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Grizzlies Waive D.J. Kennedy

September 18th, 2012 at 6:13pm CST by Chuck Myron

The Grizzlies have waived forward D.J. Kennedy, reports Ronald Tillery of the Memphis Commercial Appeal (Twitter link). Kennedy was the only asset going the Grizzlies' way in the July 25th trade that sent Jeremy Pargo, a 2014 second-round draft pick, and cash to the Cavaliers. He had a non-guaranteed minimum-salary contract, so the swap will wind up amounting to a salary dump for Memphis. Pargo has a guaranteed deal for $1MM this season.

The 22-year-old, 6'6" Kennedy signed with the Cavs for the final week of the regular season, and appeared in just two games, posting a total of 12 points, seven rebounds and three assists in 59 minutes. He went undrafted out of St. John's in 2011 and spent most of last season playing for the Erie Bayhawks of the D-League, averaging 15.7 points, 7.3 rebounds and 4.4 assists in 44 games. 

Once he clears waivers, he'll be an unrestricted free agent, and the timing of the move allows him to catch on with another team before training camp. The Grizzles reached agreements with four camp invitees on Sunday, so getting rid of Kennedy brings the roster back down to 18 players, 13 of whom are believed to have at least a partial guarantee. Taking Kennedy's salary off the books lets the Grizzlies retain one of the camp invitees on a minimum-salary contract for the regular season, if they so choose, and stay below the luxury tax apron of $74.307MM, which allows for greater flexibility.

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Odds & Ends: Heat, T-Wolves, Hudson, Grizzlies

September 18th, 2012 at 4:31pm CST by Luke Adams

After weeks of consideration, the Heat appeared to conclude their hunt for a big man yesterday, inking Josh Harrellson to a non-guaranteed deal. Another team that has long been eyeing free agent bigs, the Timberwolves, continued their search today. According to Darren Wolfson of ESPN 1500 (via Twitter), Wolves GM David Kahn is still talking to agents, with Hassan Whiteside, Sean Williams, and others believed to be in the mix. That's one of a handful of today's odds and ends that we've yet to cover, so let's round up the rest….

  • Ira Winderman of the South Florida Sun Sentinel fielded questions in his mailbag about how the signing of Harrellson would affect the Heat's roster and rotation.
  • Sam Amico of FOX Sports Ohio follows up his tweet on Lester Hudson from earlier today with a full story on Hudson's agency letting him go when he failed to attend a workout with the Bobcats. "The Bobcats ended up eating a ticket for $750," said agent Tyler Glass. "I worked so hard to get him a workout, and he didn’t show. The Bobcats were annoyed and they should have been. They’re a professional organization. You don’t skip out on workouts…. He really can play in the league. But what happened with the Bobcats… Word gets around."
  • Alex Kennedy of HoopsWorld makes his picks for the offseason's most underrated acquisitions.
  • The sale of the Grizzlies to Robert Pera continued to move in the right direction today, as Memphis City Council approved transfer of the city's agreement with ownership. Amos Maki of the Memphis Commercial Appeal has the details.
  • With Dwight Howard no longer a distraction, the Magic are excited about their new direction, writes John Denton of OrlandoMagic.com.
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Odds & Ends: Bucks, Thabeet, Redd

September 17th, 2012 at 4:02pm CST by Luke Adams

A few Monday afternoon odds and ends from around the NBA:

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Grizzlies To Sign Flip Murray, Jerome Jordan

September 16th, 2012 at 9:09am CST by Zachary Links

The Grizzlies have received four new verbal commitments from players to participate in training camp on non-guaranteed contracts, including center Jerome Jordan and guard Ronald Murray, according to Ronald Tillery of the Memphis Commercial Appeal.  Former University of Oregon center Michael Dunigan and D-League forward/center Jarrid Famous are also set to join the Griz in camp.

Murray, 33, last played in the NBA for the Bulls during the 2009/10 season and has spent the last two years overseas and in the D-League.  For his NBA career, the guard has averaged 9.9 PPG, 2.1 RPG, and 2.3 APG.

Jordan, 25, appeared in 22 games for the Knicks last season between stints with the Erie BayHawks of the D-League.  The 7-footer was shipped to Houston in July along with Toney Douglas, Josh Harrellson, and two future draft picks in the Marcus Camby deal.  Jordan was waived shortly after the trade.

Famous, a 6'11" big man who spent time in the D-League last season, had just one year of eligibility at South Florida as a JUCO transfer but put himself on the NBA map thanks to his athleticism.  Dunigan, who stands at 6'10", could be of significant interest to the Grizzlies as they considered taking him with the 49th pick in the 2011 draft before settling on Josh Selby instead.

Earlier this week, the Grizzlies reached agreement with journeyman forward Ronald Dupree on a non-guaranteed deal.

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Southwest Rumors: Mavs, Gasol, McHale

September 15th, 2012 at 11:11pm CST by Chuck Myron

The Southwest Division should again be one of the league's toughest this season, with the Spurs, who've won the division twice in a row, bringing back their key parts and the playoff-tested Grizzlies doing the same. The Mavericks made plenty of changes but still figure to be in the playoff mix as long as Dirk Nowitzki is around, and the Hornets brought in No. 1 pick Anthony Davis, 2011/12 Most Improved Player Award winner Ryan Anderson, and others. The Rockets appear to be the division's soft spot, but they could be in the mix for a marquee player closer to the trade deadline with their stockpile of youth and draft picks. Here's the latest, with preseason on the horizon:

  • After a summer of change, the Mavericks' roster for the start of the regular season appears set, but beyond that there's plenty of uncertainty, as Eddie Sefko of the Dallas Morning News examines.
  • Marc Gasol spoke about his desire to remain long-term with the Grizzlies to the Spanish website Marca.com (translation via HoopsHype). Gasol still has three years left on the four-year, $57.5MM deal he signed after the lockout last December, so it doesn't seem like he's going anywhere soon.
  • Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle heard from Rockets coach Kevin McHale about the team's overhauled and largely inexperienced roster as he prepares for the first full training camp of his coaching career.
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Grizzlies To Sign Ronald Dupree

September 12th, 2012 at 4:54pm CST by Luke Adams

The Grizzlies have reached an agreement on a one-year contract with free agent Ronald Dupree, according to agent Mark Bartelstein (Twitter link via ESPN.com's Marc Stein). Terms of the deal aren't known, but I'd guess it's a non-guaranteed invite to training camp.

Dupree, 31, has appeared in 157 games for five teams over the course of his six-year NBA career. However, since playing in a handful of games for the Pistons and SuperSonics in 2007/08, the 6'7" forward has appeared in just three games, for the Raptors in 2010/11. Dupree, who played for the 2004/05 Pistons that fell to the Spurs in the NBA Finals, has averaged 3.5 PPG and 2.2 RPG in 11.2 MPG in his career.

Dupree will be the 15th player under contract for the Grizzlies, though only 13 of those deals are guaranteed. Dupree and D.J. Kennedy figure to be among the players with a chance to earn one of the final two roster spots, if Memphis heads into the season with a full 15-man roster.

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Justin Timberlake Joins Bid For Grizzlies

September 7th, 2012 at 3:16pm CST by Luke Adams

Actor and musician Justin Timberlake has agreed to join Robert Pera's ownership group in his attempt to buy the Grizzlies, a source tells Adrian Sainz of the Associated Press (link via the Star Tribune). ESPN.com's Marc Stein first reported that Pera was recruiting Timberlake, and that the Memphis native intended to make a "meaningful investment" in the franchise.

Since it was first reported that Pera had agreed to buy the Grizzlies from Michael Heisley, Pera's company, Ubiquiti Networks, has seen its stock drop, raising questions about the sale. However, Pera has reportedly recruited a handful of local investors to join his bid for the franchise, and, according to Sainz, "highly strategic national partners" are now on board as well.

The NBA Board of Governors still must approve the sale of the Grizzlies to Pera's group — the vetting process is expected to be completed sometime within the next couple months. If the bid is successful and Timberlake is officially on board, he'll be the latest celebrity to become the minority owner of an NBA franchise. Jay-Z and Will Smith are among the most prominent examples, owning minority stakes in the Nets and 76ers, respectively.

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Odds & Ends: Warriors, Jazz, Rockets, Iverson

September 6th, 2012 at 10:41pm CST by Zachary Links

We've seen a sharp rise in the size of overseas contracts in recent years, and it seems that the Chinese Basketball Association has had about enough.  Several CBA clubs are calling for an NBA-style salary cap to be instituted post-haste as the season gets underway in two months, writes Alastair Himmer of Reuters.  The league has had a salary cap in years past, but with no luxury tax system in place, there was no real way to enforce it.  Last year, Kenyon Martin signed a $2.7MM deal with the Xinjian Flying Tigers before leaving midway through the season.  Here's tonight's look around the Association..

  • Warriors coach Mark Jackson has promoted Darren Erman to the No. 3 assistant coach after the departure of Wes Unseld Jr., sources tell Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo Sports (via Twitter).  Unseld Jr. recently left Golden State to join Jacque Vaughn's staff in Orlando.
  • The Jazz are still working to complete a buyout agreement with Raja Bell and sign second-round pick Kevin Murphy, but Brian T. Smith of The Salt Lake Tribune (via Twitter) would be surprised if both situations aren't resolved before camp starts.
  • The Jazz announced that Michael Sanders has been promoted to an assistant coach on Tyrone Corbin’s staff.  Utah also agreed in principle with D-League coach and former Jazz scout Brad Jones to take over Sanders’ previous position as assistant coach in charge of player development.
  • The Rockets have elevated Gersson Rosas to executive vice president of basketball operations, according to Mark Berman of FOX Houston.  Rosas, who previously served as the club's vice president player personnel, was a finalist to become the next assistant GM of the Spurs.
  • Former MVP Allen Iverson is reportedly thinking about playing if China if he cannot land an NBA deal, but Neil Hartman of CSNPhilly.com would like to see him call it a career.  Iverson last appeared in an NBA game in February 2010 and turned down offers in Venezuela and the Dominican Republic last season.
  • Robert Pera, the prospective new owner of the Grizzlies, is recruiting singer/actor Justin Timberlake to be a minority owner of his club, sources have told Marc Stein of ESPN.com.  One source added that Timberlake is making "a meaningful investment into the team" and "plans to be active" with the club.  A recent piece by Will Leitch of New York Magazine revealed that rapper Jay-Z owns just a fraction of one percent of the Nets.
  • Kevin Willis celebrated his 50th birthday today and the former NBA center told Marc J. Spears of Yahoo Sports (via Twitter) that he could still play 15-20 minutes a night and would return if a team was serious.  Willis would easily eclipse Kurt Thomas and Grant Hill (both turn 40 in October) as the NBA's oldest player.  With that said, it's extremely difficult to imagine a comeback for Willis at this stage.
  • In an interview with HoopsWorld, free agent Sean Williams said that he isn't sure where his next NBA opportunity might come from and hasn't spoken with his agent recently.  Late last week it was reported that the Knicks are considering the former first-round pick.
  • Former University of Florida standout Taurean Green has signed with Italian team Sigma Barcellona, according to a report from Amnotizie.it passed along by Sportando.  Green averaged 9.4 PPG, 2.0 RPG, and 3.9 APG for Turkish team Tofas Bursa last season.
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Teams Using Taxpayer MLE For 2012/13

September 4th, 2012 at 3:33pm CST by Luke Adams

When it comes to team payroll, NBA clubs can essentially be broken down into three groups: Teams using cap space, over-the-cap (but under-the-tax) teams, and taxpaying teams. Yesterday, we looked at the franchises that fall into the former two categories, including 12 teams using cap space and 13 teams with access to the full $5MM mid-level exception.

That leaves just five teams in the Association that no longer have access to cap space or the full mid-level for 2012/13. It's not out of the realm of possibility that one or more of these teams could dip back below the tax threshold over the course of the season. But since their payrolls have exceeded $74,307,000 already, they're ineligible to use more than the $3.09MM taxpayer mid-level exception from now until next July.

Here's a look at the five teams that fall into this category, and where their payroll situations currently stand:

  • Brooklyn Nets: Their offseason spending spree resulted in an overall 2012/13 payroll of about $81.8MM, which included using the $3.09MM mini mid-level on Mirza Teletovic. In their first year in Brooklyn, the Nets are unlikely to try to cut costs, so I'd expect that $81.8MM figure to increase, if anything.
  • Los Angeles Lakers: Despite sitting at almost exactly $100MM in player salaries this season, the Lakers actually still have about half of their MLE to use, after spending $1.5MM+ on Jodie Meeks. We'll have to see if the Lakers are done spending or if they're ready to head well into triple-digits and increase their tax hit even more.
  • Memphis Grizzlies: The Grizzlies are the likeliest of these teams to try to sneak below the tax threshold later in the year. Their $74.9MM payroll isn't far above the apron, and most of their players are on reasonable salaries, making a deadline deal a possibility. The team's approach will probably depend on how the ownership situation is looking by the new year.
  • Miami Heat: Like the Nets, they're slightly over the $80MM mark, and don't figure to be cutting salary as long as they have a shot at the title. They used their entire $3.09MM mini MLE to sign Ray Allen.
  • New York Knicks: For all the hand-wringing this summer about the Knicks' future tax payments if they'd retained Jeremy Lin, their 2012/13 payroll isn't catastrophic — the team is below the $80MM mark, and that includes some non- or partially-guaranteed deals, which could reduce payroll a little more by season's end. The Knicks used their $3.09MM taxpayer mid-level on Jason Kidd.
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Odds & Ends: Ibaka, Grizzlies, Dooling, Lindsey

September 2nd, 2012 at 9:42pm CST by Michael Pina

The Oklahoman's Darnell Mayberry gives us five ways Serge Ibaka can live up to his recent contract extension. 

Here's a look at the rest of today's news throughout the league. 

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