Transactions Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Trevion Williams Signs Exhibit 10 Deal With Warriors

July 22nd, 2022 at 8:01pm CST by Rory Maher

The Warriors are signing rookie Trevion Williams to an Exhibit 10 deal, sources tell Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link).

Williams, who is ranked No. 7 on ESPN’s best available undrafted players, most recently suited up for the Celtics in Summer League, averaging 7.4 PPG and 6.6 RPG in five games (14.2 MPG), per RealGM.

The 6’10” big man had a productive college run with the Purdue Boilermakers, earning a couple of All-Big Ten honors the past two seasons while averaging a combined 13.5 PPG, 8.2 RPG and 2.7 APG while shooting 53.5% from the floor and 55.2% from the line in 65 games (30 starts, 22.3 MPG). He was named Big Ten Sixth Man of the Year in 2021/22.

An Exhibit 10 deal is non-guaranteed and worth the minimum, but it could put Williams on track to receive a $50K bonus if he’s waived before the regular season and then joins the Santa Cruz Warriors, Golden State’s G League affiliate.

Williams’ Exhibit 10 contract could also be converted into a two-way deal if he impresses in training camp, although both of Golden State’s two-way spots are currently filled (by Lester Quinones and Quinndary Weatherspoon).

Mac McClung Signs Non-Guaranteed Deal With Warriors

July 22nd, 2022 at 7:00pm CST by Rory Maher

JULY 22: The signing is now official, according to RealGM’s transactions log.

JULY 20: Free agent guard Mac McClung is signing a one-year, non-guaranteed contract with the Warriors, his agent Dan Poneman tells Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter links). According to Charania, the contract won’t include Exhibit 10 language, so it can’t be converted to a two-way deal.

McClung most recently appeared in Summer League action for the Warriors, averaging 13.4 PPG, 3.6 RPG, 4.8 APG and 1.0 SPG on .456/.500/.818 shooting in five games (24.4 MPG), per RealGM.

The 23-year-old was an undrafted rookie in 2021 after three college seasons, the last spent with Texas Tech. He signed an Exhibit 10 deal with the Lakers last summer, but was waived in October before the season began.

He signed a couple of 10-day hardship contracts with the Bulls in December and January, but only appeared in one NBA game for just three minutes. He spent the majority of last season in the G League with the Lakers’ affiliate, South Bay, where he was named NBAGL Rookie of the Year.

In 35 NBAGL appearances, including 33 with South Bay, McClung stuffed the stat sheet with averages of 21.0 points, 6.7 rebounds, 7.5 assists and 1.4 steals on .459/.365/.857 shooting.

At the end of last season, the Lakers promoted him to a two-way deal and he appeared in the team’s final game of the season, posting six points and three boards in nearly 22 minutes. However, the contract was only for the remainder of 2021/22, so it was mostly ceremonial.

Golden State is expected to leave its 15th standard roster spot open, with a training camp battle to determine who makes the team, tweets Anthony Slater of The Athletic. There’s also a possibility the Warriors could leave the final spot vacant in order to save money via a lower luxury tax payment, Slater adds.

Andrew Nembhard Signs Four-Year Deal With Pacers

July 22nd, 2022 at 3:03pm CST by Rory Maher

JULY 22: The Pacers have officially signed Nembhard, the team announced today in a press release.

“I’m excited to get my career and rookie season started with the Pacers,” Nembhard said in a statement. “I’m thankful for the opportunity to be a part of such a first-class organization and I can’t wait to play in front of the league’s best fans at Gainbridge Fieldhouse this year!”

JULY 20: The Pacers are signing second-rounder Andrew Nembhard to a four-year, $8.6MM deal, his agents Jaafar Choufani and Todd Ramasar tell ESPN’s Jonathan Givony (Twitter link). Nembhard’s deal includes $6.4MM in guaranteed money over the first three years, which is the most ever for a second-round pick who attended college, Givony reports.

As ESPN’s Bobby Marks observes (via Twitter), the 22-year-old will receive more guaranteed money than several first-round picks, whose contracts are only guaranteed for the first two seasons (years three and four being team options), though that is slightly misleading because Nembhard’s guarantee is spread out over three years instead of two.

Indiana has a team option on the fourth year of the deal, the 2025/26 season, sources tell Scott Agness of Fieldhouse Files. The signing will be completed using a small portion of the Pacers’ cap room.

After a strong showing at the draft combine, Nembhard shot up draft boards, going from a possible late second-rounder to a borderline first-round selection. He was ultimately taken with the first pick of the second round, 31st overall.

The 6’5″ guard spent four years in college, the first two with Florida and then the final two with Gonzaga after transferring before his junior season. In 32 games (32.2 MPG) with the Bulldogs last season, Nembhard averaged 11.8 PPG, 3.4 RPG, 5.8 APG and 1.6 SPG on .452/.383/.873 shooting. He also posted a very solid assist-to-turnover ratio of 2.97-to-1, a strong benchmark for a lead ball-handler.

Once Nembhard’s deal is official, the Pacers will still have one draft pick who is unsigned — Kendall Brown, the 48th selection. The Pacers have an opening on the 15-man roster and both two-way spots available, so either might be a possibility for the athletic forward out of Baylor.

Clippers Sign Moussa Diabate To Two-Way Contract

July 22nd, 2022 at 2:10pm CST by Luke Adams

The Clippers have officially signed second-round pick Moussa Diabate to his first NBA contract, the team announced today. As expected, it’s a one-year, two-way deal, tweets Law Murray of The Athletic.

The No. 43 overall pick in last month’s draft, Diabate spent his first and only college season at Michigan. The 6’11” big man averaged 9.0 PPG, 6.0 RPG, and 0.9 BPG in 32 games (24.9 MPG) for the Wolverines. He was named to the Big Ten’s All-Freshman team.

Diabate, 20, had a solid showing in two Las Vegas Summer League appearances this month, averaging 9.5 PPG and 7.5 RPG on 70% shooting in 24.1 MPG. A right ankle sprain prematurely ended his Summer League experience, but there’s no reason to think that injury will still be an issue by the time training camps begin in September.

With the signing, the Clippers now have 18 players under contract. Of those 18 players, 14 are on guaranteed standard contracts, three have Exhibit 10 deals, and Diabate has a two-way pact.

Undrafted free agents Justin Bean, Lucas Williamson, and Michael Devoe have also reportedly agreed to Exhibit 10 contracts with the Clippers, so it’s possible there will be a training camp competition for that second two-way slot. Exhibit 10 deals can be converted to two-way contracts prior to the regular season as long as the player doesn’t have four or more years of NBA service.

Hawks Re-Sign Sharife Cooper To Two-Way Deal

July 22nd, 2022 at 1:58pm CST by Luke Adams

Free agent guard Sharife Cooper is back under contract with the Hawks on a new two-way deal, according to NBA.com’s transactions log.

Cooper, 21, was the 48th overall pick in the 2021 draft. He spent his rookie season on a two-way contract with the Hawks and appeared in only 13 games at the NBA level, logging 39 total minutes and making just 3-of-14 shots from the field.

The former Auburn standout saw much more action at the G League level, averaging 17.1 PPG and 6.9 APG on .431/.361/.907 shooting in 22 regular season appearances (30.2 MPG) for the College Park Skyhawks, Atlanta’s NBAGL affiliate.

The Hawks issued Cooper a one-year, two-way qualifying offer in June to make him a restricted free agent, so he simply accepted that QO, as Michael Scotto of HoopsHype confirms (via Twitter). Atlanta has now filled both its two-way slots, with Chaundee Brown holding the other two-way contract.

In addition to having a pair of players on two-way deals, the Hawks are currently carrying 14 players on standard contracts — 13 of those are on fully guaranteed deals, while Tyrese Martin has a partial guarantee.

Timberwolves Sign Austin Rivers

July 21st, 2022 at 4:05pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

JULY 21: Minnesota has officially announced the signing of Rivers, confirming the move in a press release.

JULY 14: The Timberwolves have made a move to bolster their bench as they continue to reshape their roster this summer. Minnesota is signing veteran combo guard Austin Rivers to a one-year contract, agents Dave Spahn and Aaron Mintz inform Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN.

The 6’4″ vet will be signing on for the veteran’s minimum, per Darren Wolfson of 5 Eyewitness News (Twitter link).

Rivers will be reuniting with a familiar face in the Timberwolves front office — Minnesota team president Tim Connelly, who signed a lucrative deal of his own with the club this summer after a successful extended tenure with the Nuggets. Rivers spent parts of the last two NBA seasons as a key reserve in Denver under Connelly.

After signing a 10-day deal with the Nuggets in April 2021, Rivers quickly proved himself worthy of a roster spot on a postseason contender, and was promptly brought back on a rest-of-season deal. He further solidified his role with the club by stepping up as a scorer during the 2021 playoffs. In Denver’s first-round matchup against the Trail Blazers, Rivers averaged 11.5 PPG (while shooting 48.3% from deep), 2.3 APG and 2.2 RPG.

The 29-year-old journeyman re-signed with Denver during the 2021 offseason. He would go on to play a crucial role, largely off the bench, for a guard-deprived Denver club. Across 67 contests, including 18 starts, Rivers averaged 6.0 PPG on .417/.342/.727 shooting splits during 22.1 MPG of game action. He also pulled down 1.7 RPG, dished out 1.3 APG, and snagged 0.8 SPG.

Rivers joins a revamped Minnesota team that offloaded much of its veteran depth to add three-time Defensive Player of the Year Rudy Gobert. He’ll serve as a helpful ball-handler off the bench behind projected backcourt starters D’Angelo Russell and Anthony Edwards. Another new free agent signee, Kyle Anderson, will likely start at small forward, while Gobert will join All-Star big man Karl-Anthony Towns to form a jumbo-sized frontcourt tandem.

JaMychal Green Bought Out By Thunder, Plans To Join Warriors

July 20th, 2022 at 4:38pm CST by Dana Gauruder

JULY 20: Green has officially been waived by the Thunder, the team announced (via Twitter). He will clear waivers on Friday.

JULY 19: Veteran forward JaMychal Green is negotiating a contract buyout with the Thunder, Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN tweets. Once it is completed and he clears waivers, Green intends to sign with the defending champion Warriors.

Oklahoma City had sought to deal Green after acquiring him from the Nuggets last month. That didn’t happen and now Green is looking to help Golden State defend its latest title.

Green, 32, is at the stage of his career where he provides greater value to a contender than a rebuilding team. He’s on an $8.2MM expiring contract for 2022/23.

On a veteran’s minimum deal for a player with eight years of service, Green can sign with the Warriors for $2,628,597. Golden State’s cap hit would be $1,836,090, Bobby Marks of ESPN tweets.

Golden State only has 11 players on its 15-man roster, along with two unsigned second-round picks. Thus, there’s plenty of roster room for the Warriors to bring in Green.

Denver dealt Green to the Thunder in June. The Nuggets also sent a protected 2027 first-round pick to the Thunder in exchange for the draft rights to No. 30 pick Peyton Watson and two second-rounders (one in 2023 and one in 2024).

Green had a down year in 2021/22, averaging 6.4 PPG and 4.2 RPG on .486/.266/.871 shooting in 67 games (16.2 MPG) for the Nuggets, but has proven to be an effective stretch four over the years. Entering ’21/22, he had knocked down 38.0% of his three-point attempts in his first seven NBA seasons.

He’ll provide depth for Golden State at power forward behind Draymond Green and Jonathan Kuminga.

Oklahoma City is still in the process of paring down its overloaded roster. The team will have 19 players officially under contract once Green is officially cut.

Thunder Sign Kenrich Williams To Four-Year Extension

July 20th, 2022 at 3:58pm CST by Luke Adams

JULY 20: The Thunder have officially finalized Williams’ extension, the team announced today in a press release.

JULY 18: The Thunder have reached an agreement with forward Kenrich Williams on a four-year contract extension worth $27.2MM, sources tell ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (Twitter link).

Williams, who will earn $2MM this season, is in the final year of his current contract, so his new deal will begin a year from now and will run through the 2026/27 campaign. His $2MM salary for ’22/23 had been non-guaranteed, but it’ll become protected as part of the extension agreement, tweets ESPN’s Bobby Marks.

According to Joe Mussatto of The Oklahoman (Twitter link), the first three years of the extension will be guaranteed, while the fourth will be a team option.

Williams, 27, is an unlikely extension recipient. The veteran swingman, who began his college career at New Mexico Junior College and went undrafted in 2018, spent his first two professional seasons with the Pelicans before being signed-and-traded to Oklahoma City in the Steven Adams deal during the 2020 offseason as a throw-in piece for salary-matching purposes.

After shooting just .371/.304/.489 in 85 games with New Orleans, Williams developed a more reliable three-point shot in Oklahoma City, boosting his shooting percentages to .501/.391/.559 in 115 games over the last two seasons. He’s also a solid, versatile defender who has now averaged 21-plus minutes per game for four straight years.

Williams is the eight player to agree to a veteran contract extension so far during the 2022/23 league year, as our tracker shows.

Because his extension exceeds three total years (including the one left on his current deal), Williams will be ineligible to be traded for six months once he officially signs his deal.

Nuggets Sign Jack White To Two-Way Contract

July 19th, 2022 at 9:45pm CST by JD Shaw

JULY 19: The signing is official, according to a team press release.

JULY 17: The Nuggets are signing Australian forward Jack White to a two-way contract, according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (Twitter link). As Wojnarowski notes, White is coming off a strong summer league stint with the team.

White, 6’7″, played four seasons at Duke before going undrafted in 2020. He signed with the NBL’s Melbourne United that summer, helping the team win a title in his first professional season. The 24-year-old also averaged 9.5 points and 6.6 rebounds in 22.5 minutes per game this past year.

“This is an amazing opportunity for me to take another step towards living out my dream of playing in the NBA, so I couldn’t be more grateful to the Nuggets for giving me a shot,” White said, as relayed in Melbourne United’s press release.

Denver now has both two-way spots and every spot on its 15-man roster filled. The team has a strong nucleus of Jamal Murray, Michael Porter Jr., Aaron Gordon and Nikola Jokic and expects to be a perennial championship contender next season.

Taj Gibson Signs One-Year Deal With Wizards

July 19th, 2022 at 4:19pm CST by Luke Adams

JULY 19: Gibson has officially signed with the Wizards, per NBA.com’s transactions log.

JULY 10: Gibson has cleared waivers and agreed to a one-year contract with the Wizards, his agent Mark Bartelstein tells ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (Twitter link). Gibson will receive a minimum-salary deal, tweets Josh Robbins of The Athletic.

JULY 8, 4:35pm: Gibson intends to sign with the Wizards once he clears waivers, according to Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link). He’ll provide Washington with some additional frontcourt depth following the free agent departure of Thomas Bryant.

JULY 8, 3:59pm: The Knicks have officially waived big man Taj Gibson, the team announced today in a press release. He’ll clear waivers on Sunday, assuming he goes unclaimed.

Gibson, 37, appeared in 52 games for the Knicks last season, averaging 4.4 PPG and 4.4 RPG in 18.2 minutes per contest. He has long been a Tom Thibodeau favorite, having also played for the Knicks’ head coach in Chicago and Minnesota.

Gibson signed a two-year contract with the Knicks during the 2021 offseason, but his second-year salary of $5,155,500 for 2022/23 was non-guaranteed. By cutting him, New York will avoid being on the hook for any of that money.

In addition to waiving Gibson, New York has renounced Ryan Arcidiacono‘s free agent rights, according to Fred Katz of The Athletic (Twitter link). The two moves are strong signals that the Knicks intend to go under the cap in order to complete their reported signings of Jalen Brunson, Isaiah Hartenstein, and Jericho Sims, rather than remaining over the cap by acquiring Brunson via sign-and-trade.

If the Knicks had been able to turn their Alec Burks/Nerlens Noel trade with Detroit into a three-team deal involving Dallas and Brunson, they could theoretically have used their mid-level exception to sign Hartenstein and Sims, retaining a $9MM+ trade exception and the $4.1MM bi-annual exception. However, clearing cap room for their signings is the simplest path, and will leave them with the $5.4MM room exception available.

As for Gibson, there’s a chance he could re-sign with the Knicks once he clears waivers, though a few other teams have expressed interest in him, notes Ian Begley of SNY.tv (Twitter link).