Southeast Notes: Valanciunas, Salaun, Simpson, Wagner, Heat

Reaching a three-year agreement with 32-year-old center Jonas Valanciunas seems like an odd move for a rebuilding team. So why did the Wizards do it?

As Josh Robbins and William Guillory of The Athletic see it, Valanciunas’ presence will allow second overall draft pick Alex Sarr to develop at a slow and steady pace. Sarr needs to add bulk and muscle to his seven-foot frame and Valanciunas can match up against more physical centers. The veteran can also serve as a role model to the team’s other younger players.

We have more from the Southeast Division:

• Hornets lottery pick Tidjane Salaun suffered a minor laceration near his knee but is expected to be available for the start of Las Vegas Summer League next week. However, he will unavailable when the team begins mini-camp in Sacramento on Tuesday. Second-round pick KJ Simpson won’t play during either the Sacramento or Las Vegas Summer Leagues as he continues to rehab a hamstring injury suffered during the pre-draft process. He is expected to be fully recovered and available at the start of training camp this fall, according to the team’s PR department (Twitter links).
• The Magic have reached an agreement with backup big Goga Bitadze but they’re still interested in re-signing Moritz Wagner, who reciprocates that interest, Jason Beede of the Orlando Sentinel tweets. Orlando declined its $8MM option on Wagner’s contract prior to free agency.
• Other than reaching a two-year agreement with Kevin Love, the Heat haven’t done much in terms of their 15-man roster during the first two days of free agency. It’s a product of the team’s salary-cap crunch, according to Anthony Chiang of the Miami Herald. They don’t have much to offer to outside free agents and new restrictions in the CBA make it harder to pull off a trade. Miami also doesn’t have much draft capital to facilitate those deals.