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23 Trade Exceptions Generated In Deadline Deals

February 8th, 2020 at 2:41pm CST by Luke Adams

As we explain in our glossary entry on the NBA’s trade rules, teams that complete a “non-simultaneous” deal can create what’s called a traded player exception. These are salary cap exceptions a team can use anytime during the following calendar year to acquire one or more players whose salaries are no greater than the amount of that exception (plus $100K).

A number of the traded player exceptions created at the 2019 trade deadline expired this week without being used, but nearly two dozen new TPEs were generated as a result of the trades completed at this year’s deadline. They’ll expire next February, so they could be used during the offseason or sometime next season.

The full list of traded player exceptions created this week is below, sorted by amount. The player whose departure helped generate the TPE is noted in parentheses. The full list of available trade exceptions can be found right here.

In addition to the traded player exceptions from the deals completed on February 6, this list includes the exceptions created on February 5 in the four-team trade involving the Hawks, Timberwolves, Rockets, and Nuggets.

It doesn’t include trade exceptions generated in deals earlier this season, such as the $7,069,662 TPE the Trail Blazers got when they sent Kent Bazemore to Sacramento in a five-player trade. Again, the full list of current TPEs can be found here.

If you have any questions or corrections, please let me know in the comment section below.

Salary information from Basketball Insiders and Early Bird Rights was used in the creation of this post.

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Timberwolves, Evan Turner Discussing Possible Buyout

February 7th, 2020 at 4:42pm CST by Luke Adams

After overhauling their roster at the trade deadline, the Timberwolves held a massive press conference today to officially introduce their new players. Malik Beasley, Juan Hernangomez, Jarred Vanderbilt, Omari Spellman, Jacob Evans, James Johnson, and – of course – D’Angelo Russell were are all in attendance.

However, one new Timberwolf was absent: Evan Turner. Acquired for salary-matching purposes in Minnesota’s Robert Covington trade, Turner may not be on the roster for long.

According to Darren Wolfson of SKOR North (Twitter links), Turner was in town this afternoon, but is leaving today before the Timberwolves host the Clippers on Saturday. Wolfson notes that talks were ongoing between Minnesota’s front office and Turner’s representation, with Jon Krawczynski of The Athletic confirming (via Twitter) that the two sides are discussing a possible buyout.

While nothing is done yet, Turner would like the opportunity to join a contender, so he and the Wolves are exploring their options, says Krawczynski.

If he sticks around, Turner could provide short-term ball-handling help for a Timberwolves team that has traded away point guards Jeff Teague and Shabazz Napier in recent weeks. However, he’s in the final season of a four-year contract and isn’t in Minnesota’s long-term plans, so it makes sense that the Wolves would be open to ending that contract early.

A report earlier this week indicated that Turner would likely generate interest if he reaches free agency. The Celtics – his old team – were among the clubs named as potential suitors.

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Kerr On D-Lo: “Fit Was Questionable When We Signed Him”

February 7th, 2020 at 3:51pm CST by Luke Adams

A day after Golden State completed one of the biggest trades of the 2019/20 season, sending D’Angelo Russell to the Timberwolves, head coach Steve Kerr expressed confidence that newly-acquired forward Andrew Wiggins is in a good position to succeed the Warriors.

“Minnesota needed him to be a star,” Kerr said of Wiggins, per Drew Shiller of Warriors Outsiders (Twitter link). “And we’re not asking him to be a star. We’re asking him to play a role on a team that already has some star players.”

As Kerr explained (video link via Anthony Slater of The Athletic), Wiggins also figures to be a better positional fit for the Warriors than Russell once Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson are healthy. According to Kerr, Golden State isn’t expecting a whole lot of talented wings to be available during this year’s draft or free agent period, so the club is happy to add one like Wiggins now.

In his discussion of the trade, Kerr also acknowledged a point that many critics of the Warriors’ initial acquisition of Russell brought up last summer — D-Lo and the Dubs probably weren’t an ideal long-term match.

“To be perfectly blunt, the fit was questionable when we signed him,” Kerr said (video link via Slater). “… When you already have Steph and Klay and you add a ball-dominant guard, you can rightfully question the fit. That was one of the reasons the trade rumors started before the season even began.”

According to Kerr, even with Curry and Thompson sidelined this season, the Warriors got a “good enough look” over the first 50 games of the season to picture how Russell would fit on a fully healthy roster.

“I think you have an idea – I think we have an idea – that the other move, the other player (Wiggins) makes more sense,” Kerr said. “In this case, I would say (the fit is better) for both teams.”

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Wolves Notes: Towns, Russell, Tax, Beasley

February 7th, 2020 at 8:22am CST by Luke Adams

Less than 24 hours after Karl-Anthony Towns expressed his frustration with the state of the Timberwolves – and the fact that the team can’t seem to buy a win – Minnesota’s front office made arguably the biggest trade-deadline splash, acquiring D’Angelo Russell from Golden State. Speaking to Jon Krawczynski of The Athletic, Towns sounded pretty happy that the Wolves’ lengthy pursuit of his good friend had finally paid off.

“I’d be lying if I told you I thought it was possible,” Towns said. “I’m shocked like everybody else. We’ve been putting it into the universe since Day 1. We’ve never been shy about saying it in the media or interviews or wherever it may be. If you want something to happen, you have to keep believing and keep saying it to the universe and repeating it and one day the universe will hear it and give you your wish.”

Although Towns is only in the first season of a five-year, maximum-salary contract, the Timberwolves’ lack of forward progress this season has been troubling. The team didn’t want its franchise player to start looking for an exit ramp as its losses continued to pile up. And it appears that the acquisition of Russell should assuage those concerns, at least for now.

“I think with D-Lo here, it’s always going to be a big incentive for me to want to stay,” Towns told Krawczynski. “D-Lo is a big part of everything the vision is. D-Lo always knows he’s going to be wanted because his brother is here with him and he always knows he’s going to have his back covered because I’m always going to be there for him.”

Here’s more on the Wolves:

  • Here’s more from Towns, via Krawczynski, on his enthusiasm for teaming up with Russell: “First off we’re not friends, we’re brothers. That’s like blood to me. Why I think we’re going to be great, when you see the great teams in history, they always had a great big man and a great guard. I think we now have those two things set up for success.”
  • As Chris Hine of The Star Tribune tweets, and as Krawczynski writes for The Athletic, Timberwolves owner Glen Taylor signed off on going into luxury-tax territory to complete the Russell trade. The team’s 2019/20 salary is currently over the tax line by just $1,324,442, per John Hollinger of The Athletic, so the penalty will be minimal. “We wanted to get going on a better year,” Taylor told Krawczynski. “I told them that if we had to do it, we’ll do it.”
  • Taylor told Krawczynski that all of the Timberwolves’ moves this year were made with an eye toward acquiring Russell, which was always the team’s No. 1 priority. He also explained why Minnesota pushed to get a deal with the Warriors done now: “I didn’t anticipate that we would have this rough of a season. I wanted and expected a team that would be vying to get into the playoffs. We started that way and then we just fell apart. That is a part of the evaluation process you go through. (President of basketball operations) Gersson (Rosas) decided, rather than wait, he wanted to try to start to get his team in place now rather than wait for next year.”
  • Acquiring Russell is a high-risk, high-reward move for the Wolves, according to Jim Souhan of The Star Tribune, who suggests D-Lo and Towns have the talent to become “the most influential long-term teammates in Wolves history.”
  • Pointing to Russell’s and Towns’ defensive limitations, Hollinger notes at The Athletic that the team will have to complement its stars with above-average defenders at the two, three, and four.
  • Newly-acquired Wolves shooting guard Malik Beasley is in a good position to squeeze the team for a big contract in restricted free agency this summer, writes ESPN’s Zach Lowe. As Lowe observes, Minnesota will be under pressure to re-sign Beasley after making him one of the key pieces in the Robert Covington trade.
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Western Notes: Wiggins, Collison, Warriors

February 6th, 2020 at 11:09pm CST by ChrisCrouse

While Andrew Wiggins‘ contract, which has over $94MM left on it after this season, may seem like it is a negative mark on his trade value, that perception is no longer the reality around the league.

The Timberwolves knew they likely had to move Wiggins (for salary-matching purposes) and reached out to other teams about taking on the 24-year-old prior to agreeing to terms with the Warriors.

The former No. 1 pick has improved his value considerably since last season — part of that is him buying into the plan set forth by Minnesota’s player development staff. Wiggins is finding better looks and taking a more cerebral approach to the game this year after putting in substantial work during the offseason.

Here’s more from the Western Conference:

  • The Timberwolves had spoken to the Mavericks about a Wiggins deal prior to trading him to the Warriors, per a source. It’s unclear how far those talks went.
  • Former NBA wing Matt Barnes remains close with Darren Collison and says the point guard is “50/50” on returning to the league, as ESPN’s Rachel Nichols tweets. It was previously reported that if Collison returns, he’d prefer to go to the Lakers or Clippers.
  • The Warriors trading Alec Burks and Glenn Robinson III caught the locker room by surprise. “So this was a blindside,” one member of the team told Anthony Slater of The Athletic. Prior to the team’s matchup on Wednesday night, the front office pulled Burks and Robinson from pre-game shootaround, signaling that the duo was going to be traded.
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D’Angelo Russell’s Trade Market Was Not Robust

February 6th, 2020 at 9:01pm CST by ChrisCrouse

With over a year of speculation that D’Angelo Russell would end up on the Timberwolves, he is finally there. The team gave up a lightly protected first-rounder, in addition to a second-round selection and Andrew Wiggins in exchange for the former No. 2 overall pick.

Outside of Minnesota, the market for Russell wasn’t robust, according to Zach Lowe of ESPN (podcast). The Knicks were rumored to have interest in the guard, but New York was the only other team with an offer for Golden State, per Sean Deveney of Heavy.com.

While it seemed like a deal wouldn’t happen because the two sides were far apart in value, the Wolves did not relent. The franchise remained determined to acquire Russell and continued to look for ways to do so, even speaking with other teams about taking on Wiggins, as I recently reported. In the end, the Warriors were happy to take on Wiggins and the picks for a player whose skillset overlapped with their star point guard, Stephen Curry.

Russell joined the Warriors via the Kevin Durant sign-and-trade over the summer. The franchise surrendered their 2020 first-round pick (protected 1-20) to Brooklyn to accommodate the sign-and-trade. Since it won’t convey this year, that pick will turn into a 2025 second-rounder.

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Heat Acquire Iguodala, Crowder In Three-Team Trade

February 6th, 2020 at 7:10pm CST by Luke Adams

7:10pm: The trade is now official, according to press releases from the Timberwolves, Heat, and Grizzlies. Minnesota became part of the deal by agreeing to acquire Johnson for Gorgui Dieng, as we outlined in a separate story, making it a three-team trade.

11:16am: The Grizzlies and Heat have agreed to a trade that will send Andre Iguodala, Jae Crowder, and Solomon Hill to Miami in exchange for Justise Winslow, Dion Waiters, and James Johnson, reports ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (via Twitter). No draft picks will be included in the deal.

Shams Charania of The Athletic (all Twitter links) first reported that Crowder, Hill, and Waiters would be involved in the trade, which broke last night.

There’s still time for the agreement to be expanded to include the Thunder and Danilo Gallinari, but those talks between Oklahoma City and Miami have “fully stalled,” according to Woj (Twitter link).

The Heat were hoping to fold an acquisition of the veteran forward into the trade, perhaps extending his contract in the process. However, Wojnarowski tweets that the Grizzlies and Heat are focusing on officially finalizing a two-team deal for now, with Miami still unable to reach an agreement for Gallinari.

Barry Jackson of The Miami Herald has heard similar rumblings, tweeting that Crowder and Hill could be re-routed to Oklahoma City if the deal is expanded to include Gallinari, but for now Hill is under the impression he’ll end up in Miami, along with Crowder.

Even if the Heat can’t land Gallinari, they’ll add three veterans capable of playing rotation roles in Iguodala, Crowder, and Hill. Although Iguodala hasn’t appeared in a game at all since being traded from Golden State to Memphis in July, he played key minutes on the Warriors’ championship teams in recent years and will be well-rested for the stretch run.

As we detailed in a previous story, Iguodala and the Heat have reached an agreement on a two-year, $30MM contract extension as part of the trade. The second season of Iguodala’s extension will reportedly be a team option, allowing Miami to retain its financial flexibility to participate in a loaded free agent class in 2021. The Heat are expected to guarantee the second season of Iguodala’s deal for if they miss out on their top free agent targets in ’21, per Wojnarowski (Twitter link).

Crowder and Hill, meanwhile, have helped the Grizzlies exceed expectations and compete for a playoff spot this season. Crowder has started 45 games, averaging 9.9 PPG and 6.2 RPG and playing strong perimeter defense, while Hill has averaged 5.7 PPG with a .381 3PT% in 48 games (18.8 MPG).

The trade will also help the Heat out financially, since they’re sending out more money than they’re taking back. ESPN’s Bobby Marks tweets that Miami is now $3.4MM below its hard cap and reduced its projected tax bill by nearly $3.7MM. That could allow the Heat to be a player in the buyout market, though the team still has a full 15-man roster.

The franchise also cleared a significant amount of salary for 2020/21 in the deal, though Iguodala’s extension cuts into that newfound flexibility a little.

As for the Grizzlies, they’ll take on three pricey multiyear contracts in exchange for their three expiring deals. Having also extended Dillon Brooks on Wednesday, Memphis has gone from having $50MM in projected cap room to likely being over the cap this summer, tweets Jeff Siegel of Early Bird Rights.

Winslow is the prize of the deal for Memphis. The former lottery pick is under contract for $13MM annually through 2021/22, with a team option on the final year. Winslow has flashed tantalizing upside as a ball-handler and defender, but injuries have limited him to just 11 games this season. He’s currently sidelined with a lower back bone bruise.

Johnson and Waiters are on oversized contracts — Johnson is earning $15.35MM this season with a $16.05MM player option for 2020/21, while Waiters is owed $12.1MM this season and $12.65MM next year. Memphis’ willingness to take on those deals signals that the team is willing to roll over its cap room to 2021.

Both Johnson and Waiters have spent much of the season in the doghouse in Miami, but Johnson has at least appeared in 18 games, averaging 5.7 PPG and 2.9 RPG on .448/.356/.571 shooting in 15.6 minutes per contest.

Photos courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

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Warriors Trade D’Angelo Russell To Timberwolves

February 6th, 2020 at 4:33pm CST by Luke Adams

The Warriors have officially traded star guard D’Angelo Russell to the Timberwolves, the teams announced in a pair of press releases. Minnesota has also acquired big man Omari Spellman and guard Jacob Evans along with Russell.

In exchange, Golden State receives swingman Andrew Wiggins, a protected 2021 first-round pick, and a 2021 second-round pick. The 2021 first-rounder headed to Golden State will be Minnesota’s own top-three protected pick. It would become unprotected in 2022 if it doesn’t convey next year.

The Wolves’ acquisition of Russell represents the culmination of a pursuit that dates back at least to the 2019 free agent period, when the team made D-Lo its top target and offered him a lucrative four-year contract. Minnesota had hoped to pair the All-Star guard with his good friend Karl-Anthony Towns, but were passed over when the Warriors swooped in with a four-year, max-salary offer. Seven months later, Timberwolves president of basketball operations Gersson Rosas got his man.

The blockbuster deal comes at a good time for the Wolves, who have struggled mightily since their 10-8 start, and for Towns, who – after Wednesday’s game – publicly expressed his frustration with all that losing. Towns was also believed to be disappointed by the departure of Robert Covington, who was one of his best friends on the team, so Minnesota will hope that the arrival of Russell can help rejuvenate the big man’s enthusiasm — and get the Wolves a few more wins down the stretch.

The Timberwolves will now enter the summer with a pair of 24-year-old cornerstones on long-term contracts, as Russell is locked up through 2023 and Towns through 2024. They also still have their own 2020 first-round pick, as well as Brooklyn’s lottery-protected first-rounder. So they’ll have the opportunity to bring in a pair of promising prospects or use those picks in trades to further upgrade the roster.

The deal does put the Wolves slightly into tax territory, ESPN’s Bobby Marks reports (via Twitter), so another move could be forthcoming.

Meanwhile, it’s a fascinating pivot for the Warriors, who were said to be seeking a first-round selection in 2021 rather than 2020, since next year’s draft class is expected to be stronger than this year’s. The Wolves reportedly put their own 2020 protected pick and Brooklyn’s lottery-protected pick on the table in a previous offer, but it appears Golden State was willing to accept just a single first-rounder now that it’s a lightly-protected 2021 pick.

Besides the first-round pick and accompanying second-rounder, the Warriors get two things out of the deal: The first is Wiggins, whose max-salary contract had been widely considered a negative. According to Anthony Slater of The Athletic (Twitter link), however, there’s a contingent within the Warriors who believe that Wiggins is a “salvageable project.” Slater believes the deal will ultimately be judged on whether Golden State can turn Wiggins into the team’s long-term starting small forward or eventually flip him for positive value.

The second perk for the Warriors is that the deal should allow them to sneak out of the tax for this season, which will help them avoid current and future repeater penalties. Marks tweets that the team will be $3.1MM below the tax threshold and should be able to stay below that line even after filling out its roster. Golden State will have six open roster spots, necessitating at least five eventual additions, but the club will be able to stagger those signings to some extent.

ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski first broke the news and reported the terms of the trade (all Twitter links).

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

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Wolves, Grizzlies Swap James Johnson, Gorgui Dieng

February 6th, 2020 at 1:31pm CST by Luke Adams

UPDATE: This trade is now official. See this story for more details.

The Timberwolves and Grizzlies have agreed to a trade that will send forward James Johnson to Minnesota and big man Gorgui Dieng to Memphis, according to Jon Krawczynski of The Athletic (Twitter link).

Johnson is technically still a member of the Heat but is being traded to Memphis in the six-player Andre Iguodala trade. The Dieng deal with the Wolves may be folded into that transaction to make it a three-team trade, tweets ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski.

As Chris Herrington of The Daily Memphian observes (via Twitter), swapping Johnson for Dieng will add a little more salary to Memphis’ books this season and next year, but the Grizzlies view the big man as a better fit on their depth chart.

Dieng, who is under contract for $16.23MM in 2019/20 and $17.29MM in 2020/21, has averaged 7.4 PPG and 5.6 RPG in 46 games (16.9 MPG). He was particularly effective during Karl-Anthony Towns‘ injury absence, posting 12.9 PPG and 8.9 RPG on .463/.409/.806 shooting in 15 starts during that time.

Johnson is making approximately $15.34MM this season and holds a $16MM option for next season. By trimming more payroll, the Tiimberwolves will be just $1.1MM above the luxury tax line with this move, Bobby Marks of ESPN tweets.

Both teams have been extremely active prior to the deadline, as Minnesota was also part of four-team blockbuster that landed it D’Angelo Russell.

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Karl-Anthony Towns: “I’ve Been Losing For A Long Time”

February 6th, 2020 at 11:17am CST by Arthur Hill

The Timberwolves may have a problem with their franchise cornerstone, as Karl-Anthony Towns erupted after the team’s 13th straight defeat last night, writes Jon Krawczynski of The Athletic. Towns displayed minimal interest and effort throughout the home loss to the Hawks, Krawczynski adds, then spoke about his frustration after the game.

“I’ve been losing for a long time,” Towns said. “I’m not trying to do that (expletive) anymore. So every possession means a lot. You obviously see my patience running low with a lot of things. There’s no excuses. We gotta get it done.”

Towns’ personal losing streak is even longer, as he missed a month with a knee injury and subsequent illness and hasn’t been part of a victory since November 27. He also watched his best friend on the team, Robert Covington, get shipped to Houston this week in a four-team trade.

Towns posted 21 points and 11 rebounds last night, but his disengagement was obvious, Krawczynski observes, adding that there were several fourth-quarter possessions when he didn’t cross half court. Towns also wasn’t aggressive on offense, even though he had a size advantage over defenders Damian Jones and John Collins.

Krawczynski speculates that Towns may have been registering his displeasure with the Covington trade. After news of the deal broke late Tuesday night, Towns texted some of the team’s younger players to tell them they were getting a lessons in the business side of the NBA.

“I hope this is a great learning experience for them because this is what it is,” Towns said. “You could be very close and you could be with someone you cherish a lot and they could be gone the next day, not only in basketball but in life. I hope this a lesson and reminder for them.”

There were reports last month that the Knicks and Warriors were monitoring the situation in Minnesota to see if Towns might become available, but Wolves president of basketball operations Gersson Rosas responded by calling the 24-year-old center “as untouchable as they come.” While nothing is expected to happen before today’s deadline, it’s a story to watch, especially if the losing in Minnesota continues.

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