Transactions Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Sixers Sign Matisse Thybulle

July 3rd, 2019 at 4:19pm CST by Arthur Hill

Matisse Thybulle has signed his rookie contract with the Sixers, the team announced today. The senior swingman out of Washington was selected with the 20th pick in last month’s draft.

Terms of the deal weren’t released, but under the rookie salary structure, Thybulle is eligible to make $2,582,160 in his first season, $2,711,280 in his second and $2,840,160 in his third.

“Matisse was the best defensive wing in the draft and his tenacious and gritty play fit our culture perfectly,” Philadelphia GM Elton Brand said. “A talented shooter and a great person off the court, we’re very excited to welcome Matisse to the 76ers family.”

Thybulle won the Naismith Defensive Player of the Year Award this season and was honored as the Pac 12’s top defender for the second straight year. His scoring average was modest at 9.1 PPG, but he collected 3.5 steals and 2.3 blocks per night.

Pistons Sign Markieff Morris

July 3rd, 2019 at 1:51pm CST by Luke Adams

JULY 6: The Pistons have officially signed Morris, the team announced today in a press release.

JULY 3: The Pistons have reached an agreement to sign free agent forward Markieff Morris, reports Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link). It’ll be a two-year deal, a league source tells Jordan Schultz of ESPN.com (Twitter link).

The Pistons will use their bi-annual exception to sign Morris, tweets James Edwards III of The Athletic. He’ll get the full $3.6MM, Vince Ellis of The Detroit Free Press adds (via Twitter), so it’ll have a total two-year value of about $7.4MM.

Morris, 29, started the 2018/19 season with the Wizards before being sent to the Pelicans in a deadline deal. New Orleans waived him, paving the way for him to sign with the Thunder to finish the season.

It was a down year for Morris, who battled back and neck issues. In 58 total games (21.9 MPG) for the Wizards and Thunder, he averaged 9.4 PPG and 4.6 RPG, his lowest marks since his first two seasons in the league. He’ll be looking to bounce back with the Pistons.

Markieff will become the second Morris twin to play for the Pistons — his brother Marcus Morris was on the roster for two seasons from 2015-17 before being dealt to Boston.

Rockets Sign Ponds, Clemons, McDowell-White To Exhibit 10 Deals

July 3rd, 2019 at 1:30pm CST by Luke Adams

The Rockets have signed undrafted free agents Shamorie Ponds, Chris Clemons, and William McDowell-White to Exhibit 10 contracts, tweets Jonathan Feigen of The Houston Chronicle. The three agreements were reported shortly after last month’s draft.

A 6’1″ guard out of St. John’s, Ponds averaged 19.7 PPG, 5.1 APG, 4.1 RPG, and an impressive 2.6 SPG in 33 games during his junior year before declaring for the draft as an early entrant.

Clemons, a 5’9″ Campbell guard, was the nation’s leading scorer in 2018/19, averaging 30.0 PPG on .448/.357/.869 shooting.

McDowell-White was also draft-eligible this season after spending the last several years playing for teams in Australia and Germany. Having began his career with the Sydney Kings, the Australian combo guard spent a season and a half with German club Brose Bamberg, leaving the team earlier this year to prepare for the 2019 draft.

All three players are on Houston’s Summer League roster and appear on track to join the team for training camp in the fall. Assuming they don’t make the Rockets’ regular season roster, they could end up playing for the Rio Grande Valley Vipers, Houston’s G League affiliate.

Trail Blazers Sign Mario Hezonja

July 3rd, 2019 at 12:35pm CST by ChrisCrouse

JULY 3: Hezonja’s new deal with the Blazers is official, according to the team, which issued a press release today to announce it.

“Mario is a prodigiously talented player with a high ceiling and a bright future,” president of basketball operations Neil Olshey said in a statement. “He will have a chance to contribute immediately while we work to accelerate his development.”

JUNE 30: The Trail Blazers will sign Mario Hezonja to a two-year, minimum-salary deal, Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN.com tweets. The second year of the pact will be a player option.

Hezonja is coming off an uneven season for the Knicks. The former top-1o pick struggled to find a consistent role for parts of the 2018/19, though he did look impressive as a point guard/facilitator once he received the chance during New York’s final contests.

Portland traded away Evan Turner this offseason and while they received Kent Bazemore in return, they’ll miss Turner’s ball handling. Bazemore projects to be a good fit in Portland’s offense, though he doesn’t have the play-making ability to regularly handle second-unit opportunities.

Hezonja should have an opportunity to secure that role and improve his stock on a talented Portland team. The Croatian-born wing is positioned to re-enter the market next offseason if things go well.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Trail Blazers Sign Anthony Tolliver To One-Year Deal

July 3rd, 2019 at 12:34pm CST by Luke Adams

JULY 3: The Trail Blazers have officially signed Tolliver, the team announced today in a press release. Minimum-salary contracts can be finalized during the July moratorium.

JULY 1: The Trail Blazers and free agent power forward Anthony Tolliver have reached an agreement on a one-year deal worth $2.6MM, reports Shams Charania of The Athletic (via Twitter).

Based on the reported terms, it appears to be a veteran’s minimum deal for Tolliver, as he’s eligible for a $2,564,753 minimum salary in 2019/20. Portland also reportedly committed its taxpayer mid-level exception to Rodney Hood already, limiting the club’s ability to offer other free agents more than the minimum.

Tolliver, 34, has been one of the NBA’s more effective under-the-radar stretch fours in recent years. He struggled a little in Minnesota last season, averaging just 5.0 PPG and 2.7 RPG in 65 games (16.6 MPG), but he has knocked down 1.6 threes per game at a 40.7% rate over the last three seasons for the Kings, Pistons, and Timberwolves.

Tolliver will help provide much-needed outside shooting in the frontcourt for a Portland team that has lost Al-Farouq Aminu in free agency and is trading away Maurice Harkless and Meyers Leonard to acquire Hassan Whiteside.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Warriors Rescind Quinn Cook’s Qualifying Offer

July 3rd, 2019 at 8:08am CST by Luke Adams

The Warriors have withdrawn their qualifying offer to restricted free agent guard Quinn Cook, league sources tell Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link).

As a result of the move, Cook will become an unrestricted free agent. That means he’ll be able to sign outright with any team without any risk that Golden State would match an offer sheet.

Cook, 26, was a solid contributor off the bench for the Warriors in 2018/19, averaging 6.9 PPG, 2.1 RPG, and 1.6 APG with a .465/.405/.769 shooting line in 74 games (14.3 MPG).

However, the hard-capped Dubs have little flexibility to bring back all their free agents as a result of the D’Angelo Russell sign-and-trade deal that will hard-cap team salary at $138.9MM. It appears Cook will be one of the odd men out.

Knicks Sign R.J. Barrett

July 2nd, 2019 at 6:59pm CST by ChrisCrouse

The Knicks have signed R.J. Barrett to his rookie contract scale contract, according to the team’s Twitter feed.

Assuming he signed for 120% of the rookie scale, Barrett will take home $7.84MM during his first season in the league. Barrett is expected to play for the Knicks’ Summer League team in Las Vegas.

Barrett was excited to be drafted by the franchise and at the time, it appeared he would come into the league on a contender, as New York was expected to make a splash in free agency. Instead, he’ll be in a typical situation for a team drafting in the top five.

The No. 3 overall pick should have the opportunity to be one of the most productive rookies during the 2019/20 season.

Lakers Sign Jared Dudley To One-Year Deal

July 2nd, 2019 at 6:44pm CST by ChrisCrouse

JULY 7: The Lakers have officially signed Dudley to his minimum salary contract, the team announced today (via Twitter).

JULY 2: The Lakers will sign Jared Dudley to a one-year deal, Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN.com tweets. The contract will be a minimum salary arrangement.

Los Angeles is slowly adding to their roster as the franchise waits on Kawhi Leonard‘s decision. In addition to Dudley, the team has already agreed to terms with Troy Daniels on a minimum-salary deal.

Neither Daniels’ deal nor Dudley’s will impact the Lakers’ cap room, as they’ll be finalized with the minimum salary exception after the team uses that room.

Dudley appeared in 59 games for Brooklyn last season. He spotted them 20.7 minutes per game while shooting 35.1% from behind the arc. The Pistons were among the teams competing for his services this offseason.

A Southern California native, Dudley will be returning home on his new deal in the hopes of competing for a title, as he tells Alex Kennedy of HoopsHype (Twitter link).

“This is something I’ve been contemplating. I’d be getting a chance to compete for a championship, which is something I haven’t had since the Steve Nash [Suns] days,” Dudley said. “I just think that being home and with that Laker brand, what’s better than that?”

Sixers Sign Shake Milton To Four-Year Deal

July 2nd, 2019 at 5:18pm CST by ChrisCrouse

JULY 7: Milton’s new four-year contract with the Sixers is now official, the team announced today in a press release.

“Shake is the perfect example of what hard work and strong player development can produce,” GM Elton Brand said in a statement. “We are proud of the strides he made in the G League last season, where his game was able to blossom while gaining confidence as a pro. He has earned the right to be where he is today. He is an exciting young talent and I look forward to his continued development with the 76ers and the depth that he provides our roster.”

JULY 2: Shake Milton will sign a new contract with the Sixers. The team has agreed to a four-year deal with the shooting guard, according to ESPN’s Jordan Schultz (Twitter link).

Milton played last season on a two-way contract, splitting his time between the Sixers and their G League affiliate, the Delaware Blue Coats. He saw limited playing time in 20 games for Philadelphia, but put up big numbers in 27 NBAGL contests, averaging 24.9 PPG, 4.9 APG, and 4.9 RPG with a .484/.369/.810 shooting line.

Because Milton’s two-way deal featured a second year, this transaction will technically be treated as a conversion from his two-way contract to an NBA contract, similar to Monte Morris‘ deal with the Nuggets last offseason.

The Sixers will have to use cap space to ink Milton to a four-year contract. There will also be no December 15 trade restriction for Milton, as two-way contract conversions don’t carry the same rules as most offseason NBA signings.

Luke Adams contributed to this post.

Warriors Sign Glenn Robinson III

July 2nd, 2019 at 5:01pm CST by Luke Adams

JULY 9: The Warriors have officially signed Robinson, per NBA.com’s transactions log.

JULY 2: The Warriors and free agent wing Glenn Robinson III have reached an agreement on a two-year deal with a second-year player option, agent Jelani Floyd tells Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link).

While terms of the deal aren’t yet known, a minimum-salary contract seems likely, given Golden State’s cap limitations. Even then, by giving Robinson a two-year deal, the Warriors would incur a 2019/20 cap hit of $1,882,867 rather than $1,620,564, pushing them ever so slightly toward their hard cap at the $138.9MM tax apron, as cap expert Albert Nahmad notes (via Twitter).

Robinson, 25, has spent time with the Timberwolves, Sixers, Pacers, and Pistons since entering the league in 2014 as a second-round pick. Last season, he averaged 4.2 PPG and 1.5 RPG in 47 games (13.0 MPG) in a disappointing season for Detroit.

The Pistons held a $4.3MM team option on Robinson for the 2019/20 season, but unsurprisingly decided to decline it.

While Robinson knocked down just 29.0% of his three-point attempts last season, the Warriors will be hoping he can recapture the form he showed with the Pacers in his previous three seasons, when he made 39.3% of his three-point tries in 137 games (albeit on just 1.4 attempts per contest).

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.