Hawks Sign Nikola Djurisic To Standard Contract
1:10 pm: Djurisic’s deal is a three-year contract worth his minimum salary, totaling about $5.95MM, per Michael Scotto of HoopsHype, who tweets that the first year will be guaranteed.
12:57 pm: The Hawks have added a draft-and-stash player to their standard roster, announcing today in a press release that they’ve signed wing Nikola Djurisic.
Djurisic, 21, was selected by Atlanta with the 43rd overall pick of the 2024 draft and spent last season playing in the G League with the College Park Skyhawks.
While he contributed 10.5 points, 3.5 assists, and 3.1 rebounds per game in 32 NBAGL outings for the Skyhawks, the 6’8″ forward struggled with turnovers (3.1 per game) and his shooting efficiency. He made just 37.9% of his field goal attempts, including only 18-of-101 (17.8%) three-pointers.
As Kevin Chouinard of Hawks.com notes (via Twitter), Atlanta had been carrying 12 players on standard contracts and didn’t have enough room below the luxury tax line to add three more veterans on minimum-salary deals, so having Djurisic on a rookie-minimum contract will be advantageous from a cap/tax perspective.
Because Djurisic’s contract will count toward the cap for just $1,272,870 in 2025/26, the Hawks should have enough flexibility to sign two more veterans to minimum deals without surpassing the luxury tax threshold.
Djurisic’s contract will be completed using the second-round pick exception. Chouinard adds (via Twitter) that he wouldn’t be surprised if Serbian youngster spends most or all of next season in the G League.
Atlantic Notes: Simons, M. Brown, Knicks, Edgecombe
The Celtics moved forward with their Jrue Holiday/Anfernee Simons swap earlier this week, completing the trade with Portland as a straight-up, one-for-one swap after exploring ways to expand the deal during the July moratorium. However, that doesn’t necessarily mean Boston is committed to having Simons on its roster to open the season.
“I have talked to other teams who have said the Celtics are actively trying to trade Anfernee Simons,” ESPN’s Brian Windhorst said on Wednesday’s episode of The Hoop Collective podcast (YouTube link). “Whether they can or not (remains to be seen).”
Swapping out Holiday’s $32.4MM cap hit for Simons’ $27.7MM figure will help the Celtics operate below the second tax apron in 2025/26. However, as Windhorst and his ESPN colleagues Tim MacMahon and Tim Bontemps went on to speculate, the club may be looking to cut costs more significantly in what will essentially be a “gap year.” Getting out of the luxury tax entirely would be a step toward resetting the repeater tax clock.
A team operating above the cap but below the tax aprons would only have to send out about $19.2MM in matching salary to legally acquire Simons and his expiring contract.
Here’s more from around the Atlantic:
- During his introductory press conference as the Knicks‘ head coach this week, Mike Brown said he’s not bothered by the fact that the team is essentially in championship-or-bust mode as he takes over the job. “Nobody has any bigger expectations than I do. My expectations are high,” Brown said, per Chris Herring of ESPN. “This is the Knicks and Madison Square Garden. It’s iconic. … I love and embrace the expectations that come along with it.”
- While a lack of reliable depth was an issue for the Knicks last season, Brown lauded president of basketball operations Leon Rose for continuing to add more talent to the roster after the team signed Jordan Clarkson and Guerschon Yabusele in free agency, as Zach Braziller of The New York Post relays. “Jordan, the things that he can do, especially offensively,” Brown said. “He’s a veteran guy. I know he’s hungry to win. He can score at all three levels. You’re excited with that coming to the table. He’s also a better play-maker than he’s given credit (for). I’m looking forward to seeing some of that, too, because I’m huge when it comes to touching the paint and looking to spray that basketball out to get your teammates easy shots. And then Guerschon, an unbelievable young man. His size, his versatility, he can play the four, the five, maybe some three, who knows?”
- No. 3 overall pick VJ Edgecombe missed the Sixers‘ first game of the Las Vegas Summer League on Thursday after being diagnosed with a left thumb sprain. He’s still taking part in on-court workouts and will have the injury reevaluated on Saturday, tweets Michael Scotto of HoopsHype.
Kings Notes: Carter, Westbrook, Schröder, Rookies
The Las Vegas Summer League could serve as a showcase for second-year Kings guard Devin Carter, as Jason Anderson of The Sacramento Bee writes. While there’s no indication that the talks have gained any real traction, Sacramento reportedly floated the idea of a trade package that included Carter for Warriors restricted free agent Jonathan Kuminga.
The Kings’ willingness to discuss moving Carter a year after selecting him with the 13th overall pick in the 2024 draft will likely prompt a few rival clubs – including perhaps Golden State – to keep a closer eye on the 23-year-old in Vegas. For his part, when asked about how he’s handling a potentially uncertain future, Carter made it clear he’s not dwelling on the trade rumors, per Anderson.
“My pops (Anthony Carter) played for 13 years,” the Kings guard said. “He’s been traded a lot. I just talk to him about how he handled it. That will stay between us, what me and my pops be talking about, but I just come in to work every day, obviously thankful for the opportunity to be here, show up with a ready-to-work mentality all the time, and it is what it is. It’s a business.”
Carter’s 2025 Summer League experience got off to a somewhat shaky start on Thursday, as he made just 2-of-14 shots in 24 minutes of action against Orlando.
Here’s more on the Kings:
- Sacramento has been frequently linked to free agent point guard Russell Westbrook this offseason, but a deal between the two sides still seems unlikely to happen unless the club makes other roster changes, Sam Amick of The Athletic said during his weekly appearance on The Carmichael Dave Show with Jason Ross on Sactown Sports 1140 (YouTube link). “The sense that I have gotten is that the Kings have a lot of affinity for Russ, without question,” Amick said. “But the backcourt is pretty crowded already, and there was concern about making it even worse. So I have certainly been leaning in the direction of thinking that was not going to happen. And nothing’s changed roster-wise to change the logjam that they would have by making a move like that.”
- In his first media session as a member of the Kings, Dennis Schröder said it “means the world” to him to have a team target and prioritize him as its starting point guard, as Anderson writes for The Bee. “I want to give it back, of course, every single day, every single practice, games, to leave it all on the floor and give everything for this organization,” said Schröder, whose three-year, $44.4MM deal is fully guaranteed for two years and partially guaranteed for the third.
- At the presser introducing Schröder, general manager Scott Perry referred back to comments he made previously about wanting to add players who are “competitive, tough, team oriented, disciplined, accountable and professional,” suggesting that Schröder ticks those boxes. “When you marry those two things together, when free agency was embarking upon us,” Perry said, “this was the No. 1 guy we felt in the league for us that was going to fit that bill and help us establish that sustainable success that we are striving to get.”
- In a separate story for The Bee, Anderson notes that rookies Nique Clifford and Maxime Raynaud made a strong impression in their Summer League debuts on Thursday, combining for 33 points, 10 rebounds, and five assists in the Kings’ win over Orlando.
NBA Teams With Hard Caps For 2025/26
The NBA salary cap is somewhat malleable, with various exceptions allowing each team to surpass the $154,647,000 threshold once its cap room is used up. In some cases, teams blow past not only the cap limit, but the luxury tax line of $187,895,000 as well — the Cavaliers, Celtics, and Timberwolves are among the clubs who project to have substantial tax bills this season as a result of their spending.
The NBA doesn’t have a “hard cap” by default, which allows clubs like Cleveland, Boston, and Minnesota to build a significant payroll without violating NBA rules. However, there are certain scenarios in which teams can be hard-capped.
The league’s new Collective Bargaining Agreement has carried over the hard cap rules from the 2017 CBA while also expanding them, adding new scenarios in which teams can face hard caps and creating a second salary level that certain teams can’t exceed.
We go into greater detail in a separate article on how teams become hard-capped, but here’s a brief rundown of the ways it can happen in 2025/26:
- A team becomes hard-capped at the first tax apron ($195,945,000) if it makes any of the following moves:
- Acquires a player via sign-and-trade.
- Uses more than the taxpayer portion (up to two years, with a starting salary of $5,685,000) of the mid-level exception to sign a player.
- Uses any portion of the mid-level exception to acquire a player via trade or waiver claim.
- Uses any portion of the bi-annual exception to sign a player or to acquire a player via trade or waiver claim.
- Uses the expanded traded player exception.
- Uses a traded player exception generated during the previous offseason or regular season.
- Signs a player who was waived during the regular season and whose pre-waiver salary was higher than the non-taxpayer mid-level exception ($14,104,000).
- A team becomes hard-capped at the second tax apron ($207,824,000) if it makes any of the following moves:
- Uses any portion of the mid-level exception to sign a player to a contract.
- Aggregates two or more players in a trade for salary-matching purposes.
- Sends out cash in a trade.
- Sends out a player via sign-and-trade and uses that player’s outgoing salary to take back a contract (either in the same transaction or in a subsequent transaction via the resulting trade exception).
Given how many ways there are to create a hard cap, most clubs who don’t intend to operate over one of the two aprons will likely end up hard-capping themselves at one or the other.
Some teams will have to be hyper-aware of that hard cap when they consider any roster move for the rest of the season, but for others it’s just a technicality that won’t affect their plans in any meaningful way.
Listed below are the hard-capped teams for the 2025/26 league year, along with how they created a hard cap.
In some instances, a team made multiple roster moves that would have imposed a hard cap (e.g. acquired a player via sign-and-trade and used the non-taxpayer mid-level exception). Only the first of those transactions is noted below, though in some cases a team made two moves within a single transaction to create a hard cap, in which case each relevant move is mentioned.
Hard-capped at first tax apron
These teams will be prohibited from exceeding $195,945,000 in team salary.
Atlanta Hawks
- Acquired Nickeil Alexander-Walker via sign-and-trade.
- Used a trade exception generated last offseason (for Dejounte Murray) to acquire Alexander-Walker.
Charlotte Hornets
- Used expanded traded player exception to acquire Collin Sexton.
Chicago Bulls
- Used a trade exception generated last season (for Zach LaVine) to acquire Isaac Okoro.
Detroit Pistons
- Acquired Duncan Robinson via sign-and-trade.
Houston Rockets
- Acquired Clint Capela via sign-and-trade.
- Used expanded traded player exception to acquire Capela and Kevin Durant.
Indiana Pacers
- Used a trade exception generated last season (for James Wiseman) to acquire Jay Huff.
Los Angeles Clippers
- Used the non-taxpayer mid-level exception to sign Brook Lopez.
Los Angeles Lakers
- Used the non-taxpayer mid-level exception to sign Jake LaRavia.
Memphis Grizzlies
- Used expanded traded player exception to acquire Kentavious Caldwell-Pope and Cole Anthony.
Miami Heat
- Used expanded traded player exception to acquire Norman Powell.
Milwaukee Bucks
- Used expanded traded player exception to acquire Ousmane Dieng.
New Orleans Pelicans
- Used expanded traded player exception to acquire Jordan Poole and Saddiq Bey.
Orlando Magic
- Used the non-taxpayer mid-level exception to sign Tyus Jones.
Portland Trail Blazers
- Used expanded traded player exception to acquire Jrue Holiday.
Sacramento Kings
- Acquired Dennis Schröder via sign-and-trade.
- Used a trade exception generated last season (for Kevin Huerter) to acquire Schröder.
San Antonio Spurs
- Used the non-taxpayer mid-level exception to sign Luke Kornet.
Toronto Raptors
- Used the non-taxpayer mid-level exception to acquire Trayce Jackson-Davis.
Utah Jazz
- Used the non-taxpayer mid-level exception to acquire Kyle Anderson.
- Used the bi-annual exception to acquire Kevin Love.
Washington Wizards
- Used expanded traded player exception to acquire CJ McCollum, Kelly Olynyk, and Cam Whitmore.
Hard-capped at second tax apron
These teams will be prohibited from exceeding $207,824,000 in team salary.
Boston Celtics
- Sent out cash in a trade.
Brooklyn Nets
- Sent out cash in a trade.
Dallas Mavericks
- Used the taxpayer mid-level exception to sign D’Angelo Russell.
Golden State Warriors
- Used the taxpayer mid-level exception to sign Al Horford.
New York Knicks
- Used the taxpayer mid-level exception to sign Guerschon Yabusele.
Oklahoma City Thunder
- Sent out cash in a trade.
Philadelphia 76ers
- Used the taxpayer mid-level exception to sign Dominick Barlow.
Phoenix Suns
- Sent out cash in a trade.
No hard cap
- Cleveland Cavaliers
- Denver Nuggets
- Minnesota Timberwolves
This list, which figures to continue evolving, will be updated throughout the 2025/26 league year as necessary. It can be found anytime in the “Hoops Rumors Features” menu on the right-hand sidebar of our desktop site, or in the “Features” menu on our mobile site.
Central Notes: Giannis, Turner, Pacers, Lanier, Holland
Appearing on a live stream in Greece on Thursday with YouTube personality IShowSpeed, Bucks star Giannis Antetokounmpo was asked if his plan is to remain in Milwaukee going forward.
“Probably,” Antetokounmpo said (Twitter video link). “We’ll see. Probably. I love Milwaukee.”
While any public statement that Antetokounmpo makes about his future is notable, it’s hard to draw any definitive conclusions from those brief comments — they’re pretty much what you’d expect him to say if he hasn’t requested a trade but also hasn’t yet decisively committed to not asking for a trade. And by all accounts, that’s where his situation currently stands.
As we wait for a more conclusive update on Giannis’ future, the Bucks and their fans can take solace in the “probably” part of his response on Thursday, while potential suitors will likely be emboldened by the “we’ll see.”
Here’s more from around the Central:
- After signing with the Bucks on Monday following 10 years in Indiana, Myles Turner published a farewell to Pacers fans on his Instagram account on Thursday. “This chapter is closing, but the respect and love I have for this city and its people is forever,” Turner wrote within a much longer statement. “Thank you Indy, from the bottom of my heart. I mean it when I say The 317 will always be home. And I’ve been proud to call myself a Hoosier! I hope you continue to embrace me as much as I’ve always embraced you!”
- Dustin Dopirak of The Indianapolis Star shares three takeaways from the Pacers‘ victory in their first Las Vegas Summer League game on Thursday, noting that two-way players RayJ Dennis (26 points, nine assists) and Quenton Jackson (24 points on 8-of-10 shooting) were among the standouts. It would be a boon for the Pacers if Dennis emerges as a reliable option at the NBA level, Dopirak observes, since the team will be on the lookout for additional point guard depth with Tyrese Haliburton out for the entire 2025/26 season.
- Pistons second-round pick Chaz Lanier believes he’s capable of “immediately” playing a role for his new NBA team as a rookie, he told reporters during his introductory press conference this week. “Coming in to do whatever they need me to do,” Lanier said, per Coty M. Davis of The Detroit News. “Coming in and making shots when I need to. … I am a shooter first, that is what I hang my hat on; putting the ball in the basket. However, I believe that at the NBA level, you need to be able to make an impact on defense. That is how I plan on making my mark.”
- Pistons forward Ron Holland, who turned 20 on Monday, was pleased that he was able to earn an every-game rotation role as a rookie last season, but he feels like he “left a lot on the table” and “could’ve done more,” as Omari Sankofa II of The Detroit Free Press relays (subscription required). “That’s definitely putting a chip on my shoulder and being able to go into next season trying to thrive and get better every single day,” Holland said.
Tristan Vukcevic Returns To Wizards On Two-Way Contract
July 11: Vukcevic’s new two-way deal with the Wizards is official, according to the NBA’s transaction log.
July 10: Free agent big man Tristan Vukcevic is re-signing with the Wizards on a two-way contract, sources tell Shams Charania of ESPN (Twitter link).
The 22-year-old forward/center was given a qualifying offer last month, making him a restricted free agent, so he may simply be accepting that QO, which is equivalent to another one-year two-way contract.
Both Josh Robbins of The Athletic and Varun Shankar of The Washington Post have confirmed the news (Twitter links).
Washington drafted Vukcevic with the 42nd pick in 2023, but he spent most of the 2023/24 season with KK Partizan in Serbia before joining the Wizards in March of 2024. He started four of the 10 games he played in as a rookie, averaging 8.5 points and 3.6 rebounds in 15.3 minutes per night.
Vukcevic originally signed a standard contract with the Wizards, who declined their team option on the him last June. He returned to the organization a few days later on a two-way contract.
Vukcevic’s 2024/25 debut was delayed by a few months due to a left knee injury. Known for his ability to space the floor, Vukcevic made 35 appearances with the Wizards last season, averaging 9.4 points and 3.7 rebounds in 14.7 minutes per game, with a shooting slash line of .496/.373/.776.
As our tracker shows, Vukcevic will fill Washington’s third two-way spot, joining wings Jaylen Martin and Jamir Watkins. He will earn $636,435 in 2025/26 and can be active for up to 50 regular season games.
Wizards Sign Marvin Bagley III
July 11: Bagley has officially signed with the Wizards, per the transaction log at NBA.com.
July 10: The Wizards are signing free agent big man Marvin Bagley III to a one-year deal, according to Shams Charania of ESPN (Twitter link).
On paper, it makes sense for the Wizards to target a veteran big man in free agency given the fact they traded away Kelly Olynyk this week. Washington only has one player on its standard roster taller than 6’9″ — second-year center Alex Sarr.
However, it’s an interesting move given that the Wizards just traded Bagley away at the deadline to the Grizzlies. Washington originally acquired the former No. 2 overall pick ahead of the 2024 trade deadline alongside Isaiah Livers and a second-round pick. This year, the Wizards sent Bagley out in a multi-team deal that landed them Marcus Smart and a first-round pick, which they used to trade down and select Will Riley.
Bagley appeared in 43 games (16 starts) with Washington across parts of 2023/24 and ’24/25, averaging 9.6 points and 5.8 rebounds per contest.
Despite the move making positional sense, it remains to be seen whether Bagley will actually stick on an already-crowded roster. The Wizards have 15 players on official, standard contracts. They also have Richaun Holmes and Justin Champagnie on standard deals, but Holmes’s $13.28MM contract is only guaranteed for $250K and Champagnie is non-guaranteed.
If Bagley’s deal is non-guaranteed, it would seem like a cut-and-dry situation to let go of him, Holmes and Champagnie to solve the roster crunch. However, Champagnie being cut would be somewhat surprising despite his non-guaranteed status, given that he started 31 games last season and averaged 8.8 points while shooting 51.1% from the field and 38.3% from three.
If Washington opts to keep Champagnie, it would mean trading or cutting a player with a guaranteed contract. If Bagley is guaranteed, that means two players on Washington’s roster could potentially be let go despite having guaranteed deals.
In any scenario in which Bagley and/or Holmes doesn’t make the opening-night roster, that would mean Washington would be entering the season with 6’8″ Kyshawn George and Bilal Coulibaly as the tallest players on the 15-man squad outside of Sarr.
After the Grizzlies acquired Bagley last season, he only appeared in 12 games and averaged 3.6 PPG. He holds career averages of 12.0 points and 6.5 rebounds in 238 games.
Suns Notes: Dunn, Ighodaro, Culture, Maluach, Livers, Booker
Suns sophomores Ryan Dunn and Oso Ighodaro were able to build a special relationship with Kevin Durant during their first season in the league before he was traded to Houston, Duane Rankin of the Arizona Republic writes. Dunn said he loved playing with Durant and appreciated what he was able to learn from the future Hall-of-Famer.
“We built that relationship,” Dunn said. “I wish him the best in Houston. I’m excited to go compete against him and talk some smack to him now, but it’s someone I can always turn to and learn from, so I wish him the best as well.”
Both players are expected to take a major step up in responsibility this season after already being leaned on heavily in their first years in the league.
“He was such a great teammate, great leader for us,” Ighodaro said about Durant. “It was great just to be able to say I was his teammate and learned a lot from him, me and Ryan. Talked to him a little bit since he’s left. I wish nothing but the best for him.”
We have more on the Suns:
- Dunn was quick to observe some of Phoenix’s early culture changes under new general manager Brian Gregory, Rankin writes. Gregory is looking to set a competitive tone for the new-look Suns. “He wants dogs,” Dunn said. “He wants dogs on this team.” Dunn and Ighodaro are aiming to establish winning habits as leaders on the Summer League team, Rankin writes in another story. “We want to kind of change the identity here,” assistant coach DeMarre Carroll said. “We want to compete at a high level. These guys have been doing it.”
- New head coach Jordan Ott was complimentary of rookie draft pick Khaman Maluach, according to PHNX Sports’ Gerald Bourguet (Twitter link). “You know how big and long he is, it’s obvious. His ability to run just creates a different dynamic, the vertical spacing that he has above the rim. And then just the overall size and rim protection, you can feel it every second he’s out there,” Ott said. The Suns acquired the pick used to select Maluach in the Durant trade.
- In addition, Ott expressed excitement about adding Isaiah Livers to a two-way contract, per Rankin (Twitter link). “Isaiah brings a shooting piece, size piece we’re looking on this roster,” Ott said. “He has been injured, but now he’s back. He’s fully healthy. He’s been here. Excited to see him more this summer into training camp and into the season.“
- Fresh off earning the richest salary in the NBA, this season could prove to be Devin Booker‘s most challenging yet, Doug Haller of The Athletic opines. The Suns will need Booker to be patient as they sort through a reset period that may see them battling for a play-in spot yet again.
Trail Blazers Hire James Posey As Assistant Coach
The Trail Blazers have hired James Posey as an assistant coach on Chauncey Billups‘ staff, the team announced today in a press release.
Posey, a two-time NBA champion as a player, had been a member of the Suns’ staff under Mike Budenholzer for the 2024/25 season. After retiring from his playing career in 2011, Posey began his coaching career with Cleveland’s G League affiliate in 2013/14. He then joined the Cavaliers as an assistant from 2014-19, where he won another championship in 2016.
After leaving Cleveland, Posey spent the 2021/22 season with the University of Virginia’s women’s basketball team as an assistant under current Trail Blazers scout Tina Thompson. Posey then worked as an assistant from the Wizards from 2022-24 before joining the Suns.
As noted in Portland’s release, Posey was teammates with Billups with the Nuggets in the ’99/00 season. Posey joins Nate Bjorkgren, Tiago Splitter, Patrick St. Andrews, Quinton Crawford and Ronnie Burrell as assistant coaches for the Trail Blazers.
Hawks Re-Sign Jacob Toppin To Two-Way Contract
The Hawks have re-signed Jacob Toppin to a two-way contract, according to a team release. Atlanta originally signed Toppin to a two-way deal in March.
The Kentucky alum and younger brother of Pacers forward Obi Toppin played his first season-and-a-half on a two-way deal with the Knicks before being waived on March 1. He was picked up just three days later by Atlanta.
Jacob Toppin has 26 games of NBA experience, averaging 1.4 points in those games. In his one and only game with Atlanta, he scored 17 points. He has played much more at the G League level, averaging 19.4 points in 65 career NBAGL games.
With Toppin and Eli Ndiaye signed to two-way contracts, the Hawks have one opening left. That spot is reportedly going to Lamont Butler, though his deal hasn’t been finalized yet.
Once that agreement is complete, the team will have no more two-way spots to offer, but because those contracts aren’t guaranteed, the Hawks could swap out one or more of those players ahead of or during the season if they like.