2015 July | Hoops Rumors

Heat Rumors: Napier, Ennis, Johnson, Outlook

July 26th, 2015 at 1:47pm CST by Arthur Hill

Shabazz Napier, who is reportedly being dealt to the Magic, was the Heat’s best player during summer league, according to Ira Winderman of The Sun Sentinel. Summer provided the first chance for Napier to really showcase his skills after his rookie campaign was interrupted by a series of injuries, including a sports hernia that ended his season early. While Miami officials were publicly praising Napier’s performance during the summer, they were looking to trade him to provide relief from the luxury tax. He will make about $1.3MM next season, with a team option for 2016/17. Napier was the third-string point guard in Miami, and Winderman expects him to fill that same role in Orlando, being slotted behind Elfrid Payton and C.J. Watson. The columnist also examines Miami’s remaining roster and the salary status of each player.

There’s more news from Miami:

The next important deadline for the Heat will come Saturday, tweets Barry Jackson of The Miami Herald. James Ennis and Tyler Johnson will have half their salaries for next season guaranteed if they are still on the roster August 1st (See the Hoops Rumors Schedule of Contract Guarantees). Both are scheduled to make $845K. Jackson also notes that luxury tax obligations are based on team payroll at the end of the season (Twitter link). The Heat will have plenty of time to move more salary if they can’t find another deal right away.
Former Nets executive Bobby Marks tweets that today’s trade helps Miami in two ways: by trimming the team’s tax obligation and opening a roster spot. He believes there is a good chance Johnson becomes the third-string point guard.
The Heat have rebuilt quickly after losing LeBron James and have the pieces in place to be a contender in the East, contends Tim Cato of SB Nation. He argues that an improved bench and a full season from Goran Dragic will make the Heat dramatically better, especially if Hassan Whiteside proves he can handle being a full-time NBA center.

Youssou Ndoye, Spurs Agree To Camp Deal

July 26th, 2015 at 11:19am CST by ChrisCrouse

The Spurs will sign Youssou Ndoye for training camp, according to Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo Sports (Twitter link). The expectation is that the center will play for San Antonio’s D-League affiliate, the Austin Spurs.

The St. Bonaventure product was reportedly willing to sign overseas and become a draft-and-stash prospect had an NBA team selected him in last month’s draft. He had worked out for several teams, including San Antonio, but he was not selected.

Ndoye has a lot of upside as former Nets executive Bobby Marks tweets. He played for the Spurs in this year’s summer league in Vegas. The big man averaged 3.17 points and 0.5 blocks in just 9.4 minutes per game. With such low minute totals, perhaps the Spurs didn’t want to showcase the center’s upside in the summer league and risk another team swooping in to offer him an NBA deal, although that is just my speculation.

Larry Drew II To Play In France

July 26th, 2015 at 9:43am CST by ChrisCrouse

Larry Drew II has signed a deal with AS Monaco Basket in France, according to David Pick of Eurobasket.com (Twitter link). The point guard played for the Pelicans in this year’s summer league.

Drew II signed two 10-day contracts with the Sixers in January of last season, but was not re-signed for the remainder of the year. Philadelphia was pleased with the production it received from the University of California product, but the team didn’t want to tie up an additional roster spot before the trade deadline.

“Flexibility,” coach Brett Brown said last season when asked why the team didn’t sign Drew for the rest of the 2014/15 campaign. “The trade deadline is coming up, and we need flexibility. We may see [Larry] again. Who knows? What I do know is he was an ‘A’. He did everything and some, and it doesn’t prohibit us from revisiting him [in the future] at all.”

The 25-year-old has shown play-making ability, but his inconsistent jumper needs improvement if he is going to have a career in the NBA. He averaged 3.8 points and 3.8 assists while shooting 15.4% from behind the arc during his 12 games as a Sixer last year.

Celtics Notes: Randolph, Rozier, Ainge

July 26th, 2015 at 9:01am CST by ChrisCrouse

Earlier in the week, the Celtics agreed to a training camp deal with Levi Randolph, who appears willing to play for the team’s D-League affiliate. You can check out all of the moves that were made last week in our Week In Review page.

Here’s more from Boston:

Terry Rozier‘s motor was a major factor in the Celtics selecting him in the first round, Chris Forsberg of ESPN.com writes. “We had him in for two workouts. And he came in on his second workout and he had been to 18 different workouts. He still had a burst and a desire and a drive that was not going to be thwarted by fatigue. Here’s a guy that had been all over the country, had every reason to be less than his best, but just was striving to get what he ultimately wanted and that’s to be not only an NBA player, but to be a good NBA player,” coach Brad Stevens said.
Rozier joins Marcus Smart and Avery Bradley to give the Celtics a trio of defensive-minded guards. Despite the overlap in skills, President of Basketball Operations Danny Ainge believes they made the right call with the No. 16 overall pick, Ian Thomsen of NBA.com writes. “We were picking the best guy available,” said Ainge of his unpredicted investment in Rozier. “I like tough guys that can defend. In order to win playoff games you’ve got to have guys that can match up with the [Stephen] Currys and Kyrie Irvings and James Hardens – there’s a lot of really good offensive players. Our three guys are really good defenders, and I think their offense is progressing.”
Rozier, R.J. Hunter and Jordan Mickey are all likely to be on Boston’s opening day roster, Thomsen adds in the same piece.

Nets Rumors: Boatright, King, Brown, Value

July 25th, 2015 at 10:48pm CST by Arthur Hill

Ryan Boatright has improved his chances of making the Nets with a strong summer league performance, according to Don Amore of The Hartford Courant. After being passed over in this year’s draft, the rookie from Connecticut signed with Brooklyn for $1.4MM over two years, with $75K guaranteed if he stays on the roster past August 1st. Boatright, who is hoping for an invitation to training camp, played in both the Orlando and Las Vegas summer leagues, averaging 14.1 points, 2.2 assists and 23 minutes per game. When Brooklyn waived Deron Williams, that may have opened a space for Boatright. Coach Lionel Hollins said the rookie is a “candidate” for the third point guard slot, but added, “I don’t know who else we’ll bring to camp.”

There’s more news out of Brooklyn:

GM Billy King accomplished nearly all of his goals for the offseason, writes Mike Mazzeo of ESPN.com. He was able to re-sign Brook Lopez and Thaddeus Young, lessen the burden of Williams’ contract, avoid the luxury tax and make the team younger and more athletic. By settling with Williams for $27.5MM of the $43.3MM that was owed to him, Brooklyn was able to save an estimated $40MM to $50MM in luxury tax payments for next season and create an additional $17MM in cap space for next offseason. Mazzeo estimates the Nets could have $40MM in cap space next summer, enough to chase the league’s top free agents.
Hollins raved about the summer league performance of Markel Brown, according to Kathryn Przybyla of NBA.com. The second-year player was the team’s top scorer in Las Vegas, averaging 15.8 points in five games. “This year he came out, made an impact on the game, made shots and made plays,” Hollins said. “That’s how you get noticed, by coming out and helping your team win.” Brown is under the Nets’ control through the 2016/17 season.
The Nets are ranked No. 24 on Forbes’ list of the most valuable sports franchises, mainly due to the league’s new TV contracts with ESPN and TNT, according to Norman Oder of the Atlantic Yards/Pacific Park Report. The Nets are valued at $1.5 billion after failing to make the Top 50 list last year when they were valued at $770MM, Oder continues. That’s why it’s a good time for minority owner Forest City Enterprises to be selling the 20% share of the team owned by Nets Sports & Entertainment.

Dana Gauruder contributed to this post.

Western Notes: Mejri, Asik, Jordan, Suns

July 25th, 2015 at 9:43pm CST by Arthur Hill

The Mavericks have made a three-year offer to Tunisian center Salah Mejri, tweets Marc Stein of ESPN.com. The 7’1″ Mejri didn’t see much playing time last season with Real Madrid, but Dallas wants to find out if he can succeed at the NBA level. Mejri has the physical tools, according to David Pick of Eurobasket.com, who cites his energy, mobility and “giraffe length” (Twitter link). Mejri was recently released by Real Madrid and is reportedly leaning toward trying the NBA.

There’s more news from the Western Conference:

Back spasms will prevent the Pelicans‘ Omer Asik from competing for the Turkish team in Eurobasket 2015, according to John Reid of The Times Picayune. Even though he has to miss the September competition, there are no worries that the back problem will affect Asik when the Pelicans open camp. The center recently signed a five-year, $58MM deal to remain in New Orleans, although only the first four seasons are guaranteed at nearly $45MM.
The Clippers‘ DeAndre Jordan knows it will take time for the controversy surrounding his free agency change of heart to die down, writes Dan Woike of The Orange County Register. Jordan, who committed to the Mavericks before staying in Los Angeles, understands the hard feelings in Dallas. “It’s absolutely not behind me,” he said. “I think over time, it will be. Just, there are people making this out like I committed some huge crime, like I’m an enemy of the state.” Jordan said he chose the Clippers because he wants to be associated with just one team during his NBA career.
The Suns‘ offseason moves could make them a dark horse playoff contender in the West, according to Cody Taylor of Basketball Insiders. The addition of Tyson Chandler gives the team a rim protector and a veteran leader, Taylor writes. Also, the trade that sent Marcus Morris, Reggie Bullock and Danny Granger to the Pistons cleared more than $8MM in cap room and created more playing time for T.J. Warren and Archie Goodwin, who both were impressive in summer league play.

Northwest Notes: Marshall, Blazers, Thunder

July 25th, 2015 at 8:34pm CST by Arthur Hill

Coach/executive Flip Saunders said the Wolves have had no conversations with Kendall Marshall, tweets Jon Krawczynski of the Associated Press. Minnesota has been rumored to have interest in the free agent guard, whose 2014/15 season was cut short by an ACL tear.

There’s more this evening from the Northwest Division:

It wasn’t entirely by choice, but the Blazers are adopting a youth movement this offseason to build for the future, writes Gary Washburn of The Boston Globe. Faced with the reality that free agent LaMarcus Aldridge might depart, Portland began targeting young talent. The team signed Ed Davis, Al-Farouq Aminu, Phil Pressey and Cliff Alexander, and traded for Maurice Harkless, Mason Plumlee and Noah Vonleh. Add in draftee Pat Connaughton and there are a lot of fresh, young faces on Portland’s roster. “I know for myself and the coaching staff, it’s going to be a fun year,” said coach Terry Stotts. “There’s a lot of young talent and I think it’s really exciting for them. We’ve got a lot of guys who are looking for the opportunity to get more playing time and show what they can do in the league.”
Andre Roberson could be cut out of the Thunder’s rotation entirely if he fails to win a starting job, speculates beat writer Anthony Slater in a roundtable for The Oklahoman. Slater’s theory is that if Dion Waiters or Anthony Morrow is the starter, Roberson’s role on the second unit could be seized by Cameron Payne or Kyle Singler. Roberson is slated to earn more than $1.2MM next season, with a team option for nearly $2.2MM in 2016/17.
The Thunder didn’t make any flashy offseason player acquisitions, but they shouldn’t be overlooked as contenders, writes Zach Harper of CBSSports.com. Oklahoma City’s major moves were the hiring of coach Billy Donovan and the re-signing of Enes Kanter and Singler, but an injury-free year from Kevin Durant and Serge Ibaka would put the Thunder back in the title race.

Kings Rumors: Stojakovic, Divac, Jackson

July 25th, 2015 at 7:31pm CST by Arthur Hill

Former Sacramento All-Star Peja Stojakovic has received an offer to join the organization’s front office, according to Marc Stein of ESPN.com. VP of basketball and franchise operations Vlade Divac reportedly asked Stojakovic to assist him in a player personnel role. Stojakovic worked as a consultant to Divac during summer league, Stein notes. Divac and Stojakovic were teammates on the Kings and in international play.

There’s more out of Sacramento:

The Kings may have to wait few weeks for Stojakovic’s decision, tweets Jason Jones of The Sacramento Bee. “I asked him to join me,” Divac said, “and in September we’ll probably know.”
Another former Divac teammate could be in line for a job, according to Sam Amick of USA Today (Twitter link). Divac is reportedly trying to convince ex-Kings guard Bobby Jackson to accept a role with the organization.
Sacramento has taken some ridicule for its offseason moves, but Steve Kyler of Basketball Insiders argues that the organization is daring to be great. The Kings have formed a potentially unstable mix by adding free agent Rajon Rondo and coach George Karl to an unhappy star in DeMarcus Cousins, who has been the subject of trade rumors, but Divac contends that every move is about building a winner. The team assembled its newly signed free agents on a private plane to summer league games in Las Vegas and emphasized the need for everyone to put aside personal interests and do what’s best for the franchise.

Southeast Notes: Dudley, Beasley, Haslem, Daniels

July 25th, 2015 at 6:28pm CST by Arthur Hill

Jared Dudley said in a recent interview with Grantland’s Zach Lowe that he would have considered the Wizards in free agency if he had opted out of his contract, writes Ben Standig of CSNWashington.com. Dudley, who was also considering a return to Phoenix, was traded from Milwaukee to Washington earlier this month and said the Bucks didn’t show much interest in retaining him if he had opted for free agency. Dudley surprised many when he opted in for $4.25MM next season before the trade, but he used the case of the still-unsigned J.R. Smith to explain his reasoning. “I wanted to opt out,” Dudley said. “The whole thing was to opt out. At the same time, you never want to opt out — you want to have a deal in place or at least have a backup plan.” Dudley underwent surgery Tuesday for a herniated disk in his lower back and is expected to be out of action for three to four months.

There’s more news from the Southeast Division:

Michael Beasley could have a chance to make the Heat roster if he is willing to come to camp without a guaranteed contract, contends Ira Winderman of The Sun Sentinel. The columnist sees Zoran Dragic as a “lock” to earn a roster spot because of his brother, Goran, while Josh Richardson‘s potential combined with a small contract gives him a good chance as well. Winderman adds that based on Beasley’s Instagram account, he is clearly taking another shot at the NBA.
At 35, the Heat’s Udonis Haslem is giving no thought to retirement, according to Jason Lieser of the Palm Beach Post. “I feel fine,” Haslem said. “I feel like I could go three or four more years depending on how Coach might need to use me or what the situation might be.” Haslem’s workload was down again in 2014/15, logging less than 1,000 minutes for the second straight season. However, he may be called on more often next year, especially if backup center Chris Andersen gets moved to help avoid the repeater tax. Haslem’s spot on the roster is secure, as he is signed for a guaranteed $2.9MM.
Nobody questions the shooting ability of the Hornets‘ Troy Daniels, but he’ll have to do more than that to earn a secure spot in the NBA, writes Fran Blinebury of NBA.com. The 24-year-old is already on his third team, and Charlotte coach Steve Clifford said the guard’s “physical development” will be key to his NBA future. “I’ve wanted to see him add weight and gain strength, which I think will help him at both ends of the floor,” Clifford said. “He can shoot the ball from long range. He has a good feel of how to play. Right now, in order to take advantage of the skills he has worked on, he has to get stronger.”

Emmanuel Mudiay Signs With Nuggets

July 25th, 2015 at 4:59pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Nuggets have signed No. 7 overall pick Emmanuel Mudiay, as Mudiay revealed on his Twitter account. The team hasn’t made a formal announcement, but it did tacitly acknowledge the signing on Twitter.

Courtesy of USA TODAY Sports

Mudiay can receive a maximum of $3,102,240 in the upcoming season and $3,241,800 in 2016/17 with a total of $14.02MM over the next four seasons, as our chart of likely salaries for first-round picks shows. The point guard, who played in China last season after originally committing to SMU, was expected to be a top-five pick leading up to the draft before he slipped to the Nuggets’ spot in the lottery.

With veteran Jameer Nelson the only other viable option on the roster, Mudiay is expected to be the team’s starting point guard in his rookie season. As GM Tim Connelly told Christopher Dempsey of the Denver Post, the main concern with Mudiay is not playing him too much.

“I think it’s certainly a slippery slope,” Connelly said. “If you look at a lot of the elite players, they were thrown to the wolves early. Their early failures led to big-time success down the road. There’s going to be nights when Emmanuel is going to look like a 19-year old, and hopefully there’s nights where he looks like one of the elite point guards in the league. But we’re not going to put too much pressure on him. We’re going to kind of let it happen organically. And having a guy like Jameer [Nelson] behind him makes the transition that much easier.”

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