Magic Sign C.J. Watson
JULY 9TH, 11:18am: The deal is official, the team announced via press release.
8:20pm: The final season is partially guaranteed for $1MM, Josh Robbins of the Orlando Sentinel reports.
8:57am: The Magic and Watson have reached an agreement on a three-year, $15MM deal, Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports reports (on Twitter).
JULY 4TH, 12:09am: The Magic are nearing an agreement with unrestricted free agent C.J. Watson, Marc Stein of ESPN.com reports (Twitter link). It’s unclear as to the length and amount of the arrangement the two sides are discussing, though the guard is intent on securing a deal for the mid-level exception, as J. Michael of CSNWashington.com relayed earlier this week. Watson would provide backcourt depth behind Victor Oladipo and Elfrid Payton.
Watson, 31, appeared in 57 contests for the Pacers during the 2014/15 season, averaging 10.0 points, 2.9 rebounds, and 3.6 assists in 24.9 minutes per night, and owned a slash line of .434/.400/.826. His career numbers are 7.8 PPG, 2.0 RPG, and 2.5 APG, while shooting .425/.383/.806.
The Wizards, Clippers, and Mavericks were all reported to have interest in Watson. The point guard had expressed a desire to return to the Pacers back in April, saying, ”Hopefully I’ll be back here. I like it in Indy. I love the team and the atmosphere of the city. We’ll see what happens. It’s not really in my hands. So we’ll see.”
Hawks Acquire Tiago Splitter
11:11am: The deal is official, the Hawks and Spurs announced via press release. The rights to Georgios Printezis and a protected 2017 second-rounder go to San Antonio, according to the statements.
“We’re excited to bring Tiago to Atlanta. He’s played an important role in a winning environment, has a great understanding of our system and will add to our core character,” Hawks coach/executive Mike Budenholzer said as part of the statement. “Tiago also brings championship experience and we look forward to adding his interior presence to our team.”
JULY 9TH, 10:36am: The trade is expected to become final today, with the Hawks sending the rights to a draft-and-stash player and a heavily protected future second-round pick, according to Chris Vivlamore of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution (on Twitter).
JULY 1ST, 10:49am: The Spurs will trade Tiago Splitter to the Hawks, reports Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports (Twitter links). The move comes just after San Antonio agreed to re-sign Danny Green, so the Splitter move will presumably allow San Antonio to preserve the cap flexibility to compete for LaMarcus Aldridge and other marquee free agents, Wojnarowski adds. The deal can’t become official until July 9th, after the July Moratorium, and details of the swap are still in flux, tweets Brian Windhorst of ESPN.com, who suggests other components would allow the Hawks to retain Paul Millsap if they can keep him away from the Magic. Atlanta is expected to absorb Splitter into cap space, as Windhorst writes in a full story.
The arrival of Splitter, who was set to make $8.5MM this coming season and $8.25MM in 2016/17, has a 15% trade kicker in his deal, so he’ll see a bonus of about $2.5MM, notes Brian Windhorst of ESPN.com (Twitter link). Still, with DeMarre Carroll off to Toronto, the Hawks can afford that and still make a max bid for Paul Millsap.
The Spurs had made Splitter available, but it seemed as though there was a scenario in which San Antonio could sign Aldridge, Kawhi Leonard, Tim Duncan and Manu Ginobili while still keeping Splitter, as Marc Stein of ESPN.com wrote. That probably didn’t involve the lucrative deal that San Antonio reached with Green, however.
Heat Re-Sign Goran Dragic
JULY 9TH, 10:43am: The deal is official, the team announced.
“When we traded for Goran last season, we knew he was the type of player and person that we wanted to be part of our HEAT culture,” team president Pat Riley said in a statement. “His pace, ability and vision for the game is the perfect complement to lead our team as we look to bring another championship to Miami. We are pleased he has re-signed and will wear the HEAT uniform for years to come and make Miami his home.”
3:57pm: Riley confirmed that the Heat intends to sign Dragic in a statement the team released. A formal signing can’t take place until July 9th, the day after the July Moratorium.
JULY 1ST, 8:44am: The Heat and Goran Dragic have agreement on a five-year, $90MM deal, reports Marc Stein of ESPN.com (Twitter link). It’ll have a player option on the final season, Stein adds (on Twitter). That’s less than an estimated $108MM max, notes Grantland’s Zach Lowe (Twitter link). Reports in recent weeks indicated that Miami was offering between $80-100MM, though the expectation had previously been that the Heat would offer the max.
Miami has appeared a strong front-runner for the client of Rade Filipovich and Bill Duffy since the Heat gave up two first-round picks in a deal to acquire him at the deadline this year, as Dragic expressed his affection for the Heat and the city of Miami. He nonetheless saw the Lakers as a perfect fit, too. and the Knicks, Pelicans, Kings and Bucks were reportedly likely suitors. Dragic was apparently more likely to leave the Heat if Dwyane Wade bolted, but it appears as though the 29-year-old Slovenian made his decision before his backcourt partner did.
The Heat already had $53MM on the books for next season, so Dragic’s return and a new deal at market value for Wade would likely send the team zooming into tax territory unless it clears salary via trade. Heat president Pat Riley denied that the Heat are shopping Mario Chalmers and Chris Andersen with the idea of doing just that.
The deal is a windfall for Dragic, who made just $7.5MM this past season and less than $23MM during his first six years in the league, according to Basketball Insiders and Basketball-Reference data. Still, it will look like less of an investment from Miami’s standpoint once the salary cap skyrockets, as expected, in the next few years, as Arthur Hill of Hoops Rumors pointed out when he examined Dragic’s free agent stock.
Hornets Sign Jeremy Lin
THURSDAY, 10:39am: The deal is official, the Hornets announced.
WEDNESDAY, 8:32am: The Hornets and unrestricted free agent Jeremy Lin have reached an agreement on a contract, Lin announced via his Instagram account. Lin’s deal will be for two-years, and in excess of $4MM, Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports tweets.
The Mavericks were reportedly discussing sign-and-trade options with the Lakers, and were the presumed favorites to acquire the point guard or sign him outright. It’s unclear what led Lin to the Hornets, be it a more lucrative offer, or Dallas’ attention being focused on the ongoing free agent drama involving center DeAndre Jordan. Wojnarowski had previously relayed that Lin looked at Dallas as a means to reignite his career, especially with a chance to become the starting point guard. But he’ll now be relegated to being a backup to Kemba Walker in Charlotte.
The point guard took to Facebook to explain his decision (h/t to USA Today), writing, “Going into my first true free agency as an NBA player this off-season, the one thing that mattered to me the most was finding a team that would be a good fit for me. I wanted to be on a team where I would be able to play freely and truly play the game I love with joy again. That has always been the most important thing to me. After a LOT of prayer and long discussions with family and friends, I wanted to personally let you guys know I’ll be joining the Charlotte Hornets.
My journey has never looked the way I [or anyone else] thought it would, but God has always worked things out for my good and I am confident that he will continue to do so. I want to thank Coach [Steve] Clifford and the Hornets organization for this opportunity – for taking the time to talk to me, understanding my game, and most importantly, making it clear they believe in me. For those of you who have been patiently waiting for news, from the bottom of my heart, thank you for joining me on this journey. To the Lakers organization and the city of Los Angeles, thank you for your support this past season. I have no idea what is coming next, but I promise I will do everything in my power to contribute to this team and to improve as a player and as a person. Here’s to the next chapter!”
Lin made 74 appearances for the Lakers last season, including 30 starts, averaging 11.2 points, 2.6 rebounds, and 4.6 assists in 25.8 minutes per game, with a slash line of .424/.369/.795. His career numbers through five NBA seasons since going undrafted out of Harvard are 11.7 PPG, 2.6 RPG, and 4.8 APG, with a shooting line of .437/.349/.799.
Hawks Waive Austin Daye
The Hawks have waived Austin Daye, as Chris Vivlamore of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports (Twitter link) and as the team confirms via press release. His salary was non-guaranteed, but the move clears his $1,185,784 cap hold from Atlanta’s books as it attempts to clear cap room for its agreed-upon re-signing of Paul Millsap and trade for Tiago Splitter.
Atlanta originally signed Daye to a pair of 10-day contracts this past season before inking him to a deal that covered the rest of 2014/15 with the non-guaranteed 2015/16 season tacked on. It wasn’t surprising to see the Hawks, who have close ties to the Spurs, pick him up not long after the Spurs waived him, but the former 15th overall pick didn’t see much action in Atlanta, appearing in only eight regular season games for an average of 9.5 minutes per contest. He didn’t make it in to any of Atlanta’s playoff games.
Teams rarely claim players off waivers, but if a team is interested in Daye, it wouldn’t require too much of an investment to put a claim in on him, since his salary would remain non-guaranteed. Waiver claims require a $1K fee to the league office.
Pelicans Re-Sign Dante Cunningham
JULY 9TH, 9:34am: The signing is official, the team announced.
JULY 4TH, 2:07pm: Dante Cunningham has reached a new deal with the Pelicans, tweets Marc Stein of ESPN. It will be a three-year contract worth a total of $9MM, with the third year as a player option, according to Shams Charania of RealGM (Twitter link).
Cunningham told John Reid of The Times Picayune earlier this week that several teams were interested in his services. He came to New Orleans in December on a veteran’s minimum contract and made nearly $832K last season. The Pelicans didn’t have Bird Rights on Cunningham, so they were limited in what they could offer. Reid wrote that the team was looking at Richard Jefferson and Quincy Acy as possible replacements.
The 28-year-old Cunningham appeared in 66 games for the Pelicans last season, averaging 5.2 points and 3.9 rebounds per game. He took over as the starting small forward in January, but lost that job to Quincy Pondexter after the All-Star break.
Pelicans Re-Sign Alexis Ajinca
JULY 9TH, 9:33am: The deal is official, the team announced.
JULY 1ST, 1:00pm: The Pelicans will re-sign Alexis Ajinca to a four-year, $20.2MM deal, reports Marc Stein of ESPN.com (Twitter links). Sam Amick of USA Today has the deal worth $20.5MM (on Twitter). Ajinca took to Twitter to reveal that he and New Orleans have a deal. It’s quite a raise on the minimum salary that the Bradley Ames client had been making. The Pelicans, who are above the cap, can use Early Bird rights on the center.
New Orleans withdrew its $1,147,276 qualifying offer to Jeff Withey shortly before reports of the agreement, as Eric Pincus of Basketball Insiders notes (on Twitter), making Withey an unrestricted free agent and further pointing to the team’s commitment to Ajinca as its backup center. The Pelicans have a deal on an extension with Anthony Davis, but Omer Asik, the team’s starting center, is a free agent.
Pelicans Re-Sign Omer Asik
JULY 9TH, 9:31am: The deal is official, the team announced.
9:07am: The guaranteed portion is worth almost $45MM, and it’s incentives and non-guaranteed money that could make it worth $60MM, sources told Marc Stein of ESPN.com.
JULY 2ND, 8:59am: The agreement is finalized, tweets John Reid of The Times-Picayune, though the contract itself can’t become official for another week, when the July Moratorium ends.
11:32pm: The final year of the deal is not guaranteed, Stein adds (Twitter link).
11:18pm: Asik’s proposed deal would be for five years, $60MM, Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports tweets.
JULY 1ST, 9:56pm: The Pelicans and free agent Omer Asik are finalizing a deal that would bring the center back to New Orleans next season, Marc Stein of ESPN.com reports (Twitter links). The contract details are still being hammered out, but the two sides are expected to reach a verbal agreement by the end of the night, Stein adds.
Asik appeared in 76 contests for the Pelicans last season, averaging 7.3 points, 9.8 rebounds, and 0.7 blocks in 26.1 minutes per night. His career numbers through 354 games are 5.9 PPG, 7.7 RPG, and 0.9 BPG, with a slash line of .531/.000/.553.
Raptors Sign DeMarre Carroll
JULY 9TH, 9:26am: The deal is official, the team announced (on Twitter).
JULY 1ST, 11:07am: The Raptors will sign DeMarre Carroll, the small forward revealed on his verified Twitter account (hat tip to Kevin Arnovitz of ESPN.com). It’s a four-year, $60MM deal, reports Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports (on Twitter). The Hawks weren’t going to give much more than $50MM on a four-year arrangement, tweets Arnovitz. Carroll said the Pistons and Suns also had interest but the Raptors simply went over the top with their offer, tweets Chris Vivlamore of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
The Knicks, Lakers and Celtics all appeared to have interest in Carroll, too, as did the Hawks, but they were growing pessimistic about retaining the Mark Bartelstein client in tandem with Paul Millsap. Carroll is a three-and-D wing whose value skyrocketed after he signed a two-year, $5MM deal with Atlanta in 2013, and it wasn’t an easy decision for him to leave the Hawks, as he told Vivlamore (Twitter link).
Toronto will use much of its max-level cap space on Carroll, likely cutting the team off from a pursuit of LaMarcus Aldridge or another marquee target. The Raptors gained $6.6MM worth of cap flexibility when they traded Greivis Vasquez last week.
Blazers Sign Ed Davis
JULY 9TH, 9:22am: The deal is official, the team announced.
JULY 2ND, 1:56pm: The Blazers are finalizing a deal with Ed Davis, sources tell Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports (Twitter link). It’s for three years and $20MM, according to Shams Charania of RealGM (on Twitter). It doesn’t include any options, reports Ken Berger of CBSSports.com (Twitter link). The deal appears to be small enough so that Portland can sign him using the mid-level exception if it retains LaMarcus Aldridge and Robin Lopez, though it appears more likely the Blazers will use cap space.
Agent David Bauman took to Twitter to confirm the deal (hat tip to Eric Pincus of Basketball Insiders). The Lakers made a concerted push to retain him even as they chased star free agents, but Davis’ commitment to the Blazers was too quick for L.A. to catch up to, a source indicated to Mark Medina of the Los Angeles Daily News (Twitter link). The Knicks, Pistons and Celtics apparently showed interest, too, but Davis wound up with salaries lower than the ones Medina had earlier reported he was seeking.
Davis made 79 appearances for the Lakers this past season. He notched averages of 8.3 points, 7.6 rebounds, and 1.2 blocks in 23.3 minutes per game, with a slash line of .601/.000/.487. His career numbers through 354 contests are 7.2 PPG, 6.3 RPG, and 1.0 BPG.