- Despite recently receiving a three-year, $6.2MM contract from the Bulls, guard Sean Kilpatrick still views every game in the NBA as an audition, writes Joe Cowley of the Chicago Sun-Times. “That’s how I looked at things, and that’s how I viewed things since I got into this league, and that’s why I think I’ve had some type of success in that area.” Kilpatrick said.
- It appears as though the Bulls plan on keeping head coach Fred Hoiberg around for a fourth season, Cowley opines in another piece. “I’ve gotten unbelievable support from everybody throughout the year, going back to what I thought was a great offseason and training camp,” Hoiberg said.
- Two-way player Antonio Blakeney believes he established himself as an NBA player before the Bulls guard fractured his wrist, according to K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune. He averaged 7.9 PPG in 16.5 MPG in 19 appearances with Chicago. “I definitely think I showed a little bit of what I can do,” Blakeney said. “I have a lot more to show. I didn’t get to play many games this year.”
The Bulls have signed veteran guard Sean Kilpatrick to a three-year, $6.2MM contract, reports Shams Charania of Yahoo Sports. According to Charania, the deal – signed using the mid-level exception – isn’t guaranteed for the second and third years.
It has been an eventful season for Kilpatrick, who opened 2017/18 with the Nets. Waived by Brooklyn in December, Kilpatrick signed a two-way deal with the Bucks, which was eventually converted into a standard NBA deal in January. The 28-year-old was cut by Milwaukee in March and then signed a pair of 10-day contracts with the Clippers. After those deals expired, Kilpatrick appeared poised to sign with the Celtics, but that deal fell through over the weekend when he received a more appealing offer from the Bulls.
Kilpatrick’s nomadic existence this season comes on the heels of his best year as a pro. In 2016/17, he averaged 13.1 PPG and 4.0 RPG in 70 games for the Nets. Perhaps hoping he can repeat that level of production in the right environment, the Bulls are taking a very low-risk flier on Kilpatrick.
Because the Bulls remain below the NBA’s minimum salary floor, the deal essentially won’t cost them anything this season — the gap between a team’s total salary and the league-mandated minimum (90% of the cap) must be paid out at the end of the season to the club’s players, so the money given to Kilpatrick won’t add anything to the team’s year-end bill. The Bulls are believed to still be about $2MM below the salary floor after adding Kilpatrick.
Chicago’s 15-man roster was full after Sunday’s C.J. Fair signing, so Fair – like Jaylen Johnson before him – figures to be the player waived to make room for Kilpatrick.
The Bulls signed forward C.J. Fair and waived forward Jaylen Johnson, according to a team press release.
The 6’8” Fair has appeared in 47 G League games this season, splitting time between the Windy City Bulls and the Fort Wayne Mad Ants, the Pacers’ affiliate. He averaged 10.1 PPG and 4.3 RPG.
Fair, 26, went undrafted in 2014 after playing his college ball at Syracuse. He has played Summer League ball with the Mavericks and Celtics and was on the Pacers’ training-camp roster in 2014 and 2015. He has also played in France. The Windy City Bulls acquired him in February in a trade with the Mad Ants.
Johnson, 21, was barely on the Bulls roster for 24 hours. They signed him to a contract on Saturday. He averaged 11.7 PPG, 7.6 RPG and 2.9 APG in 49 games with the Windy City affiliate. He went undrafted last summer before signing with the Bulls on a training camp deal but was waived before the regular season.
- Jaylen Johnson, who signed a contract with the Bulls earlier today, was assigned to Windy City, where he has spent the entire season, tweets K.C. Johnson of The Chicago Tribune.
- Bulls guard Kris Dunn remains in a walking boot with a toe injury, but was able to exercise today on an elliptical machine, reports K.C. Johnson of The Chicago Tribune (Twitter link). Swelling has gone down and he will join the team on its upcoming road trip, but coach Fred Hoiberg said Dunn will need to be “reconditioned” if the team doesn’t shut him down for the rest of the season.
The Bulls have signed rookie forward Jaylen Johnson to an NBA contract, the team announced today via an official press release.
Johnson, 21, has until now spent this season with Chicago’s G League affiliate, the Windy City Bulls, where he has put up averages of of 29.0 minutes, 11.7 points, 7.6 boards and 2.9 assists per game in 49 games (37 starts).
Johnson went undrafted last summer before catching on with the Bulls on a training camp deal. He was waived a few days before the regular season began.
It isn’t yet clear whether the new deal for Johnson is a 10-day contract or rest-of-season deal, but a 10-day contract would count as $46.1K towards the Bulls’ cap, while a rest-of-season pact, assuming it’s signed today, would count as $87.6K.
- Sam Smith of Bulls.com takes a look at how Bulls‘ big man Cristiano Felicio is looking to improve his game to show he deserves the $32MM contract Chicago gave him over the summer. “I know a lot of people talk whatever they want to. I am not focusing on them. I am just focusing on myself and trying to get better. I know I wasn’t playing well at the beginning of the season (but) now they are giving me an opportunity again, and I am trying to show, go out and show them I can play.”
Restricted free agency can be a minefield for NBA players, who have to work with their agents to determine whether it makes sense to negotiate directly with their own teams or to seek an offer sheet from another suitor.
For certain players, restricted free agency can be a route to a monster payday, since teams looking to pry away an RFA from another team often have to overpay to do it — just ask Tim Hardaway Jr., who almost certainly did better as a restricted free agent than he would have if he had been unrestricted last summer. Otto Porter, Tony Snell, Joe Ingles, Cristiano Felicio, and Mason Plumlee were among the other 2017 RFAs who secured lucrative long-term deals.
However, for some restricted free agents, seeking out that mega-deal can backfire. Nerlens Noel and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope reportedly turned down big four-year offers last offseason and then had to settle for one-year contracts instead. Alex Len and Nikola Mirotic were among the other RFAs who remained on the market for months before eventually signing modest deals.
While it’s not necessarily the end of the world if an RFA has to accept a one-year deal that sets him up for unrestricted free agency 12 months later, a lucrative long-term deal is generally preferred, since that sort of payday can increase a young player’s career earnings exponentially.
Heading into the 2018 free agent period, league-wide cap space isn’t expected to be as abundant as it has been over the past couple years, but there are still a number of restricted free agents who appear well positioned to secure big contracts. Here are eight of them:
Clint Capela, C (Rockets): Capela may not have the dynamic sort of skill set that some of the NBA’s best big men possess, but he does exactly what the Rockets need him to — finish at the basket (.651 FG%), grab rebounds (10.9 RPG), and protect the rim (1.8 BPG). Barring a major surprise, I’d expect Houston to go well into tax territory to ensure that he and Chris Paul both get lucrative new deals this summer.- Aaron Gordon, PF (Magic): After opening the season with a red-hot shooting stretch (.595 3PT% in his first 10 games), Gordon has posted more pedestrian shooting numbers since then (.299 3PT% in his last 39 games). The former fourth overall pick becomes an extremely dangerous offensive weapon when his three-pointer is working, but even without it, he makes for an intriguing free agent option. Gordon is still just 22 years old, and coming off a career year, he’s a good bet to land a big offer sheet from a team with cap room if the Magic drag their feet in negotiations.
- Julius Randle, F/C (Lakers): With Larry Nance Jr. sent to Cleveland and Kyle Kuzma unable to sustain his hot start all season long, Randle has been the Lakers‘ most impressive big man for the last three months. Since entering the starting lineup on December 29, the former Kentucky standout has averaged 19.1 PPG, 9.3 RPG, and 3.2 APG, making a case for a spot on the Lakers’ long-term plans even if the team is able to land a top outside free agent or two this summer. The Mavericks have been cited most frequently as a potential suitor for Randle if he seeks out an offer sheet.
- Zach LaVine, G (Bulls): Although injuries have prevented LaVine from taking another step forward this season, that’s unlikely to significantly impact his free agent value. The Bulls traded for LaVine last offseason knowing that a pricey new deal was on the horizon, and there has been no indication that the team has wavered on the idea of locking him up to a long-term pact.
- Jabari Parker, F (Bucks): Had Parker stayed healthy during his first four NBA seasons, he may already have a maximum salary extension secured. Instead, two ACL injuries have created uncertainty about what his next contract will look like. The former No. 2 overall pick reportedly passed on an offer last fall that would have paid him $18MM annually, and while he may not do better than that on the open market, his market shouldn’t crater. Parker already has a 20+ PPG season under his belt, and has put up career-best shooting numbers since returning from his latest ACL tear — his scoring potential will be tantalizing enough for a team with cap flexibility to take a shot on him if the Bucks don’t re-sign him right away.
- Jusuf Nurkic, C (Trail Blazers): Nurkic has been somewhat inconsistent this season, particularly on offense, but the Trail Blazers‘ defense continues to perform better and commit fewer fouls when he’s on the court, as ESPN’s Zach Lowe wrote this week. A 23-year-old center capable of anchoring a defense for a top-six team in the NBA is a rarity — that makes him a good bet to do well for himself in free agency.
- Marcus Smart, G (Celtics): Like Nurkic, Smart isn’t necessarily a reliable go-to option on offense, but his defensive ability makes him a valuable rotation piece. According to Basketball-Reference’s on/off-court stats, the Celtics allow about five fewer points per 100 possessions and force more turnovers when Smart is on the floor. While his shooting numbers (.367/.301/.729) leave something to be desired, the 24-year-old should at least be in line for an Andre Roberson-type contract (three years, $30MM).
- Fred VanVleet, G (Raptors): The only player on this list who wasn’t a first-round pick, VanVleet actually wasn’t drafted at all, joining the Raptors as a rookie free agent in 2016. He has developed into a solid backup point guard this season, averaging 11.0 PPG and 3.5 APG with a .450/.432/.867 shooting line since the start of 2018. His success creates an interesting predicament for the Raptors, who project to be a taxpayer in 2018/19, and could have to contend with a rival suitor back-loading an offer sheet for VanVleet via the Arenas provision. Toronto may ultimately need to trade another expensive contract if they want to retain VanVleet without committing to a huge tax bill.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
In a young man’s league, Pacers point guard Darren Collison, 30, is the definition of a veteran, but doesn’t want his ability to reflect it. In his ninth NBA season, Collison wanted to make some adjustments and improvements, which led him to a phone conversation with one of the all-time greats.
Mark Monteith of NBA.com writes that Collision set up a call with future Hall-of-Famer Steve Nash. Collison wanted to pick Nash’s brain on how to adapt to playing against younger guards, implementing new moves, and improving his diet. Collison said he has long admired Nash and wanted to learn as much as he can.
“He was one of my favorite players to watch, because he’s not athletic, he’s not big, he’s not strong,” Collison said. “But when you guard him, it’s the hardest thing to do because he just knows how to keep the defense honest in the pick-and-roll. He doesn’t go fast, he doesn’t go slow. He makes every read precisely. I’ve watched a lot of film on him, so I figured why not just call him and pick his brain?”
Collison is averaging his usually solid numbers this season with 12.7 PPG and 5.3 APG in 59 games. If he ever needs it, he now has one of the greatest point guards in league history just a phone call away.
Check out more Central Division notes below:
- With Reggie Jackson back on the court, the Pistons finally have their three best players healthy simultaneously. Midseason acquisition Blake Griffin, prolific rebounder Andre Drummond, and Jackson are a strong trio that can do a lot of damage if healthy, NBA.com’s Keith Langlois writes. “If we can get Reggie healthy and keep him healthy,” head coach Stan Van Gundy said, “with those three guys, that’s going to be a formidable group to play against for anybody.”
- After recent reports suggested that the Bucks nearly traded Jabari Parker at the deadline and have a list of potential replacements for interim head coach Joe Prunty, general manager Jon Horst rejected those stories during a radio appearance in Milwaukee. Matt Velazquez of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel relays Horst’s comments, in which the Bucks GM denied the reports and indicated they came from erroneous sources.
- As we relayed earlier today, Bulls two-way guard Antonio Blakeney suffered a fractured left wrist and he will miss the rest of the season.