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Mavericks Re-Sign Salah Mejri

August 3rd, 2018 at 2:51pm CST by Luke Adams

AUGUST 3: Having used up all their cap room, the Mavericks have finally gone ahead and finalized their new one-year, minimum-salary contract with Mejri, according to a press release.

Mejri will have the ability to veto trades during the 2018/19 league year.

JULY 1: The Mavericks have reached an agreement to re-sign Salah Mejri, with the big man’s agency breaking word of his new deal (Twitter link). League sources tell Marc Stein of The New York Times (Twitter link) that it’ll be a one-year, minimum-salary contract for Mejri.

Mejri posted 3.5 PPG, 4.0 RPG, and 1.1 BPG in 61 games (12.0 MPG) for the Mavericks in 2017/18. The 7’1″ center is 32 years old, but made his NBA debut late and only has three years of NBA experience under his belt.

Mejri was eligible for restricted free agency this summer and initially received a qualifying offer from the Mavericks, but the team quickly withdrew that offer in order to maximize its cap flexibility.

Now that he has agreed to terms on a one-year deal with the Mavs, Mejri is unlikely to finalize his agreement until after the team uses all its cap room. At that point, Dallas can use the minimum salary exception to lock up Mejri, with no cap space required. He’d be in line for a $1,567,007 salary.

Sixers Sign Norvel Pelle

August 3rd, 2018 at 2:49pm CST by Luke Adams

The Sixers have made an addition to their offseason roster, announcing today in a press release that they’ve signed free agent center Norvel Pelle to a contract. Terms of the deal aren’t known, but it figures to be a camp deal that features little to no guaranteed money.

Pelle, who went undrafted in 2014, has played for teams in Taiwan, Lebanon, and Italy since beginning his professional career. He also spent time with the Delaware Blue Coats, Philadelphia’s G League team, allowing the Sixers to get a first-hand look at him.

The 76ers got a closer look at Pelle again last month when he appeared in five Las Vegas Summer League games for the club. Although he averaged just 13.8 MPG, the 25-year-old big man was effective, posting 7.4 PPG, 4.2 RPG, and 1.2 BPG.

Philadelphia has made a number of signings this offseason, bringing back NBA free agents J.J. Redick and Amir Johnson, locking up draftees Zhaire Smith, Landry Shamet, and Jonah Bolden, and signing Shake Milton and Demetrius Jackson to two-way deals. However, today’s agreement with Pelle looks like the first training camp deal of the club’s offseason.

Pacers Sign C.J. Wilcox To Two-Way Contract

August 3rd, 2018 at 11:11am CST by Luke Adams

The Pacers have filled their second two-way contract slot, officially announcing today in a press release that they’ve signed free agent shooting guard C.J. Wilcox to a two-way contract.

Wilcox, a first-round pick in the 2014 draft, spent his first two seasons with the Clippers before being traded to the Magic during the 2016 offseason. The 6’5″ guard was waived by the Magic in April 2017 and inked a two-way deal with the Trail Blazers last summer. He spent the entire 2017/18 campaign on that two-way contract with Portland, recovering from a right knee injury for the first part of the season.

Players with more than three years of NBA experience aren’t eligible to sign two-way contracts, so it appears last season didn’t count as a year of service for Wilcox, who had appeared in games with the Clippers and Magic during the previous three seasons. A player must spend at least one day on his club’s NBA roster to log a year of service, and Wilcox didn’t play at all for the Blazers in 2017/18. The 27-year-old averaged 10.4 PPG on .451/.381/.889 in 11 G League games for the Santa Cruz Warriors.

With Wilcox locked up, the Pacers have now filled both of their two-way contract slots. Edmond Sumner, who signed a two-year, two-way deal with Indiana last year, holds the other spot.

Rockets Trade Chinanu Onuaku To Mavericks

August 2nd, 2018 at 3:44pm CST by Luke Adams

AUGUST 2: The Mavericks have officially announced the trade in a press release. Dallas receives Onuaku, cash, and the ability to swap the Warriors’ 2020 second-round pick with the Rockets’ pick. In exchange, Houston receives the draft rights to 2008 second-rounder Maarty Leunen.

AUGUST 1: The Rockets are trading center Chinanu Onuaku to the Mavericks, reports ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (via Twitter). According to Wojnarowski (via Twitter), Dallas will receive Onuaku and cash from Houston in exchange for the ability to swap 2020 second-round picks.

Onuaku, 21, was selected by the Rockets in the second round of the 2016 draft with the 37th overall pick. Although he has spent the last two seasons with Houston, he has appeared in just six NBA regular season games for the club.

The former Louisville big man has spent most of his two professional seasons in the G League, playing in 83 total games for the Rio Grande Valley Vipers. In his NBAGL career, Onuaku has averaged a double-double (12.3 PPG, 10.0 RPG) to go along with 2.5 APG, 1.4 BPG, and 1.1 SPG. He also has a .617 FG%.

Having apparently felt that Onuaku wouldn’t have a role on this year’s team, Houston will move him and his guaranteed $1,544,951 salary to Dallas, creating a trade exception worth that same amount. The in-the-tax Rockets may end up replacing Onuaku on their roster, but will perhaps do so with a slightly less expensive player who has a better chance to contribute to the 2018/19 squad.

As for the Mavericks, they’ll absorb Onuaku’s contract using their leftover cap room. Once the move is official, Dallas figures to move forward with completing minimum salary deals for Salah Mejri and Devin Harris.

Donte Ingram To Get Training Camp Deal With Mavericks

August 2nd, 2018 at 12:05pm CST by Arthur Hill

The Mavericks will sign Donte Ingram of Loyola Chicago to an Exhibit 10 contract, tweets Shams Charania of Yahoo Sports.

A four-year player with the Ramblers, Ingram gained national prominence in March during their unlikely run to the Final Four. He averaged 11.0 PPG and 6.4 RPG as a senior. After going undrafted, he joined the Bulls’ entry in the Las Vegas Summer League, posting a 6.0/4.8/1.4 line in five games.

The addition of Ingram will give Dallas 18 players in camp, two below the limit.

Jordan McLaughlin Has Exhibit 10 Deal With Nets

August 2nd, 2018 at 11:02am CST by Arthur Hill

Former USC guard Jordan McLaughlin has signed an Exhibit 10 contract with the Nets and will join the team for training camp, according to a story on NetsDaily. McLaughlin, who played for Brooklyn’s entry in the Las Vegas Summer League, announced the agreement Wednesday in an Instagram post.

The 22-year-old was a four-year player with the Trojans with a reputation as a playmaker and outside shooter. He averaged 7.8 assists per game as a senior and shot .397 from 3-point range.

The addition of McLaughlin brings the Nets up to 19 players who are either signed or have agreements. Brooklyn has 15 guaranteed contracts and one more opening than can be filled before camp starts late next month.

Jazz Sign Tyler Cavanaugh To Two-Way Contract

August 1st, 2018 at 6:04pm CST by clarkcrum

The Jazz have signed forward Tyler Cavanaugh to a two-way contract, per an official release from the team.

Cavanaugh, 24, played for the Hawks last season as a rookie after going undrafted in the 2017 NBA Draft. He appeared in 39 games (one start) during the 2017/18 season, posting respectable averages of 4.7 points and 3.3 rebounds in 13.3 minutes per game.

Cavanaugh also saw action in the G League with Atlanta’s affiliate, the Erie BayHawks, where he averaged 14.5 points and 7.3 boards in 23.6 minutes per contest. He was waived by the Hawks back in May, likely in response to an ankle injury, coaching change, and imminent salary guarantee date.

Having already signed Naz Mitrou-Long to a two-way deal, the Jazz have now filled up both of their two-way slots in anticipation of the 2018/19 season. Both players will be eligible to spend up to 45 days with the Jazz during the G League season.

Bucks Sign Pat Connaughton

August 1st, 2018 at 3:23pm CST by Luke Adams

AUGUST 1: The Bucks have officially signed Connaughton, the team announced today in a press release.

“Pat is a talented wing player with a tremendous work ethic and great character,” GM Jon Horst said in a statement. “We believe he will continue to grow and develop his skills working with Coach Bud and his staff. We are excited to welcome him to the Bucks organization and we know he will be a positive addition to our roster both on and off the court.”

JULY 27: The Bucks have reached an agreement to sign free agent swingman Pat Connaughton, reports Shams Charania of Yahoo Sports (Twitter link). According to Charania (via Twitter), Connaughton will ink a two-year deal that will be worth slightly more than the minimum in each season. The first year will be guaranteed.

The Bucks are over the cap and used their entire bi-annual exception to sign Brook Lopez. However, the team still has a bit of its mid-level exception available. Having used $7MM of the $8.641MM exception to add Ersan Ilyasova, Milwaukee could give Connaughton a starting salary of $1.641MM, which would exceed his minimum salary of $1,567,007.

Assuming Connaughton gets the rest of the Bucks’ MLE and the maximum allowable 5% raise in year two, the two-year pact would be worth about $3.36MM.

Connaughton, 25, spent the last three seasons in Portland, carving out a regular rotation role in 2017/18. Appearing in all 82 games for the Blazers, the former Notre Dame standout averaged 5.4 PPG, 2.0 RPG, and 1.1 APG in 18.1 minutes per contest, with a .423/.352/.841 shooting line. However, he didn’t receive a qualifying offer from the team last month, making him an unrestricted free agent.

While he’s unlikely to see an increase in minutes in Milwaukee, Connaughton will provide solid depth for the Bucks. We had mentioned him earlier today in our look at the top free agent wings still available.

Once Connaughton is officially under contract, the Bucks will have 14 players on guaranteed salaries, with Brandon Jennings and Tyler Zeller on non-guaranteed deals.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Mavericks Sign Codi Miller-McIntyre

August 1st, 2018 at 1:54pm CST by Luke Adams

The Mavericks continue to fill out their training camp roster, announcing today in a press release that they’ve signed free agent guard Codi Miller-McIntyre to their 20-man roster. Terms of the deal aren’t known, but it’s likely a training camp contract with little to no guaranteed money.

Miller-McIntyre, a former Wake Forest point guard, went undrafted in 2016 and has spent the last two seasons playing overseas, spending time with teams in Belgium and Russia. With Parma Basket Perm, a team in Russia’s VTB United League, the 24-year-old averaged 16.0 PPG, 8.0 APG, and 5.0 RPG in 24 games last season, earning All-Star honors. He played for the Raptors’ Summer League team in Las Vegas last month.

The Mavs have yet to complete all of their reported signings this summer, but it appears they’ll have a full 20-man roster once they do. Currently, Dallas has 13 players who have officially signed guaranteed contracts, plus a pair of players on two-way deals. Devin Harris and Salah Mejri are also expected to be received guaranteed salaries, with camp invitees Miller-McIntyre, Ding Yanyuhang, and Terry Larrier filling out the roster.

With a spot on the Mavs’ regular season roster probably a long shot, Miller-McIntyre may end up becoming a member of the Texas Legends, Dallas’ G League affiliate.

Cavaliers Finalizing Deal With David Nwaba

August 1st, 2018 at 12:39pm CST by Luke Adams

The Cavaliers have agreed to sign free agent swingman David Nwaba, reports Shams Charania of Yahoo Sports (via Twitter). According to Charania and Joe Vardon of Cleveland.com (Twitter link), Nwaba and the Cavs are still in the process of finalizing the details of the deal.

A former undrafted free agent, Nwaba had a solid season for the Bulls in 2017/18, averaging 7.9 PPG and 4.7 RPG while playing strong perimeter defense in 70 games (21 starts). He opened the month of July as a restricted free agent, but when Chicago made a series of cost-cutting moves to create the cap room necessary to sign Jabari Parker, rescinding Nwaba’s qualifying offer was one of those moves.

After Nwaba became an unrestricted free agent, Vardon reported that there was mutual interest between the 25-year-old and the Cavaliers. Nwaba also reportedly drew interest from the Lakers and Spurs, and Darren Wolfson of 5 Eyewitness News tweets that there was “lots of dialogue” with the Timberwolves, but Cleveland was aggressive in its pursuit.

According to Charania (via Twitter), the Cavs were in touch with Nwaba from the very first day of free agency and recruited him hard, meeting last week with the Los Angeles native.

While the terms of Nwaba’s deal with the Cavs aren’t yet known, the team has plenty of options for what it could have offered. Cleveland is over the cap, but still has its full mid-level and bi-annual exceptions available.

Nwaba will only be the 12th Cavaliers player on a fully guaranteed contract for 2018/19, though the club also has decisions to make on Rodney Hood‘s restricted free agency and Okaro White‘s non-guaranteed salary. With approximately $108MM in guaranteed money on their books before signing Nwaba or accounting for Hood or White, the Cavs will have one eye on the $123.73MM tax line as they fill out their roster.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.