Transactions Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Spurs Sign John Holland For Camp

September 26th, 2014 at 2:58pm CST by Chuck Myron

The Spurs have signed former Boston University shooting guard John Holland, the team announced in a press release that set the training camp roster. San Antonio has plenty of flexibility to exceed the minimum salary, but it’s almost certain the team hasn’t done so here, and the deal is most likely only partially guaranteed, if that.

Holland has spent his three years as a pro playing in Europe after NBA teams passed on him in the 2011 draft, bouncing from France to Spain and back to France again for last season. He’s nonetheless been a member of three NBA summer league teams in the past two years, joining the Thunder and Heat in 2012 and the Timberwolves last summer. The 25-year-old scored 10.6 points in 27.4 minutes per game for Gravelines in France this past season, making 33.3% of his three-point attempts.

The signing gives San Antonio 19 players for camp, but 15 of them have fully guaranteed contracts. That means it’ll be an uphill battle for Holland to stick, and he’ll have to compete against Bryce Cotton, Josh Davis and JaMychal Green, all of whom have diminutive partial guarantees.

Bulls Sign Kim English, Ben Hansbrough

September 26th, 2014 at 2:44pm CST by Chuck Myron

The Bulls have signed one-year NBA veterans Kim English and Ben Hansbrough, the team announced via press release. The team is limited to giving out the minimum salary, and while it’s unclear whether there’s any guaranteed salary involved for either of them, it’d probably be nominal guarantees at best for the guards.

Hansbrough worked out for the Pistons and Lakers within the past month or so, while English was part of a large-scale Nets workout early in the offseason that seemed more geared toward summer league. The 2012/13 season is the only year that each has spent on an NBA regular season roster, with Hansbrough averaging 7.2 minutes per game for the Pacers that year while English saw the floor for 9.9 MPG in 41 appearances for the Pistons, who drafted him 44th overall in 2012. The 26-year-old Hansbrough, who went undrafted in 2011, spent this past season playing for Gran Canaria in Spain, while English, also 26, was with Italy’s Montepaschi Siena last year.

The additions give Chicago 17 players for camp. E’Twaun Moore has a partial guarantee for the 13th spot on the roster, likely leaving Hansbrough and English to compete against Nazr Mohammed and Solomon Jones to impress the team enough to keep them instead.

Bulls Sign Solomon Jones

September 26th, 2014 at 2:25pm CST by Chuck Myron

2:25pm: The signing is official, the team announced via press release.

1:40pm: The Bulls have struck a deal with eight-year NBA veteran Solomon Jones, according to his representatives at the Priority Sports agency (Twitter link). It’s a one-year deal for the minimum, as Shams Charania of RealGM confirms (on Twitter). Both the agency and Charania indicate that the 6’10” center has already put pen to paper, but the team has yet to make an official announcement. It’s not clear whether there’s any guaranteed money involved. Still, given the 13 deals with at least some guaranteed money that the team is already carrying and Chicago’s reluctance to keep more than the NBA-minimum 13 players for opening night in recent years, Jones’ salary is probably non-guaranteed.

Jones appeared in 11 games with the Magic early last season before the Magic waived him rather than guarantee his salary for the rest of the year. The 30-year-old played for the Knicks D-League affiliate after Orlando let him go, and he also traveled to play in a second-tier Chinese league during the summer. He managed only 1.3 points and 1.5 rebounds in 7.7 minutes per game for Orlando last season, and he’s never seen more than 13.9 minutes per game in any one NBA season.

The Bulls have a well-stocked frontcourt with Joakim Noah, Pau Gasol, Taj Gibson and Nikola Mirotic, and Nazr Mohammed is probably the favorite if the team retains a player on a non-guaranteed contract, so it’s tough to envision Jones lasting long in Chicago. The team has a dozen fully guaranteed pacts, while E’Twaun Moore‘s deal is partially guaranteed for $425K.

Spurs Re-Sign Aron Baynes

September 26th, 2014 at 2:13pm CST by Chuck Myron

2:13pm: The deal is official, the team announced via press release.

1:35pm: The contract will be worth $2.1MM, according to Marc Stein of ESPN.com (Twitter link), so he didn’t sign the qualifying offer. San Antonio likely used its Early Bird rights with Baynes to facilitate the deal and preserve its mid-level and biannual exceptions.

FRIDAY, 1:25pm: It’s a fully guaranteed deal for one year, tweets Shams Charania of RealGM. That leaves open the possibility that Baynes signed his qualifying offer, worth about $1.115MM, but it remains unclear whether that’s the case.

THURSDAY, 8:26am: Not long after the most prominent of the two lingering restricted free agents re-signed with his team, it appears the other one will follow suit. Aron Baynes is in San Antonio for a physical and is expected to put pen to paper on a new deal with the Spurs, reports Buck Harvey of the San Antonio Express-News (Twitter link). Both he and Eric Bledsoe had remained in restricted free agency for almost the entire offseason before Bledsoe re-signed with the Suns Wednesday. The terms of the deal for Baynes are unclear.

The Spurs appeared to maintain a consistent interest in re-signing the Entersport client even as they eyed others, and Baynes also appeared to want to continue to play in San Antonio even as he considered overseas options. San Antonio was reportedly open to a sign-and-trade with another NBA team, and China’s Shanghai Sharks jumped into the running for the 27-year-old center, but neither possibility appeared to gain much traction.

Baynes played a limited role for the Spurs after originally signing with the club midway through the 2012/13 season. He averaged 3.0 points and 2.7 rebounds in 9.3 minutes per game last season, and he only made it into 14 of San Antonio’s 23 playoff games en route to the title this spring, hitting the floor for 7.2 MPG in the postseason.

If Baynes has a fully guaranteed deal, it will presumably mean San Antonio’s regular season roster is set, since the team has been carrying 14 fully guaranteed pacts. The Spurs had been among the teams in pursuit of Ray Allen, while they’d also reportedly worked out veteran free agents Jamaal Franklin, Hakim Warrick, and a host of others, including Michael Beasley, who wound up committing to sign with the Grizzlies. A guaranteed deal for Baynes would likely forestall a deal with any other free agent deserving of guaranteed money, and it would make it more difficult for JaMychal Green, Bryce Cotton or Josh Davis to remain with the team come opening night on their partially guaranteed contracts.

Thunder Sign Michael Jenkins For Camp

September 26th, 2014 at 2:04pm CST by Chuck Myron

MONDAY, 6:39pm: The deal is official, the team announced via press release.

FRIDAY, 2:04pm: The Thunder and free agent shooting guard Michael Jenkins have struck agreement on a deal for training camp, reports Shams Charania of RealGM (on Twitter). Agent Daniel Moldovan tweeted this summer that Jenkins had a camp deal with the Nets after he’d been part of Brooklyn’s summer league squad, but his name wasn’t on the roster that Brooklyn released yesterday. Oklahoma City has the capacity to give more than the minimum salary, but it’s unlikely that Thunder did so, though perhaps there’s a small partial guarantee involved.

The 28-year-old Jenkins has spent much of his pro career overseas after going undrafted out of Winthrop in 2008, having played in Italy the past two seasons. Jenkins averaged 10.3 points and shot 39.9% from three-point range in 25.9 minutes per game for Pallacanestro Cantu last year, but his numbers were even better for Centrale del Latte Brescia the year before, when he put up 17.0 PPG in 31.4 MPG with 41.1% accuracy from behind the arc.

The Thunder have been carrying 14 fully guaranteed deals plus a non-guaranteed pact with Lance Thomas. That ostensibly gives Jenkins a decent shot to make the opening-night roster for Oklahoma City, though the Thunder have only carried 14 players to start the season the last two years.

Rockets Sign Akil Mitchell For Camp

September 26th, 2014 at 11:07am CST by Chuck Myron

FRIDAY, 11:07am: The deal is official, the team announced via press release.

WEDNESDAY, 2:02pm: The Rockets are set to sign former Virginia power forward Akil Mitchell, reports Mark Berman of Fox 26 Houston (Twitter link). The team has its biannual exception available to give him more than the minimum, but it seems most likely that it’s a minimum-salary deal for training camp that includes a nominal guarantee, at best.

The 6’8″ Mitchell spent time with Houston’s summer league team in July after going undrafted in June. He averaged 3.3 points and 4.8 rebounds in 19.5 minutes per game for the Rockets in the Orlando summer league, numbers that reflect what he did in college, where he put up 6.8 PPG and 7.0 RPG in 25.7 MPG as a senior. He had an expanded offensive role in his junior season, when he scored 13.1 PPG.

Mitchell, 22, is probably the final addition to the camp roster for Houston, which had been carrying deals with 19 players. It’ll be a tough road for him and the other camp invitees to make it to opening night, since 15 Rockets have fully guaranteed deals and Patrick Beverley, the projected starter at point guard, is on a non-guaranteed contract.

Cavs Sign A.J. Price To Camp Deal

September 26th, 2014 at 8:35am CST by Chuck Myron

FRIDAY, 8:35am: The deal is official, the team acknowledged, including Price on its training camp roster.

MONDAY, 9:52am: The Cavs have agreed to a training camp deal with A.J. Price, as Terry Pluto of the Plain Dealer writes at the bottom of his weekend column. It’s not clear if there’s any guaranteed money involved or if the contract will cover more than one season, but it’s almost certainly for the minimum salary, since that’s all the Cavs can give.

Price made the Wolves out of camp last season on a non-guaranteed deal, though the team waived him in April, long after his minimum salary had become guaranteed for the season and about a month after he underwent an appendectomy. The point guard didn’t play following the surgery, and he saw just 99 minutes all season across 28 appearances for Minnesota. Price, who turns 28 next month, was a part of the rotation in his previous stops with the Pacers and Wizards after Indiana made him the 52nd overall pick in 2009.

The Excel Sports Management client likely rounds out the Cavs preseason roster, since the team had been carrying deals with 19 other players. Price is likely competing for one of two spots up in the air for the opening night roster, since Cleveland has 12 fully guaranteed pacts, while Anderson Varejao is one of the Cavs on a partially guaranteed contract.

Cavs Sign Lou Amundson For Camp

September 26th, 2014 at 8:33am CST by Zachary Links

SEPTEMBER 26TH: The deal is official, the team acknowledged, including Amundson on its training camp roster.

SEPTEMBER 19TH: Big man Louis Amundson will be in training camp with the Cavs, agent Mark Bartelstein has confirmed to HoopsHype (via Twitter). The Mark Bartelstein client worked out for Cleveland earlier this week.

Amundson, 31, was released from his non-guaranteed deal with the Bulls in July. The veteran has bounced around quite a bit, having played for five teams in the last four seasons after a successful run in Phoenix’s rotation. He’s been exclusively on minimum-salary contracts the past two seasons and if he sticks with LeBron James & Co. it’ll be for that same figure.

The Cavs have been looking for rim protection of late, and Amundson, who has posted 2.0 blocks per 36 minutes over the course of his career, fits the bill. Cleveland already has deals with 18 players, but only 12 of them have fully guaranteed pacts. Anderson Varejao, who’s set to play a prominent role in the team’s frontcourt rotation as usual, is one of four Cavs with partially guaranteed deals.

Kings Sign David Wear For Camp

September 25th, 2014 at 11:59pm CST by Chuck Myron

SEPTEMBER 25TH: The deal is official, the team confirmed on its training camp roster.

SEPTEMBER 4TH, 10:33pm: Wear has signed his contract with the Kings, according to the RealGM transaction log. There’s still yet to be an official announcement from the team.

1:54pm: It’ll be a non-guaranteed contract that covers one season, as Jones writes in his full story.

1:17pm: The Kings are set to sign undrafted former UCLA small forward David Wear to a deal for training camp, reports Jason Jones of the Sacramento Bee (Twitter link). Presumably it’ll be a minimum-salary contract, with perhaps a small partial guarantee.

The 6’9″ 23-year-old performed a few predraft workouts for NBA teams, but there wasn’t much buzz surrounding Wear in advance of draft night. He spent summer league with the Bulls, averaging 4.8 points and 2.0 rebounds in 14.6 minutes per game across five appearances. He didn’t put up eye-popping numbers at UCLA, either, going for 6.5 PPG and 3.8 RPG in 22.9 MPG. His playing time decreased each successive year after he saw 28.4 MPG as a sophomore. Wear transferred to UCLA after spending his freshman year at North Carolina.

Wear joins 16 others who have agreements with the Kings, though only 12 of those deals are fully guaranteed, as our roster counts show. That includes Jason Terry, whom the team has agreed to trade to the Rockets for one or more non-guaranteed contracts. The Kings are also reportedly expected to waive Jeremy Tyler, whom Sacramento acquired via trade last month.

Kings Sign Trey Johnson For Camp

September 25th, 2014 at 11:59pm CST by Cray Allred

SEPTEMBER 25TH: The deal is official, the team confirmed on its training camp roster.

SEPTEMBER 11TH: It’s indeed a non-guaranteed deal for the minimum salary, according to Eric Pincus of Basketball Insiders (Twitter link). It covers just one season, as Pincus shows on the Kings salary page at Basketball Insiders.

SEPTEMBER 9TH: The team has yet to make an official announcement, but the signing has taken place, according to the RealGM transactions log.

SEPTEMBER 5TH: The Kings have reached an agreement on a one-year deal for Trey Johnson, tweets Chris Haynes of the Cleveland Plain Dealer. The contract details have yet to be reported, but it’s likely a non-guaranteed deal that only gives Johnson a roster spot for training camp. Johnson hasn’t been in the league since the 2011/12 season, and has only played in 23 total games across three NBA seasons. No other teams had reportedly shown any interest in Johnson this summer.

Once Sacramento executes an agreed-upon trade to send Jason Terry to the Rockets, the Kings will only have 11 guaranteed contracts for the 2014/15 season, giving Johnson a decent opportunity to make the team. The team must carry a minimum of 13 players for the regular season, so the guard will be competing for one of at least two open spots, unless the team adds another piece on a guaranteed deal before then.

The 6’5″ shooting guard has averaged 2.6 PPG on .333 shooting in his limited time in the league, and wasn’t featured heavily as a starter in his most recent overseas stints with Eurobasket clubs out of Israel and Venezuela. He has also spent parts of four seasons in the D-League, turning in his best season as a professional in a 2010/11 campaign in which he averaged 25.5 PPG