2014 September | Hoops Rumors

Cavs Notes: Bogans, LeBron, Marion

September 26th, 2014 at 6:32pm CST by Eddie Scarito

The Cavaliers held their media day today, and there was more buzz around the team than in any recent year. LeBron James is back in town, joining holdovers Kyrie Irving, Dion Waiters, and Tristan Thompson, and the recently acquired Kevin Love. The front office has also surrounded LeBron with a slew of veteran reserves in their efforts to bring a championship to the city of Cleveland, and to convince both James and Love to stick around the Cuyahoga River area. Here’s some notes from the day’s events:

The acquisition of Keith Bogans was about “contract flexibility,” Cavs GM David Griffin said today, tweets Chris Haynes of the Plain Dealer. That suggests that the team values him more as a trade asset than as a player, though that’s just my speculation.
When asked if Cleveland would have been a free agency option for him if LeBron wasn’t part of the package, Shawn Marion said, “No. I’m going to be honest. No,” tweets Dave McMenamin of ESPNLosAngeles.com.
Marion also said that James wasn’t enough to sell him on the Cavs, Ramona Shelburne of ESPNLosAngeles.com relays (Twitter link). It was the trade for Love that tipped the scales for Marion, according to Shelburne.
When discussing luring free agents to Cleveland, Griffin said, “You couldn’t have a better recruiter than LeBron James,” Jason Lloyd of the Akron Beacon Journal relays (Twitter link).

Chuck Myron contributed to this post.

Pelicans Sign Vernon Macklin For Camp

September 26th, 2014 at 5:12pm CST by Chuck Myron

SEPTEMBER 26TH, 5:12pm: The signing is official, New Orleans announced courtesy of a press release.

SEPTEMBER 12TH, 10:13am: Macklin signed his deal this week, just as new teammates Dionte Christmas and Kevin Jones did, according to the RealGM transactions log, though the Pelicans haven’t made any formal announcement.

SEPTEMBER 8TH, 8:06am: Power forward Vernon Macklin will join the Pelicans for camp on a non-guaranteed contract, reports Shams Charania of RealGM (Twitter link). Macklin has played in the D-League, the Philippines, Turkey and China after a 23-game stint with the Pistons in 2011/12.

The 27-year-old spent summer league with the Magic this year, averaging 5.4 points and 3.6 rebounds in 15.6 minutes per contest. He saw just 5.9 minutes per game during his regular season time with Detroit, which drafted him 52nd overall in 2011. It appeared as though he drew interest from multiple NBA teams after the Pistons allowed him to hit unrestricted free agency in the summer of 2012, but there’s otherwise been little chatter about him formally rejoining the NBA until now.

New Orleans offers Macklin a decent shot to make the opening-night roster, since the Pelicans only have 12 fully guaranteed contracts. The 6’10” big man would nonetheless have to beat out Luke Babbitt, Darius Miller, Patric Young or some combination of the three, all of whom have partial guarantees.

Pelicans Sign Dionte Christmas

September 26th, 2014 at 5:09pm CST by Alex Lee

SEPTEMBER 26TH, 5:09pm: The deal is official, the Pelicans announced via a press release.

SEPTEMBER 12TH, 10:06am: Christmas has inked his contract, according to the RealGM transactions log, though the Pelicans haven’t made a formal announcement.

SEPTEMBER 11TH, 9:39am: The deal covers one year, as Charania writes in his full story.

SEPTEMBER 10TH, 5:31pm: The Pelicans have reached an agreement with free agent guard Dionte Christmas, reports Shams Charania of RealGM (via Twitter). The Temple product was waived by the Suns in late July before his minimum salary for 2014/15 became fully guaranteed. Last season was the first in which Christmas saw any regular season NBA action, when he averaged 2.3 points and 6.4 minutes over 31 appearances with Phoenix.

Christmas, who turns 28 on September 15, played overseas for several seasons after going undrafted in 2009 but latched on with Phoenix after a strong summer league performance last season. The financial terms of this accord have yet to be disclosed, but it’s worth noting that Christmas has received more than the standard non-guaranteed training camp deal in each of the past two seasons, first with the Celtics in 2012 and again with the Suns last year.

The Pelicans have added Jimmer Fredette, Russ Smith, Darius Miller and John Salmons to their mix in the backcourt and on the wing this summer, all of whom Christmas figures to be competing with in training camp. Miller and Smith (and rookie big man Patric Young) are on partially guaranteed deals. New Orleans already has 12 players on fully guaranteed contracts for the 2014/15 season.

Pelicans Sign Kevin Jones For Camp

September 26th, 2014 at 5:06pm CST by Chuck Myron

SEPTEMBER 26TH, 5:06pm: The deal is official, the team announced in a press release.

SEPTEMBER 12TH, 10:10am: The Pelicans and Jones have signed the deal, as the RealGM transactions log shows. The team hasn’t made an official announcement just yet, however.

9:34am: It’ll indeed be a non-guaranteed contract for Jones, tweets Shams Charania of RealGM.

SEPTEMBER 8TH,9:27am: Former Cavs power forward Kevin Jones will attend training camp with the Pelicans, as he tells Caleb Wygal of The (Beckley. W.Va.) Register-Herald. The precise terms of the deal are unclear, but it seems likely to be a non-guaranteed arrangement, just like the one the Pelicans reportedly gave Vernon Macklin.

An impressive performance in summer league helped put the 25-year-old back on the NBA map, as he averaged 10.0 rebounds per game for the Pacers squad, more than anyone else in the Orlando summer league. He saw slightly fewer minutes per appearance with the D-League Select Team in the Las Vegas summer league, but his rebounding production was cut in half, to 5.0 per contest. Jones averaged 3.0 points and 2.4 rebounds in 10.4 minutes per game across 32 appearances for the Cavs in 2012/13, and he split this past season between Cleveland’s D-League affiliate and the San Miguel Beermen of the Philippines.

The additions of Jones and Macklin give the Pelicans agreements with 17 players, 12 of whom have fully guaranteed deals and three of whom have partial guarantees. Jones appears to be competing directly against Macklin and Patric Young, whose contract is partially guaranteed for $55K, for one of the final regular season roster spots.

Spurs Sign Josh Davis

September 26th, 2014 at 3:07pm CST by Eddie Scarito

SEPTEMBER 26TH: The deal is official, the team announced in a press release that set the training camp roster.

AUGUST 28TH: It’s a two-year deal for the minimum salary that’s partially guaranteed for $20K this season, tweets Eric Pincus of Basketball Insiders.

AUGUST 26TH: The Spurs have signed free agent Josh Davis, according to the RealGM.com transactions log. The 6’8″ power forward out of San Diego State wasn’t selected in this June’s NBA Draft, but he was projected to be a possible late second round pick. Though terms of the agreement weren’t released, it is a non-guaranteed, multi-year deal, most likely for the rookie minimum, and similar to the deals that Bryce Cotton and JaMychal Green signed with the team.

Davis’ signing would raise the current Spurs preseason roster count to 17. Davis will most likely be competing for the 15th and final regular season roster spot.

The 23-year-old played for three colleges, beginning with North Carolina State as a freshman, when he put up 2.6 points and 1.7 rebounds in 10.4 minutes per game. During his sophomore and junior seasons spent at Tulane, Davis averaged 17.6 PPG and 10.7 RPG. During his senior year with the Aztecs, his numbers slipped to 7.7 PPG and 10.1 RPG. His slash line for this past season was .455/.000/.472.

Heat Sign Chris Johnson For Camp

September 26th, 2014 at 3:02pm CST by Chuck Myron

FRIDAY, 3:02pm: The deal is official, the team announced via press release.

THURSDAY, 12:57pm: The Heat are expected to add former LSU center Chris Johnson to their camp roster, reports Ira Winderman of the Sun Sentinel (Twitter link). Johnson is not to be confused with the Celtics swingman by the same name. The Heat are limited to giving out only the minimum salary to the three-year veteran, though since the team has only been carrying 11 fully guaranteed deals, there’s a decent chance that Johnson’s contract will include a small partial guarantee.

Guaranteed money didn’t help Johnson stick with the Timberwolves for opening night last year, as Minnesota waived him and his minimum salary at the end of training camp. He went to China to play with Zhejiang Guangsha instead, and but he nearly made it back to the NBA with the Kings in March before a failed physical scuttled his deal with Sacramento. The 6’11” Johnson also reportedly worked out for Charlotte earlier that month.

The addition of the 29-year-old Johnson will bring the Heat to a full 20-man preseason roster. Four players have partial guarantees in addition to the 11 fully guaranteed members of the Heat, while veterans Shannon Brown and Reggie Williams are among those who’ll be in Miami’s camp without any guaranteed salary, making for tough competition.

Spurs Sign John Holland For Camp

September 26th, 2014 at 2:58pm CST by Chuck Myron

The Spurs have signed former Boston University shooting guard John Holland, the team announced in a press release that set the training camp roster. San Antonio has plenty of flexibility to exceed the minimum salary, but it’s almost certain the team hasn’t done so here, and the deal is most likely only partially guaranteed, if that.

Holland has spent his three years as a pro playing in Europe after NBA teams passed on him in the 2011 draft, bouncing from France to Spain and back to France again for last season. He’s nonetheless been a member of three NBA summer league teams in the past two years, joining the Thunder and Heat in 2012 and the Timberwolves last summer. The 25-year-old scored 10.6 points in 27.4 minutes per game for Gravelines in France this past season, making 33.3% of his three-point attempts.

The signing gives San Antonio 19 players for camp, but 15 of them have fully guaranteed contracts. That means it’ll be an uphill battle for Holland to stick, and he’ll have to compete against Bryce Cotton, Josh Davis and JaMychal Green, all of whom have diminutive partial guarantees.

Bulls Sign Kim English, Ben Hansbrough

September 26th, 2014 at 2:44pm CST by Chuck Myron

The Bulls have signed one-year NBA veterans Kim English and Ben Hansbrough, the team announced via press release. The team is limited to giving out the minimum salary, and while it’s unclear whether there’s any guaranteed salary involved for either of them, it’d probably be nominal guarantees at best for the guards.

Hansbrough worked out for the Pistons and Lakers within the past month or so, while English was part of a large-scale Nets workout early in the offseason that seemed more geared toward summer league. The 2012/13 season is the only year that each has spent on an NBA regular season roster, with Hansbrough averaging 7.2 minutes per game for the Pacers that year while English saw the floor for 9.9 MPG in 41 appearances for the Pistons, who drafted him 44th overall in 2012. The 26-year-old Hansbrough, who went undrafted in 2011, spent this past season playing for Gran Canaria in Spain, while English, also 26, was with Italy’s Montepaschi Siena last year.

The additions give Chicago 17 players for camp. E’Twaun Moore has a partial guarantee for the 13th spot on the roster, likely leaving Hansbrough and English to compete against Nazr Mohammed and Solomon Jones to impress the team enough to keep them instead.

Bulls Sign Solomon Jones

September 26th, 2014 at 2:25pm CST by Chuck Myron

2:25pm: The signing is official, the team announced via press release.

1:40pm: The Bulls have struck a deal with eight-year NBA veteran Solomon Jones, according to his representatives at the Priority Sports agency (Twitter link). It’s a one-year deal for the minimum, as Shams Charania of RealGM confirms (on Twitter). Both the agency and Charania indicate that the 6’10” center has already put pen to paper, but the team has yet to make an official announcement. It’s not clear whether there’s any guaranteed money involved. Still, given the 13 deals with at least some guaranteed money that the team is already carrying and Chicago’s reluctance to keep more than the NBA-minimum 13 players for opening night in recent years, Jones’ salary is probably non-guaranteed.

Jones appeared in 11 games with the Magic early last season before the Magic waived him rather than guarantee his salary for the rest of the year. The 30-year-old played for the Knicks D-League affiliate after Orlando let him go, and he also traveled to play in a second-tier Chinese league during the summer. He managed only 1.3 points and 1.5 rebounds in 7.7 minutes per game for Orlando last season, and he’s never seen more than 13.9 minutes per game in any one NBA season.

The Bulls have a well-stocked frontcourt with Joakim Noah, Pau Gasol, Taj Gibson and Nikola Mirotic, and Nazr Mohammed is probably the favorite if the team retains a player on a non-guaranteed contract, so it’s tough to envision Jones lasting long in Chicago. The team has a dozen fully guaranteed pacts, while E’Twaun Moore‘s deal is partially guaranteed for $425K.

Spurs Re-Sign Aron Baynes

September 26th, 2014 at 2:13pm CST by Chuck Myron

2:13pm: The deal is official, the team announced via press release.

1:35pm: The contract will be worth $2.1MM, according to Marc Stein of ESPN.com (Twitter link), so he didn’t sign the qualifying offer. San Antonio likely used its Early Bird rights with Baynes to facilitate the deal and preserve its mid-level and biannual exceptions.

FRIDAY, 1:25pm: It’s a fully guaranteed deal for one year, tweets Shams Charania of RealGM. That leaves open the possibility that Baynes signed his qualifying offer, worth about $1.115MM, but it remains unclear whether that’s the case.

THURSDAY, 8:26am: Not long after the most prominent of the two lingering restricted free agents re-signed with his team, it appears the other one will follow suit. Aron Baynes is in San Antonio for a physical and is expected to put pen to paper on a new deal with the Spurs, reports Buck Harvey of the San Antonio Express-News (Twitter link). Both he and Eric Bledsoe had remained in restricted free agency for almost the entire offseason before Bledsoe re-signed with the Suns Wednesday. The terms of the deal for Baynes are unclear.

The Spurs appeared to maintain a consistent interest in re-signing the Entersport client even as they eyed others, and Baynes also appeared to want to continue to play in San Antonio even as he considered overseas options. San Antonio was reportedly open to a sign-and-trade with another NBA team, and China’s Shanghai Sharks jumped into the running for the 27-year-old center, but neither possibility appeared to gain much traction.

Baynes played a limited role for the Spurs after originally signing with the club midway through the 2012/13 season. He averaged 3.0 points and 2.7 rebounds in 9.3 minutes per game last season, and he only made it into 14 of San Antonio’s 23 playoff games en route to the title this spring, hitting the floor for 7.2 MPG in the postseason.

If Baynes has a fully guaranteed deal, it will presumably mean San Antonio’s regular season roster is set, since the team has been carrying 14 fully guaranteed pacts. The Spurs had been among the teams in pursuit of Ray Allen, while they’d also reportedly worked out veteran free agents Jamaal Franklin, Hakim Warrick, and a host of others, including Michael Beasley, who wound up committing to sign with the Grizzlies. A guaranteed deal for Baynes would likely forestall a deal with any other free agent deserving of guaranteed money, and it would make it more difficult for JaMychal Green, Bryce Cotton or Josh Davis to remain with the team come opening night on their partially guaranteed contracts.

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