Troy Williams

Troy Williams Among Players Signed, Waived On Saturday

We passed along a large number of moves yesterday as most teams cut their rosters down to the regular season limit. NBA.com’s Transactions Log has a few more that slipped under the radar involving players who were signed and waived to either ensure their affiliate rights or to make sure returning-rights players get bonuses:

Williams is the only one in the group with previous NBA experience. He played 21 games for the Kings last season and has appeared in a combined 72 games over the past three years. Bibbs signed a pair of 10-day contracts with the Clippers in March, but didn’t see any game action.

Kings Sign Kyle Guy To Two-Way Deal

The Kings and rookie guard Kyle Guy have finalized an agreement for Guy to fill one of the team’s two-way contracts for the 2019/20 season, according to an official release from the team (h/t to Jason Jones of The Athletic).

Guy, the 55th overall selection in the 2019 NBA Draft, has already appeared in four Summer League games with the Kings, including a 21-point performance in Sacramento’s Las Vegas Summer League debut against the Chinese National Team.

A key part of Virginia’s run to a national title last season, Guy averaged 15.4 points, 4.5 rebounds, 2.1 assists and 35.4 minutes per game in 38 games (38 starts) during his junior season for the Cavaliers. He was named All-ACC First Team and Final Four Most Outstanding Player.

Wenyen Gabriel and Troy Williams occupied the Kings’ two-way slots during the 2018/19 season, but Williams is a free agent, so Guy’s deal appears to indicate that he and Gabriel are on track to hold the team’s two two-way slots for the 2019/20 season.

Pacific Notes: Chandler, Lakers, Williams, Jones

The free agent signing of Tyson Chandler paid dividends for the Lakers on Wednesday against the Timberwolves, with Chandler grabbing eight rebounds in 23 minutes — including a clutch offensive rebound to help seal the team’s 114-110 win.

“We needed the help now,” coach Luke Walton said postgame, according to ESPN’s Dave McMenamin. “And I don’t know how that all works but give [general manager] Rob [Pelinka] and [president] Magic [Johnson] credit for recognizing that and going out and getting that job done for our squad.”

Chandler reached a buyout agreement with the Suns last week, and the Los Angeles native joined the Lakers just in time for their game Wednesday. Chandler, an 18-year veteran who won a title with Dallas in 2011, provides the team with a locker room presence and ability to play center off the bench.

“I love this city the way they love me,” Chandler said when asked about the standing ovation L.A. fans gave him. “When you’re homegrown from here, go to high school and all of that, and you have these same fans that have been watching [your career] and now you represent the jersey that everyone has been cheering for their entire lives, you kind of become one.

“I’ve been on the other side and played the villain. Now it’s great to be on this side and actually rep ’em.”

There’s more from the Pacific Division:

  • A panel of ESPN writers voiced their opinions about what’s wrong with the Lakers (article link), with Kevin Arnovitz, Chris Herring and Tim Bontemps among those from the company who participated. The Lakers own a modest 5-6 record despite having LeBron James and an array of promising pieces around him.
  • Kings forward Troy Williams is making a strong bid to land a full-time roster spot with the team, James Ham of NBC Sports contends. Williams signed a two-way contract with the team in October, holding per-game averages of 8.3 points and three rebounds in four contests. “It’s what they ask of me – just to be versatile, just to be athletic, just to defend multiple people,” Williams said. “What I focus on is how I can help this team defensively before anything else.” 
  • Suns president of basketball operations James Jones did LeBron James “a solid” by reaching a buyout with Tyson Chandler and allowing him to join the Lakers this early in the season, a league source told ESPN’s Dave McMenamin“He deserves all the credit,” LeBron told ESPN of Jones. “He was very instrumental. He did right by Tyson as a veteran.” Jones and James were teammates during a four-year run in Miami and three-year run in Cleveland, which produced a total of three NBA championships.

Troy Williams Signs Two-Way Deal With Kings

OCTOBER 20: The signing is official, according to a press release from the team (per James Ham of NBC Sports California).

OCTOBER 18: Forward Troy Williams plans to sign a two-way contract with the Kings upon clearing waivers, according to The Athletic’s Michael Scotto (Twitter link).

Williams was waived by the Pelicans this week, with the 23-year-old holding past stints on the Grizzlies, Rockets and Knicks. He first entered the league after going undrafted in 2016, having spent three collegiate seasons at Indiana from 2013-16.

A 6-foot-7 forward, Williams has averaged 6.2 points, 2.6 rebounds and 16.9 minutes per contest on his career. He scored 34 points across four preseason games with the Pelicans before being waived, and joins a young, hungry Kings team focused on the future.

Pelicans Claim Tim Frazier, Waive Troy Williams

Point guard Tim Frazier, who was released Monday by the Bucks, has been claimed off waivers by the Pelicans, tweets Shams Charania of The Athletic. New Orleans opened a roster spot by waiving forward Troy Williams (Twitter link).

Frazier was the final roster cut in Milwaukee after signing with the team shortly before training camp opened in September. This will be the second stint with the Pelicans for the 27-year-old, who played a combined 81 games for New Orleans during the 2015/16 and 2016/17 seasons.

Frazier has 186 games of NBA experience, playing for the Sixers, Trail Blazers and Wizards as well. He spent last season in Washington, where he got into 59 games and averaged 3.0 PPG.

The Pelicans were Williams’ fourth team since entering the league in 2016. He signed a two-year deal in July, but only had a small guarantee for this season, while next season was non-guaranteed. Williams will become a free agent again if he clears waivers on Friday.

By claiming Frazier, the Pelicans take on the $1.5MM non-guaranteed contract he had in Milwaukee, notes ESPN’s Bobby Marks (Twitter link). Williams will receive $34,183 for four days of service and will be credited with a year of service time even if he doesn’t play in the league this season, adds salary cap expert Jeff Siegel (Twitter link).

Pelicans Waive Jarrett Jack, Garlon Green

The Pelicans have made two moves to get themselves to the required roster limit in anticipation of the upcoming regular season, officially announcing that they have waived veteran point guard Jarrett Jack and rookie forward Garlon Green.

With the moves, New Orleans’ roster now stands at 16, including two-way player Trevon Bluiett. As Will Guillory of The Athletic notes, these cuts likely mean that both Kenrich Williams and Troy Williams will make the final roster, although it’s possible one of those player’s contracts will get converted to the team’s other two-way deal alongside Bluiett.

Jack, who we indicated yesterday would probably make the team after the front office decided to part ways with Darius Morris, will likely draw some interest from other teams around the league looking for veteran leadership. He has averaged 10.8 points and 4.6 assists per game in his 13 NBA seasons.

Green, meanwhile, who signed with the Pelicans back in July after playing on the club’s summer league team in Las Vegas, averaged 4.0 points and 1.5 rebounds in four preseason games. The team will incur a $50K cap hit for him, which amounts to the amount of money guaranteed to Green in his contract.

Pelicans Notes: Okafor, Roster Decisions, Payton

The Pelicans only have 12 players on fully guaranteed contracts, leaving three potential openings on their 15-man regular season roster. However, it sounds like one of those three spots has already been claimed. According to Scott Kushner of The Advocate (Twitter link), Jahlil Okafor is a virtual lock to end up on the 15-man squad.

Okafor, who joined the Pelicans this summer after stints in Philadelphia and Brooklyn, injured his ankle last week, but head coach Alvin Gentry suggested that the ailment wouldn’t prevent him from making New Orleans’ roster. Kushner cautions that it’s not quite a done deal yet, but Okafor’s spot appears safe for now.

Here’s more from out of New Orleans:

Western Rumors: Rozier, Williams, Durant, Rockets

The Celtics’ Terry Rozier and the Nets’ Spencer Dinwiddie are two of the logical trade targets for the Suns in their search for a point guard, according to Frank Urbina of HoopsHype. Rozier is a solid two-way player coming off a career year but the Suns would likely have to offer a package that included an unprotected first-rounder to catch Boston’s attention. A trade for Dinwiddie would be more plausible and he’d be a good fit with Phoenix considering his size, perimeter shooting and pick-and-roll prowess, Urbina continues. The Clippers’ Patrick Beverley, the Cavaliers’ George Hill and the Hornets’ Kemba Walker are some of the other names Urbina throws out as potential targets. The Suns are searching for a starting point guard after trading away Brandon Knight to the Rockets last week.

We have more from the Western Conference:

  • The Pelicans signed Troy Williams, Kenrich Williams and Garlon Green to partially-guaranteed contracts in the hope of finding one reliable small forward, Scott Kushner of the New Orleans Advocate notes. That trio will compete for a roster spot, though the potential addition of swingman Tyrone Wallacesigned to an offer sheet on Monday — could change that. “They just told me they’re bringing some guys in and having them go head-on to see who wins a spot,” Kenrich Williams told Kushner.
  • By buying out Luol Deng‘s contract and using the stretch provision, the Lakers gave themselves a chance to offer Kevin Durant a max salary in free agency, as Eric Pincus of Basketball Insiders examines. The Lakers now project to have $38.2MM in cap space, which would be just enough to afford Durant, Pincus continues. If they can’t land Durant, they’ll certainly have enough to bring in another All-Star level talent. Other high-level potential free agents, including Kawhi Leonard, Klay ThompsonDeMarcus Cousins, Jimmy Butler, Walker and Kyrie Irving, could command a first-year salary of $33MM, leaving the Lakers with another $5MM to spend in other ways, Pincus adds.
  • The Rockets took a frugal approach this summer and it could cost them a title, Tim Bontemps of the Washington Post opines. They traded away Ryan Anderson and allowed two key wing players to walk in free agency. In turn, they signed three players on veteran’s minimum deals and adding a couple of bench players in the Anderson trade, Bontemps notes. So while Houston execs had said they were unconcerned about the luxury tax, their actions showed they wanted to save some money, Bontemps adds.

Pelicans Still In Need Of A Wing Player?

A bigger issue with the Pelicans this upcoming season may be the absence of a reliable player on the wing rather than the loss of Rajon Rondo or DeMarcus Cousins, as newcomers Julius Randle and Elfrid Payton are capable of replicating their production, at least in part, writes Scott Kushner of The Advocate.

Kushner opines that nobody on the Pelicans’ roster is capable of being a solid “3-and-D” player, as Solomon Hill has struggled to recover from a torn hamstring and E’Twaun Moore, limited by his 6’4” frame, has been asked to play against players much taller than him and seemingly taken out of his comfort zone as a result.

“If it was up to me — it doesn’t really matter as long as I stay on the floor and help my team win — but I would like to say that maybe I hopefully could be playing a little bit more guard (this season),” Moore said. “Last year, I was more of a wing, but it worked out well for the team because we played so fast. But it would be kind of cool to be going back to being a guard again.”

So, the Pelicans will now hold a three-man competition between Troy Williams, Garlon Green, and Kenrich Williams in order to find someone who may be able to crack the team’s wing rotation this season.

The Pelicans could also be active around midseason, as they were when they acquired Cousins in 2017 and Nikola Mirotic last season. But for now, they’ll rely on MVP-candidate Anthony Davis, Jrue Holiday, Randle and Mirotic, which should be enough to keep them in the Western Conference playoff race.

Pelicans Sign Troy Williams

JULY 27: The Pelicans have officially signed Williams, the team announced today in a press release.

JULY 25: Troy Williams has reached an agreement to sign with the Pelicans, tweets Shams Charania of Yahoo Sports.

Williams will get a two-year deal with a team option for the second season, according to Will Guillory of The Times-Picayune (Twitter link). He will have a small guarantee but no promise of a roster spot, adds Scott Kushner of The Advocate (Twitter link). It will be a minimum-salary contract, as New Orleans has used all its cap room and available exceptions.

New Orleans will be the fourth franchise for the third-year forward, who divided last season between the Rockets and Knicks. He showed promise in 17 games for New York, averaging 7.5 PPG and 3.5 RPG in 17 minutes per night, but the Knicks opted not to re-sign him.

Williams went undrafted out of Indiana in 2016 before signing with the Grizzlies. He was a part-time starter in Memphis, but was waived after 24 games. He spent brief parts of two seasons with the Rockets before landing in New York.

The addition of Williams, along with this week’s signings of Kenrich Williams and Garlon Green, brings New Orleans’ roster to 18 players, with 12 guaranteed NBA contracts.