NBA Rumors - HoopsRumors.com

Buyout Rumors: Tucker, Lowry, Dinwiddie, Harris

February 8th, 2024 at 5:40pm CST by Tristan Tucker

Clippers forward P.J. Tucker is not requesting a buyout and is expected to remain with the team through the remainder of the season, according to TNT and Bleacher Report’s Chris Haynes (Twitter link). This comes after trade attempts involving Tucker fell short, Haynes adds. This was the expected outcome if Tucker wasn’t moved at the deadline.

It’s no secret Tucker wasn’t thrilled with his role after landing with the Clippers in the James Harden trade at the beginning of the season. After starting in all 78 of his appearances with the Sixers after signing there in 2022, Tucker has only played in just 12 games with Los Angeles. averaging 14.4 minutes per game.

“I want to be somewhere where I’m needed, wanted and can do it all. I don’t know what’s going to happen but I have my fingers crossed and I’m hoping to go somewhere else whether I get bought out and choose where I go or where I can play,” Tucker said before the deadline to Andscape’s Marc J. Spears (Twitter link).

Tucker was once seen as a “strong” candidate to be moved before the deadline, but the fact that he has an $11.5MM player option for next season appears to have been an issue for opposing teams. The most likely step forward for both sides is Tucker accepting his player option in the offseason and then the two sides working together to find a deal that suits him when teams have a clearer idea of their 2024/25 plans.

For what it’s worth, Tucker seemingly expressed frustration at the situation in an Instagram story following the deadline, with the story reading “All this s— is a f—ing joke” (Instagram link).

We have more rumors regarding the buyout market:

Hornets point guard Kyle Lowry is the Sixers‘ top priority on the market if he and Charlotte come to terms on a buyout agreement, according to NBA insider Marc Stein (Twitter link). The Sixers have been making moves all day to clear salary (Danuel House) and playing time (Jaden Springer, Patrick Beverley) in the guard room, so Lowry is a sensible addition.
The Lakers, Mavericks, Pelicans and Sixers are expected to have interest in Spencer Dinwiddie after he was waived by the Raptors earlier Thursday, The Athletic’s Shams Charania said on Stadium’s live trade deadline show (hat tip to RealGM). Dinwiddie is ineligible to sign with the Celtics, Nuggets, Warriors, Clippers, Heat, Bucks and Suns, whose team salaries are above the tax apron, so that list of four interested teams includes some of the top playoff contenders available for Dinwiddie to sign with. He averaged 12.6 points and 6.0 assists in 48 games (all starts) with the Nets this season.
The Lakers are indeed among the frontrunners to sign Dinwiddie, confirms ESPN’s Dave McMenamin (Twitter link). Los Angeles is a good position to land the 6’5″ guard, because the Lakers are able to offer around $1.5MM prorated because they didn’t give Gabe Vincent the full mid-level exception in the offseason, McMenamin adds (Twitter link). Other teams are only able to offer around $1MM.
The Bulls stood pat at the trade deadline and are likely to make moves to supplement a potential playoff push, according to NBC Sports Chicago’s K.C. Johnson. Former Pistons sharpshooter Joe Harris could be a target for Chicago on the buyout market after he was waived by Detroit. Johnson adds the Bulls tried to acquire Bojan Bogdanovic from Detroit.

Hornets To Cut James Bouknight

February 8th, 2024 at 4:55pm CST by Luke Adams

The Hornets have decided to part ways with former lottery pick James Bouknight, who will be placed on waivers, according to Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link).

Charlotte has to make multiple cuts today, since the team agreed to trade Gordon Hayward for three players and P.J. Washington for two.

The 11th overall pick in the 2021 draft, Bouknight never developed into a reliable rotation player for the Hornets, averaging 4.8 points and 1.7 rebounds in 11.4 minutes per game across 79 career appearances. His shooting line during that time was just .363/.335/.762.

Bouknight also had some legal troubles after making his NBA debut and has battled injuries. The 23-year-old underwent surgery to repair a meniscus injury in his left knee in October, which delayed his debut this season.

The Hornets declined their fourth-year option for 2024/25 on Bouknight, so he’s on an expiring contract and will count against Charlotte’s cap for $4.57MM in ’23/24. The team won’t be on the hook for any money for him beyond this season.

Bouknight will be eligible to sign with any team after clearing waivers.

Blazers Sign Ashton Hagans On 10-Day Deal

February 8th, 2024 at 4:38pm CST by Dana Gauruder

4:38pm: The Blazers have officially signed Hagans to a 10-day deal, the team announced in a press release. It will cover Portland’s next four games, then expire during the All-Star break.

3:13pm: The Trail Blazers are signing Ashton Hagans on a 10-day contract, ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski tweets.

Hagans has been playing for the Blazers’ Remix NBA G League affiliate in Portland. He averaged 15.3 points, 4.8 rebounds, 9.0 assists and 1.8 steals in 15 starts with Remix.

Hagans was waived early in training camp by Portland, then signed with the G League affiliate. Hagans had a two-way contract with Minnesota in 2020/21 but only appeared in two NBA contests. He spent the last two seasons with the Raptors’ and Hornets’ G League teams.

Portland had a roster opening to add the 24-year-old guard and Hagans could see some action with Shaedon Sharpe out indefinitely due to a core muscle injury.

Pistons Waive Killian Hayes

February 8th, 2024 at 4:31pm CST by Luke Adams

4:31pm: The Pistons have officially waived Hayes, the team confirmed today (Twitter link).

12:57pm: Former lottery pick Killian Hayes will be released by the Pistons, according to a report from James L. Edwards III and Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link).

The seventh overall pick in the 2020 draft, Hayes entered the NBA with a reputation for being a solid defender and passer whose offensive game was a work in progress. That’s essentially still the case, as his shooting percentages have increased only marginally over the course of his four NBA seasons.

Hayes averaged 6.9 points, 4.9 assists, and 2.8 rebounds in 24.0 minutes per game across 42 appearances (31 starts) this season, with a shooting line of .413/.297/.660. Those field goal and three-point percentages actually represent career bests.

The Pistons reportedly explored the trade market for Hayes prior to Thursday’s deadline – talking to the Grizzlies, among other teams – but apparently didn’t find a deal to their liking. The team agreed to a series of trades that will bring in seven players while sending out three, so the 22-year-old guard will be a victim of the roster crunch, joining Joe Harris among those waived.

Cutting Hayes and Harris will put the Pistons in position to complete at least one and potentially two of their three reported trade agreements. They’ll need to waive two more players to finalize all three deals, but those last two cuts could come from their group of newly acquired players.

Hayes will be eligible to sign with any NBA team if and when he clears waivers, since his salary is well shy of this season’s non-taxpayer mid-level exception.

Pistons Waive Joe Harris

February 8th, 2024 at 4:30pm CST by Luke Adams

4:30pm: As expected, the Pistons have officially waived Harris, per an announcement from the team (Twitter link).

12:17pm: The Pistons will waive veteran forward Joe Harris, according to Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link).

Acquired from Brooklyn along with a couple second-round picks in a salary-dump trade last summer, Harris didn’t play much in Detroit this season, averaging just 2.4 points per game in 16 appearances (10.6 MPG), with a .359/.333/.500 shooting line. The 32-year-old was one of the NBA’s best three-point shooters for several years with the Nets, but ankle issues have slowed him down in recent seasons.

The Pistons have reached three separate trade agreements in the last 24 hours that will see them acquire seven total players while sending out just three, so some cuts were necessary.

If Detroit plans to waive Danuel House, Shake Milton, and Troy Brown after acquiring them from Philadelphia and Minnesota, respectively, Harris is the only player from the current roster who would need to be released — the Pistons could complete those trades one at a time and waive players as they go, creating enough roster space to finalize their two-for-four deal with New York.

However, if the Pistons intend to keep one or more players from that House/Milton/Brown group or if they want to complete the Knicks trade first, at least one more cut will be necessary.

Once Harris clears waivers, he won’t be eligible to sign the Celtics, Nuggets, Warriors, Clippers, Heat, Bucks, or Suns due to the new rule prohibiting teams whose salaries are above the first tax apron from signing a player whose pre-waiver salary exceeded the mid-level exception ($12.4MM). Harris’ salary for this season is $19.9MM.

Nets Waiving Thaddeus Young

February 8th, 2024 at 4:25pm CST by Tristan Tucker

The Nets aren’t keeping Thaddeus Young after acquiring him from Toronto in the swap that brought Dennis Schröder to Brooklyn. According to HoopsHype’s Michael Scotto (Twitter link), Brooklyn is waiving Young.

The move will clear the roster space necessary to complete Brooklyn’s Royce O’Neale trade. In that move, the Nets are bringing in Keita Bates-Diop and Jordan Goodwin, so they needed to make a cut to avoid exceeding the 15-man roster limit.

Young is on an expiring $8MM contract, meaning if he clears waivers, he’s among the appealing veteran options who are eligible to sign with teams over the tax apron since his contract fall short of the mid-level exception. He won’t be eligible to sign with the Raptors, but any other team could be an option.

Young, 35, averaged 5.0 points, 3.3 rebounds and 2.0 assists this season across 23 games (six starts) with the Raptors this season. Toronto originally acquired Young in a 2022 deadline deal, later re-signing him. He averaged 5.0 PPG in parts of three seasons with the Raptors.

Knicks’ Anunoby Out At Least Three Weeks After Elbow Surgery

February 8th, 2024 at 4:17pm CST by Rory Maher

Knicks forward OG Anunoby underwent right elbow surgery to remove a loose bone fragment and is out at least three weeks, sources tell ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (Twitter link). The team confirmed the news (via Twitter), stating that Anunoby will be reevaluated in three weeks.

According to Woj, the procedure is considered relatively minor. Anunoby tried to see if rest would heal the injury, but it was determined surgery was ultimately the best route to take to be fully healed ahead of the playoffs (Twitter link).

Anunoby last played on January 27 and has missed the past five games with the injured elbow. Based on the three-week timeline, he will miss a minimum of eight more contests, including Thursday’s game vs. Dallas.

The good news is that the All-Star break is next week, and the Knicks don’t play from February 15-21.

Ian Begley of SNY.tv reported earlier today that New York was motivated to add wing depth in part due to concern over Anunoby’s injury. Prior to the deadline, the Knicks traded for Bojan Bogdanovic and Alec Burks.

Anunoby, 26, was acquired from Toronto in a previous in-season trade. The defensive stalwart had an excellent start to his Knicks career, averaging 15.6 PPG, 4.6 RPG, 1.8 SPG and 1.1 BPG on .516/.391/.842 shooting. He’s set to hit unrestricted free agency in the offseason.

With Anunoby and Julius Randle (dislocated right shoulder) sidelined, Josh Hart, Precious Achiuwa, Bogdanovic and Burks will likely receive the majority of the minutes at the two forward spots, though Burks also plays guard.

No Deadline Deals Involving Lakers, Cavs, Hawks, Bulls, Others

February 8th, 2024 at 4:14pm CST by Rory Maher

While we certainly saw a flurry of activity prior to today’s trade deadline, seven teams didn’t make any moves at all over the past week, observes Keith Smith of Spotrac (Twitter link). That group features the Lakers, Cavaliers, Hawks, Bulls, Magic, Heat, and Pelicans.

Miami and New Orleans made previous trades this season, but the other five teams did not.

According to Dave McMenamin of ESPN and Brad Turner of The Los Angeles Times (Twitter links), the Lakers were actively involved in trade talks, but decided any deal would have been a “marginal upgrade” with a prohibitive cost. L.A. plans to be “aggressive” in the buyout market, however, and will have up to three first-round picks to trade this summer, versus the one it had available during the season.

As Dan Woike of The Los Angeles Times writes, Dejounte Murray and Alex Caruso were among the players the Lakers were interested in, but they decided the Hawks’ and Bulls’ asking prices were too steep.

The Cavs — the league’s hottest team — “believe strongly” in the roster they’ve constructed, and they also have a pair of standard roster spots open to peruse the buyout market, per Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com (Twitter link).

The Hawks were reportedly aggressive in proposing trade concepts, yet decided to keep the roster they have, despite their mediocre 22-29 record. Murray was the player most prominently featured in rumors from Atlanta’s roster.

The 24-27 Bulls also decided to stand pat, with center Andre Drummond among the players they retained, confirms Chris Haynes of Bleacher Report (via Twitter).

According to Jason Beede of The Orlando Sentinel, the Magic’s front office “did its due diligence” in evaluating the market, but it likes the current roster and wanted to maintain continuity ahead of a potential postseason push. Orlando is currently 27-24.

The Raptors made a handful of trades this season, including two on Thursday, yet one player who many expected to be on the move remains on the roster. Toronto decided to hang onto Bruce Brown past the deadline, tweets ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski.

The rebuilding Wizards were viewed as sellers ahead of the deadline, and they did trade Daniel Gafford to Dallas. But they also decided to keep veteran guards Tyus Jones and Delon Wright, two players featured in plenty of trade rumors, per Josh Robbins of The Athletic (Twitter link).

Pistons Trade Bojan Bogdanovic, Alec Burks To Knicks

February 8th, 2024 at 3:09pm CST by Rory Maher

3:09pm: The trade is official, per announcements from the Pistons and Knicks.

The two second-rounders headed to Detroit in the deal will be 2028 and 2029 picks, tweets Fred Katz of The Athletic. Those picks will be New York’s own, according to Omari Sankofa II of The Detroit Free Press.

The Pistons didn’t officially announce any cuts in their press release, but previous reporting indicated they’re waiving Killian Hayes, Joe Harris, and the newly acquired Danuel House. Arcidiacono will likely also be released after being acquired from New York, per James L. Edwards III of The Athletic (Twitter link).

10:27am: The Pistons and Knicks are finalizing a trade that will send Bojan Bogdanovic and Alec Burks to New York in exchange for Quentin Grimes, Evan Fournier, Malachi Flynn, Ryan Arcidiacono, and two second-round picks, according to Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN (Twitter link).

Bogdanovic (41.5%) and Burks (40.1%) are two strong three-point shooters who will help bolster New York’s rotation, particularly when it comes to scoring and spacing the floor. Burks, 32, is an impending unrestricted free agent, while Bogdanovic’s $19MM salary for 2024/25 is only partially guaranteed for $2MM.

However, as Fred Katz of The Athletic tweets, the Knicks are expected to fully guarantee Bogdanovic’s contract for next season, possibly to flip him to a new team in the summer or during the ’24/25 season. Burks, meanwhile, was favorite of head coach Tom Thibodeau during his first stint in New York from 2020-22, Katz observes (via Twitter).

Once the deal is official, the Knicks will have two open roster spots and will be about $2.5MM below the luxury tax threshold, tweets ESPN’s Bobby Marks. They’ll have plenty of flexibility to sign players on the buyout market, Marks observes, since they’re well below the first tax apron.

Flynn cannot be aggregated with other salaries in a trade, but the outgoing contracts of Grimes, Fournier and Arcidiacono are just enough to cover the money owed to Bogdanovic and Burks. That means the Knicks will create a traded player exception worth $3,873,025, which is Flynn’s cap hit.

According to Ian Begley of SNY.TV (Twitter link), the Knicks were motivated to add depth on the wing in part due to concern over OG Anunoby‘s right elbow injury. As Begley notes, New York recently changed Anunoby’s injury status from elbow inflammation to bone spur irritation. Anunoby has missed the past five games with the injury and will miss his sixth straight contest tonight against Dallas.

As for the Pistons, they’ve been extremely active leading up to the 2:00pm CT deadline, and they will need to cut two players to complete this trade.

James Edwards III of The Athletic hears rival teams were unwilling to meet Detroit’s asking price for Bogdanovic, and the Pistons felt Grimes was more valuable than any picks being offered (Twitter link). According to Edwards, the Knicks “have been unwilling to trade firsts to any team,” with New York likely saving its draft arsenal to chase a star player in the future.

That reporting suggests the trade, from Detroit’s perspective, could be viewed as Bogdanovic for Grimes, with Burks netting two second-round picks.

Grimes, 23, is in the third season of his rookie scale contract, and was reportedly open to a change of scenery after having his role reduced in 2023/24. He showed plenty of 3-and-D upside last season, however, averaging 11.3 points, 3.2 rebounds and 2.1 assists while frequently defending opposing teams’ top perimeter scorers. He’ll make $4.3MM next season and will be eligible for a rookie scale extension in the 2024 offseason.

While Grimes was a regular contributor for New York, Fournier, Flynn and Arcidiacono hardly played at all for the Knicks. Fournier has been openly seeking a trade for well over a year — his wish was finally granted, but it’s unclear if he’ll have a role for the Pistons. They’ll hold a $19MM team option on his contract for next season, which could be useful for salary-matching purposes in the future, if they decide to retain him.

Raptors Trade Dennis Schröder, Thaddeus Young To Nets

February 8th, 2024 at 2:56pm CST by Rory Maher

2:56pm: The trade is official, according to announcements from both the Raptors and Nets. As we outlined in separate stories, Brooklyn waived Harry Giles to complete the deal, while Toronto immediately released Dinwiddie.

11:47am: The Raptors and Nets have agreed to a trade, according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski, who reports (Twitter links) that guard Dennis Schröder and forward Thaddeus Young will be heading to Brooklyn, while guard Spencer Dinwiddie is being sent to Toronto.

A free agent addition in the offseason, Schröder is making $12.4MM this season and has a $13MM cap hit for 2024/25. Young ($8MM) and Dinwiddie ($20.36MM) are both on expiring contracts. Dinwiddie will earn a $1.5MM bonus if he appears in two more games this season, tweets ESPN’s Bobby Marks.

According to Jake Fischer of Yahoo Sports (Twitter link), while Dinwiddie didn’t formally request a trade out of Brooklyn, both he and the Nets are happy he’s headed out of town.

The Nets can acquire Schröder using their $18.1MM traded player exception, which would have expired tomorrow, observes cap expert Yossi Gozlan (Twitter link). They’ll create a new TPE worth $20.36MM — Dinwiddie’s outgoing cap hit — and it will be good until February 8, 2025.

It’s essentially a salary dump for the Raptors, since moving off Schröder’s salary for next season will give Toronto more financial flexibility to re-sign its own impending free agents. Guard Immanuel Quickley (restricted) and newly-acquired big man Kelly Olynyk (unrestricted) fall into that category.

Schröder has had a solid season, averaging 13.7 PPG, 6.1 APG and 2.7 RPG on .442/.350/.852 shooting in 51 games (30.6 MPG), including 33 starts. But the 30-year-old was clearly was no longer in Toronto’s long-term plans, particularly after acquiring Quickley from New York in a previous in-season trade.

As for Young, the longtime veteran forward was valued for his locker room presence and production when called upon. However, he’s 35 years old and doesn’t fit the Raptors’ timeline. This will be Young’s second stint with the Nets, having previously played for Brooklyn from 2015-16.

Dinwiddie, 30, has averaged 12.6 PPG, 6.0 APG and 3.0 RPG in 48 games (30.7 MPG) this season, but has struggled with efficiency (.391/.320/.781 shooting line, .530 true shooting), and isn’t a great defender. It’s unclear how much of a role he’ll have with the Raptors, but it’s worth noting that Dinwiddie has performed well as a secondary and tertiary creator in the past.

Schröder will be a major upgrade for the Nets on the defensive end, and they won’t have to worry about losing him for nothing in free agency, since he’ll be under contract until 2025.