Marcus Thornton Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Wizards Sign Marcus Thornton

March 9th, 2016 at 1:45pm CST by Chuck Myron

1:45pm: The signing is official, the team announced.

“Marcus brings experience and shooting to our backcourt and helps us fill a void caused by Gary’s injury with another veteran player,” Wizards GM Ernie Grunfeld said. “His skill set will allow him to fit right into our system and give our offense another option.”

11:19am: The Wizards and Marcus Thornton have agreement on a deal that covers the rest of the season, league sources tell Shams Charania of The Vertical on Yahoo Sports (Twitter link). Washington is waiving the injured Gary Neal to make room, as Marc Stein of ESPN.com reported minutes ago. The deal will give Thornton the minimum salary, tweets Jorge Castillo of The Washington Post.

Earlier reports identified the Heat and Cavaliers, but not the Wizards, as teams with interest in the seventh-year veteran who recently cleared waivers from the Rockets. The Heat’s path to tax flexibility has since closed, cutting off the team’s ability to sign him for another month without a heavy financial outlay. The Wizards appear to offer Thornton a better shot at playing time than the Cavaliers would, given the hip injury that’s plaguing Bradley Beal this week, though that appears to be only a short-term ailment.

Washington isn’t in position to bide its time as it sits in 10th place, two and a half games out of the final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference. Thornton is allowed to play in the postseason if the Wizards make it, since the Rockets waived him a few days before the March 1st, the cutoff date for playoff-eligibility.

Thornton’s minutes went up and down this year with Houston, a source of frustration to him, and the team was to send him to Detroit in the voided Donatas Motiejunas trade. The Pistons reportedly didn’t plan to make him part of the rotation, but he’s been productive when called upon this season, averaging 10.0 points in 18.8 minutes per contest across 47 appearances.

The Wizards had the ability to exceed the minimum salary for Thornton, since they have a disabled player exception worth nearly $2.806MM left over from Martell Webster‘s season-ending injury, which expires Thursday, plus a prorated sliver of the mid-level exception. However, they’re only about $500K shy of the luxury tax line, and it’s doubtful they’ll cross that.

Cavs, Heat Among Teams Eyeing Marcus Thornton

March 4th, 2016 at 8:28am CST by Chuck Myron

FRIDAY, 8:28am: Thornton wanted to join the Heat and was disappointed when Udrih went unclaimed, according to Jackson. Miami had strong interest, and Thornton would still like to join the team next month when the Heat are able to sign someone again without going over the tax, but he’d prefer to find a job sooner, Jackson adds.

2:43pm: Thornton is interested in seeing whether the Sixers claim Udrih off waivers to reach the salary floor, a move that would take his entire $2,170,465 salary off Miami’s books for tax purposes and give the Heat enough flexibility to sign him immediately without going over the tax, notes Jackson (Twitter link). Udrih will remain on waivers until Wednesday.

TUESDAY, 12:47pm: The Cavaliers and Heat are among a group of three or four teams with an eye on recently released shooting guard Marcus Thornton, reports Calvin Watkins of ESPN.com (Twitter link). Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald first identified the Heat’s interest last week, while Shams Charania of The Vertical on Yahoo Sports wrote Monday that Miami was in talks with the Tony Dutt client. Thornton remains in wait and see mode, according to Watkins, which jibes with Jackson’s report that the 28-year-old is in no hurry to sign. He cleared waivers from Houston this weekend, so he’ll be eligible to take part in the postseason with any playoff-bound team as long as he signs before the end of the regular season.

Tax implications loom large for both Cleveland and Miami. The Cavs are limited to giving out no more than the minimum salary, which would give Thornton about $300K if he signed today and cost the Cavs about $1.1MM in combined salary and luxury tax payments. The Heat couldn’t sign Thornton until about a week to go in the season without going over the tax line again. Beno Udrih gave back $90K of his $2,170,465 salary in Monday’s controversial buyout deal, leaving him with $2,080,465 for the season and the Heat about $41,600 under the tax threshold, reports Eric Pincus of Basketball Insiders (All Twitter links). They could use a prorated portion of their mid-level to outbid the Cavs, but that would also send Miami zooming back into the tax.

Thornton was part of the failed Donatas Motiejunas trade that was to have sent both to Detroit before it was voided, but the Pistons didn’t plan on using Thornton in the rotation as Vince Ellis of the Detroit Free Press noted. He averaged 10.0 points in 18.8 minutes per game with the Rockets this season. Those numbers are up from last season but well off his career highs of 18.7 points and 34.9 minutes per contest he saw in 2011/12 with the Kings.

Southwest Notes: Wright, Stephenson, Dejean-Jones

March 1st, 2016 at 4:03pm CST by Chuck Myron

Brandan Wright is liable to miss anywhere from a week to eight weeks with a sprained MCL in his right knee that the team revealed in a statement Monday. The Grizzlies didn’t say whether the sprain is a Grade I, which is the milder form, or a Grade II, which would keep him out longer, notes Ronald Tillery of The Commercial Appeal. USA Today’s Jeff Zillgitt hears it’s merely a Grade I (Twitter link), but coach Dave Joerger hinted at a much more pessimistic outlook, saying it will be difficult for the Grizzlies the rest of the year without him, Tillery relays (Twitter links). See more on the Grizzlies and other news from the Southwest Division:

Talk of the Grizzlies picking up Lance Stephenson‘s $9.405MM team option for next season that Chris Herrington of The Commercial Appeal referred to last week appears to have been speculative, as Herrington portrays it within his Pick-and-Pop column. It would take either an unexpected late-season flourish or an offseason gone awry for Stephenson’s option to look appealing to Grizzlies, Herrington believes.
James Ennis seems like the Grizzlies player most likely to be cut if the team wants to add someone else, Herrington posits in the same piece.
Bryce Dejean-Jones doesn’t have any guaranteed money beyond this season in his deal with the Pelicans, which is a three-year pact for the minimum salary, but he can trigger a partial guarantee of $80K for next season if he participates in summer league and a skill and conditioning program, reports Eric Pincus of Basketball Insiders (Twitter links). It’s unclear how his broken right wrist will affect his ability to fulfill those requirements. The partial guarantee would go to $100K if he sticks on the roster through July 25th, Pincus adds.
Marcus Thornton‘s release from the Rockets was just that, rather than a buyout deal, as Pincus shows Thornton didn’t give up any salary when he hit waivers last week (Twitter link).

Heat, Beno Udrih Near Buyout Agreement

February 29th, 2016 at 12:03pm CST by Chuck Myron

The Heat and Beno Udrih are near agreement on a buyout deal that would offset the salary and luxury tax costs of Miami’s decision to sign Joe Johnson this weekend, reports Shams Charania of The Vertical on Yahoo Sports. Udrih would be eligible to participate in the playoffs with another team if he hits waivers no later than Tuesday, but he’s expected to be out until late May with foot surgery, so little chance exists that he’ll be healthy enough to see action. Thus, it’s unclear why Udrih would give up a portion of his salary, worth more than $2.17MM. His contract is set to expire this summer anyway. The decision about whether to do a buyout deal, which would help the Heat, or simply hit waivers without agreeing to give up money rests with Udrih, Charania writes, indicating that Miami plans to release him one way or another.

Miami has an eye on making continued additions to its roster. The Heat and the recently released Marcus Thornton have had talks, sources told Charania, advancing an earlier report identifying the Heat’s interest in Thornton. Those same sources suggested to Charania that the Heat might pursue a point guard. Miami currently has 14 players on its roster, so offloading Udrih would create two open roster spots.

The Heat are about $44K over the tax threshold, according to The Vertical’s Bobby Marks (Twitter link). They pay $2.50 for every dollar they’re over the line, and more in the unlikely event they’re in excess of $5MM above the tax, pursuant to the league’s repeat-offender tax penalties. Miami slipped under the tax line at the trade deadline, but went back over with the Johnson signing. Udrih could give back part of his salary as a goodwill gesture to the Heat, but it would be against the rules for him and the team to prearrange any new deal that he might sign after he clears waivers.

Southwest Notes: Howard, Thornton, Dekker

February 28th, 2016 at 5:39pm CST by Arthur Hill

The Mavericks have no interest in signing Rockets center Dwight Howard if he opts out this summer, according to Eddie Sefko of The Dallas Morning News. Sefko touched on two other free agent centers, stating that Dallas is concerned about “off-court issues” involving Miami’s Hassan Whiteside, while Atlanta’s Al Horford would be a nice fit between Dirk Nowitzki and Chandler Parsons. In a question-and-answer session, Sefko also said the Mavericks may pursue Harrison Barnes if Parsons opts out, but he believes Barnes will stay with the Warriors.

There’s more from the Southwest Division:

Former Rockets guard Marcus Thornton cleared waivers this afternoon, tweets Marc Stein of ESPN.com. Houston released Thornton on Friday after he was sent to Detroit in a deal at the deadline that was later voided because of health concerns involving Donatas Motiejunas. Despite trading for Thornton, the Pistons don’t have any interest in signing him.
The Rockets have recalled rookie combo forward Sam Dekker from their D-League affiliate, writes Jonathan Feigen of The Houston Chronicle. Houston made Dekker the 18th overall pick in last summer’s draft, but he has only appeared in three games for the Rockets because of back surgery. A Wisconsin native, Dekker was called up just in time for the team’s trip to Milwaukee on Monday. “That’s just how it worked out,” he said. “… Now I get to go home, see my family. … I’m sure there will be a lot of Badger fans in Bradley Center tomorrow.”
The versatility of Lance Stephenson, who was acquired in a draft day trade with the Clippers, has helped the Grizzlies deal with the loss of Marc Gasol, according to Ronald Tillery of The Commercial Appeal. There were concerns that Memphis might collapse after Gasol’s broken foot, but the team was averaging 108.6 points in five games without their center before Saturday’s loss at Phoenix. “It’s a whole new identity for us with different groups, different guys,” coach Dave Joerger said. “I’m trying to play Lance at four different positions. Matt Barnes is playing two different positions, sometimes three. We can struggle defensively, but we’ll just keep working at it.”

Eastern Notes: Sullinger, Thornton, Moore

February 27th, 2016 at 8:56am CST by Eddie Scarito

Jared Sullinger is in line to become a restricted free agent this offseason provided the Celtics submit a qualifying offer worth $4,433,683, but the big man would prefer to remain in Boston for the long-term instead of heading elsewhere, Mike Petraglia of WEEI 93.7FM writes. “Most definitely. Most definitely. My oldest brother always told me that the worst thing to happen to me sometimes is change and that I don’t handle change well. I strongly disagree,” Sullinger said, responding to a question regarding his desire to remain in Boston. “Sometimes, you just don’t want to change the scenery. When you play for the greatest franchise in the NBA and you see all those banners and all the fans come at you, you don’t want to leave that place because you know it’s a special place in your heart. It’s the first team I played for in the NBA and hopefully it’ll be the last.”

The power forward has enjoyed flying under the radar this season thanks to the attention All-Star point guard Isaiah Thomas has received, Petraglia adds. “It’s a lot of fun, it’s a lot of fun. Growing up, I wasn’t really a high-profile guy,” Sullinger relayed. “Going into middle school, especially entering high school, and I kind of came out of nowhere and came into my own. My main thing was just to win. When they see you win, they see all the big-time games. That’s what I was told, especially in the AAU. Playing in the AAU, the more you win, the more you play against high-profile that get to this level, and the more you get exposure. The more you win, it just takes care of itself. As long as you focus on winning, the outcome is always greater.”

Here’s the latest from the Eastern Conference:

Despite Marcus Thornton being part of the nixed trade for Donatas Motiejunas, the Pistons likely won’t have any interest in signing him now that the Rockets have waived him, Vince Ellis of The Detroit Free Press notes (on Twitter). According to Ellis, Thornton was just “trade filler” and Detroit had no plans to use him in the rotation.
The Hawks were extremely interested in signing center Anderson Varejao after the Blazers waived him, but the veteran chose to head west and join the Warriors instead, Vivlamore tweets.
After languishing on Bulls coach Fred Hoiberg‘s bench early in the season, E’Twaun Moore has flourished since being moved into a starter’s role, K.C. Johnson of The Chicago Tribune writes. “I’ve always been confident,” Moore said. “I know I’m capable of playing well. It’s not really a surprise. And I don’t think it’s a surprise to my teammates either. They see how hard I work and they’ve got faith in me. It’s no big deal to me.“

Heat Interested In Marcus Thornton

February 26th, 2016 at 10:22pm CST by Eddie Scarito

The Heat have interest in signing Marcus Thornton, Barry Jackson of The Miami Herald reports (Twitter link). No signing is imminent and Thornton is in no rush to find his next team as he will likely have several options, plus he will also need to clear waivers prior to any deal, Jackson adds. Miami is already reportedly set to ink swingman Joe Johnson when he clears waivers on Saturday. The Rockets waived the 28-year-old Thornton earlier today.

There are luxury tax considerations to adding Thornton, though its unclear if that will be an issue for the Heat now that the decision has apparently been made to ink Johnson. Miami was reportedly reluctant to cross the luxury tax threshold and would have needed to wait until March 6th to sign any players if it wished to avoid putting itself in line to pay repeat-offender tax penalties. Ira Winderman of The Sun Sentinel noted earlier that the team could seek to waive a player prior to signing Johnson to avoid the tax, but that scenario would be dependent on the team either getting a player to agree to a buyout or another team making a waiver claim on whomever was released. Both instances are far-fetched, which most likely means the team will dip into the tax, though that is merely my speculation.

Playing time will likely be the determining factor for where Thornton decides to head next, as the player expressed frustration in December about the inconsistency of his usage, and his minutes have continued to fluctuate. Thornton hasn’t played since the Rockets put him into the failed trade for Donatas Motiejunas. The shooting guard appeared in 47 contests for Houston prior to his release and averaged 10.0 points, 2.4 rebounds and 1.4 assists in 18.8 minutes per night. His slash line on the year is .400/.338/.879.

Rockets Waive Marcus Thornton

February 26th, 2016 at 3:48pm CST by Chuck Myron

3:48pm: The Rockets have officially waived Thornton, the team announced.

2:41pm: The Rockets will waive Marcus Thornton, agent Tony Dutt tells Mark Berman of Fox 26 Houston (Twitter link). The news is no surprise, as Dutt and the Rockets had been set to discuss the next step for the shooting guard who hasn’t played for Houston since the trade that was to send him to Detroit was voided Monday. The seventh-year veteran signed a one-year contract for the minimum salary in the offseason, but it’s unclear if he’s giving up any of that to secure his release. He’ll be eligible to join another team for the playoffs as long as Houston formally waives him no later than Tuesday.

Thornton averaged 10.0 points in 18.8 minutes per game for the Rockets, his first double-digit scoring average since notching 12.7 points a night with the Kings in 2012/13. He posted a career-high 18.7 points per game with Sacramento in 2011/12. The 28-year-old vented frustration in December with the up-and-down minutes he was seeing in Houston, but he still averaged more minutes than the 15.0 per game he saw last season with the Suns and Celtics.

The move will open a roster spot for the Rockets. They could wind up with two open spots if buyout talks with Ty Lawson result in a waiver. However, Joe Johnson, reportedly one of Houston’s targets, instead reportedly plans to sign with the Heat.

Rockets, Thornton’s Reps To Meet; Buyout Coming?

February 26th, 2016 at 12:56pm CST by Chuck Myron

The Rockets plan to meet with representatives for Marcus Thornton today to figure out the next step for the veteran shooting guard who was to have gone to Detroit in last week’s vetoed trade, a source tells Calvin Watkins of ESPN.com, who raises the specter of the Rockets placing him on waivers (Twitter link). Thornton’s agent, Tony Dutt, confirmed to Mark Berman of Fox 26 Houston that he’ll meet with the team to discuss their options (Twitter link). Thornton is on a one-year contract for the minimum salary. The Rockets would like to keep Thornton, as well as fellow buyout candidate Ty Lawson, but the team will do what’s necessary to upgrade the roster, Watkins adds (on Twitter).

Houston has a full 15-man roster and only about $524K to spend beneath the hard cap it triggered with the offseason signings of K.J. McDaniels and Montrezl Harrell. Buyouts for Lawson, Thornton or both would give the Rockets no more than about $900K to spend on any one free agent, leaving the team at a financial disadvantage compared to some of the other suitors for Joe Johnson. Still, he’s far from the only player available, and if the Rockets open a roster spot, they could give out a minimum salary contract even if neither Lawson nor Thornton gives back any salary.

If the Rockets are going to cut the 28-year-old Thornton, he’d no doubt prefer that they do so before the end of Tuesday, the final day he can hit waivers and retain playoff eligibility. It’s unclear if Thornton wants the Rockets to release him one way or another. He expressed frustration in December about the inconsistency of his playing time, and his minutes have continued to fluctuate. Thornton hasn’t played since the Rockets put him into the failed trade, but he scored 18 points in 23 minutes on February 2nd and put up 15 points in a 25-minute appearance against the Warriors a week later. He’s averaging 10.0 points in 18.8 minutes per contest.

Pistons, NBA Void Donatas Motiejunas Trade

February 22nd, 2016 at 3:06pm CST by Chuck Myron

3:06pm: The Pistons confirmed the voiding of the trade, via press release.

“Standard with all trades, medical clearance on all players involved is required for completion. Medical clearance was not given on all players and the trade is being rescinded,” Bower said in Detroit’s statement. “In view of privacy considerations relating to medical information, we will have no further comment.”

1:15pm: The Pistons and the NBA are in the process of voiding the three-team Donatas Motiejunas trade, sources tell Shams Charania of The Vertical on Yahoo Sports (Twitter link). The power forward didn’t pass Detroit’s physical, The Vertical’s Adrian Wojnarowski notes (on Twitter), so the deal between the Pistons, Rockets and Sixers is off. Motiejunas, Marcus Thornton and Denver’s 2017 second-round pick will return to the Rockets, the Pistons will get back Joel Anthony and their top-eight protected 2016 first-round pick, while the Sixers will once more have the rights draft-and-stash player Chukwudiebere “Chu” Maduabum. The Sixers released JaKarr Sampson to facilitate the trade, but they won’t get him back, since he’s agreed to a two-year deal with the Nuggets.

Houston had slipped beneath the luxury tax line with the trade, according to The Vertical’s Bobby Marks, so today’s news has negative financial consequences for the Rockets, who are again in line to be taxpayers. The threat that the trade might fall apart grew over the weekend when the Pistons asked for and received an extra 24 hours to examine Motiejunas, who has dealt with lingering back trouble after undergoing surgery in April. The 25-year-old has appeared in only 14 games this season.

The Pistons had latitude to seek a change to the terms of the trade, including the protection attached to the first-rounder that was to go to Houston, according to Marks (Twitter link), but instead it appears they’ve decided, with the NBA’s blessing, to nix it altogether. Rescinding the trade will leave the Pistons and Sixers with one open roster spot apiece while the Rockets will go from two open roster spots to a full 15-man roster. Houston was reportedly among the teams interested in signing veteran rebounder Reggie Evans but now would have to cut somebody to do so.

Teams typically have 72 hours to administer physicals to the players they receive via trade, so it’s possible for deals to fall apart even after clubs formally announce them, even though it’s rare. The Thunder’s doctors didn’t like what they saw when they evaluated Tyson Chandler in 2009, leading the NBA to void Oklahoma City’s trade with the Hornets that year. Pistons GM Jeff Bower was the Hornets GM then, so he’s now seen voided trades from opposite perspectives.

The death of the trade is a boost to Anthony’s job prospects, since the Sixers were reportedly poised to waive him once the deal was ratified. Still, it’s perhaps a financial loss for him, since he could have latched on elsewhere for a salary that would have gone on top of the $2.5MM he’s seeing this year on his existing contract.

Conversely, it can’t help the earning potential for Motiejunas, who’s set for restricted free agency in the summer. It was a lock that either Motiejunas or fellow soon-to-be restricted free agent Terrence Jones would leave the Rockets this summer, as Zach Lowe of ESPN.com wrote before the trade agreement last week.

The voiding of the trade scraps the pair of trade exceptions, worth $2,288,205 and $947,276, respectively, that the Rockets were able to create. It also kills off a $211,795 trade exception for the Pistons, though that one would have been virtually unusable anyway.

Which team do you think suffers the most because the trade is getting voided? Leave a comment to share your thoughts.