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Free Agent Notes: Waiters, Gallinari, Holiday

July 2nd, 2017 at 12:51pm CST by Eddie Scarito

With the Knicks, Bulls, and Kings all reportedly expressing interest in unrestricted free agent Dion Waiters, Heat president Pat Riley and coach Erik Spoelstra are headed out west to Los Angeles to meet with the guard, Barry Jackson of The Miami Herald relays. The duo want to convey to Waiters that the team is still very interested in retaining his services, even though it is in no position to make a large lucrative offer until Gordon Hayward decides among offers from Miami, the Celtics, and the Jazz, Jackson notes.

On the second day of free agency, here’s the latest news and notes from around the league:

Last summer’s free agent spending frenzy has taken its toll on this year’s crop of players on the open market, ESPN’s Bobby Marks notes (on Twitter). There are still approximately 100 players who are unsigned and cap space is quickly drying up around the league, the scribe adds.
The Clippers are set to meet with unrestricted free agent Danilo Gallinari this evening in Los Angeles, TNT’s David Aldridge reports (via Twitter). The Nuggets also remain a potential landing spot for the forward, though, Denver is currently “all in” on signing Paul Millsap, Aldridge adds.
The Knicks are among several teams that have contacted unrestricted free agent Justin Holiday and New York has strong interest in re-signing the guard, Ian Begley of ESPN.com relays (ESPN Now link). It was reported earlier today that the Bulls have a contract offer on the table for Holiday, so the Knicks will certainly have some competition for his services.
There is mutual interest between unrestricted free agent point guard Shelvin Mack and the Knicks, Tony Jones of The Salt Lake City Tribune relays (via Twitter). In 55 appearances for the Jazz last season, Mack averaged 7.8 points, 2.3 rebounds and 2.8 assists in 21.9 minutes per outing. His slash line on the campaign was .446/.308/.688.
The Thunder appear to be committed to re-signing Andre Roberson, per a tweet from ESPN’s Royce Young. The scribe notes that it’s a “virtual lock” that Roberson will return to OKC in 2017/18.

Latest On Rudy Gay

July 2nd, 2017 at 10:10am CST by Luke Adams

Rudy Gay‘s meeting with the Thunder has concluded, and Gay is leaving Oklahoma City this morning, according to Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN, who reports (via Twitter) that the two sides are still looking for a “financial path” to a potential deal. OKC doesn’t have cap room available, and Wojnarowski suggests that a sign-and-trade with the Kings will be “difficult.”

While it sounds like there’s certainly mutual interest between the Thunder and Gay, the veteran forward is poised to continue exploring his options. According to Wojnarowski (via Twitter), Gay remains on the Clippers’ radar, and Los Angeles plans to meet with Gay – as well as Danilo Gallinari – within the next couple days.

When free agency first opened, a report indicated that Gay had meetings lined up with four teams, so the Thunder and Clippers aren’t his only suitors. One of those meetings was with the Kings, but it’s not clear if the other one has already happened, or if it remains on his schedule. The Spurs were reportedly in touch with Gay, and the Heat are believed to have some interest, but Miami’s interest will likely hinge on whether or not the team gets a commitment from Gordon Hayward.

Gay, who turns 31 next month, is coming off a torn Achilles, but is said to be making good progress in his recovery, and remains one of the most reliable scorers on the market. Over the last 10 years, he has never averaged fewer than 17.2 PPG in a season.

Western FA Rumors: Gay, Wolves, Rondo, Kings

July 2nd, 2017 at 12:16am CST by Luke Adams

Thunder big man Enes Kanter created a stir on Twitter earlier tonight when he published a photo that showed neighboring lockers featuring Russell Westbrook‘s and Rudy Gay‘s nameplates. While Gay was in Oklahoma City meeting with the Thunder today, Kanter’s tweet doesn’t mean the two sides have an agreement in place, according to Royce Young of ESPN.com (Twitter links). Young says that league sources were confident as of Friday night that OKC was in a strong position with Gay, adding that the Thunder made a “strong impression” during Saturday’s meeting (Twitter link).

With no deal in place yet, Gay continues to draw interest from other teams. Darren Wolfson of 5 Eyewitness News tweets that the Timberwolves remain on the lookout for a free agent who can play power forward and shoot, and gave Gay a call today. Wolfson classifies the contact as “just a check-in call,” however.

Here are more free agent rumors from around the Western Conference:

Alex Kennedy of Basketball Insiders (Twitter link) has heard that Rajon Rondo would have interest in joining the Clippers. As Kennedy notes, Rondo has friends on the team and has a history with Doc Rivers from their Boston days.
In a separate tweet, Alex Kennedy passes along an update on free agent big man Thomas Robinson, reporting that the Timberwolves have expressed some interest in the former lottery pick.
The Kings are “very interested” in signing Zach Randolph, league sources tell Jason Jones of The Sacramento Bee. Sacramento saw a pair of its free agent targets land elsewhere late on Saturday night, as Andre Iguodala committed to the Warriors and P.J. Tucker agreed to sign in Houston. The Kings had offered Iguodala a two-year deal in the range of $16MM annually, tweets Sam Amick of USA Today.
With other restricted free agents set to receive larger offers, Suns center Alex Len may be a more attainable target for teams, and is discussing scenarios with a few potential suitors, tweets Shams Charania of The Vertical.

Free Agent Rumors: Porter, Randolph, Millsap, Holiday

July 1st, 2017 at 2:57am CST by Arthur Hill

The Wizards‘ session with Otto Porter ended without an agreement, tweets David Aldridge of TNT. Porter plans to start meeting with other teams this weekend (Twitter link). That creates a potential opening for the Nets, who appear willing to offer the max of four years and $100MM, according to a post on NetsDaily. Philadelphia may also get involved, but the Sixers seem reluctant to make long-term offers. Washington has promised to match any offer for the restricted free agent.

There’s more late-night free agency news:

Aldridge has two more tidbits to pass along. The Cavaliers are interested in Grizzlies power forward Zach Randolph and plan to call him today (Twitter link). Also, Blake Griffin‘s decision to re-sign with the Clippers means the Suns will intensify their pursuit of Hawks forward Paul Millsap (Twitter link).
Jrue Holiday met with the Pelicans tonight, but no deal was reached, tweets Sam Amick of USA Today. The two sides are expected to get together again in the morning.
The new $201MM supermax contract that the Warriors gave to Stephen Curry doesn’t include a no-trade clause or a player option, according to Anthony Slater of The San Jose Mercury News (Twitter link).
Spurs forward Jonathon Simmons has gotten calls from the Kings, Clippers and Timberwolves and is ready to start holding meetings, according to Shams Charania of The Vertical (Twitter link).
In addition to Simmons, the Clippers plan to meet with Nuggets forward Danilo Gallinari on Sunday and Jazz forward Joe Ingles this weekend, relays Brad Turner of The Los Angeles Times (Twitter link).
There’s a strong chance that Celtics‘ power forward Amir Johnson will sign with the Sixers, a source tells Keith Pompey of The Philadelphia Inquirer. Johnson has a history with Philadelphia’s president of basketball operations Bryan Colangelo, who traded for him in 2009 as GM of the Raptors.
The Kings met tonight with Andre Iguodala and Patrick Patterson, according to Sam Amick of USA Today (Twitter link).
The Timberwolves have put in a call to Ty Lawson as a possible backup for Jeff Teague, tweets Darren Wolfson of 5 Eyewitness News. The Pelicans, Thunder and Kings have also been in contact with Lawson.
The Grizzlies are the latest team to show interest in Kings guard Ben McLemore, relays Chris Mannix of The Vertical (Twitter link).
The Knicks contacted Suns power forward Alan Williams tonight, posts Ian Begley on ESPN Now. Williams fits New York’s goal of finding players who can contribute on both ends of the floor, Begley notes.

Free Agent Rumors: Redick, Ingles, Hayward, Gay

July 1st, 2017 at 12:39am CST by Arthur Hill

The first meeting for Clippers guard J.J. Redick was with the Sixers, posts Adrian Wojnarowski on ESPN Now. On ESPN’s television coverage, Wojnarowski said Philadelphia would like to convince Redick to accept a short-term contract, “a one-year deal at a very big number, $20 million-plus, potentially.” The Timberwolves and Nets are also expected to be contenders for Redick, and he has expressed interest in joining former Clippers teammate Chris Paul with the Rockets. Wojnarowski adds that there is no chance of Redick returning to L.A.

There’s more from the early hours of free agency:

Jazz forward Joe Ingles has received “serious interest” from the Magic and has three meetings scheduled for Saturday, tweets Tim Bontemps of The Washington Post. Ingles will meet with the Utah delegation this weekend, according to Tony Jones of the Salt Lake Tribune (Twitter link).
Heat center Hassan Whiteside has been actively recruiting Gordon Hayward to Miami, tweets Alex Kennedy of Hoops Hype. Whiteside will attend Hayward’s meeting with Heat officials on Saturday.
Kings forward Rudy Gay has four meetings set up over the next few days, Kennedy adds (Twitter link).
The Nuggets reached out to Utah’s George Hill during the first hour of free agency, posts Ian Begley on ESPN Now. Denver could create cap room to sign Hill by letting Danilo Gallinari leave, Begley notes.
The Mavericks had a “great call” with Nerlens Noel, tweets Eddie Sefko of The Dallas Morning News. Noel expressed a desire to re-sign with the team, but nothing has been finalized.
The Lakers made calls tonight to Andre Iguodala, Rajon Rondo and Ben McLemore., tweets Ramona Shelburne of ESPN.com. The Knicks and Bucks have also inquired about McLemore, according to Chris Haynes of ESPN.com (Twitter link).

Magic May Offer Ingles 4-Year Deal

June 30th, 2017 at 10:31pm CST by Austin Kent

10:31pm: Ingles is also receiving significant interest from the Grizzlies, plus, he has a meeting scheduled with the Clippers on Saturday, Adam Joseph of 16WinsARing.com tweets.

7:59pm: It may not be long before Jazz forward Joe Ingles has a $60MM contract in front of him, Tim Bontemps of the Washington Post writes. The scribe tweets that he’s heard the Australian free agent could have a four-year deal in the $60MM range coming from the Magic.

If that’s the case, Bontemps adds, it’s hard to imagine a scenario in which the Jazz would match the restricted free agent’s new price tag.

Per Sean Deveney of the Sporting News, new Magic general manager John Hammond has long been a fan of the sharpshooting forward and this could be a significant early move for the new regime.

As Tim MacMahon of ESPN notes, there are two significant Jazz-specific takeaways from the rumored Magic offer, one being that Ingles is said to be close friends with fellow free agent Gordon Hayward, the other being that they’re represented by the same agent.

Those factors, coupled with Utah’s move earlier today to land Ricky Rubio at the likely expense of free agent George Hill (another Hayward favorite) lend credence to the notion that Hayward’s time with the Jazz may be coming to an end.

Hayward aside, Ingles is a widely respected small forward that offers a suite of intangible contributions in addition to his 7.2 points per game and 44.1% three-point shot. That said, given that the Magic were expected to lay low during free agency, such a move is somewhat surprising.

Rivers Embraces Challenge Ahead

June 30th, 2017 at 9:55pm CST by Austin Kent

As the smoke clears from the chaos of the Chris Paul trade, details have emerged regarding the numerous side deals that went down in order for the Rockets to acquire the superstar point guard from the Clippers.

Multiple Teams Show Interest In Randolph

June 30th, 2017 at 9:46pm CST by Austin Kent

9:46pm: Also interested in Randolph are the Cavaliers, Aldridge tweets. They’ll speak over the phone on Saturday.

8:14pm: Veteran big man Zach Randolph will meet with a host of teams in Los Angeles tonight, David Aldridge of TNT tweets. The Kings, Thunder and Clippers are all said to have an interest in the forward.

After a 2016/17 campaign in which he starred off the bench, Randolph’s role with Memphis appears to be dwindling. At the beginning of last season, his eighth with the Grizzlies, the club opted to start JaMychal Green ahead of him.

Still, despite the move to the bench, the soon-to-be 36-year-old remained productive, posting Per 36 numbers of 20.7 points and 12.1 rebounds.

The veteran forward will have a number of options available, depending on how he plans to play out the twilight of his career. While the Grizzlies would almost certainly welcome him back in a small role at a reasonable price, he could also be coveted as a mentor for teams with young big men or as a valuable reserve piece for a contender.

Griffin Cancels Meetings With Suns, Nuggets

June 30th, 2017 at 8:23pm CST by Austin Kent

Not long after it was announced that Blake Griffin would meet with the Suns when free agency began, he canceled the meeting, Sam Amick of USA Today tweets.

The All-Star forward also cancelled a meeting with the Nuggets suggesting that, barring a mysterious unnamed club swooping in and luring the forward away, a return to the Clippers may be imminent.

That Griffin did in fact cancel meetings with both Phoenix and Denver has since been corroborated by Brad Turner of the Los Angeles Times.

J.J. Redick Interested In Rockets

June 30th, 2017 at 2:50pm CST by Luke Adams

One of the Clippers’ core players headed from Los Angeles to Houston this week, and Chris Paul may not be the last Clipper to make that move this offseason. According to Broderick Turner of The Los Angeles Times (via Twitter), J.J. Redick is interested in joining the Rockets if the finances work out.

Those finances may be tricky. With Houston poised to be an over-the-cap team heading into the new league year, the club would be limited to the $8.4MM mid-level exception. A sign-and-trade is also a possibility, though the Rockets already sent a number of noteworthy trade pieces to the Clippers in this week’s CP3 deal.

Redick is coming off a season in which he earned about $7.38MM, which makes Houston’s MLE look reasonable. But as the top unrestricted free agent shooting guard on the market, he’ll likely be in line for a major raise, and at age 33, this looks like his best chance at one last big payday. As Turner notes in his report, a team like the Nets or Sixers may be willing to make a much more aggressive offer for Redick, perhaps in the range of $16MM+ per year.

Our list of 2017’s top 50 free agents has Redick ranked at No. 16.