2023-24 Team Developments: Trades / Free Agents / News / Rumors / Ideas

I never thought he was very good. They are deep this year. Diop and Watanabe are better than him, imo


My predictions:

East
Bucks
Boston
Cavs
Heat
Knicks
Philly

Indiana
Atlanta
Chicago
Orlando

Nets
Toronto
Washington
Detroit
Charlotte

Top 6 is pretty locked. From Indiana to Toronto, even WAS, it's pretty tight. All teams in the limbo, either rebuilding, about to blow up or starting to breakout. Don't see much games separating 7-13.
Pretty much any team in the West would have a good shot at the play-in in the East

West

Denver
Lakers
Suns
Memphis
Kings
OKC

Clippers
Mavs
Warriors
Wolves

Rockets
Pels
Utah
Spurs
Blazers

Denver really needs to stay healthy. They have no depth at all. But with Jokic is basically unfair and they roll through the season.

I think the Kings are really underrated. They were really good last year, took a 50pt Curry magic in game 7. They bring all the same guys and team can only get better, they are all young and Fox is hitting his prime.

Mavs won't make the playoffs and wouldn't shock me if they miss the play-in too if I'm wrong about Houston and NOLA. I think those 2 have weird rosters that don't fit but I may be wrong. Wolves are a mess too.

Warriors are too old for 82 games, they will build-up for the playoffs where they can be more dangerous, but unless they move CP3, I don't see them with enough power to win it all.

Memphis got really good with Smart, he's perfect for them and can cover Ja's absence. It can actually benefit the team, bringing them together and building some chemistry within the group. Adams is back too and JJJ performs better with him.

OKC are the team to watch. I'm really curious to see. It's absolutely their year, let's see if they have it in them. They must go to the playoffs and maybe sneak a R2.

 

why would Memphis do that? <——is what I mean…

 

Well, I mentioned why. Basically cut their losses before he becomes untradeable. It may not happen, but if it does, and they didn't take their chance to get out, they would likely regret it.

 

Some of this contracts just f***ing insane

50 Most Expensive NBA Players
Salary for the 2023/24 season in million
27.6

Jerami Grant
"Portland"
One of the most discussed contracts of the summer of 2023 will only grow (2 million per year). It is unknown whether Portland would have entered into this agreement with the almost 30-year-old Grant if they knew about Lillard's imminent trade request.
28.0

Jordan Poole
"Washington"
Last year, Poole was only 9th in salary on his team. Now, with the giant extension coming into force, he is the first. But the team is different. “Golden State” wrote Poole 125 million a year ago, but they will not pay it. There are bonuses in the player's contract, but to get the extra million, Jordan needs to become MVP or, even funnier, NBA Defensive Player of the Year.
28.2

Julius Randle
"NY"
There are large bonuses in the Knicks forward's contract, but his earnings may be less than the specified amount - last year Randle received 1.2 million for the All-Star Game and for reaching the playoffs, and these bonuses are taken into account in his salary for the new season. It will be difficult to meet these conditions again in 2024 and actually earn the bonus.
28.6

DeMar DeRozan
"Chicago"
The 34-year-old forward is in the last year of his agreement, the Bulls have not achieved anything with him, so there is a high probability that DeRozan will be traded to another club in the winter.
29.3

Khris Middleton
"Milwaukee"
Chris refused the automatic contract extension of 1 year and 40 million in order to get a smaller but longer contract from the Bucks. A smart move for all parties to the deal.
29.7

Kyle Lowry
"Miami"
The offseason showed that Lowry, 37, is now primarily the massive expiring contract the Heat were trying to attach to in the Lillard trade. The Heat will return to a similar scenario with Kyle, but without Lillard.
30.6

Domantas Sabonis
"Sacramento"
In the rarest of cases, the salary in an existing contract can be changed. This is exactly the case: the Kings had cap space, but they used it not on other people's free agents, but on adding to the contract of their new star. Sabonis turned perennial losers into a playoff team and was rewarded with a huge extension - starting next year he will receive more than 40 million a year.
30.8

Chris Paul
"Golden State"
Chris could have been dropped from the rankings - his contract was only half guaranteed until the end of June, and Phoenix was already thinking about releasing the veteran. But the trade of Bradley Beal turned up, and then Paul’s short (next year – completely non-guaranteed) contract interested FGP more than a long-term cooperation with Jordan Poole, and Chris changed clubs twice in a week.
31.5

Gordon Hayward
"Charlotte"
Hayward is not perceived as someone who earned $270 million in his NBA career. But this is a fact. In terms of career earnings, Gordon is ahead of, for example, Carmelo Anthony. And in terms of a minute on the floor, the traumatic Gordon is generally one of the historical leaders

 

31.8

Jaylen Brown
"Boston"
The largest contract in NBA history will come into force only next year, but for now Brown is playing for a “modest” 32 million, of which he has yet to earn 3 million in bonuses. There will be no bonuses in 2024, and Jaylen will break into the top ten in annual earnings.
32.5

Deandre Ayton
"Portland"
Ayton received money from Indiana, status from Portland, and Phoenix seemed to be only a catalyst for DeAndre’s desires to come true. Centers continue to be paid well in the NBA because... well, that's just the way it is.
32.6

De'Aaron Fox
"Sacramento"
Three NBA players have exactly the same salaries, 32.6 million (and another $60, to be exact). This is because they were simultaneously extended to the maximum from their rookie contracts in 2020 and received the same amounts. Until last season, it seemed like Fox didn't deserve to be in this group at all...
32.6

Bam Adebayo
"Miami"
...and now many people have doubts about Bam. And this despite two NBA finals by the age of 26. The public is confused by the stagnation of Bam’s personal achievements; it seems that a player at his maximum should already qualify for a place in the NBA elite, and not get to the All-Star Game every other time.
32.6

Jayson Tatum
"Boston"
The only difference between Tatum’s contract and Fox and Adebayo’s is that the final season (2025/26) is a player option. Which Jason, naturally, will reject so that next summer, following the example of his teammate Brown, he will sign a supermax extension in NBA record numbers: 330 million over five years, from 2025 to 2030. Tatum will be the first one to appear in the “future salary for the year” column the “70 million” mark.
33.2

Donovan Mitchell
"Cleveland"
Mitchell seemed to sign like the previous three of his “classmates” in the 2017 draft. The difference: after that he managed to change the club, and upon the exchange the player was entitled to a small bonus. It was paid to Donovan in the summer of 2022, and for the coming year he will actually earn the same 32.6 as Tatum and co. But that bonus is included in his “caphit” - the amount that is taken into account in the club’s statement.
33.4

Shay Gilgeous-Alexander
"Oklahoma City"
From Ayton to Morant there is a zone of “children’s maximums”; all players here are under contracts with the same payment terms – 25% of the cap in the first year. But since they were concluded in different years, the ceilings were different, and the amounts were slightly different.
33.4

Michael Porter
"Denver"
Denver's problem isn't even that Porter (who isn't a defensive player, according to his own general manager) makes so much money. The trouble is that, at the same time, he is only the third in salary in the team, albeit a champion one...
33.8

Jamal Murray
"Denver"
But the plus for the Nuggets is that, unlike Porter, the two leaders fully justify their maximums. Another plus is that Murray does this exclusively in the playoffs. If he had played regularly, he would have fulfilled the “supermax” criteria, would have earned even more, and the Nuggets’ payroll would probably have cracked - this is not a club that is used to spending money on players and the luxury tax.
33.8

Brandon Ingram
"New Orleans"
Mr. Thin makes almost as much as Mr. Fat in New Orleans.
34.0

Zion Williamsson
"New Orleans"
Mr. Fat makes even more money in New Orleans than Mr. Thin.

And the most reliable in the team is still Valanciunas for 15 million.
34.0

Darius Garland
"Cleveland"
Garland, not Mitchell, leads the Cavs in salary, although the difference is small. The young guard is already a club record holder for salary; neither LeBron nor Kevin Love received 34 million per year with the Cavs

 

45.2

Jimmy Butler
"Miami"
Jimmy's reputation as a hard worker and a team player doesn't stop him from earning a lot, a lot, a lot. Especially for a 34-year-old player who misses 20-25 matches annually due to injuries. In terms of net earnings after taxes, Butler is now second in the league!
45.6

Kawhi Leonard
"Clippers"
Four NBA players are making the same $45,640,084 this season - and $48,787,676 next season (and they were the same last year and the year before). These are the maximum veteran contracts (35% of the cap) starting in 2021. What's funny is that these four are now paired up in two clubs.
45.6

Paul George
"Clippers"
Kawhi and George have generally identical contracts in terms of amounts, terms and conditions - both can break them next summer and become free agents. Or even now extend with the Clippers. So far, this couple signs contracts symmetrically, but takes turns getting sick.
45.6

Damian Lillard
"Milwaukee"
Lillard doesn’t face the “cut-extend” dilemma—Portland knew how much he loved supermax extensions, so they put a second supermax extension in his supermax extension.

In 2025, Lillard will already receive 57 million (already from the Bucks, where his contract was transferred with all the conditions that he fulfilled in the previous team), and in 2026, he will probably become the highest paid in NBA history with 62 million At 36 years old.
45.6

Giannis Antetokounmpo
"Milwaukee"
Milwaukee traded for Lillard not thinking about his old extension, but about a new extension for someone else: Giannis. The Greek has the right now to receive a new contract, valid from 2025, but from a financial point of view it is more profitable for him to do this next summer - or even wait until the contract expires in two seasons.
46.7

Bradley Beal
"Phoenix"
The amount is not the main thing. Even if it's important. The term - another 4 years, with an increase of 3.5 million annually - is also not the main thing. The main thing is that even after moving from Washington to Phoenix, Beal retains the right to block any trade with his participation, the only such right in the entire NBA.
47.6

Nikola Jokic
"Denver"
The NBA has not only a collective, but also a personal salary cap. Jokic, for all his wonders, simply cannot earn more - even if the club were ready to give him 100 million a year. The rules are the rules, and they have been like this since 1999.
47.6

Joel Embiid
"Philadelphia"
Embiid is inferior to Jokic in the number of MVP statuettes and the number of championship rings, but is not inferior in salary. And according to passports, he generally became the leader of the NBA.
47.6

LeBron James
Lakers
LeBron has only once been the NBA's highest-paid employee. At first, Kobe was ahead of him, LeBron himself changed clubs and lowered his salary maximum, and Steph Curry, loyal to the Warriors, took the lead. But three years ago, LeBron took first place in total career earnings and noticeably broke away from his pursuers. But with new salaries, this achievement of the King will last only until the end of the 2020s.
47.6

Kevin Durant
"Phoenix"
Durant earns a little more than the previous three - by 42 thousand. But next year he will just miss them ahead, dropping to fifth place. Such are the nuances of extensions, increases and percentages of the salary cap.
51.9

Stephen Curry
"Golden State"
The first person to break the 50 million mark in a season. He was the first to earn 40+, and has generally been leading this ranking since 2017, for the seventh year in a row - repeating Kobe’s record (2009/10-2015/16). And will continue to be a leader at least until 2026.

 

Exactly why I'm surprised and happy with the contracts we gave out this offseason. They all made sense and some could arguably be bargains.

 

Where's AD?

 

More than Luka but less than FVV
40.6

Anthony Davis
Lakers
Davis has learned to play it safe and sign a long contract at the first opportunity. This does not deprive him of money: even if now he is a little behind those who earn supermax, but in two years he will be in the top 3 in salary, because it will immediately jump 30% up.
Some just didn't copy .Long list of ridiculous money amounts

 

34.0

Ja Morant
"Memphis"
Morant will definitely receive less than the allotted 34 million - the pistol lover is disqualified by the league for 25 games, and will lose 300 thousand for each missed game. But this money is not deducted from the Memphis payroll: in fact, they still pay it, albeit not to Morant, but to a charitable foundation.

35.6
James Harden
"Philadelphia"?
The most talked about contract of this year. Harden could have become a free agent, but decided to include the option in his contract because he thought it would make it easier for him to be traded to the Clippers. It turned out that it was still not at all simple - technically, this may have simplified the task of the transition, but from the point of view of compensation and leverage remaining with Philadelphia, everything was not in favor of Beard.

If Harden starts boycotting games, he will lose 400 thousand for each.
35.8

C.J. McCollum
"New Orleans"
It turns out that the Pelicans' most valuable player is not Mr. Thin or Mr. Fat, but Mr.... Small? For the first time in his career, McCollum is playing a position that suits his size. Doesn't quite match the skill set, he's not a natural playmaker. But unlike his teammates, CJ at least plays, and is not registered in the infirmary.
36.0

Karl-Anthony Towns
"Minnesota"
Friends and classmates from Kentucky, Towns and Booker signed identical agreements for the second time in a row. Not because of friendship - it’s just the maximum. Now both are in their last year of “children’s” max, some pitiful places on the border of the top 25.

Next year? 50+ million and a place right behind Curry in the rankings!
36.0

Devin Booker
"Phoenix"
In the meantime, Towns is only second on his club’s roster, and Booker is generally third, far behind Beal and Durant. In 2024/25, three players in Phoenix will earn 50 million at once. But so far only one person has reached this level in the history of the NBA, and even then for the first time - this season.
36.0

Kristaps Porzingis
"Boston"
The C Bags' two mega-trades came at opposite poles of the offseason. Porzingis arrived before the official opening of the transfer window, the Latvian took a 36 million option in his contract with the Wizards so that he could be traded (which Harden also sought, but to no avail). And Kristaps immediately extended his contract with the new team for another two years at 30 million per season.
36.9

Drew Holiday
"Boston"
The C Bags suddenly traded Holiday just before the start of the season, and the defender became the most expensive on the team - but he is also ready to soon consider the option of a long-term extension for a lower salary. However, according to the new rules, it will be possible to extend it no earlier than February.
37.0

Kyrie Irving
"Dallas"
The largest NBA contract, part of which is bonuses. Usually such agreements do not imply any conditions, but Kyrie himself is not a very ordinary athlete. He can get another 2 million a year if he behaves well (that is, if he plays in 65 matches and if the club gets 50 wins).
37.9

Pascal Siakam
"Toronto"
The Raptors themselves have not yet realized whether they are in a rebuilding process, and therefore are in no hurry to renew Siakam. At least not for the kind of money we have now. And the Cameroonian himself does not want to make a discount next year, but he is not yet planning to escape to another team.
37.9

Ben Simmons
"Brooklyn"
Well... what can I say. This contract is valid until 2025.
39.3

Tobias Harris
"Philadelphia"
And this one is expiring. Phil's only 24/25 guaranteed team is Embiid. Depending on how the season goes, what happens with Harden, and who is on the market, Harris could either go in a trade or get a contract extension. For several years now, Tobias has been ranked first in the ranking of the most expensive players who have never been called up to the All-Star Game.
40.0

Zach LaVine
"Chicago"
We overlooked everything, but in the spring Lavin will already be 29. He doesn’t qualify for the first star, but he gets on the level of the greatest and brightest. The contract is valid for another 4 years, and it becomes clear why Chicago is gauging interest in LaVine in the league. And why is this interest not very noticeable?
40.0

Trae Young
"Atlanta"
Young jumped into the third symbolic five in 2022 on time and received an additional 35 million in his supermax for this (about +7 per year). And after that, Atlanta began to throw out a starting player every summer (Herter, Collins), who on his own gets paid normally in modern times, but in combination with Young’s 40 million, it seems like it’s already too much.
40.0

Luka Doncic
"Dallas"
Luka is a contender to one day become first in this ranking. But this will happen only by the end of the 2020s, and for now the Slovenian is not even in the top 15. It’s not allowed - there’s not enough experience yet for the highest maximum salary.
40.6

Anthony Davis
Lakers
Davis has learned to play it safe and sign a long contract at the first opportunity. This does not deprive him of money: even if now he is a little behind those who earn supermax, but in two years he will be in the top 3 in salary, because it will immediately jump 30% up.
40.8

Fred VanVleet
"Houston"
Out of context, the amount looks worse than it actually is. VanVleet signed a max deal with the Rockets, but it's essentially only two years, and those are the first two years of Houston's new project. It's not so important how the free money is distributed among Houston's players right now, what's important is that the team has veterans with Fred's reputation and work ethic.
41.0

Rudy Gobert
"Minnesota"
The highest paid participant of the last World Championship, by the way. Only they don’t pay him for playing for the French national team, and after the World Cup he would hardly have received even half of his current salary. The contract is valid for another three years.
43.2

Klay Thompson
"Golden State"
This is the last year of Thompson's contract, out of 5 seasons he missed 2.5. The new agreement could knock Clay out of the top 50; he himself is not mentally prepared for this, and therefore cannot agree with the Warriors on a possible contract extension. Will he really leave the club in 2024 ?

 

And here go again

Patrick Williams expects to get a new $200 million contract from Chicago (Zach Lowe)


Chicago power forward Patrick Williams wants a significant contract extension from the organization .

According to ESPN insider Zach Lowe, Williams wants to sign a contract worth more than $200 million.

“I heard that Patrick Williams wants big, huge numbers in his next contract... I'll say it starts with a two, but I'm not talking about 20 million,” Lowe shared on his podcast.

In the 2022-23 season, Williams averaged 10.2 points and 4 rebounds on 46.4% shooting from the field and 41.5% from behind the arc. As the fourth overall pick in the 2020 draft, he will earn $9.8 million next year.

LaMelo Ball (3rd overall pick in 2020), Tyrese Haliburton (12th overall pick in 2020) and Anthony Edwards (1st overall pick in 2020) signed five-year, $260 million deals this summer.

 

Need any more proof even past Lakers as well as current and the whole organization "Lurk" on Lakersball? Stung by my snarky remark above and having taken my suggestion ... after only 11 days with Shaq, check out Big Shot Rob now.

 

Couldn't trust Ham with him.

 

Oh nooooo

The Chicago Bulls are waiving guard Carlik Jones, sources tell

Jones led South Sudan at the 2023 World Cup. In five games, his numbers were 20.4 points and 10.4 assists on 48% from the field and 42% from beyond the arc.

In the 2022-23 season for the Bulls, he played in only seven games, averaging eight minutes on the floor.

 

That one minute stretch at around the 6 min mark. sheesh

 

Kid is an even better version of KD. If he can stay healthy, he’s going to have one heck of a career.

 

Some sick plays, unreal even. Did i mention, how much i hate Pop and the f***ing Spurs... will make it tough for me to follow the kid.