Poll: Which Team Will Sign Gordon Hayward?
With Blake Griffin heading back to the Clippers, Stephen Curry and Kevin Durant sticking with the Warriors, and Chris Paul not reaching the free agent market at all, Gordon Hayward looks like the top player on the open market at the moment.
Hayward isn’t rushing his free agent decision, having scheduled meetings with three very interested suitors. The All-Star forward is sitting down with the Heat today before meeting with the Celtics on Sunday and the Jazz on Monday.
The Celtics, armed with cap flexibility and assets, and coming off a 53-win season, have long been viewed as a potential landing spot for Hayward, especially given his history with Boston head coach Brad Stevens, who coached him at Butler. However, the Jazz have a promising young core of their own, won 51 games last season, and have built up a strong relationship with Hayward over the course of his NBA career. The Heat don’t have the same kind of history with Hayward, but Hassan Whiteside has been working hard to recruit Hayward, and the appeal of South Beach shouldn’t be understated.
While those three teams appear to be the finalists for Hayward, ESPN’s Zach Lowe noted on Friday that he wouldn’t be surprised if a fourth club lands a meeting with the 27-year-old too. At this point though, it’s not clear which other teams might attempt to get involved in the Hayward sweepstakes. It may simply come down to Boston, Utah, and Miami.
What do you think? Where will Hayward end up signing? Place your vote in our poll, then jump into the comments section below to share your thoughts.
Which team will sign Gordon Hayward?
-
Boston Celtics 43% (1,679)
-
Utah Jazz 33% (1,261)
-
Miami Heat 18% (717)
-
Another team 6% (221)
Total votes: 3,878
Trade Rumors app users, click here to vote.
Free Agent Rumors: Porter, Randolph, Millsap, Holiday
The Wizards‘ session with Otto Porter ended without an agreement, tweets David Aldridge of TNT. Porter plans to start meeting with other teams this weekend (Twitter link). That creates a potential opening for the Nets, who appear willing to offer the max of four years and $100MM, according to a post on NetsDaily. Philadelphia may also get involved, but the Sixers seem reluctant to make long-term offers. Washington has promised to match any offer for the restricted free agent.
There’s more late-night free agency news:
- Aldridge has two more tidbits to pass along. The Cavaliers are interested in Grizzlies power forward Zach Randolph and plan to call him today (Twitter link). Also, Blake Griffin‘s decision to re-sign with the Clippers means the Suns will intensify their pursuit of Hawks forward Paul Millsap (Twitter link).
- Jrue Holiday met with the Pelicans tonight, but no deal was reached, tweets Sam Amick of USA Today. The two sides are expected to get together again in the morning.
- The new $201MM supermax contract that the Warriors gave to Stephen Curry doesn’t include a no-trade clause or a player option, according to Anthony Slater of The San Jose Mercury News (Twitter link).
- Spurs forward Jonathon Simmons has gotten calls from the Kings, Clippers and Timberwolves and is ready to start holding meetings, according to Shams Charania of The Vertical (Twitter link).
- In addition to Simmons, the Clippers plan to meet with Nuggets forward Danilo Gallinari on Sunday and Jazz forward Joe Ingles this weekend, relays Brad Turner of The Los Angeles Times (Twitter link).
- There’s a strong chance that Celtics‘ power forward Amir Johnson will sign with the Sixers, a source tells Keith Pompey of The Philadelphia Inquirer. Johnson has a history with Philadelphia’s president of basketball operations Bryan Colangelo, who traded for him in 2009 as GM of the Raptors.
- The Kings met tonight with Andre Iguodala and Patrick Patterson, according to Sam Amick of USA Today (Twitter link).
- The Timberwolves have put in a call to Ty Lawson as a possible backup for Jeff Teague, tweets Darren Wolfson of 5 Eyewitness News. The Pelicans, Thunder and Kings have also been in contact with Lawson.
- The Grizzlies are the latest team to show interest in Kings guard Ben McLemore, relays Chris Mannix of The Vertical (Twitter link).
- The Knicks contacted Suns power forward Alan Williams tonight, posts Ian Begley on ESPN Now. Williams fits New York’s goal of finding players who can contribute on both ends of the floor, Begley notes.
Free Agent Rumors: Redick, Ingles, Hayward, Gay
The first meeting for Clippers guard J.J. Redick was with the Sixers, posts Adrian Wojnarowski on ESPN Now. On ESPN’s television coverage, Wojnarowski said Philadelphia would like to convince Redick to accept a short-term contract, “a one-year deal at a very big number, $20 million-plus, potentially.” The Timberwolves and Nets are also expected to be contenders for Redick, and he has expressed interest in joining former Clippers teammate Chris Paul with the Rockets. Wojnarowski adds that there is no chance of Redick returning to L.A.
There’s more from the early hours of free agency:
- Jazz forward Joe Ingles has received “serious interest” from the Magic and has three meetings scheduled for Saturday, tweets Tim Bontemps of The Washington Post. Ingles will meet with the Utah delegation this weekend, according to Tony Jones of the Salt Lake Tribune (Twitter link).
- Heat center Hassan Whiteside has been actively recruiting Gordon Hayward to Miami, tweets Alex Kennedy of Hoops Hype. Whiteside will attend Hayward’s meeting with Heat officials on Saturday.
- Kings forward Rudy Gay has four meetings set up over the next few days, Kennedy adds (Twitter link).
- The Nuggets reached out to Utah’s George Hill during the first hour of free agency, posts Ian Begley on ESPN Now. Denver could create cap room to sign Hill by letting Danilo Gallinari leave, Begley notes.
- The Mavericks had a “great call” with Nerlens Noel, tweets Eddie Sefko of The Dallas Morning News. Noel expressed a desire to re-sign with the team, but nothing has been finalized.
- The Lakers made calls tonight to Andre Iguodala, Rajon Rondo and Ben McLemore., tweets Ramona Shelburne of ESPN.com. The Knicks and Bucks have also inquired about McLemore, according to Chris Haynes of ESPN.com (Twitter link).
Wolves Trade Rubio To Jazz For First-Round Pick
4:22pm: The Jazz are able to absorb Rubio’s $13.6MM contract today, but only today. As of tomorrow, the official start of the 2017/18 campaign, a Rudy Gobert raise coupled with some cap holds would push Utah’s payroll higher.
4:16pm: Jon Krawczynski of the Associated Press has tweeted that the deal is done and awaiting league approval. The 2018 first-rounder from OKC will be Top-14 protected, ESPN’s Marc Stein says.
4:05pm: Jody Genessey of the Deseret News has relayed a report from Zone Sports Networks’ Spencer Checketts that Utah will send Oklahoma City’s first-round pick to Minnesota in exchange for Rubio.
4:00pm: Tony Jones of the Salt Lake Tribune tweets that the Rubio trade “is happening”, noting that the deal is close to being done. It hasn’t, however, been formally confirmed yet.
3:45pm: The Jazz and Timberwolves are actively discussing a deal in which Ricky Rubio would head to Utah, Shams Charania of The Vertical tweets.
It’s unclear what would be heading back to Minnesota in the exchange but the news that Rubio could be on the move isn’t exactly groundbreaking. Despite the fact that the Timberwolves have already traded away two point guards this month, Rubio’s name has been a mainstay in trade rumors since the Wolves drafted Kris Dunn last June.
Much can and has been inferred from the news of these ongoing Rubio negotiations. Zach Lowe of ESPN tweets that this could mean George Hill will be unlikely to return to Utah. If nothing else, he adds, it will give the team leverage in contract negotiations with the 31-year-old.
The deal also lends credence to a theory that the Timberwolves could be serious contenders to pursue Kyle Lowry. Tim Bontemps of the Washington Post echoed the sentiments of The Athletic’s Eric Koreen suggesting as much shortly after the negotiations were made public.
In a separate tweet, Eric Koreen says that, Minnesota unloading Rubio, coupled with revoking the Shabazz Muhammad‘s qualifying offer would free up about $32MM for the organization.
Free Agent Rumors: Warriors, Noel, Hill, Tucker
With free agency less than nine hours away, there’s no meeting scheduled between the Warriors and Andre Iguodala, tweets ESPN’s Zach Lowe. However, as Lowe points out, that could change any minute and the two sides are still optimistic about Iguodala’s return.
Meanwhile, Dewayne Dedmon is on the Warriors’ radar once again this summer, according to Sam Amico of USA Today (Twitter link), who reports the Dedmon/Golden State connection is worth watching particularly if Iguodala leaves. Dedmon would be a candidate to receive some or all of Golden State’s mid-level exception, though it’s not clear yet which MLE the Warriors will have. The club could end up with the full MLE ($8.4MM), the taxpayer mid-level ($5.2MM), or the room exception ($4.3MM).
Let’s round up more notes and rumors on free agency from around the league…
- The general sense around the NBA this year heading into free agency is that teams won’t be as aggressive and free-spending out of the gate as they were a year ago, tweets Ramona Shelburne of ESPN.com. As Shelburne observes (via Twitter), that’s creating some frustration for agents, since this year’s free agents want to be paid like last year’s were.
- Nerlens Noel is receiving interest from several teams and won’t limit his discussions to the Mavericks, according to Tim MacMahon of ESPN.com, who hears from a source that Dallas is willing to pay “market value” for Noel (Twitter link). The big man is a restricted free agent, giving the Mavs the right of first refusal.
- George Hill‘s preference is to remain with the Jazz, but the Spurs would be his second choice and the Timberwolves are “lurking,” says Ben Rohrbach of Yahoo! Sports (Twitter link).
- The Raptors, Timberwolves, Nuggets, Kings, Sixers, and Clippers are among the teams expected to have interest in P.J. Tucker, tweets Darren Wolfson of 5 Eyewitness News. Toronto is schedule to meet with Tucker on Saturday, per Michael Scotto of Basketball Insiders (Twitter link).
- There’s still some mutual interest between the Kings and veteran point guard Ty Lawson, according to Jason Jones of The Sacramento Bee (via Twitter). If Lawson returns to Sacramento, his role may look a little different, with De’Aaron Fox now in the picture and Darren Collison potentially signing elsewhere.
Western FA Rumors: Hayward, Gallinari, Clippers
Jazz general manager Dennis Lindsey remains confident about his team’s chances to re-sign Gordon Hayward, George Hill, and Joe Ingles, writes Jody Genessy of The Deseret News. The team’s ability to bring back Hill and/or Ingles may be key to retaining Hayward.
Genessy reiterates (via Twitter) that Hayward really wants the Jazz to re-sign Hill, adding that his decision could hinge on that, while Sam Amick of USA Today notes (via Twitter) that Hayward and Ingles share an agent. Utah has been seeking a trade for a cheaper point guard to replace Hill, but may be hesitant to make such a move if it would make Hayward more likely to leave.
Here’s more on free agency from around the Western Conference, including another Hayward-related note:
- Having previously said that he wouldn’t prioritize the Nuggets over any other suitor in free agency, Danilo Gallinari tells Italian outlet La Gazzetta dello Sport that his goal is to remain with Denver, and will have one of his first meetings with the Nuggets. Emiliano Carchia of Sportando provides the English translation on the quotes from Gallinari, who also acknowledged that he won’t receive a maximum salary contract.
- The Clippers want to hang onto Blake Griffin in free agency, but it’s not clear whether the team is prepared to put a five-year, maximum salary offer on the table for him, tweets Ramona Shelburne of ESPN.com.
- Broderick Turner of The Los Angeles Times (Twitter link) identifies Jonathon Simmons, Rudy Gay, Danilo Gallinari, P.J. Tucker, James Johnson, Joe Ingles, and Andre Iguodala as additional free agents of interest for the Clippers.
- The Gordon Hayward sweepstakes are creating a battle amidst the Ainge family, as Chris Forsberg of ESPN.com details. Tanner Ainge, the son of Celtics president Danny Ainge, is running for Congress in Utah and has pushed for Hayward to remain with the Jazz.
Lowe’s Latest: George, Hayward, Ibaka, Gallinari
A proposed scenario that would see the Celtics sign Gordon Hayward, trade for Paul George, and sign George to a contract extension isn’t realistic, writes Zach Lowe in his latest report for ESPN.com. As Lowe points out, there would be no reason for George to re-up with Boston right away in that scenario unless he could renegotiate a maximum salary, and it would be extremely difficult for the C’s to accommodate such a deal without moving Al Horford.
Knowing that if they acquire George, he could be a rental, the Celtics have thus far been unwilling to include Jaylen Brown, Jayson Tatum, the Nets’ 2018 first-round pick, or the Lakers’ 2018 first-rounder in any of their offers to Indiana, Lowe reports. Lowe’s best guess at Boston’s offer is a package that would include Jae Crowder, Marcus Smart, and one of the team’s other first-round picks. The C’s will be reluctant to go much higher than that, given their fear that George could leave in 2018 — Tania Ganguli of The Los Angeles Times wrote on Thursday night that the Pacers forward is still telling friends he expects to be a Laker in 2018.
While George could just be a one-year rental, the Celtics have competition for him. According to Lowe, the Wizards would likely be willing to sign-and-trade Otto Porter and include a first-round pick. The Cavaliers would swap Kevin Love straight up, though that doesn’t interest Indiana much, per Lowe. If the Nuggets get involved again via three-way talks for George and Love, they could offer Gary Harris and a first-round pick, though NBA execs expect Harris to command upwards of $20MM annually on his next contract, which is due soon, says Lowe.
Here’s more from Lowe with the free agent period right around the corner:
- Lowe views Hayward as less than a 50-50 bet to stay with the Jazz, with both the Celtics and Heat as legitimate suitors. The ESPN scribe adds that he wouldn’t be surprised if a mystery fourth team ends up getting a meeting with Hayward.
- The market for Raptors big man Serge Ibaka and Nuggets forward Danilo Gallinari is expected to be in about the $20MM-per-year range, sources tell Lowe.
- The Sixers have told player agents that they plan on signing one-year contracts in free agency this summer to preserve future cap space. They may also use some of their current cap room to sign Robert Covington to a renegotiated extension, writes Lowe.
- Lowe expects the Bucks to sign Tony Snell to a deal in the range of $10-12MM annually.
- Despite drafting De’Aaron Fox, the Kings may still spend on a free agent point guard as a veteran mentor, particularly if they decide they want to chase a playoff spot right away, says Lowe.
- The Grizzlies are “crossing their fingers” that the market for RFA power forward JaMychal Green isn’t as competitive as expected, according to Lowe.
Gordon Hayward Declines Player Option
Coveted free agent Gordon Hayward has officially notified the Jazz that he’s declining his player option, Marc Stein of ESPN tweets. The announcement is a mere formality considering that the basketball world has already moved on to debating which possible suitor he’ll visit first.
Per Stein in another tweet, Hayward will meet with the Heat first, then the Celtics and finally the Jazz. For more details about the upcoming recruiting appointments, consider clicking over to our previous Hoops Rumors report from earlier in the day.
Hayward, now an official free agent, averaged 21.9 points and 5.4 rebounds per game for the Jazz and is among the most prized, reasonably attainable, players on the market.
Gordon Hayward Will Meet With Three Teams
JUNE 29, 8:36am: There are conflicting reports on the order of Hayward’s meetings, with some reports – including one from ESPN’s Jorge Sedano – suggesting the sit-down with the Celtics will happen last, following Monday’s session with the Jazz.
The order of the meetings likely won’t end up being all that important, however. Last summer, for instance, Kevin Durant met with the Warriors second out of six teams.
JUNE 28, 8:23pm: Hayward will meet with the Celtics on Sunday, according to Scott Agness of Vigilant Sports.
7:10pm: The Heat will get the first meeting with Jazz free agent Gordon Hayward, reports Tony Jones of The Salt Lake Tribune.
Hayward has scheduled a session with Miami officials for Saturday, the first day of free agency, then will meet with Utah’s delegation on Monday. The Celtics will also get a meeting, but a date hasn’t been set, tweets A. Sherrod Blakely of CSNNE.
Those are the only three teams Hayward will be considering, Jones adds, and he would like to make a decision quickly. Hayward, who opted out of a $16.7MM deal for next season, is expected to receive max offers from all three organizations. However, the Jazz have the advantage of being able to sign him for five years, while the Heat and Celtics are limited to four.
Hayward, 27, is coming off his first All-Star appearance, averaging 21.9 points in 73 games and shooting almost 40% from 3-point range. He has spent the first seven years of his NBA career in Utah.
Free Agent Notes: Caldwell-Pope, Korver, Millsap, Hill
Coach/executive Stan Van Gundy says keeping restricted free agent Kentavious Caldwell-Pope will be the Pistons‘ priority in free agency, tweets Rod Beard of The Detroit News. The Pistons submitted a $4.96MM qualifying offer to Caldwell-Pope earlier this week, giving them the right to match any offer he receives. Van Gundy adds that the team will be searching for a third center at the veterans minimum and would like to find a veteran point guard to back up Reggie Jackson and Ish Smith (Twitter link). “Our main focus in [free agency] is guards,” Van Gundy said, “whether it’s our own guys or whatever we can spend on the MLE.”
There’s more as the free agency countdown continues:
- Luxury tax issues could force Kyle Korver out of Cleveland, even though he and the team would like to extend their relationship, according to Joe Vardon of Cleveland.com. The Cavaliers may have to part with Korver, who shot a league-best .485 from 3-point range this season, if a large offer comes from another organization. Cleveland topped the $113MM tax threshold by $15MM this year and is facing a luxury tax bill of about $24.8MM, which includes a repeater penalty for exceeding the threshold every year since LeBron James returned. The Cavs currently have 10 players under contract for 2017/18 with a total salary of $128MM. With a projected tax line of $119MM, the team is looking at $29.75MM in taxes without filling up the roster.
- Six to eight teams are expected to pursue Hawks forward Paul Millsap, tweets Chris Vivlamore of The Atlanta Journal Constitution. The Nuggets, Spurs and Rockets are teams that have expressed interest in Millsap, although Houston’s plans may be altered by the package it gave the Clippers today in exchange for Chris Paul. New Hawks GM Travis Schlenk has said the Hawks don’t expect to make a full max offer to Millsap.
- Gordon Hayward is hoping the Jazz will re-sign point guard George Hill, relays Jody Genessy of The Deseret News (Twitter link). Utah is hoping for an early meeting with Hill, who averaged 16.9 points in 49 games after coming to the team in an offseason trade. Hayward remains the top priority in free agency, and the Jazz will meet with him Monday after he hears presentations from the Heat and Celtics.