Derrick Williams Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Central Notes: Deadline Previews, Butler, Williams, Rubio, Caldwell-Pope

February 17th, 2017 at 11:04pm CST by Milo Taibi

The Bulls are at a “real crossroads” at this year’s trade deadline, Mark Strotman of CSN Chicago writes. With a 28-29 record, Chicago enters the All-Star break as the seventh seed in the Eastern Conference. Given the top-heavy conference, Strotman notes, even the most optimistic fan wouldn’t have the Bulls projected to advance past the first round of the playoffs. Taj Gibson will be mentioned in trade rumors, as will Robin Lopez and Doug McDermott. While Jimmy Butler has “peak trade value,” the Bulls have incentives to keep the 27-year-old; particularly on his team-friendly contract.

For what it’s worth, Butler reportedly isn’t interested in being traded. Sources told Seerat Sohi of ESPN that Butler is “grounded in Chicago,” and feels loyalty to the franchise that took a chance on him in the 2011 draft.

Cavs Notes: Love, Smith, James, Williams, Lue

February 13th, 2017 at 7:32pm CST by Milo Taibi

The Cavaliers are concerned with Kevin Love‘s sore left knee and will pursue a second opinion, according to a report from Joe Vardon of Cleveland.com. Love, who has been ruled out of Cleveland’s match-up with the Timberwolves on Tuesday, underwent an MRI on Sunday. Love missed a pair of games on January 30 and February 1 due to a back issue, but has otherwise produced well of late- averaging 21.4 points with 11.8 rebounds over his last five games.

“Always concerned when guys are going down,” coach Tyronn Lue said of Love’s ailment. “And we’re already limited as it is. Definitely concerned, but gotta see how he feels. Just, get evaluated tomorrow and see how he feels.”

Derrick Williams May Stick With Cavs For Season

February 10th, 2017 at 10:19am CST by Luke Adams

After signing a 10-day contract with the Cavaliers on Thursday, Derrick Williams made his debut for the team on Thursday night and looked good, scoring 12 points in 22 minutes and converting all of his field goal attempts. While there’s no need for the Cavs to make any decisions on Williams yet, a team source tells Joe Vardon of Cleveland.com that the former No. 2 overall pick has a “strong chance” to earn a spot on the roster for the rest of the season.

Although Williams may not be the “playmaker” LeBron James publicly called for last month, he’s a fresh body who can play multiple positions and can provide insurance for some of the team’s veterans, writes Dave McMenamin of ESPN.com. One team source tells McMenamin that the Cavs view Williams as a “high reward, low risk” addition, despite the fact that his salary carries a $2.50 tax charge for every dollar, given the club’s tax standing.

The Cavs currently have 14 players on fully guaranteed contracts, with Williams occupying the 15th and final roster spot on a 10-day deal. Re-signing him to a second 10-day contract and then a rest-of-season deal when his current pact expires would tie up a roster spot for a Cleveland team that will be searching for additional upgrades at the deadline. However, the club is also carrying Chris Andersen, who is out for the season with a torn ACL — trading or releasing Andersen would free up an extra roster spot to allow for another addition.

Williams’ initial 10-day contract with the Cavs expires during the All-Star break, and the regular season won’t resume until several hours after the trade deadline passes on February 23, so Cleveland will likely keep that 15th roster spot open as the club explores deadline moves.

Cavs Sign Derrick Williams To 10-Day Contract

February 9th, 2017 at 1:04pm CST by Luke Adams

1:04pm: The Cavaliers have officially signed Williams to a 10-day contract, the team announced in a press release.

7:47am: Recently released Heat forward Derrick Williams is signing a 10-day contract with the Cavaliers, reports Shams Charania of The Vertical. Williams became an unrestricted free agent on Wednesday when he went unclaimed on waivers.

Williams, who turned down a 2016/17 player option with the Knicks, subsequently signed a one-year deal with Miami last summer worth $4.598MM. However, he only appeared in 25 games (11 starts) this season before falling out of the Heat’s rotation. He averaged 5.9 PPG and 2.9 RPG in those contests, with a career-low .394 FG%, and was waived earlier this week in order to open up a roster spot for Okaro White.

While the Heat will continue to carry $4.5MM+ in dead money on their books for Williams, the Cavs will sign him to a 10-day deal that counts for $57,672 against their cap. Cleveland is currently in a luxury-tax tier that applies a $2.50 tax charge for every dollar spent, so Williams’ 10-day contract will also add more than $144K to the team’s year-end tax bill.

Williams may not be the ball-handling “playmaker” that LeBron James publicly called for last month, but the former No. 2 overall pick will provide the Cavs with some frontcourt depth for at least the next 10 days. His contract is set to expire during the All-Star break, so Cleveland will free up a roster spot in time for the trade deadline, giving the team some added flexibility.

Austin Kent contributed to this post.

Heat Notes: White, Waiters, Richardson, Williams

February 7th, 2017 at 1:51pm CST by Luke Adams

Okaro White‘s new two-year deal with the Heat will feature a guaranteed prorated minimum salary for the rest of 2016/17, but the details of his 2017/18 salary are a little more complicated.

According to Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald, White’s minimum salary ($1.3MM) for next season is currently non-guaranteed. However, he’ll get a 25% guarantee if he remains on the team through July 1, with another 25% becoming guaranteed on August 1. If White earns a spot on Miami’s opening-night roster, his full salary will become guaranteed.

Because he won’t have to wait until January for his full salary to become guaranteed, White is in a better spot than most players on similar deals — if the Heat don’t want to commit to his full salary, they’ll have to waive him in the summer, or by the start of the season, which would allow him more time to catch on with another club in the NBA or elsewhere.

Let’s round up a few more Heat-related notes…

Dion Waiters, who has played a key role in the Heat’s current 11-game winning streak, isn’t certain whether he’ll be able to play in the club’s next game after spraining his left ankle, per Jackson. Meanwhile, another Heat player battling a foot injury, Josh Richardson, hopes to play at least once for the team before this month’s All-Star Game, Jackson writes.
After being waived by the Heat on Monday, Derrick Williams sent out the following tweet: “Pat Riley is a man of his word. Ultimate respect.” According to Jackson (via Twitter), that message stemmed from the fact that Williams’ release was a mutual decision. The former second overall pick wanted a chance to get more minutes with another team, and the Heat were willing to give him that opportunity by cutting him rather than hanging on to him in an effort to find a trade partner.
Within his latest mailbag, Ira Winderman of The South Florida Sun Sentinel explores whether Goran Dragic might be the Heat’s point guard of the future, and discusses whether the club might get a chance to reunite with Briante Weber down the road.

Knicks Notes: D. Williams, Carmelo, P. Jackson

February 7th, 2017 at 12:48pm CST by Luke Adams

Last June, Derrick Williams turned down a player option with the Knicks and then was surprised when the team didn’t re-engage with him on talks about a new contract. The former No. 2 overall pick ultimately signed a one-year deal with the Heat for the exact amount he would’ve earned in New York, but finds himself without an NBA home again this week after being cut by Miami to make room for Okaro White.

Although the Knicks don’t currently have an open spot on their roster, they would have some interest in re-adding Williams if he clears waivers, reports Ian Begley of ESPN.com. There’s no guarantee of a reunion between Williams and the Knicks, but the veteran forward does still have “some fans” within the organization, per Begley.

Here’s more on the Knicks:

Joakim Noah has become close with Carmelo Anthony this season, and would like to see Anthony remain in New York through this year’s trade deadline, as Marc Berman of The New York Post details. Noah is also hoping that team management won’t give up on this season to focus on the long-term future. “We’re not there,” Noah said. “We’re a team that we have to stay in the moment and stay focused. I know what this jersey means to everybody in this locker room.”
In the wake of an ugly home loss to the Lakers, Knicks president Phil Jackson remains silent, writes Stefan Bondy of The New York Daily News. As things continue to go south for the team, Jackson has allowed the situation to “spiral out of control, adopting the organizational attitude of passing off responsibility,” in Bondy’s view.
Berman hears from a source that Jackson is “miserable” with the Knicks’ losing record, but the New York Post scribe says that’s no excuse for Jackson’s behavior. According to Berman, Anthony has every right to exercise his no-trade clause if that’s what he wants to do, and Jackson should stop trying to run the star forward out of town.

Heat Cut Derrick Williams, Re-Sign Okaro White

February 6th, 2017 at 3:50pm CST by Luke Adams

3:50pm: The Heat have confirmed in a press release that they’ve re-signed White and waived Williams.

10:44am: Okaro White‘s second 10-day contract with the Heat expired on Sunday night, but the team won’t waste any time in bringing him back into the fold, opening up a roster spot to do so. According to Shams Charania of The Vertical (via Twitter), the Heat will waive veteran forward Derrick Williams and will sign White to a two-year contract.

Miami had been carrying 16 players on its roster, having been afforded a hardship exemption by the NBA due to four separate major injuries. Justise Winslow and Chris Bosh are expected to miss the rest of the season, while Josh McRoberts and Josh Richardson had also been sidelined for weeks. However, with Richardson set to return to the lineup, the team needed to pare its roster down to 15 players, and didn’t want to lose White.

A former FSU standout, White was in camp with the Heat in the fall, but didn’t crack the club’s regular season roster at the time. After playing well for Miami’s D-League affiliate (18.4 PPG, 8.7 RPG in 23 contests), White was called up to the NBA squad again, and has looked good in nine games for the Heat, averaging 4.1 PPG and 2.6 RPG in 16.4 MPG. The team is 9-0 in those games.

As for Williams, the Heat reportedly tried to find a trade partner to accommodate a deal for the former No. 2 overall pick, but came up empty-handed. Williams, who signed a one-year deal with Miami last summer, has appeared in 25 games this season, making 11 starts. He has averaged 5.9 PPG and 2.9 RPG in those contests, with a career-low .394 FG%, and has fallen out of the rotation in recent weeks, despite the team’s injury woes.

[RELATED: Salary Cap Snapshot: Miami Heat]

Because they used their room exception on Dion Waiters during the offseason and are now over the cap, the Heat’s options for signing White are limited. The team has a disabled player exception worth just under $1.3MM available, but it can only be used for a one-year deal, and White will sign a two-year pact. That means he’ll receive a minimum salary, which works out to about $210K for the rest of this season, and $1.32MM for next season, per Bobby Marks of The Vertical (Twitter link). White’s 2017/18 salary won’t be fully guaranteed.

Meanwhile, Williams’ $4.598MM salary will continue to count against the Heat’s cap unless he’s claimed off waivers by another team. His contract could be appealing to a team below the salary floor, since it would move that club nearly $4.6MM closer to the floor, despite the fact that his remaining salary is significantly lower than that.

Heat Facing Roster Crunch

February 5th, 2017 at 1:40pm CST by Milo Taibi

Now finishing up his second 10-day contract, 24-year-old Okaro White has impressed in his time with Miami. The former Seminole has played in nine games this season, including a stellar performance (10 points, seven rebounds, four blocks) against the Nets.

White’s contract expires today, and according to a report from Ira Winderman of the Sun Sentinel, the team is undecided about his future on the roster. The Heat are facing a roster crunch, as Josh Richardson is set to return from injury after missing 13 games with a foot injury. NBA teams are permitted to sign players to a maximum of two 10-day contracts before signing them for the rest of the season, or releasing them. The Heat can offer White a two-year contract at most, due to their salary cap position.

Veteran forward Derrick Williams appears to be a candidate to be cut to clear room for White. Williams, who was inked to a one-year, $4,598,000 contract over the offseason, has played sparingly under head coach Erik Spoelstra– accumulating eight DNPs over Miami’s last 10 games. Amid roster speculation, Williams traveled with the team for their upcoming road trip.

If Spoelstra’s quote is any indication, White appears to have made a lasting impression on Miami’s front office.

“You can see why we like him,” Spoelstra said of White. “He’s a Miami Heat guy, a lot of intangibles, those winning plays that we keep on talking about.”

Heat Notes: Williams, White, Johnson, Dragic

February 3rd, 2017 at 12:59pm CST by Arthur Hill

Heat forward Derrick Williams expects to travel with the team for Monday’s game at Milwaukee, tweets Barry Jackson of The Miami Herald. Miami must make a roster decision when rookie forward Okaro White‘s second 10-day contract expires Sunday, and trading or waiving Williams has been discussed. White was added as a 16th player when the NBA approved a hardship exception. That exception remains in effect, but league rules prevent teams from signing an extra player for the rest of the season without opening a roster spot.

Coach Erik Spoelstra said no decision has been made on White, and it’s possible that the Heat may release him on Sunday and hope to re-sign him later (Twitter link). White has been getting about 15 minutes a night in his eight games with Miami and is averaging 4.0 points and 2.5 rebounds. Williams has fallen out of the team’s rotation, even with its injury problems. He signed a one-year, $4.598MM deal over the summer, so waiving him wouldn’t create a significant financial burden.

There’s more today from South Florida:

Josh Richardson could be with the team when the road trip starts Monday, tweets Ira Winderman of The Sun Sentinel. Richardson’s ankle sprain was part of the reason the Heat were awarded the hardship exception, so a roster move will be necessary when he returns.
James Johnson is moving into consideration for the Most Improved and Sixth Man awards, Winderman writes in a mailbag column. His stellar play this year and Miami’s recent success will also serve to drive up his price in free agency. The 29-year-old forward signed a one-year, $4MM deal last summer.
As Miami climbs back into the playoff chase, Goran Dragic seems less likely to be moved before the February 23rd deadline, Winderman contends in a separate piece. There was once talk that the Heat would try to find a taker for Dragic and the more than $54MM he has left on his contract over the next three seasons. However, he has averaged nearly 22 points per game since returning from back spasms in early January and the Heat have started winning.

Heat Have Explored Derrick Williams Trade

February 1st, 2017 at 9:04am CST by Luke Adams

The Heat are currently exploring ways to keep Okaro White on their roster when his second 10-day contract expires, and one avenue the team has looked into involves trading Derrick Williams, according to Barry Jackson of The Miami Herald. If Miami can’t find a taker for Williams, releasing him is also something the club will consider, says Jackson.

Williams, who signed a one-year deal with the Heat last summer, has appeared in 24 games this season, making 11 starts. He has averaged 6.1 PPG and 3.0 RPG in those contests, with a career-low .393 FG%, and has fallen out of the rotation in Miami in recent weeks, despite the fact that the team is missing a handful players due to injuries.

The Wizards are among the teams that might have interest in Williams, a source close to the player tells Jackson. But Washington would likely only seriously consider Williams if he were released. Jackson points out that teams below the salary cap floor could also take a look at claiming Williams off waivers if he’s cut, since more than half his $4.598MM salary has already been paid, but his full cap hit would count toward the salary floor.

As for White, he has emerged as a potential keeper for the Heat after having played a key role during the team’s recent winning streak. The rookie forward has averaged 4.6 PPG and 2.9 RPG in seven games (17.1 MPG), with an impressive shooting line of .526/.455/1.000.

White joined the Heat as a 16th man after the team was awarded a hardship exception. Such an exemption is available to clubs who have at least four players out with long-term injuries. Miami will likely continue to meet the criteria to carry a 16th player, since Justise Winslow, Chris Bosh, Josh Richardson, and Josh McRoberts aren’t close to a return.

However, an NBA spokesman confirmed to Jackson that league rules prevent Miami from simply signing White to a rest-of-season deal as a 16th man, meaning a roster move will be required if the club wants to hang onto him. White’s second 10-day deal will expire on Sunday night.