With no NBA out clause, Ivan Johnson has signed a one-year contract with the Zhejiang Golden Bulls of the Chinese Basketball Association, a league source told RealGM.

Johnson, the 6-foot-8 free agent forward, received interest throughout NBA free agency, and his four finalists were the Los Angeles Clippers, New York Knicks, Indiana Pacers and Chicago Bulls, a source said. He decided to accept a more lucrative deal in China – where he spent the 2011 season – instead of continuing to wait for an organization to enhance its offer.

Johnson also is hoping to take advantage of China’s shorter season and return to the States late in the NBA season, when teams will deal with possible injuries and look to add pieces.

There remains strong interest in Johnson, and the 29-year-old took a deal for one season in order to return next year. RealGM first reported on Aug. 16 that Johnson had started to seriously consider leaving the NBA for offers in China and Italy.

Johnson averaged 6.5 points and 3.9 rebounds over two seasons with the Atlanta Hawks, carving a role as an active, tough big man after bouncing around in his basketball career.

Earl Barron is receiving interest from the New York Knicks, Indiana Pacers, New Orleans Pelicans and Philadelphia 76ers.

Barron finished last season as a late addition to the Knicks.

Barron went undrafted out of Memphis in 2003 and has appeared with several NBA teams in addition to overseas teams in Puerto Rico, Italy and the Philippines.

Frank Vogel was adamant about his excitement on the return of former All-Star Danny Granger to the Indiana Pacers' lineup.

“It’s really exciting," Vogel said on a radio show. "Danny is on schedule, looks really good, he’s making progress each week and we’re hoping that were going to be having a full-strength Danny Granger this year to add to this team that made a lot of noise last year.”

Granger missed most of last season with knee issues.

Granger is expected to bolster an already deep Pacers team.

Roy Hibbert traveled to San Antonio to train with Tim Duncan on Monday.

Hibbert trained with Duncan last summer, too, and has spoken at length about his friendship with the San Antonio Spurs' big man.

Other big men were in attendance on Monday, when they worked out inside the Spurs' practice facility.

The Indiana Pacers went to the Eastern Conference finals last season and received a strong playoff performance from Hibbert.

Before signing with Turkey’s Trabzonspor, Memphis Grizzlies summer league forward Jack Cooley turned down training camp invites – including multiple partially guaranteed deals – from 10 NBA teams, his agent Adam Pensack told RealGM.

Cooley had received camp deals and some partially guaranteed offers out of the Portland Trail Blazers, Grizzlies, San Antonio Spurs, Oklahoma City Thunder, Brooklyn Nets, Miami Heat, Los Angeles Lakers, Houston Rockets, Indiana Pacers and Cleveland Cavaliers, Pensack said. Even so, the Turkish club gave Cooley an offer too lucrative to reject.

“He will play a lot against top level competition and will come back next year even more ready for the NBA,” Pensack said.

Cooley, a 22-year-old forward at 6-foot-9, averaged 15 points and 9.2 rebounds over six games with the Grlzzlies in the Las Vegas summer league. He averaged 13.1 points and 10.1 rebounds in his senior season at Notre Dame, going undrafted in the June NBA draft.

Cooley is expected to pursue a deal in the NBA next offseason.

Paul George is working to develop an in-between game that could complement his ability to shoot from range and score around the rim.

Last season, George shot 34.5 percent from 10-15 feet and 37 percent from 16-23 feet.

"I am working on my midrange game," George said, while overseeing his third annual Summer Skills camp in Los Angeles. "I have to work on isolation, attacking from the elbow and always conditioning."

George has drawn motivation from losing Game 7 of the Eastern Conference Finals to the Heat.

"We learned our lesson," George said. "We have to be beasts. We understand how to get it done, now. It's all about experience. Most of our team, it was the first time in the conference finals. We just needed to do a couple things different."

Popeye Jones has agreed to join Frank Vogel's coaching staff with the Indiana Pacers.

Jones was most recently an assistant coach with the Brooklyn Nets under Avery Johnson.