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NBA Teams Designate Affiliate Players

November 3rd, 2015 at 4:01pm CST by Chuck Myron

NBA teams cut as much as 25% of their rosters at the end of the preseason, but franchises that have D-League affiliates have a way to maintain ties to many of the players they release from the NBA roster. An NBA team can claim the D-League rights to up to four of the players it waives, as long as the players clear waivers, consent to join the D-League, and don’t already have their D-League rights owned by another team. These are known as affiliate players, as our Hoops Rumors Glossary entry details.

NBA teams allocated 46 affiliate players to the D-League at the beginning of the season last year, and this year, that number has risen to 56, according to the list the D-League announced today. These players are going directly to the D-League affiliate of the NBA team that cut them and weren’t eligible for the D-League draft that took place Saturday. Teams that designated fewer than the maximum four affiliate players retain the ability to snag the D-League rights of players they waive during the regular season, but for now, this is the complete list:

Boston Celtics (Maine Red Claws)

Cleveland Cavaliers (Canton Charge)

Dallas Mavericks (Texas Legends)

Detroit Pistons (Grand Rapids Drive)

Golden State Warriors (Santa Cruz Warriors)

Houston Rockets (Rio Grande Valley Vipers)

Indiana Pacers (Fort Wayne Mad Ants)

Los Angeles Lakers (Los Angeles D-Fenders)

Memphis Grizzlies (Iowa Energy)

Miami Heat (Sioux Falls Skyforce)

New York Knicks (Westchester Knicks)

Oklahoma City Thunder (Oklahoma City Blue)

Orlando Magic (Erie BayHawks)

Philadelphia 76ers (Delaware 87ers)

Phoenix Suns (Bakersfield Jam)

Sacramento Kings (Reno Bighorns)

San Antonio Spurs (Austin Spurs)

Toronto Raptors (Raptors 905)

Utah Jazz (Idaho Stampede)

Also, several players who were on NBA preseason rosters are on D-League rosters through means other than the affiliate player rule. Most of them played under D-League contracts at some point within the last two years, meaning their D-League teams have returning player rights to them. Others entered through last weekend’s D-League draft, while others saw their D-League rights conveyed via trade. Most of these players aren’t with the D-League affiliate of the NBA team they were with last month, with a few exceptions.

Roster information from Adam Johnson of D-League Digest, Chris Reichert of Upside & Motor and freelancer and Hoops Rumors contributor Mark Porcaro was used in the creation of this post.

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Southwest Notes: Thomas, Evans, Harrell

October 21st, 2015 at 7:15pm CST by Eddie Scarito

Pelicans swingman Tyreke Evans underwent arthroscopic surgery on his right knee on Tuesday, and he is expected to be out of action for six to eight weeks, John Reid of The Times Picayune reports. ”If you know Tyreke, if there is any way of getting back earlier, he’ll do that,” coach Alvin Gentry told reporters. ”But I know he will back as soon as he possibly can. He loves to play. He can play in pain. I just want him to get well and get completely healthy.” This was the second procedure on Evans’ knee since May.

Here’s more from the Southwest Division:

  • A few teams are interested in Deshaun Thomas, but chances are still good that he ends up with the Spurs‘ D-League affiliate in Austin, Jabari Young of The San Antonio Express-News relays (Twitter link). Thomas was waived by San Antonio earlier today.
  • With injuries to Donatas Motiejunas and Terrence Jones, Rockets rookie power forward Montrezl Harrell is getting a crash course in what it takes to be in an NBA rotation, writes Jonathan Feigen of The Houston Chronicle. “He’s getting a lot of valuable lessons,” coach Kevin McHale said. “Sometimes, they’re painful lessons. He’s got a lot to learn like all rookies do. From a coaching standpoint, I’m happy for him. He gets much more opportunities. I’d much rather see D-Mo and Terrence out there every single day, playing and him playing backup and learning that way. Right now, he’s learning by baptism by fire.”
  • Mavericks coach Rick Carlisle was effusive in expressing his appreciation for what Tyson Chandler brought to the organization, and Carlisle understands that the veteran big man may harbor some ill feelings toward the franchise after being allowed to leave as a free agent a second time, Eddie Sefko of The Dallas Morning News writes. “Tyson is one of the most special people I’ve met in my 33 years in this profession,” Carlisle said. “He knows how I feel about him and he has every right to feel the way he feels. He truly is one of the all-time great Mavericks, there’s just no doubt about it. And this past summer was the byproduct of the high-stakes things you go through in this league, the risks you take. We attempted to get the team significantly younger. It didn’t work out and he decided to leave, so that was certainly his prerogative.“
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Spurs Waive Deshaun Thomas, Youssou Ndoye

October 21st, 2015 at 1:00pm CST by Chuck Myron

1:00pm: The moves are official, the team announced via press release.

10:11am: The Spurs have waived Deshaun Thomas and Youssou Ndoye sources tell Shams Charania of Yahoo Sports (Twitter link). The team has yet to make an official announcement, though Charania indicates the moves have already taken place. Ndoye went undrafted out of St. Bonaventure this year, while the Spurs picked Thomas 58th overall in the 2013 draft, so releasing him means the team is relinquishing his draft rights. Both have non-guaranteed contracts, according to Eric Pincus of Basketball Insiders. The subtractions will leave San Antonio with 18 players, meaning at least three more cuts have to take place before opening night. The Spurs have 13 fully guaranteed salaries, as our roster count shows.

Thomas, a 24-year-old combo forward, totaled nine points on 2 for 9 shooting in about 29 minutes of play spread over two preseason appearances. The former Ohio State standout who averaged 19.8 points in his final season with the Buckeyes appeared intent on joining the Spurs this season after playing two years overseas, and he signed for the terms of the required tender San Antonio had to make to keep his draft rights. While a release from the Spurs today would give any NBA team a crack at Thomas, San Antonio can elect to keep his D-League rights.

It appears San Antonio will be doing just that with Ndoye, as the expectation when he and the team reached agreement was reportedly that he would end up with the D-League Austin Spurs. Ndoye still plans on signing with San Antonio’s D-League affiliate should he clear waivers, as Charania writes in a full story. The 24-year-old center averaged 3.3 PPG in 10.0 MPG across three preseason appearances.

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Spurs Sign Rasual Butler, Deshaun Thomas

September 28th, 2015 at 10:57am CST by Chuck Myron

The Spurs revealed they’ve signed Rasual Butler today, listing him on a roster they handed out to reporters at media day, according to Dan McCarney of the San Antonio Express-News. Deshaun Thomas, the team’s second-round pick from 2013, has also signed with San Antonio, the roster reveals. That roster also serves as the team’s first acknowledgement of previously reported deals with Youssou Ndoye and Keifer Sykes.

The leadership of the 36-year-old Butler, as well as his shooting, impressed the Spurs during voluntary workouts recenty, reports Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo Sports (Twitter link). San Antonio had evidently been eyeing the veteran swingman for a while, as The Oregonian’s Jason Quick identified the team’s interest shortly after free agency began in July. Butler had reportedly been wanting to re-sign with the Wizards or join the Heat or the Trail Blazers, but he’s ultimately chosen San Antonio, which has no more than the minimum salary to give him.

The same is true for Thomas, to whom the Spurs made their required tender of a one-year, non-guaranteed offer for the minimum salary earlier this month, as international journalist David Pick reported. It’s not clear whether Thomas signed that tender or the sides worked out different terms, but it’s no surprise to see him end up in Spurs camp, since he recently posted photos to Instagram showing him in Spurs workout gear and had been willing to play for the team if it made an offer, as Pick noted. The 24-year-old big man played in France and Spain the past two seasons after the Spurs made him the 58th overall pick in 2013.

Wojnarowski first reported that Ndoye, a 24-year-old center who went undrafted out of St. Bonaventure this summer, would join the Spurs for camp, though he noted that expectation was that Ndoye would ultimately end up with the Spurs D-League affiliate. San Antonio can keep the D-League rights to as many as four of the players it cuts at the end of the preseason.

Sykes seems ultimately destined for the D-League, too, though that’s just my speculation. The 21-year-old point guard went undrafted out of Wisconsin Green Bay in June. Shams Charania of Yahoo Sports first reported his deal.

The moves give the Spurs a full 20-man camp roster, though only 13 have fully guaranteed deals.

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Latest On Spurs, 2013 Pick Deshaun Thomas

September 18th, 2015 at 6:14pm CST by Chuck Myron
SEPTEMBER 18TH, 6:14pm: The Spurs filed their required tender by the September 10th deadline to retain their draft rights to Thomas, a source told international journalist David Pick (Twitter link).  It’s unclear if Thomas has signed the tender, which by rule is a non-guaranteed one-year offer for the minimum salary, but Thomas posted photos to Instagram today showing him in Spurs workout gear at San Antonio’s practice facility, as Pick also relays.

SEPTEMBER 2ND, 11:03am: Deshaun Thomas, whom San Antonio drafted 58th overall in 2013, would sign with the Spurs if they make him an offer, a source tells international journalist David Pick (Twitter link). The 6’7″ combo forward from Ohio State has played in France and Spain the last two seasons. The Spurs have only the minimum salary to give, but they have deals with only 18 players and guaranteed pacts with just 13, leaving open spots beneath the 20-man offseason roster limit and the 15-man regular season limit.

Reports from recent weeks have indicated that San Antonio has shown interest in Rasual Butler and Brazilian center Rafael Hettsheimeir, though it’s unclear where the Spurs see Thomas in relation to them. Thomas wasn’t on the Spurs summer league squad this year, in contrast to the past two Julys.

The 24-year-old former McDonald’s All-American averaged 7.9 points and 2.6 rebounds in 20.2 minutes per game with 37.4% three-point shooting for Barcelona of Spain this past season. He was a fairly prolific scorer in college, pouring in 19.8 PPG in 35.4 MPG in 2012/13, his final season with the Buckeyes. Thomas would compete with Matt Bonner, Jimmer Fredette, Reggie Williams, Youssou Ndoye and Keifer Sykes to make it to opening night if he indeed winds up with the Spurs for the preseason.

Do you think the Spurs should give Thomas a shot? Leave a comment to tell us.

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Odds & Ends: Hayward, Mavs, Kings, Knicks

October 30th, 2013 at 10:58pm CST by Chuck Myron

The season is just two days old, but we may already have seen its most surprising result. The Sixers pulled off a stunning victory against Heat tonight — not too shabby for a team that’s still about $5MM shy of the minimum team salary, as HoopsWorld’s Eric Pincus notes in his look at teams with cap space remaining. Here’s more from a busy 14-game night:

  • The Jazz remain in talks with Gordon Hayward about an extension, with just one day left before the deadline for him to sign one, writes Aaron Falk of The Salt Lake Tribune.
  • Mark Cuban doesn’t intend to replace former Mavs GM Gersson Rosas, who resigned yesterday, reports Tim McMahon of ESPNDallas.com.
  • On “David Stern Day” in Sacramento, the commissioner weighed in on the NBA’s approval of the Kings‘ new ownership group instead of Seattle’s bid for the franchise, as Scott Howard-Cooper of NBA.com shares via Twitter. “… The owners did the right thing. They had a vote to cast and they cast it in favor of Sacramento,” Stern said.
  • Marc Berman of the New York Post hears from a source who says too much was made out of a report earlier today that said owner James Dolan expects the Knicks to win the title this season. Dolan was merely attempting to express his confidence in the team’s players, the source tells Berman.
  • Knicks GM Steve Mills isn’t looking to hire any more people to work under him in the team’s front office, but he does intend to restructure some of the roles of his existing staff, as Berman passes along in the same piece.
  • Gary Parrish of CBSSports.com points to Spurs second-round pick Deshaun Thomas as an example of why the NCAA need not allow early draft entrants back on their college teams if they don’t make an NBA roster. The agent for Thomas says he’ll make $150K on his contract with JSF Nanterre in France this season, Parrish notes.
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Deshaun Thomas To Play In France This Season

August 16th, 2013 at 3:59pm CST by Ryan Raroque

FRIDAY, 3:59pm: French team JSF Nanterre has officially announced the addition of Thomas, as Sportando notes via Twitter.

THURSDAY, 6:15pm: According to Bob Baptist of The Columbus Dispatch, Deshaun Thomas will opt to play in France this season (hat tip to Sportando). The 6'7 forward was selected 58th overall by the Spurs in June and averaged 12.4 PPG and 5.0 RPG while shooting 41.4% overall and 37.5% from long range in five summer league games. Thomas wasn't immediately sure of the name of the team he signed with, but acknowledged that he'll be playing in Paris. 

The former Ohio State Buckeye candidly spoke about his decision to play overseas, telling Baptist:

“(The Spurs) didn’t know what they want to do with their 15 (roster) spots . . . and I needed to make a decision…In this business, you have to think about family. I still could have gone to (training camp) and tried to make the (Spurs’) roster, but with my son and a family to provide for, I had to look at that. And developing a year ain’t going to hurt."

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Draft Updates: Wednesday Afternoon

June 26th, 2013 at 4:38pm CST by Luke Adams

We rounded up the morning updates on the draft earlier today, and passed along a few of the day's more notable draft-related rumors in their own separate posts. Now, a few more afternoon updates, with just over 24 hours to go until the 2013 draft:

  • If the Thunder are able to trade up and acquire a top-five pick, their primary target figures to be Alex Len, tweets Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports. According to Sam Amico of FOX Sports Ohio (via Twitter), Oklahoma City is likely dangling its two first-round picks (Nos. 12 and 29), along with Kendrick Perkins and perhaps its second-rounder (No. 32).
  • The Hawks are working out Jeff Withey, Kelly Olynyk, and Grant Jerrett in Atlanta today, tweets Wojnarowski.
  • Sean Deveney of the Sporting News writes in his latest rumor roundup that it's appearing more and more likely that the Cavaliers will keep the first overall pick.
  • Some sources believe that the Thunder won't let Deshaun Thomas get past them at No. 32 tomorrow night, according to Amico. However, many executives believe Thomas could go as high as No. 19 or as low as the mid-second-round.
  • Archie Goodwin's stock appears to be slipping as tomorrow night approaches, says Amico, adding that there's an outside chance he may not even get drafted.
  • The Clippers are said to be high on Allen Crabbe and it's possible he'll still be on the board at No. 25 for L.A., says Amico.
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Draft Notes: Jazz, Noel, Cavs, Suns, Blazers

June 20th, 2013 at 10:22pm CST by Luke Adams

We unveiled the first edition of Hoops Rumors' 2013 mock draft earlier today, as our own Alex Lee ran through picks one through 30. We'll have our second and final mock up next week, just in time for Thursday night's draft, and given the lack of consensus on this year's class, it wouldn't be a surprise to see major changes to our board over the next several days. Here are the latest draft-related notes and rumors:

  • The Clippers worked out E.J. Singler, Carrick Felix, Alex Oriakhi, and Jackie Carmichael at their Playa Vista training center this morning (Clippers.com).
  • Among those who will participate in a pre-draft workout with the Wizards tomorrow include Keith Clanton, D.J. Cooper, Joffrey Lauvergne, Korie Lucious, Nicolo Melli, and Maurice Sutton, according to the team's official website. 
  • The Timberwolves will host Mason Plumlee, Kelly Olynyk, Christian Watford, and Colton Iverson tomorrow, as per the team's official PR Twitter account. 

Earlier updates:

  • Today's NBA AM piece from Steve Kyler of HoopsWorld is heavy on draft content, including an interview with Nerlens Noel and updates on Alex Len, the Jazz, and possible draft-and-stash candidates.
  • Sources within the Cavaliers organization seem somewhat "cool" on Noel, according to Jason Lloyd of the Akron Beacon Journal. Still, Lloyd says the Cavs continue to prioritize long-term results rather than a short-term desire to make the playoffs, so Noel's inability to make an immediate impact likely wouldn't be a significant factor in the club's decision at No. 1.
  • ESPN.com's Chad Ford (Insider-only link) has unveiled his annual tiered rankings of the draft class, and none of this year's prospects qualified for either the first or second tier.
  • While most of the focus among Suns fans figures to be on the team's fifth overall pick, Phoenix also has the 30th and 57th selections. Paul Coro of the Arizona Republic has the names of the candidates for those picks who worked out for the team today, including Jeff Withey and Deshaun Thomas (Twitter link).
  • Steven Adams, Rudy Gobert, and Ricky Ledo are among the prospects working out for the Trail Blazers today, and Chris Haynes of CSNNW.com believes one of them could end up being the No. 10 pick (Twitter links).
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Draft Notes: Wyatt, Jazz, Foster

June 15th, 2013 at 9:50pm CST by Spencer Lund

It's tough when you dominate at your college, but fail to see any interest from the professional ranks. That's what Santa Clara's all-time leading scorer, Kevin Foster, is facing as he prepares to possibly be snubbed later this month in the draft.

Foster told the San Jose Mercury News' Curtis Pashelka "it would be a dream come true" to play for the Warriors, who are so close to his adopted hometown. Foster participated in a predraft workout with six other hopefuls including five guards this morning.

Even after workouts with the Rockets and Bucks, Foster said the Warriors are his "preference" because of their locale, but followed that up by saying, "I just want to get drafted somewhere." Here are some more notes surrounding the upcoming draft. 

  • Former Temple guard, Khalif Wyatt, worked out for the Sixers today, writes Keith Pompey at the Philadelphia Inquirer. But what wasn't reported was that Wyatt was joined by Shane Larkin, DeShaun Thomas and Glen Rice Jr. in the unannounced workout.
  • Tom Moore of Phillyburbs.com notes that Wyatt spent six weeks at Impact Basketball in Las Vegas, eating better and getting stronger while dropping from 223 lbs. to 210 on his 6'4" frame.
  • Keith Schlosser of SB Nation's Ridiculous Upside breaks down the intriguing prospects at the NBA's only 2012 National D-League Tryout next Saturday.  
  • The Jazz had a big day of workouts highlighted by Gonzaga University center Kelly Olynyk, writes the Salt Lake Tribune's Bill Oram, but it's his connection to Hall of Famer John Stockton, who is also a Gonzaga alum, that made the workout so enjoyable.
  • The Salt Lake Tribune's Steve Luhm said the Jazz also worked out three other likely first round selections today: Gorgui Dieng, Rudy Gobert, and Jamaal Franklin (Twitter).
  • About Franklin, SB Nation's Mountain West Connection profiled the San Diego State shooting guard.
  • Oram said the Jazz will work out Will Clyburn, Robert Covington, Troy Daniels, Rodney McGruder, E.J. Singler and Adonis Thomas tomorrow (Twitter).
  • Paul Coro of the Arizona Republic said the Suns worked out Steven Adams, Lorenzo Brown, Myck Kabongo, Mike Muscala, Alex Oriakhi and Brandon Paul today (Twitter)
  • Nerlens Noel was featured in a courtside report video by Monumental Network.
  • The Knicks will work out Archie Goodwin, Jordan Henriquez, Trent Lockett, Dejan Musli, Stan Okoye and Josiah Turner on Monday, reports ESPNNewYork.com's Ian Begley (Twitter).
  • Sportando.net reports Janis Timma will work out with five NBA teams before the draft and then head to the Las Vegas. After the draft, he may play in the NBA's summer league.  
  • Charles F. Gardner of the Journal-Sentinel profiled 6'6" Providence prospect, Ricky Ledo, who is receiving interest from NBA teams after workouts despite being deemed ineligible to play as a freshman for the Friars.
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