Hoops Rumors Originals

NBA G League Affiliations For 2018/19 Season

August 8th, 2018 at 12:31pm CST by Luke Adams

The NBA G League will move one step closer to having 30 teams, one for each NBA franchise, in the 2018/19 season. With the expansion Capital City Go-Go club joining the mix, we can add the Wizards to the list of NBA teams with their own affiliates.

The Wizards’ NBAGL affiliate will be the league’s 27th franchise, leaving just three NBA teams that don’t have a one-to-one relationship with a G League club. Those teams are the Trail Blazers, Pelicans, and Nuggets.

The Pelicans had initially hoped to have a new G League team of their own in place for the 2018/19 season, but their timetable was delayed. It will likely just be a matter of time until New Orleans launches an NBAGL affiliate, and Portland and Denver probably won’t be far behind.

For 2018/19, here’s the full list of G League affiliates:

Atlanta Hawks: Erie BayHawks
Boston Celtics: Maine Red Claws
Brooklyn Nets: Long Island Nets
Charlotte Hornets: Greensboro Swarm
Chicago Bulls: Windy City Bulls
Cleveland Cavaliers: Canton Charge
Dallas Mavericks: Texas Legends
Detroit Pistons: Grand Rapids Drive
Golden State Warriors: Santa Cruz Warriors
Houston Rockets: Rio Grande Valley Vipers
Indiana Pacers: Fort Wayne Mad Ants
Los Angeles Clippers: Agua Caliente Clippers of Ontario
Los Angeles Lakers: South Bay Lakers
Memphis Grizzlies: Memphis Hustle
Miami Heat: Sioux Falls Skyforce
Milwaukee Bucks: Wisconsin Herd
Minnesota Timberwolves: Iowa Wolves
New York Knicks: Westchester Knicks
Oklahoma City Thunder: Oklahoma City Blue
Orlando Magic: Lakeland Magic
Philadelphia 76ers: Delaware Blue Coats (new nickname)
Phoenix Suns: Northern Arizona Suns
Sacramento Kings: Stockton Kings (relocation)
San Antonio Spurs: Austin Spurs
Toronto Raptors: Raptors 905
Utah Jazz: Salt Lake City Stars
Washington Wizards: Capital City Go-Go (expansion)

Community Shootaround: Lowest Offseason Ranking

August 6th, 2018 at 8:37pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The offseason business for NBA teams is winding down with most of them simply filling their training camp rosters and handing out two-way contracts at this point of the summer.

With that in mind, NBA.com’s David Aldridge revealed his annual offseason rankings on Monday. The rankings solely reflect how successful teams were in improving their rosters and/or cap situation this summer. Aldridge’s top three included the Thunder, Lakers and Nuggets, who all achieved their major goals via free agency and trades.

On the opposite spectrum, Aldridge viewed the Hornets, Cavaliers and Heat as having the worst offseasons, with Miami holding the ignominious bottom spot. The Hornets got a low rating despite moving Dwight Howard‘s contract as they eventually wound up with Bismack Biyombo and his bloated contract on the roster. Kemba Walker‘s future beyond next season also remains unresolved.

Cleveland’s low ranking is for the most obvious reason, losing LeBron James, though extending Kevin Love‘s contract to coincide with rookie point guard Collin Sexton‘s rookie deal was viewed by Aldridge as a positive.

The Heat received the bottom ranking mainly due to being hamstrung. They’re capped out and couldn’t improve through the draft. They haven’t been able to move a bad contract and have precious few players with upside, which means the team certainly hasn’t improved its stock since the end of the season.

It could be argued that losing a major player, such as Cleveland or the Clippers (DeAndre Jordan), or trading away your best player under pressure (Spurs), should put those teams below the Heat in the offseason rankings. It could also be argued that paying a heavy price to retain players, like the Bulls (Zach LaVine) and Magic (Aaron Gordon) did, is more detrimental than standing pat by necessity.

That leads us to our question of the day: Did the Heat have the worst offseason this summer, as Aldridge ranked them? If not, which team do you feel had the worst summer?

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

Nuggets, Thunder Hold Largest Trade Exceptions

August 5th, 2018 at 4:37pm CST by Luke Adams

Within the last month and a half, several of the most sizable traded player exceptions from around the NBA have expired. The Clippers‘ $7MM+ exception from last year’s Chris Paul deal expired in June, a pair of big Raptors TPEs went unused a couple weeks later, and the Trail Blazers saw their $13MM exception from last summer’s Allen Crabbe trade expire late in July.

None of these developments were particularly surprising. Traded player exceptions, even bigger ones, often go unused. That’s especially true for teams like Toronto and Portland, whose team salaries are over the tax line. For those clubs, taking on a salary using a traded player exception would cost exponentially more due to tax penalties.

Still, those bigger trade exceptions can occasionally come in handy and are worth keeping an eye on. For instance, the Cavaliers have a $5.8MM trade exception created in last August’s Kyrie Irving deal that would have expired if it hadn’t been used within the next few weeks. The Cavs are taking advantage of it by using it to finalize the acquisition of Sam Dekker without sending out any salary in return.

That Cleveland traded player exception had been the seventh-most valuable TPE around the NBA. Here are the top five, all of which could be used to acquire a player earning at least $7MM in 2018/19:

Denver Nuggets: $13,764,045 (Expires 7/15/2019)
Denver Nuggets: $12,800,562 (Expires 7/8/2019)
Oklahoma City Thunder: $10,883,189 (Expires 7/25/2019)
Charlotte Hornets: $7,819,725 (Expires 7/6/2019)
Detroit Pistons: $7,000,000 (Expires 1/29/2019)

Check out our tracker for the full list of available traded player exceptions. For more information on exactly how trade exceptions work, be sure to check out our glossary entry on the subject.

Weekly Mailbag: 7/30/18 – 8/5/18

August 5th, 2018 at 12:58pm CST by Arthur Hill

We have an opportunity for you to hit us up with your questions in this, our weekly mailbag feature. Have a question regarding player movement, the salary cap or the NBA draft? Drop us a line at HoopsRumorsMailbag@Gmail.com.

What do you think are the chances that Kyrie Irving and his good buddy Jimmy Butler will bolt their teams and play together in New York or another team next season? — Greg Dizon

Elite players finding ways to team up has been the trend in the NBA for several years, and there are reasons to suspect Irving and Butler are plotting a way to form the next version of a superteam. Both are entering option years, so they can become free agents in what is shaping up to be a loaded class in 2019. It’s easy to picture them with a healthy Kristaps Porzingis as the leaders of a rebuilt Knicks team that would become an instant contender. If the Timberwolves falter this season, it’s also possible that the Celtics could try to make a deal for Butler before the deadline as an incentive for Irving to stay in Boston. The odds seem good that Butler and Irving will become teammates, almost certainly in the East as teams try to fill the power vacuum left by the departure of LeBron James.

What do you think is going on with the Sixers’ general manager search? It has been oddly quiet. There haven’t been any leaks of interviews, potential front runners or interested parties. Some think the lack of a general manager hurt them in pursuit of this summer’s big three (LeBron James, Paul George and Kawhi Leonard). — Anthony Coleman

It’s hard to defend the decision to go into such a pivotal summer without a GM when several franchise-changing talents were available, especially when the Sixers had cap space and trade assets. They couldn’t have gotten George, and James made up his mind early about the Lakers, but they definitely could have rivaled the Raptors’ bid for Leonard. A quick hire of ex-Cavaliers GM David Griffin might have put them in a much stronger position. There hasn’t been much news about the GM search in recent weeks, other than an odd attempt to lure Daryl Morey away from the Rockets. The Sixers say they are being diligent about finding the right person to run their front office, but they may regret not having Bryan Colangelo’s replacement in place by the start of July.

Dwight Howard seems to change teams every year. What are the chances that his current arrangement with the Wizards is a long-term one? — Wizfan, via Twitter

Obviously it depends on how much success Washington has with him in the middle, but Howard’s future salary demands will also factor in. The Wizards already have tax concerns with huge contracts for John Wall, Bradley Beal and Otto Porter, while Kelly Oubre is eligible for an extension this summer. Howard has gotten used to being among the highest-paid players on his team and hasn’t made less than $20MM in a season since leaving the Lakers in 2013. Would he accept the Wizards’ mid-level exception when he become a free agent again next summer? If not, his journey around the league will continue.

Community Shootaround: MGM Partnership

August 4th, 2018 at 7:40pm CST by Arthur Hill

The NBA made history off the court this week when it agreed to a deal that makes MGM Resorts an official “gaming partner.” It becomes the first professional sports league to enter into a partnership with a bookmaker in the wake of May’s Supreme Court ruling that overturned a federal ban on sports gambling.

Although it’s a landmark move, the deal isn’t really loaded with benefits for either side. MGM will reportedly pay the NBA $25MM over three years, which is a small amount considering the potential windfall from legalized betting. In return, the casino gets access to league highlights, names, logos and a direct data feed. MGM can also market itself as the official gaming partner of the NBA and WNBA, and it will work with the NBA on integrity provisions, such as the prevention of fraud and game fixing.

Both sides admit they’re finding their way in this new arrangement, with Commissioner Adam Silver calling it a “leap of faith” and MGM Resorts chief executive Jim Murren referring to the deal as a “partnership of trust.” The parties already had a working relationship with Murren owning the Las Vegas Aces in the WNBA.

Legalized gambling is a cause that Silver has advocated and prepared for since taking over for David Stern in 2014. He sees it as a rich new revenue source for the league and has indicated in the past that he would like the NBA to receive 1% of all dollars wagered on its games.

We want to get your opinion on the new deal. Is the NBA taking the right approach by moving aggressively into the legalized betting era and will it benefit by having a formal agreement with a sportsbook provider? Please leave your feedback in the space below.

Hoops Rumors Originals: 7/28/18 – 8/4/18

August 4th, 2018 at 3:44pm CST by clarkcrum

Every week, the writing team here at Hoops Rumors creates original content to complement our news feed. With free agency dying down, we have quite a bit of content this week. Here are our segments and features from the past seven days:

In multiple Community Shootaround posts this week, we asked:
- Is Kevin Love going to be worth the money he’ll make as a result of the recent extension he signed with the Cavaliers?
- Which eight teams do you expect to earn postseason berths in the Eastern Conference?
- Do you think Toronto will have more success with Kawhi Leonard on the roster?
- Who is the next superstar to be traded?
- Which team/player combination formed the best offseason deal?
- Which front office move should be considered the worst of the offseason?
In our only Poll this week, we asked:
- Who is your very-early pick for the 2018/19 NBA Rookie of the Year award?
Luke Adams looked at some of the upcoming salary guarantees dates to watch for certain NBA players.
In his Weekly Mailbag, Arthur Hill answered questions surrounding the free agency decisions of Vince Carter, rookie Kenrich Williams, and the Knicks’ playoff chances.
Luke Adams took a look at which free agents signed the longest (four- or five-year) contracts this summer.
We reminded our readers of the rules relating to offseason roster limits in the NBA.
Luke Adams listed all current NBA coaches in order of tenure with their current team.
We provided an update on the 2018 NBA Draft picks who have not yet signed an NBA contract.
Luke Adams analyzed how Non-Bird rights impact promotions for two-way players.
We noted five notable NBA offseason storylines worth keeping an eye on.
Luke Adams took a look at how many top 2018 free agents could reenter the market in 2019 due to having signed one-year deals or two-year deals with an option.

Categories:
Hoops Rumors Originals

Many Top 2018 Free Agents Could Re-Enter Market In 2019

August 3rd, 2018 at 4:00pm CST by Luke Adams

Most of the top NBA free agents in a given offseason will prioritize longer-term offers over shorter ones, preferring to secure the biggest payday possible when given the chance to do so. In some ways, this offseason was no exception — besides Kevin Durant, who opted for another one-plus-one deal, the top six players on our list of 2018’s best free agents all signed long-term contracts that will run through at least the 2020/21 season.

However, beyond those top few players, there simply weren’t many long-term commitments out there this summer. Many of the free agents on our top-50 list signed shorter-term contracts that will allow them to re-enter the free agent market a year from now.

A variety of factors contributed to these shorter deals. For one, not many teams around the league had cap room available this summer. Without major money attached, there’s little incentive for players to accept those longer-term contract offers — in many cases, they’d be better off going year to year rather than locking themselves into a below-market multiyear deal.

Additionally, both players and teams are looking ahead to the summer of 2019. More NBA clubs expect to have cap room available next year, with the cap projected to rise by a greater amount than it has in either of the last two years — plus, more bad contracts from the summer of 2016 will be coming off the books. That extra cap flexibility will, in turn, present more opportunities for players to get paid.

Of course, with so many players now projected to reach free agency in 2019, there still probably won’t be enough money to go around and make everyone happy. Nonetheless, the fact that so many free agents agreed to one-year deal (or two-year deals with options) this offseason signals that agents expect a more player-friendly market a year from now.

The full list of players from our top 50 free agents of 2018 list who will have the opportunity to reach free agency again in 2019 is below, along with their status for next summer — “UFA” denotes that a player will be an unrestricted free agent, while “PO” designates a player option, and so on.

By our count, up to 31 players from this year’s top 50 could become free agents again in 2019. By comparison, 12 of the 50 players from our 2017 list reached free agency again within a year.

Here’s the list:

Kevin Durant, Warriors (PO)
DeMarcus Cousins, Warriors (UFA)
Julius Randle, Pelicans (PO)
DeAndre Jordan, Mavericks (UFA)
Jabari Parker, Bulls (TO)
Tyreke Evans, Pacers (UFA)
Trevor Ariza, Suns (UFA)
J.J. Redick, Sixers (UFA)
Rajon Rondo, Lakers (UFA)
Derrick Favors, Jazz (non-guaranteed)
Isaiah Thomas, Nuggets (UFA)
Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, Lakers (UFA)
Rodney Hood (TBD)
- Hood remains unsigned and could still get a guaranteed multiyear deal.
Avery Bradley, Clippers (partial guarantee)
Brook Lopez, Bucks (UFA)
Rudy Gay, Spurs (UFA)
Wayne Ellington, Heat (UFA)
Nerlens Noel, Thunder (PO)
Kyle O’Quinn, Pacers (UFA)
Dwyane Wade (TBD)
- Wade remains unsigned and could still get a guaranteed multiyear deal.
Mario Hezonja, Knicks (UFA)
Elfrid Payton, Pelicans (UFA)
Luc Mbah a Moute, Clippers (UFA)
Aron Baynes, Celtics (PO)
David Nwaba, Cavaliers (TBD)
- Terms of Nwaba’s agreement with the Cavaliers aren’t yet known — it could be a guaranteed multiyear deal.
Anthony Tolliver, Timberwolves (UFA)
Tony Parker, Hornets (non-guaranteed)
Ed Davis, Nets (UFA)
Amir Johnson, Sixers (UFA)
Michael Beasley, Lakers (UFA)
Jeff Green, Wizards (UFA)

Note: Players who were waived in July, such as Dwight Howard and Carmelo Anthony, weren’t on our top-50 list. However, many of them have since signed one-year contracts or two-year deals with options and could be free agents in 2019 as well.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

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Hoops Rumors Originals

Five NBA Offseason Storylines Still Worth Watching

August 3rd, 2018 at 10:05am CST by Luke Adams

LeBron James has chosen his new team. The Spurs have traded Kawhi Leonard. Nearly every NBA team has used up all its cap room. In other words, there aren’t many major storylines from the 2018 offseason that still need to be resolved.

Still, as we enter the second month of the 2018/19 league year, there are a handful of subplots around the league that remain ongoing. Although August typically isn’t jam-packed with signings and trades, there are still plenty of teams looking to tweak their rosters before training camps get underway in September.

Here are five offseason storylines that are still worth watching now that much of the summer fun is over:

Will the Cavaliers re-sign Rodney Hood?
- Hood isn’t the only restricted free agent who remains unsigned, but he’s easily the most noteworthy one. Given the Cavaliers‘ proximity to the tax line, an aggressive offer sheet would put pressure on Cleveland and could probably pry Hood away. Only the Kings have the cap room necessary to make such an offer though, and Sacramento already has 16 players on guaranteed contracts. Given Hood’s dwindling leverage, it will be interesting to see if he signs a team-friendly multiyear deal with the Cavs or bets on himself by accepting his one-year qualifying offer.
- Latest on Hood: Contract talks between Cavs, Hood have stalled
Will Dwyane Wade and Udonis Haslem return to the Heat?
- Wade and Haslem debuted together for the Heat back in 2003, and outside of the season and a half Wade spent as a Bull and Cavalier, the duo has been together for the last 15 years in South Beach. It would be fitting for both players to call it a career at the same time, but that may not happen quite yet — I suspect that if Wade returns to Miami, Haslem will do so too. But a return isn’t a formality for Wade, who has received major interest from teams in China and who may seek more than the minimum salary from the in-the-tax Heat. Both players figure to make decisions this month.
- Latest on Wade, Haslem: Pat Riley anticipates decisions by mid-August
Will any other veteran stars announce their retirement?
- Wade isn’t the only longtime NBA star reportedly mulling the possibility of retiring. Manu Ginobili hasn’t made an announcement one way or the other, and neither has David West. I suspect Wade and Ginobili – who is under contract with the Spurs for one more year – will ultimately continue their respective careers, but I’m not so sure about West. When he signed with the Warriors in 2017, reports at the time suggested it would probably be his last season. He hasn’t said anything this offseason to refute that notion.
- Latest on Manu: Ginobili likely to play at least one more season
Will the Rockets be able to acquire another wing player?
- The Rockets still haven’t made their deal with Carmelo Anthony official, but even after that happens, the team may not be done with its offseason moves. The club is reportedly looking into ways to add one more three-and-D type wing, likely by dangling Ryan Anderson‘s contract and a 2019 first-round pick in trade talks. Kent Bazemore and J.R. Smith are among the players the Rockets have reportedly kicked the tires on, but there’s no shortage of other vets who may be viable trade targets, including Nicolas Batum, DeMarre Carroll, and Courtney Lee.
- Latest on Houston: Rockets remain in market for a wing player
Will Karl-Anthony Towns or any other players eligible for rookie scale extensions receive new deals?
- Devin Booker quickly came to terms on a new long-term deal with the Suns once the new league year began last month, but he’s the only one of 23 players eligible for rookie scale extensions to sign one so far. Towns, who was said last month to be discussing a max contract with the Timberwolves, is the best bet to get something done in the coming weeks. Other possible extension candidates include Larry Nance Jr. (Cavaliers), Justise Winslow (Heat), Myles Turner (Pacers), Kristaps Porzingis (Knicks), Bobby Portis (Bulls), Terry Rozier (Celtics), and Frank Kaminsky (Hornets). The deadline is the day before the 2018/19 regular season.
- Latest on Towns: Timberwolves owner Glen Taylor confident Towns will sign extension

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Categories:
Hoops Rumors Originals

How Non-Bird Rights Impact Promotions For Two-Way Players

August 2nd, 2018 at 9:08pm CST by Luke Adams

When NBA teams sign undrafted free agents or second-round picks to contracts, those clubs need to have cap space or a mid-level exception available to lock up those players for longer than two years or to pay them more than the minimum salary.

While most teams make sure to earmark some cap room or a portion of their mid-level exception to use on those players – particularly second-rounders – that’s not always the case. The Grizzlies, for instance, used their entire mid-level exception on Kyle Anderson‘s offer sheet, meaning they could only sign 32nd overall pick Jevon Carter to a two-year, minimum-salary deal.

This offseason though, a new tool has come in handy in allowing teams to sign players to longer-term or more lucrative contracts than the minimum salary exception would allow, without having to use cap room or the mid-level exception to do it. The catch? Those players had to have finished the 2017/18 season on a two-way contract with the club.

When a player is on a two-way contract, a new kind of deal introduced in the NBA’s latest Collective Bargaining Agreement, he’s not technically on a club’s 15-man roster, but he accrues Bird rights just as a player on the roster would. That means that any player who finished last season on a two-way deal had Non-Bird rights this summer.

Non-Bird rights don’t allow teams to give players major raises — Non-Bird deals can only start at up to 120% of the player’s previous salary or 120% of his minimum salary, whichever is greater. However, they do allow for contracts of up to four years, which has paid off for some teams and players this summer.

Consider the case of Georges Niang, who was on a two-way contract with the Jazz last season. Buoyed by an impressive Summer League showing with Utah last month, Niang earned a three-year contract with the club. Typically, to go up to three years, the over-the-cap Jazz would have had to dip into their mid-level exception, but that wasn’t the case for Niang — his Non-Bird rights allowed for a three-year deal.

While Niang’s contract is only worth the minimum, Non-Bird rights do allow for slightly larger salaries, as noted above. For example, the Knicks re-signed former two-way player Luke Kornet to the maximum allowable salary using his Non-Bird rights. Instead of earning his minimum salary ($1,349,383), Kornet will make 120% of that amount ($1,619,260). Without his Non-Bird rights, New York would have had to use its mid-level or bi-annual exception to give Kornet that kind of raise.

Non-Bird rights haven’t paid off for every team with a two-way player who’s getting a promotion. For instance, the Nuggets moved Torrey Craig to their standard roster by giving him a new two-year, $4MM contract. Denver had to use part of its mid-level exception to complete that signing, since it exceeded the salary Craig could’ve earned with Non-Bird rights. The Nuggets did take advantage of the Non-Bird rules with their other two-way player though, giving Monte Morris a new three-year contract.

Two-way contracts remain in their relative infancy, so it’s interesting to see how teams are taking advantage of the rules surrounding them. Players like Niang, Kornet, and Morris are among the first group of two-way players to be promoted to standard contracts via Non-Bird rights, but they certainly won’t be the last.

Here’s the full list of two-way players whose teams have promoted them to standard contracts this offseason:

Ryan Arcidiacono (Bulls)
Jabari Bird (Celtics)
Antonio Blakeney (Bulls)
Torrey Craig (Nuggets)
Derrick Jones (Heat)
Luke Kornet (Knicks)
Monte Morris (Nuggets)
Georges Niang (Jazz)

Note: Jamel Artis, Danuel House, Daniel Hamilton, and Kadeem Allen have signed or agreed to standard NBA contracts with new teams after finishing last season on two-way deals.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Community Shootaround: Worst Offseason Move

August 2nd, 2018 at 7:54pm CST by Luke Adams

On Wednesday night, we opened up a discussion on the best roster move of the offseason, from a team perspective. While the Lakers‘ signing of LeBron James was probably the single-most impactful move of the summer, other deals – such as the Warriors‘ signing of DeMarcus Cousins and the Nuggets‘ addition of Isaiah Thomas – received plenty of praise as well.

Today, we’re shifting our focus to look at the deals on the other end of the spectrum. Which roster moves were the worst of the offseason?

We can get a little creative here. If there’s not a single free agent signing or trade that stood out for you as awful, then a series of moves made – or not made – by a club could qualify for this “honor.” For instance, perhaps you weren’t a fan of the Rockets replacing Trevor Ariza and Luc Mbah a Moute with James Ennis and Carmelo Anthony, even if none of those moves on their own are particularly egregious.

A handful of ESPN analysts weighed in on this question this week. Among their choices? The Wizards‘ offseason moves, including the signing of Dwight Howard; the Bulls‘ signing of Jabari Parker to a two-year, $40MM deal; and the Lakers‘ deal with Lance Stephenson.

Those are hardly the only candidates to qualify for the most questionable move of the summer. Perhaps you’re skeptical about Devin Booker‘s new five-year maximum-salary extension with the Suns, or particularly disliked one side or the other in the Kawhi Leonard/DeMar DeRozan mega-deal. Maybe one of the signings at the very start of free agency, such as the three-year deals the Pacers and Bucks gave Doug McDermott and Ersan Ilyasova, respectively, drew your ire.

Draft-night trades also qualify for this discussion, so if you hated the Hawks‘ move to pass up on Luka Doncic for Trae Young, or the Suns‘ decision to give up an unprotected future first-rounder to move up six sports for Mikal Bridges, let us know.

What do you think? Which offseason move do you think is the worst – or just your least-favorite – of 2018?

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