Transactions Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Thunder Waive Alex Abrines

February 9th, 2019 at 7:34pm CST by Arthur Hill

7:34pm: Abrines agreed to give back almost all of the $1.8MM he was still owed, according to Charania (Twitter link), who adds that he and the team “parted ways amicably.”

4:20pm: Oklahoma City has placed Alex Abrines on waivers, tweets Shams Charania of The Athletic. The Thunder will still be responsible for the remainder of his $5,455,236 salary, which will continue to count against the team’s cap.

The third-year guard has appeared in just 31 games this season, averaging 5.3 points and 1.5 rebounds in 19 minutes per night. Abrines was a second-round draft choice in 2013, but didn’t come to the NBA until three years later.

The 25-year-old has only appeared in two games over the past six weeks and is dealing with an undisclosed personal situation, according to Berry Tramel of The Oklahoman. Abrines and team officials came to a mutual decision that he needed time away from basketball to work on those issues, adds ESPN’s Royce Young.

“He’s still battling through some things and wasn’t able to be here tonight,” coach Billy Donovan said after Tuesday’s game. “Honestly, we go day-by-day with him and continue to be supportive with him. He’s around the team, we always talk and communicate.”

The Thunder were already one player short of the roster minimum of 14 after the deadline, so OKC will have to make at least two additions. They will have two weeks from today to replace Abrines.

Pistons Sign Wayne Ellington, Waive Henry Ellenson

February 9th, 2019 at 6:09pm CST by ChrisCrouse

6:09pm: The move is official, tweets Rod Beard of The Detroit News.

4:03pm: Wayne Ellington has cleared waivers and the Pistons will sign him to a contract, Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN.com reports (Twitter link).

Ellington was sent to the Suns in the Tyler Johnson trade and the veteran was subsequently waived. It was reported on Friday that Detroit was nearing a deal with the 31-year-old after beating out “heavy competition” for his services.

While the Pistons don’t provide Ellington with a chance to compete for a title, they do provide him a path to court time on a potential playoff team. Detroit traded away Reggie Bullock, arguably the team’s best shooter, earlier in the week and Ellington, who’s a career 38.0% shooter from downtown, will have a chance to fill that void.

As we mentioned in our log of every team’s roster situation, the Pistons had a full roster and needed to make a corresponding move to add the shooting guard. The team will waive Henry Ellenson in order to make room for Ellington.

Clippers Waive Michael Beasley

February 9th, 2019 at 12:18pm CST by ChrisCrouse

The Clippers have waived Michael Beasley, according to the team’s Twitter feed. Beasley came to the franchise in the trade deadline deal that sent Mike Muscala to the Lakers.

Beasley never suited up for the Clippers. He played in 26 games for the Lakers this season, averaging 7.0 points per game.

The former No. 2 overall pick has had NBA stops in Los Angeles, Miami, Minnesota, Phoenix, Houston, Milwaukee, and New York. He has played in a total of 609 NBA games.

Pacers Waive Nik Stauskas, Wade Baldwin

February 8th, 2019 at 4:54pm CST by ChrisCrouse

The Pacers have waived Nik Stauskas and Wade Baldwin, according to a team press release. The pair was acquired from the Rockets at the trade deadline and the move to waive them was expected.

Stauskas and Baldwin spent most of the season in Portland before being traded to the Cavs for Rodney Hood. Cleveland then sent the duo to Houston as part of a three-team agreement that also brought Iman Shumpert to the Rockets. Houston then dealt the two former first-rounders to the Pacers in separate trades.

The move to waive Stauskas and Baldwin opens up two roster spots, one of which will go to new addition Wesley Matthews. GM Kevin Pritchard said the Pacers are unlikely to fill the other spot right away.

Mavericks Waive Zach Randolph

February 8th, 2019 at 4:05pm CST by Luke Adams

FEBRUARY 8: The Mavericks have officially waived Randolph, the team announced today in a press release.

FEBRUARY 7: Veteran big man Zach Randolph, acquired by the Mavericks in a deadline deal with the Kings, will be waived by Dallas, reports Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link).

Given his sizable cap hit ($11,692,308), Randolph will almost certainly go unclaimed, so he’ll become an unrestricted free agent once he clears waivers. He’ll be free to sign with any team besides Sacramento at that point.

There’s no indication based on Charania’s report that Randolph has agreed to reduce his salary as part of the transactions. Veterans on oversized contracts generally only agree to buyouts if they have a new destination lined up, and it’s not clear if that’s the case for Randolph.

The 37-year-old had yet to appear in a game for the Kings this season after playing 59 games (57 starts) in 2017/18. Randolph was still productive last season, averaging 14.5 PPG and 6.7 RPG on .473/.347/.785. While his limited ability to protect the rim or switch on defense will reduce his appeal to some extent it’s possible he’ll still draw interest from contending teams.

Hawks Waive Shelvin Mack

February 8th, 2019 at 2:39pm CST by Luke Adams

The Hawks have officially requested waivers on Shelvin Mack, the team announced today in a press release. He’ll become a free agent on Sunday, assuming he goes unclaimed.

Mack, 28, had been Memphis’ backup point guard for the 2018/19 season, averaging 7.9 PPG and 3.4 APG in 53 games (22.7 MPG). He has also had one of his best three-point shooting seasons, knocking down 35.9% of his attempts from outside.

The Grizzlies sent Mack to the Hawks in exchange for Tyler Dorsey in a deadline-day trade on Thursday. Considering the deal doesn’t appear to have saved Atlanta any money and no other assets were said to be included, it’s not clear what the Hawks’ motivations were for making the trade.

In any case, Atlanta now has two open roster spots and will have two weeks to fill at least one of them.

Pistons Plan To Waive Henry Ellenson

February 8th, 2019 at 1:43pm CST by Luke Adams

Henry Ellenson‘s run with the Pistons appears to be coming an end, as Chris Haynes of Yahoo Sports reports (via Twitter) that Detroit plans to waive the third-year big man in order to make room for Wayne Ellington. We heard earlier today that Ellington, who is currently on waivers, is nearing a deal with the Pistons.

Ellenson, 22, was the 18th overall pick in the 2016 draft, but hasn’t developed into a reliable and consistent rotation player in Detroit. In two and a half NBA seasons, the former Marquette standout has averaged 3.8 PPG and 2.2 RPG in just 59 games (8.5 MPG). He appeared in only two contests this season, falling out of the rotation entirely after the Pistons signed Zaza Pachulia and got Jon Leuer back over the offseason.

The timing of Ellenson’s release remains unclear — Ellington won’t clear waivers today, so the Pistons may wait until the veteran is ready to officially sign with the team before they make their corresponding move with Ellenson.

Once he’s waived, Ellenson will remain on waivers for two days. He’ll become an unrestricted free agent if he goes unclaimed.

Kings Sign Corey Brewer On 10-Day Contract

February 8th, 2019 at 12:37pm CST by JD Shaw

FEBRUARY 8: The Kings have officially signed Brewer to a 10-day deal, the team announced today in a press release.

FEBRUARY 7: The Kings plan to sign veteran forward Corey Brewer on a 10-day contract, according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (Twitter link).

Brewer, who most recently played for the Sixers, has spent 12 NBA seasons with seven different teams. He holds career-averages of 8.9 points, 2.8 rebounds and 1.3 steals per game.

Sacramento waived Ben McLemore earlier today to create another open roster spot, also trading the likes of Iman Shumpert, Zach Randolph, Justin Jackson and Skal Labissiere over the past 48 hours. The team owns the ninth best record in the West at 28-26, competing for a postseason spot behind their young core.

This marks the third 10-day contract signed for Brewer this season, with his previous two deals coming on the Sixers.

Pistons, Wayne Ellington Nearing Agreement

February 8th, 2019 at 11:50am CST by Luke Adams

Wayne Ellington, who is currently on waivers and will become a free agent this weekend, is closing in on a contract agreement with the Pistons, reports ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (via Twitter).

Ellington, who spent most of the season with the Heat, was sent from Miami to Phoenix in a trade this week. The veteran sharpshooter has a contract that gave him the right to veto a potential deal, but he signed off on the trade based on the knowledge that the Suns would release him, giving him the chance to join a contender.

While the 24-29 Pistons certainly aren’t the NBA’s most obvious “contender,” they’re currently just 1.5 games out of the playoff picture in the East. The Hornets and Heat hold the seventh and eighth seeds with 26-28 and 25-27 records, respectively, so Ellington could get the opportunity to help knock his old team out of the postseason.

Ellington, 31, has a career .380 3PT% and has made at least 2.3 threes per game in each of the last three seasons with the Heat, but saw his role cut back significantly in 2018/19. He struggled to crack a crowded rotation in Miami, appearing in just 25 games this season and suggesting that he wouldn’t mind a change of scenery if it gave him the opportunity to play more.

He’ll get that chance in Detroit, which may have been one of the reasons why he chose the Pistons over other suitors. According to Vince Ellis of The Detroit Free Press (via Twitter), the Pistons beat out “heavy competition” for Ellington. After trading away Reggie Bullock and Stanley Johnson in a pair of deals this week, the club should have a clear role available on the wing for the former UNC standout.

The Pistons currently have a full 15-man roster, so they’ll have to waive someone to open up a spot for Ellington.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Hawks Waive Jabari Bird

February 8th, 2019 at 10:44am CST by Luke Adams

As expected, the Hawks have officially requested waivers on newly-acquired guard Jabari Bird. The club confirmed the move in a press release.

Atlanta acquired Bird in a deadline-day trade with the Celtics, sending a heavily protected 2020 second-round pick to Boston in exchange for the second-year guard and cash.

Bird has been held out of action all season due to legal issues connected to his 2018 arrest on assault charges. The Celtics kept Bird on their roster for more than half the season in the hopes that his situation would be resolved and the NBA would make a ruling, but didn’t want to wait any longer, opting to send him to Atlanta on Thursday to open up a roster spot and slightly reduce their projected tax bill.

Given his off-court issues, Bird is unlikely to sign with a new team this season, sources confirm to Keith Smith of Yahoo Sports (Twitter link).

The Hawks now have 14 players on their 15-man contract.