2017 July | Hoops Rumors

Blazers’ Stars Recruiting Carmelo Anthony

July 19th, 2017 at 7:18pm CST by ChrisCrouse

The Blazers had interest in acquiring Carmelo Anthony, but the 10-time All-Star reportedly won’t consider waiving his no-trade clause to come to last season’s eighth seed in the Western Conference. Still, that hasn’t stopped Portland’s stars from attempting to change the small forward’s mind, as Jason Quick of Comcast Sportsnet relays.

“I spoke to him,’’ Damian Lillard said of Anthony. “Because obviously he makes us a better team. So obviously with that being out there and being a real possibility, I don’t see why I wouldn’t reach out to him and let him know the interest is mutual if he is interested in us.’’

Lillard added that he wasn’t going to share Anthony’s response, though he said the two needed to speak because bringing the 32-year-old to Portland was something that he and C.J. McCollum would welcome should the opportunity present itself.

McCollum said he spoke to Anthony through a trainer the two share. The shooting guard added that he’ll be in New York this week to train and he will “say hello to [Anthony] if he’s there.”

“If we get him … when we get him … I think we could be top three in the West, easy,’’ McCollum said. “I think he’s interested. Obviously, I feel he wants to play with his team – the Banana Boat friends. I know he wants to play with CP [Chris Paul] and LeBron, and those are good options, but I feel we are a good option.’’

Anthony is reportedly focused on getting to the Rockets and Houston believes they will end up adding him in an offseason where they’ve already Paul. The Knicks and Rockets were looking for other teams to help facilitate a trade and the Blazers were apparently one of those franchises. However, Portland doesn’t want to help Anthony get to a rival Western Conference team, as the organization believes Anthony could be the missing piece to elevate the team into the West’s upper echelon.

Lillard was hoping to convince Anthony of just that, along with assuring him that he’s wanted on the team.

“He’s Carmelo Anthony,’’ Lillard said. “You add another guy who can score 50. Over the last decade, he’s been one of best players in the league. Playing against him he’s a cerebral player. He’s smart. He played in the triangle. I can only imagine what it would be like to have him isolating on one side, and CJ in the corner, and me in opposite wing and Nurk on the opposite … I could only imagine how tough it would be to guard us.

“I want to win a championship. It’s that simple. After my rookie year I’ve been in the playoffs every year and the playoffs are fun … but at this point we need a breakthrough. I’m tired of watching … each year it bothers me more.’’

Mario Chalmers Signs With Grizzlies

July 19th, 2017 at 6:24pm CST by marksuleymanov

July 19: The signing is official, according to a team press release.

July 18: Mario Chalmers is finalizing a one-year, partially guaranteed contract to return to the Grizzlies, as first reported by Adrian Wojnarowksi of ESPN (via Twitter). The 31-year-old made 55 appearances in a Grizzlies uniform during the 2015/16 season before rupturing his right Achilles tendon. Memphis waived Chalmers after he suffered the potentially career-threatening injury.

For seven-and-a-half seasons, Chalmers was the starting point guard for the Heat, helping the team win back-to-back NBA Finals in 2012 and 2013 alongside Dwyane Wade, LeBron James, and Chris Bosh. Miami traded Chalmers in November 2015, sending him along with James Ennis, to the Grizzlies in exchange for Jarnell Stokes and Beno Udrih. In his 55-game cameo with the Grizzlies, Chalmers posted a career-best 10.8 PPG before suffering the injury.

For his career, Chalmers has averaged 9.0 PPG and 3.8 APG in 580 games. If the veteran point guard can regain his pre-injury form, he could provide solid minutes off the bench and championship experience.

Terms of the deal aren’t yet known, but a minimum salary pact appears very likely for Chalmers.

Pelicans Sign Rajon Rondo

July 19th, 2017 at 6:21pm CST by marksuleymanov

JULY 19: Rondo’s one-year deal with the Pelicans will be for $3.3MM, according to Shams Charania of The Vertical (Twitter link). The signing is now official.

JULY 15: The Pelicans have agreed to a one-year deal with veteran point guard Rajon Rondo, league sources tell Shams Charania of The Vertical (Twitter link). Charania’s report adds that the four-time All-Star met with the Pelicans twice (Thursday and Saturday) before reaching an agreement with New Orleans.

After he was waived by the Bulls last month, Rondo drew interest from several teams including the Lakers and Knicks. A late-season surge — that was cut short by an injury in the playoffs — helped Rondo rebuild some of the value he lost in the beginning of last season.

Rondo, 31, spent last season in Chicago where he posted totals of 7.8 PPG, 6.7 APG, and 5.1 RPG in 69 games (42 starts). However, Rondo’s tumultuous stint in Chicago included losing his starting role, a social media feud with former teammates Jimmy Butler and Dwyane Wade, and a seemingly abrupt parting of ways. Rondo originally signed a two-year, $28MM deal with the Bulls but the second year was only partially guaranteed. The Bulls saved $10MM by severing ties with Rondo.

In joining New Orleans, Rondo reunites with DeMarcus Cousins, the Pelicans’ prized acquisition from last season, with whom he teamed in Sacramento during the 2015/16 campaign. In a Christmas Day feature in 2015, James Jones of the Sacramento Bee detailed how strong the bond between the veteran Rondo and emotional-yet-talented center Cousins developed.

“He’s a misunderstood kid,” Rondo said. “I think that’s why I gravitate toward him so much. I love what he’s doing.”

Trading Tim Frazier to the Wizards for a second-round pick left a vacancy that Rondo now fills. It’s likely that Rondo will mostly reprise his role as a reserve for the Pelicans in 2017/18. The team agreed to a five-year, $126MM deal with Jrue Holiday to be the team’s long-term point guard.

Rondo, a former NBA champion with the 2008 Celtics, will give Holiday opportunities to play off the ball and form a potent triumvirate with Cousins and Anthony Davis. Rondo holds the reputation of one of the NBA’s best passers and gives New Orleans strong depth in case of an injury.

Terms of the deal aren’t yet known, but the Pelicans still have most of their mid-level exception available.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Wizards’ Owner Believes John Wall Will Sign Extension

July 19th, 2017 at 5:47pm CST by ChrisCrouse

The Wizards reportedly offered John Wall a four-year, $170MM extension this offseason, though the point guard has yet to sign the agreement. Owner Ted Leonsis believes it’s only a matter of time before Wall commits to the franchise long-term, as Candace Buckner of The Washington Post relays.

“I told everyone that when John was coming off his rookie contract, we would sign him and he would be our bedrock player,” Leonsis said. “…I told everybody that we would keep Bradley Beal, and already everyone is talking about the [Wall] extension. So my prediction is John Wall will sign his extension. He wants to be here and my goal is to have no drama.”

Washington has become a tax-paying team for the first time in franchise history after re-signing Otto Porter to a $106.5MM deal. Leonsis added that he will continue to spend in order to keep the team’s core together.

“I think we’ve proven that we have as much resources and as much tools as anybody in the league and we’re in the tax,” Leonsis said. “We’ll spend whatever we need to get better, but we’re going to get better by keeping our core together and then adding to it.”

Wall entered the offseason knowing that an extension offer could be coming, though he reportedly wanted to see the front office’s plan for the future before committing to a long-term deal. In addition to bringing back Porter, the organization added Jodie Meeks, Mike Scott, and Tim Frazier to a bench unit that was arguably the team’s biggest weakness last season.

Last offseason, the team chased numerous big name free agents with its cap space and handed out lucrative deals to Ian Mahinmi, Jason Smith, and Andrew Nicholson. None of the three made a major impact during the 2016/17 season, but Leonsis believes this offseason’s moves, though not as flashy, will help the team even more.

“This offseason was much more settled,” Leonsis said, “but I think we’ll be much more successful than last year.”

Rockets Sign Luc Mbah a Moute

July 19th, 2017 at 4:46pm CST by ChrisCrouse

July 19: The signing is official, according to the team’s website.

July 16: The Rockets have reached an agreement with Luc Mbah a Moute, sources tell Chris Haynes of ESPN.com (Twitter link). The deal will be a one-year, minimum salary arrangement, according to Michael Scotto of Basketball Insiders.

Mbah a Moute had been in talks with the team about returning to L.A, though the team only had the veteran’s minimum at its disposal. He’ll get that sized deal with Houston after choosing to opt out of a $2.3MM player option in order to hit free agency.

Mbah a Moute has bounced around the league since the Bucks selected him in the second round of the 2008 draft. He played well in the Clippers’ starting lineup last season, shooting 50.5% from the field on 378 attempts while providing excellent defense.

Celtics Sign Kadeem Allen To Two-Way Deal

July 19th, 2017 at 4:19pm CST by ChrisCrouse

The Celtics have signed Kadeem Allen to a two-way deal, according to a team press release. Allen is the first player to sign that type of deal with the franchise.

Players on two-way deals will spend most of their season in the G-League since they cannot spend more than 45 days with an NBA club, as our glossary page on two-way contracts shows.

Allen, who was the No. 53 overall selection in the 2017 draft, came out of the University of Arizona where he earned Second Team All-Pac 12 honors last season. He played for both of Boston’s Summer League teams this offseason.

Free Agent Notes: Lawson, Hansbrough, Buycks

July 19th, 2017 at 3:58pm CST by Luke Adams

Although he appeared to be on the verge of signing a contract with China’s Shanxi Brave Dragons, free agent point guard Ty Lawson remains on the market, agent Larry Fox tells HoopsHype. According to Fox, Lawson has received interest from several teams in China, and has reciprocated that interest and had some discussions with those clubs. However, the 29-year-old has also drawn interest from NBA teams and is still weighing his options, per Fox.

As we wait to see where Lawson lands, here are a few more free agent notes:

Former lottery pick Tyler Hansbrough has reached an agreement to join China’s Guangzhou Lions, sources tell international basketball journalist David Pick (Twitter link). Sportando first reported that Hansbrough was expected to make the move to China. The former UNC standout has appeared in 428 career regular season NBA games, but didn’t catch on with a team for the 2016/17 season.
Veteran guard Dwight Buycks broke off negotiations on a two-year contract with Olympiacos in order to pursue NBA opportunites, tweets David Pick. Buycks, who last played a regular season NBA game in 2015 with the Lakers, was said to be drawing interest from the Knicks earlier this month.
Having reached an agreement to sign Rajon Rondo after signing Jrue Holiday to a lucrative new contract earlier in the month, the Pelicans envision the two guards playing side by side. As William Guillory of The Times-Picayune details, New Orleans head coach Alvin Gentry said during a radio appearance this week that his plan for now is to start Rondo at point guard with Holiday at the two. Rondo’s deal with the Pelicans is expected to be finalized soon.

Jazz Sign Royce O’Neale

July 19th, 2017 at 3:47pm CST by Luke Adams

JULY 19, 3:47pm: The Jazz have officially signed O’Neale, per the NBA’s transactions log.

JULY 17, 10:21am: Former Baylor forward Royce O’Neale has opted out of his Euroleague contract with Lithuanian club Zalgiris Kaunas, according to international basketball journalist David Pick (Twitter link). Pick suggests he’s hearing “rumblings” of an NBA contract agreement between O’Neale and the Jazz, while Chema De Lucas of Gigantes Del Basket tweets that O’Neale will get a three-year contract from Utah, with a fully guaranteed first year.

There has been no confirmation out of Utah yet on an agreement between the Jazz and O’Neale, but we heard last week that the 24-year-old was considering multiple NBA offers and had to exercise the opt-out in his Euroleague contract by July 20.

O’Neale, who went undrafted in 2015, played one season in Germany before joining Spanish team Gran Canaria for 2016/17. In 35 Spanish League games with the team, O’Neale averaged 7.5 PPG and a team-high 5.0 RPG. The Texas native played for the Warriors’ Summer League squad in 2016, and was part of the Pelicans’ Summer League team this year.

The Jazz, who have yet to finalize all their free agent signings for the month, should have the cap room necessary to accommodate a three-year deal for O’Neale.

Nuggets Sign Torrey Craig To Two-Way Contract

July 19th, 2017 at 3:38pm CST by ChrisCrouse

JULY 19: The Nuggets have officially signed Craig to a two-way contract, the team announced today in a press release.

JULY 16: The Nuggets and Torrey Craig have agreed to a deal to add the small forward to the team, Orazio Cauchi of Sportando reports. The deal will be a two-way contract, according to Chris Dempsey of the Denver Post (Twitter link).

Players on two-way deals will spend most of their season in the G-League since they cannot spend more than 45 days with an NBA club, as our glossary page on two-way contracts shows.

Craig, who has had an impressive Summer League for Denver’s squad, played abroad over the last several seasons. He earned the NBL Best Defensive Player Award as well as All-NBL Second Team honors while playing for the Brisbane Bullets during the 2016/17 season.

Community Shootaround: Remaining RFAs

July 19th, 2017 at 2:28pm CST by Luke Adams

While most of this year’s top free agents have found new homes – or returned to their old ones – the restricted free agent market still features several interesting names. Nikola Mirotic (Bulls), JaMychal Green (Grizzlies), Mason Plumlee (Nuggets), Alex Len (Suns), and Nerlens Noel (Mavericks) remain unsigned.

A year after 27 teams dipped below the salary cap and used cap space to sign players, less than half the league’s teams did so this year, and many of those clubs have since used up all their cap room. That means that there aren’t many teams left with the spending power necessary to offer the remaining RFAs the sort of contracts they may believe they’re worth.

Clubs like the Nets, Suns, Bulls, and Hawks still have some flexibility to make aggressive offers to restricted free agents if they so choose, but none of those clubs appears to be actively pursuing anyone at the moment.

If no offer sheets are on the table for a given restricted free agent, and his team is unwilling to finalize a deal without letting the market set the price, it could create a holding pattern capable of dragging on through the summer and into the fall.

If an RFA is willing to bet on himself, he could sign his one-year qualifying offer, play out the season, and become an unrestricted free agent a year from now. The deadline for teams to withdraw qualifying offers has passed, so none of these players are in immediate danger of having their QOs pulled. Still, so far this year, no one has been willing to sign that one-year offer.

Of course, the idea of accepting the qualifying offer has varying appeal depending on the player. For instance, Green’s QO is worth a fairly modest $2,820,497, meaning he may be less inclined to sign that one-year offer than someone like Mirotic, whose QO is worth $7,228,063.

What do you think? Are the Nets or Hawks lurking with an offer sheet for any of these restricted free agents? Will they all return to their current teams? Will any of them sign their qualifying offers? Which of these RFAs would you be most inclined to pursue if you were running a team?

Jump into the comments section below to weigh in with your thoughts!

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

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