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Over the summer, eight free agents signed contracts that were worth a guaranteed $40MM or more — in some cases, such as Deron Williams' $98.77MM deal, they were worth a lot more.

Since all these contracts were for either four or five years, it will be a while yet before we can determine whether they'll be bargains, busts, or something in between. Still, with the season well underway, it's not too early to look at how these eight guys are handling the pressures of their big new deals so far.

Because Ersan Ilyasova's $40MM contract with the Bucks isn't fully guaranteed in its last year, he isn't included here. Extended players like Blake Griffin, James Harden, and others aren't on our list either, since their new contracts won't officially kick in until next season. Here's a look at the early returns on this summer's top eight free agents:

• Deron Williams, Nets (Five years, $98.77MM): Williams has helped lead the Nets to a 4-2 start in Brooklyn, averaging 17.7 PPG and 7.7 APG to date. The Nets' wins have come against some mediocre competition in the Raptors, Cavaliers, and Magic, and Williams' numbers across the board are slightly below his career averages, including an ugly .258 3PT% on over five three-pointers per game. But as D-Will continues to adjust to all his new teammates, I expect those numbers to improve.
• Brook Lopez, Nets (Four years, $60.83MM): Like his aforementioned Nets teammate, Lopez has taken advantage of a few early-season contests against Eastern Conference lottery teams to get off to a good start, including a 24.0 PER. Even more encouraging than Lopez's stats though is his health — after a lost 2011/12 season, Lopez will have a much easier time living up to his maximum-salary contract if he returns to the 82-game form he displayed in his first three years.
• Eric Gordon, Hornets (Four years, $58.37MM): While Lopez has started strong after injuries wiped out his 2011/12 campaign, Gordon hasn't bounced back quite so nicely from an injury-plagued '11/12. After a summer in which he essentially urged New Orleans not to match his offer sheet with the Suns, Gordon didn't seem to be on the same page as the Hornets when it came to his health. There's still plenty of time for this contract to work out, but when it's newsworthy that Gordon is expressing a commitment to the Hornets and hasn't requested a trade, that's not a great sign.
• Roy Hibbert, Pacers (Four years, $58.37MM): With Danny Granger out of action, the Pacers have struggled as a team, getting off to a 3-6 start. Hibbert hasn't exactly stepped up in Granger's absence, shooting 38.6% from the floor in his first nine games, with his PPG, RPG, and PER all well below last year's marks. For his part, Hibbert says his contract isn't weighing on his mind, and figures his shots will start falling eventually.
• Nicolas Batum, Trail Blazers (Four years, $46.12MM): My pick for 2012/13's Most Improved Player, Batum is making me, and the Blazers, look good through eight games. On Portland's new-look roster, Batum is playing more minutes (38.8 to 30.4), taking more shots (14.6 to 10.9), and shooting more threes (7.3 to 4.6) than he did a year ago, and his overall numbers reflect that, with career-high averages virtually across the board so far.
• JaVale McGee, Nuggets (Four years, $44MM): The Nuggets are off to a bit of a slow start, winning just four of their first eight games, and they'll likely need more of a contribution from McGee to become an elite team. The former Wizard is coming off the bench and averaging less than 20 minutes per contests so far, which isn't something you want to see from a guy making an eight-digit salary. McGee has been productive in limited action, so we'll see if his minutes increase as he gets more comfortable in George Karl's system.
• George Hill, Pacers (Five years, $40MM): Like Batum in Portland, Hill is earning more minutes and taking way more shots after signing a lucrative new contract. Part of that can be attributed to Granger's injury, but the Pacers are leaning on Hill heavily with Darren Collison playing in Dallas, and he's been handling the extra pressure in Indiana better than Hibbert has so far.
• Gerald Wallace, Nets (Four years, $40MM): Wallace has appeared in just one game this season for the Nets, having been forced out of action with a sprained ankle. The 30-year-old forward misses a few games every season with various ailments, so hopefully he's just getting that out of the way early this year. If he's plagued by injuries for much of 2012/13, this four-year contract will be off to an ominous start.

As we've outlined before, there are a number of different ways to follow Hoops Rumors via Facebook, Twitter, and RSS. If you don't want to follow all the site's updates, you can follow team-specific or transaction-only Facebook, Twitter, and RSS feeds. Although we don't have Facebook pages or Twitter feeds for specific players, you can also easily follow all our updates on your favorite player.

If, for instance, you want to keep track of all the latest news and rumors on Mickael Pietrus as he weighs his free agent options, you can visit this page. If you're interested in whether the Raptors may consider trading Jose Calderon to your favorite team, all Calderon-related updates are located here.

Every player we've written about has his own rumors page. You can find your player of choice by using our search box (located in the right sidebar); by clicking his tag at the bottom of a post where he's discussed; or, by simply typing his name in your address bar after hoopsrumors.com, substituting dashes for spaces. For example, Calderon's page is located at hoopsrumors.com/jose-calderon.

In addition to players and teams, there are a number of other subjects you can track by clicking on the tags we use at the bottom of posts. Early updates on the 2013 NBA draft, for instance, can be found on its rumors page. If you want to check out updates on Chris Hansen's quest to bring the NBA back to Seattle, those are all available here.

The James Harden trade was finalized a day before the 2012/13 season began, but since it came almost three months after the Dwight Howard/Andrew Bynum deal went down, it makes sense to classify it as the first of the 2012/13 in-season trades. The Bobcats and Hornets pulled off another swap yesterday, and now that we have multiple trades, we'll list them here in a post you can bookmark and reference throughout the season, along with our recap of the trades from this past offseason. For up-to-the-minute news on trades as well as other roster moves, like signings, cuts and coaching changes, follow our transactions-only feeds via RSS and Twitter.

February 21st

• The Bucks get J.J. Redick, Gustavo Ayon, and Ish Smith.
• The Magic get Beno Udrih, Tobias Harris, and Doron Lamb.

February 21st

• The Celtics get Jordan Crawford.
• The Wizards get Leandro Barbosa and Jason Collins.

February 21st

• The Trail Blazers get Eric Maynor.
• The Thunder get the rights to Giorgio Printezis.

February 21st

• The Thunder get Ronnie Brewer.
• The Knicks get the Thunder's 2014 second-round pick.

February 21st

• The Magic get Hakim Warrick and cash.
• The Bobcats get Josh McRoberts.

February 21st

• The Mavericks get Anthony Morrow.
• The Hawks get Dahntay Jones.

February 21st

• The Raptors get Sebastian Telfair.
• The Suns get Hamed Haddadi and a 2014 second-round pick.

February 21st

• The Grizzlies get Dexter Pittman, the Heat's 2013 second-round pick, and cash.
• The Heat get the rights to Ricky Sanchez.

February 21st

• The 76ers get Charles Jenkins and cash.
• The Warriors get a future second-round pick.

February 21st

• The Hawks get Jeremy Tyler and cash.
• The Warriors get a future second-round pick.

February 20th

• The Rockets get Thomas Robinson, Francisco Garcia, and Tyler Honeycutt.
• The Kings get Patrick Patterson, Cole Aldrich, Toney Douglas, and $1MM in cash.

February 20th

• The Suns get Marcus Morris.
• The Rockets get the Suns' 2013 second-round pick.

January 30th

• The Raptors get Rudy Gay and Hamed Haddadi.
• The Grizzlies get Tayshaun Prince, Ed Davis, Austin Daye, the Raptors' 2013 second-round pick and cash.
• The Pistons get Jose Calderon. 

January 22nd

• The Cavaliers get Marreese Speights, Wayne Ellington, Josh Selby, and the Grizzlies' 2015 first-round pick.
• The Grizzlies get Jon Leuer.

November 13th

• The Bobcats get Hakim Warrick.
• The Hornets get Matt Carroll.

October 29th

• The Rockets get James Harden, Daequan Cook, Cole Aldrich and Lazar Hayward.
• The Thunder get Kevin Martin, Jeremy Lamb, the Mavericks' 2013 first-round pick, the Raptors' 2013 first-round pick and the Bobcats' 2013 second-round pick.

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If you prefer to receive updates only on roster moves such as signings, cuts, and trades, you can follow our transactions-only feeds via RSS and Twitter.

FIBA announced sweeping changes to the schedule for the World Cup of Basketball, formerly known as the World Championships, that will take place after the next World Cup in 2014. FIBA hopes the changes will appeal to NBA teams concerned about players taking part in annual summer competitions, according to The Associated Press, but Tom Ziller of SB Nation writes that the new schedule could make it more difficult for NBA players to participate in the World Cup, since qualification will take place during the season.

After the 2014 competition, the next World Cup will be in 2019, with the field increased from 24 teams to 32. Qualification for the 2019 World Cup will be held in November 2017, and in February, June, September and November of 2018, with a final period set for February 2019. Qualification will take place in a home-and-home format, allowing each team to play in front of its own fans. 

Teams will qualify for the 2020 Olympics via the 2019 World Cup and separate tournaments in each of FIBA's four geographic zones. In the past year, NBA commissioner David Stern has expressed a desire to make the World Cup the primary international stage for basketball, and the league has pushed for an age limit that would curb NBA participation in the Olympics.

If you want to keep tabs on all of Hoops Rumors' stories and updates, you can follow us on Twitter, like us on Facebook, or subscribe to our feed through your RSS reader of choice. However, if you prefer to only receive news about your favorite NBA team, we have you covered. Below are links to our Facebook, Twitter, and RSS pages and feeds for all 30 teams.

Atlantic

• 76ers: Facebook / Twitter / RSS
• Celtics: Facebook / Twitter / RSS
• Knicks: Facebook / Twitter / RSS
• Nets: Facebook / Twitter / RSS
• Raptors: Facebook / Twitter / RSS

Central

• Bucks: Facebook / Twitter / RSS
• Bulls: Facebook / Twitter / RSS
• Cavaliers: Facebook / Twitter / RSS
• Pacers: Facebook / Twitter / RSS
• Pistons: Facebook / Twitter / RSS

Southeast

• Bobcats: Facebook / Twitter / RSS
• Hawks: Facebook / Twitter / RSS
• Heat: Facebook / Twitter / RSS
• Magic: Facebook / Twitter / RSS
• Wizards: Facebook / Twitter / RSS

Southwest

• Grizzlies: Facebook / Twitter / RSS
• Hornets: Facebook / Twitter / RSS
• Mavericks: Facebook / Twitter / RSS
• Rockets: Facebook / Twitter / RSS
• Spurs: Facebook / Twitter / RSS

Northwest

• Jazz: Facebook / Twitter / RSS
• Nuggets: Facebook / Twitter / RSS
• Thunder: Facebook / Twitter / RSS
• Timberwolves: Facebook / Twitter / RSS
• Trail Blazers: Facebook / Twitter / RSS

Pacific

• Clippers: Facebook / Twitter / RSS
• Kings: Facebook / Twitter / RSS
• Lakers: Facebook / Twitter / RSS
• Suns: Facebook / Twitter / RSS
• Warriors: Facebook / Twitter / RSS

Transactions only: Twitter / RSS

We've been keeping up with the number of players on each team's roster during preseason, with separate posts for the East and West. As we move into the regular season, the numbers won't be moving quite so quickly, without the comings and goings of training camp invitees. Nonetheless, we'll consolidate the roster counts into a single post, with some updates and added information. This gives you an idea of a team's flexibility at a glance, so you can see whether a team has room to add one of the remaining free agents on the market without having to waive someone.

The total number of players on each team's roster is listed first, followed by the number of fully guaranteed contracts and, where applicable, the names of anyone on a partially guaranteed deal. For players on non-guaranteed contracts and details on the amounts of the partial guarantees, check out this post. If you notice any omissions, please let us know.

Updated 4-17-13

Atlantic Division
Celtics: 15
Knicks: 15
Nets: 15
Raptors: 15
Sixers: 15

Southeast Division
Bobcats: 15
Hawks: 15
Heat: 15
Magic: 14
Wizards: 15

Central Division
Bucks: 15
Bulls: 15
Cavaliers: 15
Pacers: 15
Pistons: 14

Southwest Division
Grizzlies: 15
Hornets: 15
Mavericks: 15
Rockets: 15
Spurs: 15

Northwest Division
Jazz: 15
Nuggets: 15
Thunder: 15
Timberwolves: 15
Trail Blazers:15

Pacific Division
Clippers: 15
Kings: 14
Lakers: 15
Suns: 15
Warriors: 15

ShamSports was used in the creation of this post.

A host of rookies are making their debuts this week, including several who not long ago seemed unlikely to do so. First-round picks are usually locks to make their teams, but second-rounders face a struggle, and undrafted players have the most daunting challenge of all, having to scrap just for training camp invitations, much less regular-season roster spots.

Several of the players on this list spent years developing overseas after they were passed over in their respective drafts, but a few who were left on the draft board this June managed to quickly overcome the snub and make it to the league for opening night. Many of them are on non-guaranteed deals, so their stays might not be permanent, but for now, they've made it to the big time. 

The undrafted rookies are listed below by team, with their draft years in parentheses. 

• Sixers: Maalik Wayns (2012)
• Hornets: Brian Roberts (2008)
• Knicks: Chris Copeland (2006), Pablo Prigioni (1999)
• Magic: DeQuan Jones (2012)
• Nets: Mirza Teletovic (2007)
• Pacers: Ben Hansbrough (2011)
• Pistons: Slava Kravstov (2009)
• Rockets: Scott Machado (2012)
• Suns: Diante Garrett (2011), Luke Zeller (2009)
• Timberwolves: Alexey Shved (2010)
• Warriors: Kent Bazemore (2012)

In the weeks leading up to Halloween's deadline for fourth-year extension-eligible players to ink new deals, the prevailing wisdom suggested that teams were increasingly reluctant to lock up their players prior to free agency. TNT's David Aldridge and Sean Deveney of the Sporting News were among those who wrote stories attempting to explain why we were seeing fewer and fewer rookie scale extensions.

When the dust settled after October 31st, however, it turned out that clubs weren't all that reluctant to extend their fourth-year players after all. Ty Lawson, James Harden, Stephen Curry, DeMar DeRozan, Jrue Holiday, and Taj Gibson signed extensions during the last two days of October, joining Blake Griffin and Serge Ibaka as players avoiding restricted 2013 free agency by re-upping this offseason. It's the first time that many players have finalized rookie scale extensions since 2008, when NBA teams committed about $372MM to eight contract extensions.

In 2012, the amount of money committed to extensions blew away that 2008 figure, exceeding $400MM. We don't know specific amounts of the summer extensions yet, so we can't nail down the exact amount that teams spent. But if we use the base salaries reported to date and assume that next year's maximum salary will stay the same as this year's (it will likely increase), 2012's eight extensions add up to more than $424MM in commitments.

Here's a breakdown of the rookie scale extensions that have been inked over the past five seasons: