Clippers To Waive Jared Cunningham
The Clippers are expected to waive Jared Cunningham, a source tells Dan Woike of the Orange County Register (Twitter link). The move would come as no surprise, as Arash Markazi of ESPNLosAngeles.com wrote last month that the team was likely to cut ties with the former first-round pick at some point in the coming weeks. Cunningham’s contract is non-guaranteed, but it would become fully guaranteed for the rest of the season if the Clippers fail to waive him by 4:00pm Central on Wednesday. The team is less than $1MM shy of its hard cap, so dropping Cunningham before his minimum salary locks in would give the club a modicum of additional flexibility. The Clips are on the hook for the prorated portion of Cunningham’s salary of more than $915K that he’s already earned, but they’d get to take his entire salary off their books if another team claimed him off waivers.
The 23-year-old shooting guard made the team out of training camp, but he’s failed to garner much playing time, accruing just 1.8 points in 4.7 minutes per game across 19 appearances. Still, Cunningham has played in nearly as many NBA games this season as he did in his first two seasons after becoming the 24th overall pick in 2012.
The team’s deal with Cunningham is its only non-guaranteed pact, as our roster counts show, so releasing him allows the club to maintain flexibility for a signing later in the season. The Clippers may also utilize 10-day contracts, as they did with three players last season, but since the team is already over the tax line and nearing that hard cap, even the slightest of investments come at a higher cost.
Nets Waive Brandon Davies
The Nets have waived recent trade acquisition Brandon Davies, the team announced via press release. Davies has a non-guaranteed salary, so the Nets won’t be on the hook for any additional money for the second-year power forward. However, the prorated salary he earned thus far this season will stick on Brooklyn’s books unless another team claims him off waivers, though any team that would do so would have to guarantee his entire minimum salary of more than $816K for the rest of the season.
Davies made it into seven games after last month’s trade that brought him to the Nets in exchange for Andrei Kirilenko. The 23-year-old averaged 2.3 points in 6.3 minutes per contest, much lower numbers than he put up during his time with the Sixers, who put him on the floor for 19.0 MPG prior to the trade this year. Davies, a Bill Duffy client, was a favorite of Philly coach Brett Brown, who expressed his frustration with the decision the team’s front office made to part with him.
The Nets are left with 14 players, only 11 of whom have full guarantees on their contracts. Cory Jefferson, Jerome Jordan and Darius Morris are the three remaining Nets without fully guaranteed pacts, but it would be surprising if the team waived any of them this week, as Tim Bontemps of the New York Post believes (Twitter link). Wednesday is the last day that teams can waive players with non-guaranteed salary without guaranteeing that salary for the year.
Cavs, Knicks, Thunder Complete Three-Way Deal
9:56pm: The Thunder, Cavs, and Knicks all announced the deal via press release.
“Dion Waiters is a player that we’ve tracked and liked since his time at Syracuse, in the NBA, and with USA Basketball. Dion provides another proven scorer that positively impacts our roster and adds depth and flexibility,” said Presti in OKC’s release. “We have a lot of respect for his toughness and competitiveness, and believe that he is a physical playmaker who will enhance the versatility of our team. We are excited to welcome Dion to Oklahoma City and the Thunder organization.”
The Thunder’s draft pick being conveyed is protected 1-18 in 2015 and 1-15 in 2016 and 2017, respectively, according to the release from the Thunder. Should the pick not convey during this period, Oklahoma City would send the Cavs its second round draft picks in 2018 and 2019.
The Knicks’ release also makes it official that Dalembert has been waived.
8:26pm: The Knicks will receive Thomas, Amundson, and Kirk in the deal but will only keep Thomas, according to Howard Beck of Bleacher Report (via Twitter). The Knicks will also waive Dalembert.
The Cavs are sending their 2019 second-round pick to the Knicks, sources tell Brian Windhorst and Marc Stein of ESPN.com. The duo hears that team officials spoke with LeBron James about his willingness to play alongside Smith before executing the deal.
Even though the deal weakens the Knicks in the short-term, Beck (link) hears that the Knicks are not giving up on the season. The Knicks plan on making more moves between now and the February trade deadline.
At present, it appears that the deal will have Waiters going to the Thunder, Shumpert and Smith going to the Cavs, and Thomas, Amundson, and Kirk going to the Knicks. In addition, the Cavs will receive a future first-round pick from the Thunder and the Knicks will get the Cavs’ 2019 second-round choice.
Waiters has been the subject of trade talks for some time and the Cavs were reportedly telling teams around the league that they’d be willing to part with him. Cleveland wanted Grizzlies big man Kosta Koufos, who would fit the bill as the “difference-making center” they were after, but they have found another deal in this proposed three-way swap. Waiters, 23, has averaged 10.5 PPG, 2.2 RPG, and 1.7 RPG – all career lows – through 33 games this season. The former No. 4 overall pick was reportedly being shopped in August as well, but the Cavs couldn’t find a suitable deal. Waiters might not be the most complete player in the NBA, but he is a scoring threat and should add lots of punch for OKC off of the bench.
The Knicks wanted to trade Smith more than anyone else, according to a December report from ESPN.com’s Chris Broussard. In fact, the Knicks have been huddling up internally for some time to figure out how they could move the polarizing guard. There hasn’t been much trade buzz surrounding Smith in recent weeks, but the Knicks were able to find a taker in tonight’s three-team blockbuster. The 29-year-old New Jersey native is averaging 10.9 PPG, 3.4 APG, and 2.4 RPG this season. The scoring output is his lowest since his sophomore season in 2005/06. His PER rating of 11.7 – a career low – tells a more complete story of his struggles this season. Thanks to his 15% trade kicker, Smith will collect on something of a belated Christmas bonus.
Shumpert, 24, has been a mainstay on Hoops Rumors and on the back pages of the New York tabloids for the last two seasons. The Knicks might not have been intent on moving Shumpert, but by including him they were able to move both his salary and Smith’s without taking much back. The combo guard is averaging 9.3 PPG, 3.4 RPG, and 3.3 APG in 26 minutes per contest this season. Shump is also headed towards restricted free agency this offseason and the Knicks, ostensibly, weren’t going to make a big play to retain him.
The Knicks didn’t add much in terms of assets, but they have greatly improved their financial situation by moving Smith’s substantial contract. The guard is making nearly $6MM this season and he holds a player option worth nearly $6.4MM for 2015/16. It’s possible that the shooting guard could turn down the option in order to seek a more lucrative multi-year deal, but that’s not a risk that Phil Jackson & Co. were willing to take. Beyond the financial benefit of moving Smith’s deal, the Knicks are also moving a player who might not be a wonderful locker room presence.
Jazz Sign Elijah Millsap To 10-Day Deal
MONDAY, 11:45am: The signing of Millsap is official, the team announced.
SUNDAY, 4:48pm: The Jazz will sign Elijah Millsap to a 10-day deal, according to Shams Charania of RealGM. Millsap is represented by Hazan Sports Management, as shown in the Hoops Rumors Agency Database.
Millsap has been averaging 20.6 PPG, 8.3 RPG, and 5.2 APG for the Bakersfield Jam of the D-League. The 27-year-old has been a familiar face in preseason and most recently had a training camp stint with the Bucks. Finally, it appears that Millsap has achieved his NBA dream. Utah had the league-maximum 15 players on its roster but the team created a space earlier today by waiving Toure’ Murry.
Hoops Rumors spoke with Millsap back in September as he was fighting to make the Bucks’ roster. Marc Stein of ESPN.com and Tony Jones of The Salt Lake Tribune first reported that Millsap was on the verge of signing with the Jazz.
Jazz Waive Toure’ Murry
11:16am: The move is official, the team announced.
9:21am: The Jazz will waive Toure’ Murry, a league source tells Chris Herring of The Wall Street Journal (Twitter link). Presumably, the move will be to clear room on the roster for Elijah Millsap, whom the team is set to sign. Murry inked a two-year, $2MM deal over the summer, but only $250K of it was guaranteed. However, he’s already earned more than that partial guarantee, so the Jazz won’t be responsible for any additional salary to Murry should they waive him by 4pm Central on Wednesday, when NBA teams must waive non-guaranteed contracts or guarantee them for the remainder of the season.
Murry, who’s seen only one minute in one game so far for Utah in the regular season, has spent about three weeks’ worth of time in the D-League. The 6’5″ guard saw somewhat more action for the Knicks last season, putting up 2.7 points in 7.3 minutes per game across 51 appearances. That experience clearly impressed the Jazz, who saw fit to give the undrafted talent out of Wichita State his partially guaranteed deal for more than the minimum, but that’s failed to translate into playing time for him in Utah. His name was in trade rumors related to Andrei Kirilenko before the Nets instead dealt Kirilenko to the Sixers.
Utah has injury troubles in the backcourt with Alec Burks gone for the season and Patrick Christopher nursing a dislocated right kneecap that has him out indefinitely. Rodney Hood missed Saturday’s game with a sore left heel. It’s somewhat surprising that the Jazz apparently plan to cut ties with another guard just as they’re set to bring aboard Millsap, a swingman, but with Trey Burke, Dante Exum, Gordon Hayward and Ian Clark available to play guard, Utah doesn’t have a particularly dire need.
Lakers Claim Tarik Black, Waive Xavier Henry
6:00pm: The Lakers made the move official, as Mike Trudell of Lakers.com tweets.
4:22pm: The Lakers have claimed Tarik Black off waivers from the Rockets, according to Marc Stein of ESPN.com (on Twitter). To make room, the Lakers are saying farewell to Xavier Henry (link).
Just minutes ago, Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo Sports reported that the Hornets were planning on putting in a claim for Black. However, thanks to their record, the Lakers had waiver priority over the Hornets and other potentially interested clubs.
Black, who was signed to a non-guaranteed deal by the Rockets prior to being waived, averaged 4.2 points and 5.1 rebounds in 25 games for Houston. The Kansas product reportedly had interest from several clubs when the Rockets decided to sever ties.
Henry, 23, saw time in nine games for the Lakers this season, averaging 2.2 PPG in 9.6 minutes per contest. For his career, Henry has averaged of 5.7 PPG and 1.9 RPG across five seasons with the Grizzlies, Pelicans (née Hornets), and the Lakers. Henry is out for the year, meaning that it’s highly unlikely that anyone will claim him and take that $1.082MM salary off of the Lakers’ books.
With Black off the books, Stein tweets that the Rockets have now dipped back below the luxury-tax line.
Josh Smith Signs With Rockets
FRIDAY, 11:23am: The deal is official, the Rockets announced.
WEDNESDAY, 5:15pm: Smith officially cleared waivers Wednesday and is looking forward to joining Howard in Houston, reports Mark Berman of Fox 26 Houston. Smith said the Rockets expressed interest in acquiring him even before he was waived. “Now we came together, and being able to be wanted by a team with so much dynamics as far as having a chance to win the title is very special and very humbling,” Smith said.
1:05pm: The updated version of Wojnarowski’s story indicates that Smith is signing a one-year deal, in line with what Feigen says, and seconds Feigen’s report that the team is in talks about a trade that would open a roster spot. Those talks could be complete as soon as later today, Wojnarowski writes.
1:01pm: The Rockets are working on a swap to create a roster spot, Feigen tweets. Feigen also indicates that Smith’s deal is for just one season, conflicting with Wojnarowski’s earlier report.
12:52pm: Smith will receive the full $2.077MM value of the biannual exception this season, reports Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle (Twitter link).
12:03pm: Josh Smith has committed to signing with the Rockets once he clears waivers at 4pm Central today, reports Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports (Twitter link). The move is no surprise, since Houston became the favorite Monday after the Pistons waived him, and the Rockets only strengthened that position Tuesday. Houston had promised a starting job, as Marc Stein of ESPN.com reported overnight (Twitter link), and close friend Dwight Howard was recruiting him. Smith will receive a two-year deal for the biannual exception with a player option for next season, Wojnarowski reports in a full story.
That exception, which gives him $2.077MM this year and a 4.5% raise on that salary for next season, assuming Houston is giving him the full amount, is an advantage the Rockets had over many other suitors limited to the minimum. The Sixers have the cap space necessary to claim Smith off waivers and forestall Houston from signing him, but they reportedly have no intention of doing so. Still, perhaps the most important edge the Rockets had was the willingness to offer a starting role, as Smith had narrowed his choices to only teams that would give him that, Stein tweets. The Heat were one of those teams, but they evidently came up empty, as did other contenders reported to have varying levels of interest in signing the 29-year-old forward, including the Mavericks, Cavaliers, Grizzlies, Lakers, Clippers and Kings. Memphis made a strong push for him late, as Wojnarowski reported earlier today (on Twitter), but the Grizzlies fell short.
The client of agents Brian Dyke and Wallace Prather saw his stock surge as his price point dropped. Detroit, at 5-23, saw fit to eat the remaining guaranteed money on the four-year, $54MM contract he signed in the summer of 2013, using the stretch provision to spread the money so that the Pistons will pay just $5.4MM each season from 2015/16 through 2019/20. That number figures to go down further thanks to set-off rights, depending on the value of the contracts that Smith signs for the seasons ahead. His deal with the Rockets will save the Pistons $630,259 this season, presuming Smith is receiving the full value of the biannual.
The Rockets have a full 15-man roster, as our roster counts show, so a corresponding move will be necessary. They have two players without fully guaranteed contracts, but one of them is starting point guard Patrick Beverley. The other is backup center Tarik Black, but he’s played a key role and started 12 games in place of an injured Howard. Black had a partial guarantee of $50K on his minimum-salary contract to begin the season, but he’s already earned more than that amount.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Rockets Waive Tarik Black, Sign Smith
11:22pm: The Rockets have formally announced the signing of Smith and the waiving of Black.
10:49am: Unable to find an acceptable deal to open a roster spot for Josh Smith, the Rockets waived center Tarik Black today, as Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports writes in a full story. Citing an unidentified league source, Wojnarowski says the Rockets have decided to part ways with the rookie center out of Kansas. He adds that the team hopes Smith can complete a physical and sign a contract in time to play tonight against the Grizzlies, but that remains uncertain at this point.
Smith, who was waived Monday by the Pistons, announced his intention to join the Rockets even before clearing waivers on Wednesday. With Houston already having 15 players on its roster, an opening had to be created. The Rockets spent the past two days trying to work out a deal involving Black, Nick Johnson, Isaiah Canaan, Joey Dorsey or Clint Capela. Of the five, Black was the only one without a fully guaranteed contract. He signed a two-year, partially guaranteed deal in August.
Wojnarowski says several teams are interested in claiming Black. He has already earned more than the partial guarantee amount on his non-guaranteed contract. The money that Black has already earned will stick on Houston’s cap figure if he clears waivers, but another team will assume that amount on its cap if it claims him.
Black averaged 4.2 points and 5.1 rebounds in 25 games with the Rockets, and started 12 games when Dwight Howard was out of the lineup with knee pain. He earned a roster spot with the Rockets after an impressive performance in the summer leagues.
Rockets Sign Kevin McHale To Extension
1:10pm: The deal is official, the team announced via press release.
10:36am: 
The Rockets and coach Kevin McHale have agreed to a three-year extension, reports Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports. McHale entered the season in the final year of his contract and under a degree of pressure after last season’s first-round exit from the playoffs. However, Houston has started the season 20-7 in spite of the absence of Dwight Howard for a dozen games and an offseason that saw the Rockets purge much of their depth. The extension will be worth nearly $13MM over the three seasons, Wojnarowski adds (Twitter link). There are no team options involved, reports Marc Stein of ESPN.com, unlike the previous arrangement between the team and McHale (Twitter link).
“He’s done a great job and I think can take us very far in the playoffs,” Rockets owner Leslie Alexander said, as Mark Berman of Fox 26 Houston tweets.
Houston picked up McHale’s option for this season shortly after its playoff ouster last spring, a hedge between an immediate change at the helm of a still-fluid roster and the long-term commitment that the team is making now. Alexander said in November that he wouldn’t judge McHale solely on the team’s performance in the playoffs, and it seems the club’s strong start to the regular season was enough.
The Hall of Fame forward/center took over the Rockets before the lockout-shortened 2011/12 season, when the franchise was stringing together mediocre seasons just outside the playoffs in the Western Conference. Houston finished outside the postseason at 34-32 in McHale’s first year, but the Rockets have been a playoff team each of the last two years following the acquisition of James Harden in the fall of 2012 and Howard in the summer of 2013. The team has improved its winning percentage in each season since McHale’s first as coach, including this season, as the team is on pace to win 61 games.
McHale has gone 153-104 in the regular season over his time with the Rockets, who lost in six games in the first round of the playoffs in 2013 and 2014. He’s 192-159 in the regular season overall, including his time on the bench for the Timberwolves. McHale began the season as the only coach in the NBA on the final year of his contract, as Stein notes (on Twitter).
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Pistons, Suns Swap Tolliver, Mitchell
The Pistons have acquired Anthony Tolliver from the Suns in exchange for Tony Mitchell, the teams announced via press release. It’s a straight one-for-one swap. The Suns are expected to waive Mitchell, reports Paul Coro of the Arizona Republic (Twitter link). Both teams had cap space going into the deal, and both remain under the cap, so there was no salary matching necessary. Detroit is just a sliver under the cap after taking on Tolliver’s $3MM salary, while the Suns open up nearly $2.184MM in additional cap room in the exchange, even though Mitchell’s guaranteed minimum salary will stick on Phoenix’s books if he indeed hits waivers.
Tolliver, a 6’8″ combo forward, helps make up for the loss of Josh Smith, whom the Pistons shockingly waived Monday. He’s a much more proficient outside shooter than Smith is, having nailed 38.5% of his three-point attempts so far this season and 35.5% for his career. He shot 41.3% on three-pointers last season, helping him earn a two-year, $6MM deal with the Suns, who needed to replace Magic signee Channing Frye. Tolliver nonetheless saw only 11.3 minutes per game for Phoenix, which clearly saw him as expendable. Only $400K of next season’s $3MM salary is guaranteed for Tolliver, so the Pistons largely preserve their cap flexibility for the summer ahead.
Mitchell, a power forward not to be confused with the former Bucks small forward by the same name, had been on his fourth D-League assignment of the season since December 12th. The 37th overall pick in the 2013 draft had yet to appear in a regular season game this season for new coach/executive Stan Van Gundy after seeing only 79 minutes spread over 21 games as a rookie last year.