International Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Free Agency Notes: Novak, Motiejunas, Vesely

July 28th, 2017 at 3:30pm CST by Luke Adams

Veteran sharpshooter Steve Novak, who has spent the last two years with the Thunder and Bucks, has only played 66 total minutes since the start of the 2015/16 season, but he’s not ready to call it a career quite yet. Agent Mark Bartelstein tells Gery Woelfel of The Racine Journal Times that Novak wants to play another season. Bartelstein added that he’s spoken to multiple teams about Novak, but he didn’t get any more specific than that.

Here are a few more notes related to NBA free agents and free agency:

A year after his restricted free agency became one of the NBA’s most bizarre offseason storylines, Donatas Motiejunas may be on the verge of heading overseas to continue his career. Stavros Barbarousis of Eurohoops suggests that China appears to be the most likely landing spot for Motiejunas, though the big man has received interest from European clubs, including Zalgiris Kaunas in his home country of Lithuania.
Former sixth overall pick Jan Vesely reportedly drew some NBA interest this offseason, and his contract gave him the opportunity to explore NBA opportunities. However, Vesely – who has played internationally since 2014 – won’t be returning stateside. His agent has confirmed that Vesely will remain in Turkey, having opted into his deal with Fenerbahce (Twitter link).
Jeremias Engelmann of ESPN.com (Insider link) makes his picks for the six best free agent deals of the summer, identifying multiple Warriors (Zaza Pachulia, David West) and Rockets (Nene, Luc Mbah a Moute) as some of the most team-friendly signings of the offseason.

Phil Pressey Signs With Barcelona

July 27th, 2017 at 1:30pm CST by Arthur Hill

Three-year NBA veteran Phil Pressey will play for Barcelona next season, according to Orazio Cauchi of Sportando.

The 26-year-old point guard spent last season with Santa Cruz in the G League, where he averaged 18.0 points, 8.1 assists and 2.1 steals in 46 games. Those numbers put him fourth in the league in assists and fifth in steals.

Pressey signed with the Celtics after going undrafted in 2013 and spent his first two NBA seasons in Boston. After being waived in 2015, he briefly signed with the Trail Blazers, then was claimed off waivers by the Jazz, but never played for either team. He had short stays with the Sixers and Suns during the 2015/16 season.

He signed with the Warriors last September, but was waived before the season started and was in the G League for the entire year.

Jarnell Stokes Signs With Chinese Team

July 27th, 2017 at 11:57am CST by Arthur Hill

Jarnell Stokes, who played briefly for the Nuggets last season, has signed with the Zhejiang Golden Bulls of the Chinese Basketball Association, according to Dario Destri of Sportando.

The 23-year-old center/power forward signed with Denver shortly before last year’s training camp and appeared in two games before being waived in mid-November. He joined the Sioux Falls franchise in the G League in March.

Stokes was selected 35th overall by Utah in 2014 and traded to Memphis on draft night. He played 19 games as a rookie, then had short stints with the Grizzlies and Heat in 2015/16. Stokes has spent most of his career in the G League and won both regular season and playoff MVP honors in 2016.

Terrance Ferguson Obtains FIBA Clearance

July 27th, 2017 at 11:34am CST by Arthur Hill

Thunder rookie Terrance Ferguson has received clearance from FIBA that will allow him to sign an NBA contract, according to Fred Katz of The Norman Transcript.

Ferguson, the 21st pick in this year’s draft, is the only remaining unsigned first-rounder. He was unable to participate with the Oklahoma City team in the Orlando Summer League because of a contractual conflict with the Adelaide 36ers, the Australian team he played for last season.

Ferguson, 19, spent a single season with Adelaide, averaging 4.6 points and 1.2 rebounds in about 15 minutes per game.

NBA teams are not part of the process of getting clearance, Katz notes. Negotiations are conducted between FIBA and the player’s last team.

Katz adds that the Thunder ran into a similar problem when they signed Norris Cole midway through last season. They had to wait nearly a week for him to obtain clearance from his Chinese team before officially adding him on March 1.

Axel Toupane Will Play In Lithuania

July 27th, 2017 at 8:40am CST by Arthur Hill

Axel Toupane, who was waived Tuesday by the Pelicans, has signed with Zalgiris Kaunas in Lithuania, according to Dario Destri of Sportando.

The 6’7″ swingman agreed to a non-guaranteed minimum salary deal with New Orleans late last season and appeared in two games with the Pelicans. He also played two games for the Bucks on a 10-day contract in February. Toupane spent most of the season with Raptors 905, Toronto’s affiliate in the G League.

Tuesday was a salary guarantee date for Toupane, whose partial guarantee would have risen from $25K to $200K if he had been kept on the Pelicans’ roster.

Brian Roberts To Play In Greece

July 25th, 2017 at 11:48am CST by Luke Adams

JULY 25: According to international basketball journalist David Pick (Twitter link), Roberts’ deal is worth $950K in year one and $1MM in year two, with an NBA out in between. That opt-out comes when we expected, but the value of the deal is smaller than previously reported.

JULY 24: NBA free agent point guard Brian Roberts has signed with Greek club Olympiacos, the team announced this weekend (Twitter link). Roberts will receive a two-year contract from the franchise.

According to Michael Scotto of Basketball Insiders, Roberts’ new two-year deal will be worth $4MM, and will also include an NBA opt-out. While Scotto doesn’t specify the details on that opt-out clause, I’d expect Roberts would have the opportunity to return to the NBA next offseason, following the first year of the deal.

Roberts, who played his college ball at Dayton, made his NBA debut in 2012 and has spent the last several seasons with New Orleans, Charlotte, and Portland. In 2016/17, he appeared in 41 games for the Hornets, but saw limited minutes, averaging 3.5 PPG and 1.3 APG.

The Hornets, who had been seeking a reliable backup for Kemba Walker, tried Roberts and Ramon Sessions there last season, but both players were free agents this summer and it appears neither will return. Sessions remains on the market, but Charlotte signed Michael Carter-Williams to be Walker’s new backup.

Meanwhile, Roberts will have the opportunity to play a larger role overseas next year for Olympiacos, and will also get a pay raise after earning the minimum in Charlotte. His new Greek club earned a spot in the EuroLeague Final Four in 2016/17, falling in the championship game to Turkish team Fenerbahce.

International Notes: Fredette, Hamilton, Seraphin

July 23rd, 2017 at 1:38pm CST by Arthur Hill

After considering a possible NBA return, Jimmer Fredette will spend at least one more season in China, tweets international basketball writer David Pick. Fredette has agreed to a one-year deal in the $1.8MM range to remain with the Shanghai Sharks. The 28-year-old is coming off an MVP season in the Chinese Basketball Association, averaging 37.4 points per game, along with 7.9 rebounds and 4.3 assists.

The 10th player taken in the 2011 draft, Fredette started his career in Sacramento but never developed into the player the Kings had hoped. He also spent time with the Bulls, Pelicans and Knicks before leaving the NBA after the 2015/16 season. He reportedly turned down several 10-day offers at the end of last season.

There’s more news on the international front:

Justin Hamilton, who was waived by the Raptors last week after being acquired in a trade with the Nets, has signed with the Beijing Ducks of the CBA, according to Orazio Carcia of Sportando. Hamilton, who was part of the deal that sent DeMarre Carroll to Brooklyn, averaged 6.9 points and 4.1 rebounds in 64 games with the Nets last season.
Barcelona has interest in Kevin Seraphin if he isn’t retained by the Pacers, according to Dario Destri of Sportando. Seraphin’s $1,974,159 salary for next season doesn’t become guaranteed until August 1st, and the Pacers already have 14 players with guaranteed deals. He signed with Indiana last summer after spending five years with the Wizards and one with the Knicks. In his only season as a Pacer, Seraphin appeared in 49 games, averaging 4.7 points and 2.9 rebounds per night.
Ryan Arcidiacono, a former Italian league star who spent last season with the Spurs’ affiliate in the G-League, will return to Italy with Juvecaserta, tweets Chris Reichert of 2 Ways and 10 Days. Arcidiacono was the Most Outstanding Player of the 2016 NCAA Tournament at Villanova.

Sixers’ Jonah Bolden To Play In Israel

July 21st, 2017 at 8:48am CST by Luke Adams

As expected, Sixers second-round pick Jonah Bolden will spend at least one more season overseas before joining his new NBA team. Bolden has signed a three-year contract with Israeli club Maccabi Tel Aviv, the team confirmed today in a press release. The deal will include NBA opt-outs.

[RELATED: 2017 NBA Draft Pick Signings]

Bolden, 21, already has some international experience. In 2016, the 6’10” power forward opted to forgo his remaining two years of college eligibility, but made the decision in July, a month after the NBA draft. Instead of spending the 2016/17 season at UCLA, he headed to Serbia and played for FMP Beograd.

Bolden was a key contributor for his Serbian club, averaging a team-high 12.1 PPG and 6.7 RPG in 15 Serbian League games. He also averaged 12.9 PPG and 7.2 RPG in 25 ABA League contests, and showed an ability to hit outside shots, making over 40% of his overall three-point attempts.

The Sixers made a big splash in this year’s draft by trading for the No. 1 overall pick and nabbing Markelle Fultz, but the team also had three more picks — Anzejs Pasecniks (No. 25), Bolden (No. 36), and Mathias Lessort (No. 50). All three of those players are expected to play ball overseas for at least one more season.

Mavericks Waive Nicolas Brussino

July 20th, 2017 at 4:18pm CST by ChrisCrouse

4:18 PM: Dallas has waived Brussino, according to a team press release.

2:57 PM: Nicolas Brussino‘s 2017/18 salary will become guaranteed if he’s on the Mavericks’ roster past today and Eddie Sefko of the Dallas Morning News reports that the team does not plan on having that happen. Dallas will likely waive the swingman before tonight’s deadline. He was set to make slightly over $1.31MM next season and nearly $1.55MM the following year.

Brussino may head to Europe to play basketball during the 2017/18 campaign with Sekfo mentioning that multiple clubs in Spain have expressed interest in the wing. The 24-year-old has international experience, playing six seasons professionally in Argentina.

Brussino saw 9.6 minutes per game in his lone NBA season for the Mavericks this past year. He scored just 2.8 points per game while shooting 36.9% from the field.

Ekpe Udoh Returning To NBA, Signs With Jazz

July 20th, 2017 at 3:01pm CST by Luke Adams

July 20: The signing is official, according to NBA.com.

July 13: Former lottery pick Ekpe Udoh is headed back to the NBA, according to Shams Charania of The Vertical, who tweets that the big man has agreed to a two-year, $6.5MM deal with the Jazz. Udoh’s agreement with Utah was first reported by international outlet SDNA.

Udoh was the sixth overall pick in the 2010 draft, but failed to develop as hoped in the NBA for the Warriors, Bucks, and Clippers. Appearing in 270 regular season games from 2010 to 2015, the 6’10” center averaged a modest 4.0 PPG, 3.2 RPG, and 1.2 BPG.

In 2015, Udoh headed to Turkey and joined Fenerbahce, with whom he has spent the last two years. The 30-year-old’s play for Fenerbahce helped the club claim back-to-back Turkish League championships. The team was also the EuroLeague champion this year, with Udoh earning All-EuroLeague First Team honors — he was also named 2017’s EuroLeague Final Four MVP.

Upon returning stateside, Udoh will join a Jazz frontcourt that will also be adding Jonas Jerebko, who agreed to terms with the club on Wednesday. They’ll join a rotation currently led by Rudy Gobert and Derrick Favors up front.

In addition to reaching deals with Jerebko and Udoh, the Jazz also agreed to sign Thabo Sefolosha this week, so it looks like the team will probably dip under the cap to finalize their new signings. It also appears likely that Boris Diaw will be waived before his salary guarantee date this weekend, though Utah continues to explore trade possibilities.