Marcus Morris Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Popovich: Spurs “Blindsided” By Morris’ Change Of Heart

September 30th, 2019 at 2:07pm CST by Luke Adams

While it was overshadowed by bigger-name transactions, one of the most fascinating sequences of the first week of 2019’s free agent period came after the Spurs agreed to sign Marcus Morris to a two-year deal worth their mid-level exception.

San Antonio, having already reached a deal to sign DeMarre Carroll using a portion of the mid-level, renegotiated Carroll’s contract and agreed to send Davis Bertans to the Wizards in a three-team trade that would ultimately open up the MLE for Morris. However, Morris then reneged on his agreement with the Spurs, opting to sign with the Knicks instead. San Antonio subsequently used part of its MLE to sign Trey Lyles, but likely would have preferred to simply keep Bertans.

Addressing that situation for the first time today, Spurs head coach and head of basketball operations Gregg Popovich expressed frustration with how things played out, as Jabari Young of The Athletic (video link) relays.

“It was more than difficult to lose Davis,” Popovich said. “Let’s just say that that was an unfortunate situation that was handled unprofessionally on a couple of different levels. We made that move (trading Bertans) to make the signing that we did, and we got blindsided. Davis was a special player, as we all know. He was young and getting better and better, so we hated losing him.”

Morris’ change of heart in free agency played a part in his split with agent Rich Paul, who reportedly urged him to stick to his deal with the Spurs. The situation also allegedly fueled some animosity between the Knicks and Spurs.

Morris told Shams Charania of The Athletic in late July that as soon as he changed his mind and decided to sign with the Knicks, he called the Spurs to make sure they knew. According to Morris, he had “great conversations afterward” with the Spurs and felt good about moving forward.

Based on his Media Day comments, it doesn’t sound as if Popovich shared the same feelings about how the saga played out. Asked today if Morris reached out to the team and explained what happened, Popovich replied, “Not really.”

Knicks Notes: Free Agency, Fizdale, Ntilikina, Morris, Injuries

September 30th, 2019 at 1:28pm CST by JD Shaw

After an underwhelming offseason finally came to an end on Monday, a long-standing silence was broken when president Steve Mills, general manager Scott Perry and head coach David Fizdale took the podium at Knicks media day to discuss the franchise’s outlook.

The Knicks, who entered last summer with hopes of pursuing Kyrie Irving and Kevin Durant after finishing with the league’s worst record at 17-65, lost both superstars to the rival Nets and were forced to execute Plan B as free agency began.

“Free agency is a process,” Mills said, as relayed by Mike Vorkunov of The Athletic (Twitter link). “There are certain parts of it you can’t control. We had a plan in place… It played out in a way we were prepared for it to go.”

New York opted to sign nine new players to its roster, including seven directly from free agency and two from the NBA Draft. When asked why the team once again failed to securing meetings with superstar free agents, Mills rejected the notion.

“There were a lot of max-type players that we could have met with, that were interested in coming here,” Mills said, according to Vorkunov (Twitter link). “We had a certain way that we wanted to build this team. This is how we chose to build it.”

As for why Durant and Irving chose Brooklyn over New York, with both teams having enough salary-cap space to acquire the duo in free agency, Mills’ response was blunt.

“You’ll have to talk to those players about why they made the decisions that they made,” he said, according to Adam Zagoria of Forbes.

On the plus side, the Knicks sport a promising young core that consists of Dennis Smith Jr., RJ Barrett, Julius Randle and Mitchell Robinson, one that stands out from the team’s group around this time last season.

Perry defended his decision to sign a glut of power forwards in free agency (Randle, Bobby Portis, Taj Gibson and Marcus Morris), noting the importance of maximizing his team’s chances at being successful this season.

“We only had one player in the frontcourt under contract [entering the summer] and that was Mitchell Robinson,” Perry said, according to Zagoria. “We were going to have to go out and stock our frontcourt and each and every one of those players plays multiple positions. These guys can move around. We’re in the era of positionless basketball. This really fits into how we want to play the game.”

There’s more out of New York on media day:

The Knicks’ young players will have to work hard in order to earn playing time in a rotation that includes several NBA veterans, Fizdale explained, as relayed by Vorkunov. “We’re in that next phase of development where guys will have to earn it,” said Fizdale.
Scott Perry wouldn’t commit to a decision on Frank Ntilikina’s fourth-year contract option for next season, tweets Stefan Bondy of the New York Daily News. The team has until October 31 to make a final decision on whether to pick it up, with the option valued at roughly $6.17MM.
Marcus Morris decided to sign with the Knicks over the Spurs partially because he’d be closer to his hometown in Philadelphia, Vorkunov tweets. Morris originally committed to a deal with the Spurs but reneged on the agreement, choosing to join the Knicks and spurning those in San Antonio.
The team issued a medical update on Monday, stating that Damyean Dotson (right shoulder) likely won’t play in the preseason, though he could be ready for the start of the regular season. Reggie Bullock (cervical disc herniation) is making progress from his surgery and will be re-evaluated in early November.

Southwest Notes: Diallo, Morris, Iguodala, Favors

July 22nd, 2019 at 8:17pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Cheick Diallo was squeezed out of New Orleans due to a numbers crunch, John Gambadoro of Arizona Sports 98.7 FM tweets. The Pelicans didn’t want to lose the young power forward but they essentially had to choose between him and Jahlil Okafor, according to Gambadoro. New Orleans got three players back in the Anthony Davis deal, added three first-rounders including top pick Zion Williamson, and signed free agent guard J.J. Redick. New Orleans did not make a qualifying offer to Diallo, which made him an unrestricted free agent. He signed a two-year contract with the Suns.

We have more from the Southwest Division:

Marcus Morris said he meant no disrespect when backed out of a verbal two-year agreement with the Spurs to sign a one-year contract with the Knicks, as he told Shams Charania of The Athletic. “The first thing that I did when I knew I would be going another direction, I called and made sure they knew. There was no shade. There’s no disrespect,” Morris said. “I had great conversations afterward, and as long as I feel that I’m clear with them and gave them my truth, I feel good about moving forward. … I thought at the time that the Spurs deal was all that I had. The process wasn’t what I expected and it didn’t go the right way.” The way Morris’ free agent journey played out contributed to bad blood between the two organizations.
Andre Iguodala remains in limbo after getting traded to the Grizzlies, Charania reports in a video post. The Rockets, Clippers, Mavericks and Nuggets have all shown interest in the veteran forward. Houston and the Clippers are the top contenders but the Rockets have major luxury tax concerns while the only thing that would make sense for the Clippers salary-wise would be to move Maurice Harkless, whom they acquired from the Trail Blazers. However, the Clippers don’t want to ship out Harkless, Charania adds.
The Pelicans believe they can turn big man Derrick Favors into a bigger offensive threat than he was with the Jazz, William Guillory of The Athletic writes. Favors was acquired for two second-rounders in a salary dump by Utah. The opportunity to play alongside Jrue Holiday, Zion Williamson and Redick will facilitate the process. Favors will be utilized more often as a passer and be encouraged to develop his 3-point game, Guillory adds.

Spurs, Knicks At Odds Over Morris, Porzingis

July 20th, 2019 at 11:59am CST by Dana Gauruder

Animosity has developed between the Spurs and Knicks organizations over the Marcus Morris free agency odyssey and alleged tampering involving Kristaps Porzingis, Frank Isola of The Athletic and Ian Begley of SNY TV report.

Morris backed out of a verbal agreement to sign a two-year, $19MM contract with San Antonio and inked a one-year, $15MM deal with the Knicks. While he’ll earn more in 2019/20 as a Knick, the actual value of next year’s salary isn’t significantly larger, as Isola points out, due to New York’s state taxes. Morris’ motivation was to max out his earnings in ’19/20 before entering a weaker free agent market again next summer.

The Spurs are upset at a number of levels, according to Isola. Not only are they upset about the Knicks swooping in, they had opened up the mid-level exception for him by dealing forward Davis Bertans to the Wizards and asking DeMarre Carroll to rework his free-agent contract. Carroll was eventually acquired from the Nets in a sign-and-trade.

New York saw the signing of Morris as a “small victory,” according to Isola, after missing out on top-level free agents. The Knicks gained more cap room by re-working Reggie Bullock‘s free agent deal. Bullock underwent a cervical disc procedure this week.

New York’s front office also feels that the Spurs had it coming because they alleged crossed lines of accepted behavior prior to the 2017 draft when it was shopping Porzingis, Begley writes. The exact nature of San Antonio’s behavior is unclear, Begley adds, though Isola asserts there may have been illegal contact between the Spurs and Porzingis during that time. The talented big man wound up with the Mavericks in a deadline deal last February.

Knicks Notes: Morris, Bullock, Vonleh

July 16th, 2019 at 1:14pm CST by Luke Adams

After officially announcing their deals with Marcus Morris and Reggie Bullock today, the Knicks appear to be just about done with free agency. Damyean Dotson‘s salary for 2019/20 became fully guaranteed because he remained on the roster through Monday, so New York is now carrying 15 players on guaranteed deals. The team has also exhausted its cap room and appears to have used a portion of the room exception to sign Bullock.

Here are a few Knicks-related notes on Morris, Bullock, and more:

Morris’ agent Rich Paul wasn’t directly involved in his client breaking his verbal agreement with the Spurs, and preferred that Morris stick to that agreement, a source tells Marc Berman of The New York Post. According to Berman, Morris and the Knicks worked together to strike a deal. As for Morris and Paul, they’re reportedly parting ways after the forward’s tumultuous free agency.
A source tells Berman that Bullock is out “indefinitely” and isn’t expected to be ready for the start of the regular season. Ian Begley of SNY.tv reports that Bullock will likely miss at least a month of the season. The details on the veteran guard’s health issue remain a mystery, but that issue helped scuttle the initial two-year deal between the two sides — that $21MM agreement would have been worth more than double the value of their new contract.
The Knicks’ goal is to win – not tank – in 2019/20, according to Berman, who speculates that Morris and Julius Randle may end up being the team’s starting forward tandem, with 2018 lottery pick Kevin Knox moving to the bench.
After leaving the Knicks for the Timberwolves in free agency, Noah Vonleh told Mike Vorkunov of The Athletic that he had a “great” time in New York last season. “It was a great opportunity,” Vonleh said. “They gave me some playing time, let me be the 4-man, just grow as a player and change the narrative that was on me that was in the league and gave myself another a chance to give myself a new life in the league.”

Knicks Sign Marcus Morris

July 16th, 2019 at 10:19am CST by ChrisCrouse

JULY 16: Morris has officially signed with the Knicks, per NBA.com’s transactions log.

JULY 11: The Knicks have agreed to a one-year, $15MM deal with Marcus Morris, Shams Charania of The Athletic reports (Twitter link). Morris had previously come to an agreement with the Spurs but chose not to honor the verbal agreement.

San Antonio was planning on using its mid-level exception to sign Morris and turned its DeMarre Carroll acquisition into a sign-and-trade in order to accommodate Morris on a two-year deal worth approximately $19MM. The Spurs traded away Davis Bertans as part of the Carroll sign-and-trade.

“I had to make this decision based on the best situation for me and my family,” Morris said (via Charania). “This is no knock on the Spurs. I have respect for them.”

New York had the flexibility to add Morris after renegotiating its deal with Reggie Bullock. Bullock agreed to terms with the Knicks on a two-year, $21MM pact, but the franchise nixed that deal over health concerns. Ian Begley of SNY.tv tweets that New York plans to amend the agreement with Bullock.

Morris, who earned the No. 22 spot on our list of this offseason’s top 50 free agents, was the most notable name still on the board. The 29-year-old had a solid year in Boston as the Celtics’ primary starting forward in 2018/19, averaging 13.9 PPG, 6.1 RPG, and 1.5 APG with a .447/.375/.844 shooting line. He’ll join a Knicks frontcourt that also features newly-added veterans like Bobby Portis, Julius Randle, and Taj Gibson in addition to incumbent youngsters Mitchell Robinson and Kevin Knox.

The move to sign Morris exhausts New York’s cap room. The team has the room exception available to sign Bullock or another free agent.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

NBA Executives Want Shorter Moratorium

July 14th, 2019 at 12:58pm CST by Arthur Hill

Marcus Morris‘ decision to join the Knicks after agreeing to an offer from the Spurs will add momentum to a push to shorten the summer moratorium, writes Tim Bontemps of ESPN.

Morris accepted a two-year, $20MM offer from San Antonio on July 6, but changed his mind a few days later when the Knicks agreed to give him $15MM for one season. New York had unexpected money available after renegotiating its deal with Reggie Bullock over health issues.

Bontemps points out that similar concerns arose last summer when Nemanja Bjelica and Yogi Ferrell backed out of respective deals with the Sixers and Mavericks when they got better offers from the Kings.

Although executives that Bontemps spoke to at the Summer League were split in their opinions on these decisions, they are united in their dislike of the six-day moratorium, with one telling him, “It’s just too long.”

In the wake of his free agent odyssey, Morris has decided to change agents, according to Stefan Bondy of The New York Daily News. Morris has parted ways with Rich Paul of Klutch Sports, who is arguably the league’s most powerful agent and helped steer Anthony Davis to the Lakers. A source tells Bondy that Morris refused a three-year, $41MM offer from the Clippers before agreeing to the deals with the Spurs and then the Knicks.

Spurs Sign Forward Trey Lyles

July 12th, 2019 at 5:41pm CST by Luke Adams

JULY 12, 5:41pm: The signing is official, according to a team press release.

JULY 11, 6:39pm: The Spurs have reached a contract agreement with free agent forward Trey Lyles, reports ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (via Twitter). It’ll be a two-year deal, according to Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link). Jabari Young of The Athletic adds (via Twitter) that it’ll be worth about $11MM in total.

Lyles will be joining the Spurs in place of Marcus Morris, who tentatively agreed to a two-year, $19MM contract with San Antonio but will instead be signing a one-year, $15MM deal with New York. Wojnarowski suggests that the Spurs pulled their offer to Morris, but the veteran forward had reportedly been re-evaluating his options for at least a couple days.

Lyles is coming off a down year in Denver, having posted just 8.5 PPG and 3.8 RPG with a shooting line of .418/.255/.698 in 64 games (17.5 MPG). However, he flashed promising stretch-four potential in 2017/18, when he posted marks of 9.9 PPG and 4.8 RPG on .491/.381/.706 shooting.

The Nuggets originally tendered him a qualifying offer, but rescinded that QO after they acquired Jerami Grant in a trade with the Thunder, making Lyles an unrestricted free agent.

The Spurs had initially planned on signing DeMarre Carroll using their mid-level exception, but restructured that agreement to acquire Carroll via sign-and-trade, sending Davis Bertans to Washington and opening up the full mid-level for Morris. With that deal no longer happening, I’d expect Lyles to be signed using some of that MLE, though specific terms aren’t yet known.

Lyles may not provide the same sort of immediate impact that Morris would have, but he’s still just 23 years old and his ’17/18 performance suggests he has room to improve.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Atlantic Notes: Knicks, Ennis, Durant, Nets

July 11th, 2019 at 10:38am CST by Luke Adams

When Kelly Oubre struck a deal with the Suns late on Wednesday night, he represented the last of the players on our list of 2019’s top 50 free agents to reach a contract agreement with a team. However, two of those agreements are in flux.

As we previously relayed, Reggie Bullock and the Knicks are attempting to rework a two-year, $21MM deal that fell apart due to an issue with Bullock’s physical, and Marcus Morris is re-evaluating his two-year, $19MM deal with the Spurs now that New York may have cap room again.

As of Thursday morning, there’s still mutual interest between Bullock and the Knicks in finding a new deal that works, per Ian Begley of SNY.tv. Begley notes that a source told him earlier this week that the Knicks are hopeful of landing Morris, whose veteran presence and toughness intrigues the club. Steve Popper of Newsday adds (via Twitter) that he has heard from people inside and outside the Knicks’ organization who think that Morris will end up in New York.

As we wait for resolution on those two free agents, let’s round up a few more notes from around the Atlantic…

After agreeing to a new deal with the Sixers as a free agent, forward James Ennis expressed major confidence in the team’s outlook for 2019/20, as Keith Pompey of The Philadelphia Inquirer tweets. “We had a good chance last year. Kawhi (Leonard) is gone. He went to the West,” Ennis said. “So we are going to walk to the Finals in the East.”
Kevin Durant initially “balked” at the idea of being signed-and-traded to the Nets straight up for D’Angelo Russell, sources tell Brian Windhorst of ESPN. As Windhorst explains, Durant didn’t believe it was a fair deal, presumably because he could have signed outright with Brooklyn using the team’s cap room. The Warriors ultimately ended up including a heavily protected first-rounder in the swap not just to satisfy the Nets, but to satisfy KD, says Windhorst.
Sources tell Brian Lewis of The New York Post that the Nets‘ newly-added star power could increase Barclays Center revenues by about $40MM through “increased sponsorships, merchandising, and ticket sales.”

Marcus Morris Reconsidering Spurs Deal, Eyeing Knicks

July 9th, 2019 at 4:25pm CST by Luke Adams

4:25pm: According to Chris Haynes of Yahoo Sports, there’s still optimism that the Spurs and Morris will finalize their agreement. However, San Antonio has started reaching out to other free agent wings in case Morris decides to join the Knicks, sources tell Haynes.

Chris Mannix of SI.com tweets that Morris has been frustrated because he thought there would be a stronger market for his services. Since his Spurs offer has a second-year player option, he’d have the opportunity to return to free agency in 2020 no matter which team he chooses, but the Knicks’ reported offer would be worth significantly more over one year.

3:45pm: Free agent forward Marcus Morris, who agreed to a two-year deal with the Spurs on Sunday, is now reconsidering that agreement, according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski and Marc J. Spears (Twitter link).

As Wojnarowski explains, the Knicks project to have extra cap space available now that they’re reworking their initial agreement with Reggie Bullock, and Morris is considering signing with New York.

Jabari Young of The Athletic adds (via Twitter) that the word at Las Vegas Summer League is that there’s a one-year, $15MM deal available to Morris with the Knicks. According to Young, the Spurs – who were on track to sign Morris to a two-year, $19MM deal – are in “real danger” of losing the veteran forward.

If Morris reneges on his commitment to San Antonio, it would be a tough blow for the team, which turned its signing of DeMarre Carroll into a sign-and-trade deal in order to make its mid-level exception available for Morris. The Spurs sent sharpshooting forward Davis Bertans to the Wizards in that sign-and-trade for Carroll.

Should Morris sign with the Knicks, San Antonio would still have its full $9.25MM mid-level exception available, but there probably aren’t any other unrestricted free agents left on the market that would be worth a full MLE commitment.

The Knicks, meanwhile, were said to have significant interest in Morris heading into free agency, but seemingly addressed their power forward position by signing Julius Randle, Bobby Portis, and Taj Gibson.

Signing Morris would add even more veteran depth to their frontcourt, and would presumably exhaust the team’s cap room. In that scenario, perhaps Bullock – who is said to be working on a new deal with the Knicks – would fit into the room exception.

Morris, 29, had a solid year in Boston as the Celtics’ primary starting forward, averaging 13.9 PPG, 6.1 RPG, and 1.5 APG with a .447/.375/.844 shooting line.