Week in Review

Week In Review 8/30/15-9/5/15

Mikhail Prokhorov is reportedly working toward a deal that would give him 100% ownership of both the Nets and the Barclays Center. The would-be arrangement would entail Prokhorov’s company, which already owns 80% of the Nets and 45% of the arena, forgiving the approximately $31MM debt that former majority owner Bruce Ratner’s Forest City Enterprises owes them. Prokhorov and the Guggenheim Partners apparently had talks a year ago about a merging of ownership, months after a report indicated that Prokhorov was listening to offers for the Nets. Those Guggenheim talks were said to have hit a snag, though rumors that Prokhorov had interest in selling the Nets have persisted. Prokhorov has repeatedly downplayed such talk.

Here’s a look back at more news from the week that was…


Free Agent Signings

  • The Heat signed undrafted small forward Greg Whittington to a training camp deal.
  • The Clippers signed Chuck Hayes.
  • The Lakers signed Brazilian point guard Marcelo Huertas.
  • The Bucks reached a contract agreement with Charlie Westbrook.
  • The Kings and Eric Moreland reached an agreement on a one-year deal.
  • The Rockets agreed to training camp deals with Denzel Livingston, Will Cummings, Remi Yusuf and Chris Walker.
  • The Heat agreed to sign undrafted free agent Briante Weber.
  • The Pistons agreed to a deal with unrestricted free agent small forward Eric Griffin.
  • The Sixers agreed to a deal with Kendall Marshall.
  • The Bucks agreed to a non-guaranteed contract with Josh Powell.

You can stay up to date on all of the signings with Hoops Rumors’ free agent tracker.


Miscellaneous News

  • Unrestricted free agent Will Cherry officially signed with the German club Alba Berlin.
  • The Celtics extended their exclusive affiliation with the D-League’s Maine Red Claws through the 2017/18 season.
  • Clippers guard Austin Rivers signed with ASM Sports for representation.
  • DeAndre Jordan parted ways with Relativity Sports agents Dan Fegan and Jarinn Akana.
  • Unrestricted free agent Landry Fields will miss five months after having labrum surgery on his hip.
  • Grizzlies 2015 first-rounder Jarell Martin will be out indefinitely after fracturing his left foot.
  • Unrestricted free agent power forward Glen Davis underwent surgery to repair torn ligaments, a cyst, and bone spurs in his left ankle, and he is expected to be out of action for two-to-three months.
  • Former Blazers small forward Victor Claver officially signed with Lokomotiv Kuban of Russia.
  • The Jazz hired Jordan Brady as an assistant coach for their D-League affiliate.
  • Unrestricted free agent Jeff Ayres agreed to a deal with an unnamed Chinese team.
  • Former No. 4 overall pick Tyrus Thomas signed with Eisbären Bremerhaven of Germany.
  • Jazz point guard Dante Exum underwent successful surgery to repair damage to the ACL in his left knee. He will be out of action indefinitely.
  • Platinum Equity founder and Pistons owner Tom Gores is buying his firm’s stake in the team, which would give him 100% ownership of the franchise.

Week In Review 8/23/15-8/29/15

The NBA fined the Clippers $250K for violating the league’s rules against circumventing the salary cap in their pitch to DeAndre Jordan last month. The Clippers presented Jordan with a potential third-party endorsement opportunity during their meeting with him on July 2nd. That was before Jordan gave his commitment to the Mavericks, one that came undone when he later expressed second thoughts to the Clippers, who convinced him to re-sign.

The league’s investigation concluded that the violation didn’t influence Jordan’s ultimate decision to return to the team. However, the NBA is imposing the fine anyway, since rules prohibit teams from arranging compensation for players outside of the salary set forth via the contractual terms allowed under the collective bargaining agreement. Here’s the rest of the happenings from the week that was…


Free Agent Signings

Eastern Conference

Western Conference

You can stay up to date on all of the signings with Hoops Rumors’ free agent tracker.


Contract Extensions

  • The Hornets signed forward Michael Kidd-Gilchrist to a four-year, $52MM contract extension.

Miscellaneous News

  • Former NBA guard Gal Mekel signed a deal with the Serbian team Crvena Zvezda.
  • The Heat and the D-League’s Sioux Falls Skyforce formally extended their one-to-one affiliation deal.
  • Point guard Marcelo Huertas, who had planned a jump to the NBA this season and had been expected to draw significant interest, has instead signed with Galatasaray of Turkey.
  • The Lakers promoted Ryan West to director of player personnel.
  • James Nunnally signed with Sidigas Avellino of the Italian Serie A.
  • Jordan Hamilton signed a deal to play overseas for the Russian club Krasny Oktyabr.
  • Pacers draft-and-stash prospect Stanko Barac signed with Olimpia Milano of Italy.
  • Carlos Boozer is reportedly likely to remain unsigned for the rest of the offseason and instead seek a deal with a playoff contender after the season starts.
  • The Suns officially named Chris Jent the head coach of their one-to-one D-League affiliate.
  • Luka Mitrovic, the 60th pick in this year’s draft, agreed to an extension with Crvena Zvezda of Serbia that runs through the 2016/17 season.

Week In Review 8/16/15-8/22/15

J.R. Smith, who was the most prominent unsigned free agent remaining, finally agreed to re-sign with the Cavaliers this week. The two sides reached a deal on a two-year pact that includes a player option for the 2016/17 season, which will allow the guard to once again test the free agent market next offseason if he wishes.

Smith took to his personal Instagram account to relay the news, writing, “Happy to say that I am returning to the Cavs! It’s been a long ride this summer but I can say for sure, well worth the wait. When I opted out of my contract, I wanted to understand the landscape of the NBA and where I fit best. The Cavaliers had things they needed to do in order to piece together a championship caliber roster. I ended up deciding that instead of potentially securing a larger deal elsewhere, I wanted to rejoin an incredible organization in pursuit of the ultimate goal, an NBA championship. Thank you to the Cavaliers for making this happen. Can’t wait to get started!”

The 29-year-old’s decision to decline his one-year, $6.4MM player option for certainly didn’t pay off, as he will now earn $5MM this coming season under the terms of his new pact. But a chance to once again contend for an NBA title should help alleviate some of his angst regarding his lower income level for the upcoming campaign. Here’s more from the week that was…


Free Agent Signings

Eastern Conference

  • The Bucks signed former University of Wisconsin power forward Marcus Landry.
  • The Cavaliers reached a deal with free agent Jared Cunningham.
  • The Hornets agreed to a deal with undrafted free agent forward Sam Thompson.
  • The Hawks signed a deal with unrestricted free agent Jason Richardson.
  • The Wizards agreed to sign undrafted center Jaleel Roberts.
  • The Hornets agreed to a deal with unrestricted free agent center Jason Washburn.
  • The Heat signed undrafted shooting guard Corey Hawkins.

Western Conference

  • The Jazz signed undrafted guard Treveon Graham.
  • The Lakers reached a contract agreement with Michael Frazier.
  • The Grizzlies signed center Michael Holyfield.
  • The Suns and shooting guard Terrico White agreed to a deal.
  • The Warriors and Jarell Eddie reached an agreement on a training camp deal.
  • The Suns agreed to a camp deal with former Harvard combo forward Kyle Casey.

You can stay up to date on all of the signings with Hoops Rumors’ free agent tracker.


Waivers

  •  The Nuggets waived Joey Dorsey as part of a buyout arrangement. Dorsey agreed to a deal with Galatasaray of Turkey.

Miscellaneous News

  • The Raptors and Jonas Valanciunas signed an extension worth $64MM over four years.
  • Dorell Wright signed a deal with China’s Chongqing Dragons.
  • The Kings hired longtime NBA sabermetrician Roland Beech to head up their analytics department.
  • Colton Iverson officially signed with the Turkish team Pinar Karsiyaka.
  • Joel Embiid underwent a second surgery on his right foot and he is expected to miss the entire 2015/16 season.
  • The NBA officially announced that Kiki Vandeweghe has been promoted to Executive Vice President, Basketball Operations for the league.
  • The Rockets hired Matt Brase as the coach of Rio Grande Valley Vipers, their D-League affiliate.
  • The Bulls hired Toni Kukoc as a special adviser to president and COO Michael Reinsdorf.
  • Will Bynum agreed to re-sign with the Guangdong Tigers of the Chinese Basketball Association.
  • Warriors 2015 first-rounder Kevon Looney underwent surgery on his right hip and is expected to miss a minimum of four to six months.

Week In Review 8/9/15-8/15/15

Suns forward Markieff Morris said that he feels disrespected by the way the team handled the July 9th trade of his twin brother and former teammate, Marcus Morris, to the Pistons, and made it clear that he wants out of Phoenix prior to the 2015/16 season commencing. “One thing for sure, I am not going to be there,” Morris said. “If you want to put that out there, you can put that out,” he added. “. . . I am not to going to be there at all.” The forward’s comments essentially confirm last week’s report from John Gambadoro of Arizona Sports 98.7 radio that Markieff wanted off the Suns, and out of Phoenix. Morris is slated to make $8MM this coming season in the first year of his four-year, $32MM extension.

Here’s more from the week that was…


Free Agent Signings

Eastern Conference

Western Conference

  • The Lakers signed undrafted Texas forward Jonathan Holmes.
  • The Timberwolves agreed to a deal with Tayshaun Prince.
  • The Mavericks signed JaVale McGee.
  • The Kings reached a contract agreement with undrafted forward Vince Hunter.
  • The Thunder agreed to a contract with undrafted free agent Dez Wells.
  • The Pelicans agreed to a deal with undrafted shooting guard Bryce Dejean-Jones.

You can stay up to date on all of the signings with Hoops Rumors’ free agent tracker.


Waivers


Miscellaneous News

  • Olivier Hanlan, the No. 42 overall pick in this year’s NBA Draft by the Jazz, signed a deal with the Lithuanian club Zalgiris Kaunas.
  • Former Cavaliers big man Alex Kirk signed with Italy’s Giorgio Tesi Pistoia.
  • Jason Maxiell signed with the Tianjin Steel of the Chinese Basketball Association.
  • Former 2007 No. 1 overall pick Greg Oden signed with the Jiangsu Dragons of the Chinese Basketball Association.
  • Drew Gordon, who played mostly in the D-League and appeared in nine games with the Sixers last season, inked a deal with France’s Chalons-Reims.
  • Former Celtics 10-day signee Andre Dawkins inked a deal with Italy’s Auxilium CUS Torino.
  • D.J. Kennedy signed with Enisey Krasnoyarsk of Russia.
  • Nets 2015 second-rounder Juan Pablo Vaulet will be out of action for four months following surgery to repair a stress fracture in his right ankle.
  • Brandon Davies, who played for the Nets and Sixers during the 2014/15 campaign, officially signed with Pallacanestro Varese of Italy.
  • The league released the full team schedules for the 2015/16 season.
  • Zoran Dragic signed a two-year deal with Khimki of Russia.
  • The Hawks hired former NBA player Malik Rose as their manager of basketball operations.

Week In Review 8/2/15-8/8/15

The Jazz announced this week that Dante Exum has a torn ACL in his left knee, confirming initial fears in the wake of the injury he suffered Tuesday while playing for the Australian national team. He’ll inevitably require surgery, and while Utah didn’t specify a timetable for recovery, it seems likely that the point guard will miss all of the 2015/16 season. Here’s the rest of the happenings from the week that was…


Free Agent Signings

Eastern Conference

Western Conference

You can stay up to date on all of the signings with Hoops Rumors’ free agent tracker.


2015 NBA Draft Pick Signings

You can stay up to date on all of the 2015 NBA Draft signings here.


Waivers


Miscellaneous News

  • The Pacers are expected to purchase the D-League’s Fort Wayne Mad Ants.
  • The Hawks hired Michael Blackstone as an assistant GM, John Treloar as director of player personnel, and promoted Jeff Peterson to director of scouting.
  • The Nuggets and Danilo Gallinari signed a renegotiation and extension.
  • Semaj Christon, the 55th pick in the 2014 draft, signed with Italy’s Vuelle Pesaro.
  • The Raptors promoted Teresa Resch to Vice President, Basketball Operations and Player Development and Dan Tolzman to Director, Player Personnel.
  • Former lottery pick Joe Alexander turned down a Summer contract offer from the Celtics and instead signed a deal with Banco di Sardegna Sassari of Sardinia.
  • Aaron Craft, who made 50 appearances for the Warriors’ D-League affiliate last season, signed a deal with the Hungarian team Szolnoki Olaj.
  • The full roster for the upcoming Team USA minicamp was announced.

Week In Review 7/26/15-8/1/15

The public funding plan for a new Bucks arena in Milwaukee received approval from the Wisconsin State Assembly by a 52-34 vote this past Tuesday. The measure passed the state senate two weeks ago and now heads to Governor Scott Walker for his signature. Walker has consistently supported the idea of a new building that would keep the team from leaving town. State, county and city leaders have been under pressure from the league to make sure an arena is ready by the start of the 2017/18 season, with the NBA having threatened to take the team away from owners Marc Lasry, Wesley Edens and Jamie Dinan and sell it to others who would move the team. The public is on the hook for half of the arena’s expected $500MM cost. Here’s more from the week that was…


Trades

  • The Cavs dealt Brendan Haywood and Mike Miller to the Blazers and Cleveland created two trade exceptions as a result of the transaction — one for $10.5MM and another for $2.85MM — and also received cash from Portland.
  • The Magic acquired Shabazz Napier from the Heat in exchange for a protected 2016 second-round pick.
  • The Celtics acquired Zoran Dragic from the Heat in return for a protected 2019 second-round selection.
  • The Warriors acquired Jason Thompson from the Sixers in exchange for Gerald Wallace. Philly also obtains the right to swap the lesser of the 2016 first-round picks coming their way from the Heat and the Thunder for Golden State’s 2016 first-round pick.

You can keep up with all of the offseason trades here.


Free Agent Signings

Eastern Conference

Western Conference

You can stay up to date on all of the signings with Hoops Rumors’ free agent tracker.


2015 NBA Draft Pick Signings

You can stay up to date on all of the 2015 NBA Draft signings here.


Waivers


International Signings


Coaching News

  • The Kings hired Nancy Lieberman to head coach George Karl‘s staff.
  • Golden State promoted Luke Walton to lead assistant to replace Alvin Gentry.
  • The Suns officially added Earl Watson, Nate Bjorkgren and Jason Fraser to their coaching staff.
  • The Raptors hired Jerry Stackhouse, Rex Kalamian, and Andy Greer as assistant coaches.

Week In Review 7/19/15-7/25/15

One of the last major offseason storylines involves the Cavaliers’ Brendan Haywood and his sizable non-guaranteed contract. Cleveland has been unsuccessful thus far in its attempts to find a trade partner willing to ship useful assets to the Cavs in return for the big man’s pact. The team has reportedly shifted gears and now is focused on flipping Haywood in a deal that creates a traded player exception prior to August 1st, when his contract becomes fully guaranteed, as is shown by our schedule of guarantee dates. The only teams currently possessing enough cap space to absorb Haywood and create a trade exception for Cleveland are the Trail Blazers and the Sixers, with the Jazz also a possibility, provided they trade or cut several players with non-guaranteed contracts prior to landing Haywood. While we await GM David Griffin‘s next move, here’s more from the week that was…


Trades

You can keep up with all of the offseason trades here.


Free Agent Signings

Eastern Conference

Western Conference

You can stay up to date on all of the signings with Hoops Rumors’ free agent tracker.


2015 NBA Draft Pick Signings

You can stay up to date on all of the 2015 NBA Draft signings here.


Waivers


Miscellaneous News

Week In Review 7/12/15-7/18/15

Plans for a new Bucks arena in Milwaukee cleared another major hurdle this week when the Milwaukee State Senate passed the arena funding bill by a vote of 21-10, and now the proposal will go before the State Assembly for ratification. Bucks team president Peter Feigin released this statement on behalf of the franchise: “Today’s vote is a significant step forward in our collective effort to build a new sports and entertainment district in Wisconsin. We appreciate the bipartisan leadership in Madison for bringing this transformative partnership one step closer to reality. We’re optimistic that this financing package will receive support in the Assembly and look forward to working with state, county and city officials.” Besides the positive news for the Bucks and their fans, here’s the rest of the happenings from the week that was…

Trades

You can keep up with all of the offseason trades here.


Free Agent Signings

Eastern Conference

Western Conference

You can stay up to date on all of the signings with Hoops Rumors’ free agent tracker.


2015 NBA Draft Pick Signings

You can stay up to date on all of the 2015 NBA Draft signings here.


Contract Extensions


Waivers


Miscellaneous News

Week In Review 7/5/15-7/11/15

The NBA announced that the salary cap for 2015/16 will be $70MM, an 11% increase from this past season, and the luxury tax line will be $84.74MM. The last cap projection from the league had been set at $67.1MM, and the projection for the tax had been $81.6MM. These figures mean the maximum salaries for this coming season are also going to be higher than estimated, so LaMarcus Aldridge, Marc Gasol, Kawhi Leonard and others who’ve agreed to max contracts this month will earn more cash than they thought.

The league also tabulated final payrolls for each team from last season, revealing that players collectively made less than the 50.39% of basketball-related income that the collective bargaining agreement holds that they’re entitled to. Thus, the league will pay out the $57,298,826 shortfall to the union, which will distribute that amongst the players.

Here’s the rest of the happenings from the week that was…

Trades

  • The Lakers acquired Roy Hibbert from the Pacers in exchange for a future second-rounder.
  • The Knicks acquired Kyle O’Quinn via a sign-and-trade deal with the Magic. Orlando will receive cash considerations as well as the rights to swap a second-round draft pick in 2019 in return.
  • The Kings dealt Ray McCallum to San Antonio for a future second-round pick.
  • The Mavericks acquired Zaza Pachulia from the Bucks for a future second round pick.

You can keep up with all of the offseason trades here.


NBA Signings

Eastern Conference

Western Conference

You can stay up to date on all of the signings with Hoops Rumors’ free agent tracker.


Offer Sheets

  • The Trail Blazers signed Thunder restricted free agent Enes Kanter to a four-year, maximum salary offer sheet.

2015 NBA Draft Pick Signings

You can stay up to date on all of the 2015 NBA Draft signings here.


Waivers


Miscellaneous News

  • The Timberwolves rescinded their qualifying offer to Robbie Hummel, making him an unrestricted free agent.
  • The Bulls announced that Randy Brown and Charlie Henry have been hired as assistant coaches, and that Mike Wilhelm will be retained as an assistant coach on Fred Hoiberg’s coaching staff.
  • Jordan Farmar signed with Israel’s Maccabi Tel Aviv.
  • The NBA fined Mavericks team owner Mark Cuban $25k for publicly confirming the team’s pending free-agent deals with DeAndre Jordan and Wesley Matthews.
  • The Celtics officially renounced their rights to Shaquille O’Neal, Stephon Marbury, Michael Olowokandi, Michael Finley, Carlos Arroyo, Nenad Krstic, P.J. Brown, and Scot Pollard, which in turn removes their cap holds.

Week In Review 6/28/15-7/4/15

The NBA’s free agent signing period is underway and there have already been a flurry of deals agreed upon, though, these pacts cannot become official until after the moratorium is lifted on July 9th. You can stay up to date on all of the signings with our 2015 Free Agent Tracker. Before the next wave of wheeling and dealing begins, here’s a look back at the week that was…

Pending Trades

  • The Sixers and Kings agreed to a deal that sends Jason Thompson, Carl Landry, and Nik Stauskas to Philadelphia, along with Sacramento’s 2018 first-round pick and the right to swap first-rounders with the Kings in 2016 and 2017. In return the Kings receive the rights to Arturas Gudaitis and Luka Mitrovic, the 47th and 60th picks, respectively, in last week’s draft.
  • The Raptors acquired Luke Ridnour and cash from the Thunder in exchange for the rights to draft-and-stash prospect Tomislav Zubcic.
  • The Hawks reached an agreement to acquire Tiago Splitter from the Spurs.
  • The Suns and Pistons agreed to a trade that sends Marcus Morris, Reggie Bullock and Danny Granger to Detroit in exchange for a 2020 second-round pick.

Pending Signings

Eastern Conference

Western Conference


2015 NBA Draft Pick Signings

  • The Hornets signed Frank Kaminsky to a rookie scale contract.
  • The Heat inked Justise Winslow to a rookie scale contract.
  • The Nets signed first round draft pick Chris McCullough to a rookie scale contract.
  • The Raptors signed Delon Wright to a rookie deal.

Waivers


Option Decisions


Players Receiving Qualifying Offers


Players Not Extended Qualifying Offers


News/Rumors

  • Tim Duncan won’t be retiring this offseason, and intends to play in 2015/16.
  • Veteran forward Kenyon Martin announced his retirement.
  • The Greivis Vasquez trade allowed the Raptors to generate a $6.4MM trade exception, since they gave him up without taking back any salary in return.
  • Suns coach Jeff Hornacek added Jason Fraser to his staff as a player development coach focusing on the team’s big men.
  • The NBA ordered the Sixers to pay $3MM to the Pelicans last season for not fully disclosing the extent of Jrue Holiday‘s injury before his 2013 trade.
  • Luka Mitrovic, a forward from Serbia who the Sixers took with the final pick of the draft, will stay overseas next season.
  • Hawks free agent shooting guard John Jenkins parted ways with BDA Sports Management to sign with Relativity Sports.
  • Point guard Sergio Llull decided against joining the Rockets and will stay with Real Madrid.
  • Hawks big man Pero Antic signed with Fenerbahce of Turkey.