2017’s Top 10 Free Agent Deals By Annual Value
It’s taken two offseasons but NBA fans are finally starting to get used to the “new normal” when it comes to player contracts. This year we saw some of the league’s richest deals ever handed out, with sums far exceeding even last year’s historic agreements.
Of course, this is the new era of professional basketball and after a somewhat unpredictable spending spree last offseason, the market balanced itself out in 2017 thanks in no small part to fewer teams having boatloads of available cap space.
Here’s a quick look at what this summer’s top earners will bring home on their new deals. The figures take only guaranteed money into account and are sorted by annual value.
Stephen Curry, Warriors: $40.2MM over 5 years.
Blake Griffin, Clippers: $33.1MM over 4 years.
Gordon Hayward, Celtics: $31.2MM over 3 years.
Kyle Lowry, Raptors: $31.0MM over 3 years
Paul Millsap, Nuggets: $30.5MM over 2 years.
Otto Porter, Wizards: $26.0MM over 3 years.
Jrue Holiday, Pelicans: $26.0MM over 4 years
Kevin Durant, Warriors: $25.0MM over 1 year.
J.J. Redick, 76ers: $23.0MM over 1 year.
Serge Ibaka, Raptors: $21.7MM over 3 years.
Below, by contrast, are the top 10 annual values* dolled out just four summers ago in 2013.
Dwight Howard, Rockets: $21.9MM over 4 years.
Chris Paul, Clippers: $21.5MM over 5 years.
Al Jefferson, Bobcats/Hornets: $13.5MM over 3 years.
Josh Smith, Pistons: $13.5MM over 4 years.
Andrew Bynum, Cavaliers: $12.4MM over 2 years.
David West, Pacers: $12.2MM over 3 years.
Andre Iguodala, Warriors: $12.0MM over 4 years.
Nikola Pekovic, Timberwolves: $12.0MM over 5 years.
Tyreke Evans, Pelicans: $11.0MM over 4 years.
Paul Millsap, Hawks: $9.5MM over 2 years.
*Values include non-guaranteed money.
Weekly Mailbag: 8/7/17 – 8/13/17
We have an opportunity for you to hit us up with your questions in this, our weekly mailbag feature. Have a question regarding player movement, the salary cap or the NBA draft? Drop us a line at HoopsRumorsMailbag@Gmail.com.
Fact or fiction: Carmelo Anthony and Kyrie Irving will be on new teams before training camp begins. — Deven Parikh
These will be the top two stories to watch in the next six weeks or so until training camps open. To recap, Anthony has agreed to waive his no-trade clause, but so far only to join the Rockets, while Irving has asked Cavaliers owner Dan Gilbert for a trade so he can escape the long shadow of LeBron James. Whether the deals happen before camp starts — or at all –depends on how the front offices in New York and Cleveland view their situations. The Knicks have launched a youth movement that Anthony doesn’t fit. However, they don’t want to take on an expensive long-term contract in return, and the Rockets have to find a taker for Ryan Anderson to accommodate Anthony’s salary, so at least one more team is needed to make the deal work. The danger for the Knicks in holding onto Anthony is that he may not opt out of a nearly $28MM salary for 2018/19, limiting the team’s free agent options for another year. In Cleveland, it’s a matter of chemistry as the once-private feud between Irving and James is now very public and it’s almost impossible to imagine them co-existing for another season. The Knicks and Cavaliers will keep searching for the best deal, so this might take a while, but I expect Anthony and Irving to be both traded prior to camp and certainly before the season opens.
Who could the Thunder target in a trade that would make them contenders? I feel Thunder are one star away from being able to challenge Golden State. — Sawbone Sanchez
One more star to team with Russell Westbrook and Paul George would certainly make Oklahoma City a serious challenger. However, there aren’t any stars on the market right now except for Anthony and Irving and neither is a realistic option for OKC. The Thunder are also low on tradable assets after sending Victor Oladipo and Domantas Sabonis to the Pacers in exchange for George. Their best chance to add a star may come at the trade deadline in February, but to fit another hefty salary, they would have to find a taker for Steven Adams, who is owed $100MM over the next four years, or Enes Kanter, who will make nearly $17.9MM this season with an $18.6MM player option for 2018/19. Oklahoma City is also well over the cap for this season and the next one, so they will likely have to get by with the two stars they have.
Do you think the Lakers can make the playoffs this year with their current roster? – Armond Godfrey, via Twitter
L.A. has done a lot to improve over the offseason, trading for Brook Lopez, signing Kentavious Caldwell-Pope and drafting Lonzo Ball to add to an already-impressive collection of young talent. The Lakers will be better, but they still look overmatched in a loaded Western Conference. The team is coming off a 26-56 season, so just getting near .500 will be a significant improvement, but a .500 record won’t get them into the playoffs. Even so, the future is very bright in L.A., and if the rumors about George and LeBron joining the team next summer are true, the Lakers will be among the league’s elite teams again very quickly.
Community Shootaround: Pacers’ Playoff Chances
The Pacers are entering year one without Paul George, but that doesn’t mean the team will slide out of the top eight in the Eastern Conference, according to the franchise’s longest tenured player.
“I feel like we’re definitely going to be overlooked this year,” Myles Turner said (via Matthew VanTyron of the Indianapolis Star). “A lot of people look at us as young team that’s going to rebuild, but we’re a young team that’s trying to compete. We’ve got a lot of guys who can come in and make an impact right away. I expect to make the playoffs this year.”
Kevin Pelton of ESPN.com projects Indiana to finish 11th in the conference and earn a lottery appearance, something that’s only happened once since the team drafted George back in 2010.
Pelton foresees the team struggling on offense and it’s easy to see why. Scour the roster for a No. 1 scorer. Will Victor Oladipo expand his game? How about Darren Collison? Should either Lance Stephenson or Bojan Bogdanovic lead a team in shots?
The questions on offense will likely persist all season, though that alone doesn’t mean a playoff birth is inconceivable. The Eastern Conference appears weaker than it has in several years and somewhere between 35 and 40 games could be enough to lock in a lower seed. Pelton projects the team to get 32 wins this season, a total that’s slightly behind his projections for the Magic, Sixers, and Pistons—the team that the statistician has in the conference’s eighth seed with just 35.1 wins in his simulations.
If the Pacers see just a few players outperform their expected output this season, the team could end up playing games that matter in April.
That leads us to tonight’s topic: Will the Pacers make the playoffs this season? If not, what moves can they make before the trade deadline to improve their chances? Please take to the comment section below to share your thoughts and opinions. We look forward to what you have to say!
Hoops Rumors Originals: 8/5/17 – 8/12/17
Every week, the Hoops Rumors writing team compiles original content to complement our news feed. This week, we were particularly productive with our original content. Enjoy our favorite segments and features from the past seven days:
- Here is our updated 2017 NBA Free Agent Tracker.
- Which NBA teams are projected 2017/18 taxpayers?
- What is the current Offseason Roster Count for each NBA team?
- Which teams are carrying at least 15 guaranteed contracts?
- Which NBA players cannot be traded until December 15?
- And which NBA players cannot be traded until January 15?
- Three 2017 free agents signed five-year contracts. Who are they?
- Who are the longest-tenured active head coaches in the NBA?
- Who are the longest-tenured active GMs/presidents in the NBA?
- Arthur Hill discussed the prospect of Paul George being recruited by the Warriors, what the Knicks need for a change in direction, and what factors into waiver claims in his weekly Sunday mailbag. Submit your questions via Twitter (@HoopsRumors) or by sending us an email (hoopsrumorsmailbag@gmail.com).
- Check out our free Trade Rumors app available for IOS and Android.
- Here are the questions we asked you in our Community Shootaround discussions and polls this week:
- Who will win the Northwest division this season?
- Which NBA team has had the best offseason?
- Which Southwest division team had the best offseason?
- Which Southeast division team had the best offseason?
- Which Central division team had the best offseason?
- Which Pacific division team had the best offseason?
- What do you think of one person holding both head coach and president roles in the NBA?
- Which potential matchup on the NBA schedule are you most anticipating?
- Which of the revealed NBA jersey patches look the nicest?
Players Who Can’t Be Traded Until January 15
As we detailed on Thursday, players who signed new contracts as free agents during the 2017/18 league year can’t be traded for three months or until December 15, whichever comes later. That means that nearly every team has at least one player – and generally a handful – who won’t become trade-eligible until mid-December.
As we alluded to in that article, there’s also a small subset of free agent signees whose trade ineligibility lasts for another month. These players all meet a specific set of criteria: Not only did they re-sign with their previous team this offseason, but they got a raise of at least 20%, their salary is worth more than the minimum, and their team was over the cap, using Bird or Early Bird rights to sign them.
Listed below are the players who meet this criteria and can’t be traded until at least January 15, 2018. Players who have the ability to veto trades in 2017/18 are marked with an asterisk. We’ll continue to update this page over the next few months, if necessary.
Chicago Bulls
Cleveland Cavaliers
Denver Nuggets
Golden State Warriors
Los Angeles Clippers
Memphis Grizzlies
Milwaukee Bucks
New Orleans Pelicans
Oklahoma City Thunder
San Antonio Spurs
Toronto Raptors
Utah Jazz
Washington Wizards
Information from Basketball Insiders and ESPN was used in the creation of this post.
Trade Rumors App For iOS/Android
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Trade Rumors, available for iOS and Android, is the best way to consume our content on a mobile device. Here’s what it delivers, all for free:
- All the articles from Hoops Rumors, MLB Trade Rumors, Pro Football Rumors, and Pro Hockey Rumors in an easy-to-navigate, eye-catching format. Swipe through stories to quickly consume all the news and rumors from our four sites. Not into all four sports? No problem – any sport can be easily removed.
- Customize what you see. You can create feeds for any team or player across any of our sites.
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- Commenting. You can read and contribute comments on the app seamlessly.
- Customer service. If you find a bug, we’ll fix it. If you have a feature request, we’ll consider it. The app is continually evolving and improving.
- Did we mention Trade Rumors is a free app? What do you have to lose? Download it now!
Longest-Tenured NBA GMs/Presidents
When we examined the NBA’s longest-tenured head coaches earlier this week, we noted that it has been over a year since any team has made a coaching change, an improbable and impressive run of league-wide stability. However, the same can’t be said for teams’ front offices. Since the 2016/17 season ended, seven NBA clubs have named new heads of basketball operations, and that list doesn’t include the Lakers, who re-shaped their front office earlier in the year.
Although there have been more recent changes in front offices than on NBA sidelines, the same name tops the list of longest-tenured head coaches and GMs/presidents: Gregg Popovich actually became the Spurs‘ president of basketball operations two years before he took over as the club’s head coach. Still, his place in San Antonio’s hierarchy is one of a handful of situations around the league that’s somewhat difficult to pin down.
While just one person holds a team’s head coaching job, that same team could carry a variety of front office executives with titles like general manager, president of basketball operations, or executive VP of basketball operations. In some cases, it’s not always which clear which executive should be considered the club’s head of basketball operations, or which one has the ultimate final say on roster decisions. That distinction becomes even more nebulous when taking into account team ownership.
For our list of the longest-tenured GMs/presidents in the NBA, we’ve done our best to identify the top exec in each front office. In the case of the Spurs, we’ve listed Popovich as the club’s top man, since he has the final say on basketball decisions, even though GM R.C. Buford plays a huge part in that process too. If there’s any ambiguity in a front office, we’ve added a note below to explain our thinking.
Without further ado, here’s the list of the NBA’s longest-tenured heads of basketball operations, along with their respective titles and the dates they were hired or promoted:
- Gregg Popovich, Spurs (president): May 31, 1994
- GM R.C. Buford has had a significant voice in personnel moves since becoming GM in 2002, but Popovich still has final say on those decisions.
- Pat Riley, Heat (president): September 2, 1995
- John Paxson, Bulls (executive VP): April 14, 2003
- GM Gar Forman has played a major part in personnel decisions since his hiring in 2009, but Paxson is believed to still be the head of basketball operations, reporting only to ownership.
- Danny Ainge, Celtics (president): May 9, 2003
- Ernie Grunfeld, Wizards (president): June 30, 2003
- Donn Nelson, Mavericks (GM/president): March 19, 2005
- Owner Mark Cuban is also heavily involved in basketball decisions and ultimately has final say.
- Daryl Morey, Rockets (GM): May 6, 2007
- Sam Presti, Thunder (GM/executive VP): June 7, 2007
- Dell Demps, Pelicans (GM/senior VP): July 21, 2010
- Executive VP of basketball operations Mickey Loomis is also in the picture here, but Loomis – who is also the top man in the New Orleans Saints’ front office – seems to let Demps handle basketball decisions for the most part.
- Rich Cho, Hornets (GM): June 14, 2011
- Bob Myers, Warriors (GM/president): April 24, 2012
- Neil Olshey, Trail Blazers (president): June 4, 2012
- Dennis Lindsey, Jazz (GM): August 7, 2012
- Ryan McDonough, Suns (GM): May 7, 2013
- Masai Ujiri, Raptors (president): May 31, 2013
- Tim Connelly, Nuggets (GM/executive VP): June 17, 2013
- Stan Van Gundy, Pistons (president): May 14, 2014
- Chris Wallace, Grizzlies (GM): May 19, 2014
- Initially named the Grizzlies’ GM in June 2007, Wallace was demoted in 2012 as Jason Levien assumed control of basketball operations. Wallace regained his front office power in May 2014.
- Vlade Divac, Kings (GM): March 3, 2015
- Sean Marks, Nets (GM): February 18, 2016
- Bryan Colangelo, Sixers (president): April 10, 2016
- Tom Thibodeau, Timberwolves (president): April 20, 2016
- Magic Johnson, Lakers (president): February 21, 2017
- Kevin Pritchard, Pacers (president): May 1, 2017
- Jeff Weltman, Magic (president): May 22, 2017
- Travis Schlenk, Hawks (GM): May 25, 2017
- Jon Horst, Bucks (GM): June 16, 2017
- Koby Altman, Cavaliers (GM): June 19, 2017
- Initially the Cavaliers’ interim GM, Altman had his role made permanent on July 24, 2017.
- Steve Mills, Knicks (president): June 28, 2017
- Initially the Knicks’ interim president, Mills had his role made permanent on July 14, 2017.
- Lawrence Frank, Clippers (executive VP): August 4, 2017
- Frank was given control over the Clippers’ front office on August 4, 2017, but it’s not clear if he received a new title or if he’s still the executive VP of basketball ops.
Information from Basketball-Reference was used in the creation of this post.
Players Who Can’t Be Traded Until December 15
As teams consider what sort of packages to offer for potential trade targets around the NBA, there are a number of trade restrictions that those clubs must take into account. For instance, recently-signed draft picks can’t be traded for 30 days and waiver claims can’t be traded for until the 30th day of the regular season. Most notably, newly-signed free agents can’t be dealt until at least December 15.
The NBA’s Collective Bargaining Agreement states that a free agent who signs with an NBA team can’t be traded for three months or until December 15, whichever is later. So, players who sign new contracts prior to September 15 won’t be trade-eligible until at least December 15.
There are also some recently-signed players who meet a few specific criteria and can’t be traded until January 15. We’ve covered those players in a separate article.
Listed below are the players who aren’t eligible to be traded until December 15. Players whose contracts haven’t been officially finalized aren’t yet listed, while players who have the ability to veto trades in 2017/18 are marked with an asterisk. We’ll continue to update this page over the next few months, as players are signed or waived.
Updated 11-2-17 (11:58am CT)
Atlanta Hawks
Boston Celtics
Brooklyn Nets
Charlotte Hornets
Chicago Bulls
Cleveland Cavaliers
Community Shootaround: NBA Schedule
The schedule for next season is due out this week, and some specifics are already being leaked. Offseason player movement always gives us a handful of can’t-miss games, and there are several to circle on the calendar this year:
- Paul George‘s return to Indiana — A four-time All-Star, George was the top player on several very good Pacers teams in recent years. He formed a strong bond with Indiana fans, especially after returning from a devastating tibia-fibia fracture he suffered while playing for Team USA. However, George reportedly is leaning toward opting out next summer and signing with the Lakers, and his agent informed the Pacers that they weren’t in his long-term plans. A surprise trade just before the start of free agency sent him to the Thunder. It will be interesting to watch the fan reaction during his lone appearance in Indiana this season with Oklahoma City.
- Jimmy Butler‘s return to Chicago — Butler was a fan favorite in Chicago, but he didn’t fit the team once the front office decided to rebuild. His draft-night trade to Minnesota reunites him with coach/executive Tom Thibodeau and makes the Wolves a playoff contender in the West. Bulls fans may have a long, difficult season ahead of them, but they will get to welcome back Butler for one night.
- Gordon Hayward‘s return to Utah — Hayward was another beloved player during his seven seasons with the Jazz, finally earning All-Star status last season and becoming a cornerstone of a team on the rise in the West. He was the last major free agent to make a decision in July, and he put Utah fans through an excruciating wait before formally announcing his decision to join the Celtics. Hayward’s loss pushes Utah back to the middle of the pack in the ultra-competitive Western Conference as Jazz fans will get just one opportunity to watch him in person this year.
- Chris Paul‘s return to Los Angeles — Paul teamed with Blake Griffin and DeAndre Jordan to form the nucleus of some very good Clippers teams that were never able to make a prolonged playoff run. Paul decided he wanted to join James Harden in Houston, leaving the Clippers with little option but to trade him there before free agency began. Paul was a popular player in L.A., but we’ll see how Clippers fans receive him after he broke up their Big Three.
- Kyrie Irving‘s return to Cleveland? — This will be must-see TV if Irving gets the trade he told owner Dan Gilbert that he wants. A simmering feud with LeBron James and Irving’s desire to run his own team will serve as subplots if the man who hit the title-winning shot in 2016 returns to Quicken Loans Arena in another uniform.
- Carmelo Anthony‘s return to New York? — After surviving an ugly feud with former team president Phil Jackson, Anthony has agreed to waive his no-trade clause, but reportedly only for the Rockets. The teams couldn’t find the right mix of other franchises to make a deal work, and talks were paused when Scott Perry took over as Knicks GM. If Anthony does get dealt, the reaction of Knicks fans when he comes back to the Garden could depend on what their team gets in return.
Those are six potential landmark games for the upcoming season, but there are many more. We want to know the game you’re most looking forward to and why. Please leave your comments below.
NBA Teams Carrying At Least 15 Guaranteed Contracts
As we detailed earlier today in our breakdown of each NBA team’s current roster count, clubs can carry up to 20 players in the offseason, but are limited to 15 players on their regular season rosters. As such, teams will often only carry 13 or 14 players on guaranteed contracts into training camp, giving a non-guaranteed player or two the opportunity to impress coaches and earn a spot on the 15-man squad.
However, even with training camps still a month and a half away, several NBA teams are already carrying 15 or more players with fully guaranteed salaries, limiting their roster flexibility and their ability to take fliers on camp invitees.
Here’s a breakdown of those teams, with their fully guaranteed salaries noted in parentheses:
- Boston Celtics (16)
- Golden State Warriors (15)
- Memphis Grizzlies (15)
- Sacramento Kings (15)
- Utah Jazz (15)
Of those five teams, the Celtics are the only club that will absolutely have to trade or waive a player on a guaranteed contract before the regular season gets underway. Shane Larkin and Daniel Theis may be the most at-risk players, since they don’t have any guaranteed money on their deals beyond the 2017/18 season. Abdel Nader and Semi Ojeleye also don’t have fully guaranteed salaries beyond this season, though they have partial guarantees for 2018/19.
Meanwhile, the Grizzlies will be in the same boat as Boston if they ultimately bring back restricted free agent JaMychal Green. A new deal for Green would give Memphis 16 guaranteed salaries. The Grizzlies also haven’t signed second-round pick Ivan Rabb, so if they intend to do so, they could create an even more significant roster crunch.
The other teams on the list above should, for the most part, have their 15-man regular season rosters locked in at this point, but if changes need to be made, the Kings should be willing to eat a guaranteed contract — they’re still well below the cap. The Jazz could afford to eat some money too, if necessary. The Warriors may be the team that needs to best make use of all 15 roster spots as they look to defend their title, but replacing a player on a guaranteed contract would be pricey, since Golden State is already deep into tax territory.
Finally, one other team worth watching is the Thunder. Currently, Oklahoma City only has 14 players on guaranteed contracts for 2017/18, but that figure doesn’t include Jerami Grant or Semaj Christon, both of whom could have a place on the club’s roster this season. I don’t think Grant will be going anywhere, so the Thunder may have to decide whether to part ways with Christon or whether another move can be made to keep him on the 15-man roster.
Salary information from Basketball Insiders was used in the creation of this post.