Warriors Guaranteeing Kevon Looney’s Salary For 2024/25

The Warriors have decided to guarantee Kevon Looney‘s salary for the 2024/25 season, sources tell Kendra Andrews of ESPN (Twitter link).

Golden State would have had to waive Looney on Monday in order to avoid having his full $8MM salary for next season become guaranteed. Up until today, only $3MM of that total had been guaranteed, so the team could’ve saved $5MM by cutting him.

[RELATED: Early NBA Salary Guarantee Dates For 2024/25]

However, Anthony Slater of The Athletic reported over the weekend that Looney was unlikely to be waived, pointing out that cutting him and then signing a replacement wouldn’t create significant cap or tax savings, and cutting him to try to re-sign him to a minimum-salary deal was considered too risky, since he’d have other suitors. According to Slater, the veteran center is still one of head coach Steve Kerr‘s favorite players and his voice is valued in the locker room.

Looney, 28, has been with the Warriors since 2015, winning three titles during that time and starting 256 of his 523 regular season games with the franchise. His defensive versatility, toughness, and rebounding have made him an important part of Golden State’s frontcourt over the years, but he had a down season in 2023/24, as his averages dipped to 4.5 points, 5.7 rebounds, and 1.8 assists in 16.1 minutes per game.

While Looney will now be assured of receiving $8MM in 2024/25, that doesn’t mean he’ll spend the entire season with the Warriors. As Slater wrote on Saturday, the big man could emerge as a trade candidate if his expiring contract comes in handy as part of Golden State’s efforts to upgrade its roster.

The Warriors’ next major salary guarantee decision will come later this week — Chris Paul‘s $30MM contract for ’24/25 will become guaranteed if he remains on the roster through Friday. However, there’s virtually no chance Golden State will guarantee that full amount unless it’s necessary to accommodate a trade. It’s also possible that Paul will agree to push his salary guarantee date back into July to give the team more time to sift through its trade options.

Lakers Hire J.J. Redick As Head Coach

JUNE 24: The Lakers have issued a press release officially confirming that they’ve hired Redick as their head coach.

“J.J. is a fierce competitor and has an extraordinary basketball IQ and understanding of the modern game that will energize players and excite fans,” Pelinka said as part of a larger statement. “His rigorous analysis will immediately unlock new opportunities for our roster while setting a foundation for player development over the long term. He brings an intense dedication to innovation, advancing the game, and staying at the forefront of an ever-evolving league.

“Beyond his basketball acumen, J.J. has a care for people and genuine empathy that are critical for connecting with players today. This is an exciting time for Lakers basketball.””


JUNE 20: The Lakers are hiring J.J. Redick to be their new head coach, according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski, who reports that Redick will receive a four-year deal.

According to Woj, head of basketball operations Rob Pelinka believes in Redick’s “basketball IQ” and his “ability to connect with players.” Pelinka also thinks surrounding Redick with an experienced staff “will help to shorten the learning curve” for the first-time head coach. Redick has already begun to assemble a staff, Woj adds.

Dan Woike of The Los Angeles Times confirms that Redick has made a verbal commitment to the Lakers (Twitter link). Redick will receive about $8MM per season on his four-year contract, sources tell Shams Charania, Sam Amick and Jovan Buha of The Athletic.

Multiple league sources tell Brian Robb of MassLive.com that Celtics assistant coach Sam Cassell is a name to watch for an assistant job on Redick’s staff, which echoes a previous report from Marc Stein. Cassell was among the candidates who interviewed for the Lakers’ job.

A former NBA sharpshooter who played 15 seasons in the league from 2006-2021, Redick has connections to the Los Angeles area, having played four seasons for the Clippers. The ESPN analyst also co-hosts a podcast with LeBron James. While James reportedly took a hands-off approach in the search, Redick’s preexisting relationship with the superstar forward surely didn’t hurt his candidacy.

Redick, who turns 40 years old next week, was long viewed as the frontrunner for the Lakers’ head coaching job after they fired Darvin Ham last month following a first-round playoff exit. However, Redick didn’t formally interview for the position until last weekend and wasn’t offered the job until this morning, per Wojnarowski.

Wojnarowski previously reported that the Lakers offered a six-year, $70MM contract to UConn’s Dan Hurley, who has won back-to-back NCAA titles with the Huskies. Hurley ultimately declined the offer and is reportedly nearing a long-term deal to stay in Storrs.

Pelicans associate head coach James Borrego was viewed as the other main candidate in the Lakers’ search. Borrego is reportedly a finalist in the Cavs’ coaching search, with recent reports pegging him as the frontrunner for the job.

As our tracker shows, several other names emerged in the Lakers’ search, but it’s unclear how seriously some of them were considered.

Now that the team’s coaching search is over, the Lakers will turn to the draft, trade market and free agency to improve their roster entering 2024/25. Their most noteworthy potential free agent is James, who holds a $51.4MM player option for next season.

Reggie Jackson Exercising 2024/25 Player Option

Nuggets point guard Reggie Jackson is picking up his player option for 2024/25, reports Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN (Twitter link). The decision will ensure that Jackson receives a guaranteed salary of $5.25MM next season before reaching unrestricted free agency in 2025.

Jackson originally signed with Denver on the buyout market in February 2023 after he was traded from the Clippers to the Hornets and was waived by Charlotte. He struggled down the stretch during the Nuggets’ championship season, making just 38.3% of his field goal attempts (27.9% of his three-pointers) in 16 regular season games before falling out of the rotation for the playoffs.

However, the Nuggets opted not only to retain him for the 2023/24 season but to give him a raise, signing him to a two-year, $10.25MM contract using their taxpayer mid-level exception. The 34-year-old responded with a strong bounce-back season, averaging 10.2 points, 3.8 assists, and 1.9 rebounds in 22.2 minutes per game, with a shooting line of .431/.359/.806.

Jackson was one of just two Nuggets players to appear in all 82 games this past season. He also made 23 starts when Jamal Murray was forced to the sidelines for health reasons.

While Jackson’s option decision will guarantee his 2024/25 salary, it doesn’t necessarily guarantee that he’ll spend next season in Denver. It’s possible the Nuggets will end up using his expiring contract as a trade chip, though if he returns, Jackson should see once again see rotation minutes as Murray’s backup

With Jackson’s $5.25MM salary on the books, the Nuggets are now up over $172MM in guaranteed salaries for 11 players. That figure doesn’t include the cap hold for Denver’s first-round pick ($2.5MM) or a new contract for Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, who has a decision of his own to make on a $15.4MM player option. If KCP exercises that option or signs an even more lucrative contract with the Nuggets, their salary will exceed the second tax apron ($189.5MM), limiting the team’s ability to make additional roster moves.

Blazers Hire Nate Bjorkgren, Chris Fleming As Assistant Coaches

The Trail Blazers have added a pair of assistant coaches to Chauncey Billups‘ staff, confirming today in a press release that they’ve hired Nate Bjorkgren and Chris Fleming. ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (Twitter link) first reported that Bjorkgren and Fleming were joining the Blazers.

Bjorkgren, who was the Pacers’ head coach for one season in 2020/21 and also has previous head coaching experience in the G League, was a Raptors assistant from 2018-20 and again from 2021-23 before the club parted ways with Nick Nurse a year ago. Sean Highkin of Rose Garden Report noted earlier this month that Bjorkgren was attending some of the Blazers’ pre-draft workouts and speculated that he might join Billups’ staff.

Fleming, meanwhile, became a coaching free agent after the Bulls decided not to retain him beyond the 2023/24 season. He had spent the last five years as an assistant on Chicago’s staff, with previous stints on coaching staffs in Denver and Brooklyn. Like Bjorkgren, Fleming has some previous head coaching experience, though his came exclusively outside of the NBA — he coached Brose Bamberg in Germany from 2008-14 and the German national team from 2014-17.

The Blazers had been on the lookout for experienced assistants after deciding not to renew the contracts of Scott Brooks or Rodney Billups. They also lost Steve Hetzel, who left Portland for a job on Jordi Fernandez‘s new staff in Brooklyn.

There had been some speculation early in the spring that Chauncey Billups might not return as the Blazers’ head coach for 2024/25. That speculation has since died down, but it looks like Billups will have a revamped coaching staff to work with in the fall.

Central Rumors: LaVine, Bulls, Pistons, Cade, Bucks, Cavs, More

The Bulls continue to seek a deal involving Zach LaVine, but last week’s four-year, $78MM contract agreement between the Kings and Malik Monk may have removed a prime suitor from the picture, according to Michael Scotto of HoopsHype, who says some rival executives believe retaining Monk will take Sacramento out of talks for LaVine. As Scotto has previously reported, Kings wing Kevin Huerter has fans within Chicago’s front office, so if the two teams did explore a trade involving LaVine, it seems safe to assume Huerter would be involved.

In other Bulls news, Chicago is interested in re-signing center Andre Drummond, league sources tell Scotto. The big man will be an unrestricted free agent this summer after spending the past two seasons backing up Nikola Vucevic.

Scotto also states that – prior to last week’s Alex Caruso/Josh Giddey swap – there was a belief around the league that the Bulls and Thunder would consider a possible sign-and-trade deal involving Patrick Williams. It’s unclear if that idea is off the table now or if the two clubs will look into making a second offseason trade.

Finally, Scotto reports that before they struck deals to add Wes Unseld Jr. and Dan Craig to Billy Donovan‘s coaching staff, the Bulls also reached out and talked to former head coaches Nate McMillan and Dwane Casey.

Here are a few more items of interest from around the Central:

  • The Pistons – along with the Magic – were expected to be in the mix for Monk before he reached an agreement to return to Sacramento, according to Scotto, who says Detroit will continue to explore the trade and free agent markets for shooting help this offseason.
  • Elsewhere on the Pistons front, Scotto writes that a number of executives around the NBA believe Detroit will come to terms on a maximum-salary rookie scale extension for former No. 1 pick Cade Cunningham.
  • The Bucks, still very much in win-now mode, are open to the idea of trading the No. 23 pick in the draft, league sources tell Scotto. Executives with rival teams also get the sense that Milwaukee would be willing to move Bobby Portis and/or Pat Connaughton in order to upgrade the roster, though Scotto notes that both players have come up in trade talks in the past and nothing has come of it to this point.
  • James Borrego was considered the frontrunner for the Cavaliers‘ head coaching job last week before the front office met with team owner Dan Gilbert, per Shams Charania, Joe Vardon, and Jason Lloyd of The Athletic. After that meeting between management and Gilbert, Kenny Atkinson‘s candidacy “gained considerable momentum,” The Athletic’s trio adds. Assistant coaches Jordan Ott and Trevor Hendry, who worked with Atkinson in Brooklyn, are viewed as potential additions to his new staff in Cleveland, notes Scotto.

Southwest Rumors: Rockets, George, Pelicans, Grizzlies, Sharpe, Doncic

The Rockets are among the teams with interest in Paul George if he can’t work out an extension with the Clippers this week, league sources tell Michael Scotto of HoopsHype. Even though Houston is considered an unlikely destination for George, it’s an indication that the team is engaged in “big game hunting” ahead of the draft and free agency, Scotto adds.

He also hears that Rockets general manager Rafael Stone has been involved in exploratory conversations about dealing the No. 3 pick for a “win-now player upgrade” and possibly moving down in the draft.

For Houston to land George, he would have to exercise his $48.8MM player option for next season and request a trade. The organization has six recent first-round picks on its roster, along with the rights to Brooklyn’s first-rounders over the next three years.

Scotto notes that even if the Rockets don’t acquire George, they have plenty of flexibility for a major move, holding team options on Jeff Green ($8MM) and Jae’Sean Tate ($7.57MM), along with an $8MM non-guaranteed salary for Jock Landale. Houston is expected to hang onto all three of those players through their various option/guarantee deadlines, according to Jonathan Feigen of The Houston Chronicle (subscription required), who also reports that the team is open to re-signing free agent guard Aaron Holiday.

There’s more from the Southwest Division:

  • With Jonas Valanciunas considered likely to leave in free agency, the Pelicans are willing to trade the 21st pick in this year’s draft for center help, sources tell Scotto. Along with New Orleans, NBA executives consider the Grizzlies and Thunder to be possible destinations for Hawks center Clint Capela, Scotto adds. If the Pelicans keep their pick, Scotto sees Baylor center Yves Missi as a potential selection, comparing him to Capela as an athletic big man who should thrive in the pick and roll. Scotto also hears that the organization will target another former head coach for Willie Green’s staff if it loses associate head coach James Borrego.
  • The Grizzlies have renewed their interest in Nets backup center Day’Ron Sharpe after holding talks with Brooklyn at the trade deadline, Scotto states. He adds that Memphis considered making an offer for forward Dorian Finney-Smith before the Nets acquired him at the 2023 deadline. In his aggregate mock draft, Scotto suggests the Grizzlies might take Tennessee shooting specialist Dalton Knecht as a potential replacement for Luke Kennard, who has a $14.8MM team option for next season and is considered a possible trade candidate.
  • Mavericks star Luka Doncic has joined the Slovenian national team and plans to participate in an Olympic Qualifying Tournament July 2-7 in Greece, according to NBA reporter Marc Stein (Twitter link).

2024 NBA Offseason Preview: Dallas Mavericks

After winning Kyrie Irving‘s debut on February 8, 2023, the Mavericks had a 30-26 record and held the fourth seed in the Western Conference. Over the next two months, however, Dallas lost 18 of 26 contests to wrap up the 2022/23 season, free-falling down the standings to 11th place and missing out on not just the playoffs but the play-in tournament too.

It was an inauspicious start for the star backcourt duo of Irving and Luka Doncic, who struggled to share the ball effectively in crunch-time situations (10 of those 18 losses down the stretch came by five points or less). Crucially though, on the heels of a turbulent stay in Brooklyn, Irving earned rave reviews for his locker room presence and leadership during his first few months in Dallas, inspiring confidence that with more time to practice and play together, he and Doncic would figure things out on the court.

Buoyed by better chemistry between Doncic and Irving and the addition of rookie center Dereck Lively, whom the Mavericks were able to draft due to their late-season slide in ’22/23 (their first-round pick was top-10 protected), the team once again had a solid first half in ’23/24 and entered trade-deadline day with a 28-23 record. And once again, Dallas had an eventful deadline, acquiring P.J. Washington and Daniel Gafford in separate deals by sending out two of just three future first-round picks that changed hands league-wide on February 8.

Washington and Gafford certainly didn’t bring the kind of star power to the franchise that Irving had a year earlier, but the two role players also didn’t require the adjustment period that Kyrie had in 2023 — they were perfect fits in Dallas from day one. Instead of slumping down the stretch, the Mavs took off, going on a 22-9 run from deadline day through the regular season finale and moving up in the standings from No. 8 to No. 5.

While the Mavericks didn’t enter the playoffs as favorites to come out of the West, they quickly made it clear that their second-half surge was no fluke, dispatching the No. 4 Clippers in round one, knocking off the top-seeded Thunder in round two, and then making quick work of the favored Timberwolves in the Western Conference finals, winning three games in Minnesota en route to a 4-1 series victory.

The Mavericks’ run ended in the NBA Finals against a dominant Celtics team that won 64 regular season games and went 16-3 in the postseason, but Dallas was playing with house money by that point. If you’d told anyone in the organization before the season began that the Mavs would follow up their 38-win dud of a 2022/23 season with an appearance in the NBA Finals a year later, they would’ve taken that outcome in a heartbeat.

The expectations will be higher in Dallas going forward, and after falling short of a championship this spring, the Mavs will have to figure out how to get back to the NBA Finals — and how to put themselves in a better position to win it all once they get there.

Head of basketball operations Nico Harrison has done a good job so far adding complementary pieces around his franchise player (Doncic) and raising the ceiling of this roster, but there are still areas that could use an upgrade. With no cap room this offseason and their collection of future draft picks somewhat depleted, the Mavs may need to get creative to keep getting better.


The Mavericks’ Offseason Plan

In his end-of-season press conference, Harrison expressed confidence that the Mavs’ core doesn’t require any major changes, telling reporters, “If you look at our top seven or eight players that really played. I don’t see anything happening with that.”

Doncic, Irving, and Lively certainly aren’t going anywhere, and it’s safe to assume Washington and Gafford will be back after helping turn the team into a legitimate contender after the trade deadline. After that though, I’m not sure I’d write any names in pen for next year’s roster.

Beyond those five players, Josh Green and Maxi Kleber are the best bets to be back. Green, who signed a three-year rookie scale extension prior to the start of the season, battled some health issues but once again had a solid year, knocking down 38.5% of his three-pointers, handing out a career-high 2.3 assists per game, and providing solid, versatile defense on the wing. Kleber also had an injury-plagued season, appearing in just 43 contests, but continued to be a very useful frontcourt role player when available — he’s not as athletic as Lively or Gafford and won’t show up on many highlight reels, but the German big man is a versatile defender who can hit a three-pointer.

We’ve mentioned seven of Dallas’ eight highest-paid players so far. The one in that group who is least likely to return is Tim Hardaway Jr. The veteran wing, who came over from New York in the Kristaps Porzingis trade in January 2019, is one of the longest-tenured Mavericks, but his 26.8 minutes per game in 2023/24 represented his lowest average since he arrived in Dallas and his .353 3PT% was below his career rate. Hardaway battled an ankle injury in the playoffs and wasn’t used much even when he was healthy, logging just 12.7 MPG in 14 postseason appearances.

Between Hardaway’s declining role and his expiring contract (worth approximately $16.2MM), he’s the team’s most obvious trade candidate entering the summer. Any major deal – whether it’s to acquire another impact player or to create extra cap flexibility – seems almost certain to include the 32-year-old.

The Mavs aren’t loaded with tradable draft assets after having given up their 2027 first-round pick for Washington and their 2029 first-rounder for Irving. But they still have the ability to move both their 2025 and 2031 first-round picks if they make them unprotected (neither one is eligible to be pushed back a year due to the Stepien rule and the seven-year rule). They could also sweeten a potential trade offer by including one or both of Olivier-Maxence Prosper and Jaden Hardy, two youngsters who will be 22 in July and who have flashed upside early in their NBA careers.

It’s certainly possible that Dallas will make an effort to acquire another high-caliber starter together using a package that includes Hardaway, one or both of their remaining first-round picks, and one of both of those prospects. But I also wouldn’t be surprised if the Mavs look to make a smaller, cost-cutting move that turns Hardaway into a less expensive rotation piece.

For instance, a deal with the Hornets for wing Cody Martin ($8.1MM) would be legal whether or not Charlotte operates under the cap — perhaps Dallas could entice the Hornets to take on that extra salary by attaching a second-round pick or two to Hardaway. That’s just one example. There could be other teams willing to make a similar move, especially since Hardaway is still capable of providing decent rotation minutes.

The thinking here is that the Mavericks probably won’t be in position to re-sign Derrick Jones unless they trim their payroll a little. They project to operate over the tax line and possibly right around the first tax apron, which means that their only options for re-signing Jones are to offer him a Non-Bird raise (20% above his minimum salary) or to give him the full taxpayer mid-level exception ($5.18MM). Rival suitors, who would likely be eager to poach the Western champions’ starting small forward and top perimeter defender, would easily be able to top either offer.

However, if Dallas can create a little extra breathing room below the first apron, they’d be able to use more than the taxpayer portion of the mid-level exception – potentially as much as the full non-taxpayer mid-level of $12.86MM – to make a more competitive bid for Jones.

Spending more than $5.18MM of the MLE would hard-cap team salary for 2024/25 at the first apron (around $178.7MM), and Dallas already projects to have about $173.7MM counting toward the apron for 12 players, assuming Dante Exum‘s $3.15MM non-guaranteed salary is retained. So swapping out Hardaway for a player making half as much money would put the Mavs in a far better position to re-sign Jones. Veteran Dallas-area reporter Marc Stein has suggested that moving Hardaway is a “key element” of the club’s plan to keep Jones.

While sending out Hardaway in what’s essentially a salary dump would take a key salary-matching piece off the table for the Mavs’ next big trade, the team still has several mid-sized contracts on its books that could be used in such a deal. Kleber, Green, Gafford, and Washington are all earning in the $11-16MM range and are under contract for multiple seasons. Jones could join that group if Dallas is able to free up the non-taxpayer MLE to give him a new contract.

When asked after the Mavs’ season how the team will get better going forward, Harrison spoke about wanting each of his players to improve by “10 to 15 percent.” That suggests to me that he’s willing to be patient and to see how the current group does with a full training camp together rather than going out and immediately taking another big swing this summer. There will be non-Hardaway contracts to use in a bigger trade down the road if the front office eventually determines that’s what’s needed to get Dallas over the hump.

Further down on the offseason to-do list, there are five Mavericks who will be extension-eligible before the season begins, but Hardaway isn’t a candidate for a new deal from Dallas and there should be no rush to extend either Gafford or Kleber, who each have two guaranteed years left on their current contracts.

Hardy is a potential extension candidate, but again, there’s probably not a lot of urgency to get something done right away unless he’s willing to give the Mavs a team-friendly rate — he’ll be extension-eligible all season long, and if he doesn’t get a new deal, the club will have plenty of leverage next summer when he’ll be eligible for restricted free agency.

That leaves Doncic, who is a lock to get a huge new maximum-salary extension from the Mavericks. However, it won’t happen this summer. The superstar guard met the performance criteria for a super-max extension (which will start at 35% of the cap instead of 30%) this spring by making his second consecutive All-NBA team, but he only has six years of NBA service. A player must have seven to sign a super-max extension, so while Doncic is technically eligible to sign an extension this offseason, he won’t be eligible to sign that more lucrative super-max contract until July 2025.

The Mavs would obviously like to get Doncic locked up long-term as soon as possible, but they can at least feel pretty confident that the 25-year-old will be ready and willing to sign on the dotted line in 2025. Following a sub-.500 season in 2022/23, another disappointing result in ’23/24 might have prompted Doncic to question his ability to win in Dallas. This year’s success should assuage any doubts he may have had.


Salary Cap Situation

Guaranteed Salary

Non-Guaranteed Salary

  • Dante Exum ($3,150,000)
    • Exum’s salary will become guaranteed if he remains under contract through June 29.
  • A.J. Lawson ($2,120,693)
  • Jaden Hardy ($1,619,699)
    • Partial guarantee. Rest of salary noted above; Hardy’s salary will become guaranteed if he remains under contract through June 30.
  • Alex Fudge (two-way)
  • Total: $6,890,392

Dead/Retained Salary

Player Options

  • None

Team Options

  • None

Restricted Free Agents

  • None

Two-Way Free Agents

Draft Picks

  • No. 58 overall pick (no cap hold)

Extension-Eligible Players

  • Luka Doncic (veteran)
  • Daniel Gafford (veteran)
    • Extension-eligible as of October 1.
  • Tim Hardaway Jr. (veteran)
  • Jaden Hardy (veteran)
  • Maxi Kleber (veteran)
    • Extension-eligible as of September 8.

Note: Unless otherwise indicated, these players are eligible for extensions beginning in July.

Unrestricted Free Agents

Other Cap Holds

Note: The cap holds for these players are on the Mavericks’ books from prior seasons because they haven’t been renounced. They can’t be used in a sign-and-trade deal.

Cap Exceptions Available

Note: The Mavericks project to operate over the cap and either at or above the first tax apron. If they move below the first apron, they would gain access to the bi-annual exception ($4,681,000) and the full mid-level exception ($12,859,000) instead of the taxpayer mid-level exception and would regain access to their two trade exceptions (the largest of which is worth $4,953,980 and expires on July 8). If they surpass the second tax apron, they would lose access to the taxpayer MLE.

  • Taxpayer mid-level exception: $5,183,000

Sixers Rumors: George, Butler, Anunoby, KCP, LaVine, Maxey

A report last week suggested the Sixers‘ interest in acquiring Clippers star Paul George has “waned,” but sources tell Michael Scotto of HoopsHype that Philadelphia still has “significant interest” in signing George if he opts for free agency.

George, the number one name on our list of this year’s top 50 free agents, has until Saturday to decide whether to exercise his $48.8MM option for next season. If George is unable to reach an extension agreement with L.A. by then, he can either decline the option and test free agency or opt in and demand a trade.

George has long been considered an offseason priority for Philadelphia, which has the ability to create more than $60MM in cap room. The Magic are among the teams that are also expected to pursue George if he reaches the open market.

Sources inform Scotto that a trade for Heat forward Jimmy Butler remains a viable option for the Sixers if they can’t acquire George. Butler spent most of the 2018/19 season in Philadelphia before being traded to Miami and has maintained a strong relationship with Joel Embiid.

Another option, according to Scotto, could be a “short-term, higher market average annual salary” deal with Knicks free agent forward OG Anunoby. Scotto also hears the Sixers may also offer Nuggets guard Kentavious Caldwell-Pope a two-year contract similar to what Bruce Brown got last year, with a large salary for next season and a team option for 2025/26.

There’s more on the Sixers, all courtesy of Scotto:

  • Sources tell Scotto that Philadelphia has less interest in trading for Bulls guard Zach LaVine now that Alex Caruso can no longer be part of the deal. Caruso was shipped to Oklahoma City on Friday in a trade for Josh Giddey. The Sixers are reluctant to take on the three years and $138MM left on LaVine’s contract without other assets attached.
  • Tyrese Maxey is considered virtually certain to sign a max extension this summer, but Klutch CEO Rich Paul may want something in return for waiting a year while the team worked to maximize its cap space, Scotto adds. He suggests Paul might ask for a player option on the final year of Maxey’s next contract, along with a 15% trade kicker. 
  • With Buddy Hield possibly departing in free agency, Scotto sees Baylor guard Ja’Kobe Walter as a potential replacement in the draft. He notes that Walter has a 6’10” wingspan and is considered a much better perimeter defender than Hield.

Keita Bates-Diop Exercises Option For 2024/25

Nets forward Keita Bates-Diop has picked up his $2.65MM player option for next season, according to Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link).

Bates-Diop appeared in just 14 games after being acquired from Phoenix in February in a three-team deal that also included Memphis. He averaged 1.6 points, 0.6 rebounds and 0.3 assists in 4.9 minutes per night before his season ended in late March when he underwent a procedure for a stress fracture in his right tibia.

The player option was part of a two-year, $5MM deal Bates-Diop signed with the Suns in 2023. The 28-year-old has also spent time with Minnesota, Denver and San Antonio since coming into the league in 2018. He will become an unrestricted free agent next summer, assuming he remains under contract until then.

We’re tracking this year’s player option decisions right here. All of those decisions must be made by June 29.

Troy Weaver To Join Wizards As Senior Advisor

Former Pistons general manager Troy Weaver will become a senior advisor with the Wizards, sources told Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN.

As rumored last week, Weaver will reunite with Monumental Sports/Wizards president Michael Winger and GM Will Dawkins, who took over the team last summer. The three executives spent more than a decade together in Oklahoma City’s front office.

Wojnarowski hears that Weaver’s agent, Andy Miller of Klutch Sports, is finalizing a contract to have Weaver in place in time for Wednesday’s draft and the start of free agency this weekend. A team executive tells Woj that Winger and Dawkins consider Weaver to be a “truth teller” who is willing to challenge them regarding difficult decisions.

Weaver is also viewed as an expert on prospect evaluation and player development, according to Wojnarowski, who cites his role in creating the powerful Thunder team built around Kevin Durant, Russell Westbrook and James Harden.

Weaver is a Washington, D.C., native, and Wojnarowski notes that he launched his career as head coach of DC Assault, a successful AAU program. That led to assistant coaching jobs in the college ranks with Pittsburgh, New Mexico and Syracuse and eventually an NBA opportunity as the head scout in Utah.

Weaver and the Pistons parted ways in what was termed a “mutual decision” earlier this month as part of an organizational housecleaning after Trajan Langdon was hired as head of basketball operations. Detroit also dismissed head coach Monty Williams and is still searching for his replacement.

Although he didn’t produce much on-court success during his four years with the Pistons, Weaver assembled a promising collection of young talent. Draft picks during his tenure produced Cade Cunningham, Jaden Ivey, Jalen Duren and Ausar Thompson.