Reggie Williams

Thunder Re-Sign Reggie Williams To 10-Day Deal

The Thunder have signed Reggie Williams to a second 10-day contract, the team announced. Darnell Mayberry of The Oklahoman first reported the news via Twitter. Williams was with Oklahoma City earlier this month, but when his first 10-day contract expired, the team gave his roster spot to Mustafa Shakur, who signed a 10-day contract of his own, as our tracker shows. Shakur’s deal expired Tuesday, and it looks like the club has turned back to Williams, at least for now.

The 27-year-old Williams saw just five minutes of action in his first stint with Oklahoma City, his only NBA burn this year after having been a part of the league for the previous four seasons. The Rockets cut him before opening night even though his minimum-salary contract was 50% guaranteed, and the Bulls and the Grizzlies had interest in him earlier in the season. The swingman has spent most of 2013/14 with the Thunder’s D-League affiliate, and he returned to the Tulsa 66ers after his first 10-day deal expired. He averaged 20.1 points, 5.7 rebounds and 4.9 assists per game with 35.5% three-point shooting in the D-League this year.

The return of the Interperformances client gives the Thunder a full 15-man roster, though bringing Williams back on another 10-day affords the club a bit of flexibility between now and the end of the season.

Thunder Won’t Re-Sign Reggie Williams

The Thunder won’t be signing Reggie Williams to a second 10-day contract when his initial 10-day ends tonight, reports Shams Charania of RealGM.com (Twitter link). Williams was assigned to Tulsa in the NBA D-League earlier today, the club announced on Twitter, and he is expected to continue to play for the 66ers, according to Charania. This will leave the Thunder with 14 players on their roster.

Williams had spent the past four seasons in the NBA with the Warriors and Bobcats. He signed for a partially guaranteed minimum-salary deal this past summer with the Rockets, who cut him prior to opening night.

Williams only appeared in one game for the Thunder and scored five points in five minutes of action. The 27 year-old averaged 20.6 PPG over 20 appearances in the D-League prior to joining the Thunder.

D-League Notes: Bowles, Williams, Nedovic

The Iowa Energy – who share an NBA affiliation with the Bulls, Nuggets, Timberwolves, Pelicans, and Wizards – have acquired center Denzel Bowles (Gino Pilato of DLeagueDigest reports). The 6’10 big man was previously a member of the Pelicans’ (then-Hornets) summer league team in 2012/13, where he averaged 7.2 PPG and 6.6 RPG in 16.1 MPG. Most recently, Bowles played in China before entering the D-League player pool.

Here are a few more NBDL-related notes worth passing along tonight:

  • The Thunder announced via press release that forward Reggie Williams has been recalled from the Tulsa 66ers. Oklahoma City assigned Williams to the D-League earlier today before announcing his recall. Williams has yet to see action with the Thunder on the 10-day deal he signed Thursday, but he had 19 points, 10 rebounds and seven assists in today’s matinee for Tulsa.
  • The Warriors announced earlier today that they’ve recalled Nemanja Nedovic from the Santa Cruz Warriors of the NBDL.
  • The Cavaliers have recalled Sergey Karasev from the Canton Charge, according to the team’s official Twitter account.

Chuck Myron contributed to this post.

Thunder Sign Reggie Williams To 10-Day Deal

12:03pm: The Thunder has officially announced the signing, via press release.

7:58am: Four-year NBA veteran Reggie Williams is headed to the Thunder on a 10-day contract, reports Darnell Mayberry of The Oklahoman. The 27-year-old swingman has been with the Thunder’s D-League affiliate since December following NBA interest from the Bulls and Grizzlies. The official announcement of the signing should take place this morning, according to Mayberry.

Williams spent the past four seasons in the NBA with the Warriors and Bobcats. His sophomore campaign, in which he shot 42.3% from three-point range, helped him earn a two-year, $5.1MM deal with Charlotte after the lockout in 2011. He nonetheless shot just 30.7% from behind the arc over the duration of that contract, and wound up on just a partially guaranteed minimum-salary deal this past summer with the Rockets, who cut him prior to opening night.

The 27-year-old rediscovered his stroke in the D-League, knocking down 38.2% of his three-pointers as he averaged 20.6 points per game over 20 appearances. The Interperformances client will fill Oklahoma City’s lone remaining open roster spot.

Northwest Notes: Rubio, Thunder, Williams

George Karl is currently working as an ESPN analyst a year after coaching the Nuggets, but he remains familiar with his former division rivals in Minnesota. Speaking to Andy Greder of Wolves Now, the reigning Coach of the Year gave his thoughts about what the Timberwolves need to do to earn a playoff spot, and praised the team’s acquisition of Luc Mbah a Moute. Here’s more from around the Northwest:

  • After talking to a confidant of Ricky Rubio, Darren Wolfson of 1500 ESPN Twin Cities gets the sense that Rubio’s camp expects the point guard to receive a five-year maximum extension offer from the Timberwolves when he becomes eligible for it (Twitter links). While Rubio is a valuable asset, the fact that his numbers haven’t improved noticeably since his rookie season is a cause for some concern.
  • In an Insider-only piece for ESPN.com, Tom Haberstroh wonders if the Thunder will soon face a repeat of the James Harden situation, with Reggie Jackson set to become extension-eligible next July. Jackson’s rookie deal doesn’t expire until 2015, which is the same summer Kendrick Perkins‘ contract will come off the books, so Oklahoma City should have more flexibility to lock up their new Sixth Man.
  • The Thunder‘s D-League affiliate, the Tulsa 66ers, will add Reggie Williams to their roster, a source tells Gino Pilato of D-League Digest. Williams, who was waived by the Rockets prior to the regular season, will be free to sign with any NBA team even though OKC holds his D-League rights.

Southwest Notes: Diaw, Ajinca, Williams

There is news coming out of the Southwest Division that doesn’t involve Omer Asik, believe it or not. Houston’s effort to trade its backup center has dominated headlines for the past few days, and will likely continue to do so until the Rockets strike a deal. In the meantime, here’s the latest from elsewhere in the Southwest:

  • Boris Diaw tells Shams Charania of RealGM.com that it was an easy decision to exercise his more than $4.7MM player option to return to the Spurs this summer. “In the Finals, we were so close,” Diaw said. “I wanted to go again and come back with this team. It’s been a great season this year, and we play a good style of basketball and we’ll get another shot together.”
  • The Bobcats, Mavs and Raptors didn’t make the proper investment of time and effort into Alexis Ajinca‘s development during his first stint in the NBA, as Mark Deeks of ShamSports opines in a piece for the Score. That’s left the Pelicans in a position to benefit now that Ajinca is headed to New Orleans, Deeks writes, comparing it to the Spurs‘ acquisition of Aron Baynes last season.
  • Reggie Williams is set to join the D-League, according to Gino Pilato of D-League Digest. The four-year NBA veteran is on the Rockets‘ books for about $474K after Houston cut him in a numbers crunch before the start of the regular season. He was among those scheduled to work out for the Grizzlies recently before the team switched gears.

Grizzlies Shift Focus In Search For Reinforcement

The Grizzlies had been scheduled to work out several players this week, but no signing is imminent, and the team has changed its priorities since the report about the auditions, according to Ronald Tillery of the Memphis Commercial Appeal (Twitter links). The team had targeted Darius MorrisReggie Williams, Seth Curry and Kendall Marshall with the thinking that Quincy Pondexter would miss only two weeks, but the revelation that Pondexter will be out for the season has forced a change of plans. The Grizzlies are looking to add someone who’s more of a long-term solution, Tillery says.

Memphis has just 13 players on its roster, including Pondexter and Marc Gasol, who’s out indefinitely with a sprained MCL in his left knee. The team is about $3.5MM clear of the luxury tax line, so it should have plenty of flexibility to sign one or two guys. There aren’t major upgrades available on the free agent market, but names like Richard Hamilton, Shannon Brown and DeShawn Stevenson are available if the Grizzlies are still looking for a guard. Those players may be holding out for more than the minimum salary, and while Memphis has most of its mid-level exception and all of its bi-annual exception available, in-season signings are almost always for the minimum.

It’s unclear whether the Grizzlies still plan to go through with their scheduled workouts, or if any of the players linked to the team have already completed their auditions. Memphis could also look to acquire players via trade, an avenue that might net more intriguing options. Most of the players who signed this offseason become eligible to be traded on Sunday.

Bulls Audition Reggie Williams

Swingman Reggie Williams had his second workout for the Bulls today, a source tells K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune. The report doesn’t indicate that a signing is imminent, though the Bulls could be without Derrick Rose for a while with a minor injury to his right hamstring, so perhaps Chicago is searching for depth. The Bulls are carrying the minimum 13 players on their roster.

Williams was a victim of a numbers crunch in Houston, where the Rockets cut his 50% guaranteed contract at the end of the preseason to get under the 15-man roster limit. He’s played in the NBA each of the past four seasons, but his scoring average has decreased each year since he broke into the Association with 15.2 points per game as a late-season addition for the Warriors in 2009/10. He shot 40.5% from three-point range in each of his two seasons with Golden State, and just 30.7% from behind the arc the past two years with the Bobcats.

Chicago is roughly $8MM above the luxury tax threshold, so if the team signs Williams or anyone else, the Bulls would be subject to paying more in tax than they’d pay the player if they don’t dump salary before the end of the season. Bulls owner Jerry Reinsdorf has traditionally avoided the tax, having paid it for the first time last season, so I wouldn’t be surprised if the team is just lining up Williams as a contingency plan in case there’s a pressing need, though that’s just my speculation.

Rockets Waive Reggie Williams

12:08pm: The Rockets have officially waived Williams, the team announced in a press release.

11:51am: With today’s roster deadline looming, the Rockets will release Reggie Williams, according to RealGM.com. Williams, who appeared to be the odd man out after not playing in the team’s final preseason tune-up, thanked Houston for the opportunity earlier today (via Twitter).

While the Rockets have yet to officially announce the release of Williams or Marcus Camby, finalizing those cuts will reduce the club’s roster to 15 players, making it regular-season-ready. Houston will have to eat a little money in the process, since Williams’ minimum salary deal was 50% guaranteed, while Camby’s minimum salary pact was fully guaranteed.

By waiving Williams and Camby, Houston ensures that non-guaranteed players Patrick Beverley and Greg Smith have spots on the roster. Ronnie Brewer, who has a partial guarantee, also seems to have earned as spot, along with undrafted rookie Robert Covington.

Williams, who played for the Bobcats in 2012/13, will become a free agent later this week, assuming he clears waivers. At that point, the 27-year-old’s career .371 3PT% could interest some teams in need of outside shooting.

Rockets Sign Reggie Williams

JULY 19TH, 11:01am: The Rockets have officially signed Williams, the team announced today in a press release.

JULY 10TH, 8:34pm: The second year of Williams' deal isn't a team option, but is instead non-guaranteed, according to Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle. The first year is only 50% guaranteed, Feigen adds (Twitter link).

6:20pm: The Rockets have landed another outside shooter, agreeing to terms with Reggie Williams on a two-year pact worth the minimum salary, tweets Marc Stein of ESPN.com. The second year will be a team option, Stein says.

Williams, a four-year veteran, has seen his numbers decline each season after a rookie year in which he notched 15.2 points per game in a 24-game stint with the Warriors. He put up only 3.7 PPG this past season with the Bobcats, and shot just 30.6% from behind the arc, well off his mark of 42.3% from three-point range in 2010/11. He's still a 37.1% shooter for his career, and the Rockets will hope that he regains his touch to give defenses another long-range threat to worry about.

The Interperformances agency client will take a significant paycut from the $2,612,500 he earned in 2012/13. The four-year veteran's minimum will be $947,907 this coming season. Houston will likely use the minimum-salary exception, so his signing won't affect the team's pursuit of other free agents.