Transactions Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Mavericks Waive A.J. Lawson

October 8th, 2024 at 12:31pm CST by Luke Adams

The Mavericks have waived shooting guard A.J. Lawson, the team announced today (via Twitter).

Although Lawson was on a non-guaranteed contract, his release is a little more notable than many roster cuts this month, since he was on a standard multiyear deal that had carried over to this season, rather than an Exhibit 10/training camp contract.

Lawson, 24, signed a two-year, two-way contract with Dallas back in December 2022, shortly after being waived by Minnesota. He remained on that deal until March 2024, when he was promoted to the standard roster on a new four-year contract that was only guaranteed for the remainder of the 2023/24 season.

Lawson appeared in a total of 56 NBA games for the Mavericks during his two seasons with the team, including 42 in 2023/24. He averaged 3.4 points and 1.3 rebounds in 7.4 minutes per contest and posted a shooting line of .457/.307/.548 at the NBA level. The former South Carolina standout also played seven times for the Texas Legends in the G League last season, averaging 20.7 PPG and 7.0 RPG with a .530 FG%.

Dallas is carrying 14 players on guaranteed contracts. Veteran forward Markieff Morris, who has a non-guaranteed salary, is considered the heavy favorite to claim the 15th standard roster spot, assuming the team carries a full roster to open the season.

It’s worth noting that the Mavs do have a two-way slot available, so if they still like Lawson and want to bring him back, they could re-sign him to a two-way contract as long as he clears waivers — his multiyear deal wasn’t eligible to be directly converted into a two-way.

Hawks Sign, Waive Tony Bradley

October 8th, 2024 at 9:11am CST by Dana Gauruder

OCTOBER 8: The Hawks have put out a second press release indicating that Bradley has been waived.

The quick turnaround signals that he was signed for G League purposes and will receive an Exhibit 10 bonus if he spends at least 60 days with the Skyhawks, as noted below.

OCTOBER 7: The Hawks have signed center Tony Bradley, according to a team press release.

Bradley, a six-year NBA veteran, has appeared in 179 NBA contests (18 starts) over the course of his career with Utah (2017-20), Philadelphia (2020-21), Oklahoma City (2020-21) and Chicago (2021-23), averaging 4.4 points and 4.1 rebounds in 11.1 minutes.

He was signed and waived by the Mavericks during training camp last season. He then spent the 2023/24 campaign with the Texas Legends, the Mavericks’ affiliate in the NBA G League. He appeared in 17 games (10 starts), averaging 14.0 points, 9.4 rebounds, 1.9 assists and 1.7 blocks in 21.3 minutes.

The signing of Bradley brings Atlanta to full training camp roster of 21 players. It’s likely to be an Exhibit 10 deal, which would make him eligible for a bonus up to $77.5K if he’s waived and then spends at least 60 days with the College Park Skyhawks, who acquired his returning rights from the Legends last month.

Nuggets Waive Three Camp Invitees

October 8th, 2024 at 7:11am CST by Luke Adams

The Nuggets have waived forwards Gabe McGlothan and Jaylin Williams, along with guard Jahmir Young, according to NBA.com’s official transaction log. McGlothan, Williams, and Young were in camp with Denver on Exhibit 10 deals.

With the Nuggets carrying 15 players on guaranteed contracts and three on two-way contracts, it always appeared the plan was to have the trio eventually report to the Grand Rapids Gold, Denver’s G League affiliate. That’s likely to be the next stop for all three players, who will receive Exhibit 10 bonuses worth $77.5K apiece if they spend at least 60 days with the Gold.

Young got a chance to play 14 minutes in the team’s second exhibition game in Abu Dhabi against Boston on Sunday and delivered eight points, two rebounds, and two assists. However, Williams (not to be confused with the Jaylin Williams in Oklahoma City) didn’t see action in either of those preseason contests and McGlothan appeared only very briefly in Friday’s game, checking in with three seconds left in the fourth quarter.

The cuts leave Denver with 18 players on its roster, three shy of the preseason limit. The Nuggets have reportedly reached an agreement to sign big man Charles Bediako and it wouldn’t be a surprise if they rotate other players in and out of those back-end roster spots before the season begins, primarily for G League purposes.

Signing and waiving players on Exhibit 10 contracts before the season allows teams to secure players’ NBAGL rights and/or ensure those players will receive bonus money for spending 60+ days with the team’s G League affiliate.

Bulls Sign, Waive Ben Coupet Jr.

October 8th, 2024 at 7:09am CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

OCTOBER 8: As expected, Coupet has officially been waived, according to the transaction log at NBA.com.

OCTOBER 6: Free agent shooting guard Ben Coupet Jr. has signed an Exhibit 10 contract with the Bulls, according to Michael Scotto of HoopsHype (Twitter link).

The 6’7″ swingman, a Chicago native, went undrafted out of Southern Illinois in 2022. He averaged 11.0 points on .449/.411/.761 shooting, along with 4.6 rebounds, 0.9 assists and 0.5 steals per game during his 2021/22 senior season with the Salukis.

Coupet has since been plying his trade for Chicago’s G League affiliate squad, the Windy City Bulls, for the past two years. Across a total of 52 regular season bouts (16 starts), Coup has averaged 6.9 PPG, 2.5 RPG, and 0.7 APG with a shooting line of .446/.377/.793.

Scotto notes that Coupet is expected to be waived ahead of Chicago’s 2024/25 regular season, and rejoin Windy City as an affiliate player.

Should he remain with Windy City for at least 60 days, Coupet will be eligible for a bonus worth as much as $77.5K as a result of his Exhibit 10 deal.

Wendell Carter Signs Three-Year Extension With Magic

October 7th, 2024 at 9:17pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Wendell Carter Jr. has signed a three-year, $58.7MM contract extension with the Magic, Shams Charania of ESPN tweets. The Magic confirmed the signing in a press release.

Carter is entering his third year of a four-year, $50MM contract that was front-loaded. The new deal will begin in 2026 and will keep him under contract through the 2028/29 season.

According to ESPN’s Bobby Marks, Carter will make approximately $18.1MM in 2026/27, $19.6MM in 2027/28 and $21MM in 2028/29 (Twitter link).

It’s the most money Carter could have received for a three-year extension — his 2025/26 salary is below the estimated average salary, so he was eligible for up to 140% of the average. Given the rising salary cap, Carter’s salary is a reasonable cost for a starting center.

The Magic now have both of their top big men under long-term deals. Franz Wagner signed a five-year, maximum-salary extension in July. By signing the extension at this time, Carter will be ineligible to be traded this season due to extend-and-trade rules.

This is Carter’s seventh NBA season, but he’s still just 25. He has averaged 12.5 points and 8.5 points in 27.6 minutes through 315 regular-season games. Carter has battled a variety of injuries throughout his career — he’s never appeared in more than 62 games in a season.

Carter played 55 times last season (48 starts), averaging 11.0 points and 6.9 rebounds in 25.6 minutes. He also made his playoff debut earlier this year, averaging 7.6 points and 6.3 rebounds in 26.4 minutes over seven games.

Carter underwent surgery on his left hand after the postseason. The preventive procedure involved inserting a plate at the site of a fracture on Carter’s hand. He suffered the fracture in early November and had it surgically repaired at the time. He also missed some games last season due to right knee inflammation.

As our extension tracker shows, Carter’s contract is essentially identical to those signed in recent months by Pacers guard Andrew Nembhard and Clippers center Ivica Zubac, though Carter’s will begin a year later.

Knicks Sign Boo Buie On Exhibit 10 Deal

October 7th, 2024 at 8:11pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Knicks have added Boo Buie on an Exhibit 10 contract, the team’s PR department tweets.

Buie was expected to sign a similar contract with the Suns after he went undrafted in June but it never became official. Buie did appear in five Summer League contests for Phoenix, averaging 9.0 points, 2.0 assists and 1.4 rebounds in 21.1 minutes per game.

Buie, a 6’2″ two-time All-Big Ten guard, scored a total of 2,187 points during his five seasons with Northwestern. In 2023/24, he posted a career-high 19.0 points per game on .438/.434/.858 shooting. His 5.0 assists, 3.3 rebounds, and 1.4 steals per game in 34 appearances last season also represented career highs.

Exhibit 10 agreements are non-guaranteed, but can be converted into two-way contracts before the start of the regular season. If Buie is waived and then remains with the G League’s Westchester Knicks for at least 60 days, he’s eligible to earn a bonus up to $77.5K.

Pistons Sign Aaron Estrada To Exhibit 10 Contract

October 7th, 2024 at 10:36am CST by Luke Adams

The Pistons have officially signed undrafted rookie free agent Aaron Estrada to an Exhibit 10 contract, the team announced today (via Twitter). The move brings Detroit’s roster to the maximum allowable 21 players.

The move had been long anticipated, with the agreement between the two sides initially reported in June shortly after the draft. Estrada subsequently appeared in five games for the Pistons’ Summer League team in Las Vegas, averaging 5.6 points, 2.2 assists, and 1.8 rebounds in 13.4 minutes per contest.

Estrada bounced around from school to school over the course of his five-year college career, playing for St. Peter’s, Oregon, Hofstra (for two seasons), and Alabama. In his final year of NCAA eligibility in 2023/24, the 6’4″ guard averaged 13.4 points, 5.4 rebounds, and 4.6 assists in 30.9 minutes per game across 37 starts for the Crimson Tide.

While he made just 44.9% of his field goal attempts and 31.3% of his three-pointers as a super-senior in ’23/24, Estrada’s rates were 46.5% and 34.4%, respectively, in his first four college seasons. He also knocked down 86.3% of his career free throws.

While it’s possible that Estrada could have his Exhibit 10 contract converted into a two-way deal before the season begins, the fact that Detroit is bringing him in well after the start of training camps signals that he may not get a chance to compete for that open spot. The more likely outcome is that he’ll join the Motor City Cruise – the Pistons’ G League team – as an affiliate player and will earn an Exhibit 10 bonus worth up to $77.5K as long as he spends at least 60 days with the Cruise.

Charles Bediako Signing With Nuggets

October 6th, 2024 at 4:02pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

Free agent center Charles Bediako is signing a contract with the Nuggets, Bediako’s agent Daniel Green informs Michael Scotto of HoopsHype (Twitter link).

The terms of the deal have yet to be divulged. But given the timing – and the fact that Denver is carrying 15 players on guaranteed contracts and three on two-way deals – it’s likely to be a training camp contract, probably with Exhibit 10 language. The Nuggets don’t have an open roster spot, so someone will need to be cut to make room for Bediako.

Bediako went undrafted out of Alabama in 2023, but ultimately latched on with the Spurs on a two-way deal for the 2023/24 season. However, he was cut near the end of December after tearing his meniscus.

The raw seven-footer didn’t appear in any NBA games for San Antonio, but did play in a total of 17 Showcase Cup and regular season bouts for the club’s G League affiliate, the Austin Spurs.

Across six regular season matchups with Austin after returning from his knee injury, Bediako averaged 1.3 points and 1.7 rebounds while playing just 4.2 minutes per game. Prior to the injury, he put up 7.7 PPG and 6.9 RPG in 19.0 MPG across 11 Showcase Cup outings.

Most recently, the 22-year-old spent his Summer League this past July suiting up for the Magic.

Denver is almost certainly bringing on Bediako with an eye toward having him play for the team’s G League affiliate, the Grand Rapids Gold. The Gold acquired Bediako’s NBAGL returning rights from Austin in July.

Magic Exercise 2025/26 Options On Banchero, Black, Howard

October 4th, 2024 at 2:12pm CST by Rory Maher

The Magic announced (via Twitter) that they have exercised their 2025/26 rookie scale options on Paolo Banchero, Anthony Black and Jett Howard.

The No. 1 overall pick of the 2022 draft, Banchero won Rookie of the Year in ’22/23 and followed that up with his first All-Star appearance in ’23/24. Now that his fourth-year option for ’25/26 (worth $15,334,769) has been picked up, Banchero will be eligible for a rookie scale extension next summer.

Obviously, it was a foregone conclusion that Orlando would exercise its option on Banchero, who recently discussed what he’s been working to improve as he enters his third season. He’ll earn $12,160,800 in ’24/25.

Black, a 6’7″ guard, and Howard, a 6’8″ wing, were both lottery picks in 2023 (No. 6 and No. 11, respectively). Howard only played 67 regular season minutes over 18 NBA games, having spent much of his rookie season in the G League. Black was a rotation regular though, averaging 4.6 points and 2.0 rebounds in 69 regular season games (16.9 minutes per contest).

Both players were already under contract this season. This move means they’ll earn guaranteed salaries for their third seasons in ’25/26. Black will make $7,970,280 that year, while Howard will earn $5,529,720.

Our tracker has the full list of rookie scale team options for ’25/26. The deadline for teams to make those decisions is Oct. 31.

Pelicans Exercise 2025/26 Option On Jordan Hawkins

October 4th, 2024 at 1:25pm CST by Rory Maher

The Pelicans have picked up their third-year team option on Jordan Hawkins, they announced in a press release (Twitter link).

Hawkins, who was selected 14th overall in last year’s draft, was already under contract for $4,525,680 in 2024/25. He will now earn a guaranteed $4,741,320 during the ’25/26 season as well.

The Pelicans will have until next October to determine whether they want to exercise their fourth-year option on Hawkins. That option for the ’26/27 season is worth $7,021,895.

As a rookie last season, the former UConn guard appeared in 67 regular season games (17.3 minutes per contest), averaging 7.8 points and 2.2 rebounds while shooting 36.6% from three-point range. He had a handful of big scoring games, including a career-high 34 points in a January 13 victory over Dallas, but his minutes were sporadic when the Pelicans were at full strength.

Hawkins, 22, said in July that he was focused on improving defensively as he enters his second season.

The deadline for teams to decide on ’25/26 rookie scale team options is Oct. 31. We’re tracking all of those decisions right here.