NBA G League Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Southwest Notes: Westbrook, Vasquez, Grizzlies

August 15th, 2019 at 3:56pm CST by Luke Adams

Following up on his recent report that Russell Westbrook amended the payment schedule on his contract upon being traded to the Rockets, Marc Stein of The New York Times provided some additional details in his newsletter this week.

According to Stein, Westbrook’s contract previously called for 25% of his $38.5MM salary to be paid on August 1 and again on October 1. As part of his trade to the Rockets, those installments were adjusted downward to 12.5% of his salary, meaning they’re now worth $4.8MM apiece instead of $9.6MM, Stein writes.

The changes will allow Rockets owner Tilman Fertitta to avoid paying half of Westbrook’s $38.5MM salary by October 1. Under Fertitta, the club has been averse to making significant upfront payments in a variety of transactions — when Houston traded cash in three separate deals during the 2018/19 league year, it always sent that cash in many installments, rather than in a single lump sum.

Here’s more from around the Southwest:

Former NBA point guard Greivis Vasquez, who played for six teams over the course of seven seasons from 2010-17, has been named the associate head coach of the Pelicans‘ new G League affiliate, the team announced today in a press release. Vasquez will work under Ryan Pannone, the head coach of the expansion Erie BayHawks.
New Grizzlies head coach Taylor Jenkins spoke to Peter Edmiston of The Athletic about how he filled out his coaching staff and what traits he and the front office prioritized as they hired assistants. According to Jenkins, Brad Jones will be his lead assistant.
Boban Marjanovic had his best NBA season in 2018/19, averaging 7.3 PPG and 4.6 RPG in 58 games (11.7 MPG) for the Clippers and Sixers. Callie Caplan of The Dallas Morning News looks at what sort of role Marjanovic might have with the Mavericks after signing a two-year contract with the club.

NBA G League Affiliations For 2019/20 Season

August 13th, 2019 at 4:00pm CST by Luke Adams

The NBA G League is moving one step closer to having 30 teams – one for each NBA franchise – in the 2019/20 season. While the league isn’t quite there yet, it’s getting close now that we can add the Pelicans to the list of NBA teams with their own affiliates.

The Pelicans’ NBAGL affiliate will be the league’s 28th franchise, leaving just two NBA teams that don’t have a one-to-one relationship with a G League club — the Trail Blazers and Nuggets.

Of those 28 NBA teams, 26 fully own and operate their NBAGL affiliates, after the Celtics reached an agreement this year to buy the Maine Red Claws. Only the Rockets and Pistons still have “hybrid” affiliations with their G League teams, meaning they manage and fund the basketball operations while local ownership maintains the control of the business and its community relations.

Here’s the full list of G League affiliates for the 2019/20 season:

Atlanta Hawks: College Park Skyhawks (relocation)
Boston Celtics: Maine Red Claws
Brooklyn Nets: Long Island Nets
Charlotte Hornets: Greensboro Swarm
Chicago Bulls: Windy City Bulls
Cleveland Cavaliers: Canton Charge
Dallas Mavericks: Texas Legends
Detroit Pistons: Grand Rapids Drive
Golden State Warriors: Santa Cruz Warriors
Houston Rockets: Rio Grande Valley Vipers
Indiana Pacers: Fort Wayne Mad Ants
Los Angeles Clippers: Agua Caliente Clippers of Ontario
Los Angeles Lakers: South Bay Lakers
Memphis Grizzlies: Memphis Hustle
Miami Heat: Sioux Falls Skyforce
Milwaukee Bucks: Wisconsin Herd
Minnesota Timberwolves: Iowa Wolves
New Orleans Pelicans: Erie BayHawks (expansion)
New York Knicks: Westchester Knicks
Oklahoma City Thunder: Oklahoma City Blue
Orlando Magic: Lakeland Magic
Philadelphia 76ers: Delaware Blue Coats
Phoenix Suns: Northern Arizona Suns
Sacramento Kings: Stockton Kings
San Antonio Spurs: Austin Spurs
Toronto Raptors: Raptors 905
Utah Jazz: Salt Lake City Stars
Washington Wizards: Capital City Go-Go

Pacific Notes: Castleberry, James, Evans, Warriors

August 9th, 2019 at 5:34pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Kawhi Leonard will have an ally on the Clippers’ coaching staff. His close friend Jeremy Castleberry will serve as an assistant under Doc Rivers, according to Jabari Young of The Athletic (Twitter link). Castleberry followed Leonard to Toronto after the Spurs traded him to the Raptors last summer. Castleberry played with the star forward in high school and at San Diego State. He was a player development coach in Toronto.

We have more from the Pacific Division:

The Lakers will do some team bonding ahead of training camp. LeBron James is organizing a team minicamp in September, according to Shams Charania of The Athletic (video link).
Jacob Evans, the Warriors’ first-round pick in 2018, is honing his skills as a point guard. The former Cincinnati guard talked about his development in a team website post. “It’s been a great transition, honestly,” he said. “Just learning the offense, trying to learn different reads out of it, some different sets, different looks and just trying to put myself in an aggressive attack mentality.” Evans appeared in 30 regular-season games and seven postseason games last season.
Kris Weems will be promoted to head coach of the Warriors’ G League affiliate in Santa Cruz, Adam Johnson of 2 Ways & 10 Days reports. Weems has been an assistant with Santa Cruz the past two years under Aaron Miles, who will be promoted to Golden State’s staff, Johnson continues. Ryan Atkinson, Santa Cruz’s assistant GM since 2016, will be named the team’s GM. He previously served as president of basketball operations for the Rio Grande Valley Vipers.

And-Ones: Pasecniks, Beauchamp, Motiejunas

August 7th, 2019 at 2:17pm CST by Luke Adams

The No. 25 overall pick in the 2017 NBA draft, Anzejs Pasecniks had his rights renounced by the Sixers earlier this offseason, then joined the Wizards for Summer League action in July. Pasecniks averaged just 4.0 PPG on 28.6% shooting in four games (12.5 MPG), though he did chip in 5.3 RPG.

Despite his modest Summer League numbers, Pasecniks suggests that he’s receiving NBA interest, as Bruno Perkons of Sportazinas.com relays (hat tip to Sportando).

“I don’t have a contract at the moment and am a free agent, but let’s just say the negotiations are mostly with NBA teams,” Pasecniks said.

Acquired by Philadelphia from Orlando in a draft-night trade in 2017, Pasecniks remained overseas for the last two seasons, playing for Gran Canaria in Spain. He has yet to sign an NBA contract, so we’ll see if that changes before the 2019/20 season gets underway.

Here’s more from around the basketball world:

A top-30 high school recruit, MarJon Beauchamp plans to forgo college and will instead go through a year-long training program with Chameleon BX to prepare for the 2021 NBA draft, writes Jeff Borzello of ESPN.com. Beauchamp was ranked as the fifth-best small forward in the 2020 recruiting class, Borzell notes. A press release from Chameleon BX provides more information on Beauchamp’s decision.
After finishing the 2018/19 season with the Spurs, veteran power forward Donatas Motiejunas is headed back overseas for the 2019/20 campaign. Motiejunas recently signed a contract with the Shanghai Sharks of the Chinese Basketball Association, tweets journalist Zhang Duo (hat tip to Nicola Lupo of Sportando). The Lithuanian big man previously spent two seasons with China’s Shandong Golden Stars.
In an interesting story for ESPN.com, Jackie MacMullan explored how head coaches like Kenny Atkinson (Nets) and Doc Rivers (Clippers) found out about – and reacted to – their teams signing star free agents this offseason. MacMullan also examined the other side of the coin, talking to Nick Nurse (Raptors) and Steve Kerr (Warriors) about losing their stars.
The NBA G League released its list of 50 invitees for this year’s NBAGL Player Invitational. The group of undrafted rookies and veteran free agents will get the opportunity to showcase their skills at the event in the hopes of securing a G League roster spot for the 2019/20 season.

Eastern Notes: Kanter, Pistons, Tyndall

July 28th, 2019 at 7:02pm CST by JD Shaw

Veteran big man Enes Kanter decided to sign with the Celtics with hopes of competing for an NBA championship next season, he explained to Alex Kennedy of HoopsHype.

Kanter, 27, opted to leave the Blazers after spending the second half of last season with the organization, joining a Boston team that has the likes of Kemba Walker, Jaylen Brown, Jayson Tatum and Gordon Hayward on the active roster.

“The reason I went [to Boston] is for a championship,” Kanter told Kennedy. “I feel like the team is really young and willing to learn and we have an amazing group of guys. I feel like we can beat any team on any floor. All we have to do is just be good friends and stay together. Let’s just go have fun! It’s definitely going to be a very, very exciting season.”

Kanter registered major interest from a handful of teams at the start of free agency, but he and agent Mark Bartelstein worked quickly to reach an agreement with the Celtics. He’ll likely be named the team’s starting center for the 2019/20 season.

“It’s my ninth year in the league and I understand that, for many people, the money is important. For me, the most important thing is being with a team that you’re really happy on and playing with a team that’s competing for a championship,” Kanter said. “That’s was the big thing for me. For everybody else, the money matters [more]. For me, the No. 1 thing was winning.

“After I got released by the New York Knicks, I would always hear, ‘Boston Celtics, Boston Celtics, Boston Celtics,’ but I never really got a chance to talk to them. When free agency started and the clock hit 6 pm ET, I actually talked to Danny Ainge. He told me about his plans and everything. Then, the second time he called me, I answered the phone and it wasn’t him. It was Kemba Walker and he was on Danny’s phone. Kemba said, ‘Hey, my man, are we doing this or not?’ Then, he talked to me about the team and everything. That showed me what kind of leader he is, and that made me very happy. That was one of the biggest reasons [I signed with Boston].”

There’s more out of the Eastern Conference tonight:

The mother of former Grand Rapids Drive forward Zeke Upshaw has reached a private settlement in her federal lawsuit with the NBA and Pistons franchise, according to T.J. Quinn of ESPN.com. Upshaw tragically passed away after collapsing near the end of a G League game in 2018, with his mother Jewel filing a wrongful death lawsuit in the months that followed. NBA officials released the following statement on the matter: “Jewel Upshaw, the National Basketball Association, and the Detroit Pistons announced today that they have resolved their prior dispute and the litigation claims against the National Basketball Association and the Detroit Pistons pending in federal district court have been dismissed. The NBA and Pistons express their sympathies to Jewel Upshaw and the rest of Zeke’s family on his tragic passing.”
The Pistons are expected to name Donnie Tyndall as new head coach of the Grand Rapids Drive, according to Adam Johnson of 2 Ways & 10 Days. Tyndall has spent the past three seasons as an assistant coach with the Raptors 905, helping win a league championship under Jerry Stackhouse in 2017.

Celtics Become 26th Franchise To Fully Own G League Team

July 25th, 2019 at 8:18pm CST by ChrisCrouse

The Celtics have an agreement in place to buy the Maine Red Claws, their G League affiliate, as the team announced today.

“Over the years, the G League and the Red Claws have become increasingly important to the Celtics and our player development efforts. We look forward to deepening both our ties with basketball operations and within the community, and further bringing the Celtics experience to fans in Maine,” said Team President Rich Gotham.

There are 28 teams in the G League and after this move, only two franchises do not wholly own their affiliate, as 2 Ways & 10 Days highlights on Twitter.

The Rockets (Rio Grande Valley Vipers) and Pistons (Grand Rapid Drive) have “hybrid” affiliations with their respective G League clubs, meaning they manage and fund the basketball operations while local ownership maintains the control of the business and its community relations, as the G League details on its website.

The Red Claws played their first game in 2009 and are located in Portland, Maine. The team was previously owned by Maine Basketball, LLC.

Jazz Notes: Workouts, Reed, G League, Free Agency

June 7th, 2019 at 5:17pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Jazz will hold two workout sessions for draft prospects on Saturday, Eric Walden of the Salt Lake Tribune tweets. The first group will include guards Frankie Ferrari (San Francisco), Makai Mason (Baylor), wings Rayjon Tucker (Arkansas Little-Rock) and Vic Law (Northwestern) and big men Darel Poirier (France) and Kenny Wooten (Oregon).

The afternoon session will include guards Jeremiah Martin (Memphis) and Jordan Bone (Tennessee), wings Charlie Brown (St. Joseph) and Paul Eboua (Cameroon) and big men Luka Samanic (Croatia) and Daniel Gafford (Arkansas).

Utah possesses the No. 23 and 53 picks in this year’s draft.

We have more on the Jazz:

Center Willie Reed, who played for the team’s G League franchise in Salt Lake City last season, was among 30 free agent invitees to participate in the team’s annual mini-camp this week, Eric Woodyard of the Deseret News reports. Reed averaged 20.1 PPG and 11.2 RPG before suffering a season-ending shoulder injury in January. Reed, 29, has played for four other franchises and appeared in 152 NBA games.
Farmington City is lobbying the Jazz to relocate its G League team to Station Park once the Stars’ lease with Salt Lake Community College expires, Patrick Carr of the Standard-Examiner reports. The construction of a 5,000-seat, multi-use arena is part of the pitch, Carr adds.
Darren Collison, Patrick Beverley, Danny Green, Jeremy Lamb and Reggie Bullock are some of the middle-tier free agents the Jazz might pursue, Walden writes.
The Jazz brought in six guard/wing prospects on Tuesday, the team’s PR department tweets. That group included Terence Davis (Ole Miss), Aubrey Dawkins (UCF), Robert Franks (Washington State), Ahmed Hill (Virginia Tech), Eric Paschall (Villanova) and Jordan Varnado (Troy).

Hawks Officially Rebrand NBAGL Affiliate; 2 Chainz Has Ownership Stake

May 10th, 2019 at 2:33pm CST by Luke Adams

After controlling the Erie BayHawks for the last two seasons, the Hawks have officially relocated their G League franchise to College Park, Georgia. The new NBAGL team, the College Park Skyhawks, now has an official website and unveiled its primary and secondary logos today.

It was first reported back in January 2017 that the Hawks would have a G League club in College Park beginning in the 2019/20 season. In the interim, Atlanta used the Erie BayHawks as its affiliate, and now that the Hawks are no longer associated with the team in Erie, the Pelicans that will be affiliated with that squad going forward. New Orleans will eventually have a G League franchise in Birmingham, Alabama, but that’s not expected to happen until 2022, so the BayHawks will once again serve as a placeholder.

As for the Hawks’ new affiliate in College Park, the team is set to play its home games at the all-new Gateway Center, which will hold 3,500 people for Skyhawks games.

The team also announced today that rapper 2 Chainz – whose real name is Tauheed Epps and who was born and raised in College Park – has a minority stake in the Skyhawks’ ownership group. Epps told Chris Vivlamore of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution that the opportunity is a “dream come true,” adding that he intends to use his new position as a platform.

“I’m an entertainer,” Epps said. “I’m a hip-hop musician. … I’m able to use my platform to inspire the youth, with real action though, like real time, not just stories of what it used to be. I’m able to show them a real timeline of me actually going through these steps, ups and downs, and to continue the marathon. This is a real story that people can relate to. I’m tangible. I’m accessible. I’m somebody that people can touch, get next to. I’m at Hawks games with my kids. I’m a real person. I’m very transparent. I think the Hawks see how I can help spark the next coach, assistant, owner.”

With the BayHawks remaining in the G League as the Pelicans’ affiliate and the Skyhawks beginning play in 2019/20, the NBAGL is expected to have 28 teams next season. The Trail Blazers and Nuggets are the only two NBA clubs that don’t yet have their own affiliates.

NBA Announces 80 Players For G League Elite Camp

May 7th, 2019 at 11:25am CST by Luke Adams

The NBA has announced in a press release that 80 players are set to participate in its G League Elite Camp next week in Chicago from May 12-14. The event will include 40 prospects who are eligible for this year’s draft, as well as 40 standout prospects from the 2018/19 G League season.

Heading into this spring, the NBA revamped its G League Elite Camp, which in past years has simply showcased some of the NBAGL’s top performers. That aspect of the event will still exist, but G League players will only participate in the first two days of the event.

The second half of the event will feature 40 draft-eligible prospects who aren’t among the 60 prospects invited to the actual draft combine. The list of participants was determined by an NBA team vote, and those prospects will work out and scrimmage during the final two days of the event — there will be no overlap with the G League portion of the event.

As this week’s announcement confirms, a select number of draft-eligible prospects participating in the G League Elite Camp will also be invited to attend the combine itself, which takes place from May 15-19 in Chicago.

Here are the list of draft-eligible prospects who are expected to participate in the 2019 G League Elite Mini Camp, per the NBA:

Tyus Battle (Syracuse)
Bennie Boatwright (USC)
Phil Booth (Villanova)
Oshae Brissett (Syracuse)
Bryce Brown (Auburn)
Zylan Cheatham (Arizona State)
Chris Clemons (Campbell)
Amir Coffey (Minnesota)
Tyler Cook (Iowa)
Jarron Cumberland (Cincinnati)
Aubrey Dawkins (Central Florida)
Javin DeLaurier (Duke)
Mamadi Diakite (Virginia)
CJ Elleby (Washington State)
Tacko Fall (UCF)
Robert Franks (Washington State)
Jared Harper (Auburn)
Ethan Happ (Wisconsin)
Dewan Hernandez (Miami)
Amir Hinton (Shaw (NC))
DaQuan Jeffries (Tulsa)
Sagaba Konate (West Virginia)
Matur Maker (Mississauga Prep (Canada))
Terance Mann (Florida State)
Caleb Martin (Nevada)
Cody Martin (Nevada)
Luke Maye (North Carolina)
Trey Mourning (Georgetown)
Andrew Nembhard (Florida)
James Palmer Jr. (Nebraska)
Josh Perkins (Gonzaga)
Reggie Perry (Mississippi State)
Jalen Pickett (Siena)
Myles Powell (Seton Hall)
Justin Robinson (Virginia Tech)
Marial Shayok (Iowa State)
Max Strus (DePaul)
Lindell Wigginton (Iowa State)
Kenny Wooten (Oregon)
Justin Wright-Foreman (Hofstra)

Here are the 40 G League players set to participate in the G League Elite Camp:

Josh Adams (Raptors 905)
Jaylen Barford (Greensboro Swarm)
Amida Brimah (Austin Spurs)
Jared Brownridge (Delaware Blue Coats)
Antonius Cleveland (Santa Cruz Warriors)
Charles Cooke (Sioux Falls Skyforce)
Cody Demps (Stockton Kings)
Aaron Epps (Northern Arizona Suns)
Abdul Gaddy (Oklahoma City Blue)
John Gillon (Greensboro Swarm)
Kaiser Gates (Windy City Bulls)
Isaac Haas (Salt Lake City Stars)
Johnny Hamilton (Grand Rapids Drive)
Dusty Hannahs (Memphis Hustle)
Zak Irvin (Westchester Knicks)
Peter Jok (Northern Arizona Suns)
Matt Jones (Stockton Kings)
Marcus Lee (Sioux Falls Skyforce)
Zach Lofton (Grand Rapids Drive)
Tahjere McCall (Long Island Nets)
Brandon McCoy (Wisconsin Herd)
MiKyle McIntosh (Raptors 905)
Jordan McLaughlin (Long Island Nets)
Jaylen Morris (Erie BayHawks)
Mychal Mulder (Windy City Bulls)
Malik Newman (Canton Charge)
Retin Obasohan (Northern Arizona Suns)
Chinanu Onuaku (Greensboro Swarm)
Norvel Pelle (Delaware Blue Coats)
Darel Poirier (Capital City Go-Go)
Billy Preston (Texas Legends)
Desi Rodriguez (Agua Caliente Clippers of Ontario)
Kenneth Smith (Grand Rapids Drive)
Richard Solomon (Oklahoma City Blue)
Emanuel Terry (Sioux Falls Skyforce)
Juan Toscano-Anderson (Santa Cruz Warriors)
Dakarai Tucker (Rio Grande Valley Vipers)
Andrew White III (Maine Red Claws)
Thomas Wimbush (Long Island Nets)
Todd Withers (Grand Rapids Drive)

Drive Look To Remain In Grand Rapids

May 1st, 2019 at 7:11pm CST by clarkcrum

As we relayed this afternoon, the Pistons plan to relocate their G League affiliate to Detroit after the Wayne State University Board of Governors approved a plan to build a new $25MM athletic facility with a 3,000-seat arena for its basketball teams.

But, according to James Hawkins of The Detroit News, it appears as though the Pistons are going to need to a new affiliate, as the Grand Rapids Drive, the Pistons’ current NBAGL affiliate, have no plans to leave Grand Rapids.

“We are deeply committed to our fans and love being part of the sports landscape in the community that we’ve called home since 2014,” per an official statement from the Drive. “This team has been community-built and supported for five seasons, and we are looking forward to continuing the growth of the franchise here in West Michigan.”

“We have no plans on relocating to Detroit but continue to have great communication and a positive relationship with the Pistons organization,” the statement continued. “We are solely focused on our sixth season this upcoming fall, in partnership with the Detroit Pistons and the NBA.”

The Pistons currently have an agreement with the Drive for a NBA/G League affiliation that runs through the 2020/21 season, and any change in affiliation would require approval from the NBA. For what it’s worth, Pistons vice chairman Arn Tellem says it is still unclear whether the Drive or an expansion franchise will be joining the Pistons in Detroit.

“We’re (Pistons and Drive) in discussions right now and I don’t know,” Tellem said. “We have a commitment that we can get an expansion team, and it may be an expansion team. We’ll see how our discussions are resolved as we talk with the NBA and the Grand Rapids team… All we know is we’re going to be bringing a team here for the 2021 season and we’re in discussions now. I’m not sure what team it will be. All I know is there will be a team here.”