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Poll: 2008 NBA Draft Take Two (Pick No. 6)

August 24th, 2016 at 8:52pm CST by Arthur Hill

Scouting players and predicting how their skills will translate to the NBA is one of the more difficult tasks front offices have on their plates. Looking back over past drafts and how many lottery picks never evolved into stars, or even made a significant impact in the league, illustrates just how often stats, combine numbers and pure gut instinct often come up short.

Of course, we get the opportunity to critique these moves with the benefit of hindsight — a luxury that GMs don’t have on draft night. Having said that, it’s still fun to go back in time and take a theoretical look at how these drafts should have/could have gone.

We recently finished revisiting the lottery portion of the 2005 NBA Draft, which was one of the weakest in recent memory. In drafts light on impact talent, the GM who can find a diamond in the rough is king. But drafts that have a number of star-potential players can also be difficult and many an executive has made what turned out to be the wrong call. Greg Oden over Kevin Durant immediately springs to mind (sorry Blazers fans), likewise taking Sam Bowie over Michael Jordan…ouch!

The 2008 draft, which is the one we’re tackling now, had a number of players who have gone on to post big numbers in the league. This was the year of Derrick Rose (No. 1 overall), Russell Westbrook (No. 4), Kevin Love (No. 5), Brook Lopez (No. 10) and Nicolas Batum (No. 25). Over the next few weeks, we’ll be posting a series of polls asking readers to vote on whom teams should have selected in each spot.

We’ll continue with the Knicks, who held the No. 6 overall pick that year. In the “real world” draft, New York fans rained down boos on Madison Square Garden when Danilo Gallinari was announced as the Knicks’ selection. He has gone on to a productive NBA career, though his best years have come in Denver, so this was one time where the scouts got it right.

So cast your vote for who the Knicks select and check back on Thursday to see the results and to vote on who the Clippers will nab seventh overall. Also, don’t limit yourself to a simple button click. Take to the comments section below and share your thoughts on the pick and why you voted the way that you did. Also, if I fail to list a player who you think should be selected, feel free to post that in the comments section and I’ll be certain to tally those votes as well.

  1. Bulls — Russell Westbrook [Actual Pick — Derrick Rose]
  2. Heat — Kevin Love [Actual Pick — Michael Beasley]
  3. Wolves — Derrick Rose [Actual Pick — O.J. Mayo]
  4. Sonics/Thunder — DeAndre Jordan [Actual Pick — Russell Westbrook]
  5. Grizzlies — Brook Lopez [Actual Pick — Kevin Love]
  6. Knicks — ?  [Actual Pick — Danilo Gallinari]

If you’re a Trade Rumors app user, click here to vote.

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Community Shootaround: Comebacks

August 24th, 2016 at 6:30pm CST by Arthur Hill

Fans who want to watch Ray Allen, Ben Gordon, Stephen Jackson and Baron Davis play again may not have to wait for the NBA to bring back its Legends Game.

They are among several former stars who have stated that they want to return to the league, and they’re not even the most surprising names on the list. Derek Fisher, who already has a season and a half of coaching experience, is talking about playing again, as is Kwame Brown, who was the NBA’s top draft pick way back in 2001.

Maybe it’s the money or the lifestyle or the atmosphere in the locker room that they miss. Maybe they’re convinced they can still contribute something to a contending team or maybe they just want one last chance to build on their legacies. Or maybe they’re inspired by what Metta World Peace did a year ago.

The former Ron Artest seemed as much of a longshot to make an NBA roster as any of these other guys when he showed up in the Lakers’ training camp last September. He sat out all of 2014/15 and didn’t play much with the Knicks the season before that. But at age 35, he won a spot on L.A.’s roster with a partially guaranteed contract, then lasted the entire season to earn every penny of his $1,499,187 contract. Like the players mentioned above, World Peace hopes to be back in the league next season.

Are any of these other comebacks realistic? Let’s examine them case by case.

  • Allen never announced his retirement; he just stopped playing after the 2014 NBA Finals. There have been rumors before that he was returning, but recent talks with the Celtics and Bucks show there is interest in the 41-year-old shooting guard, who holds the regular season and playoff records for most 3-pointers made.
  • Gordon last played in 2014/15, when he appeared in 56 games as a reserve for the Magic. At age 33, he is considering overseas offers as he tries to work his was back into the NBA.
  • Jackson, 38, has been out of the league for two seasons and only played nine games for the Clippers in 2013/14. Nevertheless, he said earlier this summer that he was talking to the Warriors about joining their training camp and recently claimed that Jimmy Butler and Rajon Rondo want him to come out of retirement and play for the Bulls.
  • Davis has been away from the league since 2012 and has been on a highly publicized comeback trail for a couple of years. The 37-year-old spent time with the Delaware 87ers at the end of last season, but recently said he doesn’t want to pursue the D-League route again.
  • After turning 42 earlier this month, Fisher is the oldest of the comeback candidates. The former Knicks head coach, who compiled a 40-96 record, will consider playing in China if he can’t find an interested NBA team.
  • Brown’s last significant NBA job was 66 games with Charlotte in 2010/11, although he had brief stints with the Warriors and Sixers after that. At 34, Brown recently signed with a new agency and is also considering opportunities overseas.

That brings us to tonight’s question: Do you expect to see any of these players be in the NBA next season, and can any of them be productive at their current ages? Take to the comments section below to share your thoughts and opinions on the topic. We look forward to what you have to say.

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Salary Cap Snapshot: Milwaukee Bucks

August 23rd, 2016 at 10:34pm CST by Eddie Scarito

With the free agent signing period winding down and teams looking ahead to the preseason, we at Hoops Rumors will be tracking the Salary Cap figures for each team around the league.  These posts will be maintained throughout the season once financial data is reported. They will be located on the sidebar throughout the year, once all the teams’ cap figures have been relayed. You can always check RosterResource.com for up-to-date rosters for each franchise, with the Bucks’ team page accessible here.

Here’s a breakdown of where the Bucks currently stand financially:

Guaranteed Salary

Total Guaranteed Salary= $92,659,736

Cash Sent Out Via Trade:  TBD. An unknown amount was sent to the Hornets in the Miles Plumlee trade. [Amount Remaining $3.5MM]

Cash Received Via Trade: $200K received from Cavaliers in Matthew Dellavedova trade [Amount Remaining $3.3MM]

Payroll Exceptions Available

  • Trade Exception — $5,000,000 (Roy Hibbert trade) — Expires on 2/23/18
  • Trade Exception — $1,733,880 (Tyler Ennis trade) — Expires on 9/22/17
  • Trade Exception — $1,151,241 (Miles Plumlee trade) — Expires on 2/2/18
  • Trade Exception — $815,199 (Michael Carter-Williams trade) — Expires on 10/17/17
  • Room Exception — $2,898,000

Total Projected Payroll: $92,659,736

Salary Cap: $94,143,000

Estimated Available Cap Space: $1,483,264
(Note: team would have to renounce trade exceptions to use cap space)

Luxury Tax Threshold: $113,287,000

Amount Below Luxury Tax: $20,627,264

Last Updated: 4/6/17

The Basketball Insiders salary pages and The Vertical’s salary database were used in the creation of this post.

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Poll: 2008 NBA Draft Take Two (Pick No. 5)

August 23rd, 2016 at 8:12pm CST by Eddie Scarito

Scouting players and predicting how their skills will translate to the NBA is one of the more difficult tasks front offices have on their plates. Looking back over past drafts and how many lottery picks never evolved into stars, or even made a significant impact in the league, illustrates just how often stats, combine numbers and pure gut instinct often come up short.

Of course, we get the opportunity to critique these moves with the benefit of hindsight — a luxury that GMs don’t have on draft night. Having said that, it’s still fun to go back in time and take a theoretical look at how these drafts should have/could have gone.

We recently finished revisiting the lottery portion of the 2005 NBA Draft, which was one of the weakest in recent memory. In drafts light on impact talent, the GM who can find a diamond in the rough is king. But drafts that have a number of star-potential players can also be difficult and many an executive has made what turned out to be the wrong call. Greg Oden over Kevin Durant immediately springs to mind (sorry Blazers fans), likewise taking Sam Bowie over Michael Jordan…ouch!

The 2008 draft, which is the one we’re tackling now, had a number of players who have gone on to post big numbers in the league. This was the year of Derrick Rose (No. 1 overall), Russell Westbrook (No. 4), Kevin Love (No. 5), Brook Lopez (No. 10) and Nicolas Batum (No. 25). Over the next few weeks, we’ll be posting a series of polls asking readers to vote on whom teams should have selected in each spot.

We’ll continue with the Grizzlies, who held the No. 5 overall pick that year. In the “real world” draft, Memphis had acquired the No. 3 overall pick in a swap with Minnesota. The actual swap went like this: The Grizzlies acquired the draft rights to O.J. Mayo, along with Marko Jarić, Antoine Walker, and Greg Buckner, from Minnesota in exchange for the draft rights to No. 5 overall pick Kevin Love, plus, Mike Miller, Brian Cardinal, and Jason Collins. To avoid muddying the waters too much, we’ll assume the trade wasn’t completed (since Love was nabbed by the Heat with pick No. 2), so whomever is selected here will end up in Memphis.

So cast your vote for who the Grizzlies select and check back on Wednesday to see the results and to vote on who the Knicks will nab sixth overall. Also, don’t limit yourself to a simple button click. Take to the comments section below and share your thoughts on the pick and why you voted the way that you did. Also, if I fail to list a player who you think should be selected, feel free to post that in the comments section and I’ll be certain to tally those votes as well.

  1. Bulls — Russell Westbrook [Actual Pick — Derrick Rose]
  2. Heat — Kevin Love [Actual Pick — Michael Beasley]
  3. Wolves — Derrick Rose [Actual Pick — O.J. Mayo]
  4. Sonics/Thunder — DeAndre Jordan [Actual Pick — Russell Westbrook]
  5. Grizzlies — ?? [Actual Pick — Kevin Love]

If you’re a Trade Rumors app user, click here to vote.

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NBA D-League Affiliations For 2016/17

August 23rd, 2016 at 2:54pm CST by Luke Adams

The NBA D-League announced its 2016/17 schedule this week, and once again, the league has officially expanded its list of teams. The NBA’s ultimate goal is to have each of its 30 franchises affiliated with a D-League squad, and the league inched closer to that goal this year.

Three additional NBA teams – the Nets, Hornets, and Bulls – now have expansion affiliates in the D-League, while two more teams – the Suns and Jazz – relocated their affiliates, ensuring that the distance between the NBA and D-League clubs has been reduced. Phoenix’s old D-League team, the Bakersfield Jam, is now located in Northern Arizona, while the Idaho Stampede, Utah’s old D-League affiliate, has moved to Salt Lake City.

Listed below, sorted alphabetically by NBA team, are the 22 NBA D-League affiliates for the 2016/17 season.

2016/17 D-League Affiliations:

Boston Celtics: Maine Red Claws
Brooklyn Nets: Long Island Nets (new)
Charlotte Hornets: Greensboro Swarm (new)
Chicago Bulls: Windy City Bulls (new)
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 Lakers: Los Angeles D-Fenders
Memphis Grizzlies: Iowa Energy
Miami Heat: Sioux Falls Skyforce
New York Knicks: Westchester Knicks
Oklahoma City Thunder: Oklahoma City Blue
Orlando Magic: Erie BayHawks
Philadelphia 76ers: Delaware 87ers
Phoenix Suns: Northern Arizona Suns (relocated)
Sacramento Kings: Reno Bighorns
San Antonio Spurs: Austin Spurs
Toronto Raptors: Raptors 905
Utah Jazz: Salt Lake City Stars (relocated)

Listed below are the eight NBA teams still without a D-League affiliate. These eight clubs will get to assign players to D-League teams associated with other NBA franchises.

Teams without D-League affiliates:

Atlanta Hawks
Denver Nuggets
Los Angeles Clippers
Milwaukee Bucks
Minnesota Timberwolves
New Orleans Pelicans
Portland Trail Blazers
Washington Wizards

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Latest Update On Unsigned 2016 Draftees

August 23rd, 2016 at 1:31pm CST by Luke Adams

The NBA draft took place two months ago tonight, and when Brandon Ingram signed his rookie contract with the Lakers earlier today, he became the final first-rounder to lock in a plan for the 2016/17 season.

Of course, for Ingram, there was never any doubt that he’d sign an NBA contract and enter the league immediately, but that’s not the case for all of this year’s first-rounders. As our list of draft pick signings shows, three of the 30 players selected in the first round – including two Celtics – will play overseas this season.

The percentage of draftees heading (or staying) overseas is higher among second-round picks, but for those second-rounders, there are options besides entering the NBA or playing international ball — Celtics second-rounder Abdel Nader, for instance, has agreed to sign with Boston’s D-League affiliate in Maine. He’ll earn less money there than he would’ve overseas, but the Celtics will be able to keep a close eye on him and will have a hand in his development as they retain his NBA rights.

When we provided an update on 2016 draft pick signings in late July, five first-round picks and eight second-rounders were still waiting to resolve their situations. Since then, 10 of those draftees have gotten that resolution, leaving just three players whose statuses remain uncertain. They are as follows:

  1. Oklahoma City Thunder: Daniel Hamilton, SG (UConn)
  2. Sacramento Kings: Isaiah Cousins, SG (Oklahoma)
  3. Utah Jazz: Tyrone Wallace, PG (California)

Hamilton, Cousins, and Wallace were all bottom-five picks in the draft, having been selected 56th, 59th, and 60th, respectively. All three were also drafted by teams with their own D-League affiliates. As such, it wouldn’t be surprising if those clubs wanted agreements similar to the one Nader worked out with the Celtics — getting these draftees to sign D-League contracts would mean retaining their rights without having to worry about clearing an NBA roster spot for them.

If Hamilton, Cousins, or Wallace signs an NBA contract, then doesn’t earn a spot on his team’s 15-man, regular-season roster, that team would still hold his D-League rights, but would lose his NBA rights. In other words, Hamilton could be assigned to the OKC Blue, but another NBA team could sign him to its regular-season roster, and the Thunder wouldn’t be able to stop it.

For a team to retain its NBA rights to a second-round pick, it must tender a one-year, minimum-salary contract offer before September 6. With that deadline fast approaching, we should soon find out what the short-term future holds for this year’s final three unsigned draftees.

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Salary Cap Snapshot: Miami Heat

August 22nd, 2016 at 10:30pm CST by Eddie Scarito

With the free agent signing period winding down and teams looking ahead to the preseason, we at Hoops Rumors will be tracking the Salary Cap figures for each team around the league.  These posts will be maintained throughout the season once financial data is reported. They will be located on the sidebar throughout the year, once all the teams’ cap figures have been relayed. You can always check RosterResource.com for up-to-date rosters for each franchise, with the Heat’s team page accessible here.

Here’s a breakdown of where the Heat currently stand financially:

Guaranteed Salary

Total Guaranteed Salary= $101,820,405

Cash Sent Out Via Trade: $400K sent to Pelicans in Luke Babbitt trade [Amount Remaining $3.1MM]

Cash Received Via Trade: $0 [Amount Remaining $3.5MM]

Payroll Exceptions Available

Total Projected Payroll: $101,820,405

Salary Cap: $94,143,000

Estimated Available Cap Space: –$7,677,405

Luxury Tax Threshold: $113,287,000

Amount Below Luxury Tax: $11,466,595

Last Updated: 2/9/17

The Basketball Insiders salary pages and The Vertical’s salary database were used in the creation of this post.

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Poll: 2008 NBA Draft Take Two (Pick No. 4)

August 22nd, 2016 at 4:46pm CST by Eddie Scarito

Scouting players and predicting how their skills will translate to the NBA is one of the more difficult tasks front offices have on their plates. Looking back over past drafts and how many lottery picks never evolved into stars, or even made a significant impact in the league, illustrates just how often stats, combine numbers and pure gut instinct often come up short.

Of course, we get the opportunity to critique these moves with the benefit of hindsight — a luxury that GMs don’t have on draft night. Having said that, it’s still fun to go back in time and take a theoretical look at how these drafts should have/could have gone.

We recently finished revisiting the lottery portion of the 2005 NBA Draft, which was one of the weakest in recent memory. In drafts light on impact talent, the GM who can find a diamond in the rough is king. But drafts that have a number of star-potential players can also be difficult and many an executive has made what turned out to be the wrong call. Greg Oden over Kevin Durant immediately springs to mind (sorry Blazers fans), likewise taking Sam Bowie over Michael Jordan…ouch!

The 2008 draft, which is the one we’re tackling now, had a number of players who have gone on to post big numbers in the league. This was the year of Derrick Rose (No. 1 overall), Russell Westbrook (No. 4), Kevin Love (No. 5), Brook Lopez (No. 10) and Nicolas Batum (No. 25). Over the next few weeks, we’ll be posting a series of polls asking readers to vote on whom teams should have selected in each spot.

We’ll continue with the Sonics/Thunder, who held the No. 4 overall pick that year. With Westbrook already off the board, having gone No. 1 overall to the Bulls, OKC will have to find a different running mate for Kevin Durant, who the franchise nabbed the previous year. So cast your vote for who the Sonics/Thunder select and check back on Tuesday to see the results and to vote on who the Grizzlies will nab fifth overall. Also, don’t limit yourself to a simple button click. Take to the comments section below and share your thoughts on the pick and why you voted the way that you did. Also, if I fail to list a player who you think should be selected, feel free to post that in the comments section and I’ll be certain to tally those votes as well.

  1. Bulls — Russell Westbrook [Actual Pick — Derrick Rose]
  2. Heat — Kevin Love [Actual Pick — Michael Beasley]
  3. Wolves — Derrick Rose [Actual Pick — O.J. Mayo]
  4. Sonics/Thunder — ?? [Actual Pick — Russell Westbrook]

If you’re a Trade Rumors app user, click here to vote.

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2016 Extension Candidate Series

August 22nd, 2016 at 1:57pm CST by Luke Adams

Since the NBA’s 2016/17 league year got underway, three players have signed contract extensions with their current teams prior to reaching free agency. C.J. McCollum inked a rookie-scale extension with the Trail Blazers, while James Harden and Russell Westbrook agreed to veteran extensions with the Rockets and Thunder, respectively.

We didn’t get a chance to take a closer, in-depth look at Harden’s or McCollum’s case for an extension before those deals were finalized, but we did examine Westbrook’s situation in Oklahoma City, just days before he and the Thunder reached an agreement. That was the first of several pieces we’ll publish this offseason profiling and analyzing extension candidates. These posts will outline the merits of an extension for the player and his team, dissect the player’s value, and project whether or not a deal is likely.

With many players eligible for either a rookie-scale extension or a veteran extension this year, there should be no shortage of candidates to consider. Listed below are the extension candidates we’ve examined so far. This list, which we’ll continue to update throughout the offseason, can be found at any time on our right-hand sidebar under the Hoops Rumors Features menu.

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Current Free Agents Who Played Most In 2015/16

August 22nd, 2016 at 11:12am CST by Luke Adams

With NBA training camps nearing, and the start of a new regular season only a couple months away, the list of 2016 free agents doesn’t include a ton of intriguing names. After the Cavaliers re-signed LeBron James, who remained on the market until mid-August, it left LeBron’s teammate J.R. Smith as the most noteworthy player available.

Smith averaged more than 30 minutes per regular season game for the Cavs last season, totaling 2,362 minutes overall, which doesn’t even include the 730 minutes he played in the postseason. Smith’s regular-season minutes total easily makes him the free agent who played the most last season, among those who have yet to sign a contract.

Still, Smith isn’t the only current free agent who saw plenty of action for an NBA team last season and hasn’t been able to find a deal so far this summer. By our count, there are 15 other players who were on the court for at least 800 minutes during the NBA’s 2015/16 regular season and remain unsigned.

That total doesn’t include players who missed a portion of the season with an injury and didn’t reach that 800-minute threshold as a result — Rockets RFA forward Donatas Motiejunas, for instance, would have played more than 1,200 minutes if he had played in all 82 games and his MPG had remained the same. Instead, injuries limited him to just 37 contests and 547 minutes.

Listed below are the 16 players – including Smith – who played more than 800 NBA minutes last season and remain out of work. The list is heavy on guards, while big men are harder to come by. As such, teams looking to add some experienced veteran depth to their roster could explore the free agent market if they’re seeking backcourt help, but may prefer the trade market if they’re after a big man.

Here’s the list, with 2015/16’s minutes totals noted in parentheses:

Which of these veteran free agents do you expect to find a home sooner rather than later? Are there any that you don’t expect to see back in the NBA at all in 2016/17?

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