Transactions Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Lakers Waive Bryce Hamilton

September 19th, 2023 at 7:32am CST by Luke Adams

The Lakers have waived guard Bryce Hamilton, the team announced (via Twitter). The move opens up a spot on Los Angeles’ 21-man offseason roster, which had been full.

Hamilton, who will turn 23 in November, spent his rookie season in 2022/23 with the South Bay Lakers – L.A.’s G League affiliate – after going undrafted out of UNLV. He averaged 14.1 points and 4.6 rebounds in 28.2 minutes per game across 29 regular season appearances (27 starts) for South Bay, posting a shooting line of .514/.385/.679.

After playing for L.A.’s Summer League team in July, Hamilton was one of four players who signed Exhibit 10 contracts with the Lakers earlier this month, but it appears the club didn’t plan to have him come to training camp.

His signing was about ensuring that he’ll receive an Exhibit 10 bonus of $75K if and when he reports back to the Lakers’ NBAGL affiliate, which holds his returning rights. He’ll have to spend at least 60 days with South Bay to earn that bonus.

With 14 players on guaranteed contracts and three on two-way deals, the Lakers are unlikely to make any more major roster additions before training camp starts — Hamilton’s spot seems likely to be filled with another Exhibit 10 signing.

Lakers Sign Jarred Vanderbilt To Four-Year Extension

September 18th, 2023 at 1:05pm CST by Luke Adams

SEPTEMBER 18: The Lakers have put out a press release officially announcing Vanderbilt’s extension.

SEPTEMBER 15: The Lakers and forward Jarred Vanderbilt are in agreement on a four-year contract extension that will be worth $48MM, agents Rich Paul and Erika Ruiz tell Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link). According to Charania, the deal will be fully guaranteed, with a fourth-year player option.

Vanderbilt, who became extension-eligible last week, was entering the final year of his current contract, a team-friendly deal that will pay him just shy of $4.7MM in 2023/24. The extension will keep him under club control through at least the 2026/27 season, with the player option applying to ’27/28.

The NBA’s veteran extension rules typically allow players to receive up to 140% of their previous salary in the first year of an extension. However, players like Vanderbilt who are earning less than the league’s estimated average salary are eligible to receive up to 140% of the average salary. That rule will allow him to receive an eight-digit starting salary in his extension, more than doubling his previous cap hit.

Vanderbilt, 24, has played for the Nuggets, Timberwolves, Jazz, and Lakers since being drafted 41st overall in 2018. He’s a relatively limited offensive player – his 7.9 points per game in 2022/23 represented a career high – but is a talented, versatile defender who rebounds well (7.5 RPG in 24.1 MPG last season).

Vanderbilt is expected to play a major rotation role for the Lakers again this season after being acquired along with D’Angelo Russell and Malik Beasley in the trade-deadline deal that sent Russell Westbrook to Utah. He started 24 of 26 regular season games for Los Angeles following that trade, averaging 24.0 minutes per night.

Having entered the offseason with only LeBron James, Anthony Davis, Vanderbilt, and Max Christie under contract for 2023/24, the Lakers have locked in several key players to multiyear deals this summer. Like Vanderbilt, Davis signed an extension that will be guaranteed through at least 2027, while Rui Hachimura, Austin Reaves, and Gabe Vincent all signed free agent contracts that include three guaranteed seasons.

Including James and Russell, who both have players option decisions to make next summer, the Lakers now project to have seven players earning eight-figure salaries in 2024/25, notes Yossi Gozlan of HoopsHype (Twitter link).

Since Vanderbilt’s new deal will exceed the extend-and-trade limits, he’ll be ineligible to be traded for six months, meaning the Lakers won’t be able to move him during the 2023/24 season.

Spurs Sign Javante McCoy To Exhibit 10 Contract

September 18th, 2023 at 11:41am CST by Luke Adams

The Spurs have signed free agent guard Javante McCoy to an Exhibit 10 contract, Hoops Rumors has learned. The move gives San Antonio a full 21-man offseason roster.

McCoy, 25, spent his rookie season in 2022/23 with the South Bay Lakers in the G League after going undrafted out of Boston University. He came off the bench in 26 regular season NBAGL games, averaging 14.2 points, 3.8 rebounds, and 3.5 assists in 25.8 minutes per contest. His shooting line was .524/.370/.767.

McCoy played for San Antonio’s Summer League team in Sacramento and Las Vegas this July, appearing in six total games for the club.

The Spurs are carrying 17 players on standard guaranteed contracts and three on two-way deals, so there likely won’t be a spot for McCoy on their regular season roster. The Austin Spurs – San Antonio’s G League affiliate – recently acquired McCoy’s rights in a trade with South Bay, which is a strong signal that he’ll end up reporting to Austin as a returning rights player.

Assuming McCoy is waived by San Antonio prior to the season and then spends at least 60 days with Austin, he’ll be eligible to earn a $75K bonus on top of his G League salary.

Spurs Sign Setric Millner To Two-Way Contract

September 18th, 2023 at 10:46am CST by Luke Adams

The Spurs have signed rookie free agent forward Setric Millner to a two-way contract, per NBA.com’s transaction log.

A report back in June indicated that Millner would be signing with San Antonio. However, that report stated that he’d be receiving an Exhibit 10 contract. It appears the former Toledo standout will fill the Spurs’ final two-way opening instead.

Millner, who began his college career with Cleveland State in 2018/19, spent his sophomore year with Northwest Florida State College, then transferred to Toledo, where he played his junior, senior, and “super-senior” seasons.

In 35 games (32.7 MPG) in 2022/23, Millner averaged 16.1 PPG and 5.9 RPG with a shooting line of .496/.420/.784, earning a spot on the All-MAC Second Team. He joined the Spurs for Summer League after going undrafted and appeared in five total games for the club in Las Vegas and Sacramento this July.

The Spurs now have 20 players under contract, including 17 on guaranteed standard deals and three on two-way pacts. They’ll need to reduce their standard roster count to 15 players (not counting two-ways) by opening night, but in the meantime, they’ll be able to carry up to 21 total players in training camp and the preseason.

Dominick Barlow and Sir’Jabari Rice are San Antonio’s other two-way players.

Timberwolves Sign Daishen Nix To Exhibit 10 Deal

September 18th, 2023 at 6:50am CST by Arthur Hill

SEPTEMBER 18: The signing is official, according to RealGM’s transaction log.

SEPTEMBER 17: Daishen Nix will sign a one-year contract with the Timberwolves, tweets Shams Charania of The Athletic. It’s an Exhibit 10 deal, according to Chris Hine of The Star Tribune (Twitter link).

The 21-year-old combo guard averaged 4.0 points, 1.7 rebounds and 2.3 assists in 57 games with the Rockets last season. Shooting has been an issue for Nix, who connected on just 34.2% of his attempts from the field and 28.6% from beyond the arc in 2022/23.

Nix earned a two-way contract with Houston in 2021 after playing one year with the G League Ignite. He spent most of his rookie season in the G League, where he helped the Rio Grande Valley Vipers capture the championship.

The Rockets decided to waive Nix in late June before his $1,836,096 for next season became guaranteed. Houston had a team option for Nix for 2024/25, but it was also non-guaranteed.

The Exhibit 10 clause in Nix’s new deal with the Wolves will allow him to earn a bonus worth up to $75K if he’s waived and spends at least 60 days with Minnesota’s G League affiliate in Iowa. Exhibit 10 contracts can also be converted into two-way deals.

Minnesota has 14 players with fully guaranteed standard contracts, plus one two-way spot open, so there’s an opportunity for Nix to make the roster if he’s impressive during training camp. Once Nix’s signing becomes official, the Wolves will have two openings left on their offseason roster.

Mavericks Re-Sign Markieff Morris

September 16th, 2023 at 12:29pm CST by Rory Maher

The Mavericks have re-signed free agent forward Markieff Morris, the team announced in a press release.

The terms of the deal were not disclosed, but given his modest role last season, it seems likely that the 34-year-old signed a one-year, minimum-salary contract. We’ll have to wait and see if he got any guaranteed money, but Morris, who is entering his 13th season, would earn just under $3.2MM on a minimum deal, while Dallas would carry a $2,019,706 cap hit.

Morris was sent to Dallas from Brooklyn in early February as part of the Kyrie Irving trade. He was averaging a career-low 10.6 minutes per game in 27 appearances for the Nets and said he was looking for an opportunity for more playing time after the deal, but Morris played even less for the Mavs, averaging just 8.8 minutes over eight appearances. That average is actually inflated — he played 26 minutes in the team’s final game, when Dallas was trying to lose to keep its lottery pick.

While he hasn’t found much individual success in recent seasons, Morris played all 21 playoff games for the Lakers in 2019/20 when they won the championship. The longtime veteran holds career regular season averages of 10.6 points and 5.0 rebounds in 750 games (378 starts, 24.1 minutes), with a shooting slash line of .446/.343/.778.

The Mavericks waived and then used the stretch provision on JaVale McGee to free up a roster spot for Morris. McGee later signed a guaranteed one-year, minimum-salary deal with the Kings after clearing waivers.

With Morris officially signed, the Mavs now have 20 players under contract, one shy of the offseason limit. They have one two-way slot open, as our tracker shows.

Wizards Sign Dejan Vasiljevic To Exhibit 10 Deal

September 16th, 2023 at 8:03am CST by Dana Gauruder

SEPTEMBER 16: The Wizards officially signed Vasiljevic to an Exhibit 10 contract, the team announced (Twitter link). Washington still has a two-way contract opening, so he could be in competition for that spot.

JULY 31: Dejan Vasiljevic has agreed to an Exhibit 10 contract with the Wizards, ESPN’s Olgun Uluc tweets.

The former Miami Hurricanes guard has played for the Sydney Kings of Australia’s NBL since 2020 after going undrafted by NBA clubs.

In 36 games last season, Vasiljevic averaged 13.4 points, 4.3 rebounds and 1.8 assists per game. The 26-year-old opted out of his contract with the Australian club following the season.

He was on the Suns’ Summer League squad in 2022 and played for Washington’s Summer League club this month. He averaged 7.3 points in 12.7 minutes in Las Vegas while appearing in three games for the Wizards.

The addition of Vasiljevic gives Washington 20 players on its roster. The Wizards have a two-way opening, so it’s possible he could earn that spot, since Exhibit 10 deals can be converted to two-way contracts before the regular season begins.

If they’re waived by the NBA squad, players on Exhibit 10 deals can also earn a bonus of up to $75K by joining the team’s G League affiliate — in this case, the Capital City Go-Go — and spending at least 60 days with that NBAGL club.

Knicks Sign Ryan Arcidiacono, Waive Dmytro Skapintsev

September 15th, 2023 at 4:10pm CST by Luke Adams

4:10pm: Arcidiacono signed an Exhibit 9 contract, league sources tell Begley. That means the veteran guard is on a one-year, minimum-salary contract that is non-guaranteed and doesn’t count against the salary cap unless he makes New York’s regular season roster.

The Exhibit 9 language in the deal provides protection to the Knicks in case Arcidiacono sustains an untimely injury during training camp.

3:55pm: The Knicks made a pair of roster moves on Friday, announcing (on Twitter) that they’ve waived center Dmytro Skapintsev and signed free agent point guard Ryan Arcidiacono.

Cutting Skapintsev was necessary in order to open up a spot for Arcidiacono, since New York has a full 21-man roster. Skapintsev, who signed an Exhibit 10 contract with the team last month, figures to end up playing for the Westchester Knicks, New York’s G League affiliate.

As for Arcidiacono, the veteran guard has spent most of the past two seasons with the Knicks, appearing in 10 games for the team in 2021/22 and 11 more in ’22/23 before he was sent to Portland in February’s Josh Hart trade. The Trail Blazers subsequently waived Arcidiacono in April.

According to Ian Begley of SNY.tv (Twitter link), the Knicks were reluctant to include Arcidiacono in the Hart trade and only did so in order to satisfy salary-matching rules. Arcidiacono is the fourth Villanova player on the roster and is known to be particularly close with Jalen Brunson, Begley adds.

In 237 career regular season games with the Bulls, Knicks, and Blazers, Arcidiacono has averaged 4.4 points, 2.0 assists, and 1.9 rebounds in 16.4 minutes per night, posting a shooting line of .424/.373/.807.

It’s unclear if Arcidiacono’s new contract with the Knicks includes any guaranteed money, but he has made the regular season roster despite being on a non-guaranteed deal in each of the previous two seasons, and he has a path to a 15-man spot this fall. New York is only carrying 12 players on guaranteed contracts, with DaQuan Jeffries, Isaiah Roby, Duane Washington, Jacob Toppin, and Charlie Brown Jr. on non-guaranteed deals.

Magic Sign, Waive Alex Morales

September 15th, 2023 at 2:20pm CST by Rory Maher

SEPTEMBER 15: The Magic have waived Morales, tweets Beede. The plan is for the guard to return to the Osceola Magic in the G League this season, and his brief stint on Orlando’s roster ensures he’ll receive an Exhibit 10 bonus for spending at least 60 days with the NBAGL club.

SEPTEMBER 14: The Magic have signed free agent guard Alex Morales, the team announced in a press release. According to Jason Beede of The Orlando Sentinel, who was first to report the news, Morales will receive an Exhibit 10 contract (Twitter link).

Morales signed an Exhibit 10 deal with Orlando last fall and was waived before the 2022/23 season began. He spent his rookie season with Lakeland, Orlando’s then-G league affiliate. The team has rebranded and moved, and is now known as the Osceola Magic.

The former Wagner star, who spent 2022 Summer League with the Warriors, averaged 6.2 PPG, 5.3 RPG, 2.0 APG and 1.1 SPG on .471/.276/.733 shooting over 30 regular season games with Lakeland (21.9 MPG). Morales, 25, also appeared in 17 games with the NBAGL squad during the Showcase Cup last fall.

The Exhibit 10 clause in Morales’ contract means he could receive a bonus worth up to $75K if he’s waived before the season starts and spends at least 60 days with Osceola in 2023/24. Exhibit 10 contracts can also be converted into two-way deals, and Orlando has one two-way slot open.

The Magic’s roster is now full, with 21 players under contract, the offseason maximum. That number will drop to 18 — 15 on standard deals and three two-way slots — once the regular season begins.

Wizards Re-Sign Taj Gibson

September 15th, 2023 at 1:51pm CST by Luke Adams

1:51pm: The Wizards have officially re-signed Gibson, the team announced in a press release.

“Taj has earned his reputation as a consummate professional and loyal teammate,” Wizards general manager Will Dawkins said in a statement. “We look forward to him adding to the competitive atmosphere when we begin training camp next month.”

9:47am: Free agent big man Taj Gibson has reached an agreement to return to the Wizards on a one-year, minimum-salary deal, agent Mark Bartelstein tells Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN (Twitter link).

Gibson, 38, appeared in 49 games for Washington last season, averaging 3.4 points and 1.9 rebounds in 9.8 minutes per night. All of those figures were career lows, though the former first-round pick was a valued veteran presence in the Wizards’ locker room.

Given that the Wizards were already carrying 16 players on guaranteed contracts and revamped their front office this offseason, the odds seemed to be working against Gibson’s return. However, Washington isn’t especially deep in the frontcourt after trading away big man Kristaps Porzingis, so having a vet like Gibson on the bench could be a useful insurance policy.

It’s unclear at this point whether or not Gibson’s salary will be fully guaranteed. Many of the contracts being signed by veteran free agents at this stage of the offseason are either non-guaranteed or partially guaranteed, and the Wizards may not be eager to exacerbate their roster crunch by adding another guaranteed salary to their books. We’ll have to wait for additional details.

Assuming they all make the 15-man regular season roster, Gibson could end up vying with fellow centers Daniel Gafford and Mike Muscala for playing time at the five. His minimum-salary contract would pay him $3,196,448 for the 2023/24 season, while Washington would have a $2,019,706 cap charge.