Heat Sign KZ Okpala To Three-Year Deal
The Heat have signed second-round pick KZ Okpala to a three-year deal, per Anthony Chiang of the Miami Herald (Twitter link). The contract will be a minimum salary arrangement.
The contract will count against Miami’s mid-level exception since the franchise went beyond two seasons. All three years of the contract will be guaranteed, Ira Winderman of the Sun Sentinel tweets. As a result of making his deal a three-year pact, the Heat will own Okpala’s full Bird Rights once it expires.
Miami currently projects to be over the tax line, so the team will likely have the taxpayer’s mid-level ($5.7MM) at its disposal. Outside of Okpala, the team has not yet used any of this exception.
Okpala was selected with the No. 32 overall pick by the Suns (Phoenix had sent it to the Pacers in the T.J. Warren trade). Indiana agreed to pass Okpala’s draft rights on to the Heat in exchange for three second-round picks (2022, 2025, and 2026).
Contract Details: Magic, Lakers, Pistons, Bulls, More
The free agency deals began a week ago, but the details of those arrangements are slowly trickling in as they become official. Let’s take a look at some contract notes from players around the league:
- Nikola Vucevic’s four-year, $100MM deal with the Magic will decline by 8% annually, Jeff Siegel of Early Bird Rights tweets. Vucevic will make roughly $28.4MM in the first year of his front-loaded contract.
- Terrence Ross‘ four-year, $52MM contract with the Magic will start at $12.5MM, per Siegel. Ross will make $13.5MM during the 2020/21 season, followed by $12.5MM and $11.5MM in the two ensuing years.
- Al-Farouq Aminu will take home the full non-taxpayer’s mid-level on his deal with the Magic. He’ll make approximately $9.3MM during his first season and approximately $9.7MM and $10.2MM, respectively, over the ensuing two campaigns.
- Kentavious Caldwell-Pope‘s two year deal with the Lakers is worth approximately $16.6MM in total value. KCP can make roughly $1.2MM in annual incentives on top of that amount, a source tells Siegel (Twitter link). The shooting guard has a player option on the second year of the pact, which also has a 15% trade bonus. Since his deal could be a one-year contract (if he chooses to turn down the player option), Caldwell-Pope has a default no-trade clause.
- JaVale McGee also has a player option on the final year of his two-year deal with the Lakers, Keith Smith of RealGM tweets. McGee, who will make $8.2MM over the length of his contract, also has the ability to veto a trade.
- Markieff Morris‘ two-year deal with the Pistons contains a second-year player option, Smith tweets. Morris was signed via the bi-annual exception.
- Bruno Fernando‘s three-year deal with the Hawks is worth $4.7MM, Michael Scotto of The Athletic tweets. It appears Atlanta will be using cap space to sign the rookie.
- Tomas Satoransky final season of the three-year, $30MM deal with the Bulls is only guaranteed for $5MM, Fred Katz of The Athletic relays (Twitter link). Chicago brought the point guard to town via sign-and-trade.
Thunder Sign First-Round Pick Darius Bazley
The Thunder have signed Darius Bazley to his rookie-scale contract, according to the NBA.com transaction log. Assuming he makes 120% of the rookie scale, Bazley will take home approximately $2.3MM during the 2019/20 campaign, as our Rookie-Scale Salary post shows.
Contracts for first-round picks are four-year deals that are fully guaranteed for two seasons, followed by team options on the third and fourth year of the pact. Bazley’s full breakdown will look like this:
2019/20: $2,284,800
2020/21: $2,399,160
2021/22: $2,513,040 (Team Option)
2022/23: $4,264,629 (Team Option)
Bazley didn’t attend a university like a typical prospect. Bazley had a scholarship offer from Syracuse and he had a chance to join the G League. Instead, he spent the year on a $1MM internship with New Balance.
The Thunder will bring in the No. 23 overall pick after acquiring his rights on a draft-night trade with the Grizzlies. Oklahoma City traded away Paul George over the weekend and rumblings about a Russell Westbrook deal have surfaced. Depending on what moves GM Sam Presti opts to make during the remainder of the offseason, Bazley could be in line to see minutes immediately as a rookie.
Spurs Acquire DeMarre Carroll In Sign-And-Trade
JULY 6: The Spurs and Carroll’s agent Mark Bartelstein have reworked the forward’s deal to make it a three-year, $21MM contract, reports ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (via Twitter).
Adding the third year was necessary since San Antonio officially acquired Carroll via sign-and-trade rather than signing him outright (sign-and-trade contracts must be for at least three years). That deal is outlined right here.
JUNE 30: DeMarre Carroll has agreed to join the Spurs on a two-year deal, Shams Charania of The Athletic tweets. The contract will pay him $13MM over the two seasons.
Carroll spent the last two seasons in Brooklyn after the Nets acquired him via trade from the Raptors during the 2017 offseason. With Brooklyn landing Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving, the team was limited in what it could offer free agents, so Carroll departing isn’t major news.
For the Spurs, it’s their second deal of the day with the team re-signing Rudy Gay. The Spurs forward rotation appears stable.
Barring some sort of sign-and-trade arrangement, the Spurs figure to sign Carroll using their mid-level exception.
Free Agency Notes: Durant, Knicks, Cousins
Kevin Durant‘s decision to go to the Nets was not an easy one to make. Golden State, New York, and Brooklyn were reportedly in contention, but it’s beginning to sound like the two Atlantic Division teams were always the frontrunners, as Mark Berman of The New York Post writes.
There were people in Durant’s camp that wanted him to go to the Knicks, according to Jay Williams (former NBA player and friend of Durant’s). Williams also said that the Knicks trading away Kristaps Porzingis was not a factor in KD’s decision.
Here’s more from around the league:
- There’s pretty much no chance that the Wizards add DeMarcus Cousins, The Athletic’s Fred Katz writes. Washington brought back Thomas Bryant in free agency and the team is committed to developing him.
- Tim Bontemps of ESPN.com examines the Knicks strategy this offseason and makes the case that they made the moves possible given that no stars were coming in free agency. New York will have cap flexibility next summer and the team will likely get one more chance to land a top pick in the lottery.
- The Cavaliers didn’t have the flexibility to make major free-agent signings this offseason, but next summer, the team projects to have the ability to make a big splash, Joe Vardon of The Athletic relays. Cleveland will have upwards of $55MM in cap room, assuming they don’t add any long-term salary before then.
Trail Blazers Sign Mario Hezonja
JULY 3: Hezonja’s new deal with the Blazers is official, according to the team, which issued a press release today to announce it.
“Mario is a prodigiously talented player with a high ceiling and a bright future,” president of basketball operations Neil Olshey said in a statement. “He will have a chance to contribute immediately while we work to accelerate his development.”
JUNE 30: The Trail Blazers will sign Mario Hezonja to a two-year, minimum-salary deal, Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN.com tweets. The second year of the pact will be a player option.
Hezonja is coming off an uneven season for the Knicks. The former top-1o pick struggled to find a consistent role for parts of the 2018/19, though he did look impressive as a point guard/facilitator once he received the chance during New York’s final contests.
Portland traded away Evan Turner this offseason and while they received Kent Bazemore in return, they’ll miss Turner’s ball handling. Bazemore projects to be a good fit in Portland’s offense, though he doesn’t have the play-making ability to regularly handle second-unit opportunities.
Hezonja should have an opportunity to secure that role and improve his stock on a talented Portland team. The Croatian-born wing is positioned to re-enter the market next offseason if things go well.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
DeMarcus Cousins Changes Agents
DeMarcus Cousins has changed agents, according to Marc Stein of the New York Times (Twitter link). The center will be represented by Jeff Schwartz of Excel Sports.
Cousins is arguably the second-best free agent left unsigned but the market for him hasn’t exactly been robust. Adrian Wojnarowski recently said that it’s possible that the big man will not find a deal worth more than the $5.34MM contract he signed last offseason.
The Warriors inked Cousins to the taxpayer’s mid-level last season and if he signed on with a team this season on a similar deal, he’d see a slight raise. This year’s taxpayer’s mid-level exception is $5.718MM, while the non-taxpayer is $9.258MM.
Cousins could find a team will cap room, though there are not many clubs left with significant available space. The Lakers stand out as a feasible option should they miss out on Kawhi Leonard. Los Angeles has just over $32MM in cap room available.
The Clippers are another team that will have cap room available if they miss out on Leonard. The Knicks were linked to Cousins before free agency as a fallback option but New York opted to spend its budget on Bobby Portis, Julius Randle and an assortment of veterans.
Community Shootaround: Biggest Winner In Free Agency So Far
It feels like half of the league’s players are in different spots than they were just a week ago and some teams have benefited more than others from the player movement. You can check out all the movement in our Free Agent Tracker.
The Nets are arguably the biggest winner. They land Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving. The franchise also added DeAndre Jordan and netted a first-rounder from the D’Angelo Russell sign-and-trade.
Russell went to the Warriors on a max deal and Golden State had an impressive few days outside of losing Durant. The Magic were able to re-sign their main guys and will bring back the core of a team that made the playoffs in the Eastern Conference last season.
Jimmy Butler will go to the Heat via sign-and-trade, giving the Heat a star they’ve long been in the market for. Kemba Walker heads to Boston and Terry Rozier to Charlotte in a double sign-and-trade that arguably puts a ceiling on what each team can accomplish.
The Sixers landed Al Horford and Josh Richardson (via the Butler deal) and brought back Tobias Harris. Philadelphia was one of the more active teams over the past few days, while the two Los Angeles teams remained in sort of a holding pattern as they wait for Kawhi Leonard to make a decision.
The Jazz added Mike Conley prior to free agency and made moves to complement their new core. The team added Bojan Bogdanovic on a four-year deal and brought in Ed Davis, Emmanuel Mudiay and Jeff Green to round out a strong first few days of free agency.
Our community shootaround tonight is simple: Which team has made the best signings thus far? Do you believe any team had a better few days than the Nets? Is there an under-the-radar team that isn’t being talked about enough?
Let us know your opinion in the comment section below. We look forward to what you have to say!
Knicks Sign R.J. Barrett
The Knicks have signed R.J. Barrett to his rookie contract scale contract, according to the team’s Twitter feed.
Assuming he signed for 120% of the rookie scale, Barrett will take home $7.84MM during his first season in the league. Barrett is expected to play for the Knicks’ Summer League team in Las Vegas.
Barrett was excited to be drafted by the franchise and at the time, it appeared he would come into the league on a contender, as New York was expected to make a splash in free agency. Instead, he’ll be in a typical situation for a team drafting in the top five.
The No. 3 overall pick should have the opportunity to be one of the most productive rookies during the 2019/20 season.
Lakers Sign Jared Dudley To One-Year Deal
JULY 7: The Lakers have officially signed Dudley to his minimum salary contract, the team announced today (via Twitter).
JULY 2: The Lakers will sign Jared Dudley to a one-year deal, Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN.com tweets. The contract will be a minimum salary arrangement.
Los Angeles is slowly adding to their roster as the franchise waits on Kawhi Leonard‘s decision. In addition to Dudley, the team has already agreed to terms with Troy Daniels on a minimum-salary deal.
Neither Daniels’ deal nor Dudley’s will impact the Lakers’ cap room, as they’ll be finalized with the minimum salary exception after the team uses that room.
Dudley appeared in 59 games for Brooklyn last season. He spotted them 20.7 minutes per game while shooting 35.1% from behind the arc. The Pistons were among the teams competing for his services this offseason.
A Southern California native, Dudley will be returning home on his new deal in the hopes of competing for a title, as he tells Alex Kennedy of HoopsHype (Twitter link).
“This is something I’ve been contemplating. I’d be getting a chance to compete for a championship, which is something I haven’t had since the Steve Nash [Suns] days,” Dudley said. “I just think that being home and with that Laker brand, what’s better than that?”