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Free Agent Rumors: Durant, I. Smith, Diallo, Mavs, More

June 27th, 2019 at 11:52am CST by Luke Adams

While rumors of Kevin Durant‘s possible departure continue to persist, the Warriors have recently expressed some private optimism about their chances of re-signing the former MVP, according to Sam Amick of The Athletic. As Amick explains, that hope stems from the fact that Golden State is the only team with the ability to make Durant a five-year, $221MM offer. That extra year and money could be a more significant factor with KD recovering from an Achilles tear.

Earlier this week, Warriors president of basketball operations Bob Myers indicated that the team has formal plans to talk to both Durant and Klay Thompson about new deals, as Nick Friedell of ESPN.com relays (via Twitter). Myers also said that Thompson is expected to undergo his ACL surgery later this week.

Here’s more from around the NBA on free agency:

  • Ish Smith is among the free agent point guards who are on the Timberwolves‘ radar, tweets Darren Wolfson of SKOR North. Wolfson previously identified T.J. McConnell as a target of interest to Minnesota.
  • Cheick Diallo, who shares an agent with Mavericks star Luka Doncic and Mavs free agent target Patrick Beverley, is a potential fit for Dallas, per Tim MacMahon of ESPN.com (Twitter link). Diallo reportedly won’t receive a qualifying offer from New Orleans, so he’ll become an unrestricted free agent.
  • Speaking of the Mavericks, team owner Mark Cuban downplayed the importance of face-to-face meetings for free agents, as Brad Townsend of The Dallas Morning News writes. “There’s some players that want a presentation and they want the dog-and-pony show,” Cuban said. “And there’s some players, they don’t care. They have a feel and they just want to ask some questions and you don’t really have to have a meeting to do that. … It really depends on the players. I can give you a long list of players we didn’t have meetings with that we signed, and a lot of teams that didn’t have meetings and they signed people. There’s not a lot of secrets. It’s not like all of a sudden you’re going to say something they didn’t know.”
  • Although Willie Cauley-Stein‘s agent doesn’t want the Kings to give his client a qualifying offer, it wouldn’t make sense for the club to forgo that QO, writes Jason Anderson of The Sacramento Bee.
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Charania’s Latest: CP3, Klay, Harris, RHJ, Randle, More

June 26th, 2019 at 4:58pm CST by Luke Adams

League sources tell Shams Charania of The Athletic that Chris Paul never demanded a trade from the Rockets, but suggested at season’s end that he’d understand if the club decided to go in a different direction. According to Charania, Houston told Paul it remained committed to him, and he has reciprocated that commitment.

While Paul and James Harden haven’t always seen eye-to-eye, Charania hears that the two Rockets guards have been communicating since the season ended and had a positive conversation on Father’s Day.

Even if the Rockets wanted to move Paul, there would likely be no market for him, as the Rockets discovered when they quietly gauged his value in recent weeks, Charania writes.

Charania’s latest round-up at The Athletic includes several other noteworthy tidbits on 2019’s upcoming free agent period, so let’s pass along some highlights…

  • The Warriors and Klay Thompson will meet in Los Angeles at the start of free agency, per Charania. While Charania – like ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski – has heard that Thompson could speak to the Clippers if talks with Golden State break down, the Warriors and Thompson’s camp expect a quick agreement if the team puts a five-year, maximum-salary offer on the table.
  • After Keith Pompey of The Philadelphia Inquirer named the Clippers as a possible suitor for Tobias Harris, Charania says the same thing, noting that the two sides still have a good relationship. Charania also adds the Pelicans – who now have significant cap room – to the list of teams expected to express interest in Harris.
  • Rondae Hollis-Jefferson, who didn’t receive a qualifying offer from Brooklyn, is expected to draw interest from the Suns, Timberwolves, and Rockets as an unrestricted free agent, reports Charania.
  • The Bulls, Knicks, and Nets are viewed as potential suitors for Julius Randle, sources tell Charania.
  • Teams in need of some help at the point guard spot – including the Suns, Bulls, Wizards, and Kings – have shown interest in Cory Joseph, says Charania.
  • If the Knicks miss out on their top free agent targets, they’ll plan on trying to sign “high-level rotation players” to one- or two-year deals, according to Charania, who suggests that Celtics RFA-to-be Terry Rozier may be one target.
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Western Notes: Thompson, Spurs, Allen

June 25th, 2019 at 6:41pm CST by ChrisCrouse

Klay Thompson would be open to a meeting with the Clippers should the Warriors not present him with a max salary offer at the start of free agency, Adrian Wojnarowski said on the network’s free agency special. Thompson is expected to re-sign in Golden State.

Here’s more from the Western Conference:

  • San Antonio could be a fit for Trevor Ariza, Jabari Young of The Athletic writes. Ariza earned $15MM last season on a one-year deal and the Spurs had interest in him last summer, Young hears. Ariza is a candidate for the mid-level exception.
  • The Spurs have kept a close eye on Amir Johnson since he played in Toronto, Young adds in the same piece. Young speculates that the 32-year-old big man could be a fit in San Antonio, citing his close relationship with DeMar DeRozan and Rudy Gay.
  • Grayson Allen, who was traded to the Grizzlies in the Mike Conley deal, aims to improve his defense during Summer League, as he tells David Cobb of The Memphis Commercial Appeal. “When I tell you I’m going to work on defense this summer, I don’t think many people picture guys in summer workouts doing defensive slides,” Allen said. “…But for me it’s going to be continuing to work on that footwork on the defensive end, getting my body in great shape, great conditioning going into summer league and the season.”
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Warriors Notes: Durant, Draft, Thompson, Summer League

June 19th, 2019 at 7:44pm CST by Arthur Hill

Kevin Durant is doing “a lot of soul searching” as he decides whether to stay with the Warriors or leave for the Knicks or Nets, ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski said on tonight’s draft preview show (hat tip to Real GM). Woj adds that all three teams are willing to give Durant a max offer even though he is expected to miss all of next season with a ruptured Achilles.

New York has been considered the strongest threat to take Durant away from Golden State, but tonight’s report indicates that he is also giving serious consideration to Brooklyn, where he likely can join forces with his close friend Kyrie Irving. With at least three max offers awaiting, it’s virtually certain that Durant will opt out of his $31.5MM salary for next season.

There’s more Warriors news to pass along:

  • GM Bob Myers tells Mark Medina of The San Jose Mercury News that he will focus on talent over need in tomorrow’s draft, even though the team suddenly has a lot of holes to fill. In addition to Durant, who may not be back at all, Golden State has to replace Klay Thompson, who will miss most of the year with a torn ACL, and possibly free agent big men DeMarcus Cousins, Kevon Looney and Jordan Bell.  “Good young players, whatever position they are,” will be the focus, Myers said. “Those players have the most value in the NBA – rookie contract players that show themselves to have a skill and can play. Especially next year, we afford more opportunity for who we pick. Maybe we get a guy who can step in. We will have more opportunity next year. No matter what happens in free agency, we’ll have more of an opportunity for a young guy.” The Warriors have also become more likely to buy extra picks, Myers said.
  • Thompson is waiting for the swelling in his knee to subside before having surgery, Medina adds. Myers didn’t offer any medical update on Durant, whose surgery was last week.
  • Alen Smailagic is a strong candidate to go to Golden State with the No. 58 pick, according to Medina. The Serbian big man spent this season with the Warriors’ G League affiliate in Santa Cruz.
  • Jacob Evans will be part of Golden State’s Summer League team, Myers tells Medina, while Alfonzo McKinnie, who has a $1.6MM team option for next season, won’t play but will be training in Las Vegas.
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GM: We’ll Do Everything We Can To Keep Durant, Thompson

June 14th, 2019 at 9:52pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Warriors will do everything in their power to re-sign Kevin Durant and Klay Thompson in free agency despite their injuries during the Finals, GM Bob Myers told ESPN’s Nick Friedell and other media members on Friday.

The Warriors’ brass made it known throughout the season they’d try to retain Durant and Thompson despite the record luxury tax penalties they’d confront. Golden State can offer Durant a max of $221MM over five years while Thompson can receive approximately $190MM over the same period. Durant is expected to miss all of next season as he rehabs from a ruptured Achilles tendon, while Thompson will miss most, if not all, of next season due to a torn left ACL.

“We value those guys at the highest level,” Myers said. “I wouldn’t be a very good GM if I didn’t understand how valuable they are to our own team. It sometimes gets lost. But I think when Kevin plays in the NBA Finals, we’ve gone 9-1. So I don’t know what else matters. And Klay — they’re both fantastic. Those are guys that you do everything you can to keep within your organization.”

Teams with significant cap space are expected to pursue Durant despite the injury, with both New York and Los Angeles teams providing the competition for his services. Durant holds a $31.5MM player option.

Thompson is likely to remain with the organization that drafted him in 2011, which his father Mychal Thompson reiterated on Friday.

“All I’ll say is that those guys are highly important to us,” Myers said. “And deserving of being rewarded in the right manner. … It’s hard to find high-quality people, and both of them are that. And so you just — try to keep those guys within these walls the best you can.”

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Pacific Notes: Thompson, Caroline, Fall, Kings’ Staff

June 14th, 2019 at 7:30pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Mychal Thompson, father of Warriors star Klay Thompson, said there’s “no question” Klay will re-sign with Golden State, Connor Letourneau‏ of the San Francisco Chronicle tweets. The Warriors are expected to offer him a full five-year maximum deal worth nearly $190MM despite Thompson’s knee injury during Game 6 on Thursday. Thompson suffered a torn left ACL and is expected to miss most of next season.

We have more from the Pacific Division:

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Warriors Notes: Thompson, Looney, Cousins, Livingston

June 14th, 2019 at 11:27am CST by Arthur Hill

The Warriors expect Klay Thompson to be sidelined nine to 10 months with the torn ACL in his left knee that he suffered last night, according to Chris Haynes of Yahoo Sports (Twitter link). That would put his projected return sometime from mid-March to mid-April, possibly late in the season but definitely in time for next year’s playoffs if there are no unexpected setbacks.

Golden State will remain Thompson’s first option in free agency this summer, but he could listen to other teams if the Warriors don’t offer a max contract, sources tell Haynes. It’s not clear if Thompson’s injury will have any effect on what the organization plans to do.

Thompson’s was hurt in the third quarter of Game 6 when he landed awkwardly on his left leg after being fouled on a fast break. After being helped off the court, he returned to make two free throws, but wasn’t able to play any more. Thompson didn’t realize the severity at the time, telling coach Steve Kerr, “Just a two-minute rest and I’ll be ready,” relays Joe Vardon of The Athletic.

There’s more Warriors news to pass along:

  • Re-signing Kevon Looney and possibly DeMarcus Cousins will be priorities this summer, Vardon adds. Looney will be looking for a significant raise on the one-year, $1.6MM contract he had this season, while Cousins could receive as much as $6.4MM from the Warriors via his Non-Bird rights if there’s not a strong demand for him in free agency. Cousins told Anthony Slater of The Athletic that he’s “open” to coming back (Twitter link).
  • The Warriors’ fighting spirit may have sunk their future, Slater notes in a full story. If Golden State had lost in the conference semifinals after Kevin Durant‘s injury in Game 6 or hadn’t pulled out a close victory in Game 2 in Toronto, the catastrophic events of the past two games never would have happened.
  • Veteran guard Shaun Livingston will seriously consider retirement, but said he could “possibly” return for another year, tweets Marc J. Spears of The Undefeated. Livingston, who will turn 34 this summer, has just a $2MM guarantee on his $7,692,308 contract for next season. It won’t become fully guaranteed until June 30.
  • Owner Joe Lacob wasn’t ready to address free agency questions last night, but admitted that he talked with GM Bob Myers about what the Warriors do next, relays Tim Kawakami of The Athletic. “We’ll have to assess and then talk,” Lacob said. “Obviously, we still have a very good team. And a great organization. So we’ll take it one step at a time.”
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Klay Thompson Suffers Torn ACL

June 14th, 2019 at 12:35am CST by Luke Adams

A Warriors star suffered a major injury for a second straight game on Thursday night, according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (Twitter link), who hears from agent Greg Lawrence that Klay Thompson has been diagnosed with a torn ACL in his left knee.

It’s a brutal turn of events for Thompson and the Warriors, who saw Kevin Durant go down in Game 5 on Monday with a ruptured right Achilles. Like Durant, Thompson had been dealing with another injury in the same leg, having missed Game 3 due to a hamstring issue. However, there’s no indication that the ACL injury was related.

Thompson suffered the injury during the third quarter of Thursday’s game when he was fouled by Danny Green as he attempted to score on a fast break. Klay landed awkwardly on his left leg and had to be helped off the court, only to jog back onto the floor a moment later to knock down his two free throws. After making those free throws, he was removed from the game and was unable to return, eventually leaving the arena on crutches.

Despite being sidelined for Game 3, Thompson may have been the Warriors’ most valuable overall player in the NBA Finals. He played a significant role on the defensive end guarding Kawhi Leonard and was also Golden State’s most efficient scorer, knocking down an impressive 54.1% of his shots in the series, including a scorching 58.5% mark (24-for-41) from beyond the arc.

Thompson and Durant had been on track to be two of the biggest prizes in free agency this summer before these injuries took their offseasons in entirely new directions. Unlike Durant, Thompson doesn’t have a player option for 2019/20, so he’ll definitely reach the open market on June 30, while KD’s decision remains up in the air.

[RELATED: Opting In Considered A “Last Resort” For Durant]

Thompson has long been viewed as a virtual lock to re-sign with the Warriors, and there’s no reason to think that won’t still be the case. However, his injury will create a fascinating dilemma for the Western Conference champions. If the club brings back both Thompson and Durant, it would result in a massive luxury-tax bill for a roster featuring two stars who will miss most or all of the 2019/20 season.

As Anthony Slater of The Athletic observes (via Twitter), ACL recoveries typically take at least eight months, so Thompson appears likely to be on the shelf until at least the All-Star break next season, though it’s too soon to count on a specific timeline.

[RELATED: The Impact Of A Torn ACL On An NBA Player]

If the Warriors plan on heading into the 2019/20 season with one or two injured stars, it could impact how other Western teams approach the coming offseason. Rival contenders may be a little more aggressive if they sense that Golden State won’t be quite the same threat that the club has been over the last five years.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

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Pacific Notes: Clippers, Thompson, Looney, Toppert

June 9th, 2019 at 7:06pm CST by JD Shaw

The Clippers are hoping to meet with impending star free agent Kawhi Leonard once he hits the open market, but the team has started to consider other options in case he chooses to sign a new contract elsewhere, according to Joe Vardon of The Athletic.

Leonard is currently in the midst of a historic playoff run with Toronto, one that may persuade him to re-sign with the franchise if the Raptors can seal the deal and win their first ever NBA championship.

Los Angeles has long been linked to Leonard and would have the cap space to ink him on a multi-year, maximum-salary deal if he chooses to leave Toronto. However, sources told Vardon that the Clippers have recently spent most of their time during offseason meetings discussing scenarios in which Leonard doesn’t choose to sign with the team.

Leonard, an L.A. native, listed the Clippers as one of his preferred trade destinations before being moved from San Antonio to Toronto last offseason. The Clippers could also choose to pursue Warriors forward Kevin Durant, Celtics guard Kyrie Irving or other stars on the open market, including forward Anthony Davis in a potential trade with the Pelicans.

There’s more from the Pacific Division tonight:

  • Warriors guard Klay Thompson said he was roughly 80% healthy when he played in Game 4 on Friday, Matt Schneidman of The Mercury News tweets. As of Sunday, Thompson said he felt around 90% and hopes to be closer to 100% for Monday’s important Game 5.
  • Kevon Looney felt “fine” after making his surprise return to Game 4, Warriors coach Steve Kerr said, according to Mark Medina of The Mercury News (Twitter link). Looney returned for his team five days after suffering a costal cartilage fracture, displaying his toughness and willingness to sacrifice. He finished with 10 points, six rebounds and one assist in 20 minutes of work.
  • Former Suns assistant coach Cody Toppert has reached an agreement to join the Memphis Tigers as an assistant, according to The Athletic’s Michael Scotto (Twitter link). Topper will coach under NBA legend Penny Hardaway, who was hired by the University of Memphis last year. Toppert registered interest from multiple NBA teams but was sold most on Hardaway’s vision for his program, Scotto notes.
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Warriors Notes: Durant, Thompson, Gay, Lopez

June 8th, 2019 at 6:16pm CST by Arthur Hill

Kevin Durant‘s return appears to be the only thing that can save the Warriors in the NBA Finals, writes Tim Reynolds of The Associated Press. Golden State’s hopes for a three-peat are fragile as they head to Toronto with a 3-1 deficit. Injuries have hampered the Warriors throughout the playoffs, but the Raptors are the first team to fully take advantage.

There’s no guarantee Durant will return in time to make a difference and there’s not much evidence his condition has improved significantly since he suffered what was called a “mild” calf strain in the conference semifinals. Coach Steve Kerr told reporters last night that he will no longer provide daily updates on Durant’s condition.

“We’re hoping he can play Game 5 or 6,” Kerr said. “And everything in between I’ve decided I’m not sharing because it’s just gone haywire. There’s so much going on, and so it doesn’t make sense to continue to talk about it. He’s either going to play or he’s not.”

There’s more news on the two-time defending champs:

  • Since the injury occurred, the Warriors haven’t put a timeline on Durant’s return other than to say they’re optimistic he will be back, notes Mark Medina of The San Jose Mercury News. Kerr is leaving all decisions to the medical staff, which has determined that Durant isn’t in condition to play. Medina observes that a mild calf strain would be considered Grade 1, which have a seven- to 10-day recovery time. It’s more likely Durant has a Grade 2 condition, which would sideline him for four to six weeks. He suffered the injury exactly a month ago.
  • Medina identifies Rudy Gay and Brook Lopez as upcoming free agents who might be willing to take the Warriors’ $5.3MM taxpayer mid-level exception for next season. He adds that Golden State will re-sign Klay Thompson “for sure” and will take advantage of Kevon Looney‘s Bird Rights to keep him.
  • Problems at center are among the reasons for the 3-1 deficit, contends Ben Rohrbach of Yahoo Sports. He calls DeMarcus Cousins “a disaster” in Game 4, unable to keep up with the Raptors after returning from a first-round quad injury. Looney, playing with a costal cartilage fracture, didn’t contribute much after halftime, leaving 34-year-old Andrew Bogut as the best choice in the middle.
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