Category: NBA

The Cleveland Cavaliers weren’t able to pull out a win in their first Summer League game against the Indiana Pacers on Friday, but there were plenty of good things to take away from the loss. Mainly, the strong play of Meleek Thomas and Nae’Qwan Tomlin.

Thomas, the 34th overall pick in this most recent draft, scored 20 points on 7-14 shooting. This included Thomas going 2-5 from deep. The scoring touch that the Cavs were talking about after the draft showed through in his first game.

Tomlin looked like an NBA player in Friday’s loss. That’s mostly all that you want to see from a player of his caliber in this environment.

Malaki Branham also performed well, putting up 15 points on 4-8 shooting in the loss. He’s a player to keep your eye on throughout Summer League and possibly the training camp process.

One player you would like to see a nice bounce back from is Tristan Enaruna. Enaruna is on a two-way contract with the Cavs and showed great strides as a shooter throughout the previous G League season with the Charge. That didn’t show through on Friday as he went 1-7 from the field and was limited to just six minutes of play. We’ll see if he can turn it around on Sunday.

Who: Cleveland Cavaliers vs. Detroit Pistons

Where: Thomas & Mack Center – Las Vegas, NV

When: Sun., July 12 at 4 PM

TV: Prime Video

Point spread: Pistons -1.5

Cavs notable players: Nae’Qwan Tomlin, Meleek Thomas, Ernest Udeh Jr., Riley Minix, Tristan Enaruna, Malaki Branham

Pistons notable players: Ebuka Okorie, Ugonna Onyenso, Isaac Jones, Chaz Lanier

#1 Clank City

The opening five minutes of the Summer League Celtics’ game were a tough watch. We had five missed shots, seven turnovers and two foul calls, all before a bucket was scored in open play. Sure, there was a successful trip to the line, but overall, things got off to a shaky start.

That’s Summer League basketball, though. We’re not coming into these games expecting everyone to be perfect. We know things are going to be gritty and sometimes clumsy. As long as everyone is giving their full effort, you can overlook the mistakes, especially if you see players learning from them on the fly.

Unfortunately, the Celtics’ shooting woes didn’t get much better throughout the first half. They went into the locker room at halftime having shot 15.6% from the field (7-of-45) and 12.5% from deep (2-of-16). Those aren’t typos.

Whatever Amile Jefferson and his coaching staff said at halftime clearly had a positive impact. In the third quarter, Boston shot 47.4% from the field and 40% from deep. When looking at the second half as a whole, it’s clear the Celtics upped their game, 47.1% from the field, 41.2% from deep.

Much better.

The question now is whether the Summer League Celts can avoid another slow shooting start when they face the Hornets on Sunday.

#2 Pros and cons of the new free-throw rule

If you’ve been watching Summer League games outside the Celtics, you’ve already seen this rule in place. If not, then it probably came as a slight surprise. The NBA recently announced that it would be adopting the “one free-throw” rule for this year’s Summer League contests in Salt Lake City, Northern California and Las Vegas.

The rule changes mean that if a player is sent to the line, they will take one free throw for the full value of the points. i.e., if a player gets fouled while shooting a three, they will take one shot at the line worth three points.

The aim is to speed up the game. Fouls in the final two minutes of the fourth quarter and in overtime will result in the normal free-throw system.

I have mixed feelings about this rule. On the plus side, games move more quickly. We’re not being held up by lengthy shooting routines at the line (yes, I’m looking at you, Giannis), either. From a consumer standpoint, there’s a clear upside.

However, player evaluation, from a fan’s perspective, becomes a little more complicated. If you’re watching a rookie play in Summer League, and they’re struggling to get their shots to fall, you can always look at their free-throw success as a potential (small sample size) indicator of shooting skill. When you essentially half the number of free throws in a game, that data becomes significantly less reliable.

There’s also the fairness of it all. If you’re fouled when shooting a three-pointer, you have three chances to put points on the board. Even if you go 2-of-3 from the line, you’ve added to the score. Under this new rule, it’s sink or swim on the one attempt.

The G League has run with this rule for a couple of seasons now. I do wonder whether it eventually makes its way into the NBA.

#3 Chris Cenac Jr. had himself a night

Chris Cenac Jr. had a quietly impressive game. He let the action come to him, rarely forced anything and came up big when it mattered. He ended the night with 14 points, 10 rebounds and 5 stocks, going 2-of-4 from deep in the process.

Throughout the game, we saw Cenac flash different aspects of his game, be it his bounce, like when he missed the putback dunk after crashing into Dillon Mitchell, his perimeter scoring or even his ability to put the ball on the floor and finish off the bounce.

I was surprised that Cenac wasn’t part of the starting lineup, with Mitchell (Boston’s 2026 second-round draft pick) starting ahead of him. However, it clearly didn’t mean much, as he ended the night as one of the Celtics’ most impactful players.

Still, I’m not allowing myself to get too carried away by his performance on Friday; this is still Summer League after all. However, with his ability to play at both the four and five, guard multiple positions, provide switchability on defense, and knock down open treys, I wouldn’t be surprised if he worked his way into Joe Mazzulla’s rotation at some point this season.

Solid Summer League debut from the Houston product. I love that he played within the flow of the game, rather than trying to force things in hopes of impressing.

#4 Dillon Mitchell is full of energy

The box score won’t remember Mitchell fondly for this game, but when has that ever stopped us from falling in love with an energy guy?

Mitchell gave everything when on the floor. He was the first to leak out once his teammates secured rebounds, and if some of the pitch-ahead passes had been a little better timed, he could have ended the game with double-digit scoring numbers. Mitchell also had 4 stocks in the game, hustling on both sides of the floor.

Another thing I really liked about Mitchell was his explosiveness. He had a great putback dunk late in the second quarter after running the floor and sticking with the action.

Of course, it should come as no surprise that we didn’t see Mitchell attempt anything from deep. After all, he enters the NBA having shot just 19.3% from the perimeter in college. I’ll be interested to see whether he gets given a remit to start working on his outside game during the remaining Summer League games, or whether that’s something he’ll be developing with the Maine Celtics’ staff (if at all).

#5 Amari Williams, take a bow

I loved what Amari Williams brought to the table in this game. In regard to how Mazzulla likes to use non-shooting bigs, Williams perfectly fits the bill. He’s patient when in possession, is a capable and willing screener and can score in a couple of different ways. On defense, he’s got the size and frame to be a deterrent, while also having enough hip mobility to step outside of the paint and contain ball-handlers.

We saw a wide range of what Williams brings to the table against Toronto. However, it was his work in delay actions that really stood out.

Williams never rushes into an action. His poise allows things to unfold around him before he begins making his move.

Check out the above play.

Rather than trying to feed Hank Morgan on his cut, Williams keeps control of the rock, waits to see how the defense shakes out and then opts to initiate a dribble hand-off with Alondes Williams. The play doesn’t amount to anything, but for those of you who have been reading my work for a while, you’ll know i’m all about the process.

It would have been easy for Williams to fire off a pass to Morgan once he cut off his screen. Instead, Williams read the floor and got the ball to a curling forward who could pressure the defense while getting downhill. What did Williams do after the hand-off? He positioned himself in the dunker spot to either contend for an offensive board or offer an outlet if the defense locked in.

In fairness, Williams probably should have hit Mitchell on his cut, but that’s whatever at this point.

Some solid play from Williams, who faces an uphill battle to earn playing time next season.

#6 Where I go, Hugo

Whenever you tune into some Summer League hoops, it’s usually clear which players have enjoyed a year or two of professional hoops and the development that comes with it. On Friday, those players were Hugo Gonzalez and Williams for Boston.

Hugo is going to be Boston’s focal point throughout this Summer League run, or at least until the Celtics decide they’ve seen enough and shut him down. In an expanded role, the sophomore forward flirted with a triple-double, ending the night with 17 points, 10 rebounds and 8 assists.

However, the Celtics will want to see better shooting nights from Hugo in the coming days. He went 3-of-16 from the field and 1-of-9 from deep. Did that gnarly bruise on his arm play a part in such rough shooting splits? Maybe. Maybe not.

Still, despite his struggles from the field, Hugo showcased some playmaking ability, generating scoring opportunities for himself and others while running the PnR.

We already know what Hugo is capable of on the defensive end. However, seeing what he can do in an expanded offensive role is going to be incredibly fun over the next week. His timing will surely improve, as will the quality of his passing. Still, on first glance, there’s every reason to believe that over the next few years, Hugo will emerge as a solid, if not vital, member of Boston’s rotation.

#7 A 2-Man Game

Did anyone else peep the two-man game between Hugo and Williams? They had multiple possessions where they connected on some pretty good actions. It makes sense that Boston leans into plays with its two best Summer League players, especially when they’re finding so much success in those situations.

I especially liked seeing the duo connect on PnR actions, especially when it led to a scoring opportunity. It’s hard to get excited about two young guys on a roster we’re hoping will be ready to contend for a championship in 12 months’ time. Nevertheless, I couldn’t help but wonder whether we’ll see Hugo and Williams emerge as a fun-to-watch duo for years to come, either off the bench or as part of the Celtics’ starting unit down the line.

For now, though, I’ll be doing my best to keep track of how often the Celtics lean into the Hugo/Williams two-man game over the remainder of Summer League, while cheering for every possession where those plays work out well.

#8 Amile Jefferson had Tatum in support

Jayson Tatum made an appearance at Boston’s opening Summer League game, along with Derrick White. During the game, Tatum was mic’d up, as he spoke about Jefferson stepping into the head coaching gig for the Summer League C’s.

“I think this is where I’m supposed to say I’m very proud of Amile for being a head coach,” Tatum said. “But it’s his first time coaching. I had to come support my brother. Part of coaching, you’ve got to look the part. This is like the first step in becoming a head coach.”

Jefferson got his Summer League coaching career off to a great start. Not only did the Celtics win, but they turned things around after a brutal first half and stayed composed during overtime. He’s certainly got a platform to build on heading into Sunday’s matchup.

#9 Milos Uzan might have something

Uzan signed an Exhibit 10 contract with the Celtics earlier this summer. Therefore, he’ll be with the team throughout Summer League and into training camp. I hadn’t seen Uzan play before yesterday, so I didn’t know what to expect coming in.

Like most of his teammates, Uzan struggled shooting the rock. However, his speed, changes of pace and ability to change direction on a dime were all impressive. He also found ways to get his teammates involved, ending the night with five dimes. Defensively, it felt like Uzan got lost a couple of times, but nothing that I would deem egregious.

It’s hard to judge a player based on one game. Especially when that game comes in the Summer League, which is often a false dawn. I came away looking forward to seeing more of Uzan over the next week, and wondering whether he could earn a two-way spot with the Celtics. Having another speedy guard who can score and create off the bounce wouldn’t be a bad thing for Boston’s depth throughout the regular season.

#10 Locking down the perimeter

We’ve got to credit the Celtics for the work they did in locking down the three-point line. The Raptors shot just 19.6% on non-corner threes in this game, going 7-of-36. Some of that will be the fact that guys were forcing their looks, but a lot more will be the way the Celtics locked down the perimeter and forced Toronto into difficult shots under legitimate resistance.

Outside of long middies, the Celtics held Toronto to below-average scoring from every major shot location. For a group that is looking to impress both the coaching staff and onlooking scouts, putting in the work on the defensive end is the perfect pathway to both team and individual success.

Boston’s identity continues to be as a gritty defensive unit. Ensuring that translates to Summer League is a testament to the coaching staff and the players on the floor.

Tougher tests will await them during their stay in Vegas, but starting off with this type of rearguard performance gives this young Celtics roster a solid platform to build on.

The Knicks front office has been busy retaining its championship mettle this offseason. 

Within the last week, Landry Shamet, Jordan Clarkson and Jose Alvarado returned on team-friendly deals, and New York picked up Andre Drummond to replace the Boston-bound Mitchell Robinson. 

But the move that may outshine them all in the short and long term was re-signing Mohamed Diawara to a four-year, $11.2 million deal. The 21-year-old forward averaged just 3.6 points in his rookie season, but his on-court flashes and physical gifts make him a nuclear lottery ticket for the Knicks. 

As New York and many other contenders dealt with this offseason, the second apron restrictions are making it tougher to maintain cost-controlled but still competitive teams. The Thunder traded two of their key young guards ahead of their extensions, the Celtics downgraded from Jaylen Brown, and the Knicks couldn’t shell out to keep Robinson. 

Diawara’s contract runs under $3 million a year, a rounding error to the salary cap. If he becomes a rotation player, or something more, the Knicks would get a near-term contributor to their championship core and foundational piece of the next one at a fraction of the cost.

Why the Knicks are betting on Diawara's upside

Diawara's build is outrageous: 6’9” with a 7’4” wingspan, 225 pounds, and the baseline skills to boot.

He’s got some handles and a knack for finding the open man, even getting some pick-and-roll reps in real minutes this season. That kind of self-advantage creation from a player his size is rare, and he’s used it to get two feet in the paint, finishing with his length or finding others.

Diawara showed some nifty moves in his limited minutes, spin dribbles and tough angles finishes. If there’s a high-scoring upside here, we’re seeing the beginnings of it already.

On @Honda SportsNite, @IanBegley discusses the Knicks finalizing a deal with restricted free agent Mo Diawara, who the Knicks have held pre-draft workouts with, and how the Knicks' pick at 24 in the NBA Draft impacts their approach to the offseason and the second apron pic.twitter.com/1qEv2PoSSx

— SNY Knicks (@sny_knicks) June 23, 2026

The big surprise was how he shot the lights out in his rookie season. Through the month of February, he shot 41.4 percent from deep, going 10-18 in one six-game stretch.

He finished the season with a 36.9 percent clip on only 130 attempts, struggling with the higher volumes he was entrusted with in March and April, but the base is there. His jumper is fluid, tough to contest, and bagged 19 of 33 attempts from the corners. 

Defensively, Diawara was ahead of schedule as a neophyte, picking up team concepts as the season evolved and even stepping up for big moments. He had standout, promising stretches, like when he shut down Jaylen Brown in one matchup. 

While there was plenty of rawness, Diawara also carried a poise and audacious confidence despite making his debut on a championship team. When he got a chance to crack the rotation, he jumped on it.

He didn’t get consistent playing time, but for weeks at a time, especially later in the season, he was getting regular burn that served as real experience under his belt and a validation of his behind-the-scenes work. Diawara wasn’t entrusted with playoff minutes, but a bigger role this regular season could set him up for some.

The Knicks may need him, currently lacking traditional forwards beyond their starters. Until last year’s trade deadline, Guerschon Yabusele was taking those minutes and head coach Mike Brown also experimented with double-big lineups, plus super small ones with Mikal Bridges at the four.

With no Yabusele or Robinson, the Knicks could use an extra threat in the frontcourt and Diawara can start to make his claim at Summer League. With a good performance there and a strong training camp, he could earn a rotation spot out of the gates and flex his development on the big stage.

The Knicks won their championship by trusting promising, culture-fitting guys to raise their games. Locking up Diawara gives them the chance of finding another one without losing financial control.

Just two players were selected directly from mid-major programs in the 2026 NBA Draft. Santa Clara’s Allen Graves was the No. 19 pick to the Toronto Raptors, and the draft rights of South Florida’s Izaiyah Nelson, the No. 51 pick, were traded to Orlando.

However, according to the Mid-Major Reacts survey, despite Graves being a top-20 pick and Nelson being one of the final 10 selections, the two will be equally impactful in the ongoing NBA Summer League, as each player received 50% of the votes.

While Graves enters the NBA with higher expectations, there’s likely more at stake for Nelson in Las Vegas. Graves recently inked a four-year, $19.7 million contract with more than $8 million guaranteed. Nelson, too, earned a contract, but it was a two-way deal.

Graves burst onto the draft scene in just one season at Santa Clara. His redshirt freshman was headlined by WCC Sixth Man and Freshman of the Year honors, and the Broncos’ first trip to the Big Dance in 30 years. Despite coming off the bench in his lone season of collegiate action, Graves skyrocketed up draft boards thanks to his defensive versatility and offensive consistency, marking Herb Sendek’s third first rounder in the last five seasons.

He backed up the first-round label in his Summer League debut and scored 22 points, shooting 9-for-16 and 3-for-8 from deep. Arguably more impressively, he hauled in 13 rebounds, five of which were offensive, blocked two shots and had three steals. He showcased his upside as a do-it-all defender, and if he brings this sort of offense along with his defensive abilities, he’s in for a long NBA career.

Obviously, it’s way too early to formulate real conclusions about his NBA future, but his first showing was about as good as you could ask for.

On the contrary, Nelson doesn’t have as obvious of an NBA path, but he has the physical tools to be a rotational big if he finds the right situation. He doesn’t offer hardly anything offensively on the perimeter, but he got better each of his four college seasons and played himself into the draft after averaging 15.9 points, 9.6 rebounds, 1.6 steals and 1.4 blocks. 

He made the move from Arkansas State to South Florida with Brian Hodgson, and it resulted in being drafted. Now, starting with the Summer League, he’ll need to prove he belongs at the next level. Without much of a perimeter game, he’ll need to play to his strengths, continuing to be an energetic, high-level rebounder and versatile defender, ideally finding his footing offensively through solid screens and athletic finishes around the rim.

There’s a path for Nelson to stick in the NBA, it’s not as clear as Graves’, but he’s got his foot in the door now. He got off to a rather uneventful start in his first Summer League game on Thursday but flashed what he’s capable of. He scored just two points, but grabbed six rebounds, two offensive, and added a steal and a block in 15 minutes off the bench. Ideally, as Summer League progresses, he’ll see more minutes to prove he can be a high-volume rebounder and stocks guy.

Nelson also picked up five fouls in the contest, so he’ll need to show he can be sound defensively and be impactful without fouling to earn a real NBA opportunity.

Summer League action runs through July 19, and both players will continue to get game reps and show why mid-major players belong on NBA courts, but through one game each, it’s been Graves with the strongest showing.

For all your college sports betting needs, visit FanDuel.

Less than a month after playing a competitive game, the Knicks were back on a court doing some goofy play. Here are some links and notes before New York gets back to it against a familiar foe later today.

• The Knicks opened Summer League with a 91-65 loss to the Nets. Shouts out to my Brooklynites for taking advantage of the only time of the year they’re good enough to beat New York.
• Mohamed Diawara did not sugarcoat his awful performance after going 1-for-9 from the field and putting up a monster minus-39 in 23 minutes of playing time.

“I got to do way better. I think the level that we take back is, like, a little way better. I can play like I played today, and just be better than last game.”

• Pacome Dadiet somehow looked like a player, scored a team-high 20, and multiplied his value as he enters his third season in the League, earning $2.9 million. Of note, per the Daily News’ Kristian Windfield, Dadiet’s cap hit rises to $5.4 million next year, so the Knicks will need to make a business decision here.
• Rookie Tyler Nickel made a smooth impression, coming off the pine and drilling six threes of 10 attempted for all 18 of his points. Fellow drafted neophyte Jack Kayil did not make his Summer League debut (no big deal) after the mini-paperwork saga that finally got him onto the roster. Debut expected against the Spurs on Saturday, per Kris Pursianen.
• T.J. Saint is already impressed (h/t James L. Edwards) with a particular area of Nickel’s game, and it’s got nothing to do with his three-point shooting. before the shooting show, but acknowledged Dadiet and Diawara’s struggles.
• The New York Post’s Stefan Bondy wrote that the Knicks are now in the NBA’s “culture” sweet spot, revealing its two ingredients and comparing this New York team to Tim Duncan’s Spurs and Steph Curry’s Warriors. Trying to keep it spoiler-free:

“The reality, as evidenced through the NBA’s history, is ‘culture’ cannot be spoken into existence. It requires two important components, both non-negotiable and both currently achieved by the Knicks.

“(The Spurs and the Warriors) represented the standard because of Duncan and Curry. When Duncan left, Gregg Popovich was just a below-average coach. When Curry is injured, Steve Kerr’s record plummets.”

• Julius Randle is back in New York, just on the wrong side of the bridge. On Friday, attending the Nets-Knicks Summer League game, Randle spoke about plenty of things, including his role as a mentor in Brooklyn and the similarities between this new chapter and the one he spent with the Knicks. Never not like Jules.

“It feels great to be here. It’s a great opportunity. It’s a city I’m already really familiar with; it’s a situation that I’m familiar with. Then, there’s a lot of talent.

“As far as the trade stuff, man, I’m 13 years in, bro. I played in New York already; so you hear that stuff all the time. I’m used to that. It just is what it is. You ride the wave of it. At the end of the day, I’m playing basketball and I’m doing what I love for a living. So, it’s all I ask for.”

• Victor Wembanyama pulled a Brunson and signed a five-year, $252 million rookie extension with the Spurs, locking himself into the 25 percent max instead of preserving the chance to jump to the 30 percent max with All-NBA, Defensive Player of the Year, or MVP honors next season. In other words, he left about $10 million annually on the table to give the Spurs some flexibility going forward.
• Down in Miami: chaos. Bam Adebayo punched Tyler Herro in the face at a Las Vegas practice court in front of Herro’s AAU squad. Chaz with the full breakdown here.
• There is only one “rightful” farewell tour for LeBron James, thinks Charles Barkley.
• Meanwhile, a former Ohio cupcake-shop owner who once became famous for calling LeBron’s 2014 Cleveland return is now claiming LeBron is coming back to the Cavs with Bronny James and Draymond Green. Personally, I never found a cupcake I didn’t like, so I’m with Jonathan on this one.

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NBA Summer League picks for Saturday, July 11 feature a rematch of the 2026 NBA Finals, and I’m taking the San Antonio Spurs to get the win over the New York Knicks.

I’m also backing a couple of underdogs today, as I see value in both the Indiana Pacers and Los Angeles Lakers to win on Saturday.

NBA Summer League predictions for July 11

Pick
Spurs moneyline	-133
Pacers moneyline	+122
Lakers moneyline	+170

Today's Summer League Picks

Spurs moneyline (-133 at Kalshi)

In a rematch of this year's NBA Finals, I’m picking the San Antonio Spurs to exact a small measure of revenge against the New York Knicks. The Spurs have a fascinating Summer League roster, including Carter Bryant, who played throughout the NBA Playoffs for San Antonio, as well as Tarris Reed Jr., the second-round draft pick who will be fighting to get minutes as a backup center behind Victor Wembanyama and Luke Kornet.

Meanwhile, the Knicks aren’t doing much of interest to fans or bettors in Summer League, with most of their roster — and especially their main rotation — already in place for next season. A New York roster led by Mo Diawara won’t have the depth to compete with the Spurs, who should win this game handily.

Pacers moneyline (+122 at Kalshi)

The Indiana Pacers showed their Summer League strength on Friday, beating the Cleveland Cavaliers 99-93 in their offseason opener. Rienk Mast scored 16 points and grabbed 11 rebounds in the win, with Jalen Slawson adding 15 points, six boards, and five blocks.

The Philadelphia 76ers are also coming off a win, but with Labaron Philon Jr. and Johni Broome leading the way, they have far less experience than Indiana on their summer roster.

Mast is battle-tested, as he plays for the Netherlands in international play and is clearly taking his Summer League opportunity seriously. Even as an undrafted rookie, I like that level of experience to help lead the Pacers to a win on Saturday.

Lakers moneyline (+170 at Kalshi)

The Los Angeles Lakers come into Saturday’s Summer League matchup against the Dallas Mavericks as a significant underdog, but I think they offer excellent value to bettors at this price.

With LeBron James moving on from the Lakers, Los Angeles has an added desire to consider its options when it comes to young players who may potentially end up on the NBA roster. That includes a number of promising draft picks like Adou Thiero and Cameron Carr, along with undrafted free agent Robbie Avila.

Thiero scored 20 points on Friday night in a 96-84 win over the Oklahoma City Thunder, with Carr adding 18 points in the victory. I’m expecting more of the same on Saturday, with the Lakers likely to overwhelm a Mavericks team that lost 101-90 to the Golden State Warriors on Thursday.

Saturday’s NBA Summer League parlay

Spurs moneyline

Pacers moneyline

Lakers moneyline

+950 at Kalshi

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Minnesota Timberwolves vs. Denver Nuggets
Date: July 11th, 2026
Time: 6:30 PM CDT
Location: Cox Pavilion
Television Coverage: Prime Video

After what felt like an eternity, nearly two months since the Minnesota Timberwolves’ season came to an abrupt end against the San Antonio Spurs, Wolves fans finally got to celebrate another victory.

No, it didn’t carry the emotional weight of Game 4 against San Antonio, when Anthony Edwards dragged Minnesota back from the brink to even that second-round series. Nobody is hanging a Summer League banner. Nobody is pretending July basketball belongs in the same conversation as playoff basketball. But after weeks of trade speculation, draft debates, LeBron fantasy scenarios, and endless roster discussions, it was simply refreshing to watch a Timberwolves team take the floor, wear the uniform, and come away with a win.

The 103-90 victory over the New Orleans Pelicans also marked something much bigger than the score itself. It served as the official on-court debut of the Timberwolves’ new identity. The young Timberpups took the floor wearing the franchise’s redesigned royal blue and green color scheme, quietly ushering in what the organization hopes will become the next great era of Timberwolves basketball.

The previous era officially ended when the Wolves were eliminated by San Antonio. Julius Randle and Naz Reid are gone. LaMelo Ball has arrived. The roster has been reshaped. The logo has changed. The uniforms have changed. Even if it was “just” Summer League, this was the first real glimpse of what the next chapter actually looks like, and if there was one player who stole the show, it was Joan Beringer.

Coming into Summer League, Beringer was arguably the most important player on Minnesota’s roster, not because he was expected to dominate Las Vegas, but because the Timberwolves suddenly need him. Trading away Randle and Reid completely altered Minnesota’s frontcourt. What had been one of the deepest collections of big men in basketball has suddenly become one of the roster’s biggest question marks. Rudy Gobert remains the anchor, but beyond him there are opportunities to be earned.

Beringer looked like someone fully aware of that opportunity. His stat line of 18 points and 12 rebounds will immediately catch your attention, and deservedly so. Double-doubles always look nice in July. But what should excite Wolves fans even more was the simple fact that Beringer looked noticeably more comfortable than he did during stretches of his rookie season. Instead of simply surviving possessions, he looked like he was beginning to dictate them. He played with confidence around the rim, competed on the glass, and generally looked like a player beginning to understand where he belongs on an NBA floor.

That doesn’t suddenly mean Minnesota has solved its power forward problem. Let’s not do the annual Summer League thing where every solid performance immediately becomes proof that someone is ready for 28 meaningful minutes a night in May. We’ve all been down that road before. Last summer, Terrence Shannon Jr. looked like he was ready to kick the NBA’s front door off its hinges, only for injuries to derail much of his sophomore campaign. Summer League is filled with false positives every single year.

Now the attention immediately shifts to Sunday’s matchup with Denver. Obviously, nobody should confuse this with the epic battles these franchises have shared over the past few seasons. The last time Minnesota and Denver met in games that actually counted, the stakes involved advancing through the Western Conference playoffs. This time, we’re talking about Summer League, where half the players on the floor are trying to earn training camp invitations and the other half are hoping somebody remembers their name by October.

The Nuggets now get what amounts to the smallest, pettiest, and most meaningless revenge opportunity imaginable after Minnesota eliminated them from the first round. It won’t erase anything. It won’t change history. Nobody from Denver is going to feel significantly better if their Summer League roster beats Minnesota’s Summer League roster. Still, expect Denver to come ready.

For Minnesota, the priorities remain exactly where they should be. Can Beringer build on his impressive opener? Can the organization’s first glimpse into this new era continue building momentum? Those are the real victories that matter in July.

As always, Canis Hoopus will have you covered throughout Summer League. Grab a seat in the comments section, enjoy the basketball, overreact responsibly (or irresponsibly, we won’t judge) and let’s see what these young Timberpups have in store when they take on the Denver Nuggets.

Two weeks ago, the idea of LeBron James signing with the Sixers on a minimum contract would have sounded like an AI hallucination. It now appears to be under serious consideration.

On Tuesday, ESPN’s Shams Charania reported that the Sixers appeared to be in the inner circle of favorites to land LeBron, alongside the Cleveland Cavaliers and Miami Heat. He added that they were “not in the picture” prior to the Jaylen Brown trade, but LeBron is now “taking their pitch really seriously.”

Charania said Wednesday that a decision isn’t expected soon, so for now, we’ll have to stay twisting in the wind. But regardless of what James chooses to do, the fact that the Sixers are in the race at all is absurd given where they were in mid-June.

Although the trade for Jaylen Brown looks like a no-brainer at the moment (analytics nerds be damned), there’s at least one universe in which it works out better for the Celtics than it does for the Sixers. But pairing Brown with Tyrese Maxey, VJ Edgecombe and Joel Embiid has caught the attention of none other than one of the greatest players of all time.

LeBron might not be the last star to think that way. That’s a testament to the work that new team president Mike Gansey and general manager Jameer Nelson have pulled off this summer.

No matter what happens from here, the Sixers have given fans reasons to buy back in again.

The era of apathy is over

Not only is Brown a clear upgrade over George at this point of their respective careers, but he’s also largely dodged the injury bug to this point. He’s missed no more than 15 games in all but one of his 10 NBA seasons, and he just played 71 this past year.

Given Embiid’s injury concerns, the Sixers couldn’t deal with another year of the nightly will-they-or-won’t-they-play game with both him and George. Brown will miss at least a few games here and there, but he figures to be far more available during the regular season than the 36-year-old George. That should help reduce the strain on Maxey and Edgecombe.

The trade doesn’t come without risk. Brown could be tough to fit on and/or off the court. The two first-round picks that the Sixers gave up could land high in the draft, especially given the new lottery system being trialed for the next few years. Now that the shock from the trade has worn off, smart basketball minds have found ways to rationalize the deal for the Celtics.

This was a risk that the Sixers had to take, though.

Celtics president Brad Stevens explained to reporters that he thought the team’s path “looked a little bit more challenging with 70 percent of our cap and such a high percentage of our usage tied into two players.” As someone who pushed back against the Sixers’ Big 3 hopes five months before they signed George, I can’t argue with that logic.

But the Sixers didn’t have a choice. That money was already allocated either way. It was either going to George, or it was going to someone else.

In that sense, the Sixers likely saw little harm in coughing up the draft capital it took to turn George into Brown. After all, given his age, injury history and the size of his remaining contract, it might have cost them nearly as much just to dump George outright.

Although Embiid is supposedly “fired up” about the trade, this deal likely wasn’t made with him in mind. More than anything, it’s likely about Maxey.

After drafting Labaron Philon Jr. with the 22nd overall pick, Gansey said part of the appeal was that “he can come in and play some minutes and take a load off” Maxey and Edgecombe. That same rationale likely factored into the decision to trade for Brown.

Maxey averaged a league-leading 38.0 minutes per game last year, while Edgecombe wasn’t far behind at 35.0. That put him in a three-way tie with Anthony Edwards and Jalen Brunson for the ninth-most minutes per game in the NBA, which is absurd for a rookie. Given their spotty backcourt depth—Quentin Grimes and a half-season of Jared McCain—that massive workload was more or less out of necessity.

Between Philon and the newly signed Anfernee Simons, the Sixers have new reinforcements behind Maxey and Edgecombe, but their backcourt depth is still spotty beyond that. Luckily, Brown should be able to lighten the offensive burden on both Maxey and Edgecombe, allowing them to play fewer minutes without having the team crater in their absence.

It’s hard to believe this, but Maxey is already entering the third year of the five-year max deal that he signed in 2024. While three years might feel like an eternity in the NBA, front offices operate on far different clocks than the rest of us.

Had the Sixers not made this deal and largely ran back the same roster but with Simons, Dean Wade and Ariel Hukporti in place of Grimes, Kelly Oubre Jr. and Andre Drummond, it’s fair to wonder how much better (if at all) they would be in 2026-27. Now, even if they don’t land LeBron, they’re currently considered one of the favorites in the East.

There has been zero indication that Maxey is already eyeing his exit from Philly. If anything, the addition of Edgecombe last summer should further entice him to stay. But he might have been wondering what the Sixers’ long-term plan was had they just rode out the remainder of George and Embiid’s bloated contracts.

There’s no guarantee that Brown is the answer to that question. The Sixers could once again run into the three-max problem in three years when both Maxey and Brown’s contracts expire right as Edgecombe’s rookie-scale deal runs out. They might eventually reach the same conclusion that the Celtics did about the viability of that model, although the NBA will have a new collective bargaining agreement in place by then.

There’s still plenty for head coach Nick Nurse to sort out on the court when it comes to figuring out the best way to fit Brown alongside Maxey, Edgecombe and Embiid. The LeBron wild card continues to loom large, too.

But the fact we’re having these conversations at all is absurd given where the Sixers were a few weeks ago.

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LeBron James is an unrestricted free agent for the fourth time in his career - and much like the first three times, his latest dalliance in NBA free agency has once again activated an army of internet sleuths ready to crack the code on his next team.

After closing the door on his eight-year run with the Los Angeles Lakers, the latest LeBron James next team odds have the Cleveland Cavaliers and Miami Heat — his only two stops prior to L.A. — as the clear favorites to bring back The King for what could be his final NBA season. But there's smoke around the Golden State Warriors and Philadelphia 76ers, too, while the Minnesota Timberwolves and Denver Nuggets loom as long shots.

So I donned my investigative journalist cap and went to work this week gathering and decoding all of the various clues dropped by LeBron, agent Rich Paul, and the various power brokers at play to nail down where he'll play next season.

Where will LeBron James play next year? Latest odds & favorites

Team		Buy 'Yes'	Buy 'No'
Cleveland Cavaliers	+127	45¢	56¢
Miami Heat	+300	25¢	76¢
Golden State Warriors	+567	15¢	86¢
Philadelphia 76ers	+670	13¢	88¢
Minnesota Timberwolves	+2400	5¢	96¢
Denver Nuggets	+4900	2¢	99¢

Pricing provided by Kalshi - accurate as of July 11

With four rings and countless records under his belt, James' priorities aren't the same now as they were eight years ago when he left Cleveland a second time to chase another title.

As his agent laid out earlier this month, "happiness" is the driving force for James ahead of what sure feels like his last dance. He's already signaled that he's willing to be a supporting piece, per ESPN's Brian Windhorst, while taking a massive paycut to sign for a minimum contract or within a cap exception.

That's why the Cavaliers are the clear favorites to lure LeBron back for a second homecoming after he returned in 2014 and led them to their lone title in 2016. But the Heat offer a parallel pitch that teases more immediate upside, and there are a whole host of suitors who still think they're in the mix for the NBA's top remaining free agent.

When will LeBron James sign in free agency?

Date		Buy 'Yes'	Buy 'No'
Before July 13, 2026	+425	18¢	85¢
Before July 15, 2026	+200	32¢	70¢
Before July 17, 2026	+125	44¢	57¢
Before July 19, 2026	+100	50¢	54¢
Before July 26, 2026	-185	65¢	37¢
Before August 2, 2026	-300	77¢	26¢

Pricing provided by Kalshi - accurate as of July 11

Unlike in previous years, when James' free-agent decision was the first major domino of the offseason, this one could be the last of the summer. On Thursday, NBA reporter Marc Stein said that most around the league "do not expect a resolution this week" and expect this free-agent saga to last deep into Summer League (July 9-19).

Because James is expected to sign for the minimum or thereabouts, he can theoretically wait for all of the dust to settle in free agency and pick his final destination based on which team is in the best shape before his arrival. That said, he already has a "favorite in his head" according to Windhorst ... which makes it even more intriguing to read the tea leaves while we wait for his final decision.

Where will LeBron James sign in free agency?

While we technically don't yet know where LeBron will sign this summer, the evidence is mounting for each of the favorites in this free agency sweepstakes. So we constructed our own virtual corkboard and rated every clue on a 1-to-5 scale in terms of how convincing it is to a jury of NBA prognosticators (me). Let the reckless speculation begin.

Cleveland Cavaliers (45% chance)

National insiders close to LeBron think he's going to Cleveland. Windhorst, who has been as plugged in with James as anyone over the last two decades, said earlier this week that LeBron "knows what he's going to do" and that the "vibes are pointing toward Cleveland" — a pretty damning 1-2 punch for the rest of the league. That same day, Stein also reported that the rest of the league views Cleveland as "the scenario to beat" in free agency. Consider me convinced on that bit alone. 🔍🔍🔍🔍🔍

Bill Simmons said LeBron to Cleveland is "done." Nearly an hour into his latest podcast on Thursday, Simmons declared that "the Cleveland thing is done" and argued Golden State was only ever used as leverage to get Draymond Green and Anthony Davis — two fellow Klutch clients — paid top dollar on their ensuing extensions. The news was swiftly reported as fact and led to sharp movement in the market toward the Cavs, though I'm skeptical this is truly reporting rather than his own take. Still, there's clearly smoke here. 🔍🔍🔍🔍

His childhood best friend runs the Cavs' front office. Brandon Weems — whom Paul called "basically LeBron's brother" — is Cleveland's assistant GM, and Paul called him out as a "big, big X-factor" in the Cavaliers' pitch to bring James back home. He's seen as the favorite to replace Mike Gansey as general manager after he left for the 76ers. 🔍🔍🔍🔍

Cleveland is clearing the way for his return. While the Cavs invested $273 million in a Donovan Mitchell extension this summer, that didn't block LeBron's return to Cleveland — if anything, it locked in a clear succession plan. But the Cavs letting Dean Wade and Keon Ellis walk without any notable additions indicates that they're retaining maximum flexibility for LeBron ... and possibly for Bronny James, too. 🔍🔍🔍

He spent his free-agency week in Akron. Sure, LeBron can return home to golf and catch up with old friends without suspicion. But he was photographed with his high school teammates and Weems as part of a very public trip back home last week that also saw him enjoying a night out at House Three Thirty in Akron and posting on Instagram about his trip. For most players, it'd likely be a coincidence, but James always has a penchant for telegraphing his next move with intention. 🔍🔍🔍

He's dropping obvious hints on Instagram. As far as social media speculation goes, it's hard to beat this one: James liked an Instagram post openly calling for him to "come home" before later posting an Instagram video of him "enjoying a nice cruise thru my city" in Cleveland. You can never read too much into social media activity, hence the three-glass rating, but this feels like a smoking gun if there ever was one. 🔍🔍🔍

He may already be filming the ending. If reports are true that James could be documenting his 24th season for a film or series, that would add another point in Cleveland's favor for a true storybook ending fit for a documentary. Of course, LeBron can record his last act in any city, but this would make too much sense. 🔍🔍

What's the case for Cleveland? Nobody needs to explain the allure of LeBron returning home one last time: he left Miami to return to Cleveland in 2014 and promptly carried the Cavs to their first-ever title to complete the prophecy foretold for the Akron kid. Knowing how much legacy matters to LeBron, closing the final chapter of his career back home would be almost too sweet to turn down ... which is apparently how rival teams feel, too. Assuming James truly is willing to take a steep pay cut to facilitate a return to his hometown — which remains disputed among NBA insiders — it would take one heck of a pitch from a competing team to lure him away.

Miami Heat (25% chance)

Miami is the only other team that can sell a homecoming. Windhorst lumped the Heat in with the Cavs as a "category of their own" this week — the only two suitors where James wouldn't be dogged by ring-chasing narratives because he's already hung banners in both buildings. Windhorst added that LeBron still "repeats Miami Heat mantras" and that the organization is "part of his basketball DNA." I'm certainly listening. 🔍🔍🔍🔍

His organizational bridges remain intact. ESPN's Shams Charania reported earlier this week that there's no lingering tension with Pat Riley, and James has a close relationship with former coach Erik Spoelstra and current Heat star Bam Adebayo, both of whom united with James at the 2024 Olympics. With no state income tax and past ties to Miami, it's easy to see LeBron talking himself into a return to the place he won his first two titles. 🔍🔍🔍

The Heat already swung a massive superstar deal. While the trade for Giannis Antetokounmpo isn't explicitly a pitch for LeBron, it does match the organization's penchant for acquiring stars in bunches - much like they did in 2010 signing James and Chris Bosh to join Dwyane Wade in South Beach. Windhorst has been adamant that teams chasing LeBron need to take big swings to attract him — could that be enough? 🔍🔍🔍

Miami's newest star wants to "win today." Speaking of Giannis, the newest Heat star posted a potentially cryptic message on Instagram this week, captioning a video with "win today" a day after free agent Bradley Beal posted "Win the Day!!" on Twitter/X. That alone wouldn't be all that suspicious if it wasn't a phrase that LeBron uttered just a few weeks ago on his podcast. Antetokounmpo also stirred the pot when he said he likes to watch James play on a recent live stream. This definitely falls under the "reckless social media speculation" category ... but it has my attention nonetheless. 🔍🔍🔍

There's room for Bronny, too. Much like the Cavs, the Heat are reportedly open to signing Bronny James if they ink a deal with his dad in free agency. I have to imagine any team in the league would agree to that for James, but the direct reporting here is worth noting. 🔍

What's the case for Miami? It's the mirror image of Cleveland's pitch with more championship pedigree: James led the Heat to two titles under Spoelstra in 2011-12 and 2012-13, and they're set up to make another run in the Eastern Conference this year with Antetokounmpo and Adebayo in place. The Heat saw their odds spike on Friday after various reports that cast doubt on Cleveland's commanding lead — if LeBron-to-Ohio falls through and he still wants to "return home," there's a clear option waiting for him.

Golden State Warriors (15% chance)

The Warriors' surge felt real for a moment. It's been almost two weeks since Golden State peaked at 65% on Kalshi following multiple reports that the Warriors were making a play at LeBron, and that early momentum still seems to be dragging the Dubs into this race — even if it seems far less likely now that the Anthony Davis trade rumors have died down. Still, Draymond Green declined his $27.7 million player option in part to free up space for a potential James signing, so this doesn't feel entirely like a false signal. 🔍🔍🔍

LeBron and Draymond are openly hanging out. Speaking of Green, the Warriors forward (and fellow Klutch client) was seen golfing with LeBron in Puerto Rico earlier this week, which fueled rumors that the two might play together in either Golden State or Cleveland. Green has previously said that he's "always wanted" to play with James — though if you believe the "leaked" post from Poke Fresh Ohio, that reunion will be in Ohio. 🔍🔍

Stephen Curry is joining in on the fun. While attending a celebrity golf event in Tahoe, Curry made his own pitch for James to join him in the Bay. His quote about playing golf with LeBron drew headlines, but him saying that "we obviously would love to play together" certainly caught my attention ... even if it's likely media speak. 🔍

Even his own podcast is teasing a LeBron-Curry reunion. The most recent upload on the "Mind the Game" YouTube channel is a clip of James and Curry gushing over their Team USA chemistry for 10 minutes, touting the "perfect basketball" they played together and reminiscing about their on-court exploits in their brief time as teammates. It's probably nothing, but with LeBron, you truly can't rule anything out. 🔍

What's the case for Golden State? Playing alongside Curry might be the single biggest draw that any team can offer on the court, and joining a Warriors organization known for its commitment to joy and cerebral basketball is a quintessential fit for LeBron in his final year(s). The issue is whether they can make a strong enough case without prying Davis out of Washington, which looks to be a nigh-impossible challenge. Simmons could be right that Golden State is purely a leverage play for James' Klutch teammates; I'm not quite ready to rule out LeBron's greatest career adversary, but momentum is certainly fading.

Philadelphia 76ers (13% chance)

"Everything changed" after the Jaylen Brown trade. Those were Paul's opening words in his now-famous whiteboard breakdown, declaring that "everything changed" once the Sixers landed Brown. Charania backed that report by saying the 76ers were "not in the picture" until trading for Brown changed James' perspective. If true, that could shake LeBron's preference toward an early favorite and lead him to a basketball-centric decision for a team that is arguably a floor-spacing power forward away from contention. 🔍🔍🔍🔍🔍

Tyrese Maxey's name had a literal star on the whiteboard. This might be the biggest smoking gun this side of Cleveland. When Paul revealed the famous whiteboard to Max Kellerman last week, Maxey was the only player on the entire board with any sort of symbol (save for a minus sign for the Cavs trading away Darius Garland). Maxey is a Klutch client who has worked out with James since his pre-draft process back in 2020, and Windhorst reported this week that Maxey is the "biggest factor" pulling LeBron to Philly. Paul said that LeBron "loves Maxey, so we don't even need to talk about that." Say no more. 🔍🔍🔍🔍🔍

There's a familiar face in Philly's front office. Mike Gansey, who recently left his post as Cavaliers GM to run the 76ers' basketball operations, played against James in high school and spent more than a decade in the Cavaliers organization. He said earlier this week that he's "known LeBron for a long time" and "would love to have him" in Philly. Those comments weren't groundbreaking, obviously, but the off-court connection could help swing the tides toward the Sixers if James is compelled by the on-court fit. 🔍🔍🔍

Sixers ownership pitched LeBron on Paul's own podcast. Team president Bob Myers hopped on "Game Over" this month and made his pitch directly: if LeBron wants to win, he can win in Philadelphia. The pitch itself says less than his presence on the podcast, which could be Paul drumming up headlines or signal the 76ers' gravity in this race. 🔍

What's the case for Philadelphia? The 76ers were clear long shots entering this offseason, but hiring the Cavs' former general manager and then pulling off perhaps the biggest heist of the summer clearly has LeBron's attention. The Sixers pulled out all the stops to recruit James in 2018, and the Maxey appeal seems legitimate. I'm not sure there's enough here to overtake the favorites, but the smoke keeps billowing out of Philly.

Minnesota Timberwolves (5% chance)

Nobody is pushing harder than Minnesota. The Athletic's Jon Krawczynski reported this week that the Wolves have "ramped up" their pursuit and taken a pitch straight to LeBron's camp, operating with "full belief" that they belong in this race. Unrequited love doesn't spell a lasting union, but for a franchise that has never landed a marquee free agent, it's a rather bold stance that certainly has my attention ... even if LeBron's interest remains fuzzy. 🔍🔍🔍

The Timberwolves are making moves with James in mind. Minnesota traded Julius Randle and Naz Reid this summer, conveniently leaving the starting power forward spot open next to Anthony Edwards, LaMelo Ball, Jaden McDaniels, and Rudy Gobert. LeBron has already signaled that he wants to play a supporting role for his next team, and the T-Wolves don't seem eager to fill out their lineup without first seeing if he slots into it. 🔍🔍🔍

LeBron and Anthony Edwards have real history. James drafted Edwards first overall in the 2023 All-Star draft, and he lavished praise on the former top pick earlier this season, saying he loves "everything about him" and that he has "a fan in me and a friend in me for life." Edwards has made no secret of his admiration for King James, and helping shape a future face of the league could be enough to compel James to move north. 🔍🔍

What's the case for Minnesota? The best case for the Timberwolves is similar to that for the Cavaliers in 2014: join a team that has never won it all and put your stamp on NBA history as a leader on and off the court for a talented young squad. The Timberwolves were the only team on Paul's whiteboard without a championship, and LeBron could help snap the state's 35-year title drought across all major sports. This would be a true long shot given the lack of tangible connections to the franchise, but it'd be a heck of a fit on the court.

Denver Nuggets (2% chance)

Denver made the whiteboard's inner circle. For all of the talk that the Nuggets are out of the race, Paul placed them directly in the heart of the famous whiteboard as one of the five teams with a real chance to sign him. Paul was adamant that Denver was a "legitimate destination" for James this summer - that alone keeps them in the mix. 🔍🔍🔍

LeBron has history with Nuggets ownership. James has a genuine friendship with Josh Kroenke, the team's CEO/president and co-owner, that dates back years — Kroenke famously mailed LeBron a throwback Nuggets jersey when he was last a free agent in 2018. Paul also added Kroenke's name as a parenthetical note on the whiteboard, which is either another meaningless diversion or a real signal about Denver's chances in this race. 🔍🔍

Windhorst highlighted Denver as a dark horse to watch. Early in free agency, before reports swirled about favorites and shortlists, Windhorst said he "long believed" that Denver was a compelling outlier in the LeBron sweepstakes — especially given his "overly effusive" praise for Nuggets star Nikola Jokic, a fellow basketball genius and all-time passer alongside James. 🔍🔍

What's the case for Denver? If this decision is about basketball, few teams offer a more compelling on-court environment than the Nuggets, who already feature a heliocentric offensive star and could desperately use a high-IQ power forward to play off Jokic and Murray. Given the desperation in Denver to improve the roster without increasing payroll, James on the minimum would be a dream scenario ... but only if LeBron agrees.

Long shots to sign LeBron James

It feels like a near-certainty that James will sign with one of the teams listed above, as all other options have less than a 1% chance on Kalshi, with no strong reporting to back them. Here are the top teams on the outside looking in:

• New York Knicks: Paul delivered a rather shocking admission when he said that LeBron would be "going to the Knicks" if they hadn't won the title. But they did win it all behind franchise star Jalen Brunson, whom Paul suggested would need to offer his blessing for any sort of move. We can effectively rule this one out, though the alternate history is fascinating to consider if you believe Paul's candor.
• Dallas Mavericks: Paul listed the Mavericks on the whiteboard with "oil, golf, Macau, Africa" scribbled in the margins — presumably a nod to the off-court business opportunities he'd have in Dallas. But there simply isn't enough connecting LeBron to Big D, especially not with the roster seemingly years away from contention.
• Boston Celtics: One of James' biggest career rivals made the whiteboard, but the Celtics are somewhere between rebuilding and reloading after shipping Brown to Philly. I couldn't find any real connective tissue here (believe me, I looked).
• San Antonio Spurs: Victor Wembanyama is a bigger draw than potentially anyone in the league, but the Spurs using their mid-level exception to sign Tobias Harris for $31 million says everything I need to know about their interest in pursuing LeBron.

Which team will sign LeBron James?

Back in 2014, fresh off four straight Finals appearances in Miami, James shocked the world and returned home with unfinished business. He wouldn't surprise anyone by re-signing with Cleveland this time around, but the stakes are also different this summer.

If the NBA's all-time leading scorer truly values burnishing his resume with another ring (or two), he'd sign with a team like the Timberwolves or Nuggets - or even the Spurs or Thunder, though he'd never duck the ring-chasing narratives if he went to either spot. But if he was serious about chasing a fifth championship, why did he spend the first week of free agency palling around Akron with the Cavs' assistant GM and posting Instagram stories of the hottest spots in northeast Ohio?

LeBron has proven to be a Hall of Fame sentimentalist, which is why I firmly believe that he'll sign with the Cavaliers for one final ride with his hometown team. Cleveland is the only place that can truly offer a clean ending to an illustrious career with an outside chance to compete for another title, too. And if happiness is what he seeks ahead of his 24th season, the relationships he's built within the organization should help close the deal.

I wouldn't hold your breath on that happening anytime soon, though. He has no reason to rush and every reason to savor the spotlight for what will likely be the final time. Plus, with both the World Cup and Summer League running through the next week, I would expect James to sign after July 19 but before the end of the month.

This article originally appeared on Covers.com, read the full article here and view our best betting sites or check out our top sportsbook promos.

It was nice to have Phoenix Suns basketball back as the team debuted in the 2026 Summer League, opening their schedule against the Portland Trail Blazers. There are plenty of reasons to be excited, seeing as a youth movement is occurring in Phoenix and these are the foundational steps necessary to fan the flames of their development. So, as we do, we got excited.

And then, like the Suns typically do, they fell completely on their face.

Phoenix made eight total field goals in the first half, scored only 24 points, and looked completely discombobulated. Add in the fact that they went 0-of-9 from beyond the arc, and you had to ask yourself, what am I watching?

Then the second half arrived, and it was thoroughly enjoyable. The Suns used their defense as the catalyst for their offense, something the big league club did time and again last season. One thing you can get away with in Summer League is being physical. The penalty comes in the form of fouls, but they’re unlimited. Ask rookie Koa Peat, who finished his professional debut with 8 fouls. He also finished with 17 points.

Alongside sophomore Khaman Maluach, the Suns looked much more physical and effective offensively in the second half. You don’t put much weight into the final result of a Summer League game, but you can certainly take notice of how they got there.

24 points in the first half. 57 in the second. And a win in their first Summer League game. It was nice to see.

Summer Bright Side Baller Nominees

Game 1 against the Blazers. Here are your nominees:

Khaman Maluach
19 points (7-of-15, 3-of-7 3PT), 11 rebounds, 2 steals, 1 block, 7 turnovers, +6 +/-

Javonte Cooke
21 points (7-of-12, 5-of-8 3PT), 1 rebound, 0 turnovers, +6 +/-

Koa Peat
17 points (6-of-11, 0-of-0 3PT), 6 rebounds, 4 assists, 1 block, 3 turnovers, -2 +/-

Rasheer Fleming
6 points (3-of-9, 0-of-4 3PT), 10 rebounds, 1 assist, 2 steals, 2 blocks, 2 turnovers, -4 +/-

Jameer Nelson Jr.
4 points (0-of-7, 0-of-1 3PT), 6 rebounds, 3 assists, 3 steals, 1 block, 3 turnovers, +5 +/-

Darius Brown II
5 points (1-of-6, 0-of-3 3PT), 3 rebounds, 7 assists, 1 steal, 2 turnovers, -2 +/-

Cast your vote.

The six-team trade is official, and Dallas quietly attacked its biggest weakness without touching its young core or its largest trade exception.

Santi Aldama is a Maverick. Marcus Sasser is a Maverick. Tarik Biberovic, the Turkish league sharpshooter whose draft rights sat in a Memphis drawer for three years, is signing a two-year deal to finally cross the ocean. Ten players and a small mountain of picks changed hands across six franchises, and Dallas walked away from the table with exactly what it came for.

I understand if you didn’t feel the dopamine hit. That’s kind of the point.

A few days ago, I wrote that the relief of this offseason was in what Dallas had not done. Fans carrying decades of scar tissue, from the DeAndre Jordan saga to the worst trade in franchise history, watched the Sasser and Aldama reports sit unfinalized for days and started bracing for the other shoe. It never dropped. The deal didn’t fall apart. It got better. Now that the full architecture is public, we can see what the front office was doing instead of chasing splashes.

What Dallas Actually Got

Start with the problem. Last season’s Mavericks were one of the worst three-point shooting teams in the league. When defenses know they can sag off your role players, the lane clogs, rotations cheat, and your star wears multiple defenders for 40 minutes a night.

Max Christie was the best catch-and-shoot option on the roster early, and he started the year scorching. Then he faded, the way young players sometimes do. Strong starts, strong middles, strong finishes; most young careers only get one of the three in a given season. As Christie’s shooting slid and the injuries piled up, the offense tilted more and more toward the Cooper Flagg Show. Some of that was Flagg’s maturation, and the box scores down the stretch were spectacular. But some of it was that the Mavericks simply didn’t have anything else. That’s not a sustainable formula, and this front office clearly knew it.

Now look at the bets they placed. Brandon Williams remains unsigned, and Dallas may yet bring him back. But Sasser represents a different offensive wager: less paint pressure, more willingness to fire. In an injury-shortened season he shot 41.5 percent from three, and 60 percent of his field goal attempts came from behind the line. It’s a small sample, but it’s a clear signal of the shot profile Dallas is buying. “Willing shooter” is not a vibe in his case. It’s a shot chart. He spent his Detroit years buried in a crowded backcourt behind Cade Cunningham and a surging Daniss Jenkins, on a team that never quite figured out how to use him. Dallas has a role and a green light waiting.

In comes Aldama, a 25-year-old combo forward who shot 35 percent from three on real volume last season and can play the four or the five.

And in comes Biberovic, who might be the jewel of the entire offseason alongside Morez Johnson Jr.

The Biberovic Bet

Let me paint you a picture. A 6’7″ wing, 25 years old, coming off a EuroLeague season where he shot 41.9 percent from three on more than five attempts a game and 95.2 percent from the free throw line. That free throw number is not a typo. He shot nearly 49 percent from deep in Turkish league play. And this is not a one-season heater: across eight professional seasons in Europe, his career EuroLeague three-point mark is 42.3 percent. He won a EuroLeague title with Fenerbahce in 2025 and starred on the Turkish stage for years. Memphis drafted him 56th overall in 2023 and let his rights gather dust for three seasons.

His stroke is a thing of beauty. He leans away into the release like a man settling into a recliner, creating separation without ever speeding up the mechanics.

Now imagine that exact player as a 27-year-old NBA free agent with two seasons of elite shooting on an NBA roster. What does that contract look like? Go find the comparable shooters from the last few free agency cycles and check the price tags. It’s a bidding war, and it ends in eight figures a year.

Dallas is getting him for two years and $6 million with a team option.

Is there translation risk? Of course. The NBA is faster and longer than the EuroLeague, and not every great European shooter survives the jump. But when you don’t control your own first-round picks and you’re rebuilding without a net, these are precisely the asymmetrical bets you have to find. The downside is a modest flyer you can walk away from in a year. The upside is a starting-caliber floor spacer at a fraction of his potential open-market cost.

And here’s the question that hangs over the whole acquisition: would the previous front office have even known who Memphis held draft rights to? A regime that shed its European connective tissue and never once went looking for more, that treated the international scouting trail like it was optional? Biberovic would have retired in Istanbul before that front office learned to spell his name.

Adding a Class, Not a Player

Zoom out and count. Four draft picks in June: Morez Johnson Jr., Sergio de Larrea, Tobi Lawal, Vsevolod Ishchenko. Three more players 25 or younger inbound on this trade: Aldama, Sasser, Biberovic. That’s seven new additions to the under-26 talent pool in a span of three weeks, stacked on top of Flagg, Lively, Christie, and Nembhard.

They didn’t add a player. They added a class.

A word on Lively, because it matters here. He’s roughly seven months removed from foot surgery, out of the boot, walking and lifting, but as of his late-June update not yet cleared to run or jump. He says the foot will decide the timeline, not the calendar, and he’s taking more time than he needs to make sure he never deals with this again. That’s the right approach and I’m rooting for him. He’s also apparently a serious Lego guy, and so is Morez Johnson Jr., which means the Mavericks frontcourt room may soon feature two large men comparing Millennium Falcon builds. The vibes, at least, are structurally sound.

But this is why the Morez pick made sense at nine, whatever the draft-night grumbling said. Lively has not yet reached 100 regular-season games through three seasons. You cannot pencil him in. You plan for the roster you might actually have.

Building for the Star You Have, Not the One You Had

Here’s the part of this offseason I find most encouraging, and it’s about theory, not transactions.

When this franchise built around Luka, the blueprint was 3-and-D wings and rim-runners. PJ Washington and Derrick Jones Jr. spacing the corners, Lively and Gafford protecting the paint and catching lobs. That construction fit that star: a supernova distributor who drew doubles no matter what, needed vertical finishers, and needed defensive cover behind him.

My colleagues David and Tyler have written a whole series about the dream of number 77 coming home someday, and I understand the pull. But whoever the star is, the roster has to be built for him, and right now the star is Cooper Flagg.

Flagg is not a lead guard, whatever the “he’ll start at point” crowd projects. He’s a dynamic three-four who operates in the post, on the wing, and off the drive, and he’s a gifted secondary distributor. What a player like that needs is not lob targets. It’s space. Clean driving lanes. A floor where defenses can’t load up and send two bodies at him on every touch, because there’s a shooter in every direction who will make them pay.

Sasser. Aldama. Biberovic. De Larrea. That’s a spacing package assembled for a specific superstar’s specific needs. Last year, defenses could say “all we have to do is stop Cooper.” The front office spent this trade making that sentence much harder to say.

The Under the Radar Cap Move

Now for the piece of this deal that elevates it from good to better than it first appeared.

The assumption when the Aldama trade was first reported was that Dallas would absorb his salary into the traded player exception left over from the Anthony Davis deal. Simple, clean, obvious. And an ordinary front office would have done exactly that. A bad one might have sat on the TPE all the way to the deadline and let it quietly expire unused, which the rules fully allow and which incompetent front offices have done plenty of times before. Nothing forces you to capitalize on your tools. They just sit there, available, waiting for someone smart enough to use them.

Instead, the final six-team construction did something that made cap watchers sit up. By routing Khris Middleton to Washington via sign-and-trade and aggregating his outgoing money with AJ Johnson’s, Dallas met the salary-matching requirement for Aldama without spending the Davis exception at all. Sasser was absorbed through a separate bi-annual exception created just for him. Marc Stein laid it out plainly: the Mavericks brought in both Aldama and Sasser without touching either the roughly $20 million Davis trade exception or their mid-level exception, then signed Biberovic once the deal was official.

Read that again. They attacked the shooting problem, added three young players who can compete for rotation minutes, and their two biggest tools for adding another contributor are still on the shelf. The Davis exception is good deep into the season. If a Peyton Watson-type restricted free agent shakes loose, or the next player whose market unexpectedly shifts becomes available in February, Dallas has a lever most of the league has already spent.

The deal was structured better than anyone initially understood. That is craft, and it showed up in the fine print where nobody was looking.

The Crevice

This front office does not conduct its business through public courtship. The individual pieces surfaced in reports, but the full six-team architecture was not apparent until the work was done, and none of it arrived through trial balloons or self-serving narration. After years of a franchise that felt like it was run in public, through leaks and vibes and loyalty networks, the quiet is its own kind of statement.

And the quiet competence matters more here than it would almost anywhere else, because of the degree of difficulty. Dallas doesn’t control its own first-round picks. The cupboard was left nearly bare. Anyone can run a rebuild from a loaded treasure chest. This front office signed up to do it the hard way, and there’s a physical difference between the two jobs. One is waltzing down a wide hallway. The other is turning your body sideways and pushing through a crevice at its narrowest point.

Masai Ujiri knew that when he took the job. His answer was to hire up: Mike Schmitz, a talent evaluator by trade, as his right hand, and a coaching staff built around development. At his introductory press conference, Ujiri promised that every decision would be future-based, that the job was finding nuance in every avenue available, whether free agency, the draft, or elsewhere. Two months of evidence later, he’s doing what he said. If you were waiting on free agency to deliver the big splash, it was likely never coming, because that’s not the philosophy. The philosophy is nooks and crannies. It’s Memphis’s forgotten draft rights and Detroit’s buried guard and a twenty-million-dollar exception and a full mid-level, both preserved for the right moment.

The perfect long-term lead guard next to Flagg may not materialize this offseason. That’s fine. This front office is almost certainly not done, but it also will not force a move in July that serves the team better in January. The trade market in-season is a different animal: teams fall out of races, contracts become expendable, and front offices holding a twenty-million-dollar exception get very popular phone numbers. Don’t be shocked if Klay Thompson, Daniel Gafford, or others are moved somewhere down the line. And if they all open the season in Dallas, that isn’t inaction either. It’s patience, which is just inaction that knows what it’s waiting for.

The rebuild isn’t a weekend project, and anyone declaring the summer a failure because the roster is not finished may be grading a construction site as a completed house.

Optimism justified. Dopamine delayed.

I’ll take that trade every time.

Spurs fans are excited about the drafting of Jayden Quaintance, but we honestly haven’t gotten to see him in action. The 6’10” power forward was drafted in the midst of recovering from back-to-back injuries. First, a knee surgery in early 2025 followed by a torn meniscus a year later. In his draft conference, he stated he was working with the Spurs medical staff toward another surgery.

In the meantime, Quaintance has been involved with Summer League from the bench, soaking up the knowledge coach Corliss Williamson is instilling in the team.

Here’s some collegiate highlights. Fun fact: at the 1:30ish mark, he blocks his new teammate Carter Bryant.

Quaintance graduated from high school a year early. After a year and twenty-four games at Arizona State, he transferred to Kentucky where he played in four games. And today, he turns 19.

There are high hopes for Quaintance once he is fully healed. An avid chess player, Quaintance hopes to connect with Victor Wembanyama from across the chess board. On the court, he shows hints at the defensive acumen to make the Spurs one of the most feared teams in the league.

For now, the 20th pick of the draft is spending his birthday in Las Vegas getting to know his new teammates and waiting for his chance to return to the game he loves.

Happy birthday, Jayden.

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Mark Pope has drawn some criticism from fans in his first two seasons in Lexington regarding his substitution patterns.

Fans have (understandably) been frustrated with the deep bench Pope deploys throughout the season, as opposed to tightening the rotation and keeping his top players in the game longer.

Pope was asked about his substitution strategy during an appearance on Kentucky Sports Radio this past week, emphasizing player development over the course of the season. Pope said there are several variables that come into play when it comes to substitution patterns, but it’s also important to develop players up-and-down the roster.

“Developing guys is really important,” Pope said. “And you saw that, a great example is Collin Chandler. Collin Chandler was the seventh most improved player in all of college basketball last season. That doesn’t happen by accident. You have to kind of nurse guys and grow guys. You know, Jasper Johnson is a player that has tremendous upside and we needed him and kept trying to find the right situation for him, and he’s going to be a great player. Some of that’s going to come from those developmental minutes.

“You look at Otega Oweh’s rise and us being able to continuously put him in new situations. That’s how guys grow. Malachi Moreno, you know, early on in the season force feeding him some minutes helped him grow into the guy who had to carry the load for so much of last season. You kinda go down the list. For us, we are developers of players. I think it’s one of the things we do better than anyone else in the country. We help our guys get better.

“I’m really proud of the fact that Amari came in as a non-draft board guy. That Koby came in here as a non-draft board guy. That Otega came here as a non-draft board guy. These are not guys that were predestined to be drafted players. JQ was, but those other three weren’t and the fact that those guys came her and we were able to develop them, and they were able to develop themselves because it’s their hard work that does it, to earn themselves a chance to go play at the next level is really important to us.”

So what does that mean going forward? It sounds like Pope will continue to deploy a deep bench throughout the regular season, while tightening the rotation for the postseason. It’ll be interesting to see how Pope rotates lineups with this group this season.

The Washington Wizards’ summer of 2026 has centered around AJ Dybantsa’s professional debut in the Summer League. And so far, Deandre Ayton is coming to Washington, Khris Middleton is returning and Patrick Ewing is returning to coach with the first NBA team he ever coached for. In Ewing’s case, keep in mind that as a player, he is the (now second) best New York Knicks legend of all time. Why? Because the Knicks won the 2025-26 NBA championship!

Okay, I ribbed on Ewing a little too hard there.

But what about Anthony Davis? The Golden State Warriors apparently wanted him from the Wizards, but Washington has since made it clear that he’s staying. So … what now?

On Game Over, an NBA podcast with Max Kellerman and Rich Paul (who is Davis’ agent), Kellerman just asked him straight up on an episode which was released yesterday. Paul said simply “yes” and then “Why wouldn’t he” when pressed further. Paul even said “I don’t know anything about [a trade].”

I’m trying to look closer at Paul’s body language and he doesn’t seem relaxed about this topic. I can 100 percent believe him that Davis will start the 2026-27 season with the Wizards. However, he’s not so relaxed when being pressed about trade requests and the like. Interpret that for what you will.

Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.

The Dallas Mavericks have 14 of their roster spots filled for the upcoming season, leaving one vacant for them to work with.

It remains to be seen what the Mavericks will do, but there is reason to believe that a reunion with Brandon Williams could be in the cards.

“Guards who can get both feet in the paint outside of transition aren’t easy to find. Fortunately for clearance-rack shoppers, Brandon Williams is sitting right here,“ Bleacher Report contributor Dan Favale wrote.

“… A distinct lack of size hurts Williams on the defensive end. His three-point shot has also proven to be a non-starter, and even out of drives, he’s not the most reliable passer. But a 49.1 percent clip on long twos the past two years (28-of-57) coupled with reasonable free-throw shooting suggests there could be more levels to his scoring arsenal.”

When the Mavs traded for Detroit Pistons point guard Marcus Sasser, it definitely hurt Williams’ chances of returning to the team. It’s hard having Ryan Nemhard, Sasser and a returning Kyrie Irving on the roster. If Williams was added, that would give them four point guards that stand 6’2 or shorter. It’s incredibly hard to find minutes for all of them.

That being said, Williams brought an edge to the Mavericks the team needed. The attitude Williams had when he was playing for the Mavs was infectious, and it’s not easy to find that in the NBA. Williams improved a lot for the Mavericks, and who’s to say that the 26-year-old guard won’t get even better if he were to remain with Dallas?

Mavs Moneyball community, what do you think about the chances of Williams filling in the final roster spot for the team? Chime off in the comment section below.