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Nuggets To Trade Bones Hyland To Clippers

February 9th, 2023 at 12:58pm CST by Luke Adams

The Nuggets have agreed to trade second-year guard Bones Hyland to the Clippers, reports ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (via Twitter). Denver will receive L.A.’s 2024 and 2025 second-round picks in the swap, according to Wojnarowski (Twitter link).

Hyland had been on the trade block in Denver in recent weeks due in part to tension between the 22-year-old and the Nuggets’ coaching staff about his playing time. Multiple reports indicated that Hyland would welcome a change of scenery if it gave him the opportunity to take on a more significant role elsewhere.

He’ll get his change of scenery, though it’s unclear whether Hyland will get a significant bump in minutes on a deep Clippers team that has championship aspirations. Still, L.A. had been in the market for another play-maker in the backcourt and will acquire a promising one in Hyland, who averaged 12.1 PPG and 3.0 APG on .399/.378/.866 shooting in 41 games (19.5 MPG) for the Nuggets this season.

Because he’s only in the second year of his rookie contract, Hyland will remain under team control for two seasons beyond this one at a very reasonable rate ($2.3MM in 2023/24; $4.2MM in ’24/25). He’ll be eligible for a rookie scale extension during the 2024 offseason and would be a restricted free agent in 2025 if he hasn’t signed a new deal by that point.

The Nuggets had been hoping to acquire a first-round pick or a defensive-minded wing in exchange for Hyland, but will have to settle for a pair of second-rounders for an asset whose value may have dipped as of late. Hyland was a DNP-CD in Denver’s last four games leading up to the trade deadline.

The Clippers have an open spot on their roster and have a trade exception available to absorb Hyland’s $2.2MM salary, so they won’t have to send a player to the Nuggets to complete this deal. That means Denver should open up a spot on their own 15-man squad.

Timberwolves To Waive Bryn Forbes

February 9th, 2023 at 12:52pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Timberwolves are waiving guard Bryn Forbes, Jon Krawczynski of The Athletic tweets.

Minnesota needed to open up a roster spot to complete the agreed-upon three-team trade with the Lakers and Jazz. The Timberwolves are trading D’Angelo Russell to Los Angeles and bringing in guards Mike Conley and Nickeil Alexander-Walker,

Forbes was on a one-year, veteran’s minimum contract, so waiving him will not have any implications beyond this season.

The 29-year-old hadn’t seen much playing time with Minnesota. He appeared in 24 games off the bench, averaging 3.3 points in 10.6 minutes. Forbes appeared in a combined 75 regular season games with San Antonio and Denver last season.

A career 40.9 percent 3-point shooter, Forbes could be an interesting option for a contender looking for bench help once he clears waivers.

Raptors Acquire Jakob Poeltl From Spurs

February 9th, 2023 at 12:07pm CST by Arthur Hill

FEBRUARY 9: The trade is now official, the Raptors have announced in a press release.

FEBRUARY 8: The Spurs have agreed to trade center Jakob Poeltl to the Raptors in exchange for Khem Birch and draft assets, tweets ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski.

Sources tell Wojnarowski that San Antonio will receive the Raptors’ protected first-rounder in 2024, along with two future second-round picks. According to Michael Scotto of HoopsHype, the 2024 first-rounder will be top-six protected through 2026, while the second-rounders will be Toronto’s own in 2023 and 2025.

The ninth overall pick in the 2016 draft, Poeltl began his career in Toronto before being included in the blockbuster deal that sent Kawhi Leonard to the Raptors during the 2018 offseason.

He has spent the last four-and-a-half seasons in San Antonio and has steadily grown into a more well-rounded big man during that time, showing the ability to protect the rim on defense and to be a solid screen-setter and complementary scorer on offense.

Poeltl has played his best basketball since the start of the 2021/22 season, averaging 12.9 points, 9.2 rebounds, 2.9 assists, and 1.5 blocks per night in 113 games (27.8 MPG) during that stretch.

The center’s strong play made him a popular trade candidate this season for the Spurs, who are in the midst of a rebuild and are very much lottery-bound — their record dropped to 14-41 on Wednesday as a loss in Toronto extended their current losing streak to 10 games.

San Antonio was said to be seeking a pair of first-round picks for Poeltl, but will have to settle for a single first-rounder and two seconds for the 27-year-old, who will be an unrestricted free agent this summer after earning $9.4MM this season and is considered likely to warrant a commitment in the range of $15-20MM per year.

According to Wojnarowski (via Twitter), the Raptors – who have been in the market for a reliable center since the departures of Marc Gasol and Serge Ibaka in 2020 – intend to sign Poeltl to a new contract this summer. They’ll control his Bird rights, giving them the ability to offer him any amount up to the maximum without any cap restrictions.

It’s a fascinating move for a Raptors team that has been widely considered a probable seller leading up to Thursday’s trade deadline, with veterans like Fred VanVleet, Gary Trent Jr., and OG Anunoby frequently mentioned in trade rumors.

Previous reports had indicated that Toronto was generating some confusion among rival teams who were trying to figure out the club’s path at the deadline, and there was a sense that Masai Ujiri and his front office wouldn’t completely hit the reset button on the current roster.

More trades could come, since VanVleet and Trent can reach free agency this summer and the Raptors still have a glut of wings, but for now, they’ve at least addressed their hole at center and don’t appear prepared to throw in the towel on this season.

As for the Spurs, they continue to stockpile future first-round picks after acquiring a few last offseason as part of the return for Dejounte Murray. The expectation is that they’ll gather even more draft assets before Thursday’s deadline arrives, per Wojnarowski (Twitter link). Josh Richardson and Doug McDermott are among the veteran trade candidates still on the roster.

It’s unclear whether Birch will be part of the Spurs’ plans going forward. The 30-year-old center has appeared in just 20 games this season, averaging career lows in points (2.2), rebounds (1.3), and minutes (8.1) per contest. He’s earning approximately $6.7MM this season and has a guaranteed salary of nearly $7MM for 2023/24, so even if he’s waived before the fall, he would cut into San Antonio’s projected ’23 cap room.

Following the deal, the Spurs remain $25.6MM below the cap and $15.7MM under the salary floor for this season, according to ESPN’s Bobby Marks (Twitter links).

Luke Adams contributed to this story.

Matisse Thybulle To Blazers, Jalen McDaniels To Sixers In Three-Team Trade

February 9th, 2023 at 11:40am CST by Luke Adams

The Trail Blazers are in the process of finalizing a trade for Sixers defensive ace Matisse Thybulle, reports Chris Haynes of Bleacher Report (Twitter link).

According to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (Twitter links), it’ll be a three-team deal that also includes the Hornets, with forward Jalen McDaniels headed to Philadelphia and Charlotte acquiring multiple second-round picks. Veteran wing Svi Mykhailiuk, whom the Blazers agreed to acquire in the Josh Hart trade with New York, will be flipped to the Hornets in this deal, Woj adds (Twitter links).

Bobby Marks of ESPN (Twitter links) provides the full breakdown of the agreement:

Sixers to acquire McDaniels, the Knicks’ 2024 second-round pick (from Charlotte), and the Trail Blazers’ 2029 second-round pick.
Blazers to acquire Thybulle.
Hornets to acquire the most favorable of the Hornets’, Hawks’, and Nets’ 2023 second-round picks (from Philadelphia), the most favorable of the Pelicans’ and Blazers’ 2027 second-round picks (from Portland), and Mykhailiuk (from Portland).

In addition to adding a couple of second-round picks and a versatile forward in McDaniels, the Sixers will also dip under the luxury tax line with this move — they were previously $1.1MM over, but by swapping Thybulle ($4.38MM) for McDaniels ($1.93MM), they’ll now be about $1.35MM under.

McDaniels, 25, is having the most productive season of his four-year career. Through 56 games with Charlotte (21 starts, 26.7 MPG), he held averages of 10.6 PPG, 4.8 RPG, 2.0 APG and 1.2 SPG on .447/.332/.846 shooting. The former 52nd overall pick will be an unrestricted free agent in the summer, but the Sixers will hold his Bird rights if they want to re-sign him.

Jake Fischer of Yahoo Sports reported last month that the Blazers were targeting players athletic players with size and 3-and-D wings. While Thybulle isn’t a great shooter, he is a terrific athlete and was named to the All-Defensive Second Team in two of his first three seasons, so he fulfills some of what they were looking for.

Like Cam Reddish, whom the Blazers acquired in the Josh Hart deal, Thybulle will be a restricted free agent in the summer if Portland extends him a qualifying offer. The defensive stalwart was the 20th overall pick back in 2019.

Evidently the Hornets decided they didn’t want to pay McDaniels in the offseason and instead chose to add a couple of second-round picks. While they did give up one (New York’s 2024 pick), they also received two in return, with their own pick almost certain to come back to them (the Sixers controlled it from a previous trade). That pick will land in the early 30s, so it has solid value.

Mykhaliuk was also sent to Portland in the Hart deal and will now be rerouted to Charlotte. He has hardly played this season, but the Hornets will get a cheap flyer on him if they want to keep him around — he was drafted by GM Mitch Kupchak back in 2016 when the two were with the Lakers.

Rory Maher contributed to this post.

Lakers To Trade Thomas Bryant To Nuggets

February 9th, 2023 at 11:10am CST by Luke Adams

The Lakers and Nuggets have agreed to a trade that will send center Thomas Bryant to Denver in exchange for swingman Davon Reed and three second-round picks, reports Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN (Twitter link).

According to Wojnarowski (via Twitter), the second-round picks are Denver’s own in 2025, 2026, and 2029. The Nuggets have now traded away all their second-rounders between 2025 and 2029.

Bryant, who signed a minimum-salary contract with the Lakers in the offseason, has filled in admirably as the Lakers’ starting center during Anthony Davis‘ injury absences this season, but has only played a modest backup role when Davis is healthy.

In 41 games (25 starts), Bryant has averaged 12.1 points and 6.8 rebounds in 21.4 minutes per contest. His .654% FG% is a career high, as is his .440 3PT% (albeit on limited volume).

Still, as long as Davis stays healthy, Bryant’s value to the Lakers wasn’t substantial, especially with newly acquired forward Jarred Vanderbilt expected to spend some time playing as a small-ball five. Los Angeles also has veteran big man Wenyen Gabriel for depth purposes up front and would have been limited in its ability to give Bryant a raise as a free agent this summer since the team only controlled his Non-Bird rights.

On top of all that, Bryant hadn’t been thrilled with his reduced role following Davis’ return, according to Ramona Shelburne of ESPN, who tweets that he asked the Lakers to look for a better situation for him.

It’s unclear if Reed will be in the Lakers’ plans going forward. He’s on a minimum-salary contract with a non-guaranteed salary in 2023/24 and hasn’t played much in Denver this season, averaging 2.3 PPG and 1.6 RPG on .313/.364/.750 shooting in 35 appearances (9.0 MPG). The second-round picks are the primary return for L.A. in the deal, essentially replacing the three second-rounders the club gave up for Rui Hachimura last month.

As for the Nuggets, they’ve been in the market for a reliable backup center behind two-time MVP Nikola Jokic, since offseason signee DeAndre Jordan hasn’t been a regular part of the rotation. Bryant should fill that role nicely, giving the team some extra frontcourt depth as it focuses on making a deep playoff run this spring.

As Bobby Marks of ESPN tweets, both teams will create small trade exceptions equivalent to the salaries of their outgoing players ($1.9MM for Denver; $1.84MM for L.A.). Neither the Nuggets nor the Lakers have to worry about salary-matching in the deal, since both players can be absorbed using the minimum salary exception.

Nets, Suns Agree On Kevin Durant Trade

February 9th, 2023 at 12:11am CST by Arthur Hill

The Suns will acquire Kevin Durant from the Nets in exchange for Mikal Bridges, Cameron Johnson, four first-round picks and more draft consideration, tweets Shams Charania of The Athletic.

Jae Crowder, who has been sitting out since training camp in hopes of being traded, will also go to Brooklyn in the deal, Charania adds (Twitter link).

ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski reports (via Twitter) that Nets forward T.J. Warren will be part of the trade as well, and the additional draft consideration is a first-round pick swap in 2028. According to Woj, Durant wanted to be dealt to Phoenix, and new Suns owner Mat Ishbia pushed to get the deal completed tonight.

Brooklyn will receive unprotected first-rounders in 2023, 2025, 2027 and 2029, a source tells Wojnarowski. The trade will help to replenish the Nets’ draft assets after they sent multiple picks and pick swaps to Houston to acquire James Harden in 2021.

The Suns were on Durant’s short list of preferred destinations when he issued a trade demand last summer. Although Phoenix was among the teams that submitted offers to Brooklyn, no progress was made at the time and Durant eventually rescinded the demand before the start of training camp.

At age 34, Durant remains among the league’s best players, averaging 29.7 points, 6.7 rebounds and 5.3 assists per game while lifting the Nets into a tight race for the best record in the East before suffering a sprained MCL in his right knee last month. Durant is expected to be sidelined until after the All-Star break, but Brooklyn coach Jacque Vaughn said he received “a really good report” from doctors this week.

Durant still has three seasons remaining on the four-year extension he signed with the Nets in 2021, which led to speculation that the team didn’t feel any immediate pressure to trade him. Brooklyn had reportedly been telling teams that have called about Durant that he wasn’t being made available before the deadline.

A 13-time All-Star, Durant will earn $46.4MM, $49.9MM and $53.5MM over the next three seasons. He will team with Devin Booker, Chris Paul, Deandre Ayton, and the Suns’ remaining assets in hopes of bringing a title to Phoenix. Ironically, there was a report earlier this week that the Suns offered Paul to Brooklyn in hopes of landing Kyrie Irving.

The Durant-Irving pairing that seemed to make the Nets an instant contender when they both signed as free agents in 2019 will officially end with trades just a few days apart. Injuries limited their time on the court together, even when Harden was added to form a Big Three, and they managed to win just one playoff series as teammates, although they had a narrow loss to the eventual champion Bucks in 2021.

The Nets no longer have elite talent on their roster, but Bridges and Johnson have both been valuable during their time in Phoenix, and they join a team that has managed to remain competitive even with Durant and Irving in and out of the lineup.

Bridges, 26, is a strong defender and long-distance shooter and is under contract for three more years at a total of about $70MM. Johnson, also 26, is an elite three-point shooter who is headed for free agency this summer. The Nets can make him restricted with a qualifying offer worth around $8MM.

The trade ends Crowder’s long standoff with Phoenix, but Brooklyn may not be his final stop before the deadline. Wojnarowski tweets that the Nets plan to explore opportunities to move him to other teams.

The deal provides a homecoming for Warren, who spent his first five seasons with the Suns. He signed with Brooklyn in July and has managed to bounce back after missing most of the past two seasons with left foot issues.

Trail Blazers To Trade Josh Hart To Knicks

February 8th, 2023 at 10:42pm CST by Arthur Hill

The Knicks have reached an agreement to acquire Josh Hart from the Trail Blazers, tweets ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski. Portland will receive Cam Reddish and a first-round pick as part of the return.

Hart has an expiring $12.96MM contract, while Reddish is earning $5.95MM in the final year of his rookie deal, so at least one more player has to be included to match salaries.

Sources tell Michael Scotto of HoopsHype that Svi Mykhailiuk ($1.97MM) and Ryan Arcidiacono ($2.13MM) are also headed to the Blazers (Twitter link), which will satisfy the NBA’s matching rules.

The pick that New York is giving up is lottery protected for 2023, per Wojnarowski (Twitter link). If it doesn’t convey this year, it will turn into four future second-round picks. That’s presumably the Knicks’ own first-round pick, since the protection terms don’t match up with the other first-rounders they control.

New York appeared to be a late entry into the bidding for Hart, with the first rumors of a deal appearing earlier today. His toughness and tenacity on defense seem to make him a natural fit for coach Tom Thibodeau. The Cavaliers and Heat were among the other teams reported to have interest in trading for Hart.

The 27-year-old wing is expected to decline his $12.96MM option this summer and seek a long-term deal in free agency. He has been part of the starting lineup in Portland since the Blazers acquired him at last year’s trade deadline, and he’s averaging 9.5 points, 8.2 rebounds and 3.9 assists in 51 games this season.

The Knicks gave up a protected first-round pick last February to acquire Reddish, but he has fallen out of favor and hasn’t played since December 3. The 10th selection in the 2019 draft has washed out in Atlanta and New York, but he will have two months to audition for the Blazers, who can make him a restricted free agent with a $7.7MM qualifying offer.

Mykhailiuk, who signed a non-guaranteed deal with New York shortly before the start of training camp, has seen minimal playing time in 13 games.

Arcidiacono has played even less than his teammate, appearing in just 11 games and logging 26 total minutes in 2022/23. Due to the terms of his contract, he had the ability to veto any trade that involves him, but he has signed off on this one, tweets Ian Begley of SNY.tv.

The Trail Blazers will gain some cap relief as a result of the deal and will move well clear of the luxury tax line after flirting with it for much of the season. Assuming no players are added to the deal and it remains a three-for-one swap, Portland will have to cut a player from its 15-man roster to make room for the newcomers.

Heat Sign Jamaree Bouyea To 10-Day Deal

February 8th, 2023 at 2:46pm CST by Rory Maher

FEBRUARY 8: The Heat have made it official, announcing a press release that they’ve signed Bouyea to a 10-day contract.

FEBRUARY 7: The Heat plan to sign Jamaree Bouyea to a 10-day contract, sources tell Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link).

Bouyea, 23, went undrafted last June after a five-year college career with San Francisco. He signed an Exhibit 10 deal with the Heat in mid-July and played for the Heat’s Summer League squad.

The 6’2″ point guard was waived before the regular season started and has spent his entire rookie year with the Sioux Falls Skyforce, the Heat’s G League affiliate.

During the Showcase Cup, which ended in December, Bouyea averaged 15.1 PPG, 7.3 RPG, 6.1 APG and 2.4 SPG on .493/.306/.654 shooting in 16 games (35.5 MPG). He has averaged 18.3 PPG, 4.9 RPG, 5.6 APG and 1.4 SPG on .520/.286/.735 shooting during 16 regular season games for the Skyforce (33.4 MPG).

The Heat announced (via Twitter) earlier on Tuesday that Kyle Lowry will miss at least three games with knee soreness, so Bouyea could get some minutes during his 10-day deal.

Miami traded Dewayne Dedmon to the Spurs in a salary dump, and already had a roster opening, so no subsequent moves will be required to sign Bouyea.

Kings Acquire Kessler Edwards From Nets

February 7th, 2023 at 6:05pm CST by Luke Adams

6:05pm: The trade is now official, the Nets announced in a press release. Brooklyn received the draft rights to David Michineau, who currently plays for Napoli Basket in Italy’s Lega Basket Serie A, to complete the deal.

3:39pm: The Kings and Nets have finalized an agreement, a league source tells James Ham of The Kings Beat (Twitter links). Ham confirms that Sacramento will end Burton’s 10-day contract a little early to open up a roster spot for Edwards.

2:54am: The Kings and Nets are close to reaching an agreement on a trade that would send forward Kessler Edwards to Sacramento, reports Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link).

According to Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN (Twitter link), the deal will send Edwards and cash to Sacramento. It’s essentially a salary dump, since moving off Edwards’ minimum-salary contract will save the Nets approximately $8MM in salary and tax money in addition to opening up a roster spot, per Wojnarowski.

As Wojnarowski notes, Edwards must sign off on the trade, since the terms of his deal with Brooklyn give him the ability to veto a trade. He intends to approve it, according to Woj (Twitter link).

The 44th overall pick in the 2021 draft, Edwards signed a two-year contract with the Nets this past offseason after spending his rookie year on a two-way deal that includes a second-year team option. He showed promise in a limited role last season, averaging 5.9 PPG and 3.6 RPG on .412/.353/.842 shooting.

However, Edwards hasn’t seen regular playing time in 2022/23, logging 79 total minutes across 14 contests. He has scored just 15 points on 6-of-24 (25.0%) shooting for the season.

It’s unclear whether Edwards will finish the season with Sacramento. According to Wojnarowski, the club’s plan for now is to give him the opportunity to play for its G League team, the Stockton Kings, but Woj says his future remains “fluid” with two days to go until the trade deadline. It sounds like if Sacramento needs to open a roster spot at the deadline, Edwards would probably be the odd man out.

The Kings technically have a full 15-man roster for now, but one of those spots is occupied by Deonte Burton, who is on a 10-day contract that expires Wednesday night. His deal may be terminated a little early to accommodate the acquisition of Edwards.

As for the Nets, they’ll create a trade exception worth approximately $1.6MM (Edwards’ salary), but the financial savings and the newly opened roster spot will likely end up being more valuable than that exception.

Heat Trade Dedmon, Second-Round Pick To Spurs

February 7th, 2023 at 1:53pm CST by Luke Adams

1:53pm: The Spurs have officially acquired Dedmon and the Heat’s 2028 second-round pick from Miami in exchange for cash considerations, they announced in a press release.

As Bobby Marks of ESPN tweets, the belief is that the Heat are getting $110K, which is the minimum amount a team can send or receive in a trade.

10:25am: The Heat and Spurs have agreed to a trade that will send center Dewayne Dedmon to San Antonio along with a future second-round pick, reports Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link). The second-rounder will be Miami’s 2028 pick, per Anthony Chiang of The Miami Herald (Twitter link).

Dedmon, 33, re-signed with the Heat last summer and began the season as the club’s primary backup center behind Bam Adebayo. However, he lost his spot in the rotation to two-way rookie Orlando Robinson and was suspended for one game by Miami last month for a sideline outburst. The Heat had reportedly been shopping him in trade talks in recent weeks.

For the season, Dedmon has averaged 5.7 points and 3.6 rebounds per game in 30 appearances (11.7 MPG).

The Spurs remain well below the salary cap (and floor), giving them the ability to take on Dedmon’s $4.7MM salary without sending out any players of their own. They also have an open spot on their 15-man roster, so no corresponding move will be necessary to create room for Dedmon.

From the Spurs’ perspective, the deal essentially comes down to sacrificing some of their cap space for the rights to a future draft pick. Dedmon’s $4.3MM salary for 2023/24 is non-guaranteed, so he’s a good bet to be waived after the trade is official — San Antonio won’t owe him any money beyond this season.

For Miami, the move generates additional roster and cap flexibility. The Heat have spent the season carrying just 14 players, with a team salary about $200K below the luxury tax line. Moving Dedmon will give the team significantly more breathing room below the tax threshold to make trades or signings.

Even if the Heat don’t need that flexibility this week for a pre-deadline deal, they’ll have the ability to sign free agents to fill both their 14th and 15th roster spots without having to worry about becoming a taxpayer. Robinson is a candidate to be promoted to the standard roster to claim one of those openings.

Teams are permitted to carry below 14 players on standard contracts for up to two weeks at a time, so the Heat would have 14 days to add a 14th man after the trade becomes official.

To make the trade legal, the Spurs will have to send something to Miami, but since this is essentially just a salary dump, San Antonio’s outgoing piece is unlikely to be anything of real value — it could be a heavily protected draft pick, the rights to a draft-and-stash player who won’t ever play in the NBA, or a small amount of cash. Tim Reynolds of The Associated Press (Twitter link) hears that it’ll be the latter.

The Heat will generate a trade exception worth $4.7MM (Dedmon’s salary) as a result of the deal.