- Jordan Schultz of Yahoo Sports (Twitter link) describes the Rodney Hood sweepstakes as a three-team race involving the Cavaliers, Kings, and Bulls. Sacramento and Chicago are two of the only teams with the cap room necessary to make a viable offer to Hood — we wrote about the Kings’ interest in the RFA swingman earlier today.
As expected, the Bulls have officially matched the offer sheet the Kings presented to Zach LaVine, the team announced on Twitter.
The contract, which is fully guaranteed with no options, will pay LaVine $78MM over the next four years. It also includes financial protections for the Bulls in case LaVine experiences further problems with his surgically repaired left knee. Under NBA rules, the Bulls cannot trade LaVine without his consent or send him to the Kings under any circumstances for an entire year, tweets salary cap expert Albert Nahmad.
“We were excited last summer when we got a dynamic athlete in Zach LaVine through the trade,” said Bulls executive John Paxson, “and we’re excited now that we get to keep him.” (Twitter link from K.C. Johnson of The Chicago Tribune.)
LaVine was the centerpiece of a deal that sent Jimmy Butler to the Timberwolves on the night of the 2017 draft. Chicago was willing to gamble on LaVine even though he was coming off a torn ACL. He sat out the first half of his first season with the Bulls, then averaged 16.7 PPG in 24 games after recovering.
Chicago appears to still be functioning as an over-the-cap team after matching LaVine’s offer, but it could get up to about $19MM in space by waiving Sean Kilpatrick, Paul Zipser (non-guaranteed) and Julyan Stone while keeping David Nwaba‘s cap hold on its books. That would also involve renouncing all the team’s exceptions, including three traded player exceptions.
JULY 8, 8:27am: The trade is now official, according to press releases from all three teams. In addition to receiving Biyombo, the Hornets will also acquire 2019 and 2020 second-round picks from the Magic. Orlando holds multiple second-rounders in each year, so it’s not yet clear which selections are changing hands.
“There were some elements of (the trade) that we were discussing individually the last few weeks, but the deal actually came together just [on Saturday],” said Magic president of basketball operations Jeff Weltman. “It was really kind of a quick-hitter.”
The Bulls intend to waive Stone, per Vincent Goodwill of NBC Sports Chicago (Twitter link).
JULY 7, 8:20pm: The trade has been agreed to in principle, according to Wojnarowski (Twitter link).
JULY 7, 7:51pm: Charlotte, Chicago and Orlando are close to a trade that would send Timofey Mozgov to the Magic, Bismack Biyombo to the Hornets and Julyan Stone to the Bulls, tweets ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski. Bulls guard Jerian Grant will also go to Orlando in the deal, Woj adds (Twitter link).
The Hornets will give up more than $17MM in the trade between Mozgov’s $16MM salary for next season and Stone’s non-guaranteed $1,656,092. This will be the second trade of the summer for Mozgov, who was shipped from the Nets to the Hornets in a deal that became official yesterday. He has two years left on his current contract, with a $16.72MM salary for 2019/20.
In Biyombo, Charlotte picks up a shot blocker to replace Dwight Howard, who went to Brooklyn in the Mozgov deal. Biyombo’s contract is nearly in line with Mozgov’s, paying him $17MM in 2018/19, with a player option for the same amount the following season. Orlando breaks up a logjam at center that had existed since drafting Mohamed Bamba, while Mozgov becomes the third-string center in Orlando and probably won’t see much more playing time than he did in Brooklyn.
Chicago plays a minor role in the trade, creating modest savings by sending out Grant’s $2,639,314 salary in exchange for Stone’s non-guaranteed figure. The Bulls could be looking to shed any salary they can before their expected matching of the Kings’ offer sheet for Zach LaVine.
Stone’s guarantee date is August 1, posts Bobby Marks on ESPN Now, and the Bulls can increase their cap room to $16MM by letting him go and getting rid of Noah Vonleh‘s cap hold. Taking on Biyombo’s contract pushes the Hornets up to $120.3MM in salary with 14 guaranteed deals, just $3.4MM under the luxury tax.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
The Bulls will be investing in an unknown commodity by matching the Kings’ four-year, $78MM offer sheet for Zach LaVine, writes Nick Friedell of ESPN. Chicago’s most recent offer to LaVine was only about $2MM less per year than the deal with the Kings, so it’s not a great financial burden for the team to take on. The bigger question is what kind of player LaVine will be after an ACL tear limited him to a combined 71 games over the past two seasons.
The 23-year-old got into just 24 contests in his first season with Chicago and wasn’t particularly effective. LaVine averaged 16.7 points per game, but shot a career-low 38.3% from the floor and the Bulls were outscored by 7.2 PPG while he was on the court. Friedell states that LaVine hasn’t progressed beyond what he was when he entered the league, an athletic marvel who lacks efficiency on offense and consistency on defense.
The Bulls may also have to repair their relationship with LaVine, who said he felt more wanted by the Kings in free agency. The front office believes it has to match LaVine’s offer sheet so it won’t lose the centerpiece of the Jimmy Butler trade, Friedell adds, but it isn’t certain that it’s getting a player to build around for the next four seasons.
There’s more news out of Chicago:
- An escalating salary cap will make LaVine’s new contract look better in future years, notes K.C. Johnson of The Chicago Tribune. Conflicting reports give LaVine a starting salary of either $18.1MM or $19.5MM, which would be either 17.8% or 19.1% of the salary cap, and that percentage will fall in future years as the cap continues to rise. Johnson also notes that the Kings did the Bulls a favor by putting substantial injury protection for themselves in the deal in case LaVine has more problems with his left knee. Chicago’s front office didn’t suggest that in its negotiations out of fear of angering LaVine and his representatives.
- Tonight’s decision to trade Jerian Grant was a sign of confidence in Cameron Payne as the backup point guard, Johnson adds in a separate story. The Bulls will save about $1MM in swapping Grant for Julyan Stone and another $1,656,092 by waiving Stone before his August 1 guarantee date. Injuries have limited Payne to just 36 games since being acquired from the Thunder at the 2017 trade deadline.
- The Bulls will create a $2.6MM trade exception in tonight’s deal, tweets salary cap specialist Albert Nahmad. The team can open as much as $29MM before officially matching LaVine’s offer sheet by waiving Paul Zipser and Sean Kilpatrick (Twitter link).
9:10pm: The Bulls plan to match the offer sheet, ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski tweets. The cap hit for the Bulls will be $19.5MM annually, Bobby Marks of ESPN tweets.
7:04pm: Bulls shooting guard Zach LaVine has agreed a four-year, $80MM offer sheet from the Kings, Shams Charania of Yahoo Sports tweets. Chicago has 48 hours to match the offer for the restricted free agent.
The offer includes a full guarantee with no options, Michael Scotto of The Athletic tweets.
The Bulls made LaVine an offer, but not nearly for the amount Sacramento placed on the table, according to ESPN’s Marc Spears.
“I’m disappointed that I had to get an offer sheet from another team. But Sacramento stepped up and made a strong impression,” LaVine told Spears. “It appears that Sacramento wants me more than Chicago.”
Spears reports the offer as $78MM. In any case, Chicago will have to pony up to retain the talented wing.
LaVine averaged 16.7 PPG in 24 games last season after returning from a torn left ACL. He was traded last offseason by the Timberwolves in the Jimmy Butler blockbuster.
The Kings are the first rival suitor to make a concrete offer to a restricted free agent this summer.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
While the Bulls and Zach LaVine aren’t necessarily close to a deal, the team has had communication with LaVine and his representatives, writes K.C. Johnson of The Chicago Tribune. According to Johnson, the Bulls assured LaVine that speculation they wanted to do a $14MM-per-year deal wasn’t accurate, and have “proactively” negotiated in good faith with his camp on a deal that could be in the range of $18MM annually.
That seems like a very reasonable number for LaVine, particularly since only two other teams can currently offer a deal worth anything close to that, and neither of those teams seems to be pushing hard for the Bulls guard. As Johnson details, the Bulls don’t want to let LaVine get away and aren’t eager to have him play on his qualifying offer, so it seems like there’s a good chance the two sides will eventually get something done.
- Bulls restricted free agent David Nwaba has received a “barrage” of interest from around the NBA, tweets Jordan Schultz of Yahoo Sports. We heard earlier this week that Chicago was open to sign-and-trade offers for Nwaba.
The Kings are one of three NBA teams with significant cap room still available and have been linked to big-name restricted free agents like Jabari Parker and Zach LaVine within the last week or two. However, rather than making a bid for an RFA, Sacramento may take another route with its cap space.
According to Jason Jones of The Sacramento Bee, the Kings intend to focus on the trade market, hoping to use their cap room to absorb an unwanted contract or two and collect extra draft assets. The ideal scenario for the team, Jones suggests, would be to acquire a veteran small forward in a trade and pick up a 2019 first-rounder, since Sacramento’s own 2019 pick is headed to the Celtics or Sixers.
While Jones confirms that Sacramento has expressed interest in Parker and LaVine, the prospect of reshaping the roster around either player, plus the uncertainty surrounding an offer sheet – which could be matched by the Bucks and Bulls, respectively – may ultimately discourage the club from pursuing either RFA. The Kings also view Parker as a power forward and aren’t looking to add more players at that spot, Jones notes.
The Kings have been on the lookout for a small forward in free agency, offering slightly more money to Mario Hezonja than the $6.5MM he’ll reportedly receive from the Knicks. However, if the team can add a small forward in a trade that also includes another asset or two, it may be a win in both the short- and long-term for the franchise.
While Jones doesn’t identify any specific trade partners the Kings may talk to, Bobby Marks’ list of clubs with the highest projected 2018/19 team salaries gives us a pretty good idea of which teams might be looking to cut costs.
The Thunder are one possible trade partner, though Alex Abrines and Kyle Singler may not appeal much to the Kings, and Carmelo Anthony is unlikely to approve a trade to Sacramento. The Raptors could be an intriguing fit if they’re looking to get out of the tax, or at least to reduce their projected tax bill — Norman Powell is believed to be available, and C.J. Miles could be too.
The Kings, who were said to have interest in Zach LaVine before free agency officially began, may still be eyeing the restricted free agent, according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski.
During a conversation with colleague Bobby Marks on his podcast, Wojnarowski suggested on Wednesday that LaVine may be the best bet of the remaining restricted free agents to receive a lucrative offer sheet. According to Woj, the Kings have been “pretty serious” about LaVine and still have approximately $18-20MM in cap room to make an offer, if they so choose.
The Bulls still have plenty of cap flexibility and could comfortably match a four-year, $80MM offer for LaVine. However, an offer sheet in that range would put some pressure on the Bulls, who reportedly preferred to bring back their RFA guard on an average annual salary closer to $14-16MM. Given the tepid market for restricted free agents so far, Chicago may have been hoping to get an even more team-friendly deal.
LaVine is one of several notable restricted free agents who has yet to reach a contract agreement so far, joining Clint Capela, Jabari Parker, Marcus Smart, and Jusuf Nurkic, among others. It’s not clear if the Kings are considering offer sheets for any of those other players — the team was reportedly eyeing Parker earlier in free agency, but he may no longer be a Sacramento target.
We knew coming into the 2018 NBA free agent period that there may not be enough cap room to go around for all the players who hoped to sign lucrative new deals. Now, on the fourth day of the new league year, that’s more true than ever.
Teams like the Lakers, Sixers, Pacers, Nets, Mavericks, and Suns have devoted most or all of their projected cap room to free agent commitments or agreed-upon trades. While many of those clubs could theoretically open up more space with certain moves, they currently don’t project to have a ton of room available once they complete their reported deals.
The early activity from those clubs leaves just three teams with substantial projected cap room for 2018/19. These teams will be worth watching closely in the coming days – and perhaps weeks – to see how they intend to use their remaining cap room.
Will any of them make a run at one of the many intriguing restricted free agents still on the board, such as Clint Capela, Jabari Parker, Zach LaVine, Marcus Smart, or Jusuf Nurkic? Will they want to collect assets by taking on another team’s unwanted contracts, with into-the-tax clubs like the Thunder, Nuggets, and Raptors perhaps looking to cut costs? Their cap room will give these three teams some leverage no matter what path they choose.
Here’s a breakdown of the three clubs in question:
Atlanta Hawks
It’s been a quiet July so far for the Hawks, who signed their three first-round picks and inked Jaylen Adams to a two-way contract, but have otherwise stayed out of the fray. That’s no surprise, as GM Travis Schlenk said last week that the team expected to take a wait-and-see approach to free agency.
Currently, the Hawks have about $22.1MM in available cap room. They could increase that number to approximately $24.8MM by cutting Jaylen Morris and Antonius Cleveland, who are on modest non-guaranteed deals.
The Hawks are the midst of a rebuilding process and will be very patient as they put together their roster. That could mean wanting to use their cap room to take on a bad contract or two, adding more picks to their cache of draft assets. However, if they think the time is right to make a swing for a young restricted free agent who could be a cornerstone piece, they’re in position to do so. One weekend report linked them to LaVine.
Chicago Bulls
Speaking of LaVine, the Bulls‘ projected cap room will be impacted by what happens with the RFA guard. With or without him though, Chicago will have plenty of flexibility.
Currently, with cap holds for LaVine and fellow RFA David Nwaba on their books, along with non-guaranteed contracts for Sean Kilpatrick and Paul Zipser, the Bulls project to have approximately $22.6MM in cap space. The team could increase that number to $26.2MM by releasing Kilpatrick and Zipser. Waiving those players and renouncing their two RFAs would get the Bulls up to about $37.5MM, though that scenario is unlikely.
If the Bulls decide to use their space to pursue an outside RFA target, Chicago native Jabari Parker could be an option.
Sacramento Kings
The Kings have been linked to both LaVine and Parker during the free agent process, but may no longer be eyeing Parker.
Assuming they renounce the cap holds for free agents Vince Carter and Bruno Caboclo, the Kings will have about $18.2MM in cap room. Waiving Nigel Hayes, who has a non-guaranteed contract, would bump that number up to approximately $19.5MM.
If they plan to keep Hayes, the Kings are already 14 players on their roster, so it could make sense for them to use their remaining cap room in one fell swoop if there’s an opportunity they like.
Other teams that could create flexibility
While there are a number of teams that could theoretically clear cap room if they’re willing to waive or trade players on guaranteed contracts, there are a couple clubs whose path to space is quicker and easier than most.
The Nets are one such team. Once they complete their acquisition of Dwight Howard, the Nets project to have approximately $6.6MM in space. That doesn’t include Ed Davis‘ new $4.4MM deal, since Brooklyn figures to complete that signing using the room exception. It also include Joe Harris‘ modest $1.5MM cap hold rather than his new $8MM-ish salary, since the Nets will likely use all their cap room before going over the cap to re-sign Harris.
With a buyout agreement in place for Howard, the Nets are in position to increase their cap room. While it’s not clear how much Howard will give up in his agreement with Brooklyn, let’s say he gives back $5.337MM, the amount he’s reportedly receiving on his new deal with the Wizards. In that scenario, the Nets could add that amount to their $6.6MM in space, getting up to approximately $12MM.
The Lakers are another team to watch. Based on their roster moves to date, they project to have approximately $5.7MM in space. While it looks like they’ll avoid taking on multiyear deals, preferring to preserve cap flexibility for 2019, they could create significant flexibility right away if they’re willing to waive and stretch Luol Deng. Doing so would increase their cap room to about $15.5MM.
Salary information from Basketball Insiders was used in the creation of this post.