Transactions Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Bucks Waive Sandro Mamukelashvili

March 1st, 2023 at 10:49pm CST by Rory Maher

10:49pm: Mamukelashvili has officially been waived, the Bucks announced in a press release.

4:06pm: The Bucks will waive big man Sandro Mamukelashvili, sources tell Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link).

According to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (Twitter link), Milwaukee worked with Mamukelashvili’s agents to try and help with his options in the future. We’ll have to wait and see whether the young forward/center has another opportunity lined up if he clears waivers.

After spending four college seasons at Seton Hall, Mamukelashvili was selected 54th overall in the 2021 draft. He has spent the past two seasons on a two-way contract with the Bucks, but his playing time was very limited at the NBA level — he averaged 3.2 PPG and 2.1 RPG on .439/.345/.750 shooting in 65 games (9.6 MPG) from 2021-23.

The Bucks have one of league’s best frontcourts, so it’s understandable why the 23-year-old’s minutes were limited. Still, he put up strong numbers in the G League with the Wisconsin Herd this season, averaging 23.3 PPG, 13.0 RPG, 4.8 APG, 1.0 SPG and 1.0 BPG on .486/.471/.667 shooting in four regular season games (36.5 MPG).

Once Mamukelashvili is officially waived, the Bucks will have one two-way slot open. They also have a couple of standard roster spots available; Meyers Leonard is temporarily occupying one, but his 10-day deal expires in a couple days.

Wizards Waive Vernon Carey Jr.

March 1st, 2023 at 2:40pm CST by Luke Adams

The Wizards have officially waived big man Vernon Carey Jr., the team announced today in a press release.

Carey, who turned 22 on Saturday, has appeared in just 11 games this season for the Wizards and 14 overall since joining the team at the 2022 trade deadline in the Montrezl Harrell deal. The former Duke standout, who was drafted 32nd overall by the Hornets in 2020, has played in 37 total games for Charlotte and Washington, with career averages of 1.9 PPG and 1.4 RPG in 5.1 MPG.

Carey’s contract covered one additional season beyond this one, but the Wizards held a minimum-salary team option for 2023/24. By releasing him, Washington is essentially declining that option and will only be on the hook for the rest of this season’s $1.78MM salary, assuming Carey is not claimed on waivers.

The move will create an opening on the Wizards’ 15-man roster for another addition, and the club still has enough breathing room below the luxury tax line after signing Jordan Goodwin to fill that spot without becoming a taxpayer. Washington also still has an open two-way contract slot.

As for Carey, because he’s being waived on March 1, he’ll be playoff-eligible if he catches on with another NBA team. Given his lack of meaningful NBA experience though, it seems unlikely that he’ll be targeted by contenders.

Pistons Buy Out Nerlens Noel

February 28th, 2023 at 4:39pm CST by Dana Gauruder

FEBRUARY 28: Noel has been placed on waivers, the team’s PR department tweets.

FEBRUARY 27: Nerlens Noel and the Pistons have completed a contract buyout, ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski tweets. Noel will now be placed on waivers before Wednesday’s deadline to preserve his playoff eligibility.

Acquired from the Knicks in a draft-day deal, Noel played sparingly this season as Detroit evaluated younger players. He only appeared in 14 games, averaging 2.3 PPG and 2.6 RPG in 10.9 MPG.

Noel, who has played for Philadelphia, Dallas and Oklahoma City, had a $9.24MM salary this season with a club option for $9.68MM next season. That team option will come off the Pistons’ books and this season’s cap hit also figures to be reduced slightly.

Noel reportedly wasn’t actively seeking out a buyout earlier this month but obviously changed his mind. He’s expected to have multiple contenders pursuing his services once he clears waivers.

As ESPN’s Bobby Marks notes (Twitter link), Noel is the 10th player to be bought out since the trade deadline.

Detroit now has an open roster spot, though the club doesn’t necessarily have to fill it right away.

Raptors Sign Will Barton, Waive Juancho Hernangomez

February 28th, 2023 at 3:56pm CST by Luke Adams

3:56pm: The Raptors have officially signed Barton and waived Hernangomez, the team announced in a press release.

2:35pm: The Raptors are making a change to their 15-man roster, having reached an agreement to sign veteran swingman Will Barton, according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (via Twitter).

Shams Charania of The Athletic reports (via Twitter) that the team is waiving Juancho Hernangomez to create an opening for Barton.

Barton became a free agent last week after he reached a buyout agreement with the Wizards. Having been packaged with Monte Morris in an offseason trade that sent Kentavious Caldwell-Pope and Ish Smith to Denver, Barton had a disappointing season for his hometown team in D.C., averaging just 7.7 points per game on 38.7% shooting in 40 appearances (19.6 MPG).

Still, Barton’s three-point shooting remained strong (38.0%) in 2022/23 and he had several solid years with the Nuggets before last summer’s trade. The 32-year-old will add some depth to a Raptors team that has lacked consistent bench production this season. Toronto also ranks just 27th in the NBA in three-point shooting percentage (33.5%), so signing Barton will give the team another outside threat.

Hernangomez, who starred as Bo Cruz in the Netflix film Hustle, was seeing regular minutes for the Raptors earlier this season, but struggled to produce consistently and had fallen out of the rotation in recent weeks. Although the 6’9″ forward has been effective as a stretch four in past years, he made a career-low 25.4% of his three-point attempts in Toronto, averaging just 2.9 PPG and 2.9 RPG in 42 appearances (14.6 MPG).

Because he’ll be waived by March 1, Hernangomez will retain his playoff eligibility in the event that he signs with another NBA team before the end of the regular season.

As Blake Murphy of Sportsnet.ca notes (via Twitter), because his deal will only cover the last few weeks of the season, the Raptors are in position to stay narrowly below the luxury tax line after signing Barton.

Bulls Waive Goran Dragic

February 28th, 2023 at 2:56pm CST by Luke Adams

The Bulls have officially waived veteran guard Goran Dragic, the team announced today in a press release.

The move was a mutual decision made by the Bulls and Dragic, and had been in the works since the team added Patrick Beverley, sources tell K.C. Johnson of NBC Sports Chicago (Twitter link).

There was some speculation at the time of Beverley’s signing last week that Dragic would be the player released to make room on the 15-man roster for the newcomer, but Chicago cut center Tony Bradley instead. Now, the Bulls have an open roster spot and are in position to sign another player before the end of the regular season.

Dragic, 36, inked a one-year, minimum-salary contract with the Bulls last summer and had been part of the club’s point guard rotation for most of the season, averaging 6.4 points, 2.7 assists, and 1.4 rebounds per night on .425/.352/.659 shooting in 51 games (15.4 MPG). However, he looked like the odd man out following Beverley’s arrival.

Because he was waived before March 1, Dragic will be playoff-eligible if he signs with another NBA team between now and the last day of the regular season. It’s also possible he could be claimed on waivers, since any team could absorb his contract using the minimum salary exception. A club placing a claim would have to be willing to take on Dragic’s full $1.84MM cap hit and would owe him the money left on that contract.

Assuming Dragic clears waivers, his $1.84MM cap charge will stay on the Bulls’ books and Chicago’s team salary would remain about $1.2MM below the luxury tax line, tweets ESPN’s Bobby Marks. That gives the club more than enough room to sign a player to a rest-of-season minimum-salary deal to fill Dragic’s roster spot.

Knicks Sign Duane Washington To Two-Way Deal

February 28th, 2023 at 12:21pm CST by Luke Adams

12:21pm: The Knicks have officially signed Washington to a two-way contract, the team announced today (press release via Twitter). As Bobby Marks of ESPN tweets, Washington will be eligible to be active for up to 12 regular season games.

9:14am: The Knicks intend to fill one of the open slots on their 17-man roster by signing guard Duane Washington Jr. to a two-way contract, reports Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN (Twitter link).

Washington, who played for the Pacers as a rookie after going undrafted out of Ohio State in 2021, signed a two-way contract with the Suns last August and spent the first half of the 2022/23 season with Phoenix before being waived at the start of February.

Washington had several strong outings for the Suns in his second NBA season, including four games of 21 points or more. In total, he averaged 7.9 PPG and 2.0 APG in 31 appearances (12.7 MPG) while making 36.0% of his three-point attempts. The team cut him in order to sign Saben Lee to a two-way deal.

The Knicks have been on a roll lately and don’t have any open spots in their rotation, so it’s unclear whether Washington will any real action at the NBA level once he signs with New York. He could end up spending much of his time with the Westchester Knicks as the G League season enters its home stretch.

Having promoted Trevor Keels from his two-way contract to a 10-day deal last week, the Knicks have an open two-way slot alongside DaQuan Jeffries. New York also still has the flexibility to continue making changes to its standard 15-man roster — after Keels’ 10-day contract expires this weekend, the team will be carrying just 13 players on standard deals.

Willie Cauley-Stein Signs 10-Day Deal With Rockets

February 27th, 2023 at 5:50pm CST by Arthur Hill

5:50pm: Cauley-Stein’s 10-day contract with Houston is now official, the team announced in a press release. It will run through March 8, covering the Rockets’ next five games.

9:33am: The Rockets will sign veteran center Willie Cauley-Stein to a 10-day contract, tweets Shams Charania of The Athletic.

Cauley-Stein signed with Houston in October, but was waived before the start of the regular season. He has been playing for the team’s G League affiliate in Rio Grande Valley, averaging 9.4 points and 6.2 rebounds in 10 regular season games and 6.0 points and 6.4 rebounds in 16 Showcase Cup contests.

The 29-year-old appeared in 20 combined games with the Mavericks and Sixers last season. He was waived by Dallas in mid-January and signed a 10-day contract with Philadelphia in late February, but has been out of the league since then.

Cauley-Stein was selected by the Kings with the sixth pick in the 2015 draft and has played 422 games in seven seasons.

The Rockets have been carrying just 13 players with standard contracts since waiving Justin Holiday on February 13. They were required by league rules to fill at least one of their roster openings by today.

Lindy Waters III Signs Two-Year Deal With Thunder

February 27th, 2023 at 2:23pm CST by Arthur Hill

2:23pm: Waters’ promotion to a standard deal is now official, the Thunder announced in a press release.

11:17am: Two-way guard Lindy Waters III will receive a standard contract with the Thunder, tweets Shams Charania of The Athletic. The two-year deal will be worth $3.8MM and will include a team option for 2023/24.

Waters, 25, has been playing on a two-way contract since last February. The former Oklahoma State standout has appeared in 25 games this season, averaging 4.4 points and 1.7 rebounds in 11.2 minutes per night.

Waters is coming off one of his best games, scoring 12 points in 17 minutes on Sunday against the Kings. That came after he played in a G League contest with the Oklahoma City Blue earlier in the day, notes Joe Mussatto of The Oklahoman.

Based on the contract terms reported by Charania, it sounds like the Thunder will use a portion of their mid-level exception to give Waters a salary worth more than the minimum for the rest of this season.

The Thunder opened a roster spot late last night by waiving Eugene Omoruyi.

Thunder Waive Eugene Omoruyi

February 27th, 2023 at 8:53am CST by Arthur Hill

The Thunder opened a roster spot by waiving second-year forward Eugene Omoruyi, the team announced in a press release.

Omoruyi, 26, signed a two-way contract with Oklahoma City last summer and was converted to a standard deal earlier this month. His new contract ran through 2023/24, but the second season was non-guaranteed.

The Thunder wanted roster flexibility and the decision came down to Omoruyi or Dario Saric, tweets Joe Mussatto of The Oklahoman. The team opted to hold onto Saric, who was acquired from the Suns at the trade deadline.

Omoruyi appeared in 23 games for the Thunder, averaging 4.9 points and 2.3 rebounds in 11.8 minutes per night. He also spent part of the season with the team’s G League affiliate.

After going undrafted out of Oregon in 2021, Omoruyi broke into the NBA on a two-way contract with the Mavericks. He played four games for Dallas before being waived in December of that year.

Hornets Sign Bryce McGowens To Four-Year Contract

February 26th, 2023 at 3:09pm CST by Rory Maher

3:09pm: McCowens’ new contract is official, the Hornets announced in a press release.

1:29pm: Bryce McGowens is receiving a promotion from the Hornets, as they plan to convert his two-way contract to a four-year, $7.4MM standard deal, his agents, Mark Bartelstein and Kyle McAlarney of Priority Sports, tell ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (Twitter link).

The fourth year of the deal, which would be for the 2025/26 season, is a team option, Wojnarowski adds.

McGowens was the 40th overall pick of last June’s draft after spending one college season at Nebraska. In 26 games (14.7 MPG) as a two-way rookie for Charlotte, he has averaged 4.1 PPG, 1.7 RPG and 1.0 APG on .379/.364/.786 shooting.

The Hornets still have their full mid-level exception available, and they’ll be using a portion of it to give the 20-year-old a four-year deal for more than the minimum in year one.

Charlotte has two openings on its 15-man roster at the moment, so the team won’t need to waive anyone to promote McGowens. Today was the deadline for the Hornets to fill the 14th spot on their standard roster, as we previously explained.

Once the signing is official, the Hornets will have one standard roster spot open as well as a two-way slot.