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Community Shootaround: Phoenix Suns’ Outlook

March 5th, 2025 at 4:00pm CST by Luke Adams

The Suns gave fans in Phoenix something to cheer about on Tuesday night as they rallied from a 23-point second-half deficit against the Clippers to get back in the win column.

But it has been has still been a miserable stretch for the team — since the start of February, the Suns have lost 11 of 15 games and have fallen from eighth place in the Western Conference to 11th, three games out of a play-in spot.

Even Tuesday’s comeback victory wasn’t without some drama, as star forward Kevin Durant had to answer questions after the game about a heated exchange with head coach Mike Budenholzer that occurred during the first quarter.

A slew of injuries in Dallas have opened the door for the Suns to potentially catch the Mavericks for the No. 10 seed and make the play-in tournament. But accomplishing that feat won’t be easy, given that they have the most difficult remaining schedule in the NBA, per Tankathon. And even if they can get to No. 10, nothing the Suns have shown this season suggests they’re capable of winning two play-in games on the road, then upsetting the top-seeded Thunder in the first round of the playoffs.

As Zach Harper of The Athletic writes, the Suns have the NBA’s most expensive roster ($214MM+) and project to have the fourth-highest luxury tax bill in league history ($152MM+). Their defense is one of the league’s worst, ranking ahead of only Utah, New Orleans, and Washington. They have a -2.5 net rating when their “big three” of Durant, Devin Booker, and Bradley Beal share the court together.

It all points to a roster in desperate need of a shake-up, and it certainly seemed as if the Suns were aware of that fact ahead of last month’s trade deadline, though the team’s second-apron position made it difficult to navigate the trade market. The front office spent weeks trying to find a way to acquire Jimmy Butler using Beal as an outgoing piece, but found no takers for the guard’s unwieldy maximum-salary contract.

In the days leading up to the deadline, Phoenix pivoted to exploring the trade market for Durant, which “blindsided” the team’s top scorer. Back in the fall, Suns owner Mat Ishbia expressed confidence about signing Durant to an extension during the 2025 offseason, but a summer divorce now seems to be a far more likely outcome, given how irked the 36-year-old was to be put on the trade block without his knowledge.

Appearing on ESPN Countdown on Sunday (Twitter video link), Shams Charania suggested it will be an eventful offseason in Phoenix.

“Unless there’s a significant run here into the playoffs for the Phoenix Suns, league sources believe that there will be real changes in Phoenix coming to the Suns,” Charania said. “From a roster standpoint, that likely starts with Kevin Durant.

“… From my understanding, what it would look like is the Suns and Durant would work together on any potential trade to a contender. I would expect four to six contending teams with some serious involvement in Durant. He’s still playing at a really high level. He is extension-eligible in the offseason too, and as we know with the Jimmy Butler situation, the extension plays a big factor.”

As Charania points out, we may not get clarity on what the group of suitors for Durant would look like until later in the spring, since early postseason exits or deep playoff runs could make certain clubs more or less inclined to pursue a maximum-salary star entering his age-37 season.

Of course, if major changes are afoot in Phoenix, we shouldn’t necessary assume that Durant will be the only key player the team makes available. Beal figures to be back on the trade block, though his contract and his no-trade clause will continue to make it difficult for the Suns to find a taker.

The belief is that Booker will remain off the table, with Phoenix looking to build around him going forward, but Chris Mannix of SI.com (Twitter link) wonders if the Suns might reconsider that stance in the summer, arguing that the franchise would be better off with a full reset.

We want to know what you think. What should the Suns be looking to get back in a trade for Durant? Will it be possible to move Beal? Should Booker be made available? Having traded away control of all of their own draft picks for the next seven years, does a rebuild make any sense for the Suns or should they be looking to quickly retool and remain in the playoff hunt?

Head to the comment section below to share your two cents!

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NBA’s Two-Way Signing Deadline Has Now Passed

March 5th, 2025 at 7:03am CST by Luke Adams

The deadline for NBA teams to sign players to two-way contracts was Tuesday, March 4. Since that deadline has now passed, no two-way deals can be signed between now and the end of the 2024/25 league year. Clubs will be permitted to begin signing two-way contracts for the ’25/26 season on July 1.

Under the NBA’s previous Collective Bargaining Agreement, two-way signings weren’t permitted after January 15. Teams took advantage of the extended window to complete two-way deals this season, finalizing 30 of them between the February 6 trade deadline and Tuesday’s deadline. During that same period, teams promoted 16 players from two-way contracts to standard deals and made two waiver claims on two-way players.

There were nine teams – the Nuggets, Pistons, Pacers, Grizzlies, Heat, Suns, Kings, Spurs, and Jazz – that didn’t make any moves involving their two-way players between last month’s trade deadline and the two-way signing deadline. The other 21 clubs were active.

As our tracker shows, all 90 two-way slots around the NBA are now filled. However, that doesn’t necessarily mean the 90 players currently on two-way contracts will all finish the season on those deals.

There are still a handful of two-way players who could receive standard contracts before the regular season ends. The Lakers, for instance, will likely consider promoting Jordan Goodwin and/or Trey Jemison to their standard roster in order to make them playoff-eligible.

A team can promote one or more of its two-way players to its standard roster at any time between now and the end of the season — that team simply wouldn’t be permitted to sign a new player to fill the empty two-way slot created by the promotion.

Here are all the transactions related to two-way players that have been finalized since the trade deadline, sorted by team and listed in the order they were completed (from earliest to most recent):

Atlanta Hawks

Boston Celtics

Brooklyn Nets

Charlotte Hornets

Chicago Bulls

Cleveland Cavaliers

Dallas Mavericks

Golden State Warriors

Houston Rockets

Los Angeles Clippers

Los Angeles Lakers

Milwaukee Bucks

Minnesota Timberwolves

New Orleans Pelicans

New York Knicks

Oklahoma City Thunder

Orlando Magic

Philadelphia 76ers

Portland Trail Blazers

Toronto Raptors

Washington Wizards

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Players Waived After Saturday Won’t Be Playoff-Eligible

February 28th, 2025 at 9:36pm CST by Luke Adams

In order to retain his postseason eligibility for a new NBA team, a player must be waived on or before March 1. That means that any player who remains on an NBA roster after Saturday won’t be eligible to suit up in the playoffs for a new team, though there’s at least one key exception to that general rule.

A player who is currently on a 10-day contract – or a current free agent who signs one after March 1 – will retain his playoff eligibility going forward. For instance, once Lamar Stevens‘s 10-day deal with the Grizzlies expires on Sunday night, he’d still be able to re-sign with Memphis or join a new team and be eligible to play in the postseason, since he’s not being placed on waivers after March 1.

That rule applies even if a player has his 10-day contract terminated early, since that player becomes a free agent immediately without being required to pass through waivers.

Here’s the list of players on 10-day contracts that run through at least March 1 who will retain their playoff eligibility when their current deals expire:

Kevin Knox (Warriors), Kevon Harris (Hawks), and Malachi Flynn (Hornets) are also reportedly set to sign 10-day contracts this weekend. They’re all playoff-eligible too.

Since it’s often a point of confusion, it’s worth clarifying that a player doesn’t have to sign with a new team by March 1 to be playoff-eligible — he simply can’t be placed on waivers after 11:59 pm Eastern time on Saturday.

For example, P.J. Tucker was waived by Toronto on Friday. As long as he signs with a new team by the final day of the regular season (April 13), he can play in the postseason (including play-in games). If he had been cut two days later, on Sunday, Tucker would have lost his postseason eligibility.

The buyout market in 2025 hasn’t been all that active, with Ben Simmons, Javonte Green, Torrey Craig, and Alex Len among the only veterans of note who have been waived and found new NBA teams in February.

All of those players – and those who have been waived but haven’t yet signed with new teams, such as Josh Richardson, Reggie Jackson, and Mohamed Bamba – will be playoff-eligible for their new clubs, but anyone on a standard or two-way contract who is waived after Saturday won’t be. We’ll be keeping a close eye on the NBA’s transaction wire over the next 24 hours to see who else might land on waivers before that deadline passes.

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Community Shootaround: Coach Of The Year

February 26th, 2025 at 3:00pm CST by Luke Adams

More than any other NBA end-of-season award, Coach of the Year depends in large part on the preseason expectations for a given team. The top candidates for Coach of the Year recognition almost always come from the teams that surpass the win totals projected for them in the fall by the greatest margin.

It’s perhaps no surprise, then, that a pair of head coaches from the Central Division are currently considered the frontrunners for this season’s award.

Oddsmakers pegged Cleveland’s over/under for this season at 48.5 wins, but the 48-10 Cavaliers are on the verge of surpassing that total with six-and-a-half weeks left in the regular season. New head coach Kenny Atkinson, hired away from the Warriors last spring, has unlocked the Cavs’ offense, which has posted a league-leading 122.2 offensive rating this season after finishing at 114.7 (16th) in 2023/24.

In an unusual twist, Atkinson’s stiffest competition may come from the man he replaced in Cleveland. J.B. Bickerstaff was let go by the Cavaliers last spring and their results this season suggest it was the right move. But Bickerstaff has been a revelation in Detroit, where the Pistons, projected for an over/under of 24.5 wins, currently hold a 32-26 record.

We knew coming into the season that the Pistons probably weren’t going to go 14-68 again, like they did under Monty Williams a year ago, but there weren’t too many experts or fans who expected them to make a strong push for a guaranteed (top-six) playoff spot in the East. As of today, they holds the No. 6 seed, with a four-game cushion on the No. 7 Magic.

After finishing 27th in offensive rating and 25th in defensive rating last season, the Pistons rank in the top 13 in both categories in ’24/25, with Bickerstaff pressing all the right buttons to unlock first-time All-Star Cade Cunningham and to keep the team on course after its second-leading scorer (Jaden Ivey) went down with an injury on New Year’s Day. The Pistons haven’t just stayed afloat in Ivey’s absence — they’ve thrived, going 17-8 in the 25 games since he broke his fibula.

A pair of Southwest teams have exceeded expectations this season too, with Taylor Jenkins of the Grizzlies and Ime Udoka of the Rockets guiding their teams to 38-20 and 36-22 records, respectively. There was a sense coming into the season that Memphis would bounce back with better health luck and that a young Houston team would take another step forward, but I don’t think many of us were betting on both teams maintaining a 50-win pace beyond the All-Star break.

Of course, while it’s less of a surprise, given that they were the West’s top seed last spring, it’s impossible to overlook the job Mark Daigneault has done with the Thunder, whose 46-11 record puts them hot on Cleveland’s heels as the NBA’s No. 1 overall team. Oklahoma City’s +12.6 net rating is the league’s best mark and would be the second-best net rating of all-time, behind the 1995/96 Bulls (+13.4).

In the East, Joe Mazzulla has done a good job making sure the Celtics don’t succumb to a post-championship hangover, leading the team to a 42-16 record.

A pair of Los Angeles-based head coaches deserve credit too — oddsmakers projected the Lakers and Clippers to be the bottom two teams in the Pacific standings this season, but they hold the division’s top two spots to date. J.J. Redick‘s Lakers are 35-21, while Tyronn Lue‘s Clippers are 31-26 despite missing star forward Kawhi Leonard for a good chunk of the season.

We want to know what you think. Who would your Coach of the Year pick be at this point in the season? Which three coaches would be on your Coach of the Year ballot? Who do you think will ultimately win the award?

Head to the comment section below to weigh in with your thoughts!

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Josh Giddey Is Only 2025 RFA To Meet Starter Criteria So Far

February 25th, 2025 at 4:00pm CST by Luke Adams

When a player on an expiring contract is eligible for restricted free agency, his qualifying offer is determined in part by whether or not he met the “starter criteria” during the season – or two seasons – leading up to his free agency. As we explain in our glossary entry, a player meets the starter criteria when he achieves one of the following:

  • He plays at least 2,000 minutes or starts 41 games in the season before he reaches free agency.
  • He averages either 2,000 minutes or 41 starts in the two seasons prior to his restricted free agency.

If a top-14 pick coming to the end of his rookie contract fails to meet the starter criteria, the value of his qualifying offer declines. Conversely a player who was drafted at No. 10 or later or who went undrafted altogether can increase the value of his qualifying offer by meeting the starter criteria.

In many cases, an increase or decrease to a qualifying offer won’t materially affect the player’s restricted free agency, since a QO is just a one-year contract offer issued in order for the team to retain its right of first refusal. The player has the option of accepting it, but in most cases it functions as a placeholder until the RFA signs an offer sheet with a rival team or negotiates a new multiyear contract with his current team.

Warriors forward Jonathan Kuminga, for example, will likely sign a lucrative long-term deal when he reaches free agency this summer, so it won’t matter all that much if he falls short of the starter criteria and his QO drops from the standard amount of $10,240,287 to $7,976,830.

But for a player who is less likely to secure a significant payday but still a good bet to receive a qualifying offer, a difference of a few million dollars between potential QOs could have a major impact on how his free agency plays out. That difference may affect how willing a team is to put the qualifying offer on the table and how likely the player is to simply accept it.

With all that in mind, it’s worth checking in on which potential 2025 restricted free agents have actually met the starter criteria so far this season and which ones are on track to do so. The first list is a short one: Bulls guard Josh Giddey is the only player to meet the starter criteria so far.

Giddey had a huge head-start because he made 80 starts for Oklahoma City in 2023/24, meaning he just needed to make two starts this season in order to achieve an average of 41 for the past two seasons. He made his second start for the Bulls way back on October 25, which means his qualifying offer this summer will be $11,142,057 instead of dropping to $7,976,830.

None of the 10 other potential restricted free agents have met the starter criteria though. Of those players, the following three were lottery picks, with their default qualifying offers noted in parentheses:

  1. Jonathan Kuminga, Warriors ($10,240,287)
  2. Davion Mitchell, Heat ($8,741,210)
  3. Ziaire Williams, Nets ($8,353,153)

Kuminga has only started 10 games this season and will fall short of the starter criteria, which will bump his QO down to $7,976,830. Mitchell and Williams still have a chance to get there though — Mitchell has 28 starts under his belt, while Williams has 26. They both need to reach 41 to achieve the starter criteria, and they’ve been regular starters for their respective teams as of late. If they hang onto their starting jobs and stay healthy, they’ll surpass 41 starts.

Again, Kuminga’s free agency is unlikely to be affected by his smaller qualifying offer, since his offer will likely just serve as a placeholder and a last-resort fallback option. Maybe the Nets will be slightly less inclined to give Williams a qualifying offer if it’s worth $8.35MM instead of $7.98MM, but that’s such a small gap that it’s unlikely to affect the team’s QO decision either way. The same goes for Mitchell and the Heat.

The other seven players on expiring contracts who are eligible for restricted free agency are Cam Thomas (Nets), Santi Aldama (Grizzlies), Quentin Grimes (Sixers), Tre Mann (Hornets), Isaiah Jackson (Pacers), Day’Ron Sharpe (Nets), and Jabari Walker (Trail Blazers). Jaden Springer, Chris Duarte, and Bones Hyland were also part of this group before being waived this month.

Of those players, only Thomas has a realistic chance of meeting the starter criteria. He started 51 games last season, which means he needs to get to 31 this season. He’s at 17 and the Nets have 25 left to play. If Thomas can return from his hamstring strain relatively soon, which seems likely, he has a good shot at starting 14 games and reaching the necessary threshold. That would increase his QO from $5,993,172 to $8,741,210.

The others will remain eligible for their standard QOs, based on draft position (or their prior salary, in Walker’s case), as follows:

  1. Tre Mann, Hornets ($6,964,982)
  2. Isaiah Jackson, Pacers ($6,422,431)
  3. Quentin Grimes, Sixers ($6,311,825)
  4. Day’Ron Sharpe, Nets ($5,983,683)
  5. Santi Aldama, Grizzlies ($5,940,797)
  6. Jabari Walker, Trail Blazers ($2,524,624)
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Checking In On Open NBA Roster Spots

February 24th, 2025 at 12:06pm CST by Luke Adams

There has been no shortage of free agent signings across the NBA since the trade deadline, but several clubs still have at least one open roster spot as we near the home stretch of the season.

Using our roster counts tracker, let’s check in on which teams have openings and which are most likely to fill them in the short term.

Teams with multiple open spots on their standard 15-man rosters:

  • New Orleans Pelicans
  • Sacramento Kings

The Pelicans and Kings are both currently carrying 13 players on standard contracts, which teams are permitted to do for up to 14 days at a time or 28 days in total during a season.

New Orleans dipped down to 13 players last Thursday by buying out Javonte Green, which means the club will have until next Thursday (March 6) to get back to 14 players. Two-way player Brandon Boston is considered a strong candidate for a promotion, though he’s still eight games away from his 50-game limit because he has been out since February 8 with a sprained ankle.

Sacramento, meanwhile, dropped to 13 players when Daishen Nix‘s 10-day contract expired last Monday night. The Kings need to re-add a 14th man by next Tuesday (March 4) in order to adhere to the NBA’s roster rules.

Teams with one open spot on their standard 15-man rosters:

  • Atlanta Hawks
  • Boston Celtics
  • Golden State Warriors
    • Note: Two of the Warriors’ 14 players are on 10-day contracts.
  • Indiana Pacers
  • Milwaukee Bucks
  • Minnesota Timberwolves
  • New York Knicks

The Celtics, Bucks, Timberwolves, and Knicks are all deep into luxury tax territory and may not be in any rush to add a 15th man, since that player would cost exponentially more once tax penalties are taken into account. New York is currently restricted by a hard cap but could sign a player as soon as February 28.

The Hawks and Pacers have enough breathing room below the tax not to worry about surpassing that line, so they may look to add someone sooner rather than later, perhaps on a 10-day contract.

The Warriors, meanwhile, will dip back to 12 players once the 10-day contracts for Kevin Knox and Yuri Collins expire this Friday night. Golden State has some hard-cap issues to navigate for the rest of the season and might not want to get back to 14 players right away.

Teams with full standard 15-man rosters that include one 10-day contract:

  • Brooklyn Nets
  • Cleveland Cavaliers
  • Dallas Mavericks
  • Memphis Grizzlies
  • San Antonio Spurs
  • Toronto Raptors
  • Utah Jazz
  • Washington Wizards

These teams each have 14 players on standard contracts and one on a 10-day deal. With one exception, they’re all below the tax line and could continue cycling through 10-day signings or add a player on a rest-of-season contract when their current 10-day deals expire.

The one exception is Dallas. The Mavericks are right up against their hard cap, so once Moses Brown‘s 10-day contract ends, they won’t be able to bring in a new 15th man (or bring Brown back) until April 10.

Teams with an open two-way slot:

  • Brooklyn Nets
  • Golden State Warriors

The Warriors will reportedly fill their open two-way slot with Australian guard Taran Armstrong, so the Nets are really the only team with a two-way spot available, having promoted Tyrese Martin to a standard contract last Thursday.

It’s a pretty safe bet Brooklyn will fill that opening at some point before March 4, which is the deadline for two-way signings. You can also count on several other teams promoting, waiving, and signing two-way players before that deadline.

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Community Shootaround: Defensive Player Of The Year

February 24th, 2025 at 8:56am CST by Luke Adams

After finishing second in Defensive Player of the Year voting as a rookie in 2024, rising Spurs star Victor Wembanyama was viewed at this year’s All-Star break as the overwhelming frontrunner to win the award in his second NBA season.

However, the All-Star Game is the last game that Wembanyama will play in 2024/25, as he was ruled out for the remainder of the season after being diagnosed with a deep vein thrombosis in his right shoulder. While the Spurs do everything they can to make sure their franchise player is healthy and ready to go for the 2025/26 season, this year’s Defensive Player of the Year award is suddenly very much up for grabs.

Wembanyama will soon be officially out of the running, since he’ll fall well short of the 65-game requirement for end-of-season awards. As we wrote on Saturday, his absence has made Jaren Jackson Jr. of the Grizzlies and Evan Mobley as the Cavaliers the clear betting favorites to win Defensive Player of the Year.

The two young big men squared off on Sunday for the first time this season, with Mobley leading the Cavs to a tight victory by racking up 25 points, 13 rebounds, eight assists, and three blocked shots. For the season, Cleveland has a 106.9 defensive rating with Mobley on the court and a 112.6 mark when he’s not. Although Cleveland’s defense ranks seventh overall, that 106.9 defensive rating when Mobley plays would be second-best in the NBA.

Jackson, the NBA’s Defensive Player of the Year in 2023, has had a very similar on/off-court impact in Memphis. The Grizzlies have a 106.8 defensive rating when Jackson is on the floor and a 113.1 mark when he sits.

Mobley and Jackson are anchors of their respective defenses but have the athleticism and versatility to switch onto smaller opponents and move away the basket if necessary. Another player with that skill set is Heat big man Bam Adebayo, who has finished in the top five of Defensive Player of the Year voting in each of the past five seasons.

Asked last week about the possibility of a DPOY award, Adebayo made it clear he’s more focused on getting the Heat back on track than earning individual hardware. He may need to do the former to have a shot at the latter, since team success is a major factor in award consideration. Miami currently ranks eighth in the Eastern Conference with a 26-29 record.

While voters typically favor centers who protect the basket, a wing or forward can emerge as a leading candidate when no one big man separates himself from the field. Thunder swingman Luguentz Dort, a lock-down defender on the wing, could become that player this season. Oklahoma City’s 104.8 defensive rating leads the league by a wide margin and Dort currently has the third-best DPOY betting odds at BetOnline.ag.

Asked by Chris Mannix of SI.com last week about his individual goals beyond winning a championship, Dort acknowledged that he’d love to be recognized for his defense.

“Honestly, the biggest goal is to go out there and perform every night for my teammates,” he said. “But it will always be nice to get rewarded for the hard work that I do on the court, which would probably be Defensive Player of the Year or (All-Defensive) first team. If you ask me if I deserve it, I would say yes, just because of what I bring every night, all the matchups that I got to face every night. But all that would be a goal of mine.”

Dort’s teammates Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Jalen Williams, rising defensive stars Dyson Daniels and Amen Thompson, and four-time DPOY Rudy Gobert are among the other betting options available at BetOnline.ag, but I’d view them as longer shots.

We want to know what you think. Which player would be your 2024/25 pick for Defensive Player of the Year? Which player do you expect to win the award? Would Wembanyama have been your choice if he had reached the minimum-game threshold?

Head to the comment section below to weigh in with your thoughts!

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Community Shootaround: Should Joel Embiid, Paul George Be Shut Down?

February 22nd, 2025 at 11:04pm CST by Arthur Hill

Every time it seems like the Sixers‘ season can’t get any worse, somehow it does.

Saturday night, Nic Claxton‘s late tip-in gave the Nets a 105-103 victory at Philadelphia in an oddly important matchup of 20-35 teams. Brooklyn is now just a half-game behind Chicago in the race for the final play-in spot, and the Sixers are left with the sixth-worst record in the league.

Philadelphia fans loudly expressed their displeasure as the Nets built a large early advantage. The Sixers rallied to take a late lead, but weren’t able to close out the game.

Joel Embiid remained on the bench throughout the fourth quarter as coach Nick Nurse stuck with the combination that produced the comeback. The former MVP wound up with 14 points, seven rebounds and five assists in 31 minutes while shooting 4-of-13 from the field.

Embiid declined to talk to the media after the game, but Nurse explained the physical difficulties his star center is going through (Twitter video link from Derek Bodner of PHLY Sports).

“He’s giving us what he can. He’s not himself, we all know that,” Nurse said. “He’s not, certainly, the guy that we’re used to seeing play at a super high level. But I commend him for giving us what he can.”

Tonight was the 19th game of the season for Embiid, who is still feeling the effects of a lateral meniscus injury he suffered last winter. Surgery appears to be an offseason option to get him full healthy in time for training camp.

The Sixers thought they had a Big Three capable of challenging for the title when they signed Paul George over the summer to team up with Embiid and Tyrese Maxey. President of basketball operations Daryl Morey was also busy on the free agent market, adding numerous veterans with playoff experience.

But George’s season has been affected by injuries as well, and he’s currently dealing with tendon damage in his finger. He confirmed this week that he has had to take injections to be able to play.

The team’s injury list goes much deeper, starting with rookie guard Jared McCain, who was lost for the season with a meniscus tear in his left knee after a promising start. Eric Gordon sprained his right wrist earlier this month and may not be back for a while. Kyle Lowry is sidelined with a right hip injury, and Justin Edwards sprained his left ankle during practice this week.

Amid so much adversity, Philadelphia is nearing the place where losses may be more beneficial than wins. A play-in spot is still within reach, but even if they get there the Sixers would have to win two road games just to earn a first-round matchup with the powerful Cavaliers.

Another concern is this year’s first-round draft pick, which will convey to Oklahoma City if it lands outside the top six. Philadelphia needs an influx of young talent on its veteran roster, and any move up the standings would place that pick at greater risk.

We want to get your opinion. Considering the Sixers’ disappointing season and the fragile health of Embiid and George, should they be shut down for the rest of the season? Head to the comments section below to share your thoughts.

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Rest-Of-Season NBA Dates, Deadlines To Watch

February 18th, 2025 at 9:32am CST by Luke Adams

With the All-Star Game behind us, we’re preparing for the home stretch of the 2024/25 NBA season. Here are a few noteworthy dates and deadlines to keep an eye on before the playoffs begin in April.

February 28

A team with cap room can renegotiate a player’s current-year salary to give him a raise as part of a contract extension. There are no legitimate candidates for a renegotiation at this point in the season though, with all 30 teams operating over the cap.

March 1

  • Last day a player can be waived by one team and remain eligible to appear in the postseason for another team.

As we outline in our glossary entry on buyouts, a player doesn’t need to be signed by March 1 in order to retain his playoff-eligible — he simply can’t be waived after that date. A player who is waived on March 1 and signs with another team on April 8 would be playoff-eligible for his new team, but a player who is waived on March 2 and signs on March 5 wouldn’t be.

March 4

Under the previous Collective Bargaining Agreement, the deadline to sign a player to a two-way contract was January 15, but it has been pushed back in the current CBA and teams are taking full advantage. In 2024, a total of 15 two-way deals were officially finalized on March 2, 3, or 4.

In the 12 days since the trade deadline, eight players have signed new two-way contracts. That number figures to grow significantly by the end of the day on March 4, despite the fact that there are only three two-way openings around the league right now.

March 10

The Hornets ($6.5MM) and Jazz ($2.9MM) are among the teams that still have available disabled player exceptions, which could be used to sign a player to a rest-of-season contract or to claim a player with an expiring contract off waivers.

However, disabled player exceptions are used more frequently at the trade deadline than after it, and neither Charlotte nor Utah has reason to be especially aggressive in free agency. The likeliest scenario is that these DPEs – as well as those belonging to the Pacers and Nuggets – will expire without being used.

April 10

  • Last day to waive a player on an expiring contract or a player with an option for 2025/26 (4:00pm CT).

Players with at least one year still left on their contracts can be waived during the postseason or offseason, but if a team wants to part ways with a player who has the ability to reach free agency this summer, he must be cut in time to clear waivers before the last day of the regular season.

April 13

  • Last day of the NBA regular season.
  • Last day players can sign contracts for 2024/25.
  • Last day two-way contracts can be converted to standard NBA contracts.
  • Luxury tax penalties calculated based on payroll as of this day.

Several teams around the NBA have at least one open spot on their 15-man rosters. We can probably assume that most – if not all – of those clubs will fill their openings by April 13.

Playoff teams will want to make sure they have as much veteran depth as possible, just to be safe, while lottery teams will look at signing younger players to multiyear deals that include little to no guaranteed money beyond this season in order to get a longer look at them in the summer.

April 14

  • Playoff rosters set (2:00pm CT).

April 15-18

  • NBA play-in tournament.

April 19

  • NBA playoffs begin.

While they wait for the play-in tournament to conclude, the top six teams in each conference will get a few days off between the regular season and the postseason, giving them some time to recharge before the playoffs begin.

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Warriors, Cavs Must Make Roster Additions By Thursday

February 18th, 2025 at 7:57am CST by Luke Adams

NBA roster rules require teams to carry at least 14 players on standard contracts for most of the regular season. Clubs are permitted to dip below 14 players for up to 14 days at a time and 28 days in total during a season.

[RELATED: 2024/25 NBA Roster Counts]

Several teams dropped below 14 players on standard contracts earlier this month as a result of trade-deadline deals, but most of them have since made additions to get them back to the league-mandated minimum. There are some exceptions, however.

Golden State Warriors

The Warriors briefly dipped to just 11 players on standard contracts after completing their trade for Jimmy Butler on February 6, then added a 12th man by converting Quinten Post from his two-way contract.

Golden State will be required to get back to 14 players on Feb. 20, which means making a pair of roster additions. One of those additions will reportedly be Kevin Knox, who is getting a promotion from the Santa Cruz Warriors after playing well this season for Golden State’s G League affiliate.

Besides Knox, the Warriors will have to add one more player to their standard roster by Thursday, either on a 10-day contract or on a rest-of-season deal.

Knox is reportedly receiving a 10-day contract, so it would make sense for the Warriors to go that route with their second addition as well. When those 10-day deals expire, the club could remain below 14 players for two more weeks before having to get back to 14 for the rest of the season. That would help Golden State navigate its hard cap and add a 15th man sooner.

Cleveland Cavaliers

The Cavaliers’ situation is pretty straightforward. They went from 14 players on their standard roster to 13 as a result of their two-for-one De’Andre Hunter trade on Feb. 6. They haven’t made a roster move since then, so they’ll need to sign a 14th man by Feb. 20, this Thursday.

None of the Cavaliers’ two-way players – Emoni Bates, JT Thor, and Luke Travers – have appeared in more than nine NBA games this season, so they don’t look like obvious candidates for promotions. The Cavs seem more likely to sign a free agent or promote a G League player from the Cleveland Charge.

Since their 14th man is unlikely to see the court much – if at all – the Cavs could opt to go the 10-day route for now and then make a decision on a rest-of-season commitment next month.

Sacramento Kings

Unlike the Warriors and Cavaliers, the Kings don’t face any immediate deadlines. But after Daishen Nix‘s 10-day contract expired on Monday night, they’re back down to 13 players on standard contracts. They’ll have until March 4 to re-fill that roster spot, though I suspect they may not wait that long.

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