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Hornets Sign Bolden To Two-Way Contract, Waive Mensah

March 2nd, 2024 at 9:37am CST by Tristan Tucker

The Hornets have signed center Marques Bolden to a two-way contract, according to a release from the team. To create a roster spot for Bolden, Charlotte waived two-way center Nathan Mensah.

Bolden recently spent time with the Hornets on a 10-day contract, which was ended early to make room for Aleksej Pokusevski on the 15-man roster. He appeared in one game with Charlotte. The 25-year-old has also had NBA stops in Cleveland and Milwaukee. He spent part of this season on a two-way deal with the Bucks, but only appeared in two games.

Bolden played three seasons at Duke, averaging 3.8 points, 3.3 rebounds and 1.1 blocks in 88 career collegiate games (24 starts). He has been the most productive in the G League, where he’s averaged 13.3 points, 7.7 rebounds and 1.6 blocks while shooting 55.6% from the floor and 39.7% from deep in 31 regular season and Showcase Cup games with the Wisconsin Herd.

Mensah signed with the Hornets on a two-way contract in December after joining the team in training camp. He immediately carved out a small role, playing about 40 combined minutes in his first two career games and averaging 16.1 minutes from early to late January. However, his role diminished as time went on and he was nearing his active-game limit, prompting Charlotte to make the move to Bolden. In 25 games with the Hornets, Mensah averaged 1.3 points, 2.6 rebounds and 0.6 blocks.

The Hornets have 15 players on standard contracts and all three of their two-way spots are filled. Bolden joins Amari Bailey and Leaky Black as the Hornets’ two-way players.

Sixers Waive Kenneth Lofton Jr.

March 1st, 2024 at 10:02pm CST by Rory Maher

10:02pm: Lofton has been released, the 76ers confirmed in a press release.

9:45pm: The Sixers intend to waive Kenneth Lofton Jr., who is on a two-way contract, reports Kyle Neubeck of PHLY Sports (via Twitter).

A burly forward/center, Lofton went undrafted out of Louisiana Tech in 2022. He caught on with the Grizzlies, signing a two-way contract before being converted to a standard deal at the end of his rookie season in 2022/23.

Lofton became the victim of a roster crunch in Memphis when the team needed to open up a roster spot to activate Ja Morant following the completion of his 25-game suspension. He was released in December, signing a two-way deal with Philadelphia a few days later.

After averaging 5.0 PPG and 2.1 RPG while shooting 52.7% from the floor in 24 games (7.3 MPG) as a rookie, the 21-year-old has struggled in his brief NBA minutes this season, averaging a combined 2.4 PPG and 1.1 RPG while making just 34.9% of his field goal attempts in 17 games with Memphis and Philadelphia (6.4 MPG). He only played two games for the 76ers, having spent most of his time with the Delaware Blue Coats, their NBA G League affiliate.

In 10 regular season games with the Blue Coats, Lofton put up big numbers, averaging 27.2 PPG, 8.8 RPG, 4.0 APG and 1.8 BPG on .577/.324/.746 shooting (29.8 MPG). He was named to the NBAGL’s Up Next Game, but wound up being replaced last month due to an injury.

Philadelphia has two openings on its standard roster and will have one open two-way spot once Lofton is officially released.

Pistons, Shake Milton Agree To Contract Buyout

March 1st, 2024 at 8:28pm CST by Rory Maher

The Pistons and veteran guard Shake Milton have agreed to a contract buyout, according to Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link), who says “multiple postseason contenders” are interested in signing Milton once he clears waivers.

The 54th pick of the 2018 draft, Milton spent his first five NBA seasons with the Sixers before hitting unrestricted free agency last summer. He signed a two-year, $10MM contract with the Timberwolves, with the second year being non-guaranteed.

Despite initial enthusiasm, the deal didn’t work out well for either party, as Milton averaged just 4.9 PPG, 1.6 RPG and 1.3 APG on .400/.264/.818 shooting in 38 games with Minnesota (12.9 MPG), well below his career marks. The Wolves wound up trading him to Detroit last month as part of a package for Monte Morris.

Milton appeared in four games for the Pistons, averaging 6.8 PPG and 4.5 RPG in 15.8 RPG. He’s only 27 and has been a productive reserve as recently as last season, so it’s not surprising that he’s expected to draw interest from several suitors.

Players must be waived by 11:59pm ET on Friday in order to maintain their postseason eligibility, so we can safely assume Milton be cut before the end of the day.

Raptors Promote Javon Freeman-Liberty To Standard Deal

March 1st, 2024 at 5:58pm CST by Rory Maher

5:58pm: Freeman-Liberty has officially been converted to a standard deal, Toronto announced in a press release.

4:53pm: The Raptors are giving Javon Freeman-Liberty a promotion, according to Shams Charania of The Athletic, who reports (via Twitter) that the 24-year-old will receive a multiyear standard deal. Freeman-Liberty is currently on a two-way contract.

A Chicago native who played four years of college ball at Valparaiso and DePaul, Freeman-Liberty went undrafted in 2022, later signing an Exhibit 10 contract with his hometown Bulls. He spent his first pro season playing for the Windy City Bulls, Chicago’s NBA G League affiliate, and had an impressive Summer League run in 2023, which led to a two-way deal with Toronto.

Freeman-Liberty, a 6’4″ guard, has only played four total minutes across two appearances with the Raptors in 2023/24, which is technically his rookie season. He’s been a standout at the NBAGL level for the Raptors 905, however, averaging 23.8 PPG, 6.8 RPG, 4.2 APG and 1.5 SPG on .461/.345/.830 shooting in 25 Showcase Cup and regular season games (35.2 MPG).

“Javon is quiet guy who came into camp and made a lot of noise,” head coach Darko Rajakovic said. ” … We’re really proud of what he’s accomplished this year” (Twitter links via Michael Grange of Sportsnet.ca and Josh Lewenberg of TSN.ca).

Rajakovic added that he hopes to get Freeman-Liberty some playing time with the NBA club at some point this season.

The Raptors currently have 13 players on standard contracts, and a 14th — D.J. Carton — on a 10-day deal, which expires tonight. That means they won’t have to waive anyone to convert Freeman-Liberty, since standard rosters can hold up to 15 players.

Nets, Jalen Wilson Finalize Three-Year Contract

March 1st, 2024 at 5:45pm CST by Luke Adams

5:45pm: Wilson’s deal is now official, according to a press release from the Nets.

2:50pm: Wilson’s deal will include a partial guarantee for 2024/25 and a team option on the ’25/26 season, league sources tell Michael Scotto of HoopsHype (Twitter link).

2:16pm: The Nets are promoting Jalen Wilson from his two-way contract and will give him a spot on their standard 15-man roster, according to Shams Charania of The Athletic, who reports (via Twitter) that the rookie forward will sign a new three-year deal.

After winning a national championship with Kansas in 2022, Wilson led the Jayhawks in scoring (20.1 PPG) and rebounding (8.3 RPG) as a redshirt junior in 2022/23. He was named a first-team All-American and the Big 12 Player of the Year before entering the 2023 draft, where he was selected with the No. 51 overall pick by the Nets.

Wilson didn’t play much at the NBA level earlier this season but impressed in the G League with the Long Island Nets, averaging 19.3 points, 7.6 rebounds, and 3.2 assists in 33.0 minutes per game across 22 appearances in the Showcase Cup and NBAGL regular season. He posted a shooting line of .471/.380/.745 in those contests.

Wilson’s strong play with Long Island has helped earn him a spot in Brooklyn’s rotation in recent weeks. Since February 6, he has played in all 10 of the Nets’ games, averaging 5.5 PPG, 2.6 RPG, and 1.5 APG on .444/.500/.667 shooting in 18.9 MPG.

The Nets have an open spot on their 15-man roster, so no corresponding move will be required to make room for Wilson. Once his promotion is official, the club will have an open two-way slot and will face a March 4 deadline to fill it.

Brooklyn will use a portion of its mid-level exception in order to sign Wilson to a contract exceeding two seasons. Additional details on the deal aren’t yet known.

Wizards Convert Eugene Omoruyi To Standard Contract

March 1st, 2024 at 5:21pm CST by Rory Maher

The Wizards have officially converted Eugene Omoruyi‘s two-way deal into a standard contract, the team announced in a press release. ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski was the first to report the news, indicating that it’s a two-year pact (Twitter link).

Ava Wallace of The Washington Post suggested last week that Omoruyi looked like a strong candidate to be promoted to a standard deal, and now that has come to fruition.

A 6’7″ forward who went undrafted out of Oregon in 2021, Omoruyi holds three seasons of NBA experience, having made previous stops with Dallas, Oklahoma City and Detroit before catching on with Washington last summer. The 27-year-old has appeared in 27 games for the Wizards in 2023/24, averaging 4.6 points and 2.1 rebounds in 7.6 minutes per night.

In addition to his NBA minutes, Omoruyi has also played 12 total games for Washington’s G League affiliate, the Capital City Go-Go, averaging 20.2 points, 7.3 rebounds, 2.3 assists and 1.4 steals.

Omoruyi will technically be the Wizards’ 15th player on a standard deal, at least for one day — Justin Champagnie‘s 10-day contract expires on Saturday night. If they don’t re-sign Champagnie, they’ll be back down to 14 players on standard contracts at that point, with one two-way opening.

Marcus Morris Finalizes Buyout Agreement With Spurs

February 29th, 2024 at 5:31pm CST by Dana Gauruder

5:31pm: The Spurs have officially waived Morris, the team announced in a press release.

4:07pm: Marcus Morris and the Spurs have agreed to a buyout, The Athletic’s Shams Charania tweets.

Morris will hit the waiver wire before the Friday night deadline for free agents to be eligible for the postseason. He can now look for an opportunity to join a playoff contender.

Morris was dealt from Philadelphia to San Antonio at the trade deadline in a three-team swap involving the Sixers, Pacers and Spurs. It was expected he’d get a buyout from San Antonio, which sits at the bottom of the Western Conference standings.

Morris won’t be able to return to Philadelphia this season. He also can’t sign with the Celtics, Nuggets, Warriors, Clippers, Heat, Bucks and Suns since those teams have salaries above the first or second tax aprons.

Morris was on an expiring $17.1MM contract this season. That figure is well above the mid-level exception ($12.4MM), which makes teams above the tax aprons ineligible to sign him under the CBA rules.

A couple of weeks ago, former teammate Patrick Beverley (Twitter link) said Morris was leaning toward the Timberwolves if he was bought out.

Morris didn’t suit up for San Antonio. He appeared in 37 games with Philadelphia this season, including seven starts. The 34-year-old averaged 6.7 points and 2.9 rebounds in 17.2 minutes before the trade to San Antonio.

Morris started regularly for the Clippers the past three-plus seasons before being sent to the Sixers as part of the James Harden trade in November. He has averaged 12.1 points and 4.5 rebounds in 820 career games. He’s a career 37.7% 3-point shooter, which should add to his appeal once he clears waivers.

Hawks Waive Patty Mills, Convert Trent Forrest To Standard Deal

February 29th, 2024 at 12:30pm CST by Arthur Hill

12:30pm: The Hawks have officially waived Mills, the team announced in a press release. Forrest’s promotion to the standard roster is also official, the club confirmed in a second release.

8:14am: The Hawks will place veteran guard Patty Mills on waivers, sources tell Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link).

Mills, 35, was traded three times last July before winding up in Atlanta. He has appeared in just 19 games this season and hasn’t played since February 7.

In his 15th NBA season, Mills is averaging 2.7 points, 1.1 rebounds and 0.7 assists in 10.6 minutes per night, but he’s shooting 38.2% from three-point range, so he could have value for a contending team seeking an experienced shooter.

Assuming Mills is waived by the end of the day on Friday, he will be eligible to appear in the playoffs if he signs with another club by the end of the season. He has a $6.8MM expiring contract, so the Hawks won’t owe him any money beyond this season.

The Hawks will use the open roster spot to convert two-way guard Trent Forrest to a standard NBA contract, Charania tweets. The move will make Forrest eligible to play again — he had already reached his limit of 50 active games as a two-way player, even though he has only appeared in 20 of them, averaging 2.0 points, 1.3 rebounds and 2.1 assists in 10.5 minutes per night off Atlanta’s bench.

Forrest, 25, is in his second season with Atlanta after signing a two-way deal with the team in the summer of 2022. Prior to that, he spent two years in Utah.

The Hawks now have a full 15-man roster and a two-way opening that can be filled through March 4.

Mike Muscala Finalizes Buyout With Pistons

February 28th, 2024 at 4:05pm CST by Dana Gauruder

February 28: The buyout is now official and Muscala has been placed on waivers, the Pistons announced in a press release (Twitter link).

February 27: Veteran forward Mike Muscala is finalizing a buyout with the Pistons, ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski tweets. Muscala has some playoff contenders interested in signing him, Wojnarowski adds.

A player on an NBA contract must be waived by the end of the day on Friday in order to retain his playoff eligibility. As our Buyout Market Watch shows, Muscala will join several other veterans recently waived who are seeking to sign with a team in the postseason hunt.

Muscala, 32, had the misfortune of playing for the league’s two worst teams this season. He appeared in 24 games with the Wizards before he was dealt in mid-January to Detroit. Muscala has made 13 games appearances with the Pistons, including four starts, averaging 3.5 points and 2.2 rebounds in 13.2 minutes per night.

Muscala can play either power forward or small-ball center and his 37.6% career three-point percentage could make him a valuable bench piece for a team looking for frontcourt depth.

Muscala was on an expiring $3.5MM contract this season and will be an unrestricted free agent this summer. He has $905,000 remaining on this year’s salary, ESPN’s Bobby Marks tweets, so he’ll presumably be giving up a portion of that figure as part of his buyout agreement.

The other forward Detroit acquired in the deal with Washington, Danilo Gallinari, was waived after the trade deadline and joined the Bucks.

Hornets Sign Aleksej Pokusevski

February 28th, 2024 at 11:19am CST by Luke Adams

FEBRUARY 28: The Hornets have officially signed Pokusevski, the team announced today in a press release. Charlotte terminated Bolden’s 10-day contract early in order to open up a roster spot (Twitter link).

FEBRUARY 27: The Hornets are expected to sign forward Aleksej Pokusevski, according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (Twitter link). Pokusevski became a free agent after being cut by the Thunder last Friday and clearing waivers on Sunday.

The No. 17 overall pick in the 2020 draft, Pokusevski showed plenty of promise in his first three-and-a-half NBA seasons in Oklahoma City, but his development was hindered by health issues. He was limited to just 34 games (25 starts) in 2022/23 due largely to a leg fracture that sidelined him for about three months, then broke his arm during a workout in the spring of 2023 and sprained his ankle this past September.

Pokusevski got off to a strong start in ’22/23, averaging 8.1 points, 4.7 rebounds, and 1.3 blocks in 20.6 minutes per game across his 34 appearances, with career-best shooting rates of 43.4% from the field and 36.5% from the three-point line. But those injuries ended the seven-footer’s season early and he only saw garbage-time action in 10 games this season for the Thunder, logging 60 total minutes.

While Pokusevski theoretically could’ve been included in the trade that sent Gordon Hayward to Oklahoma City earlier this month, the Hornets instead acquired Tre Mann, Vasilije Micic, and Davis Bertans in that deal. The Thunder subsequently waived the 22-year-old, who was on an expiring $5MM contract and was no longer part of their future plans.

Now the Hornets are in position to add Pokusevski at a lower cost, though the exact details of his new deal have yet to be reported, so it’s unclear if he’ll earn more than the minimum or if the team will get any control beyond this season.

Charlotte currently has a full 15-man standard roster. However, one of the team’s 15 players – Marques Bolden – is on a 10-day contract that will expire this Thursday night. Pokusevski figures to take Bolden’s roster spot, either after that 10-day deal expires or perhaps earlier, if the Hornets terminate it before the 10-day mark.

Despite a recent hot streak, the Hornets remain well out of the Eastern Conference play-in picture at 15-42, so they’ll be able to use the final month-and-a-half of the season to get a look at Pokusevski in relatively low-stakes games.