Johnny O’Bryant Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Southeast Notes: Magic, Ibaka, Hawks, O’Bryant

October 13th, 2016 at 10:21am CST by Luke Adams

Within a piece on Kevin Murphy‘s quest for a roster spot, Josh Robbins of The Orlando Sentinel notes that Magic officials likely want to open the season with 14 players instead of the maximum 15, to maintain some flexibility. Still, if the team decides to carry a 15th man with a non-guaranteed contract, that player could be cut any time before January 10 and Orlando wouldn’t be on the hook for his full salary. As Robbins notes, Jodie Meeks‘ absence could help improve Murphy’s chances of earning a roster spot for the Magic.

Here’s more from out of the Southeast:

In another story for The Sentinel, Robbins notes that Serge Ibaka showed signs in his Magic debut on Wednesday of why the team traded for him. Meanwhile, new Orlando head coach Frank Vogel believes the frontcourt additions the team made this summer, including Ibaka, will benefit Elfrid Payton, as John Denton of OrlandoMagic.com details.
The Hawks announced earlier this week that big man Tiago Splitter is expected to miss at least four weeks of action due to a hamstring injury, but Splitter’s status shouldn’t have an impact on how the team’s final roster is determined, per head coach Mike Budenholzer (Twitter link via Chris Vivlamore of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution).
After spending two seasons in Milwaukee, Johnny O’Bryant talks to Ava Wallace of The Washington Post about making the transition to Washington, where he’s battling to earn a roster spot with the Wizards.

Wizards Sign Johnny O’Bryant

September 24th, 2016 at 7:58am CST by Eddie Scarito

SEPTEMBER 24th: The signing is official, per the RealGM transactions log.

SEPTEMBER 10th: The Wizards have agreed to a deal with unrestricted free agent Johnny O’Bryant, Jeff Goodman of ESPN.com reports (via Twitter). The terms of the deal are unknown, but with Washington well over the cap, it is almost assuredly for the league minimum. The team does still possess its mid-level exception, but it would be surprising if it was used in this case.

The 23-year-old will have his work cut out for him to make the regular season roster, though, he should at least have a legitimate shot to make it to opening night given the team’s current roster composition. The addition of O’Bryant will give the Wizards a preseason roster count of 17, but only 12 of those contracts possess full guarantees. Washington does not have its own D-League affiliate, so designating O’Bryant as an affiliate player is not an option should he fail to make the final cut.

O’Bryant appeared in 66 games for the Bucks in 2015/16, averaging 3.0 points and 2.7 rebounds in 13.0 minutes per outing. His shooting line on the campaign was .411/1.000/.675.

Lakers Notes: Free Agents, Young, Mozgov, Ingram

August 17th, 2016 at 5:15pm CST by Arthur Hill

Six players with NBA experience participated in the Lakers’ free agent mini-camp today, tweets Eric Pincus of Basketball Insiders. Attending the camp were Xavier Henry, Jeff Ayres, P.J. Hairston, Johnny O’Bryant, Orlando Johnson and Travis Wear. A swingman, Henry played 43 games for the Lakers during 2013/14, but was waived after just nine games the following season. Ayres is a six-year veteran center/power forward who played 16 games with the Clippers last season. Hairston, a swingman, has been in the league two years with the Hornets and Grizzlies. A power forward with two years of NBA experience, O’Bryant played 66 games for the Bucks last season but was waived in June. Johnson, a shooting guard, has four years of NBA experience and had brief stops last season with the Suns and Pelicans. Wear, a small forward, was out of the league last season after playing 61 games for the Knicks in 2014/15. “What we’re looking at here are known players,” GM Mitch Kupchak said in a video on the team’s website. “We do have roster spots open in terms of our team, but also we have roster spots open in terms of training camp.”

There’s more out of Los Angeles today:

It’s unlikely that Nick Young will be on the Lakers’ roster when the season starts, states Kevin Ding of Bleacher Report. Young recently expressed a desire to end his dispute with D’Angelo Russell, but Ding doesn’t believe he’ll get that opportunity. In a video on the Bleacher Report website, he says the Lakers have been trying to trade Young for a long time and will likely waive him if they can’t find a taker. He has two seasons and more than $11MM left on his contract. The league deadline for teams to use the stretch provision is August 31st.
Timofey Mozgov was able to participate in a full practice with his Russian team today after an injury scare last week, reports Mark Medina of The Los Angeles Times. Mozgov, who joined the Lakers on a four-year, $64MM deal last month, suffered a groin injury Friday and was forced to miss two tournament games. The Lakers said he reported no more pain after undergoing an MRI Saturday and has no more restrictions.
The Lakers held off on signing first-round pick Brandon Ingram and free agent center Tarik Black so they would have cap room for deals like the one today with Yi Jianlian, Medina tweets.

Bucks To Waive Johnny O’Bryant, Damien Inglis

June 29th, 2016 at 2:41pm CST by Luke Adams

The Bucks have requested waivers on a pair of forwards, according to Charles F. Gardner of The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, who reports that the team is parting ways with Johnny O’Bryant and Damien Inglis.

Both O’Bryant and Inglis were selected by Milwaukee early in the second round of the 2014 draft, but neither player developed into a major contributor for the Bucks. Of the two, O’Bryant saw the court more often, averaging 13.0 minutes per game in 66 contests last season. He averaged 3.0 PPG, 2.7 RPG, and 0.5 APG. Ingles, meanwhile, made his NBA debut in 2015/16, appearing in 20 games and playing sparingly in those contests.

Both players had been on the Bucks’ books for minimum salaries worth $980,431 in 2016/17. Those salaries were set to become guaranteed later this week if O’Bryant and Inglis had remained on the roster.

By waiving the duo, Milwaukee opens up a couple extra roster spots, and creates a small amount of cap room (less than $1MM in total). Not including this year’s draftees, Thon Maker and Malcolm Brogdon, the Bucks now have eight players under contract for next season, plus a qualifying offer out to RFA Miles Plumlee.

Eastern Notes: LeBron, Wade, Monroe, Bucks

August 1st, 2014 at 9:59am CST by Chuck Myron

Dwyane Wade said today that he didn’t try to recruit LeBron James back to the Heat when the two spent time together shortly before the four-time MVP announced his decision to sign with Cleveland, as Wade told reporters, including Jason Lieser of the Palm Beach Post. James didn’t tell Wade about his decision until after their time traveling back to Miami from Las Vegas, according to Wade, but James dropped enough hints to make his choice apparent.

“We had a long flight back from Vegas,” Wade said. “I probably knew then, without him telling me at that moment. You could tell where someone’s heart is and what they’re thinking. I kind of knew at that moment. As his friend, I’m just supportive. As crazy as that might sound, I’m supportive of my friend doing what makes them happy. Obviously same thing with him in this situation. You’ve gotta do what makes you happy — selfishly do what makes you happy. The decision to go back home was that.”

There’s more from Wade amid the latest from the Eastern Conference:

Wade also said that he wanted to be with a winning team more than he wanted the money he sacrificed when he opted out of his contract and re-signed with the Heat on a discount deal, as Lieser notes. Wade is convinced that the total of $10.694MM over the next two seasons that the transactions cost him gives Miami a better chance at success. (Twitter links).
Greg Monroe‘s interest in returning to the Pistons isn’t too strong, but while Detroit talked with the Hawks and perhaps the Suns about sign-and-trades involving him, those teams have moved on, as Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports told podcaster Aime Mukendi Jr. Buddy Grizzard of Hawks/Hoop provides the transcription.
The Bucks gave second-round pick Johnny O’Bryant $600K in the first year of an otherwise minimum-salary contract, notes Eric Pincus of Basketball Insiders (Twitter link). Milwaukee used part of its cap space to complete the deal with this year’s 36th overall pick.

Bucks Sign Johnny O’Bryant

July 31st, 2014 at 5:35pm CST by Chuck Myron

THURSDAY, 5:35pm: The final year of O’Bryant’s contract is actually non-guaranteed salary, rather than a team option, tweets Eric Pincus of Basketball Insiders.

6:40pm: O’Bryant’s deal is for three years, with the third year being a team option, reports Charles F. Gardner of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.

WEDNESDAY, 5:02pm: The Bucks have signed Johnny O’Bryant, the 36th pick in this year’s draft, the team announced. Exact terms of the contract were not announced. He’ll compete for playing time with Ersan Ilyasova and John Henson, though O’Bryant seems destined to spend significant time in the NBA D-League this season to help him develop.

The 6’9″ power forward had appeared in five games for the Bucks during Summer League play in Las Vegas, where he averaged 8.2 points and 5.4 rebounds in 18.2 minutes per contest. He saved his best game for last, when he posted 10 points and 10 rebounds against the Warriors Summer League entry.

O’Bryant played for three seasons at LSU, where he averaged 12.7 PPG, 7.7 RPG, and 1.3 APG for his career. He earned First Team All-SEC honors in 2013 and 2014.

Latest On Mitch McGary, Potential Promise

June 26th, 2014 at 5:36pm CST by Chuck Myron

THURSDAY, 5:36pm: Alex Kennedy of Basketball Insiders continues to hear that Mitch McGary has a promise from a team (Twitter link). Some believe it is indeed the Hornets, as Kennedy wrote earlier, while Gery Woelfel of The Journal Times hears from some who believe the Bucks, picking 31st, have promised him (Twitter link). The Thunder are “strongly considering” McGary at No. 29, tweets Jeff Goodman of ESPN.com.

WEDNESDAY, 8:24pm: A source tells Sean Deveney of Sporting News that McGary has been “all but assured” of being selected by a team in the 20s. Deveney mentions the Hornets and Thunder as possibilities.

TUESDAY, 3:12pm: Rick Bonnell of the Charlotte Observer suggests that the Hornets are also targeting LSU’s Johnny O’Bryant III (Twitter link). That seems to contract the notion that Charlotte has issued a promise to McGary, though Bonnell doesn’t explicitly say so.

2:24pm: The Hornets have given former University of Michigan center Mitch McGary a promise to draft him with the 24th overall pick Thursday, reports Chad Ford of ESPN.com (Twitter links). The 22-year-old has reportedly worked out for only one team prior to the draft, but that club is the Bucks, who are reportedly interested in him for the 31st overall pick. Still, it appears Charlotte has zeroed in on the big man in spite of back surgery that limited him to just eight games this season and a drug test that revealed his use of marijuana prior to the NCAA tournament.

McGary was a potential lottery pick prior to the back injury, so in a sense Charlotte might end up with a steal at No. 24. In any case, Jonathan Givony of DraftExpress lists McGary as the 24th best prospect in the draft, suggesting the Hornets would at least receive fair value. He’s 29th in the Insider-only rankings of Chad Ford of ESPN.com.

Still, the promise is no guarantee that the Hornets will draft McGary, and there are no binding agreements involved, even if Ford’s reporting is indeed accurate. Another team could draft McGary earlier, and the Hornets might receive an enticing offer that prompts them to trade the pick, among the possible scenarios.

Atlantic Notes: ‘Melo, Garnett, Felton, Draft

June 23rd, 2014 at 3:55pm CST by Chuck Myron

Neither New York team has a pick in either round of Thursday’s draft, but it seems there’s a decent chance that will change. The Knicks are thinking about trading Iman Shumpert for the first-rounder they’re seemingly intent on landing, and the Nets have scheduled workouts for this week with a bunch of potential second-round prospects, as we detail below amid the latest from the Big Apple:

Carmelo Anthony has opted out of his deal with New York, but it wasn’t news to the Knicks. He told the team three weeks ago that he still planned to opt out and reiterated as much during their meeting a little more than a week ago, according to Marc Berman of the New York Post. The Knicks nonetheless like their chances of re-signing him, Berman also notes.
The Nets are quietly optimistic that Kevin Garnett will return next season, reports Marc Stein of ESPN.com. His willingness to play out the final year of his contract, worth $12MM, is reportedly key to the future of soon-to-be free agent Paul Pierce, as Stein notes.
Raymond Felton avoided jail time as part of a plea agreement to resolve felony gun-related charges stemming from a February incident, reports Mike Mazzeo of ESPNNewYork.com. The Knicks point guard has been a part of trade rumors.
C.J. Fair, Semaj Christon, James Michael McAdoo, Johnny O’Bryant III, Xavier Thames, Ronald Roberts Jr., Langston Hall, Branden Frazier, Cameron Clark, Kyle Casey, Akil Mitchell, Cory Jefferson and Artem Klimenko are all working out for the Nets this week, the team announced.

Draft Notes: Exum, Mock Drafts, O’Bryant

June 22nd, 2014 at 10:26am CST by Eddie Scarito

Dante Exum is one of the draft’s most talented, but riskiest prospects, writes Josh Robbins of the Orlando Sentinel. One major question surrounding Exum is whether he’s better suited to play shooting guard than point guard, notes Robbins. A talent evaluator for an NBA team told Robbins, “He’s got to learn how to play point guard in the NBA. He’s somewhat similar to a lot of point guards working their way into the league now — guys who are looking to score the ball as well as pass the ball. Are they real point guards? In the traditional sense, no. But he’s the kind of point guard we’re getting into the league now.”

More draft notes and news:

In a separate piece, Robbins released his mock draft, which is topped by Andrew Wiggins going to the Cavaliers.
The staff over at Basketball Insiders released their updated mock draft, and also have Wiggins as their consensus top-pick.
In his mock draft, Brian Schmitz of the Orlando Sentinel has Wiggins being selected first as well, and predicts a number of trades, including the Lakers shipping the seventh pick to the Pacers for Roy Hibbert, and the Magic selecting Joel Embiid and trading him to the Celtics for Exum.
Johnny O’Bryant had a strong workout for the Bucks, reports Gery Woelfel of The Journal Times (Twitter link).

Draft Notes: Bucks, Parker, Embiid, Hornets

June 16th, 2014 at 1:04pm CST by Chuck Myron

The Bucks aren’t having any trouble getting a look at the top prospects. Milwaukee is reportedly set for a pair of workouts with Andrew Wiggins, and Chad Ford of ESPN.com hears that Jabari Parker will work out again for the club this week after having done so last week (Twitter link). Joel Embiid was already apparently slated to audition for the club, and GM John Hammond also met with the Kansas big man last week, Ford tweets. The Bucks appear to be the only team with which Wiggins, Parker, Embiid and Dante Exum have all agreed to visit and work out, Ford notes (Twitter link). Here’s more on the draft, now just 10 days away.

Jerami Grant, De’Mon Brooks, Josh Davis, Jarell Eddie and Mike Moser are among the draft prospects showing off for the Hornets today, the team announced via press release.
The Heat are auditioning Walter Tavares today, tweets Michael Scotto of SheridanHoops.
Keith Appling, Dave Dudzinski, Markel Starks, Tyler Stone and Jermaine Marshall are showing off for the Celtics today, as Chris Forsberg of ESPNBoston.com notes via Twitter. Marshall will also audition for the Cavs, Sportando reports (via Twitter).
Roscoe Smith has the Raptors and Mavs on his agenda, as Adam Zagoria of SNY.tv hears (Twitter link).
Richard Harris of NBADraft.net adds the Bulls to the list of teams for which Johnny O’Bryant III has worked out. O’Bryant also has auditions slated with the Rockets, Heat, Hornets, Bucks, Grizzlies, Raptors and Pistons, Harris reports.
Doug Haller of the Arizona Republic adds the Sixers, Mavs, Rockets and Heat to the list of teams that are getting a look at Jordan Bachynski (Twitter link).
Jahii Carson, Kendrick Perry, Earnest Ross and Alec Brown are all performing for the Rockets, Scotto tweets.
The Lakers are one of more than a dozen teams for which Ronald Roberts Jr. is working out, a source tells Zagoria (Twitter link).
The Warriors are auditioning Eric Moreland, Roberto Nelson and Travis Bader, according to Diamond Leung of the Bay Area News Group (Twitter links).