Transactions Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Kings Re-Sign Keon Ellis To Two-Way Contract

July 2nd, 2023 at 7:06pm CST by Luke Adams

The Kings have re-signed shooting guard Keon Ellis to a two-way contract, according to NBA.com’s transaction log.

Sacramento had tendered Ellis a two-way qualifying offer in the days leading up to free agency, making him a restricted free agent, so he may have simply accepted that QO.

Ellis, who went undrafted out of Alabama in 2022, signed a two-way contract with the Kings last July and spent his entire rookie season within the organization. He was deployed sparingly at the NBA level in 2022/23, appearing in 16 games and playing just 71 total minutes.

Ellis played extensively for the Stockton Kings in the G League, however, averaging 16.8 points, 5.3 rebounds, and 3.4 assists per night in 23 regular season appearances (30.4 MPG) while registering an impressive shooting line of .517/.444/.784.

Sacramento still has two-way slots available for 2023/24 after bringing back Ellis. The team also tendered a qualifying offer to its other two-way player from ’22/23, Neemias Queta, but because Queta has been on a two-way deal with the Kings for two seasons instead of just one, his QO is equivalent to a standard (partially guaranteed) minimum-salary deal rather than another two-way contract.

Jazz Sign All Three First-Round Picks

July 2nd, 2023 at 4:57pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Jazz have signed their three first-round picks — forward Taylor Hendricks, guard Keyonte George, and forward Brice Sensabaugh — to rookie scale contracts, according to a team press release.

Hendricks, the No. 9 overall pick, will make $5,569,920 in his first season. He’ll bank $25,351,580 over the life of the four-year contract. The UCF product averaged 15.2 points, 7.0 rebounds and 1.7 blocks in 34.7 minutes during his only college season.

George will receive $3,889,800 in his first season. The four-year contract is worth $18,816,885.

The No. 16 pick started 33 games for Baylor in his lone collegiate season and averaged 15.3 points, 4.2 rebounds, 2.8 assists, and 1.1 steals in 28.7 minutes per game. He was named the Big 12 Freshman of the Year.

Sensabaugh, taken with the 28th pick out of Ohio State, will bring in $2,448,600 as a rookie. The four-year deal is worth $12,576,077. He appeared in 33 games last season and averaged 16.3 points. 5.4 rebounds, and 1.2 assists in 24.5 minutes per game.

First-round picks virtually always sign contracts worth 120% of their rookie scale amount and the above figures represent those amounts. Rookie scale contracts are guaranteed for the first two years, with team options on the third and fourth years.

Nick Smith Signs Rookie Contract With Hornets

July 2nd, 2023 at 4:31pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Nick Smith Jr. has signed his rookie contract with the Hornets, according to the NBA transactions log.

The 6’5” guard out of Arkansas, who missed nearly two months of his lone college season due to a knee injury, will receive $2,463,960 if he signed for the usual 120% of the rookie scale amount at his slot.

The 27th overall pick will make $12,651,907 over his first four NBA seasons if the team options are eventually exercised for the final two years.

Smith was the second of Charlotte’s two first-round picks. The Hornets drafted potential franchise player Brandon Miller with the No. 2 pick.

Smith could jump right into the Hornets’ rotation as LaMelo Ball‘s backup.

Nuggets Sign Justin Holiday To One-Year Deal

July 2nd, 2023 at 4:26pm CST by Luke Adams

JULY 6: The Nuggets have officially signed Holiday, according to the transaction log at NBA.com.

JULY 2: Veteran swingman Justin Holiday has found a new home in free agency, according to Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN (Twitter link), who reports that Holiday has agreed to sign a one-year contract with the defending champion Nuggets.

A 10-year NBA veteran, Holiday will be joining the 10th team of his career. The 34-year-old has 622 regular season games under his belt, including 46 last season for the Hawks and Mavericks. He averaged 4.5 points and 1.2 rebounds in 15.3 minutes per game in limited roles for the two teams.

Holiday isn’t a big-time scorer, but can make an outside shot (.363 career 3PT%) and is a solid, versatile wing defender with good size (6’6″). He should be a good fit in the Nuggets’ locker room as another veteran leader, even if he may not play a whole lot, as Mike Singer of The Denver Post tweets.

Because they’ve committed their $5MM taxpayer mid-level exception to Reggie Jackson, the Nuggets are limited to offering minimum-salary contracts to outside free agents. Singer confirms that’s what Holiday will receive (Twitter link).

Holiday will earn just shy of $3.2MM on a veteran’s minimum contract, while Denver will take on a cap hit of about $2.02MM.

Gradey Dick Signs Rookie Contract With Raptors

July 2nd, 2023 at 4:01pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Gradey Dick has signed his rookie contract with the Raptors, according to NBA’s transactions log.

Assuming Dick signed a contract worth 120% of his rookie scale amount, which is normal practice in the league, he’ll make $4,536,720 in his rookie season. Over the next four seasons, the contract will be worth $21,422,550.

Rookie scale contracts are guaranteed for the first two years, with team options on the third and fourth years.

The No. 13 overall pick in the draft, Dick started 36 games in his lone season at Kansas. The 6’8” Dick averaged 14.1 points, 5.1 rebounds and 1.7 assists. He made 40.3% of his 3-point tries and was considered one of the top pure shooters in the draft.

Nets Sign Lonnie Walker To One-Year Deal

July 2nd, 2023 at 3:50pm CST by Dana Gauruder

JULY 10: The signing is official, according to a team press release.

JULY 2: The Nets are signing free agent swingman Lonnie Walker on a one-year contract, ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski tweets.

The Lakers were interested in re-signing Walker but he could find more playing time in Brooklyn. Walker made $6,479,000 in his one season with the Lakers and he became an unrestricted free agent after the season.

The 24-year-old Walker, who played four seasons with San Antonio, appeared in 56 regular-season games (32 starts) with the Lakers. He averaged 11.7 points, 1.9 rebounds and 1.1 assists in 23.2 minutes. He also appeared in 13 postseason contests, averaging 6.2 points in 13.8 minutes.

How exactly Walker slots into Brooklyn’s rotation remains to be seen. The Nets have a glut of wings, so the addition of Walker could signal some other moves.

The team has also parted ways with Patty Mills and Joe Harris this offseason, so there could be a path to minutes even without further roster shuffling, though fellow newcomer Dennis Smith Jr. also figures to have a role in the backcourt.

Eric Gordon Signs Two-Year Contract With Suns

July 2nd, 2023 at 3:05pm CST by Dana Gauruder

JULY 6: The Suns have officially signed Gordon, the team announced in a press release.

“Eric is a winning player who will make our team more dynamic and help us in our pursuit of an NBA championship,” general manager James Jones said in a statement.

JULY 2: The Suns have reached an agreement with free agent guard Eric Gordon, Shams Charania of The Athletic tweets. Gordon had multiple suitors and turned more lucrative offers to join one of the prime contenders for the 2024 championship, Charania adds (Twitter link).

It’s a two-year contract with a player option, Duane Rankin of the Arizona Republic tweets. Due to its salary-cap issues, Phoenix could only offer Gordon the veteran’s minimum after he passed through waivers.

Gordon became a free agent when the Clippers declined to guarantee his $20.9MM salary for next season. The Clippers had luxury tax issues and decided to give Gordon’s minutes to younger players.

Gordon now becomes at least a key second-unit performer on a potentially powerhouse team. He could be the leading scorer off the bench while playing alongside Cameron Payne or Damion Lee in the backcourt. It’s conceivable Gordon could slide into the starting unit with Devin Booker and Bradley Beal at the wing positions. He’s been a starter in 627 of 818 career NBA regular-season games.

After clearing waivers, Gordon had narrowed his choices to the Suns, Warriors and Rockets, according to Kelly Iko of The Athletic (Twitter link). The Warriors had made Gordon their top backcourt target on the free agent market via a veteran’s minimum deal, Anthony Slater of The Athletic tweets. However, the pathway to minutes in Golden State’s backcourt — with the addition of Chris Paul — would have been murkier than the Suns’ current situation.

L.A. acquired Gordon from the Rockets in a three-team deal at the trade deadline. He averaged 11.0 PPG and shot 42.3% from three-point range in his 22 regular season games with the Clippers and put up similar numbers in the playoffs.

Gordon joins a host of other free agents who have reached agreements with the Suns in the early days of free agency. The Suns have also secured the services of Drew Eubanks, Keita Bates-Diop, Josh Okogie, Lee, Yuta Watanabe and Chimezie Metu.

The addition gives Phoenix a full 15-man roster. The Suns’ roster now exceeds $250MM in total payroll and luxury tax penalties, Yossi Gozlan of HoopsHype notes (Twitter link).

Luka Garza Returns To Timberwolves On Two-Way Deal

July 2nd, 2023 at 3:01pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Timberwolves have re-signed big man Luka Garza on a two-way contract, Michael Scotto of Hoops Hype tweets. The signing is official, according to the NBA’s transactions log.

Garza was also on a two-way deal last season. Entering his third NBA season, Garza received a qualifying offer from Minnesota prior to the start of free agency, making him a restricted free agent. Minnesota has a full 15-man roster after reaching agreements with three free agents and adding two rookies via the draft.

While Garza didn’t get a standard contract from the club, he’ll now fill one of the Timberwolves’ three two-way slots for the coming season. Garza appeared in 28 games for the Timberwolves last season, averaging 6.5 points and 2.3 rebounds in 8.7 minutes per game off the bench.

He spent his first NBA season with Detroit after being selected with the No. 52 pick of the 2021 draft. He played 32 games for the Pistons, including five starts.

Under the new CBA, two-way players can now negotiate to receive $75K immediately upon signing, and they can negotiate that 50% of their salary is guaranteed if they are on the roster on the first day of the regular season.

Pelicans Sign Cody Zeller To One-Year Contract

July 2nd, 2023 at 2:59pm CST by Rory Maher

JULY 6: The Pelicans have signed Zeller, according to an official announcement from the team.

JULY 2: The Pelicans are signing free agent center Cody Zeller to a one-year, $3.1MM contract, agent Sam Goldfeder tells Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN (Twitter link).

Zeller just completed his 10th season, so he’ll be receiving the veteran’s minimum for a player with his experience. As our minimum-salary projections for 2023/24 show, he’ll actually be making just under $3.2MM.

The Pelicans chose not to bring back Willy Hernangomez or Jaxson Hayes, so Zeller will help fortify the team’s frontcourt depth. Hernangomez might be headed back to Europe, where he started his pro career, while Hayes is signing a two-year deal with the Lakers.

Zeller, 30, was the fourth overall pick of the 2013 draft after two college seasons at Indiana. He spent his first eight NBA seasons with Charlotte, averaging a combined 8.7 PPG and 6.0 RPG over 467 contests (22.7 MPG).

The 6’11” big man spent the past two seasons with Portland and Miami, respectively. He was a mid-season addition in ’22/23 for the Heat, who went on to make the NBA Finals as the East’s No. 8 seed.

Zeller averaged 6.5 PPG and 4.3 RPG in 15 regular season games for the Heat (14.5 MPG). He appeared in 21 of the club’s 23 postseason games, though his minutes were reduced to 8.3 per night.

The addition of Zeller means, at least for now, that the Pelicans will be above the ’23/24 luxury tax threshold, tweets Christian Clark of NOLA.com. A cost-cutting move could be in store to dip under the tax line.

Rockets To Acquire Patty Mills, Flip Him To Thunder

July 2nd, 2023 at 1:00pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

JULY 2, 1:00pm: Mills will be heading to the Thunder, according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski, who reports (via Twitter) that Oklahoma City will receive unspecified draft compensation as part of the deal.

JULY 2, 8:58am: Mills’ eventual destination remains a mystery for now. Chris Herrington of The Daily Memphian (Twitter link) says his understanding is that the veteran guard won’t be headed to the Grizzlies.

According to Jonathan Feigen of The Houston Chronicle, the Rockets traded for Mills in order to acquire an extra second-round draft pick. That’s not quite the same as saying the Nets are sending a single second-rounder to Houston as part of the deal, but that’s our working assumption for now.

JULY 1, 9:02pm: Mills won’t be staying with Houston, according to Iko, who tweets that the veteran guard will be included in an expanded version of the Brooks sign-and-trade and will be rerouted to a different team. It’s not clear at this point if that team will be the Grizzlies or another club.

JULY 1, 5:39pm: The Rockets continue to fill out their previously youth-heavy roster with more seasoned additions early in the 2023 offseason.

Shams Charania and Kelly Iko of The Athletic report (Twitter link) that Houston is putting the finishing touches on a trade for sharpshooting Nets veteran combo guard Patty Mills.

It’s unclear exactly what the Rockets are sending to Brooklyn in the deal, but the Nets aren’t taking back any players, per NetsDaily (Twitter link).

The 6’1″ vet remains a reliable catch-and-shoot option even 14 years into his NBA career. Last season for a playoff-bound Brooklyn team, the 34-year-old Saint Mary’s alum averaged 6.2 PPG on .411/.366/.833 shooting splits, 1.4 APG and 1.1 RPG across 14.2 MPG, his lowest output since the 2012/13 season.

Mills was a huge bench contributor on two NBA Finals-bound Spurs clubs in 2013 and 2014, winning it all in ’14. A deal for him would mark just the latest move clearly made with an eye towards expediting Houston’s timeline.

The Rockets, a team already loaded with recent lottery picks, have also inked experienced free agents Fred VanVleet, Dillon Brooks, and Jock Landale during this free agency period. Houston also signed controversial former Celtics head coach Ime Udoka with an eye toward professionalizing its locker room identity.