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Month: November 2024

Lakers Waive Shaquille Harrison

June 29th, 2023 at 5:06pm CST by Rory Maher

The Lakers have waived Shaquille Harrison, the team announced (via Twitter).

Harrison’s $2,413,304 salary for 2023/24 was non-guaranteed, so the move creates some cap space and roster flexibility ahead of free agency.

The veteran guard spent most of the ’22/23 season in the G League for the South Bay Lakers, L.A.’s affiliate, earning a spot on the NBAGL All-Defensive Team. He signed a 10-day deal with the Blazers at the end of the season before signing with the Lakers for the playoffs.

Harrison didn’t appear in any regular season games for the Lakers, but did play 28 minutes over eight playoff games. The 29-year-old defensive stalwart will hit unrestricted free agency in a couple days assuming he clears the waiver wire.

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Suns Guaranteeing Last Season Of Cameron Payne’s Contract

June 29th, 2023 at 5:02pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

The Suns are fully guaranteeing the final season of point guard Cameron Payne‘s contract for 2023/24, sources tell Duane Rankin of The Arizona Republic (Twitter link).

Payne’s deal had been partially guaranteed for $2MM, and now will become fully guaranteed for $6.5MM.

With injury-prone former starter Chris Paul having been offloaded as part of the deal that brought veteran guard Bradley Beal to Phoenix, the club may have an opening at starting point guard. Beal and All-Star guard Devin Booker both could handle the team’s primary play-making duties at the position, but Payne may also be utilized as the official starter while Beal and Booker are used at shooting guard and small forward.

During Beal’s introductory Suns presser today, head coach Frank Vogel said that Payne would be “in the mix” for a starting role, depending on how the rest of the team’s offseason roster building played out, Rankin tweets.

The 6’1″ vet, inked his current three-year, $19MM deal with the Suns in 2021, after reviving his career as a productive 2020/21 as Paul’s backup on an NBA Finals-bound club.

Last season, the 28-year-old averaged 10.3 PPG, 4.5 APG, 2.2 RPG, and 0.7 SPG in his 48 healthy games with Phoenix last year. He posted that scoring number on a slash line of .415/.368/.766. Injuries to his foot and lower back limited his availability for the club, both during the regular season and playoffs.

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No QOs For Suns’ Bazley, Cavs’ Windler, Heat’s Yurtseven

June 29th, 2023 at 4:52pm CST by Luke Adams

The Suns opted not to issue a qualifying offer to forward Darius Bazley, league sources tell Michael Scotto of HoopsHype (Twitter link). As a result, Bazley will become an unrestricted free agent rather than restricted.

The decision doesn’t come as a huge surprise, since Bazley’s qualifying offer would have been worth approximately $6.2MM. While it’s not clear if Phoenix is interested in re-signing the former first-round pick, the team will hold his Bird rights and could probably re-sign him at a more team-friendly rate.

Cavaliers wing Dylan Windler also didn’t receive a qualifying offer and will become an unrestricted free agent, reports Scotto (Twitter link).

Windler was never considered likely to get a QO, which would’ve been worth just shy of $6MM. He has been limited by injuries in his first four NBA seasons and hasn’t become a rotation player in Cleveland, appearing in just 84 total games.

Heat center Omer Yurtseven is another player who was eligible for a qualifying offer but didn’t receive one, according to Tim Reynolds of The Associated Press (Twitter link).

Yurtseven’s QO is only worth a projected $2.22MM ($200K more than his minimum salary), but the Heat will be cost-conscious about how they fill out their roster, given that their team salary projects to go well beyond the luxury tax line.

The following players did receive qualifying offers and will be restricted free agents:

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Magic Exercise Option On Bitadze, Decline Two Others

June 29th, 2023 at 4:40pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

The Magic have exercised their team option on reserve center Goga Bitadze for the 2023/24 season, while turning down their options on veteran point guard Michael Carter-Williams and combo forward Admiral Schofield, the club has announced in a press release (Twitter link).

Bitadze’s team option is worth $2,066,585. Carter-Williams would have earned $3.1MM next year, while Schofield’s option was worth $2MM.

Bitadze, still just 23, joined the Magic midway through 2022/23 after spending his prior three-and-a-half NBA seasons with the Pacers. He carved out a role as a valuable bench option for a super-sized young Orlando club after being waived by Indiana.

Across his 17 healthy contests for Orlando, the 6’11” big man averaged 5.8 PPG, 5.2 RPG, 1.2 APG and 0.9 BPG in just 15.0 MPG.

Though Orlando finished outside of the postseason picture with a 34-48 record last year, the rebuilding team is loaded with intriguing lottery talent among its starters, including the two picks the Magic added in last week’s draft, former Arkansas guard Anthony Black and ex-Michigan swingman Jett Howard. Bitadze makes sense for the timeline of the team as a young, cost-efficient option off the bench with plenty of upside left.

Carter-Williams, the 2013/14 Rookie of the Year, returned to the Magic in February after the club waived him during the 2021/22 season, as he was recovering from a left ankle surgery. He appeared in just four games during this most recent stint with Orlando, averaging 4.3 PPG, 1.8 APG and 1.3 RPG in 11 MPG. It remains to be seen if the well-traveled 31-year-old will get another league opportunity.

The 6’5″ Schofield has spent two of his three NBA seasons thus far with the Magic. In 37 games last year, he averaged 4.2 PPG on .451/.324/.913 shooting splits.

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Pelicans Decline Options On Jones, Hernangomez; Will Make Hayes UFA

June 29th, 2023 at 4:29pm CST by Rory Maher

The Pelicans are declining their team options on Herbert Jones and Willy Hernangomez and opted against issuing a qualifying offer to Jaxson Hayes, according to reports from Shams Charania of The Athletic (via Twitter) and Christian Clark of NOLA.com (Twitter link).

Declining Jones’ $1.84MM option makes him a restricted free agent and the two sides plan to discuss a long-term contract, per Charania. The move is a little odd though, because he would have been a restricted free agent in 2024 even if the Pelicans had picked up the option.

Since he just finished his second season, New Orleans will only have Jones’ Early Bird rights, so he’ll be an Arenas provision restricted free agent, the same as Lakers guard Austin Reaves. It seems likely that the Pelicans have a good sense of what he might sign for by going this route, though they’ll be limited in what they can offer him outright.

Jones has made a major impact for the Pelicans after being selected 35th overall two years ago, averaging 9.7 PPG, 3.9 RPG, 2.3 APG and 1.6 SPG on .473/.336/.802 shooting in 144 games (135 starts, 29.8 MPG). He’s a top-tier defender, earning All-Defensive votes as a rookie.

Unlike Jones, Hernangomez and Hayes are headed for unrestricted free agency. Both centers were reserves in ’22/23, receiving situational minutes but not much more.

Hernangomez, 29, just completed his seventh season, having made previous stops with the Knicks and Hornets. He averaged 6.9 PPG and 4.7 RPG in 38 games last season (12.1 MPG) and is reportedly a positive locker room presence.

Hayes, meanwhile, has mostly disappointed after being picked eighth overall in 2019, averaging just 5.0 PPG and 2.8 RPG in 47 games (13.0 MPG) in ’22/23. He’s still only 23, is a strong athlete, and there are a dearth of big men on the market, so he could be a buy-low candidate in free agency.

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Josh Hart Picking Up Player Option With Knicks

June 29th, 2023 at 4:14pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

Veteran Knicks swingman Josh Hart is picking up his $12.9MM player option for the 2023/24 season and will return to New York, sources inform Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link).

Per Ian Begley of SNY.tv (via Twitter), the 6’5″ small forward will now be eligible for a four-year extension worth over $80MM starting in August.

Hart has enjoyed a well-traveled journeyman career as a 3-and-D wing, having played for four clubs in his six NBA seasons. He was selected with the No. 30 pick out of Villanova in 2017, and spent his first two seasons with the Lakers as an intriguing reserve. He was included as a portion of the trade package that sent Anthony Davis to Los Angeles from the Pelicans. New Orleans then flipped him to Portland in during the 2021/22 season.

The 28-year-old was flipped to the Knicks by the Trail Blazers in 2022/23, and emerged as a critical two-way piece on a solid 47-35 Eastern Conference playoff club.

Across his 25 regular season contests with New York, Hart averaged 10.2 PPG on .586/.519/.789 shooting splits, along with 7.0 RPG, 3.6 APG, 1.4 SPG, and 0.5 BPG.

During his first-ever playoffs this spring, Hart averaged comparable numbers, though his shooting efficiency took a major hit while he exerted himself defensively against tougher competition.

He logged postseason averages of 10.4 PPG on .479/.313/.636 shooting splits, 7.4 RPG, 2.2 APG and 0.8 SPG in 11 games with New York, including five starts.

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Nickeil Alexander-Walker To Become Unrestricted Free Agent

June 29th, 2023 at 3:59pm CST by Rory Maher

The Timberwolves have decided against issuing a qualifying offer to Nickeil Alexander-Walker, making the former first-round pick an unrestricted free agent, league sources tell Michael Scotto of HoopsHype (Twitter link).

However, according to Scotto, the Wolves are still hopeful Alexander-Walker is open to reunion after they acquired him in February via trade. Minnesota could have made him a restricted free agent and had the right of first refusal had the team extended the $7,073,602 QO, but instead he’ll hit the open market.

The 17th pick of the 2019 draft, Alexander-Walker spent his first two-plus seasons with the Pelicans before being moved at the 2022 trade deadline. He was technically a Trail Blazer for one day before being re-routed to Utah, where he spent a year prior to being sent to Minnesota four months ago.

In 59 games (15.0 MPG) with the Jazz and Wolves in 2022/23, Alexander-Walker averaged 5.9 PPG, 1.8 APG and 1.7 RPG on .444/.384/.667 shooting. He also chipped in 8.4 PPG, 2.0 RPG and 1.4 APG on .429/.400/.667 shooting in five playoff games (29.6 MPG).

While those numbers don’t necessarily jump off the page, he made major strides defensively last season, playing a critical role down the stretch for the Wolves as a perimeter stopper. That role increased due to late-season injuries to key rotation players like Jaden McDaniels, Naz Reid, and to a lesser extent Kyle Anderson, who sustained an eye injury in Minnesota’s first-round loss to the Nuggets.

Still just 24 years old, the Canadian guard/forward will be an interesting player to monitor when free agency kicks off tomorrow. Alexander-Walker should have plenty of suitors given his blend of skills, particularly defensively.

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James Harden Picking Up Option, Working With Sixers On Trade

June 29th, 2023 at 3:50pm CST by Luke Adams

Sixers star James Harden has decided to exercise his $35.6MM player option for 2023/24, but he doesn’t intend to return to Philadelphia, reports Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link). According to Charania, the plan is for Harden to work together with the 76ers to find him a new home via trade.

Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN (Twitter link) confirms that Philadelphia and Harden have begun to explore trade scenarios, adding that the expectation is that the 10-time All-Star has played his last game as a Sixer.

The news comes as a major surprise. For several months, Harden’s anticipated free agency was considered likely to be a battle between the Sixers and his former team, the Rockets.

Within the last week or two, Philadelphia had seemingly emerged as a clear frontrunner based on reporting from several outlets. However, the 33-year-old won’t actually reach free agency after all, opting into the second season of his two-year deal with the 76ers in order to make it easier to trade him.

The Clippers have expressed interest in acquiring Harden, a league source tells Kyle Neubeck of PhillyVoice.com (Twitter link). Wojnarowski (Twitter link) confirms L.A.’s interest and says the Knicks are also expected to engage in trade conversations with the Sixers.

The Clippers, armed with several movable contracts and a long-standing desire to add a backcourt play-maker, are an intriguing potential trade partner for Philadelphia. According to Jake Fischer of Yahoo Sports (Twitter link), Los Angeles – which has been gauging the trade market for Marcus Morris and Norman Powell – have also inquired about Sixers forward Tobias Harris.

The Knicks, meanwhile, also possess a handful of tradable contracts, including Evan Fournier‘s expiring $18.9MM deal, and control several extra future first-round picks.

Still, Chris Mannix of SI.com (Twitter link) cautions that the Clippers and Knicks won’t be Harden’s only suitors. Philadelphia is already casting a “wide net,” according to Mannix, who says the club will be seeking a package of players who can fit alongside reigning MVP Joel Embiid.

The Rockets could make a play for Harden via trade if they so choose, but they’ve seemingly shifted their focus to free agent point guard Fred VanVleet, and Harden is focused on a move to a contender, according to Wojnarowski.

Although Harden missed out on All-Star honors this year for the first time since 2012, he still posted strong numbers during the regular season, averaging 21.0 points, a league-leading 10.7 assists, and 6.1 rebounds per game with a .441/.385/.867 shooting line in 58 appearances (36.8 MPG). He was expected to be among the top free agents available this weekend if he had opted out.

Because Harden is on a two-year contract, he won’t be eligible to sign an extension before he reaches unrestricted free agency in 2024. If he’s moved, he’ll be playing for his fourth team in four years. He was dealt from Houston to Brooklyn in January 2021 and from Brooklyn to Philadelphia in February 2022.

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Lakers To Decline Malik Beasley’s Team Option

June 29th, 2023 at 3:31pm CST by Rory Maher

In addition to waiving Mohamed Bamba before his salary became guaranteed, the Lakers also won’t exercise their team option on Malik Beasley for 2023/24, making him an unrestricted free agent, league sources tell Dave McMenamin of ESPN (Twitter link).

However, a reunion could still be in the works. As ESPN’s Bobby Marks tweets, the Lakers will retain Beasley’s Bird rights, and McMenamin reports that the Lakers plan to keep in touch with both players, with new contracts a possibility. Los Angeles will lose Bamba’s Bird rights after waiving him.

As our team option tracker shows, Beasley’s option was worth $16,524,106. He didn’t play up to that type of contract in ’22/23, so it’s not a surprise that it will be declined, though there was some thought that it might be exercised in order to explore sign-and-trade scenarios.

A long-range shooting specialist who holds a career mark of 37.8% from deep, Beasley shot just 35.7% last season, including 35.3% with the Lakers. He was acquired from Utah at the trade deadline in the deal involving Russell Westbrook.

Overall, the 26-year-old appeared in 81 games last season, including 27 starts (25.8 MPG). The Lakers had hoped he would provide an offensive jolt, but his numbers declined with L.A. and he was a non-factor in the postseason, appearing in 11 games while shooting 26.9% from three in 8.3 MPG.

While Beasley is an extremely streaky shooter who doesn’t bring a whole lot else to the table, he did shoot 38.9% from beyond the arc in 252 games from 2018-2022. That, combined with his age, should make him a popular target in free agency.

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Knicks Exercising Team Option On Miles McBride

June 29th, 2023 at 3:21pm CST by Rory Maher

The Knicks are exercising their $1.84MM team option on Miles McBride for 2023/24, league sources tell Fred Katz of The Athletic (Twitter link).

The 36th pick of the 2021 draft after two years at West Virginia, McBride just finished his second NBA season, both with the Knicks. The 22-year-old point guard had a limited role in ’22/23, averaging 3.5 PPG on .358/.299/.667 shooting in 64 games (11.9 MPG).

However, McBride is an excellent defensive player who makes a real difference on that end of the court, so it’s not surprising that his minimum-salary option was exercised. As our team option tracker shows, the Knicks previously declined their option on Derrick Rose‘s contract, making him an unrestricted free agent.

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