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NBA D-League Affiliate Players For 2016/17

November 3rd, 2016 at 12:35pm CST by Luke Adams

Throughout the offseason, and in the weeks leading up to the start of the regular season, NBA teams are permitted to carry 20 players, but that total must be cut down to 15 in advance of opening night. However, up to four players waived by teams before the season can be designated as affiliate players and assigned to their D-League squads.

The players have some say in the decision — if they’d prefer to sign with a team overseas, or if they get an opportunity with another NBA club, they’re free to turn down their team’s request to have them play in the D-League. Most NBA and international teams have fairly set rosters by late October though, so having the opportunity to continue playing in the same system is appealing to many of those preseason cuts. Especially since they’ll maintain NBA free agency while they play in the D-League.

There are a few other rules related to D-League affiliate players. A player whose returning rights are held by a D-League team can’t be an affiliate player for another club, which is why undrafted free agents from the current year are commonly signed and assigned. Additionally, an affiliate player must have signed with his team during the current league year, which explains why we often see players signed and quickly waived in the days leading up to the regular season. And, of course, not every NBA team has a D-League affiliate, so clubs like the Hawks, Nuggets, or Clippers have no place to send affiliate players.

With all that in mind, here are the NBA D-League affiliate players to start the 2016/17 season:

Austin Spurs (San Antonio Spurs)

Canton Charge (Cleveland Cavaliers)

Delaware 87ers (Philadelphia 76ers)

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Pacers Waive Alex Poythress, Nick Zeisloft

October 17th, 2016 at 3:29pm CST by Luke Adams

The Pacers have waived camp invitees Alex Poythress and Nick Zeisloft, the team announced today in a press release. The pair of cuts reduces Indiana’s roster to 17 players, including 16 with fully guaranteed salaries.

Poythress and Zeisloft both signed minimum-salary contracts with the Pacers this summer, and both players received very modest guarantees — Poythress got $35K, while Zeisloft received $25K. The duo played very sparingly in Indiana’s preseason games, and are likely ticketed for the Fort Wayne Mad Ants, the Pacers’ D-League squad, as Scott Agness of VigilantSports.com tweets.

With Poythress and Zeisloft no longer in the mix, the Pacers will have to make two more roster cuts to get their roster down to the regular-season limit of 15 players. Julyan Stone, whose salary is only guaranteed for $50K, is the most likely candidate to be waived. Indiana will also have to cut a player with a guaranteed salary, and Jeremy Evans may be that player — he was acquired in a salary-dump deal with the Mavericks and hasn’t played at all for the Pacers during the preseason.

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Contract Details: Brand, Rockets, Thunder, Pacers

September 30th, 2016 at 8:48am CST by Luke Adams

With training camps underway, teams have now officially finalized the contract agreements with various camp invitees that had been reported over the past several weeks, meaning we have plenty of contract details to round up. As usual, Eric Pincus of Basketball Insiders has been busy reporting those details, updating his salary pages for teams around the NBA.

Because we have so many updates to pass along from Pincus, we’ll divide them up by players who received some guaranteed money from their teams, and those who didn’t. All of the links below point to the Basketball Insiders team salary pages, so be sure to click through for additional information.

Here are the latest salary updates from across the league, via Pincus:

Players receiving guaranteed money:

These players aren’t necessarily assured of regular-season roster spots. In fact, many of them likely received guarantees as an incentive to accept a D-League assignment. Still, for some players, larger guarantees should increase their odds of making 15-man rosters.

  • Thomas Walkup (Bulls): One year, minimum salary. $69.5K guaranteed.
  • Keith Benson (Heat): Two years, minimum salary. $75K guaranteed.
  • Henry Sims (Jazz): One year, minimum salary. $75K guaranteed.
  • Alex Poythress (Pacers): One year, minimum salary. $35,381 guaranteed.
  • Kevin Seraphin (Pacers): Two years, $3.681MM. First year ($1.8MM) guaranteed.
  • Julyan Stone (Pacers): One year, minimum salary. $50K guaranteed.
  • Gary Payton II (Rockets): Two years, minimum salary. First year ($543,471) guaranteed.
  • Isaiah Taylor (Rockets): Two years, minimum salary. $50K guaranteed.
  • Kyle Wiltjer (Rockets): Two years, minimum salary. $275K guaranteed.
  • Cat Barber (Sixers): One year, minimum salary. $50K guaranteed.
  • Elton Brand (Sixers): One year, minimum salary. $1MM guaranteed.
  • Derrick Jones (Suns): Three years, minimum salary. $42.5K guaranteed.
  • Alex Caruso (Thunder): One year, minimum salary. $50K guaranteed.
  • Kaleb Tarczewski (Thunder): One year, minimum salary. $75K guaranteed.
  • Chris Wright (Thunder): One year, minimum salary. $100K guaranteed.

Players receiving no guaranteed money:

The following players all signed one-year, minimum salary contracts with no guaranteed money. Many of these deals are “summer contracts,” which won’t count against a team’s cap unless the player earns a spot on the 15-man roster.

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Pacers Notes: George, Hairston, Turner

September 26th, 2016 at 11:15am CST by Luke Adams

Paul George officially became eligible for a new contract extension on Sunday, and as I explained last week, there are multiple pros and cons to consider as he decides whether or not to re-up with the Pacers this year. For his part though, George doesn’t seem to have those pros and cons weighing too heavily on his mind. Speaking to reporters today, George said he’s focused on the season and is “not even thinking about” his contract situation, per Nate Taylor of The Indianapolis Star (Twitter link).

Presumably, George’s agent is thinking about a little more than his client is, so it’s not out of the question that the Pacers and their All-Star forward could reach an agreement prior to the regular season. As we wait to see whether a new deal for George is in the cards, let’s round up a few more Pacers notes…

  • According to Pacers head coach Nate McMillan, the team is heading into camp with 19 players, and three of those players will eventually end up with the D-League’s Fort Wayne Mad Ants (Twitter link via Taylor). Barring any surprises, Julyan Stone, Nick Zeisloft, and Alex Poythress, whose deals aren’t fully guaranteed, are the best bets to end up at Fort Wayne.
  • Free agent swingman P.J. Hairston, who recently worked out for Brooklyn, also had a workout with the Pacers, according to Alex Kennedy of Basketball Insiders (Twitter link).
  • Myles Turner is currently in the NBA’s concussion protocol, McMillan said today (Twitter link via Taylor). However, Turner’s regular-season availability isn’t expected to be impacted. McMillan expects the young big man to join George, Jeff Teague, Monta Ellis, and Thaddeus Young in the starting lineup to open the year (Twitter link via Taylor).
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Central Notes: Caldwell-Pope, Poythress, Bucks

August 31st, 2016 at 7:01pm CST by Arthur Hill

The Pistons and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope may make a mutual decision to wait until next summer for contract talks, writes Keith Langlois of NBA.com. Detroit took a similar approach to Andre Drummond last year, but that was to preserve cap space. In the case of Caldwell-Pope, it would be to monitor his development and decide if he’s the long-term solution at shooting guard or if Stanley Johnson is a viable alternative. From Caldwell-Pope’s perspective, he and his representatives may be encouraged by the huge salaries thrown around in free agency this year and decide that he’s likely to top whatever offer the Pistons could make now. The deadline for extensions is October 31st. Langlois notes that regardless of when it happens, coach/executive Stan Van Gundy is a huge proponent of Caldwell-Pope and wants to see him signed long term.

There’s more from the Central Division:

  • Alex Poythress isn’t discouraged about his NBA dream despite being bypassed on draft night, writes Scott Agness of Vigilant Sports. The 6’7″ forward, who spent four years at Kentucky, recently signed a partially guaranteed deal with the Pacers and is believed to be ticketed for the D-League. Poythress has been working out in Indianapolis for the past few weeks. “Things are going good,” he said. “Going through the draft process, [the Pacers] really liked me. I’m just trying to make best of this opportunity.”
  • Even though the Bucks finished 33-49 last season, Matthew Dellavedova believes he is joining a playoff team, relays ESPN’s Jake Michaels. Fresh off a championship season with the Cavaliers, the Australian point guard accepted a four-year, $38MM offer from Milwaukee and was sent there as part of a sign-and-trade deal. Dellavedova said he is looking forward to having a legendary point guard as his new coach. “To be able to learn from one of the greatest point guards of all time in Jason Kidd is going to be cool, and something I’m really excited about,” he said. “I cannot wait.”
  • The Bucks should locate their new D-League franchise in Sheboygan, argues Adam Johnson of D-League Digest. Sheboygan is one of the finalists for the new team, along with Oshkosh and Racine. The Bucks’ new affiliate will start play in the 2017/18 season.
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Pacers Sign Julyan Stone, Alex Poythress

August 29th, 2016 at 11:10am CST by Luke Adams

The Pacers have announced a pair of signings, revealing today in press release that they’ve added veteran guard Julyan Stone to their roster. The club also confirmed and formalized the previously-reported signing of undrafted free agent Alex Poythress.

Stone, 27, entered the NBA in 2012, and ultimately appeared in 47 total games over the course of three seasons for the Nuggets and Raptors. He didn’t see much action in those games, averaging just 1.3 PPG and 1.1 APG in 7.0 minutes per contest. Stone was in camp with the Thunder last fall, but was cut and signed with Gaziantep in Turkey — he averaged 4.4 PPG, 4.7 RPG, and 1.8 APG in 25 games for the Turkish club.

As for Poythress, he missed the bulk of the 2014/15 campaign due to a torn left ACL. Returning to Kentucky as a senior, the forward made 31 appearances and averaged 10.2 points, 6.0 rebounds and 0.6 steals in 23.6 minutes per contest. Poythress’ shooting line for the Wildcats was .601/.304/.706.

[RELATED: Indiana Pacers’ depth chart at RosterResource.com]

The Pacers already have 15 guaranteed contracts on their roster, so Stone and Poythress aren’t great bets to survive preseason cuts unless Indiana has injury problems heading into the season. Poythress could end up playing for the Pacers’ D-League affiliate in Fort Wayne, while Stone would be a candidate to head back overseas.

Eddie Scarito contributed to this post.

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Pacers To Sign Alex Poythress

August 12th, 2016 at 3:50pm CST by Eddie Scarito

The Pacers have agreed to a deal with undrafted free agent Alex Poythress, Adrian Wojnarowski of The Vertical reports. The exact length and terms of the arrangement are unknown, but the scribe does note that the pact includes a partial guarantee. The 22-year-old will likely be ticketed to spend the 2016/17 campaign in the NBA D-League with Indiana’s affiliate in Fort Wayne, Wojnarowski notes.

Poythress had missed the bulk of the 2014/15 campaign due to a torn left ACL. Returning to Kentucky as a senior, Poythress made 31 appearances and averaged 10.2 points, 6.0 rebounds and 0.6 steals in 23.6 minutes per contest. His shooting line for the Wildcats was .601/.304/.706.

The forward appeared in five contests for the Magic’s summer league squad in Orlando, averaging 5.0 points, 1.4 rebounds and 0.8 steals in 10.6 minutes per outing.

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Pacific Notes: Green, Barnes, Kings, McCaw

June 20th, 2016 at 10:30pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Warriors All-Star power forward Draymond Green has accepted an invitation to play for USA Basketball at the Rio Olympics, a source told Marc J. Spears of The Undefeated. Green will be making his USA Basketball national team debut, though he played on last year’s USA Showcase team. Golden State teammate Stephen Curry has already declined an invitation in order to rest his gimpy right knee.

In other news around the Pacific Division:

  • The team that gives Warriors small forward Harrison Barnes a big offer sheet in restricted free agency will be taking a major risk, Andrew Tobolowsky of UpsideMotor.com opines. Lance Stephenson posted better stats with the Pacers than Barnes did this season prior to hitting the free agent market and never lived up his supposed potential after signing with the Hornets in 2014, Tobolowsky points out. Potential suitors may overvalue Barnes in the belief he’ll thrive with a bigger role than he’s had with Golden State, Tobolowsky adds.
  • The Kings could revamp their roster for a second straight summer with their primary focus being the point guard spot, according to James Ham of CSNBayArea.com. The Kings could use a power forward who can stretch the floor, a long-term solution at small forward in place of Rudy Gay and an upgrade at shooting guard but solving the point guard dilemma is the biggest concern, Ham continues. Rajon Rondo is headed to unrestricted free agency and Darren Collison is engulfed by legal issues but the draft and free agency are unlikely to produce a solution, Ham believes. Kris Dunn and Jamal Murray could be off the board by the time the Kings’ No. 8 overall selection comes up, and it would take a tremendous sales job to land top free agent point man Mike Conley, Ham adds.
  • The Kings were the only team to bring in Sacramento native Michael Bryson for a second draft workout, Kings radio reporter Sean Cunningham tweets. The 6’4” shooting guard averaged 18.2 points during his senior season at UC Santa Barbara.
  • UNLV shooting guard Patrick McCaw was among the players who worked out for the Clippers on Monday, according to the team’s website. McCaw is a potential late first-round pick, ranked No. 28 by ESPN Insider Chad Ford and No. 29 by Draft Express’ Jonathan Givony. Other notables included a trio of forwards, Kentucky’s Alex Poythress, Iowa’s Jarrod Uthoff and Maryland’s Jake Layman.
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Pacific Notes: Walton, Rondo, Cousins, Clippers

June 19th, 2016 at 7:25pm CST by Arthur Hill

Luke Walton has managed to stay focused on his duties as lead assistant with the Warriors, even as his head coaching job with the Lakers awaits, writes Marc Berman of The New York Post. Walton had his first interview on April 18th — more than two months ago — when he had a phone conversation with Knicks president Phil Jackson. “Luke is a real loyal guy,” said fellow Golden State assistant Ron Adams. “And he’s real loyal to the Golden State Warriors — has been since he was named coach of the Lakers. It might be hard for people to understand that. I would say he’s atypical in that regard. A lot of people, if a team would’ve allowed what the Lakers allowed, I think [the person] would’ve been more fixated on that team than this team. That’s not Luke. That’s not what Luke has been.” Walton will coach his final game with the Warriors tonight, then will likely be introduced as the Lakers’ new coach later this week.

There’s more from the Pacific Division:

  • Kings point guard Rajon Rondo pronounced himself fully healthy as he prepares for his second straight year of free agency, according to Gary Washburn of The Boston Globe. Rondo signed a one-year deal with Sacramento last summer, which gave him a first-hand view of the turmoil in the organization, especially between DeMarcus Cousins and former coach George Karl. “Obviously it didn’t go the way we wanted it as an exit [missing the playoffs], but I was able to bounce back, I believe,” Rondo said. “I am very healthy. I’ve been working extremely hard on my body and my game. I’m 30 years old and I feel great.” Rondo’s numbers had declined since tearing his right anterior cruciate ligament in 2013, but he bounced back to average 11.9 points and 11.7 assists per game this season.
  • Cousins’ younger brother, Jaleel, worked out for the Kings on Saturday, according to James Jones of The Sacramento Bee. The 6-11, 250-pound center was a senior this season at South Florida.
  • Dee Brown and Pat Sullivan have emerged as assistant coaching candidates with the Clippers, tweets Marc Stein of ESPN.com. Kevin Eastman, a longtime assistant to Doc Rivers, announced his retirement earlier this week.
  • The Clippers will hold two workouts Monday, tweets Rowan Kavner of Clippers.com. The morning session will feature Alabama’s Retin Obasohan, Miami’s Sheldon McClellan, Kentucky’s Alex Poythress, Maryland’s Jake Layman, Villanova’s Daniel Ochefu and UNLV’s Stephen Zimmerman. Working out in the afternoon will be Tulsa’s James Woodard, West Virginia’s Jaysean Page, UNLV’s Patrick McCaw, Louisiana’s Alex Hamilton, SMU’s Markus Kennedy and Iowa’s Jared Uthoff.
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Central Notes: Noah, Walters, Draft

June 14th, 2016 at 5:14pm CST by Eddie Scarito

Bulls center and unrestricted free agent Joakim Noah is looking forward to the free agent process and being recruited by interested suitors, as he told Orazio Cauchi of Sportando. When asked how involved he is in the free agent process, Noah said, “I’m very focused on free agency. I spent the last 10 years in Chicago, there were good moments and bad moments but now I have an incredible opportunity for a player, being recruited by a team, I definitely want to live that kind of experience. It’s new for me but it’s something very intriguing for a player. I’ll consider every offer on the table, no doubt.”

The big man was also asked if the culture of the team changed under Bulls head coach Fred Hoiberg this season, with Noah telling Cauchi, “I don’t think so. I mean, Hoiberg is a good coach, the locker room is something that the players need to make work. It’s on us, not on the coach.”

Here’s more from the Central Division:

  • The Pacers have their sixth pre-draft workout scheduled for Wednesday, the team announced. Attendees will include Kellen Dunham (Butler), Jordan Loyd (Indianapolis), Taurean Prince (Baylor), Alex Poythress (Kentucky), Diamond Stone (Maryland), and Goodluck Okonoboh (UNLV), according to the release.
  • The Pistons are expected to name Rex Walters as head coach of their D-League affiliate, the Grand Rapids Drive, Adam Johnson of D-League Digest relays. Walters previously served as the head coach at the University of San Francisco from 2008-16, compiling a record of 126-125 during his tenure. Otis Smith, the current coach of the Drive, is expected to be promoted to a front office position with the Pistons, Johnson tweets.
  • The Bucks held a group workout this morning for Max Landis (IPFW), Carrington Love (UWGB), Tyrone Wallace (California), Kyle Collinsworth (BYU), Derrick Jones (UNLV) and Kyle Wiltjer (Gonzaga), the team announced. Milwaukee also held an individual workout this afternoon for Marquette big man Henry Ellenson, the team relayed in the same announcement.
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