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Trail Blazers Exercise 2025/26 Team Options On Three Players

October 19th, 2024 at 2:02pm CST by Luke Adams

The Trail Blazers have picked up their 2025/26 team options for three players who are on rookie scale contracts, the team announced today in a press release.

The options exercised by Portland are as follows:

Scoot Henderson (third year, $10,748,040)
Shaedon Sharpe (fourth year, $8,399,983)
Kris Murray (third year, $3,132,000)

None of the decisions come as a surprise. Henderson and Sharpe project to be long-term cornerstones for the Blazers, while Murray showed some promise in his rookie season and has a salary not far above the veteran’s minimum.

Henderson, 20, had an up-and-down rookie campaign after being selected third overall in the 2023 draft. He finished last season with averages of 14.0 points, 5.4 assists, and 3.1 rebounds in 28.5 minutes per game (62 games) and an underwhelming shooting line of .385/.325/.819. However, the Blazers remain confident that he’s capable of much more going forward.

Sharpe has been bitten by the injury bug in the past year. He was limited to 32 games last season due to health issues, including core muscle surgery, and is currently on the shelf due to a shoulder ailment. He averaged 15.9 PPG, 5.0 RPG, and 2.9 APG on .406/.333/.824 shooting when healthy last season.

Murray averaged 6.1 PPG, 3.6 RPG, and 1.3 APG in 62 games (21.7 MPG) as a rookie, with a shooting line of .396/.268/.661.

Sharpe will now become eligible for a rookie scale extension during the 2024 offseason, while the Blazers will have decisions to make on fourth-year options for Henderson and Murray by October 31, 2025.

Clippers Convert Kai Jones To Two-Way Contract

October 19th, 2024 at 1:58pm CST by Tristan Tucker

3:05pm: Jones’ two-way deal is official, per NBA.com’s transaction log.

1:58pm: The Clippers are converting big man Kai Jones to a two-way contract from his previous Exhibit 10 pact, according to NBA insider Chris B. Haynes (Twitter link).

Jones, a former 19th overall pick, impressed in recent weeks. He averaged 8.0 points, 5.0 rebounds and 2.4 blocks in five preseason games, serving as L.A.’s primary backup center while Mohamed Bamba dealt with an injury. Head coach Tyronn Lue recently made sure to note Jones’ importance to the team.

The 6’11” Texas product spent the first two years of his career with the Hornets, but didn’t crack the rotation. That, paired with a personal mental health struggle, led to his release. He signed a 10-day contract with the Sixers in March but wasn’t brought back after it expired.

Jones then landed with the Clippers at the end of the regular season. He didn’t appear in a game last season, however. He had a team option for 2024/25, which was declined this offseason, before he was brought back on the Exhibit 10 contract.

The Clippers are still at the offseason limit of 21 players, but Jones being converted likely means we will see all of Elijah Harkless, Braxton Key and Alondes Williams — their other Exhibit 10 players — waived in the coming hours. The Clippers don’t have a vacant spot on their 15-man roster and they have all three two-way slots filled. They’re also reportedly planning on signing Tosan Evbuomwan, presumably to an Exhibit 10 deal in order to subsequently waive him and have him join their G League affiliate.

Bucks Give Robbins Two-Way Deal, Cut Pasecniks

October 19th, 2024 at 1:52pm CST by Luke Adams

2:53pm: Robbins’ two-way contract is now official, according to the transaction log at NBA.com.

1:52pm: The Bucks are making a change to their two-way players ahead of the regular season, with Shams Charania of ESPN reporting (via Twitter) that the team has decided to convert Liam Robbins‘ Exhibit 10 contract to a two-way deal while waiving big man Anzejs Pasecniks.

Robbins, a seven-foot center who played his college ball at Vanderbilt, was born in Wisconsin and grew up a Bucks fan, so he’ll be sticking with his hometown team after a solid preseason in which he averaged 4.0 points, 2.8 rebounds, 1.5 assists, and 1.5 blocks in 11.7 minutes per game across four outings.

Robbins missed part of his final college season in 2022/23 with a right leg fracture, which required surgery. A second surgical procedure was required this past January due to an issue with a plate that was inserted in his leg. But after a lost rookie season, he said this fall that he’s fully healthy and has no limitations.

A first-round pick in the 2017 draft, Pasecniks has only appeared in 28 total NBA regular season games – all with the Wizards – and has spent the past three seasons in Europe, playing for Real Betis (Spain), Metropolitans 92 (France) and Palencia (Spain). It remains to be seen whether he’ll head back overseas or if he’ll remain stateside and look to earn a shot with another NBA team.

Robbins joins Ryan Rollins and Stanley Umude as Milwaukee’s two-way players.

Raptors Cut Branden Carlson, Two Others; Convert Jamison Battle To Two-Way

October 19th, 2024 at 1:39pm CST by Luke Adams

The Raptors have placed three players on waivers, according to Blake Murphy of Sportsnet.ca (Twitter link), who says that center Branden Carlson and guards Jared Rhoden and Jahmi’us Ramsey are the roster casualties in Toronto.

Carlson was on a two-way contract, while Rhoden and Ramsey were in camp on non-guaranteed Exhibit 10 contracts.

Forward Jamison Battle, the team’s other Exhibit 10 recipient, has had his contract converted into a two-way deal, replacing Carlson, Murphy adds.

Battle, who went undrafted out of Ohio State in June, impressed the Raptors at the Las Vegas Summer League, where he averaged 7.4 points per game on .565/.600/1.000 shooting in five outings (14.0 MPG). He also had a strong preseason, putting up 6.4 PPG in just 9.8 MPG in five appearances off the bench, with a .545 FG% (and a .571 3PT%).

Battle will help provide depth early in the season on the wing, where RJ Barrett and Bruce Brown are among the projected rotation players dealing with injuries.

As Murphy tweets, Rhoden will likely report to the Raptors 905, since they control his rights, and the team should have the ability to designate Carlson as an affiliate player even though he was on a two-way deal. Ramsey’s returning rights are still controlled by the Oklahoma City Blue, so the 905 would have to acquire them in order to get him on their roster.

Toronto is now carrying 14 players on fully guaranteed contracts, plus Bruno Fernando on a non-guaranteed deal, and three players on two-way pacts. Assuming Fernando makes the opening night roster, his full minimum salary will become guaranteed.

Grizzlies Convert Yuki Kawamura To Two-Way Deal

October 19th, 2024 at 1:24pm CST by Luke Adams

2:49pm: Kawamura has officially been promoted to a two-way contract, per NBA.com’s transaction log.

1:24pm: The Grizzlies intend to convert non-guaranteed camp invitee Yuki Kawamura to a two-way contract, according to Shams Charania of ESPN (Twitter link).

Kawamura, who is currently on an Exhibit 10 deal, will take the two-way slot that was previously occupied by Scotty Pippen Jr. before he was promoted to the standard roster, so no corresponding move will be necessary to make room.

The 23-year-old Japanese guard has spent the past five seasons playing in the B.League in his home country. He earned MVP honors in 2023 and averaged 20.9 points, 8.0 assists, and 3.0 rebounds in 30.6 minutes per game last season for the Yokohama B-Corsairs. He also played for Japan at this summer’s Olympics, pouring in 29 points in a near-upset of France in pool play.

Kawamura impressed his new Grizzlies teammates this fall with his competitiveness and had some strong preseason outings, handing out eight assists in last Saturday’s win against Chicago and then registering 10 points and seven assists in Monday’s victory over the Pacers.

At 5’8″, Kawamura will be the shortest active player in the NBA, tweets Charania.

Once Kawamura’s conversion is official, the Grizzlies will have 14 players on guaranteed contracts and three on two-way deals, with the club’s other Exhibit 10 signees – Miye Oni, Maozinha Pereira, Armando Bacot, and Miles Norris – seemingly on the outside looking in with the regular season roster cut-down deadline looming.

Bulls To Retain Talen Horton-Tucker

October 19th, 2024 at 1:14pm CST by Luke Adams

Talen Horton-Tucker will open the season with the Bulls, according to Jamal Collier of ESPN, who reports (via Twitter) that the sixth-year guard has made the team as its 15th man.

The 46th overall pick in the 2019 draft, Horton-Tucker spent his first three NBA seasons with the Lakers and his last two in Utah. While he showed some promise with each team and logged regular rotation minutes in each of the past four seasons, he hadn’t taken a significant step forward during that time — his 39.6% field goal percentage last season represented a career low.

Still, Horton-Tucker is just 23 years old (24 in November) and made a strong impression this fall in Chicago on a non-guaranteed Exhibit 10 contract.

The 6’4″ guard averaged 13.0 points per game in five preseason outings despite playing just 17.8 minutes per contest. He also took good care of the ball (0.8 turnovers per game) and knocked down three-pointers at a better rate (33.3%) than he has in any of his five NBA seasons.

Horton-Tucker is on a minimum-salary contract that will pay him $2,425,403 and will count against Chicago’s cap for $2,087,519 if it becomes fully guaranteed. For now, he’ll earn $13,939 for each day he spends on the roster, with the Bulls having the option of waiving him on or before January 7 to open up that 15th spot and avoid paying his full-season salary.

Barring any last-minute moves, the Bulls’ roster looks ready for the regular season, with 14 players on guaranteed contracts, Horton-Tucker on his non-guaranteed deal, and three players occupying the two-way slots.

Horton-Tucker is the first player on an Exhibit 10 contract confirmed to be making his team’s standard opening night roster.

Magic Converting Mac McClung To Two-Way Contract

October 19th, 2024 at 12:50pm CST by Luke Adams

2:18pm: McClung has been officially converted to a two-way deal, per NBA.com’s transaction log.

12:50pm: The Magic are filling one of their open two-way slots by converting Mac McClung‘s Exhibit 10 contract to a two-way deal, reports Shams Charania of ESPN (Twitter link).

A 6’2″ guard, McClung is the reigning G League Most Valuable Player and a two-time dunk contest champion. In 41 Showcase Cup and regular season games for the Osceola Magic last season, he averaged 25.5 points, 6.5 assists, and 4.6 rebounds in 35.5 minutes per contest, with an excellent shooting line of .492/.380/.846.

Despite excelling in the G League and showing off impressive athleticism in the last two dunk contests, McClung has struggled to break through at the NBA level. Since making his regular season debut nearly three years ago, he has appeared in just four NBA games — one for the Bulls in December 2021, one for the Lakers in April 2022, and two for the Sixers in April 2023.

McClung will now have a chance to suit up for the Magic this fall as one of the team’s two-way players, alongside Trevelin Queen.

Orlando still has one more two-way slot available, with Exhibit 10 camp signees Jalen Slawson, Ethan Thompson, and Alex Morales all eligible to be converted by Monday. The team could also decide to look outside the organization to fill that final two-way opening.

Mavericks Sign, Waive Jamir Chaplin, Jarod Lucas

October 19th, 2024 at 12:04pm CST by Rory Maher

OCTOBER 19: Chaplin and Lucas have both been waived, the team announced. The Mavericks 18-man roster to begin the season appears set, barring last-minute moves.

OCTOBER 18: The Mavericks have added free agents Jamir Chaplin and Jarod Lucas to their offseason roster, the team announced (via Twitter).

While the terms of the contracts were not disclosed, both players almost certainly signed Exhibit 10 deals and will be waived in the next 24 hours or so. If that comes to fruition, each would be eligible for a bonus worth up to $77.5K if they spend at least 60 days with the Texas Legends, Dallas’ NBA G League affiliate.

Chaplin, who went undrafted in June, spent his first four college seasons at South Florida before finishing his career at Little Rock. The 6’5″ guard averaged 14.7 PPG, 6.4 RPG and 1.3 SPG on .584/.361/.714 shooting in 34 games with the Trojans last season (33.9 MPG), earning a spot on the All-Ohio Valley Conference First Team.

Lucas, a 6’3″ guard, also went undrafted in June. He played three seasons at Oregon State before transferring to Nevada for his final two collegiate seasons. In 34 games with the Wolf Pack last season, Lucas averaged 17.8 PPG and 2.8 RPG on .421/.394/.899 shooting (32.6 MPG).

The Mavs now have 20 players under contract, one shy of the offseason limit. They’ll need to get down to 18 players ahead of the regular season.

Celtics Waiving Lonnie Walker IV

October 19th, 2024 at 11:51am CST by Tristan Tucker

The Celtics are waiving Lonnie Walker IV, according to ESPN’s Bobby Marks (Twitter link). Instead of keeping a full 15-man standard roster, Boston will head into the season with an open slot.

There was some speculation that Walker had done enough to make the team. He played well in the preseason, averaging 7.3 points in 16.4 minutes per game across four appearances. He’s also a young, six-year NBA veteran who holds career averages of 9.8 PPG and 2.3 RPG.

However, the Celtics are about $7MM over the second tax apron, so keeping Walker without trimming salary elsewhere would have resulted in about $8.8MM in extra projected tax penalties on top of his $2.1MM cap hit, meaning it would have cost about $11MM in total to keep him for the season.

As we mentioned earlier Saturday, the Celtics could have kept Walker on the 15-man roster and tried to reduce their tax payment later in the season with a trade or two. Instead, they’re opting to move on from the veteran guard, at least for now.

Walker is a candidate to be claimed off waivers by a team with an opening on its roster and a need for a high-scoring guard. The Celtics’ decision to waive Walker could be an indication that they don’t view that as a likely outcome — or they’re fine if it does happen. The Miami product didn’t agree to a deal until late August, sitting on the free agency market for about two months. So if guaranteed offers didn’t materialize then, they may not this time around either.

Walker was signed to an Exhibit 10 contract, so he’ll be eligible for a bonus worth $77.5K if he spends at least 60 days with Boston’s G League affiliate in Maine. Over the course of his career, Walker has been a proven commodity, so if he doesn’t get claimed or signed by another team at this time, the Celtics could revisit him later while keeping him in their system. Of course, even if he plays in Maine, Walker would be free to jump ship for another NBA team at any point this season.

Walker was not eligible for a two-way contract because he holds six years of NBA service.

By waiving Walker, the Celtics regular season roster looks set. They have 14 players on standard contracts and three on two-way deals.

Wizards, Bucks, Wolves Among Teams Exploring Roster-Trimming Trades

October 19th, 2024 at 11:28am CST by Tristan Tucker

With teams finalizing rosters ahead of Monday’s cut-down deadline, there could be a flurry of activity from teams exploring avenues to keep players on crowded rosters. According to Spotrac’s Keith Smith (Twitter link), several luxury tax teams are exploring moving off salary in an effort to keep other players they like.

While the Wizards aren’t a luxury tax team, they’re one of the many teams looking to make a move before Monday’s roster deadline. As NBA insider Jake Fischer reports (Threads link), the Wizards want to keep Jared Butler around on the 15-man roster. Butler is on a non-guaranteed contract, which made him a release candidate, but he played well in the preseason, averaging 6.8 points and 4.2 assists in 14.3 minutes per game across five outings.

That could lead the Wizards to explore trading or even cutting former No. 10 overall pick Johnny Davis, according to Fischer. The Wizards aren’t expected to exercise Davis’ fourth-year option and while he hit a clutch shot in Friday’s preseason finale, he struggled this preseason and through his two NBA years with shooting efficiency.

However, outright cutting Davis would mean not being able to use his $5.3MM salary to help facilitate trades later down the road. It’s possible Washington agrees to a bigger trade before the beginning of the regular season or considers waiving another player.

As we outlined earlier today, it’s important to note that while most teams will make cuts Saturday, that’s not really an issue for the Wizards. The main wave of cuts today are mostly going to be non-guaranteed contracts and since teams like the Wizards cutting guaranteed salary would be eating dead money anyway, they have until Monday’s deadline to come to a decision.

We have more trade rumors from around the league:

The Bucks have informed rival teams of early interest in trading third-year wing MarJon Beauchamp, according to Fischer (Threads link). Beauchamp was the 24th overall pick in 2022 by the Bucks, so their willingness to move him is noteworthy. Across his first two seasons in the league, he’s averaged 4.8 points and 2.1 rebounds. While Fischer suggests the Bucks could be looking to acquire a defensive-minded wing, Smith notes via Twitter that Milwaukee has also expressed interest in re-signing Thanasis Antetokounmpo — moving Beauchamp without taking a player back would open up that opportunity. Antetokounmpo is expected to miss the season while recovering from an Achilles tear, so signing him would be for his locker room presence, which Smith says is “prized” by both the franchise and his brother Giannis.
The Timberwolves have looked into trade options for recently acquired forward Keita Bates-Diop, according to Fischer (Threads link). Bates-Diop was rerouted a couple of times this summer, going from the Nets to the Knicks in the Mikal Bridges trade before landing with Minnesota in the Karl-Anthony Towns blockbuster. Bates-Diop is set to make just under $2.7MM this season and with the Wolves already about $17MM over the second tax apron, they’d prefer to move off his salary rather than eating it. Moving Bates-Diop is also about finding a way to keep PJ Dozier on the roster. The Wolves have 15 players on guaranteed salaries, plus Dozier on a partially guaranteed deal. Dozier is a favorite of president of basketball operations Tim Connelly.
Celtics guard Lonnie Walker IV‘s Exhibit 10 status is noteworthy, as he was seen as a bargain signing by the reigning champions at the time, but they have tight finances as a team well over the second apron. Still, Walker’s impressive preseason puts Boston in an interesting position, and Fischer indicates the Celtics have considered keeping him around. If they retained Walker through the season and made no other changes, Boston would have to make approximately $9MM in projected tax payments on top of Walker’s minimum-salary contract due to their position against the second apron. However, that amount isn’t calculated until the end of the season, so the Celtics may explore trading Jaden Springer as late as February’s trade deadline so they can keep Walker, Fischer reports.
[UPDATE: The Celtics are waiving Walker.]
The Pistons may be the primary contact for any team looking to make salary- or roster-trimming trades, Smith notes (Twitter link). The Pistons have an open roster spot and $10.2MM in cap space, putting them in position to accommodate players like Davis, Beauchamp, Bates-Diop or Springer if their teams were willing to attach draft capital.