Thunder add Randy Foye in deal with Nuggets

ByRoyce Young ESPN logo

Saturday, February 20, 2016

The Oklahoma City Thunder have acquired guard Randy Foye from the Denver Nuggets in exchange for point guard D.J. Augustin, forward Steve Novak and two second-round picks in 2016, the teams announced.

The deal adds guard depth in the Thunder backcourt with Foye, a career 37 percent 3-point shooter, while also saving Oklahoma City a considerable amount in future luxury tax penalties. It also generated a $3.8 million trade exception, which expires in one year, for the Thunder.

The Nuggets will receive the Thunder's and Charlotte Hornets' second-round picks in this year's draft.

Sources told ESPN.com's Marc Stein that the Nuggets have consented to work with Novak -- as well as forward JJ Hickson after shopping Hickson unsuccessfully before Thursday's deadline -- on contract buyouts that will make both players free agents in the coming days.

As long as Novak and Hickson are released by the Nuggets by March 1, they will be eligible to play in the 2016 playoffs with their next team.

Foye is averaging 6.0 points and 1.9 assists, and shooting 35.1 percent from the field and 29.6 percent from 3-point range in 54 games this season.

By dealing the expiring contracts of Novak ($3.7 million) and Augustin ($3 million), the Thunder reduce their pending bill by about $8.3 million.

With the total savings, the Thunder also could be contenders in the post-deadline buyout market, with the ability to use their taxpayer midlevel exception to outbid other teams.

Augustin, 28, was relegated to third-string point guard by rookie Cameron Payne, who took over as Russell Westbrook's backup in December. As a veteran on an expiring deal, Augustin was looking for more playing time in a contract year.

In 34 games this season, Augustin is averaging 4.2 points and 1.9 assists in 15.1 minutes. He will be joining his seventh team in eight seasons.

Novak, 32, is averaging 2.4 points in seven games this season. The Nuggets will be his ninth team in 10 seasons.

In other deals:

The Miami Heatmade two trades before the deadline to drop under the luxury tax, saving the team $6 million, according to Yahoo! Sports.The Heat firsttraded forward Jarnell Stokes to the New Orleans Pelicans. In addition, sources told Stein that Miami also sent $700,000 to the Pelicans.Stokes, who is on an expiring contract and will be a free agent after the season, was then released by the Pelicans on Friday. He played just 14 minutes with Miami after being included in the team's November swap with the Memphis Grizzlies. He has seen action in just 26 NBA games in his first two pro seasons, averaging 2.5 points and 1.5 rebounds in 5.5 minutes per game.
Miami later sent guard Brian Roberts, who was acquired from Charlotte on Tuesday as part of a three-team trade, to the Portland Trail Blazersin exchange for cash considerations, according to multiple media reports. Portland also received a 2021 second-round pick.
The Atlanta Hawks acquired guard Kirk Hinrich from the Chicago Bulls in a three-team trade, with guard Shelvin Mack going to the Utah Jazz. The Bulls received guard Justin Holiday along with a future second-round pick (from Utah via Denver).A 12-year veteran, Hinrich, who previously played parts of two seasons in Atlanta, is averaging 3.8 points and 1.7 assists per game and making almost $3 million this season.The move serves as a money-saving maneuver for a Bulls team that has underperformed all season and comes into Thursday's game against the Cleveland Cavaliers with a 27-25 record.This will mark Hinrich's second stint with the Hawks -- he was traded from Washington to Atlanta in 2011 and spent parts of two years with the Hawks.