P.j. Tucker Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Atlantic Notes: Aldridge, Holden, Burrell, Simmons, Tucker

September 16th, 2022 at 8:41am CST by Dana Gauruder

Free agent big man LaMarcus Aldridge appears more likely to retire than to sign another contract, Sports Illustrated’s Chris Mannix and Howard Beck said in the latest episode of The Crossover NBA Show (hat tip to NetsDaily).

Aldridge was productive in 47 games with the Nets last season, averaging 12.9 PPG and 5.5 RPG in 22.3 MPG. Aldridge went in retirement the previous season due to a heart condition but was cleared to play again by the league last fall.

We have more from the Atlantic Division:

The Long Island Nets, Brooklyn’s G League affiliate, have named J.R. Holden as GM and Ronnie Burrell as head coach, according to a team press release. Holden spent the past three seasons as director of pro personnel for the Brooklyn Nets. Burrell rejoins the Nets organization after spending the 2019/20 season as an assistant coach with Long Island. Burrell was as an assistant coach with the College Park Skyhawks, the Atlanta Hawks’ affiliate, last season.
Ben Simmons could turn into the Nets’ version of Draymond Green, Ajayi Browne of NetsDaily.com notes. Putting Simmons at the center position could provide the most spacing possible for the Nets offensively due to his play-making skills. He’s also a defensive ace, finishing second in Defensive Player of the Year votes during the 2020/21 season.
After losing the conference semifinals to the Heat last season, Sixers president of basketball operations Daryl Morey felt P.J. Tucker would be a great fit if he could sign the veteran forward in free agency, Morey said in a podcast with Philadelphia TV sportscaster John Clark (hat tip to the Miami Herald’s Barry Jackson). “Just finished playing a series [against] P.J. Tucker. P.J. was able to really impact that series in a lot of ways with his toughness, with his high-level defense, with his energy on the floor, with his offensive rebounding,” Morey said. “And (Joel Embiid) correctly said, ‘Hey, we could use a guy like that.’”

Eastern Notes: Pistons, D. Green, Celtics, Sixers

August 12th, 2022 at 2:55pm CST by Luke Adams

An Eastern Conference executive who spoke to Sean Deveney of Heavy.com believes the Pistons are a team to watch if Draymond Green doesn’t sign an extension with the Warriors before he becomes eligible for unrestricted free agency in 2023. Green was born and raised in Saginaw, Michigan, attended Michigan State, and grew up rooting for the Pistons, who have long had interest in acquiring him, according to the executive.

“(Pistons owner Tom) Gores is a Michigan State guy, and they wanted to give Draymond an offer sheet when he was a free agent (in 2015), but by then, the Warriors were going to match any offer,” the executive told Heavy.com. “So they just have not had the chance. If they can show some improvement this year with their young guys, they could get themselves in the mix.”

The idea of Green playing a mentor role on a young Pistons team is an intriguing one, and the combination of his local connection, Detroit’s projected 2023 cap room, and the rising cost of the Warriors’ roster make it a possibility worth considering. But for now, this feels more like idle speculation by a rival executive than anything concrete.

If Green and the Warriors are far apart in contract talks and he seriously considers leaving in 2023, Detroit could certainly emerge as an option, but there’s no reason at this point to think that Golden State won’t make every effort to lock up one of the cornerstones of its recent dynasty.

Here are a few more notes from around the East:

In a separate story for Heavy.com, Sean Deveney spoke to a pair of assistant coaches about veterans the Celtics could theoretically target with one of their trade exceptions if they want to fortify their frontcourt. Alex Len, Tony Bradley, and Marquese Chriss are among the names mentioned, though I suspect the team may simply fill that spot on the depth chart with a minimum-salary signing.
Kyle Neubeck of PhillyVoice.com considers the best- and worst-case scenarios for newly-signed Sixers forward P.J. Tucker, noting that the veteran’s age (37) increases the risk of a decline in his performance.
Addressing recent rumors linking Kevin Durant to the Sixers, David Murphy of The Philadelphia Inquirer says the team needs to answer two important questions: Do the 76ers have the assets necessary to acquire Durant? And if so, would it make sense to cash all of them in for the two-time Finals MVP?

NBA Investigating Sixers’ Free Agency Moves For Tampering

July 29th, 2022 at 7:02pm CST by Rory Maher

The NBA is investigating the Sixers‘ free agency moves for possible tampering and “early contact,” according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski.

As Wojnarowski details, James Harden declined his $47.4MM player option and instead took a pay cut by signing a two-year, $68.6MM deal with a second year player option. That gave the Sixers the flexibility to use their full mid-level exception to sign P.J. Tucker and their bi-annual exception to sign Danuel House — two of Harden’s former teammates with the Rockets under president of basketball operations Daryl Morey, who is now with Philadelphia.

Marc Stein first reported that the Sixers were likely to face a tampering investigation, and he was also one of the first reporters to link Tucker to Philadelphia, with rival teams reportedly convinced that Tucker was signing a three-year deal for the mid-level multiple days before free agency officially opened.

Some around the league have wondered whether the Sixers and Harden already have a future deal in place, which is against the rules of the Collective Bargaining Agreement, Wojnarowski notes. Such a handshake agreement would involve declining his player option in 2023 and signing a lucrative new contract at that time.

The Sixers are complying with the investigation, Wojnarowski adds. The Knicks are also likely to face a tampering investigation due to an early free agency agreement with guard Jalen Brunson, as Fred Katz of The Athletic wrote last week.

The Heat (Kyle Lowry sign-and-trade last summer) and Bucks (Bogdan Bogdanovic deal that fell through in 2020) both lost their 2022 second-round picks as a result of previous tampering investigations, and the Bulls will lose their 2023 second-rounder for their early sign-and-trade agreement for Lonzo Ball in 2021.

Stein’s Latest: Mitchell, Knicks, Sixers, Lakers, Beverley

July 15th, 2022 at 7:46pm CST by Rory Maher

New York’s impending pursuit of Jalen Brunson became obvious once a Knicks contingent led by Julius Randle, William Wesley and Allan Houston was spotted at Game 1 of the first-round series between the Mavericks and Jazz. However, as Marc Stein writes in his lastest article for Substack, it’s clear now that New York had designs on pursuing Donovan Mitchell as well as Brunson.

Recent reports from Tony Jones of The Athletic and Andy Larsen of The Salt Lake Tribune indicate that the Jazz are looking for six first-round picks and young players in exchange for Mitchell, but the Knicks balked at that asking price. According to Stein, even if the Knicks have more draft picks to offer at the moment, they should be “careful not to underestimate” the Heat and Nets as potential Mitchell suitors.

Under president Leon Rose, the Knicks have unsuccessfully pursued other star players, which is why it’s so important to the incumbent regime to land a player of Mitchell’s stature, Stein says.

Here’s more from Stein:

Mitchell has multiple ties to the Knicks, Stein adds. Mitchell is “very close” with Knicks assistant Johnnie Bryant, who was an assistant with the Jazz for several seasons and recently had multiple interviews for Utah’s head coaching job. He’s also friends with Brunson due to their shared connection with Eric Paschall, who is Mitchell’s closest friend in the NBA and was college teammates with Brunson at Villanova, per Stein.
Like the Knicks’ pursuit of Brunson, the Sixers are likely to face a tampering investigation due to the signing of P.J. Tucker, according to Stein, who reported four days before free agency opened that several rival teams were convinced that Tucker would land with Philadelphia. Stein and others had linked Tucker to the Sixers even before the draft, a week before free agency opened, and Stein notes that Tucker’s agent informed Shams Charania of The Athletic that he was heading to Philly a minute after free agency opened.
It has been rumored that the Lakers might be interested in Jazz guard Patrick Beverley, but a source tells Stein that L.A. has no plans to deal Talen Horton-Tucker for the veteran. The Lakers have been prioritizing speed and youth in the offseason, so swapping a 21-year-old for a 34-year-old would detract from that, Stein notes. Horton-Tucker had been floated as a possibility because the Lakers don’t have any other mid-size contracts for salary-matching purposes — he’ll make $10.26MM in 2022/23, while Beverley will earn $13MM.

Atlantic Notes: McBride, Randle, Stevens, Tucker

July 12th, 2022 at 9:02pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The addition of Jalen Brunson could make playing time scarce for Miles McBride but he’s trying to remain confident, Zach Braziler of the New York Post writes. The 2021 second-round pick played in 40 games last season and projects as the Knicks’ third-string point guard behind Brunson and Derrick Rose. “Doing whatever I can to be on the floor [is my mindset],” he said. “If that means making shots, bringing the ball up, finding the open man, playing defense, I’m doing anything I can to be on the floor.”

We have more from the Atlantic Division:

Julius Randle showed his leadership by inviting young players Jericho Sims and Feron Hunt to summer weight and cardio sessions in Dallas, Stefan Bondy of the New York Daily News notes. “It was cool. He wanted me to come down, so I said, ‘Hey, he’s a big-time player, why not get close to him, build that relationship,’” Sims said. Randle is trying to improve an image that was tarnished during a disappointing season for him and the Knicks. He’s at the beginning of a four-year extension.
Brad Stevens is happy with his current status as the Celtics’ top executive but he’s not ruling out coaching again someday, as he told Steve Bulpett of Heavy.com. “I’ve enjoyed both roles I’ve been in. I love the people I’ve worked with in both roles, and my family loves it, so, yeah, we’re really happy,” he said. “I’m not going to try to predict the future. I have no idea. No idea. I don’t know if I’d ever coach again. We’ll see.”
Toughness, durability and 3-point shooting are among the attributes that P.J. Tucker brings to the Sixers. Kyle Neubeck of PhillyVoice.com breaks down all the aspects of Tucker’s game and the intangibles he adds to the table as the veteran forward transitions from one Eastern Conference contender to another.

Atlantic Notes: Porter, Brunson, Gibson, Tucker, Davison

July 6th, 2022 at 10:01pm CST by Arthur Hill

After winning a ring with the Warriors this year, Otto Porter Jr. is now focused on getting another one with the Raptors, writes Doug Smith of The Toronto Star. Porter called it “a tough decision” to leave Golden State and sign a two-year, $12.4MM deal with Toronto.

The 29-year-old forward said he had some other offers, but he was most comfortable with the Raptors. Porter’s wife is from Toronto, which played a role in his choice.

“Winning a championship last year in Golden State, I feel like I can bring that experience here to help the younger guys out,” Porter said. “Being with (Thaddeus Young) again (after being teammates in Chicago two seasons ago), I know he has been there and done it with his leadership and (he is going) to continue to give guidance to the young guys.”

There’s more from the Atlantic Division:

The trade sending Kemba Walker to the Pistons was finalized today, but the Knicks still have options if they want to turn their agreement with Jalen Brunson into a sign-and-trade, tweets Fred Katz of The Athletic. A separate deal that has Detroit acquiring Alec Burks and Nerlens Noel still hasn’t been made official and could be folded into a larger transaction. Katz adds that the Pistons needed to complete the Walker trade so that Jalen Duren will be eligible for Summer League.
Several teams would be interested in Taj Gibson if the Knicks waive him to create cap room to sign Brunson, according to Ian Begley of SNY.tv (Twitter link). Gibson’s contract for next season is non-guaranteed.
The Sixers gave P.J. Tucker a player option for the final season of his three-year, $33MM contract, tweets Jake Fischer of Bleacher Report.
JD Davison feels like he has something to prove in Summer League after sliding to the 53rd pick in the draft, per Brian Robb of MassLive. Even though the Alabama guard was disappointed to be taken so low, he was happy to wind up with a successful organization like the Celtics. “When I got that call from the Celtics,” Davison said, “when my agent called and said the Celtics got you, it’s an organization where they win. So it was just really important to where I know I can come in here and get better every day and just come here and win. I was very happy.”

Sixers Sign P.J. Tucker, Danuel House, Trevelin Queen

June 30th, 2022 at 5:42pm CST by Luke Adams

JULY 6: With the moratorium lifted, the Sixers have now made their deals with Tucker and House official as well.

“P.J. Tucker is one of the most respected and relentless competitors in our game and is the type of competitor our fans will love and embrace,” Morey said in a press release announcing the signing of Tucker. “We’re excited to add his leadership, toughness, defensive versatility and championship pedigree to our roster. P.J. wants to deliver an NBA title to Philadelphia and his work ethic and mentality make him an impactful addition to our team and city.”

JULY 1: Queen’s deal is now official, the Sixers announced in a press release. Minimum-salary contracts can be officially completed during the July moratorium.

JUNE 30: It’s fair to say Sixers president of basketball operations Daryl Morey has a type. Philadelphia has reportedly agreed to terms with three players who used to play for Morey’s former team in Houston.

Free agent forward P.J. Tucker is finalizing a three-year, $33.2MM fully guaranteed deal with the 76ers, agent Andre Buck tells Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link). That long-rumored agreement will use the team’s full non-taxpayer mid-level exception.

The Sixers have also agreed to sign free agent forward Danuel House, tweets Charania. House is getting a two-year, $8.5MM deal, per Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN (Twitter link).

House’s deal, which will be completed using the bi-annual exception, has a second-year player option, league sources tell Michael Scotto of HoopsHype (Twitter link).

Finally, Philadelphia has reached a deal with G League MVP Trevelin Queen, according to Wojnarowski (Twitter link). The guard will sign a two-year, minimum-salary contract with a partial guarantee ($300K) in year one, tweets Derek Bodner of The Athletic.

As a result of using their full MLE and BAE, the Sixers will be hard-capped for the coming season.

The 76ers were able to use those exceptions in full due to James Harden opting out of his contract and planning to accept a lower first-year salary on a new deal with the team. If Harden’s $47MM+ option had been on Philadelphia’s books, the club would’ve been hard-pressed to remain under a hard cap.

The Sixers have been mentioned as Tucker’s most likely landing spot for much of the last week. Star center Joel Embiid singled out Tucker in his comments to the media after the team lost to Miami in the playoffs, stating that Philadelphia needed a tough, versatile player like that in its frontcourt. Needless to say, Embiid will be happy that the Sixers went out and got the 37-year-old.

House, 29, helped shore up the Jazz’s perimeter defense and hit 41.5% of his three-pointers in a 25-game stint with the club this past season. He’ll give the Sixers another three-and-D rotation player.

P.J. Tucker Unlikely To Return To Heat

June 30th, 2022 at 11:56am CST by Arthur Hill

There will be significant interest in P.J. Tucker when free agency begins later today, and the veteran forward is considered unlikely to re-sign with the Heat, according to Alex Schiffer of The Athletic (Twitter link).

Schiffer mentions the Hawks, Timberwolves, Nets, Bulls and Sixers among the teams that plan to target Tucker, adding that they will offer either the non-taxpayers’ mid-level exception of $10.49MM, or in the case of the Nets and Hawks, the taxpayers’ MLE of $6.48MM. Atlanta could also make a trade to shed salary and get below the tax line, opening up the use of the full MLE.

A report earlier this week suggested that Miami is willing to give Tucker a guaranteed three-year deal, but at less than the full MLE. It appears several teams are ready to outbid the Heat for his services.

Philadelphia has been rumored as a prime suitor for Tucker, as president of basketball operations Daryl Morey also signed him in Houston. Atlanta and Brooklyn have been mentioned as well, but Minnesota and Chicago are new to the list.

The 37-year-old Tucker is an elite defender who was part of the Bucks’ title-winning roster in 2021 and helped the Heat become the No. 1 seed in the East this season. He averaged 7.6 points and 5.5 rebounds per game for Miami and shot 41.5% from three-point range.

Heat Rumors: Tucker, Portis, Lowry, Crowder

June 30th, 2022 at 9:15am CST by Luke Adams

Heat players are reportedly lobbying free agent forward P.J. Tucker to remain with the team, according to Barry Jackson of The Miami Herald, who says All-Star wing Jimmy Butler, in particular, is “very much hoping” Tucker returns to Miami.

However, James Harden‘s decision to opt out of a $47MM+ salary for next season and likely sign a new deal starting at a lower number is the latest indication that the Sixers are a serious threat to lure Tucker to Philadelphia. Harden’s move clears a path for Philadelphia to offer its full mid-level exception to Tucker.

If Tucker does leave, the Heat will be in the market for a power forward, and T.J. Warren, Kyle Anderson, Thaddeus Young, and Nicolas Batum will be among the free agents on their radar, Jackson writes. A Wednesday report indicated the club would likely also have interest in Danilo Gallinari if he’s waived after being traded by San Antonio.

Here’s more on the Heat:

Jackson hears from a source that Miami would be a team that appeals to Bobby Portis if he decides to leave Milwaukee. But Portis is considered likely to stick with the Bucks, while the Heat are reluctant to hard-cap themselves for the season by giving their full mid-level exception to a free agent, so it’s an unlikely match.
Jackson also hears that Kyle Lowry wasn’t upset by Pat Riley‘s end-of-season comments about how his conditioning must improve. The Heat have assured Lowry they have no intention of trading him in a deal for Kyrie Irving, Jackson adds.
After saying that the Heat had emerged as the frontrunners to trade for Suns forward Jae Crowder, John Gambadoro of Arizona Sports 98.7 (Twitter links) walked back that report. As Gambadoro explains, he can’t see Phoenix taking on Duncan Robinson‘s contract, and the Heat don’t have any other obvious salary-matching pieces they’d include in an offer for Crowder.

Heat Rumors: Herro, Crowder, Warren, Cap Situation

June 29th, 2022 at 11:33am CST by Luke Adams

“Early indications” are that a potential Tyler Herro extension with the Heat this offseason would land in the range of $25MM per year, according to Jake Fischer of Bleacher Report.

Herro will become eligible for a rookie scale extension when the NBA’s 2022/23 league year begins later this week. He boosted his stock during the regular season by averaging 20.7 points per game and making a career-high 39.9% of his three-point attempts, but a mediocre playoff run (12.9 PPG with a .229 3PT%) clouded his value entering the summer.

The Heat and Herro are under no obligation to reach an extension this offseason, but doing so would keep him off the restricted free agent market in 2023. Typically, rookie scale extensions worth less than the maximum aren’t agreed to at or near the start of free agency, so the team and the 22-year-old may take a few weeks or months to negotiate a new deal. The extension deadline is the day before the ’22/23 season begins.

Here’s more on the Heat:

If the Heat can’t retain P.J. Tucker in free agency, they’ll consider attempting to trade for Suns forward Jae Crowder or potentially signing free agent forward T.J. Warren, a source tells Ira Winderman of The South Florida Sun Sentinel. Winderman stresses that those would be fallback options for the team, which is willing to offer Tucker three fully guaranteed years. Crowder played in Miami briefly in 2019/20 before leaving for Phoenix in free agency.
In a separate story for The Sun Sentinel, Winderman explores how the Heat’s reluctance to impose a hard cap on themselves this offseason may impact their roster moves. It would mean the bi-annual exception can’t be used on a player like Caleb Martin and would mean the Heat’s best offer for P.J. Tucker would start at $8.4MM (via the Non-Bird exception) rather than $10.35MM (the full mid-level).
In case you missed it, a report earlier today suggested that Victor Oladipo is considered likely to leave the Heat in free agency.