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Hawks Sign Jalen Johnson To Five-Year Extension

October 21st, 2024 at 5:34pm CST by Luke Adams

5:34pm: Johnson’s extension, which just narrowly beat the 5:00 pm Central time deadline, is official, according to NBA.com’s transaction log.

5:07pm: The Hawks have agreed to sign forward Jalen Johnson to a five-year rookie scale extension worth $150MM, agent Rich Paul tells NBA reporter Chris Haynes (Twitter link). The deal will be fully guaranteed, according to Shams Charania of ESPN (Twitter link).

Johnson, who will turn 23 in December, has steadily gained a bigger foothold in the Hawks’ rotation since seeing limited action in 22 games as a rookie in 2021/22. He broke out in a major way in his third NBA season, averaging 16.0 points, 8.7 rebounds, 3.6 assists, and 1.2 steals in 33.7 minutes per game while posting a shooting line of .511/.355/.728 in 56 outings (52 starts).

Injuries prevented Johnson from playing a full season in 2023/24, but he’s healthy this fall and appears poised to take another step forward for a retooling Hawks team that traded away one of its primary offensive options (Dejounte Murray) over the summer. Johnson has been one of the betting favorites for the Most Improved Player award ahead of the season.

With Johnson poised to take on a more significant role in year four, it made sense for the Hawks to move now to secure him to a long-term contract, since he could further increase his value with a big season in ’24/25.

Johnson’s $30MM-per-year extension puts him right in line with the five-year, $150.5MM deal that Jalen Suggs completed with the Magic and is the seventh-biggest rookie scale extension signed this offseason, behind Suggs, Alperen Sengun, and the four players who got maximum-salary commitments (Scottie Barnes, Cade Cunningham, Evan Mobley, and Franz Wagner).

Johnson and No. 1 overall pick Zaccharie Risacher project to be long-term cornerstones in Atlanta, while young center Onyeka Okongwu is also under contract for the next four seasons. Atlanta’s performance in 2024/25 may go a long way toward determining whether three-time All-Star Trae Young is also considered a part of that future core beyond his current contract, which has two guaranteed years remaining.

Wizards Sign Corey Kispert To Four-Year Extension

October 21st, 2024 at 5:16pm CST by Luke Adams

5:16pm: Kispert’s extension is official, the Wizards announced in a press release.

“Corey is someone who positively impacts our environment daily. He consistently shows up for the organization as both a player and a teammate, embodying the passion and professionalism we value,” Dawkins said in a statement. “We are excited that he has the opportunity to continue his growth and development in Washington. He’s a relentless worker who has added to his game each season. We look forward to his further evolution in the coming years.”

3:53pm: The Wizards are signing swingman Corey Kispert to a four-year, $54MM rookie scale extension, agents Mark Bartelstein and Andy Shiffman tell Marc Stein (Twitter link).

The deal will include a team option on the fourth year, according to Josh Robbins of The Athletic (Twitter link).

Kispert, 25, has been a regular part of Washington’s rotation since being selected out of Gonzaga with the 15th overall pick in the 2021 draft. He averaged a career-high 13.4 points per game last season while also chipping in 2.8 rebounds and 2.0 assists in 25.8 minutes per night across 80 outings (22 starts).

Kispert’s calling card is his ability to knock down outside shots. Over the past two seasons, he has converted 40.2% of 5.6 three-point attempts per contest, making him a valuable floor-spacer.

Since Kispert was drafted by the Wizards’ previous front office, it wasn’t clear leading up to Monday’s extension deadline whether the current decision-makers would value him highly enough to sign him to a long-term deal.

However, president Michael Winger and general manager Will Dawkins showed last fall in extending Deni Avdija that they’re willing to lock up young talent if the price is reasonable, even if that player was a carryover from the previous regime and isn’t necessarily a lock to be in the team’s long-term plans — Avdija was traded this July.

It’s possible Kispert could eventually emerge as a trade candidate too for the rebuilding Wizards, though moving him in 2024/25 would be tricky due to the poison pill provision.

A full four-year mid-level exception contract in 2025 is projected to be worth just over $60MM, so Kispert’s contract will come in a little below that figure.

Pelicans, Trey Murphy Complete Four-Year Extension

October 21st, 2024 at 5:03pm CST by Luke Adams

5:03pm: Murphy has officially signed his contract, the Pelicans announced (via Twitter).

11:05am: The Pelicans have reached an agreement with Trey Murphy on a four-year rookie scale extension worth $112MM, agents Sean Kennedy and Jeff Schwartz tell Marc Stein (Twitter link).

The deal, which will begin in 2025/26 and will keep Murphy out of restricted free agency next summer, won’t include a player option, tweets Christian Clark of NOLA.com. It also doesn’t feature any incentives, per Shams Charania of ESPN (Twitter link).

The 17th overall pick in the 2021 draft, Murphy has emerged as an integral part of the Pelicans’ rotation. In 57 games last season, he set new career highs in points (14.8), rebounds (4.9), and assists (2.2) while knocking down 38.0% of 7.8 three-point attempts per game. The 24-year-old is quickly becoming one of the NBA’s most dangerous outside shooters, with a career rate of 39.2% from beyond the arc.

Murphy’s extension isn’t far off from the five-year, $135MM deal that Devin Vassell signed with the Spurs last October. Vassell’s contract features one extra year and a slightly lower average annual value ($27MM per year, compared to $28MM for Murphy).

Murphy is the sixth player to agree to a rookie scale extension in 2024, joining Scottie Barnes, Cade Cunningham, Evan Mobley, Franz Wagner, and Moses Moody. The deadline for those deals is now just a few hours away.

Signing Murphy to a rookie scale extension ensures that the Pelicans now have four of their core players – Murphy, Zion Williamson, Dejounte Murray, and Herbert Jones – locked up through at least 2027.

One notable exception is Brandon Ingram, who is entering the final year of a five-year, maximum-salary contract. As Bobby Marks of ESPN observes (via Twitter), after accounting for Murphy’s extension, New Orleans projects to be about $31MM below the tax line in 2025/26, so a new deal for Ingram would almost certainly push the club beyond that threshold. That will be an important factor to consider for a Pelicans team that has never been a taxpayer.

Murphy is expected to miss some time at the start of this season, according to Charania. The Pelicans announced 18 days ago that Murphy has a right hamstring strain and will be reevaluated in three weeks.

Hornets Claim Jared Rhoden, Convert Him To Two-Way Deal

October 21st, 2024 at 4:42pm CST by Dana Gauruder

5:29pm: The Hornets confirmed in a press release that they’ve claimed Rhoden and converted his Exhibit 10 contract to a two-way deal.

4:42pm: The Hornets have claimed Jared Rhoden off waivers, Michael Scotto of Hoops Hype tweets. He is expected to have his Exhibit 10 contract converted into a two-way deal, Scotto adds.

The Raptors placed Rhoden on waivers over the weekend. He had signed his camp deal in August and lost a battle to gain a two-way spot on Toronto’s roster.

Rhoden, 24, played the past two years on two-way contracts with the Pistons, appearing in 31 total games. Last season he averaged 4.9 points and 1.9 rebounds in 17 games while shooting 50% from the field and 38.7% from three-point range.

Charlotte has a two-way opening to fit Rhoden onto that portion of its roster. KJ Simpson and Moussa Diabate currently hold the other two two-way slots.

Pelicans Claim Brandon Boston, Give Him Two-Way Deal

October 21st, 2024 at 4:24pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Pelicans have claimed swingman Brandon Boston Jr. off waivers, Michael Scotto of HoopsHype tweets.

Boston spent the past three seasons with the Clippers and averaged 6.2 points in 12.9 minutes per game. He appeared in 32 contests last season, averaging 5.2 PPG in 10.8 MPG in a reserve role.

Boston became a free agent in late June when the Clippers didn’t extend a qualifying offer. He was waived by the Spurs over the weekend.

Boston had an Exhibit 10 contract with San Antonio and New Orleans is converting that contract to a two-way deal, ESPN’s Shams Charania tweets. That transaction is official, according to NBA.com’s transaction log.

The Pelicans have an open two-way slot, having made their corresponding roster move earlier in the day by waiving Malcolm Hill. Forward Jamal Cain and center Trey Jemison hold New Orleans’ other two-way deals.

The Pelicans will enter the regular season with 14 players on standard contracts and all three of their two-way spots filled.

Magic Sign Jalen Suggs To Five-Year Extension

October 21st, 2024 at 4:08pm CST by Luke Adams

4:08pm: Suggs’ extension with the Magic is official, according to a press release issued by the team (Twitter link).

The $150.5MM deal is fully guaranteed, with no options, according to NBA reporter Jake Fischer and The Orlando Sentinel’s Jason Beede (Twitter links).

3:37pm: The Magic have agreed to sign guard Jalen Suggs to a five-year rookie scale extension worth $150.5MM, sources tell ESPN’s Shams Charania (Twitter link).

According to Charania (via Twitter), Suggs’ agent Darren Matsubara and team officials held a series of meetings in Orlando leading up to Monday’s extension deadline in order to finalize the terms of the deal.

Suggs’ NBA career got off to a bit of a slow start after he was selected fifth overall in the 2021 draft, as he battled injuries and struggled with his shot during his first two seasons. However, he enjoyed an impressive breakout year in 2023/24, averaging a career-high 12.6 points per game with a .471/.397/.756 shooting line and earning a spot on the All-Defensive Second Team. He also showed up on Most Improved Player and Defensive Player of the Year ballots.

With Markelle Fultz no longer in the point guard picture in Orlando, Suggs will likely be given more offensive responsibilities in his fourth NBA season and is poised to improve upon his career averages of 11.5 PPG and 3.2 APG while continuing to play lock-down defense on the other side of the ball.

As we wrote multiple times earlier in the offseason, Suggs’ camp likely viewed the five-year, $131MM extension Jaden McDaniels signed last fall as a point of reference for the Magic guard’s new deal. Like Suggs, McDaniels was considered one of the NBA’s top perimeter defenders and showed off an improved three-point shot in his third season before signing his second contract.

However, Suggs has a bigger offensive role than the Timberwolves forward and was able to secure an annual salary exceeding $30MM on his extension (assuming that $150.5MM total isn’t being inflated by incentives) compared to $26.2MM per year for McDaniels.

Suggs is the second core Magic player to sign a lucrative rookie scale extension this offseason, joining teammate Franz Wagner, who got a five-year, maximum-salary contract. Paolo Banchero is the next man up — he’ll become eligible for his own rookie scale extension in 2025.

Jonathan Isaac and Wendell Carter Jr. also signed long-term veteran extensions with Orlando this offseason and are each under contract through at least 2028.

Warriors’ Moses Moody Signs Three-Year Extension

October 21st, 2024 at 4:06pm CST by Dana Gauruder

OCTOBER 21: Moody’s extension is official, the Warriors confirmed in a press release (Twitter link).

OCTOBER 20: The Warriors and guard Moses Moody have agreed to a three-year, $39MM rookie scale contract extension, Klutch Sports CEO Rich Paul told ESPN’s Shams Charania (Twitter link).

A Friday report by Charania suggested that a Moody extension was more likely than one for teammate Jonathan Kuminga, who is seeking a more lucrative contract. The deadline for rookie scale extensions is Monday at 6 p.m. ET.

Moody hasn’t been able to crack the starting lineup during his three seasons, except as a fill-in, but he’s established himself as a reliable reserve. He has appeared in 181 regular season games (23 starts), averaging 5.9 points in 14.3 minutes.

Last season, he appeared in 66 games (nine starts), posting averages of 8.1 points, 3.0 rebounds and 0.9 assists in 17.5 minutes per night. He shot 46.2% from the field and 36% on 3-point attempts.

The No. 14 pick of the 2021 draft, Moody is still just 22 years old and continues to develop his overall game. How Moody slots into the Warrriors’ rotation this season remains to be seen. He’ll be battling Brandin Podziemski, Buddy Hield and De’Anthony Melton for backcourt minutes, with Stephen Curry the only surefire starter.

Moody will make $5.8MM this season before the extension kicks in. He’ll be the fifth 2021 first-rounder to agree to an extension, joining Cade Cunningham, Evan Mobley, Scottie Barnes and Franz Wagner, as our tracker shows.

The contract will be fully guaranteed, The Athletic’s Anthony Slater tweets. He’ll still be trade-eligible this season but his outgoing salary would count as $5.8MM (this season’s salary) while his incoming number for a new team would be $11.2MM, due to the poison pill provision.

Rockets Sign Jalen Green To Three-Year Extension

October 21st, 2024 at 4:05pm CST by Luke Adams

4:05pm: The Rockets have officially signed Green to his extension, according to NBA.com’s transaction log.

According to NBA reporter Jake Fischer (Twitter link), Green’s new deal features a 10% trade kicker. Meanwhile, the year-by-year breakdown provided by Marks (Twitter link) suggests the exact value of the contract is right around $105.3MM.

2:48pm: The Rockets and guard Jalen Green have agreed to terms on a three-year rookie scale extension worth $106MM, agents Aaron Mintz, Andrew Morrison, and Shakira Wardally tell Shams Charania and Bobby Marks of ESPN (Twitter link). The deal will include a third-year player option.

The No. 2 overall pick in the 2021 draft, Green has averaged 19.8 points, 4.1 rebounds, and 3.3 assists per game in his 225 NBA outings (all starts).

Green’s shooting percentages during his first three seasons have been modest (.421/.337/.794) and his defense has been inconsistent, but he has shown tantalizing flashes of putting it all together, including during a 15-game stretch near the end of the 2023/24 season when he averaged 29.2 PPG on .488/.422/.782 shooting and led the Rockets to 13 wins in 15 games to keep them in the play-in hunt.

The terms of Green’s new deal are quite unusual for a few reasons. For one, most rookie scale extensions cover at least four seasons and those that don’t are typically far less lucrative contracts signed by role players.

Based on our research, the largest three-year rookie scale extension signed prior to this year was the $52.5MM contract Caris LeVert received in 2019. Green’s contract will more than double the annual average value of LeVert’s.

Green also received a player option, which has become a rarity for rookie scale extensions. Of the 31 rookie scale extensions completed since 2022 prior to this deal, just one featured a player option, and that contract (for Nuggets big man Zeke Nnaji) was for four years. Green’s option will be for the 2027/28 season, allowing him to potentially reach unrestricted free agency at age 25.

As Bobby Marks of ESPN observes (via Twitter), because Green’s new contract is for just three years instead of four or five seasons, he’ll also become eligible for his next extension earlier than most rookie scale extension recipients. He’ll be able to sign an extension worth up to a projected $227MM+ over four years as of October 26, per Marks.

While it remains to be seen whether or not the Rockets will try to become a cap-space team during the 2025 offseason, Green’s new contract won’t necessarily affect their ability to do so, since he would’ve had a significant cap hold (exceeding $37MM) as a restricted free agent. His first-year salary on his new deal will be $33.5MM, per Kelly Iko of The Athletic (Twitter link), which is a little more than $5MM below his projected max.

Injury Notes: Jackson, Grizzlies, Sixers, Raptors, Bufkin

October 21st, 2024 at 4:00pm CST by Rory Maher

Grizzlies big man Jaren Jackson Jr. will be sidelined for Wednesday’s regular season opener vs. Utah but head coach Taylor Jenkins said there’s a chance he could suit up later this week, as Damichael Cole of The Memphis Commercial Appeal relays. Jackson was diagnosed with a low-grade hamstring strain at the beginning of October.

“Hamstring’s in a good spot, he’s been progressing well,” Jenkins said. “We’re going to be cautious, have him get a little more five-on-five in the next couple of days and probably trend more towards later in the week when he’ll return.”

Jackson has two years and about $48.7MM remaining on his contract. He was eligible to sign an extension worth $103MM over three years prior to Monday night’s deadline, but he’ll revisit a potential new deal in the offseason, sources tell ESPN’s Bobby Marks. That outcome was always considered likely, as the 2023 Defensive Player of the Year could earn far more money in 2025 than he can right now — he’d be eligible for a super-max extension if he wins DPOY, MVP or make an All-NBA team in 2024/25.

Jenkins also provided injury updates on Luke Kennard (foot soreness), Vince Williams (shin stress reaction), GG Jackson (foot surgery) and Cam Spencer (ankle sprain), Cole adds. Kennard will be sidelined for the first week of the season, Williams and Spencer are “still a couple of weeks away,” and Jackson will be reevaluated in late November.

Here are some more injury notes from around the NBA:

Joel Embiid (knee management) and Jared McCain (pulmonary contusion) were able to go through all of the Sixers‘ practice on Monday aside from 5-on-5 scrimmaging, tweets Derek Bodner of PHLY Sports. Free agent addition Paul George, who sustained a hyperextended left knee in preseason action, did not practice but will be reevaluated on Tuesday, per head coach Nick Nurse.
Raptors wings RJ Barrett and Ja’Kobe Walter practiced on Monday, but the team didn’t do any contact work, per Eric Koreen of The Athletic (Twitter link). Head coach Darko Rajakovic called Barrett day-to-day, while Walter is considered seven-to-10 days behind his veteran teammate. Both players are dealing with sprained AC joints in their right shoulders.
Second-year guard Kobe Bufkin suffered a right shoulder injury in Saturday’s practice and is undergoing testing to determine the severity of the injury, the Hawks announced (via Twitter). It’s unclear at this time how long Bufkin will be out, but he’ll be sidelined for Wednesday’s regular season opener, per the team. Bufkin was limited to just 17 games as a rookie last season due to toe and finger injuries.

Timberwolves Waive Keita Bates-Diop

October 21st, 2024 at 3:08pm CST by Rory Maher

The Timberwolves have set their 2024/25 regular season roster by waiving veteran forward Keita Bates-Diop, the team announced in a press release.

A report over the weekend stated Minnesota was looking to move off Bates-Diop’s $2,654,644 salary, which is fully guaranteed, but clearly the Wolves were unable to find a suitable trade. Assuming he goes unclaimed, Minnesota will now carry that figure as a dead-money cap hit for ’24/25.

According to Keith Smith of Sporac (Twitter link), Bates-Diop’s salary will cost the Wolves a projected $14.8MM when accounting for their luxury tax payment, though that’s a tentative figure that won’t be finalized until the season concludes.

The Wolves didn’t need to finalize their opening night roster until Monday evening. Bates-Diop wasn’t in attendance for Saturday’s practice, indicating that he was likely the odd man out. Removing him from the roster allows the club to hang onto PJ Dozier, whose salary is partially guaranteed.

A former second-round pick (No. 48 overall in 2018) who starred in college at Ohio State, Bates-Diop is a six-year veteran who holds career averages of 6.0 points and 3.0 rebounds on .474/.333/.751 shooting in 283 regular season games with Minnesota, Denver, San Antonio, Phoenix and Brooklyn. He signed a two-year, minimum-salary deal with the Suns last season before being traded to the Nets at the February deadline.

Bates-Diop was sent to New York in the Mikal Bridges trade and then was re-routed to Minnesota as a throw-in for salary-matching purposes in the Karl-Anthony Towns blockbuster, so it makes sense that he’s not in the Wolves’ plans.

The 28-year-old will become an unrestricted free agent on Wednesday if he clears waivers.