Washington Wizards Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Wizards Notes: Sheppard, Wall, Roster, Brooks

September 29th, 2019 at 11:50am CST by Arthur Hill

New GM Tommy Sheppard indicated in a press conference this week that the Wizards will be giving a lot more minutes to younger players this year, relays Fred Katz of The Athletic. Sheppard stated that the organization wants to have each rookie play at least 1,500 minutes between the NBA and the G League. That represents a significant change from last season, when Bradley Beal led the league in minutes played and coach Scott Brooks relied heavily on his veterans.

Washington has a pair of rookies with guaranteed contracts in Rui Hachimura and Admiral Schofield, so they should see plenty of time with the Wizards. Garrison Mathews, who has a two-way deal, and Justin Robinson, who wasn’t drafted but has a chance to make the final roster, could both wind up at Capital City. Troy Brown, Moritz Wagner, Isaac Bonga and Jemerrio Jones, all second-year players who didn’t see much time last season, may spend time there as well.

“We gotta show them why and how it’s good for them,” Sheppard said about selling the approach to veterans. “But I think they’re active participants in it, and I think everybody appreciates that we’re trying to prolong careers. You make a bad decision on a player — they go out, and they pop a hamstring, or something happens which could’ve been avoided because of fatigue factor we didn’t recognize — that’s on us.”

There’s more from D.C., all courtesy of Katz:

John Wall is serving as a virtual assistant coach while he waits to return from a ruptured Achilles that may sideline him for the entire season. Sheppard said Wall is helping to teach the younger players, and the team won’t pressure him to try to return. “We’re not waiting on a calendar. There’s not a clock when he comes back,” he said. “He comes back when he’s 100 percent.”
The Wizards have 13 players with guaranteed contracts and may opt to go with a 14-player roster rather than the maximum of 15. “If you have 15 players and one gets hurt, (using a two-way player) is the only way you can plug it,” Sheppard said. “You have 14 players; you can sign somebody and bring them in that’s not in the G League. It gives you optionality … My vision, putting rosters together, it doesn’t make a lot of sense not to hold back a roster spot for the competition, for the inevitable injury, something.” Jordan McRae, who has a $400K guarantee, is considered likely to earn a roster spot, according to Katz, but injuries to Wall and Isaiah Thomas increase the need for another point guard.
Brooks, who is entering the fourth year of his five-year contract, will be judged on building a positive culture rather than wins and losses, Sheppard adds.

Wizards Signed, Waived Michael Cobbins

September 27th, 2019 at 8:46am CST by Luke Adams

Before they officially set their 20-man roster for training camp by signing Chris Chiozza on Thursday, the Wizards briefly carried another newly-added player on their roster. According to RealGM’s transactions log, free agent power forward Michael Cobbins signed a contract with Washington and was waived shortly thereafter.

A former starter at Oklahoma State, Cobbins went undrafted in 2015 and signed his first professional contract with the Thunder that year, but has never appeared in an NBA game. Over the course of the last four seasons, Cobbins has spent time with teams in Greece, Germany, and Croatia, in addition to the the Oklahoma City Blue of the G League.

The Wizards’ deal with Cobbins was almost certainly an Exhibit 10 contract designed to get him a bonus worth up to $50K if he spends at least two months with Washington’s G League affiliate this season.

Since Cobbins’ last G League stint came with the OKC Blue in 2017/18, the Thunder’s NBAGL team would typically hold the 27-year-old’s returning rights for the coming season. However, the Capital City Go-Go claimed him in their expansion draft last summer, so the Wizards’ affiliate won’t have to make a trade to acquire his rights.

Wizards Rumors: Beal, DPE, Wall, Brooks

September 26th, 2019 at 12:39pm CST by Luke Adams

When Bradley Beal become eligible for a contract extension in July, the Wizards reportedly offered the most lucrative possible long-term deal they could (three years, $111.8MM). Two months later, they still don’t have an answer from Beal, who isn’t talking as if a new contract is his top priority at the moment.

In a conversation with NBC Sports Washington’s Chris Miller (video link), Beal said he hasn’t been thinking about an extension, preferring to let his agent handle his contract situation. However, he also stressed that he’s not looking for an exit from the Wizards.

“Honestly you might slap me, but I haven’t thought about it,” Beal said. “I’m just getting better and letting my agent, [GM] Tommy [Sheppard], and everybody else deal with it. I just go hoop. Every day I see somebody and they ask ‘Beal, you leaving?’ and I’m like ‘I’m still living in D.C., I ain’t going nowhere.'”

Acknowledging that he’s aware of speculation about his future and the fact that fans want an answer, Beal said that he likes being a member of the Wizards, hinting that the grass wouldn’t necessarily be greener if he were to go elsewhere.

“It’s a great thing that a lot of people love your game and want you on their team,” Beal said. “But I love the situation I have too. Not every situation would be my situation.”

Sheppard said today that he’s giving Beal space to consider the team’s extension offer, and that it will be up to him to make a decision by October 21 (Twitter link via Chase Hughes of NBC Sports Washington). Because the All-Star guard still has two guaranteed years left on his current contract, he can’t sign an in-season extension. As we’ve noted previously, waiting until at least 2020 to sign a new deal would give him the best chance to maximize his earnings.

Here’s more on the Wizards:

Having assumed control of the Wizards’ front office this summer, Sheppard and his group are prioritizing players who embody the “Wizards Way,” as Gene Wang of The Washington Post relays. “I think we’re still evaluating the best way to express it, but we know what we don’t want the Wizards Way to look like,” Sheppard said. “We don’t want players that don’t want to be here. We don’t want people to have contracts that far exceed what they produce result-wise. We don’t want unhappy people that are going to cause disintegration in our locker room. That’s the way out. That’s the Wizards’ way out, so what we’re trying to onboard now, talent, of course, but high character, hard-driven, value-driven people that we can back with data that have places in our locker room.”
The Wizards still haven’t gotten an answer on whether their disabled player exception request for John Wall will be approved, Sheppard said today (Twitter link via Hughes). The club applied all the way back at the start of July, so it appears it wasn’t a slam-dunk decision. An NBA-designated physician will have to determine whether Wall is “substantially more likely than not” to be out of action through at least June 15, 2020.
Hughes adds in the same tweet that Wall will be helping out the coaching staff this season as he recovers from his Achilles tear. The veteran point guard will have a few players to whom he’s specifically assigned.
It will be a pivotal year for head coach Scott Brooks in Washington, according to Hughes, who writes at NBC Sports Washington that the season could go a number of different ways. It remains an open question whether Brooks will be coaching the Wizards beyond 2019/20, says Hughes.
The Wizards signed Chris Chiozza and finalized their 20-man training camp roster, as we detailed earlier today.

Wizards Sign Chris Chiozza

September 26th, 2019 at 10:46am CST by Luke Adams

The Wizards have finalized their training camp roster, signing free agent point guard Chris Chiozza to the fill the 20th and final spot on the squad, the team announced today in a press release. Chase Hughes of NBC Sports Washington first reported last week that Chiozza would be joining the club for camp. He signed an Exhibit 10 contract, tweets Candace Buckner of The Washington Post.

Chiozza is a familiar face for the Wizards, who initially signed him to their Summer League team and then to their preseason roster in 2018 after he went undrafted out of Florida. The 6’0″ guard subsequently spent most of his rookie season with Washington’s G League affiliate, averaging 13.6 PPG and 6.8 APG on .435/.420/.777 shooting in 43 games (33.5 MPG) for the Capital City Go-Go. He was named to the NBAGL’s All-Rookie team at season’s end.

Chiozza also spent some of his rookie season with the Rockets, signing a 10-day contract with the club in February and then a rest-of-season deal in March. His contract with Houston included a non-guaranteed second year, but he was waived in July after playing limited minutes in seven NBA games as a Rocket.

Since the Wizards only have 13 players with fully guaranteed salaries and one on a two-way contract, it’s possible Chiozza will be among the players to start the regular season in D.C. His odds of making the team may hinge in part on how Isaiah Thomas‘ injury recovery progresses — Thomas underwent surgery on his thumb earlier this month and isn’t expected to return by opening night.

Wizards Sign, Waive Kellen Dunham

September 25th, 2019 at 12:50pm CST by Luke Adams

The Wizards signed shooting guard Kellen Dunham to a contract on Tuesday, but waived him shortly thereafter, according to a pair of NBA transaction logs. RealGM lists Dunham’s signing, while NBA.com notes that he was released.

Dunham, who played his college ball at Butler, went undrafted in 2016 and has bounced around between the G League and international leagues since then. His NBAGL rights were acquired by the Capital City Go-Go – Washington’s affiliate – in 2018’s expansion draft, and he spent the entire 2018/19 season with the club, averaging 7.8 PPG with a .454 3PT% in 50 games off the bench.

It appears likely that Dunham will return to the Go-Go for the 2019/20 season. When he does, he should be in line for a bonus worth up to $50K as a result of being signed on Tuesday.

An Exhibit 10 contract entitles a player to that bonus if he goes on to spend two months on his team’s G League roster — even if he was on the NBA roster for less than 24 hours before being released, as was the case with Dunham.

Wizards Pick Up 2020/21 Options On Brown, Wagner

September 25th, 2019 at 10:52am CST by Luke Adams

Another team has got its 2020/21 rookie scale team option decisions out of the way well in advance of the October 31 deadline, as Fred Katz of The Athletic reports (via Twitter) that the Wizards have exercised their third-year options on both Troy Brown and Moritz Wagner.

The 15th overall pick in the 2018 draft, Brown will now have a fully guaranteed cap hit of $3,372,840 for the 2020/21 season. Washington also locked in a $2,161,920 cap charge in ’20/21 for Wagner, who was drafted 25th overall in 2018. The Wizards will have to make decisions on fourth-year options for 2021/22 on both players by October 31, 2020.

Brown, 20, appeared in 52 games in his rookie season, averaging 4.8 PPG and 2.8 RPG in 14.0 minutes per contest for the Wizards. He’s expected to play a more significant role going forward, but he’s currently dealing with a left calf strain that may jeopardize his availability for opening night.

Wagner, 22, spent his rookie year with the Lakers, averaging 4.8 PPG and 2.0 RPG in 43 games (10.4 MPG). He arrived in Washington along with Isaac Bonga and Jemerrio Jones as part of the blockbuster three-team trade that saw Anthony Davis land in Los Angeles.

We’re tracking all of this year’s decisions on 2020/21 rookie scale options right here.

Wizards’ Troy Brown Strains Calf, Out Four Weeks

September 24th, 2019 at 3:07pm CST by Luke Adams

Wizards forward Troy Brown suffered a left calf strain during workouts on Monday and is expected to miss approximately four weeks, the team announced today in a press release.

A four-week absence would sideline Brown through October 22, and the Wizards’ season will begin on October 23 in Dallas. As such, it’s possible the 20-year-old could make it back for opening night, but that’s certainly not a lock.

The 15th overall pick in the 2018 draft, Brown appeared in 52 games in his rookie season, averaging 4.8 PPG and 2.8 RPG in 14.0 minutes per contest. He’s expected to play a more significant role moving forward as Washington transitions into rebuilding mode.

Brown’s injury is the latest in a string of them for the Wizards, who will be a little shorthanded when training camp opens next week. C.J. Miles underwent surgery in July to repair a stress fracture in his left foot, while Isaiah Thomas underwent thumb surgery last week and is expected to miss the start of the regular season.

John Wall On Achilles Recovery: “Taking Baby Steps”

September 21st, 2019 at 11:47am CST by marksuleymanov

Wizards point guard John Wall, in the midst of recovering from a torn Achilles, is making some strides in his recovery.

“I’m great, man. Just rehabbing, working out and lifting weights. I’m shooting some jump shots, doing some ball-handling and stuff like that,” Wall said to NBC Sports Washington’s Chris Miller.

Wall, 29, suffered the injury this past January during a fall at his home as he was recovering from a heel injury. Given Washington’s lofty financial commitment to the five-time All-Star, the club will be counting on him to be one of its primary contributors when he’s healthy.

At his peak, Wall has shown himself as one of the premier point guards in the NBA. Just last season, he averaged 20.7 PPG and 8.1 APG in 32 contests before the injuries set in.

However, at this point, Wall is taking a conservative approach in his recovery so he does not end up re-injuring himself.

“I understand because I’ve played through injuries before that if I try to come back too soon or too fast, I could be hurt and have to start all over again. I’m not trying to go through that process again, so I’m finally taking my baby steps,” he said.

14 NBA Teams Have Open 20-Man Roster Spots

September 20th, 2019 at 7:08pm CST by Luke Adams

With NBA training camps right around the corner, several more teams filled their 20-man offseason rosters this week. The Hornets did so on Monday, with the Mavericks, Pistons, Raptors, and Hawks following suit over the next few days. Those clubs join a list of 16 total teams that don’t have any openings on their offseason rosters.

Of course, every NBA team with a full 20-man roster is carrying multiple players who have non-guaranteed contracts, so it’s not as if any of them would be hamstrung if they really want to sign another player. But for now at least, it appears as if those 16 teams have their 20-man squads set for when camps get underway at the end of the month.

That leaves 14 clubs that still have open roster spots, as our tracker shows. Here’s a breakdown of those teams, along with my speculation on whether we can expect them to make moves within the next week or two:

19 players under contract:

Golden State Warriors
Philadelphia 76ers
Sacramento Kings
Washington Wizards

None of these teams are carrying 15 players on fully guaranteed contracts, so it’s possible they’ll still add a veteran player who could earn a regular season roster spot. But it’s more likely that they’ll each sign another young player who could end up in the G League, since all four teams have their own NBAGL affiliates. The Wizards, who need to add some point guard depth, are said to be eyeing Chris Chiozza for their final spot.

18 players under contract:

Boston Celtics
Denver Nuggets
Houston Rockets
New Orleans Pelicans
Orlando Magic
Phoenix Suns
Portland Trail Blazers

While it’s not official yet, the Celtics essentially have a full roster. Kaiser Gates and Yante Maten have both reportedly agreed to Exhibit 10 contracts with the Celtics, but have yet to finalize them. Once they’re under contract, Boston’s 20-man roster will be full.

The Magic could also have a full 20-man roster if and when they complete their reported agreement with Isaac Humphries and sign first-round pick Chuma Okeke. The Pelicans, meanwhile, reportedly reached deals with undrafted rookies Jalen Adams, Javon Bess, and Aubrey Dawkins, but there’s only room for two of them on the roster, so unless New Orleans plans to waive a player, the team won’t be signing all three.

The Rockets are signing Thabo Sefolosha and would have room for one more camp invitee, while I’d expect the Suns to invite two more young players to camp with them.

The Nuggets and Trail Blazers don’t have their own G League affiliates, so they may not fill out their rosters unless they just need healthy bodies for camp.

17 players under contract:

Brooklyn Nets
Chicago Bulls
Oklahoma City Thunder

All three of these teams have their own G League affiliates and should fill out their camp rosters with young players who can play for the Long Island Nets, Windy City Bulls, or OKC Blue. Of course, rumors continue to swirl that the Nets are eyeing Carmelo Anthony, but I wouldn’t expect the Bulls or Thunder to be seeking any veteran help.

Nuggets Notes: Beasley, Hernangomez, Bol, Cancar

September 20th, 2019 at 1:58pm CST by Arthur Hill

Possible extensions for Malik Beasley and Juancho Hernangomez are the last pieces of business the Nuggets may address before the opening of training camp, writes Mike Singer of The Denver Post. Denver’s front office acted quickly to give Jamal Murray a max extension, but the others aren’t clear-cut decisions, and Singer examines the positives and negatives of reaching deals with both players before the October 21 deadline.

Beasley emerged as a valuable bench player last season after injuries to Gary Harris and Will Barton. He averaged 15.9 PPG and shot 55% from the field as a starter, including 50% on 3-pointers. He enters this season as Harris’ primary backup, but still needs to improve on defense before coach Michael Malone will be comfortable playing him late in games. Singer speculates that based on last year’s performance, Beasley may want to skip an extension and try his luck as a restricted free agent next summer.

Hernangomez is coming off an injury-plagued season that saw him fall out of the rotation by the second half of the season. He had core surgery after the season ended and is coming off a strong performance with Spain’s gold medal-winning World Cup team. Hernangomez doesn’t have an established role and figures to compete for playing time with Barton, Torrey Craig, Michael Porter Jr. and Jerami Grant.

There’s more today from Denver:

It may be time for the Nuggets to move some of their depth in exchange for an established star, suggests Nick Kosmider of The Athletic. If the Wizards decide to part with Bradley Beal, for example, Kosmider believes Denver could put together a competitive offer involving Harris, Porter and a future first-rounder or possibly Hernangomez, Monte Morris, Beasley and a future pick. Other possible targets could include Kevin Love, Jeff Teague or one of the Raptors‘ veterans.
Bol Bol may spend his entire rookie season in the G League, Kosmider states in a mailbag column. Bol was a highly touted college prospect before injuries cut his season short, and the Nuggets view him as a project that will take time to develop, Kosmider adds, which is why he was signed to a two-way contract. Bol’s progress may be complicated because Denver doesn’t have a direct G League affiliate, which means much of the work will be done by another organization.
Vlatko Cancar may be in the same position, but his standard contract gives him a better chance to win a role in training camp, Kosmider notes in the same piece.