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Rockets Notes: Gordon, D’Antoni, Hartenstein, MCW

September 27th, 2018 at 10:13pm CST by JD Shaw

Rockets guard Eric Gordon is unlikely to sign a contract extension with the team at this point, the 29-year-old said this week, according to Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle. Gordon’s representatives spoke with Rockets management about a potential extension this summer, but talks didn’t advance past the initial stage.

Gordon is set to enter the third season of his four-year, $52MM contract, establishing himself as a valuable scorer off the Rockets’ bench. Since Houston is over the salary cap, the club could only offer a starting salary worth up to 120% of Gordon’s $14MM salary for 2019/20 in any potential extension, according to Feigen. The team can then offer 8% raises for the following seasons, but the thought of receiving better offers in the free agency of 2020 likely intrigues Gordon more.

“There were extension talks, but nothing really serious,” Gordon said. “I would much rather be here (in Houston) as long as I can. Everything will work out. I’ll be here another two years. We’ll see what happens. I’ll see how the next two years go, but I would definitely like to be here the rest of my career.”

There’s more from the Rockets:

  • Houston exercised its 2019/20 option on head coach Mike D’Antoni over the summer, but hopes to retain him for many years beyond that, Feigen writes in a separate column. “Mike is going to be here as long as we can keep him here,” Rockets owner Tilman Fertitta said.
  • Several players are competing for the Rockets’ backup center position, Feigen notes, but 20-year-old Isaiah Hartenstein appears to have a decisive lead just three days into camp.
  • Michael Carter-Williams hopes to take advantage of his versatility this season, Feigen writes, which could allow him to see minutes at the wing positions. “I definitely need to take a look at several positions,” Carter-Williams said.
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Contract Details: Thomas, Harris, Len, Knicks

August 7th, 2018 at 9:59am CST by Luke Adams

The three-year, minimum-salary deal that Khyri Thomas signed with the Pistons looks identical to the one fellow second-rounder Bruce Brown received from the club, as Eric Pincus of Basketball Insiders details. Both contracts include two guaranteed seasons with a non-guaranteed third year.

In giving Thomas three years instead of two, the Pistons had to once again dip into the mid-level exception. The team has now used that exception to sign Thomas, Brown, and Glenn Robinson, pushing its total MLE commitments to about $5.75MM. That figure exceeds the amount of the taxpayer mid-level, meaning Detroit will now be hard-capped at $129.817MM for the rest of the 2018/19 league year.

Teams become hard-capped when they acquire a player via sign-and-trade, use their bi-annual exception, or use more than the taxpayer portion ($5.337MM) of the mid-level exception.

Here are several more contract- and salary-related updates from Pincus:

  • Joe Harris‘ fully guaranteed two-year deal with the Nets is worth exactly $16MM, but it’s worth more in the first year ($8.33MM) than the second ($7.67MM), per Pincus.
  • The Hawks used nearly their entire room exception ($4.449MM) on Alex Len‘s two-year contract, which starts at $4.35MM. Len will earn a little less in year two, for a total value of $8.51MM (link).
  • Noah Vonleh and Kadeem Allen both signed one-year, non-guaranteed contracts with the Knicks, according to Pincus. Vonleh will be owed a $100K guarantee if he remains under contract through September 25.
  • Monte Morris‘ three-year pact with the Nuggets was originally reported as a $4.8MM deal, but Pincus classifies it as a minimum-salary contract, worth about $4.6MM. Morris received two guaranteed years, with the third-year salary set to become guaranteed if he remains under contract through June 30, 2020.
  • The Rockets and Thunder dipped into their taxpayer mid-level exceptions for rookie deals for Isaiah Hartenstein and Hamidou Diallo, respectively. Both are three-year, minimum-salary contracts, but Hartenstein only has one guaranteed year (link) while Diallo has two (link).
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Southwest Rumors: Davis, Jordan, Conley, Hartenstein

July 26th, 2018 at 8:25pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Anthony Davis learned that DeMarcus Cousins was joining the Warriors while watching TV and didn’t see it coming, Scott Kushner of the Baton Rouge Advocate relays. Davis’ comments were made during a CBS-TV interview.

The Pelicans‘ superstar big man understood why Cousins decided to take a one-year deal with Golden State after entering free agency with hopes of a max contract offer.

“I was a little shocked. But I know DeMarcus, and I know he made the best decision for him and his career at that time and for his family,” Davis said. “Of course, I definitely would’ve loved for that to keep going. But at that point, I wasn’t sure what was going on with his situation or what was going through his head. It’s a lot, coming from being traded and then feeling like you deserve a max contract, and then you tear your Achilles. It was a tough situation; it’s tough on him.”

We have more from the Southwest Division:

  • Mavericks center DeAndre Jordan isn’t expected to show up at the USA Basketball minicamp this week, Dwain Price of Mavs.com tweets. Jordan wasn’t at the camp on Thursday and is likely to remain absent on Friday, Price adds.
  • Grizzlies point guard Mike Conley is participating at the minicamp but will not compete in full scrimmages or contact drills, Michael Wallace of the Grizzlies’ website reports. Conley said his foot and heel are pain-free for the first time in two years after undergoing season-ending surgery in January.
  • Isaiah Hartenstein‘s three-year contract with the Rockets is fully guaranteed next season, has a partial guarantee the second year, and a non-guaranteed third year, Michael Scotto of The Athletic tweets. The 7-footer, a 2017 second-round selection, signed the contract on Wednesday after playing in the G League last season. He posted averages of 10.3 PPG, 8.0 RPG, and 2.3 BPG in four summer league games with Houston earlier this month.
  • Dirk Nowitzki‘s one-year contract with the Mavericks does not contain a no-trade clause because he has automatic veto rights over any trade as a One-Year Bird, Marc Stein of the New York Times tweets. Nowitzki signed the $5MM deal this week.
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Rockets Sign Isaiah Hartenstein

July 25th, 2018 at 5:56pm CST by Luke Adams

5:56pm: The signing is official, the Rockets announced on their website.

3:32pm: Hartenstein will receive a three-year contract, signaling that the Rockets will use a small portion of their mid-level exception to complete the signing, tweets Jonathan Feigen of The Houston Chronicle (Twitter link).

3:17pm: The Rockets will finalize a deal with draft-and-stash prospect Isaiah Hartenstein today, according to Mark Berman of Fox 26 Houston (Twitter link). We heard last week that Houston was looking to reach an agreement with its 2017 second-round pick.

Hartenstein, 20, had a strong showing for the Rockets during this year’s NBA Summer League after playing for the Rio Grande Valley Vipers – Houston’s G League affiliate – last season. Having averaged 9.5 PPG, 6.6 RPG, and 1.1 BPG in 38 games for the Vipers in 2017/18, the seven-footer posted 10.3 PPG, 8.0 RPG, and 2.3 BPG in four Summer League games earlier this month.

Before being selected 43rd overall in the 2017 draft and heading to the G League, Hartenstein played with Lithuanian club Zalgiris Kaunas, where he helped lead the team to a seventh straight Lithuanian Basketball Club title.

Terms of Hartenstein’s deal aren’t yet known. A minimum-salary agreement seems likely, but the Rockets could go up to three years if they decide to dip into their mid-level exception rather than using the minimum salary exception.

Hartenstein will be the second draft-and-stash prospect to sign an NBA contract this month. Jonah Bolden of the Sixers was the first.

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Rockets Looking To Sign Isaiah Hartenstein?

July 18th, 2018 at 7:26pm CST by clarkcrum

According to a report from Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle, the Rockets are working toward signing 2017 second-round pick Isaiah Hartenstein to an NBA deal with hopes they will reach an agreement by the end of the week.

Hartenstein, 20, had a strong showing for the Rockets during this year’s NBA Summer League after the 7-foot center played for the Rockets’ G League affiliate, the Rio Grande Valley Vipers, last season.

Before being selected No. 43 overall in last year’s draft, Hartenstein played with Lithuanian club Zalgiris Kaunas, where he helped lead the team to a seventh straight Lithuanian Basketball Club title.

With the Vipers, Hartenstein averaged 9.5 points and 6.6 rebounds in 18.7 minutes per game, making 57.1 percent of his shots. He averaged 10.3 points and eight rebounds per game during this year’s Summer League.

Hartenstein’s signing could mean the end of center Zhou Qi‘s time with the Rockets. Both big men Nene and Chinanu Onuaku have fully-guaranteed salaries for the upcoming 2018/19 campaign, while Qi has no guaranteed money on his contract that runs through 2021.

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Isaiah Hartenstein Joins Rockets’ G League Affiliate

October 22nd, 2017 at 2:00pm CST by Luke Adams

Isaiah Hartenstein, the Rockets’ lone 2017 draft pick, is among the players listed on the training camp roster for Houston’s G League affiliate, the Rio Grande Valley Vipers (Twitter link via Chris Reichert of 2 Ways & 10 Days).

After being selected with the 43rd overall pick in the 2017 draft, Hartenstein didn’t sign an NBA contract, with the Rockets opting not to carry him on their 15-man roster in his rookie season. Instead, it appears Hartenstein signed a straight G League contract, which will allow him to play for the Vipers without the Rockets losing his NBA rights.

The approach is similar to the one the Celtics took with second-round pick Abdel Nader a year ago. Although he wanted to sign an NBA contract, Nader agreed to ink a G League deal and joined the Maine Red Claws, with Boston hanging on to his NBA rights. Nader had an outstanding season for the Red Claws, earning All G League honors, and the C’s rewarded him this summer with a multiyear NBA contract that’s guaranteed for 2017/18.

Hartenstein, who is still just 19, spent most of his teenage years playing overseas in Germany and Lithuania, and was viewed as one of the top international prospects in this year’s draft. The seven-footer remains raw, but is viewed as a versatile big man who is capable of earning an NBA rotation spot in the coming years.

International basketball reporter David Pick first reported back in late July that the Rockets were expected to have Hartenstein play in the G League with the Rio Grande Valley Vipers.

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Checking In On Unsigned 2017 Draft Picks

July 31st, 2017 at 2:00pm CST by Luke Adams

One month into the 2017/18 NBA league year, most of this year’s draftees know where they’ll be playing for the upcoming season. As our tracker for draft pick signings shows, we’re only waiting for resolution on a small group of players.

Twenty-nine of 30 first-round picks have signed their first NBA contracts, and the 30th – Sixers big man Anzejs Pasecniks – will remain overseas for at least one more year. Meanwhile, in the second round, about half of this year’s picks have signed NBA contracts, a handful of others have agreed to two-way deals, and some will continue to play international ball.

There’s no rush at this point for teams to finalize plans for the last few unsigned draft picks from this year’s class, but it’s still worth checking in to see where things stand for those players. Here are the 2017 draftees whose statuses for ’17/18 appear to be up in the air:

  • Ivan Rabb (Memphis Grizzlies, No. 35): The Grizzlies signed 45th overall pick Dillon Brooks, but have yet to lock up Rabb, who now finds himself in an interesting spot. Memphis already has 15 players on guaranteed contracts for 2017/18, and that total doesn’t even include RFA JaMychal Green, who seems likely to return. Even though there’s no current opening for Rabb, he was probably too high a draft pick to accept a two-way contract, so perhaps the Grizzlies ultimately intend to trade or waive a player (or two) to make room. Otherwise, it’s not clear what the plan is for Rabb.
  • Isaiah Hartenstein (Houston Rockets, No. 43): International basketball reporter David Pick provided an update on Hartenstein today, tweeting that Houston will likely have him start with the Rio Grande Valley Vipers in the G League. So far, no player drafted earlier than No. 51 has signed a two-way contract, and typically only players selected at the very end of the draft accept straight G League contracts. If Hartenstein is willing to go to the G League, it would be a great value move for the Rockets.
  • Nigel Williams-Goss (Utah Jazz, No. 55): Two weeks ago, we heard that Williams-Goss was a candidate for Utah’s second two-way contract opening. The Jazz haven’t made a move to fill that slot since then, so I’d expect Williams-Goss remains the leading candidate.
  • Jabari Bird (Boston Celtics, No. 56): Like Williams-Goss in Utah, Bird appears to be the top candidate for the final two-way contract opening in Boston. Such a move would make a lot of sense. There isn’t enough room on the Celtics’ regular-season roster for Bird, and the four players selected with the picks from 51 through 54 in this year’s draft all got two-way deals — it’s logical that the 55th and 56th picks would too.
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Southwest Notes: Morey, Rockets, Noel, Ferrell

June 24th, 2017 at 12:52pm CST by Joshua Fischman

Rockets GM Daryl Morey, who recently signed a four-year extension, continues to work on large-scale moves after a quiet draft, writes Jonathan Feigen of The Houston Chronicle. On draft night, the Rockets had just one second-round pick and used it on Isaiah Hartenstein, who will remain overseas next season, Feigen tweets. The Rockets also traded their second-round pick, Dillon Brooks, to the Grizzlies for a second-round pick next season. Morey discussed his approach:

“We were very focused on two things, to get someone who can help us now and in the future. The second, we did a lot of potential discussions with teams that advanced a little bit today. Obviously, we’re focused on the team now, focused on chasing Golden State. Anything we can push in the future to help us upgrade the team, potentially through trade, we’re ready to do.”

The Rockets were discussing Paul George with the Pacers on Thursday and continue to do so, but nothing was considered close on draft day, per Feigen. The team was simultaneously having conversations directed at making cap room available if they needed it for an expensive free agent addition. Morey stated that the team was considering some deals to move into the first round of the draft, but the Rockets prioritized saving cap space to pursue big trades.

What else is going on in the Southwest division?:

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Jazz Rumors: Beverley, Rubio, Draft, Favors

June 22nd, 2017 at 4:37pm CST by Luke Adams

The Jazz continued this afternoon to engage in talks for Rockets point guard Patrick Beverley, according to Tony Jones of The Salt Lake Tribune, who notes (via Twitter) that Utah also has another point guard on its radar.

It’s possible that other point guard is Timberwolves veteran Ricky Rubio. Jody Genessy of The Deseret News reports that Utah has explored the possibility of acquiring Rubio in a trade. However, Genessy acknowledges that there’s no traction on that front for now.

Here are several more Jazz-related rumors:

  • According to Genessey, the Jazz continue to be “very active” in trade talks as they explore the possibility of moving up in the draft. Utah currently has the 24th and 30th overall picks, but wouldn’t mind moving up into the 12-17 range to grab a shooter, sources tell The Deseret News.
  • The Jazz aren’t shopping Derrick Favors, who is entering the final year of his contract, but he is receiving “a lot of interest” from teams, says Genessy. Although Utah would prefer to keep Favors, he’s not entirely off-limits.
  • The Jazz still feel “pretty comfortable” that Gordon Hayward will remain with the team after opting out, but the club doesn’t know for sure, which is complicating offseason planning, writes Genessy.
  • Utah has increased its international budget, making a draft-and-stash prospect a possibility for one of the club’s picks tonights, per Genessy. Marc J. Spears of The Undefeated tweets that the Jazz, Spurs, and Nets are all keeping a close eye on international big man Isaiah Hartenstein, who will likely be picked in the 20s tonight.
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Draft Notes: Jackson, Ball, Ntilikina, Smith

June 21st, 2017 at 2:27pm CST by Arthur Hill

Kansas forward Josh Jackson wanted to work out for the Celtics after they traded for the No. 3 pick, but couldn’t work out the scheduling, tweets Steve Bulpett of The Boston Herald. The Celtics are reportedly deciding between Jackson and Duke forward Jayson Tatum if they decide to keep the pick, and Tatum held a workout in Boston on Monday.

Jackson added that he has spoken to Celtics rookie Jaylen Brown and believes they would form a good combination (Twitter link). The former Jayhawk also disputed a rumor that he refused to work out for the team unless he was promised Boston wouldn’t trade its pick (Twitter link).

There’s more as the top prospects met with the media today in New York:

  • Lonzo Ball confirmed to reporters his only pre-draft meeting was with the Lakers, tweets Ohm Youngmisuk of ESPN.com. Ball also believes L.A. traded D’Angelo Russell to open up a spot for him and he can see that “the Lakers have a plan.” He adds that the Lakers haven’t promised to take him, relays Adam Zagoria of Fanrag Sports (Twitter link), saying, “We’ll just find out tomorrow night.” Ball also explained why he turned down a session with the Celtics when they had the top pick, tweets Adam Himmelsbach of The Boston Globe. “If it’s either play for the hometown or go No. 1, I’d rather play for the hometown,” Ball said.
  • Frank Ntilikina met with the Knicks front office today, including team president Phil Jackson, according to Ian Begley of ESPN.com (Twitter link). The French point guard, who is reportedly in strong consideration with New York’s No. 8 pick, said the team wanted to meet him in person.
  • Dennis Smith Jr. also met with Jackson and the Knicks front office, Begley relays (Twitter link). The North Carolina State point guard believes he can be effective in the triangle offense.
  • Indiana’s OG Anunoby said doctors have assured him that he can resume basketball activities by October or early November, according to Jake Fischer of Sports Illustrated (Twitter link). Anunoby had surgery on his right knee after a season-ending injury in January.
  • Arizona’s Lauri Markkanen was a Timberwolves fan growing up, and Minnesota was among the four teams he worked out for, Fischer tweets. The others were the Mavericks, Celtics and Magic, and he had a meeting with the Knicks.
  • Gonzaga’s Zach Collins had private workouts with the Magic, Wolves, Kings, Mavericks and Suns, and a group session with the Lakers, Fischer relays (Twitter link).
  • Duke’s Luke Kennard held individual workouts for the Lakers, Pistons, Knicks and Mavericks (Twitter link).
  • The Nets and Bulls were among the teams to work out international big man Isaiah Hartenstein leading up to the draft, tweets David Pick.
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