Washington Wizards Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Southeast Notes: Magic, Nene, Heat

May 22nd, 2015 at 4:30pm CST by Eddie Scarito

The Magic are unlikely to add a player with the No. 5 overall pick who can make an immediate impact, so any dramatic roster improvements will need to come via the free agent market, Josh Robbins of The Orlando Sentinel writes. Orlando would have about $14MM in available salary cap space if the team were to waive Ben Gordon and Luke Ridnour before their salaries for next season become guaranteed, Robbins adds.

“Organizationally,” Magic CEO Alex Martins said, “we’ve always maintained the same approach, the same philosophy: when available, spending up to the tax level as it relates to free agency. Our ownership has given us the ability to do that again, and we’ll continue to do that in these upcoming free-agent years, this offseason and next year as well.”

Here’s the latest out of the Southeast Division:

One of the Wizards‘ top priorities this offseason will be to add a stretch four, which would result in Nene playing more at center, something the player might not be too keen on, Jorge Castillo of The Washington Post writes.
Wizards coach Randy Wittman indicated that Nene shifting to the reserve center role wouldn’t diminish his value to the team, Castillo adds. “As we saw down the stretch, he played some five, he and Marc in that situation,” Wittman said. “Him playing that position doesn’t make it a lesser role. We’ve got to look at what works best for who we have here. … With what John Wall does and the pace of play, we’ve got to play fast.”
Heat president Pat Riley indicated that the team is looking for an all-around player who can score from the outside with the No. 10 overall pick in this June’s NBA Draft, Joseph Goodman of The Miami Herald writes. “A lot of times you have a player or two players who are playmakers that are your best playmakers and your best scorers, but they might not have that kind of range or that kind of game, so you need to go out and get two or three of those kinds of players,” Riley said. “And so, while we felt we had enough maybe on the perimeter, that might be an area where we look, but I don’t want him to be a one-dimensional guy.”

Offseason Outlook: Washington Wizards

May 21st, 2015 at 9:57am CST by Chuck Myron

Guaranteed Contracts

John Wall ($15,851,950)
Nene ($13,000,000)
Marcin Gortat ($11,217,391)
Bradley Beal ($5,694,674)
Martell Webster ($5,613,500)
Otto Porter ($4,662,960)
Kris Humphries ($4,440,000)
Ramon Sessions ($2,170,465)
DeJuan Blair ($2,000,000)

Non-Guaranteed Contracts

None

Options

Paul Pierce ($5,543,725 — Player)
Garrett Temple ($1,100,602 — Player)

Restricted Free Agents/Cap Holds

None

Unrestricted Free Agents/Cap Holds

Kevin Seraphin ($7,407,517)
No. 19 pick ($1,310,300)
Rasual Butler ($947,276)
Will Bynum ($947,276)
Drew Gooden ($947,276)

Draft Picks

1st Round (19th overall)
2nd Round (49th overall)

Cap Outlook

Guaranteed Salary: $64,650,940
Non-Guaranteed Salary: $0
Options: $6,644,327
Cap Holds: $11,559,645
Total: $82,854,912

A year later, the Wizards wound up right where they had been. Washington came closer to the title than it had in more than three decades last season, and this year, the Wizards repeated their run to the sixth game of the conference semifinals against the East’s No. 1 seed. If the three-point shot from Paul Pierce that officials waived off after a replay review at the end of Game 6 against the Hawks had left Pierce’s hands a moment earlier, the Wizards might still be playing. Still, Pierce’s mere presence on the court that night signaled the progress the Wizards have made in the past 12 months, even if the results in the playoffs didn’t show it.

March 23, 2015; Oakland, CA, USA; Washington Wizards guard Bradley Beal (3) dribbles the basketball during the second quarter against the Golden State Warriors at Oracle Arena. The Warriors defeated the Wizards 107-76. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports

Courtesy of USA Today Sports Images

A 10-time All-Star still capable of making a significant contribution such as Pierce wouldn’t have chosen to sign with Wizards if he didn’t find them capable of going far. No one, and probably Pierce included, would have mistaken this year’s Wizards for a title contender, but it’s a franchise with at least a few of the basic ingredients necessary to become one in the near future. John Wall further established himself as an elite point guard, taking fewer shots and dishing more assists. He averaged 10.1 assists per game in the regular season and an even more impressive 11.9 in the playoffs, and he said at the team’s end-of-season press conference that what he’d learned from Pierce this season had a profound impact, as the Wizards Twitter account relays.

Much of the future for the Wizards depends on how much Wall, who’ll turn 25 in September, and Bradley Beal, who won’t be 22 until next month, can improve before they hit their respective peaks. Still, in spite of coach Randy Wittman‘s apparent belief that Pierce will play again next season, the 37-year-old veteran of 17 NBA seasons is making no such guarantees, and even if he does choose to come back, it’s not certain that he will do so with the Wizards. Pierce can become a free agent this summer if he turns down his player option, and as he showed in the playoffs, he probably still has enough left to command a salary similar to the more than $5.5MM he’d make on the option.

Backup center Kevin Seraphin already has his sights set on a starting role, signaling that he’s on his way elsewhere, with Marcin Gortat only one year into a five-year contract. Drew Gooden, another frontcourt rotation player, is also a free agent this summer. Washington is already knocking against the projected $67.1MM salary cap, so the team has little capacity to replace the players who walk away. The most significant financial weapon that GM Ernie Grunfeld is likely to have at his disposal will probably be the $5.464MM non-taxpayer’s mid-level exception, though he’ll also have the $2.139MM biannual exception two years after the ill-fated biannual signing of Eric Maynor. The signings that teams make with the mid-level and biannual are hit or miss. The Clippers were the only team to use the non-taxpayer’s mid-level to its full extent last summer, and they probably regret doing so for Spencer Hawes, while the Rockets held on to their biannual into the season and used it in December to nab Josh Smith, who was key in helping Houston oust the Clippers in the playoffs. In any case, the Wizards would be fortunate to find a player who can produce like Pierce did this year at those price points.

Grunfeld and the Wizards were creative in acquiring Kris Humphries and DeJuan Blair via sign-and-trade last summer when they didn’t otherwise have means to sign them for more than the minimum, and while neither of them had an outsized impact, it shows there’s another way to upgrade. Washington has a pair of trade exceptions, one worth $4.625MM and the other more than $2.252MM, to facilitate those sorts of deals.

The Wizards could engender a more significant shakeup if they take heed to Gortat’s preference to play next to a stretch four. Nene doesn’t fit that description, and he’ll be on an expiring contract next season, when he’ll make $13MM. That salary won’t be easy to swap, particularly since many of Nene’s numbers were down this season amid fewer minutes per game than he’s seen since 2007/08, and he’ll turn 33 in September. It’s possible that Grunfeld could find a team with win-now aspirations that would be willing to take a short-term risk, like the Hornets, Kings or Raptors. However, unless one of those teams would be willing to send back an asset of real value, the Wizards are probably better off sticking with Nene and further reducing his role if Pierce, whose teams have played well with him at power forward, returns. Washington can always explore trades for Nene during the season if he grows discontent with his role, and the Wizards needn’t rush to add long-term salary to fix a short-term issue.

However the Wizards spend money in the offseason ahead, it’ll be with the summer of 2016 in mind. It’s no secret that the Wizards would love to persuade D.C. native Kevin Durant. set for free agency that summer, into a homecoming. The Wizards already have about $29MM in guaranteed salary for 2016/17, when preliminary projections show the salary cap surging to $89MM. An estimated starting salary for Durant in his next contract, based on that figure, would come in around $25MM. That would entail roughly $54MM for just three players, since Wall and Gortat are currently the only Wizards under guaranteed contracts for 2016/17. Nene is set to become a free agent that summer, and Otto Porter has a rookie scale team option for 2016/17 that season that the Wizards will surely pick up by the deadline to do so, which comes this year on October 31st. That’s also the last day the team can give an extension to Beal.

The Wizards are reportedly committed to giving Beal the max, and coach Randy Wittman signaled this week that the team intends to keep him around for the foreseeable future. The team has apparently been planning an extension for Beal for quite some time, but a five-year extension this summer is out of the question, since Washington already made Wall its Designated Player. The Wizards could sign Beal for five seasons if they wait until he hits restricted free agency after next season, and as Ken Berger of CBSSports.com noted, that would mean a significantly lower cap hold for Beal entering the summer of 2016, affording the team greater flexibility to chase Durant and others.

Regardless of when it happens, a max arrangement for Beal would mean he’d be making significantly more per season than Wall does, since the max salaries are escalating right along with the salary cap. The max for Beal would start at around an estimated $21MM, about $4MM more than Wall is scheduled to make in 2016/17, the season in which Beal’s next deal, whether in the form of an extension or a new contract, will begin. That might be too much for the shooting guard, even in the adjusted NBA economics that the surging salary cap will bring about, particularly given that he’s never posted a PER as high as 15.0, the mark of an average player. That metric is unfair to Beal, since he’s clearly more valuable than it suggests, but in any case, the Wizards seem poised to make a deeply consequential investment in the Mark Bartelstein client.

Washington didn’t make the progress in the postseason it might have hoped for this season, but the franchise is still in a much better position than it had been for many years, and more importantly, still seemingly a contender for Durant. Upgrades this summer would further the cause of attracting a superstar when the Wizards will have money to play with in 2016, but Washington is largely boxed in financially for now. A creative approach from the front office would help, but patience will be the key word for Grunfeld and company this summer.

Cap Footnotes

1 — The cap hold for Pierce would be $6,366,000 if he opts out.
2 — The cap hold for Temple would be $947,276 if he opts out, but he said he’s likely to opt in.

The Basketball Insiders Salary Pages were used in the creation of this post.

Wizards Ready To Give Max To Bradley Beal

May 20th, 2015 at 3:27pm CST by Chuck Myron

The Wizards have made it clear that they’re committed to paying Bradley Beal the maximum salary, as Ken Berger of CBSSports.com writes amid his Playoff Buzz column. Berger raises the question of whether it’ll come in the form of an extension this offseason or a new contract in the summer of 2016, though J. Michael of CSNWashington.com reported in October that the club was planning an extension for the promising shooting guard. Coach Randy Wittman signaled earlier this week that the Wizards intend to keep Beal, whose rookie scale contract expires after next season, for the long term.

Giving Beal the max, regardless of whether it comes in the form of an extension or a new contract, would be a bold investment from Washington, since the deal would kick in just as the salary cap jumps to a projected $89MM for 2015/16. League execs nonetheless told Shams Charania of RealGM that they were confident that Beal would be able to command the max this summer, as Charania reported in November. Max salaries rise right along with the cap, and Beal would garner an estimated starting salary of around $21MM, about $4MM more than the team is set to pay John Wall that season.

Wall just finished the first season of a five-year max extension he signed in 2013, which made him the team’s Designated Player. That means the Wizards can’t give Beal an extension that covers more than four seasons, though they can ink him to a new five-year contract if they allow him to hit restricted free agency in 2016.

Washington also stands to benefit from a new contract instead of an extension because that would allow the team to keep Beal’s 2015/16 cap hold of about $11.389MM on the books into the summer of 2016, as Berger points out. D.C. native Kevin Durant is poised to headline the 2016 free agent class and it’s no secret that the Wizards would like to talk him into a homecoming. Passing on an extension with Beal and signing him in restricted free agency could afford the team an extra $10MM or so in flexibility to chase Durant or other targets in 2016. The Wizards could wait to officially sign Beal while chasing other free agents, though there’s always the risk that Beal would find an offer sheet with terms more to his liking from another team, forcing Washington to decide whether to match. Making it clear that they intend to give him the max would dissipate that threat, however.

Leonard, Green, Allen Lead All-Defensive Teams

May 20th, 2015 at 1:17pm CST by Chuck Myron

Kawhi Leonard, Draymond Green, Tony Allen, DeAndre Jordan and Chris Paul comprise this year’s All-Defensive First Team, the NBA announced via press release. Anthony Davis, Jimmy Butler, Andrew Bogut, John Wall and Tim Duncan are on the second team. Bogut’s selection is perhaps most important, since he triggers a bonus worth 15% of his nearly $12.973MM salary for this season, giving him approximately $1.946MM in extra pay. It also means his cap hit for next season jumps to $13.8MM instead of $12MM, since the bonus will fall in the category of a likely bonus. Still, the extra $1.8MM wouldn’t count against the tax next season unless Bogut again plays in 65 games and makes an All-Defensive team.

Leonard was the leading vote-getter from the media members who cast the ballots, which is no surprise, since he also won the Defensive Player of the Year award. The latest honor is further ammunition for a max contract this summer from the Spurs, though it appears he and San Antonio were already set to quickly agree to terms on one come July. Green and Jordan are also soon-to-be free agents on the first team, while Butler and Duncan are heading to free agency from the second team.

Davis, who’s eligible for a rookie scale extension this summer, topped the voting among second-teamers. The balloting went by a points system in which two points were awarded for a first team vote and one point for a second. Rudy Gobert, who received five first team votes, garnered the most points among those who missed the cut for both teams. LeBron James, Russell Westbrook, Avery Bradley, Michael Kidd-Gilchrist, Klay Thompson, Marc Gasol and Mike Conley were others who garnered multiple first team votes but didn’t make it on either team. Click here to see how each media member voted.

Southeast Notes: Beal, Nene, Ressler, Fournier

May 19th, 2015 at 3:31pm CST by Chuck Myron

It’s conference finals or bust for the Wizards next season, opines Ohm Youngmisuk of ESPN.com. Coach Randy Wittman acknowledges the challenge is to find the right complements to John Wall and Bradley Beal, as Youngmisuk notes. J. Michael of CSNWashington.com reported in October that the team is planning an extension for Beal, who’s eligible to receive one this summer, and Wittman hinted that the team has no intention to let the shooting guard go anywhere anytime soon.

“We know what we have to do and the pieces that I would like to add moving forward,” Wittman said. “Brad and John will be here a long time and so we got to utilize their strengths and find the right people to put around them.”

There’s more on the Wizards amid the latest from the Southeast Division:

Marcin Gortat said Monday that he wants to play with a stretch four, but Nene, who doesn’t fit that description, made it clear that he’d prefer not to have to play more center, as Michael relays in a pair of pieces. Moving to center might mean a backup role for Nene as he enters the final season of his contract with the Wizards, Michael suggests. “As much as I love Nene, and I think Nene understands this, too, I would love to play with a stretch four, with a guy who shoots the ball from the three-point line because that automatically gives me more room under the basket to operate,” Gortat said. “It gives me more opportunity to play pick-and-rolls to the paint where the paint is open.”
The Board of Governors are expected to complete the approval process for Tony Ressler’s deal to buy the Hawks within the next four to six weeks, a source told Chris Vivlamore of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. The draft is five weeks from Thursday, and free agency begins six weeks from Wednesday.
Offseason trade acquisition Evan Fournier was a revelation early in the season for the Magic, but his numbers were inconsistent after a switch to the bench, and he’d likely be a reserve again next season if the team re-signs Tobias Harris, writes Brian Schmitz of the Orlando Sentinel. Fournier is eligible for a rookie scale extension this summer.

Eastern Notes: Seraphin, Knicks, Bucks

May 17th, 2015 at 7:16pm CST by Will Joseph

Kevin Seraphin, who is set to become an unrestricted free agent this summer, wants to play for a team that would allow him to compete for a starting job, J. Michael of CSNWashington.com reports, and that likely means that the center won’t re-sign with the Wizards, Michael adds. Seraphin matched his career high with 79 regular-season appearances but didn’t start a game after inking a one-year qualifying offer last summer for $3.9MM to stay in Washington, as Michael points out. The Wizards are set at center, Michael adds, because Marcin Gortat will be entering the second year of a five-year deal with the team. “I definitely want a chance to be a starter,” Seraphin told Michael. “I definitely want to be somewhere I have a chance to be a starter.”

Willie Cauley-Stein said on Friday that he would work out with the Knicks today, but the Knicks didn’t end up bringing him in, tweets ESPN.com’s Ian Begley, who added that a league source told him that a workout was actually never scheduled. The Knicks met with D’Angelo Russell and Justise Winslow at the NBA Draft Combine in Chicago, according to ESPN.com. All three players are expected to be selected within the first 10 picks of the draft. The Knicks own a top-five pick heading into the lottery. According to Hoops Rumors’ odds page, the most likely spot for the Knicks is fourth. New York has a 31.9% chance of picking fourth.
If the Sixers slide into the fifth or sixth spot in the draft, Justise Winslow, who played at Duke, might be a solid option, Keith Pompey of The Philadelphia Inquirer writes. The Sixers have a 15.6% chance of winning the draft lottery and are guaranteed to pick at least sixth.
The Bucks, who own the No. 17 pick in the draft, met with small forward Rondae Hollis-Jefferson, who played at Arizona, and big man Frank Kaminsky, who earned college player of the year honors with Wisconsin, Matt Velazquez of the Journal Sentinel tweets.

Southeast Notes: Pierce, Hornets, Dragic, Heat

May 16th, 2015 at 10:48pm CST by Arthur Hill

It’s time for the Wizards‘ Paul Pierce to retire, argues A. Sherrod Blakely of CSNNE.com. The former Celtics star has enjoyed a legendary career, Blakely writes, and there is little to be gained by trying to extend it. Pierce, 37, posted statistical lows in just about every category this season. He has a player option worth more than $5.5MM for next year.

There’s more from the Southeast Division:

Kentucky’s Devin Booker would be just the kind of shooter the Hornets need, according to Rick Bonnell of the Charlotte Observer. Charlotte was the worst 3-point shooting team in the NBA at just 31.8% this season. Booker hit 41% of his treys at Kentucky and considers himself “definitely” the best shooter from distance in the draft. The Hornets are currently slotted with the ninth pick heading into Tuesday’s lottery.
The Heat and Goran Dragic should be able to come to an agreement shortly after free agency begins, writes Surya Fernandez of Fox Sports Florida. Dragic has made numerous statements about how much he likes the city and the team, and the Heat have been open about their desire to keep Dragic, whom they acquired from Phoenix in a three-team deal at the trade deadline. “So far I had a great experience here with the Heat,” Dragic said. “Great coaching staff and teammates.”
Arizona’s Stanley Johnson would be a nice draft pickup for the Heat, contends Jason Lieser of The Palm Beach Post. Lieser writes that Johnson could provide immediate wing depth and would be an able replacement if Luol Deng leaves the team this summer or in 2016. However, Miami won’t know if it even has a first-round pick until the lottery. If the Heat pick falls to 11th or worse, it will be conveyed to Philadelphia.
The Magic interviewed Kentucky’s Trey Lyles at the NBA Draft Combine, tweets Josh Robbins of The Orlando Sentinel. Also interviewed was Bobby Portis of Arkansas, Robbins adds (Twitter link).

Southeast Notes: Pierce, Heat, Hornets

May 16th, 2015 at 4:20pm CST by Eddie Scarito

With the sting of his last second shot being waived off because time had expired and his team being eliminated from the postseason still fresh, the Wizards‘ Paul Pierce now has to make a decision regarding his player option for 2015/15 worth $5,543,725, Ohm Youngmisuk of ESPN.com writes. “I haven’t really thought about it,” Pierce said. “I don’t even know if I am going to play basketball anymore. These seasons get harder and harder every year, every day. Summers get even harder when you start getting back in shape. I’m 37 years old. I’m top two or three oldest in the league.” Pierce indicated he would take some time and discuss the matter with his family before making his call on next season, Youngmisuk adds. “I have been playing this game [for] like 32 years. Since I was a little kid. Probably going to be the hardest thing to do is put the game down. But I know that time is coming one day. I am not sure if it is this year or next year. I will sit down with my family and figure things out,” Pierce said.

Here’s more out of the Southeast Division:

Wizards coach Randy Wittman indicated that he’d be very surprised if Pierce didn’t opt in and return to the team next season, J. Michael of CSNWashington.com relays (Twitter link).
Heat president Pat Riley interviewed Kansas swingman Kelly Oubre at the draft combine, Jason Lieser of The Palm Beach Post tweets.
While at the draft combine Hornets executives met with Kentucky’s Devin Booker and Willie Cauley-Stein, as well as Duke forward Justise Winslow, Rick Bonnell of The Charlotte Observer reports in a series of tweets.
Riley also sat down with Booker for an interview, who said that the Heat executive told him that Dwyane Wade was in the final stage of his career and that the young guard would be able to learn from him, Lieser tweets. Also meeting with the team while in Chicago were Arkansas forward Bobby Portis and Kentucky forward Trey Lyles, Lieser adds (Twitter links).

Draft Rumors: Porzingis, Wood, Dawson

May 15th, 2015 at 10:29am CST by Chuck Myron

At least one GM is among the multiple executives who believe Latvian power forward Kristaps Porzingis has a shot to be drafted as highly as No. 2, reports Scott Howard-Cooper of NBA.com. The head of basketball ops for another team said that he’s a “lock” for the top five and that it wouldn’t be surprising to see him go within the top three, adding that he’d draft him in front of Jahlil Okafor, the Duke center who occupied the top spot in projections for most of the season. The 19-year-old is No. 5 in Chad Ford’s ESPN.com rankings and No. 8 with Jonathan Givony of DraftExpress. Here’s more as draft rumors kick into high gear:

Christian Wood, a power forward out of UNLV, is hoping to follow in Giannis Antetokounmpo‘s footsteps as a ball-handler with unusual height and length, Howard-Cooper writes in the same piece. The Bucks intend to interview Wood, Virginia small forward Justin Anderson and others today, tweets Gery Woelfel of The Journal Times.
Both the DraftExpress team and Ford go in depth on the measurements from the combine, with Ford, in his Insider-only piece, noting that most top prospects sized up well and that this year’s draft class is among the longest groups in memory in terms of both height and wingspan.
Michigan State power forward Branden Dawson has interviewed with the Wizards, Clippers and Pelicans at the draft combine, as he told Vince Ellis of the Detroit Free Press. Ellis, in the same report, adds Stanley Johnson, Frank Kaminsky and Rashad Vaughn to the list of prospects with whom the Pistons have spoken.
Terry Rozier met with the Pistons, too, as well as the Mavs, Suns, Knicks and Spurs, reports Steve Kyler of Basketball Insiders (on Twitter).
The Sixers, Lakers, Cavs and Bucks have interviewed Cameron Payne, Kyler also tweets. Payne spoke with our Zach Links recently about his draft prospects.
Keith Pompey of the Philadelphia Inquirer adds the Hornets and Warriors to the list of teams speaking with Rakeem Christmas (Twitter link).

Western Notes: Matthews, Draft, Young

May 14th, 2015 at 10:46pm CST by Eddie Scarito

Jabari Young of CSNNW.com wouldn’t be surprised if Wesley Matthews gives the Blazers a discount to re-sign him this summer. Young interprets GM Neil Olshey‘s tone from his season-ending press conference as a signal that the team will pursue a new deal with the shooting guard. “We know his value to us,” Olshey said, adding that “We also know he’s going to have market value around the league. That’s another competitive part of the free agent process that we’re going to have to participate in.”

Here’s the latest out of the Western Conference:

The Blazers are scheduled to meet with UNLV’s Christian Wood, Jabari Young of CSNNW.com relays (Twitter links). Portland is also expected to take a close look at big man Myles Turner, Young notes.
Seth Curry will join the Pelicans‘ summer league squad, Shams Charania of RealGM tweets. Curry made two appearances for the Suns during the 2014/15 season while on a lone 10-day contract.
Oregon senior guard Joseph Young interviewed with the Spurs, Pelicans, Knicks, Wizards, and Clippers today, Jabari Young tweets.
Sean Meagher of The Oregonian looks at Blazers point guard Tim Frazier, who inked a multiyear deal with the team this season, and what the player’s role might be next season. Frazier’s minimum salary arrangement with Portland is non-guaranteed.
The list of players whom the Thunder have interviewed during the combine includes Kelly Oubre, Aaron Harrison, Andrew Harrison, Tyus Jones, Terry Rozier, Turner, and Stanley Johnson, Darnell Mayberry of The Oklahoman relays (Twitter link).

Chuck Myron contributed to this post.