Hoops Rumors Originals

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

• Last day for contract renegotiations.

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

• Last day for a team to sign a player to a two-way contract.

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

• Last day to use a disabled player exception.

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.

NBA teams have been permitted to sign 10-day contracts since January 5, but between that date and last Thursday’s trade deadline, only two clubs – the Raptors and Thunder – actually took advantage of that opportunity and signed players to 10-day deals.

Since last Thursday, several other teams have joined them, with more roster spots opening up around the NBA and clubs no longer feeling the need to preserve those roster openings for possible trades. As our tracker shows, seven 10-day deals were signed between February 7 and 11 and that number figures to continue growing steadily after clubs return from the All-Star break.

Here are the 10-day contracts that are currently active around the league:

• Charlotte Hornets: Elfrid Payton (runs through Feb. 16)
• Sacramento Kings: Daishen Nix (runs through Feb. 17)
• San Antonio Spurs: Bismack Biyombo (runs through Feb. 20)
• Philadelphia 76ers: David Roddy (runs through Feb. 20)
• Indiana Pacers: Jahlil Okafor (runs through Feb. 20)
• Washington Wizards: Jaylen Nowell (runs through Feb. 21)

Chuma Okeke was on a 10-day contract with the Sixers that would have run through February 16, but that deal was terminated early in order to make room on the roster for Jared Butler, who was promoted from his two-way deal.

It’s worth noting that 10-day contracts signed just before the All-Star break can sometimes technically run beyond 10 days. That’s because those deals are required to cover a minimum of three games.

Payton and Nix were under contract for at least three games prior to the All-Star break, which is why their deals will expire during the break. Roddy and Okafor signed on Feb. 11 and their contracts will cover at least three games during those 10 days.

However, Biyombo signed with San Antonio on Feb. 9, with just two games left on the team’s schedule prior to the All-Star break. As a result, his deal will extend to become a 12-day contract in order to cover the first post-All-Star game on the Spurs’ schedule on Feb. 20.

Nowell’s 10-day contract with the Wizards was the most curiously timed signing of the bunch. He signed it last Saturday, which was a game day for the Wizards, who also played on Monday and Wednesday. If Nowell had signed in time to be activated for that Feb. 8 game, his 10-day contract would only run through the 17th, but he wasn’t on Washington’s active or inactive list last Saturday, and the team didn’t formally announce his deal until after the game ended.

As a result, our working assumption is that Nowell’s contract will extend to cover the Wizards’ first game after the break on Feb. 21, turning his 10-day deal into a 14-day arrangement.

You can use our 10-day contract tracker to continue to keep tabs on all the 10-day deals signed for the rest of the season, starting with the one Kevin Knox will reportedly complete with the Warriors next week.

The 2025 NBA trade deadline is behind us, but that doesn’t mean teams are finished making roster moves. With two months still left in the 2024/25 regular season, there are still many roster spots to be filled around the league, as well as veterans who might not finish the year with their current teams.

The NBA’s buyout market has been active since the trade deadline and could feature several more moves in the next couple weeks.

[RELATED: Hoops Rumors Glossary: Buyouts]

A veteran in an undesirable situation due to his playing time or his team’s place in the standings (or both) could ask to be released and may even be willing to give back a little money to accommodate the move. Some teams might make that decision unilaterally, opting to release a veteran to open up a roster spot for a younger player.

Over the rest of the month, we’ll use the space below to monitor the buyout market, keeping tabs on which veteran players have been bought out or released, and which have found new teams. We’ll also keep an eye on players who are potential buyout candidates. The list will be updated regularly in the coming days and weeks.

A player on an NBA contract must be waived by the end of the day on March 1 in order to retain his playoff eligibility, so that will be a key date to watch.

Here’s our breakdown of the 2025 NBA buyout market:

Last updated 3-3-25 (11:09 am CT)

Veterans who have been recently bought out or waived and are free agents:

• Mohamed Bamba, C
• Reggie Jackson, G
• Josh Richardson, G/F
• P.J. Tucker, F
• Christian Wood, F/C

Not every player who has been waived this season will be mentioned here. This list is essentially just made up of players with at least a few years of NBA experience who could be of immediate interest to teams in the playoff mix.

For instance, Patrick Baldwin Jr. and Jalen Hood-Schifino were among those waived since the trade deadline, but neither one has ever been a reliable rotation player. They don’t fit the profile of a traditional buyout market pickup for a contending team and won’t be listed here for that reason.

It’s also worth noting that players like Richardson and Wood are listed here despite dealing with injuries that have limited their availability this season. We’re still assuming that they might be healthy enough to contribute before the end of the season, whereas that’s not the case for a recently waived player like James Wiseman, who will be out until 2025/26 due to his torn Achilles.

Veterans who have been bought out or released and joined new teams:

• Torrey Craig: Waived by Bulls; signed with Celtics.
• Ben Simmons: Bought out by Nets; signed with Clippers.
  • Note: Simmons’ pre-waiver salary exceeded the non-taxpayer mid-level exception, making him ineligible to sign with a team operating over either tax apron.
• Alex Len: Waived by Wizards; signed with Lakers.
• Daniel Theis: Waived by Thunder; signed with AS Monaco (Europe).
• Javonte Green: Bought out with Pelicans; signed with Cavaliers.
• Bones Hyland: Waived by Hawks; signed two-way contract with Timberwolves.

Again, we’re focusing here on players who fit the traditional buyout market profile, which means playoff teams (or at least playoff hopefuls) adding win-now help.

If a lottery-bound team signs a young player in order to audition him for the rest of this season, that signing won’t be listed here.

Other veterans who are candidates to be bought out or released:

Note: Players marked with an asterisk (*) have salaries above the non-taxpayer mid-level exception and would be ineligible to sign with a team operating over either tax apron.

Realistic candidates:

• Marvin Bagley III (Grizzlies)
• Seth Curry (Hornets)
• Vasilije Micic (Suns)
• Patty Mills (Clippers)
• Monte Morris (Suns)
• Cam Reddish (Lakers)
• Delon Wright (Knicks)
• Cody Zeller (Rockets)

Longer shots:

• Chris Boucher (Raptors)
• Malcolm Brogdon (Wizards) *
• Bruce Brown (Pelicans) *
• Tre Jones (Bulls)
• Larry Nance Jr. (Hawks)
• D’Angelo Russell (Nets) *

Not all of these players will be bought out or waived. In fact, even in the “realistic candidates” section, many are more likely to stay put than to reach free agency. There have been reports specifically suggesting that some of the “longer shots” – including Brogdon and Brown – are expected to stay where they are for the rest of the season.

Still, until March 1 comes and goes, we’re viewing these players as worth monitoring.

Teams operating in tax apron territory:

As noted above, a player whose pre-waiver salary exceeds the non-taxpayer mid-level exception is ineligible to sign with a team operating over either tax apron. The non-taxpayer MLE this season is $12,822,000, so that restriction would apply to Bogdanovic ($19,032,850) but not to Bagley ($12,500,000).

Here are the teams in tax apron territory who are ineligible to sign a player who fits that bill:

• Boston Celtics
• Denver Nuggets
• Los Angeles Lakers
• Milwaukee Bucks
• Minnesota Timberwolves
• New York Knicks
• Phoenix Suns

We heard repeatedly in the months leading up to the 2025 NBA trade deadline that the new Collective Bargaining Agreement would make it more challenging than ever for teams to complete deals. Executives around the league responded by swapping a record 63 current NBA players during the week leading up to the deadline, plus the draft rights to an additional three players.

It was a wild, eventful week, with 21 trades completed by 25 teams since we flipped the calendar to February. Those deals ranged from a stunning blockbuster to the most minor of draft-pick swaps.

[RELATED: Community Shootaround: Trade Deadline Winners, Losers]

Thanks for following along with us at Hoops Rumors. Here’s a recap of all of 2025’s deadline deals, with the details reported and announced so far:

Trades completed during deadline week

The Lakers and Mavericks shock the NBA (story)

• Lakers acquire Luka Doncic, Maxi Kleber, Markieff Morris, and cash ($55K; from Jazz)
• Mavericks acquire Anthony Davis, Max Christie, the Lakers’ 2029 first-round pick, and cash ($55K; from Jazz).
• Jazz acquire Jalen Hood-Schifino, the Clippers’ 2025 second-round pick (from Lakers), and the 2025 Mavericks’ second-round pick.
• Note: The 2025 Mavericks second-round pick going to Utah technically includes “least favorable” terms, but there’s essentially no chance it won’t be Dallas’ own pick.

The Heat resolve a standoff and the Warriors finally get their complementary star (story)

• Warriors acquire Jimmy Butler.
• Heat acquire Andrew Wiggins, Kyle Anderson, Davion Mitchell, and the Warriors’ 2025 first-round pick (top-10 protected).
• Pistons acquire Dennis Schröder, Lindy Waters, and either the Warriors’ or Timberwolves’ 2031 second-round pick (whichever is least favorable; from Warriors).
• Jazz acquire KJ Martin, Josh Richardson, a 2028 second-round pick (from Pistons), and either the Heat’s or Pacers’ 2031 second-round pick (whichever is most favorable; from Heat).
• Raptors acquire P.J. Tucker, the Lakers’ 2026 second-round pick (from Heat), and cash (from Heat).

The Spurs land Victor Wembanyama‘s pick-and-roll partner (story)

• Spurs acquire De’Aaron Fox and Jordan McLaughlin.
• Kings acquire Zach LaVine, Sidy Cissoko, the Hornets’ 2025 first-round pick (top-14 protected; from Spurs), the Spurs’ 2027 first-round pick, the Timberwolves’ 2031 first-round pick, the Bulls’ 2025 second-round pick (from Spurs), the Nuggets’ 2028 second-round pick (top-33 protected; from Spurs), and their own 2028 second-round pick (from Bulls).
• Bulls acquire Kevin Huerter, Zach Collins, Tre Jones, and their own 2025 first-round pick (from Spurs).
• Note: The Bulls’ 2025 second-round pick had previously been controlled by the Spurs (if in the top 55) or Kings (if 56 or later). The Kings acquired it unconditionally as part of this trade.

The Raptors take a flier on a former All-Star (story)

• Raptors acquire Brandon Ingram.
• Pelicans acquire Bruce Brown, Kelly Olynyk, the Pacers’ 2026 first-round pick (top-four protected), and the Raptors’ 2031 second-round pick.

The East’s top team loads up for the stretch run (story)

• Cavaliers acquire De’Andre Hunter.
• Hawks acquire Caris LeVert, Georges Niang, the Cavaliers’ 2027 second-round pick, the Cavaliers’ 2029 second-round pick, the Cavaliers’ 2031 second-round pick, the right to swap first-round picks with the Cavaliers in 2026 and the right to swap their 2028 first-round pick for either the Cavaliers’ or Jazz’s 2028 first-round pick (whichever is least favorable).
• Note: The terms on the 2026 swap will be extremely convoluted because other teams have the right to swap first-round picks with both Atlanta and Cleveland. Essentially, the Hawks will have the ability to swap the least favorable of their own 2026 first-round pick and the Spurs’ pick for whichever pick the Cavaliers end up with (either their own pick, the Jazz’s pick, or the Timberwolves’ pick).

The Bucks sneak below the second apron and move on from a three-time All-Star (story)

• Bucks acquire Kyle Kuzma, Jericho Sims, either the Pistons’, Suns’, or Warriors’ 2025 second-round pick (whichever is second-most favorable; from Wizards), and a protected-second round pick (from Spurs).
• Wizards acquire Khris Middleton, AJ Johnson, the draft rights to Mathias Lessort (from Knicks), the right to swap their own 2028 first-round pick for the Bucks’ 2028 first-round pick or the Trail Blazers’ 2028 first-round pick (whichever is least favorable), and cash ($1MM; from Bucks).
• Knicks acquire Delon Wright, the draft rights to Hugo Besson (from Bucks), and cash ($2MM; from Bucks).
• Spurs acquire Patrick Baldwin Jr. and cash ($4.13MM; from Bucks).
• Note: If the Trail Blazers haven’t conveyed their lottery-protected 2025 first-round pick by 2027 and it lands outside the lottery in 2028, it would be ineligible to be swapped; in that scenario, the Wizards would simply have the right to swap their own 2028 first-round pick for the Bucks’ 2028 first-round pick.

The Lakers land their center of the present and future (story)

• Lakers acquire Mark Williams.
• Hornets acquire Dalton Knecht, Cam Reddish, the Lakers’ 2031 first-round pick, and the right to swap their 2030 first-round pick for the Lakers’ 2030 first-round pick.

The Grizzlies admit defeat on a prior trade for a Defensive Player of the Year (story)

• Grizzlies acquire Marvin Bagley III, Johnny Davis, a 2025 second-round pick (from Wizards), and a 2028 second-round pick (from Kings).
• Wizards acquire Marcus Smart, Colby Jones, Alex Len, and the Grizzlies’ 2025 first-round pick (top-14 protected).
• Kings acquire Jake LaRavia.

The Mavericks and Sixers make a deal — then amend it (two stories)

• Mavericks acquire Caleb Martin and the Sixers’ 2030 second-round pick.
• Sixers acquire Quentin Grimes and either the Sixers’ or Nuggets’ 2025 second-round pick (whichever is most favorable).

The Kings add another Lithuanian center to their frontcourt (story)

• Kings acquire Jonas Valanciunas.
• Wizards acquire Sidy Cissoko, the Nuggets’ 2028 second-round pick (top-33 protected), and the Kings’ 2029 second-round pick.

The Suns find a taker for a big man no longer in their plans (story)

• Hornets acquire Jusuf Nurkic and either the Suns’, Wizards’ (9-30 protected), Magic’s, or Grizzlies’ 2026 first-round pick (whichever is least favorable).
• Suns acquire Cody Martin, Vasilije Micic, and a 2026 second-round pick.

The Wizards consolidate their draft assets (story)

• Wizards acquire Reggie Jackson and either the Thunder’s, Rockets’ (top-four protected), or Clippers’ 2026 first-round pick (whichever is least favorable).
• Sixers acquire Jared Butler (two-way), either the Warriors’ or Suns’ 2027 second-round pick (whichever is most favorable), the Warriors’ 2028 second-round pick, the Wizards’ 2030 second-round pick, and either the Suns’ or Trail Blazers’ 2030 second-round pick (whichever is most favorable).

The Clippers duck the tax… (story)

• Clippers acquire Drew Eubanks and Patty Mills.
• Jazz acquire P.J. Tucker, Mohamed Bamba, either the Clippers’ or Jazz’s 2030 second-round pick (whichever is least favorable), and cash ($852K).
• Note: The Jazz had previously acquired the right to swap their own 2030 second-round pick for the Clippers’ 2030 second-rounder. They now control both picks.

… So do the Sixers … (story)

• Pistons acquire KJ Martin, the Bucks’ 2027 second-round pick, and the Mavericks’ 2031 second-round pick.
• Sixers acquire cash.

… And the Hawks … (story)

• Rockets acquire Cody Zeller and the Rockets’ 2028 second-round pick.
• Hawks acquire the draft rights to Alpha Kaba.

… And the Pelicans, who extend their NBA-high streak of non-taxpaying seasons (story)

• Thunder acquire Daniel Theis and either the Pelicans’ or Magic’s 2031 second-round pick (whichever is least favorable).
• Pelicans acquire cash ($1MM).

The Celtics chip away at their tax bill (story)

• Rockets acquire Jaden Springer, either the Trail Blazers’ or Pelicans’ pick (whichever is least favorable; top-55 protected), and the Celtics’ 2030 second-round pick.
• Celtics acquire the Rockets’ 2031 second-round pick (top-55 protected).

The Pacers create some extra breathing room below the tax line (story)

• Raptors acquire James Wiseman and cash.
• Pacers acquire the Raptors’ 2026 second-round pick (top-55 protected).

The Hornets and Thunder make us ask “why?” (story)

• Hornets acquire the Suns’ 2029 second-round pick.
• Thunder acquire the Nuggets’ 2030 second-round pick.

The following two trades have yet to be officially announced as of this article’s publication, but remain on track to be processed at some point early on Friday morning:

The Clippers and Hawks swap underperforming guards (story)

• Clippers to acquire Bogdan Bogdanovic, the Timberwolves’ 2025 second-round pick, the Grizzlies’ 2026 second-round pick (43-60 protected), and their own 2027 second-round pick.
• Hawks to acquire Terance Mann and Bones Hyland.

The Bucks part ways with their 2022 first-round pick (story)

• Clippers to acquire MarJon Beauchamp.
• Bucks to acquire Kevin Porter Jr.

Notable trade candidates who stayed put

• Kevin Durant, Suns (story)
• Nikola Vucevic, Bulls
• Cameron Johnson, Nets
• John Collins and Jordan Clarkson, Jazz
• Robert Williams, Trail Blazers
• Clint Capela, Hawks
• Mitchell Robinson, Knicks
• Chris Boucher, Raptors
• Malcolm Brogdon, Wizards

Players waived on deadline day

Officially released:

• Sidy Cissoko, Wizards (story)
• Jalen Hood-Schifino, Jazz (story)
• Reggie Jackson, Wizards (story)
• Wendell Moore, Pistons (story)
• Pete Nance, Sixers (story)
• Jaden Springer, Rockets (story)
• Daniel Theis, Thunder (story)
• James Wiseman, Raptors (story)

Expected to be waived:

• Josh Richardson, Jazz (story)