Marc Gasol Narrowing Focus To Lakers, Raptors
Free agent center Marc Gasol is narrowing his focus to the Lakers and Raptors, according to Shams Charnia of The Athletic (Twitter link).
The Warriors were among the teams also expressing interest in Gasol, but it sounds as if they’re no longer in the mix. The Mavericks also aren’t considered a probable destination anymore, Charania adds, noting that Dallas had been in the running up until now (Twitter link).
The Raptors hold Gasol’s Bird rights and are well positioned to offer him a lucrative one-year deal for 2020/21. Toronto should be especially motivated to bring back its starting center, having lost Serge Ibaka to the Clippers. If both Gasol and Ibaka depart, 2019 second-rounder Dewan Hernandez would be the only center under contract for the Raptors, since their other big man – Chris Boucher – is a restricted free agent.
While the Raptors can offer Gasol more money for next season, the Lakers are working the marketplace to try to find a way to improve their offer, per Charania. For the time being, they’d be limited to the veteran’s minimum, since they’ve already signed Wesley Matthews using the bi-annual exception and intend to use the full mid-level exception to Montrezl Harrell.
If the Lakers can shed some salary – and if the Raptors or Clippers are willing to cooperate – a sign-and-trade deal for either Gasol or Harrell could help keep the MLE open for the other. Los Angeles is exploring trading away JaVale McGee and his $4.2MM cap hit, tweets Marc Stein of The New York Times.
Should the Lakers snatch Gasol away from Toronto, the Raptors may shift their attention to a Lakers free agent, according to Stein, who reports (via Twitter) that Toronto has “strong interest” in forward Markieff Morris.
Nuggets Sign Isaiah Hartenstein
NOVEMBER 30: The Nuggets have officially signed Hartenstein, the team announced in a press release.
NOVEMBER 22: The Nuggets intend to sign free agent center Isaiah Hartenstein to fill their final roster spot, a league source tells Mike Singer of The Denver Post. He’ll receive a two-year deal, Singer adds (via Twitter).
Hartenstein’s deal will include a second-year player option, according to Kelly Iko of The Athletic (Twitter link). It’ll be a minimum-salary contract, adds Singer (via Twitter).
Hartenstein, 22, spent the first two years of his NBA career in Houston before being waived in June. In 51 total games, he averaged 3.1 PPG and 2.7 RPG in 9.5 minutes per contest.
He’s expected to compete with Zeke Nnaji for Denver’s backup center job following the departure of Mason Plumlee, Singer notes. I’d expect Paul Millsap and JaMychal Green are also candidates to play some minutes at the five in smaller lineups when Nikola Jokic is off the floor.
Another player who could be in the mix for playing time at center is 2019 second-rounder Bol Bol, who will be promoted from his two-way contract to the standard roster, according to Singer. Bol will fill the roster spot previously occupied by Keita Bates-Diop, who will be waived before his salary for 2020/21 becomes guaranteed, per Singer.
Bol, once considered a probable 2019 lottery pick, dropped to No. 44 in last year’s draft due to health concerns. The 21-year-old was limited to seven NBA appearances and eight G League games as a rookie.
The Nuggets will also aim to sign forward Greg Whittington to a two-way contract, per Singer, though a league source tells JD Shaw of Hoops Rumors that Whittington has yet to agree to a deal. Undrafted Marquette free agent Markus Howard is on track to fill one on Denver’s two-way slots.
Bucks, D.J. Augustin Agree To Three-Year Deal
NOVEMBER 22, 12:51pm: The third year of Augustin’s new contract won’t be guaranteed, according to Eric Nehm of The Athletic (Twitter link).
NOVEMBER 21, 11:19am: The Bucks and free agent point guard D.J. Augustin have agreed to a deal, according to Shams Charania of The Athletic, who reports (via Twitter) that Augustin will sign a three-year, $21MM contract.
Augustin, 33, averaged 10.5 PPG and 4.6 APG on .399/.348/.890 shooting in 57 games (24.9 MPG) as the Magic’s primary backup point guard in 2019/20. Those shooting rates were off his usual marks — in the two previous seasons, he had made 46.2% of his shots from the field and 42.0% of his three-pointers.
In Milwaukee, Augustin will get the opportunity to play alongside impact players like Giannis Antetokounmpo, Jrue Holiday, and Khris Middleton, so the Bucks are presumably hoping that – with plenty of open looks – the veteran point guard will improve upon last year’s shooting numbers.
Augustin will also be able to take on some ball-handling and play-making duties in Milwaukee’s rotation, playing a similar role to the one that Bogdan Bogdanovic might have if his reported sign-and-trade deal with the Bucks hadn’t fallen apart earlier in the week.
The Bucks will sign Augustin using a portion of their mid-level exception. Milwaukee is also reportedly using its bi-annual exception to sign Bobby Portis, meaning the team will be hard-capped at $138.93MM for the 2020/21 league year.
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Grizzlies Sign Jontay Porter To Three-Year Deal
6:11pm: The deal is official, according a Grizzlies press release.
12:30pm: The Grizzlies and restricted free agent forward Jontay Porter have agreed to terms on a new three-year, $6MM deal, his agents at Priority Sports tell Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN (Twitter link).
Porter, who went undrafted in 2019 out of Missouri after tearing his ACL for a second time, was once considered a top prospect but has yet to play in an NBA game due to those knee injuries. Still, the Grizzlies seem to believe in his upside, having signed him to a contract before the end of the 2019/20 season in anticipation of him being ready for training camp later in the year.
Although the Grizzlies turned down Porter’s team option earlier in the week, they made him a restricted free agent and had Non-Bird rights on him, allowing for a deal that exceeds two years without using the mid-level, ESPN’s Bobby Marks notes (via Twitter). It appears it’ll also be worth a little more than the minimum.
Trail Blazers, Rockets Complete Robert Covington Trade
NOVEMBER 22: The deal is now official, according to a press release from the Trail Blazers. Covington goes to Portland in exchange for Ariza, the draft rights to No. 16 pick Isaiah Stewart, and the Blazers’ protected 2021 first-round pick.
Houston can now flip Ariza and Stewart to the Pistons, who will in turn send Ariza to Oklahoma City.
NOVEMBER 16: The Rockets and Trail Blazers are finalizing an agreement on a trade that will send forward Robert Covington to Portland, reports ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (via Twitter). In exchange for Covington, Houston will acquire forward Trevor Ariza, the No. 16 pick in the 2020 draft, and Portland’s protected 2021 first-round selection, sources tell Wojnarowski.
While Covington isn’t the Rocket whose name has been mentioned most frequently in trade rumors during the last week or two, the fact that Houston is willing to move him indicates the team is no longer satisfied to simply run it back for the 2020/21 season. James Harden and Russell Westbrook are, of course, both reportedly hoping to be dealt this fall, so we’ll have to wait to see if this trade is a precursor to larger moves for the Rockets.
It was only nine months ago that the Rockets surrendered Clint Capela and a first-round pick in a four-team deal to acquire Covington, a three-and-D wing whom the team viewed as an ideal fit for its system. The 29-year-old did fit in well in Houston, averaging 11.6 PPG and 8.0 RPG in 22 games (33.0 MPG) down the stretch, though he struggled with his shot (.392 FG%, .315 3PT%). Covington was more reliable in the postseason, making 50.0% of his three-point attempts.
Ariza, who also plays a three-and-D role, is no stranger to Houston, having had two previous stints with the organization. Although he’s 35 years old, Ariza was still a solid contributor in Portland last season, averaging 11.0 PPG and 4.8 RPG with a .491/.400/.872 shooting line in 21 games (33.4 MPG) after being acquired in a trade-deadline deal. He opted out of the NBA’s restart this summer in Orlando.
Covington ($12.1MM) and Ariza ($12.8MM) have similar salaries for the 2020/21 season, though Ariza’s money is mostly non-guaranteed. It’ll need to be guaranteed for salary-matching purposes, tweets ESPN’s Bobby Marks. While Ariza’s deal is set to expire a year from now, Covington’s contract is a little more team-friendly, running through 2022.
Covington’s age, contract, and versatility were all presumably factors in Portland’s decision to give up its next two first-round picks along with Ariza to land him. The veteran forward will join a lineup that will also feature Damian Lillard, CJ McCollum, and Jusuf Nurkic. Rodney Hood, Gary Trent Jr., and Zach Collins are among the candidates to fill out an impressive starting five.
The trade will have to be officially completed after the Blazers pick at No. 16 on behalf of the Rockets on Wednesday, since teams aren’t allowed to leave themselves with no first-round picks in two consecutive future drafts. Once the 2020 draft is over, Portland will be able to trade its 2021 pick.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Hawks Sign Bogdanovic To Offer Sheet; Kings Leaning Toward Not Matching
NOVEMBER 24, 7:05pm: The Kings are still discussing whether to match Atlanta’s offer sheet but are leaning strongly towards not matching, Amick tweets.
NOVEMBER 22, 12:11pm: The Hawks have sent Bogdanovic’s signed offer sheet to the Kings, who will now have until Tuesday night to decide whether or not to match it, reports Amick (Twitter link).
The deal includes a fourth-year player option and a 15% trade kicker, tweets Marc Stein of The New York Times. That trade kicker is structured so that the team trading away Bogdanovic while he’s on this contract would have to pay the bonus, Stein adds (via Twitter).
NOVEMBER 22, 11:17am: The Hawks are submitting an offer sheet for Kings restricted free agent swingman Bogdan Bogdanovic, according to Sam Amick of The Athletic (Twitter link). Emiliano Carchia of Sportando first reported on Friday that Atlanta was expected to sign Bogdanovic to an offer sheet.
The deal will be worth $72MM over four years, according to Chris Kirschner of The Athletic (Twitter link). That’s the exact price we’d heard connected to Bogdanovic for the last several days.
Once Bogdanovic officially signs the offer sheet, the Kings will have two days to make a decision on whether or not to match it. As Amick notes (via Twitter), the Hawks likely wouldn’t be prepared to move forward on the offer sheet unless they felt pretty confident about its chances of not being matched.
Earlier this week, it appeared that Bogdanovic would join the Bucks in a sign-and-trade agreement that packaged him and Justin James to Milwaukee for Donte DiVincenzo, D.J. Wilson, and Ersan Ilyasova. However, a couple days after it was first reported, that deal fell apart amid rumors that Bogdanovic himself hadn’t agree to sign with Milwaukee.
Since word of the deal broke several days before free agency opened, there was speculation that the NBA may have intervened due to perceived tampering and/or circumvention. That hasn’t been confirmed at all, though the league did open an investigation into the situation.
The Bucks ultimately moved on from their pursuit of Bogdanovic, opening the door for the Hawks – one of the few teams with significant cap room – to make a run at him. Atlanta has already had a successful free agency period, having struck deals with Danilo Gallinari, Rajon Rondo, and Kris Dunn. If they can land Bogdanovic, it would represent another upgrade on a core that already features Trae Young, John Collins, and Clint Capela.
While there’s still a chance the Kings could match the Hawks’ offer so as not to lose a key asset for nothing, the team may have tipped its hand when its reported agreement with the Bucks broke. That deal was a signal that Sacramento wasn’t necessarily intent on retaining the RFA swingman, who would add another expensive multiyear contract to a cap sheet that already features pricey long-term deals for Harrison Barnes, Buddy Hield, and – starting in 2021/22 – De’Aaron Fox.
After their deal with the Bucks was scuttled, the Kings reportedly explored other sign-and-trade scenarios involving Bogdanovic, with the Lakers and Pacers among the teams believed to have interest. However, any deal would’ve come with cap- and compensation-related challenges, whereas Atlanta had the flexibility to simply sign Bogdanovic outright to an offer sheet.
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Warriors Sign Kent Bazemore To One-Year Deal
NOVEMBER 24: The Warriors have signed Bazemore to his one-year contract, according to the NBA’s official transactions log.
NOVEMBER 22: The Warriors and free agent forward Kent Bazemore have agreed to a one-year deal, agent Austin Walton tells Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link).
Bazemore’s new contract will be worth the veteran’s minimum, according to Anthony Slater of The Athletic (Twitter link), so it won’t cut into Golden State’s mid-level exception or potential disabled player exception. Bazemore will earn $2.32MM, while Golden State will take a $1.62MM cap hit.
It’s a reunion for the two sides, as Bazemore started his career in Golden State as an undrafted free agent back in 2012. This time around, the 31-year-old should get an opportunity to play regular minutes on the wing, especially with Klay Thompson expected to miss the entire season with an Achilles tear.
Bazemore, who began last season with the Trail Blazers, had a slow start to the year, but played well after being traded to the Kings in January. In 25 games down the stretch for Sacramento, the three-and-D swingman averaged 10.3 PPG, 4.9 RPG, and 1.2 SPG with a shooting line of .418/.384/.733.
Bucks Sign Torrey Craig
NOVEMBER 26: The Bucks have officially signed Craig to a one-year contract, according to the NBA’s transactions log.
NOVEMBER 22: The Bucks are making another free agent addition, according to Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN, who reports (via Twitter) that the team has reached a deal with veteran wing Torrey Craig. Craig’s reps at CAA confirmed the agreement.
Craig entered the league year as a restricted free agent, but became unrestricted when the Nuggets withdrew his qualifying offer on Saturday. As a result, Denver didn’t have the right to match offers for the swingman.
Craig, who will turn 30 next month, averaged 5.4 PPG and 3.3 RPG in 58 games (27 starts) for Denver in 2019/20, providing the team with solid perimeter defense. However, he became a victim of a roster crunch in Denver.
In Milwaukee, he’ll be tasked with helping to guard some of the Eastern Conference’s talented wing scorers, joining an impressive defensive squad that includes past All-Defensive players such as Giannis Antetokounmpo, Brook Lopez, and Jrue Holiday.
While the terms of Craig’s deal haven’t been reported, a minimum-salary pact seems likely, given Milwaukee’s projected hard-cap constraints.
Marc Gasol Receiving Interest From Lakers, Raptors, Warriors
NOVEMBER 22, 11:11am: The Lakers have emerged as a “serious” suitor for Gasol, according to Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link).
As Charania explains, the opportunity to play in Los Angeles and chase another title appeal to Gasol, though he’d likely have to accept a minimum-salary deal. Marc Stein of The New York Times reported the Lakers’ interest in Gasol on Friday.
NOVEMBER 21, 11:37pm: In the wake of Serge Ibaka‘s contract agreement with the Clippers, the Raptors are working to convince their other center – Marc Gasol – to sign a new deal with the club, reports ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (Twitter link). However, according to Wojnarowski (Twitter link), Gasol is receiving interest from other teams, including the Warriors.
The Raptors hold Gasol’s Bird rights and are well positioned to offer him a lucrative one-year deal for 2020/21, especially now that Ibaka is no longer in play. Toronto’s reluctance to offer multiple years and eat into its 2021 cap room may have hindered the team’s ability to re-sign Ibaka, but it seems unlikely to be a major handicap in the Gasol sweepstakes, since the 35-year-old probably won’t receive many multiyear offers.
Whether or not they re-sign Gasol, the Raptors will have the full $9.3MM mid-level exception available to seek additional frontcourt help.
Golden State’s resources to offer Gasol a contract are somewhat limited, especially if the team is dedicating part of its $5.7MM mid-level exception to Brad Wanamaker, as has been rumored. Following Klay Thompson‘s Achilles tear, the Warriors have sought a $9.3MM disabled player exception that would allow the club to sign a free agent to a one-year contract, but it’s not clear how long it might take for the NBA to approve that request.
Even if the Warriors get that DPE soon, making a $9MM offer to a free agent would increase the club’s already-massive projected tax bill exponentially, and it’s not clear just how much team ownership is willing to pay for this season’s roster — especially with Thompson’s injury compromising Golden State’s championship chances.
While the Warriors are in the market for a center like Gasol, they’re not limiting their free agent search to traditional bigs, according to Monte Poole of NBC Sports Bay Area, who says (via Twitter) that wing-type players are also being considered.
Checking In On Top Remaining NBA Free Agents
Technically, most of this year’s top free agents remain unsigned. Until the moratorium at the place at the start of the 2020/21 league year lifts at 11:01am central time today, most of them are ineligible to sign their new contracts.
However, over the last two days, many of the players from our list of 2020’s top free agents have taken themselves off the market by reaching contract agreements with teams around the league.
[RELATED: 2020 NBA Free Agent Tracker]
While those are just tentative agreements and could still fall apart, that usually doesn’t happen more than once or twice in a given offseason, so it’s safe to pencil those deals in for the time being and assume those free agents are off the board.
So who does that leave? Here are the top free agents from our top-50 list who have yet to agree to new deals:
- Anthony Davis, F/C, Lakers
- Brandon Ingram, F, Pelicans (RFA)
- Bogdan Bogdanovic, G/F, Kings (RFA)
- Hassan Whiteside, C, Trail Blazers
- Dario Saric, F, Suns (RFA)
- Aron Baynes, C, Suns
- Bryn Forbes, G, Spurs
- Marc Gasol, C, Raptors
- Juan Hernangomez, F, Timberwolves (RFA)
- Kent Bazemore, F, Kings
- Markieff Morris, F, Lakers
- Langston Galloway, G, Pistons
- Harry Giles, C, Kings
- Reggie Jackson, G, Clippers
Several of the players listed in our honorable mention section – including Chris Boucher (RFA), Chris Chiozza (RFA), Torrey Craig, Shaquille Harrison, Rondae Hollis-Jefferson, Frank Kaminsky, Alex Len, Jordan McLaughlin (RFA), E’Twaun Moore, Shabazz Napier, Austin Rivers, and Glenn Robinson – also remain unsigned.
Plus, a few noteworthy veterans have hit the free agent market since we published our list, having cleared waivers after being released. That group includes Taj Gibson, Ersan Ilyasova, and Wayne Ellington.
Now, while the idea that Davis and Ingram are still out there may seem tantalizing, the idea that either of those players will leave his current team is probably misguided. Davis has always planned to re-sign with the Lakers and simply intends to take his time before finalizing an agreement. It’s possible it won’t happen until after Thanksgiving, or even early December.
As for Ingram, his restricted status means the Pelicans would be able to match any offer he receives and the assumption is that the team would do so. The more likely scenario is that Ingram and New Orleans will simply work out their own maximum-salary agreement.
So if we’re considering the top free agents who are still legitimately available, the list probably starts with Bogdanovic. We’ll see if anything happens with him today once the moratorium ends — if he were to sign an offer sheet at that point with the Hawks (who are very interested), the clock would start immediately on the Kings, who would have two days to decide whether or not to match.
The complete list of available free agents can be found right here.
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