Transactions Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Derrick Favors Plans To Pick Up Player Option

April 12th, 2022 at 10:57am CST by Luke Adams

Thunder big man Derrick Favors expects to exercise his player option for 2022/23 and to be back in Oklahoma City next season, he said today (Twitter link via Joe Mussatto of The Oklahoman).

The three-year deal Favors signed with Utah in 2020 included two guaranteed years and a $10.18MM option for ’22/23. The veteran center was traded from the Jazz to the Thunder during the 2021 offseason and didn’t play a ton for his new team this season, averaging a modest 16.7 minutes per game in 39 appearances. His season came to an early end due to a back issue.

Favors averaged 5.3 PPG and 4.7 RPG in his part-time role for Oklahoma City in 2021/22. Although he’s still a solid rebounder and can score around the basket, the 30-year-old didn’t have much of a role on a rebuilding Thunder team that was more focused on developing its young players.

Once he officially picks up his player option, Favors should be viewed as a trade candidate, since he’ll be on an expiring deal and likely isn’t part of OKC’s long-term plans. However, his $10MM+ salary may be more than some teams are comfortable paying a backup center.

Suns Convert Wainright’s Two-Way Deal Into Standard Contract

April 10th, 2022 at 2:23pm CST by Dana Gauruder

2:23pm: The Suns have officially converted Wainright’s contract from a two-way to a standard deal, the team confirmed (via Twitter).

1:28pm: The Suns are converting the two-way contract of rookie forward Ishmail Wainright into a standard deal, making Wainright eligible for the playoffs, Shams Charania of The Athletic tweets.

Wainright has seen action in 44 Suns games this season, averaging 2.1 PGG and 1.2 RPG in 7.4 MPG. The 27-year-old signed his two-way contract in October after being waived by Toronto during training camp.

It’s unlikely that Wainright will see much action in the playoffs, but he might be employed as a defensive specialist in certain situations.

Wainright, who went undrafted out of Baylor in 2017, played for a number of international leagues prior to this season.

Jazz Convert Trent Forrest’s Two-Way Contract To Standard Deal

April 10th, 2022 at 1:24pm CST by Arthur Hill

1:24pm: The transaction is official, according to a team press release.

10:25am: Two-way player Trent Forrest will receive a standard contract from the Jazz, tweets ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski. The move will make him eligible to participate in the playoffs, which two-way players cannot do.

The 23-year-old point guard is in his second season as a two-way player with Utah. He has appeared in 60 games so far in 2021/22, making six starts, and is averaging 3.3 points, 1.7 rebounds and 1.8 assists in 12.8 minutes per night.

Undrafted out of Florida State in 2020, Forrest reached a two-way agreement with the Jazz in November of that year and appeared in 30 games as a rookie. He signed another two-way deal before the start of this season’s training camp.

Once the move is official, Utah will have a full 15-man roster heading into the postseason. The Jazz are currently tied for fifth in the West at 48-33 and hold a tiebreaker advantage over the Nuggets.

Cavaliers Bring Back RJ Nembhard On Two-Way Deal

April 10th, 2022 at 11:49am CST by Arthur Hill

Shooting guard RJ Nembhard has returned to the Cavaliers on a two-way contract, the team announced in a press release.

Nembhard originally signed a two-way deal with Cleveland in October and was converted to a standard contract on March 31. He was waived Thursday to give the Cavs a roster opening to convert Moses Brown‘s contract, a move that was confirmed in today’s press release.

A rookie out of TCU, the 23-year-old Nembhard appeared in 13 games this season, playing just 4.6 minutes per night. He had a much bigger role with the Cavaliers’ G League affiliate, averaging 24.5 points, 8.1 rebounds an 5.5 assists in 23 games.

It’s unclear if Nembhard’s new contract is for one or two years. If it’s a one-year deal, he’ll be eligible for restricted free agency this summer. A two-year deal would give Cleveland the option of keeping Nembhard in one of the team’s two-way slots next season.

Devin Cannady Signs With Magic

April 10th, 2022 at 11:23am CST by Arthur Hill

The Magic have used their open roster spot to sign guard Devin Cannady, the team announced in a press release.

Cannady, 25, just completed a 10-day contract with Orlando that he signed in late March. He appeared in four games during that deal, averaging 8.8 points, 1.5 rebounds and 2.0 assists in 27.8 minutes per night. He spent much of the season with the Magic’s G League affiliate in Lakeland, putting up 15.8 PPG in 16 games.

Cannady also played eight games for Orlando last season after signing a 10-day contract and then a two-way deal in April. He was in training camp with the team before the start of this season.

Nets Waive James Johnson, Promote Kessler Edwards

April 10th, 2022 at 8:40am CST by Rory Maher

APRIL 10: Edwards’ new contract is now official, the Nets announced (via Twitter). It includes a team option for next season, tweets Michael Scotto of HoopsHype.

APRIL 7: The Nets have waived forward James Johnson, our JD Shaw tweets, and plan to promote rookie Kessler Edwards to a standard deal so he’s eligible for the postseason, sources tell Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN (Twitter link).

Johnson, 35, is a 13-year NBA veteran who’s appeared in a total of 747 regular season games. In 62 games (10 starts) with the Nets this season, he averaged 5.5 points, 3.5 rebounds and 2.1 assists on .469/.271/.527 shooting in 19.2 minutes per night.

Edwards, 21, was the 44th overall pick of the 2021 draft after three seasons with Pepperdine. He’s been on a two-way contract this season, and clearly the Nets like what they’ve seen from the young forward, because they want him to keep contributing for a potential playoff run.

Through 46 games (22 starts) this season, Edwards is averaging 5.8 points and 3.5 rebounds on .412/.359/.824 shooting in 20.1 minutes. He took advantage of his opportunity over the winter months when the team was ravaged by players in the health and safety protocols, as he’d rarely seen action to that point.

Edwards is known as a strong, versatile defender and is a better spot-up shooter than Johnson, as evidenced by their respective three-point percentages. Because Johnson was waived so late in the season, he will not be eligible to play in the postseason with another team.

Cavaliers Convert Moses Brown To Standard Contract

April 10th, 2022 at 8:29am CST by Arthur Hill

Moses Brown, who signed a two-way contract with the Cavaliers in late March, now has a standard deal with the team, according to the NBA.com transactions log. Cleveland had an open roster spot available, so the club was able to convert Brown without any other move.

Although no details were provided, it’s likely a minimum-salary arrangement that covers the final day of the regular season. Brown will now be eligible for the play-in tournament and playoffs, which two-way players cannot participate in.

The 22-year-old center joined the Cavs in March on a pair of 10-day contracts to provide center depth with Jarrett Allen injured and signed a two-way deal at the end of the month. He has appeared in 13 games, starting five, and has averaged 6.3 points and 5.5 rebounds per night while shooting 62.3% from the floor.

Brown also played 23 games for the Mavericks this season before being waived on February 10 when Dallas needed to open a roster spot to complete a trade with Washington.

Juwan Morgan Signs Multi-Year Deal With Celtics

April 10th, 2022 at 8:06am CST by Arthur Hill

APRIL 10: Morgan’s signing is official, according to the NBA.com transactions log.

APRIL 9: The Celtics will fill their open roster spot before the playoffs by signing Juwan Morgan to a multi-year contract, tweets Shams Charania of The Athletic.

The deal is expected to be for two years, with a non-guaranteed salary for 2022/23, a source tells Keith Smith of CelticsBlog (Twitter link).

The 24-year-old forward recently completed a 10-day contract with Boston, getting into one game and playing four minutes without scoring. He also appeared in a single game with the Raptors on a 10-day deal in December.

Morgan spent most of this season with the Celtics’ G League affiliate in Maine, where he averaged 12.6 points, 6.0 rebounds and 3.1 assists in 29 games. He was in training camp with Boston, but was waived before the start of the regular season.

Morgan began his NBA career with the Jazz after going undrafted out of Indiana in 2019. He spent his first two seasons in Utah, playing a combined 50 games.

No corresponding roster move will be necessary to complete the signing, since Boston’s 15th roster spot had previously been occupied by Morgan on his 10-day contract.

Blazers Sign Reggie Perry To Hardship Deal For Final Game

April 9th, 2022 at 2:31pm CST by JD Shaw

The Trail Blazers have signed forward Reggie Perry to a hardship contract, allowing him to play in the team’s final game of the season on Sunday, the club announced today in a press release. Portland will host Utah as the team looks to avoid its 11th straight loss.

Perry signed a 10-day deal with the Blazers in December and a hardship 10-day on March 30. He has appeared in eight games for Portland this season, averaging 8.8 points, 4.8 rebounds and 1.1 steals in 18.0 minutes. He also signed a 10-day contract with the Pacers in early February and played in a single game with Indiana.

Perry played just over 16 minutes in the Blazers’ 50-point loss to the Mavericks on Friday, finishing with nine points and two rebounds off the bench. His biggest impact this season came in the G League. In 34 games with the Raptors’ affiliate, he averaged 19.7 points and 11.1 rebounds per game.

The Blazers currently have nine players injured, making them eligible for a handful of hardship exceptions — Drew Eubanks and Kris Dunn are also signed to hardship deals. Perry’s contract will expire when the regular season ends, so the club won’t have any form of Bird rights on him this summer.

Lakers Sign Mac McClung To Two-Way Deal

April 9th, 2022 at 1:15pm CST by Rory Maher

APRIL 9: McClung has officially signed his two-way contract with the Lakers, the team announced on social media (Twitter link).

APRIL 8: The Lakers intend to sign G League guard Mac McClung to their open two-way spot, reports Shams Charania of The Athletic and Stadium (via Twitter).

Los Angeles recently created a two-way opening by promoting Wenyen Gabriel to a standard contract on Friday after waiving Trevor Ariza on Thursday.

McClung, 23, went undrafted in 2021 after three college seasons. He started his collegiate career with Georgetown, but transferred to Texas Tech following his sophomore year. He signed an Exhibit 10 deal with the Lakers last summer, but was waived in October before the season began.

McClung 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 has spent the majority of the 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. Once the signing becomes official, the Lakers will have a full 15-man roster and both two-way spots filled.