Jazz Sign Quinn, Gilder, Jackson
10:16pm: The contract of second-round pick Kevin Murphy isn't guaranteed, Smith writes, so that means the Jazz only have 14 fully guaranteed contracts, including Raja Bell's. That provides a little extra room for one of the camp invitees to make the team.
8:54pm: The Jazz will bring point guard Chris Quinn to training camp, reports Brian T. Smith of The Salt Lake Tribune (Twitter link). The addition of Quinn, likely on a non-guaranteed, minimum-salary deal, brings the team's roster to 19 players. Quinn will likely compete for the final regular season roster spot with Trey Gilder, Darnell Jackson and Brian Butch, whose signings were officially announced via press release, as Alex Kennedy of HoopsWorld notes via Twitter. Gilder and Jackson appeared close to invites earlier this month, while the signing of Butch was reportedly confirmed a few days ago.
Quinn has spent parts of five seasons in the NBA, with the Heat, Nets and finally the Spurs, with whom he made his last NBA appearance in 2010/11. The 6'2" 29-year-old averaged 4.6 points and 1.9 assists in 13.8 minutes per game with a 12.5 PER over his NBA career. He spent last season with Khimki BC in Russia, and put up 7.3 PPG and 2.9 APG in 19.4 MPG.
The Jazz have 15 fully guaranteed contracts, though one of them belongs to Raja Bell, who is attempting to negotiate a buyout. If he's successful, that would leave a spot open for Quinn, Gilder, Jackson or Butch, Teams aren't obligated to carry more than 13 players, though, so all of the recent signees must impress in order to stick around.
Extension Candidate: Paul Millsap
A few days ago when I looked at the extension candidacy of Al Jefferson, I surmised that if the Jazz want to re-up one of their pair of veteran big men eligible for an extension, Paul Millsap might be the better choice. In August, Brian T. Smith of The Salt Lake Tribune wrote that the Jazz offered Millsap about $25MM over three years, all they're capable of paying him in an extension under the rules of the CBA, but Millsap has let the offer sit. He'll be an unrestricted free agent next summer, and Smith estimated that he could be in line for a contract worth at least $9MM a year, more than he could get in an extension. Yet it would be hard for Millsap to get the most out of free agency if he spends the year coming off the bench, and Smith wrote yesterday that he'll engage in an "old-school, winner-take-all position battle" in camp against Derrick Favors for the starting power forward job. Losing that competition might be enough to prompt Jefferson to reconsider the Jazz's offer.
Millsap's cap hit will be $8.6MM this season, though he'll actually only clear about $7.2MM, since the other $1.4MM came as part of a signing bonus in 2009. Either way, that's about half of Jefferson's $15MM salary this year. For a much cheaper price, Millsap comes off a season in which he delivered production that was remarkably similar to Jefferson's. Millsap shot 49.5% while Jefferson shot 49.2%. Millsap grabbed 8.8 rebounds per game, and Jefferson notched 9.6 RPG. Millsap's 21.8 PER is just a tick down from Jefferson's 22.8. Millsap scored fewer points per game (16.6 to Jefferson's 19.2), but saw fewer shot opportunities, attempting 13.5 field goals per game while Jefferson took 17.2. They're separated in age by little more than a month, but still, Millsap seems likely to continue to make less than Jefferson does when they sign their next contracts. That's in part because of what they've both made in the past and in part because the 6'10" Jefferson is two inches taller and capable of manning the center position, where there's a league-wide dearth of talent.
The Jazz only have about $25MM tied up for 2013/14, including team options, so they don't necessarily have to choose between Millsap and Jefferson. Still, cap space would become tighter if the team elects to re-sign its younger bigs, Favors and Enes Kanter, when they finish their rookie contracts in 2014 and 2015, respectively. It doesn't make much sense to pay four guys major money when only two of them can start without playing out of position, so one, if not two, of them will have to move on eventually. Millsap was reportedly part of trade talks involving Ryan Anderson this summer, and while the Jazz were apparently reluctant to make a deal, it certainly seems there's no guarantee Millsap will finish the season in Utah if he doesn't sign an extension.
Between trade rumors and the specter of a contract-year benching, there's plenty of motivation for Millsap to take the Jazz's offer, especially if he's truly interested in remaining in Utah. The priority for the 27-year-old Millsap, who made close to the minimum salary his first three seasons in the league and has spent his last three as a relative bargain, might be to seek the most guaranteed money he can get as he approaches unrestricted free agency for the first time. For that reason, I still think he's unlikely to accept the offer from the Jazz, though I wouldn't be completely shocked if he did. Unlike players coming off of rookie-scale contracts, Millsap is eligible to sign an extension right up until June 30th of next year, so if he loses the starting job to Favors in training camp or at a later point this season, that $25MM offer might start to look more attractive to him, providing it's still on the table.
Northwest Rumors: Hickson, Morrison, Jazz
It's been a busy day for current and former members of the Timberwolves. The team officially announced the signing of Louis Amundson, having reportedly passed on Sean Williams and Yi Jianlian. Anthony Tolliver was also in the running to return until yesterday, and today he agreed to sign with the Hawks. Mark Deeks of ShamSports revealed the Wolves can get out of the last year of their contract with Brandon Roy if he reinjures his knees this season, and after an offseason of changes, Kevin Love says he's satisfied with the team's moves. There's news on Minnesota's Northwest Division rivals as well, and we'll round it up here:
- J.J. Hickson will start training camp with the inside track to be the starter at center for the Blazers, said coach Terry Stotts, who also gave a nod to the strides rookie Meyers Leonard made over the summer, as The Oregonian's Joe Freeman writes.
- In the same piece, Freeman reports that the Blazers will give strong consideration to keeping Adam Morrison for the entire season. The third overall pick in the 2006 draft signed a non-guaranteed contract with the team last week.
- The Jazz have added 27-year-old former University of Utah guard Johnnie Bryant to their staff as a player development assistant, reports Jody Genessy of the Deseret News (Twitter link).
Odds & Ends: Blake, Seattle, Fegan, Millsap, Uzoh
According to the team's official website, Lakers guard Steve Blake suffered a puncture wound after stepping on a spike strip in a parking lot. The statement says Blake will be restricted from team activities for at least three weeks. Despite not being one of the bigger names on Los Angeles' roster, Blake's role as the team's veteran backup point guard is quite important, especially considering incoming starter Steve Nash's inability to log major minutes.
Here are a few more Monday odds and ends from around the NBA:
- Later today, Seattle City Council is expected to formally approve Chris Hansen's plan to build a $490MM arena in downtown Seattle, according to an Associated Press report (via the Seattle Times). Hansen and city council reached an agreement two weeks ago on financing for the arena proposal, meaning today's vote is expected to be merely a formality. Hansen's plan will still require an okay from the King County Council, but the city's approval would allow him to start looking for a franchise to bring to Seattle.
- One NBA GM tells Sam Amico of FOX Sports Ohio that he expects veteran free agents like Derek Fisher and Michael Redd to sign deals late in training camp or even after the season begins.
- It appears agent Dan Fegan will join Happy Walters at a newly-created agency called Relativity Sports, according to Darren Heitner of Sports Agent Blog. Fegan, who represents Dwight Howard, Nene, and John Wall, among others, recently left Lagardère Unlimited.
- Paul Millsap hasn't really begun thinking about free agency yet, stressing that he's "still with the Utah Jazz" and he'll consider his options when the time comes, as Brian T. Smith of the Salt Lake Tribune writes.
- Jonathan Tjarks of RealGM.com views Joe Johnson's and Manu Ginobili's career paths as two examples for James Harden to consider as the fourth-year guard weighs his contract options.
- Ben Uzoh has parted ways with French team Cholet, making him a free agent again, according to Emiliano Carchia of Sportando. Uzoh has appeared in 60 total games for the Nets, Cavs, and Raptors over the past two seasons.
- Many of the storylines that SI.com's Sam Amick will be watching this season involve players on new teams, including Raymond Felton in New York, Andre Iguodala in Denver, and Andrew Bynum in Philadelphia.
Brian Butch Signs With Jazz
9:46pm: Brian Smith from the Salt Lake Tribune confirms the deal, tweeting that a person close to Butch described it as a "make-good deal." According to Smith, the Jazz's roster is now at 15 and Butch will be competing with Darnell Jackson and Trey Gilder for a roster spot. Smith averaged 15.3 points and 9.8 rebounds for the D-League's Bakersfield Jam last season.
7:59pm: Brian Butch has signed with the Jazz, tweets Gery Woelfel of the Racine Journal Times. After going undrafted in 2008 out of Wisconsin, Butch has bounced around the D-League and Europe. This is undoubtedly a non-guaranteed deal that gives Butch nothing more than an opportunity to make the team in training camp. We last heard from Butch less than a month ago when the Spurs brought him in for a workout.
Western Notes: Nowitzki, Mavs, Hayward, Jazz
The Lakers have gotten the majority of the headlines in the Western Conference this summer, but there's been plenty going on elsewhere, especially this weekend. Raja Bell and the Jazz remain in a staredown over his buyout, while former Clippers big man Kenyon Martin, one of the key remaining free agents, continues to hold out for more than the minimum. Here's more from the Western Conference:
- Dirk Nowitzki says his knee feel fine, and despite the Mavs' failure to attract Deron Williams, he's upbeat about the team's roster this year, according to Eddie Sefko of the Dallas Morning News. "I think we have a good team again," he said. "I like all the new additions. I think we got younger on the perimeter, more atheltic and that was always our goal."
- Nowitzki singled out three of his new Mavs teammates for praise, saying, "[Chris] Kaman should be the best center offensively that I’ve ever played with in Dallas. [O.J.] Mayo is a big-time shot-maker that can also attack the basket and run some screen-and-rolls. [Darren] Collison is a fast guy who is going to push the pace. He’s great at penetrating and has a floater and creates shots."
- Gordon Hayward says he was glad to see the Jazz bring back Jeremy Evans on a three-year, $5.25MM deal this summer, and embraces the challenge he faces for a starting spot at either wing position, as he tells Brian T. Smith of The Salt Lake Tribune. "You want to start for the team and you want to make sure you're the one out there on the court getting as many minutes as you can," Hayward said. "So, especially in training camp, there's going to be some competition going on. That'll just further benefit all of our games and make us better as a team."
Latest On Raja Bell
A buyout continues to be the most likely next step for the Jazz and Raja Bell, but the situation remains "uncertain and unpredicatable," Brian T. Smith of The Salt Lake Tribune reports (Twitter links). Bell could wind up in a trade, or might just spend the season on the roster without playing, Smith also tweets, as Lamar Odom and Jamaal Tinsley have done in the past.
The Jazz have considered trading Bell for a long time, according to Smith (Twitter link), and we heard recently that Bell's issues with the team date back two years. With training camp approaching, the time to get a deal done is dwindling, and while Smith says it's "almost unthinkable" Bell would suit up for the team this year, it has become a remote possibility (Twitter links). GM Dennis Lindsey, hired in August and a late comer to negotiations with Bell, declined comment to Smith on the matter (Twitter link).
Smith reported last week that buyout talks had stalled. Bell is set to make $3.48MM this season in the final year of a three-year, $9.72MM deal he signed with the team in 2010. The 36-year-old shooting guard has identified the Heat as his top choice if and when he can shake free from Utah. Six teams were reportedly interested in Bell back in July, shortly after it appeared a buyout was imminent, but most if not all of them have probably moved on to other targets. The trade market isn't active at the moment, Timberwolves owner Glen Taylor said last night, so it appears that option might not be available at the moment.
Jazz Expected To Sign Darnell Jackson
The Jazz are expected to bring Darnell Jackson to training camp, tweets Brian T. Smith of The Salt Lake Tribune. The 6'9" Kansas product has spent parts of three seasons in the NBA, and last made an appearance with the Kings in 2010/11. He's likely to get a non-guaranteed deal at the minimum salary.
Jackson was taken 52nd overall in the 2008 draft by the Heat and traded to the Cavs on draft night. He signed a three-year deal with Cleveland, but was sent to the D-League four times during his abbreviated stint there before the team waived him in 2010. The Bucks claimed him off waivers, trading him a few months later to the Kings. He played in a career-high 59 games for Sacramento in 2010/11, but saw only 8.2 minutes per contest, averaging 3.2 points and 1.6 rebounds. He spent last season with the Ukrainian club BC Donetsk.
Once he gets to camp, he'll probably compete for the last roster spot with Trey Gilder, another 6'9" forward who received an invite from the team. The Jazz have 15 guaranteed contracts on the roster, but one of those belongs to Raja Bell, who is attempting to negotiate a buyout.
Extension Candidate: Al Jefferson
After Dwight Howard and Andrew Bynum, Al Jefferson figures to be the most prominent center on next summer's free agent market. He's never made an All-Star team, but he's been a consistent performer over the life of a five-year, $65MM extension that kicked in for 2008/09. He's averaged 19.2 points and 9.8 rebounds with a 21.0 PER over the first four years of the deal that will pay him $15MM in 2012/13, its final season. He's played in 86% of his team's games the last four seasons after playing all 82 the year before the contract took effect, and is just 27 years old. There's no reason to expect he won't command the maximum amount in his next deal. The question is whether that deal is a new contract or another extension.
Typically, it wouldn't be worthwhile for a veteran to extend his contract under the current CBA. Extensions are limited to three seasons, while a player can get a five-year contract if he waits until free agency to re-sign with his team. Even if he jumps to another team as a free agent, he can sign a four-year deal, and more seasons usually means more guaranteed money.
For Jefferson, there are mitigating factors at play, many of which also apply to Bynum, as Luke Adams of Hoops Rumors wrote. If Jefferson signs a five-year deal next offseason, he'll be 33 years old when it ends. He would be subject to the over-36 rule if he wanted to sign a long-term deal, and it's questionable whether he'd still be playing well enough to merit another lengthy commitment anyway. He would also be signing his next deal in 2018, after the league and the union will have had the chance to opt out of the current CBA in 2017 and negotiate new terms that might be less friendly to veteran players. If Jefferson signed an extension now, he'd be 31 when it ended, still young enough to sign a four-year deal without running afoul of the over-36 rule, which removes the incentives for teams to sign players to long-term contracts. Jefferson could even include a player option for the final season of his extension. That would allow him to become a free agent at age 30 in 2015, when could sign a full five-year deal. He would have more than 10 years of service at that point, making him eligible for 35% of the salary cap, instead of the 30% he could get as a nine-year veteran next summer.
In Jefferson's case, it might be the team that's more skittish to do the deal. As solid as Jefferson has been, the Jazz have a wealth of big men, from Paul Millsap to promising youngsters Derrick Favors and Enes Kanter, both of whom were third overall picks in their respective drafts. The Jazz may not want to commit maximum money to Jefferson when his presence in the lineup would prevent Favors or Kanter from getting the minutes they need to blossom. Millsap's contract is up after this season, too, and his $8.604MM salary this season means the Jazz could give him a significant raise that would still make him cheaper than Jefferson.
Jefferson has indicated a willingness to remain in Utah, so perhaps the Jazz could extract a hometown discount of sorts from him. Jefferson might argue that signing a maximum extension, which would represent less guaranteed money than a new maximum contract next summer, could qualify as a discount, but I don't think the Jazz would bite. If they wanted to keep Jefferson around, I think they'd want to do so long-term, given the team's focus on the future. I'm not so sure that new GM Dennis Lindsey wouldn't want to go in a different direction anyway, extending or re-signing Millsap and letting Jefferson walk next summer unless he agreed to less of an annual salary than his market value would dictate.
Eastern Notes: Magic, Sixers, Nets, Celtics
The biggest NBA news of the day so far has come out of Philadelphia, where the 76ers are announced Tony DiLeo's promotion to general manger. SI.com's Sam Amick has a few additional details on the move, including some other names that the Sixers pursued. According to Amick, the Sixers were turned down when they asked permission to speak to Jazz executive Kevin O'Connor and Thunder exec Troy Weaver. Here are a few more Friday notes out of the Eastern Conference:
- Harkless' and Smith's injuries will not be healed in time for the regular season, keeping them out of the Magic lineup until mid-November, Schmitz writes, updating his earlier tweet (below).
Earlier updates:
- Amick adds that the 76ers may still hire a more analytically-inclined executive to work alongside DiLeo in the Philadelphia front office.
- Nets owner Mikhail Prokhorov had praise for GM Billy King and coach Avery Johnson, whose contracts are set to expire at season's end. Stefan Bondy of the New York Daily News passes along Prokhorov's quotes in a pair of tweets.
- Al Harrington, Maurice Harkless, and Ish Smith, all recovering from offseason surgery, are expected to miss training camp, tweets Brian Schmitz of the Orlando Sentinel. All three players were added by the Magic this summer.
- J.J. Redick understands that the Magic are in a transition year, but says he loves playing in Orlando and that he and GM Rob Hennigan are "on the same page" when it comes to his future (Twitterlinks via John Denton of OrlandoMagic.com).
- A. Sherrod Blakely of CSNNE.com looks into which Celtics on non-guaranteed contracts are the best bets to earn a roster spot, concluding that Dionte Christmas is a clear-cut favourite.
- Raja Bell tells Andy Slater of 640 AM Sports in Miami that the Heat would be his first choice in free agency if he can work out a buyout with the Jazz (Sulia link via Ira Winderman of the South Florida Sun Sentinel).
- In his latest mailbag for the Sun Sentinel, Winderman debates whether the Heat or Celtics had the better offseason and examines where Miami's roster stands.