Wizards Ink Casper Ware To Camp Deal
SEPTEMBER 21: Approximately a month after agreeing to terms with him, the Wizards have officially signed Ware, according to RealGM’s NBA transactions log.
AUGUST 18: The Wizards have agreed to a contract with unrestricted free agent Casper Ware, Tim Bontemps of The Washington Post reports (on Twitter). The scribe labels it as a training camp deal, which means it likely includes little or no guaranteed money. Washington is well over the cap, so it is likely for the league minimum salary, though, the team does still have its Room Exception available, but it would be surprising if that was used in this instance.
Washington already has 16 players under contract, including 12 possessing full guarantees on their deals, so Ware certainly has his work cut out for him to make the regular season roster. He’ll be competing with Trey Burke, Tomas Satoransky and Marcus Thornton for a spot on the bench.
Ware, who last appeared in the NBA during the regular season in 2013/14 with the Sixers, spent this past campaign overseas where he split time between Tianjin Ronggang (China) and ASVEL Lyon-Villeurbanne (France). In 31 combined games, the guard averaged 15.5 points, 3.2 rebounds and 3.7 assists in 27.3 minutes per outing. His shooting line was .394/.354/.793.
Salary Cap Snapshot: Washington Wizards
With the free agent signing period winding down and teams looking ahead to the preseason, we at Hoops Rumors will be tracking the Salary Cap figures for each team around the league. These posts will be maintained throughout the season once financial data is reported. They will be located on the sidebar throughout the year, once all the teams’ cap figures have been relayed. You can always check RosterResource.com for up-to-date rosters for each franchise, with the Wizards’ team page accessible here.
Here’s a breakdown of where the Wizards currently stand financially:
Guaranteed Salary
- Bradley Beal —$22,116,750
- John Wall —$16,957,900
- Ian Mahinmi —$15,944,154
- Marcin Gortat —$12,000,000
- Markieff Morris —$7,400,000
- Otto Porter —$5,893,981
- Jason Smith —$5,000,000
- Bojan Bogdanovic — $3,730,653
- Trey Burke —$3,386,598
- Tomas Satoransky —$2,870,813
- Kelly Oubre —$2,006,640
- Brandon Jennings — $1,200,000
- Chris McCullough — $1,191,480
- Martell Webster —$833,334 [Waived via Stretch Provision]
- Danuel House —$543,471 [Waived by team]
- Daniel Ochefu —$543,471
- Sheldon McClellan —$543,471
- Jarell Eddie —$175,000 [Waived by team]
Total Guaranteed Salary= $102,337,716
Cash Sent Out Via Trade: $0 [Amount Remaining $3.5MM]
Cash Received Via Trade: $0 [Amount Remaining $3.5MM]
Payroll Exceptions Available
- Trade Exception — $2,515,973 (Andrew Nicholson trade) — Expires on 2/22/18
- Room Exception — $1,698,000 (Used $1,200,000 to sign Brandon Jennings)
Total Projected Payroll: $102,337,716
Salary Cap: $94,143,000
Estimated Available Cap Space: –$8,194,716
Luxury Tax Threshold: $113,287,000
Amount Below Luxury Tax: $10,949,284
Last Updated: 3/3/17
The Basketball Insiders salary pages and The Vertical’s salary database were used in the creation of this post.
Wizards Won't Rush Wall
The Wizards aren’t going to push John Wall to be ready for opening night, writes Ben Standig of CSNMidAtlantic.com. The 26-year-old point guard had surgical procedures on both knees during the offseason, and the team is being careful with his recovery. “We’re in no rush,” said new Washington head coach Scott Brooks. “We want to make sure that he’s ready. It’s a process. We still have all of training camp. We’ll see. We’re going to keep working, keep pushing him. The one thing about John. He puts the work in.” Wall has started playing one-on-one, but he still has to make progress before he can handle training camp drills or five-on-five games.
Wizards Notes: Wall, Beal, Dudley
Wizards coach Scott Brooks does not believe the team has any continuity issues, especially as it pertains to stars Bradley Beal and John Wall, Candace Buckner of the Washington Post relays. Both players had recently spoke of on-court chemistry issues, but, despite that, Brooks said he only sees two competitive players. Brooks, of course, has experience in dealing with superstars on the same team, having just left Oklahoma City.
“There’s a lot of things I’m worried about going into camp, and every coach in this league is worried about. That is not one of them,” Brooks said. “I haven’t even talked to our assistant coaches about it. Will I meet with each player individually? Yes. Will I meet with the team? Yes. Will I meet with the positions together? Yes. But I don’t see our team having a problem with chemistry.”
Here’s more out of Washington:
- The departure of Jared Dudley, who signed a three-year pact with the Suns, will be felt by the Wizards this season because of his veteran leadership in the locker room, J Neuharth-Keusch of USA TODAY Sports writes. Dudley was a dependable contributor as a stretch-four and shot a team-high 42.0% from 3-point range in his only season with Washington, as Neuharth-Keusch points out.
- Unsurprisingly, the X-factor for the Wizards this season, Neuharth-Keusch writes in the same piece, is Bradley Beal. After missing chunks of time throughout his career because of several injuries, Beal again will be counted on to remain healthy and lead Washington. He is locked in to a long-term contract, as Neuharth-Keusch notes.
Standig: Could Celtics' Roster Crunch Help Wizards?
As we noted earlier today, the Celtics are among the small group of NBA teams that currently has more than 16 guaranteed contracts on the books for 2016/17. Ben Standig of CSNMidAtlantic.com, pointing out that the Wizards could use some depth on the wing, wonders if a Boston player like Gerald Green could appeal to Washington. Of course, since Green just signed a new contract this summer, he’d have to be waived for the Wizards to have an opportunity to add him to their opening-night roster — he’s not trade-eligible until December 15.
Wall, Beal May Be Fine Together
- It’s healthy for John Wall and Bradley Beal to be open about their disagreements, contends Ric Bucher of Bleacher Report. He believes the Wizards‘ backcourt tandem will improve their communication because they’re willing to speak publicly about the problem, which Bucher describes as both wanting to be the dominant personality on the team. Bucher doesn’t think there’s a need to trade either one because their skills are complementary.
Teams Not Projected To Have 2017 Cap Room
During the first few years of the NBA’s current Collective Bargaining Agreement, many teams had virtually no chance to open up cap room. The salary cap remained in the $58MM range for three straight seasons, making it tricky for teams to get under the cap unless they were in rebuilding mode and shed high-priced players. However, with the cap now up to $94MM+, and projected to blow past $100MM next summer, that’s no longer the case.
This year, 27 of 30 teams used cap room at some point to acquire players, leaving just three teams that never went under the cap. Plenty of those 27 teams have since used up all their space and gone well over the cap, but not many currently project to be over the cap in future seasons.
The NBA’s most recent estimate for the 2017/18 salary cap, released last month, was $102MM. At this point in the league year, cap estimates are usually on the conservative side, so we can probably expect a slightly higher figure next year, but that’s no lock — particularly since the NBA and the players’ union may make changes to the CBA by next July.
Still, even if we assume that the $102MM projection is accurate, there are currently only two teams whose guaranteed salaries for 2017/18 exceed that figure. Here are those teams:
Projected to be over the 2017/18 cap:
- Portland Trail Blazers: Incredibly, no NBA team has more guaranteed money on its 2017/18 books than the Blazers, whose $123.71MM blows away the competition. That total doesn’t include team options for Noah Vonleh and Shabazz Napier, a qualifying offer for Mason Plumlee, or Festus Ezeli‘s non-guaranteed salary. Throw in those figures, plus a few more non-guaranteed salaries, and Portland’s commitments total $140MM+. Damian Lillard, C.J. McCollum, Allen Crabbe, and Evan Turner combine to make $86.58MM in ’17/18.
- Cleveland Cavaliers: Even without a new contract for J.R. Smith, the Cavs already have more than $113MM in guaranteed salaries on their books for ’17/18. LeBron James‘ $33.29MM salary is the biggest number, but the team has four more eight-digit cap hits, ranging from about $10.34MM for Iman Shumpert to $22.64MM for Kevin Love.
While the Blazers and Cavs are the only two teams whose guaranteed salaries for next year exceed $102MM, there are a few more clubs joining them above that threshold when taking into account non-guaranteed salaries, options, and/or qualifying offers. Here are those teams:
Projected to potentially be over the 2017/18 cap:
- Washington Wizards: After locking up Bradley Beal and Ian Mahinmi to expensive long-term deals this summer, the Wizards have $94MM+ in guaranteed salaries on their books for 2017/18. The team will have to add another $2MM+ to that total for Kelly Oubre, and then may need to commit more than $12MM in total to qualifying offers for Otto Porter and Trey Burke, potential restricted free agents.
- Los Angeles Clippers: The Clippers have less than $60MM in guaranteed money on their ’17/18 cap, but that figure doesn’t include either Chris Paul or Blake Griffin, who have early termination options on their contracts. If both players stay in L.A. – either on their current deals or new ones – the Clippers will remain well over the cap.
- Detroit Pistons: This summer, the Pistons maxed out their cap room, then went over the cap to sign Andre Drummond to a max deal. Once the club exercises its 2017/18 option on Stanley Johnson, it will have about $95MM on the cap for next year. Detroit must also account for qualifying offers for Kentavious Caldwell-Pope and Reggie Bullock, along with Aron Baynes‘ $6.5MM player option, taking the team over the projected cap.
- Toronto Raptors: The Raptors’ current guaranteed and non-guaranteed commitments for 2017/18 total about $104MM, and the team figures to pare down that figure to below $102MM before the season begins. Still, if the club intends to keep Kyle Lowry beyond next season, he’ll likely require a big raise on his current $12MM player option, meaning Toronto’s remaining cap space will be chewed up quickly.
There are some other NBA teams that may not be involved in free agency because they’ll need any cap room they may have to re-sign their own players. Despite only currently having $37.3MM in guarantees on their 2017/18 cap, the Warriors may very well fit into this category, since Stephen Curry will be getting a huge raise, and the team will want to retain Kevin Durant and Andre Iguodala as well.
Of course, these outlooks could change between now and next July, depending on in-season trades, draft-day deals, and potential CBA changes. For now though, the teams listed above appear to be the least likely candidates to go below the cap next offseason.
Information from Basketball Insiders was used in the creation of this post.
Wall Working His Way Back From Surgery
- Wizards point guard John Wall is going through intense rehab as he tries to bounce back from two knee surgeries in May, writes Ben Standig of CSNMidAtlantic. Wall, who is expected to be ready for the start of next season, promises “the beginning of the new John Wall era” and says he’s trying to get in the best shape of his career.
Marshall Could Be An Option For The Wizards
The Wizards could be a suitor for Kendall Marshall, Ben Standig of Comcast Sportsnet speculates. Marshall was traded to the Jazz and subsequently waived on Friday. Washington could look to add depth at the point guard position with John Wall still recovering from knee surgery. The team added former first round pick Trey Burke via trade this offseason and the Michigan product will likely get the first shot at backing up the team’s franchise player.
Wall, Beal Issues Could Lead To Eventual Breakup
The disconnect between the Wizards backcourt duo of John Wall and Bradley Beal could eventually convince the front office to deal one of them, according to Kevin O’Connor of The Ringer.
Wall recently admitted in a TV interview with CSN’s Chris Miller that he and Beal don’t have great on-court chemistry, claiming they have “a tendency to dislike each other on the court.” Beal told CSNMidAtlantic.com’s J. Michael that he and Wall “lose sight of the fact that we need each other.”
O’Connor takes it a step further, quoting an unnamed agent who says the dislike extends beyond the basketball floor.
“Whatever is public, multiply it by five and that’s how they really feel about each other,” the agent told O’Connor. “It’s probably a total disaster.”
New Wizards head coach Scott Brooks will have the challenge of getting them to become a more cohesive pair but if that fails, the club may have no choice but to break them up, O’Connor opines. Beal just signed a $127MM contract but Wall’s contract, with three years and $54.2MM remaining, can easily be moved if the Wizards go in that direction, O’Connor adds.
Wall’s willingness to become more accountable and a respected leader will go a long way in determining how Washington handles the situation, Michael asserts in a different column. The backcourt pair, while not the best of friends, don’t hate each other, Michael continues. But assistant coach Sidney Lowe contends Wall must do more to win over everyone in the locker room.
“It’s your communication and get your players to feel good about you. And the way you do that is by you getting them to feel good about themselves,” Lowe told Michael. “There’s something to that. Obviously that’s an area where I can work with and talk to with John and help him out a little bit.”
Wall’s habit of publicly displaying his displeasure over contracts handed out to opposing players does not help his cause, O’Connor contends. Wall criticized the Pistons last summer for giving out a big contract to Reggie Jackson. Wall apparently had similar feelings about the extension James Harden received from the Rockets this summer, with a front-office executive telling O’Connor that Wall was “rankled” by that four-year, $118MM contract.