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Poll: How Will Isaac Okoro’s Situation Be Resolved?

September 8th, 2024 at 2:38pm CST by Rory Maher

With training camps set to begin in about three weeks, there haven’t been many updates on the NBA’s lone remaining restricted free agent, former No. 5 overall pick Isaac Okoro.

Okoro provides real value to the Cavaliers — he’s their best on-ball defender and is frequently tasked with guarding the opposing teams’ best perimeter player. Even with a major size disadvantage, Okoro did an admirable job defending Paolo Banchero in Cleveland’s first-round playoff series vs. Orlando.

The issue is on the other end of the court, where Okoro is an inconsistent shooter and scorer whom opposing defenses frequently ignore. After shooting a career-best 39.1% from three-point range in the 2023/24 regular season, he converted just 25.7% of his outside looks in the postseason.

The Cavaliers extended a qualifying offer — essentially just a one-year contract offer — to Okoro in June, granting them the right of first refusal in negotiations. That QO is worth $11,828,974. If the 23-year-old accepts the QO, he would become an unrestricted free agent in 2025.

In late July, Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com reported that the Cavs also made Okoro a multiyear offer, roughly in the range of $8-10MM annually. Cleveland certainly seems to be in the driver’s seat in negotiations and hasn’t budged on that stance, according to reports last month from Fedor and ESPN’s Brian Windhorst.

One of the primary issues for Okoro is the Pistons are the only team in the league that has cap room available, and there has been no indication they’re interested in testing the Cavaliers with a long-term offer that Cleveland could match. There also haven’t been any rumors about teams potentially using the non-taxpayer mid-level exception to make Okoro an offer.

For what it’s worth, the Cavs used the stretch provision to spread Ricky Rubio‘s $1,274,015 dead-money cap hit for 2024/25 across three seasons. Rubio will now count against Cleveland’s books for $424,672 annually through ’26/27. That might not sound significant, but it could help the Cavs re-sign Okoro while avoiding the luxury tax — a key consideration for a team whose payroll is set to balloon in ’25/26, when Evan Mobley‘s rookie scale extension kicks in.

Aside from accepting the QO, re-signing with the Cavs on a multiyear deal, or signing with another team (again, the Cavs could choose to match), there’s one other viable outcome. The Cavs reportedly discussed a sign-and-trade with the Nets involving Okoro and Dorian Finney-Smith, but it sounds like those talks didn’t get serious.

We want to know what you think. How will Okoro’s situation be resolved? Vote in our poll, then head to the comment section to share your thoughts.

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NBA 2024 Offseason Check-In: New York Knicks

September 6th, 2024 at 2:29pm CST by Luke Adams

Hoops Rumors is checking in on the 2024 offseason for all 30 NBA teams, recapping the summer’s free agent signings, trades, draft picks, departures, and more. We’ll take a look at each team’s offseason moves and consider what might still be coming before the regular season begins. Today, we’re focusing on the New York Knicks.

Free agent signings

  • OG Anunoby: Five years, $212,500,000. Fifth-year player option. Includes 15% trade kicker. Re-signed using Bird rights.
  • Precious Achiuwa: One year, $6,000,000. Re-signed using Bird rights. Waived right to veto trade.
  • Cameron Payne: One year, minimum salary. Signed using minimum salary exception.
  • Chuma Okeke: One year, minimum salary. Non-guaranteed (Exhibit 10). Signed using minimum salary exception.

Trades

  • Acquired the draft rights to Dillon Jones (No. 26 pick) and the No. 51 pick in the 2024 draft from the Wizards in exchange for the draft rights to Kyshawn George (No. 24 pick).
  • Acquired either the Celtics’ or Grizzlies’ 2025 second-round pick (whichever is more favorable); the Warriors’ 2026 second-round pick; the Timberwolves’ 2027 second-round pick; either the Thunder’s, Rockets’, Heat’s, or Pacers’ 2027 second-round pick (whichever is second-most favorable), and either the Thunder’s, Rockets’, Heat’s, or Pacers’ 2027 second-round pick (whichever is third-most favorable) from the Thunder in exchange for the draft rights to Dillon Jones (No. 26 pick).
  • Acquired the draft rights to Tyler Kolek (No. 34 pick) from the Trail Blazers in exchange for the Timberwolves’ 2027 second-round pick; either the Pacers’ or Wizards’ 2029 second-round pick (whichever is least favorable); and the Knicks’ 2030 second-round pick.
  • Acquired the draft rights to Ariel Hukporti (No. 58 pick), the draft rights to Petteri Koponen, and cash ($1MM) from the Mavericks in exchange for the draft rights to Melvin Ajinca (No. 51 pick).
  • Acquired the draft rights to Oso Ighodaro (No. 40 pick) and cash ($500K) from the Thunder in exchange for the draft rights to Ajay Mitchell (No. 38 pick).
  • Acquired the draft rights to Kevin McCullar (No. 56 pick) and the Celtics’ 2028 second-round pick (top-45 protected) from the Suns in exchange for the draft rights to Oso Ighodaro (No. 40 pick).
  • Acquired Mikal Bridges, Keita Bates-Diop, the draft rights to Juan Pablo Vaulet, and either the Pistons’, Bucks’, or Magic’s 2026 second-round pick (whichever is least favorable) from the Nets in exchange for Bojan Bogdanovic, Shake Milton (sign-and-trade), Mamadi Diakite, the Knicks’ 2025 first-round pick, the Bucks’ 2025 first-round pick (top-four protected), the Knicks’ 2027 first-round pick, the Knicks’ 2029 first-round pick, the Knicks’ 2031 first-round pick, the right to swap a 2028 first-round pick (the Nets’ or the Suns’; whichever is most favorable) for the Knicks’ 2028 first-round pick, and the Nets’ 2025 second-round pick.

Draft picks

  • 1-25: Pacome Dadiet
    • Signed to rookie scale contract (four years, $13,012,968).
  • 2-34: Tyler Kolek
    • Signed to four-year, $9,062,682 contract. First three years guaranteed. Fourth-year team option.
  • 2-56: Kevin McCullar
    • Signed to two-way contract.
  • 2-58: Ariel Hukporti
    • Signed to two-way contract.

Two-way signings

Departed/unsigned free agents

Other moves

  • Signed Jalen Brunson to a three-year, $156,549,124 veteran extension that begins in 2025/26. Includes fourth-year player option and 15% trade kicker.
  • Exercised Jericho Sims‘ 2024/25 team option ($2,092,344).

Salary cap situation

  • Operating over the cap ($140.6MM), over the luxury tax line ($170.8MM), and between the first tax apron ($178.1MM) and second tax apron ($188.9MM).
  • Carrying approximately $179.2MM in salary.
  • Hard-capped at $188,931,000.
  • Taxpayer mid-level exception ($5.2MM) available.
  • Two traded player exceptions frozen/unavailable (largest worth $5,241,072).

The offseason so far

Considered a potential landing spot for top free agents and trade candidates for several seasons, the Knicks managed to climb up the Eastern Conference standings in recent years without ever swinging a major deal for a star.

Their biggest free agent addition during that time, Jalen Brunson, has evolved into an All-NBA player in New York, but that was far from a given when he signed in 2022 — to that point, he only had one season as a full-time starter under his belt and had posted a career average of 11.9 points per game. The Knicks’ biggest trade during that same time period, made midway through the 2023/24 season for OG Anunoby, didn’t involve a single outgoing first-round pick.

If not for injuries to key players like Anunoby, Julius Randle, and Mitchell Robinson, among others, the Knicks had a real shot to advance to the Eastern Conference Finals in 2024. They nearly made it anyway, taking the Pacers to seven games in the Eastern Semifinals after winning 50 regular season games for just the second time since 2000.

With the club on the verge of title contention, the time was right this offseason for the Knicks to finally take their big swing and cash in some of those first-round picks they’d been hoarding. They struck a deal with the Nets to acquire Mikal Bridges in exchange for a package that featured four unprotected first-round picks, a fifth lightly protected first-rounder, and a first-round pick swap.

It was a stunning move for multiple reasons. For one, the Knicks and Nets are unlikely trade partners — the two New York clubs hadn’t made a deal with one another since 1983.

Bridges wasn’t widely considered to be available, since the Nets didn’t control their 2025 or 2026 first-round selections and appeared more inclined to build around the forward than to bottom out to increase the value of lottery picks they didn’t own. But at the same time they sent Bridges to New York, the Nets reached a separate agreement with Houston to regain control of their ’25 and ’26 picks, setting them up to rebuild in earnest over the next year or two.

It was also a substantial price to pay for a player who has never made an All-Star team or won a major NBA award. The price wasn’t far off from the one Minnesota paid for Rudy Gobert in 2022 — that package included more useful veterans (Jarred Vanderbilt, Malik Beasley, Patrick Beverley) than what the Knicks gave up (Bojan Bogdanovic, Shake Milton), but the draft-pick compensation the Jazz received (three unprotected first-round picks, one lightly protected first-rounder, the rights to No. 22 pick Walker Kessler, and a first-round swap) was nearly identical.

Although the Bridges acquisition was a surprising one, it made perfect sense for the Knicks in many respects. Most of the other trade candidates linked to New York in recent years – such as Donovan Mitchell and Karl-Anthony Towns – were big-time scorers who wouldn’t help much on defense, making them questionable fits on a roster coached by Tom Thibodeau. Bridges, on the other hand, is a two-way force who has hovered around 20 points per game for the past two seasons, has knocked down 37.5% of his career three-point attempts, and finished second in Defensive Player of the Year voting in 2022.

Acquiring Bridges also allowed the Knicks to add to their set of Villanova alumni — like new teammates Brunson, Josh Hart, and Donte DiVincenzo, Bridges played for the Wildcats from 2015-17. All four players were on the 2016 championship roster, while Brunson, DiVincenzo, and Bridges won a second national title in 2018. Whether that Villanova connection actually improves the Knicks’ title odds is up for debate, but having a group of long-time friends who genuinely like each other certainly helped create good vibes in New York last season. Bridges’ arrival should only help in that regard.

As steep a price as the Knicks paid to acquire Bridges, the team hasn’t yet fully exhausted its cache of draft assets, so another smaller move or two isn’t out of the question. Plus, if they were going to splurge on anyone, it makes sense for the Knicks to do so on a player on a team-friendly contract who comes with little to no fit concerns.

After agreeing to trade for Bridges, New York re-signed his new partner on the wing, Anunoby, to an eye-popping five-year, $212.5MM contract. The move gives the Knicks two of the NBA’s top three-and-D players, putting them in a great position to match up with a defending-champion Celtics team led by Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown.

It’s a high price to pay for an oft-injured player like Anunoby, who has missed 29, 34, 15, and 32 games in the past four regular seasons and was hurt again in the second round of the playoffs. His impact, which goes far beyond his scoring output, is so significant that if he manages to play 65-70 games per season for the next few years, the investment will be worthwhile, but it’s a risky one.

The fact that the Knicks were able to lock up Brunson to a below-market contract extension (four years, $156.5MM) on the heels of his fifth-place finish in MVP voting helps offset the high price the club paid to retain Anunoby. Both players are now under contract through at least 2027/28, with player options for ’28/29, and while Anunoby will earn higher salaries than Brunson for the next four years, the overall price the club will pay for the duo is a reasonable one.

While Brunson was the only Knicks player to receive an extension this summer, the team also completed a new long-term deal with Thibodeau, who was set to enter the final year of his existing contract. Thibodeau has his share of critics who argue his tendency to lean too heavily on certain players leads to injuries, but it’d be hard to claim he hasn’t gotten the most out of his rosters during the past couple years, deftly navigating those injury issues to keep the Knicks competitive.

The Knicks also made several minor moves in the draft and free agency to fill out their roster, re-signing Precious Achiuwa, adding Cameron Payne, and drafting Pacome Dadiet and Tyler Kolek.

It wasn’t all good news in New York though, as the club’s spending limitations prevented a new deal with Isaiah Hartenstein, the backup center who became the starter for much of the season due to Robinson’s health problems.

Because they only held Hartenstein’s Early Bird rights, the Knicks were limited to offering approximately $72.5MM for four years, and not quite all of that money would’ve been guaranteed. New York put its best offer on the table, but the Thunder topped it with a three-year, $87MM bid that included nearly $60MM in guaranteed money over the first two seasons. The Knicks’ offer included only about $30MM in guaranteed salary during those same two years.

It’s a significant loss for the Knicks, who benefited greatly from Hartenstein’s defensive versatility and rim-protecting ability, as well as his screening and play-making on offense. Robinson is a very good rim-runner and defender who is more athletic than Hartenstein, but he has dealt with injuries in recent years and isn’t the type of player who can be relied upon for 30 to 35 minutes per night (his career high is 27.5 MPG). His offensive game is somewhat limited too, as he’s not much of a shooter or passer.

Achiuwa, Randle, and Jericho Sims will soak up some minutes at center during the regular season, and the Knicks can probably get by with those options for a while, but it’s safe to assume the team will remain on the lookout for a more reliable and more traditional backup center after failing to land one this offseason.

Up next

As detailed above, the hunt for a backup center figures to continue into the fall — and potentially well into the regular season if no good options materialize in the next month-and-a-half.

Although New York still has its full taxpayer mid-level exception ($5.2MM) available, there are no free agent centers still on the market who warrant more than minimum-salary investments, so barring a surprise preseason cut, a trade will likely be necessary to address the position. The Knicks can freely aggregate players’ contracts in a trade, but can’t take back more salary than they send out.

The Knicks have an open spot on their projected 15-man regular season roster, but may keep it open to maximize their flexibility. That would line them up to bring in a 15th man later if one of their two-way players emerges, injuries necessitate an acquisition at a specific position, or they simply want to add more depth.

Randle isn’t the only extension-eligible player on the roster (Robinson or Sims are also in that group), but he’s certainly the most noteworthy one. He holds a player option for the 2025/26 season, giving him an opportunity to reach unrestricted free agency next July.

Obviously the Knicks won’t want to lose Randle for nothing, but it wouldn’t surprise me if they take extension talks into the season and wait to see how the three-time All-Star looks coming off shoulder surgery as part of the new-look rotation. He could sign a new contract at any time until June 30 as long as he declines his player option as part of the deal (up until October 21, he could exercise the option as part of an extension), so there should be no rush from the team’s perspective.

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2024/25 NBA Over/Unders: Southwest Division

September 6th, 2024 at 8:46am CST by Luke Adams

With the 2024/25 NBA regular season set to tip off next month, we’re getting serious about predictions for the upcoming campaign and continuing an annual Hoops Rumors tradition.

With the help of the lines from a series of sports betting sites – including Bovada and BetOnline – we’re running through the predicted win totals for each of the NBA’s 30 teams, by division. In a series of team-by-team polls, you’ll get the chance to weigh in on whether you think those forecasts are too optimistic or too pessimistic.

In 2023/24, our voters went 16-14 on their over/under picks. Can you top that in ’24/25?

We’ll continue our series today with the Southwest Division…

Dallas Mavericks

Memphis Grizzlies

New Orleans Pelicans

Houston Rockets

San Antonio Spurs

Previous voting results:

Atlantic

  • Boston Celtics (58.5 wins): Over (69.7%)
  • New York Knicks (53.5 wins): Over (58.8%)
  • Philadelphia 76ers (52.5 wins): Under (51.7%)
  • Toronto Raptors (30.5 wins): Under (58.7%)
  • Brooklyn Nets (19.5 wins): Over (54.3%)
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2024/25 NBA Over/Unders: Atlantic Division

September 4th, 2024 at 9:18am CST by Luke Adams

With the 2024/25 NBA regular season set to tip off next month, we’re getting serious about predictions for the upcoming campaign and continuing an annual Hoops Rumors tradition.

With the help of the lines from a series of sports betting sites – including Bovada and BetOnline – we’re running through the predicted win totals for each of the NBA’s 30 teams, by division. In a series of team-by-team polls, you’ll get the chance to weigh in on whether you think those forecasts are too optimistic or too pessimistic.

In 2023/24, our voters went 16-14 on their over/under picks. Can you top that in ’24/25?

We’ll begin our series today with the Atlantic Division…

Boston Celtics

New York Knicks

Philadelphia 76ers

Toronto Raptors

Brooklyn Nets

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Just One Team Has Used Full Non-Taxpayer MLE So Far

September 4th, 2024 at 8:03am CST by Luke Adams

As long as a team is operating below the second tax apron, it has access to at least some form of the mid-level exception, a tool designed to allow clubs to add talent without using cap room to do so. As we outline in more detail within our glossary, one of the following MLEs is available to a team below the second apron of $188,931,000:

  • Taxpayer mid-level exception ($5,183,000): For teams operating between the first and second tax aprons.
  • Non-taxpayer mid-level exception ($12,822,000): For teams operating above the cap and below the first apron.
  • Room exception ($7,983,000): For teams who operate under the cap and use up all their room.

While four teams – the Celtics, Suns, Timberwolves, and Bucks – currently have salaries above the second tax apron, the other 26 clubs have access to one of these three mid-level exceptions. However, only a small handful of those clubs have actually taken advantage of the exception, as our tracker shows.

The Warriors are the lone team to use the full portion of the non-taxpayer mid-level exception so far in 2024/25, having signed free agent guard De’Anthony Melton a one-year contract worth $12,822,000.

Four other teams have used at least some portion of the non-taxpayer mid-level exception, but still have a chunk left over for one or more signings later in the league year. That group includes the Bulls (approximately $4.25MM remaining), Mavericks ($4.25MM), Clippers ($3.3MM), and Wizards ($6.38MM). They used part of their MLEs to sign Jalen Smith, Naji Marshall, Derrick Jones, and Saddiq Bey, respectively.

The Nuggets used the entire $5.2MM taxpayer mid-level exception to add Dario Saric in free agency, while the Sixers re-signed Kelly Oubre using their full $8MM room exception.

The remaining 19 teams have yet to dip into their mid-level or room exceptions at all.

In some cases, it’s not practical to do so. For example, the Heat and Lakers technically have access to the taxpayer MLE, but are so close to the second apron that they can’t realistically use it without shedding some salary.

Other teams are close enough to the luxury tax line that it wouldn’t make sense for them to spend their mid-level exception and become a taxpayer. The Nets and Hawks, for instance, have yet to touch their MLEs, but they’re each less than $2MM away from the tax threshold, so it’s safe to assume neither team is on the verge of bringing in an MLE-level free agent.

Still, there are plenty of teams that have more than enough spending flexibility to use some or all of their exception. That group includes every club with access to the room exception, including potential contenders such as the Thunder and Magic.

The 2024/25 season represents the first league year in which teams are permitted to use the non-taxpayer mid-level exception or the room exception to acquire a player via trade rather than just to sign a player to a contract, so some clubs may be waiting until mid-season to see if a better opportunity arises on the trade market. Others may use some of their leftover exception money to pursue a free agent on the buyout market in February.

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NBA 2024 Offseason Check-In: Oklahoma City Thunder

September 3rd, 2024 at 3:07pm CST by Luke Adams

Hoops Rumors is checking in on the 2024 offseason for all 30 NBA teams, recapping the summer’s free agent signings, trades, draft picks, departures, and more. We’ll take a look at each team’s offseason moves and consider what might still be coming before the regular season begins. Today, we’re focusing on the Oklahoma City Thunder.

Free agent signings

  • Isaiah Hartenstein: Three years, $87,000,000. Third-year team option. Signed using cap room.
  • Isaiah Joe: Four years, $48,000,000. Fourth-year team option. Re-signed using Early Bird rights after team option was declined.
  • Aaron Wiggins: Five years, $45,000,000. Includes an additional $2MM in unlikely incentives. Fifth-year team option. Re-signed using Bird rights after team option was declined.

Trades

  • Acquired Alex Caruso from the Bulls in exchange for Josh Giddey.
  • Acquired the draft rights to Dillon Jones (No. 26 pick) from the Knicks in exchange for either the Celtics’ or Grizzlies’ 2025 second-round pick (whichever is more favorable); the Warriors’ 2026 second-round pick; the Timberwolves’ 2027 second-round pick; either the Thunder’s, Rockets’, Heat’s, or Pacers’ 2027 second-round pick (whichever is second-most favorable), and either the Thunder’s, Rockets’, Heat’s, or Pacers’ 2027 second-round pick (whichever is third-most favorable).
  • Acquired the draft rights to Quinten Post (No. 52 pick) from the Warriors in exchange for Lindy Waters.
  • Acquired the draft rights to Oso Ighodaro (No. 40 pick) from the Trail Blazers in exchange for the draft rights to Quinten Post (No. 52 pick) and cash.
  • Acquired the draft rights to Ajay Mitchell (No. 38 pick) from the Knicks in exchange for the draft rights to Oso Ighodaro (No. 40 pick) and cash ($500K).

Draft picks

  • 1-12: Nikola Topic
    • Signed to rookie scale contract (four years, $23,030,849).
  • 1-26: Dillon Jones
    • Signed to rookie scale contract (four years, $13,460,725).
  • 2-43: Ajay Mitchell
    • Signed to two-way contract.

Two-way signings

Departed/unsigned free agents

Salary cap situation

  • Went below the cap to use room.
  • Now operating over the cap ($140.6MM) and below the luxury tax line ($170.8MM).
  • Carrying approximately $159.2MM in salary.
  • Hard-capped at $178,132,000.
  • Full room exception ($8MM) available.

The offseason so far

Despite maintaining significant cap flexibility and controlling the NBA’s deepest collection of draft assets, the Thunder have operated extremely patiently in recent years, preserving most of those future picks and continuing to gradually build their roster through the draft.

That patience was on display again this June, when Oklahoma City used its lottery pick (No. 12 overall) in the 2024 draft to select Nikola Topic, a player who will spend his rookie season recovering from an ACL tear. Topic isn’t expected to make his NBA debut until the fall of 2025, which is perfectly fine with the Thunder.

The Thunder’s patient approach has reflected the front office’s desire to avoid skipping steps and its goal of building a roster capable of contending for the next decade — not just for a two- or three-year window. But after the team took a huge step forward in 2024/25 by winning 57 regular season games (the most in the Western Conference) and a playoff series (the club’s first series win since 2016), Sam Presti and his top lieutenants acknowledged with a pair of offseason moves that it was time to push down on the gas pedal at least a little bit.

The first of those two moves was a trade that sent former lottery pick Josh Giddey to Chicago in exchange for three-and D standout Alex Caruso. Giddey showed real promise as a ball-handler and play-maker in his first three NBA seasons, but his subpar outside shooting and defense made him a playoff liability, and he was never an ideal fit on a roster led by another ball-dominant guard (Shai Gilgeous-Alexander).

With Giddey eligible for a rookie scale extension this offseason, the Thunder were faced with a choice on whether to pay him or trade him. They took the latter route and got terrific value by finding a trade partner – the Bulls – who badly wanted to land a young point guard.

Caruso is on an expiring contract himself, so he’ll be due a pay raise for 2025 too. But unlike Giddey, he’s not the type of player who will be played off the floor in the postseason. In fact, he should thrive in big games as a shooter, cutter, and secondary ball-handler next to Gilgeous-Alexander, lessening the burden on Oklahoma City’s star by defending opponents’ top guards. The Thunder had the NBA’s fourth-best defensive rating last season and Caruso should only make them better on that end of the floor.

The Thunder’s other major offseason move saw them use up virtually all of their cap room ($30MM) to sign center Isaiah Hartenstein away from the Knicks. Hartenstein will help shore up a frontcourt that was led admirably by Rookie of the Year runner-up Chet Holmgren last season but needed another rebounder — OKC placed 28th in the NBA last season with a rebounding rate of just 48.4%.

It will be interesting to see exactly how the Thunder intend to use Hartenstein. NBA teams typically don’t award $30MM salaries to players they plan to bring off the bench, but Holmgren obviously won’t be moved to the second unit either. Whether or not Hartenstein starts, it’s a safe bet he and Holmgren will share the court frequently, which should make for some fascinating looks on both ends of the court.

The former Knicks center will also provide OKC with crucial insurance at the five in the event of a Holmgren injury, though the big man didn’t miss a game in 2023/24 after sitting out the entire ’22/23 season with a foot issue.

Outside of trading for Caruso, signing Hartenstein, and drafting Topic, the Thunder made a handful of interesting under-the-radar moves this summer, including turning down team options on both Isaiah Joe and Aaron Wiggins in order to re-sign the two rotation wings to team-friendly long-term contracts. The threat of exercising those team options presumably gave Oklahoma City some leverage in negotiations with Joe and Wiggins, who will now earn eight-figure salaries instead of the veteran’s minimum in 2024/25.

Oklahoma City also surrendered a whopping five future second-round picks in order to acquire the No. 26 pick in the draft to select Dillon Jones. It’s the third straight year in which the Thunder took advantage of their excess draft assets to make a trade to nab a player they really like.

That strategy worked out well in each of the past two years. In 2022, the Thunder were reportedly concerned that Jalen Williams wouldn’t make it to them at No. 12, so they traded for the No. 11 pick (they technically used that one on Ousmane Dieng, but the deal ensured Williams was available at No. 12). In 2023, Oklahoma City traded up in the lottery to select Cason Wallace, who emerged as a reliable rotation player as a rookie, making 41.9% of his three-pointers and playing excellent defense.

Will Jones become the Thunder’s next draft-day-trade success story? Maybe, but I wouldn’t necessarily pencil him in for a substantial role in year one, given how deep the roster looks.

Up next

A pair of key Thunder guards are technically extension-eligible, but likely won’t sign new deals before the regular season begins. Gilgeous-Alexander has met the super-max criteria but needs one more year of service in order to officially signed a designated veteran extension, so he’ll almost certainly wait until 2025 to re-up with Oklahoma City.

Caruso, meanwhile, could be extended anytime, but until December 21 (six months after the trade), he’ll be limited to a maximum deal of three years and $48.9MM. Those numbers would increase to four years and $81.1MM at the six-month mark. While it’s not necessarily a sure thing that he’ll receive that maximum four-year offer, Caruso is better off waiting until Dec. 21 to maximize his bargaining position in negotiations.

Big man Jaylin Williams may actually be the best OKC candidate for a preseason extension, but with his role projected to decline following the arrival of Hartenstein, it would likely have to be a pretty team-friendly deal for the Thunder to pull the trigger.

The Thunder actually have one open spot on their projected 15-man roster and plenty of flexibility to make a move using that roster spot, since they’re still more than $11MM below the luxury tax line.

There aren’t really any free agents left worth splurging on (OKC’s $8MM room exception wouldn’t be enough to pry Isaac Okoro away from the Cavs), so I expect Presti and the front office to continue scouring the trade market to see if there’s a target who makes sense. The team can afford to be patient, perhaps starting the season with a 15th man on a non-guaranteed contract and then revisiting the trade market in January or February.

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Teams Limited To Minimum Salary Contract Offers

September 3rd, 2024 at 7:57am CST by Luke Adams

There won’t be a ton of free agents who sign for more than the veteran’s minimum between now and the end of the NBA’s regular season. The majority of the players whose markets exceeded the minimum came off the board pretty quickly in July, and teams aren’t looking to spend big on the players who are still available.

Still, that certainly doesn’t mean every signing for the next seven months will be of the minimum-salary variety. In some cases – especially on the buyout market in February – being able to offer a couple million dollars more than the minimum could be the difference between a team landing a free agent and missing out on him.

With that in mind, it’s worth checking in on which teams don’t currently have the ability to offer more than the minimum. By our count, a third of the NBA is in this boat, though some of those clubs could generate some spending flexibility by making cost-cutting trades.

Here’s a breakdown of the teams currently limited to minimum-salary contract offers for free agents:

Teams above the second tax apron:

  • Boston Celtics
  • Milwaukee Bucks
  • Minnesota Timberwolves
  • Phoenix Suns

Teams operating above the second tax apron, which comes in at $188,931,000 in 2024/25, face a series of roster-building restrictions, including being prohibited from using any form of the mid-level exception, as well as the bi-annual exception.

The Celtics, Bucks, Timberwolves, and Suns all fall into that group of teams above the second apron and therefore don’t have any cap exceptions available to use on free agents besides the minimum salary exception.

Teams very close to the second tax apron:

  • Los Angeles Lakers
  • Miami Heat

Because their team salaries are below the second apron, the Lakers and Heat each technically have the ability to use their taxpayer mid-level exception, which is worth $5,168,000 this season.

However, both clubs are operating so close to the second apron that using any portion of the taxpayer MLE would push team salary above that threshold, which isn’t permitted — a team that uses the taxpayer MLE can’t have a salary above the second apron upon the completion of the signing (or at any time after that).

Therefore, unless they make a move to shed salary, the Lakers and Heat will be limited to minimum-salary signings from here on out.

Over-the-cap teams that have used all their cap exceptions:

  • Denver Nuggets
  • Philadelphia 76ers

The Nuggets are currently operating between the first and second tax aprons and have already used their taxpayer mid-level exception to sign Dario Saric. Because the bi-annual exception isn’t available to teams above the first apron, Denver can no longer offer more than the veteran’s minimum.

The Sixers, meanwhile, used their entire room exception to re-sign Kelly Oubre after spending all their cap space. They’re now well over the cap and only have the minimum salary exception left to sign a free agent outright.

It’s worth noting that acquiring a player via sign-and-trade is technically a possibility prior to opening night for teams who have used up all their cap exceptions and want to add a free agent for more than the minimum. However, that’s not currently a practical option for either Denver or Philadelphia, who are both above the first tax apron.

Teams right up against their hard caps:

  • Dallas Mavericks
  • Golden State Warriors

The Mavericks have about $4.25MM of their mid-level exception still available after using a portion of it to sign Naji Marshall, and both Dallas and Golden State still have their full bi-annual exceptions on hand.

Based on the roster moves they’ve made so far this summer though, both the Mavs and Warriors are hard-capped at the first apron of $178,132,000 and are less than $1MM away from that hard cap. In other words, unless they shed salary by trading or waiving one or more of their current players, those two teams aren’t just prohibited from using their remaining exceptions — they’re also unable to add another minimum-salary player on a standard contract.

Dallas and Golden State are each carrying at least one player with a non-guaranteed salary, so it would technically be possible for, say, the Mavs to cut A.J. Lawson and then use a portion of their mid-level exception to sign a free agent. However, their breathing room below the hard cap is so limited that any signings above the minimum are unlikely, unless a cost-cutting trade generates more flexibility — the same goes for the Warriors.

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Two 2024 Draft Picks Remain Unsigned

September 1st, 2024 at 10:59am CST by Rory Maher

Of the 58 players who were selected in June’s draft, 54 have signed their first NBA contracts since the start of July. As our tracker shows, the breakdown is as follows:

Two second-round picks — Juan Nunez (No. 36) and Melvin Ajinca (No. 51) — will continue their professional careers in Europe. Their draft rights are controlled by the Spurs and Mavericks, respectively.

That leaves two players from the 2024 draft class who have yet to sign with their respective NBA teams. Here are those players:

The Hawks‘ plans for Djurisic remain unclear. The 20-year-old sustained a left foot fracture during a Summer League game in July; the injury required surgery, with another update on his status slated for November. That means he is expected to miss the beginning of the 2024/25 regular season, which opens in late October.

Atlanta has 15 players signed to guaranteed standard contracts, and all three of the team’s two-way spots are currently filled. It’s possible the Hawks could waive one of their two-way players to create room for Djurisic, but there are other possibilities, both in North America and overseas.

When our Luke Adams wrote about Djurisic last month, he wondered whether the young guard might consider signing a G League contract to rehab and get back into game shape with the College Park Skyhawks (Atlanta’s NBAGL affiliate). Going that route could potentially earn Djurisic a promotion to the NBA roster later in the season, perhaps after Atlanta opens up a spot on its standard roster with a trade or two.

As for Post, Adams believes the most likely outcome is Golden State eventually waiving Pat Spencer, opening a two-way contract spot for the Dutch big man. If the Warriors make a multiplayer trade, a standard deal for the 24-year-old is another possibility, but nothing appears imminent on that front.

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Nine NBA Teams Have Two-Way Contract Openings

September 1st, 2024 at 9:11am CST by Rory Maher

Two-way contracts allow NBA teams to carry three extra players in addition to the 15 on their regular season roster. These players generally bounce back and forth between the NBA and G League, but remain under team control and can’t be poached by rival franchises.

With training camps set to begin in about a month, there are still nine NBA teams with open two-way spots. Two clubs — the Nets and Magic — each have a pair of two-way openings, while the remaining seven teams have one opening apiece. That means there are currently 11 two-way openings in the NBA.

Here’s the full list of NBA teams with two-way vacancies, as shown by our 2024/25 two-way contract tracker:

  • Brooklyn Nets
  • Chicago Bulls
  • Charlotte Hornets
  • Dallas Mavericks
  • Detroit Pistons
  • Los Angeles Clippers
  • Orlando Magic
  • Portland Trail Blazers
  • Washington Wizards

Technically, the Cavaliers have yet to finalize their reported two-way deal with JT Thor, but we expect that to occur at some point before training camp — that’s why they are not included on this list.

Since two-way deals are non-guaranteed and don’t count against the salary cap, it’s pretty common to see players shuffled in and out of rosters both before and during the season. It’s worth noting that Exhibit 10 deals can be converted to two-way contracts under certain conditions — these teams may be waiting until training camp and preseason to get a better look at young players.

First introduced in 2017, two-way deals have undergone some rule changes in recent years, and the NBA’s new Collective Bargaining Agreement has updated them further. Here are some key points to remember:

  • Teams can now carry three players on two-way contracts, rather than two.
  • Two-way players are eligible to be active for up to 50 of their team’s 82 regular season games. If a team isn’t carrying a full 15-man standard roster, its two-way players can only be active for a combined 90 games.
  • Players on two-way contracts will earn $578,577 in 2024/25, half of the rookie minimum.
  • Two-way contracts can’t be signed after March 4.

You can check out our glossary entry to learn more about two-way contracts.

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Highest-Paid NBA Players By Team

August 31st, 2024 at 2:46pm CST by Luke Adams

On Friday, we listed the top 50 highest-paid NBA players for the 2024/25 season. Although that list presented a clear picture of the highest earners for the current season, not every NBA team was represented. Four of the league’s 30 franchises – the Pistons, Magic, Spurs, and Wizards – didn’t have a single player in the top 50.

Our list of highest-paid players for 2024/25 also only provided a snapshot for this year. For example, Ben Simmons, who cracked the top 25, will certainly be well compensated for the coming season, but he’s on an expiring contract and will fall off that list next year after reaching free agency.

Today, we’re shifting our focus to the highest-paid players by team. This will allow us to check in on the clubs that weren’t represented on our initial list, as well as identifying some of the league’s most lucrative multiyear commitments — we’ve included each club’s highest-paid player for the current season (by 2024/25 base salary) and its highest-paid player in total (by total base salary, including player options but not team options).

Let’s dive in…

Atlanta Hawks

  • 2024/25: Trae Young ($43,031,940)
  • Total: Trae Young (three years, $137,998,980)
    • Note: Young’s final year is a player option.

Boston Celtics

  • 2024/25: Jaylen Brown ($49,205,800)
  • Total: Jayson Tatum (six years, $348,781,750)
    • Note: The projected value of Tatum’s super-max extension is based on a $154,647,000 salary cap for 2025/26; Tatum’s final year is a player option.

Brooklyn Nets

  • 2024/25: Ben Simmons ($40,338,144)
  • Total: Nic Claxton (four years, $97,000,000)
    • Note: Claxton could earn another $3MM in incentives.

Charlotte Hornets

  • 2024/25: LaMelo Ball ($35,147,000)
  • Total: LaMelo Ball (five years, $203,852,600)

Chicago Bulls

  • 2024/25: Zach LaVine ($43,031,940)
  • Total: Zach LaVine (three years, $137,998,980)
    • Note: LaVine’s final year is a player option.

Cleveland Cavaliers

  • 2024/25: Darius Garland ($36,725,670)
  • Total: Evan Mobley (six years, $235,465,807)
    • Note: The projected value of Mobley’s maximum-salary extension is based on a $154,647,000 salary cap for 2025/26. His projected six-year earnings could increase to as much as $280,313,437 if he meets certain Rose Rule performance criteria.

Dallas Mavericks

  • 2024/25: Luka Doncic ($43,031,940)
  • Total: Luka Doncic (three years, $137,998,980)
    • Note: Doncic’s final year is a player option.

Denver Nuggets

  • 2024/25: Nikola Jokic ($51,415,938)
  • Total: Nikola Jokic (four years, $228,515,280)

    • Note: Jokic’s final year is a player option.

Detroit Pistons

  • 2024/25: Tobias Harris ($25,365,854)
  • Total: Cade Cunningham (six years, $238,178,959)
    • Note: The projected value of Cunningham’s maximum-salary extension is based on a $154,647,000 salary cap for 2025/26. His projected six-year earnings could increase to as much as $283,026,589 if he meets certain Rose Rule performance criteria.

Golden State Warriors

  • 2024/25: Stephen Curry ($55,761,216)
  • Total: Stephen Curry (three years, $177,955,191)

Read more

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