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Lakers Cut Devontae Cacok, Demetrius Jackson

October 21st, 2019 at 4:43pm CST by Luke Adams

The Lakers have finalized their roster for the regular season, announcing today in a press release that they’ve waived Devontae Cacok and Demetrius Jackson.

Los Angeles took the decision down to the wire, but Cacok and Jackson were always the most likely players to be released. The Lakers have 14 players on fully guaranteed salaries, with Dwight Howard and his non-guaranteed contract set to occupy the 15th and final slot on the standard roster.

Cacok or Jackson could have received a two-way contract, but the Lakers have already filled both of those slots as well, with Zach Norvell Jr. and Kostas Antetokounmpo starting the season as the club’s two-way players.

Although Cacok and Jackson had non-guaranteed contracts, the Lakers will be on hook for two days’ worth of their minimum salaries, since they won’t clear waivers until the second day of the regular season.

Grizzlies To Decline Josh Jackson’s Option

October 21st, 2019 at 4:39pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Grizzlies are declining Josh Jackson‘s fourth-year option, which will make him an unrestricted free agent at the end of this season, Chris Herrington of The Daily Memphian tweets.

Jackson, who will make a little over $7MM this season, was due to receive $8.93MM in 2020/21 if Memphis had chosen to pick up the option.

Jackson was a huge disappointment in his two seasons with the Suns, who selected him with the No. 4 overall pick in 2017. He averaged 12.3 PPG, 4.5 RPG and 1.9 APG in 156 games with Phoenix. He only started 29 of 79 games last year for one of the league’s worst teams.

His unspectacular play, coupled with some troubling incidents off the court, convinced Phoenix to ship him to Memphis this offseason in what was essentially a salary dump.

He will start this season in the G League after skipping training camp. However, if Jackson can turn his career around, the Grizzlies might still be interested in re-signing him, Herrington adds.

Pistons Waive Joe Johnson

October 21st, 2019 at 4:31pm CST by Luke Adams

4:31pm: The Pistons have officially waived Johnson, per a press release from the team. A source tells Vince Ellis of The Detroit Free Press (Twitter link) that Iso Joe isn’t giving up on his NBA comeback and plans to pursue other opportunities.

2:27pm: The Pistons are waiving veteran forward Joe Johnson, league sources tell ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (Twitter link). The move should pave the way for Detroit to finalize its regular season roster, with Christian Wood claiming the final spot on the 15-man squad.

Johnson, who didn’t play in the NBA during the 2018/19 season, turned heads with his performance in Ice Cube‘s 3-on-3 league earlier this year. The 17-year NBA veteran showed he still had something left in the tank during his BIG3 run, ranking atop the league in scoring, winning the MVP award, and leading his team to a championship.

That performance helped earn Johnson a partially guaranteed deal in Detroit. However, the team still had 14 players on guaranteed contracts and Wood – who had a non-guaranteed salary – made a strong case to be part of the regular season roster. The Pistons reportedly explored trade options to open another roster spot, with Langston Galloway and Khyri Thomas among the candidates to be moved, but ultimately decided to release Johnson.

An injury may have also been a factor in the Pistons’ decision, as Chris Haynes of Yahoo Sports reports (via Twitter) that Johnson was experiencing swelling in his Achilles. According to Haynes, tests came back clean and Johnson was responding well to treatment. Still, for a 38-year-old who hasn’t played in the NBA in over a year, any health issues should be approached with caution.

With Johnson headed to the waiver wire, the Pistons will be on the hook for his $220K partial guarantee, assuming he goes unclaimed. Detroit’s team salary is now just $4K below the luxury tax line, tweets cap expert Albert Nahmad.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Celtics Sign Jaylen Brown To Four-Year Extension

October 21st, 2019 at 4:27pm CST by Luke Adams

4:27pm: Brown’s new deal has $103MM in guaranteed money, with $4MM in likely incentives and another $8MM in unlikely incentives, a source tells Jay King of The Athletic (Twitter link).

3:59pm: The Celtics have officially announced Brown’s extension, issuing a press release to confirm the deal.

“Jaylen has made tremendous strides over the last three years and has become a fantastic player for us on both ends of the court,” Ainge said in a statement. “He’s a great person and hard worker who, at 22 years old, can score and defend against the best players in the NBA. Jaylen is a true professional who did a great job accepting his role last season, and he is a major part of our championship goals.”

2:51pm: Jaylen Brown has become the sixth player to agree to a rookie scale extension this year, having reached a four-year, $115MM deal with the Celtics, agent Jason Glushon tells ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (Twitter link). The contract doesn’t feature any team or player options, tweets Chris Haynes of Yahoo Sports.

It’s an early birthday gift for Brown, who will turn 23 years old on Thursday. The former No. 3 overall pick had an up-and-down season in 2018/19 after a modest breakout performance in 2017/18, averaging 13.0 PPG, 4.2 RPG, and 1.4 APG on .465/.344/.658 shooting in 74 games (25.9 MPG).

Given Brown’s down year and the Celtics’ history of letting extension-eligible players reach restricted free agency, it initially looked as if the two sides were unlikely to work out a new deal this fall. However, Brown – who operated without an agent for his first three years in the NBA – recently hired Glushon to negotiate his extension, and his new agent came through, getting a deal done with just a few hours left before tonight’s deadline.

According to Wojnarowski (via Twitter), Glushon and Celtics president of basketball operations Danny Ainge completed the majority of their negotiations over the weekend. This is Ainge’s first rookie scale extension for a Celtic since Rajon Rondo in 2009, Woj adds.

While it’s possible that Brown could’ve done a little better in restricted free agency next summer, there isn’t a massive difference between his new deal and a maximum-salary offer sheet. Based on the NBA’s latest projections, a four-year offer sheet from a rival suitor would have been worth $124.7MM. And if the cap for 2020/21 comes in any lower than $116MM, that projected max would drop along with it.

Boston will now count on continued improvements from Brown, who should take on a greater role in 2019/20 now that veterans like Kyrie Irving, Al Horford, and Marcus Morris are no longer on the roster. Brown is coming off a strong showing for Team USA in the 2019 FIBA World Cup, and is viewed as a potential impact player at both ends of the court.

Brown joins Ben Simmons (Sixers), Jamal Murray (Nuggets), Pascal Siakam (Raptors), Buddy Hield (Kings), and Caris LeVert (Nets) as players who have worked out rookie scale extensions this offseason. Brown’s deal falls in between Siakam’s ($129MM+) and Hield’s (between $86-106MM) in terms of overall four-year value.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Nets Sign Taurean Prince To Two-Year Extension

October 21st, 2019 at 4:26pm CST by Luke Adams

Before even playing a regular season game for the Nets, Taurean Prince has been locked up for an additional two years by the club.

Prince’s agent, Steve Heumann of CAA Sports, tells ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (Twitter link) that the forward has agreed to a two-year, $29MM extension with Brooklyn. The Nets have put out a press release confirming that the move is official.

The acquisition of Prince was somewhat overlooked during a busy Nets offseason — he was part of the return in a trade that sent Allen Crabbe and two first-round picks to Atlanta. In addition to clearing the cap space necessary to land both Kyrie Irving and Kevin Durant, that deal netted Prince, who’s coming off a couple solid seasons with the Hawks.

Since the start of the 2017/18 campaign, Prince has averaged 13.9 PPG and 4.3 RPG with a .431/.387/.834 shooting line in 137 regular season games (29.3 MPG). The 25-year-old was Brooklyn’s leading scorer in the preseason, knocking down 16-of-23 attempts from beyond the arc. While he won’t match that 69.6% rate in the regular season, the Nets will count on him to space the floor on offense.

Although he hasn’t been with the franchise for long, Prince already appears to be sold on Brooklyn. He told Brian Lewis of The New York Post last week that he was hoping to sign a rookie scale extension.

“I want to be here as long as I can. And whatever happens, happens, but I’m just happy to play good basketball,” Prince said. “One hundred percent, yeah. For sure. This is the best organization I’ve been in.”

With Prince on the books for 2020/21, the Nets now project to have at least $135MM in team salary next year, tweets Bobby Marks of ESPN.com. That doesn’t take into account team options for Garrett Temple and others, or cap holds for possible first-round picks and free agents like Joe Harris, so Brooklyn’s roster could get quite expensive if the team wants to keep it together.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Grizzlies Exercise Contract Options On Jackson Jr., Allen

October 21st, 2019 at 4:18pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Grizzlies have exercised their 2020/21 contract options on big man Jaren Jackson Jr. and guard Grayson Allen, according to a team press release.

Jackson, the fourth pick in the 2018 draft, averaged 13.8 PPG, 4.7 RPG and 1.4 BPG during his rookie campaign. He’ll now make a guaranteed $7,257,360 next season after collecting approximately $6.93MM during his second season. The option was a mere formality for Memphis, which is building around Jackson and 2019 lottery pick Ja Morant.

Allen was selected with the No. 21 overall pick last year by the Jazz. He averaged 5.6 PPG in 10.9 MPG over 38 appearances with Utah.

Allen was part of the package Memphis received in the Mike Conley blockbuster. Allen, who is making approximately $2.43MM this season, will receive $2,545,320 in 2020/21. Allen is competing for minutes at shooting guard with Dillon Brooks and European import Marko Guduric.

Jazz Release William Howard

October 21st, 2019 at 3:36pm CST by Luke Adams

The Jazz have set their roster to start the 2019/20 season by waiving forward William Howard, the team announced today in a press release. Utah now has 15 players on standard contracts and two on two-way deals.

Howard, who will turn 26 on Friday, joined the Jazz in July after spending the last two seasons with Limoges in France. He averaged 10.6 PPG, 3.1 RPG, and 2.2 APG in 16 EuroCup games in 2018/19. In three preseason games with Utah, he put up 6.7 PPG and 2.0 RPG in 11.5 minutes per contest.

Howard had a $50K partial guarantee, so that cap charge will remain on the books for the Jazz unless he’s claimed on waivers on Wednesday. Stanton Kidd, who also had a partial guarantee, will now open the season as Utah’s 15th man.

Knicks Exercise Options On Ntilikina, DSJ, Knox

October 21st, 2019 at 2:01pm CST by Luke Adams

2:01pm: The Knicks have made it official, announcing that they’ve picked up the 2020/21 options on Ntilikina, Smith, and Knox.

12:31pm: The Knicks will exercise Frank Ntilikina‘s fourth-year option for the 2020/21 season, reports Ian Begley of SNY.tv (Twitter link). The team is also picking up its fourth-year option on Dennis Smith Jr. and its third-year option on Kevin Knox, as expected, tweets Steve Popper of Newsday.

Of the three option decisions, the one on Ntilikina was the only one that was up in the air leading up to the October 31 deadline. The former eighth overall pick has been somewhat underwhelming in his first two seasons, averaging 5.9 PPG and 3.1 APG on .354/.305/.735 shooting in 121 games (21.6 MPG) for the Knicks.

However, Ntilikina had a strong showing for France in the 2019 FIBA World Cup last month and has been more aggressive on offense for New York this preseason, as Mike Vorkunov of The Athletic detailed last week. As such, the Knicks were willing to lock in his $6,176,578 cap hit for the 2020/21 season. The 21-year-old is now on track to reach restricted free agency in 2021 if he doesn’t sign an extension next year.

As for Smith and Knox, those option decision were simpler ones. Smith, who was selected one spot after Ntilikina in 2017’s draft, will count against the cap for $5,686,677 in ’20/21, while Knox will have a $4,588,680 charge.

We’re tracking all of the decisions on 2020/21 rookie scale team options right here.

Timberwolves Waive Tyrone Wallace

October 21st, 2019 at 1:37pm CST by Luke Adams

The Timberwolves have waived point guard Tyrone Wallace in advance of the regular season roster deadline, league sources tell Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link). The move reduces Minnesota’s roster count to 15 players, plus a pair on two-way contracts.

Wallace, 25, broke into the NBA in 2017/18, averaging 9.7 PPG, 3.5 RPG, and 2.4 APG in 30 games (28.4 MPG) for the Clippers. He appeared in 62 more games for Los Angeles last season, but played limited minutes and saw his shooting percentages dip to .424/.211/.526. He was released by the Clips in July and was claimed off waivers by Minnesota.

Considering they took their roster decision down to the wire today, it appears the Wolves either considered keeping Wallace or tried to find a trade for him. However, Minnesota has 15 players with guaranteed salaries and Wallace is on a non-guaranteed contract, which made him the odd man out.

Wallace is now on track to clear waivers on Wednesday, though he’s a candidate to be claimed. Because he’s earning the minimum, any team would be eligible to place a claim and take on his non-guaranteed contract. If he makes it to free agency, the Wolves will be on the hook for two days’ worth of his salary, which works out to approximately $18K.

Minnesota’s roster is now ready for the regular season.

Raptors Convert Oshae Brissett To Two-Way Contract

October 21st, 2019 at 12:45pm CST by Luke Adams

The Raptors have set their roster for the start of the regular season, announcing today in a press release that they’ve converted Oshae Brissett‘s Exhibit 10 contract into a two-way deal.

A native of Mississauga, Ontario – the home of the Raptors’ G League affiliate – Brissett played two seasons at Syracuse before forgoing his remaining NCAA eligibility and entering the 2019 draft. Although he wasn’t selected in June, he quickly caught on with the Clippers for Summer League, then signed with the Raptors later in July.

The 6’8″ forward, who averaged 13.7 PPG and 8.2 RPG in his two seasons at Syracuse, will be eligible to spend up to 45 days in the NBA on his two-way contract, but figures to play primarily for the Raptors 905.

Toronto now has 15 players on standard contracts and one on a two-way contract. Chris Boucher, Malcolm Miller, and Dewan Hernandez don’t have fully guaranteed salaries, but all three players are poised to make the 15-man roster to start the season. The team could also add another two-way player later today, though there’s no rush to do so before opening night.