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Offseason Check-In

Hoops Rumors’ 2024 Offseason Check-In Series

August 26th, 2024 at 7:55am CST by Luke Adams

In advance of training camps, 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’re taking a look at each team’s offseason moves and consider what might still be coming before the regular season begins.

All of our Offseason Check-In articles are linked below, sorted by conference and division.

Eastern Conference

Atlantic

Central

Southeast

Western Conference

Northwest

Pacific

Southwest

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NBA 2024 Offseason Check-In: Memphis Grizzlies

August 24th, 2024 at 5:52pm 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 Memphis Grizzlies.

Free agent signings

  • Luke Kennard: One year, $9,250,000. Includes $1,387,500 in unlikely incentives. Re-signed using Bird rights after team option was declined.

Trades

  • Acquired the draft rights to Cam Spencer (No. 53 pick) from the Pistons in a four-team trade in exchange for the draft rights to Ulrich Chomche (No. 57 pick; to Raptors) and the Grizzlies’ 2030 second-round pick (top-50 protected; to Timberwolves).
  • Acquired Mamadi Diakite and the draft rights to Nemanja Dangubic in exchange for Ziaire Williams and the Mavericks’ 2030 second-round pick.

Draft picks

  • 1-9: Zach Edey
    • Signed to rookie scale contract (four years, $26,202,576).
  • 2-39: Jaylen Wells
    • Signed to four-year, minimum-salary contract ($7,895,796). First two years guaranteed. Third year non-guaranteed. Fourth-year non-guaranteed team option.
  • 2-53: Cam Spencer
    • Signed to two-way contract.

Two-way signings

Departed/unsigned free agents

Other moves

Salary cap situation

  • Operating over the cap ($140.6MM) and below the luxury tax line ($170.8MM).
  • Carrying approximately $170MM in salary.
  • No hard cap.
  • Full mid-level, bi-annual exceptions available.
  • Four traded player exceptions available (largest worth $12,600,000).

The offseason so far

It has been a quiet summer in Memphis, where the Grizzlies will bet on the return of a handful of starters and rotation players from injuries to propel them to a bounce-back season in 2024/25. There’s reason to believe that could be a fruitful strategy. After all, this roster is pretty similar to the one that racked up 56 wins in 2021/22 and 51 more in ’22/23.

Injuries to Desmond Bane (he played 42 games last season), Marcus Smart (20 games), Brandon Clarke (six games), Luke Kennard (39 games), Steven Adams (zero games), and especially Ja Morant (nine games) derailed Memphis in 2024/25, but the team will have all of those players back on the court next season, with the exception of Adams, who was sent to Houston ahead of the February trade deadline.

While the Grizzlies didn’t lose any key players this offseason, they still had a hole to fill up front, where they lost Adams and Xavier Tillman during the season. Operating right up against the luxury tax line, Memphis wasn’t in position to add an impact veteran center, but the club used its lottery pick to bring in a potential long-term answer at the position, drafting Zach Edey ninth overall.

Edey is coming off a monster college career at Purdue, where he was named the NCAA’s player of the year in each of the past two seasons. And he showed some promise when he was able to suit up in Summer League last month, averaging 10.0 points, 9.0 rebounds, and 2.5 blocks in 21.0 minutes per game, though he was limited to just two appearances (one in Salt Lake City and one in Las Vegas) due to ankle issues.

Still, it remains to be seen how the 22-year-old will adjust to the speed and athleticism of the NBA game, especially with opposing offenses looking to lure him away from the rim and out to the perimeter. If Edey’s not ready to take on a substantial role as a rookie, the Grizzlies will otherwise have to rely on non-traditional fives like Jaren Jackson Jr., Santi Aldama, and Clarke.

Edey represents the only major addition of the summer for the Grizzlies, who also re-signed Kennard to a new one-year deal and drafted a couple players in the second round in June — Jaylen Wells will have a spot on the team’s 15-man roster, while Cam Spencer begins his career on a two-way deal.

Of the offseason departures, Ziaire Williams is the most notable. He was drafted with the 10th overall pick in 2021, but never developed into a consistent contributor and was dealt to Brooklyn in a salary dump.

Up next

The Grizzlies currently have 14 players on fully guaranteed contracts, with Mamadi Diakite occupying the 15th roster spot — his $2.27MM salary is partially guaranteed for approximately $1.39MM.

Due to that partial guarantee, the Grizzlies don’t have the ability to waive Diakite and then sign a new 15th man for the veteran’s minimum without surpassing the luxury tax line — unless they cut Diakite within the next week and stretch his partial guarantee across three seasons.

I haven’t gotten the sense that Memphis is especially motivated to bring in a new 15th man, so the team may ultimately stick with Diakite for now. If the Grizzlies need to create a little spending flexibility below the tax line down the road, he could probably be traded relatively easily, perhaps with just some cash attached rather than any future draft assets.

Scotty Pippen Jr., who was impressive down the stretch for Memphis last season, may be the leading candidate to eventually supplant Diakite as the club’s 15th man. For the time being, Pippen is on a two-way deal and there will likely be no real urgency to promote him until he nears his 50-game limit.

The Grizzlies do have a few extension candidates on their roster worth watching, starting with Aldama, who is eligible for a rookie scale extension. After a promising sophomore season in 2022/23, Aldama didn’t take a significant step forward in year three, but if Memphis believes that was just a blip in an otherwise ascendant trajectory, the team could look to lock him up this fall rather than risk having his price tag go up in 2025.

Jackson and Smart are each eligible for a veteran extension this offseason, though both players are also under team control through 2026, so if nothing gets done before the season begins, that’s not a cause for concern. A new deal for Smart seems unlikely, given that he barely played due to health problems during his first year in Memphis.

Jackson is a better bet to be a long-term fixture with the franchise, but if he wants to try to make himself super-max-eligible by winning another Defensive Player of the Year award or earning an All-NBA spot in 2024/25, he’ll wait a year to sign anything. He may wait anyway, since his $23.4MM salary for ’25/26 will make it hard for the Grizzlies to offer him a deal worthy of his on-court value (they’re limited to a 40% raise in year one, with 8% annual raises after that).

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NBA 2024 Offseason Check-In: Detroit Pistons

August 23rd, 2024 at 5:21pm 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 Detroit Pistons.

Free agent signings

Trades

  • Acquired Tim Hardaway Jr., the Raptors’ 2025 second-round pick, the Heat’s 2028 second-round pick, and either the Clippers’ or Hornets’ 2028 second-round pick (whichever is least favorable) from the Mavericks in exchange for Quentin Grimes.
  • Acquired Wendell Moore and the draft rights to Bobi Klintman (No. 37 pick) from the Timberwolves in a four-team trade in exchange for the draft rights to Cam Spencer (No. 53 pick; sent to Grizzlies).

Draft picks

  • 1-5: Ron Holland
    • Signed to rookie scale contract (four years, $37,463,383).
  • 2-37: Bobi Klintman
    • Signed to four-year, $7,995,796 contract. First two years guaranteed. Third year non-guaranteed. Fourth-year non-guaranteed team option.

Two-way signings

Departed/unsigned free agents

Other moves

  • Signed Cade Cunningham to a five-year, maximum-salary rookie scale extension that begins in 2025/26. Projected value of $224,238,150 (starting at 25% of the cap). Projected value can increase to $269,085,780 (30% of the cap) if Cunningham meets Rose Rule performance criteria.
  • Claimed Paul Reed off waivers.
  • Waived Troy Brown.
  • Waived Buddy Boeheim (two-way).

Salary cap situation

  • Operating under the cap ($140.6MM) and above the minimum salary floor ($126.5MM).
  • Carrying approximately $130.3MM in salary.
  • No hard cap.
  • Full room exception ($8MM) available.

The offseason so far

After winning no more than 23 games for four straight seasons, the Pistons entered 2023/24 hoping to take a step forward under new head coach Monty Williams. Instead, the team endured one of the ugliest seasons in NBA history, compiling a franchise-worst 14-68 record and matching a league record by losing 28 consecutive games.

The Pistons responded by replacing general manager Troy Weaver with new head of basketball operations Trajan Langdon, a former player and a veteran executive who previously worked in New Orleans and Brooklyn. Langdon certainly wants to see better on-court results than Detroit had last season, but he also isn’t yet feeling any win-now pressure in his first year on the job, so his approach to the offseason blended moves that could help in the short term with future-minded transactions.

In free agency, the Pistons looked to add veteran leadership while upgrading their outside shooting after ranking among the NBA’s bottom five last season in three-pointers made and three-point percentage. There was some sticker shock when word broke that Tobias Harris had agreed to a two-year, $52MM contract with Detroit, but Harris is the sort of scorer and shooter the team needed in its frontcourt, and his deal isn’t lengthy enough to become a real burden on the club’s cap.

The Pistons also re-signed Simone Fontecchio (two years, $16MM) and brought in Malik Beasley (one year, $6MM), giving the team two more reliable marksmen on short-term deals.

Harris, Fontecchio, and Beasley aren’t going to turn Detroit into a playoff team, but they’ll help open up the floor for franchise player Cade Cunningham to operate. After a lost 2022/23 season, Cunningham returned from a left leg injury and enjoyed a breakout year, with career highs in PPG (22.7), APG (7.5), FG% (.449), and 3PT% (.355).

The former No. 1 overall pick is entering his age-23 season and will be playing on a roster a little better suited to his skill set, so it’s not unreasonable to expect him to reach a new level in 2024/25. The Pistons are certainly hoping for continued growth after giving him a five-year, maximum-salary rookie scale extension in July. That deal, which will go into effect in ’25/26, projects to be worth about $224MM, or up to $269MM if Cunningham takes a huge step forward and earns All-NBA honors next spring.

While additions like Harris and Beasley should help make the Pistons a more competitive team in the short term, some of Langdon’s other moves this summer were made with the long term in mind. Detroit acquired three future second-round picks and moved up 16 spots in this year’s second round by sending out Quentin Grimes and taking back Tim Hardaway Jr. (from Dallas) and Wendell Moore (from Minnesota) in salary-dump deals.

It’s possible none of those four second-round picks (including this year’s No. 37 selection Bobi Klintman) will yield a better NBA player than Grimes, but Langdon and his new front office clearly weren’t committed enough to the former Knick to pay up for his next contract (Grimes is rookie scale extension-eligible this offseason). And while Hardaway was a salary dump from the Mavericks’ perspective, he figures to play a rotation role in Detroit in 2024/25 after making 37.5% of his three-point tries over the past five seasons.

The Pistons’ lottery selection, No. 5 overall pick Ron Holland, is another long-term investment for the organization — he turned 19 just last month and has a few areas of his game he’ll need to improve in order to earn regular rotation minutes as a rookie. Several mock drafts leading up to June’s event had Holland going outside the top 10, but Langdon was willing to bet on the young forward’s upside following an up-and-down year with the G League Ignite.

While the Pistons’ selection of Holland was unexpected, it may not have been the most surprising move made in Detroit this summer. A year after signing what was – at the time – a record-setting contract for an NBA head coach, Williams was dismissed with five years and well over $60MM still left on that six-year deal.

It’s rare for NBA teams to eat that much money and give up on a head coach so soon, but it’s a credit to club owner Tom Gores that he was willing to write that check and let Langdon make his own hire. The Pistons brought in former Cavs head coach J.B. Bickerstaff, who showed in Cleveland that he’s capable of turning a young team into a perennial playoff club.

Up next

The Pistons are the only NBA team with any cap room remaining — they have just over $10MM still available.

Theoretically, with one spot still open on the team’s projected 15-man roster, that money could be used to pursue a free agent. But Cavs restricted free agent Isaac Okoro is the only unsigned player likely to earn significantly more than the veteran’s minimum, and there has been no indication Detroit is pursuing him.

There’s no urgency for the Pistons to use their cap room immediately, so the front office will likely remain patient and stay on the lookout for ways it could come in handy. That could mean accommodating another salary dump to acquire more draft assets, like they did with Hardway and Moore. It could also mean claiming a player off waivers, like they did last month with big man Paul Reed. If no favorable opportunities arise this fall, Detroit could carry that cap room into the season and use it to make a midseason deal.

In addition to their open 15-man roster spot, the Pistons have one two-way slot available.

As for extension candidates, Hardaway is the only player eligible for a new deal now that Cunningham has been locked up. I don’t expect extending the veteran wing will be a preseason priority for Detroit — if he performs well during the season, the team could always explore a possible extension for Hardaway anytime up until June 30.

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NBA 2024 Offseason Check-In: Los Angeles Lakers

August 22nd, 2024 at 8:19am 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 Los Angeles Lakers.

Free agent signings

  • LeBron James: Two years, $101,355,998. Second-year player option. Includes no-trade clause and 15% trade kicker. Re-signed using Bird rights.
  • Max Christie: Four years, $32,000,000. Fourth-year player option. Re-signed using Early Bird rights.
  • Kylor Kelley: One year, minimum salary. Non-guaranteed (Exhibit 10). Signed using minimum salary exception.
  • Quincy Olivari: One year, minimum salary. Non-guaranteed (Exhibit 10). Signed using minimum salary exception.

Trades

  • None

Draft picks

  • 1-17: Dalton Knecht
    • Signed to rookie scale contract (four years, $18,483,219).
  • 2-55: Bronny James
    • Signed to four-year, minimum-salary contract ($7,895,796). First two years guaranteed. Third year partially guaranteed ($1,258,873). Fourth-year team option.

Two-way signings

Departed/unsigned free agents

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 $188.2MM in salary.
  • No hard cap.
  • Taxpayer mid-level exception ($5.2MM) available, but can’t be used due to proximity to second apron.

The offseason so far

Lakers forwards LeBron James and Anthony Davis have repeatedly shown, most recently at the 2024 Olympics in Paris, that they remain capable of performing at a superstar level and anchoring a contending team. But the Lakers’ front office wasn’t able to do much this summer to further fortify the supporting cast around James and Davis.

The Lakers’ cap limitations were a factor in the team’s relative inactivity. After re-signing James to a new two-year deal a little below the max and locking up restricted free agent Max Christie to a four-year, $32MM contract, the team’s salary is hovering just below the second tax apron. That means Los Angeles can’t offer more than the veteran’s minimum to any outside free agents.

The Lakers explored potential upgrades on the trade market, but they don’t really have the assets necessary to make any significant upgrades via that route either.

The team has reportedly been unwilling to seriously consider moving Austin Reaves, the best trade chip on the roster outside of James and Davis. Most of the other vets – Rui Hachimura, D’Angelo Russell, Gabe Vincent, Jarred Vanderbilt, and a series of minimum-salary players (Christian Wood, Jaxson Hayes, and Cam Reddish) – have neutral trade value at best, and L.A. can’t take back more salary than it sends out.

Ultimately, the Lakers appear likely to enter the 2024/25 season with a relatively similar roster to the one that finished the ’23/24 campaign. They’ll bet on internal improvement and will hope to get some contributions from their newly drafted rookies.

Christie’s new $32MM deal may have surprised some, but it could turn out to be a bargain if the 2022 second-round pick continues to develop into a reliable rotation piece. He’s a 37.8% career three-point shooter (in a limited sample) and has the tools to be a good defender. Jalen Hood-Schifino is another candidate to take a step forward following an underwhelming rookie year, though he doesn’t look quite as ready for an increased role as Christie.

As for the rookies, Bronny James got way more press this summer than first-round pick Dalton Knecht, and that trend figures to continue into the fall as Bronny and LeBron become the first father-son duo to suit up alongside one another in an NBA game. But it’s Knecht who is more likely to make an immediate impact for the Lakers.

The former Tennessee standout is a talented three-point shooter whose ability to spread the floor should be of immediate use to a team that ranked 24th last season in made three-pointers. Knecht’s strong Las Vegas Summer League showing (21.3 PPG, .391 3PT%) generated optimism that his adjustment to the NBA could be a relatively quick one — especially since, at age 23, he’s two years older than Christie and Hood-Schifino.

The most notable new addition the Lakers made this summer may actually have been on the sidelines rather than on the roster. The team parted ways with head coach Darvin Ham and replaced him with first-timer J.J. Redick, following a lengthy search that included a very public flirtation with UConn’s Dan Hurley.

While Redick’s ability to think creatively about the game shone through in his work as an analyst and podcaster, he doesn’t have any coaching experience at the NBA level, so hiring him to lead one of the league’s marquee franchises in one of the country’s largest markets is certainly a big swing. The Lakers reportedly envision Redick as a coach with elite upside who has the potential to stick in the job long-term, but he’ll find himself under the microscope early and often if L.A. doesn’t get off to a strong start this fall.

Up next

With 15 players on guaranteed contracts and three on two-way deals, the Lakers’ roster looks ready for the regular season. I imagine they’ll continue to keep an eye out for possible trades, but those are more likely to materialize during the season than before it.

Literally every player on the Lakers’ roster has signed a new contract since July 2023, so no one will be eligible for an extension ahead of opening night this fall. That means, barring some action on the trade market, the Lakers’ fall could end up being just as quiet from a transaction perspective as their summer has been.

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NBA 2024 Offseason Check-In: Cleveland Cavaliers

August 21st, 2024 at 9:20am 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 Cleveland Cavaliers.

Free agent signings

  • None

Trades

  • None

Draft picks

  • 1-20: Jaylon Tyson
    • Signed to rookie scale contract (four years, $16,118,700).

Two-way signings

Departed/unsigned free agents

Contract extensions

  • Signed Evan Mobley to a five-year, maximum-salary rookie scale extension that begins in 2025/26. Projected value of $224,238,150 (starting at 25% of the cap). Projected value can increase to $246,661,965 (27.5% of the cap) or $269,085,780 (30% of the cap) if Mobley meets Rose Rule performance criteria. Includes 15% trade kicker.
  • Signed Donovan Mitchell to a three-year, maximum-salary veteran extension that begins in 2025/26. Projected value of $150,316,884. Includes third-year player option.
  • Signed Jarrett Allen to a three-year, $90,720,000 veteran extension that begins in 2026/27.

Salary cap situation

  • Operating over the cap ($140.6MM) and below the luxury tax line ($170.8MM).
  • Carrying approximately $159.8MM in salary for 12 players.
    • Note: This figure would increase to $173.7MM if Okoro’s qualifying offer and a 14th man on a veteran’s minimum contract were added.
  • No hard cap.
  • Full mid-level exception ($12.8MM) available.

The offseason so far

Entering the summer, there was speculation that the Cavaliers could be one of the most active teams on the trade market this summer, potentially breaking up their star duos in both the backcourt (Donovan Mitchell and Darius Garland) and frontcourt (Evan Mobley and Jarrett Allen).

Instead, the Cavs doubled down on their top four players, signing three of them to long-term extensions this offseason. Mitchell is now locked up for at least the next three seasons, with Garland under team control for the next four, Allen for the next five, and Mobley for the next six.

That doesn’t mean Cleveland can’t pivot down the road if the team ultimately decides that the skill sets of Mitchell and Garland or Mobley and Allen overlap too much — all four players should continue to have positive trade value on their current contracts. But for now, the front office is betting this roster still has another level to reach with continued growth from that quartet and the influence of a new head coach.

Despite getting the Cavs their first playoff series win since LeBron James was on the roster, head coach J.B. Bickerstaff was dismissed following the club’s second-round loss to Boston. Reporting in the wake of his ouster suggested that he and multiple Cavs players – including Mitchell – weren’t necessarily on the same page, so perhaps moving on from Bickerstaff was a necessary step to secure the All-Star guard’s commitment beyond the 2024/25 season.

Mitchell’s influence could be felt in the Cavs’ subsequent coaching search — the All-Star guard reportedly endorsed eventual hire Kenny Atkinson for the job. The team also brought in former Jazz assistant Johnnie Bryant, who was close with Mitchell in Utah, to be Atkinson’s associate head coach.

Outside of the coaching change and extensions for Mitchell, Mobley, and Allen, it has been an awfully quiet summer so far for the Cavaliers, who are the only team in the NBA not to have signed any free agents to standard contracts or acquired any players via trade. The lone newcomer to date is first-round pick Jaylon Tyson, a 6’6″ wing coming off a breakout year for Cal who will be looking to crack Cleveland’s rotation in his rookie season.

Up next

With just 12 players on standard contracts, including 10 on fully guaranteed deals, there’s still work to be done in Cleveland. Even if Sam Merrill and Craig Porter – whose salaries aren’t yet guaranteed – make the regular season roster as expected, the Cavs will need to add two players to that group before opening night.

One of those two could be Isaac Okoro, the league’s last remaining restricted free agent. The two sides appear to have stalled in negotiations, with the Cavs said to prefer a multiyear deal in the neighborhood of $8-10MM per year, while the former lottery pick is presumably seeking something in at least the mid-level range ($12-14MM annually).

Cleveland has reportedly discussed possible sign-and-trade scenarios involving Okoro, including one concept involving Nets forward Dorian Finney-Smith. But all indications are that none of those talks have gained serious momentum, so a return to the Cavs still looks like the most likely outcome for Okoro, whether he accepts his one-year, $11.8MM qualifying offer or reaches an agreement on a longer-term contract.

If Okoro re-signs – or if the club acquires just a single player in a sign-and-trade deal for him – the expectation is that the Cavs will finalize their roster by signing a “cost-effective, playable, end-of-bench veteran” to be their 14th man, according to Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com, who suggested that player would ideally be a locker-room leader like Tristan Thompson was last season. Marcus Morris, who finished the 2023/24 campaign in Cleveland, is one possibility.

Unless the Cavaliers let Okoro walk, bring him back on a very team-friendly deal, or trade him for a player with a modest cap hit, their team salary will almost certainly surpass the luxury tax line – or be right up against that line – once they have 14 players under contract, so the belief is that they’ll keep their 15th roster spot open at the start of the regular season to maintain roster flexibility and save some money.

The Cavs will have one more two-way slot to fill once they officially complete their reported agreement with JT Thor. Isaiah Mobley and Pete Nance, each of whom finished last season on two-way deals in Cleveland, are options. The club could also look outside of the organization for that last spot, as it did with Thor. Draft-and-stash prospect Luke Travers is also in the mix for that spot, though his next steps after leaving Melbourne United remain up in the air.

Cleveland entered the season with four veterans slated to be extension-eligible this offseason. With three of those four already signed to new contracts, forward Dean Wade – who will become eligible next month – is the last possible extension candidate to watch. I think the Cavs like Wade and would extend him if the price is right, but he’s coming off a couple injury-plagued seasons, so unless they’re getting him at a discount, the front office may prefer to wait on a new deal.

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NBA 2024 Offseason Check-In: Los Angeles Clippers

August 20th, 2024 at 7:46pm 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 Los Angeles Clippers.

Free agent signings

  • James Harden: Two years, $70,000,000. Second-year player option. Includes 15% trade kicker. Re-signed using Bird rights.
  • Derrick Jones: Three years, $30,000,000. Includes 5% trade kicker. Signed using non-taxpayer mid-level exception.
  • Kris Dunn: Three years, $16,279,200. Third year non-guaranteed. Signed using Early Bird rights and acquired via sign-and-trade from Jazz.
  • Nicolas Batum: Two years, $9,569,400. Second-year player option. Includes 15% trade kicker. Signed using bi-annual exception.
  • Kevin Porter Jr.: Two years, minimum salary ($4,784,366). Second-year player option. Includes 15% trade kicker. Signed using minimum salary exception.
  • Mohamed Bamba: One year, minimum salary. Signed using minimum salary exception.
  • Kai Jones: One year, minimum salary. Non-guaranteed (Exhibit 10). Re-signed using minimum salary exception.

Trades

Draft picks

  • 2-46: Cam Christie
    • Signed to four-year, minimum-salary contract ($7,895,796). First two years guaranteed. Third year non-guaranteed. Fourth-year non-guaranteed team option.

Two-way signings

Departed/unsigned free agents

Salary cap situation

  • Operating over the cap ($140.6MM), above the luxury tax line ($170.8MM), and below the first tax apron ($178.1MM).
  • Carrying approximately $173.3MM in salary.
  • Hard-capped at $178,132,000.
  • $3,298,190 of mid-level exception available.
  • One traded player exception available (worth $559,782).

The offseason so far

On the evening of June 30, before word broke that the Sixers had an agreement in place with Paul George, the Clippers put out a release confirming that the star forward wouldn’t be back in Los Angeles, citing “the new CBA” multiple times in their statement explaining why George was moving on.

While the new second tax apron likely played a part in the Clippers’ decision to draw a hard line in their negotiations with George, the fact that the team had won just three total playoff games – and no playoff series – in the past three years presumably factored into that decision too.

Doubling down on the existing core by investing in George on a four-year, maximum-salary contract probably would’ve given the Clippers a stronger roster in the short term than the one they’ll field in 2024/25. But it also would’ve come with significant risk, given George’s and Kawhi Leonard‘s age and recent injury histories, and it’s not as if the team appeared to be on the verge of a championship in recent years.

Not being on the hook for a long-term max deal for George creates more financial and roster flexibility for the Clippers going forward. It also allowed them to add to and diversify their roster this offseason while putting returning star James Harden in a better position to maximize his offensive talents.

Harden, whose scoring average dipped to 16.6 points per game last season (his lowest mark since 2010/11), re-signed with the Clippers on a two-year, $70MM deal that includes a second-year player option. The commitment to Harden comes with little long-term risk and could even be a relative bargain if the former MVP enjoys a bounce-back season with the ball in his hands more often. Still, at age 35, Harden seems unlikely to regain his prime All-NBA form.

Another former MVP in the back half of his career, Russell Westbrook, picked up his $4MM player option in June, but he and the Clippers immediately began working on a trade to get him to a new destination. It’s not really clear whether that move was instigated more by the Clippers or by Westbrook’s camp, but a change of scenery probably made sense for the longtime star, whose fit in L.A. was awkward after the club acquired Harden last fall.

George and Westbrook have 18 All-Star nods between them. The Clippers’ new incoming role players have zero. Still, Derrick Jones, Kris Dunn, and Nicolas Batum are solid, versatile defenders who should fit in nicely alongside the club’s top offensive weapons like Harden, Leonard, and Norman Powell. They were acquired via the mid-level exception, sign-and-trade, and bi-annual exception, respectively, three tools that wouldn’t have been available to the Clips if they’d re-signed George and were operating over the second apron.

The minimum-salary signing of Kevin Porter Jr. raised some eyebrows, given the domestic violence charges that torpedoed his 2023/24 season and led to his release. President of basketball operations Lawrence Frank explained in July why the team was willing to give a second chance to Porter, who may face a suspension from the NBA related to that incident. Once he’s eligible to play, the Clippers’ hope is that he stays out of trouble and performs like the player who averaged 19.2 PPG and 5.7 APG for Houston in 2022/23.

The Clippers’ ceiling in 2024/25 may not be as high as it would’ve been with George still in the fold, but running it back with essentially the same roster wouldn’t have inspired much confidence, given the results in the Kawhi/PG13 era. If the new-look roster doesn’t perform up to expectations, L.A.’s front office is better positioned to pivot and change directions, given the shorter, less expensive contracts on the roster.

Up next

Veteran forward P.J. Tucker fell out of the Clippers’ rotation last season and didn’t seem too thrilled with his situation. He still exercised his $11.54MM player option in June because he wouldn’t have made nearly that much money if he’d declined that option to become a free agent, but he was a strong candidate to be traded or waived this summer. It now sounds like that may not happen. I wouldn’t pencil in Tucker as part of the opening-night roster quite yet though. His days in L.A. appear numbered — it’s just a matter of whether his exit happens sometime this summer or fall, or later in the season.

If Tucker remains on the roster, the Clippers’ 15-man group looks set, with just one two-way slot to fill next to Jordan Miller and Trentyn Flowers. Camp invitees like Kai Jones, Elijah Harkless, RayJ Dennis, and Kevon Harris could be in the mix for that spot (only Jones has officially signed an Exhibit 10 contract so far, but the other three have reportedly agreed to sign with the team).

The Clippers also have a handful of players eligible for extensions, including Ivica Zubac and Terance Mann, two important rotation players entering contract years. Reaching new deals with Zubac and Mann figures to be a higher priority for L.A. than locking up Powell (who has two years left on his contract) or Bones Hyland (whose playing time as a Clipper has been limited), but the team may look into what it would take to extend all four players.

Zubac and Mann could be extended anytime between now and June 30, 2025, whereas there’s an October 21 deadline for Powell and Hyland. I’d still view Zubac and Mann as the more likely candidates to get something done before opening night.

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NBA 2024 Offseason Check-In: Chicago Bulls

August 19th, 2024 at 4:00pm 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 Chicago Bulls.

Free agent signings

  • Patrick Williams: Five years, $90,000,000. Fifth-year player option. Re-signed using Bird rights.
  • Jalen Smith: Three years, $27,000,000. Signed using non-taxpayer mid-level exception.
  • Marcus Domask: One year, minimum salary. Non-guaranteed (Exhibit 10). Signed using minimum salary exception.
  • Kenneth Lofton Jr.: One year, minimum salary. Non-guaranteed (Exhibit 10). Signed using minimum salary exception.

Trades

  • Acquired Josh Giddey from the Thunder in exchange for Alex Caruso.
  • Acquired Chris Duarte, RaiQuan Gray (two-way), the Kings’ 2025 second-round pick, the Kings’ 2028 second-round pick, and cash in a three-team trade in exchange for DeMar DeRozan (signed-and-traded to Kings).
    • Note: Gray was subsequently waived.

Draft picks

  • 1-11: Matas Buzelis
    • Signed to rookie scale contract (four years, $23,950,723).

Two-way signings

Departed/unsigned free agents

Other moves

Salary cap situation

  • Operating over the cap ($140.6MM) and below the luxury tax line ($170.8MM).
  • Carrying approximately $166.1MM in salary.
  • Hard-capped at $178,132,000.
  • $4,250,571 of mid-level exception available.
  • Full bi-annual exception available.
  • Two traded player exceptions available (largest worth $17,506,232).

The offseason so far

There was some good news for fans in Chicago this summer, as the Bulls’ front office finally accepted that roster changes were needed and that the group in place since 2021 wasn’t about to finally break through and become a contender.

The bad news? That decision probably came too late for the Bulls to get the most out of their veteran trade chips.

Chicago acquired a pair of future second-round picks along with Chris Duarte – a former first-round pick still on his rookie contract – in a sign-and-trade deal sending DeMar DeRozan to Sacramento. That’s a better outcome for the Bulls than letting their top scorer walk for nothing, but it’s a pretty modest return compared to what they might’ve gotten for DeRozan if they’d put him on the trade block before he reached unrestricted free agency.

The other two members of the Bulls’ one-time “big three” – Zach LaVine and Nikola Vucevic – didn’t go anywhere this offseason and may both still be on the roster on opening night. Their contracts (three years, $138MM for LaVine; two years, $41.5MM for Vucevic) are viewed as somewhat onerous relative to their on-court contributions.

While they could be traded, Chicago shouldn’t expect to receive much of value in return for either LaVine, who is coming off season-ending foot surgery, or Vucevic, who will turn 34 years old this October. In fact, moving off LaVine’s maximum-salary deal would probably require attaching assets at this point, so it might make more sense for the team to retain him in the hopes that he’ll increase his value by playing well this fall.

The most interesting move of the Bulls’ summer was trading defensive ace Alex Caruso for former lottery pick Josh Giddey, who had a tumultuous season both on and off the court in 2023/24. Based on reports that Chicago was seeking multiple first-rounders for Caruso, it came as a surprise that the club didn’t acquire a single pick in the deal, especially from a Thunder team loaded with future draft assets.

I understand the Bulls’ thinking to some extent. While his unreliable outside shot made him something of a liability in the postseason, Giddey is a talented ball-handler and play-maker who is still just 21 years old and is on his way to becoming a better pro than most mid-first-rounders in a typical draft class. A player with Giddey’s three-season track record certainly has a higher floor than an untested 19-year-old prospect.

On the other hand, Giddey is entering his fourth season and is currently eligible for a rookie scale extension. Even if he’s not extended by October 21, he’ll be due a major raise next summer when he reaches restricted free agency, whereas a draftee would’ve been on a team-friendly rookie contract for four seasons.

With Giddey expected to take over point guard duties, Patrick Williams back under contract on a five-year, $90MM deal, Jalen Smith added to the frontcourt on a three-year, $27MM contract, and lottery pick Matas Buzelis on track to play a role as a rookie, the Bulls are well on their way to leaning into a youth movement. However, the ongoing presence of LaVine and Vucevic complicates matters, leaving the team somewhat caught in the middle between play-in/playoff contention and a full-fledged rebuild.

Up next

Assuming there are no trades involving LaVine, Vucevic, or any other Bulls before opening night, 14 standard roster spots look spoken for, while the 15th is up for grabs.

Onuralp Bitim and Kenneth Lofton are among the players on non-guaranteed deals who appear to be in the mix for that last roster spot, and it’s possible the club will bring in one or two more players to compete for it in camp. Carrying a player with a non-guaranteed salary as the 15th man would give Chicago the flexibility to make an in-season change if need be.

The Bulls also have an open two-way slot, with Adama Sanogo and DJ Steward occupying two of those three openings for now. It’s possible that spot could be up for grabs in a camp competition too — Lofton and Marcus Domask are both on Exhibit 10 contracts that could be converted into two-way deals before the season begins.

Newcomers Giddey and Duarte are eligible for rookie scale extensions and I’d expect the Bulls to seriously consider signing Giddey. His stock could be much higher in a year than it is right now, assuming he thrives in Chicago with the ball in his hands more often, so locking him up sooner rather than later could pay off in the long run. A preseason agreement with Duarte, who has seen his playing time and production decline in each of his three NBA seasons, is hard to envision.

The only other Bull who is eligible for an extension is Lonzo Ball, but it’s safe to say that’s not happening either. Just getting on the court this fall would be a huge win for Ball, who has been sidelined for over two-and-a-half years due to knee issues. Barring an unlikely bounce-back season for the former No. 2 overall pick, he’s a strong candidate to have his expiring contract traded by February’s trade deadline — or  to be waived before the end of the season, if he continues to miss time for health reasons.

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NBA 2024 Offseason Check-In: Houston Rockets

August 17th, 2024 at 2:57pm 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 Houston Rockets.

Free agent signings

  • Aaron Holiday: Two years, $9,569,400. Second-year team option. Re-signed using bi-annual exception. Waived right to veto trade.
  • Nate Hinton: One year, minimum salary. Non-guaranteed (Exhibit 10). Re-signed using minimum salary exception.
  • Jermaine Samuels: One year, minimum salary. Non-guaranteed (Exhibit 10). Re-signed using minimum salary exception.

Trades

  • Acquired the Suns’ 2027 first-round pick, either the Mavericks’ or the Suns’ 2029 first-round pick (whichever is more favorable), swap rights for the Suns’ 2025 first-round pick, and swap rights for either the Mavericks’ or Suns’ 2029 first-round pick (whichever is least favorable) from the Nets in exchange for the Nets’ own 2026 first-round pick and control of the Nets’ own 2025 first-round pick (negating the Rockets’ right to swap either their own 2025 first-rounder or the Thunder’s 2025 first-rounder for Brooklyn’s pick).
  • Acquired AJ Griffin from the Hawks in a three-team trade in exchange for the draft rights to Pelle Larsson (No. 44 pick; to Heat).

Draft picks

  • 1-3: Reed Sheppard
    • Signed to rookie scale contract (four years, $45,853,024).

Two-way signings

Departed/unsigned free agents

Other moves

Salary cap situation

  • Operating over the cap ($140.6MM) and below the luxury tax line ($170.8MM).
  • Carrying approximately $163.9MM in salary.
  • Hard-capped at $178,132,000.
  • Full mid-level exception ($12.8MM) available.
  • One traded player exception available (worth $797,080).

The offseason so far

After making a major splash on the free agent market a year ago by signing several Fred VanVleet, Dillon Brooks, and a handful of other veterans, the Rockets had a much quieter summer in 2024.

Houston’s only real move of note in free agency was to bring back reserve point guard Aaron Holiday on a two-year contract that isn’t guaranteed beyond 2024/25. Holiday was solid in a rotation role last season, but he’s unlikely to play more than 15-18 minutes per game.

The team also made a minor move on the trade market by acquiring AJ Griffin from Atlanta in exchange for the No. 44 overall pick in this year’s draft. A 2022 first-round pick, Griffin had a promising rookie season, with 8.9 PPG and a .390 3PT%, then missed significant time in 2023/24 due to leg and ankle injuries, as well as personal issues. He wasn’t effective even when he did play, but Houston is betting on a bounce-back season for a player who will remain on his affordable rookie scale contract for two more seasons.

While the Rockets didn’t control their own first-round pick in 2024, one of the first-rounders they acquired from Brooklyn in the James Harden blockbuster paid off in a major way, moving up to No. 3 on lottery night. Houston used that selection to draft Reed Sheppard, who posted a .521 3PT% in his lone college season at Kentucky. Having added Griffin and Sheppard, it’s clear the Rockets made it an offseason priority to improve a three-point percentage (35.2%) that ranked 23rd in the NBA last season.

The rest of the Rockets’ moves are arguably more noteworthy for what they mean going forward than the impact they’ll have in the short term.

Houston picked up its team options on Jeff Green ($8MM) and Jae’Sean Tate ($7.6MM) while guaranteeing Jock Landale‘s $8MM salary for 2024/25, giving the team nearly $24MM in expendable expiring contracts that could come in handy at this season’s trade deadline. Green, Tate, and Landale figure to see some action during the regular season, but none are locks to spend all year in the rotation, especially if the club’s young players continue to improve — they may be more valuable as trade chips.

The Rockets also gave up control of the Nets’ first-round picks in 2025 (they had swap rights) and 2026 (they would’ve acquired Brooklyn’s pick outright) in exchange for two future first-rounders and two future swaps. Three of those four are Suns picks. It’s an interesting play for Houston, which is pushing its trade assets further into the future and betting against Phoenix’s longevity as a contending team, as most of those picks and swaps are for either 2027 or 2029.

Up next

With plenty of expiring money on their books, a surplus of future draft assets, and a handful of talented young players on their roster, the Rockets are well positioned to make a bid for a star if one becomes available on the trade market.

Between now and the start of the regular season, however, the more pressing issue is whether to extend Alperen Sengun and/or Jalen Green. Both players are eligible for rookie scale extensions until October 21.

Sengun enjoyed a breakout year in 2023/24, finishing third in Most Improved Player voting after averaging 21.1 PPG, 9.3 RPG, and 5.0 APG. Green’s scoring average declined, but he continued to show flashes of stardom, including one 20-game stretch from February to April in which he put up 26.6 PPG, 6.1 RPG, and 4.3 APG on .465/.381/.822 shooting.

Still, Green remains an inconsistent overall shooter and defender; Sengun, who was injured to finish the season, isn’t really a rim protector in the middle; and the Rockets had a higher net rating when each player was off the court than when he was on it. That’s not to say that Sengun and Green don’t deserve extensions, but neither case is a no-brainer for Houston, especially if those 2021 first-rounders are seeking maximum salaries or something close to it.

It’s also unclear whether the Rockets want to maintain the flexibility to potentially clear maximum-salary cap room in 2025. If so, it would certainly make sense to hold off on an extension for Sengun, at least. His cap hold as a restricted free agent would be just $16.3MM, far below his projected first-year salary on a new deal. Green’s cap hold would come in just above $31MM, so postponing an extension for him would only create additional cap flexibility if Houston expects to pay him more than that in 2025/26.

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NBA 2024 Offseason Check-In: Charlotte Hornets

August 16th, 2024 at 1:33pm 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 Charlotte Hornets.

Free agent signings

  • Miles Bridges: Three years, $75,000,000. Re-signed using Bird rights.
  • Seth Curry: One year, minimum salary. Signed using minimum salary exception.
  • Taj Gibson: One year, minimum salary. Partially guaranteed ($1,082,270). Signed using minimum salary exception.

Trades

  • Acquired Devonte’ Graham and the Pelicans’ 2025 second-round pick from the Spurs in exchange for cash.
    • Note: Graham was subsequently waived.
  • Acquired Josh Green, Reggie Jackson, the Nuggets’ 2029 second-round pick, and the Nuggets’ 2030 second-round pick from the Mavericks and Nuggets in a six-team trade in exchange for the Sixers’ 2025 second-round pick (to Mavericks or Timberwolves) and cash (to Nuggets).
    • Note: Jackson was subsequently bought out.

Draft picks

  • 1-6: Tidjane Salaun
    • Signed to rookie scale contract (four years, $34,035,472).
  • 2-42: KJ Simpson
    • Signed to two-year, two-way contract.

Two-way signings

Departed/unsigned free agents

Other moves

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 $153.6MM in salary.
  • Hard-capped at $188,931,000.
  • Full room exception ($8MM) available.

The offseason so far

The Hornets only won 21 games in 2023/24, their lowest mark in over a decade, but there were a few positive developments over the course of the season – the first under their new ownership group – that may pay off for the franchise in the long run.

For one, last year’s No. 2 overall pick Brandon Miller looks like a long-term building block and a future star. Charlotte also made a smart mid-season pivot, accepting the best offers on the trade market for veterans Terry Rozier, P.J. Washington, and Gordon Hayward, which netted the club several future draft assets. Finally, the team made a front office change in the spring, hiring Jeff Peterson to be its new head of basketball operations.

It will take some time before we can really evaluate several of the moves Peterson made during his first offseason at the helm. For instance, his head coaching hire looks like a good one — Charles Lee has received rave reviews for his work as an assistant. But first-time head coaches don’t come without risk, so it remains to be seen whether Lee’s transition to a lead role is a smooth one.

The biggest roster move the Hornets made this summer was re-signing forward Miles Bridges to a three-year, $75MM contract as an unrestricted free agent. That looks like a fair deal based on his on-court production, but Bridges’ history of domestic violence cases can’t be ignored. The hope in Charlotte is that Bridges’ past behavior is fully in the rear-view mirror and that he’ll be an upstanding citizen going forward, but you can certainly make a case that the Hornets never should have made that sort of investment to a player with those allegations on his record.

The Hornets’ 2024 lottery pick doesn’t come without risk either, albeit for entirely different reasons — Tidjane Salaun just turned 19 last week and isn’t considered likely to make an NBA impact as a rookie. Many people around the league were surprised Salaun was selected as high as No. 6, according to ESPN’s Jeremy Woo; ESPN’s Jonathan Givony describes him as a player who is “still just getting his feet wet at the highest levels.” That doesn’t mean Salaun won’t become an impact player down the road, but Charlotte will have to be patient with his development.

The Hornets operated under the cap this offseason, with Peterson using that room to accommodate a handful of salary dumps (Devonte’ Graham, Reggie Jackson, Josh Green) rather than pursuing outside free agents.

Graham and Jackson came with draft picks attached and were subsequently waived, whereas Green – a 23-year-old wing with a three-and-D skill set – projects to be a rotation player in Charlotte going forward. He’s under contract through the 2026/27 season.

Up next

The Hornets still have roster spots to fill before the regular season begins, with 14 players on standard contracts and a pair on two-way deals.

While the team could leave that 15th standard roster spot open to start the season, there’s no real reason not to fill it, given how far Charlotte’s team salary is from the luxury tax line. If the Hornets aren’t yet prepared to commit to a player for the full season, they could carry a 15th man with a non-guaranteed salary this fall.

Tre Mann, who was acquired from the Thunder at the 2024 trade deadline, is eligible for a rookie scale extension, while Cody Martin is eligible for a veteran extension. Martin isn’t a candidate for a new deal at this point, given his injury woes over the past two seasons, but Mann might be one worth watching — he made 28 starts for Charlotte down the stretch and played well (11.9 PPG, 5.2 APG, .453/.364/.759 shooting).

That’s a relatively small sample size, so the Hornets may prefer to wait another year on Mann and then negotiate a deal with him in restricted free agency next summer. But if they’re encouraged by how he looks in camp and if the price is right, I wouldn’t be totally shocked if the two sides worked something out sooner rather than later.

The Hornets are a team to watch on the trade market during the preseason and into the season, since they can afford to take on some salary and have shown in the last eight months that they’re happy to take on unwanted contracts in order to continue stockpiling draft assets.

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NBA 2024 Offseason Check-In: Golden State Warriors

August 15th, 2024 at 5:11pm 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 Golden State Warriors.

Free agent signings

  • Buddy Hield: Four years, $37,756,096. Third year partially guaranteed ($3MM). Fourth-year player option (partially guaranteed for $3,136,364 if exercised). Signed using Bird rights and acquired via sign-and-trade from Sixers.
  • Kyle Anderson: Three years, $27,658,536. Third year non-guaranteed. Signed using Bird rights and acquired via sign-and-trade from Timberwolves.
  • De’Anthony Melton: One year, $12,822,000. Signed using non-taxpayer mid-level exception.
  • Jackson Rowe: One year, minimum salary. Non-guaranteed (Exhibit 10). Signed using minimum salary exception.

Trades

  • Acquired Lindy Waters from the Thunder in exchange for the draft rights to Quinten Post (No. 52 pick).
  • Reacquired the draft rights to Quinten Post (No. 52 pick) from the Trail Blazers in exchange for cash.
  • Acquired Kyle Anderson (sign-and-trade) and Buddy Hield (sign-and-trade) in a six-team trade in exchange for Klay Thompson (sign-and-trade; to Mavericks), swap rights for the Warriors’ 2031 second-round pick (to Timberwolves), and cash (to Timberwolves)

Draft picks

Two-way signings

Departed/unsigned free agents

Other moves

Salary cap situation

  • Operating over the cap ($140.6MM), over the luxury tax line ($170.8MM), and below the first tax apron ($178.1MM).
  • Carrying approximately $176.6MM in salary.
  • Hard-capped at $178,132,000.
  • Bi-annual exception available.
  • One traded player exception available (worth $2,019,706).

The offseason so far

It was the end of an era this summer in the Bay Area, as four-time champion Klay Thompson, decided to move on to a new team after spending his first 13 NBA seasons with the Warriors.

Seeing Thompson in a Mavericks uniform next season will be an adjustment — if there was one group of active core players who seemed destined to spend their entire careers with a single franchise, it was Thompson, Stephen Curry, and Draymond Green with the Warriors.

Still, it’s hard to say the move was particularly surprising, given how disgruntled Thompson seemed to be during his final season in Golden State as his role diminished, his production declined, and the Warriors’ extension offer(s) came in below what he believed his history with the organization warranted.

Thompson is still an effective offensive weapon (he averaged 17.9 PPG with a .387 3PT% last season), but his defense has fallen off since he tore his ACL and Achilles, and moving on from him and Chris Paul (whose $30MM non-guaranteed salary was waived) makes the Warriors’ roster younger, more flexible, and more affordable heading into the 2024/25 season.

After operating above the luxury tax line for years, the Warriors made a concerted effort to cut costs — ownership would likely still be willing to spend big bucks for a championship contender, but the club didn’t make it out of the first round of the play-in tournament this spring. It didn’t make sense to continue carrying such a significant payroll.

The move below the first tax apron allowed the Dubs to make the kinds of moves that had been off-limits for years, including using their full mid-level exception (on versatile guard De’Anthony Melton) and acquiring players via sign-and-trade (sharpshooter Buddy Hield and savvy veteran Kyle Anderson).

The newcomers won’t instantly return Golden State to title contention, but there’s optimism that their mix of skill sets and the ongoing development of young players like Jonathan Kuminga, Moses Moody, Brandin Podziemski, and Trayce Jackson-Davis can make the Warriors a deeper, more dangerous team than they were in 2023/24.

Up next

With 14 players on standard contracts and three on two-way deals, the Warriors’ roster looks just about regular-season-ready. Adding a 15th man is unlikely due to the team’s proximity to its hard cap, and while Gui Santos and Lindy Waters aren’t necessarily locked in for the regular season due to their non-guaranteed salaries, there has been no indication Golden State will look to replace either player.

Still, there are issues to address before the season begins, starting with potential contract extensions. Kuminga and Moody are eligible for rookie scale extensions, while Curry could sign a one-year veteran extension worth approximately $62.6MM for 2026/27.

I wouldn’t necessarily expect Moody to get a new deal this summer or fall. His playing time has been inconsistent in his first three seasons, so the Warriors will be reluctant to pay him big money based on his career achievements so far, while Moody will be reluctant to lock in a long-term deal before he gets a chance to show what he can do with a more regular role.

Curry, on the other hand, seems more likely to get something done. The Over-38 rule prevents the Warriors from tacking on more than one year to the two left on his current deal, but I have to think they’d be willing to give him that one year if he wants it. Curry showed in the gold medal game at the Paris Olympics that we shouldn’t count on his performance falling off anytime soon.

Kuminga’s case is a trickier one. Based on his breakout performance during the second half of the 2023/24 season (he averaged 20.0 PPG and 5.4 RPG on .547/.377/.778 shooting during a 34-game stretch from January 12 to March 26 before injuring his knee), he’d be justified in seeking a massive payday.

I don’t expect the Warriors to give him the maximum-salary deal that his fellow 2021 draftees Scottie Barnes, Cade Cunningham, Evan Mobley, and Franz Wagner received. The question is whether there’s an amount below the max that makes sense for both sides.

Given his limited track record, you may balk at the idea of a deal in the range of $150-175MM for Kuminga, but if he follows up last year’s breakout by taking another step forward, he could be worth even more than that in free agency next summer. As a point of comparison, Immanuel Quickley got $162.5MM in guaranteed money from Toronto last month as a restricted free agent. This will be a tricky negotiation, so it wouldn’t be a shock if Golden State takes its chances and postpones it until 2025.

In addition to sorting through possible extensions, the Warriors will have to resolve Quinten Post‘s situation. The No. 52 overall pick is one of the only unsigned players from this year’s draft class — a two-way deal would make sense, given his draft slot, but Golden State would have to waive someone (possibly Pat Spencer?) to create a two-way opening for Post.

The Warriors’ pursuit of Lauri Markkanen showed that the front office isn’t opposed to shaking up its roster before training camp, but with the Jazz forward no longer trade-eligible, I don’t see any trade candidates out there right now that make a ton of sense for Golden State. While general manager Mike Dunleavy Jr. will probably keep an eye out for possible deals, I’d be a little surprised if he does anything significant by October.

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