Transactions Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Spurs, Drew Eubanks Agree To Camp Deal

July 2nd, 2018 at 1:40pm CST by Luke Adams

The Spurs have reached an agreement with undrafted free agent Drew Eubanks on a training camp deal, reports Michael Scotto of The Athletic (Twitter link). Eubanks will attend camp this fall as a member of San Antonio’s 20-man offseason roster, but won’t be assured a regular-season roster spot.

Eubanks, who entered the 2018 draft following his junior year at Oregon State, averaged 13.2 PPG, 6.8 RPG, and 1.7 BPG in 2017/18. The 6’10” forward/center ranked 80th on Jonathan Givony’s big board at ESPN.com, and didn’t hear his name called on draft night last month.

While the terms of Eubanks’ agreement aren’t known, camp deals often include Exhibit 10 language, which allow for a guaranteed bonus of up to $50K if the player is cut by the NBA team and joins the club’s G League affiliate. Exhibit 10 contracts can also be converted into two-way deals.

Eubanks will also participate in the Summer League with the Spurs.

Warriors Sign First-Rounder Jacob Evans

July 2nd, 2018 at 1:03pm CST by Luke Adams

The Warriors have officially signed first-round pick Jacob Evans to his rookie scale contract, the team announced today in a press release. While most transactions can’t be completed until after the July moratorium ends, first-rounders can sign rookie deals this week.

Evans, the 28th pick in this year’s draft, played his college ball at Cincinnati, where he averaged 13.0 PPG, 4.7 RPG, and 3.1 APG in 2017/18. The 6’6″ wing, who made 37.7% of his three-pointers during his college career, projects as a potential three-and-D option at the NBA level.

The NBA’s rookie scale will result in a first-year salary of $1.6MM+ for Evans, who will get a four-year contract with two guaranteed seasons and two team options. Assuming he plays out the full contract, he’d be eligible for an extension during the 2021 offseason and would be on track for restricted free agency in 2022.

Hornets Sign J.P. Macura To Two-Way Deal

July 2nd, 2018 at 10:21am CST by Luke Adams

JULY 2: The Hornets have officially signed Macura to a two-way contract, the team confirmed today in a press release.

JUNE 23: Former Xavier wing J.P. Macura will sign a two-way contract with the Hornets for the 2018/19 season, reports Jonathan Givony of ESPN.com (Twitter link). Macura, whose deal can’t be finalized until the new NBA league year begins, went undrafted on Thursday night.

As a senior with the Musketeers in 2017/18, Macura averaged 12.9 PPG, 4.5 RPG, and 2.9 APG with a shooting line of .479/.377/.821. Givony, who had Macura ranked 84th on his big board, describes the youngster as a “tough, high-IQ shot maker with a ton of game.”

The Hornets were one of several teams to work out Macura during the pre-draft process, along with the Suns, Grizzlies, and Spurs.

After carrying Marcus Paige and Mangok Mathiang on two-way deals in 2017/18, Charlotte appears poised to give Macura one of those two slots. According to Basketball Insiders’ data, Mathiang’s agreement spans two years, so Macura seems more likely to take Paige’s spot. Teams can only carry two players on two-way contracts at a time during the regular season, along with 15 players on standard NBA deals.

Hornets Sign Miles Bridges To Rookie Contract

July 2nd, 2018 at 9:52am CST by Luke Adams

The Hornets have signed first-round pick Miles Bridges to his four-year rookie scale contract, a league source tells Michael Scotto of The Athletic (Twitter link). The deal will feature two guaranteed years, with team options for years three and four.

Bridges, who was selected with the No. 12 pick, was part of a draft-night trade. The Clippers technically drafted Bridges, sending his draft rights and two second-round picks to Charlotte in exchange for the draft rights to No. 11 pick Shai Gilgeous-Alexander.

Bridges is coming off a sophomore season at Michigan State in which he averaged 17.1 PPG, 7.0 RPG, and 2.7 APG with a shooting line of .457/.364/.853. He could potentially handle either forward position at the NBA level.

Assuming he signs for the full 120% of the rookie scale for the No. 12 pick, Bridges will earn a first-year salary of $3.2MM. He’ll be extension-eligible in 2021 and eligible for restricted free agency in 2022.

Pelicans Sign Elfrid Payton

July 2nd, 2018 at 9:30am CST by Luke Adams

JULY 8, 6:57pm: The Pelicans have officially signed Payton, according to the NBA’s transactions log. With Julius Randle taking up New Orleans’ mid-level exception, the team is expected to use its bi-annual exception on Payton.

JULY 2, 9:30am: Payton’s one-year deal with the Pelicans will pay him $2.7MM, sources tell ESPN’s Zach Lowe (Twitter link). Scott Kushner of The Advocate (Twitter link) first reported that it would be worth more than the minimum, but less than the bi-annual exception ($3.382MM).

JULY 1, 9:57pm: The Pelicans have reached an agreement on a deal with point guard Elfrid Payton, according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (Twitter links), who reports that it’ll be a one-year contract. Payton, who didn’t receive a qualifying offer from the Suns, had been an unrestricted free agent.

Payton, 24, spent the first three and a half seasons of his NBA career in Orlando before being sent to Phoenix in a midseason trade earlier this year. In 19 games with the Suns, the former 10th overall pick averaged 11.8 PPG, 6.2 APG, and 5.3 RPG, numbers that were about in line with his career averages.

While Payton has the ability to fill up the stat sheet on a given night, his shooting and defensive shortcomings have limited his impact throughout his four-year NBA career. During his time in Phoenix, he shot just .435/.200/.685, and the team had a 115.7 defensive rating when he played (108.9 when he sat). He fell out of the Suns’ rotation by the end of the season.

Still, the Pelicans will look to unlock Payton’s full potential, adding him to a backcourt that features Jrue Holiday, E’Twaun Moore, and Frank Jackson. New Orleans also has interest in re-signing free agent point guard Rajon Rondo, and remains hopeful of bringing him back into the fold even after reaching a deal with Payton, tweets Marc Stein of The New York Times.

Payton’s deal with the Pelicans represents a homecoming for the 6’4″ guard, who was born in Gretna, Louisiana and played his college ball at Louisiana-Lafayette.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Grizzlies Sign Jaren Jackson To Rookie Contract

July 1st, 2018 at 11:09pm CST by Luke Adams

The Grizzlies became the latest team to formally lock up their first-round pick to his rookie scale contract on Sunday, announcing in a press release that they’ve signed Jaren Jackson Jr.

Jackson, the fourth overall pick in the 2018 draft, elected to go pro after spending just one season at Michigan State. As a freshman, the 6’11” forward/center averaged 10.9 PPG, 5.8 RPG, and an impressive 3.0 BPG in just 21.8 minutes per contest. He also showed an ability to make outside shots, with a .396 3PT%.

As the No. 4 overall pick, Jackson figures to earn a first-year salary of approximately $5.9MM. That’s the maximum allowable 120% of the rookie scale amount for the fourth overall pick. His deal will feature two guaranteed years, with team options on the third and fourth seasons.

Three of this year’s top-five picks have now officially signed their rookie scale contracts, with Jackson joining Marvin Bagley III (Kings) and Trae Young (Hawks).

Jazz Guarantee Thabo Sefolosha’s Contract For 2018/19

July 1st, 2018 at 10:23pm CST by Austin Kent

The Jazz have elected to not waive veteran forward Thabo Sefolosha, Tony Jones of The Salt Lake Tribune tweets. The club could have cleared Sefolosha’s $5.2MM non-guaranteed salary had they released him prior to July 1, but it will now become guaranteed.

Sefolosha had an up-and-down first season in Utah after signing a two-year deal with the Jazz last summer. The 34-year-old was an effective part of the Jazz rotation in the fist half, averaging 8.2 PPG and 4.2 RPG with a .492/.381/.815 shooting line in 21.2 minutes per contest.

However, an MCL injury in his right knee ended Sefolosha’s season early, limiting him to just 38 games. Additionally, the NBA announced in April that Sefolosha would be suspended five games for violating the league’s anti-drug program. Since he couldn’t serve that ban will while he was injured, the 12-year veteran will miss the first five contests of the 2018/19 season.

Sefolosha was one of three notable Jazz veterans with non-guaranteed salaries for 2018/19. Utah will reportedly have to decide by July 9 whether to retain Jonas Jerebko ($4.2MM) and Ekpe Udoh ($3.36MM). Royce O’Neale and David Stockton also have non-guaranteed minimum salaries for next season.

With Sefolosha officially on the cap for 2018/19, the Jazz now have more than $80MM in guaranteed money on their books. Utah will likely remain an over-the-cap team, with cap holds for Derrick Favors, Dante Exum, and Raul Neto – along with the aforementioned non-guaranteed salaries – pushing them over the $101.87MM threshold.

Knicks Sign Mario Hezonja To One-Year Deal

July 1st, 2018 at 8:09pm CST by Austin Kent

JULY 6: The Knicks have officially signed Hezonja, according to the NBA’s transactions log.

JULY 1: The Knicks have agreed to a one-year, $6.5MM pact with small forward Mario Hezonja, Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN tweets. The 23-year-old comes off of a career-best season in which he averaged 9.6 points in 22.1 minutes per game for the Magic.

Prior to the 2017/18 season, the Magic elected not to pick up the 2015 fifth-overall pick’s fourth-year option and the Croatian swingman responded with a notable increase in production. In 11 February contests, for example, Hezonja averaged 15.5 points and 5.0 rebounds per game.

As we relayed earlier today, Marc Berman of The New York Post had reported that the Knicks had put an offer on the table for Hezonja worth a portion of the club’s $8.641MM mid-level exception. These reported terms would fall in line with that, leaving enough of the MLE available for New York to ink second-round pick Mitchell Robinson, something the club had been set on doing.

While Hezonja had reportedly been seeking a multiyear deal, the Knicks want to retain as much cap flexibility as possible for the 2019 offseason, and only plan on offering one-year guarantees this summer.

The buy-low addition of Hezonja, a young, recent lottery pick, will add depth to New York’s rotation. Hezonja will compete with Tim Hardaway Jr. and Courtney Lee for minutes on the wing, assuming the latter remains on the roster.

The move will give the Knicks three of the top seven draft picks from 2015. Kristaps Porzingis (No. 4) and Emmanuel Mudiay (No. 7) were also top selections in that draft.

According to a subsequent Wojnarowski tweet, the Blazers, Kings and Grizzlies were also in the mix for Hezonja’s services.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Lakers Re-Sign Kentavious Caldwell-Pope

July 1st, 2018 at 7:43pm CST by Austin Kent

JULY 6: The Lakers have officially re-signed Caldwell-Pope, the team announced today in a press release.

JULY 1: The Lakers will re-sign Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, Chris Haynes of ESPN reports. The news comes less than an hour after it was revealed that they’ll be inking LeBron James as well. James and Caldwell-Pope are both represented by agent Rich Paul and the Klutch Sports Group.

In a subsequent tweet, Haynes added that the deal for Caldwell-Pope will be a one-year pact worth $12MM. That’s $6MM less than the one-year contract the two parties agreed on last summer.

Caldwell-Pope, 25, joined the Lakers last summer after spending the first four years of his NBA career in Detroit. The 6’5″ shooting guard enjoyed his best season as a shooter last year, setting new career highs in FG% (.426) and 3PT% (.383). He averaged 13.4 PPG, 5.2 RPG, 2.2 APG, and 1.4 SPG in 74 games (all starts).

Caldwell-Pope, who complements his ability to make three-pointers with strong perimeter defense on the other end of the floor, will return to Los Angeles after apparently seeing interest from a number of teams, including the Grizzlies and Clippers.

Adding Caldwell-Pope’s new $12MM deal to James’ max contract significantly reduces the Lakers’ available cap room. With Luol Deng‘s $18MM salary and Julius Randle‘s $12MM+ cap hold on their books, the Lakers are essentially capped out after committing $47MM+ to LeBron and KCP. However, the team could re-open space by renouncing Randle and trading or stretching Deng.

The Lakers could get up to about $23.6MM in cap room by renouncing Randle and stretching Deng. Renouncing Randle and trading Deng for no incoming salary would result in $30MM+ in space. Keeping Randle’s cap hold on the books and stretching Deng would open up about $12MM.

Luke Adams contributed to this post. Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Malik Newman Signs Two-Way Deal With Lakers

July 1st, 2018 at 3:55pm CST by Arthur Hill

JULY 1: The Lakers have officially signed Newman to a two-way contract, the team announced today in a press release. Having not tendered qualifying offers to Caruso or Payton, the Lakers appear poised to have new players in both two-way slots for 2018/19.

JUNE 22: The Lakers will add Kansas guard Malik Newman on a two-way contract, tweets Shams Charania of Yahoo Sports.

Newman, 21, spent just one season with the Jayhawks after transferring from Mississippi State. He put up 14.2 points per game this year and shot 42% from 3-point range. He helped the Jayhawks reach the Final Four with a 32-point performance against Duke in the regional finals.

Alex Caruso and Gary Payton II are the Lakers’ current two-way players, with their contracts set to expire at the end of June.