Jazz Sign, Waive Kendall Pollard
OCTOBER 14: Less than 24 hours after signing him, the Jazz have waived Pollard, the team announced in a press release. Utah is now in position to make Pollard an affiliate player for the Salt Lake City Stars, the club’s G League squad.
OCTOBER 13: The Jazz have signed forward Kendall Pollard, Matt Sanchez of the team’s official site writes. The 22-year-old Dayton product went undrafted in the 2017 NBA Draft.
The signing brings Utah’s roster count up to 20 players, 15 of whom are already on guaranteed contracts. The franchise likely signed the free agent with the intention of waiving him to make him an affiliate player for their G League squad.
Joel Bolomboy, Royce O’Neale Compete For Last Jazz Slot
The final roster spot on the Jazz will come down to Joel Bolomboy and Royce O’Neale, Tony Jones of the Salt Lake Tribune tweets. Bolomboy was a second-round pick of the club’s in 2016 and O’Neale signed on with the franchise as a free agent in July.
Notably, both players have guaranteed deals, the latter having impressed the club enough to land a three-year deal with a guaranteed first year despite having played internationally since going undrafted in 2015.
Bolomboy was a mainstay on Utah’s G League affiliate last season and performed admirably at that level. He never did secure a sizable role on the Jazz amid their impressive 2016/17 campaign, however.
Jones specifies in his tweet that a decision between the two players has not been made. The transitioning club, fresh off of a busy offseason that saw them lose a pair of significant free agents, could use either Bolomboy or O’Neale as a depth piece this season.
At first glance, the club’s stable of solid, veteran swingmen appears more established than their frontcourt, a potential impediment to O’Neale.
Regardless, the team would likely bring either into the fold with their G League affiliate when they officially determine who to waive.
Jazz Waive Torian Graham
Three days after signing him, the Jazz have waived guard Torian Graham, the team announced today in a press release. He’ll become an unrestricted free agent on Saturday if and when he clears waivers.
Graham, a 6’4″ shooting guard, spent last season at Arizona State. In 33 games, he averaged 18.6 PPG with 4.2 RPG, and was the team’s biggest outside shooting threat — he made three-point shots at a 38.7% rate, pouring in 3.3 per game.
Graham’s brief stay on Utah’s NBA roster will allow the Jazz to make him an affiliate player for the Salt Lake City Stars, their G League team. Assuming Graham doesn’t sign with another NBA club, he figures to open the G League season in Salt Lake City.
Utah’s roster count is now at 19 players, including a pair on two-way contracts. The Jazz will need to make two more roster cuts before the regular season begins.
2017 Offseason In Review: Utah Jazz
Hoops Rumors is breaking down the 2017 offseason for all 30 NBA teams, revisiting the summer’s free agent signings, trades, draft picks, departures, and more. We’ll evaluate each team’s moves from the last several months and look ahead to what the 2017/18 season holds for all 30 franchises. Today, we’re focusing on the Utah Jazz.
Signings:
- Joe Ingles: Four years, $50MM.
- Thabo Sefolosha: Two years, $10.5MM. Second year non-guaranteed.
- Jonas Jerebko: Two years, $8.2MM. Second year non-guaranteed.
- Ekpe Udoh: Two years, $6.5MM. Second year non-guaranteed.
- Royce O’Neale: Three years, minimum salary. Second and third years non-guaranteed.
- Eric Griffin: Two-way contract. One year. $50K guaranteed.
- Nate Wolters: Two-way contract. One year. $50K guaranteed.
Camp invitees:
- Taylor Braun: One year, minimum salary. Exhibits nine and 10. (Waived)
- Naz Mitrou-Long: One year, minimum salary. Exhibits nine and 10.
- Torian Graham: Exact details not yet known.
Trades:
- Acquired the draft rights to Donovan Mitchell (No. 13 pick) from the Nuggets in exchange for Trey Lyles and the draft rights to Tyler Lydon (No. 24 pick).
- Acquired the draft rights to Tony Bradley (No. 28 pick) from the Lakers in exchange for the draft rights to Josh Hart (No. 30 pick) and Thomas Bryant (No. 42 pick).
- Acquired Ricky Rubio from the Timberwolves in exchange for the Thunder’s 2018 first-round pick (top-14 protected).
Draft picks:
- 1-13: Donovan Mitchell — Signed to rookie contract.
- 1-28: Tony Bradley — Signed to rookie contract.
- 2-55: Nigel Williams-Goss — Stashed overseas.
Departing players:
- Boris Diaw (waived)
- Gordon Hayward
- George Hill
- Trey Lyles
- Shelvin Mack
- Jeff Withey
Other offseason news:
- Hired David Morway and Justin Zanik as assistant general managers.
Salary cap situation:
- Used cap room; now operating over the cap, but under the tax. Carrying approximately $110MM in guaranteed salaries. Approximately $1.128MM of room exception still available. Otherwise, only minimum salary exception available.
Check out the Utah Jazz’s full roster and depth chart at RosterResource.com.
Story of the summer:
There’s no denying that Utah’s biggest priority heading into the summer was to retain the services of Gordon Hayward, a free agent after seven seasons with the Jazz. Alas, the Butler product left the only NBA franchise he ever knew to reunite with former Butler head coach Brad Stevens as a Celtic.
While the Jazz may have been devastated by the move, they weren’t blindsided, and they ended up stringing together an offseason with upsides that ease the pain of their All-Star’s exit.
Hayward was an excellent asset for the Jazz, but Rudy Gobert and the system installed by coach Quin Snyder have been equally important to the franchise’s recent success. With a host of compelling young players eager to develop and take advantage of a newfound opportunity, 2017/18 may not be so bad after all.
Jazz Sign Torian Graham
The Jazz have signed Torian Graham to a contract, the team announced today in a press release. Details of the agreement weren’t released, but it figures to be a non-guaranteed deal.
Graham, a 6’4″ guard, spent last season at Arizona State. In 33 games, Graham averaged 18.6 PPG with 4.2 RPG, and was the team’s biggest threat from three-point range — he made outside shots at a 38.7% rate, pouring in 3.3 per game.
The Jazz had been carrying the maximum 20 players up until Saturday, when the club waived camp invitee Taylor Braun. That opened up one spot, which Utah has filled by signing Graham and getting back up to 20 players.
While the Jazz didn’t say as much in their announcement of the signing, they likely view Graham as a potential affiliate player for their G League squad, the Salt Lake City Stars.
Jazz Waive Taylor Braun
Less than two weeks after signing Taylor Braun to a training camp deal, the Jazz have waived the swingman, according to the team’s website.
The North Dakota State product appeared in two games for Utah this preseason. He saw just four minutes of action, scoring a total of four points.
Utah’s roster now sits at 19 and the team has two more preseason games before it has to make further roster cuts.
Dante Exum To Miss Significant Time With Shoulder Injury
Dante Exum left the Jazz‘s preseason game against the Suns on Friday with a shoulder injury that overshadowed the team’s eventual 112-101 victory. The non-televised game did not provide visuals of Exum’s injury but Jazz head coach Quin Snyder said it was serious.
“If you saw his shoulder it didn’t look good,” Snyder told reporters, including Jazz radio host David Locke (Twitter link).
Cavaliers Notes: Green, Shumpert, Lue, Patterson
After 10 seasons in the NBA, Jeff Green couldn’t pass up an opportunity to play for a championship contender, relays Joe Gabriele of NBA.com. Green took a substantial pay cut to join the Cavaliers, dropping his salary from $15MM last season to the veterans minimum of $2.3MM. He is also relegated to a reserve role, with LeBron James cemented as the team’s starting small forward, but Green said the shot at a ring makes the sacrifices worthwhile.
“That was what I was looking for and that’s what came to my sight – that there was an opportunity here,” said Green, who is with his sixth NBA team. “So I was thankful for it and I couldn’t pass it up; the opportunity was there and I jumped on it. It wasn’t a matter of timing or when it happened. It was just when I got the call and thought about it. And I didn’t have to think long. I wrote down the pros and cons of what I wanted. And this situation fit every ‘pro’ on that list.”
There’s more news out of Cleveland:
- Coach Tyronn Lue reassured Iman Shumpert about his future with the team following an offseason filled with trade rumors, writes Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com. The Cavaliers came close to shipping Shumpert to Houston in early July, but the Rockets pulled out of the deal after signing P.J. Tucker. Cleveland continued to search for a trade, but the right partner never emerged. Shumpert was frustrated by the reports and shared that sentiment with Lue in a pre-camp meeting. He was also upset about the way his role diminished late in the season and into the playoffs. Shumpert has a player option on his $11MM salary for next season and could become an unrestricted free agent next summer.
- Shumpert needs to become more reliable on offense before the Cavs will trust him against the Warriors, according to Jason Lloyd of The Athletic. Shumpert was a non-factor as Cleveland’s season ended in Game 5 of the NBA Finals, getting off the bench for less than four minutes. He has vowed to contribute more on the offensive end of the court, but with a turnover rate of 19% in transition, Lloyd cautions that might not be best for the team.
- Andrae Patterson, formerly with Utah’s front office, will join the Cavaliers as director of basketball administration, relays Joe Vardon of Cleveland.com. The 41-year-old had a brief NBA career with the Timberwolves and played nine seasons in Europe.
Mitchell Impresses With Defensive Prowess
- First-round selection Donovan Mitchell has impressed Jazz coach Quin Snyder with his defensive tenacity, Mike Sorensen of the Deseret News writes. The No. 13 overall pick enjoys playing defense, as he told Sorensen, and his head coach has noticed. “Donovan’s defense — if you’re on the wing and trying to get open, you better be ready, because he’s going to make it hard for you to catch the ball,” he said. The shooting guard will battle Alec Burks and Rodney Hood for playing time.
Alec Burks Says He's 100 Percent
Russell Westbrook‘s decision to sign an extension with the Thunder is making it easier for Paul George to decide whether to stay put when he becomes a free agent next summer, as he told ESPN’s Royce Young and other media members (Twitter link). George is impressed by the commitment between the reigning Most Valuable Player and the franchise, as Westbrook decided this week to sign a five-year, $205MM extension. George’s overt desire to leave the Pacers after this season, specifically for the Lakers, led Indiana to trade him to Oklahoma City. It appears George is now seriously interested in re-signing. “Not only in us pairing together but just knowing what type of dude Russ is and his values and his beliefs and him being committed to this organization says a lot,” George said. “And I’m one person that’s enjoying it here, so I think when that time comes the decision will be easier to make for myself.”
In other developments around the Northwest Division:
- Anthony Morrow has apparently taken an early lead in the fight for the Blazers’ 15th roster spot, Joe Freeman of The Oregonian reports. Morrow received a one-year, non-guaranteed contract prior to training camp and is battling Archie Goodwin and Isaiah Briscoe for a spot on the opening-night roster, Freeman continues. After four days of training camp, he’s already impressed coaches and teammates with his shooting, leadership and positive attitude, Freeman adds.
- Center Mason Plumlee will be Nikola Jokic‘s backup but he’ll have a big role with the Nuggets, coach Michael Malone told Gina Mizell of The Denver Post. Plumlee was re-signed by Denver to a three-year, $41MM deal this summer after being acquired from the Blazers in February. “He brings us a physicality and presence that, really, none of the other guys really have,” Malone said. “He is a lob threat on offense and he’s a rim protector on defense. On top of that, he’s a very skilled and capable playmaker.”
- Jazz guard Alec Burks believes he’s finally fully recovered from the broken leg he suffered in December 2015, according to Mike Sorensen of The Deseret News. Burks is looking for a bounce-back season, even though coach Quin Snyder isn’t sure what role Burks will have this season, Sorensen adds. “This summer I felt like I was before I got hurt on that December day two years ago,” Burks told Sorensen. “I felt more explosive, more like myself. As you could tell, last year I wasn’t myself athletically, I wasn’t at all.”