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Kevon Harris

Magic Sign Kevon Harris To Two-Way Contract

July 25th, 2022 at 1:26pm CST by Luke Adams

1:26pm: Harris’ two-way contract with the Magic is now official, the team confirmed in a press release.

10:15am: The Magic have reached an agreement with free agent guard Kevon Harris and will sign him to a two-way contract, according to Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link).

Harris, 25, went undrafted out of Stephen F. Austin in 2020 and has spent some time in the G League and overseas since then, playing for the Raptors 905 in the NBAGL and KK Zadar in Croatia.

Harris emerged as a full-time starter for Toronto’s G League affiliate in 2021/22, averaging 15.1 PPG, 5.8 RPG, and 3.5 APG on .473/.343/.740 shooting in 24 regular season appearances (30.2 MPG). He played for the Timberwolves’ Summer League team in Las Vegas earlier this month and made a strong impression, putting up 15.8 PPG on .577/.458/.727 shooting in five games (27.1 MPG).

Once they officially complete Harris’ deal, the Magic will have filled both of their two-way contract slots. The team re-signed Admiral Schofield to a two-way contract last week.

[RELATED: 2022/23 NBA Two-Way Contract Tracker]

Orlando will have 18 players under contract after signing Harris — 15 on guaranteed standard contracts, one (Devin Cannady) on a non-guaranteed deal, and Schofield and Harris on two-way pacts.

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Summer League Commitments: Wolves, Warriors, Wizards, Magic

June 24th, 2022 at 5:11pm CST by JD Shaw

Kevon Harris has accepted a summer league invite from the Timberwolves, his agent Billy Davis of Family of Athletes told Hoops Rumors. Harris, a 6’6″ guard, averaged 14.9 points, 5.8 rebounds, 3.7 assists and 1.5 steals per game for the Raptors’ G League affiliate this season, shooting 49% from the floor and 39% from deep.

Harris went unselected in the 2020 NBA draft after spending four collegiate seasons at Stephen F. Austin. This will be the first summer league stint of his career. The event will be held from July 7-17 in Las Vegas, Nevada.

There’s more summer league news to report:

  • Richmond’s Jacob Gilyard has agreed to play summer league with the Warriors, a league source told Hoops Rumors. Gilyard, a 5’9″ point guard, averaged 13.3 points and 5.4 assists per game last season. He went undrafted on Thursday.
  • The Wizards are bringing guard Pat Spencer to their Las Vegas Summer League entry, agents Keith Glass and Luke Glass said. Spencer, 25, played for the team’s G League affiliate this season, averaging 7.5 points. Originally a lacrosse star at Loyola University Maryland, Spencer didn’t play organized basketball between 2016 and 2019. He left the school as the NCAA all-time leader in assists and second in points, then transitioned back to basketball.
  • Jared Wilson-Frame has committed to play with the Magic during summer league, agent Billy Davis told Hoops Rumors. Wilson-Frame averaged 16.4 points per game with the Jazz’s G League affiliate this season, shooting 41% from three-point range.
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Jazz Notes: Far From Contending, Mini-Camp, Prospect Workouts

June 2nd, 2022 at 1:57pm CST by Rory Maher

All four of the 2021/22 Conference Finalists — the Warriors, Mavericks, Celtics and Heat — proved how far the Jazz are from contending for a championship, Sarah Todd of The Deseret News opines.

Todd notes that head coach Quin Snyder, whose status remains uncertain for next season, said Utah was very close to competing at the highest level at his end-of-season press conference.

“This year, I thought that our record didn’t necessarily reflect what we could do in the playoffs. I felt like we were this close to having a spark and kicking it in and finding that unity, that extra secret sauce, and taking off. And obviously that didn’t happen,” Snyder said, per Eric Walden of The Salt Lake Tribune.

Todd disagrees. Even assuming the Jazz had advanced past Dallas in the first round (they lost in six games), Todd is doubtful the Jazz would have been able to take the Suns to seven games in the second round, as Dallas was able to do.

She also doesn’t think the Jazz would have fared any better than the Mavs did against the Warriors in the Western Conference Finals, if they’d gotten past Phoenix.

Ultimately, the Todd believes the flawed roster was too much to overcome, and Utah’s front office will have a tough job improving it this summer.

Here’s more from Utah:

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2020/21 NBA G League Draft Results

January 11th, 2021 at 1:03pm CST by Luke Adams

The NBA G League held its draft for the 2020/21 season on Monday afternoon.

In a typical year, the G League draft lasts four rounds and teams are only required to make two selections. However, this year’s draft was just three rounds and teams weren’t required to make any picks.

Because only 17 of 28 NBA G League affiliates (plus the G League Ignite) are participating in the revamped season at Walt Disney World in Florida, and because teams aren’t permitted to bring extra players to training camp for health and safety reasons, roster spots will be at a premium in the NBAGL this season, and the draft reflected that. Only 25 players were selected.

With the first overall pick, the Greensboro Swarm – the Hornets‘ affiliate – nabbed former Wizard Admiral Schofield. The 42nd overall pick in the 2019 NBA draft, Schofield averaged 3.0 PPG and 1.4 RPG in 33 games (11.2 MPG) as a rookie before being traded to the Thunder during the offseason. Oklahoma City waived him last month.

With the second overall pick, which they acquired in a trade earlier in the day, the Memphis Hustle selected former Baylor standout Freddie Gillespie, who had been in camp with the Mavericks. Gillespie recently spoke to JD Shaw of Hoops Rumors about his desire to make it to the NBA and his plans to begin his professional career in the G League. He’s now in position to suit up for the Grizzlies‘ affiliate.

Here are the full 2020/21 G League draft results:

Round One:

  1. Greensboro Swarm (Hornets): Admiral Schofield (Tennessee)
  2. Memphis Hustle (Grizzlies): Freddie Gillespie (Baylor)
  3. Canton Charge (Cavaliers): Antonio Blakeney (LSU)
  4. Iowa Wolves (Timberwolves): Allonzo Trier (Arizona)
  5. Lakeland Magic (Magic):  Tahjere McCall (Tennessee State)
  6. Canton Charge: Anthony Lamb (Vermont)
  7. Oklahoma City Blue (Thunder): Zavier Simpson (Michigan)
  8. Lakeland Magic: DJ Hogg (Texas A&M)
  9. Westchester Knicks (Knicks): Justin Patton (Creighton)
  10. Rio Grande Valley Vipers (Rockets): Armoni Brooks (Houston)
  11. Raptors 905 (Raptors): Kevon Harris (Stephen F. Austin)
  12. Rio Grande Valley Vipers: Jarron Cumberland (Cincinnati)
  13. Oklahoma City Blue: Vince Edwards (Purdue)
  14. Austin Spurs (Spurs): Jonathan Kasibabu (Fairfield)
  15. Raptors 905: Gary Payton II (Oregon State)
  16. Memphis Hustle: Anthony Cowan Jr. (Maryland)
  17. Iowa Wolves: Dakarai Tucker (Utah)
  18. Salt Lake City Stars (Jazz): No pick
  19. N/A

Round Two:

  1. Delaware Blue Coats (Sixers): Jemerrio Jones (New Mexico State)
  2. Fort Wayne Mad Ants (Pacers): Oshae Brissett (Syracuse)
  3. Westchester Knicks: No pick
  4. Iowa Wolves: No pick
  5. Long Island Nets (Nets): No pick
  6. Agua Caliente Clippers of Ontario (Clippers): No pick
  7. Fort Wayne Mad Ants: Quincy McKnight (Seton Hall)
  8. Agua Caliente Clippers of Ontario (Clippers): No pick
  9. Santa Cruz Warriors (Warriors): Selom Mawugbe (Azusa Pacific)
  10. Raptors 905: No pick
  11. Memphis Hustle: No pick
  12. Austin Spurs: Anthony Mathis (Oregon)
  13. Erie BayHawks (Pelicans): No pick
  14. Greensboro Swarm: No pick
  15. Austin Spurs: Kaleb Johnson (Georgetown)
  16. Santa Cruz Warriors: No pick
  17. Memphis Hustle: No pick
  18. Oklahoma City Blue: Rob Edwards (Arizona State)
  19. Salt Lake City Stars: No pick

Round Three:

  1. Greensboro Swarm: No pick
  2. Erie BayHawks: No pick
  3. Westchester Knicks: No pick
  4. Delaware Blue Coats: Braxton Key (Virginia)
  5. No picks from 43-57

The teams that didn’t make any picks will fill their rosters with affiliate players and returning rights players, meaning they didn’t need to draft anyone and/or didn’t have the open spots to do so.

As Jonathan Givony of ESPN and Blake Murphy of The Athletic noted (via Twitter), NBAGL teams overwhelmingly opted for youth, passing on most of the notable veteran NBA players in the draft pool. That group included Michael Beasley, Mario Chalmers, Lance Stephenson, Emeka Okafor, and Shabazz Muhammad, among others.

Former Nets first-rounder Dzanan Musa removed his name from the draft pool before the event began, per Marc Stein of The New York Times (Twitter link).

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Lakers Waive Zavier Simpson, Kevon Harris, Tres Tinkle

December 14th, 2020 at 2:08pm CST by Luke Adams

The Lakers waived guard Zavier Simpson, guard Kevon Harris, and forward Tres Tinkle on Sunday, according to the NBA’s official transactions log.

Simpson, Harris, and Tinkle were all rookie free agents who went undrafted last month, then agreed to Exhibit 10 contracts with the Lakers. It looked as if the plan was for them to participate in training camp and then perhaps join Los Angeles’ G League affiliate, the South Bay Lakers. However, the team reportedly opted not to bring them to camp as a coronavirus precaution.

The Lakers are also among the teams expected to bypass the proposed G League bubble, as our JD Shaw has reported. As such, Harris, Simpson, and Tinkle may not get an opportunity to play for South Bay this season. Still, it appears all three players officially signed their Exhibit 10 deals, just in case.

Following the series of transactions, the Lakers are once again carrying 16 players on their roster, including 14 on standard contracts and a pair on two-way deals. They seem likely to open the season with those 16 players under contract.

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L.A. Notes: Lakers, Cook, Davis, George, Clippers

December 7th, 2020 at 11:02am CST by Luke Adams

According to a report from Ben Stinar of Forbes (Twitter link), the Lakers have sent home their players who don’t have guaranteed contracts as a coronavirus precaution in order to limit the number of people on the court during training camp.

The exact details here are a little unclear. The Lakers reportedly agreed to Exhibit 10 deals with undrafted rookies Zavier Simpson, Tres Tinkle, and Kevon Harris, but those signings haven’t been announced by the team and haven’t shown up in the league’s public transactions log, so it’s possible they simply won’t be officially finalized.

Meanwhile, Quinn Cook formally re-signed with the Lakers on Friday, and Keith Smith of Yahoo Sports reports (via Twitter) that Cook received a non-guaranteed training camp contract. However, it doesn’t appear that Stinar’s report would apply to the veteran guard. Head coach Frank Vogel suggested on Sunday that he expects Cook to begin practicing later this week once he clears COVID-19 protocols, as Dave McMenamin of ESPN tweets.

As we await more details on the Lakers’ camp roster, let’s round up a few more notes on the NBA’s two L.A. teams…

  • After signing a five-year contract with the Lakers, Anthony Davis explained that he felt more comfortable locking in a longer-term deal in part because of his injury history, writes Dave McMenamin of ESPN. “I do have a little history with injuries, and a two-year deal, you kind of bet on yourself. … God forbid, knock on wood, something happens,” Davis said. “… I want to secure the most amount of years possible and be here long-term with this team, so I thought the five-year deal was best for me in my situation.”
  • After suggesting during an appearance on the All The Smoke podcast that Doc Rivers misused him last season and suggesting the Clippers failed to make adjustments during their second-round loss to Denver, Paul George walked those comments back a little on Friday, as Ohm Youngmisuk of ESPN details. Rivers’ response, per Keith Pompey of The Philadelphia Inquirer: “Hey, listen, I enjoyed coaching him. So not a lot to say there. (New Clippers coach) Ty Lue was sitting right next to me. So he better hope it’s not adjustments. It ain’t going to be much different.”
  • Speaking to reporters on Sunday, Clippers point guard Patrick Beverley said that he and his teammates are entering the season angry and looking to make up for their disappointing playoff showing. “The attitude around here is guys are pissed off,” Beverley said, according to Youngmisuk. “Which is good. We should be pissed off after our exit last year in the playoffs. … It is a little quieter workplace and guys are more locked in, more focused, and that is the way it should be.”
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Kevon Harris To Sign With Lakers

November 24th, 2020 at 12:09pm CST by Arthur Hill

The Lakers will sign shooting guard Kevon Harris, tweets Ben Stinar of Forbes. No details were given on the deal, which was confirmed by his agent, Billy Davis. It’s likely a training camp contract, although the team does have a two-way slot still available.

Harris, 23, averaged 17.5 points, 5.7 rebounds, 2.1 assists and 1.5 steals per game in his senior season at Stephen F. Austin. He was named Southland Conference Player of the Year.

Harris will face long odds to earn a spot on the Lakers’ roster, but he should be a candidate for their G League affiliate if that league is able to operate this season.

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Draft Decisions: DeLaurier, Waters, Elleby, Others

May 28th, 2019 at 8:35am CST by Luke Adams

As we relayed on Monday evening, Duke is losing one key member of its 2019/20 squad, with center Marques Bolden opting to keep his name in the 2019 NBA draft pool and go pro. However, the Blue Devils did get some good news on the draft front.

According to Jeff Goodman of Stadium (via Twitter), junior big man Javin DeLaurier has opted to withdraw from the 2019 draft and return to school for his senior year.

DeLaurier hasn’t played a huge role for Duke in his first three seasons, but with Bolden out of the picture, he could play more significant minutes in ’19/20. In 38 games (16 starts) last season, DeLaurier posted 3.8 PPG, 4.4 RPG, and 1.3 BPG with a .747 FG% in 16.3 minutes per contest. He had a double-double (10 points, 11 rebounds, three blocks) in Duke’s Elite 8 loss to Michigan State.

Here are more of the latest draft decisions made by this year’s early entrants in advance of Wednesday’s deadline:

  • Shaw junior guard Amir Hinton and LSU sophomore guard Tremont Waters are keeping their names in the 2019 draft pool, agent Kim Grillier tells Goodman (Twitter link).
  • A pair of Waters’ teammates, junior guards Marlon Taylor and Skylar Mays, will return to LSU for the 2019/20 season after testing the draft waters, a source tells Jon Rothstein of CBS Sports (Twitter link).
  • Kevon Harris, a junior guard out of Stephen F. Austin, is pulling out of the draft and retaining his college eligibility, reports Rothstein (via Twitter).
  • After testing the draft waters, Washington State forward CJ Elleby has elected to return to school for his sophomore season, tweets Rothstein.
  • We can also remove David DiLeo‘s name from the early entrant list, according to Rothstein, who tweets that the forward is headed back to Central Michigan for his senior year.
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Latest On Early Entrants List For 2019 NBA Draft

April 22nd, 2019 at 1:50pm CST by Luke Adams

The deadline for early entrants to declare for the 2019 NBA draft fell on Sunday night, with plenty of NCAA underclassmen and international prospects entering their names into the draft before that deadline.

News continues to trickle in on players making draft decisions, and it will just be a matter of time before the NBA issues an official list of the players who declared for the 2019 NBA draft as early entrants. Once that group is set, the next key deadline to watch will be May 29 — that’s the last day for NCAA players to withdraw from draft consideration while retaining their college eligibility.

Here are many of the early entrants who have declared for the draft within the past couple days (our full list can be found here):

NCAA early entrants:

International early entrants:

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