2021 NBA Free Agency Primer

The NBA’s 2021 free agency period officially begins on Monday at 5:00 pm central time. At that point, we can expect news of contract agreements to start pouring in, continuing well into the night.

By our count, 34 free agents agreed to deals on day one of free agency in 2020 — we’ll see if that number is matched or exceeded later today.

Here are a few links to prepare for you one of the most exciting days on the NBA calendar:

• Top 50 Free Agents Of 2021
  Kawhi Leonard, John Collins, and Chris Paul lead the way on our list of the best available players.
• 2021 Free Agents By Position/Type
  2021 Free Agents By Team
  Want the full breakdown of players available this summer? Take your pick from these two lists.
• Key Offseason Dates/Deadlines
  A breakdown of the important dates to watch beyond today.
• Maximum Salary Projections For 2021/22
  Mid-Level, Bi-Annual Exception Projections For 2021/22
  Our projections are based on a 3% salary cap increase. We should find out within a matter of hours what the exact cap for 2021/22 will look like.
• Player Option Decisions For 2021/22
  Team Option Decisions For 2021/22
  The deadline for these decisions was on Sunday, so they’re all in now.
• 2021 Qualifying Offer Recap
  We have the full list of which players are becoming restricted free agents.
• 2021 Offseason Trades
  Eleven trades have been officially completed so far this offseason, with nine more agreed upon and many more to come.
• Outstanding Trade Exceptions
  A number of teams have traded player exceptions available to take on salary without sending any back.
• 2021 Offseason Preview Series
  We took a closer look at all 30 teams’ cap situations and key offseason decisions.
• Hoops Rumors Glossary
  Need a refresher on how sign-and-trades work, what it means to have “Early Bird rights” on a player, or how a team becomes hard-capped? We explain all in our glossary.