Hoops Rumors Originals

Free Agent Stock Watch 2020: Southwest Division

Every week, Hoops Rumors takes a closer look at players who will be free agents or could become free agents next offseason. We examine if their stock is rising or falling due to performance and other factors. This week, we take a look at players from the Southwest Division:

Derrick Favors, Pelicans, 28, PF/C (Up) – Signed to a two-year, $37.6MM deal in 2018
A power forward by trade, Favors has emerged as the Pelicans’ starting center. Over a nine-game span prior to Friday’s action, Favors posted six double-doubles while averaging 11.2 PPG and 14.4 RPG. With an expiring $17.65MM contract, Favors is a candidate to be dealt before February’s deadline. Favors left Friday’s game with a hamstring injury but as long as it’s not serious, he could be an intriguing rental. Several teams were already monitoring Favors prior to his recent productive run. Jaxson Hayes is the future center for the Pelicans and Favors doesn’t stretch defenses but his steady contributions will draw some attention in a weak free agent market.

Isaiah Hartenstein, Rockets, 21, PF/C (Up) – Signed to a three-year, $3.92MM deal in 2018
Hartenstein doesn’t get many opportunities but he puts up strong numbers when the Rockets are shorthanded in the frontcourt. In a three-game stretch in late December, Hartenstein averaged 14.7 PPG on 73% percent shooting and 11.3 RPG. In six G League outings this season, he has posted 21.3 PPG, 14.5 RPG and 4.7 APG in 33.3 MPG. The Rockets have a June 29 deadline to guarantee Hartenstein’s $1.66MM salary. It’s hard to see the Rockets letting the 21-year-old 7-footer walk away at that price.

Josh Jackson, Grizzlies, 22, SF (Down) – Signed to a three-year, $18.2MM deal in 2017
Following two troubled seasons with the Suns, Jackson was dealt to the Grizzlies during the offseason. Memphis decided to have Jackson work on improving his game and reputation at the G League level. The fourth overall pick of the 2017 draft has toiled there during the first three months of the season. Jackson was suspended two games for violating team rules last month, then went into an offensive funk until a 35-point outburst against the Iowa Wolves Monday. There’s no indication the Grizzlies have any interest in re-signing the unrestricted free agent this summer.

Ryan Broekhoff, Mavericks, 29, SG (Down) – Signed to a two-year, $2.25MM deal in 2018
Broekhoff suffered a fractured left fibula late last month and is out indefinitely. Tough break — literally — for the Australian swingman, who wasn’t playing much anyway. He has appeared in 10 games this season, averaging 3.7 PPG in 7.7 MPG, after playing 42 games with Dallas last season in his first NBA campaign. Dallas would have to extend a $1.9MM qualifying offer to him in June to make him a restricted free agent. It seems likely that Broekhoff will return overseas next season to resume his career.

Jakob Poeltl, Spurs, 24, C (Down) – Signed to a four-year, $12.2MM deal in 2016
The Raptors’ 2016 lottery pick hasn’t really developed with a change of scenery over the past two seasons. Though Poeltl has made modest increases in his rebounding, assist and shot-blocking averages this season, his playing time remains limited to 15-20 minutes per game. The 7-footer doesn’t provide much offensively and has yet to develop a 3-point shot. He’s also a poor free throw shooter. San Antonio would have to extend a $5.1MM qualifying offer to make him a restricted free agent. That’s a reasonable price for a second-unit player but San Antonio may let him walk and seek an upgrade.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

NBA Trade Candidate Watch: Central Division

Over the course of the 2019/20 NBA season, up until February’s trade deadline, we’re keeping an eye on potential trade candidates from around the NBA, monitoring their value and exploring the likelihood that they’ll be moved. Each of these looks at possible trade candidates focuses on a specific division, as we zero in on three players from that division.

The Central Division may have one or two more sellers than initially anticipated this season. Detroit and Chicago had playoff aspirations in the fall, but are both solidly in the lottery at this point, with the 14-25 Pistons narrowly ahead of the 13-25 Bulls. Both teams are dealing with significant injuries to frontcourt players and may look to move a veteran or two before the trade deadline.

Here are three more trade candidates from the Central, including one from each of those two struggling clubs:

Andre Drummond, C
Detroit Pistons
$27.1MM cap hit; $28.8MM player option for 2020/21

Blake Griffin‘s knee injury, which may be season-ending, makes it all the more likely that the Pistons will throw in the towel on the 2019/20 season and seriously consider getting what they can for Drummond. Even if the return for the big man isn’t massive, it might be a better outcome than seeing him walk for nothing in the offseason or having to invest heavily in a pricey new long-term contract for him.

The Hawks were among the teams linked last week to Drummond and appear on the surface to be an ideal fit for him. They have a massive expiring contract (Chandler Parsons‘) that could be used for salary-matching purposes; they have an extra 2020 first-round pick to offer (the Nets’); and they’re motivated to get up-and-coming star Trae Young some more help.

The idea of a Young/Drummond pick-and-roll combination is legitimately intriguing, but the Hawks have some leverage here — they’ll have more than enough cap room in the summer of 2020 to make a play for Drummond as a free agent. Are his Bird rights important enough that they’d give up a first-round pick and/or another asset of value to land him now?

It would be in the Pistons’ best interests to engage a couple potential trade partners that don’t project to have 2020 cap room in order to put pressure on Atlanta and drive up the price on Drummond. The report linking teams like the Raptors, Celtics, and Mavericks to the big man may have been designed to do that. We’ll see in the coming weeks just how serious those clubs – or others – are about Drummond.

Thaddeus Young, PF
Chicago Bulls
$12.9MM cap hit; $13.5MM guaranteed salary in 2020/21; $14.2MM non-guaranteed salary in 2021/22

It was nearly a month ago that reports surfaced suggesting Young was dissatisfied with his role in Chicago and had privately spoken to the Bulls his desire for increased playing time. At the time, Young was averaging just 21.6 minutes per game, his lowest mark since he was a rookie in 2007/08.

Since then, Young’s minutes have increased — but only to 23.3 MPG, and that average is buoyed by his 29.8 MPG in the club’s last three games, which can be attributed partly to Wendell Carter‘s recent ankle injury.

To be fair, it’s hard to blame the Bulls for dialing back Young’s role. His effectiveness has dropped off this season, as his .401 FG% is easily a career low. Still, the veteran forward is only 31 years old, so I don’t know that his struggles are simply the result of him being past his prime. He and the Bulls just haven’t been a good fit so far, and a change of scenery may be in both sides’ best interests.

Young’s contract, which includes a guaranteed $13.5MM cap hit for next season, will probably limit his appeal, but he has reportedly drawn some interest, including from the Clippers. If Chicago can extract even a second-round pick without taking back bad money, it might make sense to pull the trigger.

Myles Turner, C
Indiana Pacers
$18MM cap hit; $18MM guaranteed salaries every season through 2022/23

NBA experts and teams around the league view Turner as a trade candidate. For now though, most importantly, the Pacers don’t. Indiana has insisted for the last couple years that it’s happy moving forward with its duo of Turner and Domantas Sabonis, and a report from earlier today indicated the team continues to rebuff inquiries on Turner.

Turner remains an intriguing speculative trade candidate for a couple reasons. For one, it’s hard to imagine the Pacers as a legit title contender with those two centers playing alongside each other. The Raptors won a championship last spring with Marc Gasol and Serge Ibaka, but those two vets rarely played together, and Ibaka had to accept a reduced role coming off the bench.

Secondly, Turner’s ability to make three-pointers on offense and block shots on defense makes him the sort of player that teams with frontcourt holes all over the league would love to acquire. He’s locked into a reasonable long-term contract and it’s fair to assume the Pacers could get a strong return if they make him available.

The Pacers’ ideal target in a Turner trade would probably be a versatile, two-way forward who could guard top scorers like Kevin Durant and LeBron James while complementing Sabonis, Victor Oladipo, and Malcolm Brogdon on offense. The problem? There just aren’t many players out there who fit that bill and would actually be available. As such, I’d expect the Pacers to stick to their guns on Turner and only eventually entertain the idea of a trade if they have another disappointing first-round exit this spring.

Revisit the rest of our 2019/20 Trade Candidate series right here.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

2019/20 Mid-Level, Bi-Annual Exceptions Begin To Prorate

Besides being the day when non-guaranteed 2019/20 salaries become fully guaranteed, January 10 represents an important date on the NBA calendar for a second reason. It’s also the day when several cap exceptions begin to prorate downward for the rest of the season.

[RELATED: Key In-Season NBA Dates Deadlines For 2019/20]

As ESPN’s Bobby Marks tweets, the non-taxpayer mid-level exception, taxpayer mid-level exception, room exception, and bi-annual exception will all decline in value by 1/177th each day for the rest of the season, beginning today. Trade exceptions and disabled player exceptions will be unaffected.

Each team will be affected slightly differently by the proration calculations. For instance, the Spurs had $3,758,000 left on their mid-level exception entering today. Their MLE value will decline by $21,232 per day (1/177th of $3,758,000) for each of the season’s remaining 97 days. By the last day of the season, it will be worth less than $1.7MM.

A team like the Cavaliers, with their full $9,258,000 mid-level exception available, will see its value decline by over $52K per day, while the $961,380 left on the Raptors‘ MLE will decline by just $5,432 per day.

[RELATED: Hoops Rumors Glossary: Proration]

According to Marks, 18 teams will be affected by the rest-of-season proration. Twelve clubs don’t have any form of mid-level, room, or bi-annual exception available, since they’ve already used one or more of those exceptions. The unaffected clubs are the Grizzlies, Magic, Celtics, Nets, Pacers, Clippers, Lakers, Bucks, Sixers, Suns, Kings, and Jazz.

These prorating exceptions shouldn’t have a major league-wide impact. However, if the other 18 teams want to offer a free agent more than the minimum salary or sign a free agent to a three- or four-year contract the rest of the way, they’ll need to use some form of the MLE or BAE, so they’ll have to keep tabs on the ever-changing values of those exceptions.

For details on how much the remaining teams have left on their mid-level and/or bi-annual exceptions, you can check out our trackers here and here.

NBA Teams With Open Roster Spots

January is generally a month full of roster shuffling in the NBA. The opening of the 10-day contract period (January 5), the salary guarantee deadline (January 7), the two-way contract deadline (January 15), and the upcoming trade deadline (February 6) all incentivize teams to make changes to their rosters.

With those dates in mind, we’re taking a look today at which teams around the NBA still have openings on their 15-man rosters and which ones have a two-way contract slot available.

Listed below, with the help of our roster counts breakdown, are the teams that aren’t carrying full rosters.

Teams with an open 15-man roster spot:

  • Denver Nuggets
  • Golden State Warriors
    • Note: The Warriors have two open roster spots.
  • Houston Rockets
  • Miami Heat
  • Oklahoma City Thunder
  • Orlando Magic
  • Portland Trail Blazers

Not carrying a full 15-man roster saves a team some money and gives that team the flexibility to add a player in a trade or on the buyout market. For most the teams listed above, the financial factor probably outweighs the roster-flexibility factor — the Warriors, Rockets, Heat, Thunder, and Trail Blazers are all in tax territory, while the Nuggets are close. Only the Magic don’t have immediate tax concerns.

It’s worth noting that because Golden State has two open roster spots, the team has a two-week window after waiving Marquese Chriss on Tuesday to get to the required minimum of 14 players. They’re expected to promote two-way player Damion Lee, which would open up a two-way contract slot.

Teams whose full 15-man rosters include at least one 10-day contract:

  • Atlanta Hawks
  • Brooklyn Nets
  • Cleveland Cavaliers

Paul Watson is currently on a 10-day contract with the Hawks, while Justin Anderson has one with the Nets. Those deals will expire at the end of the day on January 15, so each team could open up a roster spot at that point by not re-signing Watson or Anderson to a second 10-day pact.

As for the Cavaliers, they have two players on 10-day contracts after re-signing Alfonzo McKinnie and Tyler Cook on Thursday. Those deals will run through January 18, at which time Cleveland could re-sign one or both players, or move forward with just 13 players for up to two weeks.

Teams with an open two-way contract slot:

  • Phoenix Suns

The Suns have been the only NBA team carrying just one two-way player all season long. Phoenix has its own G League affiliate and two-way contracts don’t count against the cap at all, so the franchise’s motivation for not filling that spot remains unclear. While there’s no indication a move is imminent, it would be surprising if the Suns don’t sign a second two-way player before the January 15 deadline.

Ish Smith Channels His Inner Steve Nash For The Wizards

MVP chants broke out during the Wizards‘ upset victory over the Celtics, drowning out the thousands of Boston fans that, at times, made the Capital One Arena feel like the TD Garden. Ish Smith, who had 59 points off the bench over his past two games, had again taken control of the contest.

“If it were a two-game season, I would have to agree with the crowd: MVP,” coach Scott Brooks said to the media in attendance, including Hoops Rumors. “And he’s bringing back the mid-range. He plays. Man, that guy, he’s hard to stay in front of. He changes direction, his pace, speed, it’s hard—it’s hard to stay in front of him.”

Smith, who signed a two-year, $12MM contract with the Wizards this past offseason, attributes many parts of his game to NBA legend Steve Nash.

“You know what’s funny, I was watching some tape of [Nash] last night,” the point guard said after the team’s win over the Celtics. “I’m always trying to get better. The game of basketball, I love to play the game and Steve did such a great job, as you know, and we know watching him. Probing, keeping his dribble, he was unbelievable in the mid-range game. I sometimes thought he didn’t shoot enough. I used to watch tons of him.

“The late, great Skip Prosser, my coach, he passed away. He used to sit me down my freshman year and show me tons of Tony Parker and Steve Nash clips. When you watch me play, you see a lot of that. Coaches used to tell me [to keep my dribble]. I’m glad I’m continuing that on and I’m still trying to learn from him, just watching his tapes. I watched the playoffs when he played against Dallas and he had 39 and he just kept making shots and they went to the conference finals. I’m constantly learning and getting better.”

Smith’s has elevated his game at a time when his team needed him the most, as Washington has been decimated by injuries this season. No one expected John Wall to come back, but the list of players sidelined is getting ridiculous. C.J. Miles has been out since November. Thomas Bryant hasn’t played in over a month. Davis Bertans, Moritz Wagner, and Rui Hachimura all remain out with three very different injuries.

NBA Ironman Bradley Beal has missed the past three games and five out of the past six, including the Wizards’ pair of upset victories over the Nuggets and Celtics. Garrison Mathews, who was turning into a key contributor for the team, went down during the first half of the Boston game. The team had to utilize a pair of hardship exceptions in recent weeks on Gary Payton II and Johnathan Williams, starting both in a handful of contests before being forced to trim down the roster again. Charles Barkley could play ‘Who he play for’ Wizards edition and go 0-for-6.

Despite the various ailments, Brooks has opted to stack the bench unit, led by Smith, and the strategy has paid dividends. The Wizards scored 92 points off the bench against the Nuggets, causing coach Mike Malone to give a brash rant, telling reporters that he was “embarrassed” for his squad.

“The reality is this is the NBA, man, I don’t care who plays,” Malone said. “They’re professional players, all their players are playing for something. They don’t get an opportunity to play a lot now they have an opportunity. They are grabbing it. So, you know, kudos to them. That’s what you want to see.”

After the Wizards’ win on Saturday, the locker room had a champagne-like celebration (it was all water). After the win over the Celtics, it was all praise to Smith, who has led this ever-changing group, mentoring the younger players and playing the role of both scorer and facilitator on the floor.

“There’s certain stuff he does where I’m like, ‘I can’t do that.’ Just the pace he plays at and how calm he stays, how collected he is and his composure,” Troy Brown Jr. said of Smith. “He’s definitely a great player and somebody definitely to look up to that’s been in the league for a long time.”

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Recap Of Non-Guaranteed Contract Decisions

January 7 represents a key date for the NBA players who are on non-guaranteed contracts for the 2019/20 season. While their salaries won’t technically become guaranteed until January 10, the players who remained under contract through 5:00pm ET today are now assured of those guaranteed salaries. If released tomorrow, they wouldn’t clear waivers by the start of January 10, so they’ve survived the cut.

While a handful of players with non-guaranteed contracts were released in recent days, most appear to be safe. We’ll use the space below to break down those decisions from around the league.

The following players will have their non-guaranteed 2019/20 salaries become fully guaranteed on Friday:

The following players were waived within the last few days before their salaries could become fully guaranteed. Their dead-money cap hits are noted:

Technically, some of these players remain on waivers, so their salaries could still become fully guaranteed – and their cap hits could be fully removed from their old teams’ books – if they’re claimed by a new team.

Salary information from Basketball Insiders was used in the creation of this post.

NBA Trade Candidate Watch: Pacific Division

Over the course of the 2019/20 NBA season, up until February’s trade deadline, we’re keeping an eye on potential trade candidates from around the NBA, monitoring their value and exploring the likelihood that they’ll be moved. Each of these looks at possible trade candidates focuses on a specific division, as we zero in on three players from that division.

The Pacific Division has been the subject of a handful of trade rumors lately, including reports suggesting that the Kings and Lakers have touched base on a possible deal and that the Suns and Clippers might make good trade partners for a swap of big men.

As we wait to see whether any of these whispers actually turn into anything concrete, here are three potential trade candidates from around the Pacific:

Kyle Kuzma, PF
Los Angeles Lakers
$2MM cap hit; $3.6MM guaranteed salary in 2020/21; RFA in 2021

As recently as last Friday, word was that the Lakers still viewed Kuzma as a core long-term piece and were focused more on upgrading their roster around the edges. However, Sam Amick of The Athletic suggested over the weekend that the club was open to listening to inquiries on Kuzma, and Marc Stein of The New York Times reported on Monday that the Kings were among the teams with interest.

This may simply be a case of the Lakers doing due diligence. According to Amick, LeBron James remains supportive of Kuzma and general manager Rob Pelinka is believed to be the young forward’s biggest backer. The Lakers’ reported asking price, relayed by Sean Deveney of Heavy.com, is high and seems unlikely to be met. And moving Kuzma for an impact player would be tricky, given his small $2MM cap hit.

On the other hand, Kuzma’s fit in L.A.’s frontcourt is somewhat uncomfortable, since the club likes to use a traditional center. Playing Kuzma alongside, say, Dwight Howard, LeBron, and Anthony Davis isn’t ideal, so if the Lakers can move him in a deal for an impact wing player like Bogdan Bogdanovic or Robert Covington, it might make sense to do so.

I think Kuzma is probably still more likely than not to remain with the Lakers through the deadline, but a trade in the next month wouldn’t be at all shocking.

Dewayne Dedmon, C
Sacramento Kings
$13.3MM cap hit; $13.3MM guaranteed salary in 2020/21; $13.3MM partially guaranteed salary ($1MM) in 2021/22

The Kings’ offseason commitments to Dedmon ($27.7MM in guaranteed money) and Richaun Holmes ($9.8MM) reflected the club’s belief that Dedmon would be the starting center for the foreseeable future, with Holmes playing a backup role. That view made sense — following two strong seasons in Atlanta, Dedmon was a popular mid-level free agent target for teams around the NBA, and the Kings were willing to go even higher than the mid-level to lock him up.

However, it only took four games for new head coach Luke Walton to move Holmes into the starting lineup, demoting Dedmon to a bench role. As Holmes as emerged as one of Sacramento’s most valuable contributors, Dedmon has fallen out of the rotation altogether, having been listed as inactive for the team’s last three games.

Dedmon has publicly confirmed that he’d like to be traded, receiving a $50K fine for his honesty. But his value is low at this point as a result of his struggles in Sacramento. The Kings are reportedly open to moving the big man, but won’t make a deal just to get rid of him.

A shoulder injury suffered by Holmes on Monday night may open up a path for Dedmon to get back into the rotation, which could be the opportunity he needs to show potential suitors he still has value.

Tyler Johnson, G
Phoenix Suns
$19.2MM cap hit; UFA in 2020

Gina Mizell of The Athletic recently identified Johnson as the Suns’ most likely player to be dealt in the coming weeks. Unfortunately for Johnson, that’s not because contenders will be clamoring to add him to their rotations — it’s because of his $19.2MM contract, which will expire in the summer.

It remains to be seen which direction Phoenix will go at the trade deadline, but as long as the team remains in the playoff hunt, targeting an upgrade such as Danilo Gallinari is a possibility. If the Suns were to make a play for someone like Gallinari, who is earning more than $22MM this season, using Johnson’s $19MM+ expiring deal as a salary-matching chip would be the most logical move.

While Johnson is a trade candidate due to his contract situation, he may welcome a change of scenery. After starting the season as a regular contributor in Phoenix, Johnson has fallen out of the rotation, appearing in just six games since the start of December.

Revisit the rest of our 2019/20 Trade Candidate series right here.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Community Shootaround: Western Conference Playoffs

Entering the New Year, there’s a clear separation between the haves and have-nots in the Western Conference. Six teams have 22 or more wins while eight teams are at least six games under the .500 mark.

Regardless of that disparity, eight teams have to make the playoffs and the last two spots are up for grabs. The surprising Thunder currently hold the No. 7 spot with an 20-15 record. However, this was supposed to be a rebuilding season after they traded stars Russell Westbrook and Paul George. It’s fair to wonder if they can sustain their success with a guard-oriented offense and a prime trade candidate in wing Danilo Gallinari, who has an expiring contract.

Outside of the Warriors, any of the West teams with losing records could make a playoff push. The Spurs, who have the eighth-best record at the moment despite their 14-20 record, can rely on the veteran duo of LaMarcus Aldridge and DeMar DeRozan and the coaching wizardry of Gregg Popovich.

The Trail Blazers’ season has been a head-scratcher but they were only a half-game behind San Antonio entering Monday’s action.  They’re due for a hot streak as long as Damian Lillard and CJ McCollum stay healthy.

Suns center Deandre Ayton has finished out his suspension and they have a formidable backcourt duo in Ricky Rubio and Devin Booker. It seemed unrealistic to think the young Grizzlies can finish in the top eight but they have caught fire during their current trip and they do possess the likely Rookie of the Year in Ja Morant.

The Pelicans are starting to heat up after a woeful start and Zion Williamson is expected to debut this month. The Timberwolves need to get Karl-Anthony Towns healthy and focused but he’s capable of leading a turnaround. The Kings have been a huge disappointment but there’s too much talent on their roster to count them out, especially with De’Aaron Fox back in action.

That leads us to our question of the day: Which teams will claim the last two playoff spots in the Western Conference? 

Please take to the comments section to weigh in on this topic. We look forward to your input.

Hoops Rumors’ 2020 10-Day Contract Tracker

On January 5, NBA teams became eligible to sign players to 10-day contracts, and many of the signings that take place between January 15 (the two-way contract deadline) and April will likely be of the 10-day variety. Hoops Rumors has created a database that allows you to keep on top of those deals, tracking every 10-day signing all season long.

Besides featuring all of this year’s 10-day deals, our 10-Day Contract Tracker includes information on all 10-day contracts signed since the 2006/07 season, giving you a chance to identify trends regarding your favorite teams and players. The search filters in the database make it easy to sort by team, player and year. For instance, if you want to see all the 10-day contracts that the Hawks have signed in recent years, you can do so here.

You can also see whether a player and team signed a second 10-day contract, or if those short-term deals led to an agreement that covered the rest of the season. Our tracker also notes which 10-day deals remain active, saving you from having to figure out whether a particular contract ends on Wednesday or Thursday.

A link to our 10-Day Contract Tracker can be found at any time in the right sidebar under “Hoops Rumors Features” on our desktop site. On our mobile site, you can find it on our “Features” page. We’ll be keeping it up to date for the rest of the season, so be sure to check back to keep tabs on the latest signings as they become official.

Hoops Rumors Originals: 12/29/19 – 1/4/20

Every week, the Hoops Rumors writing team creates original content to complement our news feed. Here are our original segments and features from the past seven days: