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International Notes: Valanciunas, Ibaka, Nwora, Neto

July 4th, 2025 at 9:20pm CST by Eli Cohen

While there’s still no resolution on his NBA contract situation, Jonas Valanciunas appears to be moving forward with his reported plan to sign with the EuroLeague club Panathinaikos. According to Antonis Stroggylakis of Eurohoops, Valanciunas arrived in Athens on Friday with the intent of undergoing a physical and finalizing the terms of a lucrative three-year deal.

However, Valanciunas remains under contract in the NBA and will be traded from Sacramento to Denver once the July moratorium ends. Reports have indicated that the Nuggets have long had interest in Valanciunas and envisioned a major role for him on their 2025/26 roster, so they’re hoping to convince him to honor his NBA contract.

Still, with all signs pointing to Valanciunas desiring a return to Europe, it certainly seems as if he and his new NBA team are headed for buyout discussions. In that scenario, the Nuggets would likely require him to give up most – if not all – of the $10.4MM guaranteed salary he’s owed next season. That would give Denver some spending flexibility to return to free agency or the trade market in search of a new backup center for Nikola Jokic.

We have more from around the world of international hoops:

Three-time NBA All-Defensive first-teamer Serge Ibaka is leaving Real Madrid, the Spanish team announced on Wednesday. The 35-year-old big man averaged 6.5 points and 3.3 rebounds in 12.0 minutes per night during EuroLeague play for the eventual Liga ACB champions. This was Ibaka’s first year with Real Madrid after playing the previous season with Bayern Munich. It has now been more than two years since he was last on an NBA roster.
Vegeran wing Jordan Nwora is leaving Anadolu Efes, the Turkish club announced (via Twitter). Nwora, who played four seasons in the NBA, primarily with the Bucks and Pacers, has agreed to a deal with Crvena Zvezda out of Belgrade, Serbia, per a Eurohoops report (via Twitter).
Free agent guard Raul Neto has signed with San Pablo Burgos for the upcoming season, the team announced. The 33-year-old Neto, who appeared in 435 regular season NBA games from 2015-23, played limited minutes in 2024/25 with Barcelona. San Pablo Burgos competes in Spain’s Primera FEB, which is the country’s second division league.
Sergio Scariolo has agreed to return to Real Madrid as their head coach, according to Eurohoops.net. The Italian coach, who won an NBA title as an assistant for the 2018/19 Raptors, has spent most of his career in the EuroLeague. He had a previous tenure with Real Madrid from 1999-2002, and has been coaching Virtus Bologna for the past three seasons. Scariolo, who has four EuroBasket championships and a pair of Olympic medals to his name, has agreed to a three-year deal with Real Madrid and will officially join the club after coaching the Spanish national team one last time at this year’s EuroBasket tournament.

Knicks Notes: Brown, Exum, Ayton, Nori

July 4th, 2025 at 7:58pm CST by Eli Cohen

Mike Brown has verbally agreed to a deal to become the head coach of the Knicks, according to Sam Amick of the Athletic (via Twitter), who adds that Brown is expected to officially sign his contract early next week.

In a look at what the two-time Coach of the Year will bring to the Knicks, ESPN’s Chris Herring points to a willingness to change up the rotation if he doesn’t like what he’s seeing. This marks a clear change from former head coach Tom Thibodeau, who had a reputation for being notoriously slow to change a lineup that don’t seem to be working.

Herring also believes that Brown’s time with the Kings, including a season in which they broke the league’s offensive efficiency record, bodes well for his work with a Knicks team that has clearly oriented itself around creating the most lethal offense possible.

According to Fred Katz of the Athletic, Brown’s greatest gift might be his ability to evolve as a coach. The offensive system he brought to Sacramento was entirely different from the one his teams in Cleveland deployed. Brown possesses a mind for detail, Katz writes, but he loves to bring in outside ideas and influences, whether that means relying on assistant coaches or taking parts of sets he has seen others run.

The Knicks are banking on the idea that his various experiences throughout his coaching journey can culminate in the ultimate success in New York.

We have more from the Knicks:

Dante Exum was considering the Knicks before eventually agreeing to re-sign with the Mavericks, writes SNY’s Ian Begley. That interest, along with their previously reported check-in on Ben Simmons, would indicate the Knicks might be looking for one more guard to fill out the roster. It also suggests they’re looking for a defensive-minded player to complement their two offensive-facing additions in Jordan Clarkson and Guerschon Yabusele.
According to Begley, some within the Knicks’ decision-making group viewed Deandre Ayton as a potentially good fit next to Karl-Anthony Towns, prior to Ayton agreeing to sign with the Lakers. Begley confirms ESPN’s reporting that feedback on Ayton coming out of Portland was encouraging, and adds that the Knicks were told good things about his leadership with the younger players on the Blazers. However, New York had no path to matching or exceeding the Lakers’ two-year, $16.6MM offer.
Within the same story, Begley notes that the Knicks were impressed by Timberwolves assistant coach Micah Nori‘s interview for the team’s head coaching vacancy, especially his thoughts on player production and workloads. The Knicks primarily considered candidates with previous head coaching experience, with Nori serving as the lone exception.
In case you missed it, Yabusele spoke about what appealed to him about the Knicks and why he accepted their contract offer.

Guerschon Yabusele Talks Knicks Deal, Sixers’ Offer

July 4th, 2025 at 6:54pm CST by Eli Cohen

The Knicks didn’t have a lot of financial flexibility coming into the 2025 offseason but will still manage to come away with a pair of players who figure to play rotation minutes in Jordan Clarkson and Guerschon Yabusele.

Yabusele had been linked to the Nuggets, Spurs, and Bucks before ultimately agreeing to a two-year, $11.7MM deal with New York. Speaking during an interview with SKWEEK TV about his decision-making process, Yabusele said part of the appeal came from what he saw when he faced the Knicks last season as a member of the Sixers.

“It’s a couple of teams that we play against, and I was looking at them, like, ‘Oh my God, this team plays good together. They’re a good team. I can tell it’s a good group of guys, there’s no bad guys, there’s no problems,'” Yabusele said (Twitter video link). “And I was looking at them like, ‘Oh my God, this could be like a good chance and opportunity to play there.'”

Beyond the cohesiveness, Yabusele spoke about feeling that the fit was the right one.

“I feel like their team, it really [matches] my DNA, I would say, to fight, to play hard, to be the underdogs, to go and fight every night,” he added.

Yabusele came to Philadelphia last season after spending the previous five years in Europe. Playing for the injury-riddled Sixers, he averaged 11.0 points, 5.6 rebounds, and 2.1 assists per game while making 50.1% of his shots from the field (38.0% of his three-pointers) and starting 43 of his 70 outings.

The 6’8″ forward proved to be a bright spot in an otherwise disappointing season and was open to returning to the 76ersrs. However, he revealed in his SKWEEK TV interview that the offer he received from Philadelphia wasn’t as competitive as what he might have expected.

“I didn’t really have any issues over there… I was like, ‘Okay, if they want to re-sign me, and then they give me something good, I will come back for sure. And if they want me to leave, then I will leave,'” Yabusele said (Twitter video link). “But they almost didn’t make, really, like an offer. They did, but it was really, really, low, to be really transparent… so I feel like, ‘Oh my god, you guys don’t really want me to stay.'”

The Sixers, who only held Non-Bird rights on Yabusele, could theoretically have dipped into their mid-level exception like New York did to make him an offer. However, their ability to re-sign the Frenchman was impacted by their negotiations with restricted free agent Quentin Grimes — if Grimes gets a significant raise, Philadelphia’s team salary could be in second-apron territory, compromising their ability to use any portion of that MLE.

Despite what he considered to be a low-ball offer, Yabusele emphasized his gratitude to the Sixers for giving him his second chance at playing in the NBA.

“I will always be thankful to be able to be part of their franchise,” he said. “Me and my family [are] really happy about everything they did for us.”

Yabusele will now go to a Knicks team with a new head coach and championship aspirations, where his versatile offensive game should complement New York’s incumbent big men.

Bulls RFA Giddey Reportedly Still Seeking $30MM Annually

July 4th, 2025 at 5:47pm CST by Luke Adams

The Bulls and restricted free agent guard Josh Giddey are having “good dialogue” during the first week of free agency, says Joe Cowley of The Chicago Sun-Times (Twitter link).

However, according to Cowley, Giddey’s camp is “dug in” on matching the contract extension Jalen Suggs signed with Orlando last fall.

Reports since October have continually cited an asking price of $30MM annually from Giddey and his reps. Several of 2024’s top rookie scale extension candidates were seeking that same per-year salary at the time, and Suggs and Hawks forward Jalen Johnson ended up at exactly that figure, signing five-year deals worth $150MM apiece.

Giddey didn’t do anything to hurt his case for a big payday in 2024/25. After an up-and-down start as he got acclimated to his new NBA home, the 22-year-old had a huge second half, posting averages of 21.2 points, 10.7 rebounds, 9.3 assists, and 1.5 steals with a shooting line of .500/.457/.809 in his final 19 games, 12 of which were Bulls victories.

Giddey’s full-season averages were 14.6 PPG, 8.1 RPG, 7.2 APG, and 1.2 SPG on .465/.378/.781 shooting. Several of those marks, including the three-point percentage, were career highs.

Still, while Giddey had a strong first season in Chicago and looks like the Bulls’ point guard of the future, he and several of the other top restricted free agents on the market may have a hard time maximizing their earnings this summer with so little cap room available around the league. With no other potential suitors in position to realistically get up to the neighborhood of $30MM per year for Giddey, the Bulls have a good amount of leverage and can afford to be patient.

The Bulls’ front office may also be wary of bidding against itself for Giddey after completing a five-year, $90MM deal with former lottery pick Patrick Williams when he was coming off his rookie contract last summer. Chicago reached that agreement before free agency even opened, then saw Williams’ production take a step backwards in the first year of the contract.

Kel’el Ware Looking To Reward Heat For Belief In Him

July 4th, 2025 at 4:59pm CST by Eli Cohen

After an encouraging rookie season with the Heat, Kel’el Ware‘s name popped up in trade speculation this summer in connection with Miami’s pursuit of former Suns star Kevin Durant. Ultimately, the Heat decided to make Ware off limits in any potential deal for Durant, which was believed to be one key reason why Phoenix preferred Houston’s offer to Miami’s.

Ware is now determined to make good on that show of confidence from the team that drafted him, writes Anthony Chiang for the Miami Herald. The soon-to-be second-year center understands the responsibility that comes from such a decision, and is working to put himself in the best possible position to reward Miami’s belief in him.

“It made me feel the Heat wanted me and they want to see how far I can get in the future and see how my development goes,” he said. “That makes me want to show them what I can do and how far I can go. … They see the potential in me and they see what I can be. So my main goal is to just sort of repay that they didn’t make a mistake.”

Ware averaged 9.3 points and 7.9 rebounds per game for the Heat as a rookie after being selected with the 15th pick in the 2024 draft. After starting the season as a backup, he eventually moved into the starting lineup alongside longtime star big man Bam Adebayo and made 40 starts for the club between the regular season and playoffs. In that role, he averaged 10.7 points, 9.7 rebounds, and 1.2 blocks per night.

He has spent much of his offseason looking to add muscle and continue sharpening his skill set. Coming into the 2025 Summer League, Ware has one goal: to dominate.

“There are specifics that we’re trying to get into him,” said Heat assistant and Summer League head coach Eric Glass. “We always want to see him grow. There are leadership aspects. But he just needs to take the next step. He has all the capability in the world to go out and dominate games and practices, and that’s what we’re looking for from him.”

Ware echoed the sentiment.

“My goals for the offseason and in the summer league is to show that I added more to my game, that I’ve gotten strong in the weight room,” he said. “Just showing that I can be a force out there and be dominant.”

Ware’s Summer League will tip off on Saturday, July 5, at 3:30 pm Central time against the Spurs at this year’s California Classic. If all goes according to plan for him and the Heat, the 21-year-old will quickly become one of the annual “too good for Summer League” players and wrap up his summer well before the Las Vegas Summer League comes to a close later this month.

Bulls Sign Noa Essengue To Rookie Contract

July 4th, 2025 at 4:03pm CST by Luke Adams

The Bulls have officially signed their first-round pick, announcing (via Twitter) that forward Noa Essengue has finalized his rookie scale contract.

The No. 12 overall pick is expected to receive a four-year, $25.33MM deal that is fully guaranteed for the first two seasons, with team options on the third and fourth years. He’ll make $5.43MM as a rookie in 2025/26.

A 6’10” forward from France, Essengue signed with Ratiopharm Ulm in July 2023. He spent most of his first season with Ulm’s developmental team, but played a key role for the German club this past season, averaging 12.4 points, 5.3 rebounds, and 1.4 steals in 23.7 minutes per game across 18 EuroCup appearances.

As the second-youngest player in the 2025 draft class, Essengue may not play a significant role for the Bulls right away, but the team was pleased to land him at No. 12. General manager Marc Eversley said after the draft that the Frenchman was the best player available at that spot and “fits the style of play that we want to play.”

Western Notes: Nuggets, Lakers, Coward, Queen, Jazz

July 4th, 2025 at 3:15pm CST by Luke Adams

After former Nuggets head coach Michael Malone spent years asking for more veteran depth, Denver’s new top decision-makers – led by general manager Ben Tenzer – have made the sort of moves this offseason that he would’ve appreciated, as Tim Bontemps and Brian Windhorst write for ESPN.com.

Even with Jonas Valanciunas‘ NBA future up in the air, the Nuggets did well to bring back Bruce Brown and add Tim Hardaway Jr. on minimum-salary deals. Executives around the league also took notice of their decision to part with their lone tradable future first-round pick (2032) and forward Michael Porter Jr. in a deal that netted them Cameron Johnson and took them out of the tax.

“That was a prized asset they gave up,” one general manager told ESPN, referencing the unprotected 2032 pick. “Teams have been eyeing that one to see if they’d actually use it.”

“I know Cam Johnson has some past health issues, but Porter’s back issues and knee issues make this move make sense to me,” another executive said to ESPN. “I think Cam and (Nikola) Jokic will connect on the floor well. They both think the game the same way.”

That last point could be an important one, according to one rival GM: “There is only one person who needs to be impressed with their offseason. That’s Jokic. Sometimes the best trades you make are the ones that engage your superstar. If Jokic is energized by those moves, then it was a great summer.”

Here’s more from around the Western Conference:

Within that same ESPN.com story, Bontemps and Windhorst check in on the Lakers, noting that the club has received a handful of inquiries from “eyebrow-raised” teams following Rich Paul‘s cryptic statement accompanying LeBron James‘ opt-in. There’s nothing happening on that front for now, but teams will certainly monitor the situation, according to ESPN’s duo, who add that there was a “small bidding war” early in free agency for forward Jake LaRavia. He ultimately agreed to join the Lakers.
No. 11 overall pick Cedric Coward, whom the Grizzlies traded up to draft, is doubtful to play in Summer League this month, a team spokesperson told Damichael Cole of The Memphis Commercial Appeal. Coward is still making his way back from a shoulder injury that limited him to just six games at Washington State last season. While the 21-year-old said last week that he feels ready to play, Grizzlies general manager Zach Kleiman told reporters at the time that the rookie wing had only done 1-on-0 work and would need to take part in 5-on-5 drills to be fully cleared.
When the Pelicans faced criticism in the wake of last week’s draft, it was more about giving up a valuable unprotected 2026 first-round pick to move up 10 spots from No. 23 to No. 13 than about the player they chose to pick at that spot. But big man Derik Queen is still taking that criticism personally and using it as motivation, writes Rod Walker of NOLA.com. “I don’t think anybody in that class ever is going to be better than me,” Queen said. “I block all the noise out. (Pelicans head of basketball operations) Joe (Dumars) has got a lot of faith in me. Most of these guys (in the draft), I beat in high school. It doesn’t really matter. I know the NBA is a whole different level. Don’t get too big-headed. Don’t get too low. And just beat on them next year when they come in, and make Joe look like a genius.”
Chuck Terrell, who had been working for the Jazz as their vice president of basketball intelligence, has left that position to become the general manager of Georgia Tech’s men’s basketball program, agent Andy Miller tells Michael Scotto of HoopsHype (Twitter link).

Nets Sign Nolan Traore To Rookie Contract

July 4th, 2025 at 2:08pm CST by Luke Adams

The Nets have now locked up four of their five first-round picks, officially signing French point guard Nolan Traore to his rookie scale contract on Friday, per Brian Lewis of The New York Post (Twitter links).

Brooklyn had announced deals for Egor Demin, Ben Saraf, and Danny Wolf on Thursday, but Traore’s deal was delayed while the paperwork following his buyout from Saint-Quentin in France got sorted out.

The Nets’ fifth first-rounder, Drake Powell, is part of a trade that can’t be finalized until Sunday, so he’ll likely sign his first NBA contract early next week.

Traore, who turned 19 last month, played a featured role with Saint-Quentin in France’s top basketball league (LNB Élite) in 2024/25, averaging 11.6 points and 5.1 assists on .392/.302/.701 shooting in 30 games (22.6 minutes per contest).

While shooting efficiency and turnovers are viewed as possible question marks for Traore, he has good size for a guard and is considered a talented play-maker and passer. He was long viewed as a potential 2025 lottery pick before his stock dipped a little during an up-and-down year overseas.

Assuming Traore – the No. 19 pick – signed for the maximum allowable 120% of his rookie scale amount, which is likely, his four-year contract will be worth about $18.46MM, with two guaranteed years followed by third- and fourth-year team options.

Scotto’s Latest: Rollins, Hornets, Bucks, Ayton, Valanciunas

July 4th, 2025 at 1:35pm CST by Luke Adams

After having his qualifying offer withdrawn by the Bucks earlier this week, free agent guard Ryan Rollins is drawing interest from a handful of teams around the NBA, according to Michael Scotto of HoopsHype, who says the Suns, Trail Blazers, Spurs, and Lakers are among the clubs with Rollins on their radar.

A reunion with Milwaukee also hasn’t been ruled out either, Scotto reports. Even after rescinding his qualifying offer and making him an unrestricted free agent, the Bucks are in position to hang onto Rollins’ Early Bird rights, which would allow them to go over the cap to re-sign him after they use up all their room.

Portland still has its $14.1MM non-taxpayer mid-level exception available, while San Antonio and Los Angeles have the $5.1MM bi-annual exception on hand, Scotto writes. However, the Suns could only offer more than a minimum-salary deal if they shed salary — perhaps via a Bradley Beal buyout agreement.

Rollins had a modest breakout year this past season, registering averages of 6.2 points, 1.9 assists, and 1.9 rebounds in 14.6 minutes per game, along with a shooting line of .487/.408/.800. He had only made 25 appearances across two NBA seasons prior to 2024/25.

Here’s more from Scotto:

Examining the Hornets‘ roster crunch, Scotto identifies Josh Okogie and DaQuan Jeffries – who are on non-guaranteed contracts – as candidates to be waived if no trade opportunities involving them arise. Executives who spoke to HoopsHype also view former first-round pick Nick Smith Jr. as a player who could be traded. That applies to veterans on expiring contracts like Pat Connaughton and Collin Sexton as well.
Before he agreed to re-sign with the Hornets, point guard Tre Mann received interest from the Bucks, Scotto reports. Milwaukee is in the market for additional point guard depth after losing Damian Lillard to an Achilles tear and subsequently planning to waive him.
Echoing reporting from ESPN’s Shams Charania, Scotto says that teams who reached out to Trail Blazers officials for feedback on Deandre Ayton got positive reviews on the big man, who was a “community staple in Portland and hosted many team bonding events.” Reporting from The Athletic had suggested that Ayton’s attitude and bad habits played a part in the decision to part ways with him.
Addressing the Jonas Valanciunas situation, Scotto notes that the Nuggets have tried to acquire the veteran center for the past couple years and have envisioned him playing a significant role if he reports to Denver, giving superstar Nikola Jokic more opportunities to rest. Amid rumors that Valanciunas is traveling to Greece and hopes to sign with the EuroLeague club Panathinaikos, Scotto hears that the 33-year-old is expected to address the situation soon.

2025/26 NBA Two-Way Contract Tracker

July 4th, 2025 at 12:22pm CST by Luke Adams

Two-way contracts allow NBA teams to carry three extra players in addition to the 15 on their regular season roster. These players generally bounce back and forth between the NBA and G League, but remain under team control and can’t be poached by rival franchises.

First introduced in 2017, two-way deals have undergone some rule changes in recent years, and the NBA’s latest Collective Bargaining Agreement has updated them further. Here are some key points to remember:

Teams can carry three players on two-way contracts.
Two-way players are eligible to be active for up to 50 of their team’s 82 regular season games.
If a team isn’t carrying a full 15-man standard roster, its two-way players can only be active for a combined 90 games.
Players on two-way contracts will earn $636,435 in 2025/26, half of the rookie minimum.
Two-way contracts can’t be signed after March 4.
Two-way players are ineligible to play in the postseason (including play-in games) unless they’re promoted to the standard 15-man roster, which can happen at any time up until the last day of the regular season.

You can check out our glossary entry to learn more about two-way contracts.

NBA teams have begun to fill in their two-way slots for the 2025/26 league year, so we’ll track all those deals in the space below. Some two-way players from 2024/25 inked two-year contracts and remain under contract for this season, while others have been newly signed.

If a two-way signing has been reported by a trusted source but isn’t yet official, we’ll list it in italics and link to the report, updating the info as necessary. Players who are in the first year of two-way contracts that cover two years (the maximum length), will be noted with an asterisk (*) once that info is confirmed.

This tracker will continue to be updated throughout the 2025/26 league year, and can be found anytime in the “Hoops Rumors Features” menu on the right-hand sidebar of our desktop site, or in the “Features” menu on our mobile site.

Here are 2025/26’s two-way players:

Updated 7-4-25

Atlanta Hawks

The Hawks have two-way qualifying offers on the table for Jacob Toppin and Keaton Wallace.

Boston Celtics

Brooklyn Nets

Tosan Evbuomwan, F
Tyson Etienne, G
Empty

Charlotte Hornets

KJ Simpson, G
Damion Baugh, G
Empty

Chicago Bulls

Detroit Pistons

Ron Harper Jr., G/F
Tolu Smith, F
Empty

The Pistons have a two-way qualifying offer on the table for Daniss Jenkins.

Golden State Warriors

Jackson Rowe, F
Empty
Empty

The Warriors have a two-way qualifying offer on the table for Taran Armstrong.

Houston Rockets

David Roddy, F
Kevon Harris, G/F (reported)
Empty

The Rockets have a two-way qualifying offer on the table for N’Faly Dante.

Indiana Pacers

RayJ Dennis, G
Empty
Empty

The Pacers have a two-way qualifying offer on the table for Enrique Freeman.

Los Angeles Clippers

Los Angeles Lakers

Trey Jemison, C
Eric Dixon, F (reported)
Empty

The Lakers have a two-way qualifying offer on the table for Christian Koloko.

Memphis Grizzlies

Zyon Pullin, G
Empty
Empty

Miami Heat

Vladislav Goldin, C
Empty
Empty

The Heat have a two-way qualifying offer on the table for Dru Smith.

Milwaukee Bucks

Pete Nance, F
Jamaree Bouyea, G
Mark Sears, G

Minnesota Timberwolves

Jesse Edwards, C
Rocco Zikarsky, C (reported)
Empty

The Timberwolves have a two-way qualifying offer on the table for Tristen Newton.

New Orleans Pelicans

New York Knicks

Empty
Empty
Empty

The Knicks have a two-way qualifying offer on the table for Kevin McCullar.

Oklahoma City Thunder

Brooks Barnhizer, G/F
Empty
Empty

The Thunder have a two-way qualifying offer on the table for Branden Carlson.

Orlando Magic

Ethan Thompson, G
Empty
Empty

Philadelphia 76ers

Phoenix Suns

CJ Huntley, F *
Empty
Empty

Portland Trail Blazers

Sidy Cissoko, F
Caleb Love, G
Empty

Sacramento Kings

Dylan Cardwell, C *
Empty
Empty

The Kings have a two-way qualifying offer on the table for Isaiah Crawford.

San Antonio Spurs

Empty
Empty
Empty

The Spurs have two-way qualifying offers on the table for Harrison Ingram and Riley Minix.

Toronto Raptors

Ulrich Chomche, C
Chucky Hepburn, G
Empty

Utah Jazz

Elijah Harkless, G
RJ Luis Jr., G/F (reported)
Empty

The Jazz have a two-way qualifying offer on the table for Oscar Tshiebwe.

Washington Wizards

Jaylen Martin, F
Empty
Empty

The Wizards have a two-way qualifying offer on the table for Tristan Vukcevic.

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