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Pistons Turn Down Options On Chimezie Metu, Stanley Umude

June 29th, 2024 at 5:22pm CST by Arthur Hill

The Pistons have declined team options valued at $2.65MM for Chimezie Metu and $2.12MM for Stanley Umude, league sources tell Michael Scotto of Hoops Hype (Twitter link). Both players will be unrestricted when free agency begins Sunday afternoon.

The moves will give Detroit a little more cap room to utilize in free agency. With more than $58MM to spend, the Pistons are expected to be among the most active teams on the market.

Metu, a 27-year-old center/power forward, came to Detroit on a 10-day contract in March and later signed for the rest of the season. He appeared in 14 games, starting seven, and averaged 10.5 points and 6.0 rebounds in 29.4 minutes per night.

Umude, a 25-year-old shooting guard, played on a two-way contract before having it converted to a standard deal in February. He saw action in 24 games, averaging 5.3 points and 2.1 rebounds in 12.8 minutes per night.

Knicks Didn’t Extend Qualifying Offer To Precious Achiuwa

June 29th, 2024 at 5:04pm CST by Arthur Hill

The Knicks opted not to extend a $6.3MM qualifying offer to Precious Achiuwa, league sources tell Fred Katz of The Athletic (Twitter link). The decision means the 24-year-old big man will be unrestricted when he enters free agency on Sunday.

New York hasn’t ruled out re-signing Achiuwa, Katz adds, but the team didn’t want to risk the possibility of having him quickly accept the QO, which would have affected its hard cap situation as it tries to work out the details of the trade to acquire Mikal Bridges from Brooklyn.

The Knicks acquired Achiuwa in late December as part of the OG Anunoby deal. He wound up playing a significant role amid long-term injuries to Julius Randle, Mitchell Robinson and others. Achiuwa appeared in 49 games after the trade, making 18 starts and averaging 7.6 points and 7.2 rebounds in 24.2 minutes per night.

The Knicks have picked up their $2MM team option on Jericho Sims for next season, a source tells Stefan Bondy of The New York Post (Twitter link). The backup center still only has a $651K partial guarantee on his $2.09MM salary, with trigger dates in July and August. Sims, who has spent the past three seasons with New York, will be an unrestricted free agent next summer.

The team has declined DaQuan Jeffries‘ $2.5MM option, Katz tweets. Jeffries, who saw action in 17 games, will become an unrestricted free agent on Sunday.

The Knicks extended a qualifying offer to two-way forward Jacob Toppin, making him a restricted free agent, Katz tweets. However, two-way players Duane Washington Jr. and Charlie Brown Jr. did not receive QOs (Twitter links).

Damion Lee Declines Player Option With Suns

June 29th, 2024 at 4:59pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

Suns shooting guard Damion Lee has declined his $2.8MM player option with Phoenix and will become an unrestricted free agent, sources inform Michael Scotto of HoopsHype (Twitter link).

The 6’5″ swingman missed the entire 2023/24 NBA season after suffering a meniscus tear in his right knee, which ultimately required surgery.

Lee initially signed a one-season, minimum contract to join the Suns in the summer of 2022. He then inked a one-and-one contract with Phoenix last summer. During his lone healthy season with the Suns, Lee averaged 8.2 PPG on a .442/.445/.904 shooting line, along with 3.0 rebounds and 1.3 assists across 74 healthy contests.

After going undrafted in 2016, the Louisville alum began his NBA career with the Hawks in 2017/18, but he has spent most of his time in the league with the Warriors, with whom he won a championship as a floor-spacing backup in 2021/22. He was reunited with one-time Golden State teammate Kevin Durant in Phoenix when the latter was traded there from the Nets in 2022/23.

According to Gerald Bourguet of PHNX Sports (Twitter link), a new deal with the Suns is a possibility for Lee, who would be eligible to sign for more than the veteran’s minimum since Phoenix holds his Early Bird rights.

Warriors Preparing To Lose Klay Thompson

June 29th, 2024 at 4:58pm CST by Luke Adams

With Klay Thompson just 24 hours away from reaching unrestricted free agency, the Warriors are preparing to lose their longtime sharpshooter and four-time NBA champion, league sources tell Shams Charania and Anthony Slater of The Athletic.

According to Charania and Slater, the Warriors and Thompson haven’t had much contact as of late and the team hasn’t made him a formal contract offer since the exclusive negotiating window opened after the NBA Finals.

The club has expressed interest in circling back to the five-time All-Star after addressing other business, including figuring out what to do with Chris Paul and his non-guaranteed $30MM expiring salary.

However, Thompson’s side believes Golden State’s interest in a reunion has been “disingenuous,” per The Athletic’s duo, who say he “never felt reciprocated love from management about his firm place in the franchise’s plans.”

As a result, the 34-year-old is determined to find a new home, league sources tell Charania and Slater, and both sides believe their 13-year run together is about to come to an end.

The Lakers, Clippers, and Mavericks are expected to be among Thompson’s top suitors, though all three teams project to be over the cap and would have to negotiate a sign-and-trade. Golden State has been open to the idea of accommodating such a deal in order to maximize Thompson’s earning potential, sources tell The Athletic.

Multiple clubs with cap room are expected to be in the mix too, per Charania and Slater. The Sixers and Magic are among the cap-space teams that have been linked to the longtime Warrior in recent days.

Marc Stein, who reported on Friday night that there’s “strong” mutual interest between Thompson and the Mavericks, tweets that LeBron James is hopeful the Lakers can make a bid to challenge Dallas for the veteran swingman. For his part, Thompson is intrigued by the Lakers possibility and plans to talking to both them and the Mavs, among other potential suitors, tweets Broderick Turner of The Los Angeles Times.

Jeff Dowtin Jr.’s Option Declined By Sixers

June 29th, 2024 at 4:44pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

The Sixers have opted to decline reserve point guard Jeff Dowtin Jr.‘s team option for 2024/25, reports Keith Pompey of The Philadelphia Inquirer (via Twitter).

After going undrafted out of Rhode Island in 2020, Dowtin spent the 2020/21 season with the Lakeland Magic, Orlando’s G League affiliate. The 6’3″ point guard has since logged time with the Warriors, Bucks, and Raptors, often on either 10-day contracts or two-way deals that have seen him split his time with each team’s G League affiliate club.

Dowtin started off the 2023/24 season with Philadelphia’s NBAGL team, the Delaware Blue Coats, before inking a two-way deal with the Sixers. In April, that contract was converted to a standard agreement for the rest of the season, with a second-year team option.

All told, Dowtin boasts career NBA averages of 2.9 points, 1.5 assists, 1.3 rebounds and 0.5 steals per night. In 20 games with Delaware last year, Dowtin averaged 19.1 PPG on .491/.387/.906 shooting, along with 5.3 APG, 2.8 RPG, and 1.2 SPG.

Dowtin had been eligible for a qualifying offer, which would have made him a restricted free agent and allowed Philadelphia to match any contract extended his way. It appears that he did not receive one, given that the Sixers are looking to maximize their cap space with free agency looming.

Magic Decline $8MM Team Option On Moritz Wagner

June 29th, 2024 at 4:34pm CST by Arthur Hill

The Magic aren’t picking up their $8MM team option for Moritz Wagner for next season, but both sides have interest in negotiating a new contract, according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (Twitter link).

The decision means the 27-year-old big man will become an unrestricted free agent Sunday afternoon and will be free to talk with anyone. Wagner has spent the past four seasons in Orlando and presumably enjoys playing alongside his brother, Franz Wagner, so the team should have an advantage in trying to re-sign him.

The Magic are expected to be major players on the free agent market, and the extra $8MM in cap room could turn out to be valuable. Orlando is projected to have upwards of $52MM to work with and is considered to be a suitor for Clippers forward Paul George, who is declining his $48.8MM option for next season.

One possibility for Wagner suggested by Yossi Gozlan of HoopsHype (Twitter link) is for Orlando to use its $8MM room exception to give him the same salary as his option. The team would have to exhaust its cap space before that pathway becomes available.

Wagner played an important role off Orlando’s bench this season, averaging 10.9 points, 4.3 rebounds and 1.2 assists in 80 games.

Cam Reddish Exercises Player Option With Lakers

June 29th, 2024 at 4:18pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

Lakers forward Cam Reddish has picked up his minimum-salary player option for 2024/25, per Shams Charania of The Athletic (via Twitter). The move guarantees Reddish’s $2.46MM salary for next season.

Last season with Los Angeles, Reddish averaged a career-worst 5.4 PPG on .389/.336/.759 shooting, alongn with 2.1 RPG, 1.0 APG and 1.0 SPG. Health issues limited him to just 48 contests with the club, which included 26 starts.

As Jovan Buha of The Athletic tweets, now that Reddish, Christian Wood, D’Angelo Russell, and Jaxson Hayes have picked up their options for next season, the Lakers project to have 14 roster spots filled for next season, assuming LeBron James returns.

The Lakers have three rostered role players who are free agents this season in reserve 3-and-D forward Taurean Prince and backup guards Max Christie and Spencer Dinwiddie. Buha notes that Los Angeles may want to hold on to Christie, a restricted free agent.

To carve out more roster space, the front office may be looking to offload contracts. Given that Hayes and Reddish were minimal contributors during the Lakers’ stretch run and postseason, those two are among the most obvious candidates to be moved. Extracting value in return could prove difficult.

Lakers’ LeBron James Opting Out To Become Free Agent

June 29th, 2024 at 4:18pm CST by Tristan Tucker

4:18pm: Confirming James’ opt-out decision, agent Rich Paul tells Dave McMenamin of ESPN (Twitter link) that the star forward is open to discussing a deal worth less than the max if it means adding another impact player.

“He is prioritizing a roster improvement,” Paul said of James. “He’s been adamant about exuding all efforts to improve the roster.”

11:16am: Lakers superstar LeBron James is declining his $51.4MM player option for the 2024/25 season, according to The Athletic’s Shams Charania (Twitter link).

While the move will technically make James a free agent, the expectation is that he’ll return to the Lakers on a new deal, Charania reports. Tim Reynolds of The Associated Press confirms that LeBron plans to seek a new agreement with Los Angeles.

This was the expected move, as we previously relayed. As cap expert Yossi Gozlan observes (Twitter link), James can re-sign with the Lakers for a maximum of $162MM over three years, which would take him through his age-42 season. Additionally, he’s eligible for a no-trade clause.

The Lakers’ team salary would be in first-apron territory if they bring James back at the max. However, he may be willing to be flexible.

Chris Haynes of Bleacher Report (Twitter link) says the four-time MVP would be open to accepting a lower salary to help the club access the full non-taxpayer mid-level exception ($12.9MM) if there’s a target that makes sense. Keith Smith of Spotrac (Twitter link) explores what that math might look like.

The Lakers selected LeBron’s son, Bronny James, with the No. 55 overall pick in the 2024 draft on Thursday. Re-signing with the Lakers would allow for the elder James to play next to his son, something he’s expressed interest in doing in the past.

LeBron has maintained a high level of play even through his age-39 season, averaging 25.7 points, 7.3 rebounds and 8.3 assists while shooting 54.0% from the field and 41.0% from three in 71 games last season. His 71 games played last year represented his highest regular season total since 2017/18 with Cleveland, and LeBron helped push the Lakers to the playoffs, where they fell in five games to the Nuggets.

While the Lakers lost in the first round, they were competitive against the reigning champs, having been outscored by 11 points in the series. With new coach J.J. Redick on board, Los Angeles seems poised to build on its core heading into next year.

LeBron’s spent the last six seasons of his career with Los Angeles, winning a ring in ’19/20 and passing several milestones while donning the purple-and-gold, including becoming the NBA’s all-time leader in points scored.

Grizzlies Decline Luke Kennard’s 2024/25 Team Option

June 29th, 2024 at 4:15pm CST by Luke Adams

The Grizzlies did not exercise Luke Kennard‘s $14.8MM team option for 2024/25 prior to Saturday’s deadline, reports Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN (Twitter link).

While the move will make Kennard an unrestricted free agent, the two sides are “eager” to discuss a new, restructured deal, according to Wojnarowski.

Kennard was limited to just 39 games (22 starts) this past season for health reasons, including a left knee bone bruise, but was effective when he was available, with averages of 11.0 points, 3.5 assists, and 2.9 rebounds in 25.6 minutes per game.

One of the NBA’s best three-point shooters, the 28-year-old wing has made at least 44.6% of his attempts from beyond the arc in each of the past four seasons, including 45.0% in 2023/24.

A $14.8MM salary isn’t unreasonable for a shooter of that caliber, but the Grizzlies would have been above the first tax apron if they had exercised Kennard’s option. As Bobby Marks of ESPN tweets, team salary is now $8MM below the luxury tax line and $11.5MM below the first apron.

The Grizzlies value Kennard and what he brings to the rotation, according to Damichael Cole of The Memphis Commercial Appeal (Twitter link), so a new deal is possible. However, as Cole notes, the veteran sharpshooter figures to draw interest on the open market.

Bulls’ Torrey Craig Picking Up Option

June 29th, 2024 at 4:14pm CST by Arthur Hill

Bulls forward Torrey Craig has exercised his $2.8MM player option for next season, sources tell ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (Twitter link).

Craig, 33, came to Chicago last summer, signing a two-year contract that paid him $2.5MM this season and included the option for 2024/25. The defensive specialist appeared in 53 games this year, making 14 starts and averaging 5.7 points, 4.1 rebounds and 1.1 assists in 19.8 minutes per night.

Craig broke into the NBA on a two-way contract with Denver in 2017 and has spent time with Milwaukee, Indiana and Phoenix as well.

It’s unclear what his role might be next season as Chicago appears to be pivoting toward a younger and more athletic team. Craig’s salary could be useful in a trade as Arturas Karnisovas tries to remake the roster.

Craig is the only Bull who had a player option decision to finalize today.