Desagana Diop Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Spurs Notes: Paul, Vassell, McLaughlin, King, Ingram

April 3rd, 2025 at 6:48am CST by Luke Adams

When a player signs a contract that includes unlikely incentives, those incentives can be worth up to 15% of the player’s base salary. The Spurs took full advantage of that rule last summer when they signed Chris Paul, making the most of their cap room by agreeing to a one-year deal with a base salary of $10.46MM and another $1.569MM in achievable unlikely incentives that wouldn’t count against the cap.

Paul began cashing in on those incentives on Wednesday, according to ESPN’s Bobby Marks (Twitter link), when the Spurs registered their 32nd win of the season, beating the Nuggets in Denver. The veteran point guard earned a $262K bonus as a result of the team reaching that win total, Marks reports.

Paul is on track to earn another $523K before the end of the season by meeting two more individual performance benchmarks, Marks tweets. As Marks previously wrote for ESPN.com, those bonuses are related to Paul’s net rating and true shooting percentage.

Here’s more on the Spurs:

Spurs wing Devin Vassell was held out of Wednesday’s win for left ankle injury management, missing a game for the first time since December 6. Acting head coach Mitch Johnson explained that the team decided to rest Vassell because he was “getting a little bit too much in the danger zone” after having been playing through an ankle injury, writes Tom Orsborn of The San Antonio Express-News. “It’s being mindful of the big picture, keeping him healthy, and so we made the call,” Johnson said.
A throw-in piece in the De’Aaron Fox blockbuster in February, guard Jordan McLaughlin has barely played for the Spurs since being dealt from Sacramento to San Antonio. But he was a +8 in 17 minutes of action in Denver on Wednesday and made a crucial three-point shot in the fourth quarter. With just nine Spurs players active for the game, McLaughlin said the reserves’ attitude was to “go out there and have fun,” as Orsborn relays. “We all work really hard behind the scenes even when we’re not playing, so it was just a great opportunity for us to go out there and play basketball,” the veteran guard said.
Scott King, the head coach of the Austin Spurs, San Antonio’s G League affiliate, has been named the NBAGL’s Coach of the Year, the league announced on Wednesday (Twitter link). A former Knicks player development coach, King led Austin to a 22-12 record and the No. 2 seed in the G League’s Western Conference in his first year at the helm, finishing ahead of runners-up DeSagana Diop (Westchester Knicks) and Quinton Crawford (Stockton Kings) in a vote conducted by the league’s 31 head coaches and GMs. At the time of his hiring, one report indicated that King was viewed as a future NBA head coach — he likely bolstered his case with his performance this season.
Speaking to Grant Afseth of RG.org, Spurs two-way forward Harrison Ingram said his goal is to earn a standard contract. The 48th overall pick in the 2024 draft, Ingram has appeared in just three games for San Antonio this season, having spent most of the year in Austin, an experience he discussed with Afseth. He’ll be eligible for restricted free agency this summer.

Knicks Notes: Sims, Robinson, Diop, Hartenstein

July 11th, 2022 at 10:35am CST by Luke Adams

Jericho Sims has shown so far during the Las Vegas Summer League why the Knicks were willing to give him a new three-year deal this offseason, writes Zach Braziller of The New York Post. In addition to averaging a double-double (13.5 PPG, 10.5 RPG) in his first two Summer League games, Sims has displayed intriguing mobility and play-making ability, putting the ball on the floor and bringing it up the court himself after grabbing rebounds.

“I’ve been working on pushing the ball in transition a little bit, trying to get more comfortable doing that again, making the right reads,” he said, per Braziller.

Sims’ three-year contract is worth just $2,000 above the minimum in 2022/23, with minimum salaries in years two and three, per Fred Katz of The Athletic (Twitter links). Katz adds that the first year is fully guaranteed, while the second year is partially guaranteed for $600K and the third year is a team option with a partial guarantee of $651,180.

Here’s more on the Knicks:

Mitchell Robinson‘s strong relationships with his young teammates and other members of the organization played a major part in his decision to remain with the Knicks, according to Ian Begley of SNY.tv. “He had a number of opportunities,” a source familiar with Robinson’s thinking said of the center’s free agency. “He chose to be there.”
DeSagana Diop, the head coach of the Westchester Knicks (New York’s G League team), is taking over as the head coach of Senegal’s national men’s basketball team, a source tells Marc J. Spears of Andscape (Twitter link).
Clippers head coach Tyronn Lue believes Los Angeles’ former backup center Isaiah Hartenstein will be a good fit on his new team in New York, Braziller writes for The New York Post. “You can run stuff through him, he can make plays, he can make passes,” Lue told Braziller. “Defensively, he’s one of (Tom Thibodeau‘s) types of guys. He can switch at the five position, good in the drops. He’s very athletic and so he can do a lot of different things. He had a great year for us.” Although Lue would’ve liked to have Hartenstein back in L.A., he said he’s “happy for him, getting the contract he got.”
In case you missed it, the Knicks finalized their Alec Burks/Nerlens Noel trade with the Pistons on Monday, clearing a path to officially sign Jalen Brunson and Hartenstein.

Atlantic Notes: Smart, Williams, Diop, Nets, White

May 26th, 2022 at 5:21pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Celtics starters Marcus Smart and Robert Williams are listed as questionable for Game 6 on Friday, the team tweets. It’s the same injury designation they had for Game 5.

Smart wound up playing 24 minutes on Wednesday despite his right ankle sprain and Williams made it through 27 minutes on his sore left knee.

We have more from the Atlantic Division:

DeSagana Diop is the new head coach of the G League’s Westchester Knicks, Marc Stein tweets. Diop was represented by Knicks president Leon Rose when Rose was a player agent. Diop has assistant coaching experience with the Jazz and, most recently, the Rockets.
It has been reported that the Nets will likely defer the first-rounder owed by the Sixers from this year to next summer. However, that doesn’t mean the Nets will hold onto it and draft a rookie next summer, according to Heavy.com’s Sean Deveney. They might instead use it to facilitate an in-season trade next season to address injuries or roster shortcomings.
The deadline deal that sent Derrick White from San Antonio to Boston has proven to be crucial to the Celtics in their postseason run, Brian Windhorst of ESPN notes. They have registered blowout wins in two of the three games Smart has missed during the playoffs and having White at their disposal was a key to those successes. The Spurs acquired Josh Richardson, Romeo Langford, the Celtics’ 2022 first-round pick, and the conditional right to swap first-round picks with Boston in 2028 in exchange for White.

Rockets Add Hornacek To Silas’ Coaching Staff

November 30th, 2020 at 5:09pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Rockets have hired Jeff Hornacek as an assistant on Stephen Silas’ staff, according to a team press release.

Hornacek was the head coach in Phoenix for 2 1/2 seasons from 2013-16 and in New York for two seasons from 2016-18. Previous reports indicated Houston was close to an agreement with Hornacek and now it’s official.

John Lucas, who was reportedly one of the finalists to replace Mike D’Antoni as head coach, will remain in the organization as an assistant. Will Weaver, Rick Higgins, and DeSagana Diop will also join Silas’ staff.

Weaver was the head coach of the Sydney Kings in Australia after being named NBA G League Coach of the Year for the 2018/19 season with the Long Island Nets. Higgins spent the past two seasons with the Magic as associate coach/player development, while Diop spent the past four seasons on the Jazz’s staff.

Rockets Notes: Harden, Westbrook, Diop, Caboclo, Green

November 24th, 2020 at 9:56pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Rockets are likely to start training camp and the regular season with James Harden and Russell Westbrook on the roster, Adrian Wojnarowski said on ESPN’s SportsCenter (video link). Houston has not engaged on trade talks involving Harden. The team has tried to find a taker for Westbrook but his contract, which has three years and $132.5MM remaining, makes it very difficult. “That’s not an easy trade to make,” Wojnarowski said.

We have more on the Rockets:

DeSagana Diop has joined Stephen Silas’ coaching staff, Tim MacMahon of ESPN tweets. Diop, who appeared in over 600 games as an NBA player, had been a Jazz assistant coach the last four years.
The Rockets’ front office would like to re-sign free agent big man Bruno Caboclo, according to The Athletic’s Kelly Iko. Caboclo, 24, was dealt from Memphis to Houston at the trade deadline in February, but didn’t see much action after joining the Rockets. He appeared in just eight regular-season games and made two postseason cameos.
Gerald Green remains hopeful the Rockets will re-sign him, Mark Berman of KRIV tweets. “Everybody knows how much I feel about this city and what this city feels for me,” Green said. The veteran swingman missed the entire 2019/20 season due to a broken foot and has been training privately in Houston.
ICYMI, Sterling Brown agreed to a one-year deal with the Rockets on Sunday.

Rockets Notes: Harden, Silas, Diop, Higgins, Weaver, McMillan

November 5th, 2020 at 6:32pm CST by Dana Gauruder

New Rockets general manager Rafael Stone says he’s committed to building a championship team around James Harden, according to Tim MacMahon of ESPN. There has been speculation former Rockets GM and newly-hired Sixers executive Daryl Morey would try to acquire the former MVP.

“We’ve still got James Harden. Our goal is still to win a championship, and if you’ve got him, you’re halfway there,” Stone said. “It’s incumbent on me and (new coach) Stephen (Silas) and the whole team to figure out the rest of the whole, but the key piece is there.”

Silas embraces those expectations and the pressure that comes with it. “I’m a win-now coach,” he said. “To not have to deal with growing and all that type of stuff, to think championship right away, is exciting for me. And I’m prepared for it and ready for it.”

We have more on the Rockets:

Silas’ contract is a four-year deal, Mark Berman of Fox 26 Houston tweets. Silas was officially hired on October 30 after being one of the presumed finalists along with Jeff Van Gundy and John Lucas, who has decided to remain in Houston and join Silas’ staff.
As previously reported, the team has talked to former Suns and Knicks coach Jeff Hornacek about joining their coaching staff. Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle has uncovered a few other candidates that the Rockets are interested in hiring. Jazz assistant DeSagana Diop, Magic assistant Rick Higgins and former Sixers and Nets assistant Will Weaver are also possible additions to the staff, though Weaver is also a candidate for the Thunder’s head coaching job.
The front office aggressively pursued former Pacers head coach Nate McMillan to join the staff but he opted to instead join the Hawks’ staff under Lloyd Pierce, Berman adds in another tweet. Atlanta is close to hiring McMillan, though no official announcement has been made.

Western Notes: Knight, Diop, Douglas

October 3rd, 2016 at 7:39pm CST by Eddie Scarito

Suns coach Earl Watson has already named his starting lineup for the regular season and second-year player Devin Booker received the nod at shooting guard, Paul Coro of The Arizona Republic reports. This means that Brandon Knight will shift into the sixth man role, Coro adds. “That’s the starting lineup for the season,” Watson said. “We’re not wasting time. We’re not lingering with inner-competition. Brandon Knight is not a bench player. He’s a starter in this league. He’s sacrificed the most for our group. He took it like the pro he is because he understands the opportunity that we have to be special. Do players like coming off the bench? No, and we embrace that. That’s the inner-competitive nature that we need.”

“I knew at one point in my career I’d be a starter,” Booker told Coro. “I didn’t know it’d be this soon but I have put in that work to be one.” Here’s more from out West:

The Pelicans waived Chris Copeland earlier today in an effort to free up more minutes for players who are on the bubble to make the team’s regular season roster, according to coach Alvin Gentry, Scott Kushner of The New Orleans Advocate relays. New Orleans had two healthy scratches, Robert Sacre and Alonzo Gee, in its preseason opening victory over the Mavericks on Saturday, the scribe notes.
The Jazz have hired former NBA player DeSagana Diop as a coaching associate, the team announced. As a coaching associate, Diop will assist the Jazz coaching staff in a variety of capacities including work on the court during practices and individual player workouts, video editing and analysis, and other team preparation, according to the press release.
Toney Douglas, who signed with the Cavaliers earlier today, also drew interest from the Nuggets and the Suns, Sam Amico of AmicoHoops.net relays (via Twitter).

Wizards Likely To Sign Drew Gooden

February 25th, 2014 at 8:23am CST by Zachary Links

TUESDAY, 8:23am: J. Michael of CSNWashington adds Antawn Jamison and Justin Hamilton to the list of others the Wizards are considering, but Michael confirms that Gooden is the favorite to land a 10-day deal. The team may also hold off on signing anyone to give Chris Singleton a shot at playing time, Michael writes.

MONDAY, 5:11pm: Gooden will be in D.C. tomorrow to ink his deal with the Wizards, tweets Marc J. Spears of Yahoo Sports. Meanwhile, Michael Lee of the Washington Post (on Twitter) hears that it’s “unlikely” that Washington will sign anyone before tomorrow night’s game against the Magic. He cites Lou Amundson and DeSagana Diop as other 10-day possibilities for the Wizards.

4:11pm: It’s likely that the Wizards will sign Drew Gooden to a 10-day deal, according to Marc Stein of ESPN.com (via Twitter). The 32-year-old hasn’t stepped foot on an NBA court since April of last year but he could help fortify Washington’s frontcourt depth in the wake of Nene‘s injury.

We learned last month that Gooden was working out in hopes of landing an NBA deal. Over his 16 games in Milwaukee last season, the 11-year veteran averaged 13.7 points and 6.5 rebounds in 26.2 minutes per game, which added up to a PER of 18.88. The Bucks wound up using the amnesty clause on the 6’11” big man over the summer, taking his $13.37MM salary between this season and next off of their books.

While other amnesty victims from this past summer like Metta World Peace and Mike Miller were able to hook on elsewhere, there were few, if any, nibbles on Gooden.

Cavs Waive DeSagana Diop, Three Others

October 25th, 2013 at 12:19pm CST by Luke Adams

The Cavaliers appear to have finalized their roster for opening night, having released four players to reduce their roster count to 15 players. The team announced today in a press release that it has waived DeSagana Diop, Kenny Kadji, Jermaine Taylor, and Elliot Williams.

The roster decisions aren’t a huge surprise for the Cavs, who were expected to hang on to camp invitees Henry Sims and Matthew Dellavedova. Diop, Kadji, Taylor, and Williams were all believed to be on fully non-guaranteed contracts, so they won’t affect Cleveland’s books at all this season.

Eastern Notes: Mason, Irving, Cavs, Magic

October 10th, 2013 at 10:32am CST by Luke Adams

It took a while for Roger Mason Jr. to land with an NBA team this offseason, as Mason didn’t sign with the Heat until late September. However, that doesn’t mean there was no other interest in the veteran shooter. According to Ethan J. Skolnick of Bleacher Report (via Twitter), Mason had also been considering the Bulls before a 45-minute conversation with Ray Allen sold him on Miami.

Here’s more from around the Eastern Conference:

When asked by a young fan at a community event if he’d leave Cleveland like LeBron James did, Kyrie Irving said he wouldn’t, as Sean Highkin of USA Today details. While we probably shouldn’t assume that’s set in stone, it’ll likely be a while before the Cavs guard hits the open market anyway. Irving still has two seasons remaining on his rookie contract and will be a strong candidate for a long-term extension a year from now.
While some observers believe that DeSagana Diop has the inside track on securing a reserve roster spot with the Cavs, Kenny Kadji is making a pretty strong case for the job, writes Bob Finnan of The Plain Dealer (Sulia link). We heard yesterday from another Cleveland scribe, Jason Lloyd of the Akron Beacon Journal, that Henry Sims may be Kadji’s primary competition for a roster spot.
The Magic see Jacksonville as a good location for a potential D-League affiliate, but it’s not the only possibility, writes Josh Robbins of the Orlando Sentinel. The Magic’s D-League affiliate for the 2013/14 season is the Fort Wayne Mad Ants, a team they share with the Bobcats, Pistons, Pacers, Grizzlies, and Bucks.
New Celtics big man Vitor Faverani isn’t the most verbose guy in the league, but he offers Boston a lot in the way of physical play and pick and rolls, according to Ben Rohrbach of WEEI.com.

Zach Links contributed to this post.