Reggie Jackson Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Clippers Notes: Dunn, George, Jackson

March 4th, 2020 at 3:38pm CST by Luke Adams

There has been buzz throughout the 2019/20 season that the Clippers are expected to be among the teams that will show interest in Kris Dunn when he reaches free agency this summer, says K.C. Johnson of NBC Sports Chicago. It’s not clear how Dunn’s season-ending knee injury will affect L.A.’s potential interest, Johnson adds.

The Clippers’ interest level may also be impacted by how the Bulls handle Dunn’s situation — he’ll be a restricted free agent if Chicago extends a qualifying offer worth $4,642,800, which seems likely and which would increase the Bulls’ leverage.

While Dunn’s offensive numbers aren’t great, he was one of the NBA’s best perimeter defenders when healthy, leading the league with 2.9 steals per 36 minutes. That would make him an intriguing fit on a Clippers roster that’s already packed with talented defenders, including Kawhi Leonard, Paul George, and Patrick Beverley.

Here’s more on the Clippers:

After he enjoyed a career year in 2018/19 in Oklahoma City, Paul George is still trying to get comfortable amidst an injury-plagued first season with the Clippers, writes Royce Young of ESPN. “I’m a work in progress,” George said on Tuesday. “It’s been a tough year being injured. Being in the rotation, being out of the rotation. And then just playing in a whole new system, new players, new teammates, new coaches, new playing style. So it’s been a bit of an adjustment for me.”
Reggie Jackson has had an impressive impact on the Clippers’ second unit since arriving from Detroit, according to Jovan Buha of The Athletic, who notes that Jackson’s ball-handling ability has freed up Lou Williams to play off the ball more frequently.
In case you missed it, we identified Jackson as one of 2020’s best buyout-market signings in a Community Shootaround discussion earlier today.

L.A. Notes: Morris, Jackson, George, Beverley, Bryant

February 22nd, 2020 at 9:35am CST by marksuleymanov

After failing to land Marcus Morris, the Lakers are set to add his twin brother Markieff Morris after the forward negotiated a buyout with the Pistons on Friday. While Markieff is not the offensive contributor that his brother is, he can still pack some punch for the Lakers, Sporting News’ Jacob Hancock writes.

Marcus is in the midst of his best season, averaging 19.0 PPG and 5.4 RPG while shooting 43.2% from beyond the arc. Markieff has posted more a modest 11.0 PPG whilst shooting a career-best 39.7% from three. Markieff gives the Lakers another big body to see time in the frontcourt along with Anthony Davis, JaVale McGee and Dwight Howard. Additionally, Markieff’s presence will allow Kyle Kuzma — who has seen time at power forward — to play his more natural position at small forward.

The move figures to become official once Markieff clears waivers on Sunday.

Check more notes surrounding the L.A. teams:

To reach a buyout agreement with Detroit, Markieff gave up $4.3MM, the remainder of this season’s salary plus his player option for 2020/21, tweets ESPN’s Bobby Marks.
Despite practicing for two straight days, Paul George (hamstring) and Patrick Beverley (groin) have been ruled out of the Clippers‘ Saturday tilt against the Kings, ESPN’s Ohm Youngmisuk writes. George’s hamstring has been a cause for concern this season while Beverley sat out the Skills Challenge to heal the groin. Head coach Doc Rivers has stressed the need for the Clippers to be healthy and establish chemistry heading into the playoffs.
In addition to acquiring Marcus Morris, the Clippers were also busy in the buyout market adding veteran guard Reggie Jackson. While Jackson figures to help the Clippers’ second unit off the bench, the opportunity will also allow him to play alongside longtime friend Paul George, Andrew Greif of the Los Angeles Times writes.
The Lakers vs. Clippers game scheduled for January 28 that was postponed following Kobe Bryant‘s shocking death has been rescheduled for April 9 at Staples Center, per ESPN’s Dave McMenamin.

Clippers Sign Reggie Jackson

February 20th, 2020 at 10:06pm CST by ChrisCrouse

The Clippers have officially signed Reggie Jackson, as the team relays on its website. The point guard agreed to a buyout with the Pistons earlier this week.

“Reggie is a proven playmaker and scorer, and we are looking forward to adding his experience and creativity to our team,” said president of basketball operations Lawrence Frank.

Jackson will make $734,025 for the remainder of the season, Bobby Marks of ESPN.com tweets. Los Angeles will carry a $512,721 cap hit as a result of the signing.

Jackson, 29, spent the last five years in Detroit, having been acquired from the Thunder in a three-team trade in February 2015. He signed a five-year, $80MM deal with the Pistons a few months later and had been in the final season of that contract before he was released. Jackson gave back a flat $800K in his buyout agreement with the Pistons, reducing Detroit’s dead-money charge for 2019/20 to $17,286,956.

Jackson’s name was among those rumored to be available via trade prior to the deadline, though no deal materialized. The Lakers had interested in inking Jackson earlier this week before the Clippers swooped in.

Pistons Notes: Jackson, Kennard, Thomas, Wood

February 19th, 2020 at 2:56pm CST by Luke Adams

With just 25 games left in their season, the Pistons are prioritizing developing and evaluating their young players, which is a key reason why the team was willing to buy out Reggie Jackson, sources tell James L. Edwards III of The Athletic. The agreement will save Detroit a little money, but more importantly, it will give the team a chance to get a longer look at how young players like Jordan Bone handle point guard duties, Edwards writes.

Jackson gave back a flat $800K in his buyout agreement with the Pistons, reducing his cap hit for 2019/20 to $17,286,956, according to ESPN’s Bobby Marks (via Twitter). Detroit moves further below the tax line and has part of its mid-level exception available, Marks notes (via Twitter), so the team could use its newly-opened roster spot to sign a prospect to a three- or four-year deal before the end of the regular season.

Promoting Bone from his two-way contract to the 15-man roster would also be an option, tweets Keith Langlois of Pistons.com. However, head coach Dwane Casey suggested today that the team may start by using that open roster spot to get a look at some players on 10-day contracts (Twitter link via Langlois).

Here’s more on the Pistons:

Luke Kennard is still “a ways away” from returning, Casey said today, per Rod Beard of The Detroit News (Twitter link). Kennard, who is recovering from a knee injury, has done some contact work, but isn’t yet ready for games.
Second-year guard Khyri Thomas, who has been sidelined since late October after undergoing right foot surgery, is expected to head to the G League as part of his rehab process this week. As Beard tweets, Thomas will likely play a couple games for the Grand Rapids Drive before suiting up for the Pistons.
James L. Edwards III of The Athletic spoke to a handful of sources to try to get a feel for Christian Wood‘s value on the free agent market this summer. According to Edwards, those sources believe Wood is capable of securing a multiyear deal in the range of $5-10MM per year. Edwards suggests a three-year, $30MM contract might make both the Pistons and Wood happy.
Over at Pistons.com, Langlois passes along some more comments from Casey on what to expect from the retooling Pistons for the rest of the 2019/20 season.

Reggie Jackson Bought Out By Pistons, Plans To Join Clippers

February 18th, 2020 at 5:07pm CST by Luke Adams

5:07pm: The Pistons have issued a press release formally announcing they’ve reached a buyout agreement with Jackson and have waived him.

3:24pm: Veteran point guard Reggie Jackson has reached a buyout agreement with the Pistons, according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski, who reports (via Twitter) that Jackson intends to sign with the Clippers once he clears waivers and reaches free agency.

Jackson, 29, has spent the last five years in Detroit, having been acquired from the Thunder in a three-team trade in February 2015. He signed a five-year, $80MM deal with the Pistons a few months later and is now in the final season of that contract. His buyout agreement with the club figures to slightly reduce his $18,086,956 cap hit for 2019/20.

The Pistons had hoped that giving Jackson the reins as the team’s starting point guard – after he began his career as Russell Westbrook‘s backup – would clear a path for him to develop into a star. Although the former Boston College standout had some productive seasons in Detroit, his overall numbers as a Piston (16.2 PPG, 5.6 APG, .425/.354/.851 shooting) fell short of that star level.

Jackson’s name surfaced frequently in trade rumors over the last couple years, but his rising cap hit made it difficult for the Pistons to find a deal that upgraded their roster. Even at this year’s deadline, as the team pivoted toward a rebuild and accepted a very modest package for Andre Drummond, Detroit apparently didn’t find a trade offer it liked for Jackson.

With the Pistons headed for a lottery finish, there was little incentive to keep Jackson around for the rest of the season. He’ll now finish the year with the Clippers, who have until this Saturday to sign a player and get back to the 14-player roster minimum.

As Ohm Youngmisuk of ESPN notes (via Twitter), L.A. could still use a defensive wing or a rim protector, but Jackson will give the team another ball-handler and a veteran scorer off the bench.

The Lakers and Clippers, who were poised to compete for Darren Collison if he had opted to come out of retirement, were each said to be in the market for a point guard. Wojnarowski confirms (via Twitter) that the Lakers also had interest in Jackson — they’ll have to look elsewhere if they still hope to address the position.

[RELATED: 2020 NBA Buyout Market Watch]

Jackson had still been owed $5.7MM of his ’19/20 salary, tweets ESPN’s Bobby Marks. While we don’t know the exact terms of the buyout agreement, the veteran guard likely agreed to give back a prorated portion of the minimum salary. If he’s officially released by the Pistons today and joins the Clippers on Thursday, he’d make $734,025 on his new contract, with a $512,721 cap charge.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Central Notes: Hill, Oladipo, Jackson, Bulls

February 13th, 2020 at 5:27pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

Sweet-shooting Bucks backup point guard George Hill may be on one of the best teams in the NBA as he visits the Pacers, but he will always be an “Indianapolis boy” at heart, as the Indianapolis Star’s Dana Hunsinger Benbow details.

An alum of Broad Ripple High and IUPUI, Hill has been a solid NBA mainstay since being drafted in 2008. Hill apparently does not harbor much nostalgia for the Pacers, who traded him in the 2016 offseason to the Jazz. “I hope we beat them (by 20),” Hill said. “The Pacers didn’t want me.” The 46-8 Bucks sure do. Hill is connecting on an astronomical 51.1% of his 6.4 three-point attempts per game this season.

There’s more out of the Central Division:

Though Pacers shooting guard Victor Oladipo has been back on the court for seven games, he knows he has yet to reclaim his All-Star caliber play, per Royce Young of ESPN. “I missed a whole year of NBA basketball, not just basketball,” Oladipo said. “It’s the highest level of basketball. It’s different.” Oladipo is averaging 11.1 PPG, 2.9 APG, and 2.0 APG in 25.0 minutes per contest.
Oft-injured Pistons point guard Reggie Jackson is in the final season of his five-year, $80MM contract, but the Pistons may not want to buy him out due to their limited options at his position, according to Keith Langlois of Pistons.com.
The slumping Bulls, losers of six straight games and owners of a paltry 19-36 record, offer more intrigue over the rest of this season than meets the eye, per Joe Cowley of the Chicago Sun-Times. Cowley notes that head coach Jim Boylen, several young prospects, and even Chicago’s front office decision-makers might be fighting for their futures with the franchise during the 2019/20 home stretch.

Cavs Notes: Drummond, Sexton, McKinnie, Bolden

February 11th, 2020 at 1:09pm CST by Luke Adams

Heading into the trade deadline, no Pistons player had been with the team longer than Reggie Jackson — except for Andre Drummond. So when Detroit swung a deal that sent Drummond to the Cavaliers, it made sense that Jackson would be among those most affected by the move.

“He was my best friend on the team and it’s been like that for five-and-a-half years. He acclimated me when I first got to Detroit and we built a great friendship and brotherhood,” Jackson said of Drummond, per Rod Beard of The Detroit News. “That’s my guy forever, so it was a tough day seeing he got traded to the Cavs but wishing him nothing but the best for him and his family.”

As Drummond gets acclimated to his new home in Cleveland, here are a few more Cavaliers-related notes:

Second-year Cavs guard Collin Sexton has been added to the U.S. roster for the Rising Stars game in Chicago this weekend, the league announced today. Sexton will replace Heat guard Tyler Herro, who is nursing a right foot injury.
Alfonzo McKinnie‘s new four-year contract with the Cavaliers includes a $1.5MM guaranteed salary for the 2019/20 season, according to Jeff Siegel of Early Bird Rights (Twitter link). That’s significantly more than the $623K McKinnie would have received had he signed a prorated minimum deal. And that’s likely a big reason why he was willing to tack on three team-friendly, non-guaranteed years at the minimum. Cleveland was able to exceed the minimum and go up to four years using the mid-level exception.
Following the expiration of his 10-day contract with the Cavaliers, Marques Bolden rejoined the team’s G League affiliate, the Canton Charge, per JD Shaw of Hoops Rumors (Twitter link). Since Bolden just signed a single 10-day deal with Cleveland, he’d be eligible to sign a second one between now and the end of the regular season.

Clippers Interested If Reggie Jackson Gets Buyout

February 7th, 2020 at 8:29pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Clippers would be a likely suitor if Pistons point guard Reggie Jackson pursues and receives a buyout, Marc Stein of the New York Times tweets.

Jackson hasn’t decided whether to go the buyout route, Stein adds. Jackson is making approximately $18.1MM in the final year of his five-year, $80MM contract that he signed in 2015.

Detroit has gone into full rebuild mode and traded Jackson’s longtime pick-and-roll partner, Andre Drummond, to Cleveland on Thursday.

Jackson has missed most of this season with a back injury. He’s been productive since returning last month, scoring 20 or more points in four of the last eight games prior to the team’s road tilt in Oklahoma City on Friday.

The Clippers are also in the running for free agent guard Darren Collison, who will decide next week whether to come out of retirement.

Pistons Notes: Drummond, Rose, Wood, Kennard, More

February 7th, 2020 at 12:31pm CST by Luke Adams

After a report on Thursday morning suggested the Pistons would likely hang onto center Andre Drummond, the team ended up making a deal just hours later, sending the longtime Piston to Cleveland for a modest package that included a pair of expiring contracts and a future second-round pick. Drummond, perhaps having expected to remain in Detroit, immediately responded to the trade on Twitter.

“If there’s one thing I learned about the NBA, there’s no friends or loyalty,” Drummond tweeted. “I’ve given my heart and soul to the Pistons , and to have this happen with no heads-up makes me realize even more that this is just a business!”

Speaking today to reporters about the deal, head of basketball operations Ed Stefanski said that Drummond and his representatives knew he was being discussed in trade talks, but acknowledged that the Cavs emerged as an option at the 11th hour, pretty close to the deadline.

“The worst thing in the world is have to trade someone who’s been here (for a long time),” Stefanski said, per Rod Beard of The Detroit News. “This is the only place he’s been in. Emotions are raw. ‘Dre knew he was in trade talks and I was talking to his representatives about different things. Cleveland came in late. I guess you’d have to talk to ‘Dre what exactly he meant. But again, emotions are raw when this stuff happens. I understand that.”

While many NBA observers were surprised at how little the Pistons received for Drummond, Stefanski suggested there weren’t stronger offers out there, pointing out that the center position isn’t valued “like it once was” (Twitter links via James Edwards III of The Athletic).

Here’s more on the Pistons:

Strong offers didn’t really materialize for Derrick Rose, according to Vince Ellis of The Detroit Free Press, who tweets that potential suitors may have been scared off by Detroit’s high asking price and Rose’s desire to stick with the Pistons.
Langston Galloway and Markieff Morris, who are both on expiring contracts, didn’t generate much serious interest around the NBA, sources tell James Edwards III of The Athletic. Stefanski suggested today that Detroit probably couldn’t have gotten more than a draft pick in the 50s for those players, Edwards tweets. The Pistons preferred to finish the year with their veterans.
Edwards, who reported on Thursday that the Pistons turned down a Celtics offer for Christian Wood, notes that Wood has interest in re-signing with Detroit this summer.
The Pistons started talking in earnest about a rebuild after injuries derailed their playoff chances this season, since the team doesn’t want to be stuck in the middle of the pack anymore, per Stefanski (Twitter links via Edwards). “We are looking to rebuild,” Stefanski said. “What the future holds will be interesting. We haven’t had the luxury of having cap space since we’ve been here — do you use it in free agency, collecting assets or making trades? We have to use it wisely.”
Stefanski declined to specifically address the rumored Luke Kennard trade talks, but said the young shooting guard is “well-liked by other NBA teams.” The Pistons are happy to keep Kennard and make him part of their rebuild, according to Stefanski, who adds that the 23-year-old may be ready to return from his knee injury after the All-Star break (all Twitter links via Edwards).
The Pistons haven’t discussed a potential buyout for Reggie Jackson, according to Stefanski (Twitter link via Beard).

Buyout Rumors: Ellington, Jackson, Jazz

February 6th, 2020 at 4:00pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Veterans on the trading block that teams were unable to move by Thursday’s deadline could still wind up with other teams. Below are updates on some of those players:

The Knicks will look into buying out shooting guard Wayne Ellington, Ian Begley of SNY-TV tweets. Ellington signed a two-year, $16MM contract with New York last summer but the second year is only guaranteed for $1MM. Ellington, 32, has appeared in just 24 games this season, averaging 4.0 PPG in 14.1 MPG. He’s a 37.7% career shooter from beyond the arc.
A buyout of point guard Reggie Jackson is an option for the Pistons but is termed “premature” for the time being, Yahoo Sports’ Vince Goodwill tweets. Jackson, who is making over $18MM in the final year of his deal, has missed a good chunk of this season with a back ailment. He is close friends with Andre Drummond, who is headed to Cleveland.
The Jazz will be one of the contenders scouring the buyout market both domestically and internationally, Tony Jones of The Athletic tweets. Utah explored several deals the past two days but couldn’t find one that made sense, Jones adds.
The Cavaliers are apparently uninterested in buying out center Tristan Thompson. Get the details here.