The NBA season never truly ends. The Knicks will kick off their Summer League schedule with a Friday night matchup against the Detroit Pistons.
The Knicks only had one pick in this year’s draft (second-rounder Mohamed Diawara), but the club still has several prospects -- including 2024 first-round pick Pacome Dadiet -- playing this summer. Here’s who to keep an eye on during the action...
Pacome Dadiet
The Knicks’ lone first-round pick over the past two years, Dadiet has potential as a 3-and-D wing. Standing 6-foot-8, Dadiet has an important Summer League ahead of him.
Dadiet barely played for the Knicks during his rookie season, and his stint in the G League was not impressive. He only shot 40.6 percent from the field and 31.9 percent in 14 regular season games with the Westchester Knicks. But Dadiet is only 19 years old, so there’s still room for him to grow.
During Summer League, it will be important to see how Dadiet guards the ball, if he’s in the right places as a help defender, and if he can make an impact on the boards. On offense, the focus for the Frenchman should be knocking down open shots, and making quick reads of when to cut or attack off the dribble.
Tyler Kolek
Kolek had a quiet rookie season, but he did play the most minutes of any of the Knicks’ four rookies (296). Already a strong playmaking point guard, Kolek is a proven passer.
He averaged 8.9 assists in eight G League games with the Westchester Knicks, but scoring should be a focus for Kolek. The guard shot just 32 percent with Westchester and 29.8 percent with the Knicks.
The point guard also needs to grow as a finisher, both in the midrange and in the paint. With Kolek’s lack of size and athleticism, developing a floater would be useful. Also, his point-of-attack defense will be something to watch. With Cameron Payne a free agent, Kolek is currently New York’s only other point guard on the roster outside of Jalen Brunson. There’s a chance he could see some time on the floor next season.
New York Knicks center Ariel Hukporti (55) dunks against the Indiana Pacers in the fourth quarter during game five of the eastern conference finals for the 2025 NBA Playoffs at Madison Square Garden / Vincent Carchietta - Imagn Images
Ariel Hukporti
Hukporti should have a simple role for Summer League: set good screens, roll to the basket, and protect the rim on defense. With Mitchell Robinson’s injury history, Hukporti has the potential to find minutes at center this season.
For Summer League, the Knicks will get a good look at how Hukporti has improved from when they drafted him. It would be nice to see the team throw him the ball in the post occasionally during these games and see what he can do.
In his rookie season, Hukporti showed promise in limited minutes before missing significant time due to a torn meniscus in his left knee. The seven-footer has good touch around the basket. If Hukporti keeps it simple and takes care of his responsibilities as a center, Summer League will be a success.
Kevin McCullar Jr.
There were other intriguing options to look at, such as Diawara -- who is 6-foot-8 with a 7-foot-4 wingspan. There’s also former 2023 second-rounder James Nnaji, who is a raw but athletic big with a 7-foot-7 wingspan.
However, let’s go with McCullar. A second-round pick in 2024, McCullar is on a two-way contract. As he rehabbed from a torn ACL suffered in college at Kansas, McCullar was limited to just four games last season.
An older prospect at the age of 24, McCullar will need to prove he can knock down shots from the perimeter to excel in the league. The wing shot only 22.2 percent from three in 13 regular season G League games. McCullar has a good feel for the game and can make an impact in multiple ways, as evidenced by him averaging 18.3 points, 6.0 rebounds and 4.1 assists in his last collegiate season.
Al Horford could help a lot of teams: He can score inside, knock down 3s, and remains a quality defender. At age 39, a team has to monitor his minutes and not run him like he's 29, but in a limited role, he could help a lot of playoff teams. It’s why he is one of the best free agents still on the market.
"Horford's future remains unclear. A league source said Monday that Horford is taking his time while assessing offers from multiple teams but added that the 39-year-old is considering retirement, too."
Marc Stein reported in his Substack that the Warriors are considered the frontrunners, but that Horford has options. One thing that seems certain is that Horford is not returning to Boston. Celtics president Brad Stevens said he made an offer to Horford, but that it's "unlikely" he plays in the green next season.
Asked Brad Stevens if resigning Al Horford is still a priority:
“I don't know what I can say about this or not say about it. I mean, we made offers to both Luke and Al. We would’ve loved to have had both of them back. I'd say that's unlikely. The only reason I haven't talked… pic.twitter.com/5DWxIkpBNR
Horford averaged 9 points and 6.2 rebounds a night, playing 27.7 minutes per game for Boston last season (he started 42 games, played in 60, with his role expanded due to Kristaps Porzingis missing time due to injury).
The Warriors have emerged as a strong contender to bring back De'Anthony Melton in free agency, league sources tell @TheSteinLine, in addition to Golden State's well-chronicled interest in signing Al Horford.
The Warriors, who notably remain the final NBA team yet to make a move in free agency, also have “well-chronicled interest,” as Stein puts it, in veteran center Al Horford.
Shortly after, once he became trade-eligible in December, the Warriors sent Melton to the Brooklyn Nets in exchange for guard Dennis Schröder. In just six games with Golden State, the USC product averaged 10.3 points, 3.3 rebounds, 2.8 assists and 1.2 steals in 20.2 minutes, while shooting 40.7 percent from the field.
However, if Melton returns to Golden State — who obviously liked him enough to sign him last offseason — the acclaimed defender could have a second chance to show out in the Bay.
Jaylen Brown knows what it’s like to be a focal point of the Boston Celtics offense.
He has averaged 20-plus points per game in six straight seasons, and during that stretch he has made four All-Star appearances, been selected to the All-NBA second team, and helped lead the Celtics to a championship as the MVP of the 2024 NBA Finals.
But the 2025-26 season will present a new challenge for Brown: being the primary focus of the opposing team’s defense every night for 82 games.
With superstar forward Jayson Tatum in the midst of a long recovery from a ruptured Achilles suffered in May, all eyes will be on Brown as the team’s No. 1 option on offense next season.
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Celtics president of basketball operations Brad Stevens isn’t worried about Brown’s ability to step up in this new role.
“There’s no question Jaylen will draw the most attention and that Jaylen will thrive in that,” Stevens said at a press conference Tuesday. “You saw him several times — certainly in the few games in the playoffs where we had to play without Tatum, and I thought he did a good job, especially those two home games.
“I think he’s ready for any challenge. He always has been. I’m excited to see all these guys take a step up.”
Brown scored 36 points with 10 rebounds and five assists in Game 2 of the first-round playoff series against the Orlando Magic back in April. Tatum missed that game due to a wrist injury. Brown also scored 26 points with 12 assists and eight rebounds in a Game 5 win over the New York Knicks in the conference semifinals. It was one of two games Tatum missed in the series after injuring his Achilles.
In three 2025 playoff games without Tatum, Brown averaged 27.3 points, 8.0 rebounds and 7.7 assists per game. And Brown also had an injured knee that required offseason surgery.
Despite his wealth of experience, career accolades, and the fact that he’s one of the top 20 players in the sport, plenty of people will still question Brown’s ability to be a No. 1 option.
It could provide a new source of motivation for Brown.
But that won’t be exclusive to him. The entire team will have something to prove during the upcoming season as a result of so many people not viewing them as a contender.
“I’m excited to see the chip on their shoulder,” Stevens said. “I think we’ve always had it. We’ve had a competitive group and a competitive mindset. But we’ve maybe had much higher expectations or some higher expectations. So I’m excited to see us get ready to go, and Jaylen will be a big part of that.”
One of the "rules" for Summer League is this: If a player got regular run during the NBA season, they should dominate in Summer League. Their game should have risen to the point that they were above this level of summer run.
Case in point: Utah's Brice Sensabaugh. The former Ohio State forward played 71 games for the Jazz last season, and on Monday night went out and dropped 37 in Utah's win over Memphis in the Salt Lake Summer League.
Brice Sensabaugh went OFF for 37 points in the @utahjazz W ‼️
Also of note from that game: Utah's No. 5 pick Ace Bailey looked much more comfortable after a rough first outing. What rookies do in Summer League is more of a measuring stick than anything else, but a good sign is a player who learns and improves over the course of those games. Bailey did that between his first two Summer League games.
No. 5 pick Ace Bailey was impressive in the @utahjazz Salt Lake City Summer League W
Gonzalez is working out with the Celtics in preparation for NBA Summer League, which is scheduled to begin Friday in Las Vegas. The 19-year-old has looked the part in practice, according to his teammate Jordan Walsh.
“He plays hard. Really hard,” Walsh said. “Fans are gonna love that. He plays hard, he dives on the floor, he’s a defensive menace, and he attacks the rim with force. I think everyone knows that, but this is my first time seeing him play and being able to watch it and go against it. He got me one time. It’s been cool.”
The Celtics drafted Gonzalez out of Spain with the 28th overall pick. The 6-foot-7 wing averaged 5.2 points, 2.5 rebounds, and 0.9 assists in 14.2 minutes per game last season with Real Madrid. Although those numbers don’t jump off the page, Gonzalez’s upside is evident to those who have watched him take the court.
As for adjusting from playing overseas to joining one of the NBA’s most iconic franchises, that shouldn’t be a problem.
“For me, playing for the Madrid Academy since I was 10 (years old), I was almost like playing for a team where winning was a must every year, winning every title,” Gonzalez told reporters last week.
“So (I’m) pretty used to the team success. It’s the first and the main thing for the whole season. It’s nothing that I need to learn. It’s something that I already got in my DNA.”
Gonzalez will be joined by fellow 2025 draft picks Amari Williams and Max Shulga on the Celtics’ Summer League roster. Check out the full Summer League roster and schedule below:
In fact, the second apron forced them to trade two key starters — Jrue Holiday and Kristaps Porzingis — over the last few weeks.
But the C’s did add a few players in free agency, most notably Luka Garza and Josh Minott. Garza has played four seasons in the NBA and was a two-time first-team All-American at Iowa. Minott has three years of pro experience as an athletic 6-foot-8 wing.
Why did the Celtics target Garza and Minott?
“We’ve been limited in what tools we can use (to add players) with where we are right around the second apron,” Celtics president of basketball operations Brad Stevens said Tuesday at a press conference.
“So we were looking for those guys on those contracts that have upside, and who are competitors, who are workers, who want to be good and haven’t hit their peak yet, but we’ve seen something in them that gives them a chance to be very impactful.”
Both Garza and Minott played for the Minnesota Timberwolves last season. The Wolves had a lot of depth, so opportunities were not abundant for each player. They’ll have a chance to prove themselves in Boston next season.
“Luka obviously has been a stats darling, but in limited time behind very, very good players. Same thing with Minott,” Stevens said. “Minott is a guy who brings a lot of versatility to the table. He’s a person who can guard several positions, and he can shoot a little bit, but also plays with great energy and length. Both of those guys really rebound.”
It remains to be seen whether Garza and/or Minott will make a meaningful impact off the bench in Boston, but their skill sets and body of work in the NBA so far make them well worth the gamble.
“As we have a team that’s being re-tooled, I think the biggest thing is bringing in guys who can complement our best players and our core, but also have some upside — maybe some unrealized upside thus far,” Stevens explained.
“(Garza and Minott) were in a great situation being coached by a great coach in Chris Finch and a great organization with a ton of talent. And they’re used to winning. I like that, too.”
The Boston Celtics went all-in to contend for a title in each of the last two seasons. Now, they’re facing the consequences.
That was the essence of Brad Stevens’ message to reporters Tuesday when the Celtics’ president of basketball operations was asked about his team’s decisions to trade Jrue Holiday and Kristaps Porzingis, who played key roles on a championship roster but would have cost a combined $63.1 million on the 2025-26 payroll.
“The second apron is why those trades happened,” Stevens said. “I think that’s pretty obvious. The basketball penalties associated with those are real.”
So, Stevens set about making significant (and difficult) changes, from trading Holiday and Porzingis to letting Luke Kornet and Al Horford walk in free agency. (Stevens said Tuesday it’s “unlikely” Horford re-signs with the Celtics.) After those moves, the Celtics are just barely over the second apron — by less than $1 million — but can duck under that threshold with at least one more minor move.
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Based on Stevens’ comments, you can expect the team to get under the second apron in short order.
“It was really important for us to, again, get out of that penalty box in a lot of ways,” Stevens said. “Because you can feel those, and those are real things.”
With so much focus on the second apron, it’s fair to wonder whether Stevens will continue to cut costs to get out of the luxury tax entirely, using 2025-26 as a “reset” season while Jayson Tatum recovers from a ruptured Achilles. It’s also fair to wonder if new lead owner Bill Chisholm has encouraged cost-cutting to lower the team’s massive luxury tax bill.
Yet Stevens insisted Tuesday that Chisholm has issued no directives to trim salary.
“Bill has been pretty clear from the get-go that he wants to make sure that we’re prioritizing basketball assets and the ability to retool this thing at the highest level that we can,” Stevens said.
” … We have most of our first-round picks still. We have a lot of second (-round picks) now. … We don’t want to take away our chance to use those to become the best that we can be over the next few years just to make a move to help save money. I think that’s been very clearly stated to me.”
The Celtics undoubtedly got worse on paper this offseason, ostensibly replacing Holiday, Porzingis, Horford and Kornet with Anfernee Simons, Georges Niang, Luka Garza and Josh Minott. But Stevens believes the flexibility Boston gains from getting out of the second apron will help the team build a better roster around Tatum and Jaylen Brown in the long-term.
“We’ll continue to look at how we can make things a little bit better or tweak things around the edges, and maybe something comes up over the next couple weeks. But that’s been our mindset,” Stevens added.
“The priority is continuing to make sure that we have our future firsts and all these things that are that are in play for us, so that we can then use those to build.”
That building couldn’t have happened without a mini-roster teardown this summer, which is why Stevens viewed those cost-cutting measures as a necessity for the Celtics.
The Boston Celtics went all-in to contend for a title in each of the last two seasons. Now, they’re facing the consequences.
That was the essence of Brad Stevens’ message to reporters Tuesday when the Celtics’ president of basketball operations was asked about his team’s decisions to trade Jrue Holiday and Kristaps Porzingis, who played key roles on a championship roster but would have cost a combined $63.1 million on the 2025-26 payroll.
“The second apron is why those trades happened,” Stevens said. “I think that’s pretty obvious. The basketball penalties associated with those are real.”
So, Stevens set about making significant (and difficult) changes, from trading Holiday and Porzingis to letting Luke Kornet and Al Horford walk in free agency. (Stevens said Tuesday it’s “unlikely” Horford re-signs with the Celtics.) After those moves, the Celtics are just barely over the second apron — by less than $1 million — but can duck under that threshold with at least one more minor move.
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Based on Stevens’ comments, you can expect the team to get under the second apron in short order.
“It was really important for us to, again, get out of that penalty box in a lot of ways,” Stevens said. “Because you can feel those, and those are real things.”
With so much focus on the second apron, it’s fair to wonder whether Stevens will continue to cut costs to get out of the luxury tax entirely, using 2025-26 as a “reset” season while Jayson Tatum recovers from a ruptured Achilles. It’s also fair to wonder if new lead owner Bill Chisholm has encouraged cost-cutting to lower the team’s massive luxury tax bill.
Yet Stevens insisted Tuesday that Chisholm has issued no directives to trim salary.
“Bill has been pretty clear from the get-go that he wants to make sure that we’re prioritizing basketball assets and the ability to retool this thing at the highest level that we can,” Stevens said.
” … We have most of our first-round picks still. We have a lot of second (-round picks) now. … We don’t want to take away our chance to use those to become the best that we can be over the next few years just to make a move to help save money. I think that’s been very clearly stated to me.”
The Celtics undoubtedly got worse on paper this offseason, ostensibly replacing Holiday, Porzingis, Horford and Kornet with Anfernee Simons, Georges Niang, Luka Garza and Josh Minott. But Stevens believes the flexibility Boston gains from getting out of the second apron will help the team build a better roster around Tatum and Jaylen Brown in the long-term.
“We’ll continue to look at how we can make things a little bit better or tweak things around the edges, and maybe something comes up over the next couple weeks. But that’s been our mindset,” Stevens added.
“… The priority is continuing to make sure that we have our future firsts and all these things that are that are in play for us, so that we can then use those to build.”
That building couldn’t have happened without a mini-roster teardown this summer, which is why Stevens viewed those cost-cutting measures as a necessity for the Celtics.
Celtics president of basketball operations Brad Stevens was pretty candid at a press conference Tuesday when asked about Horford.
“We made offers to both Luke (Kornet) and Al. We would’ve loved to have had both of them back. I’d say that’s unlikely,” Stevens told reporters.
“The only reason I haven’t talked about Al is, I could talk about Al my whole press conference and not say enough. But I don’t want to speak in absolute terms until an ultimate decision is made. If he were to go and play somewhere else, I think he’s an all-time Celtic, a winner, and did everything he could for this organization, not only in the games but also how he impacted our younger players.”
Horford has spent the last four seasons with the Celtics (seven in total across two stints in Boston), and he played a crucial role in the C’s being a title contender throughout that period, including a championship in 2024.
His ability to shoot 3-pointers, defend at a high level and provide veteran leadership, among several other qualities, was very valuable to the Celtics’ ascension.
The Celtics are limited in what they can offer Horford — or any other free agent — as a team over luxury tax. Horford is able to make more money with other teams. The C’s are also unlikely to be title contenders next season with Jayson Tatum recovering from a ruptured Achilles.
The Boston Globe’s Adam Himmelsbach reported Monday, citing a league source, that Horford is “taking his time while assessing offers from multiple teams” and that “the 39-year-old is considering retirement, too.”
The Golden State Warriors reportedly have interest in signing Horford after they lost veteran center Kevon Looney earlier in free agency.
If Horford doesn’t return, the Celtics will have lost three centers — Horford, Kornet, and Kristaps Porzingis — from last season’s roster.
Like many fans and players, Draymond Green patiently has been waiting for a big move in NBA free agency this year. And like those fans and players, he’s been disappointed thus far.
The Warriors star forward shared some in-depth thoughts in multiple Threads posts Monday night, calling out the league and its new CBA rules for their impact on the free-agent market.
Draymond Green just had A LOT to say about NBA free agency and the CBA on Threads
Green said a lot, but the premise of his “argument” seems to be how little players truly understand the fine print of the business side of the NBA.
“Sadly, I sit here and watch so many players overplay the market and not understand what they are up against with the new rules,” Green wrote. “Which leads me to trying to understand the [staggering] percentage of guys that has no idea of THE BUSINESS they are a part of. And I as a ‘VET’ in this league watch players mismanage their careers and before they know it, look back like DAMN, where to next?”
Green acknowledged there were plenty of other topics he wanted to get off his chest but didn’t want to type all of it out.
And while he showed an appreciation to the league and the partnerships between all parties involved, he seemingly hinted that he would be a better fit as the National Basketball Players Association president, a role currently occupied by veteran guard CJ McCollum.
“I have what I think is an extremely unique perspective on this,” Green wrote. “I am obviously a player, a former amazing general manager is one of my close friends. I am very close with previous owners and current ones. I was introduced to the business at 16 by Joe [Dumars], so yeah all that to say, it’s interesting to watch and also be a part of. Maybe I’ll write some long piece, or maybe I’ll just do a podcast lol.
“But regardless of where I decide to let these thoughts out, I should’ve been the Players association president lol. I could’ve helped a lot.”
Green ended his late-night rant wanting to make one thing perfectly clear.
“Also before y’all run and make this about [Jonathan Kuminga], it isn’t,” he wrote. “He’s 22 and will be great and make a bunch of money, so this aint’ got nothing to do with him.”
With a week gone by of free agency, it’s been mostly a snoozefest around the league in a period when the basketball world is on high alert in anticipation of major league-shaking moves.
The second apron, which acts as a hard cap for teams, of the luxury tax has led to teams spending less money. The CBA extends through the 2029-30 season, and June 2029 is the earliest the NBPA or league owners can opt out.
Celtics president of basketball operations Brad Stevens was pretty candid at a press conference Tuesday when asked about Horford.
“We made offers to both Luke (Kornet) and Al. We would’ve loved to have had both of them back. I’d say that’s unlikely,” Stevens told reporters.
“The only reason I haven’t talked about Al is, I could talk about Al my whole press conference and not say enough. But I don’t want to speak in absolute terms until an ultimate decision is made. If he were to go and play somewhere else, I think he’s an all-time Celtic, a winner, and did everything he could for this organization, not only in the games but also how he impacted our younger players.”
Horford has spent the last four seasons with the Celtics (seven in total across two stints in Boston), and he played a crucial role in the C’s being a title contender throughout that period, including a championship in 2024.
His ability to shoot 3-pointers, defend at a high level and provide veteran leadership, among several other qualities, was very valuable to the Celtics’ ascension.
The Celtics are limited in what they can offer Horford — or any other free agent — as a team over the luxury tax. Horford is able to make more money with other teams. The C’s are also unlikely to be title contenders next season with Jayson Tatum recovering from a ruptured Achilles.
The Boston Globe’s Adam Himmelsbach reported Monday, citing a league source, that Horford is “taking his time while assessing offers from multiple teams” and that “the 39-year-old is considering retirement, too.”
The Golden State Warriors reportedly have interest in signing Horford after they lost veteran center Kevon Looney earlier in free agency.
If Horford doesn’t return, the Celtics will have lost three centers — Horford, Kornet, and Kristaps Porzingis — from last season’s roster.
The Houston Rockets scored a free agency coup by landing Kevin Durant.Photograph: Slaven Vlašić/Getty Images
It’s a time-honored convention among NBA fans and analysts alike to jump to premature conclusions a week or so into free agency, and far be it from me to stray from tradition. So, here are the very early winners and losers of this season’s game of NBA musical chairs, thus far:
The winners
Atlanta Hawks I’m old enough to remember when a Trae Young-led Hawks team made the Eastern Conference finals a few seasons ago. Since then, their drop from contender status has been steep: the Dejounte Murray experiment came and went, and trade chatter around Young only grew louder. But this season feels markedly different and that’s due in large part to a bangin’ offseason from Atlanta’s front office. They somehow convinced the New Orleans Pelicans to give up an unprotected first-round pick next year just to move up 10 measly spots in the draft (!! more on that later), and flipped inconsequential role players Terance Mann and Georges Niang for Kristaps Porzingis, Nickeil Alexander-Walker and Luke Kennard. Almost overnight, they’ve become one of the deeper teams in the East. And they were already onto something last year, with No 1 overall pick Zacharie Risacher, Most Improved Player Dyson Daniels, and defensive spark plug Jalen Johnson, who’s returning from injury. This is the best shot Trae Young has ever had to make real noise in a weakened East.
Denver Nuggets The Kroenkes, who own the Nuggets, could never be accused of being fast and loose with their cash. Just last week, Josh Kroenke raised eyebrows when he casually floated the idea of trading Best Player on Earth Nikola Jokić if the team’s tax bill got too steep.But credit where it’s due: Denver is having a terrific offseason. They offloaded the aging-like-milk-in-the-sun Michael Porter Jr contract (along with a 2032 unprotected first-round pick, a bridge they’ll cross when they get to it) in exchange for trade buzz magnet Cameron Johnson, a much better fit next to Jokić and one who earns roughly half as much. They also brought back Bruce Brown Jr on a veteran minimum deal, an absolute steal for a player they sorely missed during his journeyman stint around the league. A bizarre last-minute reversal from Jonas Valanciunas, who reportedly backed out of signing with Denver to return to Europe, caused a brief stir. But all told, the Nuggets have gone from “Are they really about to waste Jokić’s prime?” to “Bona fide contender” in a matter of days.
Houston Rockets No one is having a better summer than the Rockets. After a commendable season that saw them emerge as the surprise No 2 seed in a stacked Western Conference, and without a true superstar, head coach Ime Udoka earned a well-deserved Coach of the Year nomination. They entered the offseason with a young, deep and exciting (but still flawed) roster, and a glaring need for a late-game shot-maker and offensive closer. Enter Kevin Durant. Houston landed the future Hall of Famer by giving up only the question-mark-laden Jalen Green, the mercurial Dillon Brooks and modest draft capital. They didn’t stop there. The Rockets retained Fred VanVleet, added backup center Clint Capela and quietly snagged 3-and-D wing Dorian Finney-Smith from the Lakers. Now they’re exactly where any team wants to be: deep, balanced and primed to take on the defending champion Thunder.
The losers
New Orleans Pelicans Self-awareness is one of the most valuable skills in life, especially when running an NBA front office. The Pelicans, it appears, are in short supply. They opened the offseason by trading for Jordan Poole (?), then followed that head-scratcher with one of the most baffling draft-day moves in recent memory: trading their unprotected 2025 first-round pick to move up just 10 spots in this year’s draft (from No 23 to No 13 to be specific). For those keeping track at home: there is no reason to believe New Orleans will be even a play-in team in a loaded Western Conference next season, let alone reach the playoffs, and that pick they gave up could easily end up as the No 1 overall (especially if the injury bug continues to plague them). That means there’s a non-zero chance the Pelicans have just handed away the rights to generational prospect AJ Dybantsa ... for the privilege of moving up 10 slots in a draft where they already had two first-rounders. Lunacy.
Milwaukee Bucks Listen, we’ve all made desperate decisions in a haze of panic to keep someone from leaving. It’s fundamental to the human condition. But the extent to which the Bucks are wholly and fully cooked the moment 31-year-old Giannis Antetokounmpo demands a trade, an outcome that feels more inevitable by the day, cannot be overstated. When Damian Lillard and his $56m salary went down indefinitely with a ruptured achilles this spring, Milwaukee panicked and understandably so. But waiving and stretching Lillard means $22m in dead money … every year for the next five years. And they did this to create space for signing Myles Turner, who replaces departing veteran Brook Lopez. Turner is a solid starting center, sure, but hardly enough of a needle mover to lift the essentially identical roster of a first-round loser to championship glory, and certainly not one worth the nearly $50m Milwaukee will now be paying between his salary and the Lillard buyout. The instinct to panic is understandable. The results might prove catastrophic.
LeBron James and Luka Dončić From a front-office perspective, the Lakers are riding high. The team just sold for a record-shattering $10bn to Dodgers controlling owner Mark Walter and, for now at least, they still have the crown jewel of one of the most lopsided trades in NBA history on their roster. But for said crown jewel, Luka Dončić, and his childhood idol turned teammate LeBron James, the outlooks isn’t quite so rosy. The company line out of Laker Land is that they’re prioritizing future flexibility over win-now moves, but that feels like a bit of a ridiculous conceit. For starters, when was the last time a true game-changer actually made it to free agency instead of signing the max and requesting a trade later? And LeBron, now 40 and coming off a season where he finished sixth in MVP voting and made the All-NBA second team, clearly doesn’t fit that long-term timeline. Even Dončić, at 26 and entering his prime, doesn’t have time to wait around. Yes, they technically addressed their glaring hole at center by adding Deandre Ayton on a buyout, and Jake LaRavia was a nice, low-cost pickup at forward. But after losing Dončić’s close friend and key contributor Dorian Finney-Smith in free agency, reportedly not on great terms, there are still serious holes in this roster. And little sign the front office feels any urgency to fill them. Dončić and James deserve better.
Honorable mention
Fans of the Indiana Pacers From one game away from a championship and one of the most exciting young teams in the league to staring down the barrel of a year without Tyrese Haliburton and watching 10-year Pacers veteran Myles Turner walk in free agency due, allegedly, to Pacers’ ownership’s unwillingness to go into the luxury tax. It’s been a tough couple of weeks to be a Pacers fan, and they have my most sincere sympathies.
Multiple reports have suggested the Phoenix Suns are very close to reaching a waive-and-stretch buyout deal with Bradley Beal, who has two years and $110.8 million left on his contract (Zach Lowe at The Ringer and Fred Katz at The Athletic are just two of the names reporting the deal is close). This is a negotiation because Beal has to give back approximately $13.8 million of his contract for the Suns to be able to waive and stretch him (thanks to a little-discussed provision of the CBA). He appears willing to do that to get out of Phoenix and to a playoff team in a city where he wants to be.
Which appears to be the Los Angeles Clippers.
Los Angeles trading away Norman Powell — a sharpshooting, ball-handling wing, a role the Clippers need filled next to James Harden — is seen as a precursor to the Beal signing, league sources told NBC Sports. While Beal could start in place of Kris Dunn in the Clippers' backcourt, for defensive purposes, the better fit would be for Beal to come off the bench with a second unit that includes John Collins (unless Collins starts and Derrick Jones Jr. comes off the bench), Bogdan Bogdanovic, and Brook Lopez. The Clippers can offer Beal either the remaining portion of their mid-level exception (estimated to be approximately $5.3 million) or the room exception ($5.1 million).
Beal also "has thought about" the Golden State Warriors, Los Angeles Lakers and Milwaukee Bucks, reports The Athletic's Katz. While Miami and Beal have had a flirtation in the past, they do not appear to be a potential landing spot now.
Whether one of those other teams steps up with a deal or Beal chooses the Clippers, this appears close to happening. It will be the second nine-figure waive and stretch of the NBA season, behind only the $115 million the Bucks waived to move on from Damian Lillard and sign Myles Turner.
