Christian Wood Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Sixers Make Four Signings Official

September 27th, 2015 at 2:14pm CST by Will Joseph

The Sixers have officially signed J.P. Tokoto, T.J. McConnell, Jordan McRae and Christian Wood, the team announced. All four moves were expected. The Sixers have 13 fully guaranteed deals.

Wood, McRae and Tokoto had already put pen to paper, according to reports, but the Sixers had yet to acknowledge the deals.

McRae, the No. 58 overall pick from the 2014 draft, is reportedly with the team on a non-guaranteed contract for the minimum salary that covers one season. McConnell’s deal includes a partial salary guarantee, according to reports. Wood reportedly has a deal for four years with a partial guarantee worth $50K. Tokoto has a one-year, non-guaranteed deal, it has been reported.

Rockets Sign Cummings, Livingston, Walker

September 21st, 2015 at 6:15pm CST by Chuck Myron

SEPTEMBER 21ST, 6:15pm: The Rockets formally announced the signings of Cummings, Livingston and Walker (Twitter link). Houston waived Yusuf on Friday without ever formally recognizing his signing.

SEPTEMBER 9TH, 6:59pm: Walker has officially been signed, Eric Pincus of Basketball Insiders reports (Twitter link).

SEPTEMBER 5TH, 8:10am: Cummings and Livingston have signed contracts with the Rockets, according to the RealGM.com transactions log.

12:09pm: The signing of Yusuf has taken place, and it’s a non-guaranteed contract worth the rookie minimum salary, reports Eric Pincus of Basketball Insiders (Twitter link). That means it wouldn’t count against the hard cap the Rockets would impose upon themselves if they signed No. 32 pick Montrezl Harrell for more than the minimum or for longer than two years, as I explained earlier.

11:24am: Feigen has corrected his earlier report, omitting Wood’s name from his revised list (Twitter links). Wood’s status with the Rockets thus appears unclear.

SEPTEMBER 3RD, 11:00am: The Rockets are close to signing Denzel Livingston, Will Cummings, Christian Wood, Remi Yusuf and Chris Walker for training camp, a source tells Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle (Twitter link). A deal with Wood, who went undrafted out of UNLV this year, has apparently been in place since June Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo Sports reported that the Rockets had agreed to sign him, but the other four names appear to be new additions for Houston.

Livingston, a 6’4″ combo guard who played his college ball at Incarnate Word, also went undrafted this year. He saw a smidgen of playing time with Houston’s summer league squad, averaging 2.0 points in 7.5 minutes per contest across three appearances. Cummings, a point guard from Temple, was another college senior passed up in the draft this June. He saw more extensive time for the Rockets in summer league, compiling 10.0 PPG in 22.8 MPG, though his 3.3 assists against 2.8 turnovers per game isn’t an encouraging ratio.

Walker, a once-heralded prospect whose stock plummeted at Florida, put up 4.2 PPG in 8.8 MPG for the summer Rockets. The forward/center declared for this year’s draft after his sophomore season with the Gators. Yusuf is a somewhat more surprising addition, since he didn’t play NBA summer league ball. The guard, a native of Nigeria, played at Texas A&M-Kingsville before going undrafted in 2006, and he spent time last season playing with SKP Banska Bystrica in Slovakia.

Sixers Sign Christian Wood

September 14th, 2015 at 5:47pm CST by Chuck Myron

SEPTEMBER 14TH, 5:47pm: Wood has put pen to paper with the Sixers, his agents at ASM reveal via Twitter (hat tip to Sportando’s Orazio Cauchi). The team has yet to make an announcement.

SEPTEMBER 8TH, 1:54pm: The partial guarantee is worth $50K, reports Eric Pincus of Basketball Insiders (Twitter link).

3:40pm: The deal is for four years, and it includes a partial guarantee, tweets Derek Bodner of Philadelphia magazine.

SEPTEMBER 7TH, 11:41am: The Sixers have reached agreement with undrafted UNLV power forward Christian Wood, agent Matt Ramker announced via Twitter. Wood was reportedly to have signed a partially guaranteed contract with the Rockets, but it appears that’s not happening. The 6’11” Wood, who turns 20 later this month, was one of the most heralded prospects not to be selected in June’s draft.

Jonathan Givony of DraftExpress ranked Wood the 25th-best prospect right before the draft this year, and Chad Ford of ESPN.com had him at No. 38, but subpar performances in predraft workouts caused his stock to fall, as Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo Sports wrote when it appeared Wood was on his way to the Rockets. He averaged a double-double as a sophomore this past season at UNLV, posting 15.7 points and 10.0 rebounds in 32.7 minutes per game. He put up 6.5 PPG and 4.0 RPG in 14.6 MPG across four appearances for the Rockets in summer league. It’s not surprising to see Philly jump into the mix for a player in whom Houston had interest, since Sixers GM Sam Hinkie used to work under Rockets GM Daryl Morey.

The move injects some doubt into another deal agreed upon shortly after the draft. Philadelphia reportedly already had contracts or verbal agreements with 20 players before striking the deal with Wood, and teams can’t bring more than 20 players to training camp. The Sixers have reportedly intended to sign T.J. McConnell to a partially guaranteed deal after he went undrafted out of Arizona. Jordan McRae and J.P. Tokoto have also appeared on their way to Sixers camp, but those arrangements appear in jeopardy for now. Still, the Sixers could clear room for all of them if they trade or release other players already on signed contracts.

The Rockets recently broke off a partially guaranteed deal with Chuck Hayes, so it wouldn’t be altogether surprising if the same circumstances surrounding that dissolution are at play with Wood. Houston would trigger a hard cap if it signs No. 32 overall pick Montrezl Harrell for more than the minimum or for more than two years, and the Rockets are perilously close to that hard cap amount, as I examined in depth earlier in the offseason. Clearing partially guaranteed agreements would help the Rockets secure Harrell on a long-term deal, maintain flexibility and reduce their luxury tax bill.

Do you think Wood will make the Rockets and the teams that passed him up in the draft regret their choices? Leave a comment to tell us.

Rockets To Sign Christian Wood

June 26th, 2015 at 6:20pm CST by Eddie Scarito

The Rockets have agreed to a free agent deal with UNLV forward Christian Wood, Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports reports. Houston can’t formally make a contract offer to Wood until Wednesday at the earliest, and could not sign him for more than the minimum salary until after the July Moratorium is lifted. The exact length and terms of the proposed arrangement are not yet known, though sources have told Wojnarowski that the deal is a partially guaranteed one.

Wood going undrafted on Thursday night could be considered a bit of a shocker, especially since many mock drafts predicted the 6’11” forward would be selected toward the end of the first round or early in the second. The Rockets’ addition of Wood is surprising considering the team selected Wisconsin combo forward Sam Dekker with the No. 18 overall pick, and then doubled-down and nabbed Louisville big man Montrezl Harrell at pick No. 32.

The 19-year -old performed below standards in pre-draft workouts, according to the Yahoo! scribe, after averaging 15.5 points, 9.8 rebounds and 2.6 blocks for UNLV during his sophomore campaign. Wood’s career NCAA numbers are 10.4 PPG, 6.8 RPG, and 1.9 BPG, with a slash line of .477/.261/.747.

Draft Rumors: Lakers, Okafor, Russell

June 25th, 2015 at 3:24pm CST by Zachary Links

The Lakers are leaning towards taking Jahlil Okafor with the No. 2 overall pick, according to Mike Bresnahan of the Los Angeles Times (on Twitter). However, Ramona Shelburne of ESPNLosAngeles.com (on Twitter) hears that the Lakers are undecided with both Okafor and D’Angelo Russell in play. Of course, the only word that counts will come from commissioner Adam Silver later tonight. Here’s the latest draft news..

Frank Kaminsky is moving up draft boards in the final hours, league sources tell David Aldridge of NBA.com (on Twitter). He could very well go higher than No. 9, which is where the Hornets would like him.
Kings owner Vivek Ranadive was known to be very high on Willie Cauley-Stein but Sam Amick of USA Today Sports (on Twitter) isn’t hearing much of that today.
Several league sources tell Alex Kennedy of Basketball Insiders (on Twitter) that they expect Cauley-Stein to slip. The big man didn’t shine in workouts or interviews and his ankle is a concern.
The Jazz are targeting Stanley Johnson and Justise Winslow at No. 12 and they’re willing to trade up if they feel it’s necessary, according to Spencer Checketts of 1280 The Zone (via Twitter links). If those trade-up scenarios don’t pan out, Utah could instead move down. If they do move down, Checketts lists the Celtics (No. 16), Bucks (17) and, Rockets (No. 18) as possible partners.
Marcin Gortat during a press conference in Poland said the Pistons asked him about prospect Mateusz Ponitka, according to Sportando (on Twitter). Ponitka worked out for Detroit earlier this week. The shooting guard looks to be a second round (or, undrafted) prospect.
The Bucks like UNLV forward Christian Wood, but feel that he’ll be chosen later in the first round, Gery Woelfel of the Racine Journal Times tweets. Milwaukee owns the No. 17 pick in the first round and the No 46 pick in the second.
David Pick of Eurobasket.net (on Twitter) hears that projected second-round pick Shawn Dawson hopes to slide under the radar and go undrafted. Dawson is currently ranked as the No. 66 prospect in the draft by DraftExpress.

Western Notes: Barton, Buycks, Blazers

June 23rd, 2015 at 10:49pm CST by Eddie Scarito

The Nuggets have tendered Will Barton a qualifying offer worth $1,181,348, making the guard a restricted free agent this offseason, Eric Pincus of Basketball Insiders reports (Twitter link). The move was expected since both sides have previously expressed a desire for the player to return to Denver next season. The 24-year-old saw sparse playing time with the Blazers over his first two and a half seasons in the league, but the deadline trade that sent him to Denver this February provided him with more opportunities to get on the court. He averaged 11.0 points in 24.4 minutes per game over 28 appearances for the Nuggets.

Here’s more from the Western Conference:

The Warriors are exploring options regarding trading up from the No. 30 overall pick in the draft, Scott Howard-Cooper of NBA.com tweets. Which player the team could be targeting with such a move is unknown, Howard-Cooper adds.
The chances that the Lakers will select Duke big man Jahlil Okafor with the No. 2 overall pick have increased since last week, Chad Ford of ESPN.com relays (on Twitter). Ford pegged the odds at 70% last Friday, and now has them at 80% that Los Angeles nabs Okafor on Thursday night.
The Lakers have informed free agent guard Dwight Buycks that they are interested in re-signing him for next season, David Pick of Eurobasket.com tweets. Buycks, who inked a single 10-day deal with the team this past season, was reportedly set to be signed for the remainder of the 2014/15 campaign before a hand injury knocked him out for the remainder of the team’s contests.
The Blazers will work out UNLV shooting guard Rashad Vaughn on Wednesday, reports Gery Woelfel of the Journal Times.
Woelfel adds the Warriors to the list of teams that have worked out UNLV big man Christian Wood.
Working out for Portland today were Darion Atkins (Virginia), Javonte Green (Radford), Charles Jackson (Tennessee Tech), Jordan Railey (Washington State), Satnam Singh (India), and Gary Bell Jr. (Gonzaga), the Blazers announced.
Virginia swingman Justin Anderson is scheduled to work out for the Grizzlies on Wednesday, Chris Vernon of ESPN 92.9 FM relays (Twitter links). Vernon also dispels the notion that Memphis made a draft promise to LSU big man Jarell Martin, and says that Martin shut down scheduling any further workouts for other reasons.

Chuck Myron contributed to this post.

And-Ones: Thunder, Grizzlies, Antic

June 22nd, 2015 at 11:44pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Thunder have been shopping Perry Jones, Jeremy Lamb and Steve Novak, Chris Mannix of Sports Illustrated tweets. Oklahoma City, which has $78.26MM in guaranteed salary commitments for next season, is seeking financial relief but it is also seeking a draft pick, Mannix adds. The Thunder already have picks at No. 14 and No. 48.

In other news around the league:

The Knicks, Kings and Hornets are the teams most likely to trade out of the Top 10 in the draft, Mannix reports in a separate tweet.
Guards Andre Hollins and Deville Smith and forwards Nino Johnson and Aaron White worked out for the Grizzlies on Monday, completing the team’s predraft workouts, according to Grizzlies.com.
R.J. Hunter, Anthony Brown, Olivier Hanlan, Christian Wood, Sir’Dominic Porter and Mouhammadou Jaiteh will work out for the Wizards on Tuesday, according to J. Michael of CSNWashington.com. (Twitter link).
Fenerbahce of the Turkish League is interested in signing Hawks free agent center Pero Antic, according to Sportando’s Emiliano Carchia.

Central Notes: Pistons, Vaughn, Cavs

June 22nd, 2015 at 6:43pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Pistons are not expecting their lottery pick to become a starter next season but they will keep the pick unless they get a superstar talent, Keith Langlois of Pistons.com reports. Coach and president of basketball operations Stan Van Gundy told the team’s beat reporters on Monday that with ample cap space — approximately $20MM even after the Ersan Ilyasova deal — that he’ll fill the starting small forward vacancy through free agency or a trade, Langlois continues. Tayshaun Prince, the starting small forward during the second half of last season, is an unrestricted free agent. Van Gundy virtually shut the door on reports that the Pistons were shopping the No. 8 overall pick, including one on Monday about a possible deal with the Knicks for guard Tim Hardaway Jr., Langlois adds. “The one thing we are firm on is – minus a superstar being available – we won’t trade out of the draft,” Van Gundy said. “For your salary structure and everything else, it’s too important. It’s probably unlikely that we trade back, but it’s not impossible.”

In other news around the Central Division

Van Gundy acknowledged during the same press conference that he was “not entirely optimistic” about retaining unrestricted free agent Greg Monroe, the Associated Press reports. Though Van Gundy indicated it wasn’t a foregone conclusion, Monroe is expected to find a starting job elsewhere. The trade for Ilyasova gives the Pistons a starting-caliber power forward to replace him.
Shooting guard Rashad Vaughn was among six players brought in by the Bucks in their final pre-draft workout, according to the team’s website. Vaughn is rated No. 19 on ESPN Insider Chad Ford’s Top 100 prospects list, twice as high as DraftExpress’ Jonathan Givony, who pegs him at No. 38. The group consisted of mostly late first-round and second-round prospects, including centers Mouhammadou Jaiteh and Josh Smith (Georgetown) and forwards Christian Wood, Cody Larson and J.P. Tokoto. The Bucks own the No. 17 and No. 46 picks in the draft.
Syracuse center Rakeem Christmas was part of a group workout with the Cavaliers on Monday, according to Michael Scotto of Sheridan Hoops (Twitter link). Christmas is rated No. 34 on Ford’s board and No. 43 by Givony. The Cavs hold the No. 24 and No. 53 selections on Thursday.

Eastern Notes: Celtics, Wood, Smith

June 21st, 2015 at 10:17pm CST by Arthur Hill

The Celtics face long odds in their quest to deal for a lottery pick, writes A. Sherrod Blakely of CSNNE.com. Boston is expected to continue its effort right through draft night, but trading into the top 14 is much tougher than fans realize. Blakely points out that draft-night trades to enter lottery territory have only happened five times in the last decade. “It takes two to trade,” said Austin Ainge, the Celtics’ director of player personnel. “We can’t force that on anyone else, nor is that always smart. The [New England] Patriots have done very well moving back.” If the Celtics are able to swing a deal, Blakely writes that they would be interested in frontcourt help, possibly Kentucky’s Willie Cauley-Stein or Texas’ Myles Turner.

There’s more news from the Eastern Conference:

The Celtics could pull off a surprise and draft a point guard with one of their two first-round picks despite selecting Marcus Smart last June, Mark Murphy of the Boston Herald speculates. They could consider Jerian Grant, Delon Wright or Tyus Jones with the No. 16 overall pick, while Terry Rozier might be an option at No. 28, Murphy adds.
The Bucks have made a last-minute decision to work out UNLV’s Christian Wood, tweets Gery Woelfel of The Journal Times. Wood’s workout session will take place Monday. Milwaukee holds the 17th pick in Thursday’s draft.
The Cavaliers‘ J.R. Smith is thankful to be in Cleveland, but that doesn’t guarantee he will opt in this summer, according to Joe Vardon of the Northeast Ohio Media Group. Smith, who has a $6.4MM player option for next season, went from the bottom of the league to the NBA Finals thanks to a January 5th trade that got him out of New York. He was effective during the regular season, but had an up-and-down performance in the playoffs. Smith has stated that he would like to opt out and then re-sign with Cleveland.

Dana Gauruder contributed to this post.

Southwest Notes: Gordon, James, Grizzlies

June 14th, 2015 at 6:05pm CST by Will Joseph

Eric Gordon, who will reportedly pick up his player option worth more than $15.514MM to stay with the Pelicans, is likely making a savvy financial decision, John Reid of The Times Picayune writes, because there’s a strong chance the guard fetches a more lucrative deal in the summer of 2016, when the salary cap rises. The projected salary cap of $67.1MM for next season is expected to jump to $89MM in 2016/17 before soaring to $108MM in 2017/18, as Reid points outs. There’s a distinct possibility Gordon thrives under new coach Alvin Gentry‘s up-tempo offense, Reid adds, and that would give a boost to his numbers and stock.

There’s more from the Southwest Division:

Free agent Bernard James has teams interested in signing him, but the center would like to return to the Mavs, the team that re-signed him in March for the remainder of the season after two 10-day pacts, Earl K. Sneed of Mavs.com writes. James signed with the Shanghai Sharks of China in November after the Mavs waived him just before the season started. “You know, I’ve been talking to my agent a lot, and there’s a few teams interested,” James said. “But, hopefully, I’d like to be back here with the Mavericks. We’ll see what happens in the draft, what’s their needs and whoever [Mavericks owner Mark Cuban and coach Rick Carlisle] find for next year. Whatever players they sign, hopefully there’s a spot for me and there’s a niche I can carve out. We’ll see what happens, man, but I’m expecting it not to be quite as crazy as the last two summers.”
Cliff Alexander, Aaron Harrison, Jamal Jones, Kenneth Smith, Corey Walden and Christian Wood will all work out for the Grizzlies on Monday, the team announced in a press release.