Transactions Rumors | Hoops Rumors

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.

Raptors To Sign Malcolm Miller To 10-Day Contract

February 8th, 2019 at 10:11am CST by Luke Adams

The Raptors, left with five open roster spots after the trade deadline, will begin to fill those openings by signing forward Malcolm Miller to a 10-day contract, reports Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link).

Miller, 25, spent the 2017/18 season on a two-way contract with the Raptors, appearing in 15 games for the NBA squad and averaging 12.6 PPG and 5.1 RPG in 34 contests for the Raptors 905, Toronto’s G League affiliate. He was a candidate to stick with the team for 2018/19, but suffered a dislocated shoulder during Summer League play.

Since then, Miller has remained in the organization, rehabbing his injury with the G League squad and recently making his return to the court. In six games with the Raptors 905, Miller averaged only a modest 8.2 PPG and 2.5 RPG, but Toronto apparently saw enough to give him a promotion.

The Raptors entered this week with 14 players under contract, but moved Jonas Valanciunas, Delon Wright, C.J. Miles, Greg Monroe, and Malachi Richardson, only receiving Marc Gasol in return. That series of transactions left Toronto with 10 players, requiring the club to make a roster addition immediately.

The league-mandated minimum is 14 players, not counting two-way deals, but teams are permitted to dip as low as 11 for up to two weeks at a time. The Raptors will have until later this month to add three more players to their roster, perhaps via the G League or the buyout market.

Pelicans Waive Markieff Morris

February 8th, 2019 at 7:52am CST by JD Shaw

FEBRUARY 8: Morris was officially released on Thursday night, RealGM’s NBA transactions log confirms. While the Pelicans didn’t formally announce the transaction, Morris had to be cut in order to accommodate the Nikola Mirotic trade, which saw New Orleans acquire two players for one.

FEBRUARY 7: The Pelicans plan to waive forward Markieff Morris, who’s currently dealing with a neck injury, Shams Charania of The Athletic tweets.

New Orleans acquired Morris and a 2023 second-round pick in a trade with Washington this week, sending away forward Wesley Johnson. Morris is dealing with Transient Cervical Neuropraxia and began experiencing discomfort in his neck and upper back last month. Morris is expected to seek a second opinion on his injury, per Chris Haynes of Yahoo Sports (Twitter link).

The Wizards originally put a six-week timetable on Morris at the start of his injury, which was diagnosed during the first week of January.

Morris, an eight-year veteran, mostly spent the past four seasons as Washington’s starting power forward and established himself as a valuable 3-and-D talent. He joins Enes Kanter, Zach Randolph, Marcin Gortat, Wayne Ellington and others as players who are now available in free agency.

Before getting injured, Morris was averaging 11.5 points and 5.1 rebounds on 44% shooting, starting in 15 of 34 contests on the season.

Celtics Trade Jabari Bird To Hawks

February 7th, 2019 at 10:48pm CST by JD Shaw

10:48pm: The Hawks have officially acquired Jabari Bird and cash from the Celtics in exchange for a conditional 2020 second-round pick, the team announced on Thursday.

2:06pm: The Celtics are trading Jabari Bird and cash to the Hawks in exchange for a heavily protected second-round pick, tweets Keith Smith of Yahoo Sports. Chris Haynes of Yahoo first reported that Boston would trade Bird to Atlanta today.

The Hawks will waive Bird after acquiring him, according to Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link). The move is simply intended to save both teams a little money and to open up a roster spot for Boston.

Bird, 24, appeared in just 13 games with the Celtics last season and didn’t play at all this year. The C’s drafted him 56th overall in 2017, mostly using him in the NBA G League with their affiliate in Maine. He was arrested on domestic violence and assault charges last September and failed to make his way back onto the court.

The pick being acquired by the Celtics is top-55 protected, meaning it most likely won’t convey to the team, Smith adds in a separate tweet. Boston will now look to the buyout market in hopes of upgrading its team before the postseason, and could express interest in free agent Enes Kanter, according to ESPN’s Ian Begley (Twitter link).

Rockets Trade Stauskas, Baldwin To Pacers

February 7th, 2019 at 10:00pm CST by Arthur Hill

10:00pm: The Pacers have officially completed their trade with the Rockets, acquiring Stauskas, Baldwin, Milwaukee’s 2021 second-round pick and the rights to Maarty Leunen for cash considerations, the team announced.

Indiana also waived Anigbogu to make the agreement official.

1:05pm: The Pacers are waiving second-year center Ike Anigbogu to make room for their incoming players, tweets Chris Haynes of Yahoo Sports.

12:16pm: A day after acquiring Nik Stauskas and Wade Baldwin, the Rockets have reached an agreement to send them to the Pacers, tweets ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski. Houston will also ship a second-round pick to Indiana, Woj adds, and the Pacers plan to waive both players (Twitter link).

The Pacers only have one roster opening, so they will have to get rid of someone before they can take on Stauskas and Baldwin, notes Keith Smith of Real GM (Twitter link). The Rockets are making the deal for tax purposes, so it’s unlikely they will be getting anyone in return.

A flurry of trades over the past two days has put Houston $634K under the luxury tax, according to ESPN’s Bobby Marks (Twitter link). The Rockets are down to 12 players, two below the league minimum, but are expected to be active on the buyout market. They will have two weeks to get their roster back to at least 14. Owner Tilman Fertitta has been saying that he wanted to get under the tax this season to avoid repeater penalties in the future, relays Jonathan Feigen of The Houston Chronicle (Twitter link).

Indiana will drop down to 13 players once if it follows through with plans to waive Stauskas and Baldwin and will also have two weeks to get back to the 14-player minimum.

The Rockets acquired both players last night in a three-team deal that also brought them Iman Shumpert. Houston had to take both players from the Cavaliers to help Cleveland stay below the luxury tax. This is the third trade in four days for Stauskas and Baldwin, who were also sent from the Trail Blazers to the Cavs in the Rodney Hood swap.

Grizzlies, Hawks Swap Shelvin Mack, Tyler Dorsey

February 7th, 2019 at 9:54pm CST by Luke Adams

9:54pm: The Grizzlies have officially traded Mack to the Hawks in exchange for Dorsey, the team confirmed on Thursday (Twitter link).

1:35pm: The Grizzlies and Hawks are in agreement on a trade that will send point guard Shelvin Mack to Atlanta and shooting guard Tyler Dorsey to Memphis, tweets Michael Wallace of Grizzlies.com.

Mack, 28, has 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.

However, Mack is expected to be waived by Atlanta, per Chris Vivlamore of The Atlanta Journal Constitution (Twitter link). If those are the Hawks’ intentions for Mack, it’s not clear what their motivations are for making the deal.

As for the Grizzlies’ side, sending out Mack for Dorsey allows the retooling squad to replace a veteran with a young prospect who had taken a step backward in Atlanta this season. A second-round pick in the 2017 draft, Dorsey posted 7.2 PPG and a .362 3PT% in his first year, but those numbers have dipped 3.3 PPG and a .256 3PT% in year two, as he has seen his role cut back.

Rockets Trade James Ennis To Sixers

February 7th, 2019 at 9:49pm CST by Luke Adams

9:49pm: The trade between the Rockets and Sixers centered around Ennis is official, both teams announced in press releases. Houston traded Ennis to Philadelphia in exchange for the rights to swap the Rockets’ 2021 second-round pick for the Sixers’ 2021 second-rounder.

The 76ers also confirmed the release of Richardson, who was acquired in a separate deal with Toronto this week.

11:45am: The Sixers will waive Richardson to open up room for Ennis, tweets Derek Bodner of The Athletic.

11:11am: The Rockets and Sixers have reached an agreement on a trade that will send James Ennis to Philadelphia, reports Shams Charania of The Athletic (via Twitter). According to Charania, Houston will receive the right to swap 2021 second-round picks with the 76ers (Twitter link).

The Rockets signed Ennis to a two-year, minimum salary contract during the 2018 offseason in the hopes that he could help fill the void on the wing created when the team lost Trevor Ariza and Luc Mbah a Moute in free agency.

The 28-year-old Ennis battled some injuries during his time with the Rockets, but was a solid contributor in the 39 games he played. In 23.6 minutes per contest, he averaged 7.4 PPG on .500/.373/.714 shooting. However, with Iman Shumpert set to arrive in Houston as a result of a three-team trade with Sacramento and Cleveland, it appears the Rockets are willing to move on from Ennis.

The Sixers, meanwhile, will add a solid bench piece at a low cost after sacrificing some depth in their acquisition of Jimmy Butler earlier in the season. It’s unclear how much playing time Ennis will get in Philadelphia, but I’d expect him to see minutes for the second unit in a three-and-D role.

The 76ers will be able to add Ennis to their roster without sending out any salary, since he’s on a minimum deal, though they’ll need to make a corresponding move to open up a roster spot. Malachi Richardson and Justin Patton look like the most expendable pieces on the roster.

As for the Rockets, they started the week at 14 players and had been poised to take on an extra man in their deal with the Kings and Cavs. Moving Ennis will get them back to 14 and will slightly reduce their projected luxury tax bill. They’ll also create a modest trade exception worth Ennis’ salary ($1,621,415).

The exact details on the pick swap rights aren’t yet known — the Rockets may simply get the chance to swap out their pick for the Sixers’ selection during the 2021 second round, but Philadelphia also holds ’21 second-rounders from Denver and New York, so it could be more complicated than that.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.