Dirk Nowitzki Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Southwest Notes: Bogut, Simmons, Hield, Nowitzki

July 31st, 2016 at 8:45pm CST by Arthur Hill

New Mavericks center Andrew Bogut was back on the court today for the first time since hurting his left knee in Game 5 of the NBA Finals, reports ESPN.com. Bogut played nine minutes for the Australian National Team in an Oympic tune-up against China. He wore a brace on his knee as he registered three rebounds and an assist. “I think his first game back from an injury is always difficult,” said Australian assistant coach Luc Longley. “We’re fairly happy with how he moved, how he looked on the court and will build from that.”

There’s more news from the Southwest Division:

Jonathon Simmons‘ contract with the Spurs is now fully guaranteed for next season, relays Emiliano Carchia of Sportando. The second-year shooting guard will make $847,636 after the guarantee deadline passed Saturday.
The Pelicans expect first-round pick Buddy Hield to have ups and downs during his rookie season, writes Ian Thomsen of NBA.com. Hield struggled with his shot in his first summer league experience, connecting on just 33% from the field and 23% from 3-point range. New Orleans is counting on Hield to replace Eric Gordon, who signed with the Rockets in free agency. “With him it’s never going to be about effort,” said Pelicans coach Alvin Gentry. “It’s just going to be about the experience of learning, and if that’s all you’ve got to worry about then I think he’s going to be a very good player. It’s going to be a roller coaster season for him. He’s going to have some 30-point games, he’s also going to have some 3-for-15 games. That’s all a part of learning as a rookie. But you tell me a rookie that’s come in this league that hasn’t done that.”
After years of being paid below his market value, the Mavericks‘ Dirk Nowitzki deserves the two-year, $50MM deal he signed this summer, contends Tim MacMahon of ESPN.com. Nowitzki said he took less in previous years to help Dallas assemble the best possible team and noted that the Mavericks were able to trade for Tyson Chandler and sign Chandler Parsons because of it.

Southwest Notes: Parker, Nowitzki, Dedmon

July 28th, 2016 at 7:43pm CST by Eddie Scarito

Despite the retirement of Tim Duncan this summer, point guard Tony Parker still believes the Spurs will be a factor in the championship hunt in 2016/17, Tom Orsborn of The San Antonio Express-News writes. “Obviously, we are going to miss him a lot,” Parker said of Duncan. “You can’t replace a guy like Timmy. But we will try to do our best to keep the Spurs going and to keep winning. I’m just going to try to be a good leader and welcome all the new guys and try to help them as much as I can and just show them the Spurs culture and what we do here.”

Here’s more from out of the Southwest Division:

Former Providence point guard God Shammgod has joined the Mavericks‘ staff as an assistant coach in charge of player development, Jon Rothstein of CBSSports.com tweets.
Dirk Nowitzki‘s contract with the Mavs calls for him to earn $25MM per season, includes a no-trade clause and the second year is a team option with no guaranteed money, Eric Pincus of Basketball Insiders relays (Twitter links).
Center Dewayne Dedmon said his two best options this offseason were the Spurs and the Warriors, adding he chose San Antonio in order to have a shot a beating Golden State, Jabari Young of The San Antonio Express-News relays (Subscription required). The soon-to-be 27-year-old inked a two-year deal with the Spurs this offseason.

Mavs, Dirk Nowitzki Finalize $50MM Deal

July 27th, 2016 at 5:21pm CST by Luke Adams

JULY 27th, 5:21pm: The deal is official, the Mavericks announced via press release.

JULY 22nd, 1:59pm: The second year of Nowitzki’s new deal is only partially guaranteed for $5MM, Stein writes within his full story on the agreement. Still, barring something drastic happening between now and next summer, it’s hard to imagine the Mavericks waiving the future Hall-of-Famer to get out of that second year — it’s likely a precaution in the event that Nowitzki decides to retire in 2017.

1:48pm: About two and a half weeks after reaching an agreement on the framework of a two-year contract, Dirk Nowitzki and the Mavericks have finalized that contract, and the deal will pay him more than initially expected, reports ESPN’s Marc Stein (via Twitter). According to Stein, Nowitzki’s new pact will be worth $50MM, an increase over the $40MM figure reported earlier this month.

Because the Mavericks hold Nowitzki’s Bird rights, the team can go over the cap to re-sign him, and can give him any salary up to his maximum, which is nearly $31MM for the 2016/17 season. Dallas has been keeping Nowitzki’s $12.5MM cap hold on the books while finalizing all the other agreed-upon signings and trades from the offseason — now that the team has no more cap room left, the 38-year-old’s deal can be completed.

Increasing Nowitzki’s salary by an extra $5MM per year shouldn’t have an impact on the team’s ability to bring in any other players. The pay bump also ensures that Dirk’s latest deal is worth slightly more than the final two-year, $48.5MM contract Kobe Bryant signed with the Lakers.

Even at $20MM annually, Nowitzki’s new deal would have represented a significant increase in salary on his last contract, which was worth $25MM over three years. At $50MM over two years, Nowitzki’s new annual average salary matches the overall value of that three-year pact.

The longtime Maverick opted out of the final year of that previous deal last month, choosing instead to work out a new, multiyear contract with Dallas. Although there were rumblings that the Warriors – and perhaps other teams – intended to reach out to Nowitzki, the Mavs were always the strong favorites to re-sign him.

Despite turning 38 in June, Nowitzki has continued to be extremely productive for the Mavericks, even as the team has slipped from title contention in recent years. In 2015/16, the German big man averaged 18.3 PPG, 6.5 RPG, and 1.7 3PG. Nowitzki’s field-goal percentage did slip to .448, his worst mark since his rookie season, but he shot a respectable 36.8% on three-pointers and continued to handle a significant offensive load for the franchise.

Nowitzki’s new two-year contract was reportedly expected to include a player option in year two, as of earlier this month. There’s no indication yet that has changed, now that the two sides have formally hammered out the details.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Southwest Rumors: Mavs, Jones, Pelicans

July 22nd, 2016 at 10:31pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Mavs must lop off some salaries in order to sign a max-contract player next summer if Dirk Nowitzki returns in 2017/18, Tim MacMahon of ESPN.com reports. Nowitki and the club agreed to a two-year, $50MM contract on Friday. Nowitzki’s $25MM salary for the second season of the contract, plus more than $60MM in other guaranteed commitments, would leave Dallas with less than $16MM under the projected cap of $102MM, by MacMahon’s calculations. If Nowitzki retires after next season, the Mavs can exercise a $5MM team option, according to ESPN.com’s Marc Stein.

In other news concerning the Southwest Division:

The opportunity to play steady minutes and rejoin forces with his ex-college teammate Anthony Davis were major factors in Terrence Jones’ decision to sign with the Pelicans, Oliver Maroney of Basketball Insiders writes. Jones, who signed a one-year contract worth an estimated $980K, appeared in only 50 games last season. “I wanted an opportunity to play for a team that is young and defining itself, but could still compete right away,” Jones told Maroney. “I wanted a larger role, where I could really compete and help a team win.” He’s excited about the prospect of playing alongside Davis, with whom he won the NCAA championship at Kentucky, Maroney adds. “We both work well together and we’ve already got a great chemistry and friendship,” Jones said. “When he’s healthy, I think he’s as good as any other big in the league, so I am excited to see what we can do this year.”
The Pelicans renounced their rights to Norris Cole, Kendrick Perkins and Jordan Hamilton, Justin Verrier of ESPN.com tweets. Those moves allowed them to officially sign both Jones and point guard Tim Frazier.

Southwest Notes: Nowitzki, Cuban, Jones, Stephens

July 17th, 2016 at 8:51pm CST by Arthur Hill

There was never a chance that Dirk Nowitzki would emulate Kevin Durant and Dwyane Wade and leave his long-time team, according to Gary Washburn of The Boston Globe. Nowitzki agreed to a two-year, $40MM deal to stay in Dallas, and Mavericks owner Mark Cuban said he never thought the situation would end differently. “Dirk wasn’t going anywhere,” Cuban said. “Dirk and Dallas, Dallas and Dirk, they’re synonymous. I understand and respect why D-Wade did what he did but there was never any doubt [about Nowitzki staying in Dallas], Dirk gets what Dirk wants.”

There’s more from the Southwest Division:

Durant’s decision to join Golden State benefited the Mavericks, who were able to trade for Andrew Bogut and sign Harrison Barnes as the Warriors worked to clear cap space. Cuban likes the look of his new squad, Washburn writes in the same piece. “Yeah, Golden State south,” the owner said. “Harrison will get a chance to expand his game and [Wesley Matthews] will be fully healthy. Deron Williams, Harrison, Dirk, Andrew, that’s not a bad starting five, and we’ve got some of our guys coming back. So we’ll be all right.”
Jameel Warney is trying to decide whether to attend training camp with the Mavericks or accept an offer in South Korea, tweets Adam Zagoria of SNY.tv. Warney, a three-time America East Player of the Year at Stony Brook, was part of the Mavs’ Summer League team.
The Pelicans‘ Anthony Davis is happy to have Terrence Jones as a teammate again, he said in an interview with Nancy Armour of USA Today on NBA A to Z. New Orleans reached a deal with Jones on Thursday, signing the ex-Rocket for one year at the minimum salary. Houston elected not to submit a qualifying offer to the four-year veteran, making him an unrestricted free agent. ”He’s very physical and he can put the ball on the floor, great slasher and can drive to the basket,” Davis said. ”I think not a lot of bigs can guard him. I think me and him played very well with each other at Kentucky and hopefully we can do it here in New Orleans.”
The Grizzlies will bring former University of Memphis guard D.J. Stephens to camp, new coach David Fizdale said in an interview on NBA.com. The 25-year-old Stephens has three games of NBA experience with Milwaukee in 2014.

Southwest Notes: Barnes, Nowitzki, Duncan

July 15th, 2016 at 12:39pm CST by Arthur Hill

The Mavericks are planning an expanded role for newly signed forward Harrison Barnes, writes Tim MacMahon of ESPN.com. Dallas gave Barnes $94MM over four years after losing small forward Chandler Parsons to the Grizzlies in free agency. “You’re going to see a lot more to his game than you’ve seen in the past,” Mavericks owner Mark Cuban said of Barnes. “I think he can do a lot more than he’s been asked to do, and that’s what we expect to see. … Maybe not first year, but I think he’s going to grow into [the role of go-to guy]. Just because a guy hasn’t done things doesn’t mean he can’t do it.” Barnes, 24, averaged 13.6 points and 5.7 rebounds in 66 games with the Warriors last season.

There’s more from the Southwest Division:

Dirk Nowitzki probably would have left the Mavericks as a free agent or requested a trade by now if he hadn’t won a title in 2011, contends Tim Cowlishaw of The Dallas Morning News. Cowlishaw also gives Dallas a C grade for its performance in free agency and speculates that medical reports on Parsons must have been scary for Cuban to let him go.
The Spurs‘ Tim Duncan, who announced his retirement this week, has officially cleared waivers, according to Real GM. It’s a minor footnote for someone who almost certainly is done with the NBA, but Duncan would be a free agent if he ever does decide to return.
San Antonio has removed its cap hold for 2015 first-round pick Nikola Milutinov, Real GM notes. The move means the 6’11” Serbian center, who played this season with Olympiacos in Greece, will spend at least one more year overseas.
The Grizzlies have withdrawn their qualifying offer to shooting guard Nick Calathes, according to Real GM. Calathes, who spent this season with Panathinaikos in Greece, would be an unrestricted free agent if he returns to the NBA. The 27-year-old spent two seasons in Memphis.

Southwest Notes: Gordon, Harden, Murray

July 11th, 2016 at 10:51am CST by Eddie Scarito

New Rockets shooting guard Eric Gordon missed 189 out of a possible 410 games during his time with the Pelicans and never played more than 64 games in a season, but Gordon doesn’t believe he is injury prone, John Reid of The Times Picayune writes. “Most of them been fluke injuries,” Gordon said. ”From the first one where I just banged knees and this past year I was on my way to playing 82 games and then end up having a freakish breaking the finger [injury]. They were little fluke injuries that I can easily overcome, but my plan every year 82 games plus more.’‘

[RELATED: Tim Duncan Announces Retirement]

Here’s more from out of the Southwest Division:

Retaining James Harden, who agreed to a four-year, $118MM renegotiation and extension with the Rockets, was a big step for the franchise, given the difficulty the organization has had in landing and keeping star players, Calvin Watkins of ESPN.com writes.
By re-signing with the Mavericks for two-years and $40MM, Dirk Nowitzki cost himself a shot at latching on to a contender and chasing another ring before his career comes to a close, but he’ll have the distinction of remaining with the same franchise for his entire career, Rick Gosselin of The Dallas Morning News writes.
Spurs 2016 first round pick Dejounte Murray is trying to maintain his identity as a basketball player while acclimating himself to San Antonio’s system, Michael C. Wright of ESPN.com relays. “They still tell me to be myself, [but] just play the right way. The Spurs way,” Murray said. “I know what type of ball they play because I’ve watched them over the years starting with the NBA team, and this is the summer league team. Everybody here is trying to get on the floor in the regular season. So it’s not hard. I’m just going out, [doing] whatever they tell me to do, and I’m learning the system practice by practice, and I’m going out and executing in the games.“

Mavericks Acquire Andrew Bogut From Warriors

July 7th, 2016 at 9:24am CST by Luke Adams

THURSDAY, 9:24am: The Mavericks have formally confirmed in a press release that they’ve acquired Bogut and a future second-round pick in exchange for a conditional future second-rounder.

MONDAY, 6:11pm: The Mavs will receive a conditional 2019 second-round draft choice along with Bogut, a league source told Tim MacMahon of ESPN.com (Twitter link).

3:37pm: The Mavs are sending a future second-round pick to Golden State as part of the deal, tweets Shams Charania of The Vertical.

1:35pm: The Warriors and Mavs are now in agreement on a trade involving Bogut, Stein reports (via Twitter).

1:29pm: The Warriors and Mavericks are in the “final stages” of negotiations on a trade that will send Andrew Bogut to Dallas, according to ESPN’s Marc Stein (Twitter links). There are still some details to be sorted out, but it looks like a deal will get done, writes Adrian Wojnarowski of The Vertical. Stein had reported earlier today that the Mavs had emerged as a strong potential suitor for Bogut, in the wake of Kevin Durant‘s agreement with Golden State.

Because the Warriors need to clear cap room, the Mavs won’t be sending back any salary in the proposed deal, and will absorb Bogut into their own cap space. The other parts of the deal aren’t known yet.

Dallas will have to send something to Golden State in the deal, but it could just be a heavily-protected future draft pick or the NBA rights to a previously-drafted player. If draft picks are involved in the swap, I’d expect the Mavs to land the better pick, since they’re essentially doing the Warriors a favor, allowing Golden State to clear the room necessary for Durant.

A former No. 1 overall pick, Bogut remains a solid presence in the middle when he’s healthy. His 5.4 PPG for the Warriors this past season represented a career-low, but he contributed 5.3 RPG and 1.6 BPG to go along with a .627 FG%. Golden State obviously didn’t lean on Bogut for offense, but the team seemed to miss his rim protection and rebounding in the NBA Finals after he went down with a knee injury.

In addition to finalizing a deal for Bogut, the Mavericks are attempting to secure an agreement with Harrison Barnes, and will look to re-sign Dirk Nowitzki, per Wojnarowski.

Meanwhile, with a probable landing spot lined up for Bogut’s $12.68MM salary, the Warriors intend to fully guarantee Shaun Livingston‘s $5.78MM salary for the coming season, tweets Marc J. Spears of The Undefeated.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Mavs To Re-Sign Dirk Nowitzki

July 5th, 2016 at 8:25am CST by Luke Adams

After missing out on some of their top free agent targets early in July, the Mavericks have been active over the last couple days filling out their roster, and now the team is set to lock up its franchise player to a new contract. According to ESPN’s Marc Stein, the Mavs have reached an agreement on the framework for a two-year, $40MM deal for Dirk Nowitzki. The second year of the deal will likely be a player option, per Stein.

For Nowitzki, the new deal will represent a significant increase in salary on his last contract, which was worth $25MM over three years. The longtime Maverick opted out of the final year of that deal last month, choosing instead to work out a new, multiyear contract with Dallas. Although there were rumblings that the Warriors – and perhaps other teams – intended to reach out to Nowitzki, the Mavs were always the strong favorites to re-sign him.

Because Nowitzki was on such a modest contract, his cap hold this summer is only worth about $12.5MM. The Mavericks will have to keep that figure on their books as they absorb trade acquisition Andrew Bogut and finalize contracts for other free agent signees. However, once they use up their cap room, the Mavs will be able to go over the cap to finalize Nowitzki’s deal, which will have a salary closer to $20MM in 2016/17.

Although they missed out on top free agent targets like Mike Conley and Hassan Whiteside, the Mavericks have recovered reasonably well, agreeing to acquire Bogut from the Warriors for essentially nothing, and landing Harrison Barnes and Seth Curry in free agency. The team also reached agreements to bring back a pair of its own free agents, Deron Williams and Dwight Powell.

Nowitzki turned 38 in June, but has continued to be extremely productive for the Mavericks, even as the team has slipped from title contention in recent years. In 2015/16, the German big man averaged 18.3 PPG, 6.5 RPG, and 1.7 3PG. Nowitzki’s field-goal percentage did slip to .448, his worst mark since his rookie season, but he shot a respectable 36.8% on three-pointers and continued to handle a significant offensive load for the franchise.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Southwest Rumors: Rockets, Gentile, Gee, Dirk

June 21st, 2016 at 4:01pm CST by Luke Adams

Italian wing Alessandro Gentile, whose NBA rights are held by the Rockets, is very interested in making the leap to the NBA this year now that Mike D’Antoni is the new head coach in Houston, as he tells Adrian Wojnarwoski of The Vertical. “My goal is to play in the NBA next year,” Gentile told The Vertical. “I really hope this can happen. For me, Mike D’Antoni is like a legend in Italian basketball, an example for everyone. For him to coach me would be very, very nice.”

While the Rockets have “significant interest” in signing Gentile, according to Wojnarowski, the team may wait to see what happens at the start of July’s free agent period before negotiating a deal with the 23-year-old. It’s also possible that Houston could trade his rights, if the team “becomes hesitant or financially unwilling” to lock him up — in that scenario, Gentile would still want to come stateside. “My dream is that I want to play in Houston with Mike D’Antoni,” Gentile said. “If that’s not possible, my goal is to still play in the NBA next year.”

Here’s more from out of the Southwest:

The Rockets don’t have a first-round draft pick this year, but general manager Daryl Morey thinks they should be able to get back into the first round if they want to. “I think it will be pretty easy to trade (our) picks into the first this year,” Morey tells Calvin Watkins of ESPN.com. “There are four teams that have almost half the draft in the first round, and none of them wants to use their pick to trade. Trading in will be easy.” On Monday, we looked at the five teams that control 14 of this year’s 30 first-round picks.
The deadline for Alonzo Gee to make his decision on his player option for 2016/17 had previously been reported as June 21st, but Brett Dawson of The Advocate tweets that the Pelicans forward will actually have until June 27th to pick up or decline that option.
The Pelicans haven’t been shy about dealing first-round picks for veteran players in the past, and general manager Dell Demps hasn’t ruled out the possibility of doing it again with the No. 6 overall selection this year. ESPN’s Justin Verrier examines the pros and cons of trading the pick for New Orleans.
In the wake of a report indicating that the Warriors may attempt to court Dirk Nowitzki in free agency, Mavericks guard Devin Harris tells Eddie Sefko of The Dallas Morning News, “I don’t think the big German is going anywhere.” Nowitzki has opted out of his contract, but is still considered likely to re-sign with Dallas.
Matt Bonner is eligible for free agency this summer, but the 36-year-old veteran hopes to play another year with the Spurs, as Tom Orsborn of The San Antonio Express-News details.