Transactions Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Terrence Ross To Sign With Suns Following Buyout

February 11th, 2023 at 11:14pm CST by Arthur Hill

Terrence Ross plans to join the Suns after his buyout with the Magic is complete, tweets ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski. Ross must clear waivers before he can sign with Phoenix.

Earlier in the day, Wojnarowski reported that the Mavericks were the frontrunners to add Ross, but he says that changed when new Suns owner Mat Ishbia and coach Monty Williams got involved. They were able to sell Ross on the idea of coming to Phoenix to join Kevin Durant in pursuit of a title.

The Suns have two open roster spots, so they can sign Ross without a corresponding move.

Dallas’ offer is limited to a pro-rated minimum contract, which is worth about $900K, points out Yossi Gozlan of HoopsHype (Twitter link), while Phoenix has $5.2MM of its mid-level exception left and could offer more than the minimum (though it’s unclear whether they will).

Ross will help replace some of the wing depth the Suns had to send to Brooklyn in the Durant trade. He’s a career 36.2% shooter from three-point range and is connecting at 38.1% from long distance this season. He was averaging 8.0 PPG in 42 games for Orlando.

Raptors Sign Joe Wieskamp To Multiyear Deal

February 11th, 2023 at 5:00pm CST by Luke Adams

5:00 pm: Wieskamp’s deal is worth the minimum salary and doesn’t currently include any guaranteed money for 2023/24, tweets Anil Gogna of No Trade Clause. Wieskamp’s salary for next season would become guaranteed if he remains under contract beyond June 30.

10:15am: The Raptors have signed free agent swingman Joe Wieskamp to a multiyear contract, the team announced today in a press release.

Wieskamp previously signed a pair of 10-day contracts with Toronto in January. Because teams aren’t permitted to sign a player to more than two standard 10-day deals in a single season, the Raptors were unable to bring back the 23-year-old without committing to him for at least the rest of 2022/23.

Now that the trade deadline has passed and Toronto still had an open spot on its 15-man roster, the club has decided to re-sign Wieskamp to fill that opening.

In his first 20 days as a Raptor, Wieskamp appeared in just two games, scoring nine points in 17 minutes and making 3-of-4 three-pointers. The former Iowa standout has spent most of this season in the G League, where he has averaged 16.7 PPG and made 41.2% of his threes in 19 total contests for the Wisconsin Herd and Raptors 905.

Wieskamp was drafted 41st overall in 2021 by the Spurs and spent most of his rookie season on a two-way contract with San Antonio. The 23-year-old re-signed with the Spurs last August on a two-year deal that included a guaranteed $2.175MM salary for 2022/23, but was the victim of a roster crunch in San Antonio and was waived in October just before the regular season tipped off.

The deal with Wieskamp likely means that the Raptors won’t be a player in the buyout market, according to Blake Murphy of Sportsnet.ca (Twitter link). While Toronto could waive a player to open up another roster spot if needed, its team salary is quite close to the luxury tax line, Murphy notes.

The exact terms of Wieskamp’s new contract aren’t yet known, but it seems unlikely to include much – if any – guaranteed money beyond the current season. Assuming it’s a minimum-salary deal, he’ll earn $545,989 for the rest of 2022/23.

Pacers Officially Waive Serge Ibaka

February 11th, 2023 at 1:34pm CST by Luke Adams

As expected, the Pacers have waived veteran center Serge Ibaka. The team confirmed the transaction in a press release.

Ibaka was traded from Milwaukee to Indiana on deadline day, but he was only included for salary-matching purposes in the four-team trade that sent Jae Crowder to the Bucks (and, of course, Kevin Durant to the Suns). A Thursday report indicated that he would be released by the Pacers.

Ibaka, 33, hasn’t looked the same after having back surgery a couple years ago. This season with the Bucks, he averaged a career-low 11.6 minutes per game in 16 appearances, putting up 4.1 PPG and 2.8 RPG on .481/.333/.615 shooting in his limited role. He and the Bucks agreed last month that he’d remain away from the team as the two sides sought a trade.

Ibaka has a strong NBA track record, having been one of the league’s best shot blockers during his time in Oklahoma City and playing a key part on a championship team in Toronto in 2019. We should get a sense based on how much interest he draws in free agency whether teams still believe he has something left in the tank.

The big man will clear waivers on Monday, assuming he goes unclaimed.

The Pacers are reportedly expected to re-sign James Johnson to fill the roster spot that Ibaka’s release will open.

Thunder Add Eugene Omoruyi To 15-Man Roster

February 10th, 2023 at 10:51pm CST by Dana Gauruder

10:51pm: Omoruyi’s new contract and promotion to the 15-man roster is official, according to a team press release.

6:58pm: The Thunder are converting forward Eugene Omoruyi‘s two-way contract to a standard deal, ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski tweets.

The contract will run through the 2023/24 season, Wojnarowski adds in another tweet. Details were not disclosed but it’s likely a minimum deal without a full guarantee for next season.

Omoruyi signed a two-way contract in early July.

He has appeared in 21 NBA games this season, including two starts. He’s averaged 5.0 points and 2.3 rebounds in 12.2 minutes per night.

The Thunder opened up a roster spot by trading Mike Muscala to Boston. Though Justin Jackson was sent to OKC in the deal, he was waived on Friday.

Omoruyi went undrafted in 2021 and spent time with the Mavericks on a two-way deal last year. He suffered a season-ending injury in December and was subsequently waived.

During his college career, he spent three seasons at Rutgers and one season at Oregon before declaring for the 2021 NBA draft.

Spurs Re-Sign Gorgui Dieng

February 10th, 2023 at 12:50pm CST by Luke Adams

Veteran center Gorgui Dieng is once again back under contract with the Spurs, according to a press release from the team announcing that he has signed a rest-of-season deal.

Dieng, who began the season in San Antonio, was waived a little over a month ago to accommodate the team’s acquisition of Noah Vonleh. He subsequently signed a pair of 10-day contracts, and now that the Spurs got through the trade deadline with an open spot on their 15-man roster, he’s back as the club’s 15th man.

Dieng, 33, has played sparingly for the Spurs in 2022/23, averaging 3.4 PPG, 2.8 RPG, and 1.6 APG in 17 contests (9.8 MPG). However, the organization highly values his veteran leadership and his presence in the locker room.

On his new minimum-salary contract, Dieng will earn $895,743 for the rest of the season while the team takes on a $622,582 cap hit.

With their roster now full, it’s unclear whether more moves could be coming for the Spurs. They acquired Khem Birch and Devonte’ Graham as salary-matching pieces at the trade deadline, and while those two veterans may not be in San Antonio’s long-term plans, they’re both owed guaranteed salary in 2023/24, so they’re not ideal buyout candidates.

Wizards Sign Quenton Jackson On Two-Way Deal

February 10th, 2023 at 12:21pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

FEBRUARY 10: Jackson’s two-way contract is now official, the Wizards confirmed in a press release.

FEBRUARY 9: Free agent point guard Quenton Jackson is joining the Wizards on a two-way deal, his agents Adie von Gontard and Gino Littles have informed Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link).

The Wizards have an open two-way slot, so no corresponding roster move is necessary. Jackson will join incumbent combo guard Jordan Goodwin as the club’s second two-way player going forward, though Goodwin is a strong candidate to be promoted to the 15-man roster sooner or later.

Jackson, who went undrafted out of Texas A&M this summer, has been playing for Washington’s NBAGL affiliate, the Capital City Go-Go, in 2022/23.

Across 17 games with Capital City, Jackson has been averaging 14.6 PPG on .506/.348/.774 shooting splits. He also is chipping in 3.9 RPG, 3.1 APG and 1.5 SPG. He will no doubt get plenty of chances to boost those averages on this new two-way agreement, as this promotion will see him splitting his time between the Wizards and their G League club.

Mavericks Sign Chris Silva To Second 10-Day Contract

February 10th, 2023 at 11:44am CST by Luke Adams

Following the expiration of his first 10-day contract on Thursday night, forward Chris Silva has signed a second 10-day deal with the Mavericks, the team announced today (via Twitter).

Silva didn’t see much action during his first 10 days in Dallas, appearing in just one of four games and playing only three minutes. Nonetheless, it seems the Mavs aren’t prepared to move on from him.

Before signing with Dallas, Silva had been playing for Atlanta’s G League affiliate, the College Park Skyhawks. The 26-year-old averaged 13.5 points, 9.4 rebounds, 3.0 assists, and 1.6 blocks per game in 18 Showcase Cup appearances (26.0 MPG) for the Skyhawks. Since the regular season began, he has recorded 14.2 PPG, 7.6 RPG, 2.3 APG, and 0.9 BPG in 11 contests (22.4 MPG).

Silva’s new deal will run through February 19, covering the Mavs’ four remaining games before the All-Star break. After it expires, Dallas will have to decide whether to re-sign him for the rest of the season or let him walk.

Silva will earn $109,318 over the course of his 10-day deal, while the Mavs will carry a cap hit of $105,522.

Clippers Trade Jackson, Second-Rounder To Hornets For Plumlee

February 9th, 2023 at 11:11pm CST by Arthur Hill

11:11pm: The trade is now official, according to a press release from the Clippers.

“Mason will help fortify our center position with his energy and playmaking ability,” president of basketball operations Lawrence Frank said in a statement. “He is an impressive passer with great vision. Our team will enjoy playing with him.”

As we relayed in a separate story, Jackson is expected to be bought out by the Hornets.

1:46pm: The Clippers will get the veteran center they’ve been seeking by acquiring Mason Plumlee from the Hornets, tweets ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski.

Point guard Reggie Jackson will head to Charlotte in return, and the Hornets will also receive the Clippers’ 2028 second-round pick, according to Andrew Greif of The Los Angeles Times (Twitter link).

Plumlee is making $9.08MM in the final year of his contract. He has been the Hornets’ starting center over the past two seasons.

Despite being 32 years old, Plumlee is posting career highs in most statistical categories, including points (12.2), rebounds (9.7), assists (3.7), FG% (66.9) and minutes per game (28.5) in 56 games this year. The Clippers are undersized off their bench and have been looking for a reliable big man to back up Ivica Zubac.

Jackson had been a focus of the Clippers’ offense since he arrived in L.A. three years ago, but he has seen his role reduced recently. The 32-year-old has an expiring contract worth $11.2MM.

Through 52 games (38 starts, 25.7 minutes) with the Clippers in 2022/23, Jackson was averaging 10.9 points, 2.2 rebounds and 3.5 assists.

Knicks, Blazers, Sixers, Hornets Officially Complete Four-Team Trade

February 9th, 2023 at 10:47pm CST by Luke Adams

The Knicks, Trail Blazers, Sixers, and Hornets have folded two separate trade agreements into a single four-team trade, with press releases from New York and Portland confirming that the deal is official.

The trade combines the Knicks’ acquisition of Josh Hart from Portland with the three-team trade agreement that sends Matisse Thybulle to the Blazers and Jalen McDaniels to the 76ers. Kyle Neubeck of PhillyVoice first reported (via Twitter) that the two deals would be combined into one.

Here are the full terms of the trade:

Knicks acquire Josh Hart, the draft rights to Bojan Dubljevic (from Trail Blazers), and the draft rights to Daniel Diez (from Trail Blazers).
Trail Blazers acquire Matisse Thybulle, Cam Reddish, Ryan Arcidiacono, the Knicks’ 2023 first-round pick (top-14 protected), and the draft rights to Ante Tomic (from Knicks).
Sixers acquire Jalen McDaniels, the Knicks’ 2024 second-round pick (from Hornets), and the Trail Blazers’ 2029 second-round pick.
Hornets acquire Svi Mykhailiuk, either the Hornets’, Hawks’, or Nets’ 2023 second-round pick (whichever is most favorable; from Sixers), and either the Pelicans’ or Trail Blazers’ 2027 second-round pick (whichever is most favorable; from Trail Blazers).

The deal expanded slightly to include the draft rights of three draft-and-stash players, but otherwise looks the same as what was previously reported.

As expected, Portland waived Greg Brown to help open up the necessary roster spots for their incoming players.

For more details on the deal, check out our full stories on the Knicks/Blazers half of the trade, as well as the Blazers/Sixers/Hornets portion.

Eric Gordon To Clippers, Luke Kennard To Grizzlies In Three-Team Trade

February 9th, 2023 at 10:22pm CST by Rory Maher

10:22pm: The trade is now official, according to press releases from the Rockets, Grizzlies, and Clippers.

As first reported by Kelly Iko of The Athletic and confirmed by the Rockets, the swap rights Houston got in the deal are top-six protected. So in the unlikely event that the Thunder’s and Clippers’ picks both land in the top six, the Rockets won’t be able to swap the Bucks’ first-rounder for the least favorable of those two picks.

The Rockets also confirmed that they’ve waived Boban Marjanovic to accommodate the extra incoming player in the deal. They’re expected to re-sign him once he clears waivers and Wall is released.

Andrew Greif of The Los Angeles Times (Twitter link) has the details on the three second-round picks the Clippers acquired from the Grizzlies. They are as follows:

The Raptors’ 2024 second-round pick.
Either the Pacers’ 2024 second-round pick or the least favorable of the Cavaliers’ and Jazz’s 2024 second-round picks (whichever is most favorable).
The Grizzlies’ 2027 second-round pick.

1:20pm: The Clippers have reached an agreement to acquire veteran wing Eric Gordon from the Rockets, sources tell Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link).

According to Charania, the move will be part of a three-team deal that sends Luke Kennard to the Grizzlies, with Clippers guard John Wall headed back to Houston (Twitter links). The Rockets plan to waive Wall, tweets Chris Haynes of Bleacher Report.

Danny Green will be sent from Memphis to Houston in the trade, according to Wojnarowski, who reports (via Twitter) that the Clippers are getting three second-round picks from the Grizzlies. The Rockets will also acquire the right to swap this year’s Bucks first-round pick with the Clippers’ first-rounder (or the Thunder’s first-rounder, if the Clippers pick is earlier in the draft), tweets Tim MacMahon of ESPN.

It’s an interesting trade from all sides. The Clippers have needed a guard who could drive and shoot from outside while playing decent defense, and Gordon fits that bill when he’s playing well. Gordon has been in trade rumors for years, and now he’s headed back to the Clippers, who drafted him seventh overall back in 2008.

While the Clippers took a risk by potentially losing their own first-round pick, they’ll still be guaranteed to receive the Bucks’ first-rounder and will also get three second-rounders from Memphis, which isn’t bad at all considering they arguably got the best player in the trade. Gordon, 34, makes $19.57MM this season, but his $20.92MM salary for 2023/24 is non-guaranteed.

The Rockets had long been looking for a first-round pick for Gordon, and they’re essentially swapping Milwaukee’s potential late first-round pick (it would be 28th right now) for one with higher upside — the Clippers’ would be 18th right now. The Bucks (37-17) are currently six games ahead of the Clippers (31-27), but there’s still 20-plus games remaining for both teams.

Green has been one of the NBA’s best 3-and-D wings for the better part of a decade, winning three championships with the Spurs, Raptors and Lakers. He holds a 39.9% career mark from behind the arc, but he’s 35 years old and just made his season debut this month after recovering from a torn ACL suffered in last year’s playoffs. Green will be a free agent this summer.

Wall temporarily heading back to Houston after his troubled tenure with the Rockets is an ironic twist, as he’ll be waived by the same team that bought him out in the offseason — that’s how he signed with L.A. in the first place. He didn’t find much success with the Clippers, posting a poor shooting slash line of .408/.303/.681 for a team hoping to contend.

The Grizzlies rank just 24th in the league in 3-point percentage and get one of the league’s best shooters in the 26-year-old Kennard, who holds a career mark of 42.7% on 3s, including 44.7% this season. He is not a strong defensive player, but he’s a decent complementary play-maker.

Dealing away three second-rounders for a player who is nine years younger and on a reasonable long-term contract that will pay him about $45.2MM through 2025 (the final year is a team option) makes sense. Green is a very good, albeit streaker shooter, but Kennard is elite in that regard.

Luke Adams contributed to this post.