Transactions Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Warriors Sign Jordan Poole To Four-Year Extension

October 16th, 2022 at 1:06pm CST by Luke Adams

OCTOBER 16, 1:06pm: The Warriors have officially signed Poole to his four-year extension, the team announced today in a press release.

As we detailed in a separate story, Golden State also extended Wiggins for four years after reaching a deal with Poole.

OCTOBER 15, 2:14pm: The Warriors and Poole have now reached an agreement on the extension, reports Wojnarowski (via Twitter).

The four-year extension will include $123MM in guaranteed money, with an additional $17MM available via incentives, reports Anthony Slater of The Athletic.

OCTOBER 15, 10:51am: The Warriors are finalizing a four-year rookie scale extension with guard Jordan Poole, agents Drew Morrison and Austin Brown of CAA Sports tell ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (Twitter link). The deal will be worth $140MM, according to Wojnarowski, who says the two sides are completing the final details and are expected to have a formal agreement soon.

Given that the $140MM figure is coming from Poole’s representatives, it’s possible that not all of that money is fully guaranteed and that a portion of it is only attainable through incentives. Still, it looks like it will be the biggest rookie scale extension signed this year outside of the maximum-salary deals completed by Ja Morant, Darius Garland, and Zion Williamson.

Poole’s huge new contract agreement comes on the heels of a breakout season, as he averaged 18.5 PPG, 4.0 APG, and 3.4 RPG on .448/.364/.925 shooting in 76 games (30.0 MPG) for the eventual champions.

The 23-year-old played an important role in Golden State’s title run, increasing his shooting percentages to .508/.391/.915 in 22 playoff contests (27.5 MPG) and averaging 17.0 PPG.

Poole was one of three members of the Warriors’ championship rotation who was extension-eligible and entering a potential contract year this fall. He was viewed as the team’s top priority ahead of fellow extension candidates Draymond Green and Andrew Wiggins.

A practice incident earlier this month that saw Green punch Poole seemed to add more urgency to the Warriors’ desire to get an extension done, since they wanted to affirm their commitment to Poole following that altercation, rather than having his contract situation hanging over his head all season.

Even if Poole earns a full $140MM over the next four years, that figure will fall just short of what a maximum-salary contract would’ve been worth as a restricted free agent next summer, based on the NBA’s latest salary cap forecast. As our max projections show, using a $134MM cap estimate, Poole would’ve been eligible for a four-year max worth about $150MM with the Warriors or approximately $144MM if he were to sign with another team.

It’s unclear what sort of impact Poole’s extension will have on Golden State’s extension negotiations with Wiggins and Green. Joe Lacob and the ownership group have paid record-setting amounts on player salaries and luxury tax penalties for the current roster, but the team has suggested there’s a ceiling on what ownership is prepared to spend going forward. Lucrative new contracts for both Wiggins and Green may push the cost of the Warriors’ roster beyond that ceiling.

Poole will be the seventh player to sign a rookie scale extension in 2022, joining Morant, Garland, Williamson, Tyler Herro, RJ Barrett, and Keldon Johnson. Seventeen players remain eligible to sign rookie scale extensions before Monday’s deadline.

Sixers Convert Michael Foster Jr. To Two-Way Deal, Waive Charlie Brown Jr.

October 16th, 2022 at 11:40am CST by Arthur Hill

11:40am: The Sixers have officially converted Foster’s deal to a two-way contract and waived Brown, the team announced in a press release.

9:36am: Michael Foster Jr. will receive a two-way contract with the Sixers, tweets ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski. Charlie Brown Jr. will be released from his two-way deal in a corresponding move.

Foster, a 19-year-old forward, joined the team in July on an Exhibit 10 contract after playing for G League Ignite last season. He appeared in three games during the preseason, averaging 1.7 PPG in 6.1 minutes per night.

Foster also played for the Sixers during Summer League and was considered to be one of the best players not selected in this year’s draft.

Brown, a 25-year-old shooting guard, signed a 10-day contract with Philadelphia in January and was given a two-way deal when that expired. He got into 19 games with the Sixers and averaged 1.5 points and 1.6 rebounds in limited minutes. Brown also played three games for the Mavericks last season and has spent time with the Hawks and Thunder as well.

The move likely sets Philadelphia’s roster ahead of Tuesday’s regular season opener, as the team now has 14 players on standard contracts and a pair on two-way deals. The Sixers are expected to keep one roster spot open, tweets Derek Bodner of The Athletic.

Timberwolves Sign-And-Waive Emmanuel Mudiay, Two Others

October 15th, 2022 at 8:12pm CST by Arthur Hill

The Timberwolves announced the signing of former lottery pick Emmanuel Mudiay, along with guard Matt Lewis and forward Phillip Wheeler. All three were later waived, the team tweeted.

Mudiay will join Minnesota’s G League team in Iowa, according to Jon Krawczynski of The Athletic (Twitter link), and Lewis and Wheeler will likely be headed there also. Krawczynski points out that new Timberwolves president Tim Connelly was running the Nuggets when they selected Mudiay with the seventh pick in the 2015 draft (Twitter link).

Mudiay, 26, was traded from Denver to the Knicks in 2018 and signed with the Jazz in 2019. He appeared in two games for the Kings last season after signing a 10-day contract in December and had a brief stay in Lithuania as well.

Lewis, 23, signed with the Timberwolves after going undrafted out of James Madison and played for Iowa last season. He averaged 11.1 points, 4.3 rebounds and 2.4 assists in 32 G League games.

Wheeler, 20, played eight G League games last season with Rio Grande Valley and Mexico City. He also spent part of the year in Puerto Rico. His agreement with Minnesota was originally reported in June.

Three Players Signed, Waived By Jazz

October 15th, 2022 at 7:34pm CST by Arthur Hill

The Jazz have placed forward Tyler Cook and guards Frank Jackson and Isaiah Miller on waivers, the team announced in a press release. Their signings were announced earlier today, as Andy Larsen of The Salt Lake Tribune tweets.

Cook, a 25-year-old forward, appeared in 20 games with the Bulls last season on a two-way contract. He entered the league with the Cavaliers in 2019 and has also played for the Nuggets, Pistons and Nets.

Jackson spent the past two seasons with the Pistons and played two years with the Pelicans as well. The 24-year-old guard was the 31st pick in the 2017 draft.

Miller, a 24-year-old point guard, was waived by the Trail Blazers earlier this week. He spent last season with the Iowa Wolves, Minnesota’s G League affiliate.

All three players are likely to end up with Utah’s G League team, the Salt Lake City Stars, once they clear waivers.

Raptors Sign, Waive Four Players

October 15th, 2022 at 7:00pm CST by Arthur Hill

The Raptors have signed and waived David Johnson, Reggie Perry, Christian Vital and Ryan Hawkins, tweets Blake Murphy of Sportsnet.ca. All four players got Exhibit 10 contracts and will be eligible for a bonus worth up to $50K if they spend at least 60 days with Raptors 905 in the G League.

Toronto selected Johnson with the 47th pick in the 2021 draft and signed him to a two-way contract last season. He saw minimal playing time in two NBA games, but averaged 11.5 points, 3.3 rebounds and 2.3 assists in 23 G League contests.

Perry played nine games for the Trail Blazers and one with the Pacers last season, all on 10-day contracts.

Vital joined the Raptors for Summer League action, and the team recently acquired his rights in a G League trade. Hawkins also played for Toronto’s Summer League team after going undrafted out of Creighton.

Pistons Waive Devontae Cacok, Stanley Umude

October 15th, 2022 at 6:33pm CST by Arthur Hill

The Pistons have waived forward Devontae Cacok and guard Stanley Umude, according to NBA.com’s official transactions log.

Both players held Exhibit 10 contracts and are likely to end up with Detroit’s G League affiliate, the Motor City Cruise. They will be eligible for a $50K bonus if they spend at least 60 days with the Cruise. Cacok signed with Detroit on Friday, while Umude joined the team in late September, shortly before the start of training camp.

The Pistons still have 16 players with fully guaranteed contracts, but they are expected to waive Kemba Walker before the deadline for rosters to be finalized Monday afternoon.

Hawks, Mavs, Celtics, Thunder, Spurs Make Minor Cuts

October 15th, 2022 at 6:32pm CST by Luke Adams

The Hawks, Mavericks, Celtics, Thunder, and Spurs have each waived a player who had been under contract on a non-guaranteed training camp deal, per NBA.com’s transaction log. Those cuts are as follows:

Atlanta Hawks: Jared Rhoden
Boston Celtics: Marial Shayok
Dallas Mavericks: Grant Riller
Oklahoma City Thunder: Scotty Hopson
San Antonio Spurs: Jalen Adaway

In each of these cases, the player’s stint on his team’s roster was short-lived and his deal was aimed at either securing his G League rights or ensuring that he receives a bonus worth up to $50K for returning to his old NBAGL team this season.

Adaway’s Exhibit 10 agreement with the Spurs was reported in August, but wasn’t actually completed until today — by the time we knew he had officially signed his contract, he had already been cut.

The Hawks, Celtics, and Mavericks are now in compliance with the NBA’s regular season roster limit. Atlanta and Dallas each have 14 players on standard contracts, while Boston has 15. The Mavs are expected to add Facundo Campazzo as a 15th man before the regular season begins next week.

The Thunder and Spurs still have more moves to make before their regular season rosters are set. Both teams are expected to waive players with guaranteed contracts, so there was no need to finalize those moves today, as we explained on Saturday morning.

Thunder Exercise Options For Giddey, Mann, Pokusevski

October 15th, 2022 at 6:19pm CST by Arthur Hill

The Thunder have picked up third-year options for guards Josh Giddey and Tre Mann and a fourth-year option for forward Aleksej Pokusevski, the team announced in a press release.

Giddey, the sixth pick in last year’s draft, is now locked into a $6,587,040 salary for the 2023/24 season. He was a member of the All-Rookie Second Team last season and was named Western Conference Rookie of the Month four times. He averaged 12.5 points, 7.8 rebounds and 6.4 assists in 54 games before a hip issue ended his season in February.

Mann, a part-time starter last season, will earn $3,191,400 in 2023/24. He averaged 10.4 points, 2.9 rebounds and 1.5 assists and ranked among the top 10 rookies in three-point percentage, free throw percentage and points scored.

Pokusevski will make $5,009,633 for the 2023/24 season and will be eligible for restricted free agency that summer. The 17th pick in the 2020 draft, Pokusevski averaged 7.6 points, 5.2 rebounds and 2.1 assists last season.

Bucks Cut Lindell Wigginton, Marques Bolden

October 15th, 2022 at 6:11pm CST by Luke Adams

The Bucks have waived guard Lindell Wigginton and center Marques Bolden as they prepare for the regular season, per NBA.com’s transaction log.

Wigginton, 24, played 19 games (10.5 MPG) as a rookie for Milwaukee last season while on a two-way contract, averaging 4.2 PPG, 1.3 RPG and 1.2 APG. The Canadian point guard spent most of last season with the Bucks’ G League affiliate, the Wisconsin Herd, averaging 16.7 PPG, 5.1 RPG and 4.9 APG in 25 total games.

Bolden, 24, has spent most of his professional career in the G League since going undrafted out of Duke in 2019. In 69 career appearances for the Cavaliers’ and Jazz’s NBAGL affiliates, he has averaged 10.2 PPG, 7.4 RPG, and 1.6 BPG in 23.1 minutes per contest. The big man also spent time in the NBA with Cleveland from 2019-21, first on a 10-day contract and later on a two-way deal, playing a very limited role in seven games for the Cavs.

The Bucks also signed and waived former second-round pick Elijah Hughes today, per NBA.com. That move will secure Hughes’ G League rights for the Wisconsin Herd, Milwaukee’s affiliate.

Hughes spent most of his first two NBA seasons in Utah, playing sparingly for the Jazz, then was traded to Portland along with Joe Ingles at the 2022 deadline. He averaged 3.8 PPG and 1.9 RPG with a dismal .296/.224/.667 shooting line in 22 games (14.6 MPG) for the Blazers down the stretch.

The Bucks now have 15 players on standard guaranteed contracts and a pair on two-way deals, so they’re set for the regular season.

Spurs Waive Alize Johnson

October 15th, 2022 at 6:04pm CST by Arthur Hill

The Spurs have placed Alize Johnson on waivers, tweets Michael Scotto of Hoops Hype.

The move was confirmed by Tom Orsborne of The San Antonio Express-News (Twitter link), who adds that the team still has one roster cut to make before Monday afternoon’s deadline. He points to Joe Wieskamp and Romeo Langford as being “on the bubble.”

Johnson joined the Spurs in August on a training camp deal. It was non-guaranteed and included an Exhibit 9 clause, which carries fewer protections than the more common Exhibit 10.

The 26-year-old power forward started last season with the Bulls before being waived in mid-December. He signed a 10-day contract with the Wizards later that month, then inked a pair of 10-day deals with the Pelicans in March. He played 23 combined games with the three teams, averaging 1.8 points and 2.7 rebounds in 7.3 minutes per night.

Johnson broke into the league with the Pacers, who made him the 50th pick in the 2018 draft. He also spent time with the Nets.