Nets Rumors

NBA 2024 Offseason Check-In: Brooklyn Nets

August 14th, 2024 at 11:57am CST by Luke Adams

Hoops Rumors is checking in on the 2024 offseason for all 30 NBA teams, recapping the summer’s free agent signings, trades, draft picks, departures, and more. We’ll take a look at each team’s offseason moves and consider what might still be coming before the regular season begins. Today, we’re focusing on the Brooklyn Nets.

Free agent signings

Nic Claxton: Four years, $97,000,000. Includes $3,000,000 in incentives. Re-signed using Bird rights.
Shake Milton: Three years, $9,162,405. Second and third years non-guaranteed. Signed using Non-Bird rights and acquired via sign-and-trade from Knicks.
Keon Johnson: Two years, minimum salary ($4,512,814). First year partially guaranteed ($250,000). Second-year team option. Re-signed using minimum salary exception. Waived right to veto trade.
Trendon Watford: One year, $2,726,603. Accepted qualifying offer.

Trades

Reacquired their own 2026 first-round pick and control of their own 2025 first-round pick (negating the Rockets’ right to swap either their own 2025 first-rounder or the Thunder’s 2025 first-rounder for Brooklyn’s pick) from the Rockets in exchange for the Suns’ 2027 first-round pick, either the Mavericks’ or the Suns’ 2029 first-round pick (whichever is more favorable), swap rights for the Suns’ 2025 first-round pick, and swap rights for either the Mavericks’ or Suns’ 2029 first-round pick (whichever is least favorable).
Acquired Bojan Bogdanovic, Shake Milton (sign-and-trade), Mamadi Diakite, the Knicks’ 2025 first-round pick, the Bucks’ 2025 first-round pick (top-four protected), the Knicks’ 2027 first-round pick, the Knicks’ 2029 first-round pick, the Knicks’ 2031 first-round pick, swap rights for the Knicks’ 2028 first-round pick, and the Nets’ own 2025 second-round pick from the Knicks in exchange for Mikal Bridges, Keita Bates-Diop, the draft rights to Juan Pablo Vaulet, and either the Pistons’, Bucks’, or Magic’s 2026 second-round pick (whichever is least favorable).
Acquired Ziaire Williams and the Mavericks’ 2030 second-round pick from the Grizzlies in exchange for Mamadi Diakite and the draft rights to Nemanja Dangubic.

Draft picks

None

Two-way signings

None

Departed/unsigned free agents

Jacob Gilyard (unsigned)
Dennis Smith Jr. (unsigned)
Lonnie Walker (unsigned)

Salary cap situation

Operating over the cap ($140.6MM) and below the luxury tax line ($170.8MM).
Carrying approximately $167.6MM in salary.
Hard-capped at $178,132,000.
Full mid-level, bi-annual exceptions available.
Five traded player exceptions available (largest worth $23,300,000).

The offseason so far

The Nets attempted to remain competitive after trading away James Harden, Kevin Durant, and Kyrie Irving in 2022 and 2023, but after closing the 2022/23 season on a 13-17 run, then posting a 32-50 record in ’23/24, the club had no way to meaningfully improve this summer, with no picks in this year’s draft and no cap room available. Rather than risk getting stuck in the middle for the next several years, management decided to take a step back and go into full rebuilding mode.

That meant trading three-and-D standout Mikal Bridges, Brooklyn’s most valuable player. Perhaps even more importantly, it meant reacquiring control of the Nets’ own 2025 and 2026 draft picks — the club had previously traded swap rights in 2025 and its unprotected 2026 pick to Houston, but paid a steep price (two future Suns first-rounders and two swaps) to get them back.

Without control of those picks, bottoming out in the next year or two wouldn’t have benefited the Nets at all, but now the club is in position to secure a high lottery pick in a loaded 2025 draft.

Brooklyn did make one major investment this offseason, re-signing starting center Nic Claxton to a four-year, $97MM contract. Despite not being in win-now mode, retaining Claxton made sense for the Nets, who didn’t want to lose a promising young player for nothing and could probably trade the big man down the road for positive value. Claxton’s still just 25 years old though, so he could very well be part of the next contending team in Brooklyn.

Outside of locking up Claxton, the Nets’ offseason moves have either been minor transactions or have been focused on the future. In exchange for Bridges, Brooklyn received five first-round picks (four unprotected) and a pick swap from their cross-town rivals in New York, further replenishing a stash of draft assets that was depleted a few years ago when the Nets first traded for Harden. The Nets have loaded up since then by flipping Harden and moving Durant, Irving, and now Bridges.

While regaining control of their 2025 and 2026 first-round picks from Houston was more important, it’s worth noting that the Nets also reacquired their 2025 second-rounder from the Knicks in the Bridges deal. If Brooklyn is among the NBA’s worst teams in 2024/25, that could be a top-35 selection.

Up next

The Nets have reportedly reached Exhibit 10 agreements with a handful of free agents, most notably former lottery pick Killian Hayes. Villanova’s Mark Armstrong and Division II guard KJ Jones also reportedly agreed to sign with Brooklyn.

Even after those deals are officially finalized, the team will have a pair of openings on its 21-man offseason roster, but the squad already features 15 players on standard contracts, including 13 on guaranteed salaries. While Jalen Wilson and Keon Johnson don’t have full guarantees, they appear more likely than not to make the regular season roster, which may be essentially set.

That projected 15-man roster could still undergo some changes if the Nets make another trade or two before the regular season begins. There has been no indication that anything is close, but talks could pick up again as training camps near, and Brooklyn has no shortage of veteran trade candidates — Ben Simmons, Dennis Schröder, and Bojan Bogdanovic are all on expiring contracts and may not have long-term futures with the franchise, though wings Dorian Finney-Smith and Cameron Johnson would have more value on the trade market.

The Nets also have a pair of players eligible for rookie scale extensions, with former first-rounders Cam Thomas and Day’Ron Sharpe entering the final year of their rookie deals. I expect the front office to explore deals with both players. However, Brooklyn will be wary of overpaying either player ahead of restricted free agency, since Thomas has been a somewhat one-dimensional scorer (albeit a talented one) and Sharpe is a reserve who has never averaged more than 15.1 minutes per game in a season.

Western Notes: DeRozan, Rockets, Suns, D. Jones

August 12th, 2024 at 9:30pm CST by Dana Gauruder

New Kings wing DeMar DeRozan is staying sharp in California. DeRozan erupted for 54 points for the Mecca Cheaters in the Drew League championship game on Sunday, Jason Anderson of the Sacramento Bee relays. The Drew League is a pro-am event held every year in Los Angeles. DeRozan was named the game’s MVP after his team erased a 16-point deficit in the final five minutes and pulled out a one-point victory.

A free agent last month, DeRozan was acquired from the Bulls in a blockbuster, three-team deal. His new contract with the Kings is worth approximately $74MM over three years.

We have more from the Western Conference:

The Rockets are doing some early bonding, according to Kelly Iko of The Athletic (Twitter link). Jalen Green is hosting a players-only minicamp in Los Angeles this week with Alperen Sengun, Reed Sheppard, Jabari Smith Jr. and Amen Thompson among the teammates expected to show up.
The Suns are hiring Oronde Taliaferro as their director of scouting, Michael Scotto of HoopsHype tweets. Taliaferro, who is expected to focus on college scouting, was previously a scout for the Nets.
The Thunder‘s Dillon Jones, the No. 26 overall pick, is one of the most interesting rookies in this class, Rylan Stiles of Sports Illustrated opines. Oklahoma City was interested in selecting Jones, a Weber State product, in the second round last year before he opted to return to college to improve his stock. The Thunder gave up five second-round picks in a deadline-deal with the Knicks to acquire the 26th pick. Jones could play a variety of positions for a coaching staff that enjoys tinkering with rotations and lineups.

New York Notes: Brunson, Lessort, Schröder, Nets

August 9th, 2024 at 11:00pm CST by Luke Adams

Speaking on Thursday to reporters, including Stefan Bondy of The New York Post, Knicks guard Jalen Brunson explained why he was willing to accept a four-year, $156.5MM contract extension this summer. The deal was the biggest one Brunson was able to sign at this point, but he could have landed a significantly more lucrative payday if he had waited another year.

“Priority A, I secured I think a decent amount of money to support myself and my family, my extended family in the current time. I didn’t have to wait a year,” Brunson said. “Like I said, a lot can happen in a year. Everyone in this room has seen a lot happen in a year when players wait out. So that’s one thing. No. 2 — I would love to be here, I want to be here the rest of my career. And winning trumps everything I do individually. Like I said, when you win as a team, individuals can grow from that. That’s at the front of my mind at all times — what can I do to win?”

While Brunson will have a chance down the road to make up much of the money he “lost” by signing an early extension, his deal will provide the Knicks with added cap flexibility for the next few seasons. The veteran point guard told reporters that he has studied team-first champions from other sports, such as Tom Brady and Derek Jeter, and that he took those examples into account when making his decision.

“First, Tom Brady and Derek Jeter are in a class of their own. I’m not saying I’m a part of that class,” Brunson said. “Second, those dudes are the epitome of winning. They did whatever it took to win. That was on the forefront of their minds. I just knew if I did this, it would give us a lot of flexibility and put us in position to win.

“And I know that a lot of people don’t agree with it. A lot of people are saying it’s not the smart thing from a personal standpoint. But I just know — I’m comfortable here. This is home for me. I don’t worry about what anybody else says, what they think. That’s their opinion. They can have it.”

Here’s more on the NBA’s two New York teams:

The Knicks, who acquired Mathias Lessort‘s draft rights back in 2020, inquired earlier this offseason about the 28-year-old’s interest in coming stateside, according to Ian Begley of SNY.tv. However, the two sides weren’t able to find common ground, says Begley. Vincent Collet, the head coach of the French national team, recently expressed surprise that Lessort isn’t in the NBA.
In a conversation with Marc J. Spears of Andscape, Nets point guard Dennis Schröder talked about growing up in Germany, playing in the Olympics, and his desire to remain in Brooklyn for the final year of his current contract — and potentially well beyond that. “I want to be in Brooklyn long-term. Hopefully that works out,” Schröder said. “I want to be a veteran who shows the young people the way and how we should play and how we play as a team. I understand that the NBA is always more individual, but I want to make one team like we had in Atlanta where it was about just winning and really not (caring) who scores. And I want to bring that back to the NBA, to the Brooklyn Nets.”
While plenty can change between now and July 2025, the Nets are currently the only team projected to have significant cap room next summer, tweets ESPN’s Bobby Marks. Even before accounting for possible in-season trades and/or extensions, cap projections can vary significantly depending on which cap holds and options are assumed to be on the books, but Keith Smith of Spotrac (Twitter link) also projects Brooklyn to have the most cap space of any team in 2025.

New York Notes: Schröder, Wilson, Johnson, Brunson

August 8th, 2024 at 9:35am CST by Dana Gauruder

Dennis Schröder is entering his walk year with the Nets. He’ll make $13MM next season and his expiring contract could be an attractive trade piece.

If it were up to him, Schröder would settle down with the rebuilding franchise. He told Andscape’s Marc Spears he doesn’t want to be moved.

“I want to be in Brooklyn long-term. Hopefully, that works out,” he said. “I want to be a veteran who shows the young people the way and how we should play and how we play as a team. I understand that the NBA is always more individual, but I want to make one team like we had in Atlanta where it was about just winning and really not [caring] who scores. And I want to bring that back to the NBA, to the Brooklyn Nets. And hopefully they see the same vision and of course still compete on the highest level, but that’s going to take some time.”

Schröder appeared in 29 games (25 starts) after being acquired from Toronto in a trade deadline deal. Brooklyn is his seventh team since he entered the league in 2013.

We have more on the New York teams:

Jalen Wilson was named the Las Vegas Summer League MVP, where he averaged 21.8 points, 4.6 rebounds, 1.0 assists and 0.6 steals while shooting 47.3% from the field and 55.0% from 3-point range in five games. The 23-year-old Nets forward has a $1.89MM minimum-salary contract for 2024/25 that is currently just partially guaranteed for $75K. It increases to a partial guarantee of $325K if he makes the opening night roster. That keeps him motivated. “You can never get complacent with where things are,” he told Brian Lewis of the New York Post. “And that’s where I’m at. I’m just shooting for more goals, shooting for more achievements. Now that I’m here back in town, you have the opportunity to get in the gym every single day and get better. So you know, when the time comes, that you’re prepared.”
Nets wing Keon Johnson earned a two-year contract with his strong showing in Las Vegas. He’s in a similar situation as Wilson. His minimum salary contract has a $250K partial guarantee that will increase to $700K if he remains under contract through the first day of the regular season. “I feel like it’s a staple to the work I’ve been putting in over the past couple of years,” Johnson told Lewis. “I’ve been through a lot of ups and downs, pretty much since I’ve been drafted, and I just kind of held my hat on– just keep putting the work in, and hopefully one day my number will get called, and I’ll have the opportunity like I am now.”
Jalen Brunson legitimizes the title of Knicks captain, Stefan Bondy of the New York Post opines in a subscriber-only story. Brunson has embraced a leadership role on and off the court and the decision to name him captain is well-deserved, according to Bondy.

Atlantic Notes: Celtics, Brunson, Randle, Tsai, Marks

August 4th, 2024 at 1:45pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

After going 64-18 in the regular season and 16-3 in the playoffs en route to their 18th title this June, the Celtics already look like the team to beat next season. In a reader mailbag, Brian Robb of MassLive.com speculates as to which players could improve even more in 2024/25.

Robb believes that reserve big man Xavier Tillman, who has dealt with knee troubles in the last two seasons, still has room to grow at age 25. Robb also believes that Finals MVP swingman Jaylen Brown could improve his scoring efficiency.

Additionally, Robb touches on Tatum’s inconsistent postseason scoring, the team’s contracts, and what in-game elements the club can improve.

There’s more out of the Atlantic Division:

Knicks All-NBA point guard Jalen Brunson inked a four-year, $156.5MM contract extension with New York this summer — far less than the five-year, $269MM contract he could have signed as an unrestricted free agent last year. In an Insider-only story, Bobby Marks and Tim Bontemps of ESPN reflect on how the superstar guard’s below-market deal could impact the future of All-Star power forward Julius Randle – who has just become extension-eligible himself – and the rest of the roster.
Nets owner Joe Tsai has “absolute confidence” that general manager Sean Marks can rebuild the club’s roster, a source informs Brian Lewis of The New York Post (subscription required). Marks’ history of finding talent outside of the draft lottery is a major factor in ownership’s belief in the team’s longtime GM. “[Tsai has] absolute confidence in the ability of the front office to draft well,” that source said. “Sean’s track record there is very good: Jarrett Allen, Caris LeVert, Nic Claxton. [They took] Nic Claxton 31st in the draft. [Tsai] has every confidence in Sean.”
In case you missed it, new Nets head coach Jordi Fernandez believes his experience coaching the Canadian national team helped him book the Brooklyn gig.

Nets Notes: Fernandez, Bridges, Okoro, Training Staff

August 3rd, 2024 at 9:30pm CST by Arthur Hill

Jordi Fernandez spent 15 years working on NBA staffs and in the G League before the Nets gave him his first head coaching opportunity in April. In an interview with Marc J. Spears of Andscape, Fernandez speculates that his experience as head coach of the Canadian national team gave him an edge in Brooklyn’s hiring process.

“Everybody says that they value the G League experience, which I think was amazing,” he said. “And for me it was a big part of why I kept developing. But coaching Canada and qualifying for the Olympics, it was the last push to be a head coach in the NBA and I’ll always be thankful for the opportunity. But also thankful for these guys, how hard they play. They are the ones that qualified. They are the ones that got a medal, so I obviously benefited from it.”

The Olympic obligations have prevented Fernandez from concentrating full-time on his new job, but he tells Spears they haven’t been a major distraction. He says Nets officials have been “super supportive” about his Olympic duties, and he was able to monitor Summer League games and practices by watching film. He’ll be able to devote his full attention to the team once the medal round in Paris wraps up next weekend.

“I’ve been calling and texting the (Nets) players,” Fernandez said. “I talked to Dennis (Schröder). Talked to the young guys. I talked to (Trendon) Watford. We just we got him back on the team, which we were very happy about. It takes time to build relationships, but they’ve been responsive and they’ve been awesome.”

There’s more on the Nets:

Also in the interview, Fernandez addresses the fact that the team he expected to coach changed significantly when Brooklyn traded Mikal Bridges to the Knicks in June. Fernandez said he supports the deal, which brought back Bojan Bogdanovic, Mamadi Diakite, Shake Milton and a large collection of draft assets, signifying that the Nets are fully moving into a rebuilding stage. “It was one of the avenues that we’ve had in mind and how we wanted to do things,” Fernandez said. “Obviously, he’s an amazing player and have a lot of respect for him. Every good trade has to be a win-win. And this is one avenue that we were contemplating. I’m very excited because I know that we can build something more special.”
Despite speculation earlier this week, it doesn’t look like the Nets are in position to acquire Isaac Okoro from the Cavaliers, Jake Fischer of Yahoo Sports said on the “Ball Don’t Lie” podcast (hat tip to Sports Illustrated). Cleveland was rumored to be considering a sign-and-trade deal involving Dorian Finney-Smith. “I don’t think those talks got really, really substantial to my understanding,” Fischer said. “I just don’t think it can even happen right now after the salary stuff has all shifted out.”
Jonathan Felipe, the Nets’ head trainer, and Les Gelis, director of sports medicine (injury management) and co-head of the performance team, won’t be returning for the upcoming season, according to NetsDaily (Twitter links).

Four Under-The-Radar Players To Watch For 2024/25

July 29th, 2024 at 8:18pm CST by Tristan Tucker

Rosters for the 2024/25 season are far from being set, but it’s never too early to try to predict some of next season’s happenings. When considering players who are primed for breakouts, draft picks who immediately became stars like Paolo Banchero and Victor Wembanyama come to mind, but several more players in a tier below that will emerge as rotation mainstays for the first time.

Think players like Sam Hauser of the Celtics. Hauser gradually crept up Boston’s rotation over the past three years, eventually becoming a part of the title core and earning himself an extension. Likewise, Miles McBride was a second-round pick who showed promise, but eventually broke out after the ’23/24 deadline for New York. Isaiah Joe of the Thunder is another example, while Vince Williams of the Grizzlies and Simone Fontecchio of the Pistons also broke onto the scene earlier this year.

With that said, here are four players I think could “break out” next season in the sense that they go from a fringe rotation piece to a reliable regular for a team.

Day’Ron Sharpe

This might be cheating a bit, since Sharpe appeared in 61 games last season and averaged 6.8 points and 6.4 rebounds. However, he managed to record those numbers in just 15.1 minutes per night, improving across the board for the Nets. I expect Sharpe to play more this season even though he’s still behind Nic Claxton in the rotation.

For starters, the Nets pivoted toward a rebuild this offseason after trading away Mikal Bridges. With Bridges gone and players like Cameron Johnson, Dorian Finney-Smith, Bojan Bogdanovic and Dennis Schröder set up to be potential trade pieces, there should be more minutes to go around at some point in the season, at least in theory. That would put Sharpe, the No. 29 overall pick in 2021, in prime position to play more and continue to show off his improvement.

Sharpe is set to be a restricted free agent next offseason and, if he manages to continue to show linear growth, I wouldn’t be surprised to see him draw a bevy of suitors. If the Nets didn’t want to pay Sharpe after handing a contract to Claxton this offseason, Sharpe could draw interest at the deadline for a playoff team needing size or another young team looking for a mainstay.

Given his contract status, youth (heturns 23 this season), and team positioning, Sharpe seems like a solid candidate to “break out” for next season.

Max Christie

The Lakers have had a quiet offseason, with their only external additions being 2024 draftees Dalton Knecht and Bronny James. One move that flew under the radar was the long-term extension of Christie, a player who only played 14.1 minutes last season. While the 2022 No. 35 pick saw his responsibilities increase last season from his rookie year, he holds a career average of 3.8 points per game.

Clearly, the Lakers liked what they saw from the 21-year-old Christie, as they rewarded him with a $32MM deal. While he hasn’t played a ton at the NBA level, he holds solid upside as a three-and-D prospect. It was somewhat surprising, for my money, that a team with cap space didn’t try to price Christie out of the Lakers’ range.

The Lakers getting Christie back could be a huge win for a team that needs three-and-D players in their rotation. Given that the Lakers might still make a trade before the year and players ahead of him last year either fell out of favor or simply left in free agency, Christie seems like a lock for more minutes and production next season. He could have a key role for the Lakers in the final couple years of his contract if things play right.

Craig Porter Jr./Ricky Council IV

While Porter and Council are distinctly different players, both could improve and continue to work their way into the rotations of playoff contenders in the Eastern Conference, which is why they’re grouped together here.

Porter played more on a two-way contract last season before being promoted to a standard deal. He’s a small guard but has played well above his size both in college and in the pros. He works well as a secondary ball-handler and a solid defensive guard. While the Cavaliers still have three open roster spots and could add a player or two who may overtake Porter in the guard room, I could see him winning the ninth or 10th spot in the rotation and potentially being the club’s top backup lead guard.

Council didn’t play as much for the Sixers until the end of the season, but his high efficiency impressed the organization and they rewarded him with a standard contract.

While Philadelphia eventually re-signed Tyrese Maxey, Kelly Oubre, Kyle Lowry and KJ Martin, I find it telling that the Council was just one of two players from last year’s roster who stayed on the roster throughout the entire offseason. His contract for next season is non-guaranteed, so they easily could have waived him if they felt someone else better fit his role. Martin and draft picks Jared McCain and Adem Bona might not play much next season, which has Council and Eric Gordon looking like the team’s only true bench wings off the bench.

While it’s not a lock Porter or Council make an impact on the rotation this year — let alone make it through their contracts being guaranteed at the league-wide date in 2025 — their organizations have shown they value each respective player. To me, Porter and Council are some of the more likely candidates to follow Hauser’s footsteps of developing for a couple seasons before breaking into a rotation.

Coaches, Scouts, Execs Weigh In On NBA Offseason Moves

July 29th, 2024 at 3:05pm CST by Rory Maher

While there are still some noteworthy free agents who have yet to find new teams, we’re currently in a relatively slow period for NBA transactions, as most teams have a pretty good idea of what their rosters will look like ahead of the 2024/25 season.

With that in mind, Tim Bontemps of ESPN (subscription required) recently spoke to 18 NBA coaches, scouts and executives to solicit their (anonymous) opinions on the biggest moves made so far in the 2024 offseason.

Here are some highlights from Bontemps’ survey, which is worth reading in full for those who subscribe to ESPN+:

Which team had the best offseason?

Sixers (8 votes), Knicks (5), Thunder (3), Celtics.

“They took themselves to the next level,” an East executive said of the 76ers. “We’ll see if it’s good enough, but you went from Point A to Point B.”

Which team had the worst offseason?

Nuggets (6 votes), Bulls (5), Clippers (4), Lakers (1), Knicks (1), Pistons (1).

As Bontemps writes, Denver (Kentavious Caldwell-Pope), Chicago (Alex Caruso, DeMar DeRozan) and the Clippers (Paul George) received the majority of the votes for losing key players in free agency and/or trades.

Interestingly, while Philadelphia signing George to a four-year, maximum-salary contract received the most votes (six) for the best offseason move, it also tied for the most votes (three) for worst move. A total of 10 different answers were given for worst move, including the Bulls and Kings receiving three votes apiece for their parts in the DeRozan sign-and-trade.

As for the most surprising move, the Knicks’ blockbuster trade with the Nets for Mikal Bridges received the most votes (five) in Bontemps’ survey, followed by George leaving Los Angeles (three) and the swap of Caruso for Josh Giddey (two). Eight other moves each received one vote.

Bontemps also asked questions about the top offseason trend, the effectiveness of the new CBA, and whether there will be an increase in tanking ahead of the 2025 draft.

Nets, Cavs Have Discussed Okoro, Finney-Smith

July 29th, 2024 at 7:54am CST by Luke Adams

As the Cavaliers consider various scenarios involving restricted free agent forward Isaac Okoro, one option they’ve explored is a sign-and-trade deal with the Nets, according to Michael Scotto of HoopsHype.

Sources tell Scotto that, while no agreement is imminent, Brooklyn is considered a possible sign-and-trade destination for Okoro. Veteran Brooklyn wing Dorian Finney-Smith – who is known to be a potential Cavaliers target – has come up in discussions between the two teams involving Okoro, Scotto confirms.

With the Nets hitting the reset button to some extent, adding the 23-year-old Okoro on a longer-term deal may be a better fit for the organization than retaining the 31-year-old Finney-Smith, who can reach unrestricted free agency next summer if he declines his 2025/26 player option.

The Nets are one of several teams to have expressed some sign-and-trade interest in Okoro, Scotto writes, adding that the former Auburn standout could potentially earn an annual salary north of the mid-level exception ($12.8MM) if a sign-and-trade comes to fruition.

Recent reporting indicated that the Cavs have made Okoro a multiyear offer that would pay him less than his $11.8MM qualifying offer on an annual basis — that offer is estimated to be in the range of $8-10MM per year. However, Scotto hears that rival teams believe Cleveland would be prepared to match an offer sheet up to about the full non-taxpayer mid-level.

The Cavaliers are approximately $9.7MM below the luxury tax line, with at least two roster spots to fill, so re-signing Okoro and remaining out of the tax would require him to accept a starting salary slightly below $8MM. A higher starting salary – including his $11.8MM qualifying offer – would push team salary into tax territory.

It’s unclear if staying out of the tax is a priority for Cleveland this season, given that the team projects to above that line next season (and beyond) once Evan Mobley‘s new maximum-salary extension takes effect, Scotto writes. If the club brings back Okoro and wants to avoid the tax for one more year, trading a player like Caris LeVert or Georges Niang could be an option, Scotto speculates, though he notes that Niang is close with Donovan Mitchell, while LeVert is an important part of the second unit. Okoro himself could become a trade candidate later in the season too.

In Scotto’s view, the worst-case scenario for the Cavs would be for Okoro to accept his one-year qualifying offer, since that would give him trade veto rights for the 2024/25 season and he could potentially leave for nothing next summer. For that reason, Scotto expects the Cavs to either come to terms on a multiyear deal with the former No. 5 overall pick or to find a sign-and-trade scenario they like.

Community Shootaround: Underrated Remaining Free Agents

July 28th, 2024 at 8:48pm CST by Tristan Tucker

For the most part, standard roster spots across the league have dried up with the bulk of the top free agents having decided their destinations earlier in July. And some of the teams that do have open roster spots seem to be maneuvering to bring back some of the bigger names remaining in free agency.

Take the Grizzlies for example, who salary dumped Ziaire Williams in a move that seems to be setting up a return for Luke Kennard, one of the top players still available. The Cavaliers have three open standard roster spots, but figure to fill one or more of them once Isaac Okoro‘s restricted free agency is resolved (whether they’re keeping flexibility for a sign-and-trade or simply plan to bring him back remains to be seen). The Knicks, likewise, are the most likely destination for Precious Achiuwa but could still execute a sign-and-trade.

The remaining players on our top-50 list are Okoro (No. 20), Kennard (No. 29), Achiuwa (No. 37), Markelle Fultz (No. 43), Cedi Osman (No. 46) and Gordon Hayward (No. 49). While teams seem to have at least some level of plans in place for the top few remaining free agents, there are several others who have found recent success in the NBA and could help teams, but who appear to have been overlooked to this point.

A pair of Nets guards in Lonnie Walker IV and Dennis Smith Jr. are among the free agents who haven’t found new homes. Both are still relatively young and have shown promise in their careers. Smith, in particular, established himself as one of the better backcourt defenders in the league in his season with Charlotte in 2022/23, but he didn’t catch on for the long term. Walker has shown an ability to score in bunches and averaged 9.7 points in just 17.4 minutes last season (20.1 points per 36).

Likewise, Jordan Nwora is a young wing who can score in a pinch, but he hasn’t been brought back by the Raptors to this point. Though he’s shown flashes in Milwaukee, Indiana and Toronto, Nwora’s NBA future is unknown at this point. In 206 career appearances, the former No. 45 overall pick has averaged 7.6 points per game.

Talen Horton-Tucker made 11 starts for the Jazz last season and averaged 10.1 points and 3.5 assists per contest. While it’s possible the Jazz continue to develop the 23-year-old, there has been no indication so far that he remains in their plans.

Other young players like Omer Yurtseven, Dominick Barlow and Brandon Boston Jr. have had moments in the league, but none have found homes this offseason.

Davis Bertans feels likely to end up signing a deal with a contender, but his name hasn’t come up much in free agent conversations. Though he isn’t young, Bertans seemed to rehabilitate his value with Charlotte after averages 20.8 minutes last year after being acquired at the deadline, and he shot 37.5% from three on 6.3 attempts per game.

To be clear, the perceived lack of a market for the aforementioned players isn’t necessarily surprising. Tyus Jones and Gary Trent, though they reportedly passed on more lucrative offers, ended up only signing for the minimum. Teams are impacted by the CBA’s recent tax apron changes and a smaller-than-usual cap increase, resulting in a slower free agency this season.

Still, there’s always value to be found across professional basketball, and plenty of talented players are available to be signed by teams.

We want your input. Who do you think are the most underrated remaining free agents? Are there any players you feel are unfairly overlooked? Is there anyone we forgot?

Head to the comment section to let us know! We look forward to hearing your input.

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