The NBA’s free-agency moratorium ended on Monday afternoon, allowing teams to officially complete any signings and trades. And there was a lot to make official after the last two weeks of activity.
That included the Giannis Antetokounmpo trade to the Miami Heat, the Charlotte Hornets’ trade of LaMelo Ball to the Minnesota Timberwolves, and the Grizzlies’ move of Ja Morant to the Portland Trail Blazers. And Jaylen Brown is headed to the 76ers in exchange for Paul George.
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The Clippers also agreed on a trade to send Kawhi Leonard back to Toronto, the team he led to the 2019 NBA championship. However, the trade is on hold for the time being and won’t be completed until the league finishes its investigation following allegations of paying Leonard impermissible benefits.
It’s also extension time in the NBA, and the Spurs locked down star Victor Wembanyama to a reported five-year, $252 million rookie max extension on Friday. The Cavs made a splash with Donovan Mitchell on Tuesday morning, inking him to a four-year, $273 million maximum contract extension. Nikola Jokić, meanwhile, will seemingly wait another year to sign an even bigger deal with the Denver Nuggets.
Elsewhere, LeBron James is on the hunt for a new team. His agent, Rich Paul, candidly discussed some of the potential fits on the “Game Over” podcast with Max Kellerman this week, citing the New York Knicks, Philadelphia 76ers and Boston Celtics, among others.
Check out Yahoo Sports’ free agency big board and position rankings: Shooting guards | Small forwards | Power forward | Centers
Teddy Ricketson
Veteran free agent guard Victor Oladipo announced on social media on Saturday that he will be holding a pro day in Las Vegas, Nevada on Tuesday, July 14.
Oladipo is hoping to make his way back into the NBA.
He last played for the Miami Heat in the 2022-2023 season, but suited up for only 42 games and suffered a season-ending knee injury.
Oladipo joined the NBA in 2013 when the Orlando Magic drafted him second overall. Over a 10-year career, so far, he has played for the Magic, Oklahoma City Thunder, Indiana Pacers, Houston Rockets and Heat.
The veteran guard has played in 504 career games and has averaged 16.9 points, 4.5 rebounds and 3.9 assists per game. Oladipo is a two-time NBA All-Star, was the NBA’s Most Improved Player in 2018 and was named to the NBA’s All-Defensive First Team in 2018.
Read more from Yahoo Sports.
Ian Casselberry
Victor Wembanyama has signed a contract extension with the San Antonio Spurs, the team announced on Friday. The deal is a rookie max extension for five years and $252 million, ESPN’s Shams Charania reports.
The fifth year of the extension will be a player option.
Earlier on Friday, Wembanyama hinted at agreeing to an extension, posting a message that said “I’m here to stay” on social media. Reports subsequently circulated regarding the star center possibly taking less money in a new contract to give the Spurs more financial flexibility.
Wembanyama indeed opted to take the 25% rookie maximum instead of a 30% supermax after next season. Escalators in that deal could have driven the value of the contract up to $303 million, according to Charania.
Read more from Yahoo Sports.
Chris Cwik
The biggest issue facing the San Antonio Spurs this offseason appears to be solved. Star center Victor Wembanyama sent out an encouraging message to fans Friday suggesting he’s going to sign a new extension with the team.
That message, which Wembanyama sent out on X, was short, but included the phrase, “I’m here to stay.”
Wembanyama, 22, entered the offseason in line for a massive contract. A max deal would reportedly net Wembanyama an astounding five-year, $251 million extension.
But Wembanyama might not be interested in taking the most money possible. There are reports that Wembanyama might be willing to take less in order to give the Spurs more financial flexibility in the future.
Read the full story here.
Ian Casselberry
At the NBA Summer League in Las Vegas, Boston Celtics coach Joe Mazzulla talked to reporters for the first time since Jaylen Brown was traded to the Philadelphia 76ers in exchange for Paul George, two first-round picks and two second-rounders.
Mazzulla said the Celtics “have a different identity now” without Brown, who had been in Boston for 10 years and preceded the coach’s time with the organization. He also emphasized that he trusts president of basketball operations Brad Stevens and understands why Brown was traded.
“There’s great alignment within the organization and there’s conversations that are always going to be had,” Mazzulla said, via The Athletic.
“But I think in moments like this, this is where you just trust, you listen, you trust and you have an understanding for what they do,” he added. “I think Brad has been the absolute best at what he does and there’s just a level of trust that goes into that.”
Ian Casselberry
While appearing at the American Century Championship celebrity golf tournament, Golden State Warriors star Stephen Curry was asked repeatedly about the possibility of playing with LeBron James.
Speaking to reporters, Curry acknowledged the “allure” of teaming up with James and the impact it would have on the NBA. Though he didn’t get into specifics of conversations he’s had with his He then explained what his pitch would be to his 2024 Olympics teammate.
“The pitch is: Do you want to play good basketball and be around people that know how to play the game?” Curry said.
“Hopefully raise our floor and our competitiveness this year,” he added. “There’s good golf in the Bay. We’re an organization that’s been there. He knows that.”
Mentioning golf was a not-so-sly reference to James’ agent, Rich Paul, saying “indoor and outdoor golf” were important to his friend and client.
Read more from Yahoo Sports.
Ian Casselberry
While LeBron James looks at his free-agent options, teams pursuing the four-time NBA MVP are making their recruiting pitches via voice memos, according to ESPN’s Shams Charania.
The notes are being sent to James’ agent, Rich Paul, and then being relayed to the four-time NBA champion. Who is speaking on those voice notes could be an indication as to how important James is viewed by the teams making their pitches.
A few other teams, sources told Charania, have had their owner, or president, or general manager record a voice memo.
The Philadelphia 76ers may be perceived as gaining an advantage in the competition for James’ services with Bob Myers — president of Harris Blitzer Sports & Entertainment, the entity that owns the Sixers — appearing on Paul’s “Game Over” podcast that he co-hosts with Max Kellerman.
Whether or not the Cleveland Cavaliers and Miami Heat, two other reported teams in the LeBron sweepstakes, have left memos for Paul to give to James isn’t known, according to ESPN’s Dave McMenamin.
Chris Cwik
When the Toronto Raptors acquired star forward Kawhi Leonard from the Los Angeles Clippers in late June, questions immediately arose about regarding Leonard’s status. The forward and the Clippers were still under investigation by the NBA after reports emerged accusing the Clippers of paying Leonard impermissible benefits to sign with the team ahead of the 2019-20 NBA season.
That investigation is still underway and the Leonard trade cannot be completed until the NBA closes the case, both teams confirmed Thursday.
The Clippers issued a statement to ESPN confirming the situation, saying the team has cooperated with the NBA for the last 10 months as it looked into the allegations.
In the statement, the Clippers once again claimed their innocence, saying the team “did not funnel money to Kawhi Leonard.” It added, “We have not done what we are accused of doing.”
Chris Cwik
The New York Knicks are bringing back a member of their championship roster. Jordan Clarkson has reportedly re-signed with the team, per his agent Rich Paul.
The financial details of Clarkson’s deal are not known at this time.
The 34-year-old played in a reserve role with the team last season, averaging 8.6 points over 72 games.
Ryan Young
Mo Bamba is headed back to the Utah Jazz on a two-year deal, according to ESPN’s Shams Charania. He was dealt there ahead of the deadline last season from the Raptors, but only played two games with the team.
Jason Owens
The Denver Nuggets are waiving center Jonas Valanciunas, according to Hoops Hype’s Michael Scotto and ESPN’s Shams Charania.
The Nuggets made the decision before a $10 million guarantee kicked in on his contract.
Valanciunas joined the Nuggets last offseason via a trade from the Sacramento Kings. The Nuggets hoped that Valanciunas would serve as the answer as a reliable backup to three-time NBA MVP Nikola Jokić. But Valanciunas fell out of the regular rotation down the stretch run and during Denver’s first-round playoff loss to the Minnesota Timberwolves.
Chris Cwik
Veteran big man Larry Nance Jr. has reportedly signed a one-year, $4 million deal with the Indiana Pacers.
Nance, 33, spent last season in a part-time role with the Cleveland Cavaliers. In 35 games, he averaged 3.7 points and 2.7 rebounds.
The Pacers will mark Nance’s sixth team in 12 seasons in the NBA. He’s mostly been used as a reserve in recent seasons, and hasn’t started double-digit games since the 2021-22 season.
Ryan Young
The Golden State Warriors are letting Quinten Post walk. The Warriors declined to match Post’s three-year, $30 million offer sheet with the Grizzlies on Tuesday night, according to ESPN’s Shams Charania.
So, Post will head to Memphis on that deal instead.
Ryan Young
As part of the giant six-team deal that Shams Charania reported earlier tonight, the Wizards are sending D’Angelo Russell to Memphis along with a future second-round pick and a second-round pick swap.
Teddy Ricketson
Free agent forward Khris Middleton has agreed to a three-year, $17.6 million deal with the Washington Wizards, per ESPN’s Shams Charania. The move was completed as a sign-and-trade.
Middleton returns to the Wizards where he spent part of the last three seasons. He was traded to Washington from the Milwaukee Bucks as part of a four-team trade in February 2025.
The forward then spent the rest of that season in Washington and the start of the 2025-2026 season. He was limited due to health concerns from injuries in both legs.
In February 2026, Middleton was traded to the Dallas Mavericks as part of a three-team deal. He played only 29 games for the Mavericks and averaged 10.0 points, 3.3 rebounds, and 2.2 assists in 21.1 minutes per game.
All told, the deal is a six-team trade that includes the Mavericks, Wizards, Los Angeles Clippers, Detroit Pistons, Bucks and Memphis Grizzlies. It includes previous deals completed over the last few days.
Teddy Ricketson
The Detroit Pistons are trading Caris LeVert and two second-round picks to the Milwaukee Bucks for Taurean Prince and Gary Harris, per ESPN’s Shams Charania.
The Pistons will free up some cap space and create a trade exception, while Milwaukee adds LeVert and draft assets.
LeVert, 31, signed a two-year deal with Detroit ahead of the 2025-2026 season. He played in 60 games last season for the Pistons, averaging 7.4 points, 2.0 rebounds and 2.7 assists in 19 minutes per game off the bench.
The veteran forward Prince played in only 26 games for the Bucks last season. He missed the majority of the season due to a herniated disk in his neck and the subsequent surgery to fix it.
Harris has been in the league since 2014. He spent most of his career between the Denver Nuggets and the Orlando Magic before landing with the Bucks ahead of last season. He played 48 games for Milwaukee in 2025-2026, coming off the bench in all but two appearances.
Teddy Ricketson
The Los Angeles Lakers and forward Kevon Looney have agreed to a one-year, $3.9 million deal, per ESPN’s Shams Charania.
Looney has been in the league since 2015 when he was drafted 30th overall by the Golden State Warriors. The forward spent the first 10 years of his career with the franchise.
He left in free agency last season, joining the New Orleans Pelicans. Looney played in only 21 games in New Orleans. He averaged 2.8 points, 5.6 rebounds and 14.6 minutes per game.
Chris Cwik
Donovan Mitchell kept the Cleveland Cavaliers afloat when injuries decimated the team’s roster last season. The team rewarded his efforts Tuesday, reportedly signing Mitchell to a four-year, $273 million maximum contract extension, per ESPN.
Mitchell, 29, averaged 27.9 points with the team last season, earning down-ballot MVP votes.
Mitchell’s new deal contains a player option for the 2030-31 NBA season, per Charania.
Mitchell wasn’t just rewarded for his performance last season. Since being traded to the Cavaliers, he’s been a standout player over multiple seasons. In his four years with the team, Mitchell averaged 26.7 points, 5.3 assists and 4.6 rebounds per game. He’s made the All-Star team each of those seasons and has three top-7 finishes in the MVP voting over that period.
While the Cavaliers have made the playoffs in all four seasons with Mitchell, the team has yet to win a championship. After early playoff exits in his first three seasons with the team, Mitchell helped lead the Cavaliers on a run to the Eastern Conference finals last season. They were swept by the New York Knicks in the series, however.
Read more here.
Ian Casselberry
Following Serbia’s 94-81 win over Bosnia-Herzegovina in the FIBA World Cup qualifiers, Nikola Jokić told reporters that his preference is to hold off on signing a contract extension with the Denver Nuggets until after the 2026-27 season.
“My idea is to sign next summer and stay with Denver for the rest of my career,” Jokić said, translated by DNVR Sports.
Jokić, 31, is under contract for one more season at $59 million and has a $62.8 million player option for 2027-28.
Last season, the Nuggets center finished second in NBA MVP voting behind the Oklahoma City Thunder’s Shai Gilgeous-Alexander after averaging 27.7 points, 12.9 rebounds and 10.7 assists. He became the first player to ever lead the league in rebounds and assists during a single season.
Read more from Yahoo Sports.
Teddy Ricketson
The Sacramento Kings have waived DeMar DeRozan, per ESPN’s Shams Charania. This comes after the franchise couldn’t find a trade partner.
DeRozan has been in the league since 2009, when he was selected ninth overall by the Toronto Raptors. The 36-year-old had been with the Kings for two years. In total, he played 154 games with the franchise and averaged 20.3 points, 3.4 rebounds and 4.3 assists per game.
Prior to his release, DeRozan had one year remaining on his deal. Charnia’s report included that his salary had a partial guarantee for next season, but that the two sides worked together on his release.
The veteran is expected to have several teams interested, per Charania.
Read more from Yahoo Sports.
Teddy Ricketson
Phoenix Suns CEO Josh Bartelstein is finalizing an extension with the franchise, per ESPN’s Shams Charania.
Bartlestein is also the CEO of the Phoenix Mercury. Team owner Mat Ishbia confirmed the extension to ESPN.
“From day one, I knew Josh was the right person to help build the culture and organization that I envisioned in Phoenix – on and off the court. He is my trusted partner in every aspect of our basketball (Suns and Mercury) operations and business side as well.
His knowledge of basketball, care for our players and the strong relationships he has across the NBA and WNBA have been invaluable in building our success and will continue to shape our future. His leadership has elevated our entire organization.
He is one of the best CEO’s in all of sports, and happens to be one of the youngest too, and I’m excited to keep working next to Josh as we continue to build on our success.”
