Toronto Raptors Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Check-In On 10-Day Contracts, Open Roster Spots

May 3rd, 2021 at 1:45pm CST by Luke Adams

The 2020/21 NBA regular season will come to an end on May 16. That means that there are just 14 days left in the season, and just four more days left to sign a player to a 10-day contract. As of this Friday (May 7), a 10-day deal would technically cover the remainder of the season.

With the playoffs around the corner, it makes sense that the number of active 10-day contracts around the NBA has been on the decline. The number of league-wide roster openings is also dwindling.

Here are the 10-day contracts that are currently active:

Oklahoma City Thunder: Charlie Brown Jr. (runs through May 4)
Orlando Magic: Ignas Brazdeikis (runs through May 11)
Brooklyn Nets: Mike James (runs through May 12)

Of those three players, Brown is the only one who will technically be eligible to sign another 10-day contract when his current pact expires.

Meanwhile, with players like Austin Rivers, Mfiondu Kabengele, Anthony Tolliver, Yogi Ferrell, and Freddie Gillespie signing rest-of-season contracts within the last several days, more and more teams now have full 15-man rosters and may be done making roster moves this season.

The following teams still have at least one open spot on their 15-man squads:

Golden State Warriors (2)
Miami Heat
Minnesota Timberwolves
New Orleans Pelicans
New York Knicks
Portland Trail Blazers
San Antonio Spurs
Washington Wizards

In addition to these clubs, the Nets, Magic, and Thunder would each have a roster opening if they don’t retain the players on 10-day contracts noted above. The Knicks just opened their 15th roster spot on Sunday night, when Jared Harper‘s 10-day deal expired.

While many of these teams figure to fill their rosters before the regular season ends – either with a developmental prospect or one more veteran for postseason depth – the Warriors are the only club here that must add at least one more player. Teams are only permitted to dip below 14 players on standard contracts for up to two weeks at a time. Since Golden State was carrying Gary Payton II on a 10-day deal up until last Thursday, they’ll have until next Thursday (May 13) to re-add a 14th man.

The following teams also have an open two-way contract slot, which they may or may not fill during the season’s final two weeks:

Minnesota Timberwolves
New York Knicks
Phoenix Suns
Toronto Raptors

Gary Trent Jr. Close To Meeting Starter Criteria

May 3rd, 2021 at 10:12am CST by Luke Adams

As Blake Murphy of The Athletic notes, Raptors swingman Gary Trent Jr., who has missed the last five games with a leg injury, is just one start (or 57 minutes played) away from meeting the starter criteria, which would increase the value of his qualifying offer and cap hold. While it may just be a coincidence based on which Raptors were available, it’s worth noting that Trent came off the bench in his last two healthy games after starting his first eight with the team. Toronto would gain a little extra cap flexibility this offseason if Trent falls short of meeting the starter criteria.

Raptors Experimenting With Role For Birch, Minutes For Harris

May 2nd, 2021 at 4:04pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

The Raptors already appear to be playing with an eye towards next season as their play-in tournament odds continue to shrink, writes Michael Grange of Sportsnet. One sign is the team’s willingness to experiment. To wit, head coach Nick Nurse has tried new center Khem Birch as a fast-break ball handler of late. The club is 26-38, three games behind the 10th-seeded Wizards with just eight games left to make up ground.
After the Jazz defeated the Raptors 106-102 yesterday, the Knicks will officially at least make the league’s play-in tournament, according to Marc Berman of the New York Post. This will mark the team’s first postseason appearance since 2013.
Raptors head coach Nick Nurse said on Saturday that he appreciated the recent performance of Jalen Harris in limited minutes, and hopes to find more time for the rookie guard during the season’s home stretch, tweets Josh Lewenberg of TSN Sports.

Atlantic Notes: Birch, Trent, Hill, Harden

May 1st, 2021 at 9:02pm CST by Arthur Hill

Center Khem Birch has expanded his game since joining the Raptors and will likely be a priority for the team in free agency, writes Doug Smith of The Toronto Star. Birch, who signed with Toronto after being waived by the Magic last month, said the coaching staff has given him a green light to try new things.

“Coach (Nick) Nurse told me today to work on my ball-handling and to go coast-to-coast or even just be a threat in transition,” Birch said. “So it’s stuff I’ve worked on but I’ve never implemented it into my game. But the fact that the coaching staff here allows me to do that type of stuff, you’re right, it is like starting over again.”

Birch has taken over as the Raptors’ starting center and is averaging career highs in points (10.8 per game), rebounds (7.3) and assists (1.4). The 28-year-old was making $3MM this season with Orlando and should be in line for a sizable raise this summer.

“I didn’t expect this much freedom,” Birch said. “Honestly, I just thought I was just going to protect the rim, get rebounds and everything else. I wasn’t expecting this kind of freedom now. I was kind of expecting it maybe next season or something like that, but not right now.”

There’s more from the Atlantic Division:

Raptors swingman Gary Trent Jr. will miss both games this weekend, but the team hopes to have him back Tuesday or Thursday, tweets Blake Murphy of The Athletic. Trent hasn’t played in a week because of a bruised left leg.
George Hill is making a difference for the Sixers as a ball-handler and veteran presence off the bench, according to Ky Carlin of USA Today’s Sixers Wire. Philadelphia had to wait for Hill, who was acquired at the trade deadline but was unavailable until Monday because of a sprained right thumb. “Having George is just another vet who can really just talk to the guards and explain certain plays, offense and defense,” Dwight Howard said. “How to defend, how to get set up in pick-and-rolls, and get our offense going, and what plays we want to run and stuff like that.”
Nets coach Steve Nash told reporters Friday that he’s not sure if James Harden will play any more during the regular season, writes Brian Lewis of The New York Post. Harden has missed the past 13 games with a strained right hamstring and it doesn’t sound like he’ll be back soon. “I just don’t want to make a guess one side or the other because I don’t think it serves anyone, because it’s out of our control,” Nash said. “We’re really waiting to see how he responds and how he heals and how quickly he gets there and then how quickly can he handle high-intensity, NBA-level work. I’ll have to say we’ll see. But both are possible.”

Raptors Taking Savvy Chance On Gillespie; Flynn's Recent Play May Pave Way For Lowry Departure

April 29th, 2021 at 7:49pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

In opting to ink undrafted rookie power forward Freddie Gillespie to a two-year contract after his two 10-day deals with the Raptors expired, the team is clearly buying low on a promising backup prospect, writes Dave Feschuck of the Toronto Star.
The promising in-season development of rookie Raptors point guard Malachi Flynn could wind up being a factor in how the franchise evaluates the future of longtime Toronto point guard Kyle Lowry, writes Doug Smith of the Toronto Star. An unrestricted free agent in 2021, Lowry is expected to receive serious interest from contenders. Smith notes that if Flynn continues along his current growth pace heading into the 2021/22 season, the Raptors could be more comfortable moving on from Lowry. “He’s running the team better,” head coach Nick Nurse said of Flynn’s recent play. “He’s play-calling. He’s getting people organized. He’s getting off the ball. He’s getting in the paint. He’s getting to the rim. Those are all additions to the way he started out, I think.”

Khem Birch Fitting In Well With Club

April 28th, 2021 at 3:51pm CST by JD Shaw

Raptors center Khem Birch has fit in well with his new club in limited time, Eric Koreen of The Athletic writes. Birch most recently finished with 14 points, six rebounds and two blocks in a win over the Cavaliers, playing well on both ends of the floor. “He’s been a good factor here,” coach Nick Nurse said postgame. “I thought he was solid, too, defensively. I can remember maybe one double-team he went a little too quick on that they cut back door on us, but other than that, he was pretty mistake-free down there, too. So good game for him. He’s stringing ’em (together), playing well.”

Sixers May Renew Kyle Lowry Pursuit In Offseason

April 28th, 2021 at 12:19pm CST by Luke Adams

The Sixers weren’t able to pry Kyle Lowry away from the Raptors at last month’s trade deadline, but they plan to renew their pursuit of the veteran guard this offseason, sources tell Sam Amick of The Athletic.

As Amick explains, while the 76ers addressed their point guard spot by acquiring George Hill at the deadline, Hill has an expiring contract in 2021/22 and only has a partial guarantee ($1.28MM of $10MM+), so he’s not necessarily viewed as a long-term answer in that role.

The Sixers project to be over the cap this summer, so they’d need to negotiate a sign-and-trade in order to land Lowry, Amick notes. Completing such a deal would be a challenge — Philadelphia wouldn’t want to include Joel Embiid, Ben Simmons, or Tobias Harris in an offer for Lowry, but those three players earn a combined $100MM next season.

Teams that acquire a player via sign-and-trade become hard-capped at the tax apron for the rest of the league year. This year’s tax apron was $139MM and next season’s won’t be significantly higher, so the Sixers would be hard-pressed to accommodate lucrative contracts for Embiid, Simmons, Harris, and Lowry and fill out the rest of their 15-man roster without surpassing that threshold.

Landing Lowry at a rate far lower than his current $30MM salary would be an ideal scenario for the Sixers, but the six-time All-Star reportedly won’t be looking to take a pay cut, and he’s expected to be a popular target on this offseason’s free agent market, one general manager tells Amick.

“There’s teams with money and not a lot of players, so I think he’s going to do really well,” the GM said of Lowry.

The Raptors are also expected to make an effort to re-sign Lowry, and the Heat were known to be interested last month — Miami should have enough cap room to make a serious play for the 35-year-old if they so choose.

Raptors Sign Freddie Gillespie To Two-Year Deal

April 28th, 2021 at 10:54am CST by Luke Adams

10:54am: The Raptors have officially signed Gillespie, the team announced in a press release.

According to Blake Murphy of The Athletic (Twitter link), next season’s salary is non-guaranteed. It has a $50K partial guarantee trigger date at some point, then would become fully guaranteed if Gillespie makes the regular season roster.

8:33am: The Raptors are set to sign big man Freddie Gillespie to a new contract after his second 10-day deal expired on Tuesday night, according to Shams Charania and Blake Murphy of The Athletic (Twitter link). Gillespie will receive a two-year contract from Toronto, per The Athletic’s duo.

Gillespie, who has appeared in 10 games for the Raptors this month, has made a strong impression both on and off the court during his first 20 days with the club. He averaged 5.3 points, 3.6 rebounds, and 1.0 block per game in 16.0 minutes per contest, racking up five blocked shots in just 14 minutes of action during Monday’s victory over Cleveland.

Last offseason, the Raptors re-signed Chris Boucher and added Aron Baynes and Alex Len to shore up a frontcourt rotation that no longer included Serge Ibaka and Marc Gasol. However, Len was waived early in the season, Baynes is no longer in the rotation, and Boucher is injured, leaving Gillespie as the team’s current backup center behind another recent addition, Khem Birch.

Because the Raptors used their full mid-level exception to sign Baynes and Len and don’t have a bi-annual exception available this season, they’re limited to the minimum salary exception on Gillespie, meaning they couldn’t have offered him more than two years or more than the rookie minimum.

Assuming he finalizes his new deal today, Gillespie will earn $116,903 over the final 19 days of the regular season. His salary for 2021/22 will be $1,517,981, though that figure likely won’t be fully guaranteed.

The Raptors will have a full 15-man roster once they officially re-add Gillespie. The club does still have an open two-way contract slot that could be filled before the end of the regular season.

For more on Gillespie’s unorthodox journey to the NBA, be sure to read our feature on the former Baylor standout from earlier this year.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Murphy Breaks Down All 30 10-Day Raptors Contracts

April 27th, 2021 at 10:14pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

Standout Raptors power forward Freddie Gillespie has inspired Blake Murphy of The Athletic to assess all 31 players the Raptors have signed to 10-day contracts in team history to determine where Gillespie ranks. A hint: Gillespie does crack the top five.

Checking In On Active 10-Day Contracts

April 27th, 2021 at 8:48am CST by Luke Adams

Since the NBA’s 10-day signing window for the 2020/21 season officially opened in February, a total of 54 separate 10-day deals have been finalized. Many of those signings have be completed since the trade deadline passed a month ago — 36 10-day contracts have been signed in April alone.

With so much action on the 10-day market, we’re taking a little time today to check in on the 10-day deals that are still active, exploring which of those players are eligible for additional 10-day contracts and which teams are still shuttling players in and out of their back-end roster spots.

Here, with the help of our 10-day tracker and our roster counts page, are the players on active 10-day deals:

Players on their first 10-day contracts:

Los Angeles Clippers: Yogi Ferrell (runs through 4/28)
Denver Nuggets: Austin Rivers (runs through 4/29)
Brooklyn Nets: Mike James (runs through 5/2)
New York Knicks: Jared Harper (runs through 5/2)
Oklahoma City Thunder: Charlie Brown (runs through 5/4)

These players will all be eligible for a second 10-day contract once their current deals expire. In the case of Brown, it’s possible the Thunder would just sign him to a rest-of-season deal if they’re comfortable keeping him around, since a second 10-day deal would run through at least May 14. The regular season ends on May 16.

Players on their second 10-day contracts:

Toronto Raptors: Freddie Gillespie (runs through 4/27)
Portland Trail Blazers: Rondae Hollis-Jefferson (runs through 4/27)
Golden State Warriors: Gary Payton II (runs through 4/28)
Cleveland Cavaliers: Mfiondu Kabengele (runs through 4/30)
Orlando Magic: Robert Franks (runs through 5/1)
- Update: Franks’ 10-day deal has been terminated early by the Magic.
Philadelphia 76ers: Anthony Tolliver (runs through 5/1)
Orlando Magic: Donta Hall (runs through 5/2)

These players won’t be eligible for a new 10-day contract when their current deals expire, since a player can’t sign three 10-day deals with the same team in a single season. It’s a safe bet that some of these players will receive rest-of-season contracts though — I’d be shocked if the Raptors let Gillespie get away, for instance.

Any team here that opts not to re-sign a player to a rest-of-season contract would open up a roster spot, which could be used on another 10-day trial before the regular season ends. Golden State and Portland are carrying just 14 players at the moment, so they’d have each two open roster spots if they don’t re-sign Payton and Hollis-Jefferson, respectively.

There are a handful of other teams that could still take advantage of the 10-day contract before the end of the season. The Heat, Timberwolves, Pelicans, Kings, Spurs, and Wizards all have at least one open roster spot.

The Heat and Pelicans are right up against the luxury tax line and may be done with 10-days for the season, preferring rest-of-season commitments if and when they fill their roster openings. The Wolves, Spurs, and Wizards may end up going that route too, but for now they’re still decent candidates for 10-day signings.

The Kings, meanwhile, had Damian Jones on a pair of 10-day contracts before his second deal expired on Monday night. Head coach Luke Walton spoke positively about Jones’ contributions to the team, as Jason Anderson of The Sacramento Bee relays (via Twitter), so the veteran center could end up getting a rest-of-season contract. If so, Sacramento would have a full roster and would likely be done with 10-days for the season.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.