The Bulls, Pacers, and Magic are among the teams expected to push the Thunder for free agent forward Jerami Grant, a source tells Jordan Schultz of Yahoo Sports (Twitter link). Grant emerged as a key bench piece for Oklahoma City in 2017/18, averaging 8.4 PPG and 3.9 RPG with a .535 FG%. However, the Thunder may be hard-pressed to retain him if Paul George returns, since the club would be well over the tax line, making a competitive offer for Grant worth exponentially more expensive due to potential tax penalties.
The Lakers may not necessarily need a star in place to lure LeBron James, Zach Lowe of ESPN writes in a massive round-up of free agency notes. If James were to sign in Los Angeles alongside the team’s existing young stars and plethora of cap space they’d immediately become one of the league’s most appealing destinations for the next 12 months.
The comment comes in response to the notion that the Lakers are growing desperate to acquire Kawhi Leonard from the Spurs prior to James’ opt-in deadline tomorrow at 10:59pm CST. As things stand, both the Celtics and Sixers appear poised to offer better packages than what Lowe speculates L.A. might.
The King’s decision will have a ripple effect on the rest of the league, especially the Eastern Conference. If the Raptors, for example, were to watch James head to the West, it would make keeping their current core in place more appealing considering that their path to the Finals would be hypothetically easier.
Here’s a taste of the rest of Lowe’s findings:
- If the Thunder can convince Paul George to return to Oklahoma City, it will be a monumental victory for general manager Sam Presti. If he leaves, the club would be forced to at least think about blowing the current squad up and trading Russell Westbrook.
- Only six teams have notable amounts of potential cap space and half of those – the Hawks, Bulls and Kings – are telling teams that they’re interested in using that space to absorb bad contracts and pick up assets.
- It’s unclear that there will be much of a market for Derrick Favors beyond, potentially the Mavs. It may make more sense for the big man to stay with the Jazz after finally starting to click alongside Rudy Gobert in Quin Snyder‘s offense last season.
- The two best candidates to sign a qualifying offer this summer and approach next summer as unrestricted free agents are Celtics guard Marcus Smart and Trail Blazers center Jusuf Nurkic. Lowe writes that Nurkic turned down a “rich” four-year extension last fall but might have a hard time finding a team willing to offer more than the mid-level exception this summer.
- It stands to reason that Aaron Gordon, Zach LaVine and Jabari Parker will yield significant offers from the Magic, Bulls and Bucks respectively but none of those teams have reason to offer a max contract right away.
- The Pacers could make life harder for the Magic by putting together an offer in the $20MM range for Gordon. Lowe writes that there has been “mild discontent for years” about Gordon’s role in Orlando’s offense.
- The Nuggets tried “feverishly” to trade for a second first-round pick last Thursday in the hopes of nabbing Zhaire Smith. Denver’s 2019 first-rounder was on the table in those talks.
For more free agency notes, including some potential contract extension candidates and the reasoning behind Nikola Jokic not getting a player option in the fifth year of his new deal with the Nuggets, check out the full feature at ESPN.
Per the NBA’s Collective Bargaining Agreement, a player is not permitted to sign a rookie scale contract extension until after the July Moratorium ends at noon on July 6. However, according to K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune, the Bulls have already discussed a multiyear contract extension offer with big man Bobby Portis.
Portis, 23, has until the day before the 2018-19 season begins to sign a rookie scale extension. If he declines to do so, the Bulls will be able to make him a restricted free agent next summer by extending him a qualifying offer, currently projected to be worth just over $3.6MM.
The Bulls have drafted promising young big men Lauri Markkanen and Wendell Carter with top-10 picks in both of the last two drafts. Yet, Johnson’s report clearly demonstrates that the Bulls see Portis as a reliable and important backup moving forward after he averaged a career-high 13.2 PPG and 6.8 RPG in 73 games with the Bulls during the 2017/18 season.
The Bulls have tendered a qualifying offer to Zach LaVine putting him on track to become a restricted free agent on Sunday, per RealGM’s official transactions log. When LaVine reaches the open market, he can expect to draw interest from the Kings, according to K.C. Johnson of The Chicago Tribune, who hears from league sources that Sacramento is considering signing LaVine to an offer sheet.
After failing to meet the starter criteria due to his ACL injury, LaVine is in line for a qualifying offer worth $4,333,932. The 23-year-old could accept that one-year offer from the Bulls with an eye toward unrestricted free agency in 2019, but he’s more likely to sign a long-term deal this summer.
LaVine could receive that long-term offer from the Kings, who project to have up to about $19MM in cap room, assuming Garrett Temple exercises his player option. That would be enough to accommodate a lucrative multiyear offer for LaVine, though the Bulls would likely match something in the four-year, $80MM range, according to Johnson. An offer closer to the max would give Chicago pause, Johnson adds. Based on a $101MM cap, a four-year max contract projects to be worth over $108MM.
[RELATED: Kings interested in Jabari Parker, Mario Hezonja]
The Bulls viewed LaVine as a franchise building block when they acquired him from the Timberwolves last summer. Although the team still envisions having LaVine on its roster for years to come, the front office also wants to make sure not to overpay the young guard, and would like to maintain flexibility to add another core piece if the opportunity arises, writes Johnson.
LaVine is one of a handful of Bulls who are eligible for restricted free agency. We heard earlier today that David Nwaba has received a qualifying offer from the club, and two-way player Ryan Arcidiacono got one too, according to RealGM’s transactions log.
Noah Vonleh isn’t in Chicago’s plans and won’t receive a qualifying offer, according to Johnson. Vonleh will become an unrestricted free agent on July 1.
The Bulls have issued a qualifying offer to shooting guard David Nwaba, ensuring that he’ll become a restricted free agent on Sunday, reports Shams Charania of Yahoo Sports (via Twitter).
The move had been expected, since Nwaba’s qualifying offer will only be worth about $1.7MM and he has developed into a solid rotation player over the course of two NBA seasons. In 2017/18, Nwaba averaged 7.9 PPG and 4.7 RPG in 70 games (23.5 MPG) for the Bulls. The 25-year-old is also viewed as a strong perimeter defender.
Nwaba will now have the option of accepting his one-year qualifying offer, negotiating a new agreement with the Bulls, or trying to secure an offer sheet from a rival suitor. If Nwaba signs with another team, Chicago would have two days to decide whether or not to match his offer sheet.
Nwaba is one of three Bulls veterans eligible for restricted free agency this summer. Zach LaVine and Noah Vonleh are in line for qualifying offers worth approximately $4.33MM — LaVine is a lock to receive one, while Vonleh isn’t.
Jazz forward Derrick Favors has set up a few free agent meetings, Eric Woodyard of the Deseret News tweets. Favors is happy in Utah but wants to go through the free-agent process to determine his best course of action, Woodyard adds. Favors, 26, averaged 12.7 PPG and 7.2 RPG last season. Jazz GM Dennis Lindsey said recently he’d like to keep the team’s core intact. The Wizards, Bucks and Warriors have been mentioned as potential landing spots for Favors.
In other developments involving players heading to free agency:
- At least one Western Conference team is preparing to make a run at Bulls restricted free agent guard Zach LaVine, K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune reports. Johnson anticipates the Bulls would prefer to re-sign LaVine in the $14-16MM range annually but might balk if he receives an offer sheet worth $20MM or more per year.
- Mavericks guard Seth Curry has been medically cleared after missing last season with a left tibia fracture, Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN tweets. Curry, an unrestricted free agent, has been engaged in full basketball-related activities for a month, Wojnarowski adds. Curry had a breakout season with Dallas the previous year, averaging 12.8 PPG and 2.7 APG while starting 42 of 70 games.
- The Nets are interested in Magic forward Mario Hezonja, Brian Lewis of the New York Post hears. Hezonja has not lived up to his billing after being the No. 5 pick of the 2015 draft but the Nets think highly of him and aren’t afraid of reclamation projects, Lewis continues. Hezonja, who averaged 9.6 PPG last season, is an unrestricted free agent after Orlando declined to pick up his fourth-year option last year. Brooklyn has pursued top-level restricted free agents in recent years but is unlikely to do so this summer because the front office would like to create room for two max players next summer, Lewis adds.
- After declining Lance Stephenson‘s team option, the Pacers could still bring him back later in free agency. However, league sources tell Adam Zagoria of ZagsBlog.com (Twitter link) not to rule out the Bulls as a potential suitor for Stephenson.
- Frank Urbina of HoopsHype.com identifies a few potential landing spots for Cavaliers guard Rodney Hood, suggesting the Heat, Pacers, and Bulls could be decent fits for the restricted free agent.
Marcus Smart is less than a week from reaching restricted free agency, and potential suitors for the four-year veteran are beginning to emerge. According to Jordan Schultz of Yahoo Sports (Twitter link), the Bulls, Suns, Pacers, and Mavericks are among the teams that could challenge the Celtics for Smart’s services.
The Mavericks were identified as a possible suitor for Smart last week, but the draft results may have altered their free agency plans. Having selected Luka Doncic and Jalen Brunson on Thursday, Dallas appears more likely to target big men in free agency — Schultz suggests the Mavs’ interest in Smart “depends on [the] price.”
As for the other teams mentioned by Schultz, they’d all make some sense as potential landing spots. The Pacers are closer to contending than Phoenix or Chicago, but at age 24, Smart is capable of either contributing right away to a playoff team or being a long-term building block for a club that’s still a year or two away.
The Suns’ point guard outlook remains somewhat unclear, with Brandon Knight coming off a torn ACL and Elie Okobo probably not ready for a major role. The Bulls have Kris Dunn at the point, while the Pacers figure to retain Darren Collison and Cory Joseph. However, both of those teams should have cap space, and could use Smart to create intriguing combinations in their respective backcourts.
Smart, who missed time with a thumb injury in 2017/18, averaged 10.2 PPG, 4.8 APG, and 3.5 RPG for the season. While his numbers – particularly his .367/.301/.729 shooting line – were modest, the 24-year-old is considered one of the NBA’s most talented perimeter defenders, and has been a culture-setter in Boston.
There’s mutual interest between Smart and the Celtics for a new deal, but the club has several other expensive long-term commitments to consider, so it’s not clear how high the front office will be willing to go to retain the hard-nosed guard.
When the Bulls acquired Zach LaVine a year ago in a draft-night blockbuster with Minnesota, the team made it clear that it viewed the young guard as a long-term building block. The Bulls maintained that stance even after failing to agree to terms on a rookie scale extension with LaVine during the 2017 offseason, conveying that they fully intended to lock up LaVine in restricted free agency.
Now, with LaVine’s restricted free agency right around the corner, his return to the Bulls may not be the absolute lock it once was. According to Nick Friedell of ESPN.com (Twitter link), the “near universal support” LaVine once had internally in the organization isn’t there anymore.
A long-term deal for LaVine in Chicago remains a real possibility, but the Bulls plan to wait to see if he receives a big-money offer from another team, per Friedell. If the 23-year-old signs an offer sheet with a rival suitor, the Bulls could then decide if they want to match it.
LaVine’s ability to contribute in his first season with the Bulls was limited by his recovery from an ACL tear. The club should be able to reasonably expect more going forward from the former lottery pick than the modest production it got in his first 24 games in Chicago (16.7 PPG, .383/.341/.813 shooting).
Here’s more on the Bulls:
- The Bulls liked several big men at the top of the draft, including Marvin Bagley III, Jaren Jackson Jr., and Mohamed Bamba. However, the price to move up was too high for the team, sources tell Vincent Goodwill of NBC Sports Chicago. According to Goodwill, Chicago likely would have had to surrender the No. 22 pick and a future first-rounder to trade up from No. 7.
- Executive VP of basketball operations John Paxson explained that it didn’t make sense for the Bulls to give up so many pieces at this point in their rebuild, Goodwill relays. “We feel we’re in a situation at this time of our rebuild that to give up assets, important draft assets to move up a spot or two, that didn’t make sense to us and the way we’re planning,” Paxson said. “We continue to talk about being patient and disciplined in how we make decisions.”
- General manager Gar Forman on the team’s trade options and eventual No. 7 pick: “We’re always looking and probing for opportunity. How close we got, we don’t know. We looked into some things. We thought it was more than a six-player draft. And Wendell [Carter Jr.] is a guy we’ve been high on for quite awhile.”
- The Bulls reportedly made a promise to No. 22 pick Chandler Hutchison very early in the pre-draft process. While Paxson and Forman declined to comment on that alleged promise, Paxson said the club likes the Boise State forward “a lot,” per Goodwill. “We scouted him early, scouted him often. He knew we liked him,” Paxson said. “He addresses a position of need. We had debates on wings and players at his position. His ability to rebound and take it off the board, those things are really valuable, especially the way we want to play.”
- The Bulls made an effort to move up, but decided it was “too expensive,” a source tells Vincent Goodwill of NBC Sports Chicago (Twitter link). Any move would have cost them the 22nd pick and future selections.