Transactions Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Spurs Sign Donatas Motiejunas

April 4th, 2019 at 10:55am CST by Luke Adams

10:55am: The Spurs have officially signed Motiejunas, the team announced in a press release. The club now has a full 15-man roster.

10:02am: Nearly two weeks after reporting that big man Donatas Motiejunas and the Spurs were nearing a contract agreement, ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski provides an update, tweeting that Motiejunas is expected to officially sign with San Antonio today. Motiejunas will meet the team on its current road trip, Woj adds.

Motiejunas, 28, has spent the last two seasons playing for the Shandong Golden Stars in the Chinese Basketball Association. In 37 games with the club this season, he averaged an impressive 27.3 PPG, 14.0 RPG, and 4.2 APG, per Asia-Basket.com.

The Lithuanian forward’s deal with the Spurs was reportedly postponed due to visa issues, but he’s set to join the team in advance of the postseason. He’ll be eligible to participate in the playoffs, since he hasn’t been released by an NBA team since March 1.

Before playing in China, Motiejunas spent five seasons playing in the NBA for the Rockets and Pelicans. In 248 total contests (18.4 MPG), he averaged 7.4 PPG, 3.8 RPG, and 1.1 APG on .469/.300/.600 shooting.

The Spurs have had an open spot on their 15-man roster since buying out Pau Gasol last month, so no corresponding move will be necessary to make room for Motiejunas. Assuming it’s finalized today, his rest-of-season deal will have a very modest cap hit of $59,820.

Magic Waive Isaiah Briscoe

April 4th, 2019 at 10:30am CST by Luke Adams

The Magic have officially released injured point guard Isaiah Briscoe, the team announced today in a press release. The move opens a spot on Michael Carter-Williams, who has been re-signed for the rest of the season and will now be playoff-eligible if Orlando makes the postseason.

It’s a tough break for Briscoe, who had assumed backup point guard duties for the Magic and had been holding his own before undergoing surgery to repair a torn meniscus last month. For the season, the 22-year-old out of Kentucky averaged 3.5 PPG, 2.2 APG, and 1.9 RPG in 39 games (14.3 MPG).

Carter-Williams had spent 20 days (two 10-day contracts) on the Magic’s roster as a 16th man — the injury-plagued club was allowed to add an extra player because it qualified for a hardship provision. However, MCW wouldn’t have been able to participate in the playoffs if he were re-signed with the hardship provision and Orlando didn’t waive another player.

The Magic’s decision was believed to come down to Briscoe vs. Jerian Grant. While Briscoe had supplanted Grant as the team’s backup point guard prior to his injury, the fact that Grant is healthy now probably gave him the upper hand. Keith Smith of Yahoo Sports tweets that the Magic would like to re-sign Briscoe this summer if possible.

Briscoe’s contract with Orlando includes non-guaranteed salaries for 2019/20 and 2020/21, so he could be an attractive target for teams interested in placing a waiver claim. Because he signed a three-year contract instead of a two-year deal though, he’s ineligible to be claimed using the minimum salary exception. A team would need to use a trade exception or cap room to put in a claim. If he clears waivers, he’ll become a free agent on Saturday.

Magic Sign Michael Carter-Williams For Rest Of Season

April 4th, 2019 at 10:29am CST by Luke Adams

APRIL 4: The Magic have officially re-signed Carter-Williams, the team announced today in a press release. The club waived Briscoe to ensure that MCW is playoff-eligible, as we detail in a separate story.

APRIL 3: Michael Carter-Williams‘ second 10-day contract with the Magic will expire after tonight’s game vs. New York, but the team doesn’t plan on letting him get away. President of basketball operations Jeff Weltman tells Chris Hays of The Orlando Sentinel that the Magic plan on signing Carter-Williams for the rest of the season.

“So you are allowed two 10-days and after that you have to sign the player to a contract for the rest of the season, which we will do with Michael,” Weltman said. “Beyond that, as far as setting a roster for the playoffs, that’s bad karma to talk about right now. Let’s make the playoffs then we’ll talk about that.”

The Magic have been able to carry Carter-Williams on their roster via a hardship exception, which is granted to teams that have at least four players who have missed three or more games and are expected to continue to miss two weeks or more. However, as Weltman suggests, a 16th man signed via the hardship provision isn’t eligible for the playoffs.

Orlando can sign MCW for the rest of the season using the hardship provision, but in order to make him postseason-eligible, the team would need to waive another player to reduce its roster to 15 players before the end of the regular season. With a playoff spot not yet assured, the Magic figure to put off that decision until sometime next week.

Carter-Williams’ stats with the Magic (5.6 PPG, 4.6 RPG, 3.6 APG, and a .364/.214/.667 shooting line) are somewhat modest, but he has helped stabilize the team’s second unit as D.J. Augustin‘s backup. The club is 6-2 since his debut.

If the Magic do make the playoffs, point guards Jerian Grant and Isaiah Briscoe figure to be among the candidates to be cut to make room on the 15-man playoff squad for MCW, as Josh Robbins of The Athletic wrote earlier this week. Grant is on an expiring contract, while Briscoe has two more years left on his minimum-salary contract, though Briscoe has a knee injury and isn’t expected to return this season.

Knicks Sign Billy Garrett For Rest Of Season

April 2nd, 2019 at 2:55pm CST by Luke Adams

2:55pm: The Knicks have officially signed Garrett, the team confirmed today in a press release. The announcement classifies the deal as a 10-day contract, despite the fact that there are only nine days left in the season.

12:21pm: The Knicks are filling the open spot on their 15-man roster by promoting shooting guard Billy Garrett from their G League affiliate, reports Ian Begley of ESPN.com. According to Begley (via Twitter), Garrett has signed a rest-of-season contract with New York.

Garrett, who went undrafted out of DePaul in 2017, has been a member of the Westchester Knicks since going pro. In 2018/19, he appeared in NBAGL 48 games for the club, averaging 16.5 PPG, 3.7 APG, and 3.3 RPG with a .475/.322/.856 shooting line in 29.8 minutes per contest.

It’s not clear if the Knicks view Garrett as a potential part of their future or if his new contract includes any sort of club option for 2019/20 — the deal may simply be a way to give him an end-of-season salary bump and reward him for his strong play in Westchester.

The Knicks, who dipped down to 12 players on their roster following the trade deadline, filled two of their three available slots by signing John Jenkins and Henry Ellenson, but had held their 15th spot open for the last couple months. The team now has a full roster with the end of the regular season just eight days away.

Kings Sign B.J. Johnson

April 2nd, 2019 at 2:19pm CST by Luke Adams

2:19pm: In their announcement officially confirming Johnson’s signing, the Kings added that he’ll be assigned to the Lakeland Magic, Orlando’s affiliate. That move will allow Johnson to continue his NBAGL playoff run with Lakeland.

11:09am: After signing a pair of 10-day contracts with Atlanta earlier this year, rookie swingman B.J. Johnson will finish the 2018/19 season with another NBA team. According to Jason Jones of The Athletic (via Twitter), the Kings are signing Johnson for the rest of the season. NBA.com’s official transactions log confirms that the move was finalized on Monday.

Johnson, who went undrafted out of La Salle in 2018, has spent most of his first professional season playing for the Lakeland Magic in the G League. He averaged 15.4 PPG, 5.0 RPG, and 1.4 SPG with a shooting line of .476/.444/.841 in 39 NBAGL games, earning him an NBA shot with the Hawks.

Over the span of 20 days in Atlanta, the 23-year-old appeared in six games, averaging 3.5 PPG and 1.3 RPG in limited minutes (7.2 MPG).

The Kings had an open spot on their 15-man roster after Cody Demps‘ 10-day deal expired, so no corresponding move is necessary to create room for Johnson, who figures to earn a rest-of-season minimum salary worth just over $47K. There’s no indication yet that his new contract includes any form of team option for 2019/20.

Jones adds that the Kings intend to immediately assign Johnson to the G League so he can resume playing in the postseason. However, Sacramento’s own affiliate – the Stockton Kings – has been eliminated from the NBAGL playoffs, and it’s not clear that assignment rules would allow the Kings to send him back to his old team in Lakeland. We’ll wait for official word on Johnson’s status.

Hawks Sign Isaac Humphries

April 1st, 2019 at 11:17am CST by Luke Adams

The Hawks have signed G League center Isaac Humphries for the remainder of the season, the team announced today in a press release. Based on Atlanta’s announcement, it sounds as if Humphries’ new deal will expire at season’s end rather than including an option for next season.

Humphries, who played for the Erie BayHawks – Atlanta’s G League affiliate – this season, averaged 11.3 PPG, 6.9 RPG, and 1.1 BPG in 46 games (21.8 MPG) this season. The Australian native went undrafted out of Kentucky in 2017 and joined the Sydney Kings for his first professional season in 2017/18, earning NBL Rookie of the Year honors.

Atlanta has an open spot on its 15-man roster, so no corresponding move was necessary to clear space for Humphries. The Hawks now have 14 players on guaranteed contracts, with Deyonta Davis on a 10-day deal that will expire on Sunday night.

Humphries will earn just over $47K on his new contract, which will cover the season’s final 10 days.

Lakers Sign Jemerrio Jones To Two-Year Deal

March 31st, 2019 at 12:18pm CST by ChrisCrouse

MARCH 31: The signing is official, according to a tweet from the Lakers.

MARCH 30: The Lakers will sign Jemerrio Jones to a two-year deal, according to Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link). The second-year of the pact contains a team option.

Jones will have six games to further make his case for a roster spot next season. The combo forward most recently played for the Lakers’ G League affiliate, leading the team in rebounds per game.

Jones will take over the roster spot currently held by Scott Machado, who will see his 10-day deal with Los Angeles expire on Sunday. Machado appeared in four games for the Lakers, seeing a total of 19 minutes.

JaKarr Sampson Signs 10-Day Contract With Bulls

March 31st, 2019 at 11:10am CST by Arthur Hill

The Bulls have added JaKarr Sampson on a 10-day contract, the team announced in a press release. Sampson was signed with a hardship exception, so a corresponding move won’t be necessary.

It’s the latest effort to provide reinforcements for a squad that is missing seven rotation players because of injuries. On Friday, Chicago signed Walter Lemon Jr. for the rest of the season.

Sampson had been playing for the Bulls’ Windy City affiliate, averaging 21.1 points and 9.1 rebounds in 24 games. The 26-year-old forward joined the G League team after being cut by Chicago in the preseason.

Sampson was a two-way player with the Kings last year, appearing in 22 NBA games. He signed with the Bulls after Sacramento withdrew a qualifying offer last summer. Sampson has also spent time with the Sixers and Nuggets.

Wolves Sign Mitch Creek To 10-Day Deal

March 30th, 2019 at 8:22pm CST by ChrisCrouse

8:22pm: The signing is official, the Timberwolves confirmed in a tweet.

11:44am: The Timberwolves are working on a 10-day deal for Mitch Creek, Jon Krawczynski of The Athletic reports (Twitter link). Minnesota has been hit with a rash of injuries in the backcourt and Creek may get a chance to see playing time with the team.

Creek signed two 10-day deals with Brooklyn earlier this season. He saw action in four games, scoring just 3.8 points per contest.

The shooting guard most recently played for the Long Island Nets of the G League. Creek also has an extensive international resume with China and Australia among his prior stops.

Minnesota has a full 15-man roster, but should qualify to add an extra player via the hardship provision, since the team has at least four players – Derrick Rose, Luol Deng, Jeff Teague, and Robert Covington – sidelined with long-term injuries. Assuming the team is granted a hardship exception, no corresponding roster move will be needed to clear room for Creek.

Grizzlies Sign Dusty Hannahs To 10-Day Deal

March 30th, 2019 at 10:16am CST by ChrisCrouse

The Grizzlies have inked Dusty Hannahs to a 10-day contract, according to a team press release. Hannahs had been playing with the team’s G League affiliate, the Memphis Hustle.

Hannahs also spent last season with the Hustle and is the young franchise’s all-time leading scorer. He helped lead the G League squad to the playoffs this season.

Hannahs was not selected in the 2017 draft after playing two seasons at the University of Arkansas. He also played two seasons of collegiate basketball with Texas Tech.

The Grizzlies have a full 15-man roster, but won’t need to waive anyone to make room for Hannahs. Kyle Anderson, Dillon Brooks, Jaren Jackson, and C.J. Miles are all sidelined with long-term injuries, so Memphis meets the terms of the hardship provision, which grants injury-plagued teams an extra roster spot.