2018 Free Agency: Latest news and reported deals
NBA free agency is well under way and the reported deals are being agreed to at a frantic pace. Catch up on all the first few days of action here: June 30 | July 1 | July 2
As NBA free agency rolls along, keep up on all the latest news and reports from around the league …
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Reports: Pacers reach deal with O’Quinn
The Indiana Pacers have quietly worked this offseason to revamp their bench. That renovation project continued on Friday as the team reportedly reached a deal with big man Kyle O’Quinn.
Yahoo Sports’ Shams Charania has more (via Twitter) about the deal — which was reported by multiple outlets:
Free agent Kyle O’Quinn has agreed to a one-year, $4.5M deal with the Indiana Pacers, league sources tell Yahoo.
In his three seasons with the New York Knicks, O’Quinn appeared in 221 of a possible 246 games and was a dependable reserve there. He averaged 6.1 points and 5.2 rebounds per game in 15.3 minutes per game during his time in New York.
O’Quinn is entering his seventh NBA season, after spending three with Orlando and three with the Knicks. He averaged a career-high 7.1 points per game last season and has yet to appear in a postseason game.
— July 6, 11:11 a.m.
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Report: Mavs to sign Ryan Broekhoff
Dallas’ efforts to gear up for a resurgent season reportedly continued on Thursday. According to Shams Charania of Yahoo Sports, the Mavs have come to an agreement on a two-year deal with Australian forward Ryan Broekhoff:
Guard Ryan Broekhoff has agreed to a two-year deal with the Dallas Mavericks, league sources tell Yahoo. Guaranteed in first season.
The 6-foot-7 forward averaged 12.3 points and 5.5 rebounds per contest for Lokomotiv Kuban of the VTB United League last season, shooting 54.9 percent overall and a scorching 50.6 percent from 3-point range. The Melbourne native and Valparaiso (2009-13) product earned 2018 Euro Cup First Team honors.
— 7:10 p.m., July 5
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Reports: Sixers add Bjelica
Philadelphia has added to its already deep frontcourt after reportedly agreeing to a deal with former Minnesota Timberwolves swingman Nemanja Bjelica. Per ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski and Jessica Camerato of NBC Sports Philadelphia, the deal is for one year:
Forward Nemanja Bjelica has agreed to a one-year deal with the Philadelphia 76ers, league sources tell ESPN. Minnesota withdrew qualifying offer to make him a free agent.
Sixers to sign forward Nemanja Bjelica to a one-year deal to the room mid-level exception ($4.4M), per source. (Signing first reported by @JakeLFischer). Last season Bjelica averaged 6.8 points and 4.1 rebounds for the Timberwolves.
Last season, Bjelica averaged 6.8 points and 4.1 rebounds per game in 61 games. In March, Bjelica was a starter as Wolves’ star Jimmy recovered from a meniscus injury. In 13 starts that month, Bjelica averaged 11 ppg, 6.8 rpg and shot 43.4 percent from 3-point range.
— 9:53 a.m., July 5
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Report: Johnson returns to Sixers
Philadelphia 76ers center Amir Johnson has agreed to return to the team on a one-year deal, according to Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN.
Johnson played in 74 regular-season games last season with averages of 4.6 points, 4.5 rebounds and 1.6 assists in 15.8 minutes.
— 3:30 p.m., July 4
Report: Clippers interested in keeping Harrell
The LA Clippers have been busy in the frontcourt this offseason, trading for Washington Wizards center Marcin Gortat and, shortly thereafter, reportedly letting incumbent center DeAndre Jordan leave for the Dallas Mavericks.
Montrezl Harrell appeared in 76 games last year — mostly in a backup role — for the Clippers. Per Broderick Turner of the Los Angeles Times, the Clippers are wanting to keep Harrell around:
The Clippers now have a 16-man roster with Bradley, one over the league maximum, and have interest in re-signing free-agent center Montrezl Harrell, according NBA officials not authorized to speak publicly on the matter.
If the Clippers and Harrell agree to a deal, that pushes their roster two players above the 15-man limit and would mean L.A. has to purge players.
— 10:52 a.m., July 4
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Report: Felton back with Thunder for one year
Veteran point guard Raymond Felton has agreed to return to Oklahoma City on a one-year, $2.4 million deal, according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski.
Free agent guard Raymond Felton has agreed to a one-year deal to return to Oklahoma City, league source tells ESPN.
The decision to re-sign comes days after OKC was able to retain All-Star forward Paul George, who reportedly committed to a four-year deal. Felton played in all 82 games as the reserve guard behind Russell Westbrook, averaging 6.9 points and 2.5 assists in 16.6 minutes per game. The 34-year-old is entering his 14th season.
Felton’s contract officially pushes OKC past a historic $300 million in team salary and luxury tax, per ESPN.
— 12:48 a.m., July 4
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Reports: Looney to re-sign with Warriors
The Golden State Warriors are locking up their backup center position as Kevon Looney has agreed to re-sign on a one-year deal, per multiple reports.
According to The Mercury News‘ Mark Medina, Looney had other offers in free agency but chose to stick with the defending NBA champions:
The Warriors upgraded their roster, while still retaining a young player that they feared they might lose.
Fourth-year forward Kevon Looney agreed to re-sign with the Warriors on a one-year, veteran’s minimum deal, league sources confirmed to Bay Area News Group. ESPN first reported the news.
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Looney wanted to entertain other more lucrative offers with teams that could offer a larger role. Though he also fielded interest from the Los Angeles Clippers, Houston Rockets, Philadelphia 76ers and Atlanta Hawks, Looney found it more appealing to stay with the Warriors because of his ongoing development and the team’s recent championship success. Looney has also set himself up for potentially another breakout season that could yield more offseason interest next summer.
On Monday, the Warriors made a splash by agreeing to terms with All-Star center DeMarcus Cousins on a one-year, $5 million deal. Cousins is recovering from an Achilles injury and center JaVale McGee left for the Lakers in free agency, which means Looney is likely to see more minutes.
Looney, 22, averaged 4.0 points and 3.3 rebounds in 66 games last season. Golden State’s roster is now set to have 12 players under contract once the moratorium period is over July 6.
— 8:27 p.m., July 3
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Reports: Exum gets new deal with Jazz
The Utah Jazz are showing they want to keep working with their young talent on the team. Earlier on Tuesday, the team reportedly agreed to an extension with Raul Neto, and now, the team has agreed to an extension for restricted free agent Dante Exum.
According to multiple reports, Exum has landed a three-year, $33 million deal. Tony Jones of The Salt Lake Tribune has more on Utah’s latest move of the summer:
The Jazz and their prized restricted free agent agreed to a three-year deal worth $33 million on Tuesday, league sources tell The Tribune. ESPN.com was first to report on the agreement.
General manager Dennis Lindsey made Exum a priority during free agency, and sees him as a longterm piece for the Jazz. Exum is the only Jazz player this offseason to sign a deal guaranteed beyond next season.
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The Jazz have limited money to use in free agency after re-signing Exum and Raul Neto earlier on Tuesday. They will have to decide on whether they guarantee the contracts of Ekpe Udoh and Jonas Jerebko. Beyond that, they appear to be almost finished, unless they decide against bringing Jerebko or Udoh back and dip into the free-agent market.
Exum, who was drafted with fifth overall in the 2014 Draft, missed most of last season with a shoulder injury. However, he showed promise in his last 14 games of the regular season and was solid in key stretches in defending Houston Rockets star James Harden in the Western Conference semifinals.
Exum was sacked by injury in that series, picking up a hamstring injury before Game 4 that kept him from playing the rest of the series.
Exum, 22, who missed the entire 2015-16 season with a torn ACL, averaged 8.1 points per game in 14 games last season.
— 6:09 p.m., July 3
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Reports: Neto agrees to contract extension
Utah Jazz guard Raul Neto has agreed to a contract extension, according to Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN and Shams Charania of Yahoo! Sports. Charania reports the contract is a two-year, $4.4-million deal.
Neto, a 26-year-old guard from Brazil, averaged 4.5 points and 1.8 assists in 12.2 minutes for Utah last season.
— 4:34 p.m., July 3
Reports: Evans agrees to deal with Pacers
Former Memphis Grizzlies guard Tyreke Evans was reportedly busy yesterday, meeting with the Los Angeles Lakers after previously doing so with the Oklahoma City Thunder the day before.
But today, the point guard has agreed to a one-day with the Indiana Pacers, according multiple reports. J. Michael of the Indianapolis Star has more on why the Pacers reached a deal with up Evans:
Doug McDermott was the first move made in free agency by the Pacers, but the most significant one came Tuesday when Tyreke Evans came to terms with them on a one-year, $12 million deal, a league source confirmed to IndyStar.
At 6-6, Evans can play both backcourt positions as well as on the wing which gives the Pacers the versatility they were missing during last season’s playoff run that ended in Game 7 vs. the Cleveland Cavaliers.
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Evans is a piece — not a star that many assumed he’d be after winning Rookie of the Year — and he can fill that role well behind Victor Oladipo at shooting guard.
One of the Pacers’ biggest needs, aside from 3-point shooting to space the floor for Oladipo, is size in the backcourt. When they have to switch defensively, having a player Evans’ size minimizes those disadvantages.
Also, Evans could push Bojan Bogdanovic for time on the wing or allow coach Nate McMillan to spread the floor with three-plus shooters at all times.
He had a career resurgence of sorts last season, averaging 19.4 points, 5.1 rebounds and 5.2 assists per game — stats that were among his best since his early career days with the Sacramento Kings.
Aside from talking with the Lakers and Thunder, Will Guillory of The Times-Picayune reported on Monday that the New Orleans Pelicans also may have interest in Evans, too.
— 4:02 p.m., July 3
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Reports: Green heading to Wizards
Jeff Green is going back home. The forward, a former star at Maryland’s Northwestern High School and at Georgetown, has reached a one-year with the Washington Wizards, per multiple reports.
Candace Buckner of The Washington Post has more on Green’s homecoming to the Washington, D.C., area:
During the NBA Eastern Conference finals, Jeff Green certainly had his mind on his Cleveland Cavaliers as they contested the Boston Celtics in a tight playoff matchup. However, like anyone with Washington roots, Green also obsessed over the Capitals’ run to the Stanley Cup. On the night before the Capitals played in the Game 1 of the finals, Green vowed to be in front of his television. Next season, however, Green can probably get a more up-close view of his favorite hockey team.
On Tuesday, Green reached a one-year deal with the Washington Wizards, giving the team a veteran backup forward with NBA Finals experience.
Green, the 31-year-old native of Hyattsville, has career averages of 13.2 points, 4.6 rebounds and 1.6 assists. With the decision to sign with the Wizards, Green returns to the same arena in which he starred as a member of the Georgetown Hoyas for three seasons.
Green played for the Cleveland Cavaliers last season and averaged 10.8 points per game.
— 3:15 p.m., July 3
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Reports: Carter-Williams, Rockets reach deal
Former Kia Rookie of the Year winner Michael Carter-Williams is heading to the Western Conference, it seems.
Per multiple reports, Carter-Williams — who spent last season with the Charlotte Hornets — has reached a one-year, minimum deal with the Houston Rockets.
Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle has more on the Rockets’ latest offseason move:
The Rockets’ greater free-agency goals remain, but they made the sort of small, subtle move they hope pans out the way other recent under-the-radar deals have for them.
The Rockets reached agreement with point guard Michael Carter-Williams on a one-year, minimum contract worth $1.9 million, a person with knowledge of the deal said Tuesday.
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But the Rockets had wanted an emergency lead guard who could fill in for starters James Harden and Chris Paul and sixth man Eric Gordon. Williams is considered a strong defensive player who at 6-6 can play in the Rockets’ switching defensive style.
Their hope is that if he does have to step in at the point, as opposed to playing at shooting guard with Harden or Paul, he can play with enough shooters that his own shortcomings as a catch-and-shoot threat won’t be a factor.
Carter-Williams went 11th overall in the 2013 NBA Draft, averaging 16.7 points, 6.2 rebounds, 6.3 assists and 1.9 steals per game in 2013-14. However, injuries have hampered him since then and he played in just 52 games for the Hornets last season. He had surgery in mid-March for a torn labrum in his left shoulder and missed the rest of the 2017-18 season.
— 2:07 p.m., July 3
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Cousins calls Warriors deal ‘my chess move’
As free agency began, DeMarcus Cousins was seen as one of the most intriguing names to watch this summer. However, Cousins tells The Undefeated’s Marc J. Spears that he did not receive offers once free agency officially began at 12:01 a.m. ET Sunday. Cousins was at his offseason home in Las Vegas and up early in the morning yesterday when an idea struck him, Spears writes.
Just before the sun peeked in on another sweltering Vegas day, Cousins called his long-time agent Jarin Akana with a shocking plan. How about signing the mid-level exception with an elite team? How about giving the reigning NBA champion Golden State Warriors a call, despite the fact they already had four All-Stars, to see if they were interested?
“I was f—– up,” Cousins said. “I said to Jarin, ‘Let’s make a call.’ He was shocked. It was very insulting to not receive an offer. But I understand. I prepared myself for this.”
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Cousins said: “This was my ace of spades. This was my chess move.”
— 11:10 a.m., July 3
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Report: Celtics never made offer for Cousins
The Boston Celtics are flush with young talent and have some movable contracts, two things that make them a potential player in just about any free agency scenario. However, when it came time to make a push for big man DeMarcus Cousins, it seems Boston may have simply missed out its chance to truly pursue him.
Adam Himmelsbach of The Boston Globe reports (via Twitter) that by the time the Celtics started to look into making Cousins an offer, it was too late.
According to a league source, the Celtics never made an offer for DeMarcus Cousins. They’d heard he might have interest in Boston, and by the time they started to look into it, he was a Warrior.
Additionally, Chris Mannix of Yahoo Sports reports (via Twitter) that the Celtics’ interest in Cousins should not be overstated:
Wouldn’t overstate DeMarcus Cousins interest in Boston. Cousins camp alerted Boston to a potential interest in signing there, per source, but the deal with Golden State was wrapped up before the Celtics made an offer.
The Warriors stunned the NBA world last night by reaching a reported one-year, $5.3 million deal with Cousins. Once Cousins is fully healthy and recovered from his Achilles injury, he would join a Golden State starting lineup that features All-Stars Stephen Curry, Kevin Durant, Draymond Green and Klay Thompson.
— 10:47 a.m., July 3
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