Transactions Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Grizzlies Sign Second-Round Pick Cam Spencer To Two-Way Deal

July 8th, 2024 at 7:25pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Grizzlies have signed second-round pick Cam Spencer to a two-way contract, the team’s PR department tweets.

Memphis acquired Spencer’s draft rights in a four-team swap that featured the Pistons, Timberwolves and Raptors.

Spencer played a major role in UConn’s second consecutive national championship after transferring from Rutgers.

The No. 53 pick in the draft, Spencer started all 40 games for UConn last season and averaged 14.3 points, 4.9 rebounds, 3.6 assists and 1.5 steals in 32.8 minutes. The 24-year-old, who was selected First Team All-Big East, shot 48.4% from the field, 44.0% from 3-point range and 91.1% from the free throw line.

Spencer fills the Grizzlies’ final open two-way slot. Scotty Pippen Jr. and Trey Jemison occupy the other two-way spots.

Kings Officially Acquire DeRozan, Spurs Get Barnes In Three-Team Swap

July 8th, 2024 at 6:22pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The blockbuster three-team deal involving DeMar DeRozan and Harrison Barnes is official, according to a Spurs press release, Kings press release, and Bulls press release.

The Spurs acquired Barnes from the Kings. In addition, San Antonio received the right to swap first-round picks with the Kings in 2031 while sending two-way player RaiQuan Gray to Chicago.

Additionally, the Spurs are waiving Charles Bassey to complete the trade, Jeff McDonald of the San Antonio Express-News tweets. However, San Antonio is exploring ways to bring Bassey back in the fold.

Sacramento acquired DeRozan from the Bulls while sending Chris Duarte, two second-round picks and cash considerations to Chicago, along with Barnes and the 2031 pick swap to San Antonio.

The Bulls will waive Gray, K.C. Johnson of NBC Sports Chicago tweets.

The deal is a sign-and-trade for DeRozan, who ranked sixth on our list of the top 50 free agents for this summer. His new contract is worth approximately $76MM over three years, according to Chris Haynes of TNT and Bleacher Report (Twitter link), who adds that the first two seasons are fully guaranteed with a partial guarantee for the final year.

The contract includes $49MM in guaranteed money over the first two seasons, per Sean Cunningham of FOX 40 Sacramento (Twitter link). It also features bonuses for being named an All-Star, tweets ESPN’s Bobby Marks.

The trade leaves the Kings hard-capped at the $178.1MM first apron, per cap expert Yossi Gozlan (Twitter link). Sacramento will also create a $5.9MM trade exception in the deal, Gozlan adds.

The 34-year-old DeRozan was extremely productive during his three seasons in Chicago, averaging 25.5 points, 4.7 rebounds and 5.1 assists per game and finishing near the top in the Clutch Player of the Year balloting the past two seasons.

The six-time All-Star will now team with De’Aaron Fox, Domantas Sabonis, Malik Monk and Keegan Murray on what should be one of the league’s most exciting offenses. The Kings will be counting on that group to lead them back to the playoffs after being eliminated in the play-in tournament last season.

Parting with DeRozan is the latest step in an offseason roster shakeup in Chicago, which has already traded Alex Caruso and lost Andre Drummond in free agency. The Bulls are shifting to a younger and less expensive roster in hopes of eventually rebuilding into a more competitive team.

Duarte, a 27-year-old swingman with three years of NBA experience, is the latest addition, but it’s uncertain how large his role will be. He appeared in 59 games with Sacramento last season, but averaged just 3.9 points and 1.8 rebounds in 12.2 minutes per night.

Duarte is under contract for one more season at $5.9MM and is eligible for an extension through October 21. Chicago will create a significant trade exception in the deal $17.6MM trade exception in the deal, according to Bobby Marks of ESPN (Twitter link).

Barnes joins Chris Paul as veteran offseason additions in San Antonio. The 32-year-old is extremely durable, playing in all 82 games the past two seasons. He can handle either forward spot and he figures to get plenty of open looks alongside Paul and Victor Wembanyama. Barnes averaged 12.2 points, 3.0 rebounds and 1.2 assists last season with .474/.387/.801 shooting stats.

The Spurs will use their cap space to absorb Barnes’ $18MM salary for the upcoming season, Wojnarowski and Tim Bontemps write in a full story on the trade. Barnes will make $19MM in 2025/26 before becoming an unrestricted free agent.

Barnes’ contract includes a $3.7MM trade kicker that Sacramento will be responsible for, Marks adds (Twitter link), broken up into $1.85MM for each of the next two seasons. That number could be negotiated down, but only with Barnes’ consent.

Knicks Sign Ariel Hukporti On Two-Way Deal

July 8th, 2024 at 6:04pm CST by Dana Gauruder

8:06pm: The signing is official, the team’s PR department tweets. It’s a one-year deal, The Athletic’s Fred Katz tweets.

6:04pm: The Knicks are signing the last pick of the draft, Ariel Hukporti, to a two-way contract, Michael Scotto of HoopsHype reports (Twitter link).

The German-born big man spent the 2023/24 season in Australia with Melbourne United, averaging 8.4 PPG, 7.0 RPG and 1.5 BPG in 28 games (18.4 MPG).

New York made multiple trades in the second round and wound up with the final pick in the draft, where it snagged Hukporti. All of the Knicks’ two-way slots are open, though they have a two-way qualifying offer on the table for Jacob Toppin.

Pelicans Sign Yves Missi To Rookie Scale Contract

July 8th, 2024 at 4:14pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Pelicans have signed first-round pick Yves Missi to a rookie scale contract, according to the NBA transactions log. The Pelicans confirmed the signing via a press release.

Missi, a big man out of Baylor, was the 21st pick of the draft. Assuming he received the maximum 120% of this year’s rookie scale salaries, Missi will make $3,193,200 in his first season. He can earn a total of $15,654,827 over the next four seasons.

Rookie scale contracts are guaranteed for the first two years, with team options on the third and fourth years.

In his lone college season, Missi averaged 10.7 points, 5.6 rebounds and 1.5 blocks in 22.9 minutes per game while appearing in 34 contests, including 32 starts.

With the departure of Jonas Valanciunas, Missi has an opportunity to earn minutes in his rookie campaign.

Celtics Re-Sign JD Davison To Two-Way Contract

July 8th, 2024 at 3:22pm CST by Luke Adams

JD Davison is back under contract in Boston, according to the Celtics, who announced (via Twitter) they’ve signed the free agent guard to another two-way deal.

Davison, who was the 53rd overall pick out of Alabama in 2022, has spent his first two professional seasons on two-way contracts with the Celtics, logging just 105 total minutes in 20 games at the NBA level across those two years.

While Davison hasn’t been able to crack the rotation on a veteran NBA roster, the 21-year-old has been a high-level performer for the Maine Celtics in the G League. He earned All-NBAGL Third Team honors this past season after averaging 21.5 points, 8.5 assists, and 5.1 rebounds in 34.3 minutes per game across 44 total Showcase Cup and regular season contests.

The Celtics didn’t issue Davison a qualifying offer at the end of June because he was ineligible for another two-way QO (his offer would’ve been a one-year, partially guaranteed standard contract). However, it appears bringing him back on a third two-way contract was always the plan. Davison will play for Boston’s Summer League team this month in Las Vegas.

The C’s now have one two-way slot available, with Drew Peterson filling the other.

Wolves Sign Dillingham, Shannon To Rookie Contracts

July 8th, 2024 at 1:51pm CST by Luke Adams

The Timberwolves have officially signed first-round picks Rob Dillingham and Terrence Shannon to their rookie scale contracts, according to the NBA’s transaction log.

Minnesota acquired the No. 8 pick – which originally belonged to Toronto – from the Spurs on draft night in order to select Dillingham. The former Kentucky guard averaged 15.2 points, 3.9 assists, and 2.9 rebounds in just 23.3 minutes per game across 32 outings during his first and only college season, knocking down an impressive 44.4% of his three-point attempts.

While Dillingham may not play a significant role immediately on a veteran roster that is coming off a Western Conference Finals appearance, the Wolves lost some backcourt depth this offseason when Monte Morris and Jordan McLaughlin signed elsewhere. At the very least, the team’s lottery pick should get a chance to earn rotation minutes and provide some scoring punch off the bench.

The Wolves used their own No. 27 pick on Shannon, another high-scoring guard. The 6’6″ Illinois alum put up 23.0 PPG on .475/.362/.801 shooting in 33.9 MPG (32 games).

Assuming neither player accepted less than the maximum allowable 120% of the rookie scale, Dillingham will earn about $6.26MM as a rookie, with a four-year deal worth $28.49MM, while Shannon’s rookie salary will be $2.55MM and his four-year contract will be worth $13.08MM.

As our tracker shows, 27 of this year’s 30 first-round picks have now signed their rookie scale contracts.

Heat Re-Sign Haywood Highsmith

July 8th, 2024 at 12:10pm CST by Luke Adams

5:25pm: The signing is official, the team tweets.

12:10pm: The Heat have agreed to re-sign free agent forward Haywood Highsmith, agent Jerry Dianis tell Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN (Twitter link).

Highsmith will receive a two-year, $11MM deal to remain in Miami, per Wojnarowski. The full amount is guaranteed, with no team or player option on the second year, Woj adds (Twitter link).

“We’ve been consistent with Miami with how Haywood felt,” Dianis told Ira Winderman of The South Florida Sun Sentinel (Twitter link). “And we felt he wanted to be in Miami. This deal memorializes that.”

Highsmith, who is 6’7″ with a seven-foot wingspan, earned a rotation role in Miami over the last two seasons due primarily due to his defense. However, he has gradually developed into more of a threat on the offensive end, having set new career highs in points per game (6.1), field-goal percentage (46.5%), and three-point percentage (39.6%) while averaging 20.7 minutes per contest across 66 games (26 starts) in 2023/24.

The No. 36 free agent on our top-50 list, Highsmith reportedly drew interest from rival suitors during free agency. According to Barry Jackson of The Miami Herald (Twitter link), the Bucks and Suns – both of whom were limited to minimum-salary offers – were among the teams pursuing the 27-year-old, with Damian Lillard joining Milwaukee’s recruiting efforts.

However, Highsmith had spoken multiple times in the spring about his desire to remain in Miami. The Heat were limited in their ability to offer much more than the two-year, $11MM contract they put on the table due to their proximity to the second tax apron — and their desire to remain below that apron.

According to cap expert Yossi Gozlan (Twitter link), the club projects to have about $1.5MM in breathing room below the second apron, with 14 players on guaranteed contracts. That suggests, barring additional roster moves, that the 15th roster spot may remain open entering the season.

Daniel Theis Signs With Pelicans

July 8th, 2024 at 10:48am CST by Arthur Hill

JULY 9: Theis’ deal with New Orleans is now official, according to the NBA’s transaction log.

JULY 8: Free agent center Daniel Theis will join the Pelicans on a one-year contract, sources tell ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (Twitter link).

His salary will be roughly $3MM, according to Kelly Iko of The Athletic (Twitter link). That suggests it’s probably a minimum-salary deal, which would be worth $2,800,834.

The well-traveled big man will provide an inside presence for a New Orleans team that just lost Jonas Valanciunas, who was shipped to Washington in a sign-and-trade deal. Theis could be in contention for a starting spot, depending on how the Pelicans fill out the rest of their roster.

New Orleans will be the sixth team for Theis, who averaged 6.3 points, 4.1 rebounds and 1.0 assists in 59 games with the Clippers last season. He signed with L.A. in mid-November after being waived by Indiana.

Theis, 32, began his career with Boston in 2017. He also had short stays with Chicago and Houston, along with a return to the Celtics late in the 2021/22 season.

Theis was one of the stars of the German team that went undefeated while winning the gold medal at the 2023 FIBA World Cup. He will represent Germany again at this year’s Summer Olympics.

Raptors Re-Sign Immanuel Quickley To Five-Year Deal

July 8th, 2024 at 9:04am CST by Luke Adams

JULY 8: The Raptors have announced the new contract with Quickley (Twitter link).

“Immanuel embodies so many things that are important to our team,” team president Masai Ujiri said. “… He wants to win and he will be a Raptor for years to come. We are very high on I.Q. – our point guard of the future.”

JUNE 28: Immanuel Quickley, a restricted free agent this offseason, intends to re-sign with the Raptors, according to Shams Charania of The Athletic, who reports (via Twitter) that the guard will receive a five-year contract worth $175MM.

Quickley, the Sixth Man of the Year runner-up in 2022/23, was the centerpiece of the Raptors’ return in the OG Anunoby trade with the Knicks in December, arriving in Toronto midway through the season along with RJ Barrett.

The fourth-year guard averaged 18.6 points, 6.8 assists, and 4.8 rebounds per game with a .395 3PT% in his first 38 games as a Raptor, establishing himself as part of the team’s long-term future.

As we wrote when we ranked Quickley seventh in our list of this summer’s top 50 free agents, Tyler Herro (four years, $120MM, plus incentives), Jordan Poole (four years, $123MM, plus incentives), and Devin Vassell (five years, $135MM, plus incentives) were expected to be a few points of comparison for the guard’s contract negotiations this summer.

While it remains to be seen if Quickley’s $175MM will be fully guaranteed, the 25-year-old appears poised to land a bigger payday than any of those players by securing an annual average value of $35MM per year.

It’s the second major financial commitment the Raptors will make to a cornerstone piece this summer. The team also reportedly intends to sign Scottie Barnes to a five-year rookie scale extension that will begin in 2025/26 and will be worth a projected $225MM.

Neither deal can become official until July, and Toronto may not rush to formally complete Quickley’s deal, since his cap hold is just $12.5MM. If they end up operating under the cap, the Raptors can use up all their room while keeping that hold on their books, then go over the cap using Quickley’s Bird rights to sign him to his new deal.

Quickley is the fifth free agent in the top 10 of our top-50 list to reach an agreement with his team during the new exclusive negotiating window between the end of the NBA Finals and the official start of free agency on June 30. He joins Anunoby, Pascal Siakam, Nic Claxton, and Malik Monk as players who have agreed to remain with their current teams. The other players in our top 10 are Paul George, Tyrese Maxey (who is considered a lock to remain in Philadelphia), LeBron James, DeMar DeRozan, and James Harden.

Scottie Barnes Signs Max Extension With Raptors

July 8th, 2024 at 9:02am CST by Arthur Hill

JULY 8: Barnes’ extension is now official, the Raptors confirmed (via Twitter).

“We are so proud of Scottie for the player and leader he has become,” team president Masai Ujiri said in a press release. “I’ve said before that he is the type of player you build a team around. Well, we are doing that. … Together, our future starts here. It starts now.”

JUNE 24: Scottie Barnes will receive a maximum-salary extension from the Raptors that could pay him up to $270MM over five years, sources tell ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (Twitter link).

The deal won’t include a team or player option, reports Michael Scotto of HoopsHype.

Toronto intends to rebuild its roster around the 2022 Rookie of the Year, according to Wojnarowski, who adds that agent Bill Duffy of WME Basketball recently met with team president Masai Ujiri and general manager Bobby Webster to work out the terms of the deal. Barnes will become eligible to sign it once the moratorium lifts on July 6.

Cap expert Yossi Gozlan (Twitter link) offers details on the projected salaries for Barnes, noting that the base value of the extension projects to be nearly $225MM (based on a $141MM cap in 2024/25 and a 10% increase for ’25/26), but it could reach $270MM if he makes an All-NBA team next season.

[Hoops Rumors Glossary: Derrick Rose Rule]

Without an All-NBA nod next spring, Barnes would be on track to earn $38,775,000 when the extension begins with the 2025/26 season, followed by $41,877,000 in 2026/27, $44,979,000 in 2027/28, $48,081,000 in 2028/29 and $51,183,000 in 2029/30.

Barnes’ extension and an expected new deal for Immanuel Quickley mean the Raptors likely won’t have any cap space to work with next summer, Gozlan adds (Twitter link). They could have about $30MM available this year if they decline their $23MM team option on Bruce Brown or trade him without receiving much salary in return.

Barnes has emerged as Toronto’s franchise player since being drafted with the fourth pick in 2021. He earned his first All-Star selection this season, averaging 19.9 points, 8.2 rebounds and 6.1 assists in 60 games. His season ended early when he underwent surgery for a broken bone in his left hand in early March.

The Raptors seemed to anoint him as the key to their future when they traded away OG Anunoby and Pascal Siakam in separate deals over the winter.

Barnes becomes the first member of the 2021 draft class to reach an extension with his team. Cade Cunningham, Jalen Green, Evan Mobley and Jalen Suggs are among the others in line for extensions this summer.