More to come…

George became the third player to sign a rookie scale extension this offseason, joining Victor Wembanyama (Spurs) and Amen Thompson (Rockets).

“You look at the rest of the class, the No. 2 pick, (Hornets forward) Brandon Miller, and then the No. 5 pick, (Pistons forward) Ausar Thompson,” Charania said. “They’re both in active conversations with their teams. I’m told there is optimism with an Ausar Thompson extension in Detroit.

“And then I would also keep an eye on (Thunder guard) Cason Wallace, (Warriors guard) Brandin Podziemski, (Bucks forward) Jaime Jaquez. … But I would look at both Brandon Miller and Ausar Thompson to have more and more conversations with their respective teams — the Hornets and the Pistons — in the upcoming days and weeks.”

After Charania first brought up Miller and Thompson being in contract talks, ESPN’s video production crew put up a screen showing both of those promising young wings as well as several other notable players who have yet to sign an extension this offseason, including Scoot Henderson (Trail Blazers), Anthony Black (Magic), Wallace, Dereck Lively II (Mavericks), Jaquez and Podziemski.

For what it’s worth, Charania didn’t share any intel about Henderson, Black or Lively. It seemed as if Charania might have been a little surprised to see them listed, but I wouldn’t read much into that one way or another.

Hornets head of basketball operations Jeff Peterson said in July that he had talked with Miller and his representation about a potential extension, but declined to go into more detail beyond saying the team hoped to sign the former Alabama star to a long-term deal. Miller is recovering from offseason shoulder surgery.

Pistons president of basketball operations Trajan Langdon spoke glowingly of Thompson in May, and a report at the start of September indicated that the two sides have been discussing a new deal. Still, this is the first time we’ve seen someone say there’s optimism about an extension being reached.

Larsson will earn $2.3MM this season after Miami exercised its team option on his contract in June. He would have been on track for restricted free agency in 2027, but instead will sign a four-year extension that features a mutual option — both a player and a team option — for the 2030/31 season, per Charania.

Larsson signed a three-year, minimum-salary contract after he was selected 44th overall in the 2024 draft. Miami acquired his rights in a draft-day trade with Houston.

According to Ira Winderman of The South Florida Sun Sentinel (Twitter link), the former Arizona Wildcat’s extension features an ascending structure and will start at around $13.5MM in 2027/28.

Larsson’s new deal will come in lower than the projected non-taxpayer mid-level exception for ’27/28, notes Keith Smith of Spotrac (via Twitter), and is comparable to the four-year, $62.4MM rookie scale extension Nikola Jovic received from the Heat last year, tweets Barry Jackson of The Miami Herald.

Larsson’s extension is also similar in length and structure to the contracts Nickeil Alexander-Walker ($60.6MM over four years) and Quentin Grimes ($60MM over four years) signed as unrestricted free agents the past two summers. Alexander-Walker received his deal from Atlanta via sign-and-trade, while Grimes was signed by the Lakers using cap room.

After receiving some rotation minutes as a rookie in 2024/25, averaging 4.6 points, 1.7 rebounds and 1.2 assists in 55 regular season outings (14.2 minutes per game), Larsson emerged as a critical player for the Heat in his second season. In 70 appearances in ’25/26, including 54 starts, he averaged 11.4 PPG, 3.5 RPG and 3.4 APG on .496/.323/.797 shooting in 26.4 MPG.

Larsson received consistent praise from head coach Erik Spoelstra throughout last season for his willingness to do the dirty work and make unselfish, winning plays. Charania (Twitter links) refers to the 25-year-old guard/forward as a “foundational piece” who is expected to play a “major rotation role” for the team in 2026/27.

Larsson is the top player on the Swedish national team and had some big performances for his home country during a handful of World Cup qualifying games this summer.

Free agent signings

• Ayo Dosunmu: Five years, $112,000,000. Fifth-year player option. Re-signed using Bird rights.
• Jonathan Kuminga: Two years, $12,431,200. Second-year player option. Signed using taxpayer mid-level exception.
• Jaylen Clark: Three years, $10,000,000. Fully guaranteed. Re-signed using Bird rights.
• Bones Hyland: One year, minimum salary. Fully guaranteed. Re-signed using minimum salary exception. Waived right to veto trade.
• Trey Lyles: One year, minimum salary. Partially guaranteed ($1.5MM). Signed using minimum salary exception.
• Jules Bernard: One year, minimum salary. Non-guaranteed (Exhibit 9/10). Signed using minimum salary exception.

Trades

• Acquired LaMelo Ball and Josh Green from the Hornets and the draft rights to Isaiah Evans (No. 33 pick) from the Nets in a four-team trade in exchange for Julius Randle (to Nets), Naz Reid (to Hornets), the draft rights to Joshua Jefferson (No. 28 pick; to Nets), the draft rights to Matteo Spagnolo (to Hornets), the Timberwolves’ 2033 first-round pick (to Hornets), the Timberwolves’ 2029 second-round pick (to Hornets), the Timberwolves’ 2032 second-round pick (to Hornets), the Timberwolves’ 2033 second-round pick (to Hornets), and first-round pick swaps in 2028, 2029, and 2030 (to Hornets).
• Acquired Cody Williams and John Konchar from the Jazz in exchange for Josh Green and cash ($4MM).

Draft picks

• 2-33: Isaiah Evans
  • Signed to four-year, $9,264,648 contract using second-round pick exception. First three years guaranteed. Fourth-year team option.
• 2-59: Trey Kaufman-Renn
  • Unsigned.

Two-way signings

• Enrique Freeman
  • One year, $91,000 partial guarantee (will increase to $339,441 at start of regular season).

Note: The Timberwolves carried over Rocco Zikarsky and Zyon Pullin on two-way contracts from 2025/26.

Departed/unsigned free agents

• Kyle Anderson (Raptors)
• Mike Conley (Celtics)
• Joe Ingles (Melbourne United – Australia)
• Julian Phillips (Rockets)

Other roster moves

• Waived John Konchar ($6,165,000 salary stretched across three seasons).

Salary cap situation

Note: Figures are rounded to one decimal place.

• Operating over the first apron ($209MM) and below the second tax apron ($221.7MM).
• Hard-capped at second apron.
• Team salary: $215.4MM (tax); $217.2MM (apron).
• Above luxury tax line by $15MM; above first apron by $8.1MM; below second apron by $4.5MM.
• Two traded player exceptions frozen/unavailable (largest worth $10.8MM).
• One traded player exception available (worth $2.5MM).

The offseason so far

Since being hired as the Timberwolves’ president of basketball operations four years ago, Tim Connelly has provided periodic reminders that he’s not content to play it safe and focus on job preservation. Connelly controversially surrendered a massive package of players and draft assets for Rudy Gobert during his first year on the job in 2022, then traded Karl-Anthony Towns to New York in 2024.

Nearly two years after completing that Towns blockbuster, Connelly was due to take another big swing on the trade market, and he delivered in a major way this offseason by making a deal for Hornets point guard LaMelo Ball.

While Minnesota only sent a single first-round pick to Charlotte in the trade, the overall price for Ball certainly wasn’t light. The Timberwolves’ outgoing package included three second-round picks, three first-round pick swaps, and fan favorite Naz Reid, who had been a perennial Sixth Man of the Year candidate in recent years and won the award in 2024.

It was a significant price to pay for a player whose value ahead of the 2025/26 season appeared to be at a low. During the three-year stretch from 2022-25, Ball had been limited to just 105 total games due to a series of injuries, including recurring ankle issues, and he wasn’t exactly leading the Hornets to wins even when he was healthy — the team won 27, 21, and 19 games during those three seasons.

But Ball appeared in 72 regular season games in 2025/26 and proved what he’s capable of when he can stay on the court. His scoring average dipped to 20.1 points per game and he shot just 40.7% from the field, which was nearly a career low, but he cut down on his turnovers and played winning basketball, making everyone around him better.

The Hornets had a remarkable +9.1 net rating and a 123.2 offensive rating during Ball’s time on the floor. Those marks would’ve ranked second and first in the NBA, respectively, over the course of a full season, and represented a massive improvement over the +1.5 net rating and 110.6 offensive rating that Charlotte posted when the star point guard wasn’t playing.

The Timberwolves are hoping that Ball can do for players like Jaden McDaniels, Gobert, and Joan Beringer what he did for the likes of Kon Knueppel, Brandon Miller, and Moussa Diabate in Charlotte, attracting defensive attention and setting his teammates up for open shots and easier finishes around the net. Ball’s presence will also ease some of the pressure on Anthony Edwards, who was overextended offensively in 2025/26 on a team without a true point guard and saw his defensive intensity slip a little as a result.

Acquiring Ball and re-signing mid-season trade acquisition Ayo Dosunmu to a five-year, $112MM contract ensured that Minnesota will have one of the NBA’s very best backcourts, with those two and Edwards all expected to play major roles. But the Wolves will have some production to make up in the frontcourt, where Reid and Julius Randle – who was traded to Brooklyn in a cost-cutting deal – are no longer in the mix.

Minnesota reached an agreement early in free agency to bring back Trey Lyles from Europe on a partially guaranteed minimum-salary contract. But Lyles, an NBA journeyman, is better suited to a backup role, so the front office spent much of the summer trying to figure out how to acquire a starting-caliber power forward with limited roster-building tools at its disposal. Those efforts ultimately paid off when the Wolves convinced Jonathan Kuminga, who had been seeking a more lucrative deal, to accept a two-year, $12.4MM offer that includes a second-year player option.

The Wolves had to send out a possible rotation wing (Josh Green) in a cost-cutting trade in order to free up the taxpayer mid-level exception to sign Kuminga, but the team believed that was a worthwhile trade-off to land a former No. 7 overall pick who is entering his age-24 season and has shown promise on both ends of the floor through five NBA seasons.

Even if Kuminga plays well, there are questions about the Timberwolves’ depth with Reid and Randle gone and Donte DiVincenzo likely to spend most of the season recovering from the Achilles tear he sustained in the first round of the 2026 playoffs. Minnesota will be counting on internal improvement from young players like Beringer, Terrence Shannon Jr., and Jaylen Clark – who signed a new three-year, $10MM deal this offseason – as the team looks to secure a top-five seed in the West.

Up next

Prior to their series of roster moves that included trading Green, signing Kuminga, and waiving John Konchar, the Timberwolves appeared likely to be capped at 14 players on standard contracts entering the regular season. However, with $4.5MM in breathing room below the second tax apron, Minnesota can now afford to bring in a 15th man on a minimum-salary contract ($2.45MM) and still have a little flexibility below that hard cap.

Whether or not the Wolves carry a full 15-man squad into opening night remains to be seen. With DiVincenzo on the shelf and no sense yet of what the club can expect from youngsters like Isaiah Evans and Cody Williams this fall, it wouldn’t be the worst idea to add a 15th man on a non-guaranteed deal for depth purposes, but the pickings are pretty slim at this point. Veteran free agent forwards like Kevin Love, Nicolas Batum, or Jeff Green are fits in theory, but they may not have much left in the tank at this point in their respective careers.

Minnesota still has an unsigned second-rounder from the 2026 draft, but it sounds like No. 59 pick Trey Kaufman-Renn is focused on returning to school for one more year rather than beginning his NBA career. That’d probably be fine with the Wolves, who currently don’t have a two-way slot available and would be able to keep a close eye on Kaufman-Renn as a domestic draft-and-stash prospect.

Several notable Wolves players are currently extension-eligible, including Edwards, Ball, and DiVincenzo. McDaniels (October 1) and Gobert (Oct. 24) will soon join that group too.

Still, there should be no urgency to make a deal with Edwards, Ball, or McDaniels, each of whom has three years left on his current contract. Edwards can also qualify for a super-max extension if he makes an All-NBA team in 2026/27, so it’s safe to assume he’ll wait until next summer to discuss a new deal.

It would also be pretty shocking if the Wolves extend DiVincenzo while he’s still deep in the process of rehabbing his Achilles tear.

That leaves Gobert as the probable next man up for an extension. The French center could become a free agent as early as 2027, since he holds a $38MM player option for ’27/28, but he won’t become eligible to negotiate a new deal until after opening night. We’ll see whether he and the Wolves want to try to get something done during the season or whether they hold off until the spring to get serious about an extension.

Gobert turned 34 in June, so the Wolves will likely be wary about how many years they’re willing to guarantee, but the big man is still a crucial part of the team’s game plan as its rim-protecting anchor and a perennial Defensive Player of the Year vote-getter.

Baker, who went undrafted in 2024 out of LSU, has spent the past two seasons in the G League, suiting up for the Iowa Wolves in 2024/25 and the Osceola Magic in ’25/26.

A 6’11” center, Baker averaged 9.5 points, 6.2 rebounds, and 1.0 assist in 18.6 minutes per game in 43 appearances for Orlando’s NBAGL affiliate last season. He was subsequently part of Orlando’s Summer League roster in Las Vegas in July, averaging 8.0 PPG and 2.3 RPG in three outings (11.4 MPG).

However, it looks like the plan for Baker this fall is to join the Hawks’ G League affiliate, the College Park Skyhawks. They acquired his returning rights from Osceola in a four-team trade last month.

Baker had been an Exhibit 10 contract with Atlanta and will receive a bonus worth $91K if he spends at least 60 days with the Hawks’ affiliate this fall.

1:06 pm: Free agent forward Cam Whitmore has reached a contract agreement with the Nuggets and will sign a two-way deal with the team, reports Shams Charania of ESPN (Twitter link).

According to Charania, Whitmore has already been in Denver working out with Nuggets players. Marc Stein reported earlier this week that the former Villanova standout was drawing interest from the Nuggets.

The 20th overall pick in the 2023 NBA draft, Whitmore was traded last month from the Wizards to the Cavaliers, who waived him in a cost-cutting move in order to finalize their roster moves ahead of the preseason.

Whitmore, 22, averaged 10.8 points and 3.4 rebounds in 17.4 minutes per game over the course of 98 appearances (five starts) for the Rockets during his first two NBA seasons, posting a shooting line of .449/.357/.707. Houston traded him to Washington during the 2025 offseason and he saw action in 21 contests for the Wizards last season, averaging 9.2 PPG and 2.8 RPG on .456/.286/.742 shooting.

Whitmore’s third year in the NBA was cut short after he was diagnosed with a blood clot in his right shoulder. The Wizards announced in mid-January that he would be sidelined for the rest of the season, and he expressed confidence in the spring that he’d be ready to return to action and bounce back in 2026/27.

As our tracker shows, Denver is currently carrying guard KJ Simpson and forward Bryce Hopkins on two-way deals, so Whitmore will fill the team’s third and final two-way slot entering the ’26/27 season.

As long as he’s on that two-way deal, Whitmore will be eligible to be active for a maximum of 50 regular season games and will earn a salary of $678,882, half the rookie minimum. He’s also assured of receiving his fully guaranteed $5.46MM salary from Cleveland from his previous contract. In order to make him playoff-eligible or to free him up for more than 50 regular season appearances, the Nuggets would have to promote Whitmore to their standard 15-man roster.

Since this will be Whitmore’s final year of two-way eligibility, his contract will cover just one year. He’ll become an unrestricted free agent in July 2027 if he finishes the season on that two-way deal.

“Keyonte’s leadership, growth, and commitment to what we’re building make him an integral part of this franchise’s future,” president of basketball operations Austin Ainge said in a statement. “His work ethic, ability to connect with teammates in the locker room and on the floor, and his love for this team and our fans have been incredible to watch. We’re thrilled he’s choosing to remain in Utah as a foundational piece as we continue chasing our ultimate goal: a championship.”

10:04 am: The Jazz and guard Keyonte George have reached an agreement on a rookie scale extension that will be worth $157.5MM over five years, sources tell Shams Charania and Tim MacMahon of ESPN (Twitter link).

The deal will go into effect in 2027/28 after George earns $6.56MM in the final year of his rookie scale contract in ’26/27. It will run through the ’31/32 season and won’t include either a player or team option, per Charania (Twitter link).

According to Jake Fischer of The Stein Line (Twitter link), the contract will feature $500K in annual incentives. Fischer suggests those $2.5MM in overall bonuses are included in the $157.5MM total, which would mean the base value of the deal is $155MM.

George, who will turn 23 in November, was the 16th overall pick in the 2023 draft. The 6’4″ combo guard immediately emerged as a rotation player for the rebuilding Jazz as a rookie and has steadily increased his production in each of his three NBA seasons.

In 2025/26, George averaged 23.6 points, 6.1 assists, and 3.7 rebounds, and 1.1 steals in 33.1 minutes per game over the course of 54 outings (all starts) before missing the final month of the season due to a hamstring strain. His shooting line was .456/.371/.892.

As productive as George has become on offense, it was unclear how aggressively the Jazz would attempt to lock him up to a rookie scale extension due to his limitations on the other end of the floor. The former Baylor standout has graded out as one of the NBA’s worst defenders based on advanced stats over the past three years, with Utah ranking either 29th or 30th in defensive rating in each of those seasons.

However, the Jazz’s long-term commitment to George signals their belief in his ability to continue improving defensively, as well as their faith that he’ll fit well alongside this year’s No. 2 overall pick, Darryn Peterson. While neither George nor Peterson is a traditional point guard, Utah is said to have confidence in the duo’s ability to share ball-handling and play-making responsibilities in the backcourt.

George is the third first-rounder in the 2023 draft class to sign a rookie scale extension this offseason, joining Spurs big man Victor Wembanyama and Rockets guard Amen Thompson. Wembanyama completed a five-year, maximum-salary contract that projects to be worth $255MM, while Thompson agreed to a five-year, $208MM deal that features a 10% trade kicker.

[RELATED: Players Eligible For Rookie Scale Extensions In 2026]

At $155MM over five years, George will earn an average of $31MM annually on his second NBA contract, well below the projected max of $51MM per year. He could increase that average annual salary to $31.5MM by earning his bonuses.

The Jazz now have all of their franchise cornerstones under contract for at least the next three seasons. Lauri Markkanen’s and Ace Bailey’s deals expire in 2029, while Peterson’s rookie scale deal runs through 2030. Big man Jaren Jackson Jr. has three more guaranteed years left on his contract, with a player option for the 2029/30 season.

“I feel like it just gives me a lot more leeway and a lot more rope to be more aggressive defensively,” Watson said. “I think playing the passing lanes more aggressively and really push up on guys more knowing that I have that back line behind me and I have elite rim protection in JA and Evan. I think it makes our team a threat defensively because we can play very aggressive and very physical while at the same time not giving up too many shots at the rim.”

Watson had a breakout season for Denver in 2025/26, setting new career highs in points (14.6), rebounds (4.9), and assists (2.1) per game while improving his shooting line to .491/.411/.730. That performance convinced the Cavs that he’ll be an asset in the short term, and president of basketball operations Koby Altman believes the 24-year-old has plenty of room to continue expanding his game and getting better.

“We’re really excited about what he’s going to bring to the table right away, but I think even more than that, his best basketball is ahead of him,” Altman said, per Reedy. “He’s going to help us win some games, but I’m also really excited about his trajectory with us.”

Here’s more from around the Eastern Conference:

• The Raptors officially announced a series of changes to their coaching staff on Thursday, confirming in a press release that the team has hired Stephen Silas as an assistant, as reported in July. Notably, Jeremy Castleberry, who has worked closely with Kawhi Leonard in San Antonio, Toronto, and Los Angeles after playing alongside the star forward at San Diego State, has rejoined the Raptors’ staff.
• The Magic are hiring Ronnie Burrell as the head coach of their G League affiliate, the Osceola Magic, reports Michael Scotto of HoopsHype (Twitter link). A Trail Blazers assistant for the past two seasons, Burrell previously spent several years with the Nets and earned G League Coach of the Year honors in 2022/23 for leading Brooklyn’s affiliate – the Long Island Nets – to a 23-9 regular season record.
• ESPN’s Zach Kram refers to Landry Shamet’s four-year, $24MM deal and Jose Alvarado’s three-year, $14.4MM contract as two of the best value signings of the summer, but he gives the Knicks an overall offseason grade of B-minus due to the team’s backup center downgrade, which stemmed from second-apron concerns.

September 17: Forward Saddiq Bey has agreed to a three-year, $55.5MM contract extension with the Pelicans, agents James Dunleavy and Jordan Gertler tell Shams Charania of ESPN (Twitter links).

According to Charania, Bey’s extension is fully guaranteed and features an unspecified trade kicker.

New Orleans’ front office is very high on Bey both on and off the court, per Will Guillory of The Athletic, who confirms the news (via Twitter).

Bey had a major bounce-back season in 2025/26 after missing the entire ’24/25 campaign while recovering from a torn anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee, an injury he suffered in March 2024 as a member of the Hawks. In 72 appearances last season, including 64 starts, the 27-year-old averaged 17.7 points, 5.6 rebounds, 2.5 assists and 0.9 steals in 31.2 minutes per game. He posted a shooting slash line of .451/.367/.841.

Bey will earn a team-friendly $6.56MM in 2026/27 before his extension kicks in during the ’27/28 league year. His new deal runs through ’29/30.

The 6’8″ combo forward was one the first draft additions (Bey was the 19th overall pick) Troy Weaver made after becoming Detroit’s GM in 2020. Bey was traded to Atlanta in February 2023 and signed a three-year contract with the Wizards in 2024 prior to being dealt to the Pelicans last year.

While Weaver traded Bey to the Hawks, he was hired by the Wizards as a senior advisor a few weeks before Bey signed with Washington two-plus years ago, and became the Pelicans’ senior VP of basketball operations/GM last May, several weeks before New Orleans traded for Bey.

The total reported value of Bey’s contract over the next four years is $62.06MM, which is very similar to the $61.6MM Naji Marshall will make over that same span. Marshall, who will earn $9.4MM this season, signed a three-year, $52.2MM extension with the Mavericks at the beginning of August.

Bey suggested at his end-of-season press conference in April that he was open to a long-term stay in New Orleans, and Michael Scotto of HoopsHype reported at the end of June that the two sides were interested in working out an extension. Now a new deal has come to fruition.

Only five members of the Pelicans are under contract through 2028/29: Bey, Trey Murphy III, Herbert Jones, and 2025 lottery picks Jeremiah Fears and Derik Queen.

The club also elevated vice president of basketball strategy Jon Nichols to associate general manager and announced that Brendon Yu and Jose Calderon have been named assistant general managers. Yu was previously the Cavs’ director of college scouting, while Calderon was a special advisor to the front office.

8:15 am: Cavaliers executive Brandon Weems is receiving a promotion, according to Shams Charania of ESPN, who reports (via Twitter) that Weems will be elevated from assistant general manager to general manager.

Koby Altman is the president of basketball operations in Cleveland and Mike Gansey had served as the Cavaliers’ GM until he left the organization to run the Sixers’ front office earlier this offseason. Weems’ new title indicates that he’ll take Gansey’s place as Altman’s top lieutenant and the No. 2 man in the basketball operations department.

Weems was the assistant director of basketball operations under John Calipari at Kentucky from 2009-12, then served as a staff assistant at Drexel in 2012/13 and an assistant coach at Oakland University in Michigan from 2013-15.

Weems joined the Cavaliers in a scouting role in 2015 and steadily rose through the organizational ranks during the next decade, serving as the team’s director of scouting from 2017-21, its senior director of player personnel in 2021/22, and an assistant GM since 2022.

Weems’ name was in the news a little in July when agent Rich Paul singled him out as a reason why the Cavaliers appealed to LeBron James in free agency. Weems and James are longtime friends – Paul referred to him as “basically LeBron’s brother” – though the four-time MVP ultimately passed on the opportunity to return to Cleveland in favor of joining Gansey in Philadelphia.

“Not at all,” Curry replied when asked if the idea of going through free agency appeals to him (Twitter video link). “I’ve always stated that I wanna be a lifer with Golden State. What we’ve built there, the fact that I get to run it back this year with Draymond (Green) and coach (Steve) Kerr. All the contract stuff, this NBA thing from year to year, is so crazy, things change really fast. But I do know my interest and mission to stay in Golden State and be competitive is there, and the contract stuff will take care of itself.”

Curry became eligible on August 29 to sign an extension that could be worth up to $136.7MM over two years. Reporting has indicated that the Warriors are prepared to give the two-time MVP essentially whatever one- or two-year contract he wants to sign. He’ll make roughly $62.6MM in 2026/27, which is the last year of his current deal.

During an NBA Today segment on Thursday, ESPN’s Anthony Slater (Twitter video link) speculated that there will be resolution by the start of training camp. That might mean Curry agrees to a new deal by then, though it could also mean he and the Warriors decide to hold off for a few months in order to give the two parties more flexibility ahead of a 2027 offseason in which Golden State projects to have significant cap room.

“Steph Curry, at some point, I would guess, in the next week and a half, will come to some clarity about if he wants to do an extension now or wait,” Slater said.

We have more on the Warriors:

• Slater also discussed Jimmy Butler’s ACL recovery process during his NBA Today appearance, indicating that he continues to hear “good updates” about Butler’s progress, though the veteran forward is expected to be restricted to individual work when camp opens. Butler continues to be one of the team’s leaders while sidelined, according to Slater, who says the 37-year-old is organizing a players-only pre-camp event in Southern California next week.
• Newly hired associate head coach Frank Vogel, whose addition to Steve Kerr’s staff was formally announced on Thursday, spoke to Luca Evans of The San Francisco Chronicle about why he was excited to join the Warriors and why he feels that his best head-coaching years are still ahead of him. “I don’t know how much I want to say about it publicly, but I have a lot of confidence in what’s ahead of me, when the time comes,” Vogel said. “But … that’s for when it happens. I am not hunting it. I’m excited about being in this role, for this team, and supporting Steve, and helping Steph and Draymond get another chance at a ring.”
• Vogel also spoke specifically about several Warriors players, including Brandin Podziemski, Kristaps Porzingis, and Yaxel Lendeborg, and cited the presence of Green as a factor that helped convince him to take the job. “You want your defense to have teeth, you know what I mean?” Vogel told Evans. “And (Green) scared the s–t out of me every time I played against the Warriors. I know that if he’s playing, it’s going to be hard to win that game, and it’s going to be hard to score.”

Bernard, 26, made 19 appearances with the Wizards in 2023/24 while on a two-way contract and was briefly on a two-way deal with Minnesota this past February, but he didn’t see any NBA action for the Timberwolves.

The 6’6″ swingman, who went undrafted out of UCLA in 2022, has spent the majority of his professional career in the G League. In 2025/26, he put up 22.1 points, 6.2 rebounds, and 5.0 assists in 45 outings (34.0 MPG) for the Iowa Wolves, registering a shooting line of .418/.331/.799.

Stockton, the son of Hall of Famer John Stockton, has six games of NBA experience, but the last of those came in 2018. Since then, he had played in Germany, Puerto Rico, and the G League, most recently suiting up for the Valley Suns during the 2024/25 season. He averaged 14.4 PPG, 6.0 APG, and 2.6 RPG in 27.1 MPG across 36 NBAGL appearances that year.

Stockton’s deal with the Suns, which almost certainly includes Exhibit 10 language, signals that the plan is to have him return to Phoenix’s NBAGL affiliate this season at age 35. He’ll be eligible to earn a bonus worth up to $91K on top of his G League base salary if he spends at least 60 days with the team.

Like Stockton, Bernard seems likely to be waived by Minnesota in the coming days or weeks and then return to his team’s G League affiliate this fall.

When asked whether the Clippers and Raptors considered altering the original terms of the deal after Los Angeles was forced to forfeit five first-round picks as part of the team’s punishment from the NBA for circumventing the salary cap to pay Leonard through “no-show” endorsement deals, Charania said, “No, that never occurred.”

“It was always going to be this trade. … I never got a sense that either side not only wavered in that but wavered overall on the deal,” Charania said. “Within the first several hours of the league’s punishment, the Raptors and Clippers did speak, both showed an interest and intent to move forward with the deal as negotiated.”

The Clippers will add several draft assets — two first-round picks, a swap, and two second rounders — from the Raptors as well as Brandon Ingram and Gradey Dick, who have been training alongside the Clips throughout the offseason, Charania noted.

As for Leonard, Charania referred to the decision to seek a trade back to Toronto as a “pure legacy play” for the 35-year-old star, who led the team to its first and only NBA title in 2019. The two-time Finals MVP is said to be in “advanced” discussions with the Raptors about a contract extension.

“Him going back to Toronto, this is a pure legacy play for Kawhi,” Charania said. “There were teams — (the Pistons, Timberwolves), others — that had interest in trading for him, that wanted to trade for him, that wanted to give him an extension. 

“But he made a decision, because he had one year left on his deal, to essentially weed out where he wanted to play, where he wanted to be. And so this is a legacy play for Kawhi Leonard, there’s no doubt about it.”

Here’s more on the Raptors:

• Josh Lewenberg of TSN.ca has also heard from sources that the Clippers and Raptors never gave “real consideration” to potentially altering the trade, writing that doing so would would have been “bad form.” Both teams were motivated (for very different reasons) to complete the deal in its original form and neither had the “leverage to renegotiate,” Lewenberg adds.
• In the latest episode of the team’s in-house “Open Gym” show, Leonard spoke to head coach Darko Rajakovic about star forward Scottie Barnes and indicated he was willing to do whatever it took to help the Raptors win. “If it’s Scottie’s team, it’s his team,” Leonard told Rajakovic. “I want to do whatever it takes to help you guys.” Leonard also expressed optimism about Toronto’s odds of having a strong season and was complimentary of 2025 lottery pick Collin Murray-Boyles, per Eric Koreen of The Athletic. “I think we’ve got a great chance,” Leonard said. “This group played great last year. I watched them a lot. … You’ve got Scottie Barnes, (he) showed his talents over the past two, three years. He’s become an All-Star. He’s going to be a problem this next coming year. I love the young guy (Murray-Boyles). He brings a lot of energy to the team, shows relentlessness on the court, not scared of nobody.”
• Leonard should be a substantial upgrade over Ingram in virtually every aspect of offense with the possible exception of driving, which he doesn’t do frequently, according to Samson Folk of Raptors Republic. Leonard is coming off a season in which he averaged a career-high 27.9 points per game and is extremely efficient not only in terms of requiring relatively few touches for a top offensive option but also in the varied manner in which he scores (pull-ups, pick-and-rolls, post-ups, transition), Folk writes.
• Courtney Charles, a longtime member of the basketball operations department in both coaching and front office roles, is parting ways with the Raptors after more than two decades with the organization, Lewenberg tweets. Lewenberg says Charles has been a “crucial behind-the-scenes culture setter” for Toronto.

Watson, who turns 26 years old in October, was the 54th overall pick in the 2024 draft. He spent 2024/25 — his rookie season — on a two-way contract with Boston and New York, making nine brief NBA appearances with the Knicks (he played 22 total minutes).

The former Gonzaga standout spent training camp and the preseason with the Lakers last year before he was waived prior to the regular season, and that could be the case again in 2026. Assuming that comes to fruition, he’d be eligible for a bonus worth up to $91K — on top of his normal G League salary — if he spends at least 60 days with the Coachella Valley Lakers.

Exhibit 10 deals can also be converted into two-way contracts. While Los Angeles doesn’t currently have a two-way opening, all two-way deals are non-guaranteed, so Watson could theoretically be promoted if he impresses the team in the coming weeks. Of course, it’s possible he won’t stick around that long, since so many players are waived quickly this time of year.

Watson played 50 total games with the Lakers’ NBAGL affiliate last season, averaging 11.0 points, 4.9 rebounds, 2.9 assists (against only 0.7 turnovers), 1.4 steals and 0.7 blocks in 27.2 minutes per contest. His shooting slash line was .500/.332/.697.

Watson most recently played for the Lakers’ Summer League team, averaging 7.9 PPG, 2.9 RPG, 2.0 APG, 0.7 SPG and 0.9 BPG in 20.7 MPG across seven combined outings.

According to Tony Jones of The Athletic (Twitter link), Bona suffered the injury in a World Cup qualifying game while playing for the Turkish national team. The 6’10” big man is expected to be back on the court within the first two weeks of camp, sources tell Jones.

Bona, 23, averaged 4.8 points, 4.3 rebounds and 1.2 blocks in 17.4 minutes per game across 71 regular season outings in 2025/26. The former second-round pick will be competing with Ariel Hukporti to be Philadelphia’s primary backup center behind Joel Embiid.

Here’s more from around the Atlantic Division:

• With Jaylen Brown and LeBron James now members of the Sixers, guard VJ Edgecombe will likely be asked to play more of a complementary offensive role in 2026/27, Adam Aaronson of PhillyVoice writes. Continuing to improve as a defender and three-point shooter will be key for the 21-year-old in year two, according to Aaronson.
• In a subscriber-only story for the New York Post, Jared Schwartz compares and contrasts recent Knicks additions John Konchar, Drew Eubanks, Bruce Brown, James Wiseman and Ochai Agbaji, all of whom signed non-guaranteed Exhibit 9 deals for training camp and could be competing for one roster spot, barring other roster moves. Schwartz believes adding a third center is the “most pressing need” for the Knicks at the moment, but notes that the team could choose to retain one of the wings (Konchar, Brown, Agbaji) and address the third center spot later in the season.
• Veteran forward Michael Porter Jr. is very bullish on the Nets’ outlook for this season (Twitter video link). Appearing on a recent live stream (Kick link), Porter said trade addition Julius Randle should help take some offensive pressure off him, adding that all of the team’s 2025 first-round picks “got so much better” this offseason. “I don’t know what the expectations are for our team, but we’re definitely gonna surpass them,” he said. When asked if he thought the Nets would win 50-plus games this season, Porter replied, “Yeah, I do.”