Transactions Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Cavaliers Sign Yogi Ferrell To 10-Day Contract

January 11th, 2021 at 9:54am CST by Luke Adams

9:54am: The Cavaliers have officially signed Ferrell to his 10-day deal, the team announced in a press release. The contract will run through next Wednesday, January 20.

8:27am: The Cavaliers are signing veteran point guard Yogi Ferrell to a 10-day contract, reports Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com. Ferrell is expected to be available to play on Monday night vs. Memphis after finalizing his deal and conducting the necessary COVID-19 testing, Fedor adds.

Typically, teams can’t sign players to 10-day contracts this early in the season — the 10-day signing window for 2021 doesn’t open until February 23. However, the NBA tweaked its rules a little for this season, allowing teams to complete 10-day deals early if they’re adding a player via the hardship provision.

A hardship exception allows a team to add an extra player to its 15-man roster on a short-term basis. It can be granted by the league if the club has at least four players who have missed three or more games due to injury or illness and are expected to be out for at least two more weeks.

We heard last week that the Cavaliers, who are currently without Kevin Love (calf), Dylan Windler (wrist), Dante Exum (calf), and Matthew Dellavedova (concussion), among others, planned to apply for an extra roster spot via the hardship provision as soon as they became eligible. It appears that request was approved, so Cleveland won’t have to waive anyone to sign Ferrell.

Ferrell, 27, was a member of the Kings for the last two years, averaging 5.3 PPG and 1.7 APG on .430/.342/.881 shooting in 121 total games (13.2 MPG) across those two seasons. He didn’t find a new NBA home in free agency in November after his contract with Sacramento expired, but will – at least for the time being – provide some point guard depth for the Cavs.

In addition to missing Exum and Dellavedova, Cleveland will also be without Darius Garland (shoulder) on Monday, while Collin Sexton (ankle) is listed as questionable. In other words, Ferrell could be immediately thrust into a prominent role, given the lack of options available at the point for the Cavs.

Knicks Waive Omari Spellman, Sign Taj Gibson

January 7th, 2021 at 9:59pm CST by Luke Adams

9:59pm: The Knicks officially announced in a press release that they’ve waived Spellman. The signing of Gibson is also official, per NBA.com’s transactions log.

1:46 pm: The Knicks are waiving big man Omari Spellman to clear room to sign a veteran free agent, reports Ian Begley of SNY.tv (Twitter link). According to Shams Charania of The Athletic (via Twitter), the club plans to sign Taj Gibson to fill its newly-opened roster spot.

As we detailed earlier today, the Knicks were said to be one of many teams keeping an eye on Gibson, who reportedly worked out for seven clubs, including the Wizards. With Obi Toppin, Nerlens Noel, and Spellman all battling injuries, New York had been monitoring the free agent market for help in the frontcourt, eyeing Gibson and Tyson Chandler, among others.

While it’s not official yet, it sounds like the team will reunite with Gibson, who was a Knick in 2019/20 and has played for head coach Tom Thibodeau for much of his NBA career, including in both Chicago and Minnesota. It seems unlikely that Gibson’s new deal will be worth more than the minimum, but the Knicks – armed with $18MM in cap room – certainly have the flexibility to go higher.

Gibson, 35, started 56 of the 62 games he played for New York last season, averaging 6.1 PPG and 4.3 RPG in 16.5 minutes per contest. The club reportedly liked the job he did as a veteran mentor for young center Mitchell Robinson.

As for Spellman, the third-year big man came over from Minnesota in an offseason trade that sent Ed Davis to the Timberwolves. He was cited as a possible release candidate in December when the Knicks were mulling the possibility of retaining Michael Kidd-Gilchrist for the regular season, and also had his fourth-year team option for 2021/22 declined last month, so it comes as no surprise that he’ll be the odd man out.

Spellman, a former first-round pick who has struggled with conditioning during his NBA career, will still receive his $1.99MM salary for 2020/21, since his contract is fully guaranteed. Having declined his fourth-year option, the Knicks won’t be on the hook for any money beyond this season.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Grizzlies Sign Tim Frazier

January 4th, 2021 at 6:37pm CST by Luke Adams

6:37pm: The signing is official, pursuant to the NBA’s hardship roster rules, according to a team press release. The Grizzlies took advantage of the league’s rule tweaks and made it a 10-day contract, according to NBA.com’s transactions log.

12:31pm: The Grizzlies are set to complete the first NBA transaction of the 2021 calendar year, with Shams Charania of The Athletic reporting (via Twitter) that the club has reached a deal to sign free agent point guard Tim Frazier.

While terms of the deal haven’t been reported, it will almost certainly be a non-guaranteed minimum-salary contract.

Frazier, 30, has a total of 272 regular season NBA games for six teams under his belt. In 2019/20, he appeared in 27 games for the Pistons, averaging 3.6 PPG and 3.4 APG on .362/.333/.792 shooting in 13.1 minutes per contest. He was cut by Detroit last February to accommodate a deadline-day trade.

The Grizzlies don’t currently have an open roster spot available, but won’t have to waive a player to add Frazier, since they’ll sign him via the hardship provision, according to Charania.

The NBA can grant a team a hardship exception when that team has at least four players who have missed three or more games due to injury or illness and are expected to miss at least two more weeks. A hardship exception allows the club to add an extra player to its 15-man roster, increasing its roster limit to 16. When one of the four injured players is ready to return, the team must once again reduce its roster count to 15.

The Grizzlies have been without Jaren Jackson Jr. (knee), Justise Winslow (hip), and Jontay Porter (knee) all season so far, and recently lost Ja Morant for several weeks due to an ankle sprain. Morant missed his third consecutive game on Sunday, making Memphis eligible for a hardship exception.

Warriors Exercise Third-Year Option On Jordan Poole

December 29th, 2020 at 9:41pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

The Warriors have exercised their $2,161,440 third-year team option on Jordan Poole, according to Monte Poole of NBC Sports Bay Area (via Twitter). Poole’s rookie scale contract is now guaranteed through at least the 2021/22 season.

Golden State drafted the 6’4″ shooting guard out of Michigan with the No. 28 pick in 2019. In his rookie season, Poole averaged 8.8 PPG, 2.4 APG, 2.1 RPG and 0.6 SPG across 57 games (including 14 starts). He posted a shooting line of .333/.279/.798.

This year, with more wing rotation depth thanks to the addition of Kelly Oubre, Poole’s minutes have taken an early hit. He is currently averaging 15.0 MPG across his first four contests for the 2-2 Warriors.

Clippers Turn Down Team Option On Mfiondu Kabengele

December 29th, 2020 at 9:15pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

The Clippers will not exercise their $2,174,880 third-year team option on center Mfiondu Kabengele, Andrew Greif of the Los Angeles Times tweets. Today was the deadline to pick up rookie scale team options for 2021/22.

Greif adds that Los Angeles will continue to assess the big man’s play throughout the rest of the 2020/21 season, and could sign him to another contract in free agency. Kabengele, the No. 27 pick in the 2019 draft out of Florida State, will enter unrestricted free agency in the summer of 2021 and the Clippers won’t be able to offer him a starting salary worth more than his declined option.

Kabengele saw limited time for playoff-contending L.A. during his rookie season last year, averaging just 3.5 PPG and 0.9 RPG in 5.3 MPG across 12 games with the team.

In 27 games (all starts) for L.A.’s G League affiliate, the Agua Caliente Clippers of Ontario, the 6’9″ center averaged a much more robust 18.7 PPG, 9.3 RPG, 1.9 BPG and 1.3 APG.

Kabengele is the only 2019 first-rounder to have his third-year option for ’21/22 declined.

Celtics Picking Up 2021/22 Options On Three Players

December 29th, 2020 at 12:02pm CST by Luke Adams

The Celtics are exercising their 2021/22 team options on the rookie scale contracts of Romeo Langford, Grant Williams, and Robert Williams, according to former C’s assistant GM Ryan McDonough (Twitter link).

Langford, 21, was the 14th overall pick in the 2019 draft, but has been limited to 32 games so far due to health issues and has struggled in his limited playing time, with 2.5 PPG on .350/.185/.720 shooting in 11.6 minutes per contest. He’s currently sidelined as he recovers from wrist surgery.

Grant Williams, who was selected eight spots after Langford in the 2019 draft, has been a more regular part of Boston’s rotation since entering the league last year, averaging 3.5 PPG and 2.6 RPG in 72 games (15.3 MPG).

Langford’s and Williams’ third-year options will pay them $3.8MM and $2.6MM, respectively, in 2021/22. The Celtics will have to decide next year whether to pick up their fourth-year options for ’22/23.

As for Robert Williams, his fourth-year option for ’21/22 will guarantee him approximately $3.7MM and will put him on track for restricted free agency in ’22 if he doesn’t sign a rookie scale extension next summer.

The 23-year-old has appeared in just 63 games for the Celtics in two-plus seasons so far, but has shown some promise. He had one of the best performances of his career on Sunday vs. Indiana, putting up 12 points on 6-of-7 shooting to go along with four rebounds, four steals, and two blocks in 22 minutes.

Timberwolves Pick Up Options On Okogie, Culver

December 28th, 2020 at 4:17pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Timberwolves are picking up their 2021/22 options on Josh Okogie and Jarrett Culver, Darren Wolfson of KSTP tweets.

Okogie’s fourth-year option is worth approximately $4.09MM. The 20th pick of the 2018 draft has been a rotation player since his rookie campaign.

He has started all three games for Minnesota this season, averaging 8.0 PPG, 3.3 RPG and 1.7 APG in 25.0 MPG. The shooting guard is making $2.65MM this season.

Culver’s third-year option is worth approximately $6.4MM. The 6th overall pick of the 2019 draft averaged 9.2 PPG, 3.4 RPG and 1.7 APG in 23.9 MPG as a rookie while appearing in 63 games.

He’s coming off the bench this season, averaging 10.7 PPG, 6.7 RPG and 0.7 APG in 23.3 MPG. The swingman out of Texas Tech is pulling in $6.1MM this season.

Wizards Exercise 2021/22 Options On Troy Brown, Rui Hachimura

December 28th, 2020 at 2:56pm CST by Luke Adams

2:56pm: Fred Katz of The Athletic confirms (via Twitter) that the Wizards are declining their fourth-year options on Robinson and Wagner.

2:52pm: The Wizards have picked up their fourth-year option on Troy Brown and their third-year option on Rui Hachimura, the team announced today in a press release.

The options apply to the 2021/22 season, fully guaranteeing each player’s salary for next year. Brown will make $5.17MM in the final year of his rookie contract, while Hachimura’s third-year option is worth $4.92MM.

The 15th overall pick in the 2018 draft, Brown emerged as a regular rotation player for Washington in 2019/20, averaging 10.4 PPG, 5.6 RPG, and 2.6 APG with a .439/.341/.784 shooting line in 69 games (25.8 MPG).

Hachimura, the ninth overall pick in the 2019 draft, averaged 13.5 PPG and 6.1 RPG in 48 games (30.1 MPG) last season, earning a spot on the All-Rookie Second Team. He’s currently sidelined due to an eye issue.

Teams typically pick up all of their rookie scale options at once, so it’s worth noting that today’s announcement from the Wizards didn’t mention Jerome Robinson ($5.34MM fourth-year option) or Moritz Wagner ($3.89MM fourth-year option). Assuming those options aren’t exercised by Tuesday’s deadline, Robinson and Wagner will be on track for unrestricted free agency in 2021, and Washington won’t be able to offer them starting salaries higher than the values of their declined options.

Sixers Exercise Third-Year Option On Matisse Thybulle

December 28th, 2020 at 10:36am CST by JD Shaw

The Sixers have exercised the $2.84MM third-year option on forward Matisse Thybulle for 2021/22, ensuring he remains with the team next season, president Daryl Morey announced in a release.

Thybulle, who was acquired by Philadelphia in the 2019 draft, played 65 games during his rookie season. He started in 14 of those contests, averaging 4.7 points, 1.4 steals and 19.8 minutes on the year.

Thybulle has established himself as a proven wing defender capable of playing multiple positions. The 23-year-old also shot a respectable 36% from deep last year, showing his potential on both ends.

The 76ers have opened the 2020/21 season with a 2-1 record, losing their first game on Sunday to Cleveland without Joel Embiid (back tightness). The franchise was eliminated from the playoffs last season after being swept by Boston in the first round.

Pistons Sign Frank Jackson To Two-Way Deal

December 27th, 2020 at 5:30pm CST by Dana Gauruder

December 27: Detroit has officially inked Jackson to his two-way contract, the team announced in a press release.

December 25: The Pistons are signing guard Frank Jackson to a two-way contract, Eric Woodyard of ESPN tweets.

The Pistons are one of just three teams with an open two-way slot. Rookie guard Saben Lee holds the other two-way contract with Detroit.

Jackson was waived by the Thunder earlier this week and was not claimed. Jackson was the last cut from the Oklahoma City training camp roster.

Jackson was the victim of a numbers game, as OKC already had 15 players on fully guaranteed contracts and he had a partially guaranteed deal. He signed a two-year, minimum-salary contract with the Thunder in the offseason but only $250K was guaranteed.

Jackson, the 31st overall pick in the 2017 draft out of Duke, missed his entire rookie season with a foot injury, but appeared in 120 games for the Pelicans over the last two years, averaging 7.2 PPG, 1.8 RPG, and 1.1 APG on .422/.319/.743 shooting during that time.

The 22-year-old was eligible for restricted free agency this fall, but the Pelicans opted not to tender him a qualifying offer, making him an unrestricted free agent.