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Klay Thompson, Warriors Parting Ways

June 30th, 2024 at 5:04pm CST by Rory Maher

Veteran sharpshooter Klay Thompson is leaving the Warriors, the only franchise he’s known in his 13 NBA seasons, reports Shams Charania of The Athletic and Stadium (Twitter link).

According to Charania, the two sides are set to begin exploring sign-and-trade options for the five-time All-Star. Sources tell ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski that Thompson will talk to the Mavericks, Lakers, Clippers and Sixers with free agency officially underway (Twitter link).

The 11th pick of the 2011 draft, Thompson is one of the most accomplished shooters in league history, ranking sixth all-time in three-pointers made. The 34-year-old has knocked down 41.3% of his attempts from long distance over the course of his career.

The second “splash brother” next to Stephen Curry, Thompson played a key role in helping Golden State win four championships during his tenure with the team. Earlier in his career, he made a couple of All-NBA Third Team appearances, plus an All-Defensive Second Team nod back in 2018/19.

However, a torn ACL and a torn Achilles tendon cost Thompson two full seasons during his prime. While he has remained one of the NBA’s top three-point marksmen since he returned from those injuries in January 2022, he doesn’t have the same athleticism or defensive versatility he once did.

Thompson, who earned $43.2MM in 2023/24 during the final year of his max contract, reportedly turned down a two-year, $48MM extension from Golden State before last season began. Talks between the two sides went quiet leading up to free agency, which is always an ominous sign.

In 77 regular season games in ’23/24, Thompson averaged 17.9 PPG, 3.3 RPG and 2.3 APG on .432/.387/.927 shooting (29.7 MPG). He scored zero points and went 0-10 from the field as the No. 9 Warriors fell to the No. 10 Kings in the play-in tournament.

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FA/Trade Rumors: Wings, Pistons, Pelicans, Valanciunas

June 30th, 2024 at 4:55pm CST by Rory Maher

The free agent wing market could be held up temporarily until Paul George, Klay Thompson and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope have agreed to new contracts, says Jake Fischer of Yahoo Sports.

That outcome was always expected, with those three swingmen likely limiting other players’ options. Cap-room playoff teams like the Sixers and Magic reportedly have interest in both George and Caldwell-Pope, while the Mavericks, Lakers and Clippers are among Thompson’s suitors.

The Pistons are another team with significant cap room, but Fischer hears Detroit is more interested in taking on unwanted salaries in exchange for draft assets rather than pursuing marquee names like George.

Here are a couple more items of interest from Fischer:

  • The Pelicans are trading for former All-Star Dejounte Murray, who has a 15% trade kicker. However, sources tell Fischer there’s a chance that Murray may not receive that full 15% for salary-matching and cap reasons, describing the situation as “open-ended.” New Orleans is also on the hunt for a starting center with Jonas Valanciunas an unrestricted free agent — the team was recently linked to Magic big man Wendell Carter.
  • Speaking of Valanciunas, Fischer hears from sources who say the Lithuanian veteran is expected to draw interest from the Lakers and Wizards.
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NBA Maximum Salaries For 2024/25

June 30th, 2024 at 4:55pm CST by Luke Adams

Now that the NBA has set its salary cap for the 2024/25 league year at $140,588,000, we have a clear idea of what maximum-salary contracts will look like for the coming season.

Listed below are the maximum-salary contracts for players signing contracts that start in 2024/25.

The first chart shows the maximum salaries for a player re-signing with his own team — a player’s previous team can offer five years instead of four, and 8% annual raises instead of 5% raises. The second chart shows the maximum salaries for a player signing with a new team.

These figures will apply to a number of players who signed maximum-salary contract extensions that will go into effect in 2024/25: Devin Booker, Karl-Anthony Towns, Jaylen Brown, Anthony Edwards, Tyrese Haliburton, and LaMelo Ball. They’ll also apply to anyone who signs a maximum-salary contract with his own team as a free agent in ’24/25.

A player’s maximum salary is generally determined by his years of NBA experience, so there’s a wide gap between potential earnings for younger and older players.

In the charts below, the “6 years or less” column details the maximum contract for a player like Ball, as well as what a free agent like Tyrese Maxey is eligible for; the “7-9 years” column applies to Pascal Siakam, who is signing a four-year max deal with the Pacers, and to Edwards and Haliburton, who each qualified for a Rose Rule rookie scale extension; and the “10+ years” column applies to the league’s most experienced vets, like LeBron James and Paul George, as well as those who qualified for the super-max, such as Booker, Towns, and Brown.

Here are the maximum salary figures for 2024/25:

A player re-signing with his own team (8% annual raises, up to five years):

Year 6 years or less 7-9 years 10+ years
2024/25 $35,147,000 $42,176,400 $49,205,800
2025/26 $37,958,760 $45,550,512 $53,142,264
2026/27 $40,770,520 $48,924,624 $57,078,728
2027/28 $43,582,280 $52,298,736 $61,015,192
2028/29 $46,394,040 $55,672,848 $64,951,656
Total $203,852,600 $244,623,120 $285,393,640

A player signing with a new team (5% annual raises, up to four years):

Year 6 years or less 7-9 years 10+ years
2024/25 $35,147,000 $42,176,400 $49,205,800
2025/26 $36,904,350 $44,285,220 $51,666,090
2026/27 $38,661,700 $46,394,040 $54,126,380
2027/28 $40,419,050 $48,502,860 $56,586,670
Total $151,132,100 $181,358,520 $211,584,940

It’s worth noting that none of the maximum-salary figures listed above will apply to extension-eligible players whose new contracts will start in 2025/26.

This group includes Scottie Barnes, who will reportedly sign a maximum-salary rookie scale extension with the Raptors. It also includes players who signed max extensions in previous years that will begin in ’25/26, such as Giannis Antetokounmpo and Anthony Davis.

The exact value of those players’ contracts will depend on where the cap lands for 2025/26, which won’t be officially announced until next June.

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Max Christie Signs Four-Year Deal With Lakers

June 30th, 2024 at 4:16pm CST by Dana Gauruder

JULY 6: Christie has officially signed his new contract with the Lakers, the team announced today in a press release (Twitter link via Khobi Price of The Southern California News Group).

JUNE 30: Restricted free agent Max Christie plans to sign the Lakers’ four-year contract offer, Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN tweets. The deal is worth approximately $32MM and will include a player option in the final year.

It’s a strong commitment by the Lakers to Christie, an early second-round selection in 2022. Christie appeared in 41 games as a rookie, then spent much of last season in the rotation. He posted averages of 4.2 points, 2.1 rebounds and 0.9 assists in 67 regular-season games, including seven starts. Christie has made 37.8% of his 3-pointers, a total of 180 attempts in all, during his two seasons.

Christie made the jump to the NBA after a one-and-done season at Michigan State. Still just 21 years old, Christie offers good size (6’5”) at the shooting guard spot and could see his role expand under new head coach J.J. Redick, though he’ll have plenty of competition — including first-round pick Dalton Knecht — for minutes behind Austin Reaves.

The Lakers extended a $2.3MM qualifying offer this weekend to Christie to make him an RFA. His younger brother Cam Christie was drafted in the second round by the Clippers on Thursday.

Christie’s contract will put the Lakers approximately $39MM below the $178.1MM first tax apron, but that doesn’t include LeBron James and Bronny James, cap expert Yossi Gozlan notes (Twitter link).

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Salary Cap, Tax Line Set For 2024/25 NBA Season

June 30th, 2024 at 4:00pm CST by Luke Adams

The NBA has officially set the salary cap for its 2024/25 season. The cap has come in at $140,588,000, slightly below the most recent projection of $141MM. It represents an increase of about 3.36% on last season’s $136,021,000 cap.

Here are the details, courtesy of a league press release and Eric Pincus of Bleacher Report (Twitter link):

  • Salary cap: $140,588,000
  • Luxury tax line: $170,814,000
  • First tax apron: $178,132,000
  • Second tax apron: $188,931,000
  • Minimum salary floor: $126,529,000
  • Non-taxpayer mid-level exception: $12,822,000
  • Taxpayer mid-level exception: $5,168,000
  • Room exception: $7,983,000
  • Bi-annual exception: $4,668,000
  • Maximum salaries:
    • 6 years or fewer: $35,147,000
    • 7-9 years: $42,176,400
    • 10+ years: $49,205,800
  • Early Bird exception: $12,991,650
  • Estimated average salary: $12,930,000
  • Trade cash limit: $7,240,000
  • Maximum Exhibit 10 bonus: $77,500

The first tax apron for the 2024/25 league year ($178,132,000) will be the hard cap for any team that acquires a player via sign-and-trade, signs a player using more than the taxpayer portion of the mid-level exception, signs or acquires a player using a bi-annual exception, uses any portion of its mid-level exception to add a player via trade or waiver claim, acquires more than 100% of the outgoing salary in a trade, or uses a trade exception generated prior to the start of the 2024 offseason.

The second tax apron ($188,931,000) represents the hard cap for a team that uses any portion of the mid-level exception, aggregates two or more player salaries in a trade, sends out cash in a trade, or uses a signed-and-traded player to take back salary.

The salary floor ($126,529,000) is the minimum amount a team must pay its players in 2024/25. A team that doesn’t spend up to that amount by the start of the regular season will pay the shortfall to the NBA and won’t be eligible for its full share of the luxury tax distribution at season’s end.

We have separate stories breaking the full year-by-year figures for this season’s maximum salaries, minimum salaries, and mid-level and bi-annual exceptions.

The Early Bird amount represents the maximum starting salary a team can offer a player it intends to re-sign using his Early Bird rights, assuming that amount is greater than 175% of his previous salary.

Players earning below the estimated average salary in 2024/25 who are eligible for a veteran extension can receive a starting salary of up to 140% of the estimated average salary on a new deal. So the maximum starting salary for a player earning below the league average who signs an extension that begins in 2025/26 will be $18,102,000.

The trade cash limit is the maximum amount of money a team can send or receive during the 2024/25 league year. The sent and received categories are separate, so if a team sends out $7,240,000 in one trade and receives $7,240,000 in another, they aren’t back at square one — they’ve reached both limits.

The maximum Exhibit 10 bonus is, as its name suggests, the highest possible bonus available to a player who signs an Exhibit 10 contract with an NBA team, gets cut, then spends at least 60 days with that club’s G League affiliate.

This amount ($77,500) is also the maximum two-way protection amount, which means a player who signs a two-way contract before the season can get up to $77.5K guaranteed upon signing. A player who signs a contract with more than $77.5K guaranteed is not subsequently eligible for a two-way contract with that team in 2024/25.

The NBA’s cap increased by the maximum allowable 10% during the 2022 and 2023 offseasons and is expected to do so again in 2025 as the league’s new media rights deal takes effect, so this year represents an outlier, creating more challenges circumstances for teams navigating the cap and the aprons. The NBA has officially issued a $154,647,000 cap projection for 2025/26, Pincus confirms (Twitter link).

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FA/Trade Rumors: Okoro, Pistons, Lakers, Lopez, Grant, Knicks

June 30th, 2024 at 3:41pm CST by Luke Adams

The Pistons are a rival suitor to keep an eye on for Cavaliers free agent forward Isaac Okoro, reports Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com (subscriber link).

As Fedor explains, Okoro’s former coach J.B. Bickerstaff is being hired as the Pistons’ new head coach, and the rebuilding squad could afford to be more patient than Cleveland in developing the wing into more of a two-way threat. Additionally, Fedor cites Okoro’s “toughness, competitiveness, tenacity and defense-first credo” as important traits that would help Bickerstaff instill the kind of culture he wants in Detroit.

Okoro received a qualifying offer from the Cavaliers, making him a restricted free agent and giving Cleveland the ability to match any offer sheet he receives. Still, the Pistons will have a significant amount of cap room this summer and could make life hard on the capped-out Cavs with an aggressive offer sheet.

Here are a few more rumors from around the NBA:

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Report: Growing Optimism Sixers Will Land Paul George

June 30th, 2024 at 3:11pm CST by Luke Adams

There’s “growing optimism” that the Sixers will be able to win the Paul George sweepstakes and land the star forward, reports Chris Haynes of Bleacher Report (Twitter link).

George, who declined his 2024/25 player option with the Clippers on Saturday, is expected to meet with the 76ers, the Magic, and the Clips on Sunday night after the free agent period officially opens. Both Philadelphia and Orlando are said to be willing to offer a four-year, maximum-salary contract for George and have the cap room necessary to do so.

In addition to putting a four-year max deal on the table for him, the Sixers can offer George the opportunity to team up with 2023 MVP Joel Embiid and 2024 Most Improved Player Tyrese Maxey, creating a formidable big three that would make Philadelphia a legitimate contender in the Eastern Conference.

Marc Stein reported this afternoon that the Sixers are exploring ways to maximize their cap room and land both George and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope. As cap expert Yossi Gozlan tweets, a maximum-salary contract for George would leave Philadelphia with only about $13MM in cap room, plus the $8MM room exception.

Acquiring either George or Caldwell-Pope via sign-and-trade could allow for a higher starting salary for KCP, but would require the cooperation of the player’s old team and would hard-cap the 76ers’ team salary at the first tax apron.

Teams aren’t permitted to negotiate or reach agreements with outside free agents until after the NBA’s free agent period officially opens at 5:00 pm Central time today.

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FA Rumors: KCP, Harden, Kennard, Hartenstein, Jones, Highsmith, More

June 30th, 2024 at 2:59pm CST by Luke Adams

After Jake Fischer of Yahoo Sports reported earlier today that the Nuggets are preparing to lose Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, Michael Scotto of HoopsHype confirms there’s a growing belief around the league the veteran wing won’t remain in Denver.

The Magic have “significant” interest in Caldwell-Pope and there has been growing buzz about the possibility of Orlando aggressively pursuing him, Scotto says, adding that the Magic’s interest in Klay Thompson has cooled by comparison. Multiple executives who spoke to HoopsHype believe Caldwell-Pope will sign for $20-25MM per year.

The Sixers, who have also frequently been cited as a Caldwell-Pope suitor, have been exploring the feasibility of landing both KCP and Paul George using their cap room, tweets Marc Stein.

Here are several more rumors with the official start of free agency just a couple hours away:

  • While James Harden has been mentioned as a possible mid-level ($12.9MM) target for the Lakers, the expectation is that the Clippers will be willing to pay him approximately double that amount, Scotto writes, echoing a comment made by Adrian Wojnarowski on ESPN (YouTube link).
  • Rival executives aren’t expecting Luke Kennard to be truly available as an unrestricted free agent, according to Fischer, who says Kennard and the Grizzlies seem to be interested in continuing their relationship after the team turned down its option the sharpshooter on Saturday.
  • New Pistons head of basketball operations Trajan Langdon is known to be a fan of center Isaiah Hartenstein, so Detroit is considered a candidate to make a play for the Knicks big man, Fischer reports. A return to the Knicks still hasn’t been entirely ruled out for Hartenstein, though the Thunder continue to be viewed as a probable suitor as well, Fischer notes.
  • With point guard Tyus Jones seeking starter-level money as a free agent this offseason and the Wizards still in the early stages of their rebuilding project, there’s a growing sense that Washington will be open to moving Jones via sign-and-trade, per Scotto.
  • Free agent wing Haywood Highsmith is expected to draw interest from a mix of cap-room teams such as the Pistons, Hornets, Jazz, Spurs, and Sixers, as well as over-the-cap clubs like the Pacers, Kings, and Warriors, league sources tell Scotto, who suggests the 27-year-old could end up with a deal in the range of the full mid-level.
  • The Lakers are expected to have interest in re-signing both Taurean Prince and Spencer Dinwiddie, with Dinwiddie also likely to draw interest from the Mavericks, Scotto writes. NBA executives who spoke to HoopsHype projected Prince to potentially land a contract in the range of $5MM+ annually over two years.
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Northwest Notes: Topic, Jones, Mitchell, Nori, Nuggets

June 30th, 2024 at 2:52pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

Newly-drafted Thunder rookie Nikola Topic has confirmed that he will have surgery to repair a partially torn ACL, per Joe Mussatto of The Oklahoman (Twitter link). This approach had been expected prior to the draft, but that didn’t stop Oklahoma City from selecting the 6’6″ point guard with its No. 12 selection late in the lottery.

Last year with Mega MIS in ABA league play, Topic posted averages of 14.5 points on a .523/.259/.855 shooting line, along with 7.1 assists, 3.6 rebounds and 1.0 steals per game.

Whenever he does return – likely at the start of the 2024/25 season – he’ll join a loaded Thunder roster fresh off securing the Western Conference’s No. 1 seed and a 57-25 record in 2023/24. This year, Oklahoma City is no doubt hoping to build on that success. To wit, the team has already flipped underperforming young guard Josh Giddey for a two-time All-Defensive vet in his absolute prime, 30-year-old former Bulls guard Alex Caruso, as it looks to shore up its perimeter coverage.

There’s more out of the Northwest Division:

  • During their introductory presser, Thunder rookies Topic, Dillon Jones, and Ajay Mitchell seemed excited about joining such an impressive Oklahoma City squad, writes Joel Lorenzi of The Oklahoman. Jones, a Weber State alum, is going to be a versatile fit on an exciting young Thunder team, per Lorenzi. Topic was impressed with the team’s professionalism. “As I said before, I’m really grateful for the time here, and it’s really probably the best organization I’ve been to,” Topic said. Mitchell, drafted out of Santa Barbara, is open to whatever roster role the team decides is best.
  • The Pistons‘ decision to hire J.B. Bickerstaff as their next coach has guaranteed that top Timberwolves assistant Micah Nori will stay with Minnesota next season, reports The Athletic’s Jon Krawczynski (Twitter link). Nori has been with Minnesota under head coach Chris Finch since 2021. Nori stepped in to act as Finch’s legs after an injury forced Finch to stay static on the team’s bench during most of its run to the Western Conference Finals this spring. Not only will Nori stick around in Minnesota, he’ll likely earn a raise after going above and beyond the line of duty this postseason, reports Darren Wolfson of KSTP Sports (Twitter link).
  • As they approach the start of free agency this afternoon, a lot of the Nuggets‘ roster needs hinge on whether or not they’ll be able to re-sign unrestricted shooting guard Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, writes Bennett Durando of The Denver Post. The team’s other free agent rotation wing, journeyman vet Justin Holiday, is not expected to return to Denver, reports Harrison Wind of DNVR Sports. Wind notes that, after trading Reggie Jackson, the Nuggets will be in the market for a backup point guard as well as a veteran reserve center. Although the team has just re-signed backup big man DeAndre Jordan, it doesn’t appear to view him as an actual rotation piece, but more as a locker room leader.
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Derrick Jones’ Free Agency Complicated By Agent Change

June 30th, 2024 at 2:39pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

Fresh off a 50-32 season and a run to the NBA Finals, the Mavericks are hoping to build on their success this offseason. As Jake Fischer of Yahoo Sports writes, Dallas agreed to ship the expiring $16.2MM contract of bench swingman Tim Hardaway Jr. to the Pistons in part to create the financial flexibility to re-sign starting small forward Derrick Jones, whose defensive ferocity helped the minimum-salaried vet emerge as a critical role player during the Mavericks’ Finals run.

Across 76 healthy regular season contests last year with Dallas, Jones averaged 8.6 points on .483/.343/.713 shooting, along with 3.3 rebounds, 1.0 dimes, 0.7 steals and 0.7 rejections per game. The Hardaway deal should open up the Mavs’ non-taxpayer mid-level exception for the 6’5″ wing.

However, according to the CBA, players are not officially permitted to sign a deal with a new agent for 15 days after ending their contracts with their prior representatives, Fischer notes. Because Jones ended his association with his most recent reps on June 26, that could throw a wrench in the Mavericks’ plans to retain him.

According to Tim Cato of The Athletic, Jones’ new agency, Klutch Sports, will thus be unable to negotiate on his behalf until July 11, by which time most top free agents will be off the board. This could complicate a Jones return to a Mavericks team looking to build up its roster through a series of connected moves.

Cato notes that Jones could theoretically still work out a future contract with now-terminated representative Aaron Turner of Verus Management negotiating on his behalf. Turner and Jones could also reach an agreement to disregard the standard 15-day waiting period between representatives, which would let Klutch instantly take over.

Despite the complications created by Jones’ agency change, the Mavericks remain optimistic about their chances of retaining him, tweets Marc Stein.

In addition to hoping to re-sign Jones, the Mavs are also considered a top suitor for Warriors sharpshooter Klay Thompson. A league source tells Monte Poole of NBC Bay Area (Twitter link) that Dallas is “chasing Thompson extremely hard.” The plan would be to acquire Thompson via sign-and-trade and re-sign Jones with the mid-level exception.

The Mavs’ thinking, according to Stein, is that if they have to trade away Josh Green as part of a sign-and-trade deal for Thompson, the club would still have plenty of wing depth, with Thompson coming aboard, Quentin Grimes being acquired in the Hardaway trade, and Jones potentially returning.

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