Month: November 2024

Atlantic Notes: Lin, Nets, Valanciunas, Miller, Raptors, Jackson, Celtics

July 18th, 2017 at 6:37pm CST by Joshua Fischman

Jeremy Lin boldly stated that his Nets will make the playoffs this upcoming season while answering questions from fans in an Instagram Live video, relays A.J. Neuharth-Keusch of USA Today Sports.

“We’re making the playoffs. I don’t care what anybody else says to me,” said Lin. He went on to say, “We’re gonna do some serious damage next year… I’m pretty sure he’ll (D’Angelo Russell) start (at shooting guard), but it will be pretty interchangeable. And then when one of us is out of the game, the other person most likely will have the ball in their hands. It will probably be a little bit combo guard-esque.”

This offseason the Nets have added Russell, as well as DeMarre Carroll and Timofey Mozgov. Brooklyn will be coming off a season in which it finished 20-62, dead last in the NBA standings. Lin played in just 36 games due to injury, but averaged a furtive 14.5 PPG to go with 5.1 APG and 3.8 RPG. Furthermore, Lin managed to put up those strong numbers in a mere 24.5 minutes per contest.

Raptors president Masai Ujiri addressed rumors that the team is trying to unload center Jonas Valanciunas, via Josh Lewenberg of The Sports Network. Ujiri said that he believes in Valanciunas’ talent and values his offensive rebounding. While admitting that the team looked at trading Valanciunas when they were in the tax, the team is now “very comfortable” keeping JV.
Raptors guard Malcolm Miller underwent right ankle surgery, the team announced via press release (link via Twitter). Miller is expected to miss the next 12 weeks. He signed the team’s first two-way contract on July 9.
Also via Josh Lewenberg of The Sports Network, the Raptors president says the team will “add a couple of different players. Maybe they’re non-guarantees, I don’t know.”
The Celtics employed a creative use of the stretch provision on the contract of Demetrius Jackson, reports Bobby Marks of ESPN. A day prior to waiving the former Notre Dame guard, Boston exercised the 2019/20 non-guaranteed team option on Jackson. This allowed Boston to stretch the contract over seven years rather than five, lowering the cap hit per year to $92,857 instead of $130,000.

Knicks Notes: Hardaway, Porzingis, Draft, Perry

July 18th, 2017 at 5:38pm CST by Joshua Fischman

Knicks president Steve Mills had an aggressive plan that ultimately snared Tim Hardaway Jr., writes Newsday’s Al Iannazzone. Mills claims he reached out to Hardaway just after midnight on July 1. While Hardaway says that he didn’t hear from the Knicks until a few days into free agency, it is clear that Mills aggressively pursued the former Knick.

“We felt like there are not that many opportunities in free agency that you have the opportunity to go after a 25-year-old. We made the decision that if you want to pry a restricted free agent away from the incumbent team, you have to be aggressive. So we made a decision to be aggressive,” Mills said.

Reportedly, the Knicks brass believed that the Hawks would be willing to offer $45MM for four years, so Mills and company needed to be “aggressive” and offered $71MM over four years. Although Hardaway has started just 62 of 281 games in his career, Mills believes that he is a starting shooting guard in the NBA.

“As we look at the numbers, we believe Tim is a starting two-guard in this league. Our trajectory for him is to be a starting two- guard, the capability of being a starting two-guard for the rest of his career. And those guys average 16, 16.5 million dollars today. So that’s how we came to the decision,” the Knicks president said.

Here’s what else you should know regarding the Knicks:

Also in Iannazzone’s Newsday piece, Mills speaks to his relationship with team cornerstone, Kristaps Porzingis. “Kristaps and I have a hectic texting relationship. I continue to text Kristaps over the summer and he and I have spoken two or three times over the summer,” Mills said. Phil Jackson confirmed he was fielding trade offers for Porzingis around the draft, but since Jackson left the team, the Knicks have stated that they will build around the Latvian center.
By going young this season, the Knicks could score big in the 2018 NBA Draft, writes Adam Zagoria of FanRag Sports Network. If Carmelo Anthony is dealt, the Knicks could enter full-scale rebuilding mode, possibly setting them up for the first overall pick in the next draft. Zagoria mentions Michael Porter Jr., DeAndre Ayton, Mohamed Bamba, Luka Doncic, and Marvin Bagley as potential targets if the Knicks were to land the top selection.
In a press conference, Mills spoke about new GM Scott Perry‘s role with the team, relays Steve Popper of USA Today. “I’m going to give Scott the room to make basketball decisions and make recommendations to me,” Mills said. “He’s going to have a chance to manage the coaching staff, manage the scouting staff, and make recommendations as to where we should go as a basketball organization. I think we’ll be partners in that in the sense that he’ll come to me with his recommendation and we’ll debate it back and forth. But at the end of the day, I’m giving him the room to make those decisions.” Mills also emphasized that the goal is for the Knicks to be a younger, more athletic team, while head coach Jeff Hornacek stressed hustle and defense as the lynchpins of the new team.
Mills said that, if he were in charge, he “would’ve selected Frank [Ntilikina] at that point in the draft myself,” per Marc Berman of The New York Post. Mills continued, “He’s a guy that fits in everything that we’re talking about right now. He’s a smart basketball player. He focuses defensively and his approach to the game, his work ethic, fit exactly in the direction that we want to take this team.”

Agent: Noel ‘Very Disappointed’ With Mavericks Negotiations

July 18th, 2017 at 4:36pm CST by Joshua Fischman

Nerlens Noel and the Mavericks remain far apart in contract negotiations, reports Eddie Sefko of The Dallas Morning News. The 23-year-old big man is a restricted free agent, and as such, the Mavs can match any offer another team might tender for Noel’s services.

“We’re very disappointed with where things stand. Nerlens loves Dallas and spent June there working out, but we’re still waiting on a serious offer,” said Happy Walters, Noel’s agent.

For his part, Mavs owner Mark Cuban is unwilling to provide any details about the negotiations.

Sefko points out that 13 Mavericks currently have guaranteed contracts, meaning that only two roster spots remain. After the 76ers traded Noel to the Mavs in late February, he played 22 games, averaging 8.5 PPG and 6.8 RPG in 22.0 MPG, shooting a strong 57.5% from the floor. Noel, known for his defense, also posted 1.1 BPG and 1.0 SPG. Down the stretch, Noel’s minutes were lowered, so that the Mavs could get a look at up-and-coming players, as well as keep their win total down.

According to Sefko, Noel has limited options. He could accept whatever the Mavericks offer, despite these numbers not being to Noel’s liking. Noel could also sign the Mavs’ qualifying offer, which is about $6MM, and will remain on the table until October 16. Finally, the big man could sign an offer sheet with another team that has sufficient salary cap space.

Since none of these possibilities appear imminent, Sefko concludes that a continuation of the standoff between Noel and the Mavs is very likely. The stalemate could last well into the summer.

Raptors Sign Kennedy Meeks

July 18th, 2017 at 3:29pm CST by Luke Adams

JULY 18: The Raptors have officially signed Meeks, the team announced today in a press release.

JUNE 23: The Raptors have struck a deal with undrafted rookie Kennedy Meeks, reports Shams Charania of The Vertical (via Twitter). According to Charania, Meeks will sign a partially guaranteed contract with Toronto. The deal can’t become official until after the 2017/18 league year begins.

Meeks, 22, averaged 12.3 PPG and 9.4 RPG during his senior year at North Carolina. The 6’9″ center was viewed as a top-100 prospect by Jonathan Givony of DraftExpress, who had Meeks at No. 92 on his big board.

Although he wasn’t drafted on Thursday night, Meeks will have a chance to attend training camp with the Raptors, making him the third UNC player to find a new NBA home this week. Meeks’ former Tar Heels teammates Justin Jackson and Tony Bradley were both first-round picks, going to the Kings and Jazz, respectively.

The Raptors came away from Thursday night’s draft with OG Anunoby, who isn’t expected to be fully healthy to start the 2017/18 season.

Raptors Sign C.J. Miles

July 18th, 2017 at 3:26pm CST by Luke Adams

The Raptors have officially signed free agent swingman C.J. Miles, the team announced today in a press release. Miles’ deal with Toronto was originally reported more than a week ago, though when the story first broke, it appeared it would be a sign-and-trade. Instead, the Raptors have signed Miles outright.

“C.J. is an exceptional shooter and adds versatility to our perimeter game,” Raptors president Masai Ujiri said in a statement. “We are excited to add a player with experience level to our core group.”

Initial reports on Miles’ three-year, $25MM agreement with the Raptors suggested that Cory Joseph would be headed to Indiana in the swap. However, because Miles’ deal reportedly includes a third-year player option, it wasn’t eligible for a sign-and-trade — contracts in a sign-and-trade must run at least three years without options.

In order to get around that CBA restriction and to clear the salary necessary to bring Miles aboard, the Raptors sent Joseph to Indiana in a separate deal, and will sign Miles using their mid-level exception. Toronto would have faced a hard cap for 2017/18 either way, as we explained earlier today.

Miles, 30, will will help provide depth and outside shooting on a Raptors team that lost P.J. Tucker and DeMarre Carroll this summer. A 12-year veteran, Miles is coming off another productive season — in 76 games for the Pacers, he averaged 10.7 points and 3.0 rebounds, and shot a career-best 41.3% on three-pointers. He will be getting a nice raise from the $4.58MM he earned in 2016/17.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Trade Notes: Carmelo, Blazers, Celtics, Drummond

July 18th, 2017 at 2:51pm CST by Luke Adams

The Knicks put Carmelo Anthony trade talks on hold last week, but that decision is likely temporary, according to Chris Mannix of The Vertical, who suggests that the team wanted to get new general manager Scott Perry involved in the process. The Knicks reportedly hope that Anthony will be willing to expand his list of preferred destinations beyond Houston and Cleveland, but there has been no indication yet that the star forward is open to going to a team like the Trail Blazers, despite alleged interest from Portland.

According to Mannix, the Trail Blazers have been involved in Anthony talks, but have primarily been acting as a third-team facilitator in discussions so far. Per Mannix’s report, an inability to find a fourth team willing to take on Meyers Leonard‘s contract stalled “at least one version” of the proposed deal.

Anthony’s preferred destination is believed to be Houston, and given his no-trade clause, the fact that Carmelo is willing to accept such a deal is a good start for the Rockets. However, GM Daryl Morey will still have to get the Knicks and potentially one or two other teams on board in order to land Anthony, which is why the situation remains in a holding pattern for now.

Here are a few more trade rumors and notes from around the NBA:

Within the Vertical piece linked above, Chris Mannix notes that it’s “widely believed” the Celtics will make a run at Anthony Davis if the Pelicans‘ season goes south. New Orleans has been vehemently opposed to considering Davis deals, and while it’s possible that will change if the team struggles this season, DeMarcus Cousins would almost certainly land on the trading block first.
According to Tim Bontemps of The Washington Post, many teams around the NBA sensed this offseason that Pistons coach and president Stan Van Gundy was dissatisfied with center Andre Drummond. Detroit took calls on Drummond, but team owner Tom Gores is a big fan of the 23-year-old, and the Pistons didn’t receive any offers strong enough to merit a serious conversation about the big man’s future, per Bontemps.
Appearing on The Bill Simmons Podcast, Jimmy Butler confirmed that he left a June exit meeting with Bulls brass believing that he’d remain in Chicago. “I thought I was going to be there so I’m not going to say word for word what they said, but when I left there I did think I was going to be there,” Butler said, per Joe Cowley of The Chicago Sun-Times. “But like I said, it’s a business and it is what it is.”

Spurs Sign Joffrey Lauvergne

July 18th, 2017 at 1:05pm CST by Luke Adams

JULY 18, 1:05pm: The Spurs have officially signed Lauvergne, the team confirmed today in a press release.

JULY 10, 2:00pm: The Spurs have reached a two-year contract agreement with free agent big man Joffrey Lauvergne, reports Shams Charania of The Vertical. The news comes on the heels of the Bulls withdrawing Lauvergne’s qualifying offer, making him an unrestricted free agent, which will allow him to sign outright with San Antonio.

Lauvergne, a second-round pick in 2013, made his NBA debut for the Nuggets in 2014 and spent two years with the franchise before being sent to the Thunder in a trade last August. He was flipped again at this year’s trade deadline, heading to Chicago as part of a trade package in a deal that saw Oklahoma City land Taj Gibson and Doug McDermott.

Lauvergne, a 6’11” forward/center, looked like a player on the rise in 2015/16, averaging 7.9 PPG and 4.9 RPG with a .513 FG% in 59 games (17.6 MPG) for the Nuggets. However, he took a step backward last season. For the year, he recorded just 5.4 PPG and 3.6 RPG with a .440 FG% in 70 contests.

Despite his very modest production for the Bulls down the stretch, Lauvergne initially received a qualifying offer worth about $2.14MM from the team, which made him a restricted free agent. However, Chicago apparently decided that the big man wasn’t in the team’s long-term plans, allowing him to reach the open market with no restrictions over the weekend.

While details of the Spurs’ agreement with Lauvergne aren’t yet known, the club already used its full mid-level exception on Rudy Gay, leaving the $3.29MM bi-annual exception and the minimum salary exception for other free agents. San Antonio had been in need of some frontcourt depth, with Dewayne Dedmon, David Lee, and Pau Gasol all on the free agent market, though Gasol is expected to re-sign.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

NBA Teams With Hard Caps For 2017/18

July 18th, 2017 at 12:12pm CST by Luke Adams

The NBA salary cap is somewhat malleable, with various exceptions allowing every team to surpass the $99.093MM threshold when that room is used up. In some cases, teams blow past not only the cap limit, but the luxury-tax limit as well, with clubs like the Cavaliers, Warriors, and Trail Blazers going well beyond that tax line this year.

The NBA doesn’t have a “hard cap” by default, which allows those clubs to build significant payrolls without violating CBA rules. However, there are certain scenarios in which teams can be hard-capped. When a club uses the bi-annual exception, acquires a player via sign-and-trade, or uses more than the taxpayer portion of the mid-level exception, that club will face a hard cap for the remainder of the league year.

When a team becomes hard-capped, it cannot exceed the tax apron at any point during the rest of the league year. Under the new CBA, the tax apron is set at the point $6MM above the luxury tax line. For the 2017/18 league year, the tax line is at $119.266MM, so the apron – and the hard cap – is at $125.266MM.

So far this year, six teams have imposed a hard cap on themselves by using the bi-annual exception, using the non-taxpayer mid-level exception, or acquiring a player via sign-and-trade. Listed below are those six teams, along with their current salary situation. Team salaries are estimations, since not all contracts have been finalized, and we don’t know the exact figures on all those salaries.

Los Angeles Clippers

How they created a hard cap: Acquiring Danilo Gallinari via sign-and-trade. Using non-taxpayer mid-level exception to sign Milos Teodosic and Jawun Evans.
Approximate team salary: $120MM
Breakdown: The Clippers still have some non-guaranteed salary on their books, but even if they were to cut those contracts, they’d need to fill out their 15-man roster somehow, so they appear likely to stay over the tax line, despite losing Chris Paul. They’ll fill out their roster with minimum salary players and will have somewhat limited flexibility in trades unless they dump some salary at some point.

Houston Rockets

How they created a hard cap: Using non-taxpayer mid-level exception to sign P.J. Tucker and Zhou Qi. Using bi-annual exception to sign Tarik Black.
Approximate team salary: $119MM
Breakdown: The Rockets acquired Chris Paul before the new league year began in order to hang onto their mid-level and bi-annual exceptions, and made full use of them. Like the Clippers, the Rockets have some non-guaranteed salary that could be removed from their cap to sneak under the tax line, but they don’t appear concerned about that for now. It will be interesting to see if their hard cap limits their flexibility at all when it comes to adding a highly-paid player like Carmelo Anthony.

Toronto Raptors

How they created a hard cap: Using non-taxpayer mid-level exception to sign C.J. Miles.
Approximate team salary: $118MM
Breakdown: Dumping the salaries of DeMarre Carroll and Cory Joseph allowed the Raptors to use their full mid-level exception, which gave them the opportunity to land a talented swingman like Miles. Toronto was originally planning to acquire Miles via a sign-and-trade, but either approach would have hard-capped the club.

Detroit Pistons

How they created a hard cap: Using non-taxpayer mid-level exception to sign Langston Galloway and Eric Moreland. Using bi-annual exception to sign Anthony Tolliver.
Approximate team salary: $116MM
Breakdown: Once the Pistons added Galloway and Avery Bradley, it became clear that Kentavious Caldwell-Pope wouldn’t return. Even without KCP on their books, the Pistons are inching close to tax territory, though they should be able to avoid crossing that threshold.

Memphis Grizzlies

How they created a hard cap: Using non-taxpayer mid-level exception to sign Ben McLemore and Rade Zagorac. Using bi-annual exception to sign Tyreke Evans.
Approximate team salary: $104MM
Breakdown: The Grizzlies are well below the tax line – and the hard cap – for now, but JaMychal Green‘s new contract looms large. At this point, it seems unlikely that Green will sign a massive offer sheet that forces Memphis into tax territory to match it. But even if Green gets $10-12MM per year, the Grizzlies will get a whole lot closer to the tax threshold, which will limit their ability to add more salary. If they let Green walk, that won’t be a problem, but I’d be surprised if that happens.

San Antonio Spurs

How they created a hard cap: Using non-taxpayer mid-level exception to sign Rudy Gay.
Approximate team salary: $97MM
Breakdown: The hard cap shouldn’t have a major impact on the Spurs, who are still nearly $30MM away from reaching it. However, new contracts for Manu Ginobili and Pau Gasol could take San Antonio a whole lot closer to that tax threshold, depending on how much the club ends up paying its returning veterans.

Update (10-8-2017):

New Orleans Pelicans

How they created a hard cap: Using non-taxpayer mid-level exception to sign Rajon Rondo, Quincy Miller, and Frank Jackson.
Approximate team salary: $118MM
Breakdown: The Pelicans are closer to the hard cap than their team salary would suggest, since several unlikely incentives – which don’t currently count against the cap or tax – count for hard cap purposes. They’ll have to be careful this season about making further signings or taking back more money than they send out in a trade

Salary information from Basketball Insiders, HeatHoops, and ESPN used in this post. Team salary information not up to date.

Cavaliers Sign Cedi Osman

July 18th, 2017 at 11:30am CST by Luke Adams

JULY 18: The Cavaliers have officially announced their new deal with Osman, issuing a press release to confirm the signing.

JULY 12: The Cavaliers have agreed to sign draft-and-stash prospect Cedi Osman to a three-year contract worth $8.3MM, sources tell Brian Windhorst of ESPN (Twitter link). Jeff Zillgitt of USA Today adds (via Twitter) that there are no options in the deal.

Osman’s contract, which was first reported by Turkish outlet beIN Sports, will be finalized using a portion of the Cavaliers’ mid-level exception. With no cap room available, Cleveland had the ability to sign Osman using either the MLE or the minimum salary exception. The mid-level will allow the club to give him more than two years and more than the minimum salary.

A 22-year-old wing, Osman was the 31st overall pick in the 2015 draft but has remained overseas since then, playing for Anadolu Efes in Istanbul. In 2016/17, Osman was the club’s leading scorer in Turkish League play, averaging 13.4 PPG and shooting 38.7% on three-pointers in 34 games.

While it remains to be seen whether Osman will be able to contribute immediately in Cleveland, his arrival provides a much-needed injection of youth to an aging Cavaliers roster. With only the $5.192MM taxpayer mid-level exception available to add free agents, few valuable trade chips in hand, and no 2017 draft picks, the Cavs’ ability to add young talent this offseason was very limited.

Of course, while Osman’s new deal looks modest on the surface, the Cavs’ tax position makes it exponentially more expensive. As a repeater taxpaying team that’s already way over the tax threshold, the Cavs would pay more than $4.25 per dollar in tax penalties on Osman’s 2017/18 salary, as things stand.

Current projections have the Cavs on the hook for a $70MM+ tax bill and more than $210MM+ in total salary and taxes, per Bobby Marks of ESPN. The club could reduce its projected tax bill by dumping salary at some point, but that won’t be easy.

It’s also worth noting that the Cavs will contribute about $700K to Osman’s international buyout, according to Windhorst. Teams are permitted to pay up to $675K to a player’s international buyout this season without it counting against the cap (or having to pay tax on that contribution), so Cleveland likely chipped in that amount.

Jazz Sign Thabo Sefolosha To Two-Year Deal

July 18th, 2017 at 11:20am CST by Luke Adams

JULY 18: The Jazz have officially signed Sefolosha, the team announced today in a press release. Based on Utah’s other roster moves, it appears the team completed the deal using cap room.

JULY 12: The Jazz have reached an agreement with free agent wing Thabo Sefolosha, according to Shams Charania of The Vertical, who reports that Sefolosha will sign a two-year, $10.5MM contract with Utah.

Sefolosha, 33, has played for the Bulls, Thunder, and Hawks over the course of his 11-year NBA career. In 2016/17, he appeared in 62 games (42 starts) for Atlanta, averaging 7.2 PPG and 4.4 RPG to go along with a .441/.342/.733 shooting line and solid perimeter defense.

In Utah, Sefolosha will help to fill the gap left on the wing when Gordon Hayward departed for Boston. While he won’t come close to matching Hayward’s scoring, the former lottery pick should help stabilize the defense while players like Rodney Hood, Joe Johnson, and perhaps Alec Burks and Donovan Mitchell take on more of the scoring load.

We’ll have to wait to see how Utah handles its cap situation this year to know how the team is signing Sefolosha. The team’s new deal with Joe Ingles isn’t yet official, and it remains to be seen whether Boris Diaw‘s $7.5MM salary will be kept on the books. Depending on how the Jazz manage their cap, Sefolosha could either be signed using cap room or by using a portion of the club’s mid-level exception.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Load More Posts