Jonathan Holmes

International Notes: White, Eriksson, Pasecniks, Radicevic

After being waived by the Cavaliers earlier this week, Okaro White is nearing a deal with Maccabi Tel Aviv in Israel, according to Stavros Barbarousis of EuroHoops. White has prior overseas experience, playing in Italy and Greece before signing with the Heat in 2016.

He played in 41 games in a season and a half with Miami before being traded to the Hawks at this year’s deadline and then waived on the same day. He signed with the Cavaliers in March, but never made it on the court and was released before a partial guarantee on his 2018/19 salary kicked in. White played seven Summer League games for the Cavs, averaging 6.0 PPG and 7.4 RPG.

There’s more international news to pass along:

  • Marcus Eriksson, a draft-and-stash player whose rights are owned by the Hawks, re-signed with Herbalife Gran Canaria in Spain, tweets Keith Smith of Real GM. A 24-year-old Swedish forward, Eriksson was the 50th player taken in 2015.
  • Anzejs Pasecniks, a 2017 first-rounder whose draft rights are owned by the Sixers, also re-signed with Herbalife Gran Canaria, according to Smith (Twitter link). Orlando took the 7’2″ center with the 25th pick and traded him to Philadelphia.
  • Nikola Radicevic, a second-round selection in 2015, signed with Dolomiti Energia Trento in Italy, Smith adds (Twitter link). The Nuggets own the draft rights to the 24-year-old point guard.
  • Jonathan Holmes, who spent part of last season with Maine in the G League, has signed with Hapoel Tel Aviv, relays Emiliano Carchia of Sportando. He averaged 7.3 PPG and 7.4 PG in 11 games with the Red Claws.

And-Ones: Brown, Motiejunas, Broekhoff, USA Basketball

Longtime NBA coach Larry Brown will sign his contract to become the head coach of the Euroleague’s Fiat Torino on Sunday, according to a Sportando report. Brown’s agent, Massimo Rizzo, said his client has already signed a letter of intent to coach the club but won’t ink the official contract until his press conference this weekend, the report adds. The 77-year-old will be taking his first head coaching position since resigning from Southern Methodist two years ago.

We have more international and domestic basketball news:

  • Forward Donatas Motiejunas will remain in China next season, Sportando relays. He re-signed with Shandong for approximately $3MM, the report adds. Motiejunas played 34 games with the Pelicans in 2016/17 after beginning his career with the Rockets, but long-terms concerns over the soundness of his back sidetracked his NBA career.
  • Australian swingman Ryan Broekhoff has visited several teams this week hoping to land an NBA contract, HoopsHype tweets. Broekhoff, who went undrafted out of Valparaiso in 2013, was scheduled to visit and work out for the Wizards, Timberwolves, Bucks and Nets, HoopsHype adds.
  • Reggie Hearn, Jonathan Holmes, Amile Jefferson, David Stockton and Xavier Munford are among the 14 players who will be on the training camp roster for the USA World Cup Qualifying Team, according a USA Basketball press release. Training camp begins on Wednesday and the final roster will be pared to 12 players.  In the FIBA World Cup Qualifying games, the U.S. will face Mexico on June 28th in Mexico City and Cuba on July 1st in Havana.
  • The Hornets and Raptors are interested in adding Sergio Scariolo, who is currently the head coach of the Spanish national team, to their staffs, according to another Sportando post.

Timberwolves Hosting Free Agent Mini-Camp

The Timberwolves will become the latest NBA to host a mini-camp for veteran free agent this week, with Darren Wolfson of 5 Eyewitness News providing some details on the session that will take place in the coming days in Minnesota.

According to Wolfson (Twitter link), former Slam Dunk champion Jeremy Evans is the most notable NBA veteran taking part in the Wolves’ mini-camp. Although Evans has appeared in 250 NBA games over the course of his career, it has been a while since he played real minutes for a team — since the start of the 2016/17 season, he has appeared in just one regular season contest, playing five minutes for the Hawks this April.

Besides Evans, Quincy Miller, Jarnell Stokes, Jarell Eddie, and Shawn Long are among the other mini-camp participants who have some NBA experience, per Wolfson (all Twitter links). Of those players, Eddie suited up for an NBA team most recently, appearing in three total games for the Celtics and Bulls during the 2017/18 season. His outside shooting ability could intrigue the Wolves — in 128 career G League games, Eddie has knocked down 44.2% of his three-point tries.

Jonathan Holmes, German guard Maodo Lo, and Minnesota native Alec Brown are among the other players who will take part in the Wolves’ mini-camp this weekend, Wolfson adds.

And-Ones: 2019 Draft, Maynor, Team USA

In the wake of last week’s report suggesting that the NBA and players’ union are exploring the possibility of altering the league’s one-and-done rule for college prospects, Kevin O’Connor of The Ringer spoke to five NBA team executives about the issue. According to O’Connor, all five of those execs expect the NBA to allow high-schoolers to enter the draft pool by 2019.

“Sooner than later,” one executive said. “Everyone’s on the same page.”

If that turns out to be the case, the 2019 NBA draft may be the most fascinating one in years. Not only could top high-school prospects potentially enter the mix, but it will also be the first year that the NBA’s new lottery rules take effect.

Here are a few more odds and ends from around the basketball world:

  • Former NBA point guard Eric Maynor, a 2009 first-round pick, has signed a new contract with Orlandina Basket in Italy, as Nicola Lupo of Sportando relays. Maynor, who has played for Italian and Russian teams since 2015, appeared in 267 total NBA regular season games, primarily with the Thunder.
  • In an Insider piece for ESPN.com, Kevin Pelton breaks down the latest transactions and injuries from around the NBA, examining the effect of Mike Conley‘s Achilles issue, D’Angelo Russell‘s knee surgery, the Robert Covington extension, and much more.
  • G League forward Jonathan Holmes, who was in camp with the Celtics this fall, has left the Maine Red Claws to join Team USA for this month’s World Cup qualifiers, tweets Chris Reichert of Two Ways & 10 Days. According to the official announcement from USA Basketball, Holmes is replacing Jarell Eddie, who is battling back spasms.

Celtics Trim Roster With Four Cuts

The Celtics have waived Daniel Dixon, Jonathan Holmes, L.J. Peak and Andrew White, the team announced on Twitter.

Dixon, initially reported to be joining the team in August, didn’t officially sign on with the C’s until this week. The shooting guard went undrafted out of William & Mary back in June.

Holmes, on the other hand, a big man out of Texas, went undrafted back in 2015 and has struggled with injuries since.

Peak, a familiar face from his time at Georgetown also went undrafted this summer after declaring as an early entrant.

Finally, White, a sharp-shooting swingman inked back in August has also been let go.

Dixon, Peak and White could all end up as affiliate players with with the club’s G League squad while Holmes could end up in Maine as well, with returning rights.

Celtics Sign Jonathan Holmes, Devin Williams

The Celtics have finalized their training camp roster by signing Jonathan Holmes and Devin Williams to fill their last two roster spots, the team announced today in a press release. Boston is now carrying the maximum 20 players.

Holmes, 24, went undrafted out of Texas in 2015 and saw his rookie season derailed by a torn labrum. Last fall, Holmes joined the Cavs for camp but didn’t make the team’s regular season roster and spent most of the season playing in the G League for the Canton Charge, Cleveland’s affiliate. The power forward’s rights were traded to the Maine Red Claws this week, signaling that the C’s expect him to play for their G League squad.

As for Williams, the 23-year-old power forward played his final game for West Virginia in 2016, forgoing his senior year to enter the draft. He went undrafted last June and spent last season with Melbourne United in Australia and with the Greensboro Swarm in the G League.

The two signings signal that the Celtics won’t carry Daniel Dixon on their training camp roster at this time. Multiple outlets reported in August that Dixon had reached an agreement with Boston, but that deal either fell through or will be finalized at a later date.

USA Basketball Announces AmeriCup Roster

After taking 17 players to training camp, USA Basketball has narrowed that group down to 12 players for its official AmeriCup roster, the program announced in a press release. The players representing Team USA in next week’s AmeriCup tournament will be as follows:

The five players who missed the cut for the final roster were Rod Benson, Will Davis II, Ra’Shad James, Darius Morris, and Derek Willis.

“All 17 guys that came to camp in Houston had a strong case that they could have made that they should have been selected, but unfortunately, we could only take 12,” said U.S. coach Jeff Van Gundy. “It was very, very difficult getting down to that number, but we feel very happy with the guys that we have selected. We feel we have positional versatility, we have a good balance between size and quickness, so it will be interesting for us to go to Uruguay and see what we can do.”

As we detailed in an earlier story, FIBA has changed its format for qualifying for marquee events like the World Cup and the Olympics, and many of the qualifier tournaments will now take place during the NBA season. For those events, Team USA intends to primarily use players who have been spending time overseas and in the G League, with the bigger-name players taking over for the main events in 2019 and 2020.

Team USA doesn’t need to win the AmeriCup to qualify for the next World Cup and Olympics, but it’s a tournament the U.S. must participate in to eventually play in more crucial events. Van Gundy’s squad will participate in preliminary round games in Uruguay starting next Monday. If Team USA wins its group – which also includes Panama, the Dominican Republic, and host Uruguay – it would advance to the semifinals in Argentina in early September.

The program won’t face real pressure to win until November, when Team USA need a top-three finish in a pool that includes Puerto Rico, Mexico, and Cuba in order to start advancing to later qualifiers. For more in-depth details on how those qualifiers work, be sure to check out FIBA’s breakdowns for the 2019 World Cup and the 2020 Olympics.

17 Players Vying For Spots On USA’s AmeriCup Roster

USA Basketball has begun the process of selecting its roster for the AmeriCup 2017, the first of a series of qualifying tournaments under FIBA’s new format. As Brian Mahoney of The Associated Press details, Team USA doesn’t need to win the AmeriCup to qualify for the next World Cup and Olympics, but it’s a tournament the U.S. must participate in to eventually play in more crucial events.

Because upcoming qualifiers will take place during the NBA season, Team USA is putting together a roster primarily made up of G League players and veterans who have been playing overseas, as we previously learned. With training camp set to begin on Thursday, 17 hopefuls are suiting up for Team USA, with the program poised to eventually pare that group down to a 12-man roster.

Here are Team USA’s training camp participants, via USA Basketball:

Although there are no high-profile names in this group, several players have some NBA experience. Hilliard is currently a free agent, but appeared in 77 games over the last two seasons for the Pistons. Drew, Munford, and Plumlee have all played in at least a dozen NBA games.

Marshall, Morris, and Reggie Williams are perhaps the most notable names on the list, having played regular rotation roles for various NBA teams in recent years. Marshall was a lottery pick in the 2012 draft, while Williams has appeared in more than 200 NBA games since 2010.

None of the players on Team USA’s training camp roster are currently under contract with an NBA club, but Willis – the only player of the group who has yet to play professional ball – has reportedly agreed to a training camp deal with the Pistons.

The club will be coached by Jeff Van Gundy, an international rookie himself, and will eventually participate in preliminary round games in Uruguay later this month. If Team USA wins its group – which also includes Panama, the Dominican Republic, and host Uruguay – it would advance to the semifinals in Argentina in early September.

As Mahoney outlines in his report, Team USA won’t face real pressure to win until November, when the club need a top-three finish in a pool that includes Puerto Rico, Mexico, and Cuba in order to start advancing to later qualifiers. For more in-depth details on how those qualifiers work, be sure to check out FIBA’s breakdowns for the 2019 World Cup and the 2020 Olympics.

Cavaliers Notes: Korver, Liggins, Dunleavy, Holmes

The Cavaliers plan to use Kyle Korver primarily off the bench, according to Jason Lloyd of The Akron Beacon Journal. Cleveland’s trade for the veteran guard was finalized today, and coach Tyronn Lue calls him one of the NBA’s best shooters off screens, along with Warriors guards Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson. “Especially a guy who can move without the ball the way he moves coming off screens and things like that, there’s no better guy,” Lue said. “You put him on the floor with Channing [Frye], RJ [Richard Jefferson], LeBron [James] and the floor will open wide, so now you got to pick your poison when you try to help off Kyrie and LeBron.” However, Lue prefers to keep DeAndre Liggins in the starting lineup because of defense against opposing point guards.

There’s more news out of Cleveland:

  • Mike Dunleavy Jr.‘s disappointing season played a huge role in the deal, Lloyd writes in the same piece. The Cavs picked up Dunleavy for virtually nothing over the summer when the Bulls were clearing cap space to sign Dwyane Wade, but he put up some of the worst numbers of his career in Cleveland. He averaged just 4.6 points in 23 games and shot 35% from 3-point range, his worst figure since 2009/10. Dunleavy dropped out of the rotation early, but Lue says it wasn’t entirely his fault. “We really didn’t run the same movement stuff for him that Chicago ran for him and he didn’t really get a chance to really fit and blend in,” the coach said. “And that was on me, on us, but that’s just how our team is constructed. And it wasn’t fair to him but he’s a great professional. … I just thought he never really got a great rhythm on our team.”
  • Jonathan Holmes, who was cut by the Cavaliers in training camp, has joined the team’s D-League affiliate in Canton, tweets international basketball writer David Pick. The 24-year-old forward signed a two-month contract with Barcelona in November with an option for the rest of the season, but the team decided not to extend the deal. Pick calls him a “legit call-up candidate.”

Jonathan Holmes To Play Overseas

Forward Jonathan Holmes is headed overseas, having agreed to a contract with FC Barcelona, the team announced (translation via Emiliano Carchia of Sportando). The dollar amount of the arrangement is unknown, but the pact is for two months with an option for the remainder of the season, per the release.

Holmes spent the preseason with the Cavaliers, appearing in six contests and averaging 9.7 points, 3.3 rebounds and 0.8 assists in 17.4 minutes per outing. His shooting line was .489/.333/1.000. The forward was waived by Cleveland on October 20th and was seemingly ticked for the Canton Charge of the NBA D-League after Cleveland named him as one of its affiliate players.

The 23-year-old, who played his college ball at Texas, went undrafted in 2015 after his final season with the Longhorns. He joined the Lakers for training camp, and suffered a dislocated right shoulder before the season began. While the injury sidelined him for the next several months, it did ensure that he earned his full salary for the 2015/16 from Los Angeles. Holmes’ minimum salary deal with the Cavs this season was non-guaranteed, so he’s not collecting any salary after being cut by the team.