Transactions Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Bucks Waive Rayjon Tucker, Luca Vildoza

July 5th, 2022 at 5:11pm CST by Rory Maher

The Bucks have waived Rayjon Tucker and Luca Vildoza, reports Michael Scotto of HoopsHype (via Twitter).

The three-year, minimum-salary deal that Tucker signed with the Bucks at the end of last season was non-guaranteed entering the offseason, as was the two-year deal that Vildoza signed, so Milwaukee won’t face any financial penalties for releasing either player. Vildoza’s contract would have been partially guaranteed for $500K had he made it to the start of the 2022/23 regular season with the Bucks.

The 24-year-old Tucker went undrafted out of Little Rock in 2019 and spent most of the 2019/20 season with the Jazz, then signed a two-way contract with the Sixers in January 2021 and got a 10-day deal from the Nuggets in December 2021. Tucker was signed by the Bucks with a couple of days left in the ’21/22 regular season and played in two games, plus eight postseason appearances at the end of lopsided games.

Tucker has appeared in a total of 39 NBA games across three seasons, averaging 3.0 PPG and 1.0 RPG in just 7.7 minutes per contest. He has been much more active in the G League during that span, having played for the Salt Lake City Stars, the Wisconsin Herd, and the Delaware Blue Coats. In 27 regular season games this past season for the Herd (the Bucks’ NBAGL affiliate), the wing averaged an impressive 21.1 PPG on 53% shooting. He also chipped in 7.6 RPG, 3.8 APG, and 1.2 SPG.

Vildoza, 26, played internationally in Spain for several seasons prior to reaching a buyout to sign with the Knicks in May 2021. His four-year deal with New York was non-guaranteed beyond the end of that season, and the team ended up waiving him before he underwent foot surgery last October.

The Argentinian guard is reportedly fully healthy and recovered from the surgery, but he has yet to make his regular season debut. He did, however, make seven very brief postseason appearances with the Bucks, his only official NBA action to date beyond Summer League.

After re-signing the majority of their own free agents and agreeing to a deal with Joe Ingles, the Bucks will tentatively have 14 players on their roster once first-round pick MarJon Beauchamp is signed to his rookie deal. The 15th spot could be reserved for restricted free agent Jordan Nwora, assuming the two sides can find a deal that works for both parties.

Spurs Claim Isaiah Roby Off Waivers

July 5th, 2022 at 4:08pm CST by Rory Maher

The Spurs have used a waiver claim to add Isaiah Roby to their roster, a source tells ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (Twitter link).

Veteran NBA reporter Marc Stein was the first to report (via Twitter) that there was a “strong expectation leaguewide” that Roby would be claimed on the waiver wire.

As Eric Pincus of Bleacher Report previously noted, Roby earned more than the minimum salary in the first year of his four-year contract with the Thunder, so the Spurs will have to use some of their cap space to absorb his $1,930,681 salary for 2022/23. Waivers claims are rare for non-minimum players, but Roby has shown some promise, so San Antonio will be taking a relatively cheap flier on him contributing next season.

In his third season with the Thunder in ’21/22, the 6’8″ Roby averaged a career-best 10.1 PPG along with 4.8 RPG on .514/.444/.672 shooting in 45 games (21.1 MPG). Oklahoma City had previously picked up his club option, but then the Thunder waived him before his contract would have become fully guaranteed. Because his salary guarantee deadline was July 3, his $1.93MM will now be fully guaranteed.

The Spurs recently agreed to sign Gorgui Dieng and now added Roby, so clearly adding frontcourt depth was a priority with their final roster spots. Once all of San Antonio’s first-round picks are signed to their rookie deals (only Blake Wesley has been signed thus far, but the other two should be formalities), the Spurs will tentatively have a full 15-man roster.

Even accounting for the new additions, the Spurs still have well over $30MM in cap room this offseason, so they have plenty of options to work with going forward.

Thunder Sign Ousmane Dieng To Rookie Contract

July 5th, 2022 at 3:56pm CST by Luke Adams

The Thunder have officially signed No. 11 overall pick Ousmane Dieng to his rookie contract, the team announced today in a press release.

Oklahoma City’s announcement also confirmed the signings of the team’s other first-rounders – No. 2 pick Chet Holmgren and No. 12 pick Jalen Williams – which we wrote about on Friday.

Dieng was the first top European prospect to take advantage of the National Basketball League’s Next Stars program. The French forward spent the 2021/22 season with the New Zealand Breakers in Australia’s NBL, averaging 8.9 PPG and 3.2 RPG in 23 games (20.3 MPG) against professional competition.

The Thunder sent three protected future first-round picks to the Knicks in order to land the No. 11 pick and select Dieng on draft night.

As our chart of 2022/23 rookie salaries shows, Dieng is on track to earn $4.57MM as a rookie and $21.17MM across four years, assuming he signed for the maximum allowable 120% of the rookie scale.

Blake Wesley Signs Rookie Contract With Spurs

July 5th, 2022 at 1:07pm CST by Arthur Hill

The Spurs have signed first-round pick Blake Wesley, the team announced in a press release.

Assuming Wesley receives the standard 120% of the rookie scale, he will be paid approximately $2.39MM in his first season and $12.24MM over the life of the four-year contract.

[RELATED: 2022 NBA Draft Pick Signings]

The 19-year-old guard out of Notre Dame was the 25th pick in last month’s draft. He averaged 14.4 points, 3.7 rebounds and 2.4 assists during his lone season with the Fighting Irish and was a second-team All-ACC selection.

Wesley was one of three players selected by the Spurs in the first round of the June 23 draft. There have been no announcements yet on Jeremy Sochan and Malaki Branham, but it likely won’t be long before they sign their own rookie contracts.

Nets Sign Edmond Sumner

July 5th, 2022 at 10:58am CST by Luke Adams

JULY 8: The Nets have officially signed Sumner, the team announced today in a press release.

JULY 5: After reaching a contract agreement with T.J. Warren earlier in the day, Brooklyn is set to sign another former Pacer who missed the entire 2021/22 season due to an injury.

According to Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN (Twitter link), the Nets and free agent guard Edmond Sumner have agreed to a deal. Sumner tore his left Achilles tendon last September and was sidelined all of last season as he recovered.

Prior to the injury, Sumner enjoyed a career year in Indiana in 2020/21, playing a career-high 16.2 minutes per game and earning 24 starts in 53 contests. The 6″4″ guard averaged 7.5 PPG and 1.8 RPG with an impressive shooting line of .525/.398/.819, and projected to be part of the Pacers’ rotation for ’21/22.

The Nets actually acquired Sumner in a trade with the Pacers during the 2021 preseason, following his Achilles tear, but that was a salary-dump deal that sent a future second-round pick to Brooklyn. Sumner was waived a few days later.

While the terms of the agreement between Sumner and the Nets have yet to be reported, it’s almost certain to be a minimum-salary contract.

Brooklyn’s roster remains in flux due to the unresolved Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving situations, so Sumner’s exact role remains to be determined, but he’ll likely be a depth piece in the backcourt.

Nets Sign T.J. Warren To One-Year Contract

July 5th, 2022 at 8:50am CST by Luke Adams

JULY 7: Warren’s deal with the Nets is now official, the team announced. “T.J. is a proven three-level scorer with the size and versatility to make an impact for us,” said Nets general manager Sean Marks. “We think T.J. is a great fit on the wing, and we’re excited to welcome him and his family to Brooklyn.”

JULY 5: The Nets have reached a free agent agreement with forward T.J. Warren and will sign him to a one-year contract, sources tell Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN (Twitter link).

The terms of the deal aren’t yet known. Brooklyn hasn’t used its taxpayer mid-level exception yet and could offer Warren any amount between his minimum ($2.6MM) and the full taxpayer MLE ($6.5MM).

Warren, who will turn 29 in September, has averaged 15.5 PPG on .507/.357/.780 shooting in 332 regular season games since entering the NBA as the 14th overall pick in 2014. However, he has missed nearly two full seasons due to left foot problems, playing just four times in 2020/21 and then sitting out the entire ’21/22 campaign.

Reports have indicated that Warren is fully recovered heading into 2022/23, and in his last full season (’19/20) he put up 19.8 PPG with a .536/.403/.819 shooting line, making him an intriguing flier in free agency this offseason. He’ll likely have to shake off some rust, but if he’s back to 100%, he’s an explosive scorer capable of creating matchup problems for opposing defenses.

It’s unclear what Warren’s role will look like in Brooklyn, where the Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving situations remain very much in flux. His place on the depth chart will hinge on whether Durant is moved and what the Nets get back in any deal for the former MVP.

The Nets have now made deals this summer to add both scoring and defense on the wing, having also acquired forward Royce O’Neale from Utah in exchange for a first-round pick.

Warren began the offseason as the No. 50 free agent on our top-50 list and moved up to No. 46 after a few players exercised options.

Nets Sign Alondes Williams To Two-Way Deal

July 4th, 2022 at 9:10am CST by Rory Maher

JULY 4: Williams’ two-way deal with the Nets is now official, the team announced today in a press release.

As our tracker shows, Brooklyn’s other two-way slot remains open, though the club has a two-way qualifying offer out to David Duke.

JUNE 24: The Nets are signing Alondes Williams to a two-way deal, sources tell Shams Charania of The Athletic and Stadium (Twitter link).

The 6’5″ guard averaged 18.5 PPG, 6.4 RPG, 5.2 APG and 1.2 SPG on .507/.282/.691 shooting as a junior for Wake Forest in 2021/22. He spent his first two college seasons with Oklahoma prior to transferring to the Demon Deacons.

Williams won ACC Player of the Year and was selected to the All-ACC First Team for his strong performance this past season. He was ranked 59th on ESPN’s big board prior to the draft, so he was considered a fringe second-round pick, but ultimately went undrafted and landed in Brooklyn.

Bismack Biyombo Re-Signs With Suns

July 3rd, 2022 at 8:39pm CST by Dana Gauruder

JULY 3: Biyombo has officially re-signed with the Suns, according to NBA.com’s transactions log. That means it’s a minimum-salary deal for the veteran big man, since minimum signings can be completed during the July moratorium.

JULY 2: The Suns are re-signing free agent center Bismack Biyombo, Chris Haynes of Yahoo Sports tweets.

Biyombo, 29, appeared in 36 regular-season games last season for Phoenix, averaging 5.8 PPG and 4.6 RPG in 14.1 MPG. Biyombo, who spent the bulk of his NBA career with Charlotte, also appeared in nine playoff games last season.

Biyombo provides depth in the middle with Deandre Ayton‘s status with the franchise still very much up in the air.

Biyombo joined Phoenix last season on a 10-day contract, then signed a rest-of-the-season deal in early January for the prorated veteran’s minimum.

Nuggets Sign Christian Braun, Peyton Watson, Collin Gillespie

July 3rd, 2022 at 5:51pm CST by JD Shaw

The Nuggets have signed first-round draft picks Christian Braun and Peyton Watson to their rookie contracts, the team announced in a press release. Denver also officially signed undrafted Villanova guard Collin Gillespie to a two-way contract.

Braun, 6″7″, was drafted No. 21 overall last month. He helped Kansas win the NCAA championship this past season, averaging 14.1 points and 6.5 rebounds in 34.4 minutes per game. He also shot 49.5% from the floor and 39% from downtown during those outings. Assuming the usual 120% of the rookie scale, his deal will be for four years and $13.77MM.

Watson, 6’8″, was selected with the final pick of the first round. He played 32 games with UCLA as a freshman last season, ranking second on the team in blocked shots. He’s also only 19 years old. His deal is expected to be worth $11.27MM across four years.

Gillespie agreed to a two-way deal with Denver shortly after the draft. He averaged 15.6 points per game for Villanova last season, shooting 41.5% from three-point range. Gillespie, Braun and Watson are all set to play for the team during summer league this month.

Thunder Waive Isaiah Roby

July 3rd, 2022 at 5:30pm CST by JD Shaw

The Thunder have waived big man Isaiah Roby, the team announced. Roby’s $1.9MM contract would’ve become fully guaranteed if he wasn’t waived today.

Roby has spent the better part of three seasons with Oklahoma City since being acquired from Dallas midway through his rookie year in 2020. He appeared in 45 games last season, averaging 10.1 points and 4.8 rebounds in 21.1 minutes per contest. He also shot an efficient 51.4% from the floor.

Assuming he clears waivers on Tueday, Roby should receive interest as a free agent, as he’s only 24 years old.

He appeared in 109 total games with Oklahoma City, holding career averages of 9.1 points, 5.1 rebounds and 1.6 assists per contest. The Thunder are coming off a season in which they finished with the league’s fourth-worst record at 24-58.