Mario Chalmers Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Eastern Notes: Mickey, Brown, Wall, Beal

August 31st, 2016 at 9:04pm CST by Arthur Hill

Jordan Mickey‘s spot on the Celtics‘ roster seems safe even in a crowded training camp, according to A. Sherrod Blakely of CSNNE. With John Holland being waived today, Boston has 18 players on its roster, with 16 on fully guaranteed contracts. But the Celtics don’t seem likely to cut ties with Mickey after making a four-year commitment to him last offseason. After taking him in the second round of the 2015 draft, Boston gave Mickey a $5MM deal with a higher annual salary than first-round pick R.J. Hunter received. Mickey appeared in just 16 games for Boston as a rookie, spending most of the season with the team’s Maine affiliate in the D-League. He led the league in blocks with 4.4 per game and was a D-League All-Star. Blakely writes that the Celtics want to see more of Mickey at the NBA level before making a long-term decision.

There’s more tonight from the Eastern Conference:

Celtics power forward Jaylen Brown was voted the most athletic rookie by his fellow Class of 2016 members, relays CSNNE. Brown, the third player taken in the June draft, topped an NBA.com poll with 38.7% of the votes, followed by the Clippers’ Brice Johnson with 16.1% and the Suns’ Marquese Chriss with 9.7%.
It’s healthy for John Wall and Bradley Beal to be open about their disagreements, contends Ric Bucher of Bleacher Report. He believes the Wizards‘ backcourt tandem will improve their communication because they’re willing to speak publicly about the problem, which Bucher describes as both wanting to be the dominant personality on the team. Bucher doesn’t think there’s a need to trade either one because their skills are complementary.
The Knicks are gambling with their point guard position by bringing in two players with significant injury histories, writes Tommy Beer of Basketball Insiders. New York traded for Derrick Rose, whose 66 games last season were by far the most since tearing his ACL in the 2012 playoffs, and signed Brandon Jennings, who suffered an Achilles tear in January of 2014. Beer lists several unsigned players the Knicks should consider as insurance: Mario Chalmers, Norris Cole, Kirk Hinrich, Nate Robinson, Jordan Farmar, Andre Miller and Lance Stephenson.

Mario Chalmers Cleared To Get Back On Court

August 25th, 2016 at 12:55pm CST by Luke Adams

Veteran point guard Mario Chalmers has been medically cleared to get back on the court, he announced today (via Twitter). Chalmers ruptured his right Achilles tendon about five and a half months ago, sidelining him for the end of the 2015/16 season and the postseason.

Chalmers’ contract was set to expire this summer, though he ended up hitting the open market a little early, as the Grizzlies waived him in the wake of his season-ending injury. The 30-year-old’s stock has undoubtedly been hurt this summer by his health status, as major Achilles injuries aren’t easy to come back from. Chalmers remains unsigned for now, but now that he’s been cleared to return to the court, interest could pick up a little.

Even though he missed the final month of the season, Chalmers played more NBA minutes in 2015/16 than all but three other current free agents. In 61 total games with the Heat and Grizzlies, the former Kansas standout averaged a career-high 10.3 PPG to go along with 3.8 APG and 1.4 SPG.

While Chalmers has gotten the go-ahead to get back on the court, it remains to be seen how long it will take him to get back to full health after such a significant injury. Teams interested in signing the point guard will likely exercise patience rather than rushing to add him to their roster immediately.

Heat Notes: Butler, Chalmers, Westbrook, Weber

July 15th, 2016 at 2:00pm CST by Arthur Hill

Heat president Pat Riley reached out to Caron Butler‘s agent, but the team opted for younger players in its flurry of signings last Sunday, writes Barry Jackson of The Miami Herald. Riley’s initial call came before Dwyane Wade decided to join the Bulls, Jackson reports, and he hasn’t called since. The Kings waived the 36-year-old Butler last week. He spent one season in Sacramento and appeared in just 17 games.

There’s more news today out of Miami:

Riley also decided not to pursue Mario Chalmers, Jackson writes in the same piece. Chalmers spent seven full seasons with the Heat before being traded to Memphis in November for luxury tax relief. He ruptured his right Achilles tendon in March and was subsequently waived by the Grizzlies. Jackson says the Heat were concerned not only about the injury, but about how Chalmers would respond to reduced playing time as a backup for Goran Dragic.
Miami would be taking a major risk by trying to trade for Russell Westbrook this season, contends Ira Winderman of The Sun-Sentinel. There has been speculation that the Thunder point guard might be available because of his looming free agency next summer and the loss of Kevin Durant, but Winderman argues that the assets the Heat would have to give up in such a deal would make it less likely Westbrook would re-sign. The writer says Oklahoma City would want Dragic and Justise Winslow, which would create two big holes in Miami’s roster. Winderman doesn’t think Riley would consider that deal unless he was assured that Westbrook would stay in Miami past the 2016/17 season.
Briante Weber‘s aggressive defense may make him a valuable part of the rotation next season, according to Jason Lieser of The Palm Beach Post. Weber, who suffered a serious right knee injury as a senior at Virginia Commonwealth, spent most of this season with Miami’s D-League affiliate in Sioux Falls. The Heat briefly lost Weber in March when the Grizzlies signed him to a 10-day contract, but he returned to the D-League when that expired and joined Miami’s roster just before the playoffs. After playing just one game for the Heat — and seven total — during his rookie season, Weber has been making an impression in Summer League play. “He’s getting better and better at being our floor leader,” said Heat Summer League coach Juwan Howard. “They’re trying to get into him and make him uncomfortable with ball pressure and picking him up full-court, but Bri’s done an excellent job making decisions. At times he’s overly aggressive, but that’s his nature. I trust him.”

And-Ones: Durant, Mack, Evans, Robinson

July 5th, 2016 at 10:36pm CST by Eddie Scarito

A contributing factor that led to Kevin Durant leaving OKC to join the Warriors was his frustration with the Thunder‘s offense and guard Russell Westbrook‘s tendency to dominate the ball, a source close to the “Slim Reaper” told Howard Beck of Bleacher Report. “Ultimately, he got frustrated and felt that they had plateaued,” the source told Beck. “[Coach Billy Donovan] came in, and he still had the same issues that he had with Russ under Scotty [former coach Scott Brooks]. The offense didn’t change much. He still had to take a ton of contested shots every game; and that’s when he had the ball at all. He’s never going to have a game in Golden State where Steve Kerr has to say at halftime, ‘You guys need to get Kevin the ball,’ which happened in OKC.”

Here’s more from around the league:

The chances are increasing dramatically that the Mavericks will look to trade forward Jeremy Evans, Marc Stein of ESPN.com tweets. Evans, 28, has one year and $1,227,286 remaining on his current contract. Dallas is also exploring options to get JaVale McGee and his $1,403,611 salary off the books for next season, Tim MacMahon of ESPN.com tweets. If the center remains on the roster past July 12th his deal becomes fully guaranteed.
The Jazz will keep point guard Shelvin Mack on the roster past Thursday, which means his contract worth $2,433,334 will become fully guaranteed, Tony Jones of The Salt Lake Tribune reports.
Unrestricted free agent guard Nate Robinson hasn’t garnered much interest around the league and a number of teams have been turned off by his stated interest in joining the NFL, Marc J. Spears of The Undefeated relays (on Twitter).
The Warriors are seeking veterans willing to sign team friendly deals to fill out the roster and may be interested in point guard Mario Chalmers and center Kendrick Perkins, Rusty Simmons of The San Francisco Chronicle writes.

Grizzlies Notes: Carter, Conley, Joerger

April 24th, 2016 at 5:59pm CST by Arthur Hill

Vince Carter isn’t ready to walk away from the NBA, he told reporters in a video tweeted by NBA TV. Carter, 39, could be headed toward free agency after his Grizzlies were swept out of the playoffs by the Spurs this afternoon. He is under contract with Memphis for next season and is slated to make $4,264,057, but only $2MM of that is guaranteed. Carter averaged 6.6 points per night this year in 60 games with the Grizzlies, all but three of them as a reserve. “When I don’t feel like training or lose the passion and love for the game, then it’s time to walk away,” Carter said in a postgame press conference. “I still have it. It still bothers me to lose games and not play well.”

There’s more on a season-ending day in Memphis:

Mike Conley‘s aching Achilles is improving and he is looking forward to his first experience as an unrestricted free agent, writes Ronald Tillery of The Commercial Appeal. Conley, who hasn’t played since March 6th, will be the top point guard on the open market this offseason, and he can expect several teams to come calling. That should produce a substantial raise from the nearly $9.6MM he made this season. “This summer will be a fun one for me,” Conley said. “Free agency is new for me. We’ll see how it goes.”
Memphis coach Dave Joerger should be remembered for making history by leading a roster that included 28 different players at one point or another into the playoffs, writes Geoff Calkins of The Commercial Appeal. The Grizzlies were ravaged by season-ending injuries that robbed Joerger of Conley, Marc Gasol and Mario Chalmers. Two other key contributors, Jeff Green and Courtney Lee, were traded for draft picks at the deadline. “It’s frustrating from the level as a coach, where you see, especially San Antonio, they’re at the doctoral level of things that they run,” Joerger said. “And we had to go backward. … It’s just difficult when you have new guys, new faces. Defense is built on trust.”
With today’s loss, the Grizzlies are now eligible to make trades, tweets Bobby Marks of The Vertical. They join the 14 nonplayoff teams that have been in that position since the regular season ended. Only players under contract for next season who don’t have player options can be dealt.

Pacific Notes: Jones, Russell, Chalmers, Grizzlies

March 14th, 2016 at 12:04pm CST by Chuck Myron

Tyus Jones has already played in more games since the All-Star break than he played before it, as the Timberwolves have decided it’s time to let last year’s 24th overall pick learn on the court. Ricky Rubio, a subject of deadline trade talk whom Jones is trying to eventually replace as Minnesota’s starting point guard, sees “great things” ahead for the rookie, observes Jim Souhan of the Star Tribune.

“He can really score the ball. I think he’s learning how to control, and play in this league,” Rubio said. “It’s not like college. He’s learning how to play and he’s not afraid. That’s one of the main things you ask of a rookie. Don’t be afraid.”

See more from the Western Conference:

Much consternation has surrounded the limited playing time Lakers coach Byron Scott has given No. 2 pick D’Angelo Russell this season, but the combo guard is seeing 31.4 minutes per game since the All-Star break compared to 27.1 minutes per game before it, and he’s upbeat about the future, notes Mark Medina of the Los Angeles Daily News. “It’s all about the opportunity,” Russell said. “Everybody has a different route toward reaching their potential. Some people bloom early and some people bloom late. If I’m a late bloomer and I’m around this league for a long time, I would prefer that.”
Mario Chalmers was popular within the Grizzlies organization, as Chris Herrington of The Commercial Appeal, who believes his early-season acquisition was a plus for the team, writes in his Pick-and-Pop column. Chalmers cleared waivers after tearing his Achilles tendon last week.
The Grizzlies have filled gaps in their roster with such wizened veterans as Gilbert Arenas, Jason Williams and Keyon Dooling in past years, so the recent signings of Ray McCallum, Alex Stepheson and Briante Weber represent a shrewd pivot toward finding stopgaps with potential future value, Herrington argues in the same piece.

Southeast Notes: Wade, Chalmers, Green, Hawks

March 13th, 2016 at 9:59am CST by Arthur Hill

Mario Chalmers is getting help from a former Heat teammate as he begins the long recovery process from a ruptured right Achilles tendon, according to Ira Winderman of The Sun-Sentinel. Chalmers suffered the injury, which will keep him out for the rest of the season, during Wednesday’s game. Upon hearing the news, Dwyane Wade called Chalmers and contacted Dallas’ Wesley Matthews, who went through the same thing a year ago. Wade and Chalmers had spent more than seven seasons together in Miami before Chalmers was shipped to Memphis in a November 10th deal.

To create a roster opening to add another player, the injury-depleted Grizzlies decided to waive Chalmers. He will be a free agent this summer, but the move means Memphis will no longer own his Bird rights. “When a team makes a decision, it’s fine to everybody.” Wade said. “But when a player makes a decision, everybody goes crazy. So I guess it’s the business decision they were supposed to make. I don’t know their business and what they had to deal with, so I can’t comment on it.”

There’s more news about the Heat and the Southeast Division:

Gerald Green had a missed opportunity in Saturday’s loss to the Raptors, Winderman writes in a separate piece. The 30-year-old swingman, who will be a free agent this summer, shot just 1 of 9 from the field in nearly 22 minutes of playing time. The extended minutes came with Wade sitting out, and Winderman says Green won’t have many more chances like that this season, especially if Tyler Johnson can return from a shoulder injury.
Wade’s asking price this summer will go a long way in determining whether the Heat can afford to re-sign center Hassan Whiteside, Winderman adds in the same story.
The Hawks‘ Edy Tavares and Lamar Patterson should prepare for extended stays in the D-League, according to Chris Vivlamore of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Coach Mike Budenholzer called their latest assignments “long term,” as he plans to finish the season with a 10-man rotation. Tavares has made 10 trips to the D-League this season, while Patterson has gone five times. “I think it’s going to be good for them to play multiple games and practice and be more settled,” Budenholzer said. “I don’t know exactly how long it will be, but to say it’s a long-term outlook is fair.”

Grizzlies Waive Mario Chalmers

March 10th, 2016 at 6:16pm CST by Eddie Scarito

The Grizzlies have waived point guard Mario Chalmers, the team announced. Memphis also confirmed that he’ll miss the remainder of the 2015/16 season after rupturing his right Achilles tendon on Wednesday night. Zach Lowe of ESPN.com first reported that Chalmers had suffered a potential season-ending injury.

“Mario did an incredible job for us since coming to Memphis,” Grizzlies GM Chris Wallace said. “Right from the start, he embraced his change of scenery and endeared himself to his teammates and coaches on the court and the Memphis community off of it.” Memphis’ roster count now stands at 15 players.

Chalmers mouthed the words, “I heard it pop,” as he was helped off the floor during the third quarter of Wednesday night’s contest, according to Chris Mannix of The Vertical on Yahoo Sports. He didn’t return to the game and later left the locker room in a wheelchair, as Ronald Tillery of The Commercial Appeal first relayed. The timing of the injury for Chalmers couldn’t have been worse, as he’s set to become an unrestricted free agent at season’s end. By waiving him, Memphis forfeits its Bird rights for Chalmers.

“He has been an important part of our success this season, both coming off the bench and when called upon as a starter,” Wallace said. “But with Mario’s season-ending injury and our already-depleted roster, it became necessary to free up a roster spot.”

Marc Gasol is also done for the season, while Jordan Adams, Chris Andersen, Mike Conley, Zach Randolph and Brandan Wright are all out for indefinite periods with maladies of some kind. The avalanche of injuries the team has endured had already prompted the Grizzlies to apply for a 16th roster spot. The team has reportedly signed Briante Weber via the hardship exception to a 10-day deal, which presumably means the league granted the request, though the Grizzlies issued no formal announcement. It’s conceivable that Memphis could once again get clearance for a 16th player, since the team applied for the roster spot before Chalmers went down, as Hoops Rumors’ Chuck Myron noted earlier today. Memphis would need four players likely to miss two weeks or more to receive clearance to add a 16th man.

Chalmers posted averages of 10.8 points, 2.6 rebounds, 3.8 assists and 1.4 steals in 22.8 minutes over 55 games with the Grizzlies after they acquired him from the Heat in early November.

Grizzlies Fear Mario Chalmers Tore Achilles

March 10th, 2016 at 11:07am CST by Chuck Myron

11:07am: The team will try to get two roster spots on top of the one for Weber, with an eye on adding both a guard and a big man, according to Chris Herrington of The Commercial Appeal (Twitter links). That indicates Memphis is seeking permission to carry 18 players, three over the regular season limit. Herrington also suggests the Grizzlies might weigh the merits of waiving Chalmers if he’s done for the season, thus forfeiting his Bird rights, though it’s unclear if they’re considering such a move. Weber signed Wednesday, according to RealGM, though the team has made no announcement, and it’s not entirely clear whether he’s indeed under contract.

9:52am: The Grizzlies are worried that an MRI will show that Mario Chalmers tore his Achilles tendon during Wednesday’s game, reports Zach Lowe of ESPN.com (Twitter link). Chalmers mouthed the words, “I heard it pop,” as he was helped off the floor during the third quarter, according to Chris Mannix of The Vertical on Yahoo Sports (Twitter link). He didn’t return to the game and later left the locker room in a wheelchair, notes Ronald Tillery of The Commercial Appeal.

A torn Achilles would obviously be devastating for Chalmers, whose contract expires at the end of the season, and it would add to a litany of injuries that have already prompted the Grizzlies to apply for a 16th roster spot. The team plans to sign point guard Briante Weber if the league allows the team an extra man via the hardship exception. It’s conceivable that Memphis could get clearance for a 17th player, since the team applied for the roster spot before Chalmers went down.

Marc Gasol is done for the season, while Jordan Adams, Chris Andersen, Mike Conley, Zach Randolph and Brandan Wright are all out for indefinite periods with maladies of some kind. Memphis would need four players likely to miss two weeks or more to receive clearance to add a 16th man. A fifth such injury would allow for a 17th man.

The Grizzlies have the fortune of largely being locked into their playoff seeding, since they’re four games in the loss column behind the fourth-place Clippers and five up on the sixth-place Trail Blazers. Still, the loss of Chalmers for the rest of the season would significantly weaken their bench for the playoffs.

Western Notes: Gasol, Harden, Chalmers

February 10th, 2016 at 9:30pm CST by Eddie Scarito

Rockets shooting guard James Harden is growing increasingly frustrated with the team’s up-and-down play this season, Calvin Watkins of ESPN.com notes. “Yeah, because my first year was different,” Harden said. “We weren’t as talented and we still made playoffs, which was a big step for us. We have a lot of talent in this locker room, of course, coming off the Western Conference finals and being in the seventh spot right now. It’s frustrating, but we still have opportunities.”

Harden has come under fire for being careless with his turnovers and not being more of a playmaker, but interim coach J.B. Bickerstaff says that the swingman has shown marked improvement this season in both areas, Watkins adds. “One thing, his turnovers are down dramatically,” Bickerstaff said. “If his turnovers are down, then his assists are up. That’s one of the things he said he wanted to improve on, and obviously he’s done it, the decision-making … the creativity has been there. It’s been outstanding the last month. It’s not surprising, we knew he could do it.” It should be noted that despite Bickerstaff’s praise, Harden is still averaging 4.4 turnovers per game on the year, which would be a career high if he were to finish the season with that mark.

Here’s more from out West:

The Grizzlies have been second-guessed for not resting Marc Gasol when he complained of foot soreness, but doing so would only likely have delayed his injury, not prevented it, Chris Herrington of The Commercial Appeal opines. The center is out indefinitely with a broken foot, though Herrington speculates Gasol won’t return to action this season, which goes along with an earlier report from Marca.com that indicated the Spaniard would miss four to six months of action.
Mario Chalmers has solidified the Grizzlies’ bench with his play as reserve point guard since arriving via trade earlier this season from Miami, but when the Heat were looking to find a taker for the veteran, a number of teams, including the Jazz, were turned off by Chalmers’ stubborn personality and propensity to make poor decisions on the court, notes Zach Lowe of ESPN.com.
The Mavs are pleased with the development of 2015 first-rounder Justin Anderson, Eddie Sefko of The Dallas Morning News writes. “He’s not putting up big numbers or anything like that, but he’s playing solid within the system and has had some good plus-minus stretches,” coach Rick Carlisle said of the young swingman. “So he’s making progress. He’s learned a lot over the last three months. He’s doing what he needs to do. Generally, he’s in there with other primary guys and playmakers. Many of his shot opportunities will come off of other activity. But defensively, he’s made progress. Where we are right now, we need him.“
Nuggets camp cut Matt Janning‘s deal with the Russian club Lokomotiv Cuban includes a team option for 2016/17, international journalist David Pick informed Hoops Rumors.