Notable Unsigned Free Agents
Allen Iverson and Gilbert Arenas have 14 NBA All-Star appearances between them, but both players are out of work as this year's All-Star Game approaches. We've heard rumblings lately about the Lakers considering Arenas, and Iverson drawing interest from international teams, but for the moment, they're among the NBA veterans who find themselves unsigned.
NBA teams struggling with injuries or a general lack of production at certain positions will likely eye those unsigned players with some interest in the coming weeks. With 10-day contracts now available, taking a flier on a free agent is an inexpensive way for a team to add depth and experience to its roster.
Earl Boykins, Michael Finley, and Larry Hughes are among the most recognizable backcourt names on the free agent market, while a trio of former Raptors – Jamario Moon, Morris Peterson, and Joey Graham – highlight the available forwards. Meanwhile, former lottery picks who were part of NBA rotations a year ago, such as Al Thornton and Melvin Ely, are out of work, while veterans like Joel Przybilla, James Posey, and Joe Smith also find themselves on the outside looking in.
If a team is seeking youth and energy rather than veteran savvy, it could look at the rosters for the D-League's All-Star Game. A number of players on the squads, including Walker Russell, Greg Smith, Lance Thomas, and Andre Emmett, have recently signed NBA deals, ranging from 10-day contracts to Smith's three-year pact. But many of the D-League's All-Stars, including Gerald Green, Blake Ahearn, JamesOn Curry, and Marqus Blakely, are still out there for NBA clubs in search of new blood.
For a more complete picture of the free agents currently available, check out our list here.
Odds & Ends: Martin, Adrien, Kings
As we await the next wave of Linsanity tonight at Madison Square Garden, let's check out a few links from around the league:
- Kevin Martin, who was nearly traded to the Hornets in December, is unhappy about his role with the Rockets, writes Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle.
- After being waived by the Rockets, Jeff Adrien is drawing overseas interest, according to Sportando. However, the 26-year-old forward prefers to continue pursuing an NBA roster spot.
- Adding a point guard before the trade deadline isn't necessarily a priority for the Kings, says team president of basketball operations Geoff Petrie. Jason Jones of the Sacramento Bee has the details.
- Speaking of the Kings, a city council vote last night helped moved plans for Sacramento's new arena forward, reports Ryan Lillis of the Sacramento Bee.
- Inspired by Jeremy Lin's recent run, Bruce Arthur of the National Post looks back at six NBA veterans who had successful careers after going undrafted.
Trade Candidate: Antawn Jamison
With a month remaining until March 15th, it's not clear yet how the Cavaliers plan to approach the NBA's trade deadline. The Cavs, currently 2.5 games out of the eighth spot in the East, have enough young talent and potential trade chips that it makes sense for the team to become deadline sellers, stocking up the future.
However, comments made by coach Byron Scott today echoed multiple reports from the past few weeks. The Cavs weren't shopping Anderson Varejao prior to his wrist injury, and may be reluctant to sell off pieces if they're in position to make the playoffs.
"Once a team gets a taste of the playoffs like (the Pacers) did last year, even though they lost in the first round, you come back hungrier the next year," Scott said. "That’s why I don’t understand why people say we should lose games."
Even if the Cavs are reluctant to compromise their postseason chances by making moves, it may be a moot point by March 15th. If Cleveland continues to slip further out of the playoff picture, I expect them to listen closely to offers they receive on players like Ramon Sessions and Antawn Jamison. We've covered Sessions as a trade candidate already, so let's take a closer look at Jamison.
At age 35, Jamison is approaching 1000 career games and 35,000 career minutes, but his production doesn't seem to be slipping. His 19.0 points per 36 minutes and 17.7 PER this season are just slightly off his career averages of 19.4 and 18.5, and he's still rebounding at a respectable rate. The 6'8" forward wouldn't be a top scoring option for a title contender like he is for the Cavs, but he could be a useful frontcourt piece on a team with championship aspirations.
While those are Jamison's pros, there's one big con standing in the way of a potential deal — a salary that exceeds $15MM. No NBA team has the cap space to take on such a figure, meaning any trade partner would likely have to send at least $10MM in salary back to the Cavs, if not more. Cleveland wouldn't want to move Jamison unless it improved the club in the long-term, but there aren't many teams out there that could put together a package of expiring contracts and long-term assests worth giving up for Jamison.
One potential match is the Rockets, who have a number of former lottery picks on expiring deals. Hasheem Thabeet, Jonny Flynn, Jordan Hill, and Terrence Williams aren't getting much playing time in Houston, so perhaps they could figure into an offer for Jamison. The Cavs, meanwhile, would maintain their cap flexibility while also getting a chance to look at some young players over the season's final few weeks.
Ultimately, I don't expect Jamison to be traded. The $15MM+ coming off Cleveland's books is too valuable for the Cavs to move him unless they receive a great offer, and there just won't be great offers out there for a 35-year-old scorer off the bench.
Cavs Notes: Erden, Irving, Parker, Varejao
Three-day rests don't come along often in this lockout-shortened season, so the Cavaliers likely took full advantage of the time off they received this week. As the Cavs prepare to host Indiana tonight in their first game since Saturday, let's round up a few items out of Cleveland…
- Anderson Varejao's injury has given Semih Erden a "golden opportunity" to show what he can do, coach Byron Scott tells Jason Lloyd of the Akron Beacon Journal. Erden will be eligible for restricted free agency after the season.
- Scott doesn't understand why people think Cleveland should lose games, writes Sam Amico of FOX Sports Ohio. The Cavs' coach would prefer to earn a postseason berth, even if it meant a quick first-round exit, because he feels his young players would benefit from the playoff experience.
- Amico fielded Cavs-related questions, including plenty on possible trades, in a chat earlier today.
- Kyrie Irving has been cleared by the team to return to action tonight after missing three games with a concussion, tweets Joe Gabriele of Cavs.com. Anthony Parker is also progressing and could return next week, but there's still no timetable for Varejao (Beacon Journal link).
Hornets Sign Solomon Jones To 10-Day Contract
The Hornets have officially signed Solomon Jones to a 10-day contract, the team announced today.
Jones was cut by the Clippers last week before the team had to guarantee his contract for the season. Coming into the year, the 27-year-old had averaged 10.1 points and 7.7 rebounds per 36 minutes in his career, though in ten games with the Clips his averages were down to 2.3 and 6.4 respectively. The Hornets will be the fourth NBA team for the 6'10" South Florida product, who was drafted by the Hawks and also spent time with the Pacers.
HoopsHype first reported (via Twitter) that the Hornets would sign Jones to a 10-day contract.
Outstanding NBA Trade Exceptions
Hoops Rumors’ up-to-date list of traded player exceptions is below. These are salary cap exceptions teams can use to acquire one or more players whose salaries are no greater than the amount of the exception (plus $250K for non-apron teams).
Trade exceptions cannot be combined and expire after one year. For more information on traded player exceptions, check out Hoops Rumors’ glossary entry.
The amount of the exception, the deal in which it was obtained, and the expiration date are listed below. If a team has used a portion of an exception, that is also indicated. If you have any corrections or omissions, please contact us.
Note: Teams operating above either tax apron are ineligible to use traded player exceptions created during the 2024/25 regular season (or earlier). These exceptions are marked below in italics.
List updated 2-2-26
Atlanta Hawks
Amount: $1,278,323
Obtained: Cody Zeller (Rockets)
Initial amount: $3,500,000
Used: Duop Reath ($2,221,677)
Expires: 2/6/26
Amount: $13,101,561
Obtained: Bogdan Bogdanovic (Clippers)
Expires: 2/6/26
Amount: $6,700,000
Obtained: Clint Capela (Rockets)
Expires: 7/6/26
Amount: $4,503,720
Obtained: Kobe Bufkin (Nets)
Expires: 9/16/26
Amount: $1,357,994
Obtained: Trae Young (Wizards)
Expires: 1/11/27
Amount: $2,349,578
Obtained: Vit Krejci (Trail Blazers)
Expires: 2/1/27
Boston Celtics
Amount: $4,018,363
Obtained: Jaden Springer (Rockets)
Expires: 2/6/26
Amount: $22,531,707
Obtained: Kristaps Porzingis (Hawks)
Expires: 7/7/26
Amount: $4,721,429
Obtained: Jrue Holiday (Trail Blazers)
Expires: 7/7/26
Amount: $8,200,000
Obtained: Georges Niang (Jazz)
Expires: 8/6/26
Chicago Bulls
Amount: $760,173
Obtained: Zach LaVine (Kings)
Initial amount: $17,186,573
Used: Isaac Okoro ($11,000,000)
Used: Dario Saric ($5,426,400)
Expires: 2/3/26
Cleveland Cavaliers
Amount: $8,500,000
Obtained: Georges Niang (Hawks)
Expires: 2/6/26
Amount: $1,000,000
Obtained: Isaac Okoro (Bulls)
Expires: 7/6/26
Amount: $6,897,984
Obtained: De’Andre Hunter (Kings)
Expires: 2/1/27
Dallas Mavericks
Amount: $11,000,000
Obtained: Maxi Kleber (Lakers)
Expires: 2/2/26
Amount: $2,087,519
Obtained: Markieff Morris (Lakers)
Expires: 2/2/26
Amount: $4,296,682
Obtained: Quentin Grimes (Sixers)
Expires: 2/4/26
Denver Nuggets
Amount: $6,880,985
Obtained: Michael Porter Jr. (Nets)
Initial amount: $17,275,985
Used: Jonas Valanciunas ($10,395,000)
Expires: 7/8/26
Amount: $5,426,400
Obtained: Dario Saric (Kings)
Expires: 7/13/26
Detroit Pistons
Amount: $14,104,000
Obtained: Dennis Schröder (Kings)
Expires: 7/7/26
Golden State Warriors
Amount: $8,780,488
Obtained: Kyle Anderson (Heat)
Expires: 2/6/26
Amount: $2,196,970
Obtained: Lindy Waters (Pistons)
Expires: 2/6/26
Houston Rockets
Amount: $3,539,760
Obtained: Cam Whitmore (Wizards)
Expires: 7/6/26
Los Angeles Clippers
Amount: $6,539,000
Obtained: P.J. Tucker (Jazz)
Expires: 2/2/26
Amount: $2,087,519
Obtained: Mohamed Bamba (Jazz)
Expires: 2/2/26
Amount: $4,158,439
Obtained: Bones Hyland (Hawks)
Expires: 2/6/26
Los Angeles Lakers
Amount: $187,500
Obtained: Anthony Davis (Mavericks)
Expires: 2/2/26
Miami Heat
Amount: $7,763,122
Obtained: Jimmy Butler (Warriors)
Initial amount: $16,070,814
Used: Simone Fontecchio ($8,307,692)
Expires: 2/6/26
Amount: $3,051,153
Obtained: Josh Richardson (Jazz)
Expires: 2/6/26
Amount: $16,834,692
Obtained: Duncan Robinson (Pistons)
Expires: 7/7/26
Amount: $5,616,000
Obtained: Haywood Highsmith (Nets)
Expires: 8/17/26
Minnesota Timberwolves
Amount: $7,580,900
Obtained: Nickeil Alexander-Walker (Hawks)
Expires: 7/6/26
New Orleans Pelicans
Amount: $2,087,519
Obtained: Daniel Theis (Thunder)
Expires: 2/5/26
Amount: $13,016,200
Obtained: Brandon Ingram (Raptors)
Expires: 2/6/26
Amount: $13,445,122
Obtained: Kelly Olynyk (Wizards)
Expires: 7/6/26
New York Knicks
Amount: $2,092,344
Obtained: Jericho Sims (Bucks)
Expires: 2/6/26
Oklahoma City Thunder
Amount: $501,669
Obtained: Dillon Jones (Wizards)
Expires: 6/29/26
Philadelphia 76ers
Amount: $3,852,319
Obtained: Caleb Martin (Mavericks)
Expires: 2/4/26
Amount: $2,087,519
Obtained: Reggie Jackson (Wizards)
Expires: 2/6/26
Amount: $7,975,000
Obtained: KJ Martin (Pistons)
Expires: 2/6/26
Phoenix Suns
Amount: $2,282,000
Obtained: Jusuf Nurkic (Hornets)
Expires: 2/6/26
Amount: $3,628,720
Obtained: Vasilije Micic (Hornets)
Expires: 6/30/26
Sacramento Kings
Amount: $2,726,357
Obtained: Kevin Huerter (Bulls)
Initial amount: $16,830,357
Used: Dennis Schröder ($14,104,000)
Expires: 2/3/26
Amount: $1,891,857
Obtained: Sidy Cissoko (Wizards)
Expires: 2/5/26
Amount: $2,120,691
Obtained: Colby Jones (Wizards)
Expires: 2/6/26
Amount: $4,968,600
Obtained: Jonas Valanciunas (Nuggets)
Expires: 7/13/26
Amount: $5,426,400
Obtained: Dario Saric (Bulls)
Expires: 2/1/27
Utah Jazz
Amount: $3,564,000
Obtained: P.J. Tucker (Raptors)
Expires: 2/6/26
Amount: $25,000
Obtained: Collin Sexton (Hornets)
Expires: 6/29/26
Amount: $18,380,000
Obtained: John Collins (Clippers)
Initial amount: $26,580,000
Used: Georges Niang ($8,200,000)
Expires: 7/7/26
Washington Wizards
Amount: $9,900,000
Obtained: Jonas Valanciunas (Kings)
Expires: 2/5/26
Amount: $329,127
Obtained: Johnny Davis (Grizzlies)
Initial amount: $5,291,160
Used: Malaki Branham ($4,962,033)
Expires: 2/6/26
Amount: $13,445,122
Obtained: Kelly Olynyk (Spurs)
Expires: 7/9/26
Information from Eric Pincus of Sports Business Classroom and ESPN’s Bobby Marks was used to confirm trade exception details.
Dwight Howard Rumors: Wednesday
We're exactly a month away from this season's trade deadline, and it's looking more and more like there won't be any major developments on the Dwight Howard front until after the All-Star Game in Orlando. That doesn't mean the rumors don't continue to swirl though. We'll keep tabs on today's Howard updates right here….
- ESPN.com's Chris Broussard (Insider link) disregards Howard's list of preferred destinations and explains why hypothetical trades to the Heat, Knicks, Hawks, Lakers, and Bulls could make sense.
- The Magic appear content to play out the month and reassess the situation on March 1st, says Josh Robbins of the Orlando Sentinel. The team believes there's no rush to make a decision and that Howard will still be in high demand at the deadline.
- A pair of TNT personalities, Shaquille O'Neal and Steve Kerr, weighed in on Howard yesterday, according to the Associated Press (ESPN.com link). Kerr said he'd play out the season and try to keep the star center if he were running the Magic, while Shaq said it would be a "travesty" if D12 leaves Orlando, pointing out differences between his situation in 1996 and Howard's this season.
Hornets Notes: Buyers, Gordon, Johnson
Yesterday, we heard that the Hornets will sign Solomon Jones to a 10-day contract and that Eric Gordon underwent successful knee surgery. Today brings more news on the Hornets, so let's round it up right here….
- David Stern has reduced the list of potential buyers for the Hornets from about seven to two or three, writes J. Michael Falgoust of USA Today. The commissioner is optimistic about completing a sale by month's end.
- Following Gordon's surgery, coach Monty Williams said reports suggesting the 23-year-old doesn't want to play for the Hornets are "way off base," according to the Associated Press (via ESPN). Williams added that Gordon is "a big part of what we want to do and where we're going."
- The Hornets are making a mistake by not being more forthcoming with the team's fans, says John DeShazier of the New Orleans Times-Picayune.
- Italian team Novipiu Casale is eyeing Trey Johnson, according to a Sportando report. Johnson signed with Novipiu Casale but didn't play with the club due to an injury. Johnson returned to the NBA in December, appearing in 11 games with the Hornets before being waived late in January.
Knicks Notes: Lin, Novak, D’Antoni, Grunwald
After tonight's performance against the Raptors, it doesn't look like the attention surrounding Jeremy Lin is going to decrease anytime soon. Lin turned the ball over quite a bit in the first half but wound up with 27 points, 11 assists, and the game winning shot. Here's more on the Knicks..
- Before Lin, the D-League's Erie BayHawks' top alum was Hawks forward Ivan Johnson, writes Adam Zagoria of ZagsBlog. Johnson averaged 22.6 points in 49 games with the BayHawks before getting his opportunity with Atlanta this year.
- While Knicks coach Mike D'Antoni has a hand in the club's personnel decisions, the signings of Lin and Novak were driven by interim General Manager Glen Grunwald, a source tells Marc Berman of the New York Post. Grunwald has kept a low profile since accepting the position over the summer but has quietly revamped the Knicks roster.
- Howard Beck of the New York Times writes that contrary to speculative reports, D’Antoni was not in danger of being fired when the Knicks were spiraling earlier this year. By all indications, the Knicks are prepared to let him finish the season.
- Lin has reignited the Knicks this year but the point guard could have wound up as a Raptor, writes Steve Simmons of the Toronto Sun. Team president Bryan Colangelo liked Lin in pre-draft workouts in 2010 and also had him in mind at one point this season.
- Several factors are at play when it comes to how much Lin can earn in a new contract this summer, writes Ken Berger of CBSSports.com. A new provision in the collective bargaining agreement allows players who achieve certain playing-time benchmarks to land a higher qualifying offer. In Lin's case, the highest qualifying offer he could get under these new rules would be about $2.7MM.
Trade Candidate: Deron Williams
As their roster currently stands, it seems unlikely that the 8-21 Nets will find their way into the playoffs. Of course, the team has been linked to Dwight Howard for quite some time and they are reportedly one of three clubs on the center's list. While some pundits and fans expect Howard to wind up in New Jersey before the trade deadline, it's also possible that the Magic strike a deal elsewhere or even decide to roll the dice and hang on to their superstar.
If that's the case, the Nets could head into the summer and try to retain Deron Williams while also pursuing Howard. Alternatively, they could consider shopping Williams prior to the trade deadline. Even though Billy King & Co. gave up an awful lot to land the point guard, it may be in their best interest to trade him if they don't feel confident in their ability to keep him beyond this season.
With his deal set to expire at the end of the year, Williams could put the kibosh on any swap by refusing to agree to a contract extension. While that could hurt the Nets' leverage, trading an elite point guard will always bring a solid return. So what are some potential landing spots?
The Lakers could certainly use a playmaker of Williams' caliber and they showed before the start of the season in their ill-fated talks for Chris Paul that they're willing to give up real value for a top one-guard. If Paul was worth both Pau Gasol and Lamar Odom to Mitch Kupchak, he'd likely pay close to that to put Williams alongside Kobe Bryant. If a third team can be brought in to provide the Nets with draft picks and long-term value, a proposal which gives them Gasol and subtracts Johan Petro's contract could be a good starting point.
The other obvious destination for Williams would be the Mavericks as the guard spent his formative years in The Colony, Texas, just 30 miles of Dallas. However, the Mavs also have a dearth of young talent and it's hard to imagine the club putting together an attractive package for the Nets on their own. Dallas could try to ply pieces away from a third party to pair with the expiring contract of Jason Terry, but they wouldn't feel compelled to do so unless Williams appears to be bound for another team.
Things should improve for the Nets in the short-term with Brook Lopez set to return from injury in the coming weeks. However, the club's on-court play over the next month won't have much bearing on Williams' trade candidacy. For the Nets to feel confident in their ability to hold on to the point guard, they'll have to demonstrate that they have the vision and means to compete beyond 2012.