Timberwolves Sign Kyle Anderson
JULY 8: The Timberwolves have officially signed Anderson, according to the transactions log at NBA.com.
JUNE 30: The Timberwolves and free agent forward Kyle Anderson have agreed to a two-year, $18MM deal, agents Thad Foucher and Joe Smith tell Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN (Twitter link).
The terms of the contract suggest Minnesota will be using part of its non-taxpayer mid-level exception to sign Anderson. Both years will be guaranteed, tweets Darren Wolfson of 5 Eyewitness News.
After enjoying a career year in 2020/21 with 12.4 PPG and a .360 3PT%, Anderson failed to match those numbers in ’21/22, but he remains a solid defensive wing who rebounds well for his size and can act as a secondary play-maker.
Anderson averaged 7.6 PPG, 5.3 RPG, 2.7 APG, and 1.1 SPG on .446/.330/.638 shooting in 69 games (21.5 MPG) for Memphis this past season.
According to Dane Moore of Bring Me The News (Twitter link), the Wolves “really wanted” to add a player who could create his own shot and put pressure on the rim. They believe Anderson fits that bill.
Salary Cap, Tax Line Set For 2022/23 NBA Season
Amid a flurry of early contract agreements during the first couple hours of 2022’s free agent period, the NBA has officially set the salary cap for its 2022/23 season. As reported earlier this week, the cap increased by a full 10% on last season’s $112,414,000 figure.
Here are the details, courtesy of a league press release and a Twitter thread from Eric Pincus of Bleacher Report:
- Salary cap: $123,655,000
- Luxury tax line: $150,267,000
- Salary floor: $111,290,000
- Non-taxpayer mid-level exception: $10,490,000
- Taxpayer mid-level exception: $6,479,000
- Room exception: $5,401,000
- Maximum salaries:
- 6 years or fewer: $30,913,750
- 7-9 years: $37,096,500
- 10+ years: $43,279,250
- Early Bird exception: $10,843,350
- Estimated average salary: $10,792,000
- Tax apron: $156,983,000
- Trade cash limit: $6,363,000
The tax apron for the 2022/23 league year will be the hard cap for any team that acquires a player via sign-and-trade, signs a player using more than the taxpayer portion of the mid-level exception, or signs a player using a bi-annual exception.
The Early Bird exception is the maximum amount a team can offer a player it intends to re-sign using his Early Bird rights. Bobby Portis (Bucks) and Nicolas Batum (Clippers) are among the players who have already agreed to Early Bird deals.
Players earning below the estimated average salary who are eligible for a veteran extension can receive a starting salary of up to 120% of the estimated average salary on a new deal. So the maximum starting salary for a player earning below the league average who signs an extension that begins in 2023/24 will be $12,950,400.
[RELATED: Maximum Salaries For 2022/23]
[RELATED: Minimum Salaries For 2022/23]
[RELATED: Values Of 2022/23 Mid-Level, Bi-Annual Exceptions]
The salary floor is the minimum amount a team must pay its players in 2022/23. A team that doesn’t spend up to that amount will distribute the shortfall to its players. For instance, the Thunder had a shortfall of $22.7MM in ’21/22, which will be divided among their players, tweets Pincus.
The trade cash limit is the maximum amount of money a team can send or receive during the 2022/23 league year. The sent and received categories are separate, so if a team sends out $6,363,000 in one trade and receives $6,363,000 in another, they aren’t back at square one — they’ve reached both limits.
The NBA has also updated its salary cap projections for the 2023/24 season and is now forecasting a $133MM cap and a $161MM tax line, according to Pincus (Twitter link).
JaVale McGee Joins Mavericks On Three-Year Contract
JULY 9: McGee’s contract is official, the Mavericks confirmed (via Twitter).
JUNE 30: The Mavericks have been adding some size this offseason. After trading for big man Christian Wood earlier this month, Dallas is set to sign journeyman veteran center JaVale McGee to a three-year contract, according to Chris Haynes of Yahoo Sports.
Shams Charania of The Athletic tweets that the deal is a three-year, $20.1MM agreement, and the final season is a player option.
That figure suggests the Mavs are using their full taxpayer mid-level exception on McGee, but Marc Stein tweets that the team intends to preserve some of that MLE to sign second-round pick Jaden Hardy to a three-year contract. If that’s the case, McGee’s three-year deal will be worth about $17.2MM, tweets Yossi Gozlan of HoopsHype.
McGee expects to start at the five for Dallas, per Tim MacMahon of ESPN (Twitter link). MacMahon adds that this signing will reunite McGee with former Lakers comrades Jason Kidd, now the Mavericks’ head coach, and Dallas assistant coach Jared Dudley. Kidd served as an assistant coach under Frank Vogel and Dudley was a reserve on a title-winning 2020 Los Angeles team along with McGee.
The seven-footer, a three-time NBA champion, raved about his on-court fit with Mavericks All-Star guard Luka Doncic. “I saw some opportunities out there where I was like, ‘Oh yeah, if they had a rolling big, they could dominate in a different aspect,'” McGee said.
After being selected with the No. 18 pick by the Wizards out of Nevada in 2008, the seven-footer flashed plenty of promise with Washington as a hyper-athletic, rim-rolling center, but was ultimately dealt to the Nuggets in 2012. He was re-signed to a pricey extension in Denver, only to be dealt again, this time to the Sixers, in 2015.
McGee then enjoyed an initial one-year stint with Dallas during the 2015/16 season. He only really blossomed as one of the best low-usage centers in the league after signing with the Warriors in 2017, winning two titles with a star-studded Golden State franchise. McGee then joined the Lakers in 2018, eventually winning his third championship in 2020. The Lakers sent him to the Cavaliers during the following offseason, before he was dealt to the Nuggets and once again became a valuable reserve on a playoff contender. He spent last-season with yet another starry postseason club, the 64-win Suns, on a one-year, $5MM deal.
In 74 games with Phoenix, McGee averaged 9.2 PPG, 6.7 RPG and 1.1 BPG across just 15.8 MPG. The 34-year-old connected on an excellent 62.9% of his 6.2 field goals per night.
Lakers To Sign Lonnie Walker, Damian Jones, Troy Brown Jr.
The Lakers are signing Lonnie Walker to a one-year, $6.5MM deal, Damian Jones to a two-year, minimum-salary deal with a player option, and Troy Brown Jr. to a minimum deal, according reports from Shams Charania of The Athletic and Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN (All Twitter links here). Brown’s contract is for one year, tweets Dave McMenamin of ESPN.
Walker, 23, was the 18th pick of the 2018 draft and spent his first four seasons with the Spurs. He’s a very athletic guard and has shown glimpses of potential, but struggled with efficiency last season (.407/.314/.784 shooting line).
In 70 games (23 MPG) with San Antonio last season, Walker averaged 12.1 PPG, 2.6 RPG and 2.2 APG. The Spurs decided to withdraw his qualifying offer just before free agency opened, making him unrestricted and free to sign with any team. The move wasn’t very surprising considering the Spurs were better with him off the court (+2.1 net rating) than on it (-3.0), so he’ll be looking to build up his value in Los Angeles after an up-and-down tenure in San Antonio.
Jones, who turns 27 today, had a solid season with the Kings in 2021/22 after struggling to find a standard roster spot in ’20/21. In 56 games this season (18.2 MPG), Jones averaged 8.1 PPG and 4.4 RPG while shooting 65.8% from the field and 71.8% from the line.
After being drafted 30th overall in 2016 by the Warriors, Jones spent his first three seasons with Golden State but struggled to find a consistent role. He’s long and athletic, but was raw coming out of college. He made stops in Atlanta, Phoenix and L.A. from 2019-21 before landing with Sacramento, where he developed into a solid backup center.
Brown, 22, was the 15th pick of the 2018 draft and spent his first two-plus seasons with Washington before being traded to Chicago last year. The Bulls declined his qualifying offer after he struggled to make an impact this season, averaging 4.3 PPG and 3.1 RPG on .419/.353/.769 shooting in 66 games (16 MPG).
By using the taxpayer mid-level exception to sign Walker, the Lakers will be limited to a minimum contract for Max Christie, whom the team selected with the 35th pick of the draft last week. Christie’s deal will be limited to two years, as ESPN’s Bobby Marks relays (via Twitter).
Pistons Re-Sign Marvin Bagley III To Three-Year Contract
JULY 6: Bagley’s contract is now official, per NBA.com’s transactions log.
JUNE 30: The Pistons have agreed to bring back restricted free agent power forward Marvin Bagley III on a three-year, $37MM contract, writes Chris Haynes of Yahoo Sports.
After being selected by the Kings with the second pick in the 2018 draft over multiple future All-Stars, Bagley struggled through erratic playing time and a variety of injuries with Sacramento, but produced on offense when given some leeway by the team. He holds career averages of 13.6 PPG, on 50.1% shooting, and 7.4 RPG.
Bagley was traded to the Pistons in a four-team deal this February. In 18 games with Detroit, Bagley averaged 14.6 PPG, 6.8 RPG, 1.1 APG and 0.7 SPG across 27.2 MPG. The 6’11” big man, still just 23, has yet to become a plus defender, but has value as a scorer on a rebuilding young Pistons team.
Detroit has already enjoyed a busy 2022 offseason. In this year’s NBA draft lottery, the club selected guard Jaden Ivey and center Jalen Duren. The team also traded for veteran shooting guard Alec Burks and reserve center Nerlens Noel from the Knicks. These new additions will join Bagley, 2021 No. 1 pick Cade Cunningham, an All-Rookie First Team selection, promising young center Isaiah Stewart, and former lottery pick Killian Hayes as the Pistons continue to look toward the future.
Clippers Re-Sign Nicolas Batum To Two-Year Contract
JULY 6: The Clippers have officially re-signed Batum, the team announced today in a press release.
“Nico is a selfless vet and a winning player whose intelligence, versatility and skill have lifted our team for the past two years,” president of basketball operations Lawrence Frank said in a statement. “We wanted to keep building with him and are honored he wanted the same.”
JUNE 30: Veteran Clippers forward Nicolas Batum has agreed to return to Los Angeles on a two-season, $22MM contract, according to Chris Haynes of Yahoo Sports.
After being selected with the No. 25 pick in 2008, Batum first established himself as a switchable, reliable 3-and-D wing with the Trail Blazers. After becoming a full-time starter on multiple Portland playoff teams, Batum was eventually traded to the Hornets in 2015.
Following a lackluster run with the Hornets on a lucrative five-year, $120MM deal, Batum was waived by Charlotte ahead of the 2020/21 season, which would have been the final year on his deal. Batum joined the Clippers on a minimum contract in 2020, and promptly rebuilt his NBA value as a solid forward on both ends of the floor, capable of playing either small or power forward.
During the 2021/22 season, Batum averaged 8.3 PPG, 4.3 RPG, 1.7 APG, 1.0 SPG and 0.7 BPG for the Clippers across 59 games, including 54 starts. He posted a shooting line of .463/.400/.658. Batum declined a $3.3MM player option with L.A. ahead of the start of free agency today.
Los Angeles is gearing up for an anticipated deep playoff run, with All-Star wings Kawhi Leonard and Paul George both projected to be healthy during the 2022/23 season. In addition to bringing back 33-year-old Batum, the Clippers also are set to add 31-year-old former five-time All-Star John Wall to a team-friendly contract as they shore up veteran depth.
The Clippers are re-signing Batum using the Early Bird exception, which requires the deal to be for at least two years, with no options.
Sixers Sign P.J. Tucker, Danuel House, Trevelin Queen
JULY 6: With the moratorium lifted, the Sixers have now made their deals with Tucker and House official as well.
“P.J. Tucker is one of the most respected and relentless competitors in our game and is the type of competitor our fans will love and embrace,” Morey said in a press release announcing the signing of Tucker. “We’re excited to add his leadership, toughness, defensive versatility and championship pedigree to our roster. P.J. wants to deliver an NBA title to Philadelphia and his work ethic and mentality make him an impactful addition to our team and city.”
JULY 1: Queen’s deal is now official, the Sixers announced in a press release. Minimum-salary contracts can be officially completed during the July moratorium.
JUNE 30: It’s fair to say Sixers president of basketball operations Daryl Morey has a type. Philadelphia has reportedly agreed to terms with three players who used to play for Morey’s former team in Houston.
Free agent forward P.J. Tucker is finalizing a three-year, $33.2MM fully guaranteed deal with the 76ers, agent Andre Buck tells Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link). That long-rumored agreement will use the team’s full non-taxpayer mid-level exception.
The Sixers have also agreed to sign free agent forward Danuel House, tweets Charania. House is getting a two-year, $8.5MM deal, per Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN (Twitter link).
House’s deal, which will be completed using the bi-annual exception, has a second-year player option, league sources tell Michael Scotto of HoopsHype (Twitter link).
Finally, Philadelphia has reached a deal with G League MVP Trevelin Queen, according to Wojnarowski (Twitter link). The guard will sign a two-year, minimum-salary contract with a partial guarantee ($300K) in year one, tweets Derek Bodner of The Athletic.
As a result of using their full MLE and BAE, the Sixers will be hard-capped for the coming season.
The 76ers were able to use those exceptions in full due to James Harden opting out of his contract and planning to accept a lower first-year salary on a new deal with the team. If Harden’s $47MM+ option had been on Philadelphia’s books, the club would’ve been hard-pressed to remain under a hard cap.
The Sixers have been mentioned as Tucker’s most likely landing spot for much of the last week. Star center Joel Embiid singled out Tucker in his comments to the media after the team lost to Miami in the playoffs, stating that Philadelphia needed a tough, versatile player like that in its frontcourt. Needless to say, Embiid will be happy that the Sixers went out and got the 37-year-old.
House, 29, helped shore up the Jazz’s perimeter defense and hit 41.5% of his three-pointers in a 25-game stint with the club this past season. He’ll give the Sixers another three-and-D rotation player.
Malik Monk Signs Two-Year Contract With Kings
JULY 6, 1:37pm: Monk’s new deal with the Kings is now official, according to a press release from the team.
“Malik Monk is an elite shooter, fierce competitor and tremendous athlete,” GM Monte McNair said in a statement. “We’re thrilled to have him join us in Sacramento.”
JUNE 30, 5:37pm: Monk will sign a two-year, $19MM contract with the Kings, reports Damian Barling of ESPN 1320 (Twitter link).
JUNE 30, 4:07pm: “There is a lot of smoke” about Malik Monk signing with the Kings once free agency opens at 5:00pm CT, multiple sources tell James Ham of ESPN 1320 and The Kings Beat (Twitter link).
Jason Anderson of The Sacramento Bee hears similarly, reporting (via Twitter) that he’s getting “strong indications” from sources that Monk could be reuniting with former Kentucky teammate De’Aaron Fox. Monk and Fox were both lottery picks in 2017.
Jake Fischer of Bleacher Report was the first to link Monk to the Kings on a Spotify Live appearance with Marc Stein late Wednesday night.
Monk struggled to find a team last summer after the Hornets didn’t tender him a qualifying offer, but became one of the best values in the league on a one-year, minimum-salary contract with the Lakers. Monk had a career-year last season, averaging 13.8 PPG, 3.4 RPG and 2.9 APG on .473/.391/.795 shooting in 76 games (37 starts, 28.1 MPG).
L.A. only holds Non-Bird rights on Monk and will be limited to a contract that starts at the taxpayer mid-level exception, which is projected to be $6.5MM next season.
The Kings could offer Monk the mid-level exception, projected to be worth about $10.5MM next season, for as many as four years. There’s also a possibility that Sacramento could open up some cap space to sign him outright, depending on if the team makes some trades and releases some of their cap holds.
Monk, 24, is reportedly looking for a role where he can receive significant minutes and “be himself,” as he recently told Jovan Buha of The Athletic.
Heat Re-Sign Dewayne Dedmon
JULY 6: The Heat have officially re-signed Dedmon, the club announced in a press release. According to Anthony Chiang of The Miami Herald (Twitter link), the deal is conditionally guaranteed for the second year.
“Dewayne brings essential attributes to the center position, including size, length, physicality, rebounding, scoring and a defensive mentality to protect the rim,” team president Pat Riley said in a statement. “He has proven to be a great veteran for us and we are fortunate to have him back.”
Oladipo and the Heat adjusted the terms of his deal, so he’ll be signing for two years instead of one.
JUNE 30: The Heat have reached agreements with a pair of their own free agents. Veteran guard Victor Oladipo is signing a one-year, $11MM contract to remain in Miami, while center Dewayne Dedmon has agreed to a two-year, $9MM pact, according to Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter links).
Miami had Oladipo’s Bird rights and Dedmon’s Early Bird rights, so the team won’t have to use its mid-level or bi-annual exception to complete the deals.
A two-time All-Star, Oladipo has appeared in just 60 regular season games since the start of the 2019/20 season due to a series of injuries related to his quad.
He missed most of the ’21/22 campaign while recovering from a surgery, but showed flashes of his old self down the stretch, averaging 12.4 PPG and 3.5 APG on .479/.417/.737 shooting in eight games (21.6 MPG). The former All-Defensive First Teamer also exhibited his old versatility on defense.
A report earlier this week stated that Oladipo was considered unlikely to remain with the Heat, but the two sides ultimately worked out an agreement. It’s possible the club increased its efforts to re-sign Oladipo as a result of losing P.J. Tucker to Philadelphia; it’s also possible Oladipo didn’t get the kind of offers he sought on the open market. Of course, that earlier report may have just been erroneous. In any case, the 30-year-old is on track to return to Miami for another season.
Dedmon will once again slot into the Heat’s depth chart as a backup at the five. The nine-year veteran, who will turn 33 next month averaged 6.3 PPG and 5.8 RPG in 67 games (15.9 MPG) this past season.
Grizzlies Re-Sign Tyus Jones
JULY 6: The Grizzlies have officially re-signed Jones, the team announced today in a press release.
JUNE 30: The Grizzlies are re-signing point guard Tyus Jones, according to Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN (Twitter link). Agent Kevin Bradbury tells Wojnarowski that Jones is signing a two-year, $30MM contract to remain in Memphis.
Jones was expected to draw significant interest from teams in need of help at the point this summer, but many of those teams only had the mid-level exception available. Jones’ new deal with the Grizzlies will be worth significantly more than that.
The NBA’s leader in assist-to-turnover ratio for four straight seasons, Jones has turned the ball over just 326 times in 8,377 career NBA minutes. Besides taking care of the ball and distributing it, the 26-year-old also set career highs in PPG (8.7) and 3PT% (.390) in 2021/22.
Although he has never been a full-time starter for the Grizzlies, Jones plays an important role alongside Ja Morant and provides the team with a solid insurance policy if Morant, who plays at a breakneck pace, continues to deal with injury issues going forward.
Memphis also traded De’Anthony Melton to Philadelphia earlier in the offseason, which could lead to a slightly expanded role for Jones in 2022/23.