- Of the two-way contracts signed so far this offseason, Billy Preston‘s deal with the Cavaliers is the only one confirmed to be for two years rather than just one (Twitter link).
JULY 9, 7:23pm: James has officially signed the contract, Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN tweets.
JULY 1, 7:11pm: LeBron James is headed to Los Angeles, with his agency Klutch Sports Group issuing a press release to confirm that James will sign a four-year contract with the Lakers (hat tip to Jeff Zillgitt of USA Today). The plan all along, Zillgitt tweets, was to keep the announcement as low-key as possible.
According to Klutch Sports, James’ new deal will be worth $154MM, though the maximum four-year salary for a player with 10+ years of NBA experience who changes teams as a free agent is technically $153,312,846.
James’ new contract with the Lakers will start at $35.65MM, with subsequent salaries of $37.44MM, $39.22MM, and $41MM. That final year will be a player option, according to Shams Charania of Yahoo Sports, who tweets that LeBron will have the opportunity to opt out in 2021.
The four-year contract represents a departure from James’ last few seasons in Cleveland, when he signed shorter-term deals to maximize his earnings and his flexibility. He’ll be at least a Laker for the next three seasons, creating some stability for his family in Los Angeles and giving the Lakers time to build a championship-worthy roster around him.
The decision represents the culmination of a year-long saga. The Lakers, who had more cap space than any other NBA team heading into the 2018 offseason, were long rumored to be a potential landing spot for James, though several other teams – including the Cavaliers, Sixers, Rockets, Clippers, Heat, Celtics, Nuggets, and even the Warriors – were cited as possible suitors along the way.
[RELATED: More On LeBron’s Decision]
The Lakers were unable to secure a commitment today from Paul George, who will be headed back to Oklahoma City on a four-year deal of his own, but the team lands free agency’s big prize in James, who will join a roster featuring several up-and-coming prospects, including Lonzo Ball, Brandon Ingram, Kyle Kuzma, and Josh Hart.
With LeBron in the mix, it’s not clear if all those youngsters remain a part of the Lakers’ long-term plans. According to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (via Twitter), Kawhi Leonard remains highly motivated to become a Laker, and the Lakers may be motivated in turn to increase their efforts to acquire him in a trade with the Spurs. That would mean breaking up the Lakers’ young core.
While the Lakers’ odds of landing another top free agent like DeMarcus Cousins or Clint Capela aren’t as high now that they’ve committed $35MM+ to James and are reportedly re-signing Kentavious Caldwell-Pope to a $12MM deal, the team still has cap flexibility.
Accommodating James’ new max deal would reduce L.A.’s cap space to about $13.4MM, as cap experts Albert Nahmad and Bobby Marks detail, and adding KCP’s new $12MM salary would further eat into that room. However, the team could re-open substantial space by trading or stretching Luol Deng, or by renouncing Julius Randle. Deng has an $18MM salary for 2018/19, while Randle’s cap hold is $12,447,727. The Lakers will also have the $4.4MM room exception available once they use up all their cap space, which is expected to be used to sign Lance Stephenson.
[RELATED: DeMarcus Cousins expected to meet with Pelicans, Lakers]
[RELATED: Lakers to meet with Clint Capela]
As the Lakers complete their first steps toward a potential super-team, the Cavaliers will have to regroup now that James is leaving Cleveland for the second time in eight years. While the franchise was blindsided in 2010 when LeBron took his talents to South Beach, general manager Koby Altman and the Cavs’ front office had prepared for this eventuality by adding young, controllable players like Larry Nance, Rodney Hood, Jordan Clarkson, and Collin Sexton within the last year.
Even without a max salary for James to consider, the Cavs already have $102MM+ in guaranteed money on their books for 2018/19, a figure that doesn’t account for a new deal for Hood. Recent reports indicated that the club didn’t plan on trading Kevin Love or blowing up its roster if LeBron left, so we can assume for now that the Cavs will still aim to compete for the playoffs in ’18/19.
Although Cleveland will obviously take a significant step backward without its four-time MVP, the path to the postseason should be easier in the Eastern Conference than in the hyper-competitive West, which will welcome another All-NBA player as a result of James’ decision. Eastern contenders like the Celtics, Raptors, and Pacers will likely be thrilled to see LeBron head west.
Meanwhile, the Sixers – who met with James’ representatives earlier today – will be another team to watch in the wake of LeBron’s agreement with the Lakers. Philadelphia was the only other suitor with a significant chunk of cap room available, so the team will have to turn its attention elsewhere as it debates how to use that space.
Currently, the 76ers have nearly $27MM in space, and the team could increase that number if it waives or buys out Jerryd Bayless, who is on an $8.5MM+ expiring contract. That gives the Sixers plenty of flexibility to pursue a top free agent or to focus on re-signing J.J. Redick and adding one or two more rotation pieces.
James’ decision caps an extremely eventful first day of the 2018 NBA free agent period. Each of the top five players on our list of 2018’s best 50 free agents have now agreed to deals, though many notable names in the top 15 remain available. That list includes Capela, Cousins, Randle, Aaron Gordon, Jabari Parker, Zach LaVine, and Tyreke Evans.
Austin Kent contributed to this post. Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
- The Cavaliers had a group in Las Vegas this morning to see free agent wing Treveon Graham work out, league sources tell TNT’s David Aldridge (Twitter link). The Cavs have “strong interest” in Graham, who is drawing interest from the Timberwolves too, says Aldridge.
- 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.
- Free agent swingman Nick Young has received some interest from the Kings, Grizzlies, Rockets, Cavaliers, Jazz, and Timberwolves, among others, tweets Darren Wolfson of 5 Eyewitness News. According to Wolfson, Young views Minnesota as as “good opportunity” but the club’s interest hasn’t been as aggressive as it was a year ago.
- The Cavaliers had a group in Las Vegas this morning to see free agent wing Treveon Graham work out, league sources tell TNT’s David Aldridge (Twitter link). The Cavs have “strong interest” in Graham, who is drawing interest from the Timberwolves too, says Aldridge.
The Kings were unable to secure Zach LaVine‘s services this weekend, with the Bulls officially matching Sacramento’s four-year offer sheet to the guard on Sunday. However, the Kings may still be considering another move on the restricted free agent market.
League sources tell Jason Jones of The Sacramento Bee that Sacramento has shown interest in Cavaliers RFA Rodney Hood, though Jones cautions that talks haven’t progressed to the point where an offer sheet is imminent.
As Jones notes, the Kings are close to having a full roster, but still have approximately $19.5MM in cap room and remain on the lookout for a small forward. As such, it might make sense for the team to make an aggressive play for someone like Hood, a swingman who is young enough that he could continue to develop along with the rest of Sacramento’s young roster.
Hood, 25, spent his first three and a half seasons in Utah before being sent to Cleveland in a deadline-day trade in February. The former first-round pick struggled with the Cavs, but posted solid overall numbers in 60 regular season games in 2017/18, averaging 14.7 PPG on .429/.381/.860 shooting.
The Cavaliers have $106MM+ in guaranteed salaries on their books so far for 10 players, and certainly won’t want to go back into tax territory this season, so they may not match an aggressive offer for Hood.
If the Kings don’t make a play for Hood or another free agent, they’ll likely turn to the trade market as they look to add a small forward and use their remaining cap room to absorb an unwanted contract or two and pick up extra assets.
The Cavaliers are looking to move Kyle Korver, Terry Pluto of Cleveland.com writes in his latest round-up of Cavs-related notes and rumors. Ashish Mathur of AmicoHoops.net recently reported that Cleveland was exploring the possibility of trading both Korver and point guard George Hill.
While the Cavs have repeatedly insisted that they have no interest in moving Kevin Love, Korver might make more sense as a potential trade chip. His mid-level salary ($7.56MM) would be easier for a potential suitor to absorb, and there’s no shortage of teams around the NBA that wouldn’t mind adding a shooter of his caliber.
Dealing Korver could also clear a path for the Cavs to lock up Rodney Hood to a new multiyear deal without risking going back into luxury-tax territory. The team currently has about $106.4MM in guaranteed money on its books for 10 players. If Hood were re-signed on a salary of about $10-12MM, it would significantly limit the Cavs’ options as they try to fill out the rest of their roster without crossing the tax threshold.
While Pluto doesn’t provide any specifics on what the Cavs might be looking for in exchange for Korver, Mathur suggests the team would like to acquire draft picks. Cleveland has traded its second-round selections for the next two years, and its 2019 first-rounder will head to Atlanta if it doesn’t land in the top 10, so it makes sense that the Cavs would be looking to restock their supply of picks.
Korver, 37, was his usual effective self from three-point range in 2017/18, averaging 9.2 PPG with a .436 3PT%. The veteran marksman is a career 43.1% shooter from beyond the arc and has averaged 2.5 threes per game over his last six seasons.
Korver is under contract for one more year beyond 2018/19, but his 2019/20 salary ($7.5MM) is only partially guaranteed for $3.44MM.
Kevin Love has a chance to raise his trade value by the February deadline, which may explain why the Cavaliers aren’t putting him on the market now, writes Terry Pluto of Cleveland.com. GM Koby Altman said this week that the organization “doesn’t get better” by moving Love, and a rival executive that Pluto talked to agrees.
With LeBron James gone, Love will become the new focus of the offense in Cleveland and he has a good chance to raise the numbers of 17.6PPG and 9.0 RPG that earned him an All-Star berth this season. He also stretches opposing defense, which will give Jordan Clarkson and rookie point guard Collin Sexton easier paths to the rim.
Love will make $24MM in the upcoming season, then has a $25.6MM salary for 2019/20 that he is expected to opt out of, so the Cavaliers will likely decide to trade him at some point. The unidentified executive says he could be very popular around the deadline, especially in the Eastern Conference, where teams will see a wide open field with James now a Laker.
There’s more this morning out of Cleveland:
- The Heat, Hornets, Trail Blazers and Raptors stand out as potential trade destinations for Love, according to Frank Urbina of Hoops Hype.
- Cavaliers coach Tyronn Lue will meet with Lakers coach Luke Walton and associate head coach Brian Shaw to discuss the experience of coaching James, according to Tania Ganguli of The Los Angeles Times. “I’ll just tell them LeBron’s easy,” Lue said. “People get this whole thing built up like he’s hard to coach. It’s not. LeBron’s not the problem. It’s the outside tension that’s the problem. Just put added pressure immediately on the coaches, on his teammates. Now everything you do is under a microscope. … So it’s going to be a totally different change for the Lakers. They’ll be able to handle it.” Lue adds that he spoke to James a number of times while he was making his free agency decision, but never pressed him to stay in Cleveland.
- Pluto examines James’ legacy with the Cavaliers in a separate story. Through all he has accomplished, the enduring memory for James may be bringing an NBA championship to Cleveland. “Only people who are from there understand what that title meant,” said former Cavs coach Mike Brown. “To LeBron, I bet it’s worth more than all his MVP awards [four] and his other titles [in Miami] combined.”
- Ante Zizic, an overlooked part of the Kyrie Irving trade, has been putting up huge numbers in the Las Vegas Summer League, relays Joe Vardon of Cleveland.com. He posted 25 points and 11 rebounds in Saturday’s loss to the Bulls.
- The Cavs don’t plan on tanking or trading their top remaining player Kevin Love, Joe Vardon of the Cleveland Plain Dealer reports. GM Koby Altman said he’s intent on keeping the team competitive despite the loss of LeBron James. “Kevin is an All-Star and you don’t get better by moving Kevin,” Altman said. “Kevin’s been incredible for us for four years and he wants to be here, and to me that’s a big part for guys that are here and the guys that we’re gonna acquire, is that they want to be here and be a part of this new chapter and culture that we’re creating.”
The Cavaliers have signed power forward Billy Preston to a two-way contract, Dave McMenamin of ESPN tweets.
The 6’10” Preston did not play college basketball last season. The McDonald’s All-American committed to Kansas but was the subject of an NCAA investigation into his eligibility. He wound up signing with a Bosnian team but only played three games there due to a shoulder injury.
Preston went undrafted before agreeing to join the Cavs’ summer-league team. He’ll fill one of Cleveland’s two-way slots, with John Holland currently penciled in for the other.
The Cavaliers have officially signed their first-round pick, former Alabama guard Collin Sexton, to his rookie contract, the team announced today in a press release. Joe Vardon of Cleveland.com first reported that the deal was done.
Sexton, the eighth overall pick, landed in Cleveland by way of last year’s Kyrie Irving blockbuster, which sent the Nets’ 2018 first-round selection from Boston to Cleveland. The Cavs’ new point guard will also wear Irving’s old No. 2 on his jersey.
The third point guard selected in the 2018 draft after Luka Doncic and Trae Young, Sexton enjoyed a productive freshman year at Alabama, averaging 19.2 PPG, 3.8 RPG, and 3.6 APG in 33 games. He declared for the draft and went pro after just one college season.
As our breakdown of rookie salaries shows, Sexton will be in line for a first-year salary exceeding $4MM, with an overall value of $20MM on his four-year rookie contract. The first two years of the deal will be guaranteed, with team options for years three and four.
- The Cavaliers remain focused on making the playoffs, even after the loss of LeBron James, according to Joe Vardon of Cleveland.com. The team insists it will hang onto Kevin Love, the only All-Star remaining on the roster, and try to rebuild around him.