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Ayton, Sexton Among Players Who Don’t Agree To Extensions

October 18th, 2021 at 6:01pm CST by Dana Gauruder

While 11 players received rookie scale extensions this offseason, many notable players didn’t reach an agreement with their respective teams prior to Monday’s deadline.

As we detailed earlier, the Suns couldn’t come to terms with the No. 1 pick of the 2018 draft, Deandre Ayton. Phoenix was unwilling to offer Ayton a full max contract, which short-circuited any hopes of an agreement.

The Suns raised the concept of a shorter maximum contract — presumably for three or four years instead of the full five years — but never formally made the offer or broached the idea again with Ayton’s reps, ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski and Brian Windhorst report. Ayton is unhappy with the franchise’s consistent stance that it simply doesn’t view him as a max player, the ESPN duo adds.

That adds an intriguing subplot to Phoenix’s drive to make the Finals again. Ayton will be headed toward restricted free agent next summer. Will he be motivated toward proving the front office wrong or will his unhappiness create a major distraction? Ayton could be the most attractive free agent on next year’s market and receive a giant offer sheet, which would force the Suns to decide to match it or let their franchise center walk away.

Ayton has some company among his peers. The Cavaliers and guard Collin Sexton were unable to reach an agreement and he’s headed toward restricted free agency, Chris Fedor of the Cleveland Plain Dealer tweets. Even though Sexton posted impressive offensive stats last season (24.3 PPG, 4.4 APG), his name was frequently mentioned in trade rumors this summer, a signal that the Cavs aren’t sold on the eighth pick of the 2018 draft as their long-term floor leader.

Sexton was hoping for a $100MM+, multi-year deal that aligned with his production over the first three years, Fedor reports. At one point this offseason, Sexton used De’Aaron Fox‘s five-year, $163MM extension in 2020 as a baseline. The Cavs were unwilling to go anywhere near that number and optimism waned in recent days about reaching an agreement.

The Hornets and swingman Miles Bridges also couldn’t come to terms, Chris Haynes of Yahoo Sports tweets, nor could the Spurs and Lonnie Walker, Tom Orsborn of the San Antonio Express News tweets. Bridges averaged 12.7 PPG and 6.0 RPG last season, while Walker contributed 11.2 PPG in his third year.

Donte DiVincenzo, a key member of the Bucks’ rotation last season until he suffered a torn ligament in his ankle in July, is also headed to restricted free agency. DiVincenzo averaged 10.4 PPG, 5.8 RPG and 3.1 APG last season. Some of the other notables who didn’t sign an extension or were not offered one include the Kings’ Marvin Bagley III and the Magic’s Mohamed Bamba.

The list of players who did and did not receive rookie scale extensions can be found here.

Magic Notes: Carter, Bamba, Anthony, Trade Exception

October 17th, 2021 at 10:46am CST by Arthur Hill

The new four-year extension for center Wendell Carter Jr. is a good deal for both him and the Magic, writes Josh Robbins of The Athletic. Robbins sees the $50MM extension as a much safer investment than the five-year, $100MM contract the Cavaliers gave Jarrett Allen this summer. Carter, who was acquired from the Bulls in March, is a year younger than Allen and appears to have a long career ahead as a reliable big man who can rebound and switch on defense.

New head coach Jamahl Mosley has asked Carter to start taking more three-pointers and has used him at power forward during the preseason alongside Mo Bamba. With Jonathan Isaac and Chuma Okeke both sidelined by injuries, Carter and Bamba could be in the starting lineup for Wednesday’s season opener.

“The one thing that helps him is that he’s got great, active feet, and I think him understanding who’s a shooter, a non-shooter, those are going to be some scenarios that we’re going to have to continue to monitor,” Mosley said about Carter’s ability to defend outside the lane. “But I think he did a really good job of understanding how he could guard some of these fours in the league.”

There’s more from Orlando:

The Magic have one more day to work out an extension with Bamba, but Robbins doesn’t expect it to happen. He notes that Bamba was slowed by an injury and then COVID-19 during his first two offseasons, and this summer was his first chance to really improve his conditioning. If Bamba turns in a strong season, he could be in demand as a restricted free agent in July.
Cole Anthony was productive in the preseason after a disappointing performance during Summer League, Robbins notes in a separate story. Anthony may have been dealing with an injury in Las Vegas as he said, “It’s a world’s difference just how much better I feel right now.” He will likely start the season as the back-up point guard, although that could change when Markelle Fultz returns after offseason knee surgery.
The Magic are in position to make a significant move before the trade deadline, according to John Hollinger of The Athletic. Orlando has a $17.1MM trade exception after sending Evan Fournier to the Celtics last season, along with $22.5MM in breathing room below the tax line.

Roster Moves Still Required For Hornets, Spurs

October 17th, 2021 at 8:23am CST by Luke Adams

Nearly every NBA team currently has a roster in compliance with regular season limits — no more than 15 players on standard contracts and two on two-way deals.

[RELATED: 2021/22 NBA Roster Counts]

However, there are still a couple teams that will need to make at least one cut before Monday’s regular season roster deadline: Charlotte and San Antonio.

The Hornets are carrying 18 players — a pair on two-way contracts, plus 16 on fully guaranteed deals. One of those 16 will have to be traded or released, and while Charlotte could surprise us, Wesley Iwundu looks like the most obvious odd man out. He was included in the summer Devonte’ Graham sign-and-trade deal for salary/cap purposes, and played limited minutes for the Hornets during the preseason.

The Spurs only have 17 players, but just one is on a two-way deal, leaving 16 on guaranteed contracts. Like the Hornets, they’ll have to trade or cut one of those players by Monday. Al-Farouq Aminu is San Antonio’s equivalent of Iwundu, having been acquired in an offseason sign-and-trade (of DeMar DeRozan) for salary-matching purposes. However, his $10MM+ expiring salary could make him a useful midseason trade chip, so the Spurs may be a little more reluctant to waive him now.

Jock Landale, Keita Bates-Diop, and Drew Eubanks are other possibilities, but the Spurs just gave Landale and Bates-Diop guaranteed money earlier this offseason, and Eubanks has taken on a slightly bigger role in each of his three years in San Antonio. Aminu still appears to be the most likely release candidate, but we’ll see today or tomorrow what the Spurs have in mind.

As we explained on Saturday, while most teams completed their roster moves early, the Hornets and Spurs can afford to take an extra day or two to consider their options without any financial ramifications, since they won’t be cutting a player who has a fully non-guaranteed contract.

While Charlotte and San Antonio are the only teams that have to make moves today or tomorrow, we’ll likely see a little more roster shuffling before Monday’s deadline. Players who have been waived by one team might appeal to another club that has an open roster spot or an expendable 15th man. And some teams carrying 15 players may decide to make one more cut to get down to 14.

Additionally, seven teams still have one open two-way contract slot and may look to fill those openings before the season begins. Those clubs are the Celtics, Warriors, Lakers, Magic, Suns, Spurs, and Wizards, as our tracker shows.

Magic Waive Four Players

October 16th, 2021 at 1:17pm CST by JD Shaw

The Magic have waived Admiral Schofield, B.J. Johnson, Jeff Dowtin and Hassani Gravett, the team announced in a press release today. All four players are likely to play for the team’s G League affiliate in Lakeland this season.

Orlando currently has 16 players on its roster, including one two-way contract. It’s unclear whether the team will fill its second two-way spot before the season begins.

The Magic committed to rebuilding last season, trading away Nikola Vucevic, Aaron Gordon and Evan Fournier before the deadline. The team has a strong young core entering the 2021/22 campaign, headlined by Markelle Fultz, Jonathan Isaac and No. 5 pick Jalen Suggs.

That core also includes third-year center Wendell Carter Jr. — who signed a four-year contract extension with the organization this week.

Wendell Carter Jr. Signs Four-Year Extension With Magic

October 16th, 2021 at 9:02am CST by Luke Adams

OCTOBER 16: Carter has signed the extension, according to a team press release (Twitter link).

“Even in his relatively short time in the league, Wendell has proven to be a true professional,” team president Jeff Weltman said. “We are very happy that he will continue to build on his promising career here in Orlando.”

OCTOBER 15: The Magic have agreed to a four-year, $50MM contract extension for center Wendell Carter Jr., Anthony Fields of Vanguard Sports Group tells Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link). According to Charania, the deal will be fully guaranteed.

Carter, 22, was selected by the Bulls with the seventh overall pick in the 2018 draft. Although he showed promise during his two-and-a-half years in Chicago, Carter battled injuries and didn’t substantially increase his rookie-year production in his second and third seasons.

The big man was dealt to Orlando at the 2021 trade deadline in the blockbuster deal that sent Nikola Vucevic in Chicago. He took over the Magic’s starting center job down the stretch and averaged 11.7 PPG, 8.8 RPG, and 1.6 APG in 22 games (26.5 MPG).

It wasn’t clear this offseason whether the Magic were ready to commit long-term to Carter or if they wanted to see more from him in 2021/22. It seems the team has answered that question, taking the same route with Carter than it did a year ago with Jonathan Isaac and Markelle Fultz, who both signed multiyear rookie scale extensions that kept them off the restricted free agent market in 2021.

Isaac got about $20MM more than Carter did on his own four-year extension. Fultz’s deal was also worth $50MM, but covers just three years. The closest recent comparable for Carter’s four-year, $50MM deal – which will go into effect in 2022/23 – is the extension that Robert Williams signed with the Celtics earlier this offseason. Williams will make $48MM over four years, with $6MM more available in incentives.

There are now 17 players still eligible for rookie scale extensions in advance of Monday’s deadline, as Carter joins Luka Doncic, Trae Young, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Michael Porter Jr., and Williams in this year’s class.

Deandre Ayton, Mikal Bridges, Collin Sexton, and Jaren Jackson Jr. are among the remaining extension candidates worth watching in the coming days. Carter’s fellow Magic center, Mohamed Bamba, is also among those eligible for a rookie extension, but is considered extremely unlikely to sign one.

Magic Sign B.J. Johnson, Waive Devin Cannady

October 15th, 2021 at 11:24am CST by Luke Adams

The Magic have waived guard Devin Cannady and filled the newly-opened roster spot by signing free agent wing B.J. Johnson, the team announced today in a press release.

Johnson, who went undrafted out of La Salle in 2018, has appeared in 17 total NBA games with three teams – Atlanta, Sacramento, and Orlando – since going pro, but he has spent most of his career so far in the G League.

Johnson appeared in 67 games for the Lakeland Magic in his first two seasons, averaging an impressive 22.9 PPG, 6.4 RPG, and 2.0 SPG on .458/.417/.786 shooting in 28 NBAGL games (35.9 MPG) in 2019/20. He played for the Long Island Nets in the 2021 G League bubble, then signed with the Brisbane Bullets in April.

Lakeland just acquired Johnson’s G League returning rights from Long Island today in a five-team trade, so it’s a safe bet he’ll be returning to Orlando’s NBAGL affiliate this season. Cannady figures to join him there.

Eastern Notes: Simmons, Hachimura, Nets, Hawks, Magic

October 15th, 2021 at 9:44am CST by Luke Adams

Although Ben Simmons has reported to the Sixers and head coach Doc Rivers has said he assumes the three-time All-Star plans to suit up and play for the team, we still don’t know when that will happen or what version of Simmons the club will get, writes Kyle Neubeck of PhillyVoice.com.

One source who spoke to Neubeck described Simmons as “going through the motions” during his individual workouts this week, though that source said things have improved each day since the 25-year-old’s return. The expectation is that Simmons will clear the health and safety protocols soon, but he’s considered “doubtful” to play in Friday’s preseason finale.

Within Neubeck’s report, he notes that the Sixers have shown little interest in a Pacers trade package that includes Malcolm Brogdon and/or Caris LeVert. The 76ers have been focused on acquiring a star, since trading Simmons for multiple “good” players isn’t something they believe will improve their title odds or increase their chances of acquiring another impact player down the road, Neubeck explains.

Here’s more from around the Eastern Conference:

Wizards forward Rui Hachimura remains in the health and safety protocols after recently reporting to the team, and he may miss some time at the beginning of the regular season as he gets back up to speed and adjusts to a new playbook and coaching staff, writes Chase Hughes of NBC Sports Washington. “I don’t think (him catching up) is way down the line,” head coach Wes Unseld Jr. said. “We already have some edits that we’ll send to him. Obviously, when he’s ready we’ll spend some time away from the court to try to help him get back up to speed. That in itself is going to take some time.”
Nets forward Kevin Durant admitted to reporters on Thursday that Kyrie Irving‘s absence is not an “ideal” situation and said he’d rather be playing alongside his friend this season. However, Durant added that he’s confident “things will work out the best for both parties” and said he’s not upset about the situation. “What is being mad going to do?” Durant said, per Ohm Youngmisuk of ESPN. “We are not going to change his mind, know what I’m saying? We’ll let him figure out what he needs to do and the team figure out what they need to do.”
Nets head coach Steve Nash plans to lean on the team’s depth to replace Kyrie Irving, rather than putting that responsibility on one player, writes Greg Joyce of The New York Post. Bruce Brown and Patty Mills are among the obvious candidates for increased roles.
John Hollinger of The Athletic liked the Hawks‘ offseason moves and is optimistic about the club’s chances of avoiding regression in 2021/22, projecting them to win 50 games and a playoff series. Predictably, Hollinger is far less bullish on the Magic, forecasting a 21-win season and a last-place finish in the East for Orlando.

Southeast Notes: Hachimura, Magic, Huerter, Walker

October 12th, 2021 at 8:30pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

Wizards power forward Rui Hachimura has returned to D.C. after a weeks-long excused absence due to personal reasons, according to Chase Hughes of NBC Sports Washington (Twitter link). Hachimura, 23, averaged 13.8 PPG and 5.5 RPG in 57 games for Washington during the 2021/22 season.

Hughes notes that the 6’8″ third-year player, a 2019 lottery selection out of Gonzaga, will now have to wait to clear COVID-19 protocols. He missed several weeks with the Wizards during the club’s 2021/22 training camp/preseason. The team expects him to return within a few days.

There’s more out of the Southeast Division:

The Magic have announced several promotions within their front office, per a team press release. Matt Lloyd and Anthony Parker have been promoted to prominent roles for the club, with Lloyd upgraded to the title of vice president of basketball operations and Parker to assistant GM.
Hawks shooting guard Kevin Huerter appears to be confident he’ll receive a rookie contract extension before the October 18 deadline, following a terrific showing in the Eastern Conference playoffs with Atlanta, writes Chris Kirschner of The Athletic. Kirschner notes that, during the 2021 offseason, Huerter had a left ankle procedure to treat long-term soreness that had afflicted him throughout the 2020/21 season. “I think both sides are saying the right things and want to get something done,” Huerter said. “I’m as confident as I’ve ever been. I think both sides want to get something done. It’s obviously just coming up with the right value.” The 23-year-old, drafted with the No. 19 pick out of Maryland in 2018, averaged 11.9 PPG, 3.5 APG, 3.3 RPG and 1.2 SPG in 69 games for Atlanta last year. He posted a shooting line of .432/.363/.781.
The Capital City Go-Go, NBA G League affiliate of the Wizards, will add rookie small forward Kyree Walker, tweets Jordan Schultz of Boardroom. Schultz mentions that Walker could be considered for the Wizards’ open two-way player slot. The Wizards previously had been preparing to add Walker to their training camp roster and may still sign him to an Exhibit 10 contract to secure his NBAGL rights.

Magic Sign Devin Cannady, Cut Jeremiah Tilmon

October 12th, 2021 at 3:57pm CST by Luke Adams

The Magic have signed free agent guard Devin Cannady, waiving center Jeremiah Tilmon in order to clear room on their 20-man roster, the team announced today in a press release. While details weren’t disclosed, it figures to be a non-guaranteed camp contract for Cannady.

Undrafted in 2019, Cannady has spent most of his first two professional seasons in the G League. After playing for the Long Island Nets as a rookie, he joined the Magic for training camp in December, then suited up for Orlando’s G League affiliate, the Lakeland Magic, during the 2020/21 “bubble” season.

Cannady’s regular season numbers in 13 games (25.8 MPG) for Lakeland were relatively modest, as he averaged 11.7 PPG, 2.8 RPG, and 2.7 APG. However, the 24-year-old knocked down 40% of his three-point attempts and played a key part in the Magic’s postseason run, scoring 22 points in the team’s NBAGL championship win to earn Finals MVP honors.

That performance earned Cannady a 10-day deal with Orlando and then a two-way contract with the team. However, his season came to an early end in April when he suffered a significant ankle injury and underwent surgery.

It’s unclear when Cannady will be back to 100%, but – like Tilmon – he’s probably not in the mix for a spot on the Magic’s regular season roster at this point anyway. Orlando likely signed him in order to ensure he receives an Exhibit 10 bonus for returning to Lakeland.

The Magic have a full 20-man preseason roster, with 15 players on guaranteed contracts, four on non-guaranteed deals, and one on a two-way pact.

Magic Sign Jeremiah Tilmon, Waive Jon Teske

October 7th, 2021 at 4:48pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Magic have signed undrafted rookie center Jeremiah Tilmon and waived center Jon Teske, the team’s PR department tweets.

The 6’10” Tilmon played in 24 games last season as a senior at Missouri, averaging 12.4 PPG, 7.3 RPG and 1.42 BPG in 27.6 MPG. He appeared in one summer league game at Las Vegas for Orlando.

Teske, who went undrafted in 2020 out of Michigan, played in two preseason games. He was signed by the Magic on September 8 to a camp deal.

Tilmon won’t be on Orlando’s opening-day roster. Both players are expected to wind up on the Magic’s G League team in Lakeland, according to Josh Robbins of The Athletic (Twitter link). Teske started 12 of 15 games for Lakeland at the Orlando bubble last season, recording 6.7 PPG and 3.4 RPG in 19.8 minutes per contest.