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The Houston Rockets have waived guard/forward P.J. Hairston, forward Le’Bryan Nash, and guard Gary Payton II, General Manager Daryl Morey announced today.
Hairston signed with the Rockets on Sept. 30 while Nash signed on Oct. 22. Payton II was eligible for the 2016 NBA Draft and competed for the Rockets in the Samsung NBA Summer League and in this preseason.
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The Philadelphia 76ers signed guard Dionte Christmas today.
Christmas appeared in 31 games for the Phoenix Suns during the 2013-14 season, where he posted averages of two points and one rebound in seven minutes per game. He also has seven seasons of experience internationally, most recently with Torku Konyaspor Basket of the Turkish Basketball Super League.
He was originally signed by Philadelphia in September of 2009 after participating in the Orlando Summer League as part of the Sixers’ combined team with the Brooklyn Nets.
Christmas had a stellar career at Temple University, where he averaged 16 points, four rebounds and two assists in four years, while becoming the first player to ever lead the Atlantic 10 Conference in scoring for three consecutive seasons.
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The Portland Trail Blazers have exercised the fourth-year contract options on forward Noah Vonleh and guard Shabazz Napier.
Vonleh, 21, posted averages of 3.6 points (42.1% FG, 74.5% FT), 3.9 rebounds, 0.4 assists and 15.1 minutes in 78 games (56 starts) last season with the Trail Blazers after being acquired from the Charlotte Hornets on June 24, 2015. Vonleh was the ninth overall pick in the first round of the 2014 NBA Draft.
Acquired on July 7 from the Orlando Magic in exchange for cash considerations, Napier, 24, has averaged 4.4 points (36.1% FG, 34.7% 3-PT, 76.2% FT), 1.6 rebounds, 2.1 assists and 15.2 minutes over two seasons with the Miami Heat and Orlando. Napier was originally selected as the 24th overall pick in the first round of the 2014 NBA Draft.
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The Indiana Pacers have signed 6-9 free agent forward Ben Bentil to a contract.
Bentil, who played collegiately at Providence, was a second-round pick (51st overall) of the Boston Celtics in the 2016 NBA Draft.
The Pacers this season are built around guards Jeff Teague, Monta Ellis and Rodney Stuckey, forwards Paul George and Thaddeus Young, and centers Myles Turner and Al Jefferson. George is the big star of the group.
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The New Orleans Pelicans waived forward Alonzo Gee today, and confirmed that Lance Stephenson has made their regular season roster.
Gee, 6-6, 225, has appeared in 73 career games with New Orleans, averaging 4.5 points, 3.4 rebounds, 1.0 assists and 0.9 steals in 22.4 minutes per game. Gee was originally signed by New Orleans on July 16, 2015.
Undrafted in 2009 out of the University of Alabama, Gee has appeared in 404 career regular season games with Washington, San Antonio, Cleveland, Denver, Portland and New Orleans, holding averages of 6.8 points, 3.3 rebounds, 1.1 assists and 0.9 steals in 22.2 minutes per contest.
New Orleans’ roster now stands at 15.
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The Minnesota Timberwolves on Sunday exercised the third-year options on Tyus Jones and Karl-Anthony Towns, along with the fourth-year options on Zach LaVine and Andrew Wiggins.
Jones, 20, posted averages of 4.2 points and 2.9 assists in 15.5 minutes per contest in 37 games over his rookie season. The Wolves originally acquired the draft rights to the 6-2 guard from the Cleveland Cavaliers on June 25, 2015.
LaVine, 21, owns career averages of 12.1 points, 2.8 rebounds and 3.1 assists in 159 contests. The 6-5 guard tallied 14.0 ppg, on 45.2% shooting, including a 38.9% mark from three-point distance, a season ago. Minnesota drafted LaVine with the 13th overall selection in the 2014 NBA Draft.
Towns, 20, averaged 18.3 points, 10.5 rebounds and 1.7 blocks per game last season on his way to being named 2016 KIA NBA Rookie of the Year. The Wolves selected the 7-0 forward/center with the No. 1 overall pick in the 2015 NBA Draft.
Wiggins, 21, has averaged 18.8 points, 4.1 rebounds and 2.0 assists in 163 career contests over two seasons with Minnesota. The 6-8 forward tallied averages of 20.7 points, 3.6 rebounds and 2.0 assists a season ago. Wiggins, who was named the 2015 KIA NBA Rookie of the Year, was acquired by the Wolves via trade on August 23, 2014 after being selected No. 1 overall in the 2014 NBA Draft by Cleveland.
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The Indiana Pacers on Sunday waived 6-9 forward Jeremy Evans and 6-6 guard Julyan Stone.
Evans appeared in two preseason games and did not score.
Stone played in five games, scoring one point while averaging two rebounds per game.
The Pacers’ roster now stands at 15.
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The Toronto Raptors announced Sunday forward Jared Sullinger will have a screw inserted into the fifth metatarsal in his left foot. The surgery will be performed Monday afternoon by Dr. Martin O’Malley in New York City.
The procedure is a preventative measure to alleviate symptomatic stress reactions. Sullinger’s status will be updated as appropriate.
The Raptors signed Sullinger as a free agent July 14. The four-year veteran has averaged 11.1 points, 7.7 rebounds and 24.9 minutes in 258 regular season games.
The Raptors open the 2016-17 season Wednesday when they play host to the Detroit Pistons at Air Canada Centre at 7:30 p.m. (TSN/TSN 1050 Toronto).
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The Warriors have exercised the third-year contract option on forward Kevon Looney, which is for the 2017-18 NBA season.
Looney, 20, appeared in five games for Golden State last season, averaging 1.8 points and 2.0 rebounds in 4.2 minutes per contest. He also appeared in 12 games with the Santa Cruz Warriors of the NBA Development League, averaging 9.8 points and 7.4 rebounds in 19.3 minutes. Originally selected by Golden State with the 30th overall pick in the 2015 NBA Draft, the 6’9” forward appeared in six games this preseason, averaging 3.7 points and 4.5 rebounds in 12.1 minutes per contest.
Under the terms of the NBA’s current collective bargaining agreement, the first two years of a first round draft pick’s contract are guaranteed, while the third and fourth year of the contract are the team’s option. Teams have until October 31st to exercise these options.
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The Raptors have exercised the fourth-year team options on the Rookie Scale Contracts of forward Bruno Caboclo and center Lucas Nogueira and the third-year team option on the Rookie Scale Contract of guard Delon Wright.
The contracts for Caboclo, Nogueira and Wright are now guaranteed through the 2017-18 season.
In accordance with the league’s Collective Bargaining Agreement, the Raptors had until October 31 to exercise their option on all three players. Per team policy, financial terms of the deals were not disclosed.
Caboclo, 6-foot-9, 218 pounds, was selected by the Raptors with the 20th overall pick in the 2014 NBA Draft. The native of Osasco, Brazil split last season between Toronto and Raptors 905 in the NBA D-League. He made six appearances with Toronto. Caboclo averaged 14.7 points, 6.5 rebounds, 1.8 blocks and 34.3 minutes in 37 games (35 starts) with Raptors 905. He scored 20-or-more points eight times, including a season-high 31 points Mar. 28 at Grand Rapids.
Nogueira, 7-foot, 241 pounds was acquired from Atlanta on June 30, 2014. He saw action with the Raptors and Raptors 905 during the 2015-16 season. He averaged 2.2 points, 1.6 rebounds and 7.8 minutes in 29 outings with Toronto and 9.9 points, 6.6 rebounds and 25.1 minutes in 11 contests with Raptors 905.
The native of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil was taken 16th overall by Boston in the 2013 Draft. He played three seasons in Spain before joining the Raptors.
Wright, 6-foot-5, 183 pounds was selected by Toronto with the 20th overall pick in the 2015 NBA Draft. He averaged 3.8 points, 1.4 rebounds and 8.5 minutes in 27 games last season. Wright scored a season-high 19 points Apr. 8 vs. Indiana. He also appeared in 15 games with Raptors 905, averaging 17.7 points, 5.0 rebounds, 6.5 assists, 1.6 steals and 35.7 minutes.