2012 October | Hoops Rumors

Buyout Talks Resume Between Raja Bell, Jazz

October 30th, 2012 at 5:51pm CST by Chuck Myron

5:51pm: Charania tweets more from Bell's radio interview, noting that Bell characterized the situation as a "waiting game until [the Jazz] can either get rid of the contract and trade it or we can find a good situation for a buyout." Charania concludes that the situation is fluid, and no one on either side of the dispute is quite sure how it will turn out (Twitter links).

5:12pm: Raja Bell told Jorge Sedano of WQAM in Miami that he and the Jazz are once more working toward some means of parting ways, whether through a trade or a buyout, tweets Shams Charania of RealGM.com. This comes a week after Bell's agent, Herb Rudoy, told Charania that the two sides had ended buyout negotiations that had dragged on all summer. The report indicated Rudoy and the Jazz were discussing trade scenarios, but Rudoy later denied that part of it to Jody Genessey of the Deseret News.

The 36-year-old shooting guard is due $3.48MM this season in the final year of a three-year, $9.72MM contract. He started 33 of the 34 games he played last season in Utah, but clashed with coach Tyrone Corbin and saw his playing time disappear. Though it's long been clear that the Jazz organization sided with Corbin, their decision to exercise their 2013/14 option on Corbin today is further evidence of where they stand. Bell didn't attend camp with the Jazz after he was told to stay away, and hasn't been with the team at all in the preseason.

Bell attended high school and college in Miami, and last month he identified the Heat as his top choice for his next destination. The Heat currently have 15 players under contract, but Josh Harrellson and Terrel Harris are on non-guaranteed deals.

When Non-Guaranteed Deals Become Guaranteed

October 30th, 2012 at 4:19pm CST by Luke Adams

With the dust having settled on preseason cuts, NBA teams have eliminated most players on summer contracts and non-guaranteed deals from their rosters. However, there are still plenty of players on non-guaranteed contracts who made their respective teams' regular season rosters. Does that means their contracts are now guaranteed for the season? Well, in most cases, no.

In order for most non-guaranteed contracts to become fully guaranteed for the season, the player must remain on an NBA roster until January 10th. If the player's contract doesn't clear waivers on or before the 10th, his full salary will become guaranteed for the season. Until that date, he'll receive either a prorated portion of his salary, or some other previously-agreed-upon set amount.

However, there are a handful of players whose contracts will become guaranteed before that January 10th date. E'Twaun Moore's minimum-salary deal with the Magic, for instance, stipulates that his contract will become guaranteed if he's not waived by October 30th, which means he looks to be pretty safe.

Per Mark Deeks of ShamSports, here are the other players on non-guaranteed contracts who will see their deals become fully guaranteed prior to January 10th:

Julyan Stone (Nuggets): October 31st*
DeJuan Blair (Spurs): November 1st
P.J. Tucker (Suns): December 1st*
Cory Higgins (Bobcats): December 10th
Nate Robinson (Bulls): January 1st

Notes: Stone's contract becomes guaranteed if he's not waived by "opening night," which is assumed to be the Nuggets' opening night, rather than the NBA's opening night. Tucker's guarantee increases to $400K as of opening night before becoming fully guaranteed on December 1st.

Blazers Obtain Disabled Player Exception

October 30th, 2012 at 3:46pm CST by Luke Adams

OCTOBER 30TH: Olshey confirmed today that the Blazers have obtained a disabled player exception for Williams, tweets Chris Haynes of CSNNW.com. The GM says it's a financial tool, rather than a roster tool, which presumably means it'll only be kept on the books for cap purposes, rather than actually used to acquire a player.

OCTOBER 1ST: With Elliot Williams expected to miss the entire 2012/13 season after undergoing surgery on his ruptured achilles tendon, the Trail Blazers will not waive him, GM Neil Olshey told the media today. However, as Joe Freeman of the Oregonian tweets, the team will apply for a disabled player exception worth half Williams' salary.

Freeman adds within the same tweet that Olshey says the Trail Blazers still have about $2MM in cap space, but the GM is likely referring to the room exception, rather than actual cap space. Despite only spending about $56MM on team salary, Portland has a traded player exception worth about $2.25MM from this summer's Raymond Felton trade that the club would have to renounce to claim that cap room. Also, disabled player exceptions are only available to over-the-cap teams, so the Blazers wouldn't receive a DPE if they still had cap space.

Even if the league approves the disabled player exception for Williams, it likely won't be of much use for the Blazers. By rule, the team would receive an exception worth 50% of Williams' $1.443MM salary, which would be about $721K, less than the veteran's minimum.

Olshey also told the media today that the Blazers will make option decisions on Williams, Nolan Smith, and Luke Babbitt later this month (Twitter link via Freeman).

Blazers Decline Options On Babbitt, Williams, Smith

October 30th, 2012 at 3:29pm CST by Luke Adams

3:29pm: According to GM Neil Olshey, the Blazers have declined their options on Babbitt, Williams, and Smith, tweets Joe Freeman of the Oregonian. As I noted below, this will free up about $6.7MM of potential cap space for the Blazers next summer.

8:21am: The Trail Blazers will not exercise Luke Babbitt's fourth-year option for 2013/14, meaning he'll become an unrestricted free agent next summer, according to Chris Haynes of CSNNW.com. Babbitt had been in line for a $2.9MM salary, but the Blazers will elect to gain that amount in cap flexibility instead.

Portland also holds 2013/14 options on Elliot Williams and Nolan Smith, worth $2.37MM and $1.42MM respectively. While the team still could decide to exercise one or both of those options, Haynes says they'll likely be declined as well. Turning down all three options would allow the Blazers to gain about $6.7MM in extra cap room next summer.

As we heard yesterday, the Blazers are hoping to add an accomplished veteran player in free agency next summer, and declining their three rookie-contract options will give the club the flexibility to offer a significant, eight-digit annual salary. Depending on how free agency plays out, the Blazers could still decide to bring back Babbitt, Williams, and/or Smith for the 2013/14 season.

Suns Won’t Exercise Wesley Johnson’s Option

October 30th, 2012 at 3:16pm CST by Luke Adams

The Suns have informed Wesley Johnson they won't exercise his 2013/14 option, according to Paul Coro of the Arizona Republic (via Twitter). However, the team would still like to re-sign Johnson at season's end, and the former fourth overall pick would like to stay in Phoenix.

The chances of Phoenix picking up Johnson's option looked slim when the team announced last week that it had exercised Markieff Morris' 2013/14 option. Since clubs typically announce their option decisions all at once, and the cost of Johnson's fourth year ($5.42MM) seemed somewhat prohibitive, it appeared the team would let him become an unrestricted free agent next summer.

Be sure to check out our rookie contract option tracker to keep tabs on all of this offseason's option decisions. With tomorrow's deadline looming, the only outstanding rookie contract options for '13/14 belong to Quincy Pondexter (Grizzlies), Dominique Jones (Mavericks), Cole Aldrich (Rockets), Nolan Smith (Trail Blazers), and Elliot Williams (Trail Blazers).

Odds & Ends: Harden, Gay, Wolves, Mavs, Gibson

October 30th, 2012 at 3:05pm CST by Luke Adams

We're a few days removed from the Rockets' acquisition of James Harden, but that doesn't mean that reaction pieces or additional details have stopped rolling in. Today, Mike Bianchi of the Orlando Sentinel wonders if the Thunder got as much for Harden as the Magic did for Dwight Howard, and DeMar DeRozan talks to Eric Koreen of the National Post about how he, Harden, and other members of the 2009 draft class approach their contract situations. Meanwhile, Ric Bucher of 95.7 The Game hears from one GM that Sam Presti didn't canvass the entire league for the best deal for Harden, presumably since Presti didn't want to create an avalanche of rumors (Twitter link). And finally, Bill Simmons of Grantland adds that Harden and his agent were seeking a 15% trade kicker as part of extension talks with the Thunder.

Now that we've rounded up today's Harden-related links, let's turn to the afternoon's non-Harden notes:

Alex Kennedy of HoopsWorld examines a few players who could be trade candidates between now and the deadline, including Rudy Gay, who Kennedy says would be open to a move.
The Timberwolves have inquired on the recently-waived JaJuan Johnson, but don't figure to be a match, tweets Darren Wolfson of 1500 ESPN Twin Cities.
Dwain Price of the Fort Worth Star Telegram spoke to Mavericks GM Donnie Nelson about a number of topics, including the team's chemistry with so many new players on board.
Extension talks between Taj Gibson and the Bulls are ongoing and are expected to push up against tomorrow's 11:00pm CT deadline, says Ken Berger of CBS Sports (Twitter links).
Scottie Pippen is interesting in eventually becoming a head coach in the NBA, as he told The Waddle & Silvy Show on ESPN 1000 in Chicago (ESPNChicago.com has the details and quotes).
Mark Deeks of ShamSports tweets the details on a pair of contract buyouts: Jordan Williams will receive $420K from Atlanta after being waived by the Hawks, while Keyon Dooling will receive $400K from the Celtics following his retirement.
Dionte Christmas, who was released by the Celtics this month, appears headed for CSKA Moscow, according to Eurohoops.net (hat tip to Sportando).
A Spurs' second-round pick in 2009, Jack McClinton is hoping to earn a spot in the D-League this year and eventually receive an NBA call-up, writes David Pick at Eurobasket.com.

Celtics Pick Up Option On Avery Bradley

October 30th, 2012 at 2:27pm CST by Luke Adams

The Celtics have exercised their fourth-year option on guard Avery Bradley, the team announced today in a press release. The move will ensure that the 21-year-old is on the books for a guaranteed $2.51MM salary in 2013/14.

With Bradley officially under contract for '13/14, the Celtics will receive the opportunity to sign him to a contract extension next offseason. If the two sides don't work out a deal at that point, Bradley will become a restricted free agent in the summer of 2014.

After undergoing surgeries on both his shoulders this offseason, Bradley will miss the start of the season as he continues to rehab. He hopes to return to the court for the Celtics at some point in December.

T-Wolves Exercise Options On Rubio, Williams

October 30th, 2012 at 1:13pm CST by Luke Adams

The Timberwolves have officially announced a pair of moves that won't surprise anyone. Minnesota has exercised its third-year contract options on Ricky Rubio and Derrick Williams, according to the team (Twitter link).

Despite Williams' underwhelming rookie season, the second overall pick's 2013/14 option, worth about $5.02MM, was a lock to be exercised. The same goes for Rubio's $4MM option. Both players will have one more team option on their deals before becoming extension-eligible in 2014 or restricted free agents in 2015.

Rubio continues to rehab an ACL injury that sidelined him for a good chunk of last season, and the point guard isn't expected to be ready to return until at least December. Williams, meanwhile, should get a chance to earn increased minutes early in the season, as starting power forward Kevin Love recovers from a broken hand.

Bulls Pick Up Option On Jimmy Butler

October 30th, 2012 at 12:37pm CST by Luke Adams

The Bulls have officially exercised their 2013/14 option on Jimmy Butler, according to a team release. The move will keep Butler under contract for his third season at $1.11MM.

In addition to their 2013/14 option on Butler, the Bulls hold an additional team option on the 23-year-old for 2014/15, worth about $2.01MM. Assuming the team exercises that option next summer, Butler will be eligible for an extension in the summer of '14, or restricted free agency in the summer of '15.

With Butler's option having been formally exercised, we're still waiting on option decisions on less than 10 players. Follow all the decisions using Hoops Rumors' rookie contract option tracker.

Rockets To Exercise Options On Patterson, Morris

October 30th, 2012 at 12:27pm CST by Luke Adams

12:27pm: Agent Tony Dutt tells Berman that the Rockets will also exercise the option for his client, Marcus Morris (Twitter link).

12:01pm: McCants has received word that the Rockets officially picked up Patterson's option, tweets Berman.

11:55am: Rockets GM Daryl Morey has informed Patrick Patterson's agent, Odell McCants, that Houston will be exercising its 2013/14 option on Patterson, tweets Mark Berman of FOX 26 Houston. The fourth-year option will pay Patterson about $3.11MM in '13/14.

In addition to Patterson's option, the Rockets still have decisions to make this week on two more players for 2013/14. Cole Aldrich has a team option worth about $3.25MM, while Marcus Morris has a third-year option worth about $1.99MM. Houston initially had five pending option decisions, but the team waived JaJuan Johnson and Lazar Hayward, choosing not only to turn down next year's options on both players, but removing from the roster immediately.

To keep tabs on all the offseason's 2013/14 option decisions, check out Hoops Rumors' tracker.

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