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Wizards Sign Mouhamadou Gueye, Cut Erik Stevenson

October 14th, 2024 at 7:33am CST by Luke Adams

The Wizards made a minor change at the back of their roster on Sunday, signing free agent forward Mouhamadou Gueye to an Exhibit 10 contract and waiving guard Erik Stevenson, according to the team (Twitter links).

Gueye, who went undrafted out of Pitt in 2022, saw his first NBA action last season after joining the Raptors on a 10-day deal in February and a two-way contract in March. He appeared in 11 games down the stretch for Toronto, averaging 2.4 points, 2.1 rebounds, and 1.6 blocks in 10.9 minutes per contest.

In 39 Showcase Cup and regular season outings for the Raptors 905 – Toronto’s G League affiliate – Gueye averaged 14.2 PPG, 7.9 RPG, and 2.6 BPG in 31.0 MPG, making 56.1% of his shots from the floor but just 49.5% of his free throw tries.

Stevenson, meanwhile, was just under contract with the Wizards for a few days after signing an Exhibit 10 deal with the team last week. He didn’t appear in Friday’s preseason game vs. Toronto and appears ticketed for the Capital City Go-Go, Washington’s NBAGL team.

The Go-Go acquired Gueye’s returning rights from the 905 in a trade last month, so he’ll likely be waived before the season begins and report to Capital City as well. If Gueye and Stevenson spend at least 60 days with the Go-Go, they’ll earn Exhibit 10 bonuses worth up to $77.5K apiece.

Having also signed center John Butler Jr. and forward Taylor Funk to Exhibit 10 contracts on Sunday, the Wizards are carrying the maximum allowable 21 players on their preseason roster.

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Wizards Waive Jaylen Nowell, Sign Erik Stevenson

October 10th, 2024 at 5:23pm CST by Tristan Tucker

The Wizards are cycling through Exhibit 10 players, cutting Jaylen Nowell from the training camp roster to make room for Erik Stevenson, according to Spotrac’s Keith Smith (Twitter link).

Washington originally agreed to terms with Nowell in August alongside Kira Lewis and Leaky Black before officially adding them to their roster in September. All three were set up to compete for a spot on Washington’s roster, but with the Wizards already facing a roster crunch with 16 players on standard deals, it was an uphill battle for Nowell (or Lewis) to make it on a standard contract. Of those three signees, Black is the only one eligible for a two-way contract since he has just one year of NBA service. The Wizards have one two-way slot open.

Nowell now has the option to play for the team’s G League affiliate, the Capital City Go-Go. If he spends at least 60 days with the club, he’ll earn a bonus worth $77.5K. Nowell is a five-year NBA veteran, appearing in 197 games (four starts) and averaging 8.9 points across appearances with the Timberwolves, Grizzlies and Pistons.

The 6’4″ Stevenson went undrafted in 2023 out of West Virginia. He was cycled onto the Spurs’ roster on an Exhibit 10 contract last offseason, appearing in 48 games with both the Austin Spurs and then Texas Legends in the G League. He averaged 10.0 points, 3.5 rebounds and 2.8 assists per game in his G League appearances last year.

Theoretically, Stevenson will be in competition for Washington’s open two-way slot. It seems more likely, given the timing of the signing, that he’ll end up being waived and spending the 2024/25 season in the G League to develop.

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Eastern Notes: Heat, Haliburton, Raptors, Wizards

September 17th, 2024 at 11:33am CST by Luke Adams

The Heat are currently operating below the second tax apron by approximately $1.2MM with 14 players on guaranteed contracts. Adding a 15th man on a minimum-salary deal would push the team’s salary above the second apron, prohibiting the front office from aggregating salaries or sending out cash in a trade.

As Ira Winderman of The South Florida Sun Sentinel acknowledges in a mailbag, the Heat could carry a 15th man on a non-guaranteed contract to open the regular season, essentially paying that player by the day and then waiving him to sneak back below the second apron if needed for an in-season deal. But Miami is more concerned about being able to carry a 15th man later in the season during the playoff race, according to Winderman, who anticipates the team will keep its final standard roster spot open this fall.

For what it’s worth, if the Heat do want to carry 15 players and surpass the second apron, they’d be able to do that and could still aggregate salaries in a trade as long as they sent out more salary than they took back in that trade, moving below the second apron as a result of the transaction. In that scenario, they’d be hard-capped at the second apron for the rest of the season.

Here’s more from around the East:

  • Asked last week during an appearance on ESPN’s Pat McAfee Show (YouTube link) about rumors that he was attempting to recruit his Team USA teammates to the Pacers during his Olympic experience this summer, star guard Tyrese Haliburton suggested that story was overblown. “I think there was recruiting going on from everybody, but me saying that got blown out of proportion because I play in the smallest market,” Haliburton said. “… I’m not going anywhere. So if (anyone) wants to play with me, they’d have to come (to Indiana).”
  • With Scottie Barnes, Immanuel Quickley, RJ Barrett, and Jakob Poeltl locked in as starters, who will claim the fifth spot in the Raptors‘ starting five? Eric Koreen of The Athletic explores that question in an article examining Toronto’s depth chart and rotation, speculating that Gradey Dick will be the fifth starter and that rookie Ja’Kobe Walter will get a shot at rotation minutes this fall.
  • The Capital City Go-Go – the Wizards‘ G League affiliate – announced that they’ve acquired Erik Stevenson‘s returning rights from the Texas Legends (Mavericks) in exchange for a 2024 first-round pick and Jake Stephens‘ returning rights (Twitter link). The move suggests that Stevenson, a former West Virginia standout who played for the Wizards in Summer League, will be with Washington’s G League team to open the 2024/25 season and could be a candidate for a preseason Exhibit 10 contract.
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Spurs Sign, Waive Paul Watson, Erik Stevenson

October 12th, 2023 at 6:30pm CST by Luke Adams

OCTOBER 12: Watson and Stevenson have been waived by the Spurs, per NBA.com’s transaction log.

OCTOBER 10: The Spurs have signed free agent wing Paul Watson and guard Erik Stevenson, per RealGM’s transaction log. According to Keith Smith of Spotrac (Twitter link), both players received non-guaranteed training camp contracts.

Watson, 28, played in Germany briefly after going undrafted out of Fresno State in 2017, but has since bounced back and forth between the NBA and the G League. The 6’6″ guard/forward with some three-and-D potential, appeared in 46 total NBA games for the Hawks, Raptors, and Thunder from 2020-22, as well as 142 regular season and Showcase Cup NBAGL contests for the Westchester Knicks, Raptors 905, and Oklahoma City Blue from 2017-22.

Stevenson went undrafted earlier this year after playing five college seasons at four different schools. As a super-senior at West Virginia in 2022/23, he averaged 15.4 points, 3.4 rebounds, and 2.5 assists in 34 games (26.0 MPG) and posted a shooting line of .430/.379/.796.

In all likelihood, both Watson and Stevenson signed Exhibit 10 contracts that will make them eligible for bonuses worth up to $75K if they’re waived by San Antonio and then spend at least 60 days with the Spurs’ G League affiliate in Austin.

San Antonio now has a full 21-man preseason roster.

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Southeast Notes: Magic, Trent, Hawks, Sanogo, Wizards

June 6th, 2023 at 8:21pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Magic hold a pair of lottery picks and an early second-round selection in this month’s draft. What picks would be ideal at those spots? Jeremy Woo of ESPN weighs in on that subject and believes Overtime Elite shooting guard Ausar Thompson and Kansas shooting guard Gradey Dick would make nice fits at No. 6 and No. 11, respectively. Belmont small forward Ben Sheppard would give the Magic another shooting option if they chose him at No. 36, Woo adds.

We have more from the Southeast Division:

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Eastern Notes: Hawks, Quickley, Rubio, Celtics, Redick

May 10th, 2023 at 7:33pm CST by Rory Maher

The Hawks held pre-draft workouts with six college players on Thursday and will be hosting six more on Friday, the team announced (Twitter links).

Thursday’s group featured Alex Fudge (Florida), Logan Johnson (St. Mary’s), Matthew Mayer (Illinois), Kevin Obanor (Texas Tech), Antonio Reeves (Kentucky) and Hunter Tyson (Clemson), while Marcus Carr (Texas), Kendric Davis (Memphis), Tosan Evbuomwan (Princeton), Landers Nolley (Cincinnati), Drew Peterson (USC) and Erik Stevenson (West Virginia) will be working out tomorrow.

Of the players mentioned, only Evbuomwan — who helped lead the 15th-seeded Tigers to the Sweet Sixteen in the NCAA Tournament — appears on ESPN’s top-100 prospects list ahead of the draft; he’s considered a fringe second-round pick at No. 77. The Hawks control the 15th and 46th overall picks in June’s draft.

Here’s more from around the Eastern Conference:

  • Trailing 3-1 and facing playoff elimination tonight, the Knicks will be without Sixth Man of the Year runner-up Immanuel Quickley for the second straight game due to a left ankle sprain, head coach Tom Thibodeau told reporters, including Ian Begley of SNY.tv (Twitter link). Thibodeau did say the third-year guard’s injury has improved, but obviously not enough to play. He’s still considered day-to-day, Begley adds. Reserve guard Evan Fournier (illness) will also be sidelined, per the Knicks (Twitter link) — the veteran has yet to play this postseason.
  • Cavaliers guard Ricky Rubio didn’t have the season he was hoping for after returning from his second left ACL tear, but he and the team are hoping for better results in 2023/24, writes Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com. Sources tell Fedor the Cavs are encouraging Rubio to play in this summer’s World Cup for Spain, but the veteran hasn’t made a decision on that front. “I think it will help,” Rubio said. “I’m going to meet with my team, my personal team, see what’s the best for me in rehab. I think I’ve got to get more even strength on my lower legs, lower body and see what’s the best for me. I always want to compete up. The World Cup is something special as well. But I will take my time.”
  • Former NBA veteran JJ Redick, who is now an ESPN analyst, recently interviewed for Toronto’s head coaching job. The Celtics are among “several teams” that have shown interest in hiring Redick as an assistant coach since he retired a couple years ago, reports Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN.
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