Beno Udrih Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Heat Rumors: Stokes, Udrih, Wade

January 16th, 2016 at 5:31pm CST by Arthur Hill

The Heat have recalled Jarnell Stokes from their D-League affiliate in Sioux Falls, the team announced today. The center/forward has appeared in 14 games over four trips to the D-League, averaging 20.4 points and 9.6 rebounds. He has scored at least 20 points nine times and has recorded seven double-doubles. Stokes, who was part of the November 10th trade that also brought Beno Udrih to Miami and sent Mario Chalmers and James Ennis to Memphis, could be a player to watch, writes Ethan J. Skolnick of The Miami Herald. He hasn’t appeared in a game yet for the Heat, but injuries to Josh McRoberts and Chris Andersen could provide an opportunity. However, an illness will force Stokes to miss Sunday’s game at Oklahoma City, tweets Ira Winderman of The Sun Sentinel. Stokes is expected to join the Heat when they return home Tuesday.

There’s more news out of South Beach:

Many Heat fans are complaining about the loss of Chalmers, even though Udrih has arguably put up better numbers since the trade, writes Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald. The 33-year-old point guard is averaging more assists per 36 minutes, fewer turnovers and has a slightly better shooting percentage than Chalmers since they switched teams. Udrih takes a philosophical approach toward a journeyman NBA existence that has seen him land with seven teams in 11 seasons. “The contracts I have had have been easy to trade,” he said. “Sometimes I was thrown into a trade; sometimes I was traded because the other team wanted me.”
Dwyane Wade, who will be a free agent again this summer, ranks among the most productive 34-year-olds in league history, Jackson writes in a separate story. Wade is averaging 18.4 points through 38 games this season, third best among active players who have reached age 34 and the 26th-highest mark of all time. Wade inked a one-year, $20MM deal last summer.

Heat Notes: Whiteside, Udrih, Deng

December 20th, 2015 at 1:52pm CST by Will Joseph

With trade talk swirling around Hassan Whiteside, Moke Hamilton of Basketball Insiders details the center’s rise and how he has been able to play alongside fellow big man Chris Bosh in a detailed feature. Whiteside is set to hit free agency after the season, but as Jason Lieser of the Palm Beach Post recently told Hoops Rumors’ Chuck Myron, Whiteside’s value is very much disproportionate to his $981K contract, and that makes him extremely difficult to trade.

Here’s more out of Miami:

With Tyler Johnson battling a shoulder injury, Beno Udrih has received more playing time and a result has made himself fit in with the Heat, Ira Winderman of the Sun Sentinel details. Udrih has seen more time on the court in the past week than he had previously since being acquired by Miami in a November trade, Winderman adds. Such has been the case during the point guard’s career because Udrih has been traded four times in 12 seasons, as Winderman notes.
Luol Deng, who opted into the final season of his contract with Miami over the summer, has a tendency to go unnoticed despite his exceptional defensive skills, Jason Lieser of the Palm Beach Post writes. It will be interesting to see how much teams value Deng’s defense, in terms of dollars, when he hits free agency, especially with him averaging a modest 10.2 points per game this season (which would be a career-low).
There is a distinct possibility that Goran Dragic‘s success in December compared to his struggles before this month has to do with the point guard playing with more freedom and less of a structured approach, Ethan Skolnick of the Miami Herald writes. Dragic, whom the Heat re-signed to a five-year, $90MM deal in July, took a while to mesh with Dwyane Wade, but it seems like things have been figured out.

Eastern Notes: Rose, Pistons, Heat

November 15th, 2015 at 8:30pm CST by Will Joseph

Bulls point guard Derrick Rose may be dealing with blurred vision for a few more months, Nick Friedell of ESPN.com relays. Rose has struggled shooting so far, averaging only 12.6 points per game, as Friedell points out. Rose suffered a left orbital fracture during the Bulls’ first training camp practice on September 29th.

“[The doctors] said it could be as long as three months,” Bulls coach Fred Hoiberg said. “But [the vision] has continued to improve, and that’s obviously a positive.”

The news, however, came as a surprise to Rose.

“This is my first time hearing about it,” Rose told reporters, including K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune (Twitter link). “But you kind of have that hope in your mind that it gets well a lot quicker. But for this to be seven or eight [weeks] out and still the same way, I can’t do nothing but live with it. Get the most out of every day, keep putting my deposits in and keep working on my game until my eye gets better.”

Here’s more from the Eastern Conference:

While former Knicks shooting guard J.R. Smith is still upset with comments team president Phil Jackson made during the summer about Smith’s personal life, Marc Berman of the New York Post opines that Smith should be grateful that he was traded to the Cavs. After not fitting into the Knicks’ plans, and despite his current shooting woes, Berman writes that the Cavs still see Smith as a capable scoring threat in a reserve role.
Pistons point guard Brandon Jennings, who is recovering from a torn left Achilles suffered in January, participated in four-on-four and three-on-three games with teammates and is still on track to return around Christmas, David Mayo of MLive.com reports. “As I told him today, what’s not back right now is his quickness,” Pistons coach Stan Van Gundy said. “It’s going to take some time. Being out and being able to do stuff is one thing, and being able to do it at a speed that you can really do is another.”
Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said Beno Udrih should have no problem fitting in with Miami, Shandel Richardson of the Sun Sentinel writes. “He’s got veteran savviness about him,” Spoelstra said. “You saw it the other night. He hasn’t been in a practice. He hasn’t been in a shootaround but he’s played for enough different systems that he can just play basketball. You don’t notice things that you might have because he’s a veteran player. You can throw him in any situation. Guys like that are very valuable with veteran teams.” The Heat acquired Udrih from the Grizzlies in exchange for Mario Chalmers. Spoelstra did not identify a clear-cut role for Udrih, Richardson adds.

Fallout From/Reaction To Mario Chalmers Trade

November 11th, 2015 at 8:59am CST by Chuck Myron

The Grizzlies almost traded Jarnell Stokes to the Knicks to open a roster spot before the start of the regular season, according to The Commercial Appeal. Instead, Memphis included him in Tuesday’s trade with Miami, the earliest November swap since 2008, which sent Stokes and Beno Udrih to the Heat for Mario Chalmers and James Ennis. People within the Grizzlies organization believe that the shooting and playmaking ability Chalmers has gives the team an opportunity to see how he functions sharing the court with Mike Conley in two point guard sets that would have Conley playing off the ball, the Commercial Appeal report says.

“We just felt that this was a chance to get a guy in Mario Chalmers who is an upgrade as a 3-point shooter, particularly in the playoffs. And you get a little younger,” Grizzlies GM Chris Wallace said. “He’s been in the top 10 in steals percentage. He’s not afraid to step up and take the big shot. It’s an opportunity we had to take. It’s also an opportunity to take a look at a young, athletic guy in James Ennis.”

See more on the trade:

Chris Herrington of The Commercial Appeal doesn’t see Chalmers as a shooting upgrade over Udrih, but Chalmers is a better defender a theoretically a better fit with the Grizzlies bench, Herrington opines.
The Heat were reportedly seeking the involvement of a third team before the trade became official, and the Sixers were in play to fill that role, but the sides couldn’t work out a way to make it work, USA Today’s Jeff Zillgitt tweets. A Heat spokesperson denied that a search for a third team held up the trade call with the league, and team president Pat Riley said he wasn’t looking to channel Udrih and Stokes to another team, as Manny Navarro of the Miami Herald notes (Twitter link). Coach Erik Spoelstra answered affirmatively when asked if Udrih and Stokes will be staying with the team, Navarro tweets. “We’re not actively pursuing anything else other than what we have today,” Riley said, according to Ira Winderman of the Sun Sentinel.
The move wasn’t primarily about finances, Riley insisted, adding that he doesn’t think the Heat would ever trade a player they thought could help them win a title merely to save money, as Navarro chronicles.

Grizzlies Acquire Mario Chalmers

November 10th, 2015 at 5:10pm CST by Chuck Myron

Courtesy of USA Today Sports Images

5:10pm: The trade is official, the Heat and Grizzlies have announced, though no mention was made of a second-rounder changing hands in the deal. “This is a tough day for myself and the organization in trading Mario Chalmers and James Ennis,” said Heat president Pat Riley. “Mario was a part of two championships with us and Ennis is a solid young player, but it is part of the business and it was a move necessary to make because of our crowded backcourt. We feel that it is in the best interest of Mario and we want him to be successful and be a part of a good team. We wish them nothing but the best. We would also like to welcome Beno Udrih, an accomplished veteran and someone that has playoff and championship experience, and the addition of Jarnell Stokes, a young player that we would like to develop.”

4:04pm: The Heat don’t see either Udrih or Stokes as long-term pieces, but they’d still execute the two-team trade with the Grizzlies if they can’t find a third team, Stein writes. The ESPN scribe also invokes Andersen’s name, suggesting that he remains available.

2:57pm: The Heat are looking for a third team willing to take Udrih, Stokes or both, and that’s keeping the deal with the Grizzlies from becoming official, reports Marc Stein of ESPN.com (Twitter links). Miami has the option of simply pulling off the two-teamer with Memphis, but the Heat would prefer to include a third team, Stein adds.

12:27pm: The Grizzlies and Heat are have agreed to a deal that will send Mario Chalmers and James Ennis to Memphis for Beno Udrih, Jarnell Stokes and a second-round pick, reports Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo Sports (Twitter links). Wojnarowski’s full story indicates Miami is receiving a second-round pick from Memphis, too, but it makes no mention of, who was in Wojnarowski’s Twitter report, which didn’t include the second-rounder. In any case, the teams are preparing for a trade call with the league office today, Wojnarowski notes. Marc Stein of ESPN.com first reported a week ago that the sides had talked about a potential trade involving Chalmers, and a few days later Stein wrote about growing concern within the Grizzlies organization amid a slow start. Memphis, at 3-4, next plays Wednesday at home against the Warriors.

The move is a cost-cutter for the Heat, who give up the $4.3MM salary of Chalmers in exchange for Udrih and his pay of $2.17MM, which is only a little more than half of what Chalmers makes. Stokes and Ennis are have identical one-year veteran’s minimum salaries, though Stokes has a full guarantee while Ennis has a partial guarantee of only about $254K, since he and the Heat reworked the terms of his contract before the start of the regular season. Memphis will likely use part of its $967,500 trade exception left over from the offseason Jon Leuer deal to absorb the $845,059 that Stokes makes and offset the unbalanced exchange of salaries, notes Eric Pincus of Basketball Insiders (on Twitter).

Miami is set to remove about $6MM from its potential luxury tax bill with the trade, according to Wojnarowski, though the tax isn’t calculated until the final day of the regular season. The Heat would still be in line to pay repeat-offender tax penalties in the wake of today’s deal, and many of the same offseason rumors that raised the idea of a Chalmers trade also made mention of Chris Andersen, who could be the next to go, as Ira Winderman of the Sun Sentinel speculates (Twitter link).

Memphis hasn’t been pleased with the play of its bench and hopes that Chalmers will be an upgrade behind starting point guard Mike Conley, league sources told Wojnarowski. Ronald Tillery of The Commercial Appeal had heard from some people, ostensibly around the Grizzlies, who quietly expressed disappointment with what they perceived to be Udrih’s lack of conditioning, athleticism and defense, and the team wasn’t ready to turn the backup job over to third-stringer Russ Smith, Tillery also wrote.

A desire to avoid the tax plus confidence in Tyler Johnson and Gerald Green helped prompt the Heat to make the move, according to Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald (Twitter link), though Green remains away from the team following his hospitalization last week. Green is out of the hospital and is reportedly expected to return to the team soon, however. In any case, the acquisition of Udrih gives the team an experienced backup at the point as it attempts to regain its status among the Eastern Conference elite, even with the concerns about Udrih from Memphis. Of course, no guarantee exists that the team won’t flip Udrih to further its efforts to dodge the tax, tweets Ethan Skolnick of the Miami Herald.

Chalmers first became a trade candidate in June, when Ramona Shelburne and Brian Windhorst of ESPN.com reported that the Heat were shopping him and Andersen to try to clear room for a new deal with Dwyane Wade. Team president Pat Riley denied that, ESPN’s Zach Lowe heard in July that Chalmers and Andersen could be had “for nothing” in return, which speaks to the idea that the Heat wanted their salaries off the books. Miami had apparently backed away, at least temporarily, from the idea of a Chalmers trade by late August, but at that point they wouldn’t rule out a deal as soon as October, as Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald reported.

The Grizzlies have to renounce cap holds for unsigned free agents from years past who didn’t return to the NBA, notes former Nets executive Bobby Marks (All Twitter links). The cap holds they’re renouncing are the ones for Gilbert Arenas, Leon Powe, Stephen Hunter and Marcus D. Williams, according to Chris Herrington of The Commercial Appeal (Twitter link). That’s because those cap holds technically put the Grizzlies over the tax line, which would mean they could only take in 125% plus $100K of what they sent out — not enough to accommodate this deal, as Marks explains. Renouncing the cap holds would up that limit to 150% plus $100K, which allows the trade to take place, Marks notes.

Which team do you think is getting the better end of this deal? Leave a comment to let us know.

Heat, Grizzlies Talk Mario Chalmers Trade

November 3rd, 2015 at 9:58pm CST by Chuck Myron

9:58pm: Chalmers said that he was unaware of any trade rumors regarding himself until he arrived at the arena for tonight’s game against the Hawks, Ira Winderman of The Sun Sentinel writes. “It definitely surprised me,” Chalmers said of the rumors. “But I also know it’s a business. I didn’t know anything until I got here today.”

4:15pm: Some, presumably around the Grizzlies, have quietly expressed disappointment with what they see as Udrih’s lack of conditioning, athleticism and defense, according to Ronald Tillery of The Commercial Appeal. The team’s general belief is that Smith isn’t yet ready to assume Udrih’s place in the rotation, Tillery adds.

2:44pm: Sources who spoke with Stein raised the possibility that Udrih could be included in a would-be deal, as Stein writes in a full story. The Grizzlies would have to give up another player to take in Chalmers, however, since Udrih only makes slighly more than $2.17MM this season, as Stein alludes to. The Grizzlies could only absorb 150% plus $100K of the salary they gave up.

2:00pm: The Jazz attempted to trade for Chalmers over the offseason, but the Heat didn’t take them up on it, a source recently told Jody Genessy of the Deseret News (Twitter link).

1:06pm: The Heat and Grizzlies have talked about a potential trade that wound send Mario Chalmers to Memphis, reports Marc Stein of ESPN.com, who cautions that no deal is imminent (Twitter links). The Heat are in line to pay repeat-offender tax penalties if they finish the season above the $84.74MM tax line, and rumors have persistently surrounded Chalmers, who makes $4.3MM on an expiring contract and ceded his starting job to Goran Dragic last season. Miami had seemingly tabled the idea of a Chalmers trade as of late August but weren’t ruling out a deal as soon as October, Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald reported this summer.

Heat officials offered Chalmers in trades earlier this offseason with the tax in mind, one GM told Jackson (Twitter link), which jibes with reports from throughout the summer. Ramona Shelburne and Brian Windhorst of ESPN.com first reported in June that the Heat were shopping Chalmers, as well as Chris Andersen, in an effort to clear the way for a new deal with Dwyane Wade, though team president Pat Riley denied it. Still, ESPN colleague Zach Lowe heard soon after that Chalmers and Andersen were available “for nothing” in return, an indication that the team was simply looking to shed salary.

The Grizzlies, fresh off a 50-point loss Monday to the Warriors, have Mike Conley firmly entrenched at the point, though he, like Chalmers, is on an expiring contract. Beno Udrih is Conley’s backup, with Russ Smith the third point guard. Nick Calathes departed in free agency this past summer. They’re roughly $5MM shy of the tax line, so they could take in Chalmers’ salary, but they don’t have a trade exception large enough that would allow them to absorb Chalmers without sending salary in return. Their only contract without a fully guaranteed salary for this season belongs to JaMychal Green, and it carries a partial guarantee of $150K.

The sides could seek a third team to facilitate a swap that would allow the Heat not to have to take salary in return for Chalmers, though it’s unclear if that idea has come up in the talks between Miami and Memphis. Shedding the $4.3MM owed to Chalmers would lower Miami’s tax bill, but it wouldn’t eliminate it. The Heat have about $91.9MM in guaranteed salary as it counts toward the tax, so the Heat would still need to eliminate about $3MM to duck under the tax threshold. Andersen is on an expiring contract worth $5MM this year, but his name isn’t involved in the latest report.

Chalmers is averaging 6.7 points, 3.0 assists and 1.7 turnovers in 18.0 minutes per game in three regular season contests so far, figures that would extrapolate to one of the worst lines of his NBA career if the numbers held for the entire season. Still, he has a wealth of playoff experience, unlike Tyler Johnson and Josh Richardson, who are behind him on the depth chart, and offloading Chalmers without bringing in a comparable player would weaken the Heat as they seek to return to prominence this season, observes Ethan Skolnick of the Miami Herald.

The interest from Memphis would appear to indicate the Grizzlies want to upgrade their point guard depth, though Udrih has seemingly as well if not better than Chalmers has so far this season, averaging 6.5 points, 4.0 assists and 1.3 turnovers in 15.8 minutes per game. Chalmers could help their outside shooting, which Memphis has long lacked, but he shot just 29.4% from 3-point range last season, well beneath his 36.1% career accuracy from behind the arc.

Do you think the Grizzlies make sense as a trade destination for Chalmers? Leave a comment to share your thoughts.

Southwest Notes: Villanueva, Udrih, Conley

July 6th, 2015 at 8:59am CST by Chuck Myron

It’s a good bet that Charlie Villanueva will end up back with the Mavericks on a deal for the minimum salary, tweets Tim MacMahon of ESPNDallas.com. MacMahon wrote last month that the Mavs would welcome him back if he were to play for that amount, and Villanueva has spoken of his desire to play for coach Rick Carlisle again. There’s plenty more from the Southwest Division, where all five teams made the playoffs this past season even before the summer’s two most talked–about free agents agreed to go there:

Beno Udrih‘s full salary of more than $2.17MM is guaranteed since he remained on the Grizzlies roster through Sunday. It had been partially guaranteed for only $923K, as the schedule of salary guarantee dates shows.
Mike Conley triggered a $200K bonus because the Grizzlies went to the second round of the playoffs this past season, so his cap figure for this coming season goes up by that amount, bringing it to $9,588,426, reports Eric Pincus of Basketball Insiders (Twitter link).
Rockets draft-and-stash point guard Sergio Llull has signed an extension with Real Madrid of Spain that runs until 2021, the team announced (translation via Sportando’s Emiliano Carchia). Llull rejected reported overtures from Houston to join the NBA for this coming season, though his new deal does include a lower NBA buyout. Carlos Sanchez Blas of Marca.com first reported the deal.
The Mavs will soon announce the hiring of Nick Van Exel as the team’s D-League coach, tweets Marc Stein of ESPN.com.
Pelicans free agent Jimmer Fredette is mulling an offer from Italy’s Olimpia Milano, sources tell Paola De Persis of Sportando. Fredette would nonetheless prefer to stay in the NBA, De Persis notes.

Southwest Notes: Carter, Udrih, Fredette, Conley

October 20th, 2014 at 2:30pm CST by Chuck Myron

Vince Carter still thinks fondly of the Mavs, and he had expected he’d re-sign with the team this summer, as he told reporters today, including Eddie Sefko of the Dallas Morning News. That was until he signed with the Grizzlies, who gave him a take-it-or-leave-it offer while Dallas was still waiting to see if the Rockets would match the offer sheet that Chandler Parsons signed, according to Tim MacMahon of ESPNDallas.com.

“They offered that young man a lot of money,” Carter said of Parsons. “I kind of understood how it goes from there. It’s a business. I get it, so there’s no hard feelings or anything like that. I understand how it goes. It was a great situation, a great offer from Memphis. It was kind of like, ‘If I pass on this now, what would be left here [in Dallas] for me?’ Obviously not much. Had to move on.”

There’s more on Carter’s new team amid the latest from around the Southwest Division:

Beno Udrih felt maligned while with the Knicks, where he was former coach Mike Woodson‘s whipping boy, but the Grizzlies rejuvenated him after claiming him off waivers last February, as Ronald Tillery of The Commercial Appeal details in a subscription-only piece. Udrih re-signed with Memphis this summer. “I always believed in myself,” Udrih said. “When my number is called upon I’ll do my best. When your number is not called you can’t compete. I was in a situation [in New York] where people didn’t really care about what I could do. So all I could do is hope to get in the right situation. In Memphis, I’m definitely in the right situation.”
Jimmer Fredette‘s defensive shortcomings have limited his effectiveness in the NBA, but Pelicans coach Monty Williams believes that the former 10th overall pick can mirror the defensive competency of shooting specialists Marco Belinelli and Anthony Morrow. Jimmy Smith of The Times-Picayune has the details. Fredette signed for the minimum with New Orleans this summer, like Morrow did last year before parlaying his time with the Pelicans into a three-year, $10.032MM deal with the Thunder.
Mike Conley admits he had some uneasiness this summer amid the turmoil surrounding the Grizzlies front office and coach Dave Joerger, but Conley’s excited to proceed with Joerger and most of his teammates back for another year in Memphis, as he tells Jeff Caplan of NBA.com.

Grizzlies Re-Sign Beno Udrih

July 15th, 2014 at 1:32pm CST by Chuck Myron

JULY 15TH: The deal is official, the team announced via press release.

JULY 10TH: 3:31pm: The sides have reached agreement, tweets Ronald Tillery of The Commercial Appeal. The second year is partially guaranteed, Tillery adds.

3:07pm: Point guard Beno Udrih has given his commitment to stay in Memphis, and a deal is set to be complete today, tweets Marc Stein of ESPN.com. It’ll be a two-year contract for the biannual exception, Stein adds (Twitter link). The full value of the biannual is $2.077MM for 2014/15 and a total of $4,247,465 over two years.

The 32-year-old Marc Cornstein client will end up with a raise from the minimum-salary contract he signed last summer with the Knicks. New York waived him along with Metta World Peace shortly after the trade deadline, but Memphis claimed him off waivers, a move that paid dividends when the NBA suspended backup point guard Nick Calathes for the playoffs. Udrih, who played only 55 regular season minutes for the Grizzlies, stepped into the rotation for the postseason and averaged 7.9 points and 1.7 assists in 16.4 minutes per game.

The move seems to cast doubt on the future of Calathes, who’s on a non-guaranteed deal that becomes fully guaranteed if Memphis doesn’t waive him by the end of this coming Tuesday. Calathes has a pair of lucrative overseas offers waiting for him if the Grizzlies cut him loose. Still, Grizzlies coach Dave Joerger has signaled that the team intends to keep Calathes.

Western Notes: Love, Wolves, Grizzlies

June 28th, 2014 at 10:31pm CST by Cray Allred

Kevin Love, Klay Thompson, and David Lee will attend Team USA training camp starting on July 27, and Darren Wolfson of 1500 ESPN Twin Cities tweets that he thinks the Wolves and Warriors view that date as an unofficial deadline to complete a trade involving those players. Here’s more from out West:

Flip Saunders defended the Wolves‘ choice to sell two second round draft picks to Jerry Zgoda of The Star Tribune, saying the moves don’t signify a lack of commitment to winning at all costs. “If you don’t have a player who you think will be in your program, I’m not going to draft somebody just to say we drafted him,” said Saunders. “When I look at our salary cap, we’re up in the high [$60 millions] and, I think, last year were the highest salary-cap team that didn’t make the playoffs. I look at the commitment that [owner Glen Taylor] has made last year and moving forward, we’re committed to winning. Those picks had nothing to do with trying to get money.” Saunders’ assertion is incorrect: the Knicks, Celtics, and Lakers all had higher team salaries than Minnesota and did not make the playoffs.
Unrestricted free agents James Johnson and Beno Udrih appear unlikely to re-sign with the Grizzlies, writes Ronald Tillery of Commercial Appeal.
However, the Grizzlies are poised to make a strong pitch for free agent Mike Miller to re-sign with the team, the Commercial Appeal scribe reports.
Tillery adds that Memphis is likely to retain Kosta Koufos‘s partially-guaranteed $3MM contract for 2014/15.