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Free Agent Rumors: DeRozan, Kings, Spurs, Morris, Bridges, Jones

July 3rd, 2024 at 9:59pm CST by Luke Adams

Following up on a report from Marc J. Spears stating that Sacramento is a “dark horse” suitor to watch for DeMar DeRozan, Barry Jackson of The Miami Herald confirms (via Twitter) that the Kings and Bulls have had discussions about a possible sign-and-trade deal involving the free agent forward.

The Spurs have also emerged as a possibility for DeRozan, Jackson adds. The 34-year-old previously spent three seasons playing for Gregg Popovich in San Antonio from 2018-21.

While Jackson (Twitter link) isn’t entirely ruling out the Heat for DeRozan, he notes that the club’s cap situation makes it impossible to give the forward the kind of contract he’s seeking, so the front office seems more likely to preserve its assets in case a better trade opportunity arises — as a first-apron team, Miami would be in a better position to acquire a player who is already under contract than a free agent like DeRozan via sign-and-trade.

Here are a few more free agent rumors and notes from around the NBA:

The Sixers have expressed interest in the possibility of a reunion with free agent forward and Philadelphia native Marcus Morris, multiple sources tell Keith Pompey of The Philadelphia Inquirer. However, the 76ers aren’t the only team eyeing Morris. The Pistons, Hornets, Cavaliers, Mavericks, Heat, and Timberwolves have all expressed some level of interest too, Pompey writes.
It’s unclear where Miles Bridges will end up, according to Rod Boone of The Charlotte Observer, who says that the Pistons‘ interest seems to have dwindled following their front office and coaching changes, while the Sixers were “never in” on the free agent forward. The Hornets and Bridges publicly expressed interest in a new deal earlier in the offseason, but they’ve had over two weeks to talk and still don’t appear to have momentum toward an agreement. “I think they end up signing and trading Bridges,” a rival executive told Boone.
The Clippers continue to have interest in bringing back Kai Jones, but the free agent big man has an ankle injury that will prevent him from suiting up for Summer League, a source tells Law Murray of The Athletic (Twitter link).
The Pistons are one of the only teams that still has significant cap room available and they’ll need to at least reach the minimum salary floor before the season begins. Omari Sankofa II of The Detroit Free Press (subscription required) suggests a few potential free agents targets for Detroit, including Malik Beasley and Gary Trent Jr., while James L. Edwards III of The Athletic considers trade scenarios that might make sense for the club’s cap room.

Bulls Sign Matas Buzelis To Rookie Contract

July 3rd, 2024 at 10:10am CST by Luke Adams

Rookie forward Matas Buzelis, the No. 11 pick in the 2024 draft, has signed his first NBA contract with the Bulls, according to NBA.com’s transaction log.

A 6’10” forward who played for the G League Ignite in 2023/24, Buzelis averaged 14.1 points, 6.6 rebounds, and 1.9 blocks in 31.0 minutes per game across 34 NBAGL outings. While there’s optimism among NBA evaluators about his ability to improve as a shooter, he made a modest 45.3% of his field goal attempts and 26.1% of his three-pointers for the Ignite.

Viewed as a possible top-five pick, Buzelis slipped out of the top 10 and will head to a Chicago team that’s in the midst of retooling its roster. The Bulls have already traded Alex Caruso for Josh Giddey, are prepared to lose DeMar DeRozan in free agency, and are looking to move Zach LaVine.

As our breakdown of this year’s rookie salaries shows, Buzelis will earn approximately $5.2MM in his first NBA season and nearly $24MM over the course of four years, assuming he signed for the maximum allowable 120% of the rookie scale (which virtually every first-rounder does). The third and fourth years of the deal will be team options.

FA Rumors: DeRozan, Kings, Hield, Warriors, Martin, Heat, Hezonja

July 3rd, 2024 at 9:19am CST by Luke Adams

Assuming DeMar DeRozan doesn’t sign with a cap-room team, it will almost certainly require a sign-and-trade to land him, per Chris Haynes of Bleacher Report (video link). As Haynes explains, DeRozan has no interest in settling for a mid-level offer.

“For the teams that might be calling or gauging interest in DeMar taking a full mid-level exception, which is around $13MM, I’m told that is not even being considered right now,” Haynes said on Tuesday.

The Bulls won’t bring back DeRozan, but they’re open to working with him on a sign-and-trade to help him get where he wants, Haynes confirms. Still, negotiating that sort of deal will be a challenge, given that some of the forward’s suitors (like Miami) aren’t in a great financial position to make a sign-and-trade. I’d also expect Chicago will be reluctant to take back much salary, since the team projects to be about $13MM below the luxury tax line, though that number is fluid and would move up or down if other moves are made.

Appearing on ESPN’s NBA Today on Tuesday (Twitter video link), Marc J. Spears of Andscape identified the Kings as one “dark horse” suitor to watch for DeRozan. Sacramento has reportedly made Harrison Barnes, Kevin Huerter, and draft capital available in trade talks (in general, not for DeRozan specifically) as the team looks to upgrade its roster around Domantas Sabonis and De’Aaron Fox. Previous reporting has indicated that the Bulls like Huerter.

Here are a few more free agency updates from around the NBA:

Buddy Hield doesn’t have an agreement in place with the Warriors yet, but the two sides are “tracking toward” a deal, according to Jake Fischer of Yahoo Sports (Twitter links), who says that a sign-and-trade would likely see the Sixers receive second-round draft capital in return. If Golden State doesn’t send out additional salary, the club would have to absorb both Hield and Kyle Anderson into a trade exception created by sending Klay Thompson to Dallas, or complete all three of those moves as one multi-team mega-deal in order to maximize Thompson’s outgoing salary as a matching piece (John Hollinger of The Athletic briefly explored this more complex possibility on Tuesday night).
While Caleb Martin‘s return to the Heat is still considered unlikely, it shouldn’t be entirely ruled out, according to Barry Jackson and Anthony Chiang, who suggest in a pair of stories for The Miami Herald that the team’s interest in re-signing Martin hasn’t waned as long as the price is right. Jackson and Chiang also say that Miami remains in the mix to sign Haywood Highsmith, though his return is “far from guaranteed.”
The Heat had initial discussions with DeMar DeRozan on Tuesday and expect to follow up on Wednesday, but there have been no indications that the club will “move mountains” (ie. shed significant salary) in order to land him, Jackson tweets.
Although Real Madrid has officially announced its new five-year contract with Mario Hezonja, the veteran forward has an NBA-opt out until July 20 with a modest buyout figure and has received interest from “numerous” NBA teams, according to Donatas Urbonas of BasketNews.com. The 29-year-old, who was the fifth overall pick in the 2015 draft, appeared in 330 NBA regular season games but has been out of the league since 2020.

Jalen Smith Might Be Underrated Addition

July 2nd, 2024 at 10:21pm CST by Dana Gauruder

On the surface, the Bulls’ three-year agreement with free agent Jalen Smith may not seem like a big deal. But The Athletic’s Darnell Mayberry believes the former Pacers big man could be due for a breakout season.

Smith fits into the Bulls’ aim of getting younger and more athletic. He’s adept at rim-running and offensive rebounding and he’ll improve their interior defense, Mayberry writes, adding that Smith could even become the starter if Nikola Vucevic is dealt.

An NBA insider tells The Chicago Sun-Times’ Joe Cowley that the relationship between Zach LaVine and the Bulls’ top brass is completely shattered and “filled with mistrust.” The Bulls are trying hard to move LaVine and his big contract. If they fail in those efforts before training camp, the front office and ownership would consider that the worst-case scenario.

Scotto’s Latest: Markkanen, Achiuwa, Knicks, Kessler, Vucevic, Sixers

July 2nd, 2024 at 3:57pm CST by Luke Adams

The expectation around the NBA, according to Michael Scotto of HoopsHype, is that the Jazz will only seriously consider trading Lauri Markkanen if they receive a huge offer similar in value to the one Brooklyn got for Mikal Bridges, which included four unprotected first-round picks, an unprotected first-round swap, and one more lightly protected first-rounder.

The decision on Markkanen is viewed as an inflection point for the Jazz, who could accelerate their timeline by trying to find another star to join him in Utah or extend their timeline by moving the star forward and continuing to stockpile assets ahead of a loaded 2025 draft.

In addition to confirming the four teams previously reported to have interest in Markkanen (the Warriors, Spurs, Kings, and Timberwolves), Scotto adds the Pelicans to the list of potential suitors for the star forward. However, he says New Orleans has been reluctant to discuss valuable young role players like Trey Murphy and Herbert Jones.

Brandon Ingram, the most obvious trade candidate on the Pelicans’ roster, wouldn’t be a logical target for Utah in a Markkanen trade. New Orleans is including a pair of first-round picks in its deal for Dejounte Murray but could still offer as many as four first-rounders (2025, 2027, 2029, and 2031) in a package for a player like Markkanen.

Here’s more from Scotto:

Unrestricted free agent Precious Achiuwa – who is drawing interest from multiple contenders, per Ian Begley of SNY.tv – liked playing in New York and remains open to re-signing with the Knicks, Scotto writes. The Knicks’ search for help at center has also involved making trade calls to the Jazz about Walker Kessler and the Hornets about Nick Richards, according to Scotto, who says rival executives think the Jazz are more willing to listen to inquiries on Kessler than they would’ve been a year ago.
With DeMar DeRozan seemingly on the verge of leaving Chicago, there’s a belief around the league that the Bulls may look to trade Nikola Vucevic and make the roster even younger, league sources tell Scotto.
Providing several Sixers-related updates, Scotto says Philadelphia is expected to either trade or waive Paul Reed and his $7.7MM non-guaranteed contract, has exploratory trade interest in Nets forward Dorian Finney-Smith, and wants to add more shooting and guard depth, with Lester Quinones and Kyle Lowry among the players on its radar. Additionally, second-round pick Adem Bona is expected to get a standard contract and a place on the 76ers’ 15-man roster, Scotto reports.

Latest On DeMar DeRozan

July 2nd, 2024 at 1:19pm CST by Luke Adams

There’s mutual interest between the Heat and free agent forward DeMar DeRozan, a pair of sources with knowledge of the situation tell Barry Jackson and Anthony Chiang of The Miami Herald.

DeRozan is one of the top players left on the marketplace, having come in at No. 6 in our list of top 50 free agents. He led the NBA in total minutes played in 2023/24, averaging 24.0 points, 5.3 assists, and 4.3 rebounds per game with a shooting line of .480/.333/.853.

Despite the mutual interest, there’s not a clear path for Miami to offer DeRozan the sort of contract he’s seeking. As Jackson and Chiang write, the Heat are currently a first-apron team, so the best they could do would be the $5.2MM taxpayer mid-level exception. A sign-and-trade deal isn’t an impossibility, but it would require them to shed salary, since a team that acquires a player via sign-and-trade becomes hard-capped at the first apron, so it could get complicated.

DeRozan isn’t expected to return to the Bulls, but Jackson and Chiang hear that “several” teams remain in play for the six-time All-Star. One of those clubs is the Lakers, as we previously relayed. ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski confirmed L.A.’s interest during a SportsCenter appearance on Tuesday (YouTube link), but reiterated that it won’t be easy for the Lakers and other over-the-cap suitors to negotiate a sign-and-trade deal.

“I think there’s interest in DeMar DeRozan, but the kind of contract that he might want just is not going to be available,” Wojnarowski said. “It’s not left out there in the marketplace. The Bulls are more than willing to work on a sign-and-trade agreement to get him the years and money that he might want, but with the new salary cap rules, those are much more difficult for teams to do.

“… In DeMar DeRozan’s case, and it may not be as appealing to him, but it may look like a one-year deal somewhere, let the market reset next year. Because if you do a sign-and-trade, it’s got to be at least three years and now you’re locked into a three-year deal at a number you may not like.”

DeRozan’s free agency this summer is somewhat reminiscent of his 2021 free agency. When he hit the market three years ago, teams like the Lakers and Clippers were viewed as suitors but didn’t have the financial means to make him a competitive offer. It briefly looked like he might accept a discount to return to his hometown, but he ultimately landed with the Bulls on a three-year, $82MM deal via sign-and-trade.

It seems less likely this time around that a suitor will emerge to make DeRozan a huge three-year offer. Still, it’s worth noting that settling for a one-year contract in the hopes of securing a larger payday next summer – as Woj suggests – would be risky move for a player who will turn 35 next month.

L.A. Notes: Lakers, Klay, DeRozan, Clippers, George, Batum

July 2nd, 2024 at 7:53am CST by Luke Adams

The Lakers are believed to have made a bid for Klay Thompson that would’ve been for more years and more overall money than the three-year, $50MM deal he accepted from the Mavericks, according to reports from Dan Woike of The Los Angeles Times and Tim MacMahon of ESPN on the Hoop Collective podcast (hat tip to RealGM). Los Angeles would have had to send out salary and assets in a sign-and-trade to make such an offer.

The Lakers were “extremely intriguing” to Thompson, says ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski. However, sources tell Wojnarowski that the Mavericks’ NBA Finals run and the financial advantages of living in Texas were among the deciding factors for the veteran sharpshooter, who will be joining a new team for the first time since entering the NBA in 2011.

LeBron James reportedly made a recruiting call to Thompson when free agency opened and the Lakers had a face-to-face meeting with the 34-year-old on Sunday night, per Marc Stein (Twitter link). But, as Stein writes, the Mavs had Thompson’s former USA Basketball teammate Kyrie Irving on their side for recruiting purposes and were able to secure Thompson’s commitment following their own face-to-face meeting.

Here’s more out of Los Angeles:

Having missed out on Thompson, the Lakers shifted their focus to DeMar DeRozan, Jovan Buha of The Athletic confirms. LeBron James would reportedly be willing to accept a pay cut to accommodate the acquisition of DeRozan, so L.A. could theoretically offer the free agent forward more than the full mid-level exception via a sign-and-trade. But negotiating such a deal would be tricky, since the Bulls will want assets in return and likely won’t be open to taking back much – if any – salary due to their own financial situation.
It’s unclear if there are any other free agent targets left on the board for whom James would take a discount, so if the Lakers are unable to land DeRozan, LeBron would likely be on track to sign a maximum-salary contract with the team, Buha notes.
Buha adds that the Lakers have been active in trade talks in recent days, discussing possible deals with the Trail Blazers, Nets, and Jazz, among other clubs. Previous reporting has suggested the Lakers have some level of interest in Jerami Grant (Portland) and Cameron Johnson (Brooklyn); Utah has plenty of cap room available and could potentially take on salary as a third team in a sign-and-trade for DeRozan, though that’s just my speculation. The Jazz are also believed to be open to listening to inquiries on some of their veterans, including Lauri Markkanen (to be clear, the Lakers aren’t among the teams that have been linked to Markkanen so far).
Besides being unwilling to offer Paul George a fourth year, the Clippers also didn’t include a no-trade clause in their proposal to the star forward, ESPN’s Wojnarowski said during a SportsCenter appearance (hat tip to RealGM). George would have been eligible for a no-trade clause with the Clippers because he was signing a free agent contract, had at least eight years of NBA experience, and had spent at least four years with the team.
Sixers star Joel Embiid was pushing for a return to Philadelphia for Nicolas Batum, who also drew interest from the Bucks, among other teams, reports Tomer Azarly of ClutchPoints. However, Batum – who played for the Clippers from 2020-23 – still has family in Los Angeles and considers it home, per Azarly. Azarly adds that the forward’s relationships with head coach Tyronn Lue and some front office members also factored into his decision to return to L.A. on a two-year deal.

Trade/FA Rumors: Markkanen, Westbrook, DeRozan, Achiuwa, Trent

July 1st, 2024 at 3:44pm CST by Rory Maher

Appearing on SportsCenter, ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski confirmed a report from his ESPN colleague Brian Windhorst stating that the Warriors are among the teams with interest in trading for Jazz forward Lauri Markkanen (YouTube link).

“Utah is not sure it wants to trade (Markkanen), but they have to listen; they’ve been listening,” Wojnarowski said. “And a lot of the teams that missed out on Mikal Bridges from Brooklyn have transferred over to try and see if they can land Lauri Markkanen from Utah. Golden State is one of those teams.”

Here are a few more trade and free agency rumors from around the NBA:

According to Harrison Wind of DNVR Sports (Twitter link), three-time MVP Nikola Jokic has “pushed behind the scenes” for the Nuggets to trade for Clippers guard Russell Westbrook, himself a former NBA MVP. Wind hears Jokic has wanted to play with Westbrook for multiple seasons. Joey Linn of Sports Illustrated confirms (via Twitter) Wind’s reporting, adding that DeAndre Jordan has been supportive of the idea of adding Westbrook as well. According to Linn, the Clips are exploring “several” trade possibilities for Westbrook, and even if he isn’t traded to Denver directly, it’s possible he might eventually land with the Nuggets.
The Bulls and DeMar DeRozan appear destined to part ways, with a source telling Joe Cowley of The Chicago Sun-Times that the six-time All-Star will be landing elsewhere. According to Cowley, DeRozan made up his mind to leave once Chicago traded Alex Caruso to Oklahoma City for Josh Giddey. The Bulls have been targeting younger players in free agency, re-signing restricted free agent Patrick Williams and agreeing to a three-year deal with big man Jalen Smith.
While the Knicks chose not to tender a qualifying offer to forward/center Precious Achiuwa, they are still open to a potential reunion with the 24-year-old, a source tells Fred Katz of The Athletic. Ian Begley of SNY.tv hears (via Twitter) interest in a reunion is mutual, but the young big man is also drawing interest from “several” contenders, so he could have multiple options to choose from.
There hasn’t been much news related to Raptors guard Gary Trent Jr., a 25-year-old unrestricted free agent who earned $18.6MM last season. As Michael Grange of Sportsnet.ca writes, GM Bobby Webster said before free agency opened that a return to Toronto was still possible, assuming the terms were agreeable for both sides. “You want to be strategic about what’s tradable, what’s not tradable,” Webster said of Trent. “We have some big contracts coming up in the future, so it’ll just have to be something that makes sense for everyone.”

Jalen Smith Signs Three-Year Contract With Bulls

July 1st, 2024 at 8:31am CST by Arthur Hill

JULY 8: The signing is official, according to a team press release.

JULY 1: Free agent center Jalen Smith will join the Bulls on a three-year, $27MM contract, sources tell ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (Twitter link).

Smith became an unrestricted free agent on Friday by declining his $5.42MM player option for next season. The 24-year-old, who ranked 44th on our list of the top 50 free agents, winds up with a nice raise and a longer deal in Chicago.

Smith is expected to be the Bulls‘ new backup center after Andre Drummond agreed to terms with Philadelphia on Sunday night. With no available cap space, Chicago will likely sign Smith with a portion of its $12.8MM non-taxpayer mid-level exception. Whether they use the MLE or acquire him via sign-and-trade, the Bulls will be hard-capped at the first tax apron of $178,132,000.

After being selected by Phoenix with the 10th pick in the 2020 draft, Smith was sent to Indiana at the 2022 trade deadline. He became a valuable backup in two-and-a-half years with the Pacers and played rotation minutes as the team reached the Eastern Conference Finals.

He averaged 9.9 points, 5.5 rebounds and 1.0 assists in 61 games this season while shooting 59.2% from the floor and 42.4% from three-point range.

The addition of Smith is one of several recent moves the Bulls have made to create a younger, more athletic roster and become less reliant on veterans. They traded for Josh Giddey last week and agreed to terms on a new five-year deal with free agent Patrick Williams over the weekend.

Trade Rumors: LaVine, Johnson, Ingram, Pacers, Carter

June 30th, 2024 at 2:18pm CST by Luke Adams

The Bulls don’t appear to have made any progress on the Zach LaVine trade front, according to ESPN’s Bobby Marks (YouTube link). Chicago has made an effort this offseason to find a taker for LaVine, but hasn’t found many teams with interest — even if a draft pick is attached to the two-time All-Star.

“Literally, there is no market for Zach LaVine,” Marks said. “They are trying to give him away and attach a first-round pick. I’ve been told that by multiple people.”

LaVine’s maximum-salary contract looks especially onerous as teams grapple with the implications of the new Collective Bargaining Agreement. He’s owed $43MM next season coming off foot surgery and has a guaranteed salary of $46MM in 2025/26, with a player option worth nearly $49MM for ’26/27.

Here are a few more trade rumors from across the league:

Nets forward Cameron Johnson is generating trade interest from the Raptors and Kings, with the Pacers and Magic among the other teams to register exploratory interest, reports Michael Scotto of HoopsHype. The Cavaliers have been mentioned as another possible suitor for Johnson, but “nothing has materialized on that front” yet, according to Scotto. Brookyn is believed to be open to inquiries to most of the veterans on its roster after having agreed to send Mikal Bridges to New York.
The Kings are a team to keep an eye on as a possible suitor for Pelicans forward Brandon Ingram, Scotto writes, confirming reporting from Jake Fischer. For now, Sacramento’s interest in Ingram has only been exploratory, Scotto notes.
Teams talking to the Pacers have inquired about youngsters Bennedict Mathurin and Jarace Walker, per Scotto. While there has been no indication that Indiana is looking to move either player, the team made the Eastern Conference finals without Mathurin available and has reached lucrative new free agent deals for two power forwards who are ahead of Walker on the depth chart (Pascal Siakam and Obi Toppin), so it’s fair to wonder whether they’ll be available this summer.
With the Magic considered a potential suitor for Isaiah Hartenstein, teams have expressed interest in trading for Orlando center Wendell Carter, according to Scotto, who says the Pelicans are among the clubs to inquire on Carter.