Transactions Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Jazz Sign Josh Christopher To Two-Way Contract

October 13th, 2023 at 11:49am CST by Tristan Tucker

OCTOBER 13, 11:49am: The Jazz have officially signed Christopher to a two-way contract, the team confirmed today in a press release.

OCTOBER 12, 8:24pm: Utah has waived Hauser to open up a two-way slot for Christopher, according to NBA.com’s transaction log.

OCTOBER 12, 6:32pm: The Jazz are signing former Rockets first-round pick Josh Christopher to a two-way contract, according to Shams Charania and Tony Jones of The Athletic (Twitter link).

Christopher, 21, was selected with the No. 24 overall pick in the 2021 NBA Draft. The former Arizona State wing averaged 6.9 points in 138 games (four starts) in his first two seasons in the league.

The 6’5″ Christopher was waived by the Grizzlies at the end of September after the team acquired him in an earlier offseason trade. Now, he’s heading to Utah after showcasing the ability to score in bunches at the NBA level. He holds career highs of 30 points, eight rebounds, seven assists and five steals.

Christopher can provide immediate wing and scoring depth for the Jazz and could look to carve out a role on the bench. He averaged 5.8 points per game last season.

The Jazz already have three players signed to two-way contracts – Joey Hauser, Johnny Juzang and Micah Potter – and will have to waive one to bring in Christopher. Utah has a full 21-man roster as of this moment.

Christopher joins Usman Garuba and TyTy Washington as recent former Houston first-round picks to sign two-way deals with other teams this offseason. Houston traded away the young trio in the same five-team deal that brought Dillon Brooks to the Rockets via sign-and-trade.

Spurs Sign, Waive Paul Watson, Erik Stevenson

October 12th, 2023 at 6:30pm CST by Luke Adams

OCTOBER 12: Watson and Stevenson have been waived by the Spurs, per NBA.com’s transaction log.

OCTOBER 10: The Spurs have signed free agent wing Paul Watson and guard Erik Stevenson, per RealGM’s transaction log. According to Keith Smith of Spotrac (Twitter link), both players received non-guaranteed training camp contracts.

Watson, 28, played in Germany briefly after going undrafted out of Fresno State in 2017, but has since bounced back and forth between the NBA and the G League. The 6’6″ guard/forward with some three-and-D potential, appeared in 46 total NBA games for the Hawks, Raptors, and Thunder from 2020-22, as well as 142 regular season and Showcase Cup NBAGL contests for the Westchester Knicks, Raptors 905, and Oklahoma City Blue from 2017-22.

Stevenson went undrafted earlier this year after playing five college seasons at four different schools. As a super-senior at West Virginia in 2022/23, he averaged 15.4 points, 3.4 rebounds, and 2.5 assists in 34 games (26.0 MPG) and posted a shooting line of .430/.379/.796.

In all likelihood, both Watson and Stevenson signed Exhibit 10 contracts that will make them eligible for bonuses worth up to $75K if they’re waived by San Antonio and then spend at least 60 days with the Spurs’ G League affiliate in Austin.

San Antonio now has a full 21-man preseason roster.

Chance Comanche, Deonte Burton Waived By Kings

October 12th, 2023 at 6:02pm CST by Tristan Tucker

The Kings have waived both center Chance Comanche and wing Deonte Burton, according to James Ham of The Kings Beat (Twitter link). Ham adds that the expectation is that both players will join the Stockton Kings, assuming they clear waivers.

Since Comanche and Burton signed Exhibit 10 contracts, they’ll both be eligible to receive a $75K bonus if they spend at least 60 days with Stockton. Both players have three or more years of experience in the G League and spent time in Stockton last season.

Comanche signed with the Kings on September 21 after averaging 12.9 points, 7.3 rebounds and 1.4 blocks across 43 regular season and Showcase Cup games with Stockton last season. His strong efforts in the G League turned into a 10-day contract with the Trail Blazers in April, and he put up seven points and three boards in one appearance with Portland. He did not appear in any preseason games with Sacramento this season.

Burton, who signed on September 23, averaged 11.5 points across 33 total appearances with the Stockton Kings last season. He holds averages of 2.5 points and 1.2 rebounds in 73 career NBA games. His play in the G League last season also resulted in a 10-day contract, but Burton’s was with the Kings, though he only appeared in two games and didn’t record a stat. Burton appeared in one preseason game with Sacramento this year.

After waiving Comanche and Burton, the Kings’ roster now stands at 18 players, with Jaylen Nowell the only currently signed Exhibit 10 player on the roster. Sacramento has one open spot for its 15-man regular season roster, so it’s possible the Kings are eyeing Nowell for that spot. It’s likely the team will cycle through more Exhibit 10 players for G League purposes in the coming days.

Pelicans Sign Jalen Crutcher, Waive Liam Robbins

October 12th, 2023 at 11:42am CST by Rory Maher

The Pelicans have made a minor change to their preseason roster, signing free agent guard Jalen Crutcher, the team announced in a press release. New Orleans waived Liam Robbins to create a roster opening for Crutcher.

A former college standout at Dayton, Crutcher played four years for the Flyers prior to going undrafted in 2021. He has spent his first two professional seasons playing in the G League for the Greensboro Swarm — Charlotte’s affiliate — after signing Exhibit 10 deals with and then being waived by the Hornets.

A 6’2″ point guard, Crutcher appeared in 57 regular season games (39 starts, 32.7 MPG) with the Swarm from 2021-23, averaging 15.8 PPG, 5.8 APG and 3.0 RPG with an impressive .473/.430/.774 shooting slash line.

The Birmingham Squadron — the Pelicans’ NBAGL affiliate — acquired Crutcher’s returning player rights last month in a deal with the Swarm. That means the 24-year-old likely signed an Exhibit 10 contract with New Orleans, which would entitle him to a $75K bonus if he’s waived and spends at least 60 days with the Squadron.

Robbins, a 7’0″ big man who went undrafted in June out of Vanderbilt, inked an Exhibit 10 deal with the Pelicans at the end of last month. It looked like he might be promoted to a two-way contract, but last week he unfortunately sustained a stress fracture in his right fibula and was ruled out indefinitely.

Nuggets Exercise 2024/25 Option On Peyton Watson

October 11th, 2023 at 11:15pm CST by Rory Maher

The Nuggets have exercised their third-year team option on Peyton Watson, a league source tells Vinny Benedetto of The Denver Gazette (Twitter link). The move has no impact on Watson’s status for the upcoming season, but locks in his $2,413,560 salary for the 2024/25 season.

A 6’8″ wing who played one college season at UCLA, Watson was the final first-round pick (30th overall) in 2022. He appeared in 23 games (8.1 MPG) as a rookie for the Nuggets last season, averaging 3.3 PPG and 1.6 RPG. He also made five brief playoff appearances during Denver’s championship run in ’22/23.

Watson, 21, played more extensively at the G League level, suiting up for 19 games with Denver’s affiliate, the Grand Rapids Gold.

The Nuggets are high on Watson, who is an outstanding athlete with a lot of defensive upside. He could be a rotation player in year two, and multiple outlets have cited the young forward as a possible under-the-radar contributor for Denver in ’23/24.

Denver will have to decide whether or not to pick up Watson’s fourth-year option — worth $4,356,476 — next October. The Nuggets picked up Christian Braun‘s third-year option on Tuesday, as expected.

The full list of decisions on 2024/25 rookie scale team options can be found right here.

Jazz Sign Devoe, Justice; Waive Kinsey, Ongenda

October 11th, 2023 at 7:25pm CST by Rory Maher

The Jazz have signed guard Michael Devoe and forward Keshawn Justice, the team announced in a press release. To create room on the 21-man offseason roster, Utah waived Taevion Kinsey and Nick Ongenda, both of whom were on training camp contracts.

While the terms of the agreements were not disclosed, it seems likely that Devoe and Justice signed Exhibit 10 deals and will eventually be waived and headed to the G League to play for the Jazz’s affiliate, the Salt Lake City Stars. In that scenario, both players could earn bonuses worth up to $75K if they spend at least 60 days with the Stars.

The Stars acquired Devoe’s returning player rights from the Rip City Remix (Portland’s new NBAGL affiliate) last month. The former Georgia Tech standout signed an Exhibit 10 deal with the Clippers last fall, was waived, and spent his first pro season playing for their affiliate, the Ontario Clippers.

Devoe had modest stats for Ontario (6.7 points, 3.2 rebounds and 1.9 assists in 20.8 minutes over 29 regular season games), but he had a strong Summer League showing for the Blazers, averaging 18.8 points, 3.3 rebounds, 4.5 assists and 1.3 steals in just 23.9 minutes. Of course, that was a small sample size, as he only played four games.

Justice went undrafted in June after five seasons at Santa Clara. As a “super senior” in 2022/23, the 23-year-old averaged 13.3 points, 4.1 rebounds and 2.5 rebounds in 33 games for the Broncos (34.9 minutes). He played for the Jazz’s Summer League squad, averaging 10.2 points, 6.8 rebounds and 1.2 steals in five games (23.4 minutes).

The Jazz’s roster remains at the offseason maximum of 21 players under contract, including 12 players on guaranteed standard deals. All three of Utah’s two-way slots are filled.

Hornets Waive Kai Jones

October 11th, 2023 at 3:59pm CST by Rory Maher

The Hornets have waived former first-round pick Kai Jones, according to Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link). The team confirmed the news in a press release.

Jones had been away from the Hornets – with no timetable for a return – for personal reasons. The decision for him not to attend training camp was made after the 22-year-old made a series of unusual social media posts, calling out some of his teammates in a handful of tweets and videos.

The No. 19 overall pick in the 2021 draft, Jones averaged just 2.7 points and 2.0 rebounds in 9.1 minutes per game across 67 total appearances in his first two professional seasons. He had a much bigger role at the G League level, averaging 17.2 points, 9.9 rebounds, 1.2 steals and 2.1 blocks in 38 regular season games with the Greensboro Swarm — Charlotte’s affiliate — from 2021-23.

A 6’11” big man from the Bahamas, Jones publicly requested a trade a couple days ago. The Hornets decided to release him instead, and they will be on the hook for his full $3,047,880 salary for 2023/24 if he goes unclaimed on waivers. Charlotte also declined its fourth-year team option on Jones — worth $4,693,735 — as part of the move.

Charlotte originally acquired Jones’ rights in a draft-night trade with the Knicks. The first-round pick the Hornets sent New York as part of that deal still hasn’t conveyed and will be lottery-protected in 2024 and 2025. If it hasn’t conveyed by then, it will turn into two second-round picks.

As our roster count shows, the Hornets now have 20 players under contract, with all three two-way slots filled.

It’s worth noting that the Hornets have three players — Edmond Sumner (Exhibit 9), Frank Ntilikina ($200K partial guarantee) and JT Thor — on non-guaranteed contracts, not counting their players on Exhibit 10 deals. The odds of all three players making the opening night roster likely increased now that Jones is out of the picture, since Charlotte only has 12 players on guaranteed standard deals.

Wizards Sign Michael Foster Jr. To Exhibit 10 Contract

October 11th, 2023 at 1:04pm CST by Luke Adams

The Wizards have made a minor change to their roster, announcing today (via Twitter) that they’ve signed forward Michael Foster Jr. to an Exhibit 10 contract. Rookie guard Chase Audige, who was also on an Exhibit 10 deal, was waived to open up a spot on the 21-man roster.

Foster went undrafted a year ago after playing for the G League Ignite in 2021/22. He caught on with the Sixers and spent a few weeks at the start of the regular season on a two-way contract with the team, making his NBA debut during that time. However, he was waived last November and spent the rest of the season with the Delaware Blue Coats, Philadelphia’s G League affiliate.

Foster, 20, averaged 13.6 points, 7.1 rebounds, and 1.8 blocks in 24.3 minutes per contest in 41 appearances last season for the Blue Coats, posting a shooting line of .519/.254/.693. He continued to play a rotation role for the club en route to its NBAGL championship in the spring.

As we noted earlier today, the Blue Coats traded Foster’s returning rights to the Capital City Go-Go, so he’ll now be in line to play for the Wizards’ G League affiliate if he’s waived and heads to the NBAGL. In that scenario, Foster would be eligible to earn an Exhibit 10 bonus worth up to $75K as long as he spends at least 60 days with the Go-Go.

Nuggets Picking Up Christian Braun’s Third-Year Option

October 10th, 2023 at 8:55pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Nuggets are picking up their third-year option on Christian Braun, ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski tweets.

It’s a mere formality, as Braun has already earned a prominent role with the defending champions. There was no doubt Denver would retain him on his rookie scale contract.

Braun is expected to be the first reserve off the bench in his second season. He appeared in 76 regular season games as a rookie, averaging 4.7 points in 15.5 minutes per game, and saw action in 19 playoff games, contributing 3.2 points and 2.1 rebounds in 13.0 minutes per contest.

The 21st overall pick of last year’s draft, Braun’s third-year option for the 2024/25 season is worth $3,089,640. He’ll make $2,949,120 this season and Denver holds a fourth-year option worth $4,921,797, which must be exercised by the end of next October.

Hawks Sign, Waive Brandon Randolph

October 10th, 2023 at 5:15pm CST by Luke Adams

5:15pm: The Hawks have waived Randolph, according to another press release from the club.

2:33pm: The Hawks have signed guard Brandon Randolph, the team announced today in a press release.

While the club didn’t reveal any details about the agreement, Brad Rowland of Locked On Hawks tweets that it’s a non-guaranteed training camp contract. It likely includes Exhibit 10 language, as most camp deals do.

Randolph, who went undrafted out of Arizona in 2019, has spent most of the last few seasons playing in the G League. In 43 regular season and Showcase Cup games last season for the Wisconsin Herd and Austin Spurs, he averaged 14.3 points, 3.8 rebounds, and 1.9 assists in 27.7 minutes per contest, posting a solid shooting line of .505/.351/.788.

The College Park Skyhawks, Atlanta’s G League affiliate, acquired Randolph’s rights from Austin in August. That deal and today’s signing are strong indicators that the Skyhawks plan on having him on their roster as a returning rights player this fall.

Atlanta now has 19 players under contract, two below the preseason limit.