Transactions Rumors | Hoops Rumors

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 According to RealGM’s transactions log, the Bucks have withdrawn their qualifying offer to two-way player Xavier Munford.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.

Alan Williams Signs Two-Way Deal With Nets

September 24th, 2018 at 10:05am CST by Arthur Hill

SEPTEMBER 24: Williams’ two-way contract with the Nets is now official, the team confirmed today in a press release.

SEPTEMBER 14: The Nets will sign free agent center Alan Williams to a two-way contract, tweets ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski.

Williams spent his first three seasons with the Suns before being waived in July. He played just five games at the NBA level last year, spending most of his time in the G League. Williams appeared in 62 games during his time in Phoenix, averaging 6.4 PPG and 5.7 RPG.

Williams, who worked out for the Cavaliers last week, will be limited to 45 days in the NBA under the two-way deal. He will join an organization that has been looking for big men at the G League level.

The Nets still have their other two-way slot open, along with one more roster vacancy heading into camp.

Timberwolves Sign Karl-Anthony Towns To Extension

September 23rd, 2018 at 9:45pm CST by Arthur Hill

SEPTEMBER 23: The Timberwolves have officially signed Towns to his new extension, the team announced today in a press release.

SEPTEMBER 22: Karl-Anthony Towns has decided to accept an extension from the Timberwolves, according to Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN. The new deal could pay Towns as much as $190MM over the next five years based on current cap projections.

The latest news out of Minnesota may be further indication that Jimmy Butler is headed out of town soon. A report this week suggested that Towns, who clashed with the former Bulls star during his first year in Minnesota, was delaying a decision on an extension until Butler’s fate was decided.

News first broke in July that the Wolves were discussing an extension with Towns, and they have been waiting more than two months for the fourth-year center to accept their offer. His agent, Leon Rose of CAA Sports, contacted the club tonight with news of his decision, sources told Wojnarowski.

“On June 25, 2015, I was drafted to and committed to the Minnesota Timberwolves,” Towns said in a prepared statement. “On September 22, 2018, I made a recommitment to the Wolves and have the same feelings of excitement that I felt back in 2015.

“I promise to the fans, my teammates and the organization to keep the vision of the man who drafted me, Flip Saunders, alive and treat his dream of winning with respect and dignity. To the fans from Day One and the Timberwolves fans, this is for you. Thank you for believing in me.”

Terms of the super-max contract enable Towns to earn 30% of the team’s salary cap by making an All-NBA team or by being named MVP or Defensive Player of the Year this season. The deal does not contain a player option, according to Michael Scotto of The Athletic (Twitter link).

If Towns doesn’t meet the super-max criteria, his new deal would start at 25% of the cap rather than 30%. In that scenario, the yearly cap hits for the Wolves project to be worth $27.25MM, $29.43MM, $31.61MM, $33.79MM and $35.97MM, for a total of $158.05MM. If Towns earns one of the honors noted above, the annual cap hits would increase to $32.7MM, $35.32MM, $37.93MM, $40.55MM, and $43.16MM ($189.66MM in total).

The new deal also establishes Towns as the cornerstone of the franchise for the foreseeable future. He quickly turned into one of the best young centers in the league after being drafted with the top pick in 2015. Towns hasn’t missed a game in his first three seasons and posted a 21.3/12.3/2.4 line last year.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Thunder Sign Four Players To Camp Roster

September 23rd, 2018 at 7:07pm CST by Luke Adams

The Thunder have released their roster for training camp, and the list includes four new names beyond the players we already knew were under contract. According to the club (Twitter link via Brett Dawson), Abdul Gaddy, K.J. McDaniels, Richard Solomon, and Bryce Alford have also signed contracts.

Oklahoma City already had 14 players on guaranteed deals, plus two more on two-way pacts, so the four newly-added players almost certainly received non-guaranteed contracts for training camp. While it’s possible that one of those players could earn the team’s 15th roster spot for the regular season, the Thunder will likely carry just 14 players to start the year to avoid accruing additional tax penalties.

Of the four new additions, McDaniels has the only NBA experience, having appeared in 148 total regular season games for the Sixers, Rockets, and Nets from 2014 to 2017. The 25-year-old swingman averaged 5.3 PPG and 2.2 RPG in those games (14.1 MPG).

As for the others, Gaddy – a point guard – has played primarily in international league since going undrafted out of Washington in 2013. Former Cal big man Solomon – who has also played overseas – and ex-UCLA guard Alford have each spent time in past seasons with the Thunder’s G League affiliate, the Oklahoma City Blue.

Kings Waive Deyonta Davis

September 22nd, 2018 at 4:20pm CST by Arthur Hill

The Kings have waived center Deyonta Davis, who was acquired from the Grizzlies in July, tweets Marc J. Spears of ESPN. The team has confirmed the move on its website.

Davis was waived because Kings officials want to spend training camp focusing on players who are likely to make the final roster or play for their G League team in Stockton, Spears adds (Twitter link). Davis didn’t appear ticketed for either destination.

Sacramento sent Garrett Temple to the Grizzlies on July 17 in exchange for Davis, Ben McLemore and cash. Memphis took Davis with the 31st pick in the 2016 draft, but he was a disappointment in his two seasons there, averaging 4.3 PPG and 3.2 RPG in 98 games.

The Kings still must pay Davis his $1,544,951 salary for the upcoming season. The move leaves them with 17 players on the roster heading into training camp.