Memphis Grizzlies Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Grizzlies Acquire Luke Ridnour

June 24th, 2015 at 2:33pm CST by Chuck Myron

2:33pm: The trade is official, the Magic and Grizzlies announced via press releases.

10:21am: The Grizzlies and Magic have agreed to a trade that will send Luke Ridnour to Memphis, reports Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports (Twitter link). The Magic will get the rights to 2013 second-round pick Janis Timma, Wojnarowski adds (on Twitter).

Courtesy of USA Today Sports Images

The 34-year-old Ridnour was reportedly considering retirement as of March, and he hasn’t publicly said whether or not he intends to play next season. His $2.75MM salary is non-guaranteed, though it becomes fully guaranteed if he remains under contract through July 10th. So, the move doesn’t immediately add to the roughly $47MM the Grizzlies have in guaranteed salary for next season, nor does it reduce the Magic’s nearly $39MM in commitments. Orlando was almost certainly going to waive Ridnour before his salary locked in, tweets Josh Robbins of the Orlando Sentinel.

The Grizzlies have a trade exception worth more than $3MM as a vestige of having sent Quincy Pondexter to the Pelicans in January’s Jeff Green trade, so the Grizzlies could use that to officially acquire Ridnour before July 1st. They could open cap space to make the move if they wait until next month to formalize it, though they’re unlikely to go under the cap unless Marc Gasol bolts, so it would seem the trade exception will go to use. Orlando, which is already under the cap, doesn’t have the chance to create a trade exception of its own for Ridnour.

Memphis is gaining a backup point guard who’s also seen time at the two, so his acquisition would seemingly create competition for Beno Udrih, whose salary of nearly $2.175MM is partially guaranteed for $923K, and Nick Calathes, who’s entering free agency. The Grizzlies can make Calathes a restricted free agent if they tender a qualifying offer $1,147,276 by month’s end, though perhaps today’s news is a signal that they’re prepared to move on from him. It’s also possible that the Grizzlies will try to flip Ridnour in another trade, Wojnarowski suggests.

Timma, a small forward who turns 23 next month, averaged 12.6 points, 5.0 rebounds and 3.5 assists in 28.9 minutes per game this past season for VEF Riga of Latvia. It’s assumed that his contract with that team expires this year, as Mark Porcaro notes in our Draft Rights Held Players database.

Western Notes: Barton, Buycks, Blazers

June 23rd, 2015 at 10:49pm CST by Eddie Scarito

The Nuggets have tendered Will Barton a qualifying offer worth $1,181,348, making the guard a restricted free agent this offseason, Eric Pincus of Basketball Insiders reports (Twitter link). The move was expected since both sides have previously expressed a desire for the player to return to Denver next season. The 24-year-old saw sparse playing time with the Blazers over his first two and a half seasons in the league, but the deadline trade that sent him to Denver this February provided him with more opportunities to get on the court. He averaged 11.0 points in 24.4 minutes per game over 28 appearances for the Nuggets.

Here’s more from the Western Conference:

The Warriors are exploring options regarding trading up from the No. 30 overall pick in the draft, Scott Howard-Cooper of NBA.com tweets. Which player the team could be targeting with such a move is unknown, Howard-Cooper adds.
The chances that the Lakers will select Duke big man Jahlil Okafor with the No. 2 overall pick have increased since last week, Chad Ford of ESPN.com relays (on Twitter). Ford pegged the odds at 70% last Friday, and now has them at 80% that Los Angeles nabs Okafor on Thursday night.
The Lakers have informed free agent guard Dwight Buycks that they are interested in re-signing him for next season, David Pick of Eurobasket.com tweets. Buycks, who inked a single 10-day deal with the team this past season, was reportedly set to be signed for the remainder of the 2014/15 campaign before a hand injury knocked him out for the remainder of the team’s contests.
The Blazers will work out UNLV shooting guard Rashad Vaughn on Wednesday, reports Gery Woelfel of the Journal Times.
Woelfel adds the Warriors to the list of teams that have worked out UNLV big man Christian Wood.
Working out for Portland today were Darion Atkins (Virginia), Javonte Green (Radford), Charles Jackson (Tennessee Tech), Jordan Railey (Washington State), Satnam Singh (India), and Gary Bell Jr. (Gonzaga), the Blazers announced.
Virginia swingman Justin Anderson is scheduled to work out for the Grizzlies on Wednesday, Chris Vernon of ESPN 92.9 FM relays (Twitter links). Vernon also dispels the notion that Memphis made a draft promise to LSU big man Jarell Martin, and says that Martin shut down scheduling any further workouts for other reasons.

Chuck Myron contributed to this post.

And-Ones: Thunder, Grizzlies, Antic

June 22nd, 2015 at 11:44pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Thunder have been shopping Perry Jones, Jeremy Lamb and Steve Novak, Chris Mannix of Sports Illustrated tweets. Oklahoma City, which has $78.26MM in guaranteed salary commitments for next season, is seeking financial relief but it is also seeking a draft pick, Mannix adds. The Thunder already have picks at No. 14 and No. 48.

In other news around the league:

The Knicks, Kings and Hornets are the teams most likely to trade out of the Top 10 in the draft, Mannix reports in a separate tweet.
Guards Andre Hollins and Deville Smith and forwards Nino Johnson and Aaron White worked out for the Grizzlies on Monday, completing the team’s predraft workouts, according to Grizzlies.com.
R.J. Hunter, Anthony Brown, Olivier Hanlan, Christian Wood, Sir’Dominic Porter and Mouhammadou Jaiteh will work out for the Wizards on Tuesday, according to J. Michael of CSNWashington.com. (Twitter link).
Fenerbahce of the Turkish League is interested in signing Hawks free agent center Pero Antic, according to Sportando’s Emiliano Carchia.

Draft Notes: Porzingis, Kings, Pacers

June 22nd, 2015 at 10:54pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Knicks held a private workout for Kristaps Porzingis on Monday morning, according to Frank Isola of the New York Daily News. The Knicks were impressed by his workout in Las Vegas two weeks ago and wanted to take a second look at the Latvian power forward, Isola continues. D’Angelo Russell is still the Knicks’ likely choice at No. 4 if he’s available and they do not trade the pick, Isola adds. Marc Berman of the New York Post, who also reported the workout, notes that team president Phil Jackson said he is trying to draft a starter with the fourth pick, which would make Porzingis an odd fit. “He’s absolutely not a starter on a good team next season and maybe not [on] a bad team,’’ one NBA scout told Berman. “He’s not physically ready. I’d be shocked if they took him.’’

In other draft news around the league:

Officials from many teams sense that the interest the Sixers have in Porzingis is overstated and a ruse to convince competitors to trade up for the pick, Jonathan Givony of DraftExpress writes in his latest mock draft.
Many believe that the Grizzlies, at pick No. 25, are the team that’s made the reported promise to Jarell Martin, Givony writes in the same piece.
Willie Cauley-Stein would not make sense with the Kings’ lottery pick because he wouldn’t be a good fit alongside DeMarcus Cousins, Ailene Voisin of the Sacramento Bee tweets. Multiple scouts told Voisin that Cauley-Stein would clog the lane and limit the spacing for Cousins in the low post. In contrast, the Kings are intrigued by the pairing of Frank Kaminsky and Cousins, according to Chris Mannix of Sports Illustrated (Twitter link). Kaminsky had a strong workout with the Kings on Monday, Mannix adds.
The Celtics are trying to move up in the draft and have had discussions with at least one team in the Top 10, Mannix writes a separate tweet. Mannix quotes a rival executive that Boston is being “aggressive, one of the few teams thinking big.”
The Pacers could trade out of the lottery and into the late teens or early 20s of the first round if the player they target at No. 11 is taken ahead of them, Alex Kennedy of Basketball Insiders tweets.

Greg Oden Working Out For Hornets, Mavs

June 20th, 2015 at 5:44pm CST by Chuck Myron

5:44pm: Oden also worked out for the Hornets last week, and indeed did so for the Grizzlies earlier this spring, Charania reports as part of a full story.

5:42pm: Greg Oden will work out for the Mavericks this week as part of a mini-camp the team is conducting, reports Shams Charania of RealGM, citing league sources (Twitter link). Mini-camps are usually the domain of players merely trying to latch on for summer league, but it nonetheless represents another small step in the latest comeback effort for the former No. 1 overall pick. The Grizzlies had been thinking about bringing in Oden for a mini-camp of their own, as Charania reported last month.

Oden sat out this past season as he faced multiple charges related to domestic violence. He avoided jail time as part of a plea agreement in February in which he pleaded guilty to a felony battery charge and the three other charges against him were dismissed.

The now 27-year-old Oden, whom the Blazers took first in the 2007 draft, played sparingly for the Heat in 2013/14, averaging 2.9 points and 2.3 rebounds in 9.2 minutes per game across 23 regular season appearances. It was the first NBA action since the 2009/10 season for the oft-injured 7-footer.

Southwest Notes: Green, Villanueva, Hunt

June 19th, 2015 at 1:41pm CST by Chuck Myron

Jeff Green, who picked up his player option with the Grizzlies, will represent a cap hold of $9.45MM rather than $9.2MM for 2015/16 because he triggered a $250K bonus this season, according to Eric Pincus of Basketball Insiders (Twitter links). The incentive clause kicked in when Memphis picked up its 55th win, and he was in line for an additional $200K if the Grizzlies, who finished 55-27, had won 56 games, Pincus explains. The cap hit applies for next season because the league now considers it likely that Memphis will again win 55 games, though he won’t get the money if they don’t again hit that threshold. Here’s more from around the Southwest Division.

Charlie Villanueva would like to re-sign with the Mavericks, and while the team would welcome that, Dallas isn’t willing to pay more than the minimum, writes Tim MacMahon of ESPNDallas.com.
The Mavs are close to a deal with former Nuggets interim coach Melvin Hunt that would make him the top assistant in Dallas to head coach Rick Carlisle, reports Marc Stein of ESPN.com. The Pelicans have also been interested in Hunt as an assistant, Stein reported earlier.
Shooting guards Norman Powell of UCLA, Josh Richardson of Tennessee and Tyler Harvey of Eastern Washington are working out for the Mavs today, reports Michael Scotto of SheridanHoops (on Twitter).
The Grizzlies will work out Southeast Missouri State forward Nino Johnson on Monday, sources tell Sportando’s Emiliano Carchia.

2015/16 Roster Counts: Memphis Grizzlies

June 18th, 2015 at 8:20pm CST by Eddie Scarito

During the offseason it’s OK for teams to carry as many as 20 players, but clubs must trim their rosters down to a maximum of 15 by opening night. In the meantime, some teams will hang around that 15-man line, while others will max out their roster counts. Some clubs may actually have more than 15 contracts that are at least partially guaranteed on the books. That means they’ll end up paying players who won’t be on the regular season roster, unless they can find trade partners.

With plenty more movement still to come, here’s the latest look at the Grizzlies’ roster size, the contract guarantee status of each player, and how each player came to be on Memphis’ roster.

(Last Updated 4-11-16, 12:28pm)

Fully Guaranteed (15)

Jordan Adams (G) — 6’5″/20 years old. Drafted with No. 22 overall pick in 2014.
Tony Allen (G) — 6’4″/33 years old. Free agent signing.
Chris Andersen (F/C) — 6’10″/36 years old. Acquired via trade from Miami.
Matt Barnes (F) — 6’7″/35 years old. Acquired via trade with Hornets.
Vince Carter (G/F) — 6’6″/38 years old. Free agent signing.
Mike Conley (G) — 6’1/27 years old. Drafted with No. 4 overall pick in 2007.
Bryce Cotton (G) — 6’1/23 years old. Free agent signing.
Jordan Farmar (G) — 6’2″/29 years old. Free agent signing.
Marc Gasol (C) — 7’1″/30 years old. Draft rights acquired via Lakers.
JaMychal Green (F) — 6’8″/24 years old. Free agent signing.
P.J. Hairston (G) — 6’6″/22 years old. Acquired via trade from Hornets.
Jarell Martin (F) — 6’10″/21 years old. Drafted with the No. 25 overall pick in 2015.
Xavier Munford (G) — 6’2″/23 years old. Free agent signing.
Zach Randolph (F) — 6’9″/33 years old. Acquired via trade with Clippers.
Lance Stephenson (G/F) — 6’5″/24 years old. Acquired via trade with Clippers.
Brandan Wright (F) — 6’10″/27 years old. Free agent signing.

10-Day Contracts (0)

None

TOTAL ROSTER COUNT (16)

Jeff Green Opts In With Grizzlies

June 18th, 2015 at 3:03pm CST by Chuck Myron

3:03pm: Green has indeed opted in, the team announced via press release.

12:01pm: Jeff Green is picking up his player option worth $9.2MM to stay with the Grizzlies for next season, reports Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports (Twitter link). The move is a key decision for Memphis, as it would lift the team to about $47MM in guaranteed salary commitments for next season, likely closing off any possibility for the team to open cap space if it re-signs Marc Gasol.

The working assumption in Memphis had been that Green would opt in, though the presence of skilled agent David Falk made that less than a foregone conclusion, as Marc Stein of ESPN.com wrote a month ago. Green came to the Grizzlies from Boston in a mid-January trade, though he didn’t have a game-changing impact and at one point during the regular season brought up the idea of moving to the Memphis bench. He nonetheless appeared as a starter for all but eight of his 45 regular season games in a Grizzlies uniform, but coach Dave Joerger used him chiefly off the bench in the playoffs.

The Celtics apparently traded Green in part because they were worried that he would opt out. It’s unclear whether he would have been more likely to opt out if he had stayed with the Celtics, though staying in Memphis does give him a better shot at winning than staying in Boston likely would have. In any case, Green will have another decision to make next summer when his contract expires.

Assuming Green officially opts in, the Grizzlies will likely have only the $5.434MM mid-level exception to use to sign free agents for more than the minimum salary if Gasol returns, since they used their biannual exception on Beno Udrih last year. I looked at that and other issues when I examined the offseason ahead for Memphis.

Southwest Notes: Gordon, James, Grizzlies

June 14th, 2015 at 6:05pm CST by Will Joseph

Eric Gordon, who will reportedly pick up his player option worth more than $15.514MM to stay with the Pelicans, is likely making a savvy financial decision, John Reid of The Times Picayune writes, because there’s a strong chance the guard fetches a more lucrative deal in the summer of 2016, when the salary cap rises. The projected salary cap of $67.1MM for next season is expected to jump to $89MM in 2016/17 before soaring to $108MM in 2017/18, as Reid points outs. There’s a distinct possibility Gordon thrives under new coach Alvin Gentry‘s up-tempo offense, Reid adds, and that would give a boost to his numbers and stock.

There’s more from the Southwest Division:

Free agent Bernard James has teams interested in signing him, but the center would like to return to the Mavs, the team that re-signed him in March for the remainder of the season after two 10-day pacts, Earl K. Sneed of Mavs.com writes. James signed with the Shanghai Sharks of China in November after the Mavs waived him just before the season started. “You know, I’ve been talking to my agent a lot, and there’s a few teams interested,” James said. “But, hopefully, I’d like to be back here with the Mavericks. We’ll see what happens in the draft, what’s their needs and whoever [Mavericks owner Mark Cuban and coach Rick Carlisle] find for next year. Whatever players they sign, hopefully there’s a spot for me and there’s a niche I can carve out. We’ll see what happens, man, but I’m expecting it not to be quite as crazy as the last two summers.”
Cliff Alexander, Aaron Harrison, Jamal Jones, Kenneth Smith, Corey Walden and Christian Wood will all work out for the Grizzlies on Monday, the team announced in a press release.

Western Notes: Calathes, Jazz, McCullough

June 12th, 2015 at 10:36pm CST by Eddie Scarito

Grizzlies guard Nick Calathes has insisted that he prefers to remain in the NBA, but rumors continue to signal that his camp is soliciting his services overseas, as David Pick of Eurobasket.com hears that he’s seeking a $3.5MM annual salary from international clubs (Twitter link). Calathes can become a restricted free agent this summer if Memphis tenders him a qualifying offer worth $1,147,276.

Here’s more from the Western Conference:

The Jazz have two sets of workouts scheduled for tomorrow, the team announced (Twitter links). The first group consists of Jonathan Holmes (Texas), Gabriel Olaseni (Iowa), Charles Jackson (Tennessee Tech), Kenneth Smith (Louisiana Tech), J.J. O’Brien (San Diego State), and Marcus Thornton (William and Mary).
The second group working out for the Jazz on Saturday will be comprised of Jerian Grant (Notre Dame), Trey Lyles (Kentucky), Olivier Hanlan (Boston College), Mouhammadou Jaiteh (France), Cady Lalanne (UMass), and Myles Turner (Texas).
The Mavericks brought in Syracuse forward Chris McCullough for an interview on Thursday, Michael Scotto of SheridanHoops tweets.
The Thunder will bring in Tennessee swingman Josh Richardson on Saturday as part of a group workout, Scotto relays (Twitter link).

Chuck Myron contributed to this post.