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Eastern Notes: Teague, Hunter, McRae, Scott

October 28th, 2016 at 5:42pm CST by Eddie Scarito

Pacers point guard Jeff Teague, who was acquired this summer from Atlanta, is a big fan of the Pacers’ new up-tempo attack, Jim Ayello of The Indianapolis Star relays.  “We were just trying to set the tempo,” said Teague, who notched 20 points and helped guide Indiana to a season-opening 130-121 overtime victory against the Mavs. “Trying to get the crowd into the game a little bit. That’s how we have to come out. We have to come out ready to play, and we did. We’re going to be able to get up and down. We’ve got a lot of talented players, so we can get to the basket, penetrate and kick anytime.”

Teague shot just 5-15 from the field, but was dealing with a cut finger he sustained in the first half, Ayello notes. “I thought he [Teague] did some good things,” coach Nate McMillan said after the game. “He established that tempo for us early, pushing the ball. Something happened with his finger and I think that was a distraction and he started to miss a few shots. Overall I thought he did a nice job.”

Here’s more from the Eastern Conference:

  • R.J. Hunter, who signed with the Bulls after being waived by the Celtics, said it took him a day to get over being cut and that a number of GMs around the league told him that he needs to improve his strength if he wants to be successful in the league, K.C. Johnson of The Chicago Tribune relays (on Twitter). The shooting guard also noted that he was thankful for Chicago’s interest, calling the team’s support “surreal,” Johnson adds.
  • Despite a strong preseason, Jordan McRae didn’t see any action in the Cavs‘ season opening rout of the Knicks. With the team reportedly looking for a taker for the shooting guard and having other roster needs to address, this will make it difficult for Cleveland to land more than a future second round pick for the player, as he is still an unknown quantity in the NBA, Sam Amico of AmicoHoops.net writes.
  • Hawks forward Mike Scott will be unavailable for Saturday’s contest against the Sixers due to a sore right knee, Chris Vivlamore of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports. Scott has been limited in training camp due to the knee issue and also missed Thursday’s season opener against the Wizards, the scribe notes. It’s unclear when the veteran will be able to return to the court for Atlanta.
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Bulls Pick Up Options On McDermott, Portis, Grant

October 28th, 2016 at 4:01pm CST by Eddie Scarito

The Bulls announced via press release that they have exercised their fourth-year option on Doug McDermott and the third-year options for Jerian Grant and Bobby Portis. McDermott will earn $3,294,994 in 2017/18, Portis will be on the books for $1,516,320 and Grant will earn $1,713,840 as a result of their options being picked up by Chicago.

McDermott appeared in 81 games last season after appearing in only 36 contests during his rookie season. The forward out of Creighton owns career averages of 7.5 points and 2.0 rebounds while shooting 44.5% from the field overall, 41% from beyond the three-point line and 82.8% from the charity stripe. McDermott was selected with the No. 11 overall in the 2014 NBA Draft and came to the Bulls in a draft-night deal with the Nuggets.

Grant was the No. 19 overall pick in the 2015 Draft by the Knicks, who acquired the selection in a trade with the Hawks. In his rookie year, Grant played in 76 games and posted averages of 5.6 points, 1.9 rebounds and 2.3 assists in 16.6 minutes per game. His 78% free-throw percentage ranked sixth among all rookies.

Portis appeared in 62 games during the 2015/16 season. In his rookie year, he became the first Bull to record 20 points and 10 rebounds in one of his first five career games since 1999. He averaged 7.0 points, 5.4 rebounds and 0.8 assists in 17.8 minutes per game while shooting 42.7% from the field, 30.8% from behind the arc and 72.7% from the free-throw line.

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Grizzlies Exercise 2017/18 Option On Jarell Martin

October 28th, 2016 at 3:21pm CST by Luke Adams

The Grizzlies have exercised their third-year team option on Jarell Martin, locking in his salary for the 2017/18 season, the team announced today in a press release. The move comes three days before the October 31 deadline for decisions on ’17/18 rookie-scale options.

Martin, 22, was the 25th overall pick in the 2015 draft, and appeared in just 27 games for the Grizzlies in his rookie season. The 6’10” power forward averaged 5.7 PPG and 3.2 RPG in 14.1 minutes per contest for the Grizzlies, upping those marks to 15.0 PPG and 6.0 RPG (in 28.9 MPG) in 10 games for the D-League’s Iowa Energy.

Despite Martin’s modest production in his rookie season, it makes sense for the Grizzlies to exercise his 2017/18 option, given its price. The LSU product will make just $1.342MM, after earning $1.286MM this season. He’ll have another team option for 2018/19, and would be eligible for restricted free agency in the summer of 2019 if he plays out his rookie contract.

Martin’s option was one of two the Grizzlies had to exercise or decline this fall, but the team made its other decision early — Jordan Adams was waived by the club during its preseason cutdown, eliminating his 2017/18 option from his contract.

The full breakdown of this year’s rookie scale option decisions can be found right here.

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Bogut Explains Decision To Join Mavs Over Rockets

October 28th, 2016 at 2:41pm CST by Luke Adams

Andrew Bogut wasn’t a free agent this summer, but he did have some agency when it came to deciding his new team. Multiple reports throughout the offseason indicated that the Warriors could have sent Bogut to a number of different teams in a salary-shedding trade to clear cap room for Kevin Durant. Golden State reportedly allowed the former first overall pick to pick his destination from a list of clubs that included the Mavericks, Rockets, and the Sixers, and Bogut chose Dallas.

According to Tim MacMahon of ESPN.com, Bogut viewed the Mavericks as the best fit for him, and wanted to land with a team he could potentially re-sign with in 2017. The veteran center cited culture, coaching, and his agent’s familiarity with the Mavs as reasons why Dallas made more sense than Houston, per MacMahon.

“I’m not saying Houston has a bad culture by any means, but my agent (David Bauman) has a familiarity here,” Bogut said. “I’ve known a lot of players that have been pretty happy here when they were here. Richard Jefferson was one of them. And then the city — I like the city, so it all made sense.

“Rick Carlisle is also one of the best coaches in the league,” Bogut continued. “He knows how to get the best out of his players. He’s very, very smart and makes great adjustments. He’s a guy you want to play for. Obviously, [Mike] D’Antoni is a pretty good coach, too, but probably not suited for my style of play. I would have probably had to drop about 20 pounds to play in his system. They play a tough system, get up and down the court.”

Bogut, who is in a contract year, said back in September that he would have asked for a buyout if he ended up with a team besides the Mavs. However, he clarified those comments today, walking them back slightly by saying a buyout would have been “an option” and not necessarily something he would have forced. As MacMahon details, Bogut also said he was referring to “a different team, not Houston,” when he talked about that option. The Sixers were likely the club in question.

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Cavaliers Rumors: Shumpert, Point Guards, Jack

October 28th, 2016 at 1:49pm CST by Luke Adams

A report last Friday suggested that the Timberwolves and some other teams have inquired about the availability of Iman Shumpert, and weren’t exactly rebuffed by the Cavaliers. Although it’s true that Cleveland is answering the phone, the team isn’t actively looking to move Shumpert, a team source tells Joe Vardon of Cleveland.com. Vardon adds that Shumpert would only be dealt for a player who improves the Cavs.

While it may simply be a matter of semantics, at least one NBA general manager was surprised to read that the Cavs aren’t “actively” shopping Shumpert, according to Sam Amico of AmicoHoops.net, who says a GM texted him about the report. “Guess I’m not sure what actively means,” the GM said. “That’s news to me and probably about six other (team executives).”

While the Cavs mull their options with Shumpert, let’s check out a few more items out of Cleveland…

  • Cleveland is believed to be in the market for a backup point guard, and veteran free agent Jarrett Jack looks like a decent fit, but the club only has a “passing interest” in Jack, a league source tells Amico.
  • Within his previously-linked mailbag, Vardon is asked about free agent point guards Jameer Nelson and Andre Miller as possible targets for the Cavaliers. Per Vardon, there are no indications that either Nelson or Miller is receiving interest from the team. The Cleveland.com scribe suggests Rockets guard Patrick Beverley is a possible trade target worth keeping an eye on, but adds that the Cavs will play Shumpert and DeAndre Liggins behind Kyrie Irving for now.
  • Having played for Canada this summer in a bid to earn a spot in the Olympics, Cavs big man Tristan Thompson was disappointed that several of his fellow countrymen weren’t on the roster, and hopes they’ll join the team for future competitions. Jason Lloyd of the Akron Beacon Journal has the quotes from Thompson, along with the details on how the experience helped him.
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Stein’s Latest: Blazers, Gay, Noel, Rubio, Cousins

October 28th, 2016 at 1:00pm CST by Luke Adams

Within his latest column at ESPN.com, Marc Stein offers up 10 “fearless predictions,” forecasting 20 triple-doubles this season for Russell Westbrook, a win total in the low-60s for the Warriors, and a single player (James Harden) leading the league in both points and assists per game. A few of Stein’s predictions for the 2016/17 league year also relate to player movement, so let’s dive in and round up the highlights…

  • Many “league observers” believe that the Trail Blazers‘ aggressive spending this offseason was more about collecting assets than anything else, says Stein. Portland has an excess of wings and big men, and is considered the team most likely to make a trade this season, according to the ESPN scribe. It would certainly make sense for the Blazers to move one of their bigger long-term contracts — they already have nearly $130MM in guaranteed money on their cap for next year (2017/18).
  • Stein suggests he expects Rudy Gay (Kings), Nerlens Noel (Sixers), and Ricky Rubio (Wolves) to be dealt at some point this season. All three players have been the subject of plenty of trade rumors so far in 2016.
  • While he’s less confident about a DeMarcus Cousins trade, Stein says that February figures to be dominated by trade speculation about the Kings big man. As Stein notes, Sacramento is “determined” to contend for the playoffs this season, so if the team remains in the hunt in February, perhaps Cousins stays put. But if the Kings hang onto him, they’ll have to be confident they have a chance to re-sign him, since his trade value would take a hit in the final year of his contract, Stein writes.
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Players Who Can’t Be Traded Until December 15

October 28th, 2016 at 11:42am CST by Luke Adams

On Thursday, we examined the list of players who can’t be traded by their current teams until at least January 15. Those players all meet a certain specific set of criteria, having re-signed with their own teams using Bird rights or Early Bird rights and received a raise of at least 20%. However, that list is small compared to the list of players whose trade eligibility will return on December 15.

If a player signed a free agent contract with an NBA team this offseason, the CBA’s rules prevent him from being traded until three months after the signing or December 15, whichever is later. So if a player was signed prior to September 16 and doesn’t meet the criteria noted above for our list of January 15 players, he’ll become trade-eligible on December 15.

With teams generally looking to take stock of their rosters and where they stand in their respective conference over the first several weeks of the season, few clubs will get serious about exploring the trade market until mid-December anyway. Once this summer’s free agent signees become trade-eligible, teams will have more options and greater flexibility.

Listed below are the players who won’t become trade-eligible until December 15, sorted by team…

Atlanta Hawks

Boston Celtics

Brooklyn Nets

Charlotte Hornets

Chicago Bulls

Read more

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Cap Details: Sixers, Heat, Pelicans, Warriors

October 28th, 2016 at 10:13am CST by Luke Adams

With regular-season rosters now set, Bobby Marks of The Vertical and Eric Pincus of Basketball Insiders have been working hard to update details for recent signings, cuts, guarantee dates, and other aspects of the salary cap. Listed below are a few of their latest reports, which we’ve included in our latest updates of our own 2016/17 salary cap snapshots. Let’s dive in…

  • Dionte Christmas recently signed a contract with the Sixers that allowed the team to secure his D-League rights. Although he was waived almost immediately after signing that deal, Christmas landed a $50K guarantee from Philadelphia, per Marks and Pincus.
  • Filling in the blanks on a summer trade, Pincus tweets that the Heat sent $400K to the Pelicans in the deal that saw Luke Babbitt land in Miami.
  • According to both Marks and Pincus, the following players received increased guarantees for surviving preseason roster cuts: Dorian Finney-Smith (Mavericks) now has a $150K guarantee, Rodney McGruder (Heat) has a $300K guarantee, and John Jenkins (Suns) has a fully guaranteed $1.051MM salary.
  • Meanwhile, both Marks and Pincus now list Joffrey Lauvergne‘s $1.71MM salary with the Thunder as fully guaranteed. It was previously believed to be partially guaranteed.
  • According to Marks, Matt Costello got $31.5K guaranteed from the Grizzlies, Lamar Patterson received a $100K guarantee from the Kings, and JaVale McGee has a $250K partial guarantee from the Warriors. Marks indicates that McGee’s guarantee will increase to $500K if he’s still under contract through December 1.
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Kevin Garnett Discusses Consultant Role With Cavs, Bucks

October 28th, 2016 at 8:54am CST by Luke Adams

TNT’s Inside the NBA crew welcomed Kevin Garnett to the network last night, as the future Hall-of-Famer (Twitter link) joined Ernie Johnson, Charles Barkley, Kenny Smith, and Shaquille O’Neal on the studio show. While Garnett has a new gig as a special contributor for TNT, he continues to explore other opportunities as well, according to Adrian Wojnarowski of The Vertical, who reports (via Twitter) that KG is talking with multiple teams – including the Cavaliers and Bucks – about a “coaching consultant” role.

Following Garnett’s retirement announcement earlier this year, we heard that the longtime NBA big man was drawing interest from teams like the Cavs and Clippers for a potential coaching job. However, it sounds like any team that hires Garnett this year wouldn’t expect him to take on a full-time role, given his commitment to TNT.

As Wojnarowski details, it’s even possible that Garnett could be hired by more than one NBA team. In that scenario, KG would make “periodic stops” into various NBA cities to work with certain players, league sources tell Wojnarowski (Twitter link).

Garnett, who turned 40 in May, had been under contract with the Timberwolves as a player for this season, but made the decision in September to call it a career. Minnesota waived him at that point, leaving his $8MM cap hit on the team’s books, but freeing him up to explore new opportunities.

During training camps, Garnett was spotted spending some time with the Clippers and old friend Doc Rivers. Though KG didn’t join the team in an official capacity, Rivers suggested at the time that he certainly had room for the former Celtic on his staff. “I’m going to offer him something,” Rivers said. “I don’t want to say too much right now. I just know he’d be a great asset to any team.”

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Pacific Notes: Cousins, Suns, Kings, Clarkson

October 27th, 2016 at 10:33pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Kings center DeMarcus Cousins appears to be bonding with new coach Dave Joerger, a stark contrast to his well-publicized issues with former coach George Karl, according to Jason Jones of the Sacramento Bee. Cousins expressed to Jones that they like each other, adding he appreciates Joerger’s straightforward approach and even-keeled personality. “I think what he brought to the team is what this team needed,” Cousins told Jones. “It fits our identity more than how we played in the past. Not to knock any of the previous situations but I think this situation fits this team the best.” Cousins’ relationship with his new coach will carefully watched, particularly if the season starts to go sour once again in Sacramento.

In other developments around the Pacific Division:

  • Suns coach Earl Watson will insert a pair of rookies, point guard Tyler Ulis and power forward Dragan Bender, into the second unit to replace veterans Leandro Barbosa and P.J. Tucker, Paul Coro of the Arizona Republic reports. Watson decided to make the change after an opening-night loss to the Kings. They will join Brandon Knight, fellow rookie Marquese Chriss and Alex Len on that unit, Coro adds. “To me, they play with the most heart,” Watson told Coro. “Heart gets rewarded.”
  • The Kings’ brass told NBA Commissioner Adam Silver they want to host the 2020 All-Star Game, Scott Howard-Cooper of NBA.com tweets. No formal application has been made but their desire to host that game was made clear as Silver toured the Kings’ new Golden 1 Center, Howard-Cooper adds.
  • Combo guard Jordan Clarkson is not fazed by his new role as the Lakers’ sixth man, Tania Ganguli of the Los Angeles Times relays. The former starter had 23 second-half points and three steals in their opening-night win over the Rockets. “He’s been absolutely great,” Walton told Ganguli. “I’ve talked to him about starting or coming off the bench; he’s been good with both. It’s nice to have guys like that on your team.” 
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