- Adding Russell Westbrook would have made the Pistons better in the short term but it wasn’t worth the long-term risk, Keith Langlois of the team’s website opines. The Pistons couldn’t afford to give up future first-rounders and agree to pick swaps as Houston did to acquire Westbrook from Oklahoma City. With Blake Griffin‘s big contract and Andre Drummond holding an option to become a free agent next summer, the Pistons would not have been able to make any more notable future upgrades if they took on Westbrook’s huge contract, Langlois adds.
- Veteran point guard Tim Frazier is eager for the opportunity that awaits him with the Pistons, writes Rod Beard of The Detroit News. While Frazier may see limited minutes behind Reggie Jackson and Derrick Rose, Detroit sees value in having a young and experienced option in case Jackson or Rose get hurt.
It was recently reported that the Heat and Pistons are expected to be the top contenders to land Thunder point guard Russell Westbrook if/when Oklahoma City ends up trading him, with Miami and Westbrook already expressing mutual interest in a potential deal.
However, unlike the Heat, it doesn’t appear as if the Pistons are particularly interested in a trade for the eight-time All-Star and former NBA MVP, according to Vince Ellis of the Detroit Free Press.
Per Ellis, he reached out to a source with firsthand knowledge of the situation involving Westbrook, with the source responding, “Ridiculous… (n)othing there.” Then, in a follow-up piece, Ellis adds that the Pistons’ appetite to obtain Westbrook is lukewarm, even though the franchise readily acknowledges the talent that makes the Thunder guard one of the best point guards in the league.
Ultimately, it appears to Ellis that the primary issue with trading for Westbrook is the value of his contract, which will pay the 11-year veteran $171MM over the next four seasons. And if nothing else, Ellis’ stories probably strengthen the notion that the Heat are the prohibitive favorite to land Westbrook should he be traded from the Thunder.
Representatives from nearly half of the league’s teams were in attendance for a workout that included former NBA stars Amar’e Stoudemire and Monta Ellis, Chris Haynes of Yahoo Sports tweets.
The Lakers, Clippers, Warriors, Knicks, Thunder, Bucks, Pistons, Kings, Nuggets, Blazers, Magic, Hawks, Wolves and Wizards were all in attendance. Haynes adds that 15 international teams from Europe and Asia also had representatives in Las Vegas for the workout.
Here’s more from around the league:
- The Spurs, Nuggets, and Knicks were all interested in JaMychal Green before the forward re-signed with the Clippers, Jovan Buha of The Athletic writes. Those teams were offering him a more lucrative offer than the one he signed with Los Angeles. The Clippers put on a “full-court press” to retain Green, Buha adds, and the 29-year-old ended up inking a two-year deal worth slightly under $10MM.
- Green has the ability to be a free agent next summer, having secured a player option as part of his deal with the Clippers. Buha (in the same piece) speculates that Green could have commanded a deal in the $10MM+ range this offseason and that the forward should have the opportunity for a similar contract next summer.
- Mo Speights, who played in China last season, is working out for teams in Las Vegas on Wednesday, Marc J. Spears of The Undefeated tweets. Speights last played in the NBA for the Magic during the 2017/18 season.
The free agency deals began a week ago, but the details of those arrangements are slowly trickling in as they become official. Let’s take a look at some contract notes from players around the league:
- Nikola Vucevic’s four-year, $100MM deal with the Magic will decline by 8% annually, Jeff Siegel of Early Bird Rights tweets. Vucevic will make roughly $28.4MM in the first year of his front-loaded contract.
- Terrence Ross‘ four-year, $52MM contract with the Magic will start at $12.5MM, per Siegel. Ross will make $13.5MM during the 2020/21 season, followed by $12.5MM and $11.5MM in the two ensuing years.
- Al-Farouq Aminu will take home the full non-taxpayer’s mid-level on his deal with the Magic. He’ll make approximately $9.3MM during his first season and approximately $9.7MM and $10.2MM, respectively, over the ensuing two campaigns.
- Kentavious Caldwell-Pope‘s two year deal with the Lakers is worth approximately $16.6MM in total value. KCP can make roughly $1.2MM in annual incentives on top of that amount, a source tells Siegel (Twitter link). The shooting guard has a player option on the second year of the pact, which also has a 15% trade bonus. Since his deal could be a one-year contract (if he chooses to turn down the player option), Caldwell-Pope has a default no-trade clause.
- JaVale McGee also has a player option on the final year of his two-year deal with the Lakers, Keith Smith of RealGM tweets. McGee, who will make $8.2MM over the length of his contract, also has the ability to veto a trade.
- Markieff Morris‘ two-year deal with the Pistons contains a second-year player option, Smith tweets. Morris was signed via the bi-annual exception.
- Bruno Fernando‘s three-year deal with the Hawks is worth $4.7MM, Michael Scotto of The Athletic tweets. It appears Atlanta will be using cap space to sign the rookie.
- Tomas Satoransky final season of the three-year, $30MM deal with the Bulls is only guaranteed for $5MM, Fred Katz of The Athletic relays (Twitter link). Chicago brought the point guard to town via sign-and-trade.
The Heat and Pistons are expected to be the top contenders to land Russell Westbrook if the Thunder decide to trade him, according to Sam Amick and Brett Dawson of The Athletic.
Oklahoma City GM Sam Presti will meet this week with Westbrook and his agent, Thad Foucher, to plot out the future for the former MVP. All three were blindsided by Paul George‘s trade request, which was the result of Kawhi Leonard‘s successful lobbying effort to join him on the Clippers.
The Thunder are motivated to move Westbrook, not only because he’s the lone star left in OKC and will make $171MM over the next four years, but also because he plays the same position as Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, the centerpiece of their return in the George deal.
Miami would like to pair Westbrook with Jimmy Butler and could offer a package built around Goran Dragic, who has one year left on his contract at $19.2MM, and Dion Waiters, who is owed a combined $24.7MM over the next two seasons. Detroit’s offer might include Andre Drummond ($27MM in 2019/20 with a $28.75MM player option the following season), Reggie Jackson (one year left at $18MM) and Tony Snell ($11.39MM next season followed by a $12.18MM player option).
Some executives believe the Rockets could get involved as well, given GM Daryl Morey’s penchant for star chasing. However, pairing Westbrook with James Harden and Chris Paul, two other guards who like to control the ball, may prove awkward, and matching salary wouldn’t be easy. Houston would almost certainly have to part with Clint Capela ($14.9MM next season), Eric Gordon ($14MM), and P.J. Tucker ($8.35MM) in any deal if Paul isn’t included.
Sources with knowledge of Houston’s thinking confirmed to Tim MacMahon of ESPN.com that the Rockets have interest in Westbrook. However, one team source described a potential deal as a “long shot,” says MacMahon.
There’s more today on the Westbrook front:
- The Knicks have been mentioned as a possible suitor for Westbrook, but will have to wait until December to make a move, notes Marc Berman of The New York Post. New York no longer has the cap room to absorb Westbrook’s $37.5MM salary for next season after reaching deals with six free agents, and those new players can’t be traded before December 15. If the opportunity is still there, Elfrid Payton, Reggie Bullock, Bobby Portis, Wayne Ellington and Taj Gibson will all have expiring contracts that could interest the Thunder as they try to reduce a league-high tax bill. The Knicks can also offer the 2021 and 2023 first-rounders they acquired from Dallas in the Kristaps Porzingis deal, Berman adds.
- Michael Shapiro of Sports Illustrated mentions the Timberwolves, Celtics and Magic as other possibilities. A swap with Minnesota would be easy if OKC would accept Andrew Wiggins in return, he states, while the Celtics could offer Gordon Hayward and Jaylen Brown or wait a year and trade newly acquired Kemba Walker. Orlando has been seeking a point guard for years and has a lot of wings and big men to offer.
- The Bulls, Mavericks, Nuggets, Bucks, Spurs and Raptors all have the assets to get involved as well, according to Zack Rosenblatt of NJ.com.
The Lakers, Pelicans, and Wizards have officially completed the three-team trade that makes Anthony Davis a Laker. All three teams issued press releases tonight to announce the deal. The structure of the trade is as follows:
- Lakers acquire Anthony Davis.
- Pelicans acquire Lonzo Ball, Brandon Ingram, Josh Hart, the draft rights to De’Andre Hunter (No. 4 pick), the Lakers’ 2021 first-round pick (9-30 protected; unprotected in 2022), the Lakers’ 2024 first-round pick (unprotected), the right to swap 2023 first-round picks with the Lakers, and cash ($1.1MM; from Wizards).
- Note: The Pelicans will also have the option to defer the 2024 first-round pick to 2025.
- Wizards acquire Moritz Wagner, Isaac Bonga, Jemerrio Jones, and the Lakers’ 2022 second-round pick.
The long-awaited deal was held up slightly today as the Lakers officially finalized a series of signings using their cap room. In order to maximize its cap space, the club had to sign free agents first before acquiring Davis. Danny Green, DeMarcus Cousins, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, Quinn Cook, and JaVale McGee all signed their contracts with the Lakers since the July moratorium ended this afternoon.
The Pelicans, meanwhile, will now flip the rights to Hunter to the Hawks in a separate deal, putting the No. 4 pick on track to join his new team for Summer League action. Once the deal is done, Atlanta will also be able to complete its trade with the Sixers involving Bruno Fernando and Jordan Bone, then Philadelphia will be able to flip Bone to the Pistons.
For more details on one of the summer’s biggest trades, be sure to check out our previous stories on the Lakers/Pelicans aspect of the deal, as well as the Lakers/Wizards part of the swap.
The Nets enjoyed their most successful free agent period ever this week, agreeing to deals with Kyrie Irving, Kevin Durant and DeAndre Jordan. The moves figure to make Brooklyn one of the Eastern Conference’s premier teams next season, one year after the Nets’ made the postseason.
Even with the likelihood that Durant misses most – if not all – of next season, Brooklyn figures to be in the hunt for a top seed. Current Net Spencer Dinwiddie, a crucial part of the franchise’s increased success as of late, reportedly played a major role in recruiting those aforementioned All-Stars.
For the first time, Dinwiddie addressed Brooklyn’s moves, giving a coy response to the nature of recruitment among NBA players today.
“The thing about the NBA, everything you read is plausible,” Dinwiddie said to The Athletic’s Michael Scotto. “And with that being said, obviously, it could’ve happened, it may not have happened.”
With the spotlight now shining on the Nets, Dinwiddie noted that the team expects to be in contention for not just a playoff spot but for a title in the coming seasons.
“Anytime you add two probably top-10 players in the world, multi-time All-Stars, you’re obviously going to get better,” Dinwiddie said. “It’s on the rest of us to kind of help facilitate that transition, and hopefully we can be a very good team next year.”
Check out more Eastern Conference notes:
- Even with cap space for two max contracts, the Knicks failed to lure any top-tier free agents to New York this summer. Marc Berman of the New York Post opines that the Knicks’ failures warrant an image overhaul of the franchise if it hopes to lure top players in the future.
- The Pistons plan to keep Sviatoslav Mykhailiuk on the roster, thus fully guaranteeing his salary for the 2019/20 season, Ben Stinar of Amico Hoops relays (Twitter link). Mykhailiuk’s minimum-salary contract had a guarantee date of July 5.
- After suffering a torn Achilles, C.J. Wilcox thought his career was over. At 28 years old, Wilcox – who re-signed this week with the Pacers – is in the midst of a comeback attempt, Robby General of the Indianapolis Star writes. “Eight months ago, I was done playing basketball after tearing my Achilles,” Wilcox said. “Now I have some level of a contract, which is something to be proud of.”
It’s the fourth full day of NBA free agency and we’ve finally topped the 100 transaction mark so far this offseason. That means now is as good a time to pore through the deals that have been reported thus far and start analyzing which ones we think may prove to be the biggest bargains.
For a complete list of all the transactions I’m talking about, check out the Hoops Rumors 2019 Free Agent Tracker.
Below are a few of the bargain deals that stand out to me. I encourage you to pore through the complete list on your own and get back to us with the contracts that you think will most favor the NBA teams that inked them.
Young Bigs That Minnesota Bought Low On
MIN – Jordan Bell (1 year, $1.6MM)
MIN – Noah Vonleh (1 year, $2.0MM)
It’s safe to say that there’s a reason Bell didn’t step into significant minutes with the Warriors at any point over the course of the past few seasons. Perhaps he didn’t see eye-to-eye with the coaching staff. In any event, the Wolves will now give the 24-year-old a fresh start in a low pressure environment and perhaps the stark contrast between sunny, 60-win seasons in California and dreary, Minnesota winter slogs to the 35-win plateau will serve as a wake-up call for the talented center.
Vonleh may not have worn out his welcome with any of the teams that he’s played for, but that could be because he hasn’t stuck around long enough with any of them to do it. Vonleh had the dubious distinction of being a raw talent coming out of the draft. That, coupled with his low draft age led to high expectations. Well, we’re four years into Vonleh’s career now and while he hasn’t evolved into much more than a high energy rebound guy, he’s a pretty darn good one. Vonleh has played for four teams in five seasons and is still only 23-years-old.
Guys Who Fill The Stat Sheet When The Stars Align
WAS – Thomas Bryant (3 years, $25MM)
SAC – Richaun Holmes (2 years, $9.8MM)
Bryant didn’t end up sticking with the Lakers team that drafted him but caught on in an infinitely better environment. The 21-year-old’s low-post potential has been evident since his days as a Hoosier but he’s the type of prospect that a team would have to be in an awfully grim position to fully audition in live game action. Enter, the Washington Wizards. The Wiz were so shallow at the five last year that Bryant got the call and immediately developed chemistry with club star Bradley Beal. Don’t get me wrong, I know the NBA isn’t trending in Bryant’s favor, but he averaged 19.9 points and 11.2 rebounds in games where he saw north of 30 minutes and he showed up for the team in crunch time. The fact that Washington will lock him down with an average annual value of $8.3MM is a win. He doesn’t even have to keep the starting spot to outperform that.
The Sacramento Kings suddenly have one of the league’s most interesting frontcourts. That’s mostly due to the two sophomores they’ll return in 2019/20, but also because of the addition of chronically underrated center Dewayne Dedmon and the mysterious, springy 25-year-old Holmes, whom they just poached from the Phoenix Suns. Sacramento’s bigs may not be the best in the league, but if Holmes’ is the fourth-best on the roster, then that’s some solid depth. Holmes will make less than $5MM this year to, for the first time in his career, show what he’s capable of on a team that isn’t just spinning its tires. #ThingsYouNeverThoughtYouWouldSayAboutTheKings
Former All-Stars That Maybe, Just Maybe, Have More In The Tank
DET – Derrick Rose (2 years, $15MM)
WAS – Isaiah Thomas (1 year, $2.3MM)
Rose enjoyed an almost inconceivable comeback season in 2018/19, highlighted by a 54-point performance that will go down as one of the most memorable moments of his already dramatic career. Rose’s ridiculous early season production petered off slightly when the Wolves introduced new head coach Ryan Saunders and his fancy rational rotations but we saw enough throughout the year to know that the former MVP was capable of actually contributing at an elite level again. Rose was thrown into the deep end after six seasons of uncertainty and/or chaos. He’ll provide a badly needed offensive punch for a Detroit Pistons team that isn’t afraid to go all out for a semblance of respectability.
Thomas is two years removed from an All-NBA Second Team performance. While we all should have known that 2017/18 was going to be a wash once details of his hip injury came to light, he didn’t have much more of a chance to prove himself in 2018/19 either. The Nuggets saw years of careful drafting and asset accumulation finally start to pay off last year and rode that to their best finished in a decade, there was no room for trotting out Thomas and hoping for the best. Perhaps IT can benefit from a comeback season on the Wizards like Rose enjoyed in 2018/19. The fact that we’re even considering that as a possibility makes his one-year minimum a bargain.
One-Dimensional Bigs That Earned The Room Exception
UTA – Ed Davis (2 years, $9.8MM)
BOS – Enes Kanter (2 years, $9.8MM)
Despite the ancient proverb that board men get paid, that wasn’t the case for Davis, an all around positive force on a 2018/19 Brooklyn Nets team that cleared house to bring in a pair of superstar free agents this week. Davis was reluctantly abandoned by the Trail Blazers last summer too, and will now ply his trade for yet another franchise that’s serious about being taken seriously. Davis just needs 20 minutes of action to pull down 10-12 rebounds a night. He’ll settle in just fine on a Utah Jazz squad that’s betting big on depth.
I am convinced that Kanter was overrated for so long that he became underrated. While anything Kanter does on the offensive end will ultimately be judged by his performance on the other side of the ball, that doesn’t mean he can’t still be utilized effectively on a winning ball club. Kanter averaged 11.4 points and 9.7 rebounds per game for the Blazers in the 2019 postseason. They made it to the Western Conference Finals. Complemented by returning big man Daniel Theis, whose expertise skews toward defense, and you’ve got a very interesting, very affordable committee at the five.
The Pistons have officially signed two rookies to their first NBA contracts, announcing today in a pair of press releases that they’ve locked up first-rounder Sekou Doumbouya and inked undrafted free agent Louis King to a two-way contract.
Neither move comes as a surprise. Doumbouya’s signing was a formality, as his rookie scale amount is essentially locked in. As the No. 15 overall pick, he’ll earn about $3.3MM in his first NBA season and a total of $15.9MM if he plays out his full four-year rookie contract.
[RELATED: 2019 NBA Draft Pick Signings]
Doumbouya, a 6’9″ forward who has drawn comparisons to Pascal Siakam, was the first international player selected in the 2019 draft. The 18-year-old played professionally overseas before declaring for the NBA draft, having averaged 7.8 PPG and 3.3 RPG in 39 games last season for Limoges CSP, a club in France’s top league.
As for King, his two-way contract agreement with the Pistons was reported shortly after the draft. A forward out of Oregon, King averaged 13.5 PPG and 5.5 RPG with a .435/.386/.785 shooting line in 31 games during his first and only season with the Ducks.
The Pistons are expected to sign No. 57 overall pick Jordan Bone to occupy their second two-way contract slot, but the trades necessary to get him to Detroit haven’t yet been officially completed.