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Nick Calathes Signs With Panathinaikos

July 15th, 2015 at 4:51pm CST by Eddie Scarito

Grizzlies restricted free agent Nick Calathes has signed with Greece’s Panathinaikos, the team announced (Twitter link; translation via Sportando’s Orazio Cauchi on Twitter). Sportando’s Enea Trapani reported the sides had a deal earlier this week, though Calathes denied it. David Pick of Eurobasket.com reported that he’d commit to the Greek club today if he couldn’t find an NBA deal to his liking. Memphis couldn’t match the offer from Panathinaikos since that right only applies to bids from other NBA teams. The exact terms of the agreement were not released, but Trapani’s initial report pegged Calathes’ deal as being for three years and $7MM.

Memphis had extended Calathes a qualifying offer worth $1,147,276, making him a restricted free agent this offseason. The point guard made 58 appearances for the Grizzlies during the 2014/14 campaign, averaging 4.2 points, 1.8 rebounds, and 2.5 assists in 14.4 minutes per contest. His slash line was .421/.256/.533.

Calathes had been drawing some NBA interest, but he was reportedly hesitant to continue his career as a backup, as Pick noted. The Mavericks had reportedly contacted him, though that was more than two weeks ago, and the addition of Deron Williams likely eliminated any opportunity for Calathes in Dallas.

Chuck Myron contributed to this post.

Raptors Ink Norman Powell

July 15th, 2015 at 4:02pm CST by Eddie Scarito

The Raptors have officially signed second round pick Norman Powell, the team announced via a press release. The length and terms of the deal were not disclosed. Powell was the No. 46 overall selection in the 2015 NBA Draft.

The 22-year-old appeared in 36 contests for UCLA this past season, averaging 16.4 points, 4.7 rebounds, and 2.1 assists with a slash line of .456/.319/.751. His career numbers with the Bruins were 9.8 PPG, 3.0 RPG, and 1.5 APG. Powell is ranked No. 28 on UCLA’s all-time scoring list with 1,376 career points.

Powell has appeared in three Summer League games in Las Vegas where he leads the Raptors in scoring with 19.3 points per contest, and he’s shooting 59.5% from the field. The guard has led the team in scoring in each game, including a team-high 20 points during his professional debut against Sacramento’s squad. Hoops Rumors’ Zach Links chatted with Powell prior to this year’s draft.

Spurs Re-Sign Matt Bonner

July 15th, 2015 at 3:41pm CST by Eddie Scarito

The Spurs have re-signed veteran forward Matt Bonner, the team announced in a press release. The deal is for one year at the veteran’s minimum, Jeff McDonald of The San Antonio Express News reports. The longtime Spur was reportedly thinking about retirement this spring, though he said last year that he wished to play for several more seasons.

The 35-year-old appeared in 72 games for San Antonio this past season, averaging 3.7 points, 1.6 rebounds, and 0.7 assists with a slash line of .409/.365/.811. His career numbers through 11 NBA campaigns are 6.0 PPG, 3.1 RPG, and 0.7 APG.

Bonner had also reportedly drawn interest from the Kings, who have been seeking a stretch four in the free agent marketplace.

Sixers Sign Pierre Jackson

July 15th, 2015 at 12:37pm CST by Eddie Scarito

WEDNESDAY, 12:37pm: The signing is official, the team announced via press release.

9:42 pm: The deal is for four years, and is partially guaranteed, Chris Haynes of The Northeast Ohio Media Group tweets.

TUESDAY, 9:20pm: The Sixers and unrestricted free agent Pierre Jackson have reached an agreement on a contract, Jake Fischer of LibertyBallers reports (Twitter link). The length and details of the pact have not been released yet. The point guard, who is coming off a ruptured right Achilles’ tendon, was cleared to resume basketball activities back in April.

Jackson had been waived by Philly last September, but had indicated that he wanted to return and play for the Sixers this coming season. “There’s a little bit of loyalty here. I want to play in Philadelphia, man,” Jackson said. The 23-year-old was part of the Nerlens Noel trade between Philadelphia and the Pelicans after the Sixers selected him in the second round in 2013. New Orleans traded Jackson back to the Sixers last year in exchange for Russ Smith‘s draft rights.

The young point guard will figure into the backcourt mix for a still rebuilding Sixers team. Jackson toiled away in the NBA D-League during the 2013/14 campaign, appearing in 31 contests for the Idaho Stampede, Utah’s affiliate. Jackson averaged 29.1 points, 3.6 rebounds, and 6.2 assists, with a slash line of .449/.349/.737.

Celtics Waive Phil Pressey

July 15th, 2015 at 12:22pm CST by Chuck Myron

12:22pm: The move is official, the team announced.

11:39am: Ainge confirmed that he’s about to put Pressey on waivers, tweets Mark Murphy of the Boston Herald, though the executive doesn’t sound excited about it. “It’s really tough for us to waive Phil,” Ainge said.

11:00am: The Celtics have chosen to waive Phil Pressey rather than guarantee the minimum salary for the two-year veteran, reports Gary Washburn of the Boston Globe (Twitter link). Today is the last day the team can release Pressey before his $947,276 salary, currently non-guaranteed, locks in. Pressey was also reportedly a candidate to go to the Warriors in the David Lee trade, which has still yet to become official, so it would appear more likely that Boston will include Chris Babb in that swap.

Pressey saw 11 starts as a rookie, averaging 15.1 minutes per game that season, but he saw less playing time this year even though he was a more efficient scorer. President of basketball operations Danny Ainge liked his perimeter defense, but the point guard position is crowded in Boston, with Marcus Smart, Isaiah Thomas, Evan Turner and this year’s No. 16 overall pick, Terry Rozier, among the team’s options.

Boston’s acquisition of Perry Jones III from the Thunder on Tuesday spelled further trouble for Pressey, since it added another already-guaranteed deal to the roster. The Celtics seemingly remain a work in progress, and while teams don’t have to cut down to 15 players until the end of training camp, it appears that Boston doesn’t want to commit to Pressey at this point. He’d be eligible to re-sign with the Celtics if he clears waivers.

Clippers Sign Branden Dawson

July 15th, 2015 at 11:31am CST by Chuck Myron

WEDNESDAY, 11:31am: Dawson has officially signed with the Clippers, the team announced.

TUESDAY, 2:22pm: The Clippers are expected to sign Branden Dawson, this year’s No. 56 overall pick, within the week, reports Ben Bolch of the Los Angeles Times (Twitter link). The former Michigan State forward’s strong showing in the summer league is fueling the Clippers’ desire for a deal, Bolch indicates. It would likely be a minimum-salary deal covering no more than two seasons for Dawson, since that’s all the Clippers are limited to after re-signing DeAndre Jordan and spending their taxpayer’s mid-level exception on Paul Pierce.

New Orleans originally drafted Dawson, quickly trading him to the Clippers in return for cash. Early returns on the $630K investment are positive for the Clips, as the 22-year-old averaged 12.8 points and 10.3 rebounds across 25.6 minutes per game in his first four summer league appearances.

Defense is Dawson’s calling card, but he’s been working on a jump shot, as he told Zach Links of Hoops Rumors before the draft. The 22-year-old mentioned the Clippers and the Pelicans among the teams that liked him.

Raptors Sign Luis Scola

July 15th, 2015 at 9:32am CST by Eddie Scarito

Courtesy of USA Today Sports Images

JULY 15TH, 9:32am: The deal is official, the team announced via press release.

“Luis is an accomplished NBA and international player. We are thrilled to add his experience and leadership to our team and our locker room,” Raptors GM Masai Ujiri said in the team’s statement. “Luis is a winner wherever he goes.”

11:59pm: The agreement is for one year and approximately $3MM, Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports reports (on Twitter).

JULY 8TH, 11:29pm: The Raptors and unrestricted free agent Luis Scola have agreed to a deal, Scola announced via his Twitter account (h/t Ryan Wolstat of The Toronto Sun). The length and terms of the deal have not yet been announced.

Scola spent the 2014/15 campaign with the Pacers, appearing in 81 games, including 16 as a starter, where he averaged 9.4 points, 6.5 rebounds, and 1.3 assists in 20.5 minutes per contest. His slash line was .467/.250/.699. Through eight NBA seasons, the 35-year-old has notched averages of 12.7 PPG, 7.0 RPG, and 1.7 APG, with a shooting line of .497/.167/.742.

It was reported back in May that there was mutual interest in the forward returning to Indiana, but with the Pacers revamping their roster and aiming for a faster-paced offense, the Argentinian likely fell out of the organization’s plans. Instead he’ll head North to the Raptors where he’ll likely compete for minutes at the four spot with Patrick Patterson.

Mavs Sign Deron Williams

July 14th, 2015 at 6:57pm CST by Chuck Myron

Courtesy of USA Today Sports Images

The Mavericks have signed unrestricted free agent Deron Williams, the team announced in a press release. Williams became a free agent Monday when he cleared waivers from the Nets as part of a much-publicized buyout deal. Marc Stein of ESPN.com reported Friday that Williams, a Dallas-area native, was expected to sign a two-year contract worth about $10MM, though Stein later said the deal would be worth between $10MM and $12MM (Twitter link).

The deal with the Mavs will set off a portion of the money that Brooklyn still owes the Jeff Schwartz client. Set-off rights absolve Brooklyn from paying half the difference between what Williams will make each year with Dallas and the one-year veteran’s minimum salary each of those years. The terms of Williams’ buyout, in which he forfeited all but about $27.5MM of the nearly $43.374MM left on his contract, call for the Nets to pay him about $5.5MM a year for the next five seasons. The contract only covered this season and next, but Brooklyn used the stretch provision to spread out its remaining commitment to him.

Nets coach Lionel Hollins denies that Williams’ failure to see eye-to-eye with him, which reportedly led to an altercation in which the point guard had to be restrained from going after his coach, was the reason Brooklyn saw fit to move on. Williams doesn’t figure to find a more sympathetic coach in Dallas, where Rick Carlisle clashed with Rajon Rondo this past season. The deal with Williams helps offset the void at point guard that Rondo left when he and the team essentially parted ways during the playoffs during the playoffs, and it also helps salve some of the wounds from DeAndre Jordan‘s reversal of his decision to sign with the Mavs.

Yet Williams is no longer the top-flight point guard he was when the Mavs courted him in free agency during the summer of 2012, when he spurned Dallas to instead re-sign with the Nets. The now 31-year-old Williams scored fewer points per game and saw fewer minutes per game this past season than any year since he was a rookie. Still, he was more efficient in his time on the floor than fellow former Nets All-Star Devin Harris, who’d otherwise be in line for the starting job in Dallas, and Williams comes without the cost of assets that trading for Ty Lawson or Brandon Jennings probably would.

Hornets Sign Aaron Harrison To Two-Year Deal

July 14th, 2015 at 5:45pm CST by Arthur Hill

JULY 14TH, 5:45pm: The signing is official, the Hornets announced.

JULY 11TH, 9:48pm: The Hornets have signed former Kentucky guard Aaron Harrison to a two-year contract, tweets Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo Sports. The contract includes a partial guarantee for this season and a team option for 2016/17 (Twitter link).

Harrison was passed over in the draft, but has made a strong impression on Charlotte coach Steve Clifford, Wojnarowski reports. He has put up impressive numbers while playing for the Hornets’ summer league team in Orlando.

Harrison spent two years at Kentucky and made two trips to the Final Four. He was named preseason SEC Player of the Year prior to his sophomore season.

Spurs Sign Danny Green

July 14th, 2015 at 5:33pm CST by Chuck Myron

Courtesy of USA Today Sports Images

JULY 14TH, 5:33pm: The deal is official, the Spurs announced in a press release.

JULY 1ST, 10:33am: The Spurs and Danny Green have agreed to a four-year, $45MM deal in a surprising development, reports Chris Broussard of ESPN.com (Twitter link). Sources who spoke with Ken Berger of CBSSports.com had referred to the swingman as a “goner,” but he’s instead apparently staying, rebuffing interest from several other teams. Green confirmed to Jeff McDonald of the San Antonio Express-News that he is indeed re-signing after the July Moratorium (Twitter link).

The news is likely a disappointment for the Pistons, Mavericks, Blazers, Knicks and especially the Kings, who’d reportedly made Green their top target. The Bill Duffy client had said it would be “crazy” not to meet with New York, but apparently the Spurs, his preferred team, made him an offer to enticing to turn down.

The move allows San Antonio to retain its starting shooting guard, though the Spurs have reportedly agreed to trade starting center Tiago Splitter to the Hawks to clear room for a push toward signing LaMarcus Aldridge or another marquee free agent.