Vincent Valerio-Bodon Rumors

Lakers Sign, Waive Vincent Valerio-Bodon

September 5th, 2024 at 1:34pm CST by Arthur Hill

September 5: Valerio-Bodon has been waived, the Lakers announced (Twitter link). He’ll likely be heading back to South Bay for the upcoming season.

September 4: Vincent Valerio-Bodon has signed with the Lakers, the team announced (via Twitter). It’s an Exhibit 10 contract, according to Michael Scotto of HoopsHype (Twitter link).

The 23-year-old swingman from Hungary was in training camp with L.A. last fall, but was waived before the start of the season. He joined the Lakers’ South Bay affiliate in the G League, where he averaged 5.1 points, 2.7 rebounds and 1.2 assists in 10 games.

L.A. has a full complement for training camp already, so it will be difficult for Valerio-Bodon to earn a roster spot. The Lakers have 15 players on standard contracts, and all three two-way spots are filled. In addition, the team signed Kylor Kelley and Quincy Olivari to Exhibit 10 contracts last month, plus it reached an agreement Tuesday with Jordan Goodwin and reportedly plans to sign Sean East II. With a 21-man roster limit for camp, someone will have to be released before all the moves can be completed.

Assuming Valerio-Bodon winds up with South Bay again, he will be eligible for a bonus of up to $77.5K if he spends at least 60 days with the team.

Lakers Waive Vincent Valerio-Bodon, Damion Baugh, Scotty Pippen Jr.

October 16th, 2023 at 6:25pm CST by Tristan Tucker

The Lakers have waived forward Vincent Valerio-Bodon and guards Damion Baugh and Scotty Pippen Jr, according to a team press release relayed by The Athletic’s Jovan Buha (Twitter link).

Pippen, 22, is the son of Hall of Famer Scottie Pippen and spent last season, his rookie year, with the Lakers on a two-way contract after going undrafted out of Vanderbilt. He averaged 21.4 points, 5.6 assists and 4.1 rebounds with the South Bay Lakers in 19 regular season G League games. Pippen appeared in two preseason contests with the Lakers this year and averaged 4.5 points, 2.5 rebounds and 3.5 assists.

Baugh, 23, appeared in one game with the Lakers in the preseason. He joined the team after going undrafted out of TCU, where he averaged 12.6 points and 5.8 assists per game in his senior season.

Valerio-Bodon, 22, made one preseason appearance for the Lakers. The 6’10” forward averaged 8.2 points and 4.1 rebounds per night in the Hungarian NBIA last season.

All three players are likely to end up with the South Bay Lakers if they go unclaimed on waivers, given that they signed Exhibit 10 deals. If that happens, they’ll be eligible for a bonus worth up to $75K if they stay with South Bay for at least 60 days.

The Lakers have 14 players on standard contracts and three on two-way contracts. Given that they’ll likely save the 15th spot on their standard roster for flexibility purposes, their roster is pretty set for opening night. It’s possible the Lakers shuffle out players on Exhibit 10 deals in the coming days to funnel them to the G League.

Lakers Sign Four Players To Exhibit 10 Contracts

September 8th, 2023 at 11:26am CST by Luke Adams

The Lakers have officially signed guards Scotty Pippen Jr., Bryce Hamilton, and Damion Baugh, along with forward Vincent Valerio-Bodon, the team announced in a press release.

All four players received Exhibit 10 contracts, according to the Lakers. Exhibit 10 contracts are non-guaranteed minimum-salary deals that can be converted to two-way contracts before the regular season begins or can make a player eligible for a bonus worth up to $75K if he’s waived and then spends 60 or more days with the team’s G League affiliate.

Pippen, the son of Hall of Famer Scottie Pippen, spent his rookie year in 2022/23 on a two-way deal with the Lakers after going undrafted out of Vanderbilt. He logged just 32 total minutes in six games at the NBA level, but played regularly for the South Bay Lakers, averaging 21.4 points, 5.6 assists, and 4.1 rebounds in 27.8 minutes per game across 19 NBAGL regular season appearances.

Hamilton also played for South Bay as an undrafted rookie last season, putting up 14.1 PPG and 4.6 RPG on .514/.385/.679 shooting in 29 contests (28.2 MPG).

Baugh opted to forgo his final year of college eligibility this spring to go pro after spending the last two seasons at TCU and the two before that at Memphis. He made the All-Big 12 second team earlier this year after averaging 12.6 PPG, 5.8 APG, and 4.7 RPG in 29 games (35.0 MPG) for the Horned Frogs.

Valerio-Bodon, a 6’10” forward who is 22 years old, has been playing professionally in his home country of Hungary. He averaged 8.2 PPG and 4.1 RPG with a .503/.412/.879 shooting line in 30 games (all starts) last season for Sopron KC in the Hungarian NBIA.

The Lakers now have a full 21-man offseason roster. They’re carrying 14 players on guaranteed contracts and will likely open the season with an open spot on their 15-man roster to maximize their flexibility. Their three two-way slots are also full, so unless one of the four new additions makes a very strong impression in the preseason, Pippen, Hamilton, Baugh, and Valerio-Bodon are good bets to be waived and to report to South Bay this fall.

Draft Notes: Wembanyama, Coulibaly, Lewis, Clowney

June 18th, 2023 at 11:59am CST by Arthur Hill

Although Victor Wembanyama may be the best NBA draft prospect in 20 years, the Spurs understand that his body type carries a certain amount of injury risk, writes Jeff McDonald of The San Antonio Express-News. McDonald notes that foot injuries have interrupted or even ended the careers of numerous big men, such as Bill Walton, Yao Ming, Arvydas Sabonis and Greg Oden. The latest example is Oklahoma City’s Chet Holmgren, who suffered a foot fracture in an exhibition game last summer that forced him to miss his entire first season.

Wembanyama possesses an agility that has rarely been seen in someone so tall, and he has a team of advisors who have created a specialized training regimen to help him avoid stress injuries. Their prescription includes an all-natural diet with five meals each day, along with 10 hours of sleep.

“When you talk about a generational talent, it often times goes beyond your ability to make a shot or your ability to jump or put the ball on the floor,” Spurs general manager Brian Wright said. “As we’ve studied Victor, he’s very in depth with everything he does. It’s all those little details that go into becoming great.”

There’s more draft news to pass along:

Wembanyama is advocating for his French teammate, Bilal Coulibaly, to be selected in the lottery, relays NBA reporter Esfandiar Baraheni (Twitter link). “When I see the top 10 prospects announced at the draft, and for example the twins, Amen and Ausar Thompson, whose profile is similar to Bilal’s,” Wembanyama said, “I tell myself, very factually, that if these players are announced in the first five picks while playing in a league, Overtime Elite, whose level is light years away from what we experience here, then Bilal must be at least a top five.”
Pepperdine’s Maxwell Lewis, who worked out for the Trail Blazers on Thursday, views himself as a definite first-round pick, per Aaron Fentress of The Oregonian. “In my opinion, after just being in this environment, I feel like I’m a top-20 guy,” Lewis said. “We’ll see. Sky’s the limit.”
Alabama’s Noah Clowney is the 20th player to receive a Green Room invitation for draft night, according to Jonathan Givony of ESPN (Twitter link).
Washington State guard Justin Powell has upcoming workouts scheduled with the Rockets and Nets, tweets Adam Zagoria of NJ.com.
The Hornets are hosting six players on Sunday for a pre-draft workout (Twitter link). They are Kam’Ron Blue of Coppin State, GG Jackson of South Carolina, Terry Roberts of Georgia, Vincent Valerio-Bodon of Sopron KC, Jalen Wilson of Kansas and Isaiah Wong of Miami.

Draft Notes: Hawks, Hornets, Smith Jr., Heat, Delaire, Gardner

June 5th, 2023 at 10:53pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Kentucky guard Cason Wallace, who worked out for the Wizards on Monday, will not participate in his previously scheduled workout for the Hawks on Tuesday, Lauren Williams of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution tweets. Sincere Carry (Kent State), Armaan Franklin (Virginia), Seneca Knight (Illinois State), Xavier Castaneda (Akron), Toumani Camara (Dayton) and Vincent Valerio-Bodon (Sopron KC) will visit Atlanta on Tuesday. The Hawks hold the No. 15 pick in the first round.

We have more draft-related news:

Camara and Franklin were among the prospects who visited the Hornets on Monday, the team’s PR department tweets. Colby Jones (Xavier), Justyn Mutts (Virginia Tech), Julian Phillips (Tennessee) and Daivien Williamson (Wake Forest) also worked out for Charlotte. Jones and Phillips are considered potential first-round picks.
Arkansas guard Nick Smith Jr., a potential lottery pick, will visit the Heat in the near future, Josh Robbins of The Athletic tweets. Smith worked out for Washington on Monday.
San Diego Jaiden Delaire will remain in the draft, according to Zagoria. Delaire, who averaged 9.2 PPG and 5.3 RPG last season at San Diego, had his waiver request to play another college season denied by the NCAA. Delaire appeared in just 12 games last season due to broken toe and broken thumb but is “100% healthy now,” he told Zagoria (Twitter link).
Marist center Patrick Gardner has worked out for the Warriors, Nets and Magic, Zagoria reports in another tweet. He also has workouts scheduled with the Wizards, Bucks, Cavaliers, Pelicans and Celtics. Gardner averaged 19.1 PPG, 6.6 RPG and shot 38.3% from 3-point range last season.