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Raptors Promote Yuta Watanabe To 15-Man Roster

April 19th, 2021 at 7:20am CST by Luke Adams

7:20am: Watanabe’s second-year salary is non-guaranteed, but would become partially guaranteed for $375K if he remains under contract for three days beyond the free agency moratorium in August, reports Murphy (Twitter link). If he makes next season’s regular season roster, Watanabe would receive his full ’21/22 guarantee.

6:38am: The Raptors have elevated Yuta Watanabe to their 15-man roster, announcing today in a press release that they’ve signed the third-year forward to a standard contract.

Watanabe had spent the season on a two-way deal with Toronto, having had his Exhibit 10 contract converted before the regular season began in December. Originally considered a depth piece, the 26-year-old has become a more regular rotation fixture, appearing in 39 games for the club.

While he is valued more for his defense and his energy off the bench than his offense, Watanabe has shot the ball well this season too, averaging 4.0 PPG and 3.3 RPG on .448/.400/.826 shooting in 13.4 minutes per contest. Those numbers all exceed the ones he put up in two seasons in Memphis from 2018-20.

The exact details of Watanabe weren’t announced in the Raptors’ press release, but the team used its full mid-level exception prior to the season signing Aron Baynes and Alex Len, and didn’t have its bi-annual exception available this season. As such, we can safely assume it’s a minimum-salary deal, and Blake Murphy of The Athletic (Twitter link) confirms it covers next season as well, though it’s unclear if the 2021/22 salary is partially guaranteed or non-guaranteed.

Watanabe’s rest-of-season salary, at least, will be fully guaranteed — he’ll make $321,893 the rest of the way, in addition to what he has already earned on his two-way contract.

The Raptors now have a full 15-man roster, with 14 players on standard contracts and Freddie Gillespie on a 10-day deal. Jalen Harris is Toronto’s lone two-way player, so the club could fill its other two-way slot at some point before the regular season ends on May 16.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Pelicans Finalizing Multiyear Deal With Didi Louzada

April 18th, 2021 at 6:55pm CST by JD Shaw

The Pelicans are finalizing a multiyear agreement with draft-and-stash guard/forward Didi Louzada, according to a report from ESPN’s Olgun Uluc and Andrew Lopez.

Louzada, who most recently played in Australia with the Sydney Kings, was acquired by New Orleans with the No. 35 pick in the 2019 NBA draft. He averaged 8.8 points, 3.4 rebounds and 24.1 minutes in 20 contests with Sydney this season, shooting 39% from the field and 26% from behind the arc.

The 21-year-old Louzada stands at 6’5″ and can play the shooting guard and small forward positions. The Pelicans have until April 27 to sign another player after allowing Isaiah Thomas‘ 10-day contract expire on Monday, Uluc and Lopez note — teams are permitted to dip below the NBA’s required minimum of 14 players (not counting two-ways), but only for up to two weeks at a time.

The Pelicans haven’t touched their mid-level exception this year, so they’ll be able to use it to sign Louzada to a contract longer than two years. His cap hit for 2020/21 can be as low as the prorated rookie minimum, which is good news for a club looking to stay below the tax line.

New Orleans holds a 25-32 record, having put forth inconsistent defensive efforts this season. The club trails the No. 10 place Spurs by three games with roughly one month left in the season, losing a disappointing 122-112 game to New York on Sunday.

Raptors Sign Freddie Gillespie To Second 10-Day Deal

April 18th, 2021 at 11:25am CST by Arthur Hill

APRIL 18: The signing is official, the Raptors announced in a press release.

APRIL 17: Rookie power forward Freddie Gillespie will sign a second 10-day contract with the Raptors on Sunday, a source tells Blake Murphy of The Athletic (Twitter link).

Gillespie is averaging 5.8 points and 4.2 rebounds in five games since inking his first 10-day deal on April 8. He has been a regular member of the rotation for the short-handed team, playing 16 minutes per night.

Murphy expects Toronto to make a longer investment in Gillespie once the second deal expires, likely signing him for the rest of the season with a partial guarantee for 2021/22.

Gillespie, 23, went undrafted out of Baylor in November, but established himself with a strong performance in the G League. In 15 games for the Memphis Hustle, he posted 10.5 points, 10.3 rebounds and 2.3 blocks per night.

He will earn $61,528 during the second contract, which will also be the cap hit for the Raptors.

Rondae Hollis-Jefferson Signs Second 10-Day Deal With Trail Blazers

April 18th, 2021 at 10:21am CST by Arthur Hill

The Trail Blazers have given Rondae Hollis-Jefferson a second 10-day contract, the team announced in a press release.

The 26-year-old forward got into two games during his first 10-day deal, scoring four points in 12 total minutes. He joined the team on April 8 as Portland faced a league deadline to fill one of its two roster openings.

A first-round draft pick in 2015, Hollis-Jefferson spent his first four seasons with the Nets before signing with the Raptors as a free agent last year. He was with the Timberwolves in training camp, but failed to win a roster spot.

Players can only sign two 10-day contracts with a team during the season, so the Blazers will have to either part with Hollis-Jefferson or sign him for the rest of the season when this deal expires April 27. He will earn $128,963 over the next 10 days.

Kings Sign Damian Jones To Second 10-Day Deal

April 17th, 2021 at 1:50pm CST by Dana Gauruder

APRIL 17: The Kings have made it official, announcing Jones’ second 10-day deal in a press release.

APRIL 16: The Kings are signing center Damian Jones to a second 10-day contract, Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN tweets.

Jones’ first 10-day contract with Sacramento is set to expire on Friday night.

Jones began the season with the Suns before being waived in February, then signed a pair of 10-day deals with the Lakers. He played 14 games with Phoenix and eight with L.A., averaging a combined 3.0 PPG and 2.0 RPG. Since his arrival in Sacramento, Jones has started three games and averaged 2.3 PPG and 2.3 RPG in 13.3 MPG.

Sacramento will have another decision to make on Jones later this month, since teams can only sign players to two 10 days in a season.

The Kings’ usual starting center, Richaun Holmes, is currently sidelined with a hamstring injury.

Celtics Add Jabari Parker, Waive Moritz Wagner

April 17th, 2021 at 8:06am CST by Dana Gauruder

APRIL 17: The signing is official, according to a team press release.

APRIL 16: The Celtics are signing free agent forward Jabari Parker and waiving Moritz Wagner, according to Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter links). Parker will sign a two-year deal with Boston, Charania adds.

Parker has been looking for a new NBA home since the Kings waived him late last month. Parker had a $6.5MM expiring contract that Sacramento was unable to deal.

The second overall pick of the 2014 draft only appeared in three games with the Kings this season, due to a back injury, personal reasons, and being placed under the league’s health and safety protocols. Even when he was available, Parker wasn’t a regular part of Sacramento’s rotation.

Sacramento was Parker’s fifth NBA stop. He was included a trade deadline swap with Atlanta last February. Parker averaged 15.0 PPG in 32 games with the Hawks but only played six games with Sacramento last season.

Wagner was thrown into a three-team swap involving the Wizards, Celtics and Bulls at the trade deadline. He played nine games with Boston but only averaged 6.8 MPG in those appearances. Wagner, who was a first-round pick by the Lakers in 2018, has an expiring $2.16MM contract.

Clippers Sign DeMarcus Cousins To Second 10-Day Contract

April 16th, 2021 at 11:16am CST by Luke Adams

The Clippers have officially re-signed DeMarcus Cousins, announcing today that the big man has inked a second 10-day contract with the team.

Cousins, 30, started the season with the Rockets but was released in February as Houston shifted into retooling mode. He signed a 10-day contract with the Clippers earlier this month and appeared in three games in his first 10 days with the team, averaging 6.0 PPG and 3.0 RPG in just 9.7 minutes per contest.

Cousins will earn $175,668 on his second contract with Los Angeles, while the team takes on a $110,998 cap hit. The deal will cover L.A.’s next five games, including tonight’s contest in Philadelphia.

With Cousins back under contract, the Clippers once again have a full 15-man roster, though only 13 of those players are on full-season deals — Cousins and Malik Fitts are on 10-day pacts.

Fitts could be re-signed to a second 10-day contract when his first one expires this weekend. However, when Cousins’ new deal expires, the Clippers will have to either let him go or sign him for the rest of the season. At this point, a rest-of-season contract seems like the most likely outcome, but we’ll have to see how the next 10 days go.

Magic Sign Devin Cannady To Two-Way Deal

April 16th, 2021 at 8:53am CST by Luke Adams

Former Princeton guard Devin Cannady is back under contract with the Magic, as the team announced today in a press release that Cannady has rejoined the roster on a two-way contract.

Cannady signed a 10-day deal with Orlando on April 6, but the team ended that contract early in order to make room for another 10-day signing, Donta Hall. Since the Magic waived two-way player Karim Mané around the same time, there was an expectation that Cannady might be brought back to fill the two-way slot formerly held by Mané. Now it’s official.

Undrafted in 2019, Cannady has spent most of his first two professional seasons in the G League. After playing for the Long Island Nets as a rookie, he joined the Magic for training camp in December, then suited up for Orlando’s G League affiliate, the Lakeland Magic, during the 2020/21 “bubble” season.

Cannady’s regular season numbers in 13 games (25.8 MPG) for Lakeland were relatively modest, as he averaged 11.7 PPG, 2.8 RPG, and 2.7 APG. However, the 24-year-old knocked down 40% of his three-point attempts and played a key part in the Magic’s postseason run, scoring 22 points in the team’s NBAGL championship win to earn Finals MVP honors.

During his abbreviated 10-day contract with Orlando, Cannady saw limited action in three games, scoring 14 points in 13 total minutes. He and fellow point guard Chasson Randle are now the Magic’s two-way players.

Thunder Sign Justin Robinson To Second 10-Day Deal

April 15th, 2021 at 2:42pm CST by Luke Adams

Second-year guard Justin Robinson, whose initial 10-day contract with the Thunder expired overnight, has inked a second 10-day deal with Oklahoma City, the team announced today in a press release.

Having initially joined Oklahoma City’s roster on April 5, Robinson appeared in all six games the team played over the next 10 days, averaging 3.5 PPG and 1.3 APG on .389/.308/.600 shooting in 12.0 minutes per contest. While those numbers are pretty modest, the Thunder apparently liked what they saw from Robinson enough to keep him around for at least 10 more days.

Before arriving in OKC, Robinson played this season for the Delaware Blue Coats in the G League bubble, recording 15.5 PPG and 5.9 APG on .389/.376/.629 shooting in 13 games (31.1 MPG). The 23-year-old was a full-time starter for a Delaware squad that made it to the NBAGL Finals.

Robinson, who will earn $99,020 on his second 10-day deal with the Thunder, will fill the lone open spot on the team’s roster. So, barring any further roster moves, Oklahoma City will have a full 17-man squad for at least the next 10 days.

Once Robinson’s second 10-day contract expires, OKC will have to either let him walk or sign him for the rest of the season.

Cavs Promote Lamar Stevens To 15-Man Roster

April 14th, 2021 at 2:52pm CST by Luke Adams

2:52pm: The Cavaliers have officially announced Stevens’ new multiyear contract, issuing a press release to confirm the deal.

11:51am: It’ll be a four-year deal for Stevens, according to Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com (Twitter link), who says the contract won’t be guaranteed beyond this season and will include a fourth-year team option.

11:42am: The Cavaliers are signing forward Lamar Stevens to a multiyear NBA contract, reports Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link). Stevens is already on Cleveland’s roster, but only on a two-way deal. His new agreement with the team will give him a spot on the 15-man squad.

A rookie out of Penn State, Stevens has appeared in 37 games so far for the Cavs, averaging 4.4 PPG and 2.5 RPG in 13.1 minutes per contest. He’s also regarded as a strong defender, having told Hoops Rumors earlier this year that one of his goals is to eventually make the NBA’s All-Defensive team.

Cleveland currently has 13 players on full-season standard contracts, with Mfiondu Kabengele on a 10-day pact, so there’s an opening on the 15-man roster for Stevens. As such, no corresponding move will be required for his promotion.

The Cavaliers still have a portion of their mid-level exception available, so they could sign Stevens to a three- or four-year contract. Once it’s official, the move will open up a two-way slot for the Cavs, who could fill that opening with a developmental player before the end of the season.