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Checking In On NBA’s Two-Way Contract Slots

August 25th, 2023 at 4:00pm CST by Luke Adams

As our two-way contract tracker shows, 70 of the 90 two-way slots available around the NBA are currently occupied, with 20 still open.

The NBA’s new Collective Bargaining Agreement permits teams to carry three players on two-way deals instead of just two, increasing the league-wide total to a maximum of 90 instead of 60. In other words, that total of 70 active two-way players is a new record, and it only figures to continue rising as the regular season nears.

[RELATED: Hoops Rumors Glossary: Two-Way Contract]

Here are a few details on this year’s two-way contracts and slots:

  • A total of 64 two-way contracts have been signed during the 2023/24 league year. Two of those players who signed two-way deals – Knicks guards Trevor Keels and Duane Washington – were subsequently waived, but the other 62 are still under contract.
  • A total of 13 two-way contracts carried over from last season, since they were for two years instead of one. Eight of those deals are still active. The other five? Nets forward RaiQuan Gray, Hornets forward Xavier Sneed, Lakers forward Cole Swider, and Wizards guard Quenton Jackson were waived, while Pelicans forward E.J. Liddell was converted to a standard deal, agreeing to a three-year contract with New Orleans.
  • Three two-way qualifying offers remain on the table. Hawks guard Trent Forrest, Hornets guard Theo Maledon, and Timberwolves wing Matt Ryan still have the option of accepting those qualifying offers and returning to their respective teams on new two-way contracts. All three clubs have one two-way slot available, so no corresponding moves would be necessary to clear roster space.
  • Of the 64 two-way contracts signed this year, seven have been for two years; the other 57 have been for just one year, putting those players on track for restricted free agency in 2024. The seven players who signed two-year deals are Hornets forward Leaky Black, Cavaliers guard Craig Porter Jr., Clippers forward Jordan Miller, Lakers forward Alex Fudge, Bucks guard Omari Moore, Timberwolves guard Jaylen Clark, and Knicks wing Jaylen Martin.
  • The Warriors and the Pelicans are the only clubs with a pair of two-way openings. Every team is carrying at least one player on a two-way contract, and the other 28 besides Golden State and New Orleans are carrying at least two.
  • In 2022, 14 players had their Exhibit 10 contracts converted to two-way contracts before opening night. If roughly the same number of Exhibit 10 conversions occur this fall, many of the 20 two-way slots that remain open may not be filled for a while. However, it’s worth noting that – since two-way deals feature such modest guarantees ($75K) and don’t count against the salary cap – teams typically don’t hesitate to shuffle players in and out of those slots. So there could still be plenty of turnover in the coming weeks beyond those 20 openings.
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Key 2023 NBA Preseason Dates, Deadlines

August 25th, 2023 at 2:39pm CST by Luke Adams

The most notable dates of the 2023 NBA offseason are behind us now that we’re well clear of the draft and the free agent period. However, there are still a number of dates and deadlines to keep an eye on in the coming weeks and months before teams take the court for the 2023/24 regular season.

Here’s the breakdown:

August 31

  • Last day for teams to waive players and apply the stretch provision to their 2023/24 salaries.

September 5

  • Last day for teams to issue required tenders to unsigned second-round picks; those players become free agents on September 6 if not tendered.

September 10

  • 2023 FIBA World Cup ends.

October 2

  • NBA media day. With teams and players reporting to training camp, many coaches and general managers will speak to reporters on this date for the first time in months.

October 3

  • Training camps begin.
  • Note: Teams playing exhibition games outside of North America are expected to hold their media days and open their training camps a few days earlier.

October 5

  • Preseason begins.

October 20

  • Preseason ends.

October 21

  • Last day for players on fully non-guaranteed contracts to be waived and not count at all against a team’s 2023/24 cap. They must clear waivers before the first day of the regular season.

October 23

  • Last day of the 2023 offseason.
  • Roster limits decrease from 21 players to 18 (4:00 pm CT). Teams will be limited to carrying 15 players on standard contracts and three on two-way deals as of this deadline.
  • Last day for teams to sign a player to a rookie scale extension (5:00 pm CT).
    [RELATED: Players eligible for rookie scale extensions]
  • Last day for teams to sign an extension-eligible veteran player with multiple seasons left on his contract (such as Donovan Mitchell) to an extension. An extension-eligible veteran player on an expiring deal (like Klay Thompson) can still be extended after October 23.
  • Last day for teams to complete sign-and-trade deals.
  • Last day for teams to convert an Exhibit 10 contract into a two-way contract.

October 24

Larry Coon’s Salary Cap FAQ and NBA.com were used in the creation of this post.

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World Cup Notes: Canada, Fournier, USA, Mills, Towns

August 25th, 2023 at 1:07pm CST by Luke Adams

The Canadian national team hasn’t had a ton of success in international competition in recent years and is missing top players like Jamal Murray and Andrew Wiggins at this year’s World Cup. However, Team Canada looked formidable its first group-play game on Friday, outscoring a talented French club by 27 points in the second half en route to a 95-65 win.

“We got our ass kicked,” French wing Evan Fournier told reporters after the game, per Antonis Stroggylakis of Eurohoops. “… They were really physical with us. Taking us out of our set plays. And as a team I think they kind of forced us to do things that we don’t want to do.”

The Canadians leaned heavily on their NBA talent in the victory, with Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, RJ Barrett, Dillon Brooks, Luguentz Dort, Dwight Powell, Kelly Olynyk, and Nickeil Alexander-Walker all playing at least 20 minutes. Melvin Ejim was the only other player to log more than five minutes in the game.

Gilgeous-Alexander was the standout, racking up 27 points, 13 rebounds, and six assists in just 27 minutes of action. Powell (+35 in 23 minutes) and Brooks (+33 in 26 minutes) anchored Canada’s aggressive defense.

Canada will face Lebanon on Sunday, while France will look to bounce back against Latvia.

Here’s more on the World Cup:

  • In an Insider-only story, Jonathan Givony and Kevin Pelton of ESPN pick their 15 most interesting players at the World Cup, including reigning NCAA national player of the year Zach Edey (Canada), projected 2024 first-rounder Juan Nunez (Spain) and Fournier (France), who scored a team-high 21 points on Friday after spending most of last season glued to the Knicks‘ bench. A strong World Cup could help earn Fournier a new NBA opportunity via trade or buyout, Pelton notes.
  • Team USA entered Friday as the strong frontrunners to win the 2023 World Cup, but head coach Steve Kerr knows the team can’t afford to get overconfident, as Brian Windhorst of ESPN writes. “Last time through this tournament, we finished seventh, we lost (two) games,” Kerr said. “We recognize how hard this is. These are not the days of 1992. … We may be one of the favorites, but I don’t think anybody’s clear cut. I think there’s a lot of teams that have a shot at this thing.”
  • Following an eventful offseason that saw him traded from Brooklyn to Houston to Oklahoma City to Atlanta, veteran guard Patty Mills provided a reminder on Friday of what he can bring to a team. The Hawks guard scored a team-high 25 points in Australia’s resounding win over Finland. “No surprises there,” Jack White said of Mills’ performance, per Olgun Uluc of ESPN. “We know he can turn it on; that’s what he does… he’s a hell of a leader and it’s what we expect from him.”
  • Prior to the start of the World Cup, Timberwolves big man Karl-Anthony Towns spoke to Jon Krawczynski of The Athletic about why he’s playing for the Dominican Republic and what it means to him to represent his mother’s native country. Towns and the Dominican Republic team got off to a strong start on Friday, defeating the host Philippines in a game that set a new World Cup attendance record (38,115), as Tim Reynolds of The Associated Press details. Towns scored 26 points in the 87-81 win.
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Longest-Tenured NBA Players By Team

August 25th, 2023 at 11:52am CST by Luke Adams

Since we last checked in on the NBA’s longest-tenured players by team in August 2022, more than a third of the players on that list have either changed teams or – in the case of long-tenured Heat big man Udonis Haslem – retired.

Haslem, who made his Heat debut in 2003, was with the franchise for two decades. No players on the list below are close to reaching that benchmark yet, but Haslem’s retirement means that we have a new player atop our list of the longest-tenured players by team: Stephen Curry is about to enter his 15th season with the Warriors, having been drafted by the club in 2009. No active NBA player has been with his current team longer than that.

While Haslem is off the list because he has retired, most of the other long-tenured players who have been removed from our list changed teams via trade. Most notably, Bradley Beal – who had been with the Wizards since 2012 – and Marcus Smart – a Celtic since 2014 – were included in offseason deals.

In addition to the Wizards, Heat and Celtics, eight other teams have a new longest-tenured player since our last update. Those teams, with their former longest-tenured player listed in parentheses, are the Cavaliers (Kevin Love), Rockets (Eric Gordon), Nets (Joe Harris), Magic (Terrence Ross), Jazz (Donovan Mitchell), Hawks (John Collins), Grizzlies (Dillon Brooks), and Spurs (Jakob Poeltl).

Here are the NBA’s current longest-tenured players by team:

(Note: This is a snapshot as of August 2023 and won’t be updated throughout the season. This list features each team’s longest-tenured player, so only one player per team is listed.)

  1. Golden State Warriors: Stephen Curry (draft), June 2009
  2. Portland Trail Blazers: Damian Lillard (draft), June 2012
  3. Milwaukee Bucks: Giannis Antetokounmpo (draft), June 2013
  4. Philadelphia 76ers: Joel Embiid (draft), June 2014
  5. Denver Nuggets: Nikola Jokic (draft), June 2014
  6. Dallas Mavericks: Dwight Powell (trade), December 2014
  7. Minnesota Timberwolves: Karl-Anthony Towns (draft), June 2015
  8. Indiana Pacers: Myles Turner (draft), June 2015
  9. Phoenix Suns: Devin Booker (draft), June 2015
  10. Boston Celtics: Jaylen Brown (draft), June 2016
  11. Toronto Raptors: Pascal Siakam (draft), June 2016
  12. Sacramento Kings: De’Aaron Fox (draft), June 2017
  13. Orlando Magic: Jonathan Isaac (draft), June 2017
  14. Miami Heat: Bam Adebayo (draft), June 2017
  15. Chicago Bulls: Zach LaVine (draft trade), June 2017
  16. Memphis Grizzlies: Jaren Jackson Jr. (draft), June 2018
  17. Atlanta Hawks: Trae Young (draft trade), June 2018
  18. Charlotte Hornets: Miles Bridges (draft trade), June 2018 (*)
  19. New York Knicks: Mitchell Robinson (draft), June 2018
  20. Los Angeles Lakers: LeBron James (free agent), July 2018
  21. New Orleans Pelicans: Zion Williamson (draft), June 2019
  22. Cleveland Cavaliers: Darius Garland (draft), June 2019
  23. Brooklyn Nets: Nic Claxton (draft), June 2019
  24. Los Angeles Clippers: Ivica Zubac (trade), February 2019
  25. San Antonio Spurs: Keldon Johnson (draft), June 2019
  26. Oklahoma City Thunder: Luguentz Dort (free agent), July 2019
  27. Utah Jazz: Jordan Clarkson (trade), December 2019
  28. Detroit Pistons: Killian Hayes (draft), November 2020
  29. Washington Wizards: Deni Avdija (draft), November 2020
  30. Houston Rockets: Jae’Sean Tate (free agent), November 2020

* Note: Bridges was a free agent for the entire 2022/23 season, but the Hornets retained his RFA rights during that time and brought him back this offseason, extending his tenure with the team. If we don’t count Bridges, Charlotte’s’ longest-tenured players are Cody Martin and – if he re-signs – P.J. Washington, both of whom were selected in the 2019 draft.

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Franz Wagner Expected To Undergo MRI On Ankle

August 25th, 2023 at 10:26am CST by Luke Adams

Germany got off to a strong start in the 2023 World Cup on Friday, defeating Japan by a score of 81-63. However, the victory was marred to some extent by an injury to Magic forward Franz Wagner, who didn’t finish the game after turning his ankle.

Speaking after the game to reporters, Germany head coach Gordon Herbert said that it “looks like a slight sprained ankle” for Wagner, according to Jason Beede of The Orlando Sentinel (Twitter link).

“We’ll know more after an MRI,” Herbert added, suggesting that Wagner’s ankle will undergo further testing before Germany’s next group-play game on Sunday vs. Australia.

If Wagner has a mild ankle sprain, as Herbert speculated, it shouldn’t have any impact on his availability for the Magic this fall. There are still several weeks until training camp, giving the former eighth overall pick plenty of time to recover.

However, it’s possible the ankle injury will affect Wagner’s availability for the German national team in the next few days. While Friday’s victory over Japan was a good start, Germany is in a tough group and will almost certainly need at least one more win in the first round – over either Australia on Sunday or Finland on Tuesday – to advance to the round of 16. Obviously, the Germans would like to have Wagner on the court for those games, if possible.

Wagner, who will turn 22 on Sunday, averaged 18.6 points, 4.1 rebounds, and 3.5 assists in 32.6 minutes per game across 80 appearances in 2022/23 for the Magic. He’s entering the third year of his rookie scale contract and will become extension-eligible during the 2024 offseason.

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2025 NBA Free Agents

August 25th, 2023 at 9:15am CST by Luke Adams

Hoops Rumors’ up-to-date list of 2025 free agents is below. These are players who are eligible for restricted or unrestricted free agency after the 2024/25 season. The player’s 2025 age is in parentheses.

Players who are currently free agents are not seen here. Players with team or player options for the 2025/26 season are listed below, unless they’re still on their rookie scale contracts.

This list will be continually updated. You’ll be able to access it anytime under the “Hoops Rumors Features” menu on the right sidebar on our desktop site, or in the “Free Agent Lists” section of our mobile menu. If you have any corrections or omissions, please contact us.

Updated 11-16-24 (11:04am CT)

Unrestricted Free Agents

Point Guards

Shooting Guards

Small Forwards

Power Forwards

Centers

Restricted Free Agents

Point Guards

Shooting Guards

Small Forwards

Power Forwards

Centers

Player Options

Point Guards

Shooting Guards

Small Forwards

Power Forwards

Centers

Team Options

Point Guards

Shooting Guards

Small Forwards

Power Forwards

Centers

Two-Way Free Agents

Point Guards

Shooting Guards

Small Forwards

Power Forwards

Centers

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Heat Notes: Richardson, Bryant, Swider, Bouyea, Lillard

August 25th, 2023 at 7:53am CST by Luke Adams

After briefly discussing the Heat‘s offseason moves during an ESPN interview last week, head coach Erik Spoelstra went into more detail while taking part in a Zoom call with reporters on Wednesday. As Anthony Chiang of The Miami Herald writes, Spoelstra is looking forward to having former Heat wing Josh Richardson back on the roster in 2023/24.

“To be able to get somebody like J-Rich, who we are all really comfortable with, who we spent so many hours and years spending time developing him and where he feels also comfortable in our system and how we operate, we just feel very fortunate that we were able to get him when we were able to get him,” Spoelstra said.

“He’s already been in the gym working and it’s almost like, I mentioned to him the last time I saw him in the gym, it’s like the time away never happened. The relationship just started off right where we left it. That’s when you know you have strong relationships back and forth from our standpoint and his standpoint. Also, his versatility is going to be super important. His ability to play multiple positions.”

Here are a few more notes on the Heat, including Spoelstra’s thoughts on some of the team’s other recent additions:

  • According to Spoelstra, newly added center Thomas Bryant is a player the Heat have had their eye on for several years. They worked him out prior to the 2017 draft and were fans of the big man at the time. “His time with (the Lakers last season), I thought was really important,” Spoelstra said of Bryant. “You could see how he could be effective in our system and how he can play with multiple guys. He’s big, he’s physical, he plays with a motor and he can also stretch the floor. So he can have a presence at the rim and in the paint, but he also can space the floor and be efficient behind the three-point line. We’re excited to be able to add him to our roster and add some depth to our frontcourt and some versatile depth.”
  • Spoelstra expressed enthusiasm about forward Cole Swider, who signed an Exhibit 10 contract with the team earlier this month.“He has positional size, he has exceptional three-point shooting and range and versatility with his three-point shooting,” the head coach said. “He can shoot on the move, he can also space the floor and he has the size to be able to get his shot off with great accuracy. So we’re excited to be able to add him to our mix late into the summer. We’re looking forward to developing him and working with him.” Our Tristan Tucker recently identified Swider as a candidate to eventually earn a two-way or standard deal.
  • Spoelstra also believes the Heat will see “bigger jumps” from Jamaree Bouyea, who remained with the club on another two-way deal. “He improved being able to run a team, get guys organized,” Spoelstra said, referring to Bouyea’s play in the G League. “And defensively and the things that he can do with his speed are just super unique. So we wanted to have an opportunity to continue his development and have a second year at it.”
  • Following Damian Lillard‘s public confirmation of his trade request in an interview with Marc J. Spears of Andscape, Barry Jackson of The Miami Herald breaks down that interview from a Heat perspective, noting that trade talks with the Trail Blazers have been “largely dormant” for several weeks.
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And-Ones: Offseason Moves, Coach Contracts, Kerr, Hawaii

August 24th, 2023 at 10:02pm CST by Rory Maher

In a three-part series for The Athletic, David Aldridge ranks the teams that he believes improved the most and least this offseason. Aldridge’s most improved team is unsurprisingly the Spurs, who won the draft lottery and selected French phenom Victor Wembanyama. The Cavaliers and Suns rank Nos. 2 and 3, respectively.

In the middle section, Aldridge has the Jazz at No. 11, the Pistons at No. 15, and the Warriors at No. 20. He gives the Trail Blazers an incomplete, since there’s no way to fairly evaluate their offseason until the Damian Lillard situation is resolved.

At the bottom end, the defending-champion Nuggets are No. 29 on Aldridge’s list after losing Bruce Brown and Jeff Green in free agency; the No. 28 team is the Raptors, who lost Fred VanVleet to Houston.

Here are a few more odds and ends from around the basketball world:

  • The contracts signed by Monty Williams and Gregg Popovich will be used as benchmarks by top NBA coaches going forward. As Brian Windhorst of ESPN writes, a trio of accomplished head coaches — Steve Kerr (Warriors), Erik Spoelstra (Heat) and Tyronn Lue (Clippers), all of whom are members of Team USA — could be the primary beneficiaries of those deals. Kerr and Spoelstra are entering the final year of their respective contracts, while Lue has two years left on his deal, Windhorst notes.
  • Kerr has purchased a minority stake in European football (soccer) club Real Mallorca, according to Alex Kirkland and Rodrigo Faez of ESPN. Kerr said he was offered the opportunity by longtime friend Andy Kohlberg, who is the team’s president and recently became majority owner, per ESPN. “Andy Kohlberg and I have been friends for many years,” Kerr said. “We were together this summer. He told me there was a shift in the ownership group and he offered me the chance to be part of the new investment group. I was so excited, having been in Mallorca last summer watching a game, following the team and becoming a fan. It was a really exciting opportunity and I jumped at it.” Mallorca competes in La Liga, Spain’s top league.
  • The Jazz and Clippers will be playing their first preseason game in Hawaii on October 8, with all proceeds going to the wildfire relief effort, Ryan Kostecka writes for Utah’s team website.
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World Cup Notes: White, Maluach, Bodganovic, Batum

August 24th, 2023 at 9:02pm CST by Rory Maher

Thunder forward Jack White will be playing for Team Australia during the 2023 FIBA World Cup, which tips off at 3 a.m. CT early tomorrow morning. However, as Tom Hersz writes for NBL.com.au, White was very nearly left off the roster — he was set to be the odd man out, but Rockets center Jock Landale sustained an ankle injury during the team’s final exhibition game in Melbourne last week, creating an opening.

White, who signed a two-year deal with OKC this summer, says he’s excited to represent his home country.

“Excited to try and help this group try to get a gold medal,” White said. “It’s been our goal all camp, it’s been our standard now for the last couple of years, especially after Tokyo. But this is a dream come true for me and [I’m] just excited to do everything I can to help us win.”

Here are a few more notes ahead of the World Cup:

  • At 16 years old, South Sudan’s Khaman Maluach is the third-youngest participant in World Cup history, according to Jonathan Givony of ESPN. The 7’2″ big man, who plays in the NBA Africa Academy in Senegal, is considered an “elite prospect” for the 2025 draft class, Givony writes. “He has a great feel for the game,” South Sudan basketball federation president Luol Deng told ESPN. “Good court awareness, amazing skill set. He has made a huge improvement. At the same time, he needs to improve on everything. Sharpen every part of his game, as you expect from a 16-year-old. That’s what makes him scary. He still has so much room to grow. But he has a great spirit, is always smiling and is hungry to learn. Everyone loves being around him, and that’s why it’s been so easy to welcome him into the team.”
  • Hawks swingman Bogdan Bogdanovic is used to being a play-maker, but he’ll have the ball in his hands even more for Serbia in the absences of Nikola Jokic and Vasilije Micic. Still, he says his role won’t be all that different than he’s used to in the NBA, as Eurohoops relays. “I play the same way here and there, now with maybe more minutes,” Bogdanovic said. “In Atlanta, I have a similar role, my teammates look for me, and the defense is more focused and we use that. Here they are a little different and then the game adapts more.”
  • Two of the tournament’s top contenders will square off on day one, with Canada set to face France in Group H. Clippers forward Nicolas Batum says the French national team is eager for the challenge. “We have a big game ahead of us but that’s why we are here. We can’t wait to start the tournament,” Batum said, per Eurohoops.
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Atlantic Notes: Lawsuit, Knicks, Raptors, Warren, Stevens

August 24th, 2023 at 7:16pm CST by Rory Maher

While the Knicks made some bold claims in their lawsuit against the Raptors, people around the NBA aren’t convinced it’s as big of a scandal as it might seem on paper, according to Michael Grange of Sportsnet.ca.

“I’m not being dismissive of this,” a league executive told Grange. “But people take stuff all the time (when they change jobs). Yes, it’s proprietary, but it’s usually their own product; work that they’ve done over time. So, without knowing the sensitivity level or what was taken or how egregious it was, it’s not something I’d care about that much.

“And timing matters, too. If it was mid-season and he was taking stuff for the current year, or the upcoming season, I might be more upset about it, but if it’s from the previous year, I don’t know if I’d be all that mad.”

As Grange writes, the NBA is a copycat league, so proving that the “confidential Knicks information” that was allegedly taken by former employee Ikechukwu Azotam was truly invaluable might be difficult. There’s a reason the Knicks left the damages they’re seeking as “TBD” — they probably don’t know what exactly was taken and if it will materially impact their business, a lawyer told Grange.

Ultimately, Grange thinks the lawsuit is unlikely to go to court and will probably be handled by the NBA. He suggests Toronto might face a six-figure fine and perhaps the loss of a second-round pick.

Here’s more from the Atlantic:

  • Head coach Tom Thibodeau will likely gripe about the Knicks‘ schedule for the 2023/24 season, writes Zach Braziller of The New York Post (subscriber link). After being tied with the Hornets for the fewest games (five) with “rest advantage” last season, the Knicks have eight such games during the upcoming campaign — tied for fifth-fewest in the league, per Braziller. Rest advantage is exactly what it implies — games in which a team will be more rested than the opponent. The Celtics lead the league with 16 rest advantage games, Braziller notes.
  • The Celtics are working out — or have worked out — a number of veteran free agent wings, including T.J. Warren and Lamar Stevens. Chris Forsberg of NBC Sports Boston considers whether Warren and/or Stevens would be good fits for the back end of the roster.
  • In case you missed it, the NBA fined Sixers star James Harden $100K for recent comments he made, but the Players Association disagreed with Harden’s fine and is filing a grievance on his behalf.
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