Free Agent Rumors: Holiday, Cousins, Burke, More
Free agent swingman Justin Holiday has received interest from the Lakers, Clippers, Bulls, Raptors, Pacers, Wizards, Hornets, and Cavaliers, league sources tell Michael Scotto of The Athletic (Twitter link).
Given how quickly most of the top players came off the market, Holiday represents one of the more intriguing options available, given his ability to knock down three-pointers (1.8 3PG on 35.4% shooting over the last three years) and defend on the perimeter.
According to Scotto, the Grizzlies are open to the idea of accommodating a sign-and-trade deal involving Holiday, so a team with interest in him could potentially acquire him using a trade exception if it doesn’t want to cut into its mid-level.
Here’s more on a few NBA free agents:
- Wizards interim head of basketball operations Tommy Sheppard briefly spoke with free agent big man DeMarcus Cousins in Las Vegas, according to Candace Buckner of The Washington Post (Twitter link). A previous report indicated there was virtually no chance of Cousins signing with Washington, and Buckner cautions that the conversation was described as small talk, but she still refers to it as an “interesting development.”
- The Lakers are in the mix for free agent point guard Trey Burke, according to Marc Berman of The New York Post (Twitter link). Los Angeles still has plenty of roster spots to fill, so it’s not clear how high Burke is on the team’s wish list.
- Veteran NBA big man Darrell Arthur, who sat out last season after being waived by Phoenix in October, is considering a comeback and is open to continuing his career overseas, tweets Emiliano Carchia of Sportando.
- ESPN’s Tim MacMahon, Marc J. Spears, and Ohm Youngmisuk spoke to coaches, scouts, and executives at the Utah and California Summer Leagues to get their thoughts on free agency so far. Among the highlights: McMahon writes that a number of rival executives and scouts believe the Rockets dodged a bullet by not landing Jimmy Butler.
- The Suns have formally renounced their free agent rights to several players, including Dragan Bender, Jamal Crawford, Jimmer Fredette, and Ray Spalding, per RealGM’s transactions log.
Wizards Sign Garrison Mathews To Two-Way Contract
The Wizards have officially signed undrafted rookie Garrison Mathews to a two-way contract, according to Fred Katz of The Athletic (Twitter link). RealGM’s log of NBA transactions confirms that the move has been completed.
Mathews’ agreement with the team was first reported shortly after the draft last month by ESPN’s Jonathan Givony.
A 6’5″ shooting guard, Mathews has been one of the NCAA’s premier marksmen in the NCAA over the last four years. He averaged 20.8 PPG and 5.5 RPG in his final season at Lipscomb, knocking down 3.2 threes per game at a 40.3% rate, and was named the ASUN Player of the Year.
Washington entered the 2019/20 league year with two open two-way slots. Devin Robinson was the only two-way player under contract with the Wizards to finish the 2018/19 campaign, and the team announced that he wouldn’t return after word broke in April that he had been arrested following a nightclub fight.
Pistons Officially Sign Sekou Doumbouya, Louis King
The Pistons have officially signed two rookies to their first NBA contracts, announcing today in a pair of press releases that they’ve locked up first-rounder Sekou Doumbouya and inked undrafted free agent Louis King to a two-way contract.
Neither move comes as a surprise. Doumbouya’s signing was a formality, as his rookie scale amount is essentially locked in. As the No. 15 overall pick, he’ll earn about $3.3MM in his first NBA season and a total of $15.9MM if he plays out his full four-year rookie contract.
[RELATED: 2019 NBA Draft Pick Signings]
Doumbouya, a 6’9″ forward who has drawn comparisons to Pascal Siakam, was the first international player selected in the 2019 draft. The 18-year-old played professionally overseas before declaring for the NBA draft, having averaged 7.8 PPG and 3.3 RPG in 39 games last season for Limoges CSP, a club in France’s top league.
As for King, his two-way contract agreement with the Pistons was reported shortly after the draft. A forward out of Oregon, King averaged 13.5 PPG and 5.5 RPG with a .435/.386/.785 shooting line in 31 games during his first and only season with the Ducks.
The Pistons are expected to sign No. 57 overall pick Jordan Bone to occupy their second two-way contract slot, but the trades necessary to get him to Detroit haven’t yet been officially completed.
Kings Waive Frank Mason III
The Kings have parted ways with a 2017 second-round pick, announcing today in a press release that guard Frank Mason III has been released. Mason will become an unrestricted free agent on Saturday if he goes unclaimed on waivers.
Mason, 24, was selected by the Kings with the 34th overall pick in the 2017 draft. He had a promising rookie season, averaging 7.9 PPG and 2.8 APG with a .360 3PT% in 52 games (18.9 MPG), but lost his place in the regular rotation last season.
As Jason Jones of The Athletic notes (via Twitter), Mason was supposed to play for the Kings in the California Summer League this week, but was held out of action due to a sore right hip. His $1.62MM salary isn’t scheduled to become fully guaranteed for 2019/20 until October 15, per Basketball Insiders, so Sacramento won’t be on the hook for that cap hit.
With De’Aaron Fox starting at the point in Sacramento and Cory Joseph being brought aboard to provide depth at the position, Mason became expendable for the Kings. However, the team plans to retain point guard Yogi Ferrell, according to Jones (Twitter link). Ferrell’s $3.15MM salary for 2019/20 will become fully guaranteed if he remains under contract through today, which appears to be a lock.
Latest On Kawhi Leonard
After meeting this week with the Lakers, Clippers, and Raptors, Kawhi Leonard has yet to make a free agent decision and doesn’t plan on making an announcement today, tweets Cris Carter of Fox Sports 1.
Appearing this morning on First Things First (video link), Carter had suggested that Leonard may announce his decision on Friday, though that’s certainly not set in stone. The former NFL wide receiver may seem like an unusual source for updates on the NBA’s top free agent, but Carter is more plugged-in than most when it comes to Kawhi, as his relationship with Leonard and his camp dates back years.
ESPN’s Jalen Rose said on Wednesday that he has heard there’s a 99% chance of Leonard re-signing with the Raptors. Frank Isola of The Athletic conveyed a similar sentiment today (via Twitter), and a player whose free agency will be affected by Leonard’s has heard the same thing, albeit not directly from Kawhi or his reps, according to ESPN’s Tim MacMahon, who cautioned taking his own update with a grain of salt (Twitter link).
Nonetheless, Carter insists there is still no clear frontrunner. According to Carter, the trust that Leonard has established with the Raptors over the last year is an important factor, and yesterday’s meeting with Toronto was “very impressive,” but the Finals MVP has a “great deal of interest” in both the Lakers and Clippers.
Michael Porter Jr. Unlikely To Play In Summer League Due To Knee Sprain
Nuggets fans excited to see Michael Porter Jr.‘s long-awaited professional debut in Las Vegas Summer League play may have to wait until the fall to last year’s first-round pick take the court.
A league source tells Mike Singer of The Denver Post that Porter suffered a left knee sprain during a scrimmage on Wednesday night and is unlikely to play in Summer League.
As Singer explains, the knee injury isn’t expected to be a long-term issue, but the Nuggets want to play it safe with the young forward, who was selected 14th overall in 2018. After missing all of his rookie season last year while recovering from back surgery, Porter looked “excellent” in recent weeks during five-on-five scrimmages, writes Singer.
It’s an unfortunate development for those of us who were looking to see how Porter looked this month in Las Vegas. Top 2019 draft picks like Ja Morant (Grizzlies) and Darius Garland (Cavaliers) are also considered unlikely to take the court in Vegas as they continue to get healthy.
NBA Maximum Salary Projections For 2020/21
Note: This post was updated in February 2020 to reflect the NBA’s latest cap projection for 2020/21.
One of the most lucrative new deals agreed up on this week was a five-year, maximum-salary contract extension for Nuggets guard Jamal Murray. Ben Simmons is expected to soon finalize a similar extension with the Sixers. Those deals were reported as having total values of $170MM apiece, but that number is just an estimate for now.
Because Murray’s new contract won’t go into effect until the 2020/21 season and the NBA won’t finalize the ’20/21 salary cap until the start of next year’s free agency, we can only ballpark what maximum-salary contracts will look like based on the NBA’s latest cap projections.
When the NBA confirmed its salary cap data for the 2019/20 season on June 29, the league also updated its cap estimates for the following two years. The current projection for the 2020/21 cap is $117MM, though that number could fluctuate over the course of the next 12 months or so.
[UPDATE: It has fluctuated multiple times since then — a September projection put the 2020/21 estimate at $116MM, while a January update moved it to $115MM]
For now, we’re basing our maximum-salary estimates on the presumed $115MM cap figure. Listed below are the early maximum-salary projections for 2020/21, based on a $115MM cap. The first chart shows the maximum salaries for a player re-signing with his own team — a player’s previous club can offer five years instead of four, and 8% annual raises instead of 5% raises. The second chart shows the maximum salaries for a player signing with a new team.
A player’s maximum salary is generally determined by his years of NBA experience, so there’s a wide gap between potential earnings for younger and older players. Unless they qualify for a more lucrative extension by meeting certain performance criteria, players with no more than six years of NBA experience are limited to a starting salary worth up to 25% of the cap. For players with seven to nine years of experience, that number is 30%. For players with 10 or more years of experience, it’s 35%.
Here are the the early max-salary projections for 2020/21:
A player re-signing with his own team (8% annual raises, up to five years):
| Year | 6 years or less | 7-9 years | 10+ years |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020/21 | $28,750,000 | $34,500,000 | $40,250,000 |
| 2021/22 | $31,050,000 | $37,260,000 | $43,470,000 |
| 2022/23 | $33,350,000 | $40,020,000 | $46,690,000 |
| 2023/24 | $35,650,000 | $42,780,000 | $49,910,000 |
| 2024/25 | $37,950,000 | $45,540,000 | $53,130,000 |
| Total | $166,750,000 | $200,100,000 | $233,450,000 |
The “6 years or less” column here is what Murray’s and Simmons’ new extensions would look like, assuming those deals don’t meet certain Rose Rule triggers.
The second column reflects what a player like Anthony Davis could get if he re-signs with his own team as a free agent next summer.
The third column applies not just to players with 10+ years of experience, but also to players who meet the Designated Veteran Extension criteria (Davis would have been eligible for that amount if he had signed an extension with the Pelicans).
A player signing with a new team (5% annual raises, up to four years):
| Year | 6 years or less | 7-9 years | 10+ years |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020/21 | $28,750,000 | $34,500,000 | $40,250,000 |
| 2021/22 | $30,187,500 | $36,225,000 | $42,262,500 |
| 2022/23 | $31,625,000 | $37,950,000 | $44,275,000 |
| 2023/24 | $33,062,500 | $39,675,000 | $46,287,500 |
| Total | $123,625,000 | $148,350,000 | $173,075,000 |
If a player changes teams as a free agent, he doesn’t have access to a fifth year or 8% raises. So if Murray had opted to sign an offer sheet next summer, he would have been limited to a four-year deal projected to be worth just shy of $124MM.
If Davis or another veteran with between seven and nine years of NBA experience wants to change teams in 2019, he would be limited to a contract worth less than $150MM.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Windhorst’s Latest: Beal, Teague, Dragic, Covington, More
After a star-studded group of free agents hit the open market this summer, 2020’s free agent class isn’t expected to nearly as impressive, so front offices expect trades to “take center stage” over the next year, writes ESPN’s Brian Windhorst.
According to Windhorst, Bradley Beal‘s name is the one that keeps coming up when executives around the NBA discuss potential trade candidates, since the Wizards are facing a possible rebuilding – or at least retooling – process. However, sources tell Windhorst that Washington’s front office continues to resist inquiries on its All-Star shooting guard.
Here’s more from Windhorst’s article about possible trade targets from around the league:
- Jeff Teague (Timberwolves) and Goran Dragic (Heat), two veteran point guards on expiring $19MM contracts, were recently discussed in possible deals, Windhorst confirms. Since Minnesota missed out on D’Angelo Russell and Miami found another way to complete its Jimmy Butler sign-and-trade, Teague and Dragic may end up staying put. Neither the Wolves nor the Heat are especially deep at the point guard spot, so if either club deals its veteran guard, it would need to line up another option at the position, Windhorst notes.
- The Timberwolves were dangling Robert Covington in an effort to move up in the draft, but eventually dealt Dario Saric instead. Still, league executives wouldn’t be surprised if Covington is back on the trade market at some point in 2019/20, says Windhorst.
- Windhorst is skeptical that the Grizzlies will be able to get a real asset in return for Andre Iguodala, suggesting that Memphis’ efforts to trade him may still eventually lead to a buyout.
- The Cavaliers will likely try to move Tristan Thompson or John Henson by the trade deadline, according to Windhorst. Both big men are on expiring deals, with Thompson owed $18.5MM while Henson will make $10.5MM.
Eastern Notes: Lawson, Bulls, Collison, Sirvydis, Magic
The Celtics announced three additions to their coaching staff today, including the official hiring of Kara Lawson as their first-ever female assistant. A 13-year WNBA veteran and Olympic gold medal winner, she spent the past two seasons as the primary television analyst for the Wizards and covered games for ESPN Radio.
“This was a good fit,” Lawson said to Adam Himmelsbach of The Boston Globe. “I wanted to go somewhere where I’d be challenged, I wanted to go somewhere where I’d be allowed to coach, and I wanted to go to an organization that was going to be playing in big games to be able to get a sense of that last frontier of coaching, which is being able to do it in pressure situations in the regular season and the playoffs.”
Also added to coach Brad Stevens’ staff were Brandon Bailey, who served as coach of the Celtics’ G League affiliate in Maine the past two seasons, and Joe Mazzulla, a former assistant with the Red Claws.
There’s more from the Eastern Conference:
- It got lost in the shuffle of this week’s free agency frenzy, but according to K.C. Johnson of The Chicago Tribune (Twitter link), there was a belief in league circles that the Bulls were the frontrunners to sign Darren Collison before the free agent point guard unexpectedly announced his retirement.
- The Bulls have added two new assistants to head coach Jim Boylen’s staff, according to a press release from the team. Chris Fleming announced in May that he was leaving the Nets to come to Chicago, and Roy Rogers, who recently parted ways with the Rockets, officially joined the team Wednesday. In addition, Karen Stack has been elevated to assistant coach, Paul Miller was named assistant to the head coach and former intern Chris Kent is the new video coordinator.
- Deividas Sirvydis, who was selected by the Pistons with the 37th pick in the draft, will likely spend the upcoming season in Europe, tweets international basketball writer Donatas Urbonas. Rytas Vilnius GM Rolandas Jarutis expects to have the 6’8″ shooting guard back next season unless he has an outstanding performance with Detroit’s Summer League team. Sirvydis, 19, was MVP of the EuroLeague Basketball Next Generation Tournament in 2018.
- The Magic have probably given up on Fran Vazquez ever coming to the NBA, but there was news this week on their 2005 draft pick, whose draft rights they still retain, tweets Keith Smith of Yahoo Sports. The 36-year-old re-signed with his Zaragoza team in Spain, so his cap hold will be removed from Orlando’s books for another season.
Luke Adams contributed to this post.
Nine NBA Restricted Free Agents Still On Market
While potential starters like Danny Green, DeMarcus Cousins, Marcus Morris, and – of course – Kawhi Leonard remain available on the NBA’s unrestricted free agent market, many of the other most intriguing names out there are restricted free agents. As of Thursday morning, nine restricted free agents don’t yet have contract agreements in place.
[RELATED: 2019 NBA Free Agents]
Given the limited leverage that restricted free agents have, it’s not unusual for their situations to drag on throughout the offseason — a year ago, Patrick McCaw‘s restricted free agency wasn’t resolved until nearly halfway through the regular season. So it’s possible that some of the RFAs still on the board might not be reaching a deal anytime soon.
On the other hand, teams seem to be a little more receptive than usual this year to working out deals allowing their restricted free agents to find new homes — we’ve seen no offers sheets for RFAs so far this offseason.
D’Angelo Russell, Terry Rozier, Malcolm Brogdon, Tomas Satoransky, and Jake Layman will all be landing with new teams via sign-and-trade deals. Willie Cauley-Stein and Bobby Portis reached agreements with new clubs after their previous teams willingly withdrew their qualifying offers, and it sounds like that will be the case with Jordan Bell as well.
[RELATED: 2019 NBA Free Agent Tracker]
While we wait to see whether teams are willing to be as accommodating for the rest of this year’s RFAs, here’s a breakdown of the ones still on the market:
Kelly Oubre, F (Suns): The Suns’ cost-cutting trade for Kyle Korver was designed to allow the team to sign Ricky Rubio while still retaining Oubre’s cap hold, so it looks like Phoenix plans to re-sign him.- Ivica Zubac, C (Clippers): There has been little word on where things stand with Zubac, but the Clippers still have a ton of cap flexibility, particularly if Kawhi Leonard signs elsewhere, so I don’t expect them to be outbid for the young center.
- Tyus Jones, G (Timberwolves): If the Wolves had been able to land D’Angelo Russell, the odds of Jones’ return would have dipped, but with no point guards incoming via free agency, Minnesota will probably do its best to retain Jones.
- Delon Wright, G (Grizzlies): There are a ton of moving pieces on the Grizzlies’ roster, and Wright’s future could be tied to whether the team decides to retain Avery Bradley and guarantee his $12.96MM salary, since Memphis is inching closer to the tax line. The Mavericks and Timberwolves were said to have expressed some interest in Wright earlier this week.
- Khem Birch, C (Magic): Birch was said in June to be an under-the-radar free agent drawing significant interest. That makes him one of the more intriguing names on this list, since Orlando looks to be right around the tax line after agreeing to lucrative new deals for Nikola Vucevic and Terrence Ross. I woulnd’t think the Magic would match an aggressive offer sheet for Birch unless they could shed other salary and avoid the tax.
- Trey Lyles, F (Nuggets): Denver remains about $11MM+ below the tax line after picking up Paul Millsap‘s team option, so the club has some flexibility to bring back Lyles if it wants to.
- Patrick McCaw, G (Raptors): There has been little to no chatter about McCaw so far, but that’s not a surprise. The Raptors’ offseason business is on hold until Leonard makes a decision, and McCaw’s restricted free agency in 2018 showed he’s very willing to be patient.
- Nando De Colo, G (Raptors): De Colo had been hoping to make a return to the NBA this year, but a recent Sportando report indicated that he may end up remaining overseas and joining Turkish club Fenerbahce.
- Theo Pinson, G/F (Nets): We haven’t heard any updates on Pinson since he received his qualifying offer, but the Nets will need to maximize their cap flexibility to add Kevin Durant, Kyrie Irving, and DeAndre Jordan, making him a candidate to be renounced.
Note: There are also five two-way restricted free agents still on the market. That list can be found here.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.