Tyrone Wallace

Hawks Claim Tyrone Wallace Off Waivers

The Hawks submitted a successful waiver claim for former Timberwolves point guard Tyrone Wallace, tweets ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski. Wallace was Minnesota’s final cut on Monday as the Wolves trimmed their roster to the league limit.

Atlanta will inherit his $1.6MM non-guaranteed contract, which comes with a daily cap hit of $8,973, according to Bobby Marks of ESPN (Twitter link). The Hawks are now up to 15 players and will have $3.7MM in remaining cap room as long as Wallace stays on their roster. His contract will become fully guaranteed on January 7, which is the league-wide guarantee date.

Wallace, 25, spent the past two seasons with the Clippers, averaging a 5.5 PPG in 92 combined games. He had a promising rookie season, but fell out of the rotation last year and saw his playing time cut to 10.1 minutes per night. The Wolves claimed him in July after he was waived by L.A.

Timberwolves Waive Tyrone Wallace

The Timberwolves have waived point guard Tyrone Wallace in advance of the regular season roster deadline, league sources tell Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link). The move reduces Minnesota’s roster count to 15 players, plus a pair on two-way contracts.

Wallace, 25, broke into the NBA in 2017/18, averaging 9.7 PPG, 3.5 RPG, and 2.4 APG in 30 games (28.4 MPG) for the Clippers. He appeared in 62 more games for Los Angeles last season, but played limited minutes and saw his shooting percentages dip to .424/.211/.526. He was released by the Clips in July and was claimed off waivers by Minnesota.

Considering they took their roster decision down to the wire today, it appears the Wolves either considered keeping Wallace or tried to find a trade for him. However, Minnesota has 15 players with guaranteed salaries and Wallace is on a non-guaranteed contract, which made him the odd man out.

Wallace is now on track to clear waivers on Wednesday, though he’s a candidate to be claimed. Because he’s earning the minimum, any team would be eligible to place a claim and take on his non-guaranteed contract. If he makes it to free agency, the Wolves will be on the hook for two days’ worth of his salary, which works out to approximately $18K.

Minnesota’s roster is now ready for the regular season.

Western Notes: Green, D’Antoni, Wallace, Livingston

In the wake of Team USA’s flop in the FIBA World Cup, Warriors forward Draymond Green wants to play in next year’s Olympics, he said in a CNBC interview relayed by NBC Sports Bay Area’s Brian Witt. Green anticipates that many other stars who skipped this year’s event will also want to wear the Team USA uniform in Tokyo.

“I do hope to play, and I think a lot of guys will want to play,” the Warriors’ three-time All-Star said. “The schedule this year was a little treacherous with the games that were in America, and also the travel to Australia, which is why I think a lot of guys dropped out. You know, a long ways to China.”

We have more from around the Western Conference:

  • Despite failing to reach an agreement in extension talks, Rockets owner Tilman Fertitta believes Mike D’Antoni will remain head coach of the team beyond this season, as he told Chris Haynes of Yahoo Sports. D’Antoni is entering the final year of his four-year contract. Extension talks were a hot topic in May and June but nothing got done. Fertitta remains undeterred. “I think Mike D’Antoni’s going to be coaching here for a long time,” he said.
  • Unlike last season, Timberwolves guard Tyrone Wallace does not have any guaranteed money in his contract, Jon Krawczynski of The Athletic tweets. Wallace had a $300K partial guarantee if he remained on the roster through September 12 a year ago. Wallace’s $1,588,231 salary this season won’t become fully guaranteed unless he’s on the roster through January 10. Wallace, who came off the bench in 62 games with the Clippers last season, is the No. 3 point guard on the roster behind Jeff Teague and Shabazz Napier, and may ultimately be the odd man out on opening night, since Minnesota has 15 other players on fully guaranteed deals.
  • Warriors GM Bob Myers called Shaun Livingston’s story “one of the most inspirational in the history of professional sports” in a statement released by the club. Livingston announced his retirement on Friday. “What he accomplished after suffering so many trials and tribulations early in his career is a true testament to who he is as a person, which has always been characterized by tremendous class, grace and professionalism,” the statement read in part.

12 NBA Salary Guarantees To Watch In October

The majority of the NBA players who are currently on non-guaranteed contracts won’t have their salaries for 2019/20 become fully guaranteed until January 10. That’s the league-wide salary guarantee date and the default deadline that applies to players who haven’t negotiated an earlier salary guarantee date.

Still, some players did negotiate an earlier trigger date, and the majority of those deadlines will arrive in October. At least a dozen players around the NBA are believed to have partial or full guarantees that will go into effect in October.

Now, it’s worth noting that salary guarantee dates are somewhat malleable. If the player’s camp agrees, a team can quietly move that deadline back, giving the club more time to make a decision on whether or not to fully invest in its player for the 2019/20 season. The player doesn’t necessarily have to agree, but he may be on board with postponing that deadline if the alternative is being waived and receiving none of his salary.

Most of our information related to salary guarantee dates is coming from the salary database at Basketball Insiders, and BI hasn’t published all the details on the latest signings from around the NBA yet. In other words, there could be a few more recently-signed players who have October salary guarantee dates.

For now though, these are the 12 players believed to have salary guarantee dates coming up next month:

Full guarantees:

  1. Ivan Rabb (Grizzlies): Partial guarantee of $371,758 increases to full guarantee of $1,618,520 salary if not waived by October 19.
  2. Chris Boucher (Raptors): Partial guarantee of $125,000 increases to full guarantee of $1,588,231 salary if not waived by first day of regular season.
  3. Malcolm Miller (Raptors): Partial guarantee of $150,000 increases to full guarantee of $1,588,231 salary if not waived by first day of regular season.
  4. Duncan Robinson (Heat): Partial guarantee of $1,000,000 increases to full guarantee of $1,416,852 salary if not waived by first day of regular season.
  5. Kenrich Williams (Pelicans): Partial guarantee of $200,000 increases to full guarantee of $1,416,852 salary if not waived by first day of regular season.

Partial guarantees:

  1. Christian Wood (Pistons): $1,645,357 salary becomes partially guaranteed ($822,679) if not waived before first day of regular season.
  2. Trey Burke (Sixers): Partial guarantee of $405,000 increases to $810,000 if not waived by first day of regular season (full salary is $2,028,594).
  3. Jordan McRae (Wizards): Partial guarantee of $400,000 increases to $600,000 if not waived by first day of regular season (full salary is $1,645,357).
  4. Dragan Bender (Bucks): Partial guarantee of $300,000 increases to $600,000 if not waived by first day of regular season (full salary is $1,678,854).
  5. Ben McLemore (Rockets): Partial guarantee of $50,000 increases to $500,000 if not waived by first day of regular season (full salary is $2,028,594).
  6. Kendrick Nunn (Heat): Partial guarantee of $150,000 increases to $450,000 if not waived by first day of regular season (full salary is $1,416,852).
  7. William Howard (Jazz): Partial guarantee of $50,000 increases to $250,000 if not waived by first day of regular season (full salary is $898,310).

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Timberwolves Claim Tyrone Wallace Off Waivers

Two days after being released by the Clippers, guard Tyrone Wallace has a new NBA home. According to Shams Charania of The Athletic (via Twitter), the Timberwolves have claimed Wallace off waivers before he could reach the open market.

Wallace made a strong impression as a rookie on a two-way contract in 2017/18, when he posted 9.7 PPG, 3.5 RPG, and 2.4 APG in 30 games (28.1 MPG) for the Clippers. His performance earned him an offer sheet from the Pelicans as a restricted free agent.

However, after L.A. matched that offer sheet and brought him back, the 25-year-old struggled this past season, recording just 3.5 PPG, 1.6 RPG, and 0.7 APG in 62 games (10.1 MPG). His shooting percentages also dipped across the board. He became expendable within the last week as the Clippers cleared cap room for bigger moves.

Wallace is on a non-guaranteed minimum-salary contract that will become partially guaranteed for $300K in September, then fully guaranteed in January, so the Wolves have some time to evaluate whether he’ll be part of their plans for the 2019/20 season.

The Timberwolves’ point guard situation is in flux at the moment behind presumed starter Jeff Teague. Minnesota will acquire Shabazz Napier in a trade, but it’s not clear if the team intends to hang onto him or if it’s just accommodating a salary dump. Additionally, it remains to be seen if the Wolves will match Tyus Jones‘ three-year, $24MM+ offer sheet with the Grizzlies.

Clippers Waive Tyrone Wallace, Sindarius Thornwell

5:04pm: The Clippers have officially waived both Wallace and guard Sindarius Thornwell, according to the NBA’s official transactions log. The 48th overall pick in the 2017 draft, Thornwell had a promising rookie season but struggled last year in a reduced role, averaging 1.0 PPG and 0.7 RPG in 64 games (4.9 MPG).

Thornwell’s $1,618,520 salary was due to become guaranteed on July 20, per ESPN’s Bobby Marks, so the Clippers won’t be on the hook for it.

3:54am: The Clippers will waive guard Tyrone Wallace, league sources tell ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (Twitter link). Per Basketball Insiders, Wallace was on a non-guaranteed minimum-salary contract which would have become partially guaranteed for $300K in September, then fully guaranteed in January.

The news of Wallace’s release will be significantly overshadowed by other Clippers-related moves tonight, as the team reached an agreement to sign Kawhi Leonard and struck a deal to acquire Paul George during perhaps the most dramatic half-hour in franchise history.

Still, Wallace saw a decent amount of action as a role player for the Clips in 2018/19, averaging 3.5 PPG and 1.6 RPG in 62 games (10.1 MPG). His performance represented a step down from his 2017/18 showing, when he posted 9.7 PPG, 3.5 RPG, and 2.4 APG in 30 games (19 starts) while playing on a two-way contract.

Those rookie-year numbers helped earn Wallace an offer sheet from the Pelicans as a restricted free agent last summer, which the Clippers matched. Because of that offer sheet, New Orleans will be the only team not eligible to claim Wallace off waivers, tweets ESPN’s Bobby Marks. The former Cal standout will become an unrestricted free agent if he goes unclaimed.

Pacific Notes: Wallace, Acy, Lakers, Suns

Clippers guard Tyrone Wallace is finding stability for the first time in his professional career, David Yapkowitz of Basketball Insiders writes. Wallace, who was on a two-way contract last season, is making a guaranteed $1.34MM with the Clippers this season.

“It feels good. I think all the two-way guys obviously want a regular deal,” Wallace said. “But I think the two-way was good in terms of giving me an opportunity and giving guys an opportunity to go out there and show that they can be regular contract guys. You use it to that advantage and play well, then it feels good to be a year removed and on a regular deal.”

The Clippers matched Wallace’s offer sheet from New Orleans in September, retaining his services for a second consecutive season. He’s appeared in 30 games, averaging 3.7 points and 1.5 rebounds per contest on 44% shooting.

Wallace, 24, is an influence for several players working to earn a regular contract in the NBA. He started his career in the G League after being drafted with the 60th pick in 2016, working his way up the ladder for his current deal.

“I think I’m a guy that comes in and is able to be versatile,” Wallace said. “I can help defensively, guard multiple positions, try to attack in the open court, be aggressive, but just a team player. I come in and help these guys whichever way coach [Rivers] and the team feels I need to.”

There’s more from the Pacific Division tonight:

  • Veteran forward Quincy Acy is making an early impression on the Suns, Duane Rankin of the Arizona Republic writes. Acy signed a 10-day contract to join the team on Monday. “I’m used to kind integrating myself,” Acy said. “Just being myself. I’m a personable guy. I’m just about winning. When everybody is trying to come together and win, everything else goes out the window.”  
  • ESPN’s Dave McMenamin examines whether the Lakers have a No. 2 option behind superstar LeBron James, detailing the games of Kyle Kuzma, Brandon Ingram and others. Kuzma took charge in the team’s win over Detroit on Wednesday, scoring 42 points in 29 minutes.
  • Suns general manager James Jones was joined by Devin Booker, Deandre Ayton and Jamal Crawford at a recent downtown discussion for a $230MM proposed arena renovation, according to the Arizona Republic. The proposal would upgrade Talking Stick Resort Arena, where the Suns currently play, along with their practice facilities.

NBA G League Assignments/Recalls: 11/3/18

Here are Saturday’s G League assignments and recalls from around the NBA:

Clippers Exploring Trades To Clear Roster Logjam

With the roster deadline for the 2018/19 season just a few days away, the Clippers are exploring the trade market in the hopes of finding a deal or two that will help them clear their roster logjam, reports Keith Smith of RealGM.com (Twitter link). According to Smith, the club had been hoping to address the issue in a potential Jimmy Butler trade, but that seems like a long shot at this point.

The Clippers have 15 players on guaranteed contracts, but likely won’t end up keeping those specific 15 players on their regular season squad. Patrick Beverley has a non-guaranteed deal and Tyrone Wallace has a partial guarantee worth $300K, and both guards are strong candidates to make the roster.

Of the players with guaranteed salaries, Wesley Johnson ($6.13MM) and Jawun Evans ($1.38MM) are among those who may not be locks for the 15-man squad. Neither player projects to have a major role in the Clippers’ 2018/19 rotation.

The Clippers already found a trade that allowed them to clear one guaranteed salary when they sent Sam Dekker to Cleveland in August. If the team can’t find similar deals in the coming days, two players will need to be waived in order to get the roster down to 15 (plus a pair of two-way players) for opening night.

Western Notes: Anderson, Wallace, Kleber, Randle

Suns forward Ryan Anderson lowered his guaranteed salary to $15.4MM for the final year of his contract in 2019/2020 but it can be traded for the prior fully guaranteed value of $21.4MM, Tim Bontemps of the Washington Post tweets. Anderson agreed to the reduction to facilitate the trade from the Rockets. However, since his contract was signed under the previous CBA, its trade value remains unchanged. The Suns will have until July 10, 2019 to decide whether they want to guarantee Anderson’s full salary for the final year of his contract or waive him, in which case they’d still have to pay the reduced guarantee.

In other news from around the Western Conference:

  • Shooting guard Tyrone Wallace can’t be traded by the Clippers without his consent as a result of Los Angeles matching his offer sheet, salary cap expert Albert Nahmad tweets. The restricted free agent signed a two-year, $2.9MM offer sheet with the Pelicans but the Clippers opted to match it on Wednesday despite a roster logjam. The Clippers are prohibited from trading Wallace to the Pelicans for one year, Nahmad adds.
  • Maxi Kleber needs to improve his long-range shooting to earn rotation minutes with the Mavericks during the upcoming season, Eddie Sefko of the Dallas Morning News writes. Kleber will be competing with Dwight Powell and Salah Mejri for playing time with DeAndre Jordan and Dirk Nowitzki guaranteed to play steady minutes. The 6’11” Kleber shot 31.3% from deep in his first season with the club.
  • Anthony Davis called Julius Randle three times after Randle hit the free agent market to ensure the former Laker would sign with the Pelicans, William Guillory of The Athletic reports. Randle had his rights renounced by the Lakers after LeBron James agreed to sign with Los Angeles and Randle quickly agreed to a two-year, $18MM deal with New Orleans. Randle had more lucrative deals on the table, Guillory adds, but Randle wants to remain with the franchise even though he has an opt-out next summer.