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Clippers Waive Three Players, Convert Telfort To Two-Way Deal

October 18th, 2025 at 5:43pm CST by Luke Adams

5:43 pm: All of the Clippers’ roster moves outlined below, including Telfort’s promotion to a two-way deal, are now official, per NBA.com’s transaction log.

2:32 pm: The Clippers are setting their regular season roster by waiving Jason Preston, Patrick Baldwin Jr., and TyTy Washington Jr. while converting Jahmyl Telfort to a two-way contract, according to Law Murray of The Athletic (Twitter link).

Shams Charania of ESPN first reported (via Twitter) that Telfort would fill L.A.’s open two-way slot. The team created that opening four days ago by cutting Trentyn Flowers.

Telfort, who went undrafted out of Butler in June, averaged 16.0 points, 4.7 rebounds, and 3.4 assists per game as a super-senior in 2024/25 before becoming draft-eligible. The 6’7″ forward suited up for the Clippers’ Summer League team in July, averaging 3.6 PPG, 2.4 RPG, and 1.4 APG in 12.3 MPG across five appearances in Las Vegas.

Telfort appeared in three of the Clippers’ preseason games, scoring just nine total points in about 29 minutes of action, but the team has decided to keep him around over Preston, Baldwin, and Washington, all of whom have NBA experience and all of whom were also on Exhibit 10 contracts. According to Murray (Twitter link), Telfort has impressed the team in recent weeks with his awareness, defensive effort and versatility, and toughness.

Preston, Baldwin, and Washington would each be eligible to earn a bonus worth $85,300 if they report to the San Diego Clippers this fall and spend at least 60 days with L.A.’s G League affiliate.

The Clippers, who are too close to their hard cap to carry a full roster to open the season, will have 14 players on standard contracts and three on two-way deals once these transactions are official.

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Sixers’ Embiid, Clippers’ Beal Set For Preseason Debuts

October 17th, 2025 at 10:56am CST by Luke Adams

Sixers center Joel Embiid has been cleared to suit up on Friday for the team’s preseason finale against Minnesota, league sources tell NBA insider Chris Haynes (Twitter link).

Embiid has been ramping up this fall after undergoing surgery on his knee in the spring. Haynes had reported on Thursday that – while his status for Friday’s preseason game was up in the air – the star center was on track to be available for the start of the regular season next week. Now it appears he’ll see some action before opening night.

Clippers guard Bradley Beal is also expected to play his first game of the preseason on Friday when L.A. faces Golden State, reports Haynes (Twitter link).

Beal played through right knee inflammation in Phoenix in 2024/25 and underwent arthroscopic surgery on that knee after his season ended to address the issue. He was a limited participant in training camp this month and has yet to suit up for a preseason contest, but it sounds like he’s ready to play in his first game as a Clipper.

It’s unclear how many minutes Embiid or Beal will see tonight — the goal will presumably be to get them some reps and to make sure they get through their fall debuts without any setbacks. Assuming that happens, both players should be active when the regular season tips off next week.

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Pacific Notes: Kings, Christie, Westbrook, Hayes, Collins

October 17th, 2025 at 8:39am CST by Luke Adams

Within a story breaking down the Kings‘ decision to sign Russell Westbrook, Sam Amick of The Athletic says that “hordes” of opposing scouts have been attending Sacramento games during the preseason, since teams around the league anticipate that the Kings will be sellers at February’s trade deadline.

Westbrook is among several players on the Kings’ roster who will have something to prove this season, according to Amick, who notes that head coach Doug Christie falls into that category too.

As Amick details, citing league sources, the new contract that Christie signed in the spring when he was named the team’s permanent head coach is only guaranteed for two seasons, with a third-year team option. And his salary is only about $2MM annually in those first two years, followed by a significant increase if his option is exercised. In other words, Christie will have plenty of motivation to show during the next couple years that he deserves to keep his job.

We have more from around the Pacific Division:

  • Malik Monk, who played with Westbrook in Los Angeles, is excited to have his former teammate join the Kings, as Sean Cunningham of KCRA News relays (Twitter video link). Referring to Westbrook as “probably one of the best teammates I had,” Monk added that he thinks Westbrook can hold his own as an undersized power forward and defend opposing fours, which would help the club while Keegan Murray (thumb surgery) is sidelined.
  • After teaming up with Luka Doncic as members of the Lakers, center Jaxson Hayes wants to do so in international basketball competitions too. Hayes told reporters this week that he’s working on getting Slovenian citizenship in the hopes of representing the country in future competitions, per Eurohoops. A spokesperson for the Slovenian Basketball Federation confirmed that discussions are ongoing about adding a naturalized player at the center spot, but declined to offer specifics or confirm that Hayes is the player in question. “We are aiming to secure this player for a longer period to ensure the team’s stability in the coming years,” that spokesperson said.
  • Speaking to Law Murray of The Athletic about the offseason deal that sent him from Utah to Los Angeles and his expectations for the coming season, John Collins said the Clippers were “one of the first teams” he thought of when his name began to pop up in trade rumors. His head coach and teammates also expressed excitement about the fit. “It’s great. We get a big player like John on the floor, alongside Kawhi (Leonard), teams have a nightmare as far as matching up,” Tyronn Lue said. “You want to put a smaller guy on John, or a smaller guy on Kawhi? … (Collins’) versatility on both sides of the basketball is a huge thing for us.”
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Warriors, Lakers Top 2025 NBA Franchise Valuations

October 16th, 2025 at 8:48am CST by Luke Adams

The Warriors are still the NBA’s most valuable team, according to Kurt Badenhausen of Sportico, who unveiled the website’s updated NBA franchise valuations for 2025 on Thursday.

Badenhausen projects the Warriors’ value at $11.33 billion, which represents an incredible 24% increase from last year’s $9.14 billion valuation. The NFL’s Dallas Cowboys, at $12.8 billion, continue to be the only global sports franchise whose valuation comes in higher than Golden State’s, according to Sportico’s projections.

As Badenhausen outlines, the Warriors lead the NBA in revenue by a significant margin, having generated an estimated $833MM last season. Golden State makes more than $5MM per game in ticket revenue, along with $2.5MM from luxury suites; the club also has a $45MM per year jersey patch deal with Rakuten, earns almost double what any other team makes in sponsorship revenue, and is one of the few teams to fully own and operate its arena, per Sportico.

After placing third a year ago, the Lakers have jumped to second place on Sportico’s 2025 list at $10 billion, based on Mark Walter‘s recent agreement to purchase the team at that valuation. The Lakers moved slightly ahead of the third-place Knicks, who come in at $9.85 billion.

Every team’s valuation has increased by at least 9% since last year, per Sportico, with the average value of an NBA franchise now at $5.51 billion (up 20% from 2024) and no team worth less than $4 billion.

The average valuation has more than doubled since 2022, when it was $2.58 billion. As Badenhausen writes, the NBA’s new $76 billion media rights deal and its global ambitions – including the possible creation of a league in Europe – have played a part in those gains.

Although the Warriors’ $833MM is something out of an outlier, NBA teams generated an average of approximately $408MM in revenue last season, according to Badenhausen, with the Grizzlies coming in last at $301MM. Memphis also ranks 30th on Sportico’s list of franchise values.

Despite placing at the bottom of this list, the Grizzlies actually had the most significant increase in their franchise valuation this past year, rising from $3.06 billion to $4 billion (31%). The Pelicans (30%), Timberwolves (29%), and Eastern Conference champion Pacers (27%) were the other biggest risers.

Of course, it’s worth noting that figures from Sportico or any other media outlet are just estimates and often don’t quite match up with the sale prices for franchises that change hands. But these projections are usually in the right ballpark and remain useful for getting a sense of the league’s most and least valuable teams.

Here’s Sportico’s full list of NBA franchise valuations for 2025:

  1. Golden State Warriors: $11.33 billion
  2. Los Angeles Lakers: $10 billion
  3. New York Knicks: $9.85 billion
  4. Los Angeles Clippers: $6.72 billion
  5. Boston Celtics: $6.35 billion
  6. Brooklyn Nets: $6.22 billion
  7. Chicago Bulls: $6.12 billion
  8. Miami Heat: $6.03 billion
  9. Philadelphia 76ers: $5.61 billion
  10. Houston Rockets: $5.53 billion
  11. Dallas Mavericks: $5.24 billion
  12. Toronto Raptors: $5.22 billion
  13. Phoenix Suns: $5.09 billion
  14. Atlanta Hawks: $5.02 billion
  15. Sacramento Kings: $5 billion
  16. Cleveland Cavaliers: $4.86 billion
  17. Denver Nuggets: $4.8 billion
  18. Washington Wizards: $4.78 billion
  19. Indiana Pacers: $4.76 billion
  20. Milwaukee Bucks: $4.54 billion
  21. San Antonio Spurs: $4.5 billion
  22. Oklahoma City Thunder: $4.34 billion
  23. Utah Jazz: $4.27 billion
  24. Portland Trail Blazers: $4.25 billion
  25. Minnesota Timberwolves: $4.24 billion
  26. Orlando Magic: $4.21 billion
  27. Detroit Pistons: $4.17 billion
  28. Charlotte Hornets: $4.13 billion
  29. New Orleans Pelicans: $4.02 billion
  30. Memphis Grizzlies: $4 billion

As Badenhausen notes, Sportico’s projections are based on a control sale price, rather than limited stake purchases. Controlling shares in the Celtics, Lakers, and Trail Blazers all changed hands this past year, though only the Celtics sale has been formally approved by the NBA so far.

William Chisholm is buying the Celtics in two stages, with an initial valuation of $6.1 billion and a blended valuation of roughly $6.5 billion. Walter is purchasing the Lakers at a valuation of $10 billion, while Tom Dundon is buying the Blazers at a $4.25 billion valuation.

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Clippers Waive Two-Way Player Trentyn Flowers

October 14th, 2025 at 5:46pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Clippers have waived two-way player Trentyn Flowers, Michael Scotto of HoopsHype tweets. The move is official, per the NBA’s transaction log.

Flowers accepted his two-way qualifying offer in July. Accepting the qualifying offer locked him in to an $85,300 partial guarantee.

Flowers logged just 27 total minutes in six games at the NBA level as an undrafted rookie in 2024/25, but played a more significant role in the G League. In 42 outings last season with the San Diego Clippers, L.A.’s NBAGL affiliate, he registered averages of 17.7 points and 5.0 rebounds per contest while connecting on 47.5% of his field goal attempts and 38.5% from distance.

Flowers spent the 2023/24 season in the NBL’s Next Stars program. He averaged 5.2 points and 2.9 rebounds on .458/.421/.613 shooting in 18 games (12.7 minutes) with the Adelaide 36ers.

By waiving Flowers, the Clippers now have one open two-way spot. Kobe Sanders and Jordan Miller hold the other two-way deals.

The Clippers now have 20 players in camp and don’t plan to add another, The Athletic’s Law Murray tweets. The four players who are not on guaranteed contracts could be competing for the two-way opening.

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Pacific Notes: Kings, Butler, Warriors, Clippers, K. Brown

October 14th, 2025 at 7:44am CST by Luke Adams

Keegan Murray‘s thumb injury creates a difficult lineup decision for the Kings, who don’t have much reliable depth behind the former No. 4 overall pick at power forward, writes James Ham of The Kings Beat.

“It’s tough because Keegan has size, strength, athleticism and he shoots 40 percent [from 3-point range], I think everyone is looking for that,” head coach Doug Christie said on Sunday. “We have a couple of different guys that can equal Keegan, but we don’t have Keegan, so replacing him is definitely going to be difficult.”

The Kings have a pair of preseason games still to come on Wednesday and Friday, and Christie said he intends to “try a couple of different things” during those contests as he weighs his options for a fifth starter alongside Dennis Schröder, Zach LaVine, DeMar DeRozan, and Domantas Sabonis.

As Ham writes, veterans Dario Saric and Drew Eubanks and rookies Nique Clifford and Maxime Raynaud are among the potential candidates for the role, but the Kings have more depth in the backcourt, where Malik Monk and Keon Ellis currently project to come off the bench. The team’s thin depth chart at the four is one reason why Sacramento was so interested in Warriors restricted free agent Jonathan Kuminga this offseason, Ham notes.

We have more from around the Pacific:

  • Warriors forward Jimmy Butler won’t play on Tuesday vs. Portland after spraining his ankle in a Friday practice, tweets Anthony Slater of ESPN. However, the injury isn’t considered serious and head coach Steve Kerr is hopeful that Butler will return for Friday’s preseason finale vs. the Clippers.
  • After ESPN’s Kevin Pelton projected the Warriors to win 56 games, the second-most in the NBA, his ESPN colleague Zach Kram breaks down why Golden State could be more dangerous than the general consensus suggests. Kram cites Al Horford‘s potential impact, a well-balanced roster, and the fact that the Warriors have fewer obvious question marks than several of their Western Conference rivals.
  • Within a report detailing how the NBA approved the Clippers‘ initial sponsorship agreement with the green-bank company Aspiration in 2021, Bobby Marks and Baxter Holmes of ESPN note that people familiar with the investigation into the Clippers and Kawhi Leonard believe the probe will take months, perhaps not wrapping up until after the 2026 playoffs. The league hired the law firm Wachtell Lipton, Rosen & Katz to look into whether the Clippers circumvented the salary cap by paying Leonard via a separate “no-show” endorsement deal with Aspiration.
  • Clippers forward Kobe Brown, a first-round pick in 2023, believes he’s a “way better” player now than he was when he entered the NBA two years ago, but he also recognizes that his role may still be limited due to the team’s impressive veteran depth, writes Janis Carr of The Orange County Register. He’s OK with that if head coach Tyronn Lue determines it’s what’s best for the club. “If the team’s winning, I’m winning,” Brown said. “I don’t look at it as a negative thing. I just do my job basically.”
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Clippers, Cavaliers Make Changes To Preseason Rosters

October 13th, 2025 at 10:09pm CST by Rory Maher

The Clippers have officially re-signed TyTy Washington Jr. and waived John Poulakidas, per Law Murray of The Athletic (Twitter links).

It’s unclear why Los Angeles brought back Washington — perhaps the team wants to give him an opportunity to play in preseason. The former first-round pick was signed in August and waived in late September, so he was already eligible for his Exhibit 10 bonus, which is worth $85,300, the maximum allowable.

Former Yale sharpshooter Poulakidas was signed to an Exhibit 10 deal as well. The 6’5″ shooting guard averaged 19.4 points and 3.3 rebounds on .451/.408/.897 shooting in 27 games (31.6 minutes per contest) as a senior with the Bulldogs last season. He went undrafted in June.

The Cavaliers also made a change their preseason roster on Monday, waiving forwards Miller Kopp and Chaney Johnson, according to NBA.com’s transactions log.

Cleveland signed Kopp and Johnson to Exhibit 10 contracts on September 26. Both players spent training camp with the Cavaliers — Kopp appeared in two preseason contests, while Johnson played one.

Kopp, 26, went undrafted out of Indiana in 2023. He has spent the past two seasons in the G League with the Thunder’s affiliate, the Oklahoma City Blue. In 48 games (29.6 MPG) with the Blue in 2024/25, Kopp averaged 12.3 PPG, 5.4 RPG, 1.9 APG and 1.1 SPG while shooting 41.8% from three-point range.

As for Johnson, his Exhibit 10 deal with the Cavs was first reported shortly after he went undrafted earlier this year. The 6’7″ wing was a key reserve for an Auburn team that reached the Final Four last season, averaging 9.1 PPG, 4.9 RPG and 0.9 BPG in 38 games (23.5 MPG).

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Heat Notes: Powell, Jovic, Ware, Johnson

October 7th, 2025 at 12:43pm CST by Luke Adams

Before he was traded from the Clippers to the Heat this summer, Norman Powell had begun having conversations with L.A. about a possible contract extension, he tells Ira Winderman of The South Florida Sun Sentinel (subscription required).

“To be transparent, we were talking extension and what it would look like, and they were telling me they didn’t want to trade me, they wanted me there — all that good stuff,” Powell said. “But they inevitably ended up trading me.”

A report last month indicated that the Heat are open to discussing an extension with Powell, who is entering the final year of his current contract. However, that report suggested any deal would likely happen during the season, once the club had more time to assess his fit on the roster. For his part, the 32-year-old guard says he’s thinking about “basketball” rather than his contract situation, as Winderman relays.

“I’m just focused on what I have to do for this team, and I know if I go out there and perform, you’re going to be rewarded,” Powell said. “I feel like I’ve been performing every single year and my trajectory is just focused on getting better and how I can improve, and the payday will come.”

If Powell can carry over performances like Monday’s into the regular season, it would bode well for his future earnings. In just 16 minutes of action in Miami’s preseason matchup with Milwaukee, he racked up 18 points, making 6-of-12 shots from the floor, including 3-of-6 from beyond the arc.

“You can see his ignitability.” Heat head coach Erik Spoelstra said after the game, according to Winderman. “I like what he can do on the drive. He can really get hot from three. Guys were finding him. I think we can definitely build on that.”

Here’s more on the Heat:

  • Nikola Jovic‘s four-year rookie scale extension with the Heat starts at $16,200,000 in 2026/27 before dipping to $14,904,000 in ’27/28, Hoops Rumors has confirmed. The third year of the deal is worth $15,096,000 and then it rises back up to $16,200,000 in year four (’29/30). The structure will give the team some added cap flexibility during the 2027 and 2028 offseasons and suggests that creating cap room in 2026 probably isn’t a goal.
  • Jovic got a second consecutive start in Monday’s preseason game against the Bucks, while center Kel’el Ware, who finished last season as a starter, has yet to play alongside Bam Adebayo this month, notes Anthony Chiang of The Miami Herald.
  • Ware put up big numbers off the bench against Milwaukee, scoring 18 points and grabbing 13 rebounds, but he turned the ball over four times and was a -21 on the night. After the game, Spoelstra was more focused on the latter numbers. “I think everybody is looking at the wrong thing,” he said of Ware’s double-double, per Chiang. “It’s got to impact the game. I want him the next game to be a plus-20. That’s what it’s about. … It does not matter if you have 18 and 13 if it’s not impacting the game. … That’s part of being a young player, and that’s why I enjoy coaching him because my responsibility is to help teach him how to connect the dots and become more consistent where it now leads to winning.”
  • The Heat raised eyebrows early in the offseason when they picked up Keshad Johnson‘s guaranteed team option for 2025/26 after he logged just 98 total minutes as a rookie. Now, Johnson says he’s determined to reward the club for its faith in him, as Barry Jackson of The Miami Herald writes. “That shows they were [willing to] bet on me,” Johnson said. “If they bet on me, I’ve got to prove them right.” Johnson added that he’s willing to play either on the wing or in the frontcourt, depending on what the coaching staff asks of him. “Whether I’m undersized or not, I can compete with anybody,” the 6’6″ forward said of potentially playing in the frontcourt.
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2025/26 NBA Over/Unders: Pacific Division

October 7th, 2025 at 11:45am CST by Luke Adams

With the 2025/26 NBA regular season tipping off later this month, we’re getting serious about predictions for the upcoming campaign and continuing an annual Hoops Rumors tradition.

With the help of the lines from a series of sports betting sites – including BetMGM and BetOnline – we’re running through the predicted win totals for each of the NBA’s 30 teams, by division. In a series of team-by-team polls, you’ll get the chance to weigh in on whether you think those forecasts are too optimistic or too pessimistic.

In 2024/25, our voters went 13-17 on their over/under picks. Can we top that in ’25/26?

We’ll continue our series today with the Pacific Division…

Los Angeles Clippers

Los Angeles Lakers

Golden State Warriors

Sacramento Kings

Phoenix Suns

Previous voting results:

Atlantic

  • New York Knicks (53.5 wins): Over (63.2%)
  • Boston Celtics (42.5 wins): Over (52.7%)
  • Philadelphia 76ers (42.5 wins): Under (58.7%)
  • Toronto Raptors (37.5 wins): Over (50.2%)
  • Brooklyn Nets (20.5 wins): Over (54.4%)

Central

  • Cleveland Cavaliers (56.5 wins): Over (58.0%)
  • Detroit Pistons (46.5 wins): Over (60.5%)
  • Milwaukee Bucks (42.5 wins): Over (74.4%)
  • Indiana Pacers (37.5 wins): Over (50.1%)
  • Chicago Bulls (32.5 wins): Over (60.8%)

Northwest

  • Oklahoma City Thunder (62.5 wins): Over (62.9%)
  • Denver Nuggets (53.5 wins): Over (72.1%)
  • Minnesota Timberwolves (49.5 wins): Over (58.7%)
  • Portland Trail Blazers (34.5 wins): Over (57.1%)
  • Utah Jazz (18.5 wins): Over (55.3%).
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And-Ones: All-Star Game, Australia, A. Antetokounmpo, More

October 6th, 2025 at 3:02pm CST by Luke Adams

Regardless of the findings of the NBA’s investigation into the Clippers and Kawhi Leonard for potential salary cap circumvention, the 2026 All-Star Game won’t be relocated away from Intuit Dome, commissioner Adam Silver confirmed on Monday.

There had been some speculation that taking this season’s All-Star Game away from the Clippers could be one form of punishment for the franchise if the league determines it circumvented the cap by paying Leonard extra money via a no-show endorsement deal. However, there’s no guarantee the investigation will wrap up by mid-February, and even if it does, the All-Star Game won’t be affected, as Brian Mahoney of The Associated Press relays.

“There’s no contemplation of moving the All-Star Game,” Silver said. “Planning for the All-Star Game and the surrounding activities are operating completely independently of the ongoing investigation.”

We have more odds and ends from around the basketball world:

  • Olgun Uluc of ESPN shares his takeaways from the Pelicans‘ two exhibition games in Melbourne over the weekend, noting that projected 2026 first-rounder Dash Daniels (Dyson Daniels‘ younger brother) held his own against NBA competition and that NBL owner Larry Kestelman expects the NBA to return to Australia based on the success of this trip.
  • Alex Antetokounmpo, younger brother of Giannis Antetokounmpo, is expected to part ways with the Greek team Aris Thessaloniki and sign a G League contract, according to Johnny Askounis of Eurohoops. The 24-year-old forward has never appeared in an NBA regular season game, but previously signed Exhibit 10 contracts with the Raptors (2021) and the Bucks (2022 and 2023) prior to playing for those teams’ NBAGL affiliates.
  • The Athletic’s NBA beat writers pose one burning question facing each of the NBA’s 30 teams, including who will step up in the Celtics‘ frontcourt, whether or not the Magic have enough three-point shooting, and whether the Grizzlies can count on Ja Morant.
  • In a pair of stories for ESPN, Tim Bontemps identifies 10 names that could define the 2025/26 NBA season, while Bobby Marks previews trade season for 14 teams well positioned to be active in the coming months.
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