San Antonio Spurs Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Contract Details: Duncan, Green, De Colo, Diaw

July 26th, 2012 at 8:44am CST by Luke Adams

With the early-July flurry of activity having died down, we have the opportunity now to look back at many of the free agent deals signed earlier this month and see how exactly they'll affect teams' caps for the next few seasons. Mike Monroe of the San Antonio Express-News has the salary details for the handful of contracts signed by the Spurs this month, so let's take a look at what San Antonio will be paying its recent signees….

Tim Duncan will be paid about $9.64MM this season and $10.36MM in year two, with a $10MM player option for 2014/15. As Mark Deeks of ShamSports points out, the salary decrease for the player option seems to violate CBA rules, so depending on how the league views the deal, Duncan could be in line for a pay bump in year three.
Danny Green's deal starts at $3.5MM in year one, with 7.5% annual raises for the next two seasons, for a total of $11,287,500. As we heard from Deeks previously, this contract is fully guaranteed, with no options.
The Spurs signed 2009 draft pick Nando De Colo to a two-year contract worth about $1.4MM in year one and $1.46MM in year two. Since this is larger than a minimum salary, San Antonio presumably used its bi-annual exception to complete the deal.
Boris Diaw will earn $4.5MM in 2012/13 and $4.69MM in 2013/14, bringing the two-year total of his contract to about $9.19MM.
The salary details for Patty Mills, who will earn $1,085,120 this season, were already known, but according to Monroe, Mills' second year (at about $1.13MM) is a team option. Deeks had reported that it was a player option, so hopefully we'll get some clarification on the matter one way or the other.
According to Monroe, the Spurs' total commitments for 2012/13 amount to about $69.13MM, just below the luxury tax threshold.

2011/12 Taxpaying Teams

July 25th, 2012 at 8:57am CST by Luke Adams

While teams get their books in order for the 2012/13 season, navigating the salary cap and the luxury tax threshold, Mark Deeks of ShamSports.com takes a look back at the league's 2011/12 finances. Deeks shares the official list of teams that paid the luxury tax in 2011/12, along with the amount each club paid. The list is as follows:

Los Angeles Lakers: $12,557,264
Boston Celtics: $7,365,867
Miami Heat: $6,129,340
Dallas Mavericks: $2,738,843
San Antonio Spurs: $2,514,275
Atlanta Hawks: $666,199

The more punitive luxury-tax penalties introduced in the new Collective Bargaining Agreement have yet to kick in, so the tax penalties for the aforementioned six teams come by way of the old system — teams are penalized $1 for every dollar they spend over the tax line. In 2011/12, that tax line was at $70,307,000, so the Hawks, for instance, spent $70,973,199 on their roster.

Tax penalties for 2012/13 will remain the same as in 2011/12, but next offseason the CBA's increased restrictions take effect in earnest. In the summer of 2013, teams over the luxury tax line are ineligible to acquire players in sign-and-trade deals, while clubs that exceed the tax threshold for the 2013/14 season will pay an incremental rate based on team salary.

Spurs Interested In Bo McCalebb

July 23rd, 2012 at 6:52pm CST by Zachary Links

The Spurs are seriously interested in signing Lega Basket Serie A point guard Bo McCalebb, according to Sportando. However, his club, Montepaschi Siena, is not presently satisfied with the buyout that the Spurs have offered.

McCalebb, 27, played his college basketball at the University of New Orleans prior to moving overseas and spending time in Turkey, Serbia, and Italy. Last season, the point guard was named the Italian League MVP with 16.9 PPG and 2.6 APG. The 6'0" guard could have a tough time fitting in with San Antonio, however, as they already have a few undersized backcourt players.

So far, the Spurs are the only known NBA team with interest in signing the New Orleans native but a pair of European clubs are reportedly targeting him. Europe Fenerbahce Ulker and Unics Kazan could offer to Siena a buyout in excess of $1.21MM, according to Sportando.

Odds & Ends: Nowitzki, Collison, Humphries, Hill

July 20th, 2012 at 11:27pm CST by Chuck Myron

NBA superstars are often reluctant to take a back seat to anyone, but that's just what Mavs coach Rick Carlisle wants to see Dirk Nowitzki do. For the Mavs to contend for a championship again, someone other than Nowitzki must be the best player on the team, Carlisle told radio station 1070 the Fan in Indianapolis (via the Dallas Morning News). Of course, after missing out on Deron Williams, it doesn't appear like Nowitzki will have to relinquish his status as the team's alpha dog any time soon, unless Dallas somehow jumps to the forefront of Dwight Howard trade talk. We've got more news and analysis from around the league here:

Mark Bartelstein, the agent for Warriors free agents Brandon Rush and Dominic McGuire, will speak with Wolves GM David Kahn this weekend, tweets Jerry Zgoda of the Star Tribune.

Earlier updates:

Carlisle, in the same interview, also said he's excited to see what the extra motivation of a contract year will do for the play of point guard Darren Collison, acquired in a trade with the Pacers.
Brian Kamenetzky of ESPNLosAngeles.com looks at the effect re-signing Jordan Hill will have on the Lakers. He also notes that the team doesn't have any money committed beyond 2013/14, except for the final season of Steve Nash's contract.
Stefan Bondy of the New York Daily News examines how agent Dan Fegan patiently waited for the market to turn in favor of client Kris Humphries, who re-signed with the Nets on a two-year, $24MM deal, taking advantage of the team's inability to acquire Dwight Howard.
With Humphries, Deron Williams, Joe Johnson, Gerald Wallace and Brook Lopez, the Nets are believed to be first team with five players making at least $10MM a year, writes Chris Bernucca of SheridanHoops.com.
The Spurs are high on 6'9" free agent Eric Dawson, who signed a pair of ten-day contracts with the team last season, and he's a candidate to return, says Jeff McDonald of the San Antonio Express-News. It might be tough for him to make the team right out of camp, though, since the team already has five big men under contract, as McDonald notes (Twitter links).
The offseason is only a few weeks old, but Ben Golliver already has a list of free agency winners and losers on CBSSports.com. The Heat, Nets, Pacers, Lakers, Mavs and Nuggets have come out on top, Golliver says, while the Magic, Knicks, Bulls, Suns, Rockets and Trail Blazers didn't fare so well.

Free Agent Rumors: O’Neal, Bulls, Wallace

July 19th, 2012 at 3:18pm CST by Luke Adams

The Spurs have made a handful of signings so far this summer, but every contract agreement they've reached has been for one of their own players — unrestricted free agents Tim Duncan and Boris Diaw will return, along with restricted free agents Danny Green and Patty Mills. Even the team's one new addition, Nando De Colo, wasn't a free agent, since San Antonio held his NBA rights exclusively. The Spurs are standing relatively pat this offseason, not pursuing outside free agents, and that's just fine with coach Gregg Popovich, as he tells Jeff McDonald of the San Antonio Express-News.

So while the remaining free agents on the market aren't likely to draw a ton of interest from San Antonio, there are plenty of other potential destinations out there. Here's the latest on a few available players:

The Bucks are taking a "long look" at Jermaine O'Neal's workout today, tweets Bill Ingram of HoopsWorld.

Earlier updates:

The Bulls are eyeing shooting guards such as Marco Belinelli, Randy Foye, Delonte West, and Willie Green, according to Aggrey Sam of CSNChicago.com.
Despite indicating earlier this year that he intended to retire, Ben Wallace would like to return to the Pistons for the 2012/13 season, says Vincent Goodwill of the Detroit News. The Pistons have a full roster, so they'd have to make a move to clear a spot to sign the unrestricted free agent.
The Warriors and Bobcats are still pursuing Carl Landry, writes Alex Kennedy of HoopsWorld. Charlotte, which could offer Landry more money, is attempting to work out a sign-and-trade deal with the Hornets.
A number of teams have expressed interest in Mickael Pietrus, but the Celtics are still "very much in the picture," says A. Sherrod Blakely of CSNNE.com. Jared Zwerling of ESPNNewYork.com adds (via Twitter) that Pietrus has a "huge" offer from an overseas team, but that he wants to play for an NBA contender on more than a minimum-salary deal.
The Clippers have reached out to Ryan Hollins and Darko Milicic, in hopes of adding a backup big man for the minimum salary, writes Broderick Turner of the Los Angeles Times. Darko's agent Marc Cornstein says playing time will be a bigger factor for his client than money, since the Timberwolves are still sending him pay checks.
A big-name free agent came off the market yesterday when the Trail Blazers matched Nicolas Batum's offer sheet. As Steve Kyler of HoopsWorld writes, Blazers GM Neil Olshey stressed that reports suggesting Batum didn't want to return to Portland were orchestrated by the Timberwolves and Batum's agent. "Nic never said that," Olshey said. "Let’s be very clear. Nic made a couple of comments at the behest of the Minnesota Timberwolves and his agent. That was their agenda; it was never Nicolas’s agenda."

Odds & Ends: Delfino, Jamison, Knicks, Lopez

July 18th, 2012 at 10:40pm CST by Zachary Links

The Celtics‬ have expressed some interest in Bucks‬ swingman Carlos Delfino with O.J. Mayo off the market and Courtney Lee likely being too pricey, a source tells ‪A. Sherrod Blakely of CSNNE‬.com (via Twitter). Delfino, a restricted free agent, averaged 9.0 PPG and 3.9 RPG in 28.5 minutes per game last year for Milwaukee. Here’s more from around the Association..

Antawn Jamison had a two-year $8MM offer to play for his hometown Bobcats, but agent Makhtar N’Diaye’s reminder about the forward’s will to win pushed him to choose the Lakers instead. The veteran reportedly signed for the veteran’s minimum.
The Knicks will be forced to fill out their roster with minimum contracts and Jared Zwerling of ESPN.com has a list of players that could fit the bill. Among them are Delfino, Ronnie Brewer, Maurice Evans, Jodie Meeks, Mickael Pietrus, Sonny Weems, and Marco Belinelli.
Spurs coach Gregg Popovich indicated to reporters, including Jeff McDonald of the San Antonio News-Express (via Twitter), that contract talks with Tim Duncan were rather simple. “He was just as big a pain in the neck as he was went he almost went to Orlando,” said the coach, referring to the big man’s brief flirtation with the Magic during the summer of 2000.
Nets center Brook Lopez plans to use this summer’s Dwight Howard trade talk as motivation in 2012/13, writes Roderick Boone of Newsday.

Free Agent Rumors: Timberwolves, Rush, Mills

July 17th, 2012 at 8:42pm CST by Luke Adams

A couple more notable names came off the free agent market this morning, when Kris Humphries landed a two-year deal from the Nets and Grant Hill agreed to sign with the Clippers. While a number of solid rotation players are still available, the market is rapidly thinning for teams in search of starters. As clubs continue to jockey to sign the remaining available players, we'll track many of today's free agent rumors right here:

Jerry Zgoda of the Star Tribune lists who the Timberwolves will target with nearly $14MM in cap space if they lose out on Nicolas Batum, specifically highlighting Courtney Lee, Jordan Hill, and Greg Stiemsma.
Marcus Thompson of the Contra Costa Times says that despite the delay on an official decision regarding Brandon Rush's future, the Warriors are still likely to retain him.

Earlier updates:

Mark Deeks of ShamSports.com clarifies that Spurs guard Patty Mills re-signed with San Antonio for the value of his qualifying offer of about $1.08MM with a $1.13MM player option for 2013-14 (Twitter link).
Jason Quick of The Oregonian says that the Trail Blazers could target free agent point guard A.J. Price (Twitter link), also mentioning that Price's agent, Jeff Schwartz, declined to comment.
The Cavaliers, Rockets, Timberwolves, Hornets, 76ers, Suns, Trail Blazers, Kings, and Raptors are all eligible to make a bid on recently amnestied Andray Blatche (Chris Mannix of Sports Illustrated tweets). Mannix also says (via Twitter) that although doesn't expect a team to bid, Blatche will draw interest as an unrestricted free agent.
Mike Trudell of KCAL-9 in Los Angeles tweets that owner Jim Buss has reiterated GM Mitch Kupchak's comments that the team would like to re-sign Jordan Hill.
John Reid of the Times Picayune writes that the Hornets are interested in Ryan Hollins.
The Clippers' agreement with Hill likely takes them out of the running for Marco Belinelli, but Belinelli is still drawing interest, says Eric Pincus of HoopsWorld. Pincus names the Bulls, Magic, Warriors, and Knicks as potential suitors.
Mavericks VP of basketball operations Donnie Nelson says the Mavs are still interested in bringing back Delonte West, who has "other options on the table he's going through." Brad Townsend of the Dallas Morning News has the details.
Raja Bell, who is attempting to work out a trade or buyout from the Jazz, hasn't heard from the Heat, but has drawn interest from six other teams, says Chris Tomasson of FOX Sports Florida.
Anthony Randolph has "more than piqued" the Nuggets' curiousity, tweets Gery Woelfel of the Racine Journal Times.
Nuggets coach George Karl has a standing offer out to unrestricted free agent Anthony Carter to become an assistant coach under Karl whenever his playing career is over, says Chris Tomasson of FOX Sports Florida (Sulia link). However, Carter still believes he can help a team as a third point guard and hopes to play for a couple more years, according to Tomasson.
Despite rumors of overseas interest, Sonny Weems continues to seek an NBA contract, agent Roger Montgomery tells Emiliano Carchia of Sportando (via Twitter).
The Nets' next move might be signing Nazr Mohammed or Ryan Hollins as a backup center, tweets TNT's David Aldridge.
The Clippers are also looking to add a big, and are eyeing Hollins and Darko Milicic, tweets Scott Howard-Cooper of NBA.com.
In a piece for ESPN Deportes, Andres Nocioni confirms he'll continue playing for Caja Laboral in Spain next season rather than returning to the NBA (hat tip to Sportando for the translation).

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Contract Details: Novak, Green, Miller, Thompson

July 16th, 2012 at 4:19pm CST by Luke Adams

While most players' contracts include annual raises, or at the very least, identical annual salaries, Steve Novak's new contract with the Knicks is a little different, as Mark Deeks of ShamSports explains (Twitter link). Novak's deal starts at a little over $4MM, dips to below $3.5MM by 2014/15, then rises back up to $3.75MM for 2015/16. The unusual structure of the deal provides the Knicks a small amount of savings in the years when the rest of the team's roster will get extremely expensive.

Deeks shared a number of other contract details from around the league, via Twitter, so let's round them up….

The Spurs' deal with Danny Green is for three fully-guaranteed years and $11,287,500, with no options.
Andre Miller will earn $5MM in each of the next two seasons with the Nuggets. The third year of his deal is partially guaranteed for $2MM of $4.625MM.

Earlier updates:

Jason Thompson's five-year deal with the Kings is worth $30,187,500, though year five is only partially guaranteed for $2.65MM.
According to Deeks, the previously reported figures for Ersan Ilyasova are a little high — his deal with the Bucks is worth $40MM over five years. The first four years are guaranteed at $7.9MM each, then year five is partially guaranteed for just $400K of $8.4MM.
Jamal Crawford received the full mid-level for four years from the Clippers, but the final two years of the contract are only guaranteed for $1.5MM each.
Marcus Camby's contract with the Knicks, $13,151,319 over three years, descends in value, with just $1,025,890 of $4,177,208 guaranteed in the third season.
Every first-round pick to sign so far has received the full 120% of the rookie scale.
DeShawn Stevenson will earn $2,240,450 in each year of his three-year deal with the Hawks, though only the first season is guaranteed.
Kyle Singler's fully-guaranteed deal with the Pistons is worth $3,135,000 over three years, with no options, while Victor Claver's deal with the Trail Blazers is also fully guaranteed and will pay him $4MM over three years.
Jason Kidd (Knicks; three years, $9.09MM), Ian Mahinmi (Pacers; four years, $16MM), and Gerald Green (Pacers; three years, $10.5MM) all received fully-guaranteed contracts with no option years.
The Nets' agreement with Reggie Evans is worth $5,086,905 over three years, and is fully guaranteed.
Hasheem Thabeet's contract with the Thunder appears to be for more than the minimum salary. Deeks pegs the value at three years and $3.65MM, though only the first year and $500K of year two are guaranteed. Oklahoma City will be using either a portion of their mid-level or bi-annual exception for that deal.
I would guess Thabeet's deal will come out of the MLE, since the Thunder are also using a portion of the mid-level on Hollis Thompson, who signed a three-year minimum-salary contract. Only $75K is guaranteed, however.
Doron Lamb received a three-year, minimum-salary deal from the Bucks, with the third year nonguaranteed.

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Southwest Rumors: Anderson, Pargo, Miles

July 16th, 2012 at 2:27pm CST by Luke Adams

The Rockets have arguably been the Southwest team in the news most often this month, as they've pursued restricted free agents and continued to try to land a superstar like Dwight Howard via trade. For now though, Daryl Morey and the Rockets are playing the waiting game, as they wait to see whether the Knicks will match their offer sheet for Jeremy Lin. In the meantime, here are a few updates on Houston's division rivals….

Spurs Re-Sign Tim Duncan To Three-Year Deal

July 15th, 2012 at 7:11pm CST by Luke Adams

SUNDAY, 7:11pm: The pact is for 3 years and approximately $30MM according to Yahoo Sports' Marc Spears on Twitter. Spears credits his colleague Johnny Ludden for the report.

WEDNESDAY, 1:53pm: The Spurs officially announced in a press release that they have re-signed Duncan.

TUESDAY, 12:39pm: The contract also includes a no-trade clause, tweets Spears.

12:21pm: Duncan's three-year deal is fully guaranteed and includes a third-year player option, tweets Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports.