Last July, as soon as free agency got underway, the Clippers reached an agreement on a five-year, maximum-salary extension with Blake Griffin. Griffin wasn't a free agent, but was entering the final season of his rookie-scale contract, making him eligible for a long-term extension.
No extension-eligible players this year have been locked up as quickly as Griffin was last year, but between now and the October 31st deadline, we should see a number of players agree to new deals with their current teams. We'll also be previewing a number of specific cases later in the summer in our Extension Candidate series.
Listed below are all the players eligible for a rookie-scale contract extension this offseason. If these 2010 draftees don't sign new deals before Hallowe'en, they'll be eligible for restricted free agency next summer. Considering the lack of leaguewide interest we've seen for some of 2013's restricted free agents, such as Brandon Jennings and Gerald Henderson, the players on this list may be more inclined to secure a long-term deal sooner rather than later.
During the 2012 offseason, eight players, including Griffin, James Harden, and Stephen Curry, signed new contracts, all of which will go into effect for the 2013/14 season. Those eight rookie-scale extensions represented the highest total since 2008, so it remains to be seen whether that many deals will be inked this time around. But as Chuck Myron of Hoops Rumors outlined earlier this year when he took an early look at some extension-eligible players, there are plenty of worthy candidates. Here's the full list, sorted by team:
- 76ers: Evan Turner
- Bucks: Larry Sanders, Ekpe Udoh
- Celtics: Avery Bradley, Jordan Crawford
- Grizzlies: Ed Davis, Quincy Pondexter
- Jazz: Derrick Favors, Gordon Hayward
- Kings: DeMarcus Cousins, Patrick Patterson, Greivis Vasquez
- Pacers: Paul George
- Pistons: Greg Monroe
- Suns: Eric Bledsoe
- Wizards: Trevor Booker, Kevin Seraphin, John Wall