NBA Rumor: Marquese Chriss Free Agency
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The Golden State Warriors have signed Ky Bowman, Marquese Chriss and Juan Toscano-Anderson to contracts, the team announced today.
Bobby Marks: Golden State is signing Marquese Chriss to a two-year contract, league sources tell ESPN.
Wes Goldberg: The Warriors anticipate to convert Marquese Chriss from his two-way contract to a standard one soon, per a league source.
Wes Goldberg: The Warriors announce the signing of Marquese Chriss to a two-way contract. pic.twitter.com/VBgLmfPNYX
Chris Haynes: Marquese Chriss has signed his contract, officially rejoining the Golden State Warriors on a two-way deal, league sources tell Yahoo Sports.
Connor Letourneau: Steve Kerr on whether it surprised him that Marquese Chriss was available on a two-way: “It did. I guess the one thing that maybe hurt him in terms of not being picked up is just the trade deadline. … We’re the beneficiaries of that.”
Monte Poole: The Marquese Chriss re-signing is indeed imminent, as first reported by @Marc J. Spears. Was the plan all along, per league sources. Warriors were relieved Chriss went unclaimed on waivers and are very interested in keeping him beyond this season.
Marquese Chriss back to Golden State
Marc J. Spears: The Warriors plan to re-sign big man Marquese Chriss to a two-way player deal, a source told @TheUndefeated.
Bobby Marks: As expected, Chriss (and Gary Clark) cleared waivers. Golden St. was hoping a waiver claim would give them more room under the hard cap.
They liked Chriss, for sure. A part of the front office hopes he doesn’t get claimed off of waivers, so the team can bring him back in March. The Warriors would definitely be interested in signing him in the offseason, which for Chriss is a sign of how impressive he was during this make-good opportunity. But they weren’t just going to dump other assets. The only asset they could actually just dump, the one the Warriors were least invested in, was Chriss.
Under the current salary-cap structure, the Warriors can sign you to a 10-day contract. Would you be open to that? Marquese Chriss: “We’ve had conversations about certain things to try and make things work but I think that’s something that I would try to keep between myself and them, just because I don’t know any situation that might come up. But who knows? I would like to be here. So eventually, if that happens, I would be all for it.”
Do you think this stint changed the league-wide perception of you? Marquese Chriss: “Absolutely. I texted Bob [Myers] yesterday and I just told him I appreciated him because pretty much the whole summer, I was on the outside looking in. I had certain opportunities and certain places I could go to try and do the same things I did here, but I felt like coming here was the best opportunity for me and they put me in an opportunity to succeed from day one. I think just being here, it created a different narrative for myself.”
General manager Bob Myers informed Chriss last week that the team might need to waive him to keep Lee with the NBA club the rest of the season. But when it actually happened Monday, many players were stunned. Chriss had built strong bonds with his teammates and left some to believe he could be a long-term piece.
Bobby Marks: Golden State makes it official on the Marquese Chriss waiver. If this was early-November, Chriss would likely get claimed. However, because his contract is guaranteed once claimed and teams put a high priority on open roster spots before the trade deadline, it is unlikely.
Marquese Chriss open to signing a two-way contract
Connor Letourneau: Marquese Chriss said he would like to get a guaranteed deal, even elsewhere, but would be open to talking to Golden State about a two-way contract if that’s all that was available.
The Warriors signed veteran forward Marquese Chriss to a non-guaranteed one-year deal, as first reported by Yahoo on Tuesday. Chriss is unlikely to make the roster. Because of the hard cap, the Warriors don’t currently have the necessary wiggle room to add a 15th and final guy to their roster. If they did, Damion Lee, currently on a two-way deal, would likely get that spot. But if Chriss can impress in camp, the Warriors could shed a piece to find a spot for him. Alfonzo McKinnie is the easiest to lose. He’s the only of the 14 current roster guys on a non-guaranteed deal. They could cut him at any point before the Jan. 10 deadline.
Bobby Marks: Because of hard cap restrictions, the contract for Marquese Chriss in GSW has no salary protection. However, landing a roster spot one week from camp gives the forward an open audition for all 30 teams. No downside in taking a camp deal.
Marquese Chriss to Warriors
Chris Haynes: Free agent forward Marquese Chriss — 8th pick in 2016 NBA Draft — has reached an agreement on a one-year deal with the Golden State Warriors, league sources tell Yahoo Sports.
Anthony Slater: I hear it’s a non-guaranteed camp invite for Chriss. Warriors don’t really have room for 15th man (hard cap), but McKinnie (very likely to remain on roster) has a non-guaranteed deal and other pieces could be shed if Chriss impresses.
Chriss is a free agent at the end of the year and at least a couple of Cavs players are hopeful he can return next year on a make-good deal similar to what Rodney Hood signed last summer.
And yet, that’s a big reason why Chriss is in Cleveland. He has the reputation of not playing hard and not listening to his coaches. He was banished in Phoenix for throwing fits at coaches, and then the Rockets quickly moved on from him. One league source outside of the Cavs wondered whether his career is in jeopardy, even at this young of an age, because of his reputation and habits. If he can’t make it here, on one of the worst teams in the league where playing time is plentiful, where exactly can he fit? “I don’t think it’s even close to being over,” Chriss said of his career. “Obviously I haven’t been in the best position for myself and I think this is a better position for me to grow and develop as a player.”
Adrian Wojnarowski: Rockets declined 4th-year option on Marquese Chriss, source tells ESPN.
January 15, 2021 | 2:37 am EST Update
Wolves to pursue PJ Tucker again?
The Timberwolves have been monitoring P.J. Tucker’s situation in Houston since before the draft, and there now is reason to believe that the Rockets’ rugged frontcourt fire hydrant is finally available. The Rockets finally relented to James Harden’s trade demand, and that should open the door for them to move the 35-year-old Tucker. The Wolves have maintained contact with the Rockets on Tucker and were expected to re-engage now that Harden is gone, sources told The Athletic.
Malika Andrews: Sean Marks said that signing James Harden wasn’t directly related to Kyrie Irving’s absence. Marks said that he has spoken to Irving and the guard is “excited” to get back on the court, but Marks reiterates the timeline will be impacted by the NBA’s investigation.
Michael Scotto: Rockets coach Stephen Silas on the James Harden experience: “I had an opportunity to coach a Hall of Famer. That’s one of the things that I was excited about. Obviously, it was a rocky start, a rocky midway, and a rocky end, but he was nothing but professional to me.”
In his first game after ultimately not being included in a trade for James Harden, All-Star Ben Simmons had a triple-double — 10 points, 10 rebounds and 12 assists — in 34 minutes Thursday to lead the 76ers to a 125-108 victory over the Miami Heat in Philadelphia. Afterward, he called trade talks just part of life as an NBA player. “I mean, this a business,” Simmons said, when asked if he was happy the Harden discussions are behind him after the 2018 NBA MVP was traded to the Brooklyn Nets in a deal that was made official Thursday. “Things like that happen. Only thing I can control is, you know, how I approach my workouts, the games and my day-to-day thing. So, you know, I’m just trying to be professional and to do the right thing and help my team get wins.”
When asked if he was happy to still be in Philadelphia, Simmons added, “Of course.” Earlier, Sixers coach Doc Rivers had lauded Simmons’ defensive effort on a night he also had three steals in addition to his triple-double.
The Rockets on Wednesday agreed to trade Harden to the Brooklyn Nets. Shortly thereafter, the following conversation took place on “The Ryen Russillo Podcast” between Russillo, Bill Simmons and Jackie MacMullan: Simmons: “The sleeping giant of this whole Harden sweepstakes was Golden State. And I don’t think they were in it. But if they had decided to get into it …” Russillo: “I heard he, um … he was not … he and [Kevin] Durant are close, and Durant wanted him to leave (Houston). So I think there was some communication …” Simmons: “There was some Steve Kerr stuff.”
