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Lakers Pick Up Dalton Knecht’s 2026/27 Option

October 21st, 2025 at 7:48am CST by Luke Adams

The Lakers have exercised their team option for the 2026/27 season on forward Dalton Knecht, according to Keith Smith of Spotrac (Twitter link).

The option, which is for the third year on Knecht’s rookie scale contract, is worth $4,201,080 and is now fully guaranteed. The Lakers will face their next decision on the 24-year-old a year from now, when they’ll have to determine whether or not to pick up his $6,452,859 option for the 2027/28 season.

If that fourth-year option is exercised, Knecht would become eligible for a rookie scale extension during the summer of 2027, with potential restricted free agency on tap for 2028 if he and the Lakers don’t work out a new deal before then.

The 17th overall pick in the 2024 draft, Knecht got off to a great start as a rookie last season, averaging 12.2 points per game and making 43.9% of his three-pointers in his first 19 outings. However, he averaged just 8.1 PPG and knocked down just 34.8% of his outside shots the rest of the way while struggling defensively.

Knecht shot 32.1% from the field and 23.7% on three-pointers in six Summer League appearances and wasn’t any better in the preseason, with shooting percentages of 32.0% from the floor and 23.5% from beyond the arc in six outings. Still, the Lakers remain confident in his ability to turn things around, having picked up his 2026/27 option with plenty of time to spare before the October 31 deadline.

As our tracker shows, Knecht is the only Laker whose contract includes a rookie scale team option for ’26/27.

Blazers, Toumani Camara Finalize Four-Year Extension

October 20th, 2025 at 5:16pm CST by Eli Cohen

October 20: The deal is now official, Portland announced in a press release. It actually comes in at $81MM over four years, Hoops Rumors has learned.

“Toumani has established himself as one of the best defenders in the NBA in just a short period of time,” said Blazers GM Joe Cronin. “With defense being paramount to our identity, Toumani has been a central figure with his tenacity, versatility and competitive nature. Toumani embodies everything Rip City is about.”

October 19: The Trail Blazers have agreed to a four-year, $82MM extension with Toumani Camara, reports ESPN’s Shams Charania (via Twitter).

The third-year forward has been a revelation for the Blazers since coming over from Phoenix in the 2023 trade that brought Deandre Ayton to Portland. In 78 games (all starts) in 2024/25, Camara averaged 11.3 points, 5.8 rebounds, 2.2 assists, and 1.5 steals per game while making 37.5% of his three-point tries and playing some of the best perimeter defense in the NBA.

Camara earned praise from opponents for his play on that side of the ball, showed up on multiple Defensive Player of the Year ballots, and earned a spot on the All-Defensive second team. As Charania notes (via Twitter), the 25-year-old ranked ninth in the NBA in total steals last season and was one of seven players to record at least 100 steals and 50 blocks.

Camara was the No. 52 overall pick in the 2023 draft after spending four years in college, two with Georgia and two with Dayton. In his final season, he averaged 13.9 PPG and 8.6 RPG.

His shooting improvement – from 30.7% on three-pointers over the course of his college career to 37.5% last season – has helped him carve out a significant role and maximize his defensive impact.

The extension will replace Camara’s $2.4MM team option for 2026/27, meaning he’s now under contract for five seasons in total. Since Camara is earning well below the NBA’s estimated average salary this season ($13,870,000), his maximum extension could have started at up to 140% of that amount, with 8% annual raises, which would have worked out to $87MM over four years — his new deal will come in a little below that.

As Yossi G0zlan of the Third Apron tweets, Camara’s extension leaves enough luxury tax space in 2026/27 for a potential Shaedon Sharpe extension. Monday is the deadline for Sharpe and the Blazers to complete a rookie scale extension.

Shaedon Sharpe Signs Four-Year Extension With Blazers

October 20th, 2025 at 4:50pm CST by Eli Cohen

October 20: Sharpe’s four-year extension is official, the Trail Blazers confirmed in a press release.

“Shaedon Sharpe is one of the most exciting young players in the NBA,” said general manager Joe Cronin. “With his ability to score the basketball, play make and be a great teammate, we are ecstatic that Shaedon will be an electric part of the Trail Blazers for years to come.”

October 19: The Trail Blazers have come to terms on a four-year, $90MM rookie scale extension with shooting guard Shaedon Sharpe, reports Shams Charania for ESPN (Twitter link).

Sharpe was originally selected with the No. 7 pick in the 2022 draft after reclassifying to spend a season with Kentucky, though he ultimately did not play a game for the Wildcats.

Sharpe, 22, has started 92 of 184 regular season games through his first three seasons. In 2024/25, he established a new career highs by averaging 18.5 points per game to go along with his 4.5 rebounds and 2.8 assists per night.

However, Sharpe has struggled at times with his shooting efficiency and defense — his three-point percentage declined to a career-worst 31.1% in ’24/25, while head coach Chauncey Billups benched him at one point last season due to repeated defensive lapses.

Still, Portland remains high on Sharpe’s long-term upside and brought in veterans Jrue Holiday and Damian Lillard this offseason to provide leadership and guidance for the young backcourt duo of Sharpe and Scoot Henderson.

The Blazers have built a team primarily focused on defensive-minded players, and Sharpe’s ability to score at volume figures to factor heavily into their offensive approach.

After agreeing to a four-year extension with Toumani Camara earlier today, and with Deni Avdija on a descending deal that runs through the end of the 2027/28 season, the Blazers have locked in a young, talented wing trio on deals that will each account for less than 15% of the cap moving forward, notes Keith Smith of Spotrac (via Twitter).

Sharpe is the seventh player to agree to a rookie scale extension this offseason, joining Chet Holmgren and Jalen Williams (Thunder), Paolo Banchero (Magic), Jabari Smith Jr. (Rockets), Nikola Jovic (Heat), and Keegan Murray (Kings). There are still 14 players eligible for rookie scale extensions ahead of Monday’s deadline.

Christian Braun Signs Five-Year Extension With Nuggets

October 20th, 2025 at 4:35pm CST by Dana Gauruder

4:35 pm: Braun has officially signed his five-year extension, the Nuggets announced (via Twitter).

1:35 pm: The Nuggets and guard Christian Braun have agreed to a five-year, $125MM rookie scale extension, ESPN’s Shams Charania reports (Twitter link). There are no team or player options in the agreement, Tony Jones of The Athletic tweets.

Earlier on Monday, HoopsHype’s Michael Scotto indicated there was cautious optimism between the two parties than an extension agreement would be worked out. The new deal will begin in 2026/27.

After being an important member of the team’s bench unit during his first two years in Denver, Braun moved into the starting lineup last season following the departure of Kentavious Caldwell-Pope in free agency. The 21st pick of the 2022 draft posted career-high numbers across the board, averaging 15.4 points, 5.2 rebounds and 2.6 assists in 79 games with .580/.397/.827 shooting splits.

Braun is the eighth player in his draft class to sign or agree to a rookie scale extension, joining Paolo Banchero, Jalen Williams, Chet Holmgren, Jabari Smith Jr., Keegan Murray, Nikola Jovic and Shaedon Sharpe.

The numbers that Braun and his agent Bill Duffy agreed to fall in the range of Smith’s agreement of five years and $122MM.

With this agreement, Denver has now committed to four of its starters through at least the 2027/28 season. Braun joins superstar Nikola Jokic, Aaron Gordon and Jamal Murray, though Jokic has a player option on his contract for ’27/28.

As Bobby Marks of ESPN tweets, the Nuggets also now have more than $193MM committed to six players for the 2026/27 season. The cap for next season projects to be $166MM, with a tax line of $201MM and aprons in the neighborhood of $210MM and $223MM.

Hawks Sign Dyson Daniels To Four-Year, $100MM Extension

October 20th, 2025 at 4:04pm CST by Dana Gauruder

4:04 pm: Daniels’ extension is now official, the Hawks announced in a press release.

“We are beyond thrilled to reach a long-term deal with Dyson, and we are excited to watch him continue to grow with our group,” said general manager Onsi Saleh. “This extension reflects our belief in him today and into the future.”

2:16 pm: The Hawks and guard Dyson Daniels have agreed to a four-year, $100MM rookie scale extension, according to ESPN’s Shams Charania (Twitter link). There are no team or player options on the contract, The Athletic’s Fred Katz tweets.

Daniels spent his first two seasons with New Orleans after being selected with the eighth pick in the 2022 draft. His career blossomed after he was traded to Atlanta in the Dejounte Murray blockbuster prior to last season. Daniels became a fixture in the Hawks’ lineup and established himself as one of the premier perimeter defenders in the league.

Daniels captured the NBA’s Most Improved Player of the Year award and was runner-up for Defensive Player of the Year. He also made first team All-Defense and racked up 229 steals, the most in a single season by any player since Gary Payton in 1995/96.

Daniels posted averages of 14.1 points, 5.9 rebounds, 4.4 assists and 3.0 steals in 33.8 minutes per game while making 76 starts. He also shot a career-best 49.3% overall and 34.1% on three-point attempts.

Daniels is the ninth player in his draft class to sign or agree to a rookie scale extension that will begin in 2026/27, joining Christian Braun, Paolo Banchero, Jalen Williams, Chet Holmgren, Jabari Smith Jr., Keegan Murray, Nikola Jovic and Shaedon Sharpe.

Like Braun, Daniels will get an average annual value of $25MM on his new deal, though Braun’s new contract with Denver includes a fifth year.

Daniels and Trae Young meshed well in Atlanta’s backcourt but it’s uncertain how long that pairing will last. Young holds a $48.97MM player option on his contract for 2026/27 and could become a free agent next summer. He and the Hawks aren’t expected to reach an extension at this time.

Bucks Waive Tyler Smith

October 20th, 2025 at 3:53pm CST by Rory Maher

October 20: Smith has been waived and Jackson has made the regular season roster, tweets Shams Charania of ESPN.

October 19: Forward Tyler Smith is not in attendance at Milwaukee’s annual open practice on Sunday and is expected to be waived by the Bucks prior to Monday’s deadline for teams to get within the regular season roster limit, reports Eric Nehm of The Athletic (via Twitter).

NBA insider Jake Fischer confirms (via Twitter) the Bucks plan to release Smith and adds that the forward is expected to have “several” two-way options to pick from in the coming days.

As we wrote both yesterday and this morning, it appeared likely that either Smith or Andre Jackson Jr. would be cut loose after the Bucks decided to keep Amir Coffey. Neither one was great in the preseason, but Jackson was a little better and has shown more than Smith at the NBA level to this point in their respective careers.

Smith, who was selected 33rd overall in last year’s draft after spending 2023/24 with the now-defunct G League Ignite, is owed a guaranteed salary of $1,955,377 this season. Assuming he goes unclaimed on the waiver wire, the Bucks will carry that figure on their books for the remainder of 2025/26 — Milwaukee isn’t close to the luxury tax line, so waiving Smith won’t affect the team’s cap situation much.

As for Jackson, his $2,221,677 salary for ’25/26 will be fully guaranteed if he makes the regular season roster, which seems likely given that Smith is being released. His contract previously featured a partial guarantee of $800K.

A 6’11” power forward, Smith played a modest NBA role as a rookie last season, appearing in 23 games with averages of 2.9 points in 5.3 minutes per contest. He was a regular contributor in 25 NBAGL games with the Wisconsin Herd, though his statistics — 10.7 PPG, 6.1 RPG and 0.9 BPG on .415/.327/.824 shooting in 25.1 MPG — were fairly underwhelming.

Smith is technically under contract through ’27/28, but the final two years of his deal are non-guaranteed and won’t count against Milwaukee’s cap.

Mavs Exercise 2026/27 Option On Dereck Lively

October 20th, 2025 at 2:54pm CST by Luke Adams

The Mavericks have formally exercised their fourth-year option on Dereck Lively II‘s rookie scale contract, the team announced today (via Twitter).

The move, which had been expected, locks in Lively’s $7,239,130 salary for the 2026/27 season, putting him on track to become eligible for a rookie scale extension during the 2026 offseason. If he and the Mavs don’t work out a new deal at that time, he’d reach restricted free agency in 2027.

A 7’1″ center, Lively has averaged 8.8 points, 7.1 rebounds, and 1.5 blocks in 23.4 minutes per game for Dallas during his first two years in the league, making 72.9% of his shot attempts from the floor.

While the 21-year-old has shown plenty of promise early in his NBA career, staying on the floor has been a challenge — injuries have limited him to 91 total appearances (71 starts), including just 36 (29 starts) in 2024/25. He underwent a procedure to clean up bone spurs in his right foot in July, but was available during the preseason and should be ready to go when the team’s season tips off on Wednesday vs. San Antonio.

Decisions on rookie scale options for the 2026/27 season are due on October 31. We’re tracking all of them right here.

Blazers Sign Javonte Cooke To Two-Way Contract

October 20th, 2025 at 1:29pm CST by Eli Cohen

October 20: The signing is official, according to a team press release.

October 19: The Trail Blazers have agreed to sign free agent guard Javonte Cooke to a two-way contract, agent Jerry Dianis tells Shams Charania of ESPN (Twitter link).

Cooke, a 6’6″ guard who went undrafted in 2023, played three games with the Blazers during preseason, averaging 3.3 points and 1.7 rebounds in 7.5 minutes per contest.

Portland released Cooke on Friday and Sean Highkin of The Rose Garden Report stated at the time that the Blazers were still considering the 26-year-old for a two-way spot. Cooke was previously on a non-guaranteed camp deal.

The 26-year-old took an unusual path to the NBA. A Division-II basketball player in college who finished his career at Winston-Salem State, Cooke has played in the G League as well as the Canadian Elite Basketball League since leaving college. He made 42 appearances for the Oklahoma City Blue last season, averaging 17.0 points, 5.0 rebounds, and 2.8 assists in 28.2 minutes per game while converting 42.4% of his shots from the floor, including 33.5% of his three-point attempts.

Cooke will join Caleb Love and Sidy Cissoko as the third and final two-way player for Portland. The team had a two-way opening, so no corresponding move is necessary to re-sign Cooke.

Nets Waive Kobe Bufkin

October 19th, 2025 at 4:23pm CST by Eli Cohen

The Nets have waived guard Kobe Bufkin, the team announced today. Shams Charania of ESPN first reported the news (via Twitter).

Bufkin was traded from the Hawks to the Nets last month in exchange for $110K in cash considerations. He joined a roster loaded with guard competition after the team took Ben Saraf, Egor Demin, and Nolan Traore in the first round of the 2025 draft.

Bufkin, 22, has struggled with injuries throughout his NBA career and has appeared in just 27 total games in his first two NBA seasons. He averaged 5.0 points and 1.6 assists in 11.9 minutes per game during his time with the Hawks.

The former 15th overall pick struggled to carve out much of a role with Brooklyn during preseason, averaging just 10.9 minutes in his two outings and scoring 7.0 PPG on .364/.375/.600 shooting splits.

As Bobby Marks of ESPN notes (via Twitter), because Bufkin’s $4,503,720 salary is fully guaranteed, the Nets will remain slightly above the minimum salary floor entering the season. Not reaching the floor would cause Brooklyn to lose its luxury tax distribution, which is projected to be around $12.8MM, Marks adds (Twitter link).

The move will also get Brooklyn’s roster within the regular season limits — the team now has 15 players on standard contracts and a pair on two-way deals.

Bufkin will become an unrestricted free agent if he clears waivers on Tuesday.

Thunder Exercise 2026/27 Options On Topic, Wallace

October 19th, 2025 at 3:25pm CST by Rory Maher

The Thunder have exercised their 2026/27 team options on guards Nikola Topic and Cason Wallace, the team announced in a press release.

Wallace, the 10th overall pick of the 2023 draft, will now earn a guaranteed $7,420,806 in ’26/27, which will be his fourth season. He will be eligible for a rookie scale extension next summer.

Topic, the 12th pick of last year’s draft, will earn $5,429,760 in ’26/27 (his third season). Both players already had guaranteed contracts for ’25/26.

Wallace, who turns 22 next month, has been a rotation regular over the past two seasons for the defending champions. In 68 regular season games (27.6 minutes per contest) in ’24/25, the defensive stalwart averaged 8.4 points, 3.4 rebounds, 2.5 assists and 1.8 steals on .474/.356/.811 shooting.

Topic, 20, missed his entire rookie season due to an ACL tear. He won’t make his regular season debut until at least November after undergoing a testicular procedure earlier this month.

We’re tracking all the 2026/27 rookie scale option decisions here. They are due by October 31.