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Grizzlies Trade Adams To Rockets For Oladipo, Second-Round Picks

February 2nd, 2024 at 5:40am CST by Tristan Tucker

FEBRUARY 2: The trade is official, according to press releases from both the Rockets and Grizzlies.

The three draft picks sent from Houston to Memphis in the deal are as follows, per Wojnarowski (Twitter link) and The Athletic’s John Hollinger:

The Thunder’s 2024 second-round pick.
Either the Nets’ 2024 second-round pick (protected 55-58) or the Warriors’ 2024 second-round pick (protected 56-58) (whichever is most favorable).
Either the Rockets’ 2025 second-round pick or the Thunder’s 2025 second-round pick (whichever is most favorable).

FEBRUARY 1: The Grizzlies are trading center Steven Adams to the Rockets in exchange for Victor Oladipo and three second-round picks, according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (Twitter link). Adams is out for the season with a knee injury while Oladipo is also battling a long-term left patellar tendon injury.

According to Wojnarowski (Twitter link), the Grizzlies are acquiring two 2024 second-round picks and a 2025 second-round pick in the trade.

The move is a primarily financial one from Memphis’ side, according to Wojnarowski (Twitter link). The Grizzlies were and are facing tough contract decisions with an expensive roster set for 2024/25. Ja Morant, Desmond Bane, Jaren Jackson Jr. and Marcus Smart are among players set to make $20MM or more next season and, before acquiring Oladipo, their only free-agent-to-be next season was Xavier Tillman. Adams is set to make $12.6MM next season while Oladipo is on an expiring deal.

Not including the cap hold for a likely lottery pick, the Grizzlies had $186MM in salary for next season with the second apron projected for $190MM, according to Marks (Twitter link). Moving Adams creates some breathing room to the club, who may also look to shed additional salary ahead of next week’s deadline.

While Tillman was the Grizzlies’ only projected standard free agent, they also could look to move Luke Kennard, who possesses a $14.7MM team option for next season. While they could simply decline the option, it may make sense to try and extract value for the career 43.7% three-point shooter. Alternatively, they could exercise Kennard’s team option and look to make smaller moves to duck out of tax territory, according to Spotrac’s Keith Smith.

If they don’t flip him in another trade, the Grizzlies could buy out Oladipo in order to create an opening on their 15-man roster. Two-way player GG Jackson is impressing and is only under contract through the season. Memphis could work out a longer-term deal with him and have the 19-year-old forward take Oladipo’s roster spot, if they so choose.

The Rockets are getting a quality big man when healthy who can play alongside or behind rising star Alperen Sengun. Although Adams is out for the rest of the season, he’s the kind of physical big man the team was seeking. A Wednesday report indicated players like Portland’s Robert Williams and Atlanta’s Clint Capela were among the centers on Houston’s radar.

In the end, the Rockets landed on Adams, who should be full recovered for next season, according to Wojnarowski (Twitter link). Houston’s front office believes in the toughness and leadership he can bring to the team. Adams averaged 8.6 points, 11.5 rebounds, 1.1 blocks and 0.9 steals across 42 games with the Grizzlies in ’22/23.

Smith observes that while three second-round picks looks steep on paper for the Rockets, none of those picks are projected to be near the top of the second round. While the exact picks are unknown, the Rockets have second-rounders from Brooklyn, Golden State and Oklahoma City in 2024 and their only 2025 second-rounder is from the Thunder. Additionally, the Rockets are still well below the luxury tax for next season and can dip further by moving off of Jock Landale.

Memphis will be taking on Oladipo’s expiring contract using the $12.4MM disabled player exception they were granted as a result of Ja Morant‘s season-ending injury. That will allow the team to create a $12.6MM trade exception (equivalent to Adams’ full outgoing salary). As explained in our glossary, that trade exception would be good to use for one year.

Knicks Re-Sign Taj Gibson To 10-Day Contract

January 30th, 2024 at 12:17pm CST by Luke Adams

12:17pm: The Knicks have officially confirmed Gibson’s new 10-day contract with the team (Twitter link).

10:17am: Just over three weeks after he was waived by the Knicks, veteran big man Taj Gibson has agreed to return to Tom Thibodeau‘s club. Gibson will sign a 10-day contract with New York, agent Mark Bartelstein tells Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN (Twitter link).

A Thibodeau favorite who played for the Knicks from 2019-22, Gibson signed a non-guaranteed, minimum-salary contract with the team on December 15 and appeared in 10 games, averaging 1.4 points and 1.8 rebounds in 9.7 minutes per night.

Initially expected to merely provide some frontcourt depth and locker room leadership, the 38-year-old saw more playing time than anticipated due to injuries to centers Mitchell Robinson and Jericho Sims. However, when Sims got healthy and the Knicks traded for Precious Achiuwa, Gibson once again found himself pushed down the depth chart and was waived on January 7, just before his full-season salary could become guaranteed.

The Knicks have held that 15th roster spot open in recent weeks and once again have a need for frontcourt depth following Julius Randle‘s shoulder injury. Gibson likely won’t immediately step into New York’s rotation, but he’s a veteran whom the coaching staff trusts and can turn to if needed.

Assuming his deal is finalized today, Gibson will be under contract through next Thursday, February 8. He’ll earn a $183,704 salary over the course of his 10-day deal, while New York will carry a $116,075 cap hit.

Grizzlies Sign Tosan Evbuomwan, Trey Jemison Via Hardship Exceptions

January 30th, 2024 at 10:15am CST by Luke Adams

10:15am: The signings are official, the Grizzlies confirmed in a press release (Twitter link).

9:52am: The Grizzlies are signing forward Tosan Evbuomwan and center Trey Jemison to 10-day contracts, reports Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN (Twitter links).

Memphis has a full 15-man standard roster and is actually carrying a 16th man – Matthew Hurt – after having been granted a hardship exception. According to Wojnarowski (Twitter link), the Grizzlies have been granted two additional hardship exceptions, so no cuts will be necessary to accommodate the new additions to the roster.

As we explain in our glossary, an NBA team qualifies for a hardship exception when it has four players unavailable due to injury or illness, assuming those players have missed at least three consecutive games and are expected to remain sidelined for two or more weeks. The Grizzlies have been granted three hardship spots because they have a total of six injured players who meet the criteria: Ja Morant, Steven Adams, Brandon Clarke, Desmond Bane, Marcus Smart, and Jake LaRavia.

Evbuomwan, a rookie, went undrafted out of Princeton in 2023 and spent training camp with the Pistons before being designated as an affiliate player for Detroit’s G League affiliate, the Motor City Cruise. In 29 games for the Cruise this season, he has averaged 15.1 points, 8.6 rebounds, and 3.9 assists in 34.5 minutes per contest, with a shooting line of .559/.347/.731. He’ll get a chance to make his regular season NBA debut in Memphis.

Jemison, meanwhile, had been on a 10-day contract with the Wizards after spending most of the season with the Birmingham Squadron. The rookie big man, who went undrafted out of UAB last June, very briefly saw the floor in two games with Washington before his 10-day deal expired last night.

Well out of the play-in race in the Western Conference and with two of their most important players – Morant and Adams – sidelined for the rest of the season, the Grizzlies are using their hardship exceptions to take a look at some younger players rather than focusing on adding win-now veterans to a depleted roster.

If their deals are finalized today, Evbuomwan and Jemison will remain under contract through next Thursday (February 8). They’ll earn $64,343 apiece during their 10 days with the Grizzlies.

Grizzlies Sign Matthew Hurt To 10-Day Hardship Deal

January 29th, 2024 at 4:40pm CST by Dana Gauruder

5:09pm: Hurt has officially signed his 10-day contract, the team tweets.

4:40pm: The injury-ravaged Grizzlies are signing forward Matthew Hurt to a 10-day contract via the hardship exception, Shams Charania of The Athletic tweets.

Hurt has been playing for their NBA G League affiliate, the Memphis Hustle, averaging 22.2 points and 7.4 rebounds per game.

The Grizzlies list eight players as out for their home game tonight against Sacramento (Twitter link). John Konchar and Ziaire Williams are listed as doubtful and Vince Williams Jr. is listed as questionable.

Starters Ja Morant and Steven Adams are out with season-ending injuries, while key rotation player Brandon Clarke has yet to play this season and Desmond Bane, Marcus Smart, and Jake LaRavia have been out for multiple weeks.

Yet the Grizzlies have somehow remained competitive, winning three of their last four games.

Hurt was on Memphis’ training camp roster but was waived in mid-October. He also played for the Grizzlies’ G League affiliate last season, averaging 13.9 points, 3.9 rebounds and 1.3 assists in 45 G League Showcase and regular season games.

James Johnson Signs Second 10-Day Contract With Pacers

January 29th, 2024 at 11:30am CST by Arthur Hill

11:30am: Johnson’s new 10-day contract is official, the Pacers announced (via Twitter).

9:26am: The Pacers will sign veteran forward James Johnson to another 10-day contract, tweets ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski. The signing was confirmed to Wojnarowski by Johnson’s agent, Mark Bartelstein of Priority Sports.

Johnson didn’t see any game action during his first 10-day deal, which expired on Sunday, but he has appeared in five games for Indiana this season with four points, four rebounds and five assists in limited playing time. He signed a standard contract with the Pacers in mid-December after they reached a buyout agreement with Daniel Theis, but was waived on January 17 when the team needed to open a roster spot to complete the Pascal Siakam trade. Johnson rejoined the team two days later upon clearing waivers.

A 15-year NBA veteran, Johnson first came to Indiana before the start of last season. He has appeared in 23 total games during that time, but has mostly served as a veteran leader in the locker room.

Once Johnson’s second 10-day contract becomes official, the Pacers will be back to a 14-man roster, giving them one opening heading into the trade deadline. Teams are limited to two 10-day deals with a player during a season, so Indiana would have to sign Johnson to another standard contract to keep him for the rest of the season.

Malcolm Hill Signs 10-Day Deal With Pelicans

January 27th, 2024 at 11:37am CST by Dana Gauruder

JANUARY 27: The Pelicans issued a press release confirming the signing of Hill to a 10-day contract. The deal will cover the team’s next five games, running through February 5.

JANUARY 22: The Pelicans are signing swingman Malcolm Hill to a 10-day contract, ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski tweets.

Hill is averaging 25.6 points and 5.6 rebounds in his past 10 games for the Pelicans’ NBA G League affiliate in Birmingham. He was on the team’s training camp roster but was waived on Oct. 21.

Hill, 28, has 24 games of NBA experience across stints with the Hawks and Bulls, holding averages of 3.2 points and 1.6 rebounds. He spent time with Chicago last season on a two-way contract, but was waived in February.

New Orleans needed to add a player to its 15-man roster. The Pelicans dropped to 13 players, one below the limit, when they dealt Kira Lewis Jr. on Wednesday as part of the three-team agreement that sent Pascal Siakam to Indiana. They had a two-week window to add another player and get back to the 14-man minimum.

Hornets Trade Rozier To Heat For Lowry, First-Round Pick

January 23rd, 2024 at 1:30pm CST by Luke Adams

1:30pm: The trade is official, according to announcements from both the Hornets and Heat.

“I want to thank Terry for all his efforts since coming to Charlotte,” Hornets president of basketball operations Mitch Kupchak said in a statement. “On the court, he was a true professional and a great competitor who set a positive example for our young players. He also made himself a staple of the Charlotte community with his commitment to giving back. We wish him all the best in the future.

“The acquisition of a future first-round pick provides us an asset as we look to build long-term sustainable success around our young core of talented players. We believe adding this future pick and the additional financial flexibility from this trade will be beneficial as we continue to build our team moving forward.”

9:13am: The Hornets are trading guard Terry Rozier to the Heat in exchange for Kyle Lowry and Miami’s 2027 first-round pick, sources tell Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN (Twitter link). Shams Charania of The Athletic first reported (via Twitter) that the two teams were closing in on a deal.

The 2027 first-rounder will be lottery protected, according to Jake Fischer of Yahoo Sports (Twitter link). If it lands in the top 14 of the ’27 draft, the Heat would keep it and would instead send the Hornets their unprotected 2028 first-round pick, Fischer adds.

Rozier is in the midst of a career year. His 23.2 points and 6.6 assists per game through 30 appearances (35.5 MPG) are both career highs, as is his 45.9% field goal percentage.

While the 29-year-old has played a key role in Charlotte in recent years – starting all 298 games he has played for the team since 2019 – the 10-31 Hornets are far from contention, so it makes sense for the team to move on from him and recoup future assets.

Fischer reported last week that Rozier had a “known preference” to end up in Miami if he were to be traded this season. According to Barry Jackson of The Miami Herald (Twitter link), Rozier’s favorite player growing up was Heat star Dwyane Wade.

The Heat have had a solid first half despite dealing with injuries to several starters and rotation players — they currently sit in a tie for the sixth seed in the East, with a 24-19 record. Still, the club could use the sort of offensive punch that Rozier will provide. Miami’s 113.4 offensive rating ranks just 20th in the NBA and 10th among Eastern teams.

Rozier is earning approximately $23.2MM this season, while Lowry is on a $29.7MM expiring contract, so the deal will save the Heat a substantial chunk of money in the short term. In addition to trimming its 2023/24 team salary, Miami will reduce its projected luxury tax bill by approximately $15MM and will move well below the second tax apron, as cap experts Yossi Gozlan and Bobby Marks observe (Twitter links).

The move will add some money to the Heat’s books in future seasons, however. Whereas Lowry will reach free agency this offseason, Rozier is owed $24.9MM in 2024/25, and his $26.6MM cap hit for ’25/26 features a significant partial guarantee ($24.9MM).

The Hornets, meanwhile, will create some cap flexibility for future seasons by moving Rozier’s multiyear deal for Lowry’s expiring contract. As Gozlan points out (via Twitter), the team could generate approximately $45MM in cap room this summer.

However, Charlotte likely isn’t done dealing and remains in asset accumulation mode, as Wojnarowski tweets. Miles Bridges, P.J. Washington, and Gordon Hayward are among the other veteran candidates on the Hornets’ roster. Additionally, the front office is expected to see if it can flip Lowry in another trade before the February 8 deadline, sources tell Wojnarowski (Twitter link).

Lowry won’t have positive trade value on his own, but his expiring money may appeal to a team looking to move off a player on a multiyear deal. The Hornets could potentially extract an asset or two if they’re willing to take back an unwanted contract.

If no trade emerges for Lowry, he’d be a buyout candidate after the trade deadline. Because his salary is above the mid-level exception, the 37-year-old wouldn’t be permitted to sign with a team whose salary is above either tax apron. He’d also be ineligible to return to Miami.

It’s worth noting that the Heat owe a lottery-protected 2025 first-round pick to Oklahoma City and can’t leave themselves without first-rounders in consecutive drafts, due to the Stepien rule. So if that ’25 pick lands in the lottery, Miami would owe the Thunder an unprotected 2026 first-round selection and would send Charlotte its unprotected 2028 first-rounder.

The Heat will create a $6,477,319 trade exception in the swap — that’s the difference between Lowry’s outgoing salary and Rozier’s incoming cap charge.

Trail Blazers Sign Taze Moore To 10-Day Contract

January 20th, 2024 at 11:54am CST by Tristan Tucker

11:54am: Moore’s 10-day deal with the Blazers is official, according to a release from the team (Twitter link).

10:17am: The Trail Blazers are signing guard Taze Moore to a 10-day contract, according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (Twitter link).

Moore spent most of this season with the Texas Legends before being traded from Dallas’ G League affiliate to Portland’s, the Rip City Remix. In 21 regular season and Showcase Cup games in the G League, Moore has averaged 9.2 points, 5.2 rebounds, 3.7 assists and 1.4 steals per contest.

Moore, 25, played his first five collegiate seasons at Cal State Bakersfield before transferring to Houston for his final season, playing under coach Kelvin Sampson. After going undrafted in 2022, he spent time with the Nets in Summer League before landing with the Legends for the 2022/23 season. In his first professional season in the G League, he averaged 10.9 points and 5.7 rebounds.

The Mavericks signed Moore to an Exhibit 10 deal in the offseason before waiving him and having him rejoin the Legends. Texas traded him to the Remix last week in exchange for a first-round pick and a second-round pick in the 2024 G League draft, according to a release from the team.

Adding Moore will give the Blazers 14 players on standard contracts and three players on two-way deals.

As we explained last week, Portland was facing a deadline to add a 14th player, since NBA teams are not permitted to carry fewer than 14 players for more than two weeks at a time (or 28 total days over the course of the season). Today marked that deadline for the Blazers, since they dropped to 13 players by waiving Ish Wainright and Skylar Mays on January 6.

Wizards Sign Trey Jemison To 10-Day Contract

January 20th, 2024 at 11:04am CST by Tristan Tucker

11:04am: The Wizards officially announced that they’ve signed Jemison to a 10-day contract (Twitter link via the team).

8:29am: The Wizards plan to sign Trey Jemison to a 10-day contract, according to Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link).

Jemison, a 7’0″ center out of UAB, is averaging 10.9 points, 11.8 rebounds and 1.6 blocks across 25 regular season and Showcase Cup games for the Birmingham Squadron in the G League this season.

Jemison went undrafted in 2023 after averaging 9.1 points and 8.4 rebounds in his senior season at UAB. As a rookie free agent, he joined the Suns for Summer League before signing an Exhibit 10 contract with New Orleans. He was then waived by the Pelicans and subsequently joined their G League affiliate in Birmingham.

Jemison will provide the Wizards with some frontcourt depth following their trade that sent big men Danilo Gallinari and Mike Muscala to Detroit. Starting center Daniel Gafford also hasn’t been cleared to exit the concussion protocol, leaving Washington further shorthanded up front.

The Wizards don’t have to waive anyone to make room for Jemison, as they have an open spot on the 15-man roster. Hamidou Diallo occupied the 15th spot through Friday by way of a 10-day contract, but it appears Washington won’t bring him back on a second 10-day deal at this time.

Diallo got into just two games with the Wizards during his 10 days with the club. He’s once again a free agent and it’s possible he’ll resume playing with the Capital City Go-Go, Washington’s G League affiliate, where he was playing before signing his deal.

Pacers Sign James Johnson To 10-Day Contract

January 19th, 2024 at 5:04pm CST by Rory Maher

The Pacers have re-signed veteran forward James Johnson, but this time he’ll receive a 10-day contract instead of a rest-of-season deal, the team announced in a press release.

Indiana waived Johnson a couple days ago in order to create roster space to acquire fourth-year guard Kira Lewis, who was immediately flipped to Toronto as a salary-matching piece for two-time All-Star Pascal Siakam.

The Pacers had two open 15-man roster spots after sending out three players (Bruce Brown and Jordan Nwora were the others) for Siakam — one of those spots will be going to Johnson.

The move was expected, as Tony East of SI.com reported shortly after Johnson was released that the team planned to bring him back if he cleared waivers.

Inking Johnson to a 10-day contract will give Indiana roster flexibility in the event of more trades ahead of the February 8 deadline. As our tracker shows, the 15-year veteran is the sixth player to sign a 10-day deal this season.

Technically, the Pacers are paying Johnson twice right now, as his previous contract was guaranteed after he remained on the roster through the cut-down deadline earlier this month. The dead money cap hit for that deal is about $1.4MM.

Johnson, who has played for 10 different NBA teams, averaged 4.8 minutes per game across five appearances in 2023/24. The 36-year-old played 18 games for the Pacers last season.

His on-court contributions have been modest the past two seasons, but clearly the Pacers value Johnson’s leadership and professionalism, which is why they keep bringing him back.