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NBA free agency is here. Which stars are on the move? 

The summer's first major domino fell early Monday morning, when free agent wing Paul George agreed to a four-year max contract with the Philadelphia 76ers. More moves soon followed, including the 76ers agreeing with guard Tyrese Maxey on an extension, the New York Knicks losing center Isaiah Hartenstein to the Oklahoma City Thunder and Tobias Harris joining the Detroit Pistons.

The first day of free agency, meanwhile, still saw plenty of movement. The Golden State Warriors declined the team option of guard Chris Paul, after which the 39-year-old guard agreed to join Victor Wembanyama and the San Antonio Spurs. Kentavious Caldwell-Pope agreed to a three-year, $66 million deal with the Orlando Magic, while Jonas Valanciunas agreed to a three-year contract with the Washington Wizards. Elsewhere, James Harden agreed to return to the LA Clippers on a two-year deal, and Kevin Love is returning to Miami Heat after agreeing to a two-year contract.

Ahead of the NBA draft, two free agents decided to return to their home teams. Center Bam Adebayo agreed to a three-year, $166 million extension to keep him in Miami while forward OG Anunoby intends to sign a five-year, $212.5 million deal with the New York Knicks -- a night after the franchise traded for Mikal Bridges.

What other major deals are getting done in the first week of free agency? Which contracts will get an "A" grade? ESPN NBA Insider Kevin Pelton reacts to the latest contract news and analyzes what it means for the league this summer and beyond.

 30-team guide | Free agency and trade buzz

Deal:

Grade: A

Batum enjoyed something of a renaissance at age 35 after the Clippers included him as matching salary in their trade for James Harden in November. During 57 games with the Philadelphia 76ers, primarily as a starter, Batum averaged 25.9 minutes per game -- the most he has played since 2020-21 during his first season in L.A.

Although Batum no longer makes a big dent on the box score at this point of his 16-season career, averaging just 5.5 points with the Sixers, his 40% 3-point shooting, connective passing and size on defense made him an important cog in Philadelphia's starting five. It's a little surprising from that standpoint the 76ers didn't push harder to re-sign Batum using their remaining cap space after landing Paul George from the Clippers.

It's possible Batum simply prefers to live in Los Angeles. Having used the bulk of their non-taxpayer midlevel exception on a deal with Derrick Jones Jr., the Clippers signed Batum using their $4.7 million biannual exception. He likely slots in as the backup to Kawhi Leonard, with the ability to earn a larger role depending on how coach Tyronn Lue's wing rotation shakes out.

Adding Batum pushes the Clippers ever so slightly over the luxury tax line with 14 players under contract. Trading Russell Westbrook and replacing him with a player at the veterans minimum would get the Clippers out of the tax to start the season.

Deal:

Grade: B-

Instead of replacing Harris with Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, the Magic figured, "Why not both?"

Harris likely slides to a reserve role that's more appropriate at this stage of his career after replacing free agent Markelle Fultz as Orlando's starter alongside Jalen Suggs in the second half of last season and into the playoffs.

I would have been interested in seeing the Magic pursue a younger option, such as Gary Trent Jr., in that spot with their remaining cap space, but Orlando knows how Harris fits and surely likes his presence as a veteran mentor for the Magic's young talent.

Depending on Orlando's other plans, the Magic could complete this deal using their $8 million room exception or take it out of the $28 million in cap space they'll have left after officially signing Caldwell-Pope.

Grade: A

The last time Tatum signed a contract extension, missing out on All-NBA honors by a single spot in 2020-21 cost him more than $25 million because his salary started at 25% of the cap rather than the 30% Tatum would have received if he qualified. He's making up for that lost income this time around.

Since Tatum made the All-NBA first team in both 2021-22 and 2022-23, he was already eligible to sign a designated veteran supermax extension before he made it a third consecutive season in 2023-24. Tatum simply had to wait until this summer to become eligible to sign the extension, which will start in 2025-26 and replace the $37.1 million player option Tatum previously held.

Instead, Tatum's new contract will start at a projected $54.1 million, making it the largest in NBA history to date. With the cap set to increase the maximum 10% from season to season with new national TV deals kicking in during the 2025-26 campaign, that record will surely be short-lived. In fact, the Dallas Mavericks' Luka Doncic is already eligible to surpass Tatum next summer by virtue of his All-NBA appearances.

As a result, getting caught up in whether Tatum is worth the largest contract ever -- as with teammate Jaylen Brown a year ago -- misses the point. Tatum's consistent production entering his prime (he'll be 27 at the start of this extension) merits paying whatever it takes for the Celtics to retain him.

That's not to say the money is irrelevant to Boston. Having already struck an extension with starting guard Derrick White earlier Monday, the Celtics now have a projected $205 million committed to six players for the 2025-26 season before they consider an extension for key reserve Sam Hauser or re-signing veteran Al Horford. That's already enough to push Boston over the second apron just as the team begins paying a repeater tax that will grow even more punitive next season.

Eventually, the Celtics will need to sacrifice depth around the edges to keep paying Brown and Tatum both on contracts starting at 35% of the cap. That's a challenge to figure out another day. Today is about celebrating Tatum's well-deserved extension.

Deal:

Grade: B

After washing out with the Indiana Pacers, who drafted him No. 18 overall in 2019, Bitadze has made enormous strides since joining the Magic in 2022 for the veterans minimum. In 33 starts early last season with Wendell Carter Jr. out of the lineup, Bitadze averaged 7.5 points, 7.3 rebounds and 1.7 blocks in just 23.9 minutes per game while splitting time with Mo Wagner.

Because Orlando had both Carter and Wagner playing well, Bitadze fell out of the playoffs after the All-Star break and saw just 10 minutes of action in the Magic's first-round loss to the Cleveland Cavaliers. Based on that, his return comes as a bit of a surprise. Assuming Orlando re-signs Wagner after declining his $8 million team option, the team will have the same center logjam entering next season.

From the Magic's perspective, center depth isn't a bad thing to have. Carter has never played more than 62 games in his career, meaning Orlando needs cover behind him. Bitadze also offers insurance if the Magic decide to move on from Carter via trade at some point. In exchange, Bitadze gets a handsome raise on a new contract that pays about what other teams could have offered using the room midlevel exception.

Because the Magic have early Bird rights on Bitadze, they can keep his minimum cap hold on the books before going over the cap to re-sign him. That leaves Orlando still sitting on up to $28 million in cap space after agreeing to a deal to add Denver Nuggets guard Kentavious Caldwell-Pope.

Deal: 

Grade: D+

With the Pistons still far from competing for a playoff spot, I would have had two goals entering free agency: find value contracts for players young enough to grow with their core talent and, like the Houston Rockets last year, add players who can provide a better developmental support system.

Harris, who turns 32 next month, doesn't fit into the former category. I'm uncertain just how well he fits the latter either. On the plus side, Harris does provide shooting. He's a career 37% shooter beyond the arc, and Detroit will probably encourage Harris to increase his volume after attempting 3.9 3s per 36 minutes last season. Additionally, Harris' distribution (3.1 assists per game, more than any non-guard averaged for the 2023-24 Pistons) is a particular strength when he lines up at power forward.

At the same time, Harris has been most comfortable playing with the ball in his hands. It was one thing to ask Harris to spot up while Joel Embiid and Tyrese Maxey operated. Doing so for Cade Cunningham and Jaden Ivey might be a different story. I hope Detroit has gotten buy-in from Harris on the veteran mentor role he'll need to play supporting the development of Cunningham, Ivey and more recent lottery picks Ausar Thompson and Ron Holland II.

From a value standpoint, I'm not totally sure who the Pistons' competition was to sign Harris. After the Oklahoma City Thunder signed Isaiah Hartenstein, the Orlando Magic and Utah Jazz were the two teams remaining with the cap space to make Harris an offer like this. Harris doesn't feel like a fit for either team, while the Jazz's cap space is likely earmarked in part for a renegotiation and extension with All-Star forward Lauri Markkanen.

Realistically, Detroit probably had to offer Harris enough to prevent him from signing a smaller contract with a contending team using the non-taxpayer midlevel exception. Although I think Harris is somewhat undervalued by the general public because of how poorly his 2024 playoffs went (Harris averaged just 9.0 points for the Philadelphia 76ers in their first-round loss to the New York Knicks), that isn't the recipe for finding value in free agency.

On the plus side, the Pistons had so much spending power in free agency that they're still sitting on the third-most cap space in the league (about $25 million) after signing Harris and striking a deal to add Tim Hardaway Jr. from the Dallas Mavericks. Detroit is well positioned to take on additional bad salaries using cap space or to add another contributor on a short-term contract.

Deal:

Grade: B-

For the Mavericks to acquire Thompson will require agreement from the Golden State Warriors on a three-team sign-and-trade that will see Dallas wing Josh Green head to the Charlotte Hornets. Pending completion of that deal, let's consider how Thompson will fit.

After shooting just 32% from 3-point range during their five-game NBA Finals loss to the Boston Celtics, the Mavericks have taken bold steps this offseason to ensure that won't happen again. Adding Thompson, who ranks sixth in league history in made 3s, is by far the biggest and most fascinating move for Dallas.

We've never seen Thompson play for anyone but the Warriors, a 13-year run -- including two entire seasons lost to injury -- that resulted in five All-Star appearances and four NBA championships. The last of those came in 2021-22, after Thompson returned midseason from an ACL tear followed by an Achilles rupture, a combination largely unprecedented in NBA history. Yet Thompson still averaged 19.0 PPG in the playoffs en route to the title.

Since returning, Thompson hasn't been the same kind of defender, and his occasional lapses in shot selection became a greater source of friction last season. For the first time since his rookie season, Thompson came off the bench after the All-Star break this past season. Ultimately, Thompson and Golden State split, putting the Mavericks in position to pounce via sign-and-trade.

It will be interesting to see whether Dallas sees Thompson as a starter on the wing. He's getting more money than fellow newcomer Naji Marshall, who agreed to a three-year, $27 million deal Sunday to fill the role played by incumbent Mavericks small forward Derrick Jones Jr. Starting Thompson would maximize the floor spacing for Dallas stars Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving at the expense of defense.

The Mavericks want to hide Doncic as much as possible defensively, and although Irving was strong individually throughout Dallas' run to the Finals, asking him to defend high scorers during the regular season is unreasonable. Thompson is no longer capable of being a primary wing defender, which might suggest Marshall as the better fit in the starting five with Thompson as sixth man.

However the Mavericks line up to start games, coach Jason Kidd will have plenty of options. With Thompson replacing Green, Marshall replacing Jones and Quentin Grimes swapped in for Tim Hardaway Jr., Dallas goes 11 deep in terms of rotation-caliber players with a variety of strengths and weaknesses. Grimes and Dante Exum give Kidd strong defenders off the bench, while Hardy and Thompson will juice the team's offense. The depth should help the Mavericks manage the regular season while Kidd sorts out the best rotations for the playoffs.

Ultimately, Dallas surely came back to all those Finals missed 3s in pursuing Thompson. With Boston capable of staying home on wing shooters and containing Doncic and Irving 1-on-1, the Mavericks neither got up enough 3-point attempts (they didn't attempt more than 27 in any of the first three games, all losses) nor made enough of the shots they did try.

Thompson's contested 3-point making will be a massive upgrade for Dallas. Per Second Spectrum tracking, Thompson shot the 10th-best 3-point percentage (39%) among players with at least 500 attempts on the sixth-hardest shot diet among those 26 players. Based on Second Spectrum's quantified shot quality measure, we'd have expected an average shooter to make just 34% of Thompson's 3-point attempts due to their location, shot type and the distance to nearby defenders.

I still wonder about the cost to the Mavericks' defense. Going from Jones and Green as primary perimeter defenders to Marshall and Thompson is a massive drop-off only partly offset by adding Grimes.

If Thompson is going to finish games at small forward alongside one of Dallas' two strong centers (Daniel Gafford and Dereck Lively II), that will probably compel P.J. Washington to defend wings with size. Washington struggled in that role before enjoying more success defending power forwards and occasionally cross-matching on centers once Jones moved into the Mavericks' starting lineup after the All-Star break.

Adding Thompson undoubtedly makes Dallas a more interesting team but I'm not totally convinced it makes the Mavericks a better one.

Deal:

Grade: A-

Having officially said farewell to franchise legend Klay Thompson on Monday when he agreed to sign with the Dallas Mavericks, the Warriors replaced him on the roster by using their non-taxpayer midlevel exception to sign Melton.

Golden State is hoping this works out much like the last time the team signed a guard coming off an injury-marred season to a midlevel contract. That was Donte DiVincenzo, two years ago, and DiVincenzo parlayed a bounce-back campaign into a four-year deal with the New York Knicks.

Because the Warriors no longer project as taxpayers, the value isn't quite as outrageous this time around as DiVincenzo's $4.5 million salary. Still, had Melton stayed healthy after the Philadelphia 76ers started 22-11 with him in the lineup as a starting shooting guard, he would presumably have been looking at multiyear offers for the full midlevel exception or more.

A standout in terms of advanced all-in-one stats dating back to his lone college season at USC, Melton fills up the box score and has developed into an above-average 3-point shooter, having hit 38% over the last four seasons. As a result, Melton's teams have typically played better with him on the court. Last season, when a stress response injury to the lumbar spine in Melton's back overlapped with Joel Embiid's knee surgery, the difference was a considerable 10.3 points per 100 possessions according to Cleaning the Glass analysis.

As long as Melton is healthy after being limited to just eight appearances after Jan. 1 -- the risk associated with this contract -- I'm curious how Steve Kerr sees him fitting into Golden State's rotation. After waiving Chris Paul, the Warriors don't currently have a backup point guard and might consider using Melton in that role even though he's not a natural playmaker. Playing Melton alongside the more creative Brandin Podziemski in second units would free up more minutes at shooting guard for Moses Moody.

I also like the idea of pairing Melton and fellow havoc creator Gary Payton II off the bench. Their defensive versatility would give Kerr plenty of options, and Melton's progress as a shooter makes playing him with the less dangerous Payton (a 34.5% career 3-point shooter on just 3.3 attempts per 36 minutes) viable offensively.

As with DiVincenzo, if Melton plays well enough, Golden State could be priced out of re-signing him using non-Bird rights. In this case, however, that would require a team to use cap space to make a bigger offer. If that happens, Melton will have been such a great value for the Warriors the result will be worth it.

Grade: A

Consider George's arrival and departure from the Clippers to be bookends in an era marked by relatively little movement of stars in free agency, with trades instead becoming their most common method of changing teams. 

Over the four offseasons since George was traded to the Clippers to join Kawhi Leonard, who signed with the team as a free agent, no current All-Stars changed teams via free agency the summer after being chosen for the game. George is the first since 2019, making this a monumental move -- particularly since he's teaming up with former MVP Joel Embiid and Most Improved Player winner Tyrese Maxey in Philadelphia.

One of the most reductive pieces of NBA analysis possible is to say that a star would be an ideal second-best player on a championship contender. Naturally, if a player is already and has a teammate that is better than him, their team would be quite good too.

It's with that self-caveat in mind that I note how ideally suited George is to become the No. 3 option on offense for the 76ers after years of being the second star alongside first Russell Westbrook with the Oklahoma City Thunder and more recently Leonard with the LA Clippers.

Part of the reason star trios haven't always worked as well on the court as on paper is that the ability to create offense at high volume without sacrificing much efficiency is largely what makes players stars. That skill is no longer as important when stars team up, making it important for players to bring secondary skills to the table like floor spacing and defense.

Consider that among the 36 NBA players who averaged at least 22 PPG last season, George's time of possession -- 20% of the time the Clippers were on offense -- ranked sixth-lowest according to analysis of Second Spectrum tracking data. George barely held the ball more than Tobias Harris (17% of the time), the player he's effectively replacing in Philadelphia's offensive pecking order who averaged just 17.2 PPG.

When he doesn't have the ball in his hands, George can be a dangerous threat spotting up while Embiid is isolating or playing pick-and-roll with Maxey. He's coming off making a career-high 41% of his 3-point attempts last season on 8.5 attempts per 36 minutes and shot nearly 40% from long distance during five seasons with the Clippers.

Beyond that, an atypically high amount of George's value comes on defense for a high-scoring star wing. A four-time All-Defensive pick, albeit most recently in 2018-19, George is no longer the turnover-creating dynamo he was in his prime yet still has a massive impact at the team level. In four of the past six seasons, his teams have allowed at least five fewer points per 100 possessions with him on the court according to Cleaning the Glass analysis.

As clean a fit as George is, the Sixers will have to deal with the other issue star trios have faced in recent years: sacrificing depth for top-end talent. Despite being uniquely positioned to clear cap space to add George because of Maxey's $13 million cap hold, Philadelphia will likely have fewer proven two-way contributors than the other top contenders in the East, the defending champion Boston Celtics and New York Knicks.

On Sunday, the 76ers agreed to deals to add center Andre Drummond using cap space and re-sign small forward Kelly Oubre Jr. to a contract that can use their $8 million room exception. With George on the books at the max, starting at $49.2 million this season, that leaves about $9 million for Philadelphia to finish shopping in free agency and a depth chart currently devoid of power forwards.

Even if the Sixers split their remaining money between a couple of players, they're looking at filling out the roster with at least six players making the veterans minimum. The lure of playing alongside Embiid, George and Maxey should help Philadelphia recruit some of the best players willing to play for the minimum, but we've seen with the Los Angeles Lakers after the Russell Westbrook trade and the Phoenix Suns last season how challenging putting together a minimum-heavy roster can be.

Pending those signings, I'd put the Sixers a notch behind New York in the East, with both teams staring up at a defending champion Celtics team that returns its entire playoff rotation.

Down the road, a key question will be whether Philadelphia can utilize the taxpayer midlevel exception next offseason without pushing above the second luxury tax apron. Alternatively, the 76ers could re-sign players to slightly larger contracts that would make them more viable as matching salary in trades, a way to utilize the extra draft picks Philadelphia acquired in the James Harden trade last year.

The path to putting a championship-level supporting cast around a big three of Embiid, George and Maxey won't be easy, but the 76ers might have the front office best suited for figuring it out. Part of the emphasis Philadelphia president of basketball operations Daryl Morey has long put on acquiring stars is because of his faith in finding undervalued role players to surround them.

In this case, pursuing George was the obvious path once the Sixers committed to using cap space this summer at the trade deadline. Unlike teams that trade for stars, Philadelphia has managed to accumulate three All-Stars without jeopardizing future draft picks. The 76ers are out a pair of protected picks and own theirs outright from 2029 onward.

Given the concerns about depth, adding George might not bring a long-awaited title to Philadelphia. No matter what, it's going to make for a fascinating 2024-25 season and beyond.

Grade: A

As other contenders seek to load up, the Celtics' front office is quietly going about locking in last season's championship core for as long as possible. Having agreed Sunday to re-sign backup center Luke Kornet, the only Boston free agent who played more than 700 minutes in the regular season or 70 minutes in the playoffs, the Celtics struck a larger deal Monday to extend their starting guard through 2028-29.

Had White hit free agency coming off a season where he merited All-Star consideration and was arguably Boston's best player in the first two rounds of the playoffs (averaging 18.2 PPG, 3.8 RPG and 3.8 APG on near 50/40/90 shooting splits), he would likely have commanded an even larger contract than this with the NBA's salary cap going up and few unrestricted free agents of note.

That reality compelled the Celtics to step up with the best possible offer for White, who got the largest allowable salary (starting at a 40% increase from the bargain $20 million salary he'll make in 2024-25) and a player option on the final season of the contract. For White, the security of locking in a contract now and staying on a championship contender in Boston made it worth forgoing the possibility of more money next summer.

Extending White still requires a massive financial commitment from the Celtics, who will also surely sign Jayson Tatum to a designated veteran "supermax" extension sometime soon. That would give Boston a projected $205 million committed to six players for 2025-26 before the Celtics consider an extension for key reserve Sam Hauser or re-signing Al Horford. That's already enough to push Boston over the second apron just as the team begins paying a repeater tax that will grow even more punitive next season.

It's no wonder then, that the White news came just before ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski reported that Boston's ownership plans to sell a majority share in the team by 2028. Keeping these Celtics together beyond the next two seasons might require deeper pockets than Boston's current ownership has. That's a concern for another day. For now, Boston is readying for a run at becoming a dynasty.

Grade: A-

Having already added Alex Caruso via trade this offseason, the Thunder are now taking advantage of approximately $30 million in cap space to sign one of the top free agents to change teams.

In an ideal world, I think Oklahoma City would have targeted a combo forward who could space the floor and defend multiple positions. That player didn't really exist in free agency, so the Thunder sought to instead upgrade their size and rebounding while also doubling down on their strength protecting the rim.

A full-time starter for the first time in his career after Mitchell Robinson's injury last season, Hartenstein made a massive difference on defense for the New York Knicks and would have been a strong All-Defensive candidate had he played enough games to be eligible. Among players who defended at least five shots within 5 feet last season, the 52.5% opponents shot against Hartenstein was seventh-lowest according to Second Spectrum tracking on NBA Advanced Stats -- one spot behind Oklahoma City's Chet Holmgren.

No team in the league boasted two top-10 rim protectors last season, with Milwaukee's duo of Brook Lopez (ninth) and Giannis Antetokounmpo (13th) coming closest. The Thunder will be able to roll out 48 minutes of elite rim protection, and lineups with both Hartenstein and Holmgren together in the frontcourt could be nearly impossible to beat at the rim.

How well the two players fit offensively will determine just how much Hartenstein plays in Oklahoma City. Holmgren played nearly exclusively at center as a rookie, maximizing the Thunder's offense with five-out spacing. Just 4% of his minutes came alongside another center, typically reserve Jaylin Williams, although we saw a little more of that look during Oklahoma City's playoff loss to the Dallas Mavericks.

Thunder coach Mark Daigneault will have to tweak his spacing, but Hartenstein can serve as the dive man in pick-and-rolls while Holmgren and Oklahoma City's other two perimeter players are spotted up. And when Hartenstein is in the dunker spot, he's at least a more threatening presence there than the perimeter players (most notably now-departed Josh Giddey) the Thunder hid there against Dallas. Hartenstein also offers elite offensive rebounding the team's five-out style didn't provide, ranking 28th in offensive rebound percentage (and 29th on the defensive glass).

My suspicion is Oklahoma City will begin the season with Hartenstein as the starting center, bringing Caruso off the bench in part to manage his minutes during the regular season. By the playoffs, that could change depending on matchups. Even if Hartenstein's pairing with Holmgren proves untenable and he's primarily a backup center, the Thunder can afford that given the way his salary fits into their cap sheet.

The third year of Hartenstein's contract is a team option, meaning Oklahoma City is guaranteeing his salary only during the two-year window where Holmgren and fellow starter Jalen Williams are on their cheap rookie contracts. The Thunder should be safely below the luxury tax during that period before assessing how to handle Hartenstein's option with Holmgren and Williams starting more lucrative new deals.

Getting Hartenstein to sign off on that structure required Oklahoma City to offer a larger annual salary than the Knicks (limited to a four-year, $78 million offer using early Bird rights) possibly could. In the event the Thunder decline his team option, Hartenstein could still come out far ahead financially over the next four seasons by getting the non-taxpayer midlevel exception as a free agent in two years, when he'll be 28.

I'm not convinced playing Holmgren at power forward is the ultimate way for Oklahoma City to pursue a championship, but given the alternatives in free agency, this path makes sense for now. And in the worst-case scenario where Hartenstein isn't a fit, he should retain enough trade value on this contract to be matching salary in pursuit of the Thunder's dream fifth starter.

Grade: A

After getting an agreement from Paul George to sign on in the early hours of Monday morning, the 76ers circled back to officially reach a deal to re-sign Maxey. The timing of these transactions is key for Philadelphia, which can keep Maxey's $13 million cap hold on the books while using cap space before re-signing him with Bird rights for the largest possible deal starting at more than $35 million per season.

That sequence will likely push the Sixers into the luxury tax, but it maximized their spending power and facilitated adding a third All-Star to Maxey and 2023 MVP Joel Embiid.

Maxey has surely been in on these plans since last fall, when Philadelphia declined to extend him ahead of the final season of his rookie contract with an eye toward using cap space. By that point, Maxey already had a reasonable case to command the smaller 25% max salary for players with six or fewer years of experience. Winning Most Improved Player and making the All-Star Game for the first time only strengthened Maxey's bargaining position.

Given the security he gave up by playing last season without an extension, it is surprising Maxey didn't end up with a player option to make this as favorable a contract as possible from his perspective. That fifth year, which will come when the salary cap is projected at $206 million as compared to the current $140.6 million, figures to be a bargain for the team with Maxey in his prime at age 28.

There is still a little more work for the 76ers before they get to filling out their roster with minimum contracts. Assuming they waive or trade backup big man Paul Reed to facilitate using cap space to sign center Andre Drummond, and with the room exception earmarked for Kelly Oubre Jr., that leaves Philadelphia with about $9 million to spend. Presumably, the Sixers will target a power forward to fill out their starting lineup.

Grade: B+

Hours after taking the unusual step of issuing a statement indicating they would not re-sign Paul George as a free agent, the Clippers replaced him on the wing with one of the top alternatives available using the non-taxpayer midlevel exception.

Jones is coming off a career year with the Dallas Mavericks. After signing for the veterans minimum with Dallas last summer, he started a career-high 66 games -- more starts than he'd ever played games in a season -- and all 22 in the playoffs as the Mavericks reached the NBA Finals.

With his long arms, Jones replaces much of the defensive versatility George provided on the wing. Jones was responsible for guarding All-Star perimeter players throughout Dallas' playoff run -- including George -- meaning he can take that role off Kawhi Leonard's plate and free Leonard to roam as a terrifying help defender.

At the other end of the court, the Clippers will obviously see a massive drop-off from George to Jones. Last season's 8.6 points per game, a career-high mark for Jones, were less than half of the 22.6 points George averaged. Jones isn't particularly comfortable operating with the ball in his hands and had never made 3s at even an average rate during the regular season (last year's 34% was a career high) before hitting 37% during the Dallas playoff run.

When the Clippers are at full strength, they might be able to compensate for the downgrade. In Leonard and James Harden, who agreed to a new two-year deal reported Sunday, the Clippers have two volume shot creators. The problem is last season's 68 games were the most Leonard has played since 2016-17, and he still was sidelined for four of the six games in the Clippers' first-round loss to Jones and the Mavericks.

If Leonard is out of the lineup, the Clippers will be relying heavily on Harden to create more offense after his usage rate dropped to 21% last season. Should the Clippers trade Russell Westbrook, who picked up his player option over the weekend, that would leave Norman Powell as the only Clippers regular besides Harden and Leonard who used plays at even a league-average rate in 2023-24.

It's plausible there could be more help on the way via trade. Despite hard-capping themselves at the lower luxury tax apron by either acquiring Jones in a sign-and-trade or signing him using the non-taxpayer midlevel exception, the Clippers do have some spending power with George off their books. They currently project about $12 million below that first apron with 13 players under contract. If the Clippers could trade away one of their expiring contracts without taking back salary, it might give them enough money to add DeMar DeRozan or Klay Thompson via sign-and-trade.

Adding another scorer would enhance Jones' value to the Clippers as a wing defender. Pending that possibility, the value looks perfectly solid. The version of Jones we saw last season was probably worth more than $10 million. Although there's reason to fear Jones aging quickly because of his reliance on physical ability, the rising salary cap mitigates that downside.

Deal:

Grade: A

Following one season with the Golden State Warriors, 19-year NBA veteran Chris Paul agreed to a one-year, $11 million contract with the San Antonio Spurs. The deal will pair Paul, a 12-time All-Star, with reigning Rookie of the Year Victor Wembanyama. The Spurs experimented with several options at point guard during Wembanyama's first season, but none had the pedigree of Paul, who is currently third all time in career assists. After finishing with a 22-60 record last season, Paul's veteran presence will be a positive change for the young San Antonio roster. A full breakdown of the deal can be found here. 

Deal:

Grade: B

Two-plus years after the Sixers were forced to include Drummond in their trade with the Brooklyn Nets for James Harden, they've reacquired him as the backup to MVP center Joel Embiid. Back then, Philadelphia signed Drummond for the veterans minimum in free agency following the conclusion of a five-year deal with the Detroit Pistons worth $127 million. Drummond got more, barely, from the Chicago Bulls the following summer and is now making his highest salary since 2020-21 with his style of play back in vogue.

As teams trend bigger in the frontcourt and focus on the offensive glass, Drummond's historic levels of securing misses by his team have become valued again. Drummond, who led qualified players in offensive rebounding percentage four times with the Pistons, according to Basketball-Reference.com, actually managed a career high in the category last season at 21.5% of available misses -- higher than four teams managed as a whole.

Finding a backup for Embiid is tricky because the 76ers' offense is built so heavily around the MVP's unique skill set. Drummond succeeded in the role prior to the 2021-22 trade deadline, as Philadelphia outscored opponents by 0.6 points per 100 possessions with him on the court, according to NBA Advanced Stats. The Sixers were actually better than that with backup Paul Reed on the court this regular season (plus-4.2 net rating) but were outscored by a whopping 44 points in his 43 minutes of action in the first round against the physical New York Knicks.

With Drummond's return, Philly will surely waive Reed, whose $7.7 million salary for 2024-25 is non-guaranteed because the 76ers did not win a playoff series. (That unusual guarantee structure came from Reed's offer sheet with the Utah Jazz matched by Philadelphia last summer.) Although Drummond's salary could fit in the $8 million room exception, more realistically the Sixers will take out of cap space, leaving them with $57 million to spend if they renounce the rights to all of their free agents -- enough to fit a max deal for Paul George with room to spare.

Deal:

Grade: B

The reigning Western Conference champs will have a slightly different look on the wing next season after adding Marshall with the non-taxpayer midlevel exception they would have had to use to re-sign incumbent small forward Derrick Jones Jr.

It's possible in theory the Mavericks could still sign both players by acquiring Marshall in a sign-and-trade, but that wouldn't work with the report from ESPN's Tim MacMahon that they're pursuing a sign-and-trade deal for longtime Golden State Warriors star Klay Thompson.

Give Dallas credit for not overvaluing Jones because he was such a success story playing last season on the veterans minimum. The Mavericks got a career campaign out of Jones, whose move into the starting lineup helped kickstart the second-half surge that ultimately led them to the NBA Finals. But, Dallas would be right to wonder whether Jones could maintain that value over the life of a four-year deal.

Much of Jones' NBA success has been tied to his vertical, and at 27 he's reaching the stage where his physical ability will start to wane. Jones might be just fine, particularly if he maintains the 37% 3-point shooting we saw in last year's playoffs (up from 34% during the regular season), but Dallas couldn't count on Jones remaining a lob threat in transition and as a cutter down the road.

Marshall is only a year younger but has displayed more skill in grinding his way from undrafted rookie to key reserve for the New Orleans Pelicans. Marshall, too, enjoyed a career year in 2023-24 beyond the arc but pushed his 3-point percentage all the way to 39%. Marshall's solid free throw shooting (78% career, as compared to 71% for Jones) offers reason to believe he can remain average or better going forward.

Defensively, Marshall isn't as strong on the ball as Jones, who excelled in that role during the Mavericks' playoff run. Playing alongside All-Defensive first-team pick Herb Jones, Marshall wasn't tasked with guarding leading scorers as often, and a downgrade at that end of the court is the biggest risk Dallas is taking here.

That said, getting Marshall for an average of $9 million per year -- about 70% of the non-tax midlevel -- is excellent value. And it might open up the possibility of the Mavericks also adding Thompson. Adding Marshall will hard cap Dallas on the lower luxury tax apron. (Re-signing Jones using the non-tax midlevel would have done so as well.) Currently, the Mavericks sit about $5.8 million below that line, including the non-guaranteed salary of wing A.J. Lawson.

To pay Thompson the full $16 million trade exception Dallas can generate by completing the deal reported last Friday sending Tim Hardaway Jr. to the Detroit Pistons, the Mavericks would have to cut about $10.3 million in salary. That points to Josh Green ($12.7 million) or Maxi Kleber ($11 million), either of whom could be acquired without sending any salary back by a team using its non-tax midlevel under new CBA rules that kick in this summer.

Given that possibility, Dallas surely isn't done retooling last season's roster just yet.

Deal:

Grade: B

Having traded 23-year-old starting small forward Deni Avdija to the Portland Trail Blazers in a deal that gave them three picks in the first round of last week's NBA draft, the Wizards were an unlikely candidate to add a veteran center in free agency. In that context, signing Valanciunas seems like some combination of pragmatism and opportunism.

This has been a tough market for big men. Despite mashing the undersized Oklahoma City Thunder to the tune of 14.5 points per game and 11.5 rebounds per game in the playoffs, Valanciunas also saw his defensive weaknesses on display in that first-round sweep. With the New Orleans Pelicans challenged financially and Los Angeles Lakers apparently uninterested in using their non-taxpayer midlevel exception on a traditional big man, Valanciunas had to settle for a sub-midlevel deal with what will likely be one of the NBA's worst teams.

Ultimately, Valanciunas heading to Washington is a marriage of convenience that could work out for both sides. It's an opportunity for him to reprove his value on a team that will be starved for efficient shot creation. Valanciunas post-ups yielded 1.07 points per chance for the Pelicans, ranking just outside the top 10 among the 41 players with at least 100 post-ups, according to Second Spectrum tracking. That will likely beat the output from the Wizards' young guards.

Additionally, Washington's recent draft picks will benefit from having Valanciunas as a big target in pick-and-rolls. Although less relatively frequent, ball screens set by Valanciunas resulted in 1.04 points per chance, better than any Wizards screener who set at least 400.

As soon as the trade deadline, there could be more over-the-cap teams interested in adding Valanciunas by sending out equivalent salary. Making a move like that now via sign-and-trade would have hard capped them at the lower luxury tax apron. By that point, Washington may also be more ready to start No. 2 overall pick Alex Sarr, who won't turn 20 until after the season. Depending how bad the salary is the Wizards are willing to take back, trading Valanciunas at the deadline could bring back meaningful draft compensation.

Deal:

Grade: B

With nine-time Paul George on the way out, the Clippers needed to retain Harden, who agreed to a two-year, $70 million deal with the franchise early in the free agency window. Harden, who averaged 16 points and 8.5 assists per game last season, will return to LA to play with Kawhi Leonard as the Clippers open a new stadium next season. The full breakdown of the signing can be found here. 

Deal:

Grade: B

In the first big move of 2024 free agency, the Magic are set to sign a two-time NBA title winner away from the Denver Nuggets.

An outstanding 3-point shooter (41.5% over two seasons in Denver, with several years of 38% shooting before that) who can defend either guard spot, Caldwell-Pope is precisely the kind of role player who tends to fill out winning teams. He was a key player on the 2019-2020 Los Angeles Lakers team that won in the bubble and one of the final pieces of the 2022-23 Nuggets after being acquired via trade the previous summer.

Caldwell-Pope probably won't be that player for an Orlando team that isn't quite ready to compete for championships yet. Nonetheless, he's a solid upgrade for a Magic team that started another former Denver shooting guard (Gary Harris) alongside Jalen Suggs in the backcourt last year. As compared to Harris, Caldwell-Pope is a tad bigger and a somewhat better shooter, as well as more capable of creating his own offense.

In particular, I'm excited about the prospect of pairing Caldwell-Pope in the backcourt with Suggs, who emerged as one of the NBA's top on-ball defenders last season. Caldwell-Pope's ability to defend anywhere on the perimeter will allow Orlando coach Jamahl Mosley to mix and match in a similar way to how the Boston Celtics deployed Jrue Holiday and Derrick White last season. Caldwell-Pope hasn't rated quite at that level defensively during his career, but he's more than capable as an individual defender and generates steals at an above-average rate.

Perhaps the most interesting part of this signing is that the Magic might not be finished yet. If Caldwell-Pope's contract is structured with max 5% raises, Orlando could still generate about $29 million in cap space before using the $8 million room midlevel. The latter should be enough to re-sign at least one of Joe Ingles and Moritz Wagner after the Magic declined their team options Saturday.

Ideally, Orlando would add one more efficient shot creator on the perimeter. Going from Harris to Caldwell-Pope doesn't move the needle in that regard, and while the Magic don't want to take the ball out of the hands of young forwards Paolo Banchero and Franz Wagner entirely, relieving some of the pressure on them would be a positive.

It's hypothetically possible for Orlando to add both Caldwell-Pope and Paul George without needing to deal away too much of last season's roster. The $17.4 million non-guaranteed salary for reserve forward Jonathan Isaac gives the Magic some degree of flexibility in that scenario. More realistically, Orlando could look at using cap space to deal for another ball handler while offering cap relief as part of the return.

Down the road, Orlando does need to prepare for Suggs and Wagner to begin lucrative extensions in 2025-26 season, with Banchero due for one the following season. By then, a player option for Caldwell-Pope could be a way for the Magic to restructure his contract, offering a longer guarantee in exchange for a smaller annual salary.

For now, Orlando will likely do more to upgrade using cap space than any playoff team besides the 76ers. It's still possible the Magic take a slight step back next season because they jumped all the way from the lottery to the No. 5 seed, but Orlando's long-term outlook remains bright.

On the other side, Nuggets GM Calvin Booth seemed to be preparing fans for this possibility when he told reporters after the NBA draft, "I think we'll be OK if KCP doesn't return." Booth touted third-year wing Christian Braun as Caldwell-Pope's replacement, noting Denver's strong net rating with Braun and Nikola Jokic on the court together.

Despite trading away Reggie Jackson in a money-saving move last week, the Nuggets are still too close to the second luxury tax apron to use their non-taxpayer midlevel exception. That leaves Denver with only the $5.2 million tax midlevel to seek a replacement in free agency. No wonder Booth also touted a "plug and play" approach with second-year wing Julian Strawther likely stepping into a larger reserve role.

Deal:

Grade: B

Having declined a $4 million player option for 2024-25, Love apparently replaced it with a nearly identical salary on a two-year contract. Added by Miami after the 2022 trade deadline following a buyout with the Cleveland Cavaliers, Love played an important reserve role in 2023-24, boosting his scoring average to 8.8 points at age 35. (He'll turn 36 in September.)

Having played primarily power forward for the Heat during the 2022-23 regular season, Love was almost exclusively a backup to Bam Adebayo last season. (The two players saw just 226 minutes of action together, per NBA Advanced Stats.) In that role, Love's 3-point shooting (34% on a massive 9.5 attempts per 36 minutes) is a plus, creating space for Miami's perimeter players to work.

The amount of zone defense the Heat's second unit plays mitigates Love's biggest weakness as a center -- his lack of rim protection. Love hasn't averaged even a block per 36 minutes since his rookie season and was at 0.5 last season. Eventually, Miami will want No. 15 pick Kel'el Ware to take over as the backup center to upgrade around the basket, but for now Miami needs Love. 

Penciling in a $4 million starting salary for Love puts Miami within $5 million of the lower luxury tax apron with 11 players under contract. The Heat will likely have a choice between using their taxpayer midlevel exception or re-signing forward Caleb Martin as an unrestricted free agent. Bringing Martin back would surely push Miami over the second apron.

Deal:

Grade: B-

Christie might be the last of his kind, a second-round pick who became a restricted free agent after his second season. The second-round exception now allows teams to sign their second-round picks to longer contracts without having to use part of their midlevel exception.

During his sophomore NBA campaign, played primarily while he was 20, Christie showed enough promise to make him a compelling restricted free agent. Christie hit 36% of his 3s while flashing the ability to defend both wing spots at 6-foot-6. On a Lakers roster sorely lacking in young talent, Christie stood out, requiring the Lakers to give him a substantial raise after two seasons at the minimum.

The challenge is how Christie's new salary fits in as the Lakers contemplate using their midlevel exception in conjunction with LeBron James taking less salary for 2024-25 after declining his $51.4 million player option.

Including Christie, whose contract is projected to begin at $7.1 million with maximum raises, the Lakers now have $138.3 million committed to 13 players. Add in $700,000 unlikely incentives for D'Angelo Russell and that leaves $39 million and change to spend up to the lower luxury tax apron that would become a hard cap if the Lakers use the non-tax midlevel. That means a starting salary of $26 million for James, barring other money-saving moves.

The easiest of those would be dealing center Christian Wood, who picked up a $3 million player option and could be traded to any team because he's making the minimum. Still, that would just take the Lakers to $29 million at most for James. It will be interesting to see if he's still willing to take that substantial a discount in order to help the Lakers add a veteran contributor.

As for Christie, expectations will increase with his pay. A combination of average 3-point shooting with sub-50% accuracy inside the arc left Christie fairly inefficient overall (.544 true shooting percentage, as compared to a league average of .580) relative to his small role in the Lakers' offense (14% usage). Besides improved shooting, Christie would also benefit from generating more steals defensively.

On the plus side, Christie has years of development left on a contract that takes him through age 25. Comparable players at the same age according to my SCHOENE projection system, including Malik Beasley and Anfernee Simons (then playing primarily off-ball), developed into plus offensive players. If Christie progresses too much, the Lakers may regret giving him a player option on the last season of his contract, something they often offer free agents.

Deal:

Grade: B-

A year ago tomorrow, the New York Knicks agreed to send Toppin to the Pacers for second-round picks in what amounted to a financially motivated move. Consider it something of a best-case scenario that he's now re-signing for a substantial raise on last year's $6.8 million salary.

Toppin's skill set fit far better with Indiana's up-tempo offense (No. 2 in possessions per game) than slow-paced New York (No. 30). Although Toppin lost his starting job to Aaron Nesmith in late December, he settled in as a key part of the Pacers' rotation and averaged a career-high 10.3 points per game while making an incredible 71% of his 2-point attempts and a career-best 40% of his 3s.

The playoffs were the real test for Toppin, who has never been known for his defense. He passed, maintaining his playing time and increasing his scoring to 10.9 PPG as the competition stiffened during Indiana's unexpected run to the conference finals. Toppin played well enough to make him a potential target for teams armed with the non-taxpayer midlevel exception, convincing the Pacers to beat that deal (projected at $55 million over four years) to assure no offer sheet for the restricted free agent.

Down the road, paying Toppin and Pascal Siakam at the same position where Indiana added Jarace Walker with the No. 7 pick a year ago could make for a logjam. But it's possible that might not be an issue. Toppin played relatively more at center in the playoffs, maintaining the five-out look the Pacers get with starting center Myles Turner, while Siakam and Walker could slide to small forward. It's worth monitoring the future of the position as Walker continues to develop.

For now, Jalen Smith declining his $5.4 million player option will allow Indiana to fill out its roster while staying safely below the luxury tax line. Re-signing Toppin assures the Pacers will have their top nine players in playoff minutes under contract for 2024-25, maintaining continuity with a growing young roster.

Deal:

Grade: D

This contract for Williams seems like the latest case of the Chicago front office overvaluing the talent on the team's own roster, which has produced below-.500 results each of the past two seasons.

The Bulls were actually better in 2023-24 after Williams was lost to a midfoot injury that required season-ending surgery. Williams' 43 starts produced a 36-win pace, and while the contrast was largely about having Alex Caruso as a replacement, it still speaks poorly of Williams' ability to help a team win at this stage in his career.

Certainly, there's a scenario where having Williams under contract from ages 23 through 27 at a yearly salary below what the average starter will command as the NBA cap increases could prove a win for Chicago. If Williams realizes the potential that made him the No. 4 pick of the 2020 draft, he could regret locking in for the maximum five years instead of getting back into free agency beforehand.

Four years into Williams' career, however, we're still waiting to see that kind of development. Williams is largely the same player he was as a teenager starting for the Bulls as a rookie. Williams has been a high-percentage 3-point shooter (40% last season, 41% career), but on such limited volume (last year's 4.5 attempts per 36 minutes were a career high) that teams don't feel compelled to guard him like a threat.

Williams' accuracy inside the arc, meanwhile, has gone the wrong direction with modestly more responsibility on offense. Last season's 47% was a career low, and it meant Williams scored with below-average efficiency (.553 true shooting, compared with the league average of .580) in a smaller-than-average role (17% usage).

If Williams were a lockdown defender, that kind of offensive production might be acceptable for a starter. Though he's certainly versatile, showing the ability to defend all three wing spots at 6-foot-7, Williams hasn't made a consistently positive impact on defense. In fact, adjusted plus-minus data shows Williams as a below-average defender after factoring in teammates, opponents and shooting luck.

The biggest problem is that Chicago's other overpays -- most notably to re-sign Zach LaVine and Nikola Vucevic -- give the team little margin for error when it comes to contracts. With 13 players under contract, including second-year wing Onuralp Bitim with a non-guaranteed salary, the Bulls now stand about $22 million below the projected luxury tax line before re-signing unrestricted free agent DeMar DeRozan.

Paying the luxury tax as a likely play-in team is an untenable situation for Chicago, and while some relief is coming when the contract of injured guard Lonzo Ball ends after this season, the Bulls' ability to improve their roster outside of internal development is compromised by their lack of financial flexibility. Williams must take a considerable step forward in his development to ensure we aren't saying the same thing about his contract in a few seasons.

Grade: B-

Few free agents have ever been in a more favorable position than Royce O'Neale thanks to the restrictions on teams above the second luxury tax apron in the NBA collective bargaining agreement that kick in this season.

Not only were the Phoenix Suns unable to replace O'Neale with a free agent of equivalent value because they're well above the second apron, they couldn't sign anyone for more than the veteran's minimum. Additionally, now that Phoenix is prevented from aggregating multiple salaries together to make trades, finding matching contracts is a challenge.

All of that gave O'Neale atypical bargaining power for a 31-year-old role player who has never averaged double-figure scoring and started just 14 games last season. Within reason, O'Neale could name his price and the Suns would have little choice but to pay. That earned O'Neale, who worked hard to develop offensively after reaching the NBA as an undrafted rookie at age 24, the biggest payday of his career.

Structuring this as a four-year deal does allow Phoenix to put off the highest salaries until later years, when the salary cap will go up thanks to the NBA's pending new national TV deals. O'Neale's $9.8 million starting salary is only a modest raise from last year's $9.2 million. Nonetheless, the cost to the Suns of bringing O'Neale back will be immense.

Pending Phoenix filling out the roster, it's likely the Suns will be farther over the luxury tax line than any team in NBA history has been to finish the season, meaning each additional dollar in salary could cost them up to 6.25 times that amount in taxes. Based on reasonable assumptions, re-signing O'Neale could add more than $50 million in salary and taxes for Phoenix this year.

The drawback to O'Neale getting more than he likely would have been offered elsewhere is he becomes a strong candidate for a trade. If the Suns are looking to upgrade using the second-round picks they have as sweeteners -- the way O'Neale arrived from the Brooklyn Nets at the February trade deadline -- his salary and versatility make him a likely target. I'd guess the possibility of O'Neale landing in a less desirable spot is baked into the contract he commanded.

Deal: 

Grade: B-

Days after the New York Knicks agreed to a new contract with OG Anunoby, the Raptors have done the same with the key player they got in return from New York by trading Anunoby at the turn of the year.

Part of the appeal of that trade for Toronto was that Quickley, heading into restricted free agency, would likely come cheaper than Anunoby as an unrestricted free agent after declining a 2025-26 player option. Despite the ability to match any offer to Quickley, the Raptors are essentially paying him the same amount of his maximum salary (86%) as the Knicks did with Anunoby (87%).

The willingness by Toronto to go beyond the maximum total salary any other team could offer Quickley (a four-year deal projected at $152 million) suggests they feared such an offer sheet -- rare in recent years because of the way they tie up a team's cap space through the moratorium period. Deandre Ayton, then with the Phoenix Suns, was the only player to receive a max offer sheet in the past seven years. (Phoenix immediately matched the offer from the Indiana Pacers.)

A Quickley offer sheet from another team would surely have been less favorable from the Raptors' perspective, potentially giving him all the possible benefits above and beyond that salary, including a 15% trade bonus and a player option on the final season of his contract.

By comparison, a five-year deal for Quickley without a player option as yet reported gives Toronto far more upside if he develops into an All-Star. By the final season of this deal, 2028-29, he'll be making $39.8 million at age 29 while the maximum salary for players in their first seven NBA campaigns will likely climb north of $50 million.

At the same time, paying Quickley $35 million a year does put pressure on him to prove he's a quality starting point guard rather than merely the supersub he was in New York. Early returns were promising, as Quickley averaged 18.6 PPG and 6.8 APG in 38 starts with the Raptors, the assist average nearly double his previous career high. By shooting 39.5% from 3-point range, Quickley maintained league-average efficiency despite a tougher shot diet with less talent around him.

Because Toronto has full Bird rights on Quickley, the team can utilize his smaller $12.5 million cap hold if the Raptors decide to decline a $23 million team option for wing Bruce Brown Jr. and create about $17 million in cap space before officially inking this contract. Alternatively, Toronto could keep Brown with an eye toward potentially trading him and use the slightly smaller $12.8 million non-taxpayer midlevel exception.

Either way, with big contracts kicking in for first Quickley and then Scottie Barnes' max extension next summer, this offseason is an important opportunity for the Raptors to utilize cap flexibility to add to a young core of Barnes, Quickley and RJ Barrett.

Deal: 

Grade: B-

The Knicks' willingness to trade four of their own future first-round picks in the deal with the Brooklyn Nets to bring Mikal Bridges to Manhattan reported Tuesday signaled a confidence that they could re-sign Anunoby to play with him on the wing. Anunoby and Bridges are a potent duo of defenders with more ability to generate offense than most players of their ilk.

Part of the reason New York gave up so much for Bridges was his bargain contract, which will pay him $47.9 million over the next two seasons. Anunoby alone will make more than that in the last year of this contract -- a player option worth $48.4 million.

The Knicks' willingness to go north of $40 million average salary over the course of this contract strongly suggests they expected another team to make Anunoby a max four-year offer, worth $182 million based on current cap projections. New York could pay more than that thanks to the ability to offer a fifth year using Bird rights, up to a maximum of $245 million.

The most important number here is Anunoby's starting salary of $36.6 million. That's enough to put the Knicks right on the threshold of the lower luxury-tax apron, which New York would be subject to if the Bridges trade is completed as a one-for-one deal in exchange for Bojan Bogdanovic.

If the Knicks add more salary going out in the Bridges trade, potentially via sign-and-trade involving one of their own free agents, that will subject them to a hard cap at the higher second apron and give them about $11 million more to fill out their roster.

By signing Anunoby to the longest contract possible, New York is counting on the salary cap escalating faster than his max 8% raises once the new national TV deal kicks in. By 2028-29, the last year of Anunoby's deal, he projects to take up 23% of the cap as compared to the starting point of 26% -- although that might make it more likely he declines a player option.

A five-year deal takes Anunoby, who will turn 27 next month, through the remainder of his prime. A $42.5 million average salary sounds like a lot for a player who has never been an All-Star, or all that close. It might even prove too much, but it assures the Knicks will be perhaps the biggest threat to the Boston Celtics after adding Bridges.

Deal:

Grade: A

Given Adebayo's central role as the keeper of "Heat Culture" that has carried the team to a pair of NBA Finals appearances in the past five years, staying in Miami beyond the expiration of his current contract in 2025-26 seemed like a foregone conclusion.

Despite both sides being happy to extend their relationship, how Adebayo would handle his next contract was a question mark entering this offseason. Had he played out the upcoming campaign, Adebayo would have been eligible for a four-year extension and had the potential to qualify for a supermax extension of up to five years by either making All-NBA or winning Defensive Player of the Year.

Besides the extra year, a supermax extension could have started at up to 35% of the salary cap in 2026-27 as opposed to the 30% projection that gets us to a $166 million valuation for this deal. By locking in his extension now, Adebayo is to some degree betting against his ability to reach supermax eligibility.

Foregoing that possibility may speak to the strength of Heat Culture -- or perhaps more importantly the lure of playing in Miami -- off the court. Adebayo could reasonably fear that Miami, afraid of the potential of devoting 35% of the cap as he ages, would consider trading him instead of offering the supermax extension. By signing now, Adebayo largely assures he'll be in Miami and also gets back into free agency in 2029 ahead of his age-32 season.

Whatever Adebayo's motivation, the Heat front office has to be thrilled to take the supermax possibility off the table and put his next contract on their cap sheet officially. Miami will surely have a trickier time considering a possible extension for Jimmy Butler, who could become a free agent next summer if he declines a $52.4 million player option.

Butler's age (35 in September) and contract create plenty of uncertainty for how the Heat move forward. Whether it's Butler or pursuing a younger star, Miami knows that's to pair with Adebayo for the foreseeable future.

Deal:

Grade: A

Along with free agents being able to negotiate with their own teams prior to the traditional June 30 start of free agency, the same is true under the new collective bargaining agreement for extension-eligible players such as Barnes.

It's not very surprising this deal got done quickly. ESPN's Brian Windhorst refers to rookie extensions like this as the "fun max" because teams are eager to reward their promising draft picks. Barnes, the Rookie of the Year in 2021-22 and the first player from the 2021 draft to become an All-Star last season at age 22, qualifies as Toronto's franchise player.

Still, with rookie extensions like this that are sure to be for the maximum salary, there are a couple of points of negotiation to watch. The first is whether it includes criteria to increase the starting salary to 30% of the cap rather than the typical 25% max for players with fewer than seven years of experience, which this does. That would push Barnes' extension from a projected $225 million to $270 million if he makes All-NBA or wins either MVP or Defensive Player of the Year. The second negotiating point is including a player option on the fifth year, which it doesn't appear Barnes received. That's in line with recent rookie extensions.

None of last year's max extensions (for Anthony Edwards and Tyrese Haliburton, who bumped up their salaries by making All-NBA, as well as LaMelo Ball) included player options.

Beyond Barnes, the rest of this summer's rookie extensions could be trickier to value. As promising as the 2021 draft looked in Year 1, the development curve has been bumpier for No. 1 pick Cade Cunningham, No. 2 pick Jalen Green and No. 3 pick Evan Mobley. Franz Wagner, taken eighth by the Orlando Magic, and No. 16 pick Alperen Sengun are lower picks with cases for max extensions based on their play to date.

Some of those extensions will surely get done, perhaps even for the max, but they'll likely require more negotiating than Barnes' "fun max" did.

Deal:

Grade: A

Getting Malik Monk back is a great outcome for the Kings, who could have been outbid by a team with cap space that aggressively pursued last season's Sixth Man Award runner-up.

Since Sacramento signed Monk to just a two-year deal back in 2022, when he'd first built up his value as a part-time starter during one season with the Los Angeles Lakers, the Kings could only use early Bird rights to exceed the salary cap and re-sign Monk. That makes this deal the largest they could offer.

To some extent, Sacramento was lucky another team didn't aggressively pursue Monk, who ranked 10th in my projections of the most valuable free agents over the next three seasons based on his high-volume scoring off the bench and age (26). Much like the Lakers last year with restricted free agent Austin Reaves, the Kings deserve credit for making Monk the best offer possible, including a player option on the final season of the deal as reported by ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski.

Since he's on the small side for a shooting guard at 6-foot-3, Monk wasn't a fit with every team. That said, he improved his playmaking last season, averaging a career-high 5.1 assists per game and serving as Sacramento's primary ball handler with former Kentucky teammate De'Aaron Fox on the bench. The Kings averaged more points per pick-and-roll with Monk at the controls (1.04) than Fox (1.02) when the play led directly to a shot, according to Second Spectrum tracking.

Unfortunately, Sacramento saw Monk's value proven last season in his absence for the final 10 games due to an MCL sprain. That injury -- in the wake of starting shooting guard Kevin Huerter's injury -- torpedoed the Kings' chances of a second consecutive playoff appearance. They went 4-6 over that span, slipping into the play-in tournament, and lost in New Orleans with the No. 8 seed on the line after eliminating the Golden State Warriors.

Re-signing Monk will likely necessitate other moves for Sacramento. As ESPN's Bobby Marks noted, this contract pushes the Kings $1 million above the projected luxury-tax line with 12 players under contract, plus the No. 13 pick in this year's draft. Sacramento has plenty of excess reserves in the final seasons of their deals who could be moved, with guard Chris Duarte -- who played sparingly even with Huerter and Monk out -- particularly standing out at $5.9 million. After falling agonizingly short of the playoffs, the Kings will also want to try to upgrade the roster rather than merely retaining last season's rotation. Either way, Sacramento is closer to a playoff return with Monk under contract.

Deal:

Grade: B-

The Pacers re-signing Siakam has been telegraphed since the moment they dealt three first-round picks to acquire him in January, so it's unsurprising that he's the first player to take advantage to the change to the NBA's collective bargaining agreement allowing free agents to negotiate with their own teams beginning the day after the end of the NBA Finals.

It's also no surprise that Siakam got a deal starting at the maximum 30% of the cap for a player with eight years of experience, although Indiana did manage to hold the line on a four-year deal rather than the five years for which Siakam could have re-signed.

On one level, a 30% max -- currently projected at $42.3 million, though subject to change when the salary cap is set on June 30, with the possibility that an unusually short set of series in the conference finals and Finals could mean the NBA's basketball-related income for this season falls short of expectations -- is surely an overpay for Siakam, who has made just two All-Star Games in his career and wasn't a serious contender this season.

For a franchise like the Pacers that is rarely a player for stars in free agency, however, it was going to be tough to get more mileage out of the cap space they used to sign Bruce Brown last summer and send him to the Toronto Raptors as part of the matching salary for Siakam. Had Siakam chosen to test unrestricted free agency, it's reasonable to think one of the handful of teams with cap space would have thrown a max offer his way given the paucity of gettable star players.

Beyond that, Indiana is betting the increase in the salary cap with the NBA's new TV deals set to begin in 2025-26 will help this contract age well. The cap is set to increase the maximum 10% year-to-year over the duration of Siakam's deal, and those raises -- unlike his maximum 8% raises -- are compounded. So while Siakam's contract will be 30% of the cap in 2024-25, by the end of his deal in 2027-28, it figures to be just 28%.

That's important, because the biggest concern is how well Siakam will age over the course of his contract. He turned 30 in April, putting this deal squarely in his decline years. As I noted in my rankings of the top free agents available, the players deemed most similar to Siakam saw their per-minute performance decline by 5% the following season. It's possible that by 2027-28, Siakam is more of a complementary piece than the second star he gave the Pacers alongside All-NBA guard Tyrese Haliburton.

Before that happens, adding Siakam midseason raised Indiana's ceiling dramatically and was key to the team's unexpected trip to the conference finals. Siakam's shot creation was valuable throughout that playoff run, starting with two monster games when the Milwaukee Bucks attempted to guard him with center Brook Lopez (73 points on 31-of-48 shooting) and up through averaging 23.0 points on 57% shooting in the final three games of the conference finals with Haliburton limited and then sidelined.

Retaining Siakam keeps Indiana in the East mix as a second-tier contender but raises for both him and Haliburton will force difficult decisions elsewhere starting this summer, including a $5.4 million player option for Jalen Smith and the non-guaranteed $2.1 million salary of Kendall Brown. The Pacers will enter free agency just $14.4 million below the projected luxury tax line with 12 players under contract.

Given Indiana hasn't paid the tax since 2005-06, that likely limits what Indiana can offer restricted free agent Obi Toppin to return. If another team came in with an offer greater than the $12.9 million non-taxpayer midlevel in the wake of Toppin averaging 10.9 PPG backing up both Siakam and center Myles Turner during the Pacers' playoff run, Indiana would have to choose between letting him walk or entering the season in the tax.

Down the road, as Turner and key reserve T.J. McConnell see their contracts expire, Indiana won't be able to maintain the depth that was so important to the team this season. After trading for and re-signing Siakam, the Pacers are into a new stage of their building process, and it's one that affords less margin for error filling out the roster.