Charlotte Hornets Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Fischer’s Latest: Markkanen, DeRozan, Hield, Hart, Suns, More

August 10th, 2021 at 11:58am CST by Luke Adams

The Pelicans, Mavericks, Celtics, and Timberwolves are among the teams that have shown interest in Bulls restricted free agent Lauri Markkanen, according to Jake Fischer of Bleacher Report, who hears from sources that the price tag on the power forward would be about $15MM per year.

Landing Markkanen would be a challenge for any of those teams, however, as they’re all over the cap and would have to acquire the RFA forward via sign-and-trade. New Orleans has a traded player exception big enough to fit Markkanen, but the other teams would likely to have rely on salary-matching or offer him a lower salary (Dallas has a TPE worth $10.872MM, while Boston has one worth $9.72MM). Acquiring a player via sign-and-trade also results in a hard cap, which the Celtics are reportedly resisting.

On top of all that, Fischer confirms a previous report that the Bulls are seeking a first-round pick to accommodate a Markkanen sign-and-trade and don’t want to take on any salary, preferring any contracts to be rerouted to a third team. If they maintain that stance, the Bulls would make it very difficult for Markkanen to do anything but accept his $9MM qualifying offer.

“Chicago is playing this masterfully from no other perspective than a contract management standpoint,” a team capologist told Fischer. “It won’t do any favors relationship-wise, but they’re bleeding his market based on their tax situation, and nobody else can offer him any kind of money without them.”

As we wait to see what happens with Markkanen, it’s worth noting that the Hornets – previously rumored to be eyeing the forward – weren’t listed by Fischer as one of the teams in the hunt, and president of basketball operations Mitch Kupchak told reporters today that the team is likely done with its “heavy lifting” this offseason (Twitter link via Rod Boone of SI.com).

Here’s more from Fischer:

The Sixers, Suns, Trail Blazers, Warriors, Celtics, and Knicks were among the teams that expressed interest in DeMar DeRozan before he reached a deal with the Bulls, per Fischer. However, New York agreed to sign Evan Fournier and most of the other teams would’ve had to figure out complicated sign-and-trade arrangements to accommodate DeRozan, who never really entertained the idea of signing for the mid-level exception, sources tell Fischer.
The Pelicans and Kings discussed the possibility of swapping Buddy Hield and Josh Hart (via sign-and-trade) as part of New Orleans’ trade with Memphis, Fischer writes. It’s unclear if anything along those lines is still being considered now that the Pelicans’ deal with the Grizzlies has been completed — base year compensation rules would complicate a one-for-one swap.
The Suns are weighing their options for their final open roster spot and have gauged the trade value of 2020 lottery pick Jalen Smith, sources tell Fischer.
The Raptors will meet with Goran Dragic‘s camp at Summer League in Las Vegas to further discuss the point guard’s situation, according to Fischer.
Zach LaVine has told Bulls staffers he’s committed to improving defensively next season, Fischer says.

Southeast Notes: Butler, Thor, Magic, Dinwiddie

August 9th, 2021 at 8:19pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

After finalizing his new four-year, maximum contract extension over the weekend, All-NBA Heat swingman Jimmy Butler spoke about why he wanted to commit to Miami long-term, according to Anthony Chiang of the Miami Herald.

“They allow me to be me here, love who I am as a person and player,” Butler said of the Heat organization. “Love the guys I have an opportunity to hoop with. I think we’ll be a really good team. We’re consistently getting better, adding the right amount of vets to get over the hump and win a championship. It means everything to me to represent this great organization.”

Butler, who turns 32 in September, said that he wants to finish his career in Miami.

“It’s a place for me,” Butler said. “Teammates allow me to be me. When I’m wrong, they’re going to tell me I’m wrong. When I’m right they still probably tell me I’m wrong. I love them for that. Blessing to play with these guys and [head coach Erik Spoelstra] and [team president] Pat Riley.”

A four-time All-NBA selection, five-time All-Star, and five-time All-Defensive Team member while with the Bulls, Timberwolves and Heat (he did not earn any of these honors with his other NBA team, the Sixers), Butler showed no signs of slowing down during the 2020/21 regular season. He averaged 21.5 PPG on 49.7% shooting from the field and 86.3% from the free-throw line, as well as career-best averages of 7.1 APG, 6.9 RPG, and 2.1 SPG.

There’s more out of the Southeast Division:

Hornets rookie power forward JT Thor was signed to a four-year deal, with the first two seasons guaranteed, using some of Charlotte’s cap space, reports Bobby Marks of ESPN (Instagram video link). The 18-year-old big man was selected with the No. 37 pick out of Auburn in this year’s draft.
The young core of the rebuilding Magic – including rookie lottery picks Jalen Suggs and Franz Wagner, along with second-year point guard Cole Anthony – is exhibiting encouraging signs of development during NBA Summer League in Las Vegas, writes Dan Savage of Magic.com. “It’s about them developing camaraderie, and their ability to just tie together and move forward growing together,” new head coach Jamahl Mosley said of the Summer League squad. “Just continuing to build off each other and for each other.”
After having waived shooting guard Dwayne Bacon this weekend, the Magic project to have an open 15th roster spot, Josh Robbins of The Athletic tweets. Robbins anticipates Orlando will probably leave this final roster spot available in case an opportunity arises for the team to take on an unwanted contract – along with a draft pick – into its sizable trade exception.
New Wizards starting point guard Spencer Dinwiddie has several intriguing incentives in his three-year, $62MM deal with Washington, as Michael Scotto of HoopsHype details (Twitter link). Dinwiddie will earn a $1.5MM bonus if he plays in 50+ games, $100K if the Wizards win a first-round playoff series, $571K should the Wizards make the Eastern Conference Finals, and $400K if the Wizards qualify for the NBA Finals. As Bobby Marks of ESPN (Instagram video link) first reported, Dinwiddie would net a scant $1 bonus for winning the NBA Finals. Marks added in the same video that the partial guarantee on Dinwiddie’s 2023/24 salary will become fully guaranteed if he plays in 50+ games during the 2022/23 season.

Hornets Sign James Borrego To Contract Extension

August 9th, 2021 at 3:21pm CST by Dana Gauruder

AUGUST 9: Borrego’s extension with the Hornets is now official, the team announced today in a press release.

“We’re extremely pleased with the job that Coach Borrego and his staff have done in their three years in Charlotte,”president of basketball operations Mitch Kupchak said in a statement. “Coach and his staff have built a strong player development program and it has resulted in the continued improvement of our young players. He has implemented an exciting style that our team likes playing and our Hornets fans enjoy watching. Coach has built strong relationships with our players, has demonstrated a great knowledge of the game and has provided tremendous leadership for our group.

“We’re thrilled to have signed him to an extension and look forward to the future with him leading our team as we continue to grow and improve.”

AUGUST 7: The Hornets and head coach James Borrego are finalizing a multi-year contract extension, ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski tweets.

Charlotte had already decided to pick up its option on Borrego’s contract for next season and this will give him more long-term security.

When Charlotte hired Borrego in 2018, he was given a contract with three guaranteed years, along with an option for the fourth. Although his record is just 95-124 with the Hornets, he has spent most of that time overseeing a rebuilding project.

Borrego was an assistant coach for eight years with New Orleans, Orlando and San Antonio before becoming a head coach. He served as an interim head coach with the Magic for 30 games during the 2014/15 season.

Hornets Notes: Oubre, I. Smith, Li. Ball, Summer League

August 8th, 2021 at 1:35pm CST by Luke Adams

Kelly Oubre‘s two-year deal with the Hornets, which was completed using cap space, is worth $12MM and $12.6MM in year two, tweets Keith Smith of Spotrac. That second year is only partially guaranteed for $5MM, however, so the agreement includes just $17MM in total guaranteed money.

Meanwhile, Ish Smith‘s two-year contract with the Hornets uses most of the club’s room exception, according to Smith (Twitter link). It starts at $4.5MM in 2021/22, while the $4.725MM salary for ’22/23 is non-guaranteed.

Here’s more on the Hornets:

LiAngelo Ball, who is playing for the Hornets’ Summer League team in Las Vegas, said he’s “very thankful” for the opportunity and isn’t taking it for granted, as Rod Boone of SI.com writes. Ball was supposed to play for Oklahoma City’s G League affiliate in March 2020 before the pandemic stopped the season. He impressed Charlotte’s brass while working out in the gym with his brother LaMelo Ball in recent months, Boone writes.
Ball’s performance in Las Vegas is one of a handful of Hornets Summer League storylines to watch, according to Jonathan M. Alexander of The Charlotte Observer, who says he’ll also be keeping an eye on James Bouknight‘s three-point shooting and how much time Kai Jones spends at center.
In case you missed it, the Hornets are still believed to be eyeing restricted free agent Lauri Markkanen, despite no longer having the cap room necessary to sign him to an offer sheet.

Pelicans, Hornets Eyeing Lauri Markkanen

August 8th, 2021 at 12:38pm CST by Luke Adams

The Pelicans have displayed interest in restricted free agent forward Lauri Markkanen, sources tell veteran NBA reporter Marc Stein (Twitter link).

As Stein notes, New Orleans just generated a trade exception worth more than $17MM in the team’s three-way trade that sent Steven Adams and Eric Bledsoe to Memphis. That newly-created exception could be used to accommodate a contract worth more than the mid-level for Markkanen.

The Pelicans and Bulls also haven’t officially completed their Lonzo Ball sign-and-trade deal yet, so it’s possible a Markkanen sign-and-trade could be looped into that agreement. However, that’d be more complicated, and the Ball agreement is currently being investigated by the NBA.

The Bulls are believed to be seeking a first-round pick in order to facilitate a Markkanen sign-and-trade, says Stein. The Pelicans can’t use their trade exception to sign Markkanen to an offer sheet, so they’d need Chicago’s cooperation in order to offer him more than the mid-level.

Meanwhile, Jordan Schultz of Bleacher Report says (via Twitter) that the Hornets, who were rumored earlier in the week to be considering an offer sheet for Markkanen, remain in the hunt as a potential “sleeper.” However, that scenario is difficult to envision.

The Hornets have used up their cap room and would almost certainly have to acquire Markkanen via sign-and-trade, as Schultz tweets. Charlotte doesn’t have a trade exception that would work in such a deal and would therefore have to match salaries.

The only salaries on Charlotte’s books that would really make sense as primary matching pieces, given Markkanen’s salary expectations, are Terry Rozier‘s ($17.9MM) or Mason Plumlee‘s ($9.25MM). Rozier is more valuable to the Hornets than he would be to the Bulls, who just agreed to acquire Ball and Alex Caruso. And Charlotte just traded for Plumlee a few days ago to address the team’s hole at center.

It’s possible the Hornets will find a way to get creative and land Markkanen, perhaps using smaller salaries, but it would be a challenge.

Markkanen, meanwhile, continues to explore his options around the NBA in the hopes of joining a new team. He told a Finnish journalist earlier this week that he’s seeking a “fresh start” after four years in Chicago.

Kelly Oubre's Agent Says Eight Other Teams Made Offers

August 7th, 2021 at 10:01pm CST by Arthur Hill

Free agent forward Kelly Oubre received offers from eight other teams before deciding to sign with the Hornets, tweets Stefan Bondy of The New York Daily News. Oubre’s agent, Torrel Harris of Unique Sports International Management, says the Knicks, Lakers, Clippers, Bucks, Nuggets, Nets, Trail Blazers and Cavaliers all presented offers to Oubre.

Hornets Sign Kelly Oubre To Two-Year Deal

August 7th, 2021 at 11:36am CST by Luke Adams

AUGUST 7: Oubre and the Hornets have now finalized a two-year, $25MM contract, agent Torrel Harris tells Chris Haynes of Yahoo Sports (Twitter link). Charlotte announced the signing in a press release.

It appears Oubre’s starting salary will come in slightly lower than initially expected after Charlotte took on Wesley Iwundu in a trade with New Orleans.

The deal won’t feature any options, per Michael Scotto of HoopsHype (Twitter link). However, Rod Boone of SI.com (Twitter link) says the second year will be partially guaranteed and Anthony Slater of The Athletic provides the specifics, tweeting that $5MM of Oubre’s $12.6MM salary for 2022/23 will be guaranteed.

AUGUST 5: The Hornets and free agent wing Kelly Oubre are in agreement on a two-year deal that will be worth $26MM+, sources tell Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link).

David Aldridge of The Athletic reported earlier on Thursday that the Hornets and Oubre had engaged in discussions, while Chris Haynes of Yahoo Sports was first to report that the two sides were finalizing a multiyear deal expected to exceed $12MM per year.

Charlotte, one of the only NBA teams that still had the cap room necessary to make an offer worth more than the full mid-level exception ($9.5MM), had also reportedly been mulling an offer sheet for Lauri Markkanen. However, the Hornets’ agreement with Oubre will eat up most – if not all – of their remaining cap room, presumably taking an aggressive bid for the Bulls‘ restricted free agent forward off the table.

Oubre, 25, has spent time with the Wizards, Suns, and Warriors since entering the league as the 15th overall pick in the 2015 draft. In 2020/21, he averaged 15.4 PPG and 6.0 RPG on .439/.316/.695 shooting in 55 games (30.7 MPG) for Golden State.

While Oubre possesses good size and athleticism for a three-and-D wing, his three-point shot has been inconsistent over the course of his career (32.6%).

Charlotte will be hoping to get the 2019/20 version of Oubre, who averaged 18.7 PPG with a .352 3PT% for the Suns. The former Kansas Jayhawk will join a talented group of Hornets forwards that includes Gordon Hayward, Miles Bridges, and P.J. Washington.

Since the Hornets have the ability to sign Oubre outright using their cap room and his new contract will only be for two years, it won’t be a sign-and-trade deal involving the Warriors.

Hornets Waive Caleb Martin

August 7th, 2021 at 10:57am CST by Dana Gauruder

The Hornets have waived shooting guard Caleb Martin, according to a team press release.

Martin had a $1,782,621 salary for next season that was due to guarantee on August 15. By releasing him now, Charlotte won’t carry any dead on its cap for him in 2021/22.

Martin averaged 5.0 PPG, 2.7 RPG and 1.3 APG in 15.4 MPG while seeing action in 53 games. Martin, who went undrafted in 2019, appeared in 71 games the last two seasons.

The move clears some additional cap space for Charlotte to officially sign Kelly Oubre Jr., who agreed to a two-year deal on Friday.

And-Ones: Smith, Biyombo, Spurs, Hall, Almansa, Trade Market

August 7th, 2021 at 10:45am CST by Dana Gauruder

The Pistons officially renounced their rights to Wayne Ellington, who has signed with the Lakers, and Dennis Smith Jr., according to the RealGM transactions log. The Hornets renounced four players, including Bismack Biyombo, while the Spurs renounced their rights to a whopping 13 players. San Antonio’s list includes Donatas Motiejunas and David Lee, who haven’t appeared in an NBA game for years. Renouncing those rights allows teams to maximize their cap room in free agency.

We have more from the basketball world:

Donta Hall has signed with France’s Betclic Elite side AS Monaco, Sportando relays. Hall, who turns 24 on Saturday, played 13 games with the Magic this past season on two 10-day contracts and an end-of-the-season deal via the hardship exception. The power forward also played a total of nine games for the Pistons and Nets in 2019/20.
Overtime Elite has added another top European prospect. Izan Almansa has signed with the league, Jonathan Givony of ESPN tweets. The 6’9” Almansa, a 16-year old Spanish power forward, is the second player OTE has signed from Real Madrid’s youth program and seventh international prospect.
While free agency is winding down, the trade market could continue to percolate in the coming weeks, John Hollinger of The Athletic writes. Ben Simmons and Damian Lillard top the list of stars who could be on the move, while the Raptors and Magic are teams to watch, with the latter possibly taking on an onerous contract in order to acquire future assets.
The ESPN duo of Tim Bontemps and Bobby Marks also take a look at unresolved storylines this month involving free agency, the trade market and potential extensions.

Pelicans Officially Acquire Valanciunas, Graham In Three-Team Trade

August 7th, 2021 at 9:28am CST by Luke Adams

The Pelicans have officially announced a pair of previously–reported trades, having combined their acquisitions of center Jonas Valanciunas and point guard Devonte’ Graham into a single transaction involving both the Grizzlies and Hornets. Memphis and Charlotte have put out press releases as well.

The details of the three-team deal are as follows:

To Pelicans:
- Valanciunas (from Grizzlies)
- Graham (sign-and-trade; from Hornets)
- The draft rights to Trey Murphy (No. 17 pick; from Grizzlies)
- The draft rights to Brandon Boston (No. 51 pick; from Grizzlies)
  - Note: Boston will be rerouted to the Clippers in a subsequent trade.
To Grizzlies:
- Eric Bledsoe (from Pelicans)
- Steven Adams (from Pelicans)
- The draft rights to Ziaire Williams (No. 10 pick; from Pelicans)
- The draft rights to Jared Butler (No. 40 pick; from Pelicans)
  - Note: Butler will be rerouted to the Jazz in a subsequent trade.
- The Lakers’ 2022 first-round pick (top-10 protected; from Pelicans)
To Hornets:
- Wesley Iwundu (from Pelicans)
- The Pelicans’ 2022 first-round pick (top-14 protected; from Pelicans)
  - Note: If the Pelicans’ 2022 first-rounder falls in the top 14, the Hornets will instead receive New Orleans’ 2022 and 2024 second-round picks, per Rod Boone of SI.com.
- Cash (from Pelicans)
- The draft rights to Tyler Harvey (from Grizzlies)

The details of the three-team trade essentially line up with what was previously reported, with two new pieces added — Iwundu going from New Orleans to Charlotte and Harvey’s draft rights going from Memphis to Charlotte. Harvey was presumably only included to ensure that the Grizzlies and Hornets were “touching,” since otherwise Memphis would only have been exchanging assets with the Pelicans.

Looping their sign-and-trade acquisition of Graham into the trade suggests the Pelicans will operate over the cap, using Bledsoe’s and Adams’ outgoing salaries in order to match both Valanciunas and Graham instead of signing Graham into cap space.

As Bobby Marks of ESPN notes (via Twitter), it also allows New Orleans to generate a $17MM+ trade exception in the deal. Only Bledsoe’s and Iwundu’s outgoing salaries are needed for matching purposes to take on Valanciunas and Graham, meaning the Pelicans’ new TPE is worth Adams’ salary ($17,073,171).

Graham reportedly signed a four-year, $47MM contract with the Pelicans as part of the trade. He and Tomas Satoransky appear set to play the majority of the minutes at point guard in New Orleans, barring further roster changes. The team is sending Lonzo Ball to Chicago in a separate sign-and-trade deal.

Graham made just 37.7% of his field goal attempts in 2020/21, but his three-point mark was a very respectable 37.5%. In addition to his ability to make threes, Graham is an above-average play-maker (6.5 APG over the last two seasons) and a respectable defender.

Swapping out Adams for Valanciunas should allow the Pelicans to improve their frontcourt spacing. Valanciunas isn’t exactly a long-distance marksman, but has a solid mid-range game and will shoot the occasional three-pointer, which should create more room for Zion Williamson to operate. The former No. 5 overall pick averaged an impressive 17.1 PPG and 12.5 RPG with a .592/.368/.773 shooting line in 62 games (28.3 MPG) this past season.

From the Grizzlies’ perspective, the deal was a way to improve their draft assets in both 2021 and 2022 as a result of their willingness to take on Adams’ and Bledsoe’s pricey contracts. The team moved up from No. 17 to No. 10 to snag Williams, and later flipped the No. 40 pick (Butler) to Utah in a separate trade to move up to No. 30 for Santi Aldama.

[RELATED: 2021 NBA Offseason Trades]

The Hornets, meanwhile, decided to move on from Graham and got a protected first-round pick from New Orleans in exchange for waiving their right to match an offer sheet for the restricted free agent. Iwundu’s guaranteed $1.82MM salary for 2021/22 will eat up a small amount of Charlotte’s cap room, but the team will still have enough flexibility to complete its signing of Kelly Oubre to a two-year deal in the range of $12-13MM per year.