Transactions Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Pistons Signed, Waived Scottie Lindsey

September 25th, 2018 at 1:34pm CST by Luke Adams

Former Northwestern standout Scottie Lindsey enjoyed a very brief stay on an NBA roster this weekend, as the Pistons signed him to a contract on Saturday before waiving him on Monday, per the RealGM.com and NBA.com transaction logs.

Given the abridged nature of Lindsey’s stint with the Pistons, the club was likely looking to secure his G League rights for the Grand Rapids Drive. Assuming his deal included an Exhibit 10 clause, the 6’5″ guard could be in line for a bonus worth up to $50K if he spends at least two months with Detroit’s NBAGL affiliate.

Lindsey, 22, averaged 15.2 PPG and 3.8 RPG in his senior year at Northwestern in 2017/18, recording a .399/.362/.829 shooting line in 32 games.

Lindsey was signed to the 20th and final spot on Detroit’s training camp roster, which the team subsequently used to add Chris McCullough after cutting Lindsey.

Knicks Sign Tyrius Walker To Exhibit 10 Contract

September 25th, 2018 at 10:28am CST by Luke Adams

SEPTEMBER 25: The Knicks have officially signed Walker, the team announced today (via Twitter). New York now has a full 20-man camp roster.

SEPTEMBER 19: After playing for the Knicks during the Summer League in July, former Morehouse standout Tyrius Walker is joining New York on an Exhibit 10 contract, according to his agency You First Sports (Twitter link).

Walker, a 6’1″ guard, averaged 22.8 PPG in his final college season, buoyed by a .475/.357/.802 shooting line. Because he played for a Division II school, Walker’s competition wasn’t as strong as that of most of his fellow prospects, and he didn’t receive strong draft consideration. However, he did earn a spot on the Knicks’ Summer League squad in Las Vegas, and posted 6.3 PPG in three games (11.3 MPG).

An Exhibit 10 clause allows a team to give a player a bonus worth up to $50K if he’s waived and then spends at least two months with the club’s G League affiliate, so that’s likely what the Knicks have in mind for Walker.

C. Isaiah Smalls II of The Undefeated took a closer look back in July at Walker’s quest to achieve his NBA dream.

Nets Sign Nuni Omot To Exhibit 10 Deal

September 25th, 2018 at 10:26am CST by Luke Adams

The Nets have filled their 20-man training camp roster by signing forward Nuni Omot to a contract, the team announced today in a press release. According to Michael Scotto of The Athletic (Twitter link), it’s an Exhibit 10 deal.

Omot, who went undrafted out of Baylor this spring, averaged 9.9 PPG, 3.6 RPG, and 1.7 APG with a .489/.433/.855 shooting line during his final college season. He spent two years at Division II school Concordia University before transferring to Baylor for his junior and senior years, where he showed off a shooting stroke that made him a potential NBA sleeper, as Chris Dortch of NBA.com detailed in May.

With Omot under contract, the Nets now have a full 20-man roster, meaning there’s no room at the moment for Drew Gordon, who was reported to be on track for an Exhibit 10 deal of his own. It’s possible Brooklyn will still waive someone and sign Gordon at some point, but for now it’s Omot that claimed the final roster spot.

Brian Lewis of The New York Post first reported last week that Omot was a candidate to become Brooklyn’s 20th man for training camp.

Pistons Sign Chris McCullough To Camp Deal

September 25th, 2018 at 9:33am CST by marksuleymanov

SEPTEMBER 25: The Pistons have officially signed McCullough, the team announced today in a press release.

SEPTEMBER 23: The Pistons are signing power forward Chris McCullough to a training camp deal, according to James Edwards III of The Athletic (Twitter link).

McCullough, 23, appeared in 19 games with the Wizards last season, averaging 2.4 PPG and 1.3 RPG. He entered unrestricted free agency this summer and played for the Sixers’ Summer League squad.

The Nets drafted McCullough in the first round (29th overall) of the 2015 NBA Draft. The Syracuse product appeared in 38 games over parts of two seasons with Brooklyn before he was traded to Washington — along with Bojan Bogdanovic — in February 2017.

Most of the Syracuse product’s professional time has been spent in the G League as he’s appeared in 55 games over the past two seasons.

Bucks Withdraw QO For Xavier Munford

September 25th, 2018 at 8:54am CST by Luke Adams

The last of the two-way restricted free agents is now an unrestricted free agent. According to RealGM’s transactions log, the Bucks have withdrawn their qualifying offer to two-way player Xavier Munford. The club has also renounced its rights to Munford, freeing him up to sign elsewhere with no roadblocks.

Like Tyrone Wallace and a handful of other two-way players from last season, Munford received a qualifying offer at season’s end, meaning Milwaukee would have had a chance to match any offer sheet he signed with another NBA team. Wallace was ultimately the only two-way RFA who signed an offer sheet this offseason — the Clippers matched the deal he signed with New Orleans.

The Bucks’ decision on Munford comes as no surprise, since the club had already filled its two-way contract slots with Trevon Duval and Jaylen Morris and has 14 players on guaranteed standard contracts. While it was possible Munford could have slotted into the 15th spot on the roster, Milwaukee has plenty of viable candidates for that opening already, including Christian Wood, Shabazz Muhammad, and Tim Frazier.

Munford, 26, appeared sparingly in just six games for Milwaukee last season. However, the Bucks presumably liked what they saw from the 6’2″ guard in the G League, where he averaged 24.4 PPG and 5.2 APG on .509/.444/.747 shooting in 34 games for the Wisconsin Herd.

Patrick McCaw of the Warriors is now the only two-way or standard RFA left on the market.

Spurs Waive Olivier Hanlan, Add Nick Johnson

September 24th, 2018 at 6:35pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Spurs have waived guard Olivier Hanlan, according to the NBA.com transactions log.

San Antonio signed Hanlan last week. Hanlan will likely wind up with the G League’s Austin Spurs unless he’s claimed. He played 44 games for them last season.

San Antonio has added guard Nick Johnson to the training camp roster, according to a team release. Johnson was named the G League finals MVP last season after leading Austin to the title.

The 6’3” Johnson has not played an NBA game since the 2014/15 season, when he was a Rockets rookie.

Houston selected him in the second round in 2014. He averaged 2.6 PPG in 9.4 MPG. Johnson has appeared in a total of 102 G League games and spent the 2o16/17 season with Bayern Munich in Germany.

The Spurs technically have a full camp roster, though recently-retired Manu Ginobili is still on the 20-player list.

Hanlan, a former Boston College standout, was selected in the second round by the Jazz in 2015. The Spurs acquired his rights the following summer in exchange for Boris Diaw and a future second-rounder.

Hanlan has also played professionally in Lithuania and France. With Austin last season, the 6’4” guard averaged 14.7 PPG, 2.8 RPG, and 2.8 APG in 30.6 MPG. He averaged 6.2 PPG, 2.4 RPG and 2.6 APG in five Las Vegas outings with the Spurs’ summer league team.

Grizzlies Add Ismaila Kane To Camp Roster

September 24th, 2018 at 5:22pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Grizzlies have signed undrafted forward Ismaila Kane to their training camp roster, according to a team press release.

The 6’9” Senegal native appeared in 13 games last season for the Atlanta Metropolitan of the National Junior College Athletic Association and averaged 14.3 PPG, 11.5 RPG and 1.69 BPG.

While it’s highly unlikely the 20-year-old will make the opening-night roster, Kane has a chance to make an impression and perhaps develop his game with the team’s G League club, the Memphis Hustle.

Magic Second-Rounder Justin Jackson Signs G League Contract

September 24th, 2018 at 1:49pm CST by Luke Adams

Magic second-round pick Justin Jackson, one of the last unsigned players in this year’s draft class, has inked a G League contract and will join Orlando’s NBAGL affiliate, the Lakeland Magic, president of basketball operations Jeff Weltman said today (Twitter link via Keith Smith of RealGM.com).

Having missed most of the 2017/18 season with a torn labrum, Jackson may not have been ready to contribute to the Magic’s NBA squad right away in his rookie season, so the team has opted to make him a domestic draft-and-stash prospect instead.

While most of this year’s second-round picks, particularly those selected in the first half of the second round, signed NBA contracts, it’s not uncommon for a small handful of draftees to sign G League contracts. In fact, this will be the second consecutive year that the 43rd overall pick has taken that route — Rockets second-rounder Isaiah Hartenstein spent last season with the Rio Grande Valley Vipers before signing his first NBA deal with Houston this summer.

Before going done with his labrum injury last season, Jackson had recorded 10.3 PPG and 6.5 RPG in 44 career games at Maryland. The 21-year-old forward also had a career shooting line of .418/.386/.728. Orlando acquired his rights in a draft-night trade, moving down two spots from No. 41 to No. 43 and picking up a 2019 second-round pick in the process.

Tyler Ulis Signs Camp Deal With Warriors

September 24th, 2018 at 11:03am CST by Dana Gauruder

SEPTEMBER 24: The Warriors have officially signed Ulis, the team announced today in a press release.

SEPTEMBER 21: Point guard Tyler Ulis will sign an Exhibit 10 contract with the Warriors, Anthony Slater of The Athletic tweets. The former Suns guard will join them in camp, though he’ll likely wind up with the team’s G League affiliate in Santa Cruz, Anthony Johnson of 2Ways10Days tweets.

Ulis also had similar offers from the Rockets and Kings, Marc Spears of ESPN tweets.

The Suns waived Ulis at the end of June, ending his disappointing stint with the club. The 2106 second-rounder out of Kentucky started 58 games in his two seasons with Phoenix and appeared in 132 games overall but the front office didn’t see him in its future plans. He was cut loose before his modest $1.54MM salary for the upcoming season became guaranteed, a move that upset star shooting guard Devin Booker.

Ulis has been seeking new employment ever since and had a workout with the Cavaliers earlier this month. The Warriors already have Shaun Livingston and Quinn Cook as options behind starting point guard Stephen Curry, so Ulis can be viewed as an insurance policy if an injury strikes.

Timberwolves Sign Johnson-Odom, Stark

September 24th, 2018 at 10:22am CST by Luke Adams

The Timberwolves have announced their training camp roster, and the 18-man squad includes a pair of new names. According to the team, guards Darius Johnson-Odom and Jonathan Stark are now under contract with Minnesota.

Johnson-Odom, who will turn 29 this Friday, appeared in four games for the Lakers in 2012/13 and three games for the Sixers in 2013/14, but hasn’t played in the NBA since then. The former second-round pick has spent time with a handful of international teams in recent years, playing for multiple clubs in Italy, as well as teams in Turkey and Greece. He worked out for the Timberwolves earlier this month.

According to Emiliano Carchia of Sportando, Johnson-Odom was recently suspended by the Italian Anti-Doping Organization for eight months after testing positive to a THC test this past spring. The ban, which ends on March 16, applies to all FIBA leagues and tournaments, per Carchia.

Stark, meanwhile, went undrafted out of Murray State in 2018 after being named the Ohio Valley Conference Player of the Year last season. In his final college season, the 6’0″ guard averaged 21.4 PPG and 3.9 APG with a shooting line of .451/.399/.893. He played for Minnesota’s Summer League team in Las Vegas in July.

Both players look like long shots to make the Timberwolves’ regular season roster, and could end up playing for the Iowa Wolves in the G League.

Jimmy Butler is one of the 18 players listed on Minnesota’s camp roster, but isn’t expected to report for the start of training camp.