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James Harden Re-Signs With Sixers On Two-Year Deal

July 27th, 2022 at 4:13pm CST by Rory Maher

JULY 27: Harden’s new contract is official, the Sixers announced on Twitter.

“This is where I want to be. This is where I want to win, and I think we have the pieces to accomplish that goal,” he said in a statement. “From my first day with the 76ers organization, the team and the fans have helped me feel at home here in Philadelphia. I’m excited to build off of last season and I can’t wait to get out on the court with the guys and start this journey.”

JULY 20: James Harden is re-signing with the Sixers on a two-year, $68.6MM deal that includes a player option in year two, sources tell ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (Twitter link).

Wojnarowski reports (via Twitter) that Harden will earn $33MM in 2022/23 and the player option is worth $35.6MM for ’23/24. The former league MVP will have the opportunity to enter free agency again next summer and possibly negotiate another contract.

It was viewed as inevitable that Harden would re-sign with Philadelphia, it was only a matter of when, not if. By agreeing to a one-plus-one contract structure, it will also give him veto power on any trade during the ’22/23 league year.

According to John Hollinger of The Athletic (Twitter link), with Harden on board at $33MM, the Sixers are approximately $3.4MM below the tax apron for ’22/23. The 76ers incurred a hard cap when they signed P.J. Tucker to the full mid-level exception and Danuel House to the bi-annual exception, so they cannot exceed the $156,983,000 tax apron at any point during the league year.

Both players were signed due to the flexibility Harden gave Philadelphia when he agreed to a pay cut — he previously declined his $47.4MM player option to sign a new deal. Harden recently explained the reasoning behind his decision to Chris Haynes of Yahoo Sports.

“I had conversations with (president of basketball operations) Daryl (Morey), and it was explained how we could get better and what the market value was for certain players. I told Daryl to improve the roster, sign who we needed to sign and give me whatever is left over,” Harden said. “This is how bad I want to win. I want to compete for a championship. That’s all that matters to me at this stage. I’m willing to take less to put us in position to accomplish that.”

Harden, who turns 33 next month, had a down season by his lofty standards, appearing in 65 regular season games (37.2 MPG) with averages of 22.0 PPG, 7.7 RPG, 10.3 APG and 1.3 SPG on .410/.333/.877 shooting. Those averages dipped to 18.6 PPG, 5.7 RPG and 8.6 APG on .405/.368/.893 shooting in 12 postseason games (39.9 MPG) with the Sixers last season.

He was reportedly hampered by a hamstring injury for much of the season, the same issue that plagued him in the playoffs last year with Brooklyn. Harden famously requested a trade from the Nets ahead of the deadline in February in a deal that sent Ben Simmons, Seth Curry and other assets to Brooklyn.

When Harden officially signs his new deal, Philadelphia will have 12 players on the 15-man roster signed to guaranteed deals, as shown by our roster count. He was ranked No. 3 on our list of the top 50 free agents this summer.

Lakers Sign Jay Huff To Exhibit 10 Contract

July 27th, 2022 at 3:17pm CST by Luke Adams

The Lakers have officially signed big man Jay Huff to an Exhibit 10 contract, the team announced today (via Twitter).

Huff, who went undrafted out of Virginia in 2021, spent the first couple months of his rookie season on a two-way contract with the Lakers and appeared in four NBA games before being waived. The 7’1″ center continued to play for the South Bay Lakers in the G League after being released by the NBA team, averaging 15.7 PPG, 6.1 RPG, and 2.5 BPG in 28 regular season NBAGL games, all starts (25.9 MPG).

Huff suited up for the Lakers’ Summer League teams in San Francisco and Las Vegas this summer and played well, averaging 10.5 PPG, 4.8 RPG, and 3.0 BPG in four appearances (18.4 MPG).

The Lakers now have 19 players under contract. Of those, 12 have guaranteed deals, two (Austin Reaves and Wenyen Gabriel) have standard non-guaranteed contracts, and two (Cole Swider and Scotty Pippen Jr.) are on two-way deals. Huff joins Fabian White and Javante McCoy as the players on Exhibit 10 pacts.

Simone Fontecchio Signs Two-Year Deal With Jazz

July 27th, 2022 at 2:06pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

JULY 27: After formally parting ways this week with Baskonia, Fontecchio has officially signed with the Jazz, the team announced today in a press release.

JULY 17: Italian small forward Simone Fontecchio is signing a two-year, $6.25MM contract with the Jazz, Fontecchio’s agent Sam Goldfeder informs Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN (Twitter link). News of the deal was first reported by Cesare Forgione of EuroDevotion.

Fontecchio is considered the top international free agent prospect at his position by ESPN’s Jonathan Givony (via Twitter). Givony opines that Fontecchio possesses enough positional versatility to also play at shooting guard or power forward.

Fontecchio, then with Italian club Virtus Bologna, first declared for the 2015 NBA draft before ultimately withdrawing his name from consideration. He worked out for the Celtics, then led by current Jazz president Danny Ainge, during that initial process in 2015. He later went undrafted in 2017.

The 6’8″ wing most recently joined Spanish club Baskonia for the 2021/22 season. During 31 ACB League contests with Baskonia, he averaged 12.4 PPG, 3.9 RPG, and 1.7 APG. The 26-year-old also posted shooting splits of .465/.410/.851 last season.

Fontecchio has also suited up for Italian clubs Olimpia Milano and Reggio Emila and German team Alba Berlin.

EuroHoops reports that Fontecchio’s three-year contract with Baskonia includes an exit clause, expiring this month, that allows him to sign with an NBA team. EuroHoops adds that the Lakers had also been considering tendering an offer to Fontecchio.

Thanks to their trade of All-Star center Rudy Gobert to the Timberwolves and current rumblings that All-Star shooting guard Donovan Mitchell could be next, the Jazz have been quite active during the 2022 offseason. That said, the Fontecchio signing will mark the team’s first actual free agent addition this year.

Utah will likely use a portion of its mid-level exception to sign Fontecchio.

Jacob Gilyard Expected To Sign Exhibit 10 Deal With Grizzlies

July 27th, 2022 at 1:20pm CST by Luke Adams

Rookie free agent guard Jacob Gilyard is expected to sign an Exhibit 10 contract with the Grizzlies, agents Keith Glass and Luke Glass tell ESPN’s Bobby Marks (Twitter link).

Gilyard, who went undrafted last month, spent his entire five-year college career at Richmond, averaging 13.3 PPG, 5.4 APG, 3.5 RPG, and 2.9 SPG on .395/.360/.860 shooting in 37 games (38.5 MPG) in 2021/22.

Gilyard earned All-Atlantic 10 honors in four of his five college seasons, was named the A-10 Defensive Player of the Year in 2020, and became the all-time NCAA Division I leader in steals over the course of an impressive college career.

The 24-year-old suited up for the Warriors’ Summer League team at the California Classic earlier this month and then played for the Timberwolves in Las Vegas. He struggled with his shot, making just 5-of-18 field goal attempts (2-of-13 threes) across six games at the two events, but it appears the Grizzlies view him as a promising developmental project.

Memphis is facing a roster crunch and has already filled both its two-way contract slots, so Gilyard doesn’t have a clear path to a spot on the 17-man regular season roster. However, an Exhibit 10 deal would put him in line for a $50K bonus if he’s waived before the season and becomes an affiliate player for the Memphis Hustle, the Grizzlies’ G League affiliate.

Clippers Waive Jay Scrubb

July 27th, 2022 at 12:33pm CST by Luke Adams

The Clippers have waived shooting guard Jay Scrubb, the team officially announced today. Scrubb will become an unrestricted free agent on Friday if he goes unclaimed on waivers.

The 55th overall pick in the 2020 draft, Scrubb spent his first two professional seasons in Los Angeles with the Clippers, appearing in a total of 22 NBA games during that time. His 2021/22 season came to an early end when he went under the knife in February, undergoing surgery to repair the plantar plate in his right foot.

Although he didn’t receive a qualifying offer from the Clippers when his two-way deal expired in June, Scrubb was re-signed to an Exhibit 10 contract. However, he spent less than three weeks back under contract with the team before being waived today.

If Scrubb doesn’t find a new home between now and the start of the season, he’ll be eligible to become an affiliate player for the Ontario Clippers, L.A.’s G League team. If he spends at least 60 days on Ontario’s roster, he’d receive a bonus of $50K.

The Clippers now have 17 players under contract.

Timberwolves Sign A.J. Lawson To Two-Way Contract

July 26th, 2022 at 5:14pm CST by Dana Gauruder

JULY 26: The Timberwolves have officially signed Lawson to his two-way deal, per NBA.com’s transactions log.

JULY 19: The Timberwolves are signing free agent wing A.J. Lawson to a two-way contract, Shams Charania of The Athletic tweets.

Lawson excelled during the Las Vegas Summer League for the Mavericks, averaging 15.6 PPG and 6.0 RPG in five games.

Lawson, a 6’6” guard, was waived by the Hawks during training camp last fall. He then averaged 11.8 PPG, 6.3 RPG and 1.8 APG in 31.8 MPG for the College Park Skyhawks, Atlanta’s G League affiliate, while appearing in 33 games.

Lawson went undrafted in 2021 despite putting up 16.6 PPG and 4.1 RPG with a .351 3PT% in 21 games (31.3 MPG) as a junior for South Carolina in 2020/21.

Both of Minnesota’s two-way slots are empty, though the team has a two-way qualifying offer out to Nathan Knight.

Drake Jeffries To Join Magic On Exhibit 10 Deal

July 26th, 2022 at 4:09pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Rookie free agent guard Drake Jeffries has agreed to an Exhibit 10 contract with the Magic, according to Richard Stayman of MavsDraft.com (Twitter link).

The 6’5” Jeffries averaged 10.3 PPG, with a 40.9% success rate in 3-point attempts, and 5.4 RPG for Wyoming in his senior season. Jeffries spent two seasons with the Cowboys. After going undrafted, Jeffries appeared in one game for the Nuggets‘ Summer League team.

The addition of Jeffries will give Orlando 19 players under contract heading into training camp. That total includes 15 on standard guaranteed contracts and a pair on two-way deals.

Given the Magic’s lack of open regular season roster spots, the most likely outcome for Jeffries is that he’s waived before the regular season begins and subsequently joins Orlando’s G League team in Lakeland as an affiliate player. In that scenario, he’d receive a $50K bonus if he spends at least 60 days with Lakeland.

Rockets Re-Sign Bruno Fernando

July 26th, 2022 at 1:43pm CST by Luke Adams

1:43pm: Fernando received an Exhibit 10 contract, reports Jonathan Feigen of The Houston Chronicle. The deal could be converted into a two-way contract prior to the season or would entitle Fernando to a bonus worth up to $50K if he’s waived and then joins the Rockets’ G League team.

1:31pm: The Rockets have re-signed free agent big man Bruno Fernando to a new contract, the team announced today in a press release. Houston now has a full 20-man offseason roster.

Fernando, who will turn 24 next month, was the 34th overall pick in the 2019 draft. He began his career in Atlanta, was sent to the Celtics in a 2021 offseason trade, then was flipped to Houston at the 2022 deadline in February.

The former Maryland standout played some of the best basketball of his career down the stretch with the Rockets, albeit in a limited role. He averaged 6.9 PPG, 4.0 RPG, and 0.8 BPG on 70.7% shooting in 10 appearances (9.4 MPG) for Houston.

The terms of Fernando’s new deal are unclear. The Rockets already have 18 players on guaranteed standard contracts, so it seems unlikely they’d want to bring in a 19th without clearing that logjam.

Fernando is technically eligible for a two-way contract, but there’s no indication in Houston’s announcement that he got a two-way deal. That makes a non-guaranteed or partially guaranteed standard contract the likeliest outcome, but we’ll wait for confirmation on the details.

Hawks Waive Sharife Cooper

July 25th, 2022 at 4:59pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Hawks have requested waivers on guard Sharife Cooper, the team announced today (via Twitter).

The move comes just days after Atlanta technically re-signed Cooper to a two-way contract. Cooper, who was on a two-way deal last season, accepted his qualifying offer in that instance.

However, the Hawks apparently have another player in mind for that two-way slot. Chaundee Brown holds the club’s other two-way contract.

Cooper, 21, was the 48th overall pick in the 2021 draft. He 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.

Magic Sign Kevon Harris To Two-Way Contract

July 25th, 2022 at 1:26pm CST by Luke Adams

1:26pm: Harris’ two-way contract with the Magic is now official, the team confirmed in a press release.

10:15am: The Magic have reached an agreement with free agent guard Kevon Harris and will sign him to a two-way contract, according to Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link).

Harris, 25, went undrafted out of Stephen F. Austin in 2020 and has spent some time in the G League and overseas since then, playing for the Raptors 905 in the NBAGL and KK Zadar in Croatia.

Harris emerged as a full-time starter for Toronto’s G League affiliate in 2021/22, averaging 15.1 PPG, 5.8 RPG, and 3.5 APG on .473/.343/.740 shooting in 24 regular season appearances (30.2 MPG). He played for the Timberwolves’ Summer League team in Las Vegas earlier this month and made a strong impression, putting up 15.8 PPG on .577/.458/.727 shooting in five games (27.1 MPG).

Once they officially complete Harris’ deal, the Magic will have filled both of their two-way contract slots. The team re-signed Admiral Schofield to a two-way contract last week.

Orlando will have 18 players under contract after signing Harris — 15 on guaranteed standard contracts, one (Devin Cannady) on a non-guaranteed deal, and Schofield and Harris on two-way pacts.