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Earlier today, the Delaware 87ers acquired 6'4" shooting guard Sean Kilpatrick and a first-round pick from the Santa Cruz Warriors in exchange for power forward Ronald Roberts, Jr. and the returning player rights to Darington Hobson. In a separate deal, the Sevens dealt guard Melvin Johnson III and the returning player rights to Elijah Pittman to the Reno Bighorns for Finnish power forward Joonas Caven.
Kilpatrick made a strong case for a roster spot during the Vegas Summer League, averaging 11.5 points and 2.3 rebounds in six games for the Sixers last July. The Golden State Warriors invited Kilpatrick to training camp this October, and when he didn't make the final roster, he quickly latched onto Santa Cruz as one of Golden State's affiliate players.
In 22 games with the D-League version of the Warriors, Kilpatrick - a former first-team All-American with the Cincinnati Bearcats - averaged 11.7 points, 3.3 rebounds and 1.9 assists per night. On the year, Kilpatrick is shooting just 38.3 percent from the floor and 27.4 percent from beyond the arc.
Although Roberts was one of the Sevens' standouts this season (15.8 PPG, 11.6 RPG), the recent return of power forward Tiny Gallon made the former St. Joseph's star somewhat expendable. Roberts recently suffered a minor injury, forcing him to miss both of Delaware's games in last weekend's D-League Showcase. Johnson, a high-volume, instant-offense scorer (11.1 PPG in 20.6 MPG) figures to be an intriguing fit with the fast-paced Bighorns' offense.
The 6'11", 220-pound Caven averaged 3.0 points and 2.0 rebounds in 12 games (one start) for Reno this season. Much like 87ers' forward Jamal Jones, Caven will be draft eligible this summer.
The rights to Hobson, a 6'7" swingman who hasn't played in the D-League since 2013, were acquired by the 87ers in the 2013 NBA Development League Expansion Draft.