The team and Duren, who is a restricted free agent, are far apart on contract talks, and Duren's camp is now planning to explore sign-and-trade scenarios when free agency opens June 30, according to The Athletic. Duren, 22, is coming off of a breakout All-NBA season. But his next deal likely will fall short of the maximum the Pistons can offer – five years and $287 million – following an underwhelming postseason performance.
Duren averaged 19.5 points and 10.5 rebounds per game on 65% shooting for a 60-win Pistons team that lost in the second round. He earned All-NBA third team honors, qualifying him for a contract worth up to $287 million that starts at 30% of the salary cap with 8% raises.
But the "higher max criteria" only applies to the Pistons – outside teams are capped to a maximum deal starting at up to 25% of the cap with 5% raises over four years, which comes out to $177.4 million total.
Because outside teams need cap space to make a realistic offer sheet for Duren, a sign-and-trade would open more pathways for Duren to land with a new team. But Pistons still hold the upper hand in negotiations, since they can match any offer sheet or simply decline to agree to a trade. Duren's only other pathway, in that situation, would be picking up his qualifying offer for the 2026-27 to become an unrestricted free agent next summer.
They repeatedly have signaled that Duren is a priority and core player they wish to build around, even after his numbers dropped across the board through 14 postseason games, averaging 10.2 points, 8.5 rebounds and 1.2 blocks on 51.4% shooting.
"I want him here, that’s where I’m at with JD," team president Trajan Langdon said on June 18. "We really want JD to be here."
Despite Duren's desire to look elsewhere for a bigger contract, it appears nothing has changed for the Pistons. NBA insider Chris Haynes reported Friday after Duren's decision to seek other offers that "the Detroit Pistons are conveying that Jalen Duren will not be moved and are solely focused on coming to terms on an agreement."
Ultimately, the ball is in the Pistons' court. They can match any offer from an outside team and even if Duren is signed-and-traded, he'd be capped to four years and $177.4 million with an opposing team.
NAPA, CALIFORNIA - MAY 22: Jimmy Butler appears on the culinary stage at the 2026 BottleRock festival at Napa Valley Expo on May 22, 2026 in Napa, California. (Photo by Miikka Skaffari/WireImage)
Golden State Warriors star Jimmy Butler shared an encouraging update regarding the torn ACL he suffered last season. During Thursday’s event announcing IREN as the team’s new jersey patch sponsor, Butler fielded questions from reporters and, while he admitted the rehab process has been challenging, said he is making “incredible progress” in his recovery.
Jimmy Butler gives an update on his ACL rehab. Said he believes he is a month and a half from running. Believes he’s able to dunk jumping off his left foot but isn’t supposed to land on right foot.
Butler is now a little over six months removed from the season-ending injury he suffered on Jan. 19 against his former team, the Miami Heat. The veteran forward said he believes he is about a month and a half away from running again and is encouraged by the progress he has made throughout his rehab, even revealing that he could still dunk a basketball if he jumped off his left leg.
Perhaps the most interesting takeaway from the session, though, was how positively Butler spoke about his time with the team thus far. He shared high praise for the Warriors’ organization, and while his name has occasionally surfaced in trade speculation due to his large, expiring contract, Butler’s comments did not sound like those of a player expecting to be moved anytime soon.
Jimmy Butler says the Warriors organization is a great organization and he doesn’t want to be anywhere else:
“It’s not good, it’s great. It legitimately is the best. You don’t realize it until you’ve been in other places, and I’m not talking down on anybody that are quite lesser… pic.twitter.com/Jr3hs7ye1X
For now, Butler appears focused solely on his recovery and his future in Golden State. He’ll be 37 years old at the beginning of next season, but he made it clear that his priority is getting back on the court and helping the Warriors compete again alongside Stephen Curry.
Jimmy Butler on his rehab and when he’s coming back:
“I got some time, but I promise I’m trying to get back to it. Basketball is what I’ve known for almost forever and it’s very hard not to be able to move and hoop anytime I want to. But as soon as I can get back on the floor… pic.twitter.com/VNMa3xOULI
As speculation lingers that the final year of Butler’s contract, worth almost $57 million, could be packaged in a deal to acquire a different star to pair with Steph Curry, Butler continues to carry himself as a man who wants to play out the rest of his career in the Bay Area.
The messaging has been consistent from both Butler and the Warriors’ front office that Butler is part of the team’s future. Sitting next to Butler on Thursday, Lacob reiterated that he is confident both Butler and the team will come back strong next season. And Butler, who will be entering his 16th NBA season this fall, expressed optimism that the Warriors have enough talent to be a difficult out.
“If we’re healthy, we’re tough,” Butler said. “We’ve just got to be healthy. … As long as we’ve got Steph, we always have a chance.”
Horford’s return is an early checkpoint for a Warriors roster that appears as if it will remain mostly stable. General manager Mike Dunleavy is in active conversations with Kristaps Porzingis‘ representation to bring back the stretch center on a short-term contract, and the Warriors have been under the recent expectation that Draymond Green is likely to return on his $27.6 million player option.
“If the group is healthy, if we’re together, I feel like we’re going to compete,” Horford said. “I don’t want to think too much ahead, but once we’re able to get Jimmy and [Moses Moody] back … we have a very competitive group and we’re going to do the best that we can.”
In one fell swoop, the Wolves have raised their ceiling, lowered their floor, addressed a long-simmering issue at point guard, and formed the most entertaining backcourt in all of basketball. Minnesota has united two of the best players from the 2020 draft, whose play, in some ways, informs the zeitgeist of the present day. Edwards is the more classic figure, an all-world swingman who has increased his scoring average in each of his six seasons and is gilded by Jordan-esque athleticism and an almost supernatural development arc in both his ballhandling and pull-up shooting capability. LaMelo is the mold-breaking savant who sees basketball in shapes and colors that exist only in his head, who intuits the physics of the game differently because no one else had a dad galaxy-brained enough to teach him how to shoot from half court by the time he was 6 years old. Ball’s presence as a creator will allow Edwards to take full advantage of his one-of-one downhill explosiveness off the ball; Ant’s offensive gravity is unlike anything LaMelo has ever played with. It’ll be exhilarating. It’ll be chaos. It’ll be what has been missing from this Wolves team: something altogether new.
An “AI cloud firm” called Iren has agreed to replace Rakuten as the jersey patch sponsor for the Golden State Warriors in a deal that’s reportedly worth $50M per season. For context, that’s enough to pay for 7 1/4 Al Horfords, 10.8 Gui Santoses, or over 58 Pat Spencers!
The Detroit Pistons knew they would have to upgrade their offense this summer, following a second-round exit in the NBA playoffs to the Cleveland Cavaliers.
Joe, a 6-foot-4 shooting guard, averaged 11.1 points and 2.5 rebounds, while shooting 45.5% overall and 42.3% on 3-pointers last season in 71 games, and gives the Pistons another much-needed option to space the floor. His 3-point percentage in 2025-26 was a career-best mark.
He's a high-volume 3-point shooter. and though he fell out of the Thunder's rotation during the playoffs, he will instantly help the Pistons fill their biggest need.
Along with Duncan Robinson, the Pistons now have two players to anchor their spacing. They scored 10.2 more points per 100 possessions when Robinson was on the floor last year according to Cleaning The Glass, with Cade Cunningham (+7.3) and Jalen Duren (+6.4) ranking second and third.
Outside of Robinson, they lacked reliable shooting. However, Robinson is a candidate to be waived this summer if the Pistons wish to create cap space to make a move in free agency. Only $2 million of his roughly $16 million salary next season is guaranteed, and they would have to waive him to clear enough space to be a player in the free agency market.
Joe has two years left on a reasonable four-year, $48 million contract he signed with the Thunder, with the two most expensive years already paid on a descending deal. He'll make $11.3 million each of the next two years, with the 2027-28 season a club option, according to Spotrac.
The Pistons on Tuesday night selected Stanford freshman guard Ebuka Okorie, trading up four spots with the Memphis Grizzlies to No. 17 overall in the first round of the 2026 NBA Draft.
The Pistons finished 60-22 last season – the third-best record in franchise history and their best since 2005-06, and fell to the Cavaliers in seven games in their deepest postseason run in 18 years. Game 7 was a 125-94 embarrassment at home, concluding a blown 2-0 series lead.
Third-year president of basketball operations Trajan Langdon has said he is building around their core three – Cade Cunningham, Jalen Duren and Ausar Thompson – this summer, with a repeated emphasis on adding more shooting and ball-handling.
Tom Dundon might be beloved in Charlotte (where his NHL team just hoisted the Stanley Cup), but fans in Portland have their doubts about their team's new owner. Dundon continues to live up to his penny-pinching reputation (except with players he says, although that has yet to be put to the test), and a couple of new instances have had fans — and plenty of people around the league — shaking their heads.
One was the contract for the new head coach, Mikah Nori. He is a longtime assistant in the league who most recently served as the right-hand man to Chris Finch in Minnesota. Dundon waited until there were no other open jobs on the market, then offered Nori a one-year contract with two team options after that. It's an owner-friendly contract that is radically different from the standard contract given to a first-time head coach (usually four years, with the final year a team option). In a league where status is somewhat based on contract size, you can be sure every player on that roster knows their head coach is on a lame duck deal, undercutting his authority.
Nori took the deal, but around the NBA, other coaches have been livid.
"I feel like he was put in a situation that he shouldn't be put in with having to make a choice of this nature because of the structure of what the contract is," said Pistons' coach J.B. Bickerstaff, the president of the coaches union. "It's unfortunate that you have a dream, and from our perspective, it's like someone's taking advantage of your dream and devaluing what we feel like coaches have earned over the years. You think about the sacrifice, the time, the growth that coaches have helped and done with the NBA, and then for someone to come in and attempt to devalue the work that coaches have in this league is extremely disappointing."
Nori, for his part, handled questions about the contract with grace.
"The way I look at this is: opportunity," he told reporters at his introductory press conference. "For 28 years, the first 25 years I never had an agent. I never look at money or years. I know that if I'm successful, the rest of these things will take care of themselves."
Trail Blazers arena
Portland's Moda Center, home to the Trail Blazers, is 31 years old, feels a little dated, and is in need of maintenance and upgrades. Paying for those changes has become a political fight in Oregon.
An estimated $600 million in renovations and maintenance is needed for the building, which is owned by the city of Portland with the Trail Blazers as the main tenant and a lease that runs through 2030.
There are ongoing negotiations about how to pay for this amongst Portland (which has pledged $120 million), Multnomah County, the State of Oregon, with multiple of those entities saying that Dundon and the Trail Blazers should chip in toward the cost. Dundon said don't expect that. From Kyra Buckley and Alex Zielinski of Oregon Public Broadcasting, at the Portland Metro Chamber meeting this week.
"I just know it feels like we're making a pretty big investment by staying here and paying these tax rates and agreeing to these fees for dollars that go back into the building."
"There's lots of places that don't have taxes at the same rate. So if you charge people taxes and invest it back into the thing that helps generate the money relative to the market, other places … it's a huge investment."
While the Moda Center is city-owned and it benefits from the upgrades and maintenance, nobody would benefit more than Dundon and his franchise. In Oregon, a billionaire owner saying he shouldn't have to pay for any of the renovations to the building, and a cash-strapped city should use taxpayer dollars to fund all of it, is not going to go over well.
Not that Dundon cares. He won't care until it hits him in the pocketbook. Just know his casual threat to move the team is not something that's happening (with expansion coming to the NBA, no way Adam Silver and the other owners let that happen). Dundon is going to have to work out something with the city, and he should pay his fair share.
Alex Karaban was selected No. 29 overall in the first round of Tuesday’s NBA Draft by the Sacramento Kings. The 6-foot 8-inch forward brings not just a wide variety of skills to the table, but a leading attitude on and off the floor.
An elite catch-and-shoot player from the perimeter isn’t the only thing that Sac-Town needs; As the all-time winningest player to put on the UConn Huskies jersey and having racked up the third most wins (15) all-time in NCAA tournament, he’s a winner in every sense of the word. The Kings finished this past season with just 22 wins, tied for last in the Western Conference. Karaban can show what it takes to build a sustainable winning culture and get back into the playoffs for the first time since 2023.
Dan Hurley spoke to KCRA3 on Wednesday morning to dive into the selection. “I talked to BJ Armstrong (Kings assistant GM) this morning, and he asked me how I felt, and I said, ‘How I feel is we got worse last night with Alex leaving and you guys got better with Alex joining your team,’”
The two-time national champion will likely come off the bench behind DeMar DeRozan. With DeRozan entering his 18th NBA season, only time will tell when Karaban can snatch that starting spot. Karaban will play alongside No. 7 pick Darius Acuff, Zach LaVine, Keegan Murray and Domantas Sabonis. Karaban’s elite catch-and-shoot ability provides immediate gravity on the perimeter. In an offense built around Sabonis’ high-post facilitating andDeRozan’s mid-range pressure, Karaban offers the exact floor-spacing safety valve the Kings desperately need to keep the lane open.
Sabonis is practically a walking double-double, but with Karaban spacing the floor on the wing, his passing lanes will open up significantly. Karaban’s ability to knock down kick-out jumpers could easily push Sabonis past his mark of 10 triple-doubles from last season.
Sabonis isn’t the only assist man the Kings have; Russell Westbrook is a prime example of an unselfish player. Westbrook’s ability to get downhill can allow for even more space to open up for Karaban out on the wing or find him cutting to the rim.
Alex Karaban went OFF for a career-high 27 points in UConn's 73-57 win over UCLA.
Defensively, Karaban offers the exact type of high-IQ that’s needed at the NBA level. While he may not be a lockdown isolation defender, his awareness as a weak-side helper is elite. Playing alongside Sabonis—who anchors the interior but isn’t a traditional rim protector—Karaban’s ability to read plays, box out, and execute crisp defensive rotations will give the Kings’ bench much-needed structural stability. He’ll be the first to dive for loose balls, put his body on the line to take a charge and be the first to help up a teammate when they go down.
Karaban doesn’t need for him to go out and light it up for 25 points a night to make his rookie season a success. He needs to stick to what made him a UConn legend and be the ultimate glue guy.
NEW YORK, NEW YORK - JUNE 23: NBA commissioner Adam Silver shakes hands with Mikel Brown Jr. after he is drafted sixth overall by the Brooklyn Nets during Round One of the 2026 NBA Draft at Barclays Center on June 23, 2026 in New York City. (Photo by Arturo Holmes/Getty Images) | Getty Images
The NBA draft is now in the books, and while free agency doesn’t start until next week, we’ve already begun peeking at is pages. That means NBA Summer League, and our next chance to get a tangible look at the Nets, is right around the corner.
Friday morning, Brooklyn announced the first four of the five game’s they’ll play in Las Vegas, starting in the second week of July. The schedule includes the following:
July 10th vs New York @ 6 PM ET
July 11th vs Atlanta @ 8 PM ET
July 14th vs Sacramento @ 6 PM ET
July 16 vs Houston @ 4:30 PM ET
The Nets will also have three games before the traditional Summer League tournament in Sacramento. They were announced in late April and include:
July 4th vs Sacramento @ 5 PM ET
July 5th vs Milwaukee Bucks @ 3 PM ET
July 6th vs Golden State Warriors @ 8 PM ET
With games against the Kings in each slate, we’ll get two head-to-head looks at Mikel Brown Jr. vs Darius Acuff. The two guards going back-to-back has stirred a noteworthy amount of debate across the past few days regarding who’ll have the better career. These games could be the first chapters in a budding cross conference rivalry. The pair did square off at the collegiate level and in high school once as well.
January 25th, 2025, Mikel Brown Jr. faced Darius Acuff in high school.
It's the nature of the sports media but these two will be compared to each other for years to come based on the draft. pic.twitter.com/lfDAgGvdhL
All of Brooklyn’s games in Sacramento will be television on the YES Network, while the Vegas games will be split between ESPN, ESPN U, and Amazon Prime. We’re told summer league roster is expected to practice this Tuesday or Wednesday at HSS Training Center before departing for Sacramento.
PORTLAND, OREGON - FEBRUARY 03: Collin Gillespie #12 and Mark Williams #15 of the Phoenix Suns celebrate after a 130-125 win against the Portland Trail Blazers at Moda Center on February 03, 2026 in Portland, Oregon. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Soobum Im/Getty Images) | Getty Images
Questions. We all had them entering this offseason for the Phoenix Suns. What would the Suns do? How many gambles would the organization take? Could they retain their free agents? Should they? They didn’t have a long list of free agents to address, but the ones they did have mattered as the franchise prepared for the 2026-27 season. They weren’t flashy names, but in an offseason that demanded restraint rather than splashy moves, they were important.
This was never going to be an offseason about making headlines. It was about sitting on the sidelines, enhancing what was built last season, and continuing down the path the organization had already chosen.
As we walk away from the 2026 NBA Draft and the opening wave of free agency, it’s hard not to feel like the mission was accomplished. No, there wasn’t a move that sent your blood pressure through the roof. LaMelo Ball didn’t suddenly show up on your doorstep wearing purple and orange. Instead, while other franchises felt compelled to take risks in pursuit of a higher ceiling, the Phoenix Suns leaned into stability. They leaned into the cousin of 2025’s buzzword “align”, 2026’s “continuity”.
For where this franchise currently finds itself, that might have been the smartest move of all. Days after the season ended, I was as reluctant as anyone to invest in offseason content because my mindset never changed. Stay the course. That was my mantra from the beginning. Look internally. Lean into development and growth. Seek improvement from within rather than chasing something outside the Phoenix market that creates the illusion of progress while simultaneously capping your long-term potential.
Living between a rock and a hard place isn’t comfortable. When you see notifications rolling in about players changing teams and organizations making splashy moves, it’s natural to feel a little envious. Part of you wants that move. Part of you wants the excitement. Part of you wants something that makes you feel more secure about where your team stands.
But we’ve already lived that path over the past five years. We’ve felt those emotions. If hindsight has taught us anything, it’s that winning the moment doesn’t necessarily translate to winning in the long run. Instead, it makes you appreciate the value of continuity. It makes you appreciate development. It makes you appreciate the promise of what internal growth could become.
Make no mistake about it, there’s no guarantee that path leads to the ultimate outcome. But it is the responsible way to navigate your salary cap, your organizational viability, and your long-term ceiling. Especially considering where this franchise currently sits.
Risk is no longer something the Suns can recklessly lean into while hoping the margin for error works in their favor. Every decision has to be calculated. Every risk has to be measured. Every move has to fit both the short-term and the long-term vision. That’s exactly what the Phoenix Suns have done this offseason. They’ve accomplished everything they set out to do.
And it’s not even July 1.
They’ve brought back Collin Gillespie on a four-year deal. They’ve brought back Jordan Goodwin on a three-year deal. And now they’ve brought back Mark Williams on a three-year deal. All are competitive assets in the short term and, if need be, tradable contracts in the future.
These are names we know. These aren’t theories or ideas that we’ll spend the next summer projecting onto, hoping they become something they’re not. Yes, the hope is that all three continue to develop. But we already know these players. We know they understand the system. We know they understand the expectations. We know what they bring to the floor.
You then add a first-round pick with size, upside, and time to develop, and it’s easy to feel good about the short-term competitiveness of the franchise while recognizing that the organization is also accounting for its long-term future.
This is what a professionally run organization looks like. And it’s not sexy. That’s okay. That’s exactly what the Suns need right now. They don’t need to be chasing another blockbuster trade. They don’t need to attach picks in another desperate attempt to accelerate the timeline. They need to settle in and let the dust around the Western Conference settle while they focus on continuity, stability, and internal growth.
Maybe I’m looking at this through the eyes of someone who chooses to see the bright side rather than the darkness that could lie ahead. Or maybe, after everything this franchise has been through, that’s exactly the perspective the Suns need. But when you’re operating professionally, you put yourself in a position to be successful rather than throwing the dice across the craps table and hoping for a seven.
Right now, the Suns aren’t chasing miracle rolls. They’re hoping six and eight are the point, and that they can continue to cash in as time progresses. That’s where this franchise is. It’s not that they can never push their chips to the middle of the table again. It’s that now isn’t the time. Right now, they’re the team watching the table, waiting for the right opportunity, and benefiting from playing the long game rather than chasing instant gratification.
Smart. Strategic. Responsible. Those are the words I’d use to describe the Phoenix Suns this offseason.
Do I still have my doubts about certain areas of the roster? Of course. Every fan should have questions about their team. But you can question the roster while also respecting the process. And that’s exactly what the Suns have earned this offseason.
Will it ultimately pay off? Who knows. The Western Conference is a fucking gauntlet. But I’d much rather attack it from this position than from one of desperation and irresponsibility, especially when Oklahoma City and San Antonio exist. Be responsible now. Set yourself up for success later. Operate accordingly. That’s exactly what the Phoenix Suns have done this offseason cycle.
Maybe this path doesn’t end with a championship. Maybe it does. Nobody knows. What I do know is this: I’d much rather see the Suns operate with discipline than desperation.
The Western Conference isn’t getting any easier. Oklahoma City isn’t going anywhere. San Antonio is only getting better. That means Phoenix can’t afford to chase shortcuts anymore. Every decision has to serve a purpose. Every move has to fit a larger vision. That’s what this offseason has been about. The Suns identified who they wanted to keep, rewarded the players who earned it, added another young piece to their developmental pipeline, and resisted the temptation to make a headline-grabbing move simply for the sake of making one.
Professional organizations don’t win every offseason. They consistently make good decisions and trust that enough good decisions eventually lead to winning. For the first time in a long time, it feels like that’s exactly what the Phoenix Suns are doing.
LAS VEGAS (AP) — The top four picks in the NBA draft are receiving marquee billing in the NBA Summer League schedule released Friday.
The Washington Wizards are expected to showcase No. 1 pick AJ Dybantsa when they play the Utah Jazz and No. 2 pick Darryn Peterson on the opening day of the Summer League on July 9 in Las Vegas.
All 76 games of the Summer League from July 9-19 will be played at the Thomas & Mack Center and Pavilion. The games will be televised by Prime Video or ESPN platforms.
The regular schedule, with each team playing at least five games, ends on July 16. The semifinals are scheduled for July 18 and the championship is set for July 19.
Peterson is expected to play in the Salt Lake City Summer League that begins on July 4, so the game against Dybantsa and Washington in Las Vegas is not expected to be his first opportunity to play for the Jazz. Even so, the matchup of the top two draft picks was highlighted by the NBA.
Also notable is the matchup between the Miami Heat and Milwaukee Bucks on July 10. That will be four days after Miami's acquisition of Bucks star Giannis Antetokounmpo becomes official.
Memphis and No. 3 pick Cameron Boozer will play their Summer League opener against Chicago and No. 4 pick Caleb Wilson on July 10. That game also was promoted by the NBA as a “marquee” matchup.
Each of the two pairings involving the top four picks was scheduled for primetime tipoffs.
LAS VEGAS, NV - JULY 20: A photo of the Summer League diamond basketball and championship rings after the game during the 2025 NBA Summer League Championship game on July 20, 2025 at the Thomas & Mack Center in Las Vegas, Nevada. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2025 NBAE (Photo by Garrett Ellwood/NBAE via Getty Images) | NBAE via Getty Images
Every summer, Las Vegas becomes the place to be in the NBA world due to the Summer League. With every team in attendance, it’s a chance to get an early look at the incoming rookie class and see how they perform in a competitive professional environment.
The Lakers starting Summer League on a back-to-back seems pretty tough.
Having games stacked together during this brief competition is common, but they could have at least spaced out the first couple of games before giving them consecutive matchups.
Overall, the games are intriguing. The Lakers want to be better than the Thunder, who have been the best regular-season team in the West for years now, and having the young players battle each other will be fun.
Clippers-Lakers is always a nice local rivalry, and clearly, Lakers-Mavericks will be a thing the NBA highlights for a while due to the Luka Dončić trade, even when he isn’t playing.
This schedule is subject to change, and the Lakers could play additional games if they advance or are added onto the final weekend for another contest.
This will be a good place for the Lakers to evaluate their young players. It’s also an opportunity to watch other teams to see if anyone stands out as a player to add to Los Angeles.
While winning is always the goal, this will be a successful Summer League for the Lakers if everyone comes out healthy and you see promising shifts from the top players.
LAS VEGAS, NV - JULY 12: Tyrese Proctor #24 of the Cleveland Cavaliers free throw during the game against the Milwaukee Bucks during the 2025 NBA Summer League game on July 12, 2025 at the Pavilion in Las Vegas, Nevada. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2025 NBAE (Photo by Logan Riely/NBAE via Getty Images) | NBAE via Getty Images
The Cleveland Cavaliers are gearing up for another trip to Las Vegas for the 2026 Summer League. Prospects such as Tyrese Proctor and the newest rookie, Meleek Thomas, are expected to suit up for Cleveland.
You can find the full schedule, including streaming options, below.
Friday, July 10
4:30 p.m. ET – Cleveland vs. Indiana (ESPN2)
Cox Pavilion
Sunday, July 12
4:00 p.m. ET – Cleveland vs. Detroit (Prime)
Thomas & Mack Center
Monday, July 13
8:00 p.m. ET – Cleveland vs. Miami (Prime)
Cox Pavilion
Wednesday, July 15
5:30 p.m. ET – Cleveland vs. New Orleans (Prime)
Cox Pavilion
A fifth game will be added to the schedule later in July.
The Cavs full roster has yet to be announced, but you can expect Thomas (this year’s 34th pick) and their two-way players to be there. Tristan Enaruna and Riley Minnix were on two-way deals last season, while Ernest Udeh Jr. is their latest pickup. Udeh is a 6’11” center who went undrafted this week.
Summer League should always be taken with a grain of salt. This environment is very different from the NBA and features players who are all desperate to prove themselves. This can lead to wonky results that rarely translate directly to the pros.
Nonetheless, you can gain some insight into who these players are in Vegas. Sam Merrill, Craig Porter Jr., and Jaylon Tyson are recent success stories from inside the Cavs organization. Each of them dominated the Summer League in their own way.
I’d watch Proctor (assuming he’s there) and Thomas most closely. These are the two prospects whom Cleveland has invested the most into. Thomas, the 6’5″ combo guard, has a chance to light it up from downtown and deliver a good first impression.
Meanwhile, Proctor should look to graduate from the Summer League. It would be great to see him stand out from everyone else. A strong performance could send him home early. That’s the goal.
BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS - MAY 02: Paul George #8 of the Philadelphia 76ers defends Hugo Gonzalez #28 of the Boston Celtics during the second quarter in Game Seven of the First Round of the NBA Eastern Conference Playoffs at TD Garden on May 02, 2026 in Boston, Massachusetts. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Maddie Meyer/Getty Images) | Getty Images
NBA Summer League is right around the corner, and the Celtics will soon be back in action.
The Celtics Summer League roster is expected to include last year’s draft class — Hugo Gonzalez, Amari Williams, and Max Shulga — as well as this year’s draft class, Houston big Chris Cenac Jr., and St. John’s forward Dillon Mitchell.
In addition, the Celtics signed Houston guard Milos Uzan and Indiana forward Tucker DeVries to Exhibit 10 contracts, and those two players are expected to lace up on the Summer League team as well.
The team will be coached by Celtics assistant coach Amile Jefferson, who previously played at Duke University with Jayson Tatum. Last year’s squad was coached by longtime assistant coach Matt Reynolds.
The Celtics’ official Summer League schedule
Friday, July 10: Celtics vs. Raptors, 9 p.m. ET, ESPN
Sunday, July 12: Celtics vs. Hornets, 5 p.m. ET, ESPN2
Monday, July 13: Celtics vs. Hawks, 6 p.m. ET, Prime
Wednesday, July 15: Celtics vs. Kings, 8 p.m. ET, ESPN2
LAS VEGAS, NV - JULY 13: Chaz Lanier #20 of the Detroit Pistons drives to the basket during the game against the Houston Rockets during the 2025 NBA Summer League game on July 13, 2025 at the Thomas & Mack Center in Las Vegas, Nevada. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2025 NBAE (Photo by Logan Riely/NBAE via Getty Images) | NBAE via Getty Images
The Detroit Pistons have set the schedule for their first four games of Las Vegas Summer League, which kicks off on July 9. The team will be led by first-round pick Eubuka Okorie, and his offensive skillset seems made in a lab to dominate Summer League competition, so hopefully, we’ll have some enjoyable games to watch. Second-round pick Ugonna Onyenso is also expected to suit up for the Pistons.
The slate is as follows (all times Eastern):
July 9 at 5:30 p.m.: Pistons vs. 76ers (Prime Video)
July 12 at 4 p.m.: Pistons vs. Cavaliers (Prime)
July 13 at 4 p.m.: Pistons vs. Knicks (Prime)
July 15 at 6 p.m.: Pistons vs. Suns (ESPN U)
If you’re thinking about marquee matchups, this is a fairly limited slate for Detroit. Okorie will face off against fellow first-round pick Labaron Philon Jr. in the opener against the Sixers. They will face second-round pick Meleek Thomas and the Cavs in game 2. The Knicks’ newest addition is Jack Kayil (feel the excitement!). Finally, the Suns will be welcoming Koa Peat to the fold.
Each team is slated to play at least five games, with the final games determined by teams that are eligible to meet in the semi-finals, featuring four teams. All other fifth games will be consolation prizes. Then, the two semi-final winners will face off for the the championship game on July 19. That last one is for the true basketball sickos.
As far as who will make up the rest of the roster, I imagine we will see Chaz Lanier, last year’s second-rounder suit up. He will be joined by Jaden Henley, who recently inked an Exhibit 10 deal with the Pistons as part of a Las Vegas invite. He is a 6-foot-7 wing most recently of Grand Canyon. The Pistons also signed Corey Stephenson to an Exhibit 10 deal. He is a forward most recently from Florida International University.
The viral Warriors 2026 NBA Draft “war room” clip just showed Warriors owner Joe Lacob and general manager Mike Dunleavy going over their decision to draft Yaxel Lendeborg, but coach Steve Kerr made his opinion known ahead of time as well, if only subtly.
“Our group asked him a couple days before the draft, ‘What’s the biggest need when you look at our roster?’” Dunleavy told NBC Sports Bay Area’s Bonta Hill and Monte Poole. “And he said, ‘There’s a huge gap in the middle of it with our forward position. We need a guy that can fit in there and connect the game.’
“And I was thinking to myself, ‘Is he trying to push us in a way to take Yaxel, or is he just speaking freely?’ And, sure enough, we ended up with a guy that potentially could do that. So, I think everyone is aligned on the same page and feels good about where we’re going.”
Lendeborg averaged 15.1 points — on a 64.6 true shooting percentage — as well as 6.8 rebounds and 3.2 assists his junior year at Michigan. Additionally, he was second in the nation in win shares (7.9) and plus/minus rating (plus-16.7), only behind No. 3 overall pick Cameron Boozer.
As for Kerr, Dunleavy says that following the coach’s decision to return to the team, he has seen an unmatched level of dedication.
“His commitment to this whole thing has been tremendous, not only just with the draft, but preparing for next season with our coaching staff and how we want to play,” Dunleavy told Hill and Poole. “He spent a lot of time with these guys. …
“He was at the workouts, he went out and got meals, we watched film with these guys. It’s definitely a thing where I wanted Steve, our head coach, to be comfortable with the player we were getting and the person. I feel, no doubt, with Yaxel we vetted that out really well.”
Lendeborg’s first season will be Kerr’s 13th as coach of the Warriors, and with Jonathan Kuminga being dealt last season, the Warriors adding a wing seems to be just what the doctor ordered.
DUBROVNIK, CROATIA - JUNE 13: Basketball Player and Team AlUla Co-Owner, Lebron James looks on in the E1 Owners Suite during the E1 Series Dubrovnik GP on June 13, 2026 in Dubrovnik, Croatia. (Photo by Joe Portlock/Getty Images) | Getty Images
To the surprise of few, LeBron James’ free agency is already off to an odd start this offseason.
A topic already of much debate before free agency has even officially started, how the Lakers and LeBron handled the coming weeks was always going to draw much attention. It turns out, however, the two sides have opted not to handle things at all yet.
Once the NBA Finals concluded, teams could begin negotiating with their own free agents. The Lakers clearly took advantage of that and reached a deal with Austin Reaves on Wednesday.
However, there has not been the same level of communication with LeBron. After checking in with him once that window opened, the two parties have not spoken since, as Shams Charania of ESPN revealed on NBA Today on Thursday.
“There was a check-in call made, to my understanding, early in free agency once teams were able to start negotiating with their own free agents. Since then, there hasn’t been much communication, from my understanding, between the Lakers and LeBron James’ side and certainly not an offer yet.”
On Friday, Charania reiterated that the Lakers had not yet offered LeBron a contract and that the discussions between the sides has been limited.
"The Lakers have not made an offer to LeBron as of yesterday."
Is this odd? Certainly. But does this rule out him returning to the Lakers? Certainly not.
To be fair to LeBron, he did just spend quite a few days reuniting with the 2016 Cavs team on the 10-year anniversary of their NBA title. Multiple of the former players in attendance, namely Richard Jefferson, chronicled online the days of golfing, cigar-smoking and, surely, wine-drinking that took place. LeBron likely had no interest in talking to the Lakers at that point.
At the same time, LeBron is no longer the Lakers’ top priority. Clearly, retaining Reaves ranked higher on the priority list this summer. Finding a center for the future is a priority. Filling out the rest of the roster is a priority.
There’s also the possibility that the Lakers know LeBron’s options are limited and will call his bluff. Perhaps they’re focused on filling out their roster and are leaving LeBron as the last part of their roster build and will present him a contract option based on what’s left for them.
It’d be a bold move and not one the Lakers typically make, but clearly this isn’t going to be a normal free agency situation for LeBron. Whatever course either the team or LeBron takes, it will be one of the team’s central focuses in the coming week.
SAN FRANCISCO – After three consecutive drafts in which the Warriors quickly introduced their second-round picks to the ways of the NBA, general manager Mike Dunleavy is ready to alter the script.
“We’ll get him through summer league and see how things go and see what happens next year,” Dunleavy told NBC Sports Bay Area on Friday. “But we like him as a long-term project in terms of the things we look for and what we value.”
Don’t expect to see Jones starting at forward two weeks into his rookie season, as second-round pick Will Richard did last season. There is very little likelihood that Jones will make his NBA debut in the starting lineup, as second-rounder Quinten Post did the year before, or appear in 68 games, as second-rounder Trayce Jackson-Davis did in the 2023-24 NBA season.
Jones’ road to the NBA has been bumpier than those of Richard, Post and Jackson-Davis. Jones began his collegiate career at Tarleton State (Texas) University, spent a year at Barton Community College, then a year at St. Bonaventure before transferring to Florida State for his senior season.
“There’s an underlying dryness, that sense of humor that he has that we appreciate,” Dunleavy said. “But he’s a kid that’s all about basketball. He’s pretty focused on the game, on getting better. He’s had a unique path, too, at multiple different schools. But we’re comfortable with him.”
It’s not that the GM is closing the door on Jones contributing as a rookie. With Jimmy Butler III and Moses Moody both projected to miss at least the first half of the 2026-27 season, the Warriors currently have an acute shortage of wings.
Jones, who turned 22 last month, is 6-foot-7, 220 pounds with elite athleticism, decent shooting range, a willingness to attack the rim and a defensive mentality. His first opportunity to make his case for NBA-readiness will come next week during the California Classic Summer League at Chase Center.
Part of that comfort comes from Golden State’s familiarity with Jones’ coach at Florida State, Luke Loucks, who spent five years on the Warriors’ staff under coach Steve Kerr, beginning as an intern and eventually being elevated to assistant coach before leaving in 2021.
Between Loucks and former NBA journalist Adrian Wojnarowski – the general manager of men’s basketball at St. Bonaventure – there was plenty of intelligence available to Dunleavy and his lieutenants in the front office.
“Anytime we can do a background with people that we know and trust, it’s important,” Dunleavy said. “He was even at St. Bonaventure’s with Woj, who we have a comfort level with covering the NBA; he knows the NBA. Luke especially, too, being on our coaching staff, knowing what Coach Kerr and our group look for, we felt very comfortable with not only the player that he could be and fit in with us but the personality, too.”
The general belief among the Warriors is that Jones’ defensive development is ahead of his offense – but that his superior athleticism would stand out on their relatively unathletic roster.
