As the official waiting period to sign free-agents has come to an end, trades and signings are becoming official around the league. They are slowly trickling in and in reality they have all been reported on already so unless a trade wrinkle becomes known we won’t bother with the official announcements.
We start out latest instalment of NBA News & Notes with a few minor deals throughout the Association. To no ones surprise Chris Anderson has re-signed with the Miami Heat on a one year contract. The exact dollar figures are not yet know; however the minimum Anderson can earn is about $1.4 million.
The Toronto Raptors waded once again into the free-agent waters and they picked up Tyler Hansbrough, signing him to a two year deal. In typical Raptor fashion this signing makes little sense as the upside to having Hansbrough coming off the bench is negligible.
The New Orleans Pelicans signed former Golden State Warrior Anthony Morrow to a two year deal for the veteran league minimum. This is a nice pickup for the Pelicans as Morrow will space the floor and shoot the ball on offense and he should provide some veteran leadership to a very young Pelicans squad. Staying in New Orleans, reports also have the Pelicans signing Greg Stiemsma to a two year deal for $2.7 million. Stiemsma is a big-bodied guy who should provide some size and muscle down low for the team. There was a need here as the Pelicans jettisoned Robin Lopez earlier.
The Los Angeles Lakers have reached out and convinced Jordan Farmar to come back to Laker-land. Farmar had been overseas plying his trade; however, apparently longed for less money and more scrutiny. All kidding aside Farmar is a California kid with family in the area, but he should know that this isn’t the same Laker squad he left, they are going to be much different as they move forward this season.
The Minnesota Timberwolves are reportedly close to signing two players. Corey Brewer is apparently re-joining the Wolves on a three year deal for around $15 million while Nikola Pekovic has his sights on a much bigger deal as it is being rumoured Pekovic is looking at $50 million over the next four seasons. Both Pekovic and Brewer are solid signings for the Wolves. Pekovic had a really good season in the absence of Kevin Love and Brewer will bring some athleticism and defense to the team.
Over in Dallas, the Mavericks had been wooing Andrew Bynum, but before those talks took place they did scoop Wayne Ellington and signed him to a two year contract for $5 million. Not exactly sure how Ellington helps this roster much, but the value may become known once the season starts. A playoff run does require a deep bench, but the playoffs are not exactly a sure thing for the Mavs in the ultra-competitive Western Conference.
Now that we are on the subject of Bynum, it would appear that any interest the Mavs had in Bynum is now a mute point as reports have Bynum agreeing to a two year $24 million deal with Cleveland. Kicker to this contract is that only about $6 million is guaranteed and the second year comes at a club option. One has to think that this wasn’t the ideal contract Bynum had in mind, but it just may have been the best that was out there. This could turn into an absolute steal for the Cavs if Bynum can return healthy and if he doesn’t, it cost $6 million and he is cut loose at season’s end.
Stay tuned to eDraft for an analysis of each team and how their offseason changes may have affected their conference rankings and their postseason chances.