Mobile Menu
HEADLINES

Community Shootaround: Wizards Offseason

August 17th, 2024 at 9:59am CST by Tristan Tucker

The Wizards were one of the busiest teams of the offseason, bringing in first-round draftees in Alex Sarr, Carlton “Bub”  Carrington and Kyshawn George. They also signed Jonas Valanciunas and Saddiq Bey in free agency while making other roster moves around the margins.

Last season marked the worst in Washington franchise history, with the team registering a .183 win percentage that was about four percentage points worse than their previous low in the 1961/62 season. While the Wizards didn’t become overnight contenders, the general sentiment is they did well to continue infusing young talent and serviceable veterans.

Sarr had a bit of a tough Summer League, but he was neck-and-neck with No. 1 pick Zaccharie Risacher in the eyes of most talent evaluators for best prospect in the draft. In my view, Washington did well to surround him with veterans with differing skill sets who can help him as he rises through the ranks. Carrington enters the league as one of the youngest and most explosive guards and should have a runway to minutes relatively early in his career. George similarly has an interesting upside and brings both ACC experience (Miami) and international expertise (Switzerland).

Bey was a free agent move that fell under the radar but should help the team massively. Bey’s efficiency fell off a bit this past season but he shot 36.1% on three-pointers on 6.5 attempts in the first three years of his career. Once he recovers from his ACL surgery, should help a Wizards team that ranked 25th in three-point efficiency last season improve in that regard.

Another major area to watch out for is how Washington’s young players continue to grow alongside one another. Corey Kispert is 25 now but has steadily improved over the course of his three-year career. Meanwhile, Bilal Coulibaly showed immense promise last season and should only continue to improve as a scorer and defender. His upside and development are key to this current build becoming competitive.

Jordan Poole had a tough start to last season but he quietly averaged 21.0 points while making 36.4% of 8.9 three-point attempts per night in his last 24 games of the season. Maybe he and Kyle Kuzma (22.2 PPG on .463/.336/.775 shooting) don’t build on those numbers, but they could both be used to help supplement this young team. For what it’s worth, Kuzma has seemed to enjoy being a focal point in Washington.

The Wizards aren’t done making moves this offseason. They have 17 players signed to standard contracts and are one of the only teams who have to deal with that sort of roster crunch. While the club may just end up cutting both Eugene Omoruyi and Jared Butler, the team’s only two non-guaranteed salaries, we explained in July why it might not be that simple.

The Wizards seem to like Omoruyi, and Butler played well last season while also fitting a positional need at point guard. They could just cut other players on small standard deals, but it’s hard to pinpoint who exactly would be on the chopping block. The team re-signed Anthony Gill to a third contract with the team and clearly values him. Patrick Baldwin could be another option, but he’s still young and may have untapped upside. Washington could also address its roster crunch on the trade market — perhaps the team gives Johnny Davis a change of scenery.

Regardless of what other moves the Wizards make for the rest of the offseason, their young core is undeniably in a better place than where it was last season.

That brings us to our question of the day. How do you evaluate the Wizards’ offseason? Are you intrigued by their young players? What moves should they make to trim the roster? What’s next? 

Take to the comments to let us know what you think. We look forward to reading your input.

Retweet 0 Share 0 Send via email0

Pacific Notes: Curry, James, Davis, Clippers

August 17th, 2024 at 8:31am CST by Tristan Tucker

The Warriors‘ biggest offseason priority was to bring in a high-level, established scorer next to Stephen Curry, according to The Athletic’s Anthony Slater. That’s why Golden State targeted both Paul George and Lauri Markkanen, though the team came away with neither. While the general sentiment is that the Warriors did well for itself to bring in players like Buddy Hield, De’Anthony Melton and Kyle Anderson, Slater ponders whether the team is failing Curry.

Slater acknowledges that striking out on Markkanen may not have been management’s fault. According to Slater, Markkanen’s availability felt more like a mirage and him extending with Utah always seemed like the intended outcome.

Curry hasn’t shown any signs of unease or unrest with the roster, Slater adds. The two-time MVP is extension-eligible, and there has been no indication that either side feels less than optimistic about getting a deal done, though it won’t happen in the near future as Curry unwinds after the Paris Olympics.

While Curry could choose to sign a one-year extension by the October 21 deadline for the sake of security, it’s possible he’ll prefer to play out the season to see if the young players develop and if the new veterans fit in well. It would also be helpful to see if Draymond Green stays out of the league’s spotlight this season and if Andrew Wiggins bounces back, Slater writes. If Curry doesn’t sign an extension by Oct. 21, he’ll be eligible again next summer.

The Warriors themselves believe they improved this season, with internal team models providing a positive outlook for their veteran additions. One rival’s metric model projects the club to finish fourth in the West, Slater notes. Still, Curry’s decision on an extension before the deadline of Oct. 21 may provide a hint of his confidence level in the roster.

We have more from the Pacific Division:

  • The Paris Olympics are another major reason the Lakers should continue to be aggressive in looking for roster upgrades, Jovan Buha of The Athletic reports. LeBron James and Anthony Davis played major roles in the gold medal run, with James earning Olympics MVP honors. In Buha’s view, Davis has established himself as a top-10 NBA player and James remains firmly in that conversation too, so the tandem remains more than capable of contending for championships. Two-way wings are still a need for the team, Buha writes, but they could look to get creative in optimizing their stars with the talent on board, perhaps by playing Davis alongside another big more often or using their young shooters like Dalton Knecht and Max Christie.
  • In a similar piece, Michael Pina of The Ringer opines that the Lakers needed to bring in more veteran talent around James this offseason. The only players currently on Los Angeles’s standard roster who weren’t on last year’s team are Knecht and Bronny James. For my money though, I’ll be curious to see how they deploy their young talent this season. While the team didn’t make major veteran moves, Knecht was widely regarded as one of the biggest draft steals and players like Christie, Maxwell Lewis or Jalen Hood-Schifino could play themselves into the rotation or show enough promise to be used to trade for vets.
  • The new Clippers arena, Intuit Dome, had its grand opening on Thursday, Law Murray of The Athletic relays. The arena’s features, like the halo board, have gone viral through the last year and it marks the first time since 1998 that the Clippers won’t shares Staples Center/Crypto.com Arena with their rival Lakers. The 2024/25 regular season home opener for L.A. is against Phoenix on Oct. 23.
Retweet 0 Share 0 Send via email0

Central Notes: Bulls’ Odds, Tominaga, Verden

August 16th, 2024 at 10:38pm CST by Dana Gauruder

According to VegasInsider.com, the opening odds for the Bulls’ projected win total sit at 30.5. In order to exceed that figure, the Bulls will need a few breakout seasons, The Athletic’s Darnell Mayberry writes.

Coby White, Josh Giddey, Patrick Williams and Jalen Smith are some of the players in line for a statistical jump, given the state of current roster. The Bulls could get even younger as the season unfolds. They have been looking to deal Zach LaVine and Nikola Vucevic without success but that could change prior to next season’s trade deadline.

We have more from the Central Division:

  • Pacers training camp invitee Keisei Tominaga will play for G League United at the Fall Invitational next month, the league’s PR department tweets. Tominaga, a member of Japan’s national team at the Paris Olympics, reportedly agreed to an Exhibit 10 contract with Indiana after going undrafted out of Nebraska.
  • The Pistons are hiring Matthew Verden as their director of grassroots scouting and intelligence, according to HoopsHype’s Michael Scotto (Twitter link). Verden was previously the senior manager of player personnel and strategy for the development program Overtime Elite.
  • In case you missed it, the Bulls are signing Kenneth Lofton Jr. to a one-year contract. Get the details here.
Retweet 0 Share 0 Send via email0

Damian Lillard: ‘I’m Not A Player That’s Breaking Down’

August 16th, 2024 at 9:13pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Perennial All-Star Damian Lillard insists he’s still the same player that carved out a Hall of Fame career in Portland despite a disappointing first season with the Bucks.

“I’m not a player that’s breaking down,” Lillard told Jim Owczarski of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel in a subscriber-only story. “I live a clean, good, healthy life, so I can do it. I can do the same (expletive) I did two, three years ago. I can do it right now.”

The uncertainty surrounding Lillard was the biggest story of last offseason. Lillard was expected to be traded to his preferred destination, Miami. Instead, the Trail Blazers dealt him to Milwaukee.

After averaging a career-best 32.2 points per game in 2022/23, his scoring output dropped to 24.3 PPG in his first season with the Bucks. That was to be expected, considering he was teaming up with another superstar in Giannis Antetokounmpo but his shooting percentage was just 42.4%, including 35.4% on 3-point tries, well below his career averages.

“I think when the trade happened everybody was like, ‘Well, Milwaukee’s gonna win it,’ and I think when it didn’t always look the way they wanted it to look or thought it was gonna look, and I wasn’t looking how I looked in Portland, it was like, oh, what’s going on with Dame? Why is Dame not doing this?” he said. “But when for a greater part of the season I was still averaging about 26 points. Like, if you really think about that – what standard do y’all hold me to if I’m scoring 26 points and averaging seven assists and I’m not feeling great? I’m going through a lot of stuff. That’s just the truth.”

Injuries took a toll. During various points of the season, Liullard was dealing with calf, ankle, groin, adductor and Achilles issues. He was also going through a divorce and had to deal with playing and living in a new city after the trade finally came to fruition.

“There was a lot of change, a lot of stress, you know?” he said. “I think now, having an opportunity to get myself in order and kind of start pushing forward to next season.”

The oddsmakers peg the Bucks fourth among Eastern Conference teams heading into 2024/25, behind the defending champion Celtics, Sixers and Knicks. That’s just fine by Lillard as he continues to chase his first ring.

“The fact that we’re there and we’re under the radar is perfect because they’re gonna think nothing of us and then they’re gonna be like…You gotta face the truth, eventually. That’s how that usually works,” he said.

Retweet 0 Share 0 Send via email0

Knicks To Guarantee Jericho Sims’ Full Salary

August 16th, 2024 at 7:33pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Knicks center Jericho Sims will have his $2,092,344 salary fully guaranteed for the upcoming season, Michael Scotto of HoopsHype reports (Twitter link).

Friday represented the deadline for the Knicks to decide whether to fully guarantee the contract. Sims, who had a partial guarantee of $1,302,359, would have had to be waived today if New York wanted to avoid being on the hook for the rest of his salary.

Sims, a 2021 second-round pick, has appeared in 138 games during his first three NBA seasons, including 32 starts. Last season, he saw action in 45 regular-season games, including 11 starts. He averaged 2.0 points and 3.3 rebounds in 13.0 minutes per contest.

Sims projects as the Knicks’ third-string center behind starter Mitchell Robinson and primary backup Precious Achiuwa. The team lost Isaiah Hartenstein to Oklahoma City in free agency.

Sims should come into training camp in better shape than the past two years. He underwent thumb surgery two summers ago, followed by shoulder surgery last offseason.

Retweet 0 Share 0 Send via email0

Magic’s Banchero: ‘We’re Right There’ With East’s Top Clubs

August 16th, 2024 at 5:53pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Paolo Banchero believes the Magic should be in the conversation with the Eastern Conference’s top teams, he declared on ESPN’s First Take (hat tip to Dan Savage of NBA.com).

“We feel like we’re right there,” the Magic’s star forward said. “We’re right there with all those (elite teams in the East). I remember last year, we started the year off as a top-two, top-three seed and everybody thought it was a fluke. Everybody thought we were going to be a play-in team and drop out the top of the East. We finished strong and got the fifth seed and had a chance to really grab the two seed at the end of the season. We were right there last year.”

Orlando finished with a 47-35 regular-season mark and was eliminated by the Cavaliers in the opening round of the playoffs.

The best-of-seven series went the distance and Banchero showed why he’d been named an All-Star in February. He averaged 27.0 points, 8.6 rebounds, 4.0 assists and 1.1 steals per game during the postseason.

Banchero viewed it as a learning experience.

“I learned how to kind of slow the game down in the playoffs,” he said. “The first two games of the series in Cleveland, I felt a little sped up. I turned the ball over a lot. From Games 1 and 2 to Game 3, I think that’s where I made that jump, that adjustment and started to really slow the game down. I started to be really intentional (and) pick my spots on the floor to score and play-make.

“I also learned that you have to be in elite shape – not only physically, but mentally (in order) to deal with a seven-game series. It’s fun to go against the same team over and over, but it’s also a huge challenge. I think that’s something I took and will definitely use for next year.”

The Magic should be a more dangerous playoff team with the addition of shooting guard Kentavious Caldwell-Pope. Orlando brought in the former Nuggets wing on a three-year, $66MM deal in one of the biggest free agent signings this summer.

“Getting KCP is going to help us a lot,” Banchero said. “That’s a guy that’s won two championships in the last five seasons. He’s been around some of the greatest (players) of all-time. So, he’s going to be able to come out and make a huge difference for us. (Also), we’re a really young team and getting that playoff experience (and) a top-five seed last year (gives us) a lot of momentum heading into next season.”

Banchero, who doesn’t turn 22 until November, has lived up to his billing as the top overall pick in 2022. Orlando surprised many people by picking Banchero at that spot after his one-and-done season with Duke.

He’ll be eligible for a rookie scale extension next summer and it’s a lock that he’ll get a max offer from the Magic.

“Orlando took a chance on me when they drafted me, and I am forever grateful for that,” he said. “I give them my love and respect for that because nobody knew that I was going to go number one. I didn’t know I was going to go number one. So, they put the trust in me to take that chance and take me number one. After that, I felt like it was my job to help them reach heights that haven’t been reached in a long time … We’re trying to take (a huge) jump next year and keep taking it one level at a time.”

Banchero’s appearance on the ESPN show can be viewed here.

Retweet 0 Share 0 Send via email0

Hoops Rumors Glossary: Salary Cap Exceptions

August 16th, 2024 at 4:00pm CST by Luke Adams

There are a number of ways that NBA teams without salary cap space are able to add players. When we discuss trades and free agency at Hoops Rumors, we’ll often refer to these salary cap “exceptions.”

In case you’re wondering what exactly we mean when we mention a “Non-Bird exception” or a “bi-annual exception,” we’ve compiled a brief overview for reference. The NBA’s salary cap exceptions found in the latest Collective Bargaining Agreement are listed below, along with links to more extensive glossary entries on each exception.

  • Bird Exception: If a player has been on the same team for three years (not necessarily full seasons), his team can re-sign him for up to the player’s maximum salary. Generally, a player who changes teams via trade retains his Bird rights, but he loses them if he signs with a new team as a free agent. A Bird player can sign for up to five years with maximum annual raises of 8%.
  • Early Bird Exception: If a player has been on the same team for two years (not necessarily full seasons), his team can re-sign him for up to 175% of his previous salary or 105% of the average player salary from the previous season, whichever is greater. Early Bird contracts must be for at least two seasons (no more than four), with maximum annual raises of 8%.
  • Non-Bird Exception: If a player finishes a season with a team without having earned Bird or Early Bird rights, his team can re-sign him for 120% of his previous salary, 120% of the applicable minimum salary, or – if he’s a restricted free agent – the amount of his qualifying offer. A Non-Bird player can sign for up to four years with maximum annual raises of 5%.
  • Non-Taxpayer Mid-Level Exception: A team operating below the first tax apron can offer a player a contract for up to four years with maximum annual raises of 5% using the mid-level exception. The MLE amount for 2024/25 is $12,822,000; it will increase annually at the same rate as the salary cap. This exception, which can be used on one or multiple players, can also be used to acquire players via trade or waiver claim.
  • Taxpayer Mid-Level Exception: A team operating below the second tax apron can offer a player a contract for up to two years with a maximum second-year raise of 5% using the mid-level exception. The taxpayer MLE amount for 2024/25 is $5,168,000; it will increase annually at the same rate as the salary cap. This exception, which can be used on one or multiple players, can only be used to sign players, not to acquire them via trade or waiver claim.
  • Room Exception: If a team uses room under the cap to sign players, it forfeits its full mid-level exception and receives this exception, which isn’t available to teams above the cap. After using its cap room, a team can offer a player a contract for up to three years with maximum annual raises of 5%. The room exception amount for 2024/25 is $7,983,000; it will increase annually at the same rate as the salary cap. This exception, which can be used on one or multiple players, can also be used to acquire players via trade or waiver claim.
  • Bi-Annual Exception: A team can offer a player a contract for up to two years with a maximum raise of 5% using the bi-annual exception. However, it’s only available to teams that operate over the cap and below the first tax apron. The bi-annual exception amount for 2024/25 is $4,668,000; it will increase annually at the same rate as the salary cap. This exception, which can be used on one or multiple players, can also be used to acquire players via trade or waiver claim. As its name suggests, the bi-annual exception can only be used every other year.
  • Minimum Salary Exception: A team can offer a player a contract for up to two years worth the applicable minimum salary. A team can also use this exception to trade for minimum-salary players, as long as their contracts don’t cover more than two seasons and never included a salary above the minimum. There is no limit to the number of players a team can acquire using this exception.
  • Rookie Scale Exception: A team can sign its first-round draft picks for up to 120% of the rookie salary scale amount or as little as 80% of the rookie salary scale amount. The rookie salaries for 2024 first-round picks can be found right here. The rookie scale increases annually at the same rate as the salary cap.
  • Second-Round Pick Exception: A team can sign a second-round pick to a three- or four-year contract with a team option on the final year. A contract signed using the second-round exception can exceed the applicable rookie minimum in the first year (or the first two years, for a four-year deal), but not in the final two years. The details for second-round pick exception signings in 2024/25 can be found right here.
  • Disabled Player Exception: If a player suffers an injury deemed more likely than not to sideline him through the following June 15, a team can be granted this exception by the league. It can be used to sign a replacement player for one year, and is worth 50% of the disabled player’s salary or the amount of the non-taxpayer mid-level exception, whichever is lesser. It can also be used to acquire a player via trade or waiver claim if he’s in the final year of his contract. This exception, which must be applied for between July 1 and January 15, can only be used once and is forfeited if not used by March 10 (or the next business day, if March 10 falls on a weekend).
  • Traded Player Exception: Any team can replace a traded player – or traded players – simultaneously (in the same transaction) with one or more players whose total salaries amount to no more than 100% of the outgoing salary. For teams operating below the tax aprons, the incoming value can increase to as high as 200% of the outgoing salary (plus $250K), depending on the amount of that salary. Alternately, both non-taxpaying and taxpaying teams can replace a traded player non-simultaneously (within one year) with one or more players whose total salaries amount to no more than 100% of the traded player’s salary.

Note: This is a Hoops Rumors Glossary entry. Our glossary posts will explain specific rules relating to trades, free agency, or other aspects of the NBA’s Collective Bargaining Agreement.

Earlier versions of this post were published in 2012 and 2018.

Retweet 0 Share 0 Send via email0

Early NBA Maximum Salary Projections For 2025/26

August 16th, 2024 at 2:48pm CST by Luke Adams

Although a number of big-money free agent contracts were completed over the summer, several of the most lucrative deals signed by players so far in 2024/25 have been contract extensions. And many of those extensions have been maximum-salary deals.

[RELATED: 2024/25 NBA Contract Extension Tracker]

Because those extensions won’t go into effect until at least the 2025/26 season and the NBA won’t finalize the ’25/26 salary cap until next summer, we can only ballpark what many of year’s maximum-salary contracts will look like based on the league’s latest cap estimates.

The NBA’s most recent projection for ’25/26 called for a $154,647,000 cap, which is the number we’ll use to project next season’s maximum salaries. That would represent a 10% increase on this season’s cap, which is the maximum allowable increase for one year league year to the next.

Listed below are the early maximum-salary projections for 2025/26.

The first chart shows the maximum salaries for a player re-signing with his own team — a player’s previous club can offer five years instead of four, and 8% annual raises instead of 5% raises. The second chart shows the maximum salaries for a player signing with a new team.

A player’s maximum salary is generally determined by his years of NBA experience, so there’s a wide gap between potential earnings for younger and older players. Unless they qualify for a more lucrative extension by meeting certain performance criteria, players with no more than six years of NBA experience are limited to a starting salary worth up to 25% of the cap. For players with seven to nine years of experience, that number is 30%. For players with 10 or more years of experience, it’s 35%.

Here are the the early max-salary projections for 2025/26:

A player re-signing with his own team (8% annual raises, up to five years):

Year 6 years or less 7-9 years 10+ years
2025/26 $38,661,750 $46,394,100 $54,126,450
2026/27 $41,754,690 $50,105,628 $58,456,566
2027/28 $44,847,630 $53,817,156 $62,786,682
2028/29 $47,940,570 $57,528,684 $67,116,798
2029/30 $51,033,510 $61,240,212 $71,446,914
Total $224,238,150 $269,085,780 $313,933,410

The “6 years or less” column here is what the new extensions for Scottie Barnes, Cade Cunningham, Evan Mobley, and Franz Wagner will look like if none of them make an All-NBA team in 2025. All four players have Rose Rule language in their contracts, however, and could move up to the 30% max column (“7-9 years”) if certain performance criteria are met.

The 30% max column will also apply to players who reach the free agent market next summer with between seven and nine years of NBA experience under their belts. That would be Brandon Ingram‘s maximum contract with his current team, for instance.

The third column (35%) will apply to the super-max extension signed by Celtics star Jayson Tatum or to a player with 10+ years of NBA service who reaches free agency next summer, such as Mavericks star Kyrie Irving.

A player signing with a new team (5% annual raises, up to four years):

Year 6 years or less 7-9 years 10+ years
2025/26 $38,661,750 $46,394,100 $54,126,450
2026/27 $40,594,838 $48,713,805 $56,832,773
2027/28 $42,527,925 $51,033,510 $59,539,095
2028/29 $44,461,013 $53,353,215 $62,245,418
Total $166,245,525 $199,494,630 $232,743,735

If a player changes teams as a free agent, he doesn’t have access to a fifth year or 8% raises. So if someone like Alperen Sengun were to sign an offer sheet with a new team next summer, his maximum contract would be a four-year deal projected to be worth just over $166MM.

If a veteran free agent with between seven and nine years of NBA experience – such as Ingram – wants to change teams in 2025, he would be able to sign a four-year contract worth up to a projected $199.5MM.

Irving or another veteran with 10+ years of experience would be able to earn up to $232.7MM across four years if they change teams as free agents in 2025.

Although it happened with Paul George during the 2024 offseason, it’s relatively rare for a player with that many years of experience to sign a four-year, maximum-salary contract with a new team, especially since some of those older stars (like LeBron James) would be ineligible to sign a four-year max deal due to the Over-38 rule.

Retweet 0 Share 0 Send via email0

NBA 2024 Offseason Check-In: Charlotte Hornets

August 16th, 2024 at 1:33pm CST by Luke Adams

Hoops Rumors is checking in on the 2024 offseason for all 30 NBA teams, recapping the summer’s free agent signings, trades, draft picks, departures, and more. We’ll take a look at each team’s offseason moves and consider what might still be coming before the regular season begins. Today, we’re focusing on the Charlotte Hornets.

Free agent signings

  • Miles Bridges: Three years, $75,000,000. Re-signed using Bird rights.
  • Seth Curry: One year, minimum salary. Signed using minimum salary exception.
  • Taj Gibson: One year, minimum salary. Partially guaranteed ($1,082,270). Signed using minimum salary exception.

Trades

  • Acquired Devonte’ Graham and the Pelicans’ 2025 second-round pick from the Spurs in exchange for cash.
    • Note: Graham was subsequently waived.
  • Acquired Josh Green, Reggie Jackson, the Nuggets’ 2029 second-round pick, and the Nuggets’ 2030 second-round pick from the Mavericks and Nuggets in a six-team trade in exchange for the Sixers’ 2025 second-round pick (to Mavericks or Timberwolves) and cash (to Nuggets).
    • Note: Jackson was subsequently bought out.

Draft picks

  • 1-6: Tidjane Salaun
    • Signed to rookie scale contract (four years, $34,035,472).
  • 2-42: KJ Simpson
    • Signed to two-year, two-way contract.

Two-way signings

Departed/unsigned free agents

Other moves

Salary cap situation

  • Went below the cap to use room.
  • Now operating over the cap ($140.6MM) and below the luxury tax line ($170.8MM).
  • Carrying approximately $153.6MM in salary.
  • Hard-capped at $188,931,000.
  • Full room exception ($8MM) available.

The offseason so far

The Hornets only won 21 games in 2023/24, their lowest mark in over a decade, but there were a few positive developments over the course of the season – the first under their new ownership group – that may pay off for the franchise in the long run.

For one, last year’s No. 2 overall pick Brandon Miller looks like a long-term building block and a future star. Charlotte also made a smart mid-season pivot, accepting the best offers on the trade market for veterans Terry Rozier, P.J. Washington, and Gordon Hayward, which netted the club several future draft assets. Finally, the team made a front office change in the spring, hiring Jeff Peterson to be its new head of basketball operations.

It will take some time before we can really evaluate several of the moves Peterson made during his first offseason at the helm. For instance, his head coaching hire looks like a good one — Charles Lee has received rave reviews for his work as an assistant. But first-time head coaches don’t come without risk, so it remains to be seen whether Lee’s transition to a lead role is a smooth one.

The biggest roster move the Hornets made this summer was re-signing forward Miles Bridges to a three-year, $75MM contract as an unrestricted free agent. That looks like a fair deal based on his on-court production, but Bridges’ history of domestic violence cases can’t be ignored. The hope in Charlotte is that Bridges’ past behavior is fully in the rear-view mirror and that he’ll be an upstanding citizen going forward, but you can certainly make a case that the Hornets never should have made that sort of investment to a player with those allegations on his record.

The Hornets’ 2024 lottery pick doesn’t come without risk either, albeit for entirely different reasons — Tidjane Salaun just turned 19 last week and isn’t considered likely to make an NBA impact as a rookie. Many people around the league were surprised Salaun was selected as high as No. 6, according to ESPN’s Jeremy Woo; ESPN’s Jonathan Givony describes him as a player who is “still just getting his feet wet at the highest levels.” That doesn’t mean Salaun won’t become an impact player down the road, but Charlotte will have to be patient with his development.

The Hornets operated under the cap this offseason, with Peterson using that room to accommodate a handful of salary dumps (Devonte’ Graham, Reggie Jackson, Josh Green) rather than pursuing outside free agents.

Graham and Jackson came with draft picks attached and were subsequently waived, whereas Green – a 23-year-old wing with a three-and-D skill set – projects to be a rotation player in Charlotte going forward. He’s under contract through the 2026/27 season.

Up next

The Hornets still have roster spots to fill before the regular season begins, with 14 players on standard contracts and a pair on two-way deals.

While the team could leave that 15th standard roster spot open to start the season, there’s no real reason not to fill it, given how far Charlotte’s team salary is from the luxury tax line. If the Hornets aren’t yet prepared to commit to a player for the full season, they could carry a 15th man with a non-guaranteed salary this fall.

Tre Mann, who was acquired from the Thunder at the 2024 trade deadline, is eligible for a rookie scale extension, while Cody Martin is eligible for a veteran extension. Martin isn’t a candidate for a new deal at this point, given his injury woes over the past two seasons, but Mann might be one worth watching — he made 28 starts for Charlotte down the stretch and played well (11.9 PPG, 5.2 APG, .453/.364/.759 shooting).

That’s a relatively small sample size, so the Hornets may prefer to wait another year on Mann and then negotiate a deal with him in restricted free agency next summer. But if they’re encouraged by how he looks in camp and if the price is right, I wouldn’t be totally shocked if the two sides worked something out sooner rather than later.

The Hornets are a team to watch on the trade market during the preseason and into the season, since they can afford to take on some salary and have shown in the last eight months that they’re happy to take on unwanted contracts in order to continue stockpiling draft assets.

Retweet 0 Share 0 Send via email0

Clippers Preparing To Retain P.J. Tucker Into Regular Season?

August 16th, 2024 at 12:05pm CST by Luke Adams

The Clippers are preparing for the possibility that veteran forward P.J. Tucker will still be on their roster when the regular season begins, league sources tell Law Murray of The Athletic.

Tucker, who had a limited role in Los Angeles last season after arriving from Philadelphia in the James Harden trade, picked up his $11.54MM player option for the 2024/25 season in June.

Murray previously reported that L.A. was expected to part ways with the 13-year NBA veteran this offseason, either by trading or waiving him. However, moving Tucker’s expiring contract in a salary-dump trade would almost certainly require the Clippers to attach more valuable assets, given his negative trade value.

There aren’t many teams around the league who are in position to take on Tucker’s $11.54MM salary and the Clippers likely don’t feel as much urgency to move off the contract at this point, given that they’ve already used their bi-annual exception and most of their mid-level exception — removing Tucker’s deal from their books wouldn’t really create much practical spending flexibility.

While Murray suggests that a deal is unlikely to happen before training camp, Tucker remains a strong candidate to be moved at some point before the February trade deadline. His expiring salary could be used for matching purposes to help accommodate a mid-season move for the Clippers.

Tucker appeared in just 28 regular season games for Los Angeles in 2023/24, averaging 1.6 points and 2.5 rebounds in 15.0 minutes per contest, and he wasn’t used until Game 5 of the club’s first-round playoff series vs. Dallas.

During his best years in Houston, Tucker was a tough, switchable frontcourt defender who had the quickness to guard out to the perimeter and the strength to match up against bigger players. He was also a threat to knock down corner threes on offense. Now 39 years old, the forward is no longer as effective a three-and-D contributor and doesn’t command serious attention from opposing defenses — he averaged just 1.6 shot attempts per game in 2023/24.

Retweet 0 Share 0 Send via email0
Load More Posts