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Hassan Whiteside Opts In For 2019/20

June 21st, 2019 at 11:49am CST by Luke Adams

JUNE 21, 11:49am: Whiteside has officially exercised his 2019/20 player option, tweets ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski.

JUNE 21, 12:04am: Heat president Pat Riley confirms that Whiteside will opt in, adding that the center hasn’t requested a trade and he expects Whiteside to be on the team, tweets Barry Jackson of The Miami Herald.

JUNE 18, 4:21pm: There’s a growing belief that if and when Whiteside opts in, he may do so while asking for a trade, tweets Tim Reynolds of The Associated Press. Given his $27MM+ salary, it won’t be easy for the Heat to make a deal.

JUNE 18, 11:24am: Barring an unforeseen development in the coming days, Heat center Hassan Whiteside intends to opt into the final season of his contract, exercising his 2019/20 player option, a league source tells Barry Jackson of The Miami Herald.

Picking up that option will make Whiteside the Heat’s highest-paid player for next season, locking in a salary of $27,093,018, per Basketball Insiders. The veteran big man will subsequently be on track to reach unrestricted free agency during the summer of 2020.

Whiteside, who turned 30 years old last Thursday, averaged 12.3 PPG and 11.3 RPG with 1.9 BPG in 72 games (53 starts) for the Heat last season. While his numbers were solid, Whiteside’s 23.3 minutes per game represented his lowest mark since he arrived in Miami in 2014.

Whiteside hasn’t been thrilled about his reduced role and inconsistent minutes over the last two seasons. Still, despite expressing a little dissatisfaction with his playing time, he was always considered a virtual lock to exercise his player option to stick with the Heat — he’d have no chance of matching his $27MM salary for ’19/20 on the open market.

With option salaries for both Whiteside and Goran Dragic on their books for next season, the Heat’s guaranteed salary commitments will increase to nearly $130MM for just eight players, plus a $3.64MM cap hold for their first-round pick. The team figures to thoroughly explore ways to cut costs during the offseason to avoid ending up in tax territory with a roster that missed the playoffs this past season.

As our player option decision tracker shows, 10 players have already opted in for the 2019/20 season, with Whiteside and Dwight Powell (Mavericks) both planning to do so as well.

Here are a few more brief Heat notes:

According to Jackson, the Heat and Grizzlies discussed a possible Mike Conley trade, but didn’t see eye to eye on compensation and those talks went nowhere.
Jimmy Butler has told confidants that he’d be happy to meet with the Heat in free agency if the team wants to make a pitch, tweets Tim Reynolds of The Associated Press. Miami doesn’t project to have any cap room available this offseason though, so the idea of Butler joining the team is an extreme long shot.
University of Miami prospect Dewan Hernandez cancelled a workout with the Heat due to scheduling issues and an overcrowded workout calendar, writes Jackson.

Heat Signing Jeremiah Martin To Exhibit 10 Deal

June 21st, 2019 at 11:40am CST by Arthur Hill

Jeremiah Martin of Memphis will sign an Exhibit 10 contract with the Heat, tweets Jonathan Givony of ESPN.

The 6’3″ guard averaged 19.7 points and 4.4 assists per game as a senior and helped the Tigers reach the NCAA Tournament for the first time in five years.

Under an Exhibit 10 deal, Martin will receive a bonus ranging from $5K to $50K if he attends training camp with Miami and spends at least 60 days with the Heat’s G League affiliate.

Nick Weiler-Babb of Iowa State has committed to play for Miami during Summer League and may also receive an Exhibit 10 contract, Givony adds (Twitter link). The 6’5″ guard posted a 9.1/5.0/4.0 line as a senior.

Rockets, William McDowell-White Agree To Deal

June 21st, 2019 at 11:19am CST by Luke Adams

The Rockets have reached an agreement with William McDowell-White, according to Olgun Uluc of FOX Sports Australia, who reports (via Twitter) that the undrafted combo guard will sign an Exhibit 10 contract with Houston.

McDowell-White was 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, he spent a season and a half with German club Brose Bamberg, leaving the team earlier this year to prepare for the 2019 draft.

Besides McDowell-White, the Rockets have also lined up deals with UCLA center Moses Brown and Campbell guard Chris Clemons to play for their Summer League squad, tweets Jonathan Feigen of The Houston Chronicle.

It’s possible that the club’s agreement with Clemons will be for more than the Summer League. Both Alykhan Bijani of The Athletic and Mark Berman of FOX 26 Houston (Twitter links) classify that deal as an undrafted free agent signing, which may include an invite to training camp.

The Rockets had a quiet night on Thursday, as they were one of the only teams that didn’t have a draft pick in either the first or second round.

Pistons Sign Jordan Bone To Two-Way Contract

June 21st, 2019 at 10:54am CST by Luke Adams

JULY 8: Having completed their deal to acquire Bone over the weekend, the Pistons officially signed him to his two-way contract today, according to a team press release.

JUNE 21: After using the No. 57 pick to draft him on Thursday night, the Pistons will sign Tennessee guard Jordan Bone to a two-way contract, reports Emiliano Carchia of Sportando.

Detroit actually doesn’t hold Bone’s rights yet, since the 57th pick is tied up in a series of transactions that won’t be made official until the new league year begins, but the team reached a deal to acquire his rights in a trade agreement with the Sixers.

In his junior year at Tennessee, Bone emerged as a go-to scorer and play-maker for the team, averaging 13.5 PPG, 5.8 APG, and 3.2 RPG with a shooting line of .465/.355/.835. He also provided one of the viral-video highlights of draft night, as his draft party was preparing for him not to be selected when he unexpectedly came off the board at No. 57.

In recent years, it has become more common for players drafted in the 50s to sign two-way deals with their new teams, so Bone likely won’t be the only draftee who goes that route. A year ago, four players drafted in the 54-60 range inked two-way contracts.

Elsewhere on the Pistons front, it remains unclear whether No. 37 pick Deividas Sirvydis will be stashed overseas next season. Rolandas Jarutis, the GM of Sirvydis’ Lithuanian team BC Rytas, would prefer to get the buyout right away, so the decision may simply be up to the Pistons, tweets international reporter Donatas Urbonas. It’s also possible Detroit will try to stash Sirvydis in the G League, tweets Vince Ellis of The Detroit Free Press.

The Pistons have also agreed to a deal with USC forward Bennie Boatwright, tweets Michael Scotto of The Athletic. It’s not clear whether that deal is just for Summer League or if it features a training camp invite as well.

Boatwright, who played four seasons with the Trojans, had his best year as a senior, averaging 18.2 PPG, 6.6 RPG, and 2.5 APG with a shooting line of .474/.429/.702.

Pacers Adding Brian Bowen, Jakeenan Gant

June 21st, 2019 at 10:46am CST by Arthur Hill

Brian Bowen, who played in Australia last season with the Sydney Kings, will join the Pacers on a two-way contract, tweets Jeremy Woo of Sports Illustrated. Indiana is also signing Jakeenan Gant of Louisiana to an Exhibit 10 deal, according to Michael Scotto of The Athletic (Twitter link).

Bowen will opt out of the second year of his Australian contract to come to the NBA, tweets Jonathan Givony of Draft Express. The former McDonald’s All-American went overseas after the NCAA declared him ineligible in the wake of a recruiting scandal at Louisville. He declared for the draft last year, but withdrew before the deadline.

Bowen worked out for the Pacers last month and told Robert General of The Indianapolis Star that he wants to change the public perception of him.

“There’s a lot of narratives out there about me, but once you meet me you can tell I have a pretty good character and everything,” Bowen said. “I like to be responsible and everything and I’m just going to show teams that I’m going to give it everything I’ve got.”

Gant has been named Defensive Player of the Year in the Sun Belt the past two seasons. He was also the league’s top rebounder at 8.7 per night, while averaging 20.5 points and 2.6 blocks.

Hawks Will Sign Charlie Brown To Two-Way Deal

June 21st, 2019 at 10:21am CST by Arthur Hill

Free agent Charlie Brown of St. Joseph’s will sign a two-way contract with the Hawks, tweets Michael Scotto of The Athletic.

The 6’7″ forward was the Atlantic 10’s leading scorer this season at 19.0 points per game. He also pulled down 6.2 rebounds per night while shooting .356 from 3-point range.

Brown told Marc Narducci of The Philadelphia Inquirer this week that he had a good feeling about the draft, expecting to go late in the first round or early in the second. Instead, he’ll have to prove himself in the G League as his new contract limits him to 45 days of NBA service.

Knicks Agree To Sign Kris Wilkes, Amir Hinton, V.J. King

June 21st, 2019 at 10:05am CST by Luke Adams

The Knicks will sign UCLA forward Kris Wilkes to a two-way contract, league sources tell Tim Bontemps of ESPN.com (Twitter link). The deal can become official after the new league year begins.

Wilkes, who was the 23rd-best prospect to go undrafted on Thursday night, per ESPN’s big board, averaged 17.4 PPG, 4.8 RPG, and 1.7 APG in 33 games during his sophomore season with the Bruins. He has a wingspan of nearly 7’0″ and has potential as a slasher and multi-postional defender, according to ESPN’s scouting report.

Kadeem Allen‘s two-way deal with the Knicks runs for another season, while Isaiah Hicks‘ is expiring, so it appears likely that Wilkes will replace Hicks, though it’s possible the team will turn over both two-way spots.

Meanwhile, the Knicks have also agreed to free agent deals with two more undrafted rookies. Sources tell Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter links) that Louisville wing V.J. King and Shaw point guard Amir Hinton will sign with the team.

King didn’t play much of a role during his final year at Louisville, averaging just 3.9 PPG and 3.0 RPG in 13.7 minutes per contest, but NBA teams are still intrigued by his potential. As for Hinton, he led all Division II players in 2018/19 with 29.4 points per game and earned CIAA Player of the Year honors. He had hoped to become the first D-II since 2005 to be drafted.

Hinton will get an Exhibit 10 deal from the Knicks, according to Mike Vorkunov of The Athletic, who adds (via Twitter) that the Pistons showed a lot of interest in the Division II star. Specific details on King’s agreement aren’t known.

Lakers Agree To Sign Zach Norvell, Devontae Cacok

June 21st, 2019 at 8:57am CST by Luke Adams

The Lakers have reached deals with a pair of undrafted free agents following the conclusion of the 2019 draft. Shams Charania of The Athletic reports (via Twitter) that the team will sign Zach Norvell Jr. to a two-way contract, while ESPN’s Jonathan Givony tweets that Devontae Cacok will ink an Exhibit 10 contract with L.A.

Norvell was a player viewed by many draft experts as a strong candidate to be selected on Thursday night after he left Gonzaga following his sophomore season. He ranks 15th on ESPN’s list of prospects who went undrafted. The shooting guard was a top perimeter threat for the Zags in 2018/19, averaging 14.9 PPG and shooting 37.0% from outside the three-point line (2.6 makes per game).

Two of Norvell’s teammates, Rui Hachimura and Brandon Clarke, were first-round picks on Thursday, so Norvell will become the third Gonzaga player to enter the NBA as a rookie this year.

As for Cacok, the UNC Wilmington forward isn’t as notable a name as Norvell, but he had a solid senior season in 2018/19, posting a double-double in 33 games (15.2 PPG, 12.3 RPG). His Exhibit 10 deal will make him a candidate to either become an affiliate player for the South Bay Lakers or to have his contract converted into a two-way pact.

Magic Agree To Deals With DaQuan Jeffries, Vic Law, Dererk Pardon

June 21st, 2019 at 8:13am CST by Luke Adams

The Magic have agreed to deals with a trio of undrafted free agents, per reports. Tulsa wing DaQuan Jeffries, Northwestern forward Vic Law, and Northwestern big man Dererk Pardon, according to Shams Charania of The Athletic, ESPN’s Jonathan Givony, and Michael Scotto of The Athletic, respectively (all Twitter links).

Jeffries, whose athleticism and explosiveness intrigued NBA teams, was ranked by ESPN’s Jonathan Givony as the fourth-best prospect who wasn’t drafted on Thursday night. He posted 13.0 PPG, 5.6 RPG, 1.2 BPG, and 1.0 SPG in his final college season, shooting .502/.366/.755.

Law, who played four full college seasons at Northwestern, averaged 15.0 PPG, 6.4 RPG, and 3.0 APG as a senior. Like Jeffries, he also averaged at least one block and steal per game. Law’s teammate Pardon played alongside him during those four years at Northwestern, averaging 14.0 PPG and 7.8 RPG as a senior.

Charania, Givony, and Scotto didn’t provide any additional details on what the Magic’s agreements with Jeffries, Law, and Pardon look like. Based on the lack of specificity, it’s possible that one or more of those deals is just for the Summer League and doesn’t lead to an actual NBA contract. Assuming all three are added to Orlando’s 20-man roster though, they figure to be in line for non-guaranteed deals, perhaps with small partial guarantees.

Sixers Trade Jonathon Simmons, No. 42 Pick To Wizards

June 21st, 2019 at 1:15am CST by clarkcrum

JUNE 21: The trade is official, according to a press release from the NBA.

JUNE 20: The Sixers are trading Jonathon Simmons and the No. 42 overall pick (Tennessee’s Admiral Schofield) to the Wizards for cash considerations, according to Keith Pompey of The Philadelphia Inquirer.

According to Bobby Marks of ESPN, the Wizards are likely to acquire Simmons with the $6MM trade exception they created in the Otto Porter trade. Marks further notes that Simmons has $1MM in guaranteed salary for next season, with the $4.7MM in remaining salary for the 2019/20 season guaranteed if the 29-year-old guard is not waived by July 1.

The trade will enable the Sixers to create $1MM in more cap space in the unlikely event that Jimmy Butler and Tobias Harris both leave in free agency.