Nets Waive Dariq Whitehead, Drew Timme
The Nets have released Dariq Whitehead and Drew Timme, the team announced on Monday (Twitter link via Ian Begley of SNY.tv).
Whitehead being cut is significant because his $3,262,560 salary for 2025/26 is fully guaranteed, meaning the Nets will now carry a dead-money cap hit. Assuming he clears waivers, Whitehead’s $5,366,912 team option for 2026/27 will be declined as part of the transaction.
A 6’7″ wing, Whitehead was a highly touted high school recruit who has dealt with several injuries over the past few years. Brooklyn selected Whitehead 22nd overall in the 2023 draft after he spent one season at Duke, but the 21-year-old has only played in 22 NBA games over the past two seasons, averaging 5.3 points and 1.5 rebounds in 12.3 minutes per contest.
Timme, who had a decorated college career at Gonzaga, went undrafted in 2023 and spent most of the past two seasons in the G League. He was promoted to a two-year standard contract in late March after a strong ’24/25 regular season with the Nets’ affiliate team in Long Island.
The Nets picked up their $1,955,377 option on Timme in late June, but his salary was fully non-guaranteed, so they won’t incur a cap hit by waiving him. The 25-year-old forward/center averaged 12.1 PPG, 7.2 RPG and 2.2 APG in nine games (28.2 MPG) with Brooklyn down the stretch last season. His shooting line was .441/.257/.625.
Since he only has one year of NBA experience, Timme could theoretically return to the Nets on a two-way deal if he goes unclaimed, notes Brian Lewis of The New York Post (Twitter links). However, the team has yet to determine if Timme will get that final two-way spot, Lewis reports.
Waiving Whitehead and Timme likely means the Nets are deciding between Jalen Wilson and Tyrese Martin for their 15th standard roster spot. Wilson has a $88K partial guarantee which will increase to about $382K if he makes the regular season roster, while Martin’s contract is fully non-guaranteed.
Shams: Kings, Russell Westbrook Have ‘Strong Mutual Interest’
Veteran point guard Russell Westbrook remains an unrestricted free agent after he declined his $3.47MM player option with the Nuggets in June. Throughout the offseason, Westbrook has been repeatedly linked to the Kings, and ESPN’s Shams Charania reported on Friday that the two sides continue to have “strong mutual interest” (Twitter video link).
“I’m told there is strong mutual interest between Russell Westbrook and the Sacramento Kings,” Charania said (hat tip to Kurt Helin of NBC Sports). “And the Kings have a need for a reserve point guard. They were 29th in bench points, 29th in bench assists last season. Russell Westbrook helps with that, and he’s got relationships across that organization.
“Domantas Sabonis, he’s close with, played with him. He played with Dennis Schröder as well. DeMar DeRozan, Zach LaVine, they have L.A. ties as well. BJ Armstrong, the new assistant general manager there. He knows BJ Armstrong from the agency side, and he does have respect with Scott Perry, their new general manager, and Doug Christie, their new head coach.
“We’ll see if a deal gets done before the start of the season or during this upcoming year.”
Carmichael Dave of SactownSports.com (Twitter link) posits that there’s about a 70 percent chance that Westbrook will sign with Sacramento at some point, assuming the two sides can figure out the financials.
The plugged-in radio host also hears Westbrook has a lucrative contract offer on the table to play in China, but the former NBA MVP likely wouldn’t go that route until after the All-Star game, which is in his hometown of Los Angeles.
The Kings currently only have 13 players on guaranteed standard contracts, plus Keon Ellis on a non-guaranteed deal and Terence Davis on a training camp pact.
Westbrook, 36, played a significant role for the Nuggets after signing with Denver as a free agent during the 2024 offseason. He averaged 13.3 points, 6.1 assists, 4.9 rebounds, and 1.4 steals in 27.9 minutes per game across 75 appearances (36 starts) during the regular season, with a .449/.323/.661 shooting line. He also contributed 11.7 PPG, 2.6 APG, and 3.7 RPG in 13 playoff contests (24.1 MPG).
Bulls’ Dalen Terry Not Expected To Sign Extension
Bulls guard/forward Dalen Terry is not expected to sign a rookie scale extension before the 2025/26 season begins, reports Joe Cowley of The Chicago Sun-Times.
Terry’s camp has not had any “serious discussions” with the Bulls about a new deal, according to Cowley. Terry will remain eligible for a rookie scale extension until October 20.
The 23-year-old is entering the final year of his contract, which will pay him about $5.4MM in ’25/26. The Bulls could make Terry a restricted free agent next summer if they tender him a qualifying offer, though that seems far from certain given the way his first three seasons have played out.
A 6’7″ swingman who was selected 18th overall in the 2022 draft after two college seasons at Arizona, Terry has struggled to establish himself as a reliable rotation player to this point in his career. He appeared in a career-high 73 games last season, holding relatively modest averages of 4.5 points, 1.7 rebounds and 1.3 assists in 13.5 minutes per contest.
Terry, who switched jersey numbers (from No. 25 to No. 7) as he looks for a fresh start this fall, readily acknowledges ’25/26 is a “big year” for his career. He tells Cowley he’s looking to one of his former teammates for inspiration.
“This is how I think everybody views it,” Terry said. “They view it as I’m not a guy that scores 20, 30 points. Well, I got drafted to be like [former Bulls guard] Alex Caruso: ‘OK, he can guard, he can do all the little things, he can be a connector.’ That’s what I strive to be this year.
“Like, even [in the Bulls’ preseason victory Thursday against the Cavaliers], in my eyes, I played like [expletive]. But you look at the box score, and I’m guarding Donovan Mitchell. I was tough on him. Guarding De’Andre Hunter. I was tough on him. I have to live like that, you know?
“I remember being in the locker room [when] AC was still here, and some days he would have six points and some days he would have 20 points. That’s just the way it’s going to be. I have to hang my hat on the defensive end. So when people try to put pressure on what I should be, I’m just going to be myself.”
Joe Tsai: ‘Good Pick’ In 2026 Draft A Priority For Nets
Asked during a panel hosted by the All-In Podcast about his predictions for the Nets‘ this season, team owner Joe Tsai acknowledged that contending for a playoff spot probably isn’t a realistic goal for the team in 2025/26 (YouTube link).
“I have to say we’re in a rebuilding year,” Tsai said (hat tip to Brian Lewis of The New York Post). “We spent all of our (2025) picks — we had five first-round draft picks this past summer.
“We have one (first-round) pick in 2026, and we hope to get a good pick. So, you can predict what kind of strategy we will use for this season. But we have a very young team.”
Tsai isn’t saying anything that any Nets or NBA fan doesn’t already know. Brooklyn entered the summer as the only team with significant cap space, but used that room to take on unwanted contracts and continue stockpiling draft picks rather than acquiring win-now help. With five rookie first-round picks on their roster, the Nets will be prioritizing player development over their win-loss record in the coming months.
Although Brooklyn’s approach to the season is no secret, the NBA typically frowns upon any public remarks from an executive or owner suggesting that his team might be in tanking mode. Tsai’s comment about being able to predict the “kind of strategy” the Nets will use to achieve their goal of getting a “good” draft pick can certainly be interpreted that way, so we’ll see if the league office responds at all, perhaps with a fine.
After the Nets won 32 games in 2023/24 and 26 in ’24/25, oddsmakers have set their over/under for ’25/26 at just 20.5 wins. While general manager Sean Marks has insisted he was happy the team exceeded preseason expectations last season, his moves since last December – including trading away veterans Dennis Schröder, Dorian Finney-Smith, and Cameron Johnson – suggest he wouldn’t mind if the Nets were to drop a few more games this year and land a pick higher than No. 8 in the 2026 draft lottery.
In the process of reducing the number of veterans on the roster, Marks has loaded up youth, selecting Egor Demin (No. 8), Nolan Traore (No. 19), Drake Powell (No. 22), Ben Saraf (No. 26), and Danny Wolf (No. 27) in this June’s draft. Brooklyn projects to have the NBA’s youngest team in 2025/26, as Lewis notes.
Knicks, Raptors Agree To Dismiss Lawsuit
The Knicks and Raptors have agreed to voluntarily dismiss a lawsuit filed by the Knicks in 2023, reports Baxter Holmes for ESPN.
The lawsuit alleged that former Knicks employee Ikechukwu Azotam “illegally took thousands of proprietary files with him to his new position” in Toronto at the behest of the Raptors, who looked to gain a competitive advantage.
“The Knicks and (Raptors ownership group) Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment withdrew their respective claims and the matter is resolved. The Parties are focused on the future,” the two teams said in identical statements to ESPN.
The Knicks sought over $10MM in damages, while the Raptors filed a motion aimed at dismissing the charges and called upon league commissioner Adam Silver to adjudicate the proceedings. The Knicks then questioned Silver’s impartiality based on his close relationship with Raptors minority owner Larry Tanenbaum. In response, the Raptors accused the Knicks of dragging out the case for publicity and threatened to counter-sue.
Ultimately, a judge agreed with the Raptors that the matter should be resolved by Silver.
Along with Azotam and the Raptors organization, head coach Darko Rajakovic was listed as a defendant in the lawsuit, along with player development coach Noah Lewis and 10 unidentified employees.
Holmes notes that the case has now been voluntarily dismissed with prejudice, which means the decision is permanent.
Knicks Made Brunson ‘Untouchable’ In Giannis Trade Talks
When the Knicks and Bucks discussed the possibility of a Giannis Antetokounmpo trade in August, New York made Jalen Brunson “untouchable,” team sources tell Sam Amick of The Athletic.
The news comes as no surprise, given that the goal of an Antetokounmpo trade for the Knicks would be to pair him with Brunson, not have him replace the star point guard.
With Brunson off limits and Mikal Bridges not eligible to be moved at that time due to his recently signed extension, it stands to reason that Karl-Anthony Towns, OG Anunoby, and Mitchell Robinson were likely among the players discussed by the two sides, Amick writes.
ESPN’s Shams Charania reported earlier this week that the Knicks and Bucks spoke about Antetokounmpo over the summer after the star forward expressed some concerns about his team’s championship upside and conveyed that New York would be the only team he’d be interested in if he were to leave Milwaukee.
However, Charania stressed that those discussions didn’t gain any traction, with the Bucks making it clear they wanted to hang onto the two-time MVP and New York not making a compelling enough pitch to force them to reconsider that stance.
The Knicks have already traded away several future first-round picks, so any offer they made for a star like Antetokounmpo would have to be player-heavy in terms of value. And even if the Bucks had interest in some of those players, New York has concerns about the potential roster imbalance that sort of blockbuster trade would create, according to Amick.
While subsequent reports, including this one from The Athletic, have confirmed that those trade talks generated no momentum, Amick says this development was definitely “not nothing.” He refers to it as “nothing short of an escalation,” since it’s the strongest signal yet that Antetokounmpo is considering options outside of Milwaukee.
[RELATED: Bucks’ Antetokounmpo, Rivers Address Giannis Trade Rumors]
Although the Knicks were the only team to have a conversation with the Bucks about Giannis this offseason, many more teams around the league would be ready to pursue him if he were ever to be made available, according to Amick, who suggests that the 30-year-old’s future in Milwaukee could be largely determined by what happens this coming season. Giannis only has one more guaranteed year on his contract beyond 2025/26, with a player option for ’27/28.
Spurs’ Harper Expected To Make Preseason Debut On Friday
Dylan Harper, the No. 2 overall pick in this year’s draft, is expected to make his preseason debut on Friday night when the Spurs take on the Jazz at Frost Bank Center, per Jeff McDonald of The San Antonio Express-News (Bluesky link). Harper will play limited minutes on Friday, McDonald adds.
Harper underwent surgery in early September to repair a partially torn ligament in his left thumb. Reporting at the time indicated that there was optimism about the rookie guard’s ability to return in time for San Antonio’s regular season opener. Today’s update suggests there have been no setbacks in his recovery process.
Widely considered the best prospect in the 2025 draft class behind Cooper Flagg, Harper was drafted second overall by the Spurs even though they already had former All-Star De’Aaron Fox and reigning Rookie of the Year Stephon Castle in their backcourt.
Fox is recovering from a hamstring injury and may not be available when the Spurs’ regular season tips off, but it looks like Castle and Harper are both on track to be ready for opening night.
Harper was highly productive during his first and only college season at Rutgers, averaging 19.4 points, 4.6 rebounds, 4.0 assists and 1.4 steals in 32.6 minutes per contest across 29 games, with a shooting line of .484/.333/.750. He appeared in two games for the Spurs’ Summer League team in July, averaging 16.0 PPG and 22.1 MPG, though he struggled with his shot in the very limited sample (.357 FG%, .125 3PT%).
Latest On Lauri Markkanen
Jazz forward Lauri Markkanen, a standout for Finland during the team’s run to the EuroBasket semifinals last month, sustained a left wrist contusion during the tournament that has sidelined him through training camp and the first part of the preseason.
However, the injury is considered a minor one, according to Andy Larsen of The Salt Lake Tribune, who writes that Markkanen has still been doing workouts, is dribbling with both hands, and isn’t wearing any sort of visible protection on the affected wrist.
“It’s more maintenance,” head coach Will Hardy explained. “I’m lucky that I got to see this in San Antonio a bunch when guys were playing EuroBasket. They just competed really hard for a month and laid it all on the line. It’s nothing that we’re concerned about, but it’s just some bumps and bruises that we want to manage in this moment as he’s coming off of that. There’s nothing to be concerned about at all.”
For his part, Markkanen said that he expects to be available for opening night, though he doesn’t know how much he’ll play in any of Utah’s remaining three preseason games on Friday, Monday, and next Thursday.
“I’m not sure what the exact date is when I’m going to start, but [I’ve] been doing rehab every day and working out and feeling better,” he said.
As Larsen observes, most of the speculation involving Markkanen as of late has been centered around the possibility of a trade, rather than his health. Writing about potential players to watch at this year’s trade deadline, Chris Mannix of SI.com said earlier this week that Markkanen is the name he hears “most frequently” when he talks to people around the league, adding that Utah is thought to be “very” open for business on the Finnish forward.
The Ringer’s Zach Lowe, meanwhile, said in a recent podcast that he has a hard time imagining a scenario in which Markkanen is still on Utah’s roster in a year. New Jazz president of basketball operations Austin Ainge pushed back on that prediction, according to Larsen.
“I don’t agree with that,” Ainge said. “And I love Zach, but look, (I’m a) huge fan of Lauri. Lauri’s awesome. He’s really good, and Lauri could and hopefully is part of our next team when we’re going up.”
Still, Ainge didn’t entirely rule out the possibility of a deal involving the 2023 All-Star.
“I joke that, obviously, no one is untradeable,” Ainge said. “If a trade came in for me, I would convince (Jazz owner) Ryan (Smith) to take it. You know, this is how it goes.”
Markkanen was considered a prime trade candidate during the 2024 offseason, but signed a renegotiated and extended contract last August that made him ineligible to be moved during the 2024/25 season. He’s trade-eligible again now, but has continued to express a desire to stick with the Jazz, stating this fall, “I love to be in Utah.” Nonetheless, he acknowledged that he expects the trade speculation to continue.
“The rumors (have) already started, but I don’t pay attention to that. Pretty much anybody can get traded in this league,” Markkanen said, per Larsen. “So you just play to the best of your abilities, and enjoy the practices and games and time I get to spend in this facility and with these guys. And if something happens, then we adjust.”
According to Larsen, when the Jazz have received inquiries on Markkanen in the past, they’ve sought multiple draft picks and quality young players, but haven’t gotten a compelling offer that included both.
LeBron James To Miss Start Of 2025/26 Season
LeBron James will miss the beginning of the 2025/26 season, according to Shams Charania of ESPN (Twitter link), who reports that the Lakers star is dealing with sciatica on his left side that will keep him out for at least three to four weeks.
The Lakers open the season in 12 days, on Oct. 21 against the Warriors. If he returned at the very earliest of his projected timeline, James could be back for the team’s first NBA Cup game on Oct. 31. However, his return seems more likely to occur in early- to mid-November, barring any setbacks.
James, who has appeared in 1,884 total regular season and playoff games, played 71 regular season games in 2023/24 and 70 in his age-40 season in ’24/25. NBA insider Marc Stein adds that this will be the first time in James’ career that he’ll be out for opening night. He was previously 22 for 22 in that regard.
The 21-time All-Star kept up with his elite production in his age-40 season last year, averaging 24.4 points, 7.8 rebounds and 8.2 assists per contest.
James missed the Lakers’ first two preseason games and all of training camp with what coach JJ Redick referred to as nerve irritation in his glute. Jake LaRavia started both of L.A.’s first two preseason games and is a candidate to fill in for James and keep an extended role once he returns.
NBA GMs Expect Thunder To Repeat, Jokic To Win Fourth MVP
NBA general managers view the Thunder as the overwhelming favorite to repeat as champions this season, according to the 24th annual GM survey conducted by John Schuhmann of NBA.com. GMs were not allowed to vote for their own team or personnel.
Eighty percent of general managers predicted Oklahoma City to win the 2026 NBA Finals, with the Cavaliers and Nuggets tied for second at 7% each. The Rockets and Knicks were the only other teams to receive votes.
If the Thunder do go back-to-back, they would be the first repeat champions since Golden State in 2018.
Still, it’s worth noting that 83% of GMs thought Boston would win its second consecutive title in 2025 during last year’s edition of the survey, and the Celtics wound up being eliminated in the second round of the playoffs.
Three-time MVP Nikola Jokic is heavily favored to win his fourth award in 2025/26. The Nuggets superstar received 67% of the vote and was also tabbed as the league’s best center (maximum possible 97%), best international player (93%), best passer (80%), the player with the best basketball IQ (80%), and the player who forces opposing coaches to make the most adjustments (57%).
NBA GMs view Rockets guard/forward Amen Thompson as the league’s most athletic player (58%) and most versatile defender (18%), as well as the player most likely to have a breakout season (30%).
For the second straight year, Spurs center Victor Wembanyama was tabbed as the best player to build a franchise around, receiving 83% of the vote. The French center was also voted the league’s best defender (80%) and tied with Bucks forward Giannis Antetokounmpo for the league’s most versatile player (30% apiece).
Unsurprisingly, Mavericks forward Cooper Flagg is the runaway favorite to win Rookie of the Year, claiming the maximum 97% of the vote. General managers also think he’s the rookie who will be the best player five years from now (93%).
Fifty-three percent of GMs surveyed think the Hawks made the best offseason moves, while 47% believe the Magic will be the most improved team this season.
According to general managers, Milwaukee made by far the two most surprising offseason moves: waiving and stretching Damian Lillard (43%), and subsequently signing Myles Turner in free agency (30%).
Schuhmann’s survey is worth checking out in full and can be found right here.