Transactions Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Jazz Waive Stanley Johnson

October 14th, 2022 at 11:46pm CST by Rory Maher

The Jazz have waived forward Stanley Johnson, according to Sarah Todd of The Deseret News (Twitter link).

The Jazz are facing a roster crunch with 17 players on guaranteed standard contracts, and with the regular season limit set at 15, they’ll need to release at least one more player by October 17. Utah will be on the hook for Johnson’s fully guaranteed $2,351,521 salary in 2022/23 if he goes unclaimed on the waiver wire.

Johnson was acquired by the Jazz as a salary-matching piece in the trade that saw Talen Horton-Tucker head to Utah, with Patrick Beverley sent to the Lakers. As Danny Leroux of The Athletic notes (via Twitter), the Lakers cannot sign Johnson for the rest of the league year due to a rule in the collective bargaining agreement.

According to Andy Larsen of The Salt Lake Tribune (Twitter link), the Jazz tried to deal Johnson this week and were unable to find any takers despite playing decently for Los Angeles last season and having some good moments for Utah during preseason.

He averaged 6.7 PPG, 3.2 RPG, 1.7 APG and 0.9 SPG on .466/.314/.716 shooting in 48 games (27 starts, 22.8 MPG) for the Lakers in ’21/22.

The eighth overall pick of the 2015 draft, Johnson has played for the Pistons, Pelicans and Raptors in addition to the Lakers. His relative lack of an offensive game is the main reason why he struggled to find an NBA contract last season before landing a 10-day hardship deal with Chicago last December (he never played for the Bulls), then multiple 10-day deals and later a two-year contract with the Lakers.

Justin Champagnie Earns Raptors’ 15th Roster Spot

October 14th, 2022 at 10:48pm CST by Rory Maher

Justin Champagnie has won the training camp battle for the Raptors‘ 15th and final standard roster spot, sources tell Michael Grange of Sportsnet (Twitter link).

Toronto has waived the three other contenders for the last spot on the 15-man roster, tweets Josh Lewenberg of TSN.ca. Those players are Josh Jackson, D.J. Wilson and Gabe Brown, and they’ll clear waivers on Monday, assuming they go unclaimed.

Champagnie, 21, went undrafted last year after starring in two college seasons at Pitt. He signed a two-way deal with the Raptors as a rookie, averaging 2.3 points and 2.0 rebounds in 7.8 minutes per night in 36 games last season.

Though his role with the NBA club was modest, Champagnie averaged 21.1 points, 8.3 boards, 1.2 steals and 1.1 blocks on .489/.409/.778 shooting in 14 regular season games (35.9 minutes) for the Raptors 905, Toronto’s G League affiliate, and clearly made a strong impression on the organization. His contract was previously partially guaranteed for $325K, but now he’s set to have his $1,637,966 deal for 2022/23 fully guaranteed.

Wilson had a $250K partial guarantee on his deal, and the Raptors will be on the hook for that amount. Jackson’s deal was non-guaranteed, as was Brown’s, but unlike Jackson, Brown signed an Exhibit 10 contract, so he will earn a $50K bonus if he spends at least 60 days with the Raptors 905.

Wolves Converting Luka Garza To Two-Way Deal

October 14th, 2022 at 10:47pm CST by Rory Maher

10:50pm: Lawson will be waived to make room for Garza, sources tell Jon Krawczynski of The Athletic (Twitter link). Minnesota was high on Lawson, but didn’t want to lose Garza, per Krawczynski.

10:26pm: The Timberwolves are signing center Luka Garza to a two-way deal, according to Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link).

While Charania says “signing,” Garza is already under contract with the team, so the Wolves are technically converting his Exhibit 10 contract into a two-way deal. Minnesota’s two-way slots are currently occupied by A.J. Lawson and Eric Paschall, so they’ll need to waive one of them in order to convert Garza.

Garza, 23, was selected by the Pistons with the 52nd overall pick in the 2021 draft and spent his rookie season in Detroit, averaging 5.8 PPG and 3.1 RPG in 32 games (12.2 MPG). He was a standout for the Motor City Cruise, Detroit’s G League affiliate, putting up 20.6 PPG and 9.5 RPG in 16 games (29.8 MPG) and earning a spot on the All-NBAGL Third Team.

The former Iowa star’s contract with the Pistons was for two years, but the 2022/23 season was a team option, which Detroit declined, making him an unrestricted free agent. Garza signed an Exhibit 10 deal with the Wolves in August.

Wolves head coach Chris Finch recently stated that he likes what Garza has brought to the team during training camp.

“He’s the perfect system fit for us. Great acquisition by our front office,” Finch said. “He’s a guy I think can really grow into our system here. He can stretch the floor and he can score around the basket. That’s a great combo. Not a lot of bigs can do that.”

Nets Waive Donovan Williams; Heat Adding Jon Elmore

October 14th, 2022 at 8:30pm CST by Rory Maher

In a pair of unrelated moves, the Nets have waived Donovan Williams (Twitter link via Chris Milholen of NetsDaily), while the Heat are signing Jon Elmore to an Exhibit 10 contract, reports Anthony Chiang of The Miami Herald (via Twitter).

Williams, who was also on an Exhibit 10 deal, went undrafted this year out of UNLV. The 6’6” wing averaged 12.7 PPG and 3.3 RPG as a junior at UNLV last season, knocking down 43.6% of his 3-point attempts. If he goes unclaimed, he’ll be eligible for a $50K bonus if he spends at least 60 days with the Long Island Nets, Brooklyn’s G League affiliate.

Elmore, 26, went undrafted in 2019 after a standout college career at Marshall. He’s played professionally for European clubs in Italy, Hungary, Greece and Lithuania over the past three years.

According to Chiang, Elmore will report to Miami’s practice on Saturday prior to being waived, with the 6’3″ guard heading to the Heat’s G League affiliate, the Sioux Falls Skyforce. If he spends at least 60 days with the Skyforce, Elmore would receive a bonus worth up to $50K.

Bucks Sign, Waive Jontay Porter

October 14th, 2022 at 7:40pm CST by Luke Adams

The Bucks signed free agent forward Jontay Porter and subsequently waived him, Hoops Rumors has learned.

The younger brother of Nuggets forward Michael Porter Jr., Jontay Porter appeared in 11 games for the Grizzlies during the 2020/21 season, averaging 2.0 PPG and 1.3 RPG in 4.9 MPG. He suited up this July for Denver’s Summer League team.

Porter signed a non-guaranteed Exhibit 10 contract with the Bucks and will earn a $50K bonus if he spends at least 60 days with the Wisconsin Herd, Milwaukee’s G League squad. His NBAGL rights weren’t previously held by any team, so the Bucks will be able to retain him as an affiliate player.

Pistons Waive Jules Bernard, Sign Devontae Cacok

October 14th, 2022 at 6:47pm CST by Rory Maher

The Pistons have made a minor change to their training camp roster, announcing today (via Twitter) that they’ve waived Jules Bernard and signed Devontae Cacok to an Exhibit 10 deal.

Bernard, a 6’7″ wing, went undrafted out of UCLA earlier this year. As a senior in 2021/22, he averaged 12.8 PPG and 4.7 RPG with a shooting line of .419/.337/.818 in 35 games (30.1 MPG). He subsequently played for the Pistons’ Summer League team in Las Vegas before signing an Exhibit 10 deal with Detroit.

Cacok, a 6’7″ forward/center, has appeared in 36 NBA games over the past three seasons with the Lakers and Spurs after going undrafted out of UNC Wilmington in 2019. His role has been modest, averaging just 2.5 PPG and 2.2 RPG in 6.3 MPG, but he’s been a standout performer in the G League.

The Blazers signed Cacok to an Exhibit 10 deal for training camp, but they’re one of only two teams without a G League affiliate (the Suns are the other) and he was subsequently waived last week.

Cacok has mostly played on two-way deals over the past three years, and Exhibit 10 contracts can be converted to two-way deals, but both of Detroit’s two-way slots are occupied at the moment (by Buddy Boeheim and Braxton Key). Like Bernard, Cacok will likely be waived in the next few days, and both players would be eligible for a $50K bonus if they spend at least 60 days with the Motor City Cruise, Detroit’s G League affiliate.

Heat Claim D.J. Stewart Off Waivers

October 14th, 2022 at 5:10pm CST by Luke Adams

The Heat have claimed D.J. Stewart Jr. off waivers, according to Anthony Chiang of The Miami Herald (Twitter link). Stewart had been in training camp with Dallas, but was waived on Wednesday.

Stewart is a 23-year-old guard who went undrafted out of Mississippi State in 2021 and spent most of his rookie season playing for the Sioux Falls Skyforce, Miami’s G League affiliate. He eventually signed a two-way contract with San Antonio in March, though he didn’t appear in an NBA game with the Spurs.

In 36 total NBAGL regular season appearances for the Skyforce and the Austin Spurs last season, Stewart averaged 17.6 PPG, 4.5 RPG, and 3.1 APG on .480/.361/.764 shooting in 34.1 minutes per contest.

The Skyforce still hold Stewart’s G League rights, and the plan is to have him return to Sioux Falls after he’s waived by Miami. The Heat claimed him off waivers so that they could give him an Exhibit 10 bonus for spending at least 60 days with the Skyforce, Chiang notes.

Wolves Pick Up 2023/24 Options On Edwards, McDaniels

October 14th, 2022 at 5:02pm CST by Rory Maher

OCTOBER 15: The Timberwolves have officially exercised their options on Edwards and McDaniels, the team announced in a press release.

OCTOBER 14: The Timberwolves are picking up their 2023/24 team options on Anthony Edwards and Jaden McDaniels, reports Jon Krawczynski of The Athletic (Twitter link).

The news was expected, since both players are key members of a rising Minnesota squad. Edwards will earn $13,534,817 in his fourth season, while McDaniels will make $3,901,399.

The No. 1 overall pick of the 2020 draft, Edwards had a strong rookie season and was even better in year two, improving his numbers across the board to the tune of 21.3 PPG, 4.8 RPG, 3.8 APG and 1.5 SPG on .441/.357/.786 shooting in 72 games (34.3 MPG). The 21-year-old wing is hoping to make big strides on the defensive end this season.

McDaniels, who just turned 22 a couple of weeks ago, was the No. 28 overall pick of the 2020 draft. The 6’9″ forward is a long, athletic and versatile defender who averaged 9.2 PPG, 4.2 RPG and 0.8 BPG on .460/.317/.803 shooting in 70 games (31 starts, 25.8 MPG) last season. He has reportedly been named the starting small forward to open 2022/23.

Minnesota exercising the fourth-year options makes both players eligible for rookie scale extensions next summer, with Edwards basically a lock to receive a maximum-salary deal.

Sixers Guarantee Paul Reed’s Contract For 2022/23

October 14th, 2022 at 4:08pm CST by Rory Maher

Paul Reed has had his $1,782,621 salary for the 2022/23 season fully guaranteed by the Sixers, sources tell ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (Twitter link).

As Wojnarowski observes (via Twitter), Philadelphia technically didn’t have to make a decision on Reed’s deal until January, but the team opted to guarantee it a few months early. Reed will be a restricted free agent in 2023 if he’s extended a $2,228,276 qualifying offer.

The 23-year-old was the 58th overall pick of the 2020 draft after three college seasons with DePaul. He has had a minor role at the NBA level to this point, averaging 3.2 points and 2.4 rebounds in 7.5 minutes per contest in 64 games over the past two seasons.

However, Reed has been a star for the Delaware Blue Coats, the Sixers’ G League affiliate. He has averaged 22.3 points, 12.5 rebounds, 2.5 assists, 1.8 steals and 1.8 blocks on .582/.436/.725 shooting in 24 NBA GL games (31.6 minutes) since he was drafted two years ago.

The 6’9″ big man has served as the primary backup center to Joel Embiid during preseason over veteran Montrezl Harrell, though head coach Doc Rivers said on Wednesday that the two will split time behind Embiid, per ESPN’s Tim Bontemps (Twitter link).

Reed was in a training camp battle with Isaiah Joe and Charles Bassey for the 14th spot on the 15-man standard roster. The Sixers ended up waiving both Joe and Bassey yesterday, and it appears as though they’ll keep the 15th spot open for now to maintain roster and financial flexibility.

Knicks Sign James Akinjo To Exhibit 10 Deal

October 14th, 2022 at 3:55pm CST by Luke Adams

The Knicks have signed free agent guard James Akinjo to a contract, the team announced today in a press release. It’s an Exhibit 10 deal, according to Fred Katz of The Athletic (Twitter link).

Akinjo, 21, went undrafted this June after finishing up his college career at Baylor. He also spent time at Georgetown and Arizona before transferring to Baylor, where he averaged 13.5 PPG and 5.8 APG in 32 games (33.1 MPG) as a senior in 2021/22.

Although he struggled with his shot, making just 38.3% attempts from the field and 29.5% from beyond the arc last season, Akinjo earned a spot on the All-Big 12 First Team. He played for Atlanta’s Summer League squad in July and now appears likely to join the Westchester Knicks, New York’s G League affiliate.

If Akinjo is waived and then spends at least 60 days with Westchester, he’d be eligible for a bonus worth up to $50K.

The Knicks have a full 20-man preseason roster for now, with the regular season roster deadline around the corner.