- Thunder two-way player Eugene Omoruyi has seen some action in the early part of the 2022/23 season, appearing in four of the club’s six games so far. Joe Mussatto of The Oklahoman takes an in-depth look at Omoruyi’s unique path to the NBA.
Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Bucks big man Giannis Antetokounmpo have been named the NBA’s players of the week for October 24-30, the league announced (via Twitter).
Gilgeous-Alexander, the Western Conference winner, led Oklahoma City to a 3-0 record in victories over the Clippers (two times) and Mavericks with averages of 31.7 points, 5.3 rebounds, 7.7 assists, 2.7 steals and 1.3 blocks on .500/.500/1.000 shooting in 37.4 minutes per contest. The Thunder now sit with a 3-3 record after Gilgeous-Alexander’s stellar performances.
Two-time MVP Antetokounmpo, the East’s winner, averaged 35.7 points, 15.0 rebounds, 6.0 assists and 1.7 blocks during Milwaukee’s 3-0 week. The Bucks defeated the Nets, Knicks and Hawks, and are now 5-0 to start the 2022/23 season.
According to the NBA (Twitter link), the other nominees in the West were Desmond Bane, Devin Booker, Luka Doncic and Keldon Johnson, while Paolo Banchero, Tyrese Haliburton, Buddy Hield, Donovan Mitchell and Trae Young were nominated in the East. Antetokounmpo, Booker, Banchero and Mitchell were all nominated for the second consecutive week.
For the first time since Forbes began issuing annual valuations of NBA teams over two decades ago, a team other than the Knicks or Lakers ranks atop the publication’s list of 2022’s most valuable franchises.
According to Mike Ozanian and Justin Teitelbaum of Forbes, the Warriors are now considered the NBA’s most valuable club, with a record-setting valuation of $7 billion following a championship season.
Forbes’ duo explains that the Warriors generated more revenue and operating income in 2021/22 than any other team in NBA history, buoyed by $150MM in arena sponsorships and advertising, along with $250MM from premium seating.
While the Warriors enjoyed the biggest bump in value since Forbes’ most recent round of valuations, every other NBA team saw its valuation rise during that time as well, according to Ozanian and Teitelbaum, who say the average franchise is now valued at $2.86 billion. That’s 15% more than a year ago, despite the fact that the stock market is down 15% over the same time period.
Of the NBA’s 30 teams, only one – the Nets – lost money last season, per Forbes’ report, which states that record-setting sponsorship and advertising revenue ($1.35 billion last season) has put the league back on its “pre-Covid growth trajectory.” Further growth is anticipated going forward, with a new television and media deal to be negotiated in the coming years — it will take effect in 2025.
Although Forbes’ figures are just estimates and often don’t quite match up with the sale prices for franchises that change hands, they’re still useful for getting a sense of the league’s most and least valuable teams.
Here’s Forbes’ full list of NBA franchise valuations for 2022:
- Golden State Warriors: $7 billion
- New York Knicks: $6.1 billion
- Los Angeles Lakers: $5.9 billion
- Chicago Bulls: $4.1 billion
- Boston Celtics: $4.0 billion
- Los Angeles Clippers: $3.9 billion
- Brooklyn Nets: $3.5 billion
- Dallas Mavericks: $3.3 billion
- Houston Rockets: $3.2 billion
- Philadelphia 76ers: $3.15 billion
- Toronto Raptors: $3.1 billion
- Miami Heat: $3 billion
- Phoenix Suns: $2.7 billion
- Washington Wizards: $2.5 billion
- Milwaukee Bucks: $2.3 billion
- Portland Trail Blazers: $2.1 billion
- Cleveland Cavaliers: $2.05 billion
- Sacramento Kings: $2.03 billion
- Utah Jazz: $2.025 billion
- San Antonio Spurs: $2 billion
- Atlanta Hawks: $1.975 billion
- Denver Nuggets: $1.93 billion
- Detroit Pistons: $1.9 billion
- Oklahoma City Thunder: $1.875 billion
- Orlando Magic: $1.85 billion
- Indiana Pacers: $1.8 billion
- Charlotte Hornets: $1.7 billion
- Minnesota Timberwolves: $1.67 billion
- Memphis Grizzlies: $1.65 billion
- New Orleans Pelicans: $1.6 billion
The Bucks have the NBA’s oldest opening night roster this season, per a 2022/23 roster survey published by the league on Tuesday.
According to the NBA’s data, the average age of a Milwaukee player is 29.47 years old, with 36-year-olds George Hill and Wesley Matthews and 35-year-old Joe Ingles among the veterans contributing to that league-high average. The Heat (average age of 28.13 years old), Suns (28.05), Clippers (27.98), and Mavericks (27.89) have the next-oldest rosters, according to the NBA.
On the other end of the spectrum, no team has a younger roster than the Thunder, whose current group includes just one player older than 27 (Mike Muscala, who is 31). The average age of a Thunder player is just 23.14 years old, putting them ahead of fellow rebuilding teams like the Rockets (23.58), Spurs (23.84), and Magic (23.94). Interestingly, the Grizzlies (24.27) are the league’s fifth-youngest team, despite coming off a 56-win season.
Here are a few other tidbits of note from the NBA’s roster survey for the 2022/23 season:
- The Bucks and Thunder are also the most and least experienced NBA teams, respectively. The average Milwaukee player has 7.24 years of NBA service, while the average Oklahoma City player has just 1.94. That puts the Bucks comfortably ahead of the Clippers (6.56) and Celtics (5.82), while the Thunder are well behind the Rockets (2.29) and Magic (3.00).
- Kentucky (27) and Duke (25) have the most players currently in the NBA of any college program. No other school has more than 12 (UCLA).
- The average NBA player stands at 6-foot-6.74, weighs 217.62 pounds, and is 26.01 years old. The league identifies Grizzlies forward Dillon Brooks (6-foot-6.5, 220 pounds, and 26 years old) as the player who most closely resembles the league’s “composite” player in terms of height, weight, and age.
- There are 13 sets of brothers currently in the NBA, including three Antetokounmpos (Giannis Antetokounmpo, Thanasis Antetokounmpo, and Kostas Antetokounmpo) and three Holidays (Jrue Holiday, Justin Holiday, and Aaron Holiday).
- The league’s survey also includes some data on the youngest and oldest players, which we previously outlined here.
Thunder rookie Jalen Williams has undergone surgery to address a right orbital bone fracture, the team announced today in a press release.
Williams sustained the injury in Oklahoma City’s season opener on Wednesday when he took an inadvertent elbow to the face from Timberwolves forward Jaden McDaniels.
According to the Thunder, Williams will be reevaluated in approximately seven-to-10 days, so he’ll miss at least the next few games on OKC’s schedule.
The 12th overall pick in this year’s draft, Williams had scored five points in six minutes in his NBA regular season debut on Wednesday before going down with the injury.
While Williams’ exact recovery timeline is unknown, the injury shouldn’t be a long-term concern in the same way that an issue related to an ankle or knee might be. However, I imagine he’ll probably have to temporarily don a mask to protect his face when he returns to action.
- Former Thunder big man Nick Collison, who worked last season as a special assistant to GM Sam Presti, will be in a new role this year, having earned the title of amateur evaluation scout, according to Joe Mussatto of The Oklahoman.
The Thunder have made three cuts ahead of Monday’s regular season roster deadline, announcing that they’ve waived swingman David Nwaba, guard Trey Burke, and forward/center Marquese Chriss.
All three players were sent from Houston to Oklahoma City last month, but that trade was more about cutting costs for the Thunder than it was about the players involved. Oklahoma City also received Sterling Brown in that deal and waived him too, so none of the four players acquired from the Rockets are still under contract with the Thunder (Houston has also waived the four players it acquired in the trade).
Three cuts were required for the Thunder because they had been carrying 18 players on guaranteed contracts after signing Isaiah Joe earlier today.
The team will be on the hook for the 2022/23 salaries for Nwaba ($5,022,000), Burke ($3,423,750), and Chriss ($2,193,920), assuming they go unclaimed on waivers. However, none of the three are owed any guaranteed money beyond this season. Nwaba, Burke, and Chriss have been solid rotation players in the past, but none were particularly effective for Houston in 2021/22.
Nwaba averaged 5.1 PPG and 3.3 RPG in 46 games (13.2 MPG), while making just 30.6% of his three-point attempts; Burke put up 5.1 PPG and 1.4 APG in 42 games (10.5 MPG) and shot a career-low 31.7% on threes; Chriss averaged 4.5 PPG and 3.0 RPG in 34 appearances (10.2 MPG) and underwent knee surgery in June.
The Thunder now have 15 players on standard contracts and a pair on two-way deals, so their roster is set for the regular season.
As for Joe, his new deal with the Thunder is a three-year, minimum-salary contract that is fully guaranteed for the first season and non-guaranteed in year two, with a third-year team option, Hoops Rumors has learned. Oklahoma City used a portion of its mid-level exception to complete the signing, which head coach Mark Daigneault expressed enthusiasm about in a Monday media session.
“He’s a guy that our scouts and our people have liked for some time,” Daigneault said, per Joe Mussatto of The Oklahoman (Twitter video link).
OCTOBER 16: The Thunder have officially signed Joe, the team announced in a press release. Oklahoma City won’t have to finalize its cuts until Monday and has a full 20-man roster for now.
OCTOBER 15: The Thunder are finalizing a multi-year contract with Isaiah Joe, tweets Shams Charania of The Athletic.
Swingman David Nwaba will be among the players waived to make room on the roster, sources tell Charania (Twitter link).
Joe cleared waivers earlier today after being released Thursday by the Sixers, who selected him with the 49th pick in the 2020 draft. The 23-year-old shooting guard spent the past two years in Philadelphia and averaged 3.6 points and 1.0 rebounds in 55 games last season.
Nwaba was acquired from the Rockets in an eight-player trade in September after playing 46 games for Houston last season. Trey Burke and Marquese Chriss remain on Oklahoma City’s roster, but with more cuts remaining it’s possible that all eight players in that deal will end up on waivers.
Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, who missed the team’s entire six-game preseason schedule due to Grade 2 MCL sprain in his left knee, is on track to be available for the regular season opener on Wednesday in Minnesota, head coach Mark Daigneault told reporters on Sunday (Twitter link via Joe Mussatto of The Oklahoman).
It’s good news for the Thunder and for Gilgeous-Alexander, who has missed significant time in each of the last two seasons because of injuries, including the last 10 games of 2021/22 due to a right ankle issue.
Luguentz Dort (left quad contusion) and Kenrich Williams (right groin strain) also should be available for the Thunder in the first game of the regular season, Daigneault said today (Twitter link via Mussatto).
As expected, the majority of the NBA teams made their roster cuts on Saturday and didn’t wait until Monday’s deadline to set their regular season rosters.
Making those moves on Saturday will ensure the players on non-guaranteed contracts clear waivers on Monday, before the regular season begins. If a team had waited until Monday to waive a player on a non-guaranteed deal, he wouldn’t clear waivers until Wednesday, and the team would be on the hook for two days’ worth of his salary.
After yesterday’s flurry of roster moves, here’s where things stand around the NBA…
Teams whose rosters are within the regular season limits
Of the NBA’s 30 teams, 26 have rosters that comply with the league’s regular season roster limits, which state that clubs can’t carry more than 15 players on standard contracts or two on two-way contracts.
The following 16 teams are right at the limit, carrying 15 players on standard contracts and a pair on two-ways:
- Boston Celtics
- Brooklyn Nets
- Chicago Bulls
- Denver Nuggets
- Indiana Pacers
- Los Angeles Lakers
- Memphis Grizzlies
- Milwaukee Bucks
- Minnesota Timberwolves
- New York Knicks
- Orlando Magic
- Philadelphia 76ers
- Sacramento Kings
- Toronto Raptors
- Utah Jazz
- Washington Wizards
Just because these rosters look ready for the regular season doesn’t mean they’re fully locked in. In fact, it would be a surprise if at least one or two of these teams don’t make minor tweaks before Monday’s regular season roster deadline. That could be as simple as swapping out one two-way player for another.
The Sixers are one team to watch, since Michael Foster Jr. – who is on an Exhibit 10 contract – remains on the roster. It’s possible Philadelphia intends to convert him to a two-way deal on Sunday or Monday, which would mean the club would have to waive one of its current two-way players (Charlie Brown Jr. or Julian Champagnie).
The following seven teams are carrying 14 players on standard contracts and two on two-ways:
- Atlanta Hawks
- Charlotte Hornets
- Dallas Mavericks
- Golden State Warriors
- Los Angeles Clippers
- Miami Heat
- Phoenix Suns
The majority of these teams have luxury tax concerns and will open the season with an open roster spot to keep their projected tax bill in check, though that’s not the case for all of them.
The Hornets are well clear of the tax, for instance, and could comfortably make a roster addition if they want to. They may also be leaving a spot open for Miles Bridges, though his NBA future is up in the air due to his legal situation.The Mavericks, meanwhile, are in the tax but are still expected to sign veteran guard Facundo Campazzo before the regular season begins.
We’ve covered 23 teams so far. That leaves three more who are in within the regular season limits. Those teams are as follows:
- Cleveland Cavaliers: 14 players on standard contracts and one on a two-way deal.
- New Orleans Pelicans: 15 players on standard contracts and one on a two-way deal.
- Portland Trail Blazers: 14 players on standard contracts and one on a two-way deal.
The Trail Blazers are right up against the tax line and will likely keep their 15th spot open to start the season, but the Cavaliers could add a 15th man if they so choose. All three teams could be keeping an eye on players who were waived in recent days as they mull how to fill their open two-way slots.
It’s worth mentioning that the Pelicans still haven’t signed second-round pick E.J. Liddell, who suffered a torn ACL during Summer League play. I suspect New Orleans wants Liddell to sign a G League contract and rehab with the Birmingham Squadron this season so that the team can use its second two-way slot on someone who can actually contribute on the court, but it remains possible that Liddell could fill that two-way opening.
Teams that still have moves to make before Monday’s deadline
The following teams haven’t yet made their necessary cuts to get within the regular season roster limits:
Detroit Pistons: 16 players on standard contracts and two on two-way deals.
The final cut will be pretty simple for the Pistons. They still haven’t officially waived Kemba Walker, but they’re expected to do so before the start of the season. Because Walker’s salary is fully guaranteed, Detroit can afford to wait until Monday instead of waiving him on Saturday, since there will be no additional financial penalty.
Houston Rockets: 17 players on standard contracts and one on a two-way deal.
The Rockets‘ final moves also looks pretty straightforward. Derrick Favors, who has a guaranteed salary, and Darius Days, who is on an Exhibit 10 contract, remain on the team’s roster for now. Favors will reportedly be waived on or before Monday. The deadline to convert players from Exhibit 10 deals to two-way contracts is Monday, so if Houston converts Days to a two-way today or tomorrow, the club will be set for the season.
Oklahoma City Thunder: 17 players on standard contracts and two on two-way deals.
The Thunder will actually have to waive three players, not just two, because they’re also reportedly signing Isaiah Joe to their 15-man roster. David Nwaba is reportedly one of the players being cut, and it wouldn’t be a surprise if the other two are also players the Thunder acquired from Houston last month: Trey Burke and Marquese Chriss.
San Antonio Spurs: 16 players on standard contracts and two on two-way deals.
The Spurs will have to waive one player to get to the 15-man limit. Keita Bates-Diop and Tre Jones don’t have fully guaranteed salaries, but the fact that San Antonio didn’t finalize its cuts on Saturday suggests that a player with a guaranteed contract will be the odd man out. Tom Orsborn of The San Antonio Express-News reported on Saturday that Joe Wieskamp and Romeo Langford are “on the bubble.”
Reported Exhibit 10 signings that never materialized
There are a handful of free agent contract agreements that were reported at some point during the offseason and, as far as we can tell, never actually materialized. Those agreements are as follows:
- Indiana Pacers: Fanbo Zeng (story)
- Memphis Grizzlies: Keve Aluma (story)
- New York Knicks: Jean Montero (story)
- Utah Jazz: Kofi Cockburn (story)
These players and teams could still technically finalize these deals on Sunday or Monday, but it’s also very possible they simply fell through for one reason or another. For instance, reporting in September indicated that Montero’s buyout from his Spanish team might be an issue.
We’re no longer assuming that these signings going to happen.
Hoops Rumors’ roster resources
We consistently maintain and update a number of lists and trackers that are designed to help you keep tabs on NBA rosters. They’re all up to date following Saturday’s cuts. Those resources, which can be found on the right-hand sidebar of our desktop site or on the “Features” page within our mobile menu, include the following:
- 2022/23 NBA Roster Counts
- 2022/23 Non-Guaranteed Contracts By Team
- 2022/23 Two-Way Contract Tracker
- 2022 NBA Free Agent Tracker: This tracker will no longer be updated once the regular season begins, but includes every offseason free agent signing, including all the players who were signed-and-waived in recent days.
- 2023 NBA Free Agents By Position/Type
- 2023 NBA Free Agents By Team