- The Spurs signed guard Derrick White to a four-year, $73MM rookie scale extension prior to Monday’s deadline and White is brimming with optimism at the organization’s direction, Jeff McDonald of the San Antonio Express News writes. “I’m excited with the direction we’re going,” White said. “I’m excited to keep getting better and improving and getting back to where the Spurs should be. I’m excited to be here for that process.”
The Spurs have exercised their fourth-year team option on guard Lonnie Walker IV, as well as the third-year options on forwards Keldon Johnson and Luka Samanic, for the 2021/22 season, according to a team press release.
Walker will receive $4,447,896 during the 2021/22 campaign. Johnson will make $2.145MM and Samanic will get $2.96MM.
Walker, the 18th pick of the 2018 draft, appeared in 61 games last season and averaged 6.4 PPG and 1.1 APG in 16.2 MPG.
Johnson appeared in 17 games last season and averaged 9.1 PPG and 3.4 RPG in 17.7 MPG. He averaged 14.1 PPG in eight games during the Orlando restart. Johnson, a late first-round pick last year, also played 31 games for the G League Austin Spurs and averaged 20.3 PPG and 5.8 RPG.
Samanic, the 19th pick of the 2019 draft, appeared in three NBA games as a rookie. He also appeared in 33 games with the Austin Spurs, averaging 15.2 PPG and 7.8 RPG.
7:12pm: It’s official, according to a team press release.
5:08pm: The Spurs have reached an agreement on a four-year extension for guard Derrick White, agent Mike Lindeman tells Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN (Twitter link). It’ll be worth $73MM, per Wojnarowski.
San Antonio’s strong commitment to White comes after a season in which he was just a part-time starter. White averaged 11.3 PPG, 3.3 RPG and 3.5 APG in 24.7 MPG in his third year in the league. He started 20 of 68 games after starting 55 of 67 games in his second season.
However, the Spurs recently signaled their intentions of retaining the combo guard long term when coach Gregg Popovich remarked, “He’s somebody we plan on for the future.”
White was the 29th pick of the 2017 draft. The Spurs backcourt is now set for years to come as they signed Dejounte Murray to a four-year extension worth up to $70MM last year.
With several veteran players coming off the books after this season, San Antonio will still have plenty of cap flexibility next summer. Factoring in White’s cap hold, the Spurs only sacrificed $6MM in space for the 2021 offseason. San Antonio could still have $50MM in cap room even with White’s extension factored in, Bobby Marks of ESPN tweets.
White is currently sidelined after undergoing left toe surgery this fall.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
The 2020/21 NBA regular season will get underway on Tuesday, so it’s time to get serious about predictions for the upcoming campaign.
With the help of the lines from a handful of sports betting sites, including Bovada and BetOnline, we’re running through the predicted win totals for each of the NBA’s 30 teams, by division. In a series of team-by-team polls, you’ll get the chance to weigh in on whether you think those forecasts are too optimistic or too pessimistic.
Of course, there are plenty of wild cards to take into account this season. For one, teams are scheduled to play 72 games instead of 82, so if you’re picking a team to win 41 games, you’re not just expecting them to be a .500 club — you’re projecting them to finish 10 games above .500. For each team’s over/under below, we’ve noted the record they’d have to achieve to finish “over” their projection, as a reminder.
It’s also worth noting that the coronavirus pandemic could cause some games to be canceled in 2020/21. We don’t want you to have to take possible cancellations into account when making your picks though, so don’t let that stop you from taking the “over.” If a team has a couple games canceled, we’ll adjust their over/under figure downward, so you’re essentially just projecting that team’s winning percentage.
We’ll wrap things up by heading to the Southwest…
Dallas Mavericks
- 2019/20 record: 43-32
- Over/under for 2020/21: 43.5 wins (44-28)
- Major offseason moves:
Trade Rumors app users, click here for Mavericks poll.
New Orleans Pelicans
- 2019/20 record: 30-42
- Over/under for 2020/21: 36.5 wins (37-35)
- Major offseason moves:
Trade Rumors app users, click here for Pelicans poll.
Houston Rockets
- 2019/20 record: 44-28
- Over/under for 2020/21: 35.5 wins (36-36)
- Major offseason moves:
Trade Rumors app users, click here for Rockets poll.
Memphis Grizzlies
- 2019/20 record: 34-39
- Over/under for 2020/21: 32.5 wins (33-39)
- Major offseason moves:
- Added: Desmond Bane, Xavier Tillman
- Lost: Josh Jackson, Anthony Tolliver, Marko Guduric
Trade Rumors app users, click here for Grizzlies poll.
San Antonio Spurs
- 2019/20 record: 32-39
- Over/under for 2020/21: 30.5 wins (31-41)
- Major offseason moves:
- Added: Devin Vassell, Tre Jones
- Lost: Bryn Forbes, Marco Belinelli, Tyler Zeller, Chimezie Metu
Trade Rumors app users, click here for Spurs poll.
Previous voting results:
- Boston Celtics (45.5 wins): Over (66.3%)
- Brooklyn Nets (45.5 wins): Over (58.6%)
- Philadelphia 76ers (44.5 wins): Over (57.4%)
- Toronto Raptors (42.5 wins): Over (54.7%)
- New York Knicks (22.5 wins): Under (59.5%)
- Denver Nuggets (44.5 wins): Over (69.7%)
- Utah Jazz (42.5 wins): Over (59.9%)
- Portland Trail Blazers (41.5 wins): Over (70.1%)
- Minnesota Timberwolves (29.5 wins): Under (50.3%)
- Oklahoma City Thunder (22.5 wins): Under (64.4%)
- Milwaukee Bucks (51.5 wins): Over (73.7%)
- Indiana Pacers (39.5 wins): Over (57.9%)
- Chicago Bulls (29.5 wins): Under (61.6%)
- Cleveland Cavaliers (23.5 wins): Under (68.5%)
- Detroit Pistons (22.5 wins): Over (53.9%)
- Los Angeles Lakers (48.5 wins): Over (79.1%)
- Los Angeles Clippers (47.5 wins): Under (50.4%)
- Phoenix Suns (40.5 wins): Over (51.0%)
- Golden State Warriors (38.5 wins): Over (60.3%)
- Sacramento Kings (29.5 wins): Under (60.7%)
- Miami Heat (44.5 wins): Over (67.6%)
- Atlanta Hawks (36.5 wins): Over (58.0%)
- Washington Wizards (34.5 wins): Under (50.7%)
- Orlando Magic (31.5 wins): Under (73.5%)
- Charlotte Hornets (26.5 wins): Over (56.3%)
Spurs big man LaMarcus Aldridge is comfortable being a veteran presence with San Antonio, writes Tom Orbsorn of the San Antonio Express-News. A 15-year NBA veteran (and seven-time All Star), the 6’11” Aldridge will earn $24MM in his final year under contract.
“It’s fun,” Aldridge commented about his role among a young Spurs team. “They bring a lot of energy and a lot of spark. I’m just watching them learn and grow and take steps everyday in practice and games, and it’s been fun to watch. They’re just going to get better and better.”
Rookie guards Devin Vassell, drafted with the No. 11 pick out of Florida State, and Tre Jones, drafted with the No. 41 pick out of Duke, are the latest additions to the Spurs’ youth movement.
The Spurs have waived point guard London Perrantes, according to NBA.com’s transactions page. San Antonio’s roster is now at 14, along with a pair of two-way players.
Perrantes, who signed with the team Saturday, was believed to have an Exhibit 10 contract, which makes him eligible for a bonus of up to $50K if he spends at least 60 days with the team’s G League affiliate. Perrantes finished last season with Capital City, which still owns his G League rights, so it appears the Austin Spurs would have to make a trade before he could join them.
Perrantes’ only NBA experience came during the 2017/18 season when he appeared in 14 games as a two-way player for the Cavaliers.
The Spurs trimmed their roster by waiving forward Cameron Reynolds and center Tyler Zeller, the team announced on its website.
Reynolds, 25, signed an Exhibit 10 contract late last month and appeared in one preseason game, scoring six points in two minutes. Reynolds got into 19 games last season as a rookie with the Timberwolves.
The 30-year-old Zeller signed with the Spurs before the restart and appeared in two games in Orlando, playing four total minutes. His contract included a non-guaranteed second season, so San Antonio won’t owe him any money. Zeller has played for seven teams in eight NBA seasons.
The Spurs’ roster is now down to 17 players, with both two-way slots filled.
London Perrantes, who was signed on Friday, will likely be cut today as well, since he was presumably only signed for G League purposes. However, the team didn’t announce his signing and may not announce his release either. Assuming he’s cut, San Antonio will start the season with an open spot on its 15-man roster.
The Spurs have signed point guard London Perrantes, according to RealGM’s official transactions log.
It’s likely that Perrantes’ deal is an Exhibit 10 contract, which is a non-guaranteed one-year, minimum salary pact that allows a player to make a bonus of up to $50K if he is waived and remains on the franchise’s G League squad for at least 60 days.
The Virginia product has not appeared in the NBA since a cup of coffee with the Cavaliers during the 2017/18 season when he suited up for 14 games as one of Cleveland’s two-way players.
After a series of Summer League stops, Perrantes was picked up by the Wizards’ G League affiliate Capital City Go-Go in January this year. The Go-Go hold Perrantes’ G League rights so the Austin Spurs (Spurs’ NBAGL affiliate) would have to acquire them.
After two previous stints in the Spurs‘ front office, veteran executive Danny Ferry has returned to the franchise as a basketball operations consultant, according to a press release from the club.
Ferry finished his playing career in San Antonio from 2000-03, then spent two years in the Spurs’ front office from 2003-05 before later rejoining the team in a VP of basketball operations role from 2010-12. He also previously served as the Cavaliers’ general manager, the Hawks’ president of basketball operations, and – most recently – the Pelicans’ interim general manager.
Ferry was one of a handful of basketball operations additions and promotions announced today by the Spurs, who also hired Samson Kayode as their director of player evaluation and assistant GM of the Austin Spurs. Kayode had spent the last four years working as assistant director for the USA Basketball men’s national team.
San Antonio also announced the addition of Hao Meng as director of strategic analysis and basketball insight.
With the December 21 contract extension deadline looming for players entering the last year of their rookie contracts, the Spurs hope to reach an agreement with guard Derrick White, according to Jeff McDonald of the San Antonio Express-News (Twitter link). Head coach Gregg Popovich commented on the situation. “He’s somebody we plan on for the future,” Popovich said.
McDonald adds in a separate tweet that the club could also wait for White to reach restricted free agency in the summer of 2021, and then opt to match any offer he may receive from another team.
The Spurs drafted White with the No. 29 pick out of the University of Colorado. Last season, the 6’4″ guard averaged 11.3 PPG, 3.5 APG, and 3.3 RPG across 58 games for San Antonio, all starts. He posted a stat line of .458/.366/.853.
Last season, San Antonio signed White’s backcourt mate, Dejounte Murray, to a four-year deal worth up to $70MM with incentives. White and Murray had similar outputs last season, and White could be in line for an extension in the range of Murray’s deal.