2015 January | Hoops Rumors

Jazz Sign Elliot Williams To 10-Day Contract

January 7th, 2015 at 11:29am CST by Chuck Myron

WEDNESDAY, 11:29am: The deal is official, the team announced.

TUESDAY, 11:51am: The Jazz are expected to sign Elliot Williams to a 10-day contract soon, reports Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports. The 25-year-old combo guard is in Salt Lake City to take a physical, Spears adds. The Jazz have 15 players, including Elijah Millsap, who signed a 10-day deal Monday, so the team would need to make a corresponding move if it wants to bring Williams aboard before Millsap’s 10 days are up.

Williams, the 22nd overall pick in 2010, would help shore up a Utah backcourt that’s suffering from the absences of Alec Burks, who’s done for the year, and Patrick Christopher and Rodney Hood, who are out indefinitely. The Sixers let go of Williams just before opening night, but a few days later he became the No. 2 overall pick in the D-League draft. The 25-year-old Thad Foucher client has justified that selection, running up 21.3 points, 7.7 assists and 4.7 rebounds in 37.2 minutes per game for the affiliate of the Warriors in 16 appearances this season.

Christopher and Joe Ingles are the only members of the Jazz on non-guaranteed contracts, and Wednesday is the last day the team can waive them without guaranteeing their salaries for the season. The Jazz have planned to clear multiple roster spots, as Jody Genessy of the Deseret News hears (Twitter links). Utah can let go of Millsap anytime, though the team is responsible for a full 10 days’ worth of salary to him regardless of when the Jazz would cut ties.

Blazers Join Pursuit Of Jermaine O’Neal

January 7th, 2015 at 8:32am CST by Chuck Myron

The Blazers have pitched Jermaine O’Neal on the idea of playing in Portland, but the Mavs remain the front-runners for him, reports Marc Stein of ESPN.com. O’Neal still hasn’t decided whether to play at all this season, though he has a strong connection to the Portland area, according to Stein.

O’Neal lives in greater Dallas and he’s long held aspirations of playing close to home, as Stein wrote last month when he identified the Mavs as the favorites to land O’Neal, a position bolstered when the team traded for Rajon Rondo. The Warriors, Cavs and Clippers also appeared to be in the hunt as of last month, though Stein leaves Golden State out of his latest dispatch.

The 36-year-old center, who played for the Warriors last season, has made it clear that his family will play a key role in his decision-making, which seemingly confirms the Mavs’ status as favorites should he decide to play. O’Neal revealed this week that he’s traveled to Germany to undergo treatments on his knees, seemingly a signal that he’s preparing to make his way back to the court. Dallas president of basketball operations Donnie Nelson said last month that he was confident his team would land either O’Neal or Josh Smith, and shortly thereafter Smith signed with the Rockets.

The Blazers are missing starting center Robin Lopez, who’s likely out for the rest of the month with a broken right hand, and backup big man Joel Freeland is out for at least two weeks with a bruised right shoulder. The team has a full 15-man roster, so it would have to clear a space to sign O’Neal. Portland made O’Neal the 17th overall pick back in 1996, and he played the first four of his 18 NBA seasons with the Blazers.

Emmanuel Mudiay To Stay In China

January 7th, 2015 at 7:57am CST by Chuck Myron

Marquee draft prospect Emmanuel Mudiay plans to stay in China all season, as he and his family have told Chinese media, according to Jonathan Givony of DraftExpress (Twitter link). The point guard recently took part in his first full team practice with China’s Guangdong Southern Tigers after suffering a sprained ankle in November, Givony also tweets. It appeared a month ago that Mudiay was on his way out as the team signed Will Bynum, ostensibly to serve as his replacement. Now, Mudiay says he’s in no hurry to leave China, and the team has no reason to cut him, since the Tigers have to pay his $1.2MM salary either way, Givony notes (on Twitter).

Bynum joined the team on a temporary basis, as the club was to decide whether to keep him based on Mudiay’s recovery and Bynum’s performance. The Tigers are 14-0 since Bynum began playing for them, Givony points out (Twitter link), and the former Pistons point guard is averaging 19.7 points and 6.7 assists per contest. Mudiay hadn’t been making as much progress with the ankle as the team would have liked when Bynum came on board, and there was disagreement over his timetable for a return. Now that Mudiay is practicing again, the team faces a tough decision, since Chinese Basketball Association clubs can only suit up two healthy Americans, and Guangdong employs former Texas A&M Corpus-Christi center Chris Daniels as its starting pivotman.

Mudiay is the No. 2 prospect in the rankings of both Givony and Chad Ford of ESPN.com, and he’s No. 3 in the Hoops Rumors Draft Prospect Power Rankings that our Eddie Scarito compiles. The 18-year-old signed in China after deciding against attending SMU for what would have been his freshman season this year. He put up 17.7 PPG and 5.9 APG while also averaging 6.0 rebounds and 3.1 turnovers in 30.0 minutes per game in his 10 contests with the Tigers before the injury. The ankle injury kept some NBA teams from getting an in-person look at him this year, but that appears poised to change.

Western Notes: Jackson, Ledo, Lakers

January 6th, 2015 at 10:30pm CST by Eddie Scarito

Thunder guard Reggie Jackson was under the impression that he was headed to the Knicks in Monday night’s deal, Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports writes. “I thought I was traded,” Jackson said. “I was just thinking I was going to go home and pack and that was it.” Jackson had heard all the rumors, but said that his nerves were calmed when he didn’t get a call from his agent Aaron Mintz and brother/manager Travis Jackson, Spears adds.

Here’s more from the Western Conference:

The Mavericks have recalled Ricky Ledo from the Texas Legends, their D-League affiliate, Earl K. Sneed of Mavs.com reports (Twitter link). This was Ledo’s seventh trek to the D-League this season.
One of the beneficiaries of the Rajon Rondo trade is Richard Jefferson, who is seeing more playing time with Mavs now that Jae Crowder is in Boston, Tim MacMahon of ESPNDallas.com writes. “He [coach Rick Carlisle] didn’t really have me in the rotation,” Jefferson said. “It was just a matter of me staying a professional and waiting on the opportunity. It was always tough for me just because I’d never been in that situation. Now I’m starting to feel more comfortable and showing that I can do things a little more consistently.”
Lakers president Jeanie Buss sees no benefit in Los Angeles tanking this season, Eric Pincus of The Los Angeles Times writes. “The draft pick [the Lakers owe] to Phoenix, if we don’t give it to them this year, we have to give it to them next year, so I don’t really see what the logic would be,” Buss said. “Try to tank to keep it this year, because we’d just have to give it away next year — that doesn’t resonate with me,” she continued. “I think it’s impossible to tell your coach and tell your players, ‘Try not to win.’ That goes against everything an organization is about.“
The Thunder‘s signing of Anthony Morrow to a team-friendly deal this offseason paved the way for the team to acquire Dion Waiters, Darnell Mayberry of The Oklahoman writes. Morrow’s first-year salary of $3.2MM kept Oklahoma City from triggering a hard cap that likely would have prevented this trade from being made, Mayberry notes.

Pacific Notes: Corbin, Lakers, Wilcox

January 6th, 2015 at 9:27pm CST by Eddie Scarito

Kings GM Pete D’Alessandro confirmed that Tyrone Corbin would indeed coach Sacramento for the remainder of the season, as the GM said in a radio interview Monday on KHTK-AM, Bill Herenda of CSNBayArea.com notes. When Corbin took over for the fired Mike Malone, it was assumed that he would merely be the interim coach, notes Herenda, but the team intended to have Corbin finish out the season all along. D’Alessandro did admit that he spoke with George Karl after Malone was fired, but D’Alessandro said the organization supports Corbin fully, Herenda adds.

Here’s the latest out of the Pacific Division:

The Clippers have assigned C.J. Wilcox to the Fort Wayne Mad Ants of the D-League, the team has announced. This will be Wilcox’s first trip of the season to the D-League, and he is the first player that the Clippers have assigned this season.
Blazers guard Steve Blake still has warm regards for the Lakers, with whom he spent four years of his career before being dealt to Golden State last season, Mark Medina of The Los Angeles Daily News writes. Blake said that he “absolutely” had interest in re-signing with the Lakers this offseason, Medina notes. Blake also relayed that he and the Lakers talked at the beginning of free agency, though Los Angeles was waiting on the decisions of LeBron James and Carmelo Anthony. “As soon as the Blazers made me an offer, I took it pretty quickly,” Blake said. “There were a lot of questions for the Lakers to answer before they could get around to someone like me. I wasn’t the first option. A lot of those things didn’t clear themselves up until it was too late.”
In the same article by Medina, Chris Kaman, who didn’t mesh well with former Lakers coach Mike D’Antoni‘s system, blamed himself for signing with L.A. “I can point fingers all day long. But it was my choice where I went,” said Kaman. “I made the call and thought it would work. I don’t think that Mike D’Antoni purposely tried to [expletive] anybody over. It’s just the way he wants to play people.”
Kaman also blames the Lakers‘ delay while waiting for ‘Melo and LeBron for why he didn’t return to Los Angeles, Medina notes. “Mitch Kupchak [Lakers GM] took forever trying to wait for Carmelo,” Kaman said. “I think that was [executive] Jimmy Buss. They lost a lot of opportunities personally by waiting that long. They lost a bunch of guys that went the other way. My guess is Jimmy said we want to wait for those guys so they can try to make a run at it.”

Eastern Notes: Jackson, Napier, Thomas

January 6th, 2015 at 8:12pm CST by Eddie Scarito

Knicks president Phil Jackson won’t prove that he’s worth the $12MM per year salary that team owner James Dolan is paying him until he lands some meaningful free agents this summer, Ian O’Connor of ESPNNewYork.com opines. The problem for Jackson is that the top free agents are likely to stay with their current teams, O’Connor notes. The best Jackson can hope for is to possibly ink Greg Monroe and Goran Dragic, nice hauls, but not quite championship caliber players, the ESPN scribe adds.

Here’s more out of the East:

The Heat have recalled Shabazz Napier from the Sioux Falls Skyforce, their D-League affiliate, Ira Winderman of The Sun Sentinel reports (Twitter link). This was Napier’s second journey of the season to Sioux Falls.
The Knicks may waive Lance Thomas to create an additional roster spot, Ian Begley of ESPNNewYork.com reports (Twitter link). Thomas, who was acquired in Monday night’s three-way deal with the Cavs and the Thunder, was reported to be the one player whom New York was looking to retain of the three it had garnered in the deal.
With the trade market beginning to heat up, Alex Kennedy of Basketball Insiders looks at the players who are most likely to be dealt prior to the February trade deadline. Players who Kennedy opines could be on the move include Deron Williams (Nets), Jeff Green (Celtics), Andrei Kirilenko (Sixers), and Brandan Wright (Celtics).

Cavs Notes: Mozgov, Waiters, Shumpert

January 6th, 2015 at 7:20pm CST by Eddie Scarito

The Cavs aren’t receiving a “flat no” when they ask the Nuggets about trading for Timofey Mozgov, as Sam Amico of Fox Sports Ohio hears. Cleveland picked up an asset for the future in the form of the Thunder’s protected 2015 first-round in Monday’s trade, and the Nuggets are reportedly drawing closer to the realization that they won’t make the playoffs this year.

Here’s more out of Cleveland:

Dion Waiters was displeased with what he construed as favoritism from Cavs brass toward Kyrie Irving, Amico reports in the same piece.
Iman Shumpert is the player that will benefit the Cavaliers the most from last night’s trade, but his durability remains a question, Terry Pluto of The Northeast Ohio Media Group writes. Pluto also declares Cleveland the clear winner in this trade, considering that it netted Shumpert, J.R. Smith, and a first-rounder, while not giving up that much in return.
Despite their newly acquired personnel, the Cavs haven’t changed all that much, Tom Ziller of SB Nation writes. Shumpert’s reputation as a defender may be inflated, Smith’s volatility could become an issue, and the team did nothing to address its primary weakness–interior defense, Ziller opines.
Waiters didn’t fit with the Cavs’ new, more accomplished and urgent core, and the team dealt him to acquire depth, perimeter defense, and future flexibility, Ethan Skolnick of Bleacher Report writes. The third-year guard wasn’t ready at his age, and at this stage of his career, to make the sacrifices to his game that the team required of him, and his style of play didn’t mesh well with the role the Cavs had placed him in, Skolnick adds.
Entering Monday night’s game, the Cavaliers didn’t have the roster of a team that could contend for an NBA championship, and the Waiters trade didn’t do much to change that, Michael Lee of The Washington Post writes. Until Cleveland acquires a rim protector, its fortunes aren’t likely to change despite the newly acquired players.

Chuck Myron contributed to this post.

Jazz Waive Patrick Christopher

January 6th, 2015 at 6:32pm CST by Eddie Scarito

The Jazz have waived Patrick Christopher, the team has announced. With Utah set to sign Elliot Williams to a 10-day contract, and the Jazz’s roster count at the league-maximum 15 players, the team needed to clear a spot, and Christopher appears to be the player it chose to release. Christopher’s deal was non-guaranteed, so Utah will not be on the hook for any additional salary.

Christopher, 26, spent last season in the D-League, averaging 13.6 points in 33.5 minutes per game while nailing 44.6% of his three-point shots. He averaged 15.0 points in 36.4 MPG, and made 39.0% of his attempts from behind the arc in seven D-League appearances this season.

The 6’5″ guard out of California appeared in four games (including one start) for the Jazz this season, averaging 1.5 points and 1.5 rebounds in 7.3 minutes.

Knicks Notes: Jackson, Anthony, Murry

January 6th, 2015 at 5:30pm CST by Eddie Scarito

Team president Phil Jackson demanded a five-year deal and a promise that owner James Dolan wouldn’t meddle before the Zen Master agreed to join the Knicks this past spring, and that’s looking like a wise bargain from Jackson’s end, as Sean Deveney of The Sporting News believes. Jackson has the leeway necessary for the tear-down he’s undertaking, one that’s necessary for the Knicks to once again contend for titles, Deveney opines.

Here’s the latest out of NYC:

The removal of talent surrounding Carmelo Anthony makes it more likely that the Knicks will have Anthony miss the rest of the season so he can rehabilitate his sore knee, argues Chris Herring of The Wall Street Journal.
While the return that the Knicks received for dealing away J.R. Smith and Iman Shumpert was underwhelming, Jackson made the deal because he and his staff feared that if the Cavaliers got hot as a team, they would potentially lose interest in acquiring those players, Marc Berman of The New York Post writes. Jackson was also afraid that if Smith’s injury lingered, then he would become untradeable, Berman also notes.
Jackson’s first season as team president will be remembered for all the cap room that he cleared, but his true test as an executive will be how he puts it to use this coming summer, Mike Vaccaro of The New York Post writes.
The Knicks’ trade of Smith and Shumpert signifies that the franchise is working toward the future once again, instead of angling for a playoff berth, Brian Mahoney of The Associated Press writes. This feels like a repeat of what transpired six years ago, when the Knicks traded Zach Randolph and Jamal Crawford to set themselves up for a shot at LeBron James in the summer of 2010, a plan that backfired, Mahoney adds.
Toure’ Murry is entering the D-League, and the Knicks‘ affiliate is likely to claim him via the waiver process, Marc Stein of ESPN.com reports (Twitter link). Murry, who was recently waived by the Jazz, appeared in 51 games for New York during the 2013/14 campaign, averaging 2.7 points and 1.0 assist in 7.3 minutes per contest.

Chuck Myron contributed to this post.

Heat Waive Andre Dawkins

January 6th, 2015 at 4:20pm CST by Chuck Myron

4:20pm: The release of Dawkins is official, the Heat announced.

2:02pm: Dawkins’ agent tells Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald that the team has waived his client (Twitter link), though the Heat have yet to make an announcement. John Spencer of 540 Sports and Entertainment represents Dawkins, according to our Agency Database.

12:52pm: The Heat will release Andre Dawkins before the end of Wednesday, when his contract would become guaranteed for the season, reports Shams Charania of RealGM. Dawkins was a surprising presence on Miami’s opening-night roster thanks to his impressive three-point shooting during training camp and the preseason, but he’s appeared in more D-League games than NBA contests during the regular season. His minimum-salary contract is without any guaranteed money, beyond what he’s already earned this year, though that would change if the team kept him past this week’s leaguewide guarantee date. Miami will be responsible only for the money he’s already made, though his entire salary of more than $507K would come off the team’s books if another team claimed him off waivers.

Dawkins went undrafted out of Duke this past summer, but he made 12 of 20 three-point attempts for the Heat’s summer league team, and five of eight during the preseason. He was an eye-popping 41 of 79 from behind the arc in just eight D-League games this year, but he only made one three-pointer in six tries during 22 total regular season minutes for Miami.

The 23-year-old is the only Heat player without any guaranteed money on his contract, as our roster counts show, though Hassan Whiteside has already earned more than his $100K guarantee provided, meaning he’s on a de facto non-guaranteed deal. Most of Justin Hamilton‘s minimum salary is guaranteed, and the club’s other 12 players have fully guaranteed arrangements.

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