Philadelphia 76ers Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Sixers Sign Shake Milton To Four-Year Deal

July 2nd, 2019 at 5:18pm CST by ChrisCrouse

JULY 7: Milton’s new four-year contract with the Sixers is now official, the team announced today in a press release.

“Shake is the perfect example of what hard work and strong player development can produce,” GM Elton Brand said in a statement. “We are proud of the strides he made in the G League last season, where his game was able to blossom while gaining confidence as a pro. He has earned the right to be where he is today. He is an exciting young talent and I look forward to his continued development with the 76ers and the depth that he provides our roster.”

JULY 2: Shake Milton will sign a new contract with the Sixers. The team has agreed to a four-year deal with the shooting guard, according to ESPN’s Jordan Schultz (Twitter link).

Milton played last season on a two-way contract, splitting his time between the Sixers and their G League affiliate, the Delaware Blue Coats. He saw limited playing time in 20 games for Philadelphia, but put up big numbers in 27 NBAGL contests, averaging 24.9 PPG, 4.9 APG, and 4.9 RPG with a .484/.369/.810 shooting line.

Because Milton’s two-way deal featured a second year, this transaction will technically be treated as a conversion from his two-way contract to an NBA contract, similar to Monte Morris‘ deal with the Nuggets last offseason.

The Sixers will have to use cap space to ink Milton to a four-year contract. There will also be no December 15 trade restriction for Milton, as two-way contract conversions don’t carry the same rules as most offseason NBA signings.

Luke Adams contributed to this post.

Sixers Notes: Horford, Cap Room, Scott, Butler

July 2nd, 2019 at 2:51pm CST by Luke Adams

Al Horford‘s four-year, $109MM deal with the Sixers was originally reported to have a $97MM value with $12MM in additional bonuses tied to potential championships. However, according to Derek Bodner of The Athletic, that’s not quite right.

In a series of tweets, Bodner explains that the non-guaranteed $12MM in Horford’s contract all comes in the fourth and final year of the deal, which is partially guaranteed. There are team-related benchmarks, such as winning a championship, that could trigger that money to become guaranteed, per Bodner.

That means that Horford’s starting salary will be higher than originally anticipated — a deal with unlikely bonuses in every season might have started in the neighborhood of $22.5MM, but the actual contract is expected to start much higher than that.

Eric Pincus of Basketball Insiders (Twitter links) hears that Horford’s pact will have a first-year salary around $28MM, which means it won’t have increasing cap hits every year. That could help the Sixers in future seasons if they have to deal with tax penalties, which seems likely, given their lucrative long-term commitments to Horford, Joel Embiid, and Tobias Harris, along with Ben Simmons‘ probable max deal.

Here’s more on the 76ers:

Based on the structure of Horford’s deal, the Sixers will have a little over $2MM in cap room left, rather than the $7-8MM figures that have been reported, tweets Bodner. Based on my math, a $28MM starting salary for Horford would leave about $2.27MM in space.
As a result of their cap situation, the 76ers will use the room exception to complete Mike Scott‘s two-year, $9.8MM contract, Bodner clarifies (via Twitter). The team could technically have completed Scott’s deal using his Non-Bird rights, but will need to renounce his cap hold to create room for Horford and Josh Richardson.
There are conflicting reports on just how aggressively the Sixers attempted to re-sign Jimmy Butler in free agency. As relayed by RealGM, a report from Tom Haberstroh of NBC Sports says Philadelphia offered Butler a full five-year max, while ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski and Shams Charania of The Athletic have suggested otherwise. Haberstroh’s report acknowledges that the 76ers may have put their alleged offer on the table with the understanding that Butler wouldn’t accept, since he had already decided to move on.

Sixers Offer Max Extension To Ben Simmons

July 2nd, 2019 at 12:05pm CST by Arthur Hill

Ben Simmons has received a maximum extension offer from the Sixers that would pay him $170MM over five years, tweets ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski. Simmons’ agent, Rich Paul, will work through the details with the team in hopes of reaching an agreement, Woj adds.

The first selection in the 2016 draft, Simmons has established himself as one of the best young players in the NBA. After sitting out his first season because of injury, he captured Rookie of the Year honors in 2018 and was even better this year. One of the league’s most versatile players, Simmons posted a 16.9/8.8/7.7 line and helped the Sixers reach the second round of the playoffs.

Philadelphia wants Simmons, who will turn 23 later this month, to be part of the cornerstone for the franchise well into the future. After an offseason of change that will see Jimmy Butler and J.J. Redick depart and Al Horford and Josh Richardson replace them, the Sixers want to make sure that Simmons and center Joel Embiid are under contract for as long as possible.

Norvel Pelle Signs Two-Way Contract With Sixers

July 2nd, 2019 at 8:35am CST by Dana Gauruder

JULY 2: The Sixers have issued a press release formally announcing Pelle’s two-way contract.

JULY 1: The Sixers have signed center Norvel Pelle to a two-way contract, his agent BJ Bass told Hoops Rumors’ own JD Shaw (Twitter link). We initially reported last week that Pelle would get a two-way deal with Philadelphia.

Pelle, who went undrafted in 2014, played for the G League Delaware Blue Coats last season. The 6’11” big man was named to the NBAGL All-Defensive Team. Pelle, 26, also made a number of stops overseas during his career.

Haywood Highsmith previously occupied one of the team’s two-way contracts before being waived last week. Highsmith will join Philadelphia’s Summer League team in Las Vegas.

Heat’s Jimmy Butler Sign-And-Trade Deal To Include Clippers, Blazers

July 1st, 2019 at 7:58pm CST by Luke Adams

7:58pm: The 2023 first-round pick being sent from the Heat to Clippers will be lottery-protected through 2025, then unprotected in 2026, tweets Anthony Chiang of The Miami Herald.

5:00pm: The Clippers will receive a protected 2023 first-round pick from the Heat in the deal, according to ESPN’s full report.

4:17pm: The sign-and-trade deal that will send Jimmy Butler to the Heat and Josh Richardson to the Sixers has been agreed upon, according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski and Zach Lowe (Twitter link).

As Wojnarowski explains (via Twitter), the trade between the Trail Blazers and Heat that will send Hassan Whiteside to Portland is becoming part of the transaction, with Maurice Harkless being re-routed to the Clippers to make it a four-team deal.

The Clippers will also receive a future first-round pick from Miami, according to Wojnarowski. Since the Heat have already traded their 2021 first-round selection to the Clippers and can’t give away consecutive future first-rounders, the next one that is trade-eligible would be the 2023 selection, tweets ESPN’s Bobby Marks.

As part of the four-team swap, the Sixers will send the draft rights to 2017 second-rounder Mathias Lessort to the Clippers, reports Keith Pompey of The Philadelphia Inquirer (Twitter link).

As of now then, this is what the deal would look like:

To Heat: Jimmy Butler (via sign-and-trade, getting a four-year, $141MM contract) and Meyers Leonard.
To Sixers: Josh Richardson
To Clippers: Maurice Harkless, a future Heat first-round pick, and the draft rights to Mathias Lessort.
To Trail Blazers: Hassan Whiteside

After acquiring Harkless, the Clippers will still have a maximum-salary slot available in the event that Kawhi Leonard decides to join them, tweets Marks. It would be a tight fit though, notes ESPN’s Zach Lowe, who tweets that the club might have to renounce a couple of small cap holds. Obviously, if Leonard decides to go elsewhere, that wouldn’t be necessary.

As for the Heat, they had let Goran Dragic‘s camp know that they’d likely to need to move the point guard in order to complete the Butler acquisition, but that shouldn’t be necessary after all, tweets Barry Jackson of The Miami Herald.

Still, as Marks points out (via Twitter), Miami will have to make an additional move to make sure it gets below the hard cap $138.9MM that applies to teams that acquire a player via sign-and-trade. Waiving and stretching Ryan Anderson‘s contract looks like the most logical path for the Heat.

We have more details in other stories on the Butler/Richardson aspect of this deal, as well as the Blazers’ Whiteside acquisition.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Free Agent Rumors: P. Gasol, Mavs, Wolves, Wright, More

July 1st, 2019 at 6:45pm CST by Luke Adams

Pau Gasol, whose contract with the Bucks is up, continues to recover from a procedure on his left foot, but he wants to continue his NBA career next season, he tells ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (Twitter link).

“My recovery from surgery has been smooth and I expect to be fully cleared for basketball activities in early August,” Gasol said. “I cannot wait to start training again.”

Gasol, who is an unrestricted free agent, is the only one of Milwaukee’s free agents who has yet to reach an agreement this week. There has been no indication that the Bucks are seeking a reunion.

Here are a few more free agency notes and rumors:

The Mavericks are among the teams that have expressed “strong interest” in Delon Wright, league sources tell Ian Begley of SNY.tv (Twitter link). Darren Wolfson of SKOR North tweets that the Timberwolves have also inquired on Wright. Wright is a restricted free agent, so the Grizzlies would have the chance to match an offer sheet.
The Timberwolves continue to kick the tires on free agent point guard T.J. McConnell, according to Wolfson, who tweets that the Sixers, Heat, Lakers, Grizzlies, Suns, Wizards, and Pacers have also checked out McConnell. Barry Jackson of The Miami Herald (via Twitter) notes that McConnell could be a target for Miami if the team trades Goran Dragic.
The Thunder are among the teams that have expressed some interest in veteran guard Jodie Meeks, a league source tells Brett Dawson of The Athletic (Twitter link). Dawson’s report came shortly before Oklahoma City agreed to terms with Alec Burks, so it’s not clear if the club remains interested in Meeks.
In a text message to Marc J. Spears of The Undefeated (Twitter link), Enes Kanter explains that he considered re-signing with the Trail Blazers, but didn’t feel as if they gave him enough time to make his decision. Kanter agreed to a two-year deal with Boston.

Eastern Notes: Heat, Horford, Knicks, Hornets

July 1st, 2019 at 2:59pm CST by Luke Adams

The Heat have engaged the Wizards in trade discussions, a source in contact with one of the teams tells Barry Jackson of The Miami Herald (Twitter link). Jackson notes that Miami “loves” Bradley Beal, but acknowledges that Washington has repeatedly indicated it has no plans to move its star shooting guard. Even if the Wizards were willing to discuss Beal, the Heat’s limited assets and difficult cap situation would make it “highly challenging” to put together a realistic deal, Jackson adds.

In other Heat trade news, the proposed deal with the Mavericks that appeared to be nearing completion on Sunday now looks dead. It won’t receive the same scrutiny or mockery that the in-season Dillon Brooks/MarShon Brooks mix-up involving the Wizards, Grizzlies, and Suns did, given everything else that’s going on this week, but the Mavs/Heat deal apparently also fell apart due to a miscommunication — Miami was certain that Goran Dragic was involved, while Dallas thought it was acquiring Kelly Olynyk and Derrick Jones, as Tim Cato of The Athletic details.

Here’s more from around the Eastern Conference:

A source tells Mark Murphy of The Boston Herald that Al Horford‘s decision to sign with the Sixers was partly about money, but also about the opportunity to play alongside a star center. Horford has “always been uncomfortable in a traditional center’s role,” Murphy writes.
Multiple league executives questioned why the Knicks used their cap room to sign a collection of non-stars rather than trying to take on bad contracts to add future assets, writes Mike Vorkunov of The Athletic.
Hornets owner Michael Jordan issued a statement today bidding farewell to Kemba Walker and thanking him for “eight incredible seasons with our franchise” (link via JD Shaw of Hoops Rumors). “He always represented the Hornets, the NBA, and the city of Charlotte with class – both on the court and in the community – and we are disappointed he is leaving,” Jordan said.

Sixers, Heat Search For New Team To Join Jimmy Butler Sign-And-Trade

July 1st, 2019 at 12:53am CST by ChrisCrouse

The Heat are still working on options to complete the Jimmy Butler sign-and-trade with the Sixers, according to Ramona Shelburne of ESPN.com (Twitter link). The two sides will search for a third team to take on additional salary from Miami, as Marc Stein of the New York Times tweets.

The Mavericks appeared to be the team willing to take on salary in order to help both teams complete the trade. It was reported that Goran Dragic would be sent to Dallas as part of a three-team deal, but the Mavs then felt that Dragic’s salary would eat into their cap space and hinder their other plans.

Kelly Olynyk and Derrick Jones were believed to be taking Dragic’s place in the trade, but then it was revealed that the Heat did not want to part with Jones in the deal. The Olynyk/Jones combo wouldn’t have been quite enough from a salary-matching perspective anyway.

The Heat will look for a trade partner for Dragic out of respect for the veteran. The team and his representatives are working to find a deal by July 6. per Shelburne. However, Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald (Twitter link) hears from Dragic’s camp that there is no joint effort yet to find him a suitor.

Dragic will make approximately $19.2MM next season. After a day of contract agreements, The Mavericks, Clippers, and Lakers are the only teams with the clear ability to absorb Dragic’s deal without sending salary back, though other teams could potentially create the necessary space.

It’s possible the Mavericks will change its stance again on Dragic once they have a clearer picture of who they can sign with their cap space, though that’s simply my speculation.

Assuming the two sides find a third team to make the sign-and-trade work, Josh Richardson will go to Philadelphia and Butler will begin the Miami chapter of his career on a four-year max deal.

Heat Finalizing Sign-And-Trade For Jimmy Butler

June 30th, 2019 at 8:07pm CST by Luke Adams

The Heat are finalizing a deal to acquire free agent swingman Jimmy Butler via a sign-and-trade deal with the Sixers, reports ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (via Twitter). Philadelphia is receiving Josh Richardson as part of the agreement, tweets Shams Charania of The Athletic.

Butler will sign a four-year, maximum-salary contract with the Heat, reports Charania (via Twitter). The new deal will pay him just shy of $141MM.

Meanwhile, the 76ers will receive no additional salary back from Miami in the sign-and-trade agreement, tweets Derek Bodner of The Athletic. Philadelphia will use its remaining cap room to sign Al Horford to a lucrative four-year deal.

While Richardson is apparently the only player going to Philadelphia, the Heat will need to trade away more players to make the deal work from their end. As ESPN’s Bobby Marks notes (via Twitter), acquiring a player via sign-and-trade will trigger a hard cap at the tax apron ($138.9MM) for Miami, and team salary would be way over that hard cap after swapping Richardson for Butler.

[UPDATE: Mavs to acquire Goran Dragic as part of Butler sign-and-trade]

Once the dust settles and the details are sorted out, the Heat will be adding the sort of impact player to their lineup that they’ve long sought. In fact, as Kevin O’Connor of The Ringer points out (via Twitter), Miami made a player for Butler last fall using Richardson as bait before the Timberwolves decided to send him to Philadelphia instead.

In 65 total games for the Wolves and Sixers last season, Butler averaged 18.7 PPG, 5.3 RPG, 4.0 APG, and 1.9 SPG with a .462/.347/.855 shooting line. While his numbers dipped a little in Philadelphia, Butler averaged at least 20 points per game in each of the previous four seasons before 2018/19, making the All-Star Game in all four of those years.

With Butler headed to Miami, it will be worth watching the Clippers and Rockets to see what their next moves are. Houston had long projected confidence that it could land Butler via a sign-and-trade of its own, while the Clips had reportedly hoped to pair Butler and Kawhi Leonard in Los Angeles.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Sixers Discussing Extension With Ben Simmons, Nuggets Begin Talks With Jamal Murray

June 30th, 2019 at 6:12pm CST by ChrisCrouse

The Sixers have begun contract extension talks with Ben Simmons and his agent Rich Paul, Adrian Wojnarowski of the ESPN.com reports (Twitter link). Sham Charania of The Athletic tweets that the Nuggets have starting discussing an extension with Jamal Murray and his agent, Mike George of One Legacy.

Players from the 2016 draft class who remain on their original rookie deal are eligible to sign extensions this summer. Simmons was the No. 1 overall pick from the draft and Murray was the No. 7 overall selection.

Assuming a projected salary cap of $117MM for the 2020/21 season, the total max value of an extension for either player is approximately $170MM over five seasons.

Each player had arguably had their most successful campaign in 2018/19. Both the Nuggets and Sixers made it to the Game 7 of the second round of the playoffs, each falling in heartbreaking fashion.

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