The Wizards are still looking to make moves with their $8.6MM trade exception and in free agency, Candace Buckner of the Washington Post tweets. Washington has already agreed to a sign-and-trade to ship out Tomas Satoransky to the Bulls, agreed to a two-year deal with Ish Smith and come to terms with center Thomas Bryant on a three-year deal.
The Wizards have signed their first-round pick, forward Rui Hachimura, the team’s PR department tweets.
The ninth overall pick in the draft can max out at $4.469MM in his first season under the rookie scale stipulations. He can make $4.693MM in his second season and $4.916MM in his third year.
The West Coast Conference Player of the Year, Hachimura averaged 19.7 PPG, 6.5 RPG, and 1.5 APG for Gonzaga in his junior season while shooting 59.1% from the field.
Pau Gasol, whose contract with the Bucks is up, continues to recover from a procedure on his left foot, but he wants to continue his NBA career next season, he tells ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (Twitter link).
“My recovery from surgery has been smooth and I expect to be fully cleared for basketball activities in early August,” Gasol said. “I cannot wait to start training again.”
Gasol, who is an unrestricted free agent, is the only one of Milwaukee’s free agents who has yet to reach an agreement this week. There has been no indication that the Bucks are seeking a reunion.
Here are a few more free agency notes and rumors:
- The Mavericks are among the teams that have expressed “strong interest” in Delon Wright, league sources tell Ian Begley of SNY.tv (Twitter link). Darren Wolfson of SKOR North tweets that the Timberwolves have also inquired on Wright. Wright is a restricted free agent, so the Grizzlies would have the chance to match an offer sheet.
- The Timberwolves continue to kick the tires on free agent point guard T.J. McConnell, according to Wolfson, who tweets that the Sixers, Heat, Lakers, Grizzlies, Suns, Wizards, and Pacers have also checked out McConnell. Barry Jackson of The Miami Herald (via Twitter) notes that McConnell could be a target for Miami if the team trades Goran Dragic.
- The Thunder are among the teams that have expressed some interest in veteran guard Jodie Meeks, a league source tells Brett Dawson of The Athletic (Twitter link). Dawson’s report came shortly before Oklahoma City agreed to terms with Alec Burks, so it’s not clear if the club remains interested in Meeks.
- In a text message to Marc J. Spears of The Undefeated (Twitter link), Enes Kanter explains that he considered re-signing with the Trail Blazers, but didn’t feel as if they gave him enough time to make his decision. Kanter agreed to a two-year deal with Boston.
The Heat have engaged the Wizards in trade discussions, a source in contact with one of the teams tells Barry Jackson of The Miami Herald (Twitter link). Jackson notes that Miami “loves” Bradley Beal, but acknowledges that Washington has repeatedly indicated it has no plans to move its star shooting guard. Even if the Wizards were willing to discuss Beal, the Heat’s limited assets and difficult cap situation would make it “highly challenging” to put together a realistic deal, Jackson adds.
In other Heat trade news, the proposed deal with the Mavericks that appeared to be nearing completion on Sunday now looks dead. It won’t receive the same scrutiny or mockery that the in-season Dillon Brooks/MarShon Brooks mix-up involving the Wizards, Grizzlies, and Suns did, given everything else that’s going on this week, but the Mavs/Heat deal apparently also fell apart due to a miscommunication — Miami was certain that Goran Dragic was involved, while Dallas thought it was acquiring Kelly Olynyk and Derrick Jones, as Tim Cato of The Athletic details.
Here’s more from around the Eastern Conference:
- A source tells Mark Murphy of The Boston Herald that Al Horford‘s decision to sign with the Sixers was partly about money, but also about the opportunity to play alongside a star center. Horford has “always been uncomfortable in a traditional center’s role,” Murphy writes.
- Multiple league executives questioned why the Knicks used their cap room to sign a collection of non-stars rather than trying to take on bad contracts to add future assets, writes Mike Vorkunov of The Athletic.
- Hornets owner Michael Jordan issued a statement today bidding farewell to Kemba Walker and thanking him for “eight incredible seasons with our franchise” (link via JD Shaw of Hoops Rumors). “He always represented the Hornets, the NBA, and the city of Charlotte with class – both on the court and in the community – and we are disappointed he is leaving,” Jordan said.
JULY 9: The Wizards have officially signed Smith, per NBA.com’s transactions log.
JULY 1: The Wizards have agreed to terms on a two-year deal with free agent point guard Ish Smith, according to Shams Charania of The Athletic, who reports (via Twitter) that the deal will be worth $12MM.
[RELATED: Wizards to re-sign Thomas Bryant]
Smith, who will turn 31 on Friday, will join the 11th team of his NBA career. He spent the last three seasons in Detroit, having averaged 8.9 PPG and 3.6 APG on .419/.326/.758 shooting in 2018/19 for the Pistons.
With Detroit turning to Derrick Rose early in free agency to fill its point guard hole, Smith was destined for a new NBA home, and the Wizards had long been interested, tweets David Aldridge of The Athletic.
With John Wall expected to miss most of the 2019/20 season due to his torn Achilles and Tomas Satoransky facing restricted free agency, the Wizards needed to address the point guard position this summer.
Satoransky will be headed to Chicago in a sign-and-trade deal, so the Wizards will likely need to add at least one more point guard to join Smith while Wall recovers.
According to Candace Buckner of The Washington Post (via Twitter), Smith will receive a fully guaranteed deal and will be signed using the Wizards’ mid-level exception. Assuming the team plans on staying out tax territory and retaining its full, non-taxpayer’s MLE, it should still have more than $3MM available on that exception.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
The new-look Nets may be close to bringing back one of their locker room leaders, tweets Michael Scotto of The Athletic. Jared Dudley is interested in signing up for another season in Brooklyn, a source tells Scotto.
Dudley, who will turn 34 next month, also contributed on the court in his first season with the Nets, averaging 4.9 PPG in 59 games and shooting 35% from 3-point range. Dudley is also drawing interest from the Pistons and met with Detroit officials today, according to Chris Mannix of Sports Illustrated (Twitter link).
There’s more free agent news to pass along:
- The Mavericks’ planned discussion with Patrick Beverley didn’t happen tonight, relays Brad Townsend of the Dallas Morning News (Twitter link), who speculates that it was because of the team’s involvement in a three-way trade with the Heat and Sixers. Townsend adds that the Mavs’ chances of landing Beverley seem less likely than they were earlier.
- Dallas is optimistic about reaching a deal with restricted free agent Maxi Kleber, tweets Tim MacMahon of ESPN. He cites “productive discussions” between the Mavericks and the power forward/center.
- JaVale McGee has a meeting set with the Pistons tomorrow, relays Chris Haynes of Yahoo Sports (Twitter link). The free agent center talked to the Rockets today.
- Danny Green spoke on his Instagram account about meeting with the Mavericks, Lakers and Clippers and Raptors, tweets Blake Murphy of The Athletic. “Being patient, man,” he said of the process. “Being patient.”
- The Wizards would still like to re-sign Tomas Satoransky, but are looking into other options at point guard, according to Chase Hughes of NBC Sports Washington (Twitter link). Hughes states that they are interested in Quinn Cook and notes that Shams Charania of The Athletic has reported an inquiry about Cory Joseph.
JULY 7: The Wizards have formally announced Bryant’s new three-year deal, issuing a press release to confirm the signing.
“Re-signing Thomas was our top priority this offseason and we’re extremely excited to have him with us as he takes the next step in his development,” Wizards interim head of basketball operations Tommy Sheppard said in a statement. “His overall attitude, work ethic and team-first mentality embody the type of environment that we are working to create and sustain within the Wizards organization.”
JUNE 30: The Wizards have agreed to a three-year, $25MM contract with center Thomas Bryant, his agent, Todd Ramasar, tells ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (Twitter link).
Bryant is coming off an impressive season with the team, holding per-game averages of 10.5 points, 6.3 rebounds and 20.8 minutes. At just 21 years old, he remains one of the league’s most intriguing prospects at the center position, set to enter his third NBA season in the fall.
Washington also has the free-agent situations of Bobby Portis, Jabari Parker and Tomas Satoransky to worry about in the coming days, with Portis and Parker currently operating as though they won’t return with the team, according to Chase Hughes of NBC Sports Washington (Twitter link).
The Wizards dealt with several injuries to core players this season, finishing with a 32-50 record and failing to make the playoffs.
Tobias Harris is meeting with the Sixers to begin free agency, The Athletic’s David Aldridge tweets. Harris is seeking a full, five-year max deal.
Jimmy Butler is in Miami to begin his free agency tour and is expected to tell the Heat that he wants to sign with them. The Sixers will likely get a chance to speak with Butler before he signs elsewhere, as Miami doesn’t have the cap space necessary to offer Butler a max contract.
Here’s more from the start of free agency:
- Magic Johnson said he has spoken to Kawhi Leonard and Dennis Robertson (Leonard’s uncle) after Leonard’s camp contacted him, Brad Turner of the Los Angeles Times relays (Twitter link). No meeting between the parties has been set up yet.
- Bobby Portis and Jabari Parker are both operating as if they will not be back with the Wizards, Chase Hughes of NBC Sports reports on Twitter. Both players were brought to Washington in the mid-season deal that sent Otto Porter Jr. to Chicago.
- Julius Randle is on the Knicks‘ radar, a source tells Marc Berman of the New York Post (Twitter link). New York missed out on Kevin Durant, watching him sign with the Nets.
- The Knicks are meeting with Reggie Bullock tonight, Aldridge tweets. Bullock is ready to commit to a “strong offer,” Aldridge adds. The Lakers would like to keep him, though New York will be among the teams which will have a chance to steal him away from Los Angeles.
The Jazz are expected to meet with veteran forward Bobby Portis once free agency opens, league sources tell Tony Jones of The Athletic (Twitter link). According to Jones, the meeting will likely take place in Los Angeles.
Utah doesn’t project to have any cap room once its acquisition of Mike Conley becomes official, but can open up space by waiving Derrick Favors, who has a non-guaranteed salary of $17MM+. It appears the Jazz are weighing frontcourt options who might be better fits alongside center Rudy Gobert than a non-shooter like Favors.
A report earlier this afternoon indicated that the Jazz had been mulling a three-year offer in the $45MM range for Nikola Mirotic. However, Mirotic has opted to return to Spain, agreeing to a deal with Barcelona.
With a top stretch four like Mirotic off the board, his former teammate Portis could be a fit for what the Jazz are seeking. The Wizards‘ restricted free agent has knocked down three-pointers at a 36.1% rate over the course of his four-year NBA career, including 39.3% last season for Chicago and Washington.
The Knicks also have strong interest in Portis, according to Jones. The Lakers, Clippers, Bucks, and Magic have previously been cited as potential suitors for the 24-year-old, who is said to be seeking an annual salary worth up to $16MM. The Wizards aren’t expected to match a lucrative offer sheet.
Washington concluded a three-day minicamp today in which several notable players participated in full-court scrimmages and drills. No. 9 overall pick Rui Hachimura and No. 42 overall pick Admiral Schofield were among the prospects participating in drills for the Wizards. Schofield believes the two rookies can play well together, as he told Hoops Rumors and other media members in attendance.
“I can play multiple positions. So can [Hachimura],” Schofield said. “He can play the wing and the forward. That’s going to make us pretty lethal. We just have to get used to the [NBA level] and how things are done here, understanding from the vets how to pace ourselves and how to play the game the right way.”
Schofield, whose rights were traded to the Wizards in the Jonathon Simmons deal on draft night, initially thought he was going to Philadelphia. The 22-year-old said he actually found out about his draft spot through Adrian Wojnarowski on Twitter, as I recently passed along.
“[My agent] told me I was going to get picked…but I saw the tweet before my agent called, which was pretty cool. Woj is elite,” Schofield said.
Here’s more from Washington:
- The Wizards and Jonathon Simmons have agreed to move back the guarantee deadline on his deal from July 1 to July 8, sources confirm. Fred Katz of The Athletic was the first to report the news.
- While no definite decision has been made, last year’s second-round pick Issuf Sanon is likely to spend another season abroad, a source tells Hoops Rumors. The organization is impressed by the progress Sanon is making. “He came back lighter,” assistant coach Robert Pack said during a session with the media. “He’s playing with a little more confidence.”
- Hachimura said undrafted free agent Justin Robinson has helped him adjust to living in Washington D.C., as he told Hoops Rumors and other media members in attendance. “He’s from [the area],” Hachimura said. “Justin’s great…we talk a lot.” Robinson, who has been referred to by the team as the 61st pick in the draft, is expected to play for the team’s G League, as Candace Buckner of The Washington Post recently wrote.