Wizards Rumors

Wizards, Josh Harrellson Agree To Camp Deal

September 15th, 2015 at 2:20pm CST by Chuck Myron

The Wizards and Josh Harrellson have reached agreement on a non-guaranteed deal, reports Shams Charania of Yahoo Sports (Twitter link). The three-year veteran spent last season playing overseas after the Pistons waived him in July 2014. He’ll have a tough time sticking with Washington past the preseason, since the Wizards already have 15 players on fully guaranteed contracts, which puts them at the regular season roster limit.

A debilitating back injury in early 2014 threatened his career, but Harrellson returned to action eight months after surgery and split last season between China and Puerto Rico. The big man who earned the nickname Jorts for his fashion sense at the University of Kentucky played summer league ball with the Suns this July, averaging 8.4 points and 5.1 rebounds in 17.2 minutes per game across seven appearances.

The efficient rebounding nonetheless failed to elicit much chatter about interest from NBA teams, though he told Tim Reynolds of The Associated Press at summer league that, “My main goal is to get a contract out of this. Even if it’s a partial [guarantee], just something.” He’ll instead settle for a non-guaranteed arrangement.

Harrellson is poised to compete with fellow NBA veterans Ish Smith and Toure’ Murry in Wizards camp. The Wizards are also reportedly set to sign undrafted center Jaleel Roberts from UNC-Asheville, though a more recent report casts Roberts merely as a “possibility” for Washington.

Do you think Harrellson belongs in the NBA, whether it’s with the Wizards or another team? Leave a comment to tell us.

Western Notes: Jazz, Nash, Mavs, Crabbe

September 15th, 2015 at 1:02pm CST by Chuck Myron

The Jazz are content to play through the preseason, at least, with the point guards they have now, rather than trading for a Dante Exum replacement, reports Tony Jones of The Salt Lake Tribune. Utah won’t turn down an overwhelming offer, but the team isn’t pushing for a deal as Exum recovers from surgery two weeks ago on the torn ACL in his left knee, as Jones details. The team was reportedly interested in dealing for Garrett Temple and pursued Jason Terry before he re-signed with the Rockets, but Jones and Tribune colleague Aaron Falk wrote shortly after Exum’s injury last month that the Jazz would probably replace him in-house with Trey Burke, Raul Neto and Bryce Cotton. See more from the Western Conference here:

Steve Nash is finalizing a deal with the Warriors to become a part-time player development consultant for the team, sources tell Marc Stein of ESPN.com (Twitter link). The two-time MVP, now 41 years old, announced his retirement this spring. Warriors coach Steve Kerr was Suns GM during Nash’s time in Phoenix.
Point guard isn’t an issue for the Mavericks, who again feature four players at that position, as Earl K. Sneed of Mavs.com notes. The team replaced Rajon Rondo with Deron Williams, re-signed J.J. Barea and, though the Mavs reportedly planned to shop Raymond Felton, he remains in Dallas.
Allen Crabbe‘s 35.3% three-point shooting last season was respectable but far from elite, and this year is the last on his contract, so the former 31st overall pick spent much of the summer working on his shot with Blazers assistant coach Nate Tibbetts, as Joe Freeman of The Oregonian details. Portland kept Crabbe past the point this summer when his minimum salary for the season ahead became guaranteed.

And-Ones: Langdon, Wizards, Fournier

September 14th, 2015 at 10:28pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Cavaliers will hire Spurs scout Trajan Langdon as their Director of Player Administration, sources told Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo Sports (Twitter link). He will replace Raja Bell, who is leaving to spend more time with his family, Wojnarowski adds. The change was confirmed by Chris Haynes of Northeast Ohio Media Group, who spoke to Bell. “I had so much fun with those boys and the Cavaliers’ organization, but it was just time to be with my family,” said Bell, who served in that role for one season. “It was the right thing to do right now, but I definitely enjoyed my time there.”

In other news around the league:

Wizards owner Ted Leonsis had reached a tentative deal with Washington, D.C. mayor Muriel E. Bowser to build a $56.3MM practice facility, Jonathan O’Connell of the Washington Post reports. Officials said the city plans to construct and own the facility, which will also include an arena for the WNBA Washington Mystics, while Leonsis would contribute $10MM to aid the surrounding neighborhood, O’Connell continues. Leonsis has been pushing for a state-of-the-art venue to replace the existing practice facility at the Verizon Center in order to attract high-profile free agents next summer, including Kevin Durant, who grew up in nearby Prince George’s County, O’Connell adds.
Suns forward Markieff Morris and his brother, Pistons forward Marcus Morris, have a court appearance scheduled for Wednesday in Phoenix, Paul Coro of the Arizona Republic tweets. They face felony aggravated assault charges for their alleged roles in a January brawl at a Phoenix recreation center. The duo would be suspended a minimum of 10 games if they are found guilty of a felony and could also face a suspension if they’re guilty of a misdemeanor, former NBA executive Bobby Marks tweets.
Magic swingman Evan Fournier could have competition for minutes and a sixth-man role this season from rookie Mario Hezonja, Brian Schmitz of the Orlando Sentinel reports. Both have similar skills, though playing them together on the second unit is intriguing because it could give Orlando some second-unit firepower, Schmitz continues. Fournier needs to improve defensively and increase his strength to get more playing time, Schmitz adds. He is eligible for an extension until the start of the regular season, and we recently examined his chances of getting it in our Extension Candidate series.

2015 NBA Draft Grades: Southeast Division

September 11th, 2015 at 9:12pm CST by Eddie Scarito

The 2015 NBA Draft is squarely in the rearview and a number of draftees have already provided a taste of what is to come with their summer league play. I held off on my grades until now because I wanted a better context in which to evaluate each team’s selections, with free agency and summer league providing greater perspective. Sometimes, selecting the best available player isn’t the best course of action and it is wiser to nab a player who fits a clear need, which should always be considered when rating how each front office fared in the draft. I’ve already run down my thoughts on the Atlantic and Central Divisions, and next up is a look at the Southeast Division:

Atlanta Hawks

Team Needs: Depth, scoring.

Draft Picks:

No. 50 Overall — Marcus Eriksson, SG, Sweden
No. 59 Overall — Dimitrios Agravanis, F, Greece

Atlanta’s haul on draft night amounted to two draft-and-stash players whose NBA futures are murky at best, and Tim Hardaway Jr., whom the team acquired from the Knicks in exchange for the No. 19 overall pick that had been garnered in a swap with the Wizards earlier in the draft. So in essence, the Hawks dealt the No. 15 overall pick in the 2015 draft for 2013’s No. 24 overall choice. While I do think that Hardaway could benefit from a change of scenery, I firmly believe that Atlanta would have done better to hold onto its original pick and simply used it to select Kelly Oubre, who was taken by Washington at No. 15 overall.

Oubre, while he didn’t live up to expectations during his lone season at Kansas, has the potential to be a two-way star in the NBA. Hardaway, while being a nice complementary offensive player, has shown himself to be fairly one-dimensional thus far in his professional career. Hardaway is also a bit of a redundant a piece with Kyle Korver already on the roster, which makes the trade even more of a head-scratcher in my view. I would even go as far as saying that keeping the No. 19 overall pick, Jerian Grant, would have benefited the franchise more than adding the former Knicks shooting guard.

Overall Draft Grade: D. While the Hawks did land a proven commodity in Hardaway, Oubre has the potential to be a far better NBA player. Atlanta would have been better served to simply hold onto their original selection instead of wheeling and dealing in the first round.

Charlotte Hornets

Team Needs: Outside shooting, frontcourt depth

Draft Picks:

No. 9 Overall — Frank Kaminsky, PF, Wisconsin

It feels as if the Hornets have been searching for a player who can stretch the floor on offense for ages, with outside shooting being one of the team’s main weaknesses for a few seasons running. That’s why I found it a surprise that Charlotte passed on Devin Booker with its pick and instead went with Kaminsky. Sure, Kaminsky is certainly capable of filling up a stat sheet from the outside, but the team could have used a wing player who can shoot much more than a stretch-four. Or, perhaps I should say, another stretch-four, given that the team traded for Spencer Hawes this offseason. The addition of Hawes should have allowed for GM Rich Cho to land an impact player on the wing like Booker, or Duke’s Justise Winslow, who may end up haunting Charlotte if he becomes a two-way star in the league.

Kaminsky is limited athletically, and while he is certainly a fierce competitor who is very skilled offensively, his defensive shortcomings will lower his overall ceiling as a prospect. I’m rooting for “Frank the Tank” to succeed in the league, but I can easily see him becoming a specialist like Steve Novak, and reduced to sporadic minutes in reserve. Which is not what you want out of a top 10 pick, especially given some of the talent still on the board when Charlotte was on the clock on draft night.

Overall Draft Grade: C+. The selection of Kaminsky was puzzling given the presence of Hawes, the team’s greater needs at the wing and center positions, and the availability of Winslow and Booker at the No. 9 spot. Kaminsky is a solid player, but the team could have utilized this pick much more effectively.

Miami Heat

Team Needs: Youth, depth at wing and at center.

Draft Picks:

No. 10 Overall — Justise Winslow, SF, Duke
No. 40 Overall — Josh Richardson, SG, Tennessee

Team president Pat Riley likely stared at his draft board in disbelief when the Heat’s pick was due and he saw that Winslow was still available at No. 10 overall. Winslow had been projected by a number of mock drafts to be a potential top five pick, so landing him where Miami did cannot be considered anything but a steal for the franchise. The former Duke swingman can provide depth for both Dwyane Wade at shooting guard and Luol Deng at small forward, and given the age and injury concerns for both players, that’s a huge boon for the team. There are concerns about Winslow’s ability to hit his outside shots consistently, but his athleticism and defensive abilities should garner Winslow regular minutes as he figures things out.

The addition of Richardson isn’t likely to have much, if any, impact on the coming season for Miami. It’s doubtful that the swingman will make the team’s regular season roster, though his defensive acumen should ensure him a slot on the Heat’s D-League affiliate for 2015/16.

Overall Draft Grade: A+. It’s hard to find any fault with the Heat selecting a player of Winslow’s potential, especially with the 10th overall pick. Fantastic job for Riley, who continues to show why he’s one of the best executives in the game by not overthinking the selection.

Orlando Magic

Team Needs: Depth, outside shooting.

Draft Picks:

No. 5 Overall — Mario Hezonja, SG, Croatia
No. 51 Overall — Tyler Harvey, SG, Eastern Washington

Like Charlotte, it seems as if Orlando has been searching for a player who can light up the scoreboard from the outside for an eternity. The Magic are hoping that Hezonja, whom the team selected over better-known talents like Justise Winslow, Stanley Johnson, Devin Booker, and Frank Kaminsky with the fifth overall pick, will be the bounty of their quest. While Hezonja certainly has the skills and athletic ability to justify such a high selection, there are legitimate concerns regarding his maturity level and ability to accept coaching, which, if true, will hamper the Croatian’s development significantly. But if Hezonja manages to live up to his predraft hype, the Magic landed themselves a potential star who can fill up the rim from anywhere inside the arena.

My concern for Orlando is the high washout rate of European draftees in the NBA, and the risk the franchise took in nabbing Hezonja that high in the first round. While the upside of Hezonja is certainly tantalizing, the team may have been better served to select a more NBA-ready player in Willie Cauley-Stein, Winslow, or Booker at that slot. All of whom would have filled an obvious need for Orlando, and carried less risk while doing so.

I’m a bigger fan of GM Rob Hennigan nabbing Eastern Washington sharpshooter Tyler Harvey toward the bottom of the second round than I am of his selection of Hezonja. Harvey needs development as a player, but he’s a lethal shooter who needs to be accounted for by defenders the moment he crosses the halfcourt line. There are concerns with his level of athleticism, but he is a smart and savvy player who has the potential to become a solid contributor off of the bench for Orlando in a few seasons.

Overall Draft Grade: B+. I’ll give Hennigan credit for taking a gamble on the upside of Hezonja, but there were a number of players who could have filled the team’s needs at No. 5 overall who didn’t possess as many question marks about their NBA future.

Washington Wizards

Team Needs: Small forward, depth.

Draft Picks:

No. 15 Overall — Kelly Oubre, SF, Kansas*
No. 49 Overall — Aaron White, F, Iowa

*Acquired from Hawks in exchange for the No. 19 overall pick and two future second-rounders.

The Wizards entered the draft needing to land themselves a wing player who would complement their starting backcourt tandem of John Wall and Bradley Beal, as well as to replace Paul Pierce, who signed a free agent deal with the Clippers this offseason. Washington made a smart trade with Atlanta, swapping first-rounders and giving up two future second round picks in exchange for the opportunity to land Oubre.

The swingman out of Kansas was a disappointment during his lone season with the Jayhawks, never coming close to delivering on the preseason hype that his impending arrival in Lawrence wrought. Oubre’s freshman campaign had a rocky start, with the 19-year-old often looking completely lost on the court and receiving sporadic playing time as a result. But Oubre did turn things around as the season progressed, and Washington landed itself a heck of a talent outside of the lottery. Oubre’s defense is more NBA-ready than his offense is, and he’ll learn the hard way that it takes more than athleticism to be an effective scorer in the pros. But I do expect Oubre to develop into a starter, and possibly a future All-Star, though it often won’t be a smooth ride. But full credit is due to the Wizards’ front office, who made a solid deal on draft night to land themselves a player who fits their needs perfectly.

Overall Draft Grade: A+. Great move by GM Ernie Grunfeld to move up in the first round via trade and to land Oubre at No. 15 overall. He fits an obvious team need, and Oubre has the potential to be a two-way star in a few seasons.

Southeast Notes: Beal, Batum, Spoelstra, Hezonja

September 11th, 2015 at 10:01am CST by Chuck Myron

The Wizards and Bradley Beal have kept up a dialogue throughout the offseason, but they haven’t made much progress toward an extension, sources tell Jorge Castillo of The Washington Post. That’s not surprising, since the deadline is still weeks away, though both sides have reason not to do an extension at all and wait to strike a deal until next summer, since Beal can get a longer contract then and the Wizards can keep his cap hold low and retain flexibility, Castillo writes. I examined Beal’s extension candidacy further last week. See more from the Southeast Division:

Shaun Powell of NBA.com speculates that it wouldn’t be surprising to see the Hornets offer Nicolas Batum an extension. The small forward, whose contract expires after this season, is eligible for a veteran extension, though he could receive better terms if he signs one on or after the six-month anniversary of the June 24th trade that brought him to the Hornets, as I noted here. In any case, Powell likes most of the moves Charlotte has made this summer after the disastrous Lance Stephenson signing of last year.
Erik Spoelstra is the second-longest tenured coach in the NBA, but he’s never won a playoff series without LeBron James, so he faces pressure this season with a Heat team expected to advance beyond the first round, opines Ira Winderman of the Sun Sentinel.
Mario Hezonja‘s potent, versatile offensive game prevailed upon the Magic to ignore a more pressing need at power forward with the fifth overall pick, writes Brian Schmitz of the Orlando Sentinel. The Magic are well-stocked at the wing, but Hezonja may well emerge as the ideal sixth man, playing both the two and the three, Schmitz argues.

Pelicans Work Out Rasual Butler

September 10th, 2015 at 11:13am CST by Chuck Myron

Free agent Rasual Butler worked out for the Pelicans at their practice facility Wednesday, sources tell John Reid of The Times Picayune, who writes at the bottom of a story about the team’s signing of Sean Kilpatrick. Before this, the Spurs were the last team with interest linked to the 36-year-old, with Michael Scotto of SheridanHoops reporting that San Antonio continued to eye Butler after The Oregonian’s Jason Quick first identified the Spurs as an interested party in early July. The swingman would like to play for the Heat, as Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald wrote a few days ago, though it’s unclear if Miami wants that to happen.

Butler expressed a desire this past spring to return to the Wizards, with whom he played last season after making the regular season roster on a non-guaranteed deal for the minimum salary, and he appeared eager to join the Blazers after they became interested soon after free agency began this summer. Portland reportedly shifted gears away from him soon thereafter, however.

No movement appears to be taking place in negotiations between the Pelicans and lingering restricted free agent Norris Cole, Reid notes, leaving the team with 13 fully guaranteed contracts, plus partially guaranteed deals for Kilpatrick and undrafted shooting guard Bryce Dejean-Jones, as our Pelicans roster page shows. The team also worked out shooting guard Corey Webster, a prospect from New Zealand, as Niall Anderson of The New Zealand Herald reported and as Reid confirms.

Do you think Butler would be a fit for the Pelicans? Leave a comment to share your thoughts.

Wizards Sign Toure’ Murry

September 9th, 2015 at 10:57pm CST by Eddie Scarito

SEPTEMBER 9TH, 10:57pm: Murry has signed with the Wizards, Eric Pincus of Basketball Insiders reports (on Twitter).

AUGUST 28TH, 4:18pm: The Wizards have agreed to a deal with unrestricted free agent Toure’ Murry, J. Michael of CSNMid-Atlantic reports. The pact is a non-guaranteed training camp arrangement, Michael notes. The addition of the guard will give the Wizards a roster count of 17 players, 15 of whom possess fully guaranteed contracts, making it a longshot for Murry to make the opening night roster.

Murry had inked a one-year, $1MM contract with Utah last offseason, but it was only partially guaranteed, and he saw just one minute of action with the Jazz prior to his January release, much to the dismay of his agent, Bernie Lee. Murry later resurfaced on a pair of 10-day contracts with the Wizards, for whom he totaled six points in 17 minutes.

The Lakers had reportedly brought in Murry as part of a group workout held in Los Angeles earlier this month, though no contract offer came out of that showcase for the 25-year-old.

Wizards To Bring Ish Smith To Camp

September 9th, 2015 at 10:56pm CST by Chuck Myron

SEPTEMBER 9TH, 10:56pm: The signing is official, Eric Pincus of Basketball Insiders reports (via Twitter).

SEPTEMBER 8TH, 11:27am: The Wizards have a non-guaranteed pact with Ish Smith for training camp, reports Jorge Castillo of The Washington Post (Twitter link). Castillo also confirms an earlier report from J. Michael of CSNWashington.com that Washington will bring Toure’ Murry to camp on a non-guaranteed contract, too. Smith and Murry have already put pen to paper, according to Castillo, though the team has yet to make a formal announcement.

Washington also agreed to a non-guaranteed camp deal with undrafted UNC-Asheville center Jaleel Roberts, as Shams Charania reported at that point for RealGM, though Castillo refers to Roberts as a “possibility” for the Wizards (Twitter links). In any case, Smith, Murry and Roberts all seem to face long odds to make Washington’s roster, which includes 15 others who have fully guaranteed contracts.

Smith finished last season with the Sixers, and on a roster painfully short on point guard options, the five-year veteran had the most productive stretch of his career, averaging 12.0 points, 6.1 assists and 2.8 turnovers in 27.1 minutes per game across 25 appearances. He expressed interest at season’s end in a return to Philadelphia, but his unrestricted free agency this summer has been surprisingly quiet, with a lack of reports about any teams in pursuit. It’s possible that he was waiting on the Sixers, whose flurry of activity over Labor Day weekend left them with no more wiggle room for their camp roster, though that’s just my speculation.

The Raymond Brothers client signed a fully guaranteed contract for the minimum salary with the Rockets last summer, but Houston waived him before the start of the regular season. The Thunder added him as their 16th man via the hardship provision in November and kept him over Sebastian Telfair when they trimmed back down to 15 players. Oklahoma City nonetheless traded him to the Pelicans at the deadline, and New Orleans immediately released him. That’s when the Sixers jumped into the picture, claiming him off waivers two days later.

Do you think Ish Smith deserves to stick with the Wizards? If so, which of their 15 fully guaranteed contracts should go? Leave a comment to tell us.

Southeast Notes: Hawks, Beal, Frye, Heat

September 7th, 2015 at 8:59am CST by Chuck Myron

The Hawks have gone through several key changes since Bruce Levenson self-reported racially charged emails he’d sent and announced a year ago today that he was selling the team, as Chris Vivlamore of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution recaps. Tony Ressler took over for Levenson as the principal owner, Mike Budenholzer assumed former GM Danny Ferry‘s responsibilities and received a promotion, and Tiago Splitter and Tim Hardaway Jr. replaced DeMarre Carroll and Pero Antic as key parts of the roster. The team now faces the challenge of improving upon a season that saw “the most remarkable on-court run in franchise history,” as Vivlamore puts it. While we wait to find out where the Hawks go from here, see more from the Southeast Division:

Some people around the Wizards had questioned Bradley Beal‘s work ethic and whether he could become a great player, but the season that Paul Pierce spent in Washington helped Beal more than anyone else on the team, many Wizards insiders feel, reports Moke Hamilton of Basketball Insiders. Pierce opted out and signed with the Clippers, so it remains to be seen how Beal, whose extension candidacy I examined in depth Friday, will perform without the veteran mentor.
Channing Frye put up his lowest numbers in five years this past season after signing a four-year, $32MM deal with the Magic, and while he started 51 games, the Magic insisted that they brought him in as more of a complementary player than as a starter, writes Brian Schmitz of the Orlando Sentinel. Next month, the 32-year-old Frye will try to hold off Aaron Gordon, who turns 20 in a few weeks, for a starting spot, but Frye would best serve the Magic in a reserve role that would emphasize his floor-stretching abilities, Schmitz believes.
Ira Winderman of the Sun Sentinel won’t be surprised if the Heat open the regular season with only 14 players on the roster, though he contends in his mailbag column that the team faces depth issues.

Eastern Notes: Beal, Pacers, Celtics

September 6th, 2015 at 6:15pm CST by Will Joseph

Bradley Beal is a very talented player with a lot of upside and one who will receive a maximum deal from a different team if the Wizards don’t sign him to a max extension, Moke Hamilton of Basketball Insiders opines. Hamilton takes into account the expected rise in the league’s salary cap and suggests that Beal is likely worth a large contract because of the league’s current market. Our own Chuck Myron recently examined Beal’s extension candidacy. Ken Berger of CBSSports.com reported in May that the Wizards were committed to paying him the max, but talks didn’t really begin until mid-July, and the sides apparently met with conflicting desires.

Here’s more from around the Eastern Conference:

The Pacers, with depth in the frontcourt, don’t appear to be a good potential trade partner with the Suns for Markieff Morris, who issued a trade demand, Scott Agness of VigilantSports.com writes. The four-year, $32MM extension that Morris signed last fall kicks in for this coming season, but a lack of communication between Morris and the team indicates that the relationship will be extremely difficult to repair. For the Pacers, landing Morris would be worth looking into in exchange for a bench player and a second-round pick, Agness adds, but that package would likely not be enough to reel him in.
The main problem with the Celtics heading into this season, Chris Forsberg of ESPN.com writes, is the team lacks an elite star. Forsberg compares this group of Celtics to last year’s Hawks and adds that although Atlanta had a remarkable season without a star, it ultimately ran out of gas without a big-time player.

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