Transactions Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Thunder Promote Ajay Mitchell To Standard Roster

February 6th, 2025 at 4:27pm CST by Luke Adams

The Thunder have converted rookie guard Ajay Mitchell from his two-way contract to a standard deal, promoting him to the 15-man roster, the team announced today in a press release.

Agents Todd Ramasar and Mike Simonetta tell Shams Charania of ESPN (Twitter link) that their client has signed a two-year contract worth $6MM. That deal will far exceed the prorated minimum salary for 2024/25, so Oklahoma City used a portion of its room exception to complete the signing.

The 38th overall pick in the 2024 draft, Mitchell was one of the more impressive performers in this season’s rookie class before going down last month with a turf toe injury that required surgery.

The former UC Santa Barbara standout was a regular part of the rotation for the West-leading Thunder, appearing in the team’s first 34 games of the season and averaging 16.5 minutes per night. Michell has recorded 6.4 points, 2.0 rebounds, and 1.7 steals per contest, with an excellent shooting line of .506/.431/.848.

When the Thunder announced Mitchell’s surgery, they said he would be reevaluated in 10-to-12 weeks, suggesting he would be out for most – if not all – of the rest of the regular season.

That reduced the urgency to promote the 22-year-old shooting guard to the standard roster, but Oklahoma City will do so anyway, ensuring that if he gets healthy down the stretch, he will no longer face a 50-game NBA limit and will be eligible to play int he postseason.

The Thunder opened up a roster spot on Thursday when they waived Daniel Theis, who was acquired from New Orleans in a salary-dump trade on Wednesday, so no additional move will be necessary to make room on the roster for Mitchell.

Jazz To Waive Josh Richardson, Jalen Hood-Schifino

February 6th, 2025 at 3:12pm CST by Arthur Hill

After being involved in two mega-deals over the past week, the Jazz will part with two of the players they received, sources tell Andy Larsen of The Salt Lake Tribune (Twitter link), who says the team plans to waive Josh Richardson and Jalen Hood-Schifino.

Richardson is being re-routed to Utah in the Jimmy Butler trade, along with KJ Martin, whom the Jazz plan to keep, according to Larsen. Richardson has a $3MM expiring contract, so Utah won’t be out much money by letting him go. The 31-year-old swingman appeared in just eight games with Miami prior to being traded.

Utah acquired Hood-Schifino over the weekend by helping to facilitate the massive trade that sent Luka Doncic to the Lakers. L.A. had already declined the third-year option on the 2023 first-round pick, so Utah won’t have to pay him more than the balance of his $3.9MM salary for the rest of the season.

Both players will become unrestricted free agents once they clear waivers and will be eligible to sign with just about any team. Richardson won’t be able to rejoin the Heat, while Hood-Schifino will be ineligible to re-sign with the Lakers.

The Jazz will face an offseason decision on Martin, whose $8MM contract for 2025/26 is non-guaranteed. The 24-year-old forward has been out of action since December 23 due to a foot injury.

Sixers Trade KJ Martin, Two Second-Rounders To Pistons

February 6th, 2025 at 2:53pm CST by Rory Maher

FEBRUARY 6: The trade is official, according to a press release from the Sixers, who received cash considerations in the deal. Martin was acquired using the Pistons’ cap room and will be flipped to Utah as part of the Jimmy Butler multi-team trade, as we outlined in a separate story.

FEBRUARY 5: The Sixers are trading forward KJ Martin and a pair of second-round picks to the Pistons, sources tell Keith Pompey of The Philadelphia Inquirer (Twitter link).

According to Derek Bodner of PHLY Sports (Twitter link), Philadelphia is sending Detroit a 2027 second-rounder via Milwaukee, as well as Dallas’ 2031 selection.

Martin, 24, was listed as out on Tuesday due to trade pending. Subsequent reports indicated that he was expected to be moved on Wednesday, which has now come to fruition.

Marc Stein reports (via Twitter) that the Pistons are expected acquire Martin using their room exception. The room exception is worth $7,983,000 in 2024/25, while Martin makes just under that total ($7,975,000).

Detroit would have to use its remaining $14MM in cap space before dipping into the room exception, so this presumably won’t be the only trade the team makes. This deal suggests the front office is focused more on the future than the present, but it’s possible Detroit could thread the needle and find win-now help while still acquiring draft assets in the process.

The No. 52 pick of the 2020 draft, Martin spent his first three NBA seasons in Houston prior to being traded to the Clippers in a five-team deal in the 2023 offseason. He only played two games for Los Angeles, having been sent to Philadelphia in November 2023 as part of the James Harden blockbuster.

After playing a modest role for the Sixers in 2023/24, Martin re-signed with the club on a two-year, $16MM deal that was widely viewed as being completed for future trade purposes. The second year is fully non-guaranteed, so the high-flying forward certainly isn’t a lock to remain with Detroit going forward.

However, since the 76ers have struggled in ’24/25 – they currently sit outside of the East’s play-in tournament at 20-29 – they ended up dumping Martin’s contract instead of using it as a way to try and improve the roster, making the decision to bump up his salary last summer look like a mistake in retrospect.

As cap expert Yossi Gozlan observes (Twitter link), by shedding Martin’s salary and completing a separate trade with Dallas on Tuesday, the 76ers have saved $40MM+ when accounting for payroll, tax payments and dipping below the luxury tax line. They’ll now receive a tax distribution valued at roughly $12-14MM instead of being a taxpayer.

Since they’re well below the first tax apron, they’ll also be able to add players on the buyout market, regardless of the player’s pre-waiver salary.

Martin hasn’t seen action since Dec. 23 due to a foot injury. He has appeared in 24 games this season (seven starts), averaging 6.4 points and 3.0 rebounds in 20.0 minutes per game.

Thunder Waive Daniel Theis

February 6th, 2025 at 2:43pm CST by Rory Maher

The Thunder have waived Daniel Theis, the team announced in a press release.

Oklahoma City acquired Theis and a 2031 second-round pick in a trade with New Orleans on Wednesday. The pick will be either the Pelicans’ or Magic’s, whichever is least favorable.

It was a salary-dump move for the Pelicans, and obviously Theis wasn’t in the Thunder’s plans either. The eight-year veteran appeared in 38 games for New Orleans in 2024/25, averaging 4.3 points, 4.3 rebounds and 1.6 assists in 16.3 minutes per contest, with a shooting slash line of .473/.243/.838.

At 6’8″, Theis is undersized for a center, which has been his primary position in the NBA. Still, the 32-year-old German could provide some depth in the middle for a team seeking a reserve big man.

Theis was on a minimum-salary contract, so the Thunder will carry a dead-money cap hit of about $2.1MM if he passes through waivers. Assuming he goes unclaimed, he’ll be an unrestricted free agent in a couple days and will be able to sign with any team except New Orleans.

Oklahoma City now has 14 players on standard contracts. Rookie center Branden Carlson has signed a pair of 10-day deals with the Thunder and can only be re-signed if he’s given a rest-of-season standard contract or is brought back on a two-way deal, the latter of which would require OKC to either release a player or promote one.

Wizards Waive Reggie Jackson

February 6th, 2025 at 2:26pm CST by Arthur Hill

The Wizards are placing veteran guard Reggie Jackson on waivers after acquiring him from the Sixers earlier today, the team announced (via Twitter).

Jackson is on a one-year, minimum-salary contract, so Washington won’t be on the hook for any dead money beyond this season after letting him go. Assuming he clears waivers, he’ll be free to sign with anyone except Philadelphia for the rest of the season.

The Wizards were able to acquire a 2026 first-round pick from the Sixers, which was their motivation for the deal. They now have a roster opening, along with a vacant two-way slot after sending Jared Butler to Philadelphia.

The 34-year-old Jackson signed with Philadelphia as a free agent last summer, but he averaged just 4.4 points and 1.5 assists in 31 games while playing 12.4 minutes per night. Still, he may find some interest on the open market from teams looking for veteran backcourt help.

Pistons To Acquire Dennis Schröder

February 6th, 2025 at 1:49pm CST by Arthur Hill

The Jazz agreed to take Dennis Schröder in the four-team Jimmy Butler trade, but he’s expected to wind up with the Pistons, sources tell Omari Sankofa II of The Detroit Free Press (Twitter link). Jake Fischer of The Stein Line and Chris Haynes both confirm Sankofa’s report.

Utah will receive KJ Martin, Josh Richardson and a 2028 second-round pick in return, a source tells Fischer (Twitter link). The Pistons initially took Richardson from Miami in the Butler deal and agreed to acquire Martin from the Sixers on Wednesday.

It’s possible the Martin deal with Philadelphia will get folded into the Butler trade. Otherwise, it appears the Pistons will complete their acquisition of Martin first, taking him into cap room. Once that’s done, Detroit, Utah, Golden State and Miami can officially pull the trigger on the Butler deal.

Counting the Jazz, this will be the fourth team of the season for Schröder, who was traded from Brooklyn to Golden State in mid-December. The Warriors were counting on him to stabilize their backcourt, but he turned out to be an unreliable shooter, connecting at just 37.5% from the field and 32.2% from three-point range in 24 games.

Schröder had been expecting to stay in the Bay Area and recently signed a new lease, according to Marc J. Spears of Andscape (Twitter link). He learned that he had been traded after Wednesday’s pre-game warm-up, and now he’s on the move again.

He should have an opportunity to play a regular role in Detroit, where the Pistons have been on the lookout for another ball-handler and play-maker since Jaden Ivey broke his fibula last month.

Schröder’s $13MM contract is expiring, so the Pistons will have to decide this summer whether to make a long-term commitment. Richardson’s $3MM deal is also expiring, while Martin has an $8MM non-guaranteed contract for next season.

Sixers Trade Reggie Jackson, First-Round Pick To Wizards For Jared Butler, Four Second-Rounders

February 6th, 2025 at 1:20pm CST by Luke Adams

1:20 pm: The trade is official, according to a press release from the Sixers. Philadelphia waived two-way player Pete Nance in order to complete the deal.

9:19 am: The Sixers and Wizards have agreed to a trade, according to Michael Scotto of HoopsHype, who reports (via Twitter) that Washington will acquire a 2026 first-round pick from Philadelphia in exchange for four second-rounders.

A pair of players will also be involved in the deal, per Marc Stein of The Stein Line (Twitter link), with veteran guard Reggie Jackson headed to the Wizards and two-way player Jared Butler going to the 76ers.

According to Stein (Twitter links), the 2026 first-rounder Washington is acquiring will be the least favorable of the Thunder’s, Rockets’, and Clippers’ picks for that year. Houston’s first-rounder is technically top-four protected, though that’s extremely unlikely to affect which pick the Wizards receive.

Philadelphia, meanwhile, will receive second-rounders in 2027 and 2028, along with two in 2030, Stein adds. Here are the exact details on those four second-rounders, per Adam Aaronson of PhillyVoice (Twitter link):

Either the Warriors’ or Suns’ 2027 second-round pick (whichever is most favorable).
The Warriors’ 2028 second-round pick.
The Wizards’ 2030 second-round pick.
Either the Suns’ or Trail Blazers’ 2030 second-round pick (whichever is most favorable).

It’s a consolidation trade for the Wizards, who are taking on a little extra salary (Jackson is on a one-year, minimum-salary contract) and dipping into their huge collection of excess second-round picks in order to add a guaranteed first-round selection. Washington will still have 14 second-rounders at its disposal going forward.

As for the Sixers, they’re sacrificing a first-round pick that will likely end up in the 20s — or even at No. 30, if the Thunder are as good next season as they’ve been this year. They’ll also still control their own first-rounder in 2026 (assuming their top-six protected 2025 pick conveys this year) and have now replenished their collection of second-rounders going forward.

On top of that, Philadelphia will create a little extra financial flexibility below the luxury tax line – they’re now $3.5MM below that threshold, according to ESPN’s Bobby Marks (Twitter link) – and will get a chance to take a flier on Butler, who has been solid in a limited role in Washington.

Butler has averaged 6.9 points, 2.6 assists, and 1.3 rebounds in 11.3 minutes per game, with a shooting line of .483/.366/.778, across 32 appearances off the bench this season. The former No. 40 overall pick could be a candidate for a promotion to the Sixers’ standard roster, since he’s nearing his 50-game NBA limit for the season.

Conversely, I wouldn’t expect Jackson to factor into the Wizards’ rest-of-season plans. The veteran guard is averaging just 4.4 PPG and 1.5 APG in 12.4 MPG (31 games) this season, with a .391/.338/.778 shooting line. Josh Robbins of The Athletic confirms (via Twitter) that Jackson will likely be traded or waived by Washington.

Having waived Sidy Cissoko earlier today, Washington has an open spot on its standard roster to take in Jackson. The move will create an open two-way slot for the Wizards.

The Sixers will create another opening on their 15-man roster – they’ll have three once this deal and their KJ Martin trade are official – but will need to cut a two-way player to acquire Butler.

Sixers Sending Second-Rounder To Mavs In Caleb Martin Deal

February 6th, 2025 at 12:15pm CST by Rory Maher

The Sixers are amending their trade with the Mavericks and will now send Dallas a second-round pick in 2030 in addition to Caleb Martin, league sources tell Marc Stein (Twitter link).

According to Keith Pompey of The Philadelphia Inquirer (Twitter link), the 76ers are trading their own 2030 second-rounder to the Mavs. Philadelphia will control multiple 2030 second-round picks after officially completing its trade with Washington.

As Stein explains, Martin has been dealing with a right hip sprain and was believed to be nearing a return, but his physical was flagged due to the injury (Twitter links). Both teams consulted with the league office and Philadelphia agreed to send Dallas a second-round pick as a result.

Stein clarifies that the Mavericks don’t have any long-term concerns about Martin’s hip, though a return timeline for the veteran swingman has yet to be established.

Dallas sent impending restricted free agent Quentin Grimes and Philadelphia’s 2025 second-rounder, which the Mavs controlled from a previous deal, to the 76ers in the trade.

Bucks Trading Patrick Baldwin Jr., Cash To Spurs

February 6th, 2025 at 11:27am CST by Rory Maher

The Bucks are trading forward Patrick Baldwin Jr. and cash to the Spurs, according to Shams Charania of ESPN (Twitter link).

Moving off Baldwin’s $2.45MM contract will give Milwaukee more breathing room below the second tax apron.

It’s possible the deal will be folded into the larger trade that will send Khris Middleton to the Wizards and Kyle Kuzma to the Bucks, as that’s how Milwaukee acquired Baldwin in the first place. In that scenario, he’d technically just go straight from Washington to San Antonio.

The Spurs have an open roster spot after sending out multiple players in the De’Aaron Fox blockbuster, plus enough space left in their room exception to acquire Baldwin outright without having to send anything back in return.

The 28th overall pick of the 2022 draft, Baldwin spent his rookie season with Golden State prior to being traded to the Wizards in the Jordan Poole/Chris Paul deal back in July 2023. Baldwin’s role has been extremely limited through three NBA seasons. He has appeared in just 22 games in 2024/25 for a total of 101 minutes.

Baldwin also appeared in seven G League games with the Capital City Go-Go this season, averaging 15.0 points, 6.0 rebounds and 1.9 assists on .494/.349/.571 shooting in 27.3 minutes per contest.

Still just 22 years old, Baldwin had his rookie scale team option for ’25/26 declined last fall, which means he’ll be an unrestricted free agent this summer. He may not be in San Antonio’s plans either, so he could potentially hit free agency sooner than that if the team decides to release him in the coming days.

Celtics Trade Jaden Springer, Second-Round Pick To Rockets

February 6th, 2025 at 10:54am CST by Luke Adams

FEBRUARY 6: The trade is official, the Celtics and Rockets announced today. In addition to the terms outlined below, Houston is also receiving a protected 2027 second-round pick.

Based on the draft assets Boston controlled, per RealGM, that ’27 second-rounder figures to be either the Trail Blazers’ or Pelicans’ pick (whichever is least favorable; top-55 protected). In other words, the Rockets will only get that pick if either Portland or New Orleans is among the NBA’s top five teams in 2026/27.

FEBRUARY 5: The Celtics have agreed to trade guard Jaden Springer and a 2030 second-round pick to the Rockets in a cost-cutting move, sources tell Shams Charania of ESPN (Twitter link).

According to Charania, the two teams will also swap heavily-protected second-rounders. Kelly Iko of The Athletic reports (via Twitter) that Houston will send Boston a top-55 protected 2031 second-round selection.

A salary-dump deal involving Springer had long been anticipated for the defending champions, who had been operating well beyond the luxury tax line and had a projected end-of-season tax bill of about $65.6MM prior to this trade, according to ESPN’s Bobby Marks (Twitter link).

Moving off Springer’s expiring $4.02MM contract will reduce that projected tax payment to approximately $50.2MM, per Marks, while also opening up a second spot on Boston’s 15-man roster. It doesn’t impact their tax apron position — they remain over the second apron.

Teams can’t carry fewer than 14 players for more than 14 days at a time, so the Celtics will have up to two weeks to re-add a 14th man once their deal with the Rockets is official. Signing a replacement for Springer will bump the team’s tax bill back up a little, but the newcomer figures to be on a prorated minimum-salary deal and will have a far more modest cap hit than Springer did, so the accompanying tax penalty won’t be substantial.

As for the Rockets, they entered the day with more than $10MM in breathing room below the luxury tax line, so absorbing Springer’s $4.02MM salary doesn’t materially change their cap situation. They also have an open spot on their 15-man roster, meaning no one will have to be waived to finalize the deal.

Houston doesn’t have any trade exceptions available, but they can use a portion of their mid-level exception to take on Springer’s salary without sending out a player for matching purposes.

Springer was the 28th overall pick in the 2021 draft, but never developed into a reliable rotation player for the Sixers and was traded to the Celtics at last season’s deadline. The 22-year-old played sparingly in Boston too, appearing in just 43 games over the past year and averaging 1.9 points and 1.0 rebound in 6.3 minutes per contest.

Although Springer will be eligible for restricted free agency at the end of his contract, he’s not expected to receive a qualifying offer. In fact, he may reach unrestricted free agency before season’s end — if the Rockets want to use their 15th roster spot on another player, he’ll likely be the odd man out.