As Keith Pompey of The Philadelphia Inquirer writes, Grimes in particular has been a standout addition. He’s shown to be capable in either a starting or reserve role and is averaging 17.7 points, 5.3 rebounds and 3.3 assists on 52.4% shooting from the floor in his 11 games (eight starts) with Philadelphia. He’s scored at least 30 points three times, including 44 in a win over the red-hot Warriors last weekend.

Grimes will be a restricted free agent this summer, giving the Sixers the right to match any outside offers.

As for Butler, the Sixers were excited to acquire the former two-way guard from Washington, promoting him to a standard deal quickly upon his arrival. According to Pompey, the Sixers were interested in Butler during the 2021 draft and wanted to get a closer look at him, giving up a first-round pick in the process (and getting four seconds in return).

Pompey writes Butler has shown flashes but that Jeff Dowtin, currently on a two-way deal, has taken his spot in the rotation. Butler has a team option worth $2.35MM for next season that the Sixers will decide on this summer.

Walker has also gotten a chance to play a rotation role, averaging 16.7 minutes in his first six games. Pompey writes that Walker is still getting adjusted back to the NBA after playing overseas for the first half of the season. Like Butler, Walker has a team option for next season.

We have more from the Atlantic Division:

• The Nets have an open roster spot after not immediately extending Killian Hayes another 10-day contract. Net Income of NetsDaily notes that Brooklyn has a cushion of $1.08MM under the luxury tax, but Cameron Johnson is likely to hit an incentive that will cut that number in half. Still, there’s value in signing a player into that approximately half-million in anticipated space. Since rest-of-season salaries are prorated, the Nets won’t have a problem adding someone on a minimum deal. Tosan Evbuomwan is one candidate for a standard deal, since he’s been a part of the rotation, but Net Income notes that Evbuomwan’s two-way deal covers two years, so there’s no real rush to promote him. The Nets could circle back to Hayes later on or sign another player from a G League team.
• Nets second-year big Noah Clowney hasn’t played since Jan. 27, but it sounds as though he’s inching toward a return. According to the New York Post’s Brian Lewis (Twitter link), Clowney had his first five-on-five scrimmage on Thursday. Clowney is averaging 9.4 points and 3.9 rebounds this season.
• The Knicks are 0-7 this season against the top three teams in the league: the Thunder, Celtics and Cavaliers. On paper, New York has a contending roster, filled with versatile defenders on the wings and stars in Karl-Anthony Towns and Jalen Brunson. So what’s causing the slide against the league’s best? According to ESPN’s Chris Herring, simple factors are at play. For one, while the Knicks’ offense ranks fourth in rating, they rank 28th in three-point attempt rate. “At the root of it all, it’s math,” an Eastern Conference scout said, per Herring. “They’re really efficient, and will win a ton of games. But the [three-point] volume isn’t enough to beat the Clevelands and the Bostons. Especially when you also factor in that the Knicks are [offensive] rebounding and getting to the line a lot less than last year’s team did.” Additionally, the Knicks’ defense ranks 19th in the league.

The event – which highlights standout players at the G League level and essentially serves as the NBAGL All-Star Game – features a tournament-style format with four teams made up of seven players apiece. Those clubs face one another in semifinals (first team to 30 points), with the winners meeting in the final. All three games will be played on the afternoon of Sunday, February 16, ahead of the NBA’s All-Star Game.

Ten players for the next Up Next pool are selected by fan votes, while the other 18 are selected by the league. Here are the players who have been named as participants for the 2025 event:

Fan voting

Note: Players are listed in order of votes received. Players marked with an asterisk (*) are on two-way contracts with an NBA team.

1. Yuki Kawamura (Memphis Hustle) *
2. Justin Champagnie (Capital City Go-Go) *
3. Jahlil Okafor (Indiana Mad Ants)
4. Adama Sanogo (Windy City Bulls) *
5. Skal Labissiere (Stockton Kings)
6. Kevon Harris (College Park Skyhawks)
7. Maozinha Pereira (Memphis Hustle)
8. Trevelin Queen (Osceola Magic) *
9. Armando Bacot (Memphis Hustle)
10. Keisei Tominaga (Indiana Mad Ants)

G League selections

Note: Players are listed in alphabetical order. Players marked with an asterisk (*) are on two-way contracts with an NBA team.

1. Moses Brown (Westchester Knicks)
2. Josh Christopher (Sioux Falls Skyforce) *
3. Jeff Dowtin (Delaware Blue Coats) *
4. PJ Hall (Grand Rapids Gold) *
5. Elijah Harkless (Salt Lake City Stars) *
6. Isaac Jones (Stockton Kings) *
7. A.J. Lawson (Raptors 905) *
8. Isaiah Miller (Austin Spurs)
9. Jaylen Nowell (Capital City Go-Go)
10. Dink Pate (Mexico City Capitanes)
11. Daeqwon Plowden (College Park Skyhawks) *
12. Quinten Post (Santa Cruz Warriors) *
13. Lester Quinones (Birmingham Squadron)
14. DJ Steward (Memphis Hustle)
15. TyTy Washington Jr. (Valley Suns) *
16. Alondes Williams (Sioux Falls Skyforce)
17. Jahmir Young (Grand Rapids Gold)

The G League announced 27 names today, leaving the pool one player shy of the 28 required for four seven-player teams. However, the NBAGL’s announcement says two more participants will be named at a later date to round out the player pool.

It’s unclear if there’s a math error happening here or if Pate will need to be replaced since he’s also participating in the Rising Stars event. Further confusing matters is the fact that Williams’ name shows up in the graphic released by the G League but not in the press release.

However it happens, the Up Next player pool will eventually increase to 28 names, with those players drafted into four teams by a quartet of “influencer” general managers and then coached by G League coaches at All-Star weekend.

“He’s played pretty good almost in every game, right?” coach Nick Nurse said. “He’s finding enough perimeter shots and making enough. He doesn’t make a ton of mistakes, which is huge for us right now. Again, he’s going to get the ball to somebody if he’s in the offense to keep the offense moving. He’ll play really hard, but he’s been good.”

Yabusele became a star in Europe after leaving the NBA in 2019 following two seasons with Boston. He got offers to return in August after helping France reach the Olympic gold medal game and decided to accept a one-year, minimum-salary deal with Philadelphia. Now he’s determined to prove he belongs in the league.

“You know, I am just trying to do my best over here,” he said. “I’m trying to help the team as much as I can. As far as right now, I’m trying not to really focus on myself and try to get a win.”

There’s more on the Sixers:

• Paul George was upset that his minutes restriction prevented him from being on the court for overtime in Sunday’s game, Pompey states in a separate story. It was just the fourth game for George since returning from a bone bruise in his left knee, and the medical staff is limiting his playing time to reduce the risk of further injury. “I was completely frustrated, you know, just the way this game was going,” he said. “You know I wanted to be out there for the guys with that commitment to try to win the game, especially when you are home. You get on the good side. Luckily, my guys had me.”
• Jeff Dowtin is trying to prove he’s worthy of a larger role while Tyrese Maxey is sidelined, Pompey adds in another piece. The two-way guard had 11 points, two rebounds and a steal in 23 minutes off the bench on Sunday.
• Yabusele, Dowtin and rookie Jared McCain helped seal the victory, and Nurse indicated that they’re likely to get more opportunities as the season wears on, per Gina Mizell of The Philadelphia Inquirer. They combined for 58 points as Nurse shook up his normal rotation. “You start the season, and you’re going to give those veteran guys the first cracks at stuff,” he said. “That’s the way I’m going to do it, until you think that maybe it’s, OK, you’ve given them a couple shots here and there, and you’re not exactly where it wants to be. So then you’re going with some younger guys. I think that was part of the decision.”

George made his season debut on Monday after recovering from a bone bruise in his left knee. On Wednesday, Tyrese Maxey suffered a hamstring strain that will keep him out for at least a week. Joel Embiid won’t be eligible to return from his suspension until Tuesday, but he’ll likely miss Wednesday’s game because he’s not playing on back-to-back nights.

That leaves a heavy burden for George as he tries to turn around the Sixers after their 1-6 start, which has them at the bottom of the Eastern Conference.

“I’m still trying to get my body back,” he said. “Just rhythm. I think my execution is just off and my rhythm, my timing with ball-handling is just off, and just trying to get a feel for that. These are really, like, my first real, real, real live situations playing these games.”

George has averaged 16.5 points, 6.0 rebounds, 3.0 assists and 2.0 steals in his first two games and he’s coming off a strong shooting night, going 7-of-9 from the field in Wednesday’s loss to the Clippers. However, he’s been careless with the ball, committing 10 turnovers already.

“So they’re throwing a lot of stuff at me that I’m not quite ready for at this moment because I’m still trying to get back healthy and lungs together and cardio together,” George said. “I’ll be better. I’ll put the work in, but it is a rough patch I would say for myself and then I got to be better for these guys.”

There’s more on the Sixers:

• Head coach Nick Nurse said Kyle Lowry and Reggie Jackson will both see more playing time while Maxey is sidelined, and two-way guard Jeff Dowtin could be used as well (Twitter video link from Pompey). Rookie Jared McCain provides another point guard option. “I think obviously he’s had some really bright moments,” Nurse said of McCain. “Gives us some energy, some shooting, break down scoring as well when you can get it to the basket. Certain nights are going to call for some long stretches from him.”
• Philadelphia will face the Lakers on Friday, putting Guerschon Yabusele on the court with LeBron James for the first time since dunking over him in the Olympic gold medal game. Yabusele told Mark Medina of Sportskeeda that he wants to “move on” from that moment and accomplish more in his basketball career. The immediate goal is to reestablish himself in the NBA, and he’s been able to get consistent playing time with Embiid sidelined. “He’s probably maybe exceeded what we thought,” Nurse said. “… He’s been solid every night, good some nights. He’s always solid. He plays hard and is pretty good with the basketball. He knows when to move it to the next guy. He knows when to shoot it.”
• Former NBA guard Jameer Nelson, now in his second season as general manager of the Sixers’ G League affiliate in Delaware, talks to Gina Mizell of The Philadelphia Inquirer about his desire to someday run an NBA team.

As Brian Windhorst previously reported, Mobley’s deal includes multiple levels of Rose Rule incentives and could end up starting at either 25%, 27.5%, or 30% of the 2025/26 cap, depending on whether the big man earns end-of-season honors next season. According to Windhorst, a spot on the All-NBA Third Team would bump Mobley’s starting salary to 27.5% of the cap, but he’d have to make one of the top two teams or win Defensive Player of the Year to increase that figure to 30%.

Here are a few more details on recently signed NBA contracts:

• Sam Hauser‘s four-year extension with the Celtics is worth exactly $45MM, as previously reported, and has a straightforward ascending structure with 8% annual raises, tweets cap expert Yossi Gozlan. Hauser’s contract starts at just over $10MM in 2025/26 and increases to nearly $12.5MM by the fourth year (2028/29).
• Antonio Reeves‘ three-year, minimum-salary contract with the Pelicans is only fully guaranteed for the 2024/25 season, Hoops Rumors has learned. Reeves’ second-year salary would become 50% guaranteed if he remains under contract through at least July 23, 2025, while his third-year team option is non-guaranteed.
• Sandro Mamukelashvili‘s one-year, minimum-salary deal with the Spurs is fully guaranteed, Hoops Rumors has confirmed. Mamukelashvili also waived his right to veto a trade. San Antonio has 14 players with guaranteed salaries for 2024/25, with a 15th player (Julian Champagnie) on a non-guaranteed standard contract.
• The two-way contracts recently signed by Jeff Dowtin (Sixers), Jay Huff (Grizzlies), and DJ Steward (Bulls) are each for one season.

JULY 21: The Sixers are bringing back Jeff Dowtin on a two-way contract, The Athletic’s Shams Charania tweets.

Dowtin finished last season with Philadelphia but the Sixers declined their 2024/25 option on the reserve point guard in order to open up as much cap space as possible.

Dowtin started off the 2023/24 season with Philadelphia’s NBAGL team, the Delaware Blue Coats, before inking a two-way deal with the Sixers. In April, that contract was converted to a standard agreement for the rest of the season, with a second-year team option.

Dowtin appeared in 12 regular season games for the Sixers, averaging 4.3 points and 2.3 assists in 11.8 minutes per contest. In 20 G League games, he averaged 19.0 PPG and 5.3 APG in 32.4 MPG.

Overall, Dowtin has played in 46 NBA games during his career.

After going undrafted out of Rhode Island in 2020, Dowtin spent the 2020/21 season with the Lakeland Magic, Orlando’s G League affiliate. The 6’3″ point guard has since logged time with the Warriors, Bucks, and Raptors, often on either 10-day contracts or two-way deals that have seen him split his time with each team’s G League affiliate club.

Philadelphia already has wing Justin Edwards on a two-way deal and reportedly will also add forward David Jones on a similar contract. Dowtin would fill the third two-way slot.

After going undrafted out of Rhode Island in 2020, Dowtin spent the 2020/21 season with the Lakeland Magic, Orlando’s G League affiliate. The 6’3″ point guard has since logged time with the Warriors, Bucks, and Raptors, often on either 10-day contracts or two-way deals that have seen him split his time with each team’s G League affiliate club.

Dowtin started off the 2023/24 season with Philadelphia’s NBAGL team, the Delaware Blue Coats, before inking a two-way deal with the Sixers. In April, that contract was converted to a standard agreement for the rest of the season, with a second-year team option.

All told, Dowtin boasts career NBA averages of 2.9 points, 1.5 assists, 1.3 rebounds and 0.5 steals per night. In 20 games with Delaware last year, Dowtin averaged 19.1 PPG on .491/.387/.906 shooting, along with 5.3 APG, 2.8 RPG, and 1.2 SPG.

Dowtin had been eligible for a qualifying offer, which would have made him a restricted free agent and allowed Philadelphia to match any contract extended his way. It appears that he did not receive one, given that the Sixers are looking to maximize their cap space with free agency looming.

Both Dowtin and Queta were on two-way deals before promoted to their respective teams’ 15-man rosters, and both players received minimum-salary contracts.

Here are more notes from around the Atlantic:

• Sixers guard De’Anthony Melton, who has been sidelined since February 27 due to back issues and has only played five games since the calendar turned to 2024, has been upgraded to questionable for Tuesday’s game vs. Detroit, tweets Gina Mizell of The Philadelphia Inquirer. While Melton’s comeback efforts have flown somewhat under the radar, overshadowed by Joel Embiid‘s recent return, it would be a major boost for the 76ers if they can get the versatile guard back in action before the postseason tips off.
• Asked on Sunday about Jakob Poeltl‘s and Scottie Barnes‘ recoveries from hand surgeries, Raptors head coach Darko Rajakovic told reporters that although neither player has formally been ruled out for the season, he’s not counting on either one returning this week (Twitter links via Josh Lewenberg of TSN.ca and Michael Grange of Sportsnet). Both Poeltl and Barnes continue to go through the ramp-up process — even if they’re not back in action in the coming days, the goal is to get them in the best possible shape heading into the offseason.
• In a pair of stories for The Athletic, Eric Koreen considers what we can learn from Rajakovic’s first year as the Raptors‘ head coach and hands out his end-of-season awards, including naming Poeltl the most underappreciated Raptor of 2023/24.

APRIL 4: Point guard Jeff Dowtin will sign a rest-of-season standard contract with the Sixers, sources have informed Tim Bontemps of ESPN (Twitter link).

Dowtin is currently on a two-way contract with Philadelphia. Across the seven contests he has played with the Sixers this season, he has averaged 4.4 PPG on .550/.500/1.000 shooting, along with 2.4 APG and 1.6 RPG.

Dowtin has had a larger role – and posted considerably more impressive numbers – with the Delaware Blue Coats, Philadelphia’s NBAGL affiliate team. In 20 games for the Blue Coats, including 18 starts, Dowtin has averaged 19.1 PPG (.491/.387/.906 shooting), 5.3 APG, 2.8 RPG and 1.2 SPG.

Since going undrafted out of Rhode Island in 2020, Dowtin has been fairly well-traveled. He began his pro career plying his trade for the Lakeland Magic, Orlando’s G League squad, in 2020/21. The team won a title that season. During the ’21/22 season, the 6’3″ guard played for three separate NBA clubs —  he suited up for the Warriors on a two-way deal but was later cut and signed 10-day deals with the Bucks and Magic.

The 26-year-old is a frequent flyer with now-Philadelphia head coach Nick Nurse. He suited up for Nurse’s last squad, the Raptors, in 2022/23, also on a two-way agreement.

Following the expiration of D.J. Wilson‘s 10-day contract, the 76ers had two open spots on their 15-man standard roster, so no one will have to be waived in order to promote Dowtin and the club will still have one opening remaining. Philadelphia will be able to add a 15th man at some point between now and the end of the regular season, but won’t be able to sign another two-way player, since the deadline for two-way signings passed last month.

While Lawson’s 2023/24 salary of $1MM – which is well above his prorated minimum – is guaranteed, he’s not necessarily assured of any money beyond this season. His minimum salaries for the following three years are fully non-guaranteed. If he plays out the full contract, the Mavericks wing would earn approximately $7.91MM.

Here are more details on recently signed contracts around the NBA:

• The three-year contract that Kendall Brown signed with the Pacers features a starting salary of $1.1MM, which came out of the team’s room exception. This season is the first year that the room exception can be used to sign players for up to three years instead of just two, and Indiana took advantage of that flexibility to give Brown non-guaranteed minimum salaries in 2024/25 and ’25/26, with a team option on that final year. He’ll receive a partial guarantee of $250K if he makes the Pacers’ regular season roster in the fall.
• The new contracts for Hawks guard Trent Forrest and Spurs forward Dominick Barlow are just rest-of-season, minimum-salary deals, which suggests that those two players just got standard conversions from their two-way contracts rather than negotiating new terms. Forrest will be an unrestricted free agent this summer, while Barlow will be eligible for restricted free agency.
• As expected, both Shake Milton (Knicks) and Mike Muscala (Thunder) signed rest-of-season, minimum-salary contracts with their new clubs.
• Like fellow San Antonio newcomer RaiQuan Gray, Jamaree Bouyea signed a two-year, two-way deal with the Spurs, so his new contract runs through the 2024/25 season.
• The two-way deals recently signed by Jeff Dowtin (Sixers), Jacob Gilyard (Nets), Jacob Toppin (Knicks), Ish Wainright (Suns), Quenton Jackson (Pacers), Harry Giles (Lakers), and Dylan Windler (Hawks) are all one-year (rest-of-season) contracts, so those players will be eligible to become restricted free agents this summer.

10:45am: The Sixers are signing guard Jeff Dowtin to a two-way contract, according to The Athletic’s Shams Charania (Twitter link). Philadelphia opened up a two-way roster spot by waiving Kenneth Lofton on Friday.

Dowtin, 26, has played 34 games in the NBA since the 2021/22 season, making appearances with the Warriors, Bucks, Magic and Raptors. Most of his big league experience came last season with Toronto, where he averaged 2.4 points and 1.2 assists per night and made a positive impression as the team’s primary backup at the point down the stretch.

Dowtin has been more productive in the G League throughout the course of his career. This season, he has been playing with Philadelphia’s G League affiliate in Delaware, averaging 17.1 points, 5.4 assists and 2.9 rebounds while shooting 47.5% from the floor and 37.5% from three in 17 regular season and Showcase Cup appearances.

Dowtin joins Ricky Council IV and Terquavion Smith as Philadelphia’s two-way contract players. The Sixers also have two open standard contract spots after Darius Bazley‘s 10-day contract expired on Thursday.

With Spencer Dinwiddie going down with an ankle sprain on Monday, Walker stepped in and registered 19 points, following that up with a 17-point performance on Wednesday without Dinwiddie or Dennis Smith Jr. in the lineup. In three games this season, Walker is averaging 16.7 points and shooting a blistering 47.1% from beyond the arc. His performance so far isn’t surprising his teammates, according to the New York Post’s Brian Lewis.

“That’s Lonnie Walker,” teammate Ben Simmons said. “If you watched him last year, you know what he’s capable of. He deserves to play every night. He’s one of the guys we need on this team to have nights like this.”

Walker signed with the Nets on a one-year, minimum-salary contract this summer after averaging 11.7 PPG as a key rotation piece for the Lakers last year.

“This goes a long ways,” head coach Jacque Vaughn said. “I don’t play him the first game. … For him to still have the commitment to the team, to [say,] ‘All right second game, let’s see what coach does.’ Third game, to stay with us. To me that speaks to who he is, how we can build with him. And he’s showing the ability that he can produce.”

We have more from the Atlantic Division:

• Playing for Boston would have been a dream come true for Danilo Gallinari, who grew up a fan of the Celtics and Larry Bird, according to The Athletic’s Jay King. That chance was taken from him after Gallinari suffered a torn ACL shortly after signing with Boston last summer, and while he’s trying not to dwell on the past, the forward found it especially tough to not be on the court, King writes. “It was just bad timing,” Gallinari said. “I thought we had the chance to win it. I thought especially during the series with Miami I could have helped a lot. But it’s all in the past.” According to King, Gallinari didn’t expect to be traded this summer. He was sent to Washington in the trade that sent Kristaps Porzingis to the Celtics and is averaging 8.0 points in four games with the Wizards.
• The Raptors waived Jeff Dowtin at the roster cut-down deadline in October despite an impressive stint in the G League last season. Sportsnet.ca’s Blake Murphy reports (Twitter link) Dowtin is signing a G League contract and will suit up for the Delaware Blue Coats, the affiliate of the Sixers, who acquired his returning player rights in September. Dowtin had a few EuroLeague offers but will try to earn a call-up through the G League, Murphy adds.
• New Sixers forward Nicolas Batum is missing Thursday night’s game against the Raptors due to personal reasons, according to The Philadelphia Inquirer’s Keith Pompey. Batum averaged 2.7 points across three games with the Clippers this season.

Sources tell Fedor that the conversations about a new deal for Okoro were in the neighborhood of the deal signed by Mavericks wing Josh Green (three years, $41MM). However, the Cavaliers want to wait and see how the former lottery pick fits with this year’s roster following the offseason additions of Max Strus and Georges Niang, since he no longer projects to be a starter.

Speaking to Fedor on Wednesday, Okoro said he felt like he “should have gotten an extension” but that playing out his contract year won’t affect the way he approaches the season.

“Of course, I wanted an extension, but it happened the way it happened,” he said. “I love Cleveland. I love being here. I love being around the players, coaches, front office staff, trainers. Built great relationships. I don’t take it as a big deal.”

Here are a few more items from around the Eastern Conference:

• Celtics big man Al Horford told reporters on Wednesday that he won’t be in the starting lineup when the team’s season tips off in New York tonight, per Tim Bontemps of ESPN (Twitter link). That suggests Derrick White and Jrue Holiday will both start alongside Jayson Tatum, Jaylen Brown, and Kristaps Porzingis. For what it’s worth, head coach Joe Mazzulla said over the weekend that the Celtics will use multiple starting lineups this season, while Tatum said today that the team essentially has “six starters” (Twitter links via Jared Weiss of The Athletic and Bontemps).
• Hawks swingman Wesley Matthews underwent an MRI on Tuesday that revealed a mild right calf strain, the team announced today (Twitter link). According to the Hawks, Matthews will be reevaluated in two weeks, so he’ll miss at least Atlanta’s first seven games of the regular season.
• While Bulls forward Patrick Williams admitted on Monday that he would “obviously” like to have “a big contract,” he vowed that his lack of rookie scale extension won’t be a distraction at all this season, per K.C. Johnson of NBC Sports Chicago. “Anything personal in my life that I’ve been going through, any time I step between those four lines, it’s gone,” Williams said.
• Blake Murphy of Sportsnet.ca takes an in-depth look at the Raptors‘ roster, exploring the team’s cap and tax situation as well as potential next steps for Jeff Dowtin, who didn’t make the regular season cut.

Winslow and Gueye were on Exhibit 10 deals and will be headed to the Raptors 905, Toronto’s G League affiliate. They’ll each be eligible for a bonus worth up to $75K if they spend at least 60 days with the 905. Michael Grange of Sportsnet.ca first reported (via Twitter) that Winslow and Gueye were expected to be cut following Friday’s preseason finale vs. Washington.

As for Dowtin, his non-guaranteed standard contract would have become partially guaranteed for $900K had he remained on the roster past tomorrow’s cut-down day. However, he had an uphill battle to make the team, with 15 players signed to guaranteed standard deals.

Fifteen Raptors got into Friday’s win against the Wizards, and Dowtin wasn’t one of them, Josh Lewenberg of TSN.ca noted during the game (Twitter link). That made it pretty obvious that he was going to be cut.

It’s unclear what’s next for Dowtin, Murphy adds (via Twitter). The 26-year-old guard spent last season on a two-way contract with Toronto, appearing in 25 games (10.4 MPG). With only two years of NBA experience, he’d be eligible to sign a two-way deal with any team as a free agent if he clears waivers.

The Delaware Blue Coats (the Sixers’ affiliate) control Dowtin’s G League rights, so if another NBA opportunity doesn’t come, returning to the G league could be an option.

The Raptors currently have 18 players on their roster, with all three two-way slots filled. As Murphy tweets, they’ll likely have one more Exhibit 10 sign-and-waive coming on Saturday.

As Murphy details, the guard had an impressive run at the end of the 2022/23 season, making a case to have his prior contract converted to a standard deal last season. He was on a two-way deal last year before being re-signed to a separate, non-guaranteed standard contract in July. Even though he was a rotation piece at times, Dowtin wasn’t converted to a standard deal last season, and he was thus ineligible for postseason play.

It was presumed that Toronto would quickly re-sign Dowtin to a standard deal in free agency this year, according to Murphy, but that didn’t happen as the Raptors fleshed out the rest of the roster.

Murphy notes the Raptors could theoretically waive or trade another player in order to keep Dowtin, but he has limited time to prove he’s worth doing so in the preseason. If he’s cut, the Raptors don’t own his G League rights, which were acquired by the Sixers’ affiliate, so funneling him to their developmental system isn’t an option.

Dowtin is also a candidate to be claimed by another team if he were to be waived, which makes waiving him and then signing him back to a two-way (after waiving an incumbent two-way player) an unappealing option, and it’s unclear if he’d be willing to do that, Murphy adds.

If Dowtin makes the opening-night roster, his contract is guaranteed for $900K. It becomes guaranteed for $2.02MM if he remains on the roster through January 10.

We have more from the Raptors:

• Forward Chris Boucher is drawing rave reviews for his play during preseason, Eric Koreen of The Athletic writes in a piece evaluating the stocks of Raptors players. Boucher is expected to be a regular part of the rotation, having impressed as a cutter. Koreen writes that Jalen McDaniels, Precious Achiuwa and Thaddeus Young have improved their standing with the team while Dowtin, Garrett Temple and Otto Porter have failed to stand out.
• It appears that Dennis Schröder has supplanted Gary Trent Jr. as a starter for the Raptors. Trent had been a starter almost exclusively since arriving in Toronto in 2021/22, according to Michael Grange of Sportsnet.ca. Trent has expressed a desire to be a member of the starting lineup but said he wanted to help the team in whatever way possible (Twitter link). “Obviously the first two games I’ve been coming off the bench; practices I’ve been with the second unit … so the writing’s on the wall,” Trent said.
• Malachi Flynn appears to be breaking into the rotation, according to Grange. Head coach Darko Rajakovic is committed to using a 10-man rotation and it appears Flynn will be a part of that. Josh Lewenberg of TSN relays (Twitter link) that the point guard dedicated extra time in the weight room this offseason, having put on five-to-seven pounds. According to Lewenberg (Twitter link), Flynn knows he has a big season ahead in the final year of his rookie deal and thinks the coaching change could be a “reset” for him.