Transactions Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Spurs Sign Sir’Jabari Rice To Two-Way Deal

June 23rd, 2023 at 12:09am CST by Luke Adams

JULY 5: The Spurs have officially signed Rice to his two-way contract, the team announced today in a press release.

JUNE 23: The Spurs have agreed to sign undrafted rookie free agent Sir’Jabari Rice to a two-way contract, agent Corey Barker tells Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN (Twitter link).

Rice spent four college seasons at New Mexico State before transferring to Texas for his super-senior year in 2022/23. The 6’4″ guard appeared in 38 games for the Longhorns in 2022/23, averaging 13.0 PPG, 3.5 RPG, and 2.0 APG on .464/.371/.863 shooting.

Rice ranks 17th on ESPN’s list of prospects who didn’t get drafted on Thursday.

With teams permitted to carry up to three players on two-way deals in 2023/24, the Spurs will still have a pair of open two-way slots after agreeing to sign Rice.

Markquis Nowell Joins Raptors On Two-Way Deal

June 22nd, 2023 at 11:54pm CST by Arthur Hill

JULY 3: The Raptors have officially signed Nowell to a two-way contract, according to the transaction log at NBA.com.

JUNE 22: Kansas State guard Markquis Nowell, one of the stars of this year’s NCAA Tournament, has agreed to a two-way contract with the Raptors, tweets Shams Charania of The Athletic.

Nowell sparked the Wildcats to the Elite Eight and set a tournament record for assists in a game with 19. The 23-year-old spent five seasons in college and averaged 17.6 points and 8.3 assists per game as a senior.

Nowell was a first-team All-Big 12 selection this season and was named to the conference’s All-Defensive Team as well.

Toronto’s current two-way slots belong to point guard Jeff Dowtin and power forward Ron Harper Jr.

Bucks Acquire No. 36 Pick From Magic, Choose UConn’s Jackson

June 22nd, 2023 at 11:48pm CST by Dana Gauruder

11:48pm: The trade is official, according to the Magic (Twitter link).

10:41pm: The Bucks are acquiring a second-round pick, No. 36 overall, in a trade with the Magic, ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski tweets. Milwaukee selected UConn guard Andre Jackson at that spot.

Milwaukee had previously traded away its first-round pick and only owned the last pick of the draft at No. 58 prior to the deal.

The Magic are receiving a 2030 second-round pick and cash considerations from the Bucks, Khobi Price of the Orlando Sentinel tweets. They had two lottery picks, which they used on guards Anthony Black and Jett Howard, and apparently didn’t feel the need to add another rookie to the roster.

Jackson adds depth to the Bucks’ backcourt. He’s a versatile player who’s main drawback is his spotty perimeter game.

Wizards Trading Up To No. 7, Drafting Bilal Coulibaly

June 22nd, 2023 at 7:49pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

The Wizards have agreed to a trade with the Pacers, moving up in the draft one spot from No. 8 to No. 7 in order to select French forward Bilal Coulibaly, reports Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link).

According to Charania (via Twitter), Washington is sending two second-round draft picks to Indiana in the deal. Per Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN (Twitter link), those two picks are 2028 second-rounders: the Wizards’ own and an incoming pick from the Suns acquired in their Bradley Beal trade.

Jeremy Woo of ESPN tweets that the Wizards opted to move up to ensure they were able to draft Coulibaly before another club could select him, noting that the Jazz had grown intrigued by the swingman recently.

The 6’8″ small forward was a teammate of this year’s top pick, now-Spurs big man Victor Wembanyama, on Metropolitans 92 this past season. A raw, athletic swingman, Coulibaly averaged 10.0 PPG on a .532/.452/.595 slash line, in addition to 6.1 RPG, 1.6 APG and 1.5 SPG.

Per Chase Hughes of NBC Sports Washington, Coulibaly’s solid playoff performance alongside Wembanyama helped him move up teams’ internal pre-draft rankings. Hughes adds that he is considered a multifaceted defender, and his 7’3″ wingspan allows him to be effective on and off the ball.

Washington has been incredibly active this week, agreeing to trade away Beal, Kristaps Porzingis, and Chris Paul for younger pieces and future draft picks.

The Pacers are using the No. 8 pick to select Houston forward Jarace Walker.

Luke Adams contributed to this report.

Wizards To Receive Six Second-Rounders, Four Pick Swaps, Cash In Beal Trade

June 22nd, 2023 at 5:16pm CST by Luke Adams

5:16pm: The Wizards will receive about $3.5MM in cash from the Suns as part of the deal, tweets John Gambadoro of Arizona Sports 98.7.

2:58pm: The Wizards and Suns have finalized their Bradley Beal trade agreement, sources tell ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (Twitter links).

The blockbuster deal is not yet official, but the two sides have formally agreed on the terms. They are as follows, according to Wojnarowski:

Suns to acquire Beal, Jordan Goodwin, and Isaiah Todd.
Wizards to acquire Chris Paul; Landry Shamet; the Suns’ second-round picks in 2024, 2025, 2026, 2027, 2028, and 2030; first-round pick swaps in 2024, 2026, 2028, and 2030; and cash.
- Note: Paul will be flipped to Golden State in a separate trade.

It was previously reported that Goodwin and Todd would go to Phoenix as part of the package, and we knew that the Wizards were receiving “multiple” second-round picks and first-round swaps. However, it’s news that Phoenix is sending every second-rounder and first-round swap it possibly can to Washington.

NBA teams can only trade picks for up to seven drafts in the future, so this deal will have to wait until after Thursday’s draft is officially completed, since it includes assets from 2030.

The Suns previously traded away their 2029 second-round selection, so they’ll send the Wizards their six remaining tradable second-rounders.

Phoenix also previously dealt its 2025, 2027, and 2029 first-round picks to Brooklyn and gave the Nets the right to swap first-round picks with the Suns in 2028. The Suns will be able to offer Washington the ability to swap first-rounders with Phoenix in 2024, 2026, and 2030 and the ability to swap the Wizards’ own first-rounder with the least favorable of the Suns’ and Nets’ picks in 2028.

There’s also a scenario in which the Wizards would be able to swap their own first-rounder for the Sixers’ pick in 2028 if the Suns end up with that one instead of their own or Brooklyn’s, but that would require a specific set of outcomes and is probably a long shot.

A previous report stated that the Wizards and Suns are hoping to complete their trade call with the NBA on Friday. For cap-related reasons, the Beal trade will have to be completed in June, while the subsequent Paul trade with the Warriors will be finalized in July, tweets cap expert Albert Nahmad.

Warriors Trading Jordan Poole To Wizards For Chris Paul

June 22nd, 2023 at 2:14pm CST by Rory Maher

The Warriors are trading Jordan Poole and future draft picks to the Wizards for Chris Paul, reports Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN (Twitter link).

Golden State has no plans to waive Paul, and the two sides are looking forward to working together, sources tell Chris Haynes of Bleacher Report (Twitter link).

According to Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter links), Golden State will be sending Washington a protected 2030 first-rounder and a 2027 second-rounder, along with Ryan Rollins, who was a second-round pick last year.

[UPDATE: The Wizards also reportedly receiving Patrick Baldwin.]

The 2030 first-round pick is top-20 protected, per ESPN’s Zach Lowe (Twitter link), and those protections can’t be pushed to 2031 since the pick is already seven years out. That means there’s a zero percent chance that the Wizards will get a top-20 selection from the Warriors. The pick seems likely to turn into a 2030 second-rounder if it falls within its protected range, though that has yet to be confirmed.

Rollins’ $1.7MM salary for ’23/24 was fully guaranteed, tweets Anthony Slater of The Athletic, and removing him from the books will open up a roster spot, likely for a veteran. The former Toledo guard’s ’24/25 salary is partially guaranteed at $600K.

Jake Fischer of Yahoo Sports was first to report (via Twitter) that Golden State was actively discussing a Poole trade. Fischer heard the Wizards tried to land Golden State’s first-round pick in tonight’s draft — No. 19 overall — as part of the trade, but the Warriors were able to keep it.

As John Hollinger of The Athletic notes (Twitter link), the trade will have to be finalized in July when Poole’s four-year, $125MM extension kicks in, as Poole is currently on the last year of his rookie contract. Poole is currently subject to the poison pill provision due to the difference between his 2022/23 and ’23/24 salaries.

Paul’s $30.8MM contract for ’23/24 is expected to be fully guaranteed as part of his initial trade from Phoenix to Washington, tweets ESPN’s Bobby Marks. It had previously only been guaranteed for $15.8MM. However, Paul’s $30MM salary for ’24/25 is fully non-guaranteed.

While the Warriors have been linked to Paul in the past, it’s still a shocking turn of events to shed Poole’s contract for a 38-year-old future Hall-of-Famer. Despite being known for his incredible basketball IQ, Paul’s teams typically play in a slow, methodical style, which doesn’t seem like an obvious fit with Golden State’s motion offense.

The deal is yet another indication that the Warriors are abandoning their “two timeline” plan to develop their young players alongside their veterans and instead are going all-in on the present. The club traded former No. 2 overall pick James Wiseman in February in order to reacquire Gary Payton II, who had signed with Portland in free agency last summer.

According to Slater (Twitter link), the Warriors are placing a big bet on their medical staff, led by Rick Celebrini. Paul has a lengthy injury history, including sustaining a groin strain during the postseason, which sidelined him for four games in Phoenix’s second-round exit to the Nuggets.

Poole, the 28th pick of the 2019 draft, struggled mightily as a rookie for Golden State, but he turned a corner in the second half of year two, which lead to a breakout third season. He averaged 18.5 PPG, 4.0 APG and 3.4 RPG on .448/.364/.925 shooting during the ’21/22 regular season, playing a key role off the bench in helping the Warriors win their fourth title in eight seasons.

However, his ’22/23 season was derailed before it even started after being punched by Draymond Green in training camp. There was an awkwardness between them for the remainder of the season, and while Poole showed flashes of scoring brilliance, he also frustrated with turnovers, decision-making, and poor shot selection. Poole averaged 20.4 PPG, 4.5 APG and 2.7 RPG on .430/.336/.870 shooting during the regular season, but was ice cold in the playoffs, averaging just 10.3 PPG and 3.5 APG on .341/.254/.765 shooting.

Poole is still only 24 years old, so the Wizards will be gambling on him returning to his previous upward trajectory. They’ll also pick up some marginal draft assets as part of the deal for taking on his long-term contract.

Paul, one of the most accomplished point guards in league history, holds career averages of 17.9 PPG, 9.5 APG, 4.5 RPG and 2.1 SPG on .472/.369/.870 shooting in 1214 regular season games across 18 NBA seasons. While he was still effective in ’22/23, he also averaged a career-low 13.9 PPG to go along with 8.9 APG, 4.3 RPG and 1.5 SPG on .440/.375/.831 shooting in 59 regular season games.

Khris Middleton Declining Player Option, Will Become Free Agent

June 21st, 2023 at 11:08pm CST by Rory Maher

Bucks wing Khris Middleton is declining his $40.4MM player option to become an unrestricted free agent, his agents tell ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (Twitter link).

Despite turning down the option, the three-time All-Star could still work out a new deal with Milwaukee, Woj adds (via Twitter).

Middleton, who turns 32 in August, had a disappointing regular season in 2022/23, appearing in just 33 games (24.3 minutes) while averaging 15.1 points, 4.9 assists and 4.2 rebounds on .436/.315/.902 shooting.

He had a strong playoff showing in Milwaukee’s first-round loss to Miami, however, averaging 23.8 points, 6.4 rebounds and 6.2 assists on .465/.406/.867 shooting in five games.

Middleton battled persistent knee soreness throughout ’22/23, undergoing arthroscopic surgery to deal with the issue after the season ended. He also had wrist surgery last summer, which caused him to miss the first 20 games of last season.

The 39th pick of the 2012 draft by Detroit, Middleton didn’t play much as a rookie for the Pistons before he was traded to Milwaukee the following summer. He has emerged as one of the Bucks’ best players over the past decade, playing a key role in helping the club win the championship in ’20/21.

A recent report indicated that the Bucks plan to retain Middleton. League executives reportedly believe he could re-sign with Milwaukee on a four-year deal worth around $130MM.

Bulls’ Derrick Jones Jr. Declining 2023/24 Player Option

June 21st, 2023 at 5:46pm CST by Rory Maher

Bulls forward Derrick Jones Jr. plans to decline his player option for 2023/24 to become an unrestricted free agent, sources tell Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link).

Jones signed a two-year, $6.56MM contract with Chicago last summer that includes an opt-out decision after year one. His option for ’23/24 is worth a guaranteed $3.36MM.

The move comes as something of a surprise, as the 26-year-old told K.C. Johnson of NBC Sports Chicago in April that he planned to pick up the option to stay with the Bulls.

“Like I told coach (Billy Donovan) and everybody else, I’m locked in for two years. I didn’t sign for two years for no reason. So I’m here for two years,” Jones said. “I just gotta sit down with my agent and talk to him, figure things out. But I don’t see why not. I got no other plans, yet.”

As Jones implied at the end of that statement, plans can change, especially as players get closer to free agency. He must be confident he can exceed his option as a free agent — it’s worth noting that a seven-year veteran like Jones would earn a projected $2.7MM on a veteran’s minimum contract.

The Bulls have Jones’ Bird rights if they want to re-sign him to a new contract.

Jones appeared in 64 games for the Bulls this past season, averaging 5.0 points and 2.4 rebounds and shooting .500/.338/.738 in 14.0 minutes per night. With the exception of his three-point percentage, those numbers were all down from the ones he posted during his first year in Chicago in ’21/22.

In fact, Jones’ minutes, points and rebounds were all down when compared to his previous four seasons after becoming a rotation regular with Miami in ’18/19. The high-flying Jones is known as a strong, versatile defensive player, though he doesn’t provide much scoring or play-making on the other end.

Jones isn’t the only Bull with a $3.36MM player option for 2023/24. As our list of free agents by team shows, veteran center Andre Drummond will have to make a decision on an identical option.

We’re tracking all of this year’s player option decisions right here.

Pacers Trading No. 29, No. 32 Picks To Nuggets

June 21st, 2023 at 2:16pm CST by Luke Adams

2:16pm: As Agness reported below, the Nuggets’ own 2024 pick won’t be involved in this trade, ESPN’s Bobby Marks confirms (via Twitter).

The 2024 first-rounder the Pacers will receive from the Nuggets will be the one Denver gets in its trade with Oklahoma City: The least favorable of the Thunder’s, Clippers’, Rockets’, and Jazz’s picks.

12:28pm: The Pacers and Nuggets have agreed to a draft-pick swap, according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (Twitter links), who reports that Denver will receive the No. 29 and No. 32 picks in Thursday’s draft.

In exchange for those two selections, Indiana will receive the No. 40 pick in 2023 and the least favorable of the Nuggets’ 2024 first-rounders, per Wojnarowski.

This is the second draft-pick trade the Nuggets have agreed to this month as they look to fill out their 2023/24 roster with low-cost contributors. Denver previously agreed to send its 2029 first-rounder to Oklahoma City in exchange for this year’s No. 37 pick, the least favorable of the Thunder’s 2024 first-round picks, and a 2024 second-rounder.

As a result of their latest trade, the Nuggets will now control the 29th, 32nd, and 37th overall picks on Thursday, putting them in position to select multiple players who could contribute as rookies. The team drafted Christian Braun and Peyton Watson at No. 21 and No. 30 last year and is counting on those youngsters to play increased roles next season.

As for the Pacers, they also control the seventh, 26th, and 55th overall picks in this year’s draft, so there was an expectation that they’d move one or more of their five selections rather than keeping and using all of them. The Pacers still control four 2023 picks, so it wouldn’t be surprising if they made at least one more deal this week. According to Wojnarowski (via Twitter), they remain active in trade talks.

In addition to holding its own 2024 first-round pick, the ’24 first-round selection that Denver is getting from Oklahoma City is the least favorable of the following first-rounders:

The Thunder’s pick.
The Clippers’ pick.
The Rockets’ pick (top-four protected).
The Jazz’s pick (top-10 protected).

According to ESPN, the Nuggets will send either their own pick or the pick they get from the Thunder (whichever is least favorable) to Indiana. However, Scott Agness of Fieldhouse Files (Twitter link) hears that the Nuggets’ own pick isn’t involved, and Denver will simply reroute the pick they get from OKC on to the Pacers. We’ll wait for clarity on that point.

The full 2023 draft order can be viewed right here.

Nuggets’ Bruce Brown Declining 2023/24 Player Option

June 21st, 2023 at 9:45am CST by Luke Adams

As expected, Nuggets guard Bruce Brown will turn down his player option for the 2023/24 season, reports Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link).

Rather than locking in a ’23/24 salary worth $6,802,950, Brown will hit the free agent market, where he’ll be able to sign a new deal with Denver or a rival suitor.

Brown, who signed with the Nuggets last summer following a two-year stint in Brooklyn, averaged a career-best 11.5 points per night on .483/.358/.758 shooting in 80 games (28.5 MPG) this past season.

The 26-year-old also contributed 4.1 RPG and 3.4 APG while handling a variety of defensive assignments. In the postseason, he played the most minutes of any Denver reserve, bumping his scoring average to 12.0 PPG while shooting 51.1% from the floor.

Because Brown signed with the Nuggets just one year ago, the team only holds his Non-Bird rights, giving them the ability to offer up to about $7.8MM, a 20% raise on his previous $6.5MM salary. The club intends to offer that full raise, per Mike Singer of The Denver Post (Twitter link).

The Nuggets could theoretically offer more than $7.8MM if they had cap room or the full mid-level exception available, but they project to be over the luxury tax line, limiting their spending flexibility.

Brown is considered likely to receive an offer in the neighborhood of the full mid-level ($12MM) from another team, but spoke after the Nuggets’ championship about his desire to remain in Denver, telling reporters that “money isn’t everything.” If he’s willing to accept a below-market salary in 2023/24, he could sign another one-plus-one deal, then opt out again in 2024 and sign a more lucrative, longer-term contract with the Nuggets once they hold his Early Bird rights.

We’re tracking all of this year’s player option decisions right here.