- Lamar Patterson is hoping for a better opportunity at playing time with the Kings than he had with the Hawks, according to Dan Lovi of NBA.com. Sacramento claimed Patterson off waivers Friday, inheriting his $874,636 salary for next season. The 6’5″ shooting guard appeared in just 35 games for Atlanta during his rookie season and spent much of the year in the D-League. “When one door closes another one opens and it’s just a process you got to go through,” said Patterson. “I’m going to enjoy it, I’m going to work my butt off.”
Pat Riley anointed Justise Winslow as the Heat’s starting small forward for next season, but he hasn’t addressed the larger question of power forward, writes Ira Winderman of the Sun-Sentinel. Riley expressed his confidence in Winslow during a news conference Saturday, saying the rookie will be penciled in as the starting three for 2016/17. But if Chris Bosh isn’t medically cleared to play, that leaves Josh McRoberts, Luke Babbitt and Udonis Haslem as candidates to start alongside Winslow and Hassan Whiteside on the front line. Riley said even though Winslow is only 20, he’s ready to be an NBA starter. “I remember when James Worthy came to the Lakers and Jamaal Wilkes was incumbent,” Riley said, “and then there came that time, there came that time when it was just a matter of time when James Worthy was going to take his position.”
There’s more from the Southeast Division:
- Dwight Howard hopes his return home to Atlanta will revitalize his career, according to Steve Hummer of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. The 30-year-old center, who signed a three-year deal worth $70.5MM with the Hawks, has even changed his number to 8 to signify “a new beginning.” Howard insists that his back, which required surgery in 2012, is no longer a problem. “My back hasn’t been an issue,” he said, “and I don’t think I’ll ever have an issue out of my back for the rest of my career.”
- Kent Bazemore‘s comments at the press conference after he re-signed with the Hawks showed how much he wanted to stay in Atlanta, relays K.L. Chouinard of NBA.com. Bazemore, who landed a four-year, $70MM contract in free agency, said it was important to remain with the team he joined two seasons ago. “This is one of the high points of my life,” he said, “and I couldn’t choose a better place to be. I said I wasn’t going to get emotional, but I just love it here, you know. People have just embraced me and it just feels like home, man.”
- It’s hard to understand why the Wizards re-signed Marcus Thornton so early in free agency, writes Ben Standig of CSNMidAtlantic. Thornton, who received a one-year deal for the veteran’s minimum, projects as a fifth guard, Standig contends, adding that it’s unusual for teams to fill roster spots with those type of players before Summer League begins.
JULY 15: Jack is officially a Hawk, the team confirmed today in a press release.
JULY 10: Free agent point guard Jarrett Jack has agreed to a one-year deal with the Hawks, tweets Shams Charania of The Vertical. The contract is for the league minimum.
The 32-year-old Jack had his season cut short when he suffered a torn ACL in January. Before the injury, he appeared in 32 games for the Nets, all starts, and averaged 12.8 points and 7.4 assists. Brooklyn waived Jack at the end of June after unsuccessfully trying to find a trading partner. He was scheduled to make $6.3MM next season, but only $500K of that was guaranteed if he was cut before July.
Jack will probably back up Dennis Schroder in Atlanta. The Hawks needed point guard depth after trading Jeff Teague to the Pacers.
Jack said his rehab from the torn ACL is going “very well,” tweets Chris Vivlamore of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
JULY 15: The Hawks have formally signed Delaney, the club announced today in a press release. Delaney’s salary has been reported as $2.5MM, though it’s unclear if that figure represents the total value of his contract, or his per-year salary.
JULY 3: The Hawks and combo guard Malcolm Delaney have agreed to a guaranteed two-year deal, Shams Charania of The Vertical tweets.
The former Virginia Tech guard played overseas for the last several years and turned down a two-year, $5MM offer from Barcelona in the hopes of landing with an NBA team this year last month, reports Nikos Varlas of Eurohoops.net. The Nets and Rockets were reportedly interested in Delaney in May, but neither team pulled the trigger on a deal.
Delaney went undrafted in 2011, and the closest he has come to NBA action was a summer league stint with the Pistons in 2012, though he was involved in discussions with the Rockets in 2014, but ended up heading overseas to play in Germany instead. In 58 combined games this past season, Delaney averaged 14.5 points, 3.6 rebounds and 5.0 assists in 30.9 minutes per outing. His shooting line on the season was .409/.361/.871.
JULY 15: The Hawks have issued a press release officially announcing Humphries’ deal.
JULY 11: Free agent power forward Kris Humphries has agreed to a one-year, $4MM contract to remain with the Hawks, league sources informed Shams Charania of The Vertical (Twitter link).
Humphries drew quite a bit of interest during the free agent process, with the Wizards, Suns, Celtics, Nets, Wolves, Spurs and Hornets reportedly in the mix. In the end, he chose the team for which he played 21 games last season, averaging 6.4 points and 3.4 rebounds in 14.0 minutes. He also appeared in 28 games with the Wizards and four games with the Suns last season. The 6’9” Humphries will be entering his 13th season.
Humphries figures to be the main backup to Paul Millsap, though he’ll have to compete for minutes with Mike Scott and Mike Muscala.
The Hawks have agreed to terms with first-round picks Taurean Prince and DeAndre’ Bembry, the team announced today in a press release.
A combo forward, the 6’8″ Prince was the 12th overall pick out of Baylor, and his rights were acquired in a three-team deal with the Pacers and Jazz. Prince was a first team All-Big 12 selection this season, averaging 15.9 points, 6.1 rebounds, 2.3 assists and 1.3 steals in 34 games as a senior. He is contributing 13.7 points and 6.0 rebounds in three games as part of Atlanta’s Summer League team.
Bembry, a 6’6″ small forward, was picked 21st out of St. Joseph’s. He was the Atlantic 10 Player of the Year as a junior, averaging 17.4 points, 7.8 rebounds, 4.5 assists and 1.4 steals this season. He has put up 10.4 points, 5.0 rebounds and 3.8 assists in five Summer League games.
JULY 15th, 1:33pm: The move is official, the team announced.
JULY 14th, 4:31pm: The Kings have claimed Lamar Patterson off waivers from the Hawks, Chris Vivlamore of The Atlanta Journal Constitution reports (Twitter link). As a result, Sacramento will assume responsibility for the $874,636 he is due for 2016/17. Atlanta waived Patterson on Tuesday.
It’s a low-risk move for the Kings, as Patterson’s salary isn’t guaranteed. The team can get a look at the 24-year-old shooting guard during the preseason and not be responsible for any cash if he doesn’t pan out.
Patterson made 35 appearances for the Hawks this past season, averaging 2.4 points, 1.4 rebounds and 1.1 assists in 11.3 minutes per outing. His shooting line was .350/.245/.727.
- There are conflicting reports regarding the Hawks’ pact with combo guard Malcolm Delaney. Orazio Cauchi of Sportando notes that the deal is is worth $5MM over two years, while Chris Vivlamore of The Atlanta Journal Constitution tweets that the pact is valued at $2.5MM over two years.
7:56pm: Patterson has officially been waived, the team announced via press release.
4:53pm: The Hawks are cutting ties with Lamar Patterson and intend to waive the shooting guard, Chris Vivlamore of The Atlanta Journal Constitution reports (via Twitter). No official announcement has been made by the team at this time. As a result, Patterson will become an unrestricted free agent, provided he clears waivers.
The 24-year-old’s contract is non-guaranteed, so Atlanta won’t be on the hook for any of his $874,636 salary as a result of this move. Patterson’s deal wasn’t going to be guaranteed until January 10th, which is the league-wide date, meaning his release was not motivated by an impending deadline.
Patterson made 35 appearances for the Hawks this past season, averaging 2.4 points, 1.4 rebounds and 1.1 assists in 11.3 minutes per outing. His shooting line was .350/.245/.727.
JULY 12TH, 6:45pm: The signing is official, the team announced via press release. “We would like to welcome Dwight, and his family, home to Atlanta and into our Hawks basketball family. We feel Dwight will have a huge impact on both ends of the court with his physical presence and the force he brings to the game,” coach/executive Mike Budenholzer said. “We also look forward to his impact in our community as we all look to take Atlanta to another level on the court and off. We feel very fortunate to add a player of Dwight’s caliber and we look forward to assimilating Dwight into our team.”
JULY 1ST, 5:55pm: Howard’s three-year deal is fully guaranteed, with no option years, tweets Marc J. Spears of The Undefeated. Spears adds that the Hawks increased their initial offer by about $7MM.
5:40pm: The Hawks and Dwight Howard have struck a deal, according to Shams Charania of The Vertical, who reports (via Twitter) that the two sides have agreed to terms on a three-year contract. The pact will be worth $70.5MM, per Charania. It’s a homecoming for Howard, who was born and raised in Atlanta.
Howard, 30, met with the Hawks shortly after free agency began today, and multiple reports indicated that the team made a strong impression on him during that meeting. The former first overall pick was expected to meet with the Celtics and reportedly had interest from at least a couple other teams, but got an offer he liked from Atlanta and decided to take it.
Howard made 71 appearances for the Rockets in 2015/16, averaging 13.7 points, 11.8 rebounds, 1.4 assists and 1.63 blocks in 32.1 minutes per game. He shot 62% from the field, but just 48.9% from the free-throw line.
The eight-time All-Star declined his 2016/17 player option with the Rockets last month, opting to hit the open market instead of returning to Houston. Howard would have earned more than $23MM in 2016/17 if he had picked up the option, and essentially matched that yearly figure on his new deal — of course, Howard’s agreement with the Hawks will pay him that amount annually for the next three years, rather than just for one year.
The Hawks’ agreement with Howard doesn’t necessarily take the team out of the running for Al Horford. ESPN’s Marc Stein Stein first reported on Tuesday that Atlanta would seriously consider Howard as a free agent target if the team was unable to wedge its way into the Kevin Durant sweepstakes. According to Stein, the Hawks planned to go after Howard with the idea of playing him alongside Horford in their frontcourt.
Still, Horford is being heavily recruited by the Celtics and other clubs, and is expected to get a max deal, so he may land elsewhere. If Horford does leave Atlanta, Howard at least represents a viable replacement at center for the Hawks.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.