Memphis Grizzlies Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Pacers Win Tiebreaker For 11th Lottery Position

April 17th, 2015 at 2:25pm CST by Chuck Myron

The Pacers won a random draw with the Jazz today that gives Indiana the 11th lottery position and Utah the 12th, reports Gary Washburn of the Boston Globe (Twitter link). The teams finished with identical 38-44 records this season. Indiana will have an eight-in-1,000 chance at the No. 1 overall pick, and Utah will have a seven-in-1,000 chance, but while the extra chance the Pacers have probably won’t matter, the Pacers are in line to pick one spot in front of the Jazz if, as is most likely, neither team wins any of the top three picks.

The Lakers, who hold Houston’s first-rounder, won a random draw with the Celtics, who have the Clippers’ selection, for the 27th pick, so Boston will pick 28th, Washburn also reports (Twitter link). The Mavericks have the 21st pick and the Bulls the 22nd after winning the random draw between those teams, and the Grizzlies won their draw with the Spurs for pick No. 25, leaving San Antonio pick No. 26, according to Dan Feldman of ProBasketballTalk.com. We’ve updated our post showing this year’s draft order and lottery odds with the latest news.

The procedure for two teams tied for lottery spots dictates that they split the odds for the two positions they occupy, and that the winner of the tiebreaker receive the extra chance if there’s an odd number of them. But since the 11th team in the lottery receives eight chances out of 1,000 and the 12th gets seven chances out of 1,000 to win the lottery, the Pacers simply take over the odds of the 11th spot. There’s less than a 10% chance that either team will move up or back in the lottery.

The tiebreaker comes with a slight financial consequence for next season, since the Pacers will have the rookie scale amount for the 11th pick instead of the 12th counting against their cap, and the Jazz the opposite, a difference of nearly $100K. That difference will be slightly larger once the draftees sign for the usual 120% of those scale amounts. The teams could remove those respective cap hits if they and the players they pick agree in writing not to sign next season, but that’s an unlikely outcome.

Southwest Notes: Leonard, Griffin, Grizzlies

April 13th, 2015 at 8:16pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Kawhi Leonard‘s recent play is a major reason why the Spurs have become the league’s hottest team, Alex Kennedy of Basketball Insiders reports. The reigning NBA Finals MVP is averaging 19.2 points, 6.1 rebounds, 2.5 assists and 2.6 steals during the team’s current 11-game winning streak while shooting 56 percent from the field. Leonard is developing a reputation of stepping up his game late in the season and the playoffs, Kennedy continues. Leonard’s resurgence is a major reason why potential playoff opponents are fearful of drawing the Spurs, Kennedy adds. Leonard becomes a restricted free agent this summer, though he expects to remain with the Spurs for the long haul.

In other news around the Southwest Division:

Mavs camp invitee Eric Griffin has signed to play in Puerto Rico for Leones de Ponce, TAB Deportes reports (Twitter link; hat tip to agent Brian J. Bass). The Jazz, Clippers, and Celtics were reportedly interested in signing Griffin last month while he was with the Mavs D-League affiliate, and he also reportedly met with the Clippers about a 10-day deal in February.
Mavs coach Rick Carlisle and point guard Rajon Rondo have seemingly put their differences aside heading into the playoffs, according to Mark Medina of the Los Angeles Daily News. Rondo served a one-game, team-imposed suspension after a heated exchange with Carlisle over play-calling in late February. Carlisle said that he and Rondo, who becomes an unrestricted free agent this summer, have worked out a compromise, Medina adds. “Rondo’s been a pro. I like Rondo a lot. I’m looking forward to the playoffs because of his experience,” Carlisle said to Medina. “These kinds of adjustments are great opportunities for growth both for him and for us.”
The Grizzlies are approaching the postseason with consistent defensive intensity despite injuries to key players, Ron Tillery of the Memphis Commercial Appeal reports. Memphis has held its last three opponents to 39% despite playing the Clippers without starters Mike Conley, Marc Gasol and Tony Allen.

Lowe’s Latest: Lopez, Biyombo, Davis

April 7th, 2015 at 11:30am CST by Chuck Myron

Most executives around the league expect Brook Lopez to turn down his player option for next season, worth more than $16.744MM, writes Grantland’s Zach Lowe. That’s on the heels of his surge over the past month, as he averaged 20.9 points and 9.1 rebounds per game in March, and he’s upped those numbers to 22.8 PPG and 9.8 RPG so far in April. Lowe wrote in December that most execs thought Lopez would pick up the option, so it seems his hot streak has changed thinking around the league. Still, Bleacher Report’s Howard Beck wrote just a week after Lowe’s report in December that he had heard from many executives who expected even then that Lopez would opt out. The Nets center said a few weeks ago that he hadn’t thought about what to do with the option, so there’s some mystery here. Lowe has more rumors from his latest column, which focuses on players with decent chances of becoming this year’s version of what DeMarre Carroll was in 2013, when he signed a two-year, $5MM pact that wound up a bargain deal for the Hawks.

Bismack Biyombo will almost certainly see the value of his qualifying offer from the Hornets shrink from more than $5.194MM to nearly $4.046MM thanks to the starter criteria that he has virtually no chance of meeting. Executives are “nearly unanimous” that he wouldn’t command annual salaries of that nearly $5.2MM amount in free agency this summer, according to Lowe, though while most people believe a team could snag him for about $4MM a year, no one is sure about that, Lowe adds.
Ed Davis rejected a multiyear contract offer from the Grizzlies this past summer, several league sources tell Lowe. He instead signed with the Lakers on a two-year deal for the minimum salary with a player option that he’s said he plans to decline in search of a long-term deal this summer. Davis turned down a rookie scale extension in the fall of 2013 that would have given him annual salaries of $5-6MM beginning this season, as Ronald Tillery of The Commercial Appeal reported this past October.
Derrick Williams doesn’t intrigue front offices as much as he did a year ago, Lowe writes. He, too, is in line for a reduced qualifying offer from the Kings for failing to meet the starter criteria.
Lowe identifies the Spurs as a team to watch on Mirza Teletovic, though it’s unclear if that’s just speculation. The Nets can match offers if they extend a qualifying offer of more than $4.21MM.

Southwest Notes: Davis, Belinelli, Carter

April 5th, 2015 at 11:48am CST by ChrisCrouse

In just his third season in the league, Anthony Davis has made a case to win the MVP award. The Kentucky product is averaging 24.4 points, 10.3 rebounds, 3.0 blocks and 1.5 steals per game, while leading the league with a 30.91 player efficiency rating. If Davis takes home the Maurice Podoloff trophy either this year or next, he could benefit financially if he signs an extension with the Pelicans because he would meet the fifth year 30% max criteria. These criteria, known collectively as the Derrick Rose rule, would allow him to receive roughly 30% of the salary cap as his starting salary in an extension, as opposed to roughly 25%, which is usually reserved for players with 0-6 years of experience. Davis could also meet the criteria if during his first four years in the league, he makes two All-NBA teams or is twice voted as a starter in the All-Star game. Davis was voted as starter for the first time in the 2015 All-Star game and is likely to make his first All-NBA team this season. Davis would meet the criteria if he accomplishes either of those feats again during the 2015/16 season, even if he signs an extension before that happens when he is eligible this offseason.

Here’s more from the Southwest Division:

Marco Belinelli will be a free agent at the end of season and it’s uncertain whether he will return to San Antonio next season, as he says in an interview with II Corriere dello Sport, which is translated by Emiliano Carchia of Sportando. At 29-year-old, Belinelli acknowledges that salary will be an important factor in his decision in free agency.
Vince Carter has battled injuries this season, but the 38-year-old guard is not looking to retire after the season, Scott Cacciola of The New York Times writes. “I can’t imagine not playing.” said Carter, who signed a three year, $12MM deal with the Grizzlies last offseason. “I can’t accept that yet. I’m not at the point where I wake up and it’s like, I’m tired of this. Being around these young guys makes you feel young, I promise you.”
Ian Thomsen of NBA.com chronicles Carter’s time in the league starting in 1998 when he was an intriguing young prospect with star potential to this season where he is an elder statesman for a contender in Memphis.

And-Ones: Pekovic, Luxury Tax, Grizzlies

March 30th, 2015 at 8:00pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Nikola Pekovic‘s injury-riddled season appears to be over as Timberwolves coach Flip Saunders does not expect him to play the remainder of the season, Andy Greder of the St. Paul Pioneer Press tweets. The 29-year-old, fifth-year center has appeared in just 31 games this season and has not played since March 11th because of an ankle injury. He is averaging 12.5 points — his lowest since his rookie season — and 7.5 rebounds in 26.3 minutes. He has three years and $35.8MM remaining on his contract, the longest commitment that Minnesota has besides point guard Ricky Rubio.

In other news around the league:

The luxury tax threshold is estimated to check in at around $81MM for next season, a source tells Stefan Bondy of the New York Daily News, confirming a figure Sean Deveney of The Sporting News cited earlier this season. The threshold should vault to around $101MM for 2016/17, Bondy added.
The Grizzlies recalled forward Jarnell Stokes and guard Russ Smith from their D-League affiliate, the Iowa Energy, the team announced on its website. Stokes has been assigned to Iowa six times this season while Smith has completed three stints with the Energy as well three prior stints with the Fort Wayne Mad Ants. Stokes has averaged 2.7 points and 1.7 rebounds in 17 games with the Grizzlies. Smith has averaged 1.4 points and 0.4 assists in 5.0 minutes in 10 games in his rookie season with Memphis and the Pelicans.
Funding for upgrades to the Target Center, the Timberwolves’ home area, could receive an additional boost from the city of Minneapolis, Erin Golden of the Minneapolis Star Tribune reports. A proposal to increase the city’s contribution to the upgrades cleared another Minneapolis City Council hurdle, Golden continues. The city, which has already agreed to spend $50MM on a project, could boost its support by another $24.5MM because of rising construction costs, Golden adds.

Southwest Notes: Llull, Bertans, Gasol

March 28th, 2015 at 9:52pm CST by ChrisCrouse

GM Daryl Morey shot down the rumor that the Rockets are preparing to give draft-and-stash prospect Sergio Llull a contract for three years, totaling at least $17MM, calling it simply “not true” in an interview on Mad Radio, one of Houston’s local sports stations. Morey did say that the team may have interest in bringing the point guard aboard in the future. Houston acquired Llull’s rights from the Nuggets during the 2009 draft.

Here’s more from the Southwest Division:

Spurs international prospect Davis Bertans tore his right ACL while playing for Laboral Kutxa of Spain’s Liga ACB, writes Emiliano Carchia of Sportando. Bertans will likely miss at least six months of action. The small forward was the 42nd overall pick in the 2011 draft and San Antonio acquired his draft rights as part of the Kawhi Leonard trade.
Marc Gasol hasn’t ruled out leaving the Grizzlies and joining the Knicks, according to Fred Kerber of the New York Post. Kerber cautions that re-signing with Memphis seems to be the most likely option for Gasol, who has family ties to the city. The center reiterated that he isn’t concerned with his free agency at the moment. “I haven’t put any time in it,” Gasol said of his impending offseason decision. “The truth is, I haven’t put any time or any thought in that. It can have no impact right now. It can’t help me or my team. It’s not the time.”
James Harden is making a strong case to win the MVP award this season and he credits his familiarity in Houston as part of the reason that he is able to take his game to new heights, writes Kristie Rieken of the Associated Press. “[I’m] just more comfortable, knowing my teammates, being comfortable with myself on the court,” Harden said. “Knowing how to get shots, knowing how to get my teammates shots, and once I feel comfortable I can worry about doing other things.” The Arizona State product is in the second year of a five-year extension worth over $78MM, the maximum for a player with his level of experience.

2015/16 Salary Commitments: Grizzlies

March 27th, 2015 at 6:45pm CST by Eddie Scarito

With the NBA trade deadline passed, teams are focusing on locking down playoff spots or vying for a better chance in the draft lottery. Outside of the players who are added on 10-day deals, or those lucky enough to turn those auditions into long-term contracts, teams’ rosters are relatively set for the remainder of the season.

We at Hoops Rumors are in the process of taking a look ahead at each franchise’s salary cap situation heading into the summer, and the free agent frenzy that occurs every offseason. While the exact amount of the 2015/16 salary cap won’t be announced until July, the cap is projected to come in somewhere around $67.4MM, with the luxury tax threshold projected at approximately $81MM. This year’s $63.065MM cap represented an increase of 7.7% over 2013/14, which was well above the league’s projected annual increase of 4.5%.

We’ll continue onward by taking a look at the Grizzlies’ cap outlook for 2015/16…

Here are the players with guaranteed contracts:

Jordan Adams — $1,404,600
Tony Allen — $5,168,539
Vince Carter — $4,088,019
Mike Conley — $9,388,426
Jamaal Franklin (Stretch Provision) — $163,297
Courtney Lee — $5,675,000
Fab Melo (Stretch Provision) — $437,080
Zach Randolph — $9,638,555
Jarnell Stokes — $845,059

Here are the players with non-guaranteed contracts:

JaMychal Green — $845,059 ($150K Guaranteed)
Jon Leuer — $1,035,000
Russ Smith — $845,059
Beno Udrih — $2,170,465 ($923K Guaranteed)

Players with options:

Jeff Green (Player Option) — $9.2MM

The Grizzlies’ Cap Summary for 2015/16:

Guaranteed Salary: $37,881,575
Options/Non-Guaranteed Salary: $13,022,583
Total: $50,904,158

The Basketball Insiders salary pages were used in the creation of this post.

Southwest Notes: Smith, Howard, Mavs

March 24th, 2015 at 7:49pm CST by Eddie Scarito

The rash of injuries that have befallen the Rockets could force the team to push injured center Dwight Howard to return to action sooner than anticipated, Jenny Dial Creech of The Houston Chronicle writes. “We are so down on bodies and we don’t have a lot of practice time,” coach Kevin McHale said. “We might have to start throwing him out there and letting him get some minutes in the game, whether he starts out 15-20 minutes and getting game time. But he has to start playing here pretty soon because otherwise the season is just going to go by and you can’t wait for the playoffs to come back, so we’ll see.” Howard has been out since early February with an injured right knee.

Here’s more from the Southwest Division:

The Grizzlies re-assigned Russ Smith to the Iowa Energy, their D-League affiliate, the team announced. This is the sixth trek of the season to the D-League for Smith.
Monta Ellis and Rajon Rondo don’t appear to be a good backcourt pairing for the Mavs, which is something that the team will need to consider this summer, Eddie Sefko of the Dallas Morning News writes. Rondo is set to become an unrestricted free agent and Ellis has a player option worth $8.72MM that he can opt out of.
Marc Gasol sounds like a player who is intent on remaining with the Grizzlies, Ronald Tillery of The Commercial Appeal (subscription required) writes. “I don’t know what factors are going to play into my decision. But you can’t change the past,” Gasol said. “You can’t change where I’ve been for the majority of my life as an adult. My family has been tied to the franchise since the franchise has been in Memphis. You can’t change that. I don’t know what the future holds but I know what the past and the present is. That’s pretty clear.” Gasol will become an unrestricted free agent at season’s end.

Southwest Notes: Gasol, Ellis, Green, Powell

March 23rd, 2015 at 5:30pm CST by Chuck Myron

The Knicks have looked like long shots to land Marc Gasol in free agency this summer, but the big man says they and every other team still stand a chance, simply because he hasn’t considered what he’ll do, as he told reporters today, including Ian Begley of ESPNNewYork.com. The Grizzlies are in New York to play the Knicks tonight.

“I haven’t ruled anything out because I haven’t thought about anything so it would be [premature],” Gasol said. “The reports and stuff like that, I don’t know where they come from because in my mind I haven’t thought about it. I have no [idea] how they can go there. I don’t know. … We’re in the final stretch of the regular season and we want to get in a good feeling for the playoffs so, trust me, I’m not worrying or thinking about those things yet.”

That jibes with earlier reports that suggest Gasol has an open mind but no plans to leave Memphis, where he has deep roots. Here’s more from the Southwest Division:

People within the Mavericks have been worried for weeks about Monta Ellis‘ moody demeanor and its effect on the locker room even though the team has publicly backed the shooting guard through his slump, reports Tim MacMahon of ESPNDallas.com. It’s a sharp turnaround for Ellis, as MacMahon believes his free agent stock is falling each day. Ellis has an $8.72MM player option for next season.
Jeff Green came to Grizzlies coach Dave Joerger to suggest a bench role, and not the other way around, as Chris Herrington of The Commercial Appeal notes. Green simply hasn’t fit into the team’s starting group as well as past midseason wing acquisitions Courtney Lee and Tayshaun Prince have, though continued hot shooting from Green would mitigate the issue., Herrington observes. Green can leave the Grizzlies in free agency this summer, but he’d have to turn down a $9.2MM player option to do so.
The Mavs have recalled Dwight Powell from the D-League, tweets Earl K. Sneed of Mavs.com. The rookie big man acquired in the Rajon Rondo trade went off for 32 points and nine rebounds in 44 minutes Saturday for the D-League Texas Legends.

Andray Blatche Inks Multiyear Deal In China

March 23rd, 2015 at 1:47pm CST by Eddie Scarito

1:47pm: The deal doesn’t include any NBA escape clauses, Pick clarifies to Hoops Rumors, but it’s unclear if the team would allow him to play toward the end of an NBA season once the Chinese season ends.

MONDAY, 7:47am: The deal is worth a total of $7.5MM, a source tells David Pick of Eurobasket.com, adding that the big man has put pen to paper on the contract. The salary is guaranteed, and Blatche has no interest in returning to the NBA, Pick also hears (Twitter links).

SATURDAY, 8:56am: Former NBA player Andray Blatche is set to sign a three year deal to return to the Xinjiang Flying Tigers of the Chinese Basketball Association, AsiaBasket.com reports (hat tip to HoopsHype.com). Financial terms have not been disclosed but the deal is reportedly the largest in the history of the CBA, and possibly the largest in overseas basketball history, the report notes. Shams Charania of RealGM.com first reported the possibility of Blatche re-signing with Xinjiang. The 28-year-old big man dominated the Chinese league last season, averaging 31.0 points and 14.5 rebounds in 38.7 minutes per game for the Flying Tigers.

A number of NBA teams were reportedly interested in signing Blatche for the remainder of this season, including the Nets and Grizzlies. Miami had also shown interest in Blatche, as Marc Stein of ESPN.com reported back in December, though the emergence of Hassan Whiteside likely dampened the Heat’s interest in inking Blatche, speculated Mike Mazzeo of ESPN.com. Heat officials reportedly made preliminary inquiries about the Andy Miller client last summer, but Miami reportedly had longstanding concerns about Blatche’s maturity and behavior.

Blatche has appeared in a total of 564 NBA games over the course of his career. His last taste of action in the league came during the 2013/14 campaign with the Nets when he logged 11.2 PPG and 5.3 RPG in 22.2 minutes per game. Blatche’s career numbers are 10.1 points, 5.4 rebounds, and 1.4 assists per contest. His career shooting numbers are .467/.237/.725.