Transactions Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Mavericks Sign Dalano Banton To Exhibit 10 Contract

October 7th, 2025 at 12:51pm CST by Luke Adams

12:51 pm: It’s an Exhibit 10 deal for Banton, confirms Grant Afseth of Dallas Hoops Journal.

10:43 am: The Mavericks have signed free agent swingman Dalano Banton, the team announced today (via Twitter). In order to create room on the roster for Banton, Dallas waived camp invitee Matthew Cleveland, whose contract was fully non-guaranteed.

While details of Banton’s deal aren’t yet known, it will likely be non-guaranteed too, with Exhibit 9 and perhaps Exhibit 10 language.

Banton, who will turn 26 next month, was the 46th overall pick in the 2021 draft and has played in 216 regular season games for Toronto, Boston, and Portland over the past four seasons. In 2024/25, he made a career-high 67 appearances, averaging 8.3 points, 2.4 assists, and 2.0 rebounds in 16.7 minutes per contest, with a shooting line of .391/.324/.728.

Banton reportedly auditioned for multiple NBA teams this summer, including Golden State and Indiana, while also drawing overseas interest.

It’s possible Banton will have an opportunity to compete for a spot on the Mavericks’ regular season roster, battling with Brandon Williams ($200K partial guarantee) and Dennis Smith Jr. (non-guaranteed contract) to become the club’s 15th man. However, given that he’s being added to the preseason roster a week after training camp got underway, that might be a long shot.

If Banton’s deal does include an Exhibit 10 clause, he would be a candidate to join the Texas Legends, the Mavericks’ G League affiliate, assuming he’s waived in the next couple weeks. That could put him in position to earn a bonus worth up to $85,300 with the Legends while making his case for a promotion to the NBA.

Jazz Sign Abmas, McGriff; Waive Crowl, Murrell

October 6th, 2025 at 10:50pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

The Jazz announced multiple roster additions and subtractions on Monday.

According to a press release, the team has waived seven-foot big man Steven Crowl and guard Matthew Murrell. The Jazz announced in a subsequent press release that they’ve inked a pair of new free agents, guard Max Abmas and forward Cameron McGriff, to contracts.

Crowl and Murrell had been signed to Exhibit 10 training camp contracts; the agreements for Abmas and McGriff are almost certainly non-guaranteed Exhibit 10 deals as well.

Abmas wrapped up a five-year NCAA career with a one-season stint at Texas in 2023/24. The six-footer spent the 2024/25 campaign playing for Utah’s NBAGL affiliate, the Salt Lake City Stars. Across 34 regular season outings, Abmas averaged 13.6 points, 4.2 assists, 3.3 rebounds and 0.9 steals per night.

McGriff, an undrafted 6’7″ swingman out of Oklahoma State, appeared in three contests for Portland in 2021/22. He has been kicking around the G League ever since, with stints on the Greensboro Swarm, Memphis Hustle, and – most recently – the Noblesville Boom to his credit. In 45 contests for Noblesville last year, McGriff averaged 12.5 points, 6.2 boards and 1.8 dimes per game.

Given that the Jazz’s G League affiliate already controlled Abmas’ returning rights and acquired McGriff’s from Noblesville in an offseason trade, it seems relatively safe to assume both players are ticketed for the Salt Lake City Stars. If they remain with the Stars for at least 60 days, they’ll each earn a bonus worth up to $85,300.

Magic Sign Jalen Crutcher, Waive Johnell Davis

October 6th, 2025 at 6:27pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

Free agent guard Jalen Crutcher has signed with the Magic, who have waived Johnell Davis in a corresponding move, according to the team (Twitter link).

Crutcher’s deal is an Exhibit 10 training camp contract, a source informs Jason Beede of The Orlando Sentinel (Twitter link). As a result of the two transactions, the team still has a full 21-man preseason roster.

A three-time All-Atlantic 10 selection during his NCAA stint with Dayton, Crutcher went undrafted in 2021. Hebegan his pro career with Charlotte’s G League affiliate, the Greensboro Swarm, in 2021/22. His NBAGL rights were shipped to New Orleans’ NBAGL club, the Birmingham Squadron, ahead of the 2023/24 season.

Crutcher signed a 10-day deal with the Pelicans in February of 2024, but was not retained after the agreement expired. He returned to the Squadron, and remained in Birmingham to tip off 2024/25. New Orleans did ink him to a two-way contract, but ultimately cut him in March.

To date, Crutcher has appeared in a single NBA game, seeing the court for just under three minutes with New Orleans in 2024.

Should Crutcher be cut and spend at least 60 days with the Osceola Magic, Orlando’s G League affiliate, he’ll become eligible for a bonus worth up to $85,300. That figures to be the next step for Davis as well.

Pelicans Cut Garrison Brooks, Jalen McDaniels

October 6th, 2025 at 5:49pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

The Pelicans have cut Exhibit 10 training camp signings Garrison Brooks and Jalen McDaniels, the team announced today (Twitter link).

Both forwards are now likely to link up with the Pelicans’ G League club, the Birmingham Squadron. If Brooks and McDaniels remain with Birmingham for at least 60 days, each player will be eligible for a bonus worth up to $85,300 on top of his standard NBAGL salary.

The 26-year-old Brooks went undrafted out of Mississippi State in 2022. He suited up for the Westchester Knicks of the G League during his first pro season, but otherwise has been playing abroad in Korea and Lithuania.

McDaniels, 27, logged three-and-a-half pro seasons with the Hornets. The older brother of All-Defensive Timberwolves wing Jaden McDaniels was the No. 52 pick in the 2019 draft and has since been rostered with Philadelphia, Toronto, Sacramento, San Antonio and Washington, though following his Charlotte exit, he only saw NBA minutes with the Sixers, Raptors and Wizards.

Across 252 career NBA regular season games games, the San Diego State alum boasts averages of 6.7 points, 3.3 rebounds and 1.2 assists per contest, with a shooting line of .449/.322/.777.

Wizards Sign Skal Labissiere, Waive Akoldah Gak

October 6th, 2025 at 9:01am CST by Arthur Hill

The Wizards have signed Skal Labissiere to an Exhibit 10 contract, the team announced (via Twitter). Forward Akoldah Gak was waived to make room on the training camp roster.

Labissiere’s expected signing was first reported in August, and Washington’s G League affiliate, the Capital City Go-Go, acquired his rights later that month in a four-team trade.

The 29-year-old big man spent more than four full seasons away from the NBA before signing a 10-day contract with Sacramento in early March. He saw limited playing time in four games while the Kings were short on frontcourt depth and wasn’t re-signed to a second 10-day deal.

Labissiere played the past two years with the G League’s Stockton Kings and averaged 16.1 points and 7.9 rebounds in 28 games last season. In July, he joined Orlando’s squad at the Las Vegas Summer League, hoping it would help him land another NBA opportunity.

The Wizards already have 16 players with standard contracts, and Labissiere isn’t eligible for a two-way slot because he has more than four years of NBA experience. He’ll likely be heading back to the G League, where the Exhibit 10 contract will enable him to earn a bonus worth up to $85,300 if he spends at least 60 days with Capital City.

Gak, a 6’11” forward, signed an Exhibit 10 deal with Washington last week. Like Labissiere, the Australian big man is expected to play for the Go-Go.

Magic Sign Johnell Davis, Waive Justin Minaya

October 5th, 2025 at 6:00pm CST by Eli Cohen

The Magic have signed Johnell Davis to an Exhibit 10 deal, reports Jason Beede for the Orlando Sentinel (via Twitter). In order to do so, they have waived Justin Minaya, who was also on an Exhibit 10 contract.

Orlando formally put out a press release confirming the transactions.

Davis, who was not selected during the 2025 draft, played five years in college — four at Florida Atlantic University, and his final season at Arkansas, where he averaged 12.0 points, 3.4 rebounds, and 3.4 steals. The 6’4″ guard played three games for the Magic during Summer League, scoring 4.3 points and adding 2.3 assists in 17.9 minutes per game.

Minaya spent three seasons with the Trail Blazers for a total of 57 games, but struggled to find real minutes. He is now eligible to earn a bonus of up to $85,300 if he stays with the Magic’s G League affiliate, the Osceola Magic, for at least 60 days. The same will be true of Davis, should he be waived before the end of training camp.

Heat Sign Nikola Jovic To Four-Year Extension

October 3rd, 2025 at 7:11pm CST by Arthur Hill

Oct. 3: Jovic’s four-year extension with the Heat is now official, per the team’s Twitter account.

Oct 1: Nikola Jovic has agreed to a four-year, $62.4MM rookie scale extension with the Heat, agents Jeff Schwartz, Sean Kennedy and Jared Mucha of Excel Sports Management tell Shams Charania of ESPN (Twitter link). It’s a straight four-year deal with no option for either the team or the player, a source informs Ira Winderman of The Sun Sentinel (Twitter link).

The 22-year-old power forward is coming off his best statistical season — averaging 10.7 points, 3.9 rebounds and 2.8 assists per game while shooting 45.6% from the field and 37.1% from three-point range — but he was limited to 46 appearances after breaking a bone in his right hand in February. He was able to return for the playoff series against Cleveland and scored 24 points in Game 4, Charania states in a full story.

Jovic was primarily used off the bench last season, starting just 10 games after making 38 starts the year before. He said at Monday’s media day that he hopes to have a chance to compete for a starting role in training camp.

Jovic will make $4.4MM this season in the final year of his rookie contract. The extension will run through the 2029/30 season, and Anthony Chiang of The Miami Herald notes that he’s currently the team’s only player who’s under contract past ’28/29.

The Heat selected Jovic with the 27th pick in the 2022 draft, but he battled injuries as a rookie and only appeared in 15 games. His role has expanded over the past two seasons, and the extension appears to cement his status as part of the team’s foundation moving forward.

Jovic is the fifth member of the 2022 draft class to receive an extension, joining Paolo Banchero, Chet Holmgren, Jabari Smith Jr. and Jalen Williams, as our tracker shows. Teams have until October 20, the day before the start of the regular season, to finalize rookie scale extensions. Players who don’t receive them will become restricted free agents next summer if their teams extend qualifying offers.

As Winderman recently noted, Miami also has important extension decisions upcoming with Tyler Herro and Norman Powell that will determine the team’s financial flexibility for at least the rest of the decade.

Trail Blazers Sign Andrew Carr To Exhibit 10 Contract

October 3rd, 2025 at 12:29pm CST by Luke Adams

The Trail Blazers have officially signed rookie forward Andrew Carr, the team announced today in a press release.

While details of the deal weren’t revealed, reporting in June indicated that Carr would be signing a non-guaranteed Exhibit 10 contract with Portland. The expectation is that he’ll be waived before the regular season begins and then report to the Rip City Remix, the Blazers’ G League affiliate. If he spends at least 60 days with the Remix, he’ll earn a bonus worth up to $85,300.

Carr spent the last five college years playing college basketball, including two seasons with Delaware, two with Wake Forest, and a “super senior” season with Kentucky in 2024/25. The 6’9″ forward started 29 of 35 games he played for the Wildcats, averaging 10.3 points, 4.7 rebounds, and 1.7 assists in 24.0 minutes per contest, with a .544/.324/.748 shooting line.

Carr suited up for the Blazers’ Summer League team in Las Vegas in July. He played a modest role in five outings, averaging 3.0 points and 2.6 rebounds in 12.2 minutes per game while struggling with his shot (.375/.143/.500).

Portland had an open spot on its 21-man preseason roster, so no corresponding move was necessary to make room for Carr. The roster is now full.

Bulls Exercise Matas Buzelis’ 2026/27 Option

October 3rd, 2025 at 7:53am CST by Luke Adams

The Bulls have exercised their third-year rookie scale team option on forward Matas Buzelis, tweets Keith Smith of Spotrac.

The move guarantees Buzelis’ salary for the 2026/27 season. Last year’s 11th overall pick will earn $5.46MM in his second NBA season in ’25/26 and is now locked into a $5.72MM salary for ’26/27. Chicago will have until November 2, 2026 to decide whether or not to pick up his fourth-year option for ’27/28, worth $7.58MM.

Buzelis, who will turn 21 later this month, got off to a slow start as a rookie, scoring double-digit points just four times in his first 45 games and averaging 5.0 points and 2.7 rebounds per game with a 38.6% field goal percentage during that stretch.

However, he had a strong finish to the year, putting up 13.3 PPG and 4.5 RPG with a .494/.373/.817 shooting line over the course of his final 35 games. That second-half production propelled Buzelis to a spot on the All-Rookie second team.

Buzelis projects to be a significant part of the Bulls’ future, so this decision comes as no surprise, and it seems pretty safe to assume his fourth-year option will be exercised a year from now too. In that scenario, the 6’10” forward would become eligible for a rookie scale extension during the 2027 offseason and would reach restricted free agency in 2028 if he doesn’t sign a new contract before then.

Teams have until October 31 to make their decisions on rookie scale team options for the 2026/27 season. Buzelis is the fourth player to have his option picked up.

Wizards Sign Leaky Black, Waive Jonathan Pierre

October 2nd, 2025 at 7:12pm CST by Luke Adams

The Wizards have made a minor change to their training camp roster, announcing today (via Twitter) that they’ve signed free agent forward Leaky Black to an Exhibit 10 contract and waived camp invitee Jonathan Pierre.

Black, who went undrafted out of North Carolina in 2023, spent his rookie season on a two-way contract with the Hornets, then played last season for the Capital City Go-Go, Washington’s G League affiliate. He made 26 NBA appearances for Charlotte in 2023/24, averaging 2.7 points and 1.8 rebounds in 10.9 minutes per game.

In 44 games last season for the Go-Go, Black averaged 7.9 points, 4.8 rebounds, 2.2 assists, and 1.2 steals in 26.7 minutes per contest. Known more for his play on the other end of the court, the 6’6″ forward made the ACC’s All-Defensive team twice as a Tar Heel, in both 2022 and 2023.

In all likelihood, Black will be waived at some point before opening night and will end up rejoining the Go-Go as a returning-rights player. His Exhibit 10 deal will make him eligible for a bonus worth up to $85,300 on top of his G League salary if he spends at least 60 days with the Wizards’ affiliate.

Pierre, who will qualify as an affiliate player, will also likely land with Capital City this fall in order to earn his own $85,300 Exhibit 10 bonus.

Washington still has a full 21-man preseason roster.