Transactions Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Celtics Sign R.J. Hunter To Two-Way Deal

January 10th, 2019 at 4:03pm CST by Luke Adams

JANUARY 10: The Celtics have officially signed Hunter to a two-way contract, the team confirmed today in a press release.

JANUARY 9: The Celtics are bringing back former first-round pick R.J. Hunter on a two-way contract, tweets ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski. Hunter’s agency, Priority Sports, first announced (via Twitter) that Hunter would be returning to Boston.

Hunter, the 28th overall pick in 2015 out of Georgia State, spent just one season with the Celtics before being waived. He spent time with the Bulls in 2016/17, then signed a two-way contract with the Rockets in 2017/18. The 25-year-old was also in camp with the Hawks this past fall.

Over those few years, Hunter has been unable to carve out a regular NBA role, appearing in just 44 total games. In limited minutes (8.4 MPG), he has posted 2.6 PPG and 1.0 RPG with a .361/.282/.889 shooting line. His career G League numbers – 19.6 PPG, 3.7 RPG, 3.4 APG, and .418/.350/.803 shooting – have been more impressive.

In 22 games for the Erie BayHawks this season, Hunter has averaged 22.0 PPG, 5.6 RPG, 4.3 APG, and 2.0 SPG, earning him a two-way offer from the Celtics.

The C’s have been carrying just one two-way player (P.J. Dozier) since late November, when they waived Walt Lemon Jr., so Hunter will fill their open slot.

Pelicans Waive Andrew Harrison

January 8th, 2019 at 4:15pm CST by ChrisCrouse

The Pelicans have waived Andrew Harrison, the team announced via its website. The guard landed in New Orleans in early December via a two-way deal.

The franchise now has 16 players under contract. Trevon Bluiett is the only player on a two-way deal, so the Pelicans will have until January 15 to fill its open two-way slot.

Harrison appeared in six games for the Pelicans, seeing just 6.3 minutes per contest. The former Kentucky Wildcat has previously had NBA stops in Memphis and Cleveland.

Sixers Sign Haywood Highsmith To Two-Way Deal

January 8th, 2019 at 2:14pm CST by Luke Adams

2:14pm: The Sixers have officially signed Highsmith, the team confirmed today in a press release.

8:29am: The Sixers are set to sign G League wing Haywood Highsmith to a two-way contract later today, sources tell Keith Pompey of The Philadelphia Inquirer (Twitter link). Philadelphia has an open two-way contract slot after waiving Demetrius Jackson on Sunday.

Highsmith, a former Division II standout who played his college ball at Wheeling Jesuit, has been solid for the Delaware Blue Coats – Philadelphia’s G League affiliate – so far this season. In 21 games, he has posted 13.8 PPG, 6.9 RPG, and 2.5 APG with a .450/.394/.680 shooting line.

Mike Schmitz of ESPN.com (Insider-only link) recently identified Highsmith as one of a handful of G League players to watch, noting that the 22-year-old offers “an intriguing blend of physical tools, shooting potential and defensive versatility.” Although Highsmith isn’t a great ball-handler or play-maker, he has a “sound feel” for the game, which should only improve with more reps, Schmitz wrote.

Highsmith participated in a workout for the Sixers about a month ago.

Next Tuesday (January 15) is the deadline for teams to sign players to two-way contracts, and two-way salaries will become fully guaranteed on January 20, so Highsmith appears to be in good position to stick with the Sixers for the rest of the season once he inks his new deal.

Rockets Trade Michael Carter-Williams To Bulls

January 7th, 2019 at 4:07pm CST by Arthur Hill

4:07pm: The Rockets have officially announced their deal sending Carter-Williams to Chicago (Twitter link). The Bulls, who already waived Brooks earlier today, per RealGM’s transactions log, released Carter-Williams as well, as they confirmed (via Twitter).

10:01am: The Rockets have finalized a deal to send Michael Carter-Williams and cash to the Bulls, tweets ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski. In return, Houston will receive a heavily protected second-round pick that is unlikely to ever convey, adds Jonathan Feigen of The Houston Chronicle (Twitter link).

The Bulls will waive Carter-Williams, who has a non-guaranteed contract, before the league deadline of 5:00 pm Eastern, Wojnarowski adds (Twitter link). All contracts become fully guaranteed for the rest of the season on Thursday, but players have to be released by the close of business today to avoid the guarantee so they have time to clear waivers.

The Bulls have a full 15-man roster, so the team will waive MarShon Brooks before the deal can be completed, according to Keith Smith of Yahoo Sports (Twitter link). Brooks was acquired Thursday in a trade with the Grizzlies and hasn’t played yet for Chicago. Smith adds that the draft choice the Rockets will receive is top-55 protected. The Bulls’ second-rounder in 2019 belongs to the Sixers, so Smith believes the pick in the deal will be for 2020 (Twitter link).

The trade enables the Rockets to cut their projected luxury tax payment from $16.3MM to $13.7MM, tweets ESPN’s Bobby Marks. It also gives Houston a $1.2MM trade exception. The Rockets open a roster spot that may eventually go to Danuel House, who has won a place in the starting lineup and is approaching the 45-day NBA limit on his two-way contract.

The Bulls will take a $1.2MM cap hit, but will only have to pay Carter-Williams $366K, Marks adds (Twitter link). The cash from the Rockets is expected to cover the salary for him and Brooks. Chicago will also have an open roster spot by the end of the day, points out K.C. Johnson of The Chicago Tribune (Twitter link).

Carter-Williams was named Rookie of the Year with the Sixers in 2014, but has turned into an NBA journeyman. He spent time with the Bucks, Bulls and Hornets before signing with Houston in July. He appeared in 16 games for the Rockets, posting a 4.3/0.8/1.3 line in about nine minutes per night.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Suns Sign Quincy Acy To 10-Day Deal

January 7th, 2019 at 12:23pm CST by Arthur Hill

JANUARY 7: The signing is official, according to the team’s Twitter feed.

JANUARY 5: With 10-day contracts now permissible, the Suns will sign veteran forward Quincy Acy to the first one of the season, tweets Shams Charania of The Athletic.

The 28-year-old played 70 games for the Nets last season, but hasn’t been in the league since Brooklyn renounced his rights to generate extra cap space over the summer. Acy spent a year and a half with the Nets after joining the team in January of 2017. He has also played for the Raptors, Kings, Knicks and Mavericks since coming into the league in 2012, but has never spent two full seasons with any team.

Phoenix waived forward/center Eric Moreland on Thursday, giving the team two roster openings. The Suns have until January 17 to get back to the league minimum of 14 players, but they’ve decided not to wait. Moreland cleared waivers today and became a free agent, according to Real GM.

Raptors Waive Lorenzo Brown

January 7th, 2019 at 11:21am CST by Arthur Hill

The Raptors have placed guard Lorenzo Brown on waivers, tweets Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN. Like other players who were waived today, Brown had a contract that would have become fully guaranteed by 5pm Eastern.

The reigning G League MVP, Brown was a two-way player for Toronto last season before signing a standard contract over the summer. He appeared in 26 games this year, averaging just 2.1 PPG in 8.2 minutes per night. The 28-year-old has also played for the Sixers, Timberwolves and Suns.

If Brown decides to return to the G League, his rights are held by the Pistons’ affiliate in Grand Rapids, notes Adam Johnson of 2 Ways and 10 Days (Twitter link).

The move leaves Toronto with 13 players, one below the league minimum. The team will have two weeks to add to its roster.

The Raptors’ luxury tax projection falls from $34.5MM to $32.2MM, according to ESPN’s Bobby Marks (Twitter link). Brown received $800K in guaranteed money on his deal.

Wizards Waive Ron Baker

January 7th, 2019 at 11:09am CST by Arthur Hill

Ron Baker‘s stay in Washington turned out to be a short one as the Wizards waived him today, tweets ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski. His contract would have become fully guaranteed if he had remained on the roster past 5pm Eastern today.

It’s the second trip to the waiver wire in less than a month for Baker, who was waived by the Knicks on December 13. He joined the Wizards eight days later. Baker played four games for Washington, but didn’t score a point despite averaging 11.3 minutes per night.

The move leaves Washington with just 13 players on its roster. At least one more will have to be added by January 21 to get the team back to the NBA’s 14-player limit.

The Wizards will have a $170,915 cap hit on Baker’s salary and now face an $8.66MM luxury tax bill, according to ESPN’s Bobby Marks (Twitter link). However, the tax number will increase when an extra player is added.

Timberwolves Waive James Nunnally

January 6th, 2019 at 8:42pm CST by Eric Spyropoulos

In the latest move in a busy day for the Timberwolves, the club is waiving guard James Nunnally, league sources tell Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link). The transaction will happen in advance of Nunnally’s contract guarantee deadline this week.

After playing in Europe for the past two seasons, Nunnally signed with the Timberwolves during free agency, as Minnesota was looking to add players that could space the floor and provide solid defense. However, Nunnally was not a regular part of the rotation and rarely saw the court during his time with the Wolves.

The 28-year-old wing only played 64 minutes this season, averaging 2.1 points per game while knocking down 38.5 percent of his 3-pointers. The emergence of Josh Okogie and the additions of Robert Covington and Dario Saric pushed Nunnally further out of the rotation.

If Nunnally doesn’t catch on with another NBA team right away, a return to the EuroLeague is a viable possibility, given his past success overseas.

Cavaliers Sign Cameron Payne To 10-Day Contract

January 6th, 2019 at 5:25pm CST by Eric Spyropoulos

5:25pm: The signing is now official, the Cavs announced in a press release.

4:33pm: After releasing Patrick McCaw earlier in the day, the Cavaliers will sign point guard Cameron Payne to a 10-day contract, according to Shams Charania of The Athletic (via Twitter).

Payne was most recently with the Bulls, as he was traded to Chicago during the 2016/17 season. Unfortunately, Payne struggled with injuries, as he only appeared in 67 games for the Bulls since that 2017 trade. For his career, Payne has averaged 5.8 points and 2.5 assists per game, while shooting 32.9% from beyond the arc.

This appears to be another tryout for Payne to latch on to an NBA roster, but he will likely be behind both Collin Sexton and Matthew Dellavedova in the rotation.

Cavaliers Waive Patrick McCaw

January 6th, 2019 at 5:24pm CST by JD Shaw

5:24pm: The Cavs have officially waived McCaw, according to a press release from the club.

3:35pm: The Cavaliers are planning to waive guard Patrick McCaw, tweets Shams Charania of The Athletic. McCaw signed a non-guaranteed two-year, $6MM offer sheet with the team in restricted free agency, appearing in just three games.

Several playoff contenders are expected to express interest in McCaw, according to Charania, who adds that Cleveland will also be interested once he reaches free agency. The move allows McCaw to enter unrestricted free agency once he clears waivers in 48 hours, although there’s an outside chance he gets claimed on waivers by the end of Sunday, Marc J. Spears of ESPN’s The Undefeated reports (Twitter link).

“I bet on myself and stayed positive,” McCaw said shortly after signing in Cleveland following months of failed negotiations with the Warriors, as relayed by Tom Withers of AP. “A lot of guys in my position being 22 or 23 years old probably would never take that chance because they don’t know what the outcome could possibly be. I know I had injuries and things like that last season and I’ve just been continuing to work and get better and constantly make strides within myself. That’s how I’ve always been. Just focusing on myself, getting better within myself and telling myself I can be great at this game.”

McCaw, 23, appeared in 57 contests with the Warriors last season as a reserve guard. He held per-game averages of four points, 1.4 rebounds and 1.4 assists while shooting 41% from the floor. Golden State traded for McCaw during the 2016 NBA Draft, beginning his two-season run with the team.