Transactions Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Knicks Waive Taj Gibson

January 7th, 2024 at 3:49pm CST by Luke Adams

The Knicks have waived big man Taj Gibson ahead of today’s salary guarantee deadline, the team announced (Twitter links).

Gibson signed a non-guaranteed, minimum-salary contract with the Knicks on December 15 and appeared in 10 games for the club, 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, with Sims healthy again and Precious Achiuwa added to the roster in last weekend’s OG Anunoby trade, Gibson once again found himself pushed down the depth chart — he hadn’t played at all since Monday.

Gibson’s release doesn’t necessarily mean the Knicks are done with him for the season. He could return on a 10-day contract or two, and if the team still has an open roster spot after the trade deadline comes and goes, he’d be an obvious candidate for a rest-of-season deal.

According to Ian Begley of SNY.tv (Twitter link), New York decided to part with Gibson for now to create some additional roster flexibility ahead of the trade deadline, since the club expects to continue to be active.

Gibson had been one of two players on the Knicks’ roster who was on a non-guaranteed contract for 2023/24. The other one, Ryan Arcidiacono, will be retained and will have his full $2,528,233 salary (and $2,019,706 cap hit) guaranteed, according to Fred Katz of The Athletic (Twitter link).

Assuming he clears waivers, Gibson will count for $477,630 in dead money on the Knicks’ salary cap.

Bucks Waive Marques Bolden, Lindell Wigginton

January 7th, 2024 at 1:50pm CST by Luke Adams

1:50pm: The two Bucks cuts are official, the team confirmed in a press release.

10:16am: The Bucks have waived a pair of two-way players, according to Eric Nehm of The Athletic (Twitter link), who hears from a league source that big man Marques Bolden and guard Lindell Wigginton have been cut by the team.

A player on a two-way contract who remains on his team’s roster through Sunday is assured of his full-season salary of $559,782, but it seems that won’t be the case for Bolden or Wigginton, who will receive only a prorated portion of that figure.

Bolden had his Exhibit 10 contract converted to a two-way deal in October, prior to the start of regular season. The 25-year-old appeared briefly in just two games for Milwaukee, having spent most of the season with the Wisconsin Herd in the G League. He averaged 13.6 points, 6.0 rebounds, and 1.5 blocks in 24.6 minutes per game across 16 Showcase Cup and regular season appearances for the Herd, with an impressive shooting line of .566/.515/.722.

Like Bolden, Wigginton didn’t have a role for the NBA team during his time with the Bucks, logging eight total minutes in three appearances. The Canadian, who also spent parts of the previous two seasons with Milwaukee, averaged 19.8 PPG, 4.9 APG, and 3.3 RPG on .490/.421/.769 shooting in 10 games (30.2 MPG) for the Herd in 2023/24.

The Bucks now have a pair of two-way slots open next to TyTy Washington Jr. They’ll have nearly two months to fill those spots — the deadline to sign a player to a two-way deal is March 4.

Lakers Sign Dylan Windler To Two-Way Contract

January 7th, 2024 at 1:18pm CST by Luke Adams

JANUARY 7: Windler officially signed his two-way contract on Saturday, according to NBA.com’s transaction log.

JANUARY 6: Veteran wing Dylan Windler, who had been playing in the G League, has agreed to sign a two-way contract with the Lakers, agents Mark Bartelstein and Andy Shiffman tell Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN (Twitter link).

A first-round pick in 2019, Windler signed a two-way contract with the Knicks in July following four seasons in Cleveland, then was converted to a standard non-guaranteed contract prior to the start of the regular season. He appeared in three games for the Knicks before being waived last month, before his 2023/24 salary became fully guaranteed.

Windler continued to play for the Westchester Knicks, New York’s G League affiliate, after being waived by the NBA team. He’s coming off a monster performance on Friday vs. the Delaware Blue Coats, as he put up 23 points to go along with a NBAGL-record 33 rebounds (11 offensive) in a loss.

For the season, he has averaged 13.8 PPG and 8.8 RPG on .443/.360/.714 shooting in 13 appearances for Westchester.

Players with four years of NBA service are typically ineligible for two-way contracts. However, Windler qualifies under the new Collective Bargaining Agreement due to a rule tweak that allows players who missed one of their four seasons as a result of an injury to retain their two-way eligibility — the former Belmont standout didn’t play at all as a rookie in 2019/20 due to a leg injury.

Assuming he officially signs his contract today, Windler will be eligible to appear in up to 29 games and will earn $321,714 on his two-way deal with the Lakers.

Los Angeles, meanwhile, has to waive one of its current two-way players to open up a spot for Windler. Colin Castleton, D’Moi Hodge, and Alex Fudge currently occupy those slots, and the Lakers intend to waive Fudge, reports Dave McMenamin of ESPN (Twitter link). He logged just 14 total minutes in four NBA appearances as a rookie out of Florida this season.

Lakers Waive Alex Fudge, D’Moi Hodge

January 6th, 2024 at 4:38pm CST by Arthur Hill

In advance of the expected signing of Dylan Windler to a two-way contract, the Lakers have waived two-way players Alex Fudge and D’Moi Hodge, the team announced in a press release. The statement doesn’t mention Windler or indicate how the other open two-way slot might be used.

Sunday marks the waiver deadline to avoid having two-way contracts guaranteed for the remainder of the season, so L.A. won’t have any further financial obligations to either Fudge or Hodge. Both players earned approximately $248K on their two-way deals, and they each received a $250K bonus because the team won the in-season tournament.

Fudge, a 20-year-old small forward, saw minimal playing time in four games with the Lakers, and averaged 8.0 points, 4.3 rebounds and 1.6 assists in 10 games for the team’s South Bay G League affiliate. The two-way contract he signed this summer covered two seasons, but the second year is non-guaranteed.

Hodge, a 25-year-old shooting guard, appeared in seven games with the Lakers and 16 for South Bay, averaging 11.2 points, 3.4 rebounds and 1.4 steals with the G League team.

Kings To Cut Juan Toscano-Anderson

January 6th, 2024 at 3:49pm CST by Luke Adams

The Kings intend to waive Juan Toscano-Anderson prior to Sunday’s salary guarantee deadline, reports James Ham of The Kings Beat (Twitter link). The move will open up a spot on Sacramento’s 15-man roster.

Toscano-Anderson signed a non-guaranteed minimum-salary deal with the Kings on December 15, providing some depth on the wing for the club. However, he didn’t end up earning a role outside of garbage time, logging 19 total minutes in his eight appearances. He had two points, five rebounds, and three assists in his limited action.

Waiving Toscano-Anderson ahead of tomorrow’s salary guarantee date will give Sacramento some extra roster and financial flexibility ahead of the February 8 trade deadline. Assuming he officially hits waivers today and goes unclaimed, the 30-year-old will count for $311,063 against the Kings’ cap for his 25 days of service with the team. A club interested in claiming Toscano-Anderson would have to be prepared to guarantee his full $1,517,989 salary.

Sacramento, meanwhile, would be under no obligation to immediately fill the newly opened roster spot. However, the Kings could sign a free agent – including Toscano-Anderson, if he clears waivers – to a 10-day contract or two if they want to fortify their depth in the short term while keeping their options open for the trade deadline.

Nets Waive Armoni Brooks

January 6th, 2024 at 1:11pm CST by Luke Adams

The Nets have waived two-way guard Armoni Brooks, the team confirmed today in an official announcement. The move was first reported by Michael Scotto of HoopsHype (Twitter link).

Since Brooks was cut ahead of Sunday’s waiver deadline, Brooklyn won’t be on the hook for his full two-way salary for the rest of the season.

Brooks, who previously spent time in Houston and Toronto, signed with the Nets in July and has appeared in 10 games this season, averaging 4.2 points and 1.8 rebounds in 10.4 minutes per night. The 25-year-old made just 32.6% of his shot attempts from the field during his time in Brooklyn, though he did knock down 34.4% of his three-pointers.

Brooks has seen more action for the Long Island Nets in the G League, averaging 15.0 PPG and 4.3 RPG on .436/.393/.800 shooting in 14 games (25.6 MPG) for Brooklyn’s NBAGL affiliate in 2023/24.

The move opens up a two-way slot for the Nets alongside Jalen Wilson and Keon Johnson. The deadline to sign a player to a two-way contract doesn’t arrive until March, so the team won’t be under any pressure to fill that opening right away.

Trail Blazers Waive Skylar Mays, Ish Wainright

January 6th, 2024 at 10:22am CST by Tristan Tucker

The Trail Blazers waived guard Skylar Mays and forward Ish Wainright, according to a release from the team.

Neither Mays nor Wainright had full guarantees on their contracts and, facing a Jan. 7 deadline before those contracts became fully guaranteed, Portland decided to cut the pair loose.

As our tracker shows, Mays’ contract was partially guaranteed for just $850K and would have been guaranteed for approximately $1.86MM if not waived before Sunday. Wainright’s contract would have been guaranteed for roughly $1.93MM.

Because Wainright was on the roster for 75 days and will be on waivers for two more, the Blazers will carry a cap charge worth about $853K for his time spent on the team (77 days multiplied by a $11,080 salary per day), assuming he goes unclaimed on waivers, according to ESPN’s Bobby Marks (Twitter link).

Mays joined the Blazers on a 10-day contract late into the 2022/23 season, appearing in six games (all starts) and averaging 15.3 points and 8.3 assists from late March through the end of the season. He signed a two-way deal in early October, which was converted to a standard contract in mid-November as Portland dealt with injuries to their ball-handlers.

The LSU product put up some impressive performances in November while Portland’s roster was banged up, averaging 11.1 points and 6.4 assists in 26.3 minutes across nine games from Nov. 3-21. However, he fell out of the rotation when the Blazers got healthier and averaged just 11.1 minutes in eight appearances after that.

Portland claimed Wainright on waivers just before opening night after the Suns cut ties with him after two seasons. The 29-year-old forward was one of the older players on the roster, behind only Malcolm Brogdon and Jerami Grant. However, Wainright only appeared in seven games with the Blazers, averaging 2.9 points in 6.6 minutes per night. His best moments with the team came in his last two appearances, in which he totaled 17 points, including five three-pointers.

Wainright has averaged 3.4 points per game in 112 career appearances with the Suns and the Trail Blazers.

Waiving Mays and Wainright opens up two standard roster spots for the Trail Blazers, bringing them below the threshold of 14 players. Teams are not permitted to carry fewer than 14 players on standard contracts for more than two weeks at a time — or more than 28 total days — so expect to see more moves for Portland soon.

While this theoretically opens up roster spots in the event a trade brings in more players than they send out, the trade deadline is still a month away, and the more likely short-term option is the Blazers making moves around the edges of the roster. A 10-day signing (or two) is one possibility.

For what it’s worth, players on two-way contracts see their deals fully guaranteed on Jan. 7 too. The Blazers have Duop Reath, Ibou Badji and Justin Minaya on two-way contracts. Reath, in particular, has earned a prominent role on the Blazers, averaging 8.3 points in 21 games. It’s possible he earns a standard deal now that Portland has two open roster spots.

Knicks Sign Duane Washington Jr. To Two-Way Deal

January 3rd, 2024 at 4:32pm CST by Rory Maher

The Knicks have signed free agent guard Duane Washington Jr. to a two-way contract, the team announced (via Twitter).

This is the third time New York has signed Washington to a two-way deal since February 2023, but he has yet to make his NBA debut with the club. He was cut in late November after he sustained a right thumb injury, which was supposed to sideline him six-to-eight weeks.

The Knicks must be comfortable with how Washington is recovering, since his salary will become guaranteed if he remains on the roster through January 7, though two-way salaries don’t count toward the salary cap or luxury tax. New York waived big man Dmytro Skapintsev a couple days ago to open a two-way roster spot.

It’s worth noting that New York also just traded Immanuel Quickley, RJ Barrett, and the Pistons’ 2024 second-round pick to Toronto for OG Anunoby, Precious Achiuwa and Malachi Flynn. That created a need for backcourt depth — Washington is a 6’3″ guard.

Washington went undrafted out of Ohio State in 2021 and spent his rookie season with the Pacers. He played for the Suns 2022/23, eventually being waived before bouncing back and forth with the Knicks.

The 23-year-old averaged 27.3 points, 6.3 assists and 4.0 rebounds on .588/.417/.700 shooting in three Showcase Cup games with the G League’s Westchester Knicks (New York’s affiliate) this season prior to the injury.

The Knicks’ 18-man roster is full after the move.

Knicks Waive Two-Way Player Dmytro Skapintsev

January 1st, 2024 at 7:25pm CST by Dana Gauruder

7:25pm: Skapintsev has been waived, the team’s PR department tweets.

5:13pm: The Knicks are waiving two-way player Dmytro Skapintsev, Fred Katz of The Athletic tweets.

The Ukranian big man made two brief NBA appearances after being signed to the two-way deal on Dec. 23. At that time, New York waived Jaylen Martin to make room for him.

Skapintsez also played in 13 Showcase Cup games with the Westchester Knicks this season, averaging 5.9 points and 4.3. rebounds, prior to signing the two-way deal. It’s likely he’ll end up returning to the Knicks’ G League squad.

The Knicks’ blockbuster deal with Toronto may have impacted Skapintsev’s place on the roster. Along with acquiring centerpiece OG Anunoby from the Raptors, the Knicks received forward/center Precious Achiuwa to fortify their frontcourt depth.

New York now has an open two-way spot. Charlie Brown Jr. and Jacob Toppin are the team’s other two-way players.

Spurs Sign Mamadi Diakite To Two-Way Deal

January 1st, 2024 at 1:05pm CST by Rory Maher

The Spurs have signed free agent forward/center Mamadi Diakite to a two-way contract, the team announced in a press release.

Diakite, 26, went undrafted in 2020 out of Virginia after winning the national championship with the Cavaliers in 2018/19. This is his fourth NBA season — he played 49 games with Milwaukee, Oklahoma City and Cleveland from 2020-23 and holds career averages of 3.2 PPG and 2.5 RPG in 10.3 MPG.

A native of Guinea, Diakite was unable to find a team as a free agent this offseason, eventually landing with the Knicks on an Exhibit 10 deal that gave him a bonus after he was waived and spent time with their G League affiliate in Westchester. In 19 Showcase Cup and regular season games with Westchester in 2023/24, he averaged 8.8 PPG, 5.9 RPG and 1.1 BPG.

San Antonio recently released rookie center Charles Bediako from his two-way deal after he suffered a torn meniscus in his left knee, opening up the two-way spot that went to Diakite. The Spurs now have a full 18-man roster.