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Wolves Release D.J. Carton, Trevor Keels, Tyrese Martin

October 20th, 2023 at 4:39pm CST by Rory Maher

The Timberwolves have released D.J. Carton, Trevor Keels and Tyrese Martin, the team announced in a press release.

Carton, who went undrafted in 2021, was signed to an Exhibit 10 deal that would entitle him to a bonus worth up to $75K if he spends at least 60 days with the Iowa Wolves, Minnesota’s G League affiliate. He spent last season with Iowa, averaging 15.6 PPG, 5.5 APG, 4.0 RPG and 1.2 SPG on .529/.365/.813 shooting in 25 regular season contests (31.0 MPG).

Keels also signed a training camp deal that featured an Exhibit 10 clause. The 42nd pick of last year’s draft spent 2022/23 on a two-way deal with the Knicks, appearing in three games with New York. He spent most of his rookie season in the G League with the Westchester Knicks.

The 51st overall pick in the 2022 draft, Martin was waived by Atlanta in July after appearing in just 16 games for the Hawks last season as a rookie. He scored 21 points and grabbed 12 rebounds in his 66 total minutes at the NBA level.

Martin saw more frequent playing time for the College Park Skyhawks in the G League, averaging 18.0 PPG, 9.2 RPG, and 1.9 APG on .503/.366/.805 shooting in 23 regular season contests (33.9 MPG) for Atlanta’s G League affiliate. It’s unclear what type of contract he signed with Minnesota.

The Wolves now have 17 players under contract, with 14 players on guaranteed standard deals and all three two-way spots filled.

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Wolves Sign Trevor Keels To Training Camp Deal

September 26th, 2023 at 3:07pm CST by Rory Maher

SEPTEMBER 26: Minnesota has officially signed Keels, according to RealGM’s transaction log.

SEPTEMBER 25: The Timberwolves plan to sign free agent guard Trevor Keels to a training camp contract, sources tell Jon Krawczynski of The Athletic (Twitter link).

The 42nd pick of the 2022 draft after one college season at Duke, Keels spent his rookie season on a two-way contract with the Knicks, who gave him a qualifying offer in June to make him a restricted free agent. Keels accepted his QO this summer to return to New York on a two-way deal, but his stint only lasted a week, as he was waived to make room for Dylan Windler.

Keels, 20, only appeared in three games for the Knicks in 2022/23 for a total of eight minutes. He was a starter for their G League affiliate in Westchester, however, averaging 13.9 points, 3.4 assists, 2.8 rebounds and 1.0 steal in 25 regular season games (30.2 minutes). He posted a shooting line of .425/.355/.710.

While the terms of the contract were not disclosed, Keels’ agreement with Minnesota likely features an Exhibit 10 clause, which would entitle him to a bonus worth up to $75K if he spends at least 60 days with the team’s G League affiliate, the Iowa Wolves. However, his NBAGL rights are currently held by the Knicks, so Iowa will have to make a trade with the Westchester Knicks — New York’s affiliate — to acquire his returning player rights.

Exhibit 10 contracts can also be converted into two-way deals, and the Timberwolves currently have one two-way opening, though they also have a two-way qualifying offer out to RFA Matt Ryan.

Once Keels is officially under contract, the Timberwolves will have 19 players on their roster, as our tracker shows.

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Atlantic Notes: Reed, Simmons, Thibodeau, Keels

July 26th, 2023 at 8:39pm CST by Arthur Hill

Paul Reed said that he didn’t expect the Sixers to match the offer sheet he received from the Jazz earlier this month, per Ky Carlin of Sixers Wire.

The three-year, $23MM contract was designed to be more onerous for Philadelphia than Utah because it puts the Sixers in danger of exceeding the luxury tax threshold and the final two years become guaranteed if Reed’s team advances past the first round of the playoffs. President of basketball operations Daryl Morey decided the gamble was worth it to hold onto a promising young talent like Reed.

“I didn’t know what was gonna happen to be honest,” Reed said. “I was a restricted free agent, so they had an opportunity to match. Then I seen they signed Trez (Montrezl Harrell) and (Mohamed) Bamba, my agent was like, ‘It’s probably not likely that they match,’ but when they matched, I was real surprised.”

As Reed noted, Philadelphia now has a logjam of centers behind Joel Embiid. But new head coach Nick Nurse has a expanded role in mind for Reed that will go beyond playing in the post.

“He talked about molding me into a Pascal Siakam-type player,” Reed said. “Somebody who can kind of do it all. Shoot the ball, drive, pass, but right now, it’s all about focusing on my shot mechanics. That’s the start.”

There’s more from the Atlantic Division:

  • Nets guard Ben Simmons is “as healthy as he has ever been since his last year in Philly,” a source tells Marc J. Spears of Andscape (video link from NBA Today). The source also said Simmons is in the “final stage” of preparing for the upcoming season and has been able to pass every health benchmark the team has set so far. Simmons has been dealing with back and knee problems over the past two years, along with mental health issues, and only played 42 games last season.
  • Assuming the Knicks have another successful season, owner James Dolan will likely talk with coach Tom Thibodeau, team president Leon Rose and other members of the front office about contract extensions, according to Ian Begley of SNY.tv (video link). Thibodeau is heading into the fourth season of his five-year contract, and much of the management team is on the same timeline, Begley adds.
  • The Knicks will retain the G League rights to Trevor Keels, who was waived on Wednesday, Begley tweets. Keels had a two-way contract last season and appeared in three NBA games.
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Knicks Sign Dylan Windler To Two-Way Deal, Waive Trevor Keels

July 26th, 2023 at 7:00pm CST by Rory Maher

JULY 26: The Knicks have confirmed the signing of Windler and the previously reported release of Keels (Twitter link).

JULY 24: The Knicks are signing free agent wing Dylan Windler to a two-way contract, agents Andy Shiffman and Mark Bartelstein tell Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN (Twitter link).

The 26th pick of the 2019 draft, Windler spent all four of his NBA seasons with the Cavaliers, who chose not to give him a qualifying offer last month, making him an unrestricted free agent.

As Bobby Marks of ESPN observes (via Twitter), Windler would previously have been ineligible to receive a two-way contract, but a new provision in the CBA means he’s only counted as having three years of service because he missed his entire rookie season with an injury.

According to Stefan Bondy of The New York Daily News (Twitter link), even though it was reported that Nathan Knight would receive a two-way deal (and confirmed by Bondy himself), the team’s press release didn’t specify that he actually received said two-way deal. However, NBA.com’s official transactions log has Knight on a two-way deal.

Knight’s contract situation is relevant because the Knicks would have all three two-way slots filled if the big man is indeed on a two-way deal. Jaylen Martin and Trevor Keels occupy the other two-way slots, while Duane Washington could still accept his two-way qualifying offer.

A source tells Fred Katz of The Athletic that Knight is on a one-year, two-way contract, so the Knicks will have to either convert one of their players on a two-way deal to a standard contract or release someone (Twitter links).

Windler, 26, only appeared in 84 games during his time with Cleveland, including three games for just 10 total minutes in 2022/23. He holds career averages of 3.3 PPG and 2.3 RPG in 11.7 MPG.

The former Belmont star played 11 regular season games (22.2 MPG) for the Cavs’ G League affiliate (the Cleveland Charge) last season, averaging 12.2 PPG and 5.9 RPG on .523/.407/.632 shooting.

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Knicks Reportedly Intend To Cut Trevor Keels

July 24th, 2023 at 9:13pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

To create a two-way roster slot for swingman Dylan Windler, the Knicks intend to release incumbent two-way shooting guard Trevor Keels, sources inform Fred Katz of The Athletic (Twitter link).

The 6’5″ wing was just reportedly re-signed to a second two-way deal with New York less than a week ago. He signed his first two-way contract a year ago after being selected with the No. 42 pick out of Duke in the 2022 draft.

The 19-year-old appeared in a scant three contests for New York’s NBA squad, averaging just 2.7 MPG. In 25 regular season bouts with the Westchester Knicks, the team’s G League affiliate, Keels averaged 13.9 PPG on .425/.355/.710 shooting. He also notched 3.4 APG, 2.8 RPG and 1.0 SPG.

Keels was an ACC All-Rookie Teamer during his lone collegiate season, averaging 11.5 PPG, 3.4 RPG and 2.7 APG in his 36 regular season games with the Blue Devils, including 26 starts.

Once the Knicks complete their roster shuffling, it appears their three players on two-way contracts will be Windler, Nathan Knight, and Jaylen Martin.

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Trevor Keels Returning To Knicks On Two-Way Deal

July 19th, 2023 at 8:29pm CST by Rory Maher

Guard Trevor Keels has re-signed with the Knicks on a two-way deal, per Keith Smith of Spotrac (via Twitter). According to Fred Katz of The Athletic, it’s a one-year contract (Twitter link).

The 42nd pick of the 2022 draft after one college season at Duke, Keels spent his rookie season on a two-way contract with the Knicks, who gave him a qualifying offer last month in order to make him a restricted free agent. Based on the reported terms, it seems likely that Keels simply accepted his one-year QO in order to return to New York.

Still just 19 years old (he turns 20 in late August), Keels only appeared in three games for the Knicks in 2022/23 for a total of eight minutes. He was a starter for their G League affiliate in Westchester, however, averaging 13.9 points, 3.4 assists, 2.8 rebounds and 1.0 steal with a .425/.355/.710 shooting line in 25 regular season games (30.2 minutes per contest).

Once their two-way deal with Nathan Knight is official, the Knicks will have all three two-way slots filled, as former Overtime Elite guard Jaylen Martin occupies the third. That means Duane Washington might be the odd man out — he was given a qualifying offer last month, but the Knicks won’t have any spots available.

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12 Two-Way Restricted Free Agents Remain Unsigned

July 18th, 2023 at 10:24am CST by Luke Adams

The action on the NBA’s free agent market has slowed since the start of July, but there are still many FAs seeking new deals, including a notable group of under-the-radar players whose situations will need to be resolved in the coming days, weeks, and months.

A total of 12 two-way restricted free agents are still available, as our up-to-date list shows. Those players are as follows:

That group doesn’t include a 13th player, Neemias Queta, who is also a restricted free agent after finishing last season on a two-way deal. Although he remains eligible to sign another two-way contract, Queta was ineligible for a two-way qualifying offer after having played on a two-way with the Kings for consecutive seasons — his QO is a one-year, minimum-salary contract with a small ($75K) partial guarantee.

For the rest of these players, their qualifying offer is simply another one-year, two-way deal, which limits their leverage to negotiate a more lucrative standard contract.

Some two-way RFAs have managed to earn standard deals this offseason. A.J. Green of the Bucks was one. Julian Champagnie of the Spurs was another. Ty Jerome (Warriors) and Jack White (Nuggets) received standard contract offers from the Cavaliers and Thunder, respectively, that their former teams were unwilling to match, so Golden State and Denver simply withdrew their respective qualifying offers, making Jerome and White unrestricted free agents.

Offer sheets for two-way restricted free agents essentially never happen though. And in general, unless a team has earmarked a 15-man roster spot for a two-way free agent, it’s an uphill battle for these players to earn offseason promotions.

As a result, the majority of the dozen restricted free agents listed above will likely end up accepting their qualifying offers and hoping that their play in 2023/24 forces their clubs to find 15-man roster spots for them later in the season.

Still, it’s worth keeping an eye on this group to see if any of them can do better than another two-way — and to see how long some of them might be willing to wait in the hope of earning that opportunity.

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Atlantic Notes: C. Johnson, Petrusev, Bamba, Keels

July 12th, 2023 at 10:18am CST by Luke Adams

Cameron Johnson‘s new four-year contract with the Nets is front-loaded, with a cap hit of approximately $25.7MM in 2023/24. His cap charges in the subsequent three seasons will all be lower than that, including a drop to $21.6MM in ’25/26.

Discussing his new deal on Tuesday, Johnson explained that he hopes the structure of the contract will help the Nets be more financially flexible in future years than they would have been if he had agreed to traditional annual raises.

“Yes, that’s a big part of it,” Johnson said, according to Brian Lewis of The New York Post. “I want to be surrounded by the best players possible. I want to be on the best team possible. So as to how the contract is weighted, it’s not like they’re taking or adding anything to it, it’s just a distribution of it. So I was trying to be as flexible as possible in allowing the best for the team situation.”

Here’s more from around the Atlantic:

  • Will draft-and-stash prospect Filip Petrusev sign his first NBA contract with the Sixers this offseason? Head coach Nick Nurse seemed to suggest as much during an appearance on Tyrese Maxey‘s Maxey on the Mic podcast, referring to the 2021 second-rounder as a player “who’s going to be on the roster this year” (hat tip to Eurohoops). With James Harden‘s trade request still unresolved and Philadelphia bringing back Paul Reed and Montrezl Harrell to go along with new addition Mohamed Bamba, it would be a little surprising if the team is fully committed to bringing Petrusev – another center – stateside for 2023/24, but it sounds like it might happen.
  • Speaking of Bamba, he spoke to reporters on Monday about his decision to sign with the Sixers and the role he expects to play with his new NBA team. As Keith Pompey of The Philadelphia Inquirer details, the former lottery pick will be looking to show that he can be relied upon as a regular rotation player. “The next step for me is just consistency,” Bamba said. “Barring any injuries, just being out there and, you know, doing what I do best, protecting the rim, touching the floor and being so much more of a lob threat.”
  • Restricted free agent guard Trevor Keels is looking to show the Knicks with his Summer League play that he deserves to be part of the team’s plans going forward, writes Zach Braziller of The New York Post. He’s off to a shaky start, scoring just 10 points on 4-of-13 shooting during his first two games in Las Vegas — New York has been outscored by 52 points during his 33 minutes on the floor, per Braziller.
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No QOs For Suns’ Bazley, Cavs’ Windler, Heat’s Yurtseven

June 29th, 2023 at 4:52pm CST by Luke Adams

The Suns opted not to issue a qualifying offer to forward Darius Bazley, league sources tell Michael Scotto of HoopsHype (Twitter link). As a result, Bazley will become an unrestricted free agent rather than restricted.

The decision doesn’t come as a huge surprise, since Bazley’s qualifying offer would have been worth approximately $6.2MM. While it’s not clear if Phoenix is interested in re-signing the former first-round pick, the team will hold his Bird rights and could probably re-sign him at a more team-friendly rate.

Cavaliers wing Dylan Windler also didn’t receive a qualifying offer and will become an unrestricted free agent, reports Scotto (Twitter link).

Windler was never considered likely to get a QO, which would’ve been worth just shy of $6MM. He has been limited by injuries in his first four NBA seasons and hasn’t become a rotation player in Cleveland, appearing in just 84 total games.

Heat center Omer Yurtseven is another player who was eligible for a qualifying offer but didn’t receive one, according to Tim Reynolds of The Associated Press (Twitter link).

Yurtseven’s QO is only worth a projected $2.22MM ($200K more than his minimum salary), but the Heat will be cost-conscious about how they fill out their roster, given that their team salary projects to go well beyond the luxury tax line.

The following players did receive qualifying offers and will be restricted free agents:

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Contract Details: Dunn, Merrill, Leonard, Keels

March 16th, 2023 at 11:14am CST by Luke Adams

The Jazz dipped into their mid-level exception in order to sign Kris Dunn to his new contract, Hoops Rumors has learned. If Dunn had signed for the veteran’s minimum, he would’ve made $356,646 for the rest of the season, but he instead received more than double that amount ($735,819) via Utah’s MLE.

Dunn’s two-year deal also includes a minimum salary ($2,586,665) for 2023/24, but that figure is entirely non-guaranteed. The veteran Jazz guard would get his full guarantee if he isn’t waived on or before October 23.

Here are more details on contracts recently signed around the NBA:

  • The Cavaliers‘ new contract agreement with Sam Merrill covers three seasons, Hoops Rumors has learned. Cleveland used a portion of its mid-level exception to give Merrill a third year and to pay him $850K for the rest of this season, well above the minimum. The Cavs will control Merrill at the veteran’s minimum rate in 2023/24 and ’24/25, with both of those years non-guaranteed.
  • As expected, Meyers Leonard‘s new deal with the Bucks is worth the veteran’s minimum and covers only the rest of this season, so he’ll return to unrestricted free agency again this summer. As we noted on Wednesday, Leonard’s rest-of-season contract will pay him $409,916, while the Bucks will take on a cap hit of $284,911 (though the actual cost of the signing will exceed $1MM due to tax penalties).
  • Trevor Keels‘ new two-way contract with the Knicks is just a rest-of-season deal, so he’ll be eligible for restricted free agency if he finishes the season with the club.
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