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Southeast Notes: Johnson, Heat, Murry

October 25th, 2015 at 5:35pm CST by Will Joseph

Heat shooting guard Tyler Johnson will have his contract fully guaranteed for the season on opening night, becoming the 14th of the 15 players on the roster to have such security, Ira Winderman of the Sun Sentinel reports. Winderman tweeted Saturday that the terms of Johnson’s contract were reworked so that his full guarantee kicks in with the start of the regular season instead of the leaguewide guarantee date in January.

Here’s more from around the Southeast Division:

  • In discussing the composition of the team’s roster Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said cutting  John Lucas III was a tough decision, Winderman relays. Lucas was among five players the Heat waived educe Miami’s roster to 15 players, the regular season maximum.
  • Damien Wilkins, who was recently waived by the Hornets, has signed a deal overseas to play for Guaros de Lara of Venezuela, Sportando’s Emiliano Carchia reports. Wilkins, 35, had spent the 2012/13 season with the Sixers. He has played overseas and in the D-League since.
  • Toure’ Murry, who was waived by the Wizards, will start the season in the D-League, Jeff Zillgitt of USA Today Sports tweets.
  • Magic rookie Mario Hezonja seems to be adjusting well to life in the United States and the caliber of play in the league, Josh Robbins of the Orlando Sentinel writes. “He’s progressing for sure,” coach Scott Skiles said. “What we’ve been talking to him about is he has a tendency, like a lot of young players, [where] he checks into the game at whatever point we put him in and teams either go right at him or plays are occurring that he’s not yet comfortable with, and he gets taken advantage of often.”
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And-Ones: Hornets D-League, Final Cuts, Johnson

October 25th, 2015 at 10:03am CST by Arthur Hill

Greensboro, North Carolina, will be the site of the Hornets‘ new D-League team, reports Jeff Mills of the Greensboro News & Record. The new franchise, which will expand the league to 20 teams, will begin play next fall. Charlotte currently has no D-League affiliate. Players on D-League assignment will go to the one-to-one affiliate of another NBA team. “Greensboro’s approach to the process was innovative,” said Fred Whitfield, the Hornets’ president and chief operating officer. “Taking the Pavilion and renovating it into a basketball-style fieldhouse for us was very attractive. Especially when you could have offices for us right across the street.” The move is expected to be officially announced Tuesday. Asheville and Fayetteville were the other finalists.

There’s more news from around the basketball world:

  • After a flurry of moves Saturday, seven NBA teams still have final cuts to make before Monday’s roster deadline, tweets Marc Stein of ESPN.com. The Mavericks, Pistons, Pacers, Lakers and Grizzlies each have to unload one player to reach the roster limit of 15. The Nets still have 17 players and the Sixers have 20, which is the training camp maximum (Twitter link). The five teams with roster openings are the Rockets, Pelicans, Knicks, Magic and Suns, who each have 14 spots filled. (Twitter link).
  • Several teams have expressed interest in Nick Johnson, who was waived Saturday by the Nuggets, according to Sam Amico of Amicohoops.net. Citing an unidentified source, Amico says there’s a chance someone could pick up Johnson by Monday. Johnson was one of four players sent from Houston to Denver in the Ty Lawson trade.
  • The league is looking into the reported confrontation between Knicks coach Derek Fisher and the Grizzlies‘ Matt Barnes, writes Frank Isola of the New York Daily News. Commissioner Adam Silver confirmed the investigation, but did not offer specifics regarding possible punishment for either Fisher or Barnes. They were allegedly involved in a physical altercation at the house of Barnes’ estranged wife.
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Eastern Notes: Jones, Pistons, Lin

October 24th, 2015 at 9:26pm CST by ChrisCrouse

The Celtics knew there wasn’t a market for Perry Jones III, but they liked him and probed other trades with the thought of keeping him on the roster, Adam Himmelsbach of the Boston Globe tweets. No deal materialized and Boston waived the 24-year-old earlier today.

Here’s more from the Eastern Conference:

  • Detroit hopes that Adonis Thomas, who was waived by the team on Friday, will play for Grand Rapids Drive, the team’s D-League affiliate, Keith Langlois of Pistons.com writes. “I hope it’s an option he’ll look at,” President of Basketball Operations/coach Stan Van Gundy said. “Selfishly, we hope so. But I don’t know what he’s thinking about.” The Pistons own Thomas’ D-League rights, but the 22-year-old could look to secure a roster spot on another NBA team or look to sign overseas, where the money is often significantly more.
  • The entire reason the Pistons were so judicious in their handling of Greg Monroe on the business side was that they wanted to be careful not to overspend on a center who isn’t a rim protector at the core, David Mayo of Mlive.com opines in his latest mailbag. Mayo believes Monroe could have played center in Van Gundy’s system, but Andre Drummond‘s defensive ability and athleticism gives him a better chance to succeed at that spot.
  • New addition Jeremy Lin has helped the Hornets go undefeated in the preseason and he has proven to be a good fit next to Kemba Walker in the backcourt, Scott Fowler of the Charlotte Observer writes. “It takes a lot of pressure off me.” Walker said of playing with Lin. “I don’t always have to go back for the basketball every time. When he’s out there, he’s helping me with the pace, with the tempo. He’s very unselfish and he can score the basketball very well. So that’s fun.” The Hornets and Lin agreed to a two-year, $4.3MM deal with a player option in year two.
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Pistons Sign Ryan Boatright

October 23rd, 2015 at 9:53pm CST by Eddie Scarito

The Pistons have signed point guard Ryan Boatright, the team announced via a press release. Detroit intends to waive Boatright and assign him to its D-League affiliate in Grand Rapids, Vincent Ellis of The Detroit Free Press reports (via Twitter). Teams can retain the D-League rights for up to four players.

The Suns, Hornets and Blazers were also reportedly interested in Boatright, whom the Nets waived Tuesday. The undrafted point guard from Connecticut performed well during limited preseason action, averaging 4.2 points, 3.8 assists and 1.0 turnover in 13.9 minutes per game. His career NCAA numbers were 14.0 points, 3.5 rebounds, and 3.8 assists, with a slash line of .416/.380/.794.

The addition of Boatright raises the Pistons’ roster count to 17 players, including 16 with fully guaranteed pacts. The team is expected to waive veteran Danny Granger, who along with Boatright, would reduce the team’s roster to the regular season maximum of 15 once they are indeed let go.

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Hornets Waive Four Players

October 23rd, 2015 at 4:32pm CST by Eddie Scarito

The Hornets have parted ways with center Jason Washburn, swingman Damien Wilkins, small forward Sam Thompson, and shooting guard Elliot Williams, the team announced (via Twitter). Washburn, Wilkins, and Thompson were in camp on non-guaranteed pacts, so the team won’t be on the hook for any funds as a result of these moves, but Williams’ deal includes a small partial guarantee of $80K, which Charlotte would be responsible for provided Williams clears waivers. The team’s roster count now sits at 15 players. These moves also indicate that former Kentucky guard Aaron Harrison, who is signed to a partially guaranteed deal, has a strong shot to make the team’s regular season roster.

Washburn, 25, went undrafted out of Utah back in 2013. His career numbers in four seasons for the Utes were 8.7 points, 5.0 rebounds, and 1.3 blocks to go along with a shooting line of .565/.444/.792. He spent last season overseas playing for Brussels, where he averaged 8.9 PPG and 3.9 RPG in 27 appearances. Washburn played in two contests for the Jazz in this year’s Las Vegas Summer League.

Wilkins, 35, had spent the 2012/13 season with the Sixers, for whom he put up 6.4 points in 18.0 minutes per game with 33.3% shooting in 61 appearances, numbers close to his NBA career averages. Wilkins has played overseas and in the D-League since, notching 20.2 PPG and 5.7 RPG in 37.8 MPG with 33.1% three-point shooting across 50 contests with the D-League affiliate of the Grizzlies last season.

Thompson, 22, had appeared in 35 games for Ohio State last season, notching averages of 10.2 points, 3.9 rebounds, and 1.8 assists to go along with a shooting line of .466/.262/.688. His career marks through four NCAA seasons are 6.9 PPG, 2.8 RPG, and 1.1 APG.

Williams has struggled to find his footing in the NBA, appearing last season only on a series of five 10-day contracts split between Charlotte, the Jazz and the Pelicans. The now 26-year-old shooting guard put up 2.8 points in 9.2 minutes per game across 13 appearances in 2014/15. He saw more extensive action in 2013/14 with the Sixers, with whom he put up 6.0 PPG in 17.3 MPG.

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Suns, Hornets, Blazers Interested In Ryan Boatright

October 21st, 2015 at 11:49am CST by Chuck Myron

The Suns, Hornets and Blazers are interested in Ryan Boatright, whom the Nets waived Tuesday, and it’s possible that Brooklyn circles back to him later this season, reports Sam Amico of AmicoHoops.net. The undrafted point guard from Connecticut performed well during limited preseason time, averaging 4.2 points, 3.8 assists and 1.0 turnover in 13.9 minutes per game, but Donald Sloan outplayed him for the third point guard job on the Nets. Any NBA team could claim Boatright off waivers, so long as the team is willing to assume responsibility for his $75K partial guarantee. Teams could opt to see if he clears waivers if they want him on a non-guaranteed contract.

Phoenix is also one of the teams Amico hears is eyeing Jimmer Fredette, though the Suns are already down to 15 players. The Hornets have 14 fully guaranteed salaries, but recent addition Damien Wilkins appears to have a clear shot at the last spot on the opening night roster. Portland appears to have a much more open competition, with only 12 fully guaranteed deals.

Boatright helped Connecticut to the national championship in 2014. He spoke with Zach Links of Hoops Rumors before the draft in June, telling Zach that he’d heard from agent Aaron Goodwin that the Blazers, Nets and Clippers had strong interest.

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Battle For Roster Spots: Southeast Division

October 19th, 2015 at 3:59pm CST by Chuck Myron

Hoops Rumors is taking a team-by-team look at the battles for regular season roster spots going on around the NBA this month, the last before rosters shrink from the offseason limit of 20 to the 15-man regular season maximum. We’ve already checked out the Northwest, Pacific, Southwest, Central and Atlantic division franchises, and now we’ll finish up the series with a look at the Atlantic Division:

HAWKS

13 full guarantees (Smallest full guarantee: Tim Hardaway Jr. — $1,304,520; Edy Tavares and Justin Holiday have smaller full guarantees for this season, but their salaries for next season are guaranteed, too.)

Non-guaranteed players

Analysis: Muscala has long been a “lock” for the regular season roster, as Chris Vivlamore of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution has said, so realistically this is a matter of four players competing for one opening night spot. Patterson has seen far more playing time in the preseason than the other three, as Vivlamore pointed out before this weekend’s game against the Heat (Twitter link), and that still holds true. Patterson, who signed as a draft-and-stash prospect this summer after having been the 48th overall pick in 2014, is averaging 4.0 points in 14.3 minutes per game. Petteway is only logging about half as many minutes per contest, and Barron and Jones have seen fewer than five minutes a night.

HEAT

13 full guarantees (Smallest full guarantee: Josh Richardson — $525,093)

Non-guaranteed players

Analysis: Johnson seems like a strong bet for opening night, since half his salary is already guaranteed and he is first in line to become the third-string point guard, a key position given the uncertainty surrounding Mario Chalmers. That ostensibly leaves one open spot, though the Heat, in line to pay repeat-offender tax penalties if they wind up over the $84.74MM tax threshold at the end of the regular season, could save money and keep a spot free beneath the 15-man roster maximum on opening night. Ennis is leading the six Heat players with non-guaranteed salary in minutes per game so far in the preseason, with 17.0 MPG, but Greg Whittington is not far behind, at 16.1 MPG. Making it tricky is that Ennis’ salary of $845,059 would become fully guaranteed on opening night, though in the long run, he’d be cheaper than the other non-guaranteed players, whose full-season salaries would count as $947,276 for tax purposes if they were to stick for all of 2015/16. At least two other teams are interested in Ennis, scouts tell Ira Winderman of The Sun Sentinel, as we noted earlier, so the Heat might not get the chance to re-sign Ennis later this season if they let him go.

HORNETS

14 full guarantees (Smallest full guarantee: Troy Daniels, Tyler Hansbrough, tie — $947,276)

Non-guaranteed players

Analysis: The season-ending injury to Michael Kidd-Gilchrist begat the Wilkins signing, seemingly dampening the chances that any of the other four camp invitees will stick around for the regular season. Wilkins saw nearly 24 minutes of action in his preseason debut, his only appearance with the Hornets so far, taking only three shots and scoring five points. Still, through just one game, he’s managed to total more minutes than any other camp invitee on Charlotte’s roster except for Harrison, who’s averaging 3.8 points in 12.5 minutes per contest across four appearances so far. Harrison has a financial edge thanks to his partial guarantee, though $75K isn’t much to deter the Hornets if they’d prefer Wilkins. Harrison and Wilkins are the same height, but Wilkins has a longer wingspan that would allow him to defend better against small forwards, duties that Kidd-Gilchrist normally assumes.

MAGIC

13 full guarantees (Smallest full guarantee: Dewayne Dedmon — $947,276)

Non-guaranteed players

Analysis: Marble, the 56th overall pick of the 2014 draft who missed much of his rookie season with an eye injury, is averaging 8.8 points in 19.7 minutes, and both numbers are better than any of the other Magic camp invitees so far. None of the others is seeing double-figure minutes, and while Stiemsma comes closest, this weekend’s exhibition against Flamengo of Brazil was his first appearance of the preseason thanks to an Achilles tendon strain that had kept him from playing in the team’s first five preseason games. Ejim has looked sharp in close to 32 total minutes of play across four games, scoring 14 points and grabbing nine rebounds, helping justify his status as the only remaining Orlando camp invitee with partially guaranteed money. However, partial guarantees of $100K apiece didn’t preserve the jobs of Keith Appling and Jordan Sibert, whom the Magic waived this afternoon.

WIZARDS

15 full guarantees (Smallest full guarantee: Garrett Temple — $1,100,602)

Non-guaranteed players

Analysis: The opening night roster for the Wizards appears to have been settled for a while, or at least since trade rumors connecting Temple to the Jazz died down. The Wizards seem to be fond of Temple, who’s leading the team in preseason minutes per game, and they’d have to either trade or eat at least $2MM in salary if they were to get rid of anyone else among their 15 fully guaranteed players. Temple is posting an impressive 7.0 assists in 24.1 minutes per game so far in the preseason, though Smith is dishing dimes at an even more efficient rate, with 4.2 APG in 12.4 MPG.

The Basketball Insiders salary pages were used in the creation of this post.

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Eastern Notes: Biyombo, Hornets, Hawks

October 18th, 2015 at 10:30pm CST by Will Joseph

The Raptors‘ signing of Bismack Biyombo for two years and $6MM appears to be a steal so far because of the center’s defense and how vocal he is on the court, Ryan Wolstat of the Toronto Sun writes. While the Raptors have several capable scorers, Biyombo fills the role of setting screens and grabbing offensive rebounds, which should help the team a great deal, Wolstat adds. Biyombo, as Wolstat points out, is also only 23.

Here’s more from the Eastern Conference:

  • Veteran Damien Wilkins, undrafted rookie Aaron Harrison and third-year player Elliot Williams appear to be the candidates for the Hornets‘ final roster spot, Rick Bonnell of The Charlotte Observer details. Wilkins, Bonnell contends, has the best chance to play among the three because of his experience at small forward. The Hornets are thin at the position after Michael Kidd-Gilchrist‘s season-ending injury, as Bonnell points out. Williams likely has the smallest chance because the Hornets are deep at point guard, Bonnell adds.
  • Though he was mentored by Gregg Popovich, Mike Budenholzer, who is entering his third season as head coach of the Hawks, has put his own mark on the franchise and its style of play, Chris Vivlamore of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution writes. While the Hawks use a system similar to the Spurs, Budenholzer has crafted it to fit his personnel, Vivlamore adds.
  • Dahntay Jones, a native of New Jersey, said he always wanted to be on the Nets, but Tim Bontemps of the New York Post writes that it’s going to require a surprising move for the team to keep the 34-year-old. That’s because the franchise has made an effort to get younger and there likely just is not a spot for Jones, Bontemps adds. The Nets, as Bontemps includes in his piece, have 13 guaranteed contracts and will likely use one of the two remaining spots on a point guard. The Nets signed Jones to a non-guaranteed deal in September.
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Southeast Notes: Blair, Oubre, Wilkins, Frye

October 17th, 2015 at 7:47pm CST by Arthur Hill

DeJuan Blair is looking forward to repairing his reputation in Washington, according to J. Michael of CSNWashington.com. Blair had a disappointing first season with the Wizards after agreeing to a sign-and-trade from Dallas, appearing in just 29 games and averaging 1.9 points and 1.9 rebounds. But Blair, who still has two years and $4MM left on his contract, expects to get more playing time this season with Kevin Seraphin gone to the Knicks. “It’s my body [that’s the difference],” said Blair, who dropped 30 pounds over the summer. “Last year was a big wake-up call coming from Dallas, went from playing in the playoffs to not playing at all … This year I worked all over the summer.”

There’s more news from the Southeast Division:

  • A rash of injuries to wing players may force Kelly Oubre Jr. into the Wizards‘ rotation sooner than expected, writes Jorge Castillo of The Washington Post. Free agent addition Alan Anderson will miss a big part of the season after ankle surgery this week, his second procedure in five months. He joins an injured list that includes Martell Webster [arthritic hip], Garrett Temple [sore hamstring] and Jared Dudley [back surgery]. That leaves Oubre and Gary Neal as the only healthy wings off the bench. “Every day I’m just trying to work, and I’m trying to find myself on the court and make sure the game comes easier for me,” Oubre said. “I never really had expectations on playing time or anything like that. I’m just all in on the team.”
  • NBA veteran Damien Wilkins, signed by the Hornets after an injury to Michael Kidd-Gilchrist, tells Rick Bonnell of The Charlotte Observer that he understands his place on the team. “I’m not going to come in and try to be MKG. There is only one him – that’s why he makes the big bucks,” Wilkins said. “I’ve just got to be myself and provide some leadership and experience, make plays on both ends of the floor.” Kidd-Gilchrist is expected to miss the season after dislocating his right shoulder in a preseason game.
  • Channing Frye has become more agile and aggressive as he prepares for an expanded role with the Magic, according to John Denton of Magic.com. Frye was mainly a three-point shooter in Jacque Vaughn’s offense last season, but new coach Scott Skiles wants him to play a more complete game.
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Knicks Rumors: Lin, Anthony, O’Quinn, Seraphin

October 17th, 2015 at 3:06pm CST by Arthur Hill

The Knicks had no interest in a reunion with Jeremy Lin, according to Stefan Bondy of The New York Daily News. Lin reportedly reached out to the team during his summer free agency, but said, “There was no conversation other than them telling me they weren’t interested.” Instead, he agreed to a two-year, $4.3MM deal with the Hornets, a far cry from the three-year, $25MM contract that Houston offered him in 2012 and the Knicks chose not to match. Lin says Knicks owner James Dolan hasn’t talked to him since he left town, and rarely spoke to him beforehand.

There’s more news out of New York:

  • After a summer filled with rumors that he was unhappy with the Knicks’ draft and efforts in free agency, Carmelo Anthony has embraced a leadership role, writes Al Iannazzone of Newsday. Anthony said he was bothered by stories stating that he would have preferred Justise Winslow, Emmanuel Mudiay or Stanley Johnson over Kristaps Porzingis with the fourth pick, and that he was angry the team couldn’t land a star with about $30MM in cap room. “I think he’s just letting everyone know he’s accepting more leadership and expects to be held accountable,” said coach Derek Fisher.
  • Kyle O’Quinn is bringing a toughness back to the Knicks that is reminiscent of the 1990s teams, according to Ian Begley of ESPNNewYork.com. The fourth-year center/forward came to New York during the summer in a sign-and trade with Orlando that landed him a four-year, $16MM contract. He hopes to create a physical presence with the Knicks. “I think that’s just the way to play basketball. There’s a loose ball, you’ve got to go get it. [It’s an] extra possession for your team. That’s just the way I play,” O’Quinn said. “It’s gotten me this far, and I want to continue.”
  • The Knicks are being careful with Kevin Seraphin‘s swollen knee, writes Marc Berman of The New York Post. Seraphin, who signed a one-year, $2.8MM free agent deal in August, played 12 minutes in Friday’s preseason game after sitting out the previous two. “Any time a guy has history of a particular injury, you have to make it part of your plan in terms of managing that player,’’ Fisher said.
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