Restricted Free Agency is the last bastion of old-school “teams hold all the power” contract status in the NBA. In a league that has become increasingly player-friendly in terms of players getting paid, teams can still wield the restricted hammer over players. Sure, some restricted free agents get paid, but other times players languish on the market until they have no choice but to re-sign with their teams.

We’re going to look at what some former first-round picks might be looking at in restricted free agency this summer. To better understand that, we’re going to look back at the recent history of restricted free agency.

Over the last five offseasons from 2020 through 2024, a total of 26 former first-round picks have reached restricted free agency. That’s an average of just over five players per offseason.

This offseason, we have a whopping 10 former first-round picks who are pending restricted free agents.

Below are the former first-round picks who reached restricted free agency over the last five years and what ultimately happened with those players and their next contract.

• 2020: Malik Beasley – Minnesota Timberwolves – re-signed for four years, $60 million
• 2020: Juancho Hernangomez – Minnesota Timberwolves – re-signed for three years, $21 million
• 2020: Brandon Ingram – New Orleans Pelicans – re-signed for five years, $158 million
• 2020: Jako Poeltl – San Antonio Spurs – re-signed for three years, $27 million
• 2020: Dario Saric – Phoenix Suns – re-signed for three years, $27 million
• 2020: Denzel Valentine – Chicago Bulls – re-signed for one year, $4.6 million (signed Qualifying Offer)
• 2021: Lonzo Ball – Chicago Bulls – signed-and-traded for four years, $85 million
• 2021: John Collins – Atlanta Hawks – re-signed for five years, $125 million
• 2021: Josh Hart – New Orleans Pelicans – re-signed for three years, $38 million
• 2021: Lauri Markkanen – Cleveland Cavaliers – signed-and-traded for four years, $67 million
• 2022: Deandre Ayton – Phoenix Suns – matched offer sheet for four years, $133 million
• 2022: Marvin Bagley III – Detroit Pistons – re-signed for three years, $37 million
• 2022: Miles Bridges – Charlotte Hornets – Unsigned (suspended for season)
• 2022: Collin Sexton – Utah Jazz – signed-and-traded for four years, $72 million
• 2022: Anfernee Simons – Portland Trail Blazers – re-signed for four years, $100 million
• 2023: Rui Hachimura – Los Angeles Lakers – re-signed for three years, $51 million
• 2023: Cameron Johnson – Brooklyn Nets – re-signed for four years, $108 million
• 2023: Matisse Thybulle – Portland Trail Blazers – matched offer sheet for three years, $33 million
• 2023: P.J. Washington – Charlotte Hornets – re-signed for three years, $48 million
• 2023: Coby White – Chicago Bulls – re-signed for three years, $40 million
• 2023: Grant Williams – Dallas Mavericks – signed-and-traded for 4 years, $54 million
• 2024 Tyrese Maxey – Philadelphia 76ers – re-signed for five years, $204 million
• 2024: Isaac Okoro – Cleveland Cavaliers – re-signed for three years, $38 million
• 2024: Immanuel Quickley – Toronto Raptors – re-signed for five years, $175 million
• 2024: Obi Toppin – Indiana Pacers – re-signed for four years, $60 million
• 2024: Patrick Williams – Chicago Bulls – re-signed for five years, $90 million

Here’s the breakdown:

• Re-signed on a max deal: Three players (one matched offer sheet)
• Re-signed for less than max: 17 players (one matched offer sheet)
• Re-signed on qualifying offer: One player
• Changed teams via sign-and-trade: Four players
• Unsigned: One player

Out of 26 former first-round picks to reach restricted free agency, all but five returned to their incumbent team the next season. Only three got max contracts. And only two total players garnered offer sheets.

Within that breakdown, there’s a little context needed.

Brandon Ingram was coming off a serious, career-threatening blood clot condition before re-signing with the Pelicans. Tyrese Maxey and the Sixers agreed to delay his re-signing to allow Philadelphia to create the most cap space possible.

Of the players to change teams, all four did so via sign-and-trade. Within that group of four, both Lauri Markkanen and Collin Sexton had to wait until deep into free agency to get their new deals via sign-and-trade situations.

And, just in case you think the “just sign the qualifying offer and hit unrestricted free agency in the next summer” is a viable path, we’ve seen one player go that route. And, sadly, Denzel Valentine was out of the league after only one more season. Teams have increasingly declined to tender a qualifying offer as opposed to allowing a player to sign and become an unrestricted free agent a year later.

To recap: A grand total of three players got max contracts, and one was coming off injury concerns, one was pre-arranged and one took an offer sheet to get his max deal.

Now, to be fair, several other players got really nice contracts. John Collins, Immanuel Quickley, Cameron Johnson and Anfernee Simons all reached the $100 million marker, while Patrick Williams came up just short of that amount.

Of that group, the jury is still somewhat out on Quickley’s deal (Reminder: Quickley ranks 20th in terms of AAV among NBA point guards for the 2024-25 season. Meaning: It’s a better deal than you think it is.), but the rest are all largely fine. Collins has proven to be a bit overpaid, but Johnson and Simons have delivered solid value on their deals.

Several other players got a contract in range of the Non-Taxpayer MLE or less. To be fair again, only a couple of players got truly got squeezed and outplayed their deals. Jakob Poeltl and Josh Hart both garnered significantly bigger deals on their third contracts. That’s where Coby White seems headed too.

For everyone else, they got paid somewhere between fair and a slight overpay. And a handful of others (Juancho Hernangomez, Dario Saric, Marvin Bagley III) all got bigger deals than they should have.

One other interesting note: Of the 26 former first-round picks to hit restricted free agency since 2020, 12 of them were traded while on the deal they were re-signed to (excluding sign-and-traded players, since the trade was part of the original transaction). Can we all that “re-signers remorse”?

While restricted free agency has been tough on players, it’s largely worked out ok for them. Only three players seem to have gotten truly squeezed as restricted free agents. Sure, only a few got max deals, but the vast majority of restricted free agents still came out with a pretty nice payday.

But…where players are truly impacted is with their ability to change teams. Only four total players changed teams (Again: all via sign-and-trade, in which the incumbent team has some measure of control), and only two others even signed offer sheets. That’s roughly a 15% change rate.

The ability to change teams has been extremely limited. And that’s some history we can expect to repeat itself this offseason.

There are 10 former first-round picks who are pending restricted free agents for the 2025 offseason. By original draft slot, these are the 10 pending RFAs and their qualifying offers:

• Josh Giddey: Chicago Bulls – $11.1 million qualifying offer
• Jonthan Kuminga: Golden State Warriors – $10.2 million qualifying offer
• Davion Mitchell: Miami Heat – $7.9 million qualifying offer*
• Ziaire Williams: Brooklyn Nets – $7.9 million qualifying offer
• Tre Mann: Charlotte Hornets – $6.9 million qualifying offer
• Isaiah Jackson: Indiana Pacers – $6.4 million qualifying offer
• Quentin Grimes: Philadelphia 76ers – $6.3 million qualifying offer*
• Cam Thomas: Brooklyn Nets – $5.9 million qualifying offer
• Day’Ron Sharpe: Brooklyn Nets – $5.9 million qualifying offer
• Santi Aldama: Memphis Grizzlies – $5.9 million qualifying offer

*Both Davion Mitchell and Quentin Grimes could still reach Starter Criteria. If so, that would see Mitchell’s and Grimes’ qualifying offers come in at $8.7 million.

Looking at this group, we can pretty confidently take Ziaire Williams, Tre Mann and Isaiah Jackson out of the mix. If any of those three players receive their qualifying offer, they’d do well to simply sign it. Mann and Jackson are coming off season-ending injuries, while Williams simply hasn’t produced at a level worth $7.9 million.

That leaves seven players in the balance. Of the remaining seven players, Cam Thomas and Day’Ron Sharpe are in a somewhat weird spot. They both play for the Brooklyn Nets, who happen to be the only team that is projected to have cap space this summer. So, their situation won’t likely be driven by offer sheets, since the most a team could offer them would be the Non-Taxpayer MLE.

Now we’re down to five players. And those five all have pretty interesting situations.

Josh Giddey and Jonathan Kuminga both have enough prospect shine left on them to make them “future investment” candidates. Quentin Grimes has certainly shown enough with Philadelphia that we’ll put him in the same category.

Davion Mitchell and Santi Aldama are both high-end rotation players, but haven’t established themselves as starters yet.

Now, as we referenced above, market factors heavily influence restricted free agency. In this case, only one team having cap space is going to make it really tough on the 2025 RFA group.

Could the Nets throw a big offer sheet at Giddey, Kuminga or Grimes? Sure. All of them are young enough and talented enough to go that route. 

It's worth pausing here to note that Sean Marks has played in restricted free agency when he’s had cap space before. The Nets gave offer sheets to Allen Crabbe, Tyler Johnson and Otto Porter Jr. several years ago. All three offer sheets were matched, but Marks isn’t afraid to force a rival team to pay up to keep their players.

In the case of Kuminga and Grimes, both of their incumbent teams (Warriors and 76ers, respectively) are facing luxury tax and apron issues. If Brooklyn gave either Kuminga or Grimes anything approaching a max offer sheet (projected starting salary of $38.7 million in 2025-26), their current teams might blink at matching.

Giddey is in a bit of a different spot. He’s kind of, sort of as close to the centerpiece of the Bulls young core as they have. Giddey has been solid all season, but since the calendar flipped to 2025, he’s gone to a different level. In 32 games since January 1, Giddey has averaged 15.4 points on 48/44/82 shooing splits, 8.4 rebounds, 6.8 assists and 1.4 steals per game. If you believe in that shooting, combined with the other production, that’s approaching max contract territory.

Here’s the challenge though: Giddey, Kuminga and Grimes will be 23, 23 and 25 at the start of the 2025-26 season. That’s hardly ancient, but given that the Nets are in the early stages of their rebuild, that would be a major commitment for any of these three players.

And therein lies the issue for the 2025 RFA group: The Nets are the only team that can realistically sign any of the RFAs to an offer sheet that would cause their teams to have to swallow hard while making a decision to match.

That means, as per usual, most of the 2025 RFA group is likely to re-sign with their own team. A couple could change teams via sign-and-trade, but that’s really hard to project.

As we project the next contract for each of the pending RFAs, we’re going to assume they’ll be re-signing with their current teams. We’re using a combination of history combined with updated market factors, as well as future improvement forecasts to drive these projections.

Josh Giddey

Projected Next Contract: four years, $108 million

Analysis: Considering the Bulls gave Patrick Williams $18 million a year over five years, and he’s never shown as much as Giddey has, we’re bumping Giddey’s number up. We’re also knocking a year off, as Giddey isn’t going to fetch a player option on his final season, so he’ll likely only want to lock in for four years.

Jonathan Kuminga

Projected Next Contract: four years, $100 million

Analysis: Kuminga has been less reliable than Giddey, but he’s got higher upside. Kuminga still has “primary scorer on a good team” potential. He’s also the best, and last, of the Warriors “two timelines” prospects left. This is a pretty heavy investment, but Kuminga is worth nearly as much as the more-proven Giddey, simply given the untapped upside he still has.

Davion Mitchell

Projected Next Contract: four years, $40 million

Analysis: Mitchell has been solid enough as a backup point guard. When you adjust for his ability to also start, Mitchell’s value bumps just shy of the Non-Taxpayer MLE amount. The Heat don’t have a lot of point guard depth and Miami values locking players up on long-term team-friendly deals when they can.

Ziaire Williams

Projected Next Contract: Veteran Minimum

Analysis: Williams has played better with Nets, but he’s unlikely to get tendered a qualifying offer. That will make him an unrestricted free agent. From there, Williams will probably have to take a minimum deal to continue finding his way in the NBA.

Tre Mann

Projected Next Contract: two years, $11 million

Analysis: Mann has shown he can score and can be an NBA rotation player. Getting hurt this year really killed his chances at getting a bigger deal. Had he stayed healthy, he might have been looking at something in the range of $10-15 million AAV. As it stands, he’s likely to be more in the range of the Taxpayer MLE, if even that. Charlotte likely won’t issue the combo guard the qualifying offer. It wouldn’t be a surprise if Mann had to take a minimum deal and work his way back from there.

Isaiah Jackson

Projected Next Contract: Veteran Minimum

Analysis: Jackson will be coming of a torn Achilles. If he had stayed healthy, there was a good chance Jackson would have landed a deal around $8-10 million AAV. Now, he’ll likely have to take a minimum deal to prove he’s healthy. Also, don’t expect Indiana to tender a qualifying offer to Jackson. If they do, he’d be smart to sign it immediately.

Quentin Grimes

Projected Next Contract: four years, $100 million

This one is based on potential, need and fit with the 76ers. Because of their cap/tax/apron situation, it’s going to be hard for Philadelphia to add outside talent for the next few years. That means it’s imperative to keep a guy like Grimes. $25 million AAV might seem like a lot, but Grimes has shown he can do more than just being a 3&D guy. He should also be a really solid fit with Tyrese Maxey and Jared McCain in a three-guard rotation for the Sixers moving forward.

Cam Thomas

Projected Next Contract: three years, $45 million

Analysis: Thomas can score. He’s a better playmaker than most realize. The Nets aren’t in a position to let young talent walk out the door, but Brooklyn can’t start overpaying guys yet either. Unless there’s a team that falls in love and wants to work a sign-and-trade deal for Thomas, expect Brooklyn to get him back on a solid value contract. Think what Coby White signed for, plus a bit to represent the new cap environment. From there, it’s up to Thomas to outplay the deal, much like White has.

Day’Ron Sharpe

Projected Next Contract: three years, $30 million

Analysis: Sharpe is essentially the big man equivalent of teammate Cam Thomas. The Nets can’t just let him walk, but bigs don’t generally get paid as much as scoring wings/guards do. And Brooklyn already has Nic Claxton and Noah Clowney under contract too. That’ll push Sharpe’s deal down a bit, but he should still get a nice payday.

Santi Aldama

Projected Next Contract: four years, $60 million

Analysis: This is essentially the equivalent to the Non-Taxpayer MLE. Aldama has improved every year he’s been in the league, and that’s maintained as his role has grown. The Grizzlies cap situation is getting a bit tight, especially when you factor in Jaren Jackson Jr. is due a new starting in 2026-27. This could be one where another team works a sign-and-trade, that way Memphis can keep their books in order, but doesn’t lose Aldama for nothing. Think the equivalent to Grant Williams leaving the Boston Celtics for the Dallas Mavericks a few years back.

Bill Chishom, managing partner of Symphony Technology Group, has agreed to purchase the Boston Celtics at a $6.1 billion valuation. This is the richest purchase price for a North American sports team.

Chisholm grew up on the North Shore of Massachusetts and is a lifelong Celtics fan. Forbes estimated Chisholm to have a net worth of $7.5 billion.

The Grousbeck family, led by Wyc Grousbeck, purchased the Celtics for $360 million in 2002. They put the team up for sale this summer, shortly after the Celtics captured their record 18th NBA title.

The Celtics face questions for their new ownership group in the coming years. Boston is set to have the largest payroll, plus tax bill, in the NBA next season. The Celtics are looking at coming at over $500 million for salaries plus tax penalties. There are also questions about the team's arena situation, as the Celtics currently share TD Garden with the Boston Bruins.

The $6.1 billion valuation is also important for the NBA as a whole. Adam Silver has said that the league is looking at expansion, but the NBA was slow-playing that process. Part of the reason for that was assumed to be hoping the Celtics sale would set a benchmark for expansion teams. Now, the NBA can condifently expect to receive large bids when they do open formally open the expansion process.

The Philadelphia 76ers have a big dilemma on their hands. A 7-foot, 280-pound dilemma named Joel Embiid.

Or, if you prefer years and numbers: A four-year, $248 million dilemma named Joel Embiid.

By now, you know Embiid is out for the rest of this season. He’s got a chronic left knee issue. Embiid said it would not be corrected until he could have further surgery. Yet, for some reason, he continued to play for several more games. Eventually, the pain became too much. And after another week of obfuscation, Embiid was shut down for the season.

It was clear from watching him play this season, that things were never really right for the former MVP. Embiid looked like he was dragging his left leg up and down the floor. He’s so talented, that he was still putting up decent counting stats, but the efficiency and impact on both ends of the floor were basically gone.

Embiid put up his lowest points, rebounds and blocks since his shortened rookie season. What really took a hit was his efficiency. The Sixers center hit just 44.4% from the field, including only 29.9% on three-pointers. In addition, Embiid was averaging under a block per game for the first time in his career.

In a sad, but perfect, example of the eye test matching the stats, Embiid wasn’t the same guy.

When Joel Embiid was coming into the NBA, an often-made comp was to Patrick Ewing. Dominant, strong big man who could control the glass, protect the rim and score in a variety of ways on offense. Ewing was regularly billed as the best jump-shooting center (he didn’t take threes, because that wasn’t a thing for most centers when Ewing played) during his career. The same label has been applied to Embiid.

Now, their careers appear to be taking the same tragic turn. After an injury-filled rookie season, Ewing began a run of All-Star and All-NBA appearances that lasted for decade, but sadly, an NBA title eluded the Knicks big man. Then injuries hit again.

Over the final three seasons of his Knicks career, Ewing regularly missed time. Then he finished his career with two forgettable and somewhat injury-plagued seasons with the Seattle SuperSonics and Orlando Magic.

By the end, Ewing couldn’t really move or jump. He was still semi-effective because he had that nice touch on his shot and he was strong enough to hold his position on defense. But he was no longer much of a defensive presence, the rebounding was down and ability to dominate games in the paint was gone.

Sounds familiar, right? Sadly, this could be where we’re headed with Joel Embiid. One major difference? Ewing wrapped up his career as a role player making role player money. Embiid hasn’t even started his next max contract yet.

The Contract

Joel Embiid is currently wrapping up his third NBA contract. Embiid signed a four-year, Designated Veteran Extension that was set to run from 2023-24 through 2026-27. Embiid ended up cancelling out his player option on that final season to sign a new three-year Veteran Extension that will run from 2026-27 through 2028-29. All total, here’s what Embiid is owed over the next four seasons:

• 2025-26: $55,224,526 (final season of current contract)
• 2026-27: $59,539,200 (first season of three-year Veteran Extension)
• 2027-28: $64,302,336
• 2028-29: $69,065,472 (player option)
• Total: four years, $248,131,534

We’re going to go ahead and include that player option as being picked up as we do any future analysis of Embiid’s situation. He’ll turn 35 years old during the 2028-29 season and barring something unexpected, he’s almost guaranteed to pick up that option.

It’s worth noting that the 2026-27 season is based on Embiid maxing out at the 35% of the cap marker. There’s always the possibility that the cap comes in slightly lower than 10% growth in each of the next two seasons, but that seems unlikely.

Another point worth noting: There are no protections for Philadelphia in Embiid’s current deal or his previous deal. Embiid’s rookie scale extension famously had several benchmarks, that if missed could have allowed the 76ers to get out of the contract relatively free and clear. Those protections don’t exist on Embiid’s current contract, nor his extension that starts in 2026-27.

Last, but not least, point worth noting: Embiid is one of three max players on the Sixers books through at least the 2027-28 season. Paul George and Tyrese Maxey are both on maximum contracts for the next three seasons too. Here’s what the trio of Embiid, George and Maxey combine for against the projected cap for each of the next three seasons:

• 2025-26: $144,849,376 against a projected cap of $154,647,000
• 2026-27: $154,436,100 against a projected cap of $170,112,000
• 2027-28: $164,471,286 against a projected cap of $187,123,000

Essentially, even with projected cap growth outpacing salary growth, the Embiid, George, Maxey trio takes up the entire salary cap by themselves. Factor in other players, roster minimums and draft picks, Philadelphia will be over the cap and working around the luxury tax and tax aprons for the next few years with these three on the roster.

And that leads us to the decision points for the Sixers.

Trade Options

Philadelphia could look at all of the above and say that they and Joel Embiid have fought the good fight together, but now it’s time to go their separate ways. In that case, the Sixers could search out trade options for the big man.

Going that route opens up a couple of questions: Can Philadelphia trade Embiid? And who would trade for an injury-prone max contract center in today’s apron-fearing, perimeter-based NBA?

The first one is easily answered. There are no restrictions for the 76ers to trade Joel Embiid. He doesn’t have a no-trade clause of any kind. He’ll be trade-eligible by the offseason. That’s the easy part.

The harder part is finding a team who would take on Embiid and his massive contract. But the old saying in sports comes into play here: It only takes one…we’ll let finish that quote yourselves.

Some team, maybe even a few of them, will convince themselves that they, and their medical staff, can get Embiid right. They’ll look at it as maybe even stealing a former MVP and a regular All-Star on the cheap, in terms of trade capital.

In addition, there are a couple of teams who might look at their cap sheet and roster and will decide that they can deal with it if Embiid misses time. Maybe those teams are deep enough that they can manage the big man through the season by playing him 45-50 games a year.

Finally, there might be a team or two who are stuck enough that taking a chance on Embiid isn’t any bigger of a gamble than being a perennial lottery team anyway.

Without getting into specific trade ideas, we’ll probably have plenty of time for that over the next couple of years, someone would trade for Joel Embiid and the nearly $250 million he’s owed. It only takes one, after all.

Waive and Stretch

More than a few times while talking about Joel Embiid, someone has asked “Could Philly just waive and stretch him?”

Let’s say the 76ers decided to just press the red button and activate the nuclear option this offseason, they could attempt to waive and stretch Embiid. That would take the $248 million that Embiid is owed and spread that out over a whopping nine seasons at approximately $27.6 million per season. 

Quick explainer: The stretch provision takes the money owed to a player and spreads it evenly over a number of years that is twice the years remaining on the contract, plus one additional year. In Embiid’s case, the player option on his final season would be exercised. That would give him four years and $248 million on his contract. That would be stretched over nine seasons at $27.6 million per season.

Now, forget all of that.

Teams aren’t allowed to waive and stretch a player if the amount of the player’s stretched salary will exceed 15% of the salary cap for the season the player is being waived.

If this was to happen this upcoming season, 15% of the projected cap is $23.2 million. So, no dice there, as Embiid’s stretched salary amount would be more than 15% of the projected cap. The same would be true of the 2026-27 season too.

If Embiid is still on the roster, and things are so bad that Philly can’t trade him and they need to waive and stretch the big man, the earliest they could do that would be ahead of the 2027-28 season.

But it won’t ever get that far. If things are that bad, there’s an outside chance another option will have come into play before the summer of 2027.

Medical Retirement

If it’s believed at any point that Joel Embiid can no longer play, the 76ers could petition the NBA for an injury exclusion due to a medical retirement. In his case, Embiid would continue to receive his full salary, but Philadelphia would see his contract fully removed from their books moving forward.

If things got to this point, the Sixers would waive Embiid and his entire contract would stay on their books. At a point that is one year from his last NBA game, Philadelphia could then petition for an injury exclusion. (There’s also a clause where if the player plays 10 games or fewer in a season, the can back-date things back to the previous season’s final game played.)

From the point where the team petitions for the injury exclusion, the NBA and NBPA would jointly select a doctor/physician, or they would convene the Fitness to Play panel, to review the player’s injury history and the medical case. That doctor/physician or the Fitness to Play panel would then determine if the player’s injuries will prevent them from playing again.

If the finding is that the player can no longer play, then the contract is immediately removed from the team’s cap sheet. If the team is still over the cap following removal of the player’s salary, they are still over the cap. They don’t get an exception to replace the player.

A few more notes:

• If the player beats the odds and returns to play, his salary is put back on the team’s cap sheet (through the terms of the original contract), provided that the player plays in 25 games in any one season after the exclusion was approved.
• If the injury exclusion is approved, the player cannot re-sign with that team. The team also cannot re-acquire that player via trade or waivers.
• An injury exclusion can be sought only during the terms of the original contract. If the player was waived and stretched, the team must petition for the injury exclusion during the terms of the original contract, not the years that the salary was stretched over.
• If the player makes it back to play, but then is unable to play in the future, the team can reapply for a subsequent injury exclusion for the remainder of the contract. The process would be exactly the same as the original petition.

To be abundantly clear: There is no indication that the 76ers or Embiid are anywhere near this point. All statements from the team, and all reporting from both the team and player sides, are that Embiid intends to return to play. We are simply laying this option out as one Philadelphia could take at some point over the next four years.

Summary

The Philadelphia 76ers are in a tough spot with Joel Embiid, just as Embiid is in a tough spot with his own career. Yes, Embiid could simply walk away, the Sixers could apply for the injury exclusion and everyone sort of wins. Embiid still gets paid and the 76ers get out of the contract.

But it’s not nearly that simple. Embiid wants to play. No matter how much criticism you might want to lay on the guy, Embiid has worked very hard to play. He played in the Olympics when he probably shouldn’t have. He played through injuries this season when he definitely shouldn’t have. Given there is an option to get paid to not play and Embiid hasn’t taken it, it’s clear he wants to play.

Beyond that, Philadelphia clearly wants their All-Star center on the floor. We can argue if they’ve handled Embiid well (the argument here would be that they haven’t in recent years), but the Sixers aren’t trying to get him off the roster. If they were, they wouldn’t have continued to give him maximum contract extensions.

For now, the plan seems to be for Embiid to get further surgery or to rehab with the idea to be back at some point next season. Ideally, this process will start ASAP and Embiid will be ready close to the start of next season. However, it does seem like all parties involved are invested in getting this right this time around. If the rehab process lasts into next season, so be it. There’s a lot more at stake here than some regular season games.

Beyond this season, it’s anyone’s guess. If Embiid is able to get moderately healthy and return to being a productive (if no longer dominant) player, then the Sixers will be happy to have him in the fold.

If Embiid can’t return to form, then we start to consider trade options. If he can’t get moderately healthy, then we look at the other options we laid out. But those are 2026 questions. For now, all anyone can do is hope that Embiid can get right and get back to being himself again for next season. Any course of action from there will be determined down the line.

The 2025 NBA trade deadline is behind us. We’ll still have a handful more transactions to come, but for the most part, the major moves are done. Extensions are the big deals to watch, along with some buyouts, signings and two-way conversions also on tap. That means it’s time to look forward to the summer of 2025!

The 2025 NBA offseason looks like a weird one. The new media rights money will start hitting, but the NBA and NBPA agreed to cap the cap growth at no more than 10% from one year to the next. That means the cap is projected to go from $140.6 million this season to just over $154.6 million for next season. That $14 million jump is a big one, but it’s not going to result in a whole of cap space around the NBA.

The reason for that is teams have gotten really aggressive in recent years with extensions. More and more players are forgoing free agency and taking the certainty of extensions. In the 2024 offseason, the only big-name All-Star to change teams via direct free agency was Paul George. A few others moved via sign-and-trades and standard trades, but free agency itself wasn’t how stars moved.

That’s likely to continue in the summer of 2025. As you’ll see, there’s barely any cap space projected to be out there this summer. Also, the free agent class projects to be devoid of stars. Most of the All-Star level guys are good bets to re-sign with their current teams, or to extend before free agency opens.

However, that doesn’t mean having spending power is completely useless. With the Apron Era fully upon us, NBA teams are embracing exceptions in different ways. This summer, there will be some value signings available, simply because the means to overpay those players as free agents aren’t available. That should make for an active summer of role player movement.

In addition, it’s going to be a big-time trade summer. If you want to acquire a star, a trade will be the way to do it. And if deadline and post-deadline rumblings are any indicator, there are going to several stars available this offseason.

With all that said, here’s how things look today for 2025 offseason spending power around the NBA. For reference: The Non-Taxpayer MLE projects to be $14.1 million for 2025-26. The Taxpayer MLE projects to be $5.1 million.

(Note: These projections are made using the noted cap and tax figures above, draft pick cap holds based on projected standings and a projection on all option and guarantee decisions by players and teams. No extensions or trades have been projected. We will call out where those types of situations could impact a team projection.)

Cap Space Team – 1 Teams

1. Brooklyn Nets: $54.8 million in cap space

The Brooklyn Nets currently project to be the only team we can say with certainty will hit the summer with cap space. How much is somewhat up in the air. The Nets didn’t move Cam Johnson, Nic Claxton, or most of their high-salaried players at the deadline. So, they remain in place for now.

What could swing this projection even higher is the status of pending restricted free agent Cam Thomas and Day’Ron Sharpe. If the Nets were to let Thomas and Sharpe leave town, they could create up to $76.3 million in cap space.

Here’s the thing though: Why let Thomas and Sharpe leave for nothing? Brooklyn isn’t ready to spend all that much, as they are in the early stages of their rebuild. Thomas and Sharpe are good players. With no other cap space teams out there, the Nets might be able to get both back on team-friendly deals.

And, of course, keep an eye on Sean Marks with restricted free agents from other teams too. When Brooklyn previously had copious amounts of cap space, Marks tossed around several offer sheets. In the end, no matter what direction they take, the Nets are in a great place to be active players this offseason.

Swing Cap Space and Non-Taxpayer Mid-Level Exception Teams – 3 Teams

1. Detroit Pistons: up to $24.6 million in cap space
2. Memphis Grizzlies: up to $6.9 million in cap space
3. Utah Jazz: up to $30.0 million in cap space

The Pistons could be a cap space team this summer, with up to $24.6 million to spend. That could aid in bringing back Malik Beasley, if he’s looking at more than the Non-Taxpayer MLE (NTMLE). If Detroit can get Beasley to come back for the NTMLE, they’re better off staying over the cap and using various Bird Rights to re-sign players like Dennis Schroder and Tim Hardaway Jr.

Utah is pretty straight forward: if John Collins opts in, they’ll be over the cap. If he doesn’t, the Jazz could have over $30 million in cap space. Given Collins will find it hard to recoup the $26.6 million he’d give up by opting out, bet on Utah to stay over the cap.

Memphis is in a super interesting situation. The Grizzlies can’t create any kind of meaningful cap space. The most they can get to is about $6.9 million, while retaining restricted free agent rights for Santi Aldama. That’s not normally enough cap space for a team to bother with, and they’ll just stay over and use the NTMLE.

However, in this specific situation, that could be enough to bump up Jaren Jackson Jr.’s salary to over $30 million in a renegotiation-and-extension. That’s an interesting way to use cap space, given the Grizzlies wouldn’t have to give up on Aldama to get it done. Of course, if Jackson makes All-NBA, he’ll be eligible for a 35% of the cap max and the Grizzlies will then stay over the cap.

Non-Taxpayer Mid-Level Exception Teams – 7 Teams

1. Atlanta Hawks
2. Charlotte Hornets
3. Chicago Bulls
4. Houston Rockets
5. LA Clippers
6. San Antonio Spurs
7. Washington Wizards

This is an interesting group of teams. A few playoff teams, some up-and-coming teams and a few rebuilding teams.

Atlanta is firmly in this mix. They moved out some long-term salary, but to re-sign some free agents, or replace them, the Hawks will stay over the cap. But they should have enough clearance to use the NTMLE.

Charlotte took themselves out of the running for cap space when they took on Jusuf Nurkic’s contract for next season. That’s fine though, since the Hornets got paid a first-round pick to do so. They’re fine being a NTMLE for another season, as the rebuild continues.

Chicago moved Zach LaVine, but kept everyone else. The Bulls will have enough room to use the NTMLE, as long as things don’t get silly with Josh Giddey’s new contract.

Houston is firmly in NTMLE range. They’ll probably work out a new deal with Fred VanVleet after declining their team option, but that won’t be enough to get the Rockets to being a cap space team.

The Clippers have done such a good job managing their roster and cap sheet. LA will be able to bolster an already-strong roster by adding an NTMLE signing to the mix next season.

It feels like the Spurs shouldn’t have much money on the books, but after bringing in De’Aaron Fox, they’ll be over the cap. And that’s fine. They’ve got a strong, developing roster and they’ll be able to add to it with a NTMLE player.

Washington went the pre-agency route and took on salary for next season early by trading for Khris Middleton and Marcus Smart. That will keep the Wizards over the cap. Don’t rule out a value NTMLE signing, as they did a nice job in the Jonas Valanciunas sign-and-trade a year ago, but Washington’s real work will get done via the trade market.

Swing Non-Taxpayer Mid-Level Exception Teams and Taxpayer Mid-Level Exception Teams – 6 teams

1. Indiana Pacers
2. Milwaukee Bucks
3. New Orleans Pelicans
4. Philadelphia 76ers
5. Portland Trail Blazers
6. Sacramento Kings

Another mix of teams that are would-be contenders, plus teams just trying to find their footing as they reset their rosters.

Indiana will be around or over the tax line, and potentially pushing the first apron, if they re-sign Myles Turner. Given they didn’t trade him for the umpteenth deadline in a row, bet on Turner getting a new deal from the only NBA team he’s ever known.

Milwaukee did a good job getting off money at the deadline. That will put the Bucks in position to possibly use the NTMLE. The big question will be how much Brook Lopez re-signs for this offseason, assuming the veteran center doesn’t call it a career.

The Pelicans are in transition. Brandon Ingram is gone, but New Orleans still has a lot of money on their books for next season and beyond. Look for more rebalancing trade, as where the team lands in the 2025 NBA Draft Lottery might determine their direction moving forward.

The Sixers are kind of a mess. Things haven’t gone as planned, as Joel Embiid and Paul George have been unable to stay healthy. With those two on the books, the team is very, very expensive. But Philadelphia might be able to squeeze in a NTMLE signing, if they make another move or two around the core group.

Portland is far too expensive for a bad team. The Blazers didn’t make any moves at the deadline. That means this roster remains flush with a confusing mix of veterans and young players trying to find their way in the NBA. There’s a lot of work to be done here this offseason.

The Kings took on some long-term money by adding Zach LaVine and Jonas Valanciunas, but they also got off some money too. Sacramento will be straddling the line of NTMLE vs Tax MLE, and hard-capping themselves at the first apron might not be worth it for using the NTMLE.

Taxpayer Mid-Level Exception Teams – 4 teams

1. Denver Nuggets
2. Miami Heat
3. Oklahoma City Thunder
4. Toronto Raptors

This group is a bit larger than usual. The Nuggets and Thunder are title contenders. Miami is resetting, while the Raptors are starting to push their rebuild forward.

Denver should have just enough room to fit in a Taxpayer MLE signing. However, that would mean another hard cap at the second apron. The Nuggets might want to avoid that complication for a third consecutive season.

The Heat moved off Jimmy Butler, but they took on some other long-term money in that deal. Their roster is also mostly full. If there’s the right guy to use the Taxpayer MLE on, Miami will do it, but don’t lock that in.

The Thunder have a full roster. Their big question i: How will they fit in at least two, and possibly more, first-round picks? They could use the Taxpayer MLE, but why go into the tax now? It’s probably best to delay the inevitable for as long as you can in Oklahoma City.

When Toronto extended Brandon Ingram, they pushed right up to the tax line. They have enough room to fit in a Taxpayer MLE signing, but will they want to? It’d have to be someone who can really lift the Raptors. Otherwise, this group will focus on bringing back Chris Boucher and maybe some smaller moves around the edges of the rotation.

Swing Taxpayer Mid-Level Exception Teams and Second Apron Teams – 4 teams

1. Golden State Warriors
2. Los Angeles Lakers
3. Minnesota Timberwolves
4. Orlando Magic

Four teams that all have playoff aspirations, even if all have stumbled at points this season. That will probably be the same story a year from now.

Golden State locked into being a tax team when they extended Jimmy Butler. The big question: Can they fit in a Taxpayer MLE signing before hitting what would be a second-apron hard cap?

The Lakers situation will be determined by LeBron James. Will he take a little less for some flexibility with a signing? Will he take the max he can get? Will James just pick up his player option? Will he stay in LA? Will James retire? It feels like everything is on the table more than ever.

If Minnesota re-signs Naz Reid and Nickeil Alexander-Walker, they’ll be a second apron team. If they lose Reid, the Taxpayer MLE comes into play. It’s really that simple for the Wolves.

Orlando might be a surprise here, but they’ve got a max extension kicking in Franz Wagner and a near-max first-year salary coming online for Jalen Suggs. Add to it that the Magic have aggressively re-signed their own players, and this team is carrying a lot more salary than most realize. They’ve got a little flexibility to get under the tax line, but things are tighter in Orlando than they have been in years.

Second Apron Teams (no signing exceptions) – 5 Teams

1. Boston Celtics
2. Cleveland Cavaliers
3. Dallas Mavericks
4. New York Knicks
5. Phoenix Suns

This group grew throughout the season. Boston and Phoenix have been here and will continue to be, barring something really unexpected. The Celtics are still title favorites, so their second-apron status feels earned. The Suns aren’t, and a Kevin Durant trade could throw things into flux. But given the salary-matching rules, it’s not overly likely a Durant trade would get Phoenix all the way under the second apron.

Cleveland will join this group by virtue of acquiring De’Andre Hunter, along with extensions kicking in for Donovan Mitchell and Evan Mobley. The Cavs have never shied away from paying for a contender, so they’ll likely end up even deeper into the tax after re-signing a couple of key free agents too.

Dallas moved Luka Doncic, but Anthony Davis is starting a max extension next season. Kyrie Irving is likely to opt out and push for a max or near-max deal too. The Mavericks have a solid roster, but they are going to be a second-apron team with limited resources to improve it.

When New York landed Karl-Anthony Towns, they basically locked in second-apron status. Yes, Jalen Brunson took less to give the Knicks some flexibility, but this team is still carrying a ton of guaranteed salary. That’s not the worst thing, given New York is a contender. But it’s going to be hard for them to do much, beyond minor moves around the edges of the rotation.

The Cleveland Cavaliers loaded up to aid in a title push. The Hawks reset their roster and cap sheet bit.

Here are the particulars:

Cleveland Cavaliers acquire: De’Andre Hunter

Atlanta Hawks acquire: Caris LeVert, Georges Niang, right to swap 2026 first-round picks with the Cavaliers, right to swap 2028 first-round picks with the least favorable of Cavaliers and Jazz, 2027 Cavaliers second-round pick, 2029 Cavaliers second-round pick and 2031 Cavaliers second-round pick

Let’s dive in!

Cleveland Cavaliers

Incoming salary: $21.7 million in 2024-25

• De’Andre Hunter (SF/PF, three years, $69.9 million)

Outgoing salary: $25.1 million in 2024-25

• Caris LeVert (SG/SF, one year, $16.6 million)
• Georges Niang (PF, two years, $16.7 million)

The Cavaliers are all in. De’Andre Hunter should be a terrific fit for the Cavaliers. He’ll likely start as the team’s small forward, but he’ll slide up and play plenty of small-ball power forward too. That’s the sort of versatility that Cleveland was lacking from their forward group.

Hunter has put together his best offensive season this year. He’s done well as a spot-up shooter, and in creating his own looks. Hunter has become a bit overrated as a defender, but he’s still solid on that end. He’ll give Cleveland more size to throw at the likes of Jayson Tatum, Jaylen Brown, Mikal Bridges and OG Anunoby among their chief competitors in the Eastern Conference.

What makes this an all-in move is two-fold. Cleveland gave up most of their remaining draft capital in this deal. The Cavs traded away three seconds, while also giving Atlanta first-round swap rights in a couple of other years.

The other all-in component is on the cap sheet. The Cavaliers now have over $198 million in guaranteed salary for eight players on their books for next season. By the time they fill out the roster, Cleveland will have one of the most expensive teams in the NBA next season. That’s why ducking the luxury tax in this trade was important. That keeps the repeater clock from starting for one more year.

The Cavs did lose some on-ball playmaking in Caris LeVert, but they’ve got enough in reserve to cover for that with Ty Jerome and Craig Porter Jr. Georges Niang was a nice stretch-four for Cleveland, but Hunter and Dean Wade should be able to handle Niang’s role without much worry.

Cleveland does have a couple of roster spots to fill, so they’ll be active on the buyout market. Keep an eye on a backup center and possibly a veteran point guard.

The Cavaliers are right there in terms of being a title contender. They’ve had a terrific season to date, but there was still a sense they needed one more player to truly compete with Boston at the top of the conference. Now, Cleveland should feel good about their chances, no matter who they run into in the postseason.

Atlanta Hawks

Incoming salary: $25.1 million in 2024-25

• Caris LeVert (SG/SF, one year, $16.6 million)
• Georges Niang (PF, two years, $16.7 million)

Outgoing salary: $21.7 million in 2024-25

• De’Andre Hunter (SF/PF, three years, $69.9 million)
• Note: Atlanta also sent Cody Zeller’s $3.5 million contract to the Houston Rockets in a roster/salary clearing 

When you combine this move with their other deals, the Hawks really reset things with their roster and cap sheet. Moving De’Andre Hunter seems like a step backwards, but Atlanta got back players who can play.

Caris LeVert is a good scorer and ballhandler. With Jalen Johnson out for the season, Atlanta has really been struggling for shot creation outside of Trae Young. LeVert will help with that quite a bit. He’s not the defender Hunter is, but the Hawks defense wasn’t exactly their calling card with Hunter.

Niang is also a nice addition. Atlanta didn’t really have a stretch big on the roster. Niang should give them solid minutes beside Onyeka Okongwu and Clint Capela in the frontcourt.

In the Zeller salary-dump, the Hawks gave the Rockets back their 2028 second-round pick. That deal helped Atlanta clear a roster spot and to get under the tax. Considering Zeller never actually joined the Hawks after being a throw-in as part of the Dejounte Murray deal last summer, that’s not a loss.

On the cap sheet, Atlanta has cleaned things up considerably. Even though he’s played well this season, let’s not forget that a year ago many were suggesting that Hunter’s deal was a cap-clogger. Now, that’s gone.

The Hawks aren’t in line to have cap space next summer, but they should be well clear of the luxury tax. More importantly, in the summer of 2026, which is shaping up to potentially have a monster free agent class, Atlanta could be real players.

This trade might not make the Hawks better this season. But it probably won’t make them worse. And they added a lot of draft capital and cap flexibility for the future. That’s a win for a team that was very much stuck in the middle.

The LA Clippers added a perimeter shooting threat, and a bundle of second-round picks. The Hawks cleared out a little bit of future salary, while adding a versatile perimeter playmaker.

Here are the particulars:

LA Clippers acquire: Bogdan Bogdanovic, 2025 Timberwolves second-round pick, 2026 top-42 protected Grizzlies second-round pick, their own 2027 second-round pick

Atlanta Hawks acquire: Terance Mann, Bones Hyland

Let’s dive in!

LA Clippers

Incoming salary: $17.3 million in 2024-25

• Bogdan Bogdanovic (SG/SF, three years, $49.3 million (final season team option))

Outgoing salary: $15.6 million in 2024-25

• Terance Mann (SG/SF, four years, $58.4 million)
• Bones Hyland (PG, one year, $4.2 million)

The Clippers needed to add more shooting for their playoff push. Bogdan Bogdanovic’s history says he’ll bring that in spades.

This season, Bogdanovic has struggled with his shot. He’s looked tired after a long summer with the Serbian national team. There’s a good chance Bogdanovic will rebound after getting off his feet during the upcoming All-Star break.

If he does, the Clippers have added a knockdown shooter, who can score on spot-ups, on on-the-move catch-and-shoots and off the dribble. Bogdanovic is also used to coming off the bench, which will be his role in LA.

Look for Bogdanovic to be used to space the floor in lineups that feature Kris Dunn and possibly soon-to-be-signed Ben Simmons. Those two will benefit from Bogdanovic opening up the floor for them. Also, on nights when he has it going, Bogdanovic can be a part of the Clippers closing lineups, if they need more shooting on the floor.

Terance Mann’s role with the Clippers was a bit uncertain. He had lost a lot of minutes over the course of the season to Dunn, Derrick Jones Jr. and Amir Coffey. Look for LA to extend Coffey before the season ends, given his increased role in the team’s rotation.

Getting back three second-round picks is good work for the Clippers here, and fairly surprising. Atlanta did have a bunch of extra seconds, so it’s to the Clippers advantage that they were able to pull a few away.

Through the course of the deadline moves, LA was able to add a backup center in Drew Eubanks, perimeter shooting in Bogdanovic, a veteran locker room voice in Patty Mills and soon, some versatility on both end of the floor with Simmons. That’s really solid work for a team that many thought would fall out of the playoff picture this season.

Atlanta Hawks

Incoming salary: $15.6 million in 2024-25

• Terance Mann (SG/SF, four years, $58.4 million)
• Bones Hyland (PG, one year, $4.2 million)

Outgoing salary: $17.3 million in 2024-25

• Bogdan Bogdanovic (SG/SF, three years, $49.3 million (final season team option))

The Hawks added a little bit of long-term salary in this move, but they needed a player like Terance Mann more than they needed Bogdan Bogdanovic. That’s why this isn’t nearly as bad of a move as some have panned it as being.

Mann will bring Atlanta some additional on-ball juice. The team has been lacking that since Jalen Johnson went down. By adding both Mann and Caris LeVert in deadline deals, the Hawks have solved some of their shot creation issues.

Mann’s shooting has fallen off a bit over the last two seasons. It’s unclear what’s caused that, but that will be something to monitor with Atlanta. That’s especially true, given Mann’s three-year, $47 million extension kicks in after this season.

That was part of the reason for this trade. The Hawks will have Mann long-term, whereas Bogdanovic only had one more guaranteed year after this year. Mann is also four years younger than Bogdanovic. That’s a factor for a Hawks team that is building for the future.

Atlanta is waiving Bones Hyland, so his inclusion in this deal will have no on-court impact. The Hawks did give up there second-round picks in this deal, but they acquired three in their other trade with the Cavaliers. So, that nets out evenly for Atlanta.

This may seem like a strange trade for the Hawks, but when you look deeper it makes sense. They can give Bogdanovic’s designated-shooter role to Garrison Mathews, who has hit for 39% from deep this season. In addition, Vit Krejci can fill in scorer off the bench. And that’s before getting to Mann, who will help with shot creation and as a solid defensive player. All of that, plus some savings on the cap sheet over the next couple of years, makes this a solid trade for Atlanta.

The LA Clippers cleaned up a potential logjam on their roster by taking a flyer on a young player. The Bucks added some backcourt depth, while moving a player who was no longer part of their roster plans.

Here are the particulars:

LA Clippers acquire: MarJon Beauchamp

Milwaukee Bucks acquire: Kevin Porter Jr.

Let’s dive in!

LA Clippers

Incoming salary: $2.7 million in 2024-25

• Marjon Beauchamp (SG/SF, one year, $2.7 million)

Outgoing salary: $2.2 million in 2024-25

• Kevin Porter Jr. (SG/PG, two years, $4.8 million (2025-26 player option))

The Clippers no longer had a need for Kevin Porter Jr. in their backcourt. Kris Dunn has assumed the primary backup point guard role, Patty Mills was added earlier in trade season for depth, and Ben Simmons is joining the team after a buyout from the Nets. Off-ball, the team Norman Powell, Bogdan Bogdanovic and Amir Coffey in front of Porter.

Porter has been a bit of a wild-card in the past when he’s not playing regular minutes. That’s something that LA can no longer guarantee him with the depth they’ve added.

MarJon Beauchamp is a flyer for the Clippers. If he shows enough, LA could bring him back on a team-friendly contract next season as a developmental player.

On the cap sheet, there is a little bit more clarity for next season. Beauchamp had his fourth-year rookie scale option declined, so he’ll be an unrestricted free agent. Porter has a $2.5 million player option, which he’s likely to decline. Now, the Clippers can go into the offseason knowing they’ll certainly have that roster spot open.

Milwaukee Bucks

Incoming salary: $2.2 million in 2024-25

• Kevin Porter Jr. (SG/PG, two years, $4.8 million (2025-26 player option))

Outgoing salary: $2.7 million in 2024-25

• Marjon Beauchamp (SG/SF, one year, $2.7 million)

The Bucks protected themselves in case of a backcourt injury in this move. MarJon Beauchamp was long longer a part of the plans in Milwaukee, as witnessed by the team declining their rookie scale team option for Beauchamp for next season.

Porter could be in line for a regular rotation role for the Bucks. Milwaukee is a bit thing behind Damian Lillard at point guard, as two-way player Ryan Rollins has become the primary backup ballhandler. That’s a spot where Porter can step in and help.

Long-term, if Porter opts in for next season, he’ll make just above the veteran minimum amount. That’s solid value for the production he can bring.

After making two deals earlier in trade season that left with him a hole at center, the Lakers went all-in to fill it. The Hornets continued picking up draft capital and young players.

Here are the particulars:

Los Angeles Lakers acquire: Mark Williams

Charlotte Hornets acquire: Dalton Knecht, Cam Reddish, rights to swap 2030 first-round picks, 2031 Lakers first-round pick

Let’s dive in!

Los Angeles Lakers

Incoming salary: $4.1 million in 2024-25

• Mark Williams (C, two years, $10.4 million)

Outgoing salary: $6.3 million in 2024-25

• Dalton Knecht (SF/SG, four years, $14.5 million (rookie scale deal))
• Cam Reddish (SF/SG, one year, $2.1 million)

After trading Anthony Davis in the deal to get Luka Doncic, the Los Angeles Lakers were really thin at the center position. Los Angeles had Jaxson Hayes, two-way players and small-ball options. They filled that need with Mark Williams.

When healthy, Williams has been a solid starting center. He’s a good rebounder, decent rim protector and a solid finisher around the rim. Williams is the type of athletic lob-catch that thrives playing with Doncic. The two should make a very good pick-and-roll pairing for years to come.

The issue is that Williams has rarely been healthy in his NBA career. He’s missed considerable time in each of his first three seasons. The good news is that none of the injuries are directly related and none of them seem to a chronic thing.

The other issue with this trade is that the Lakers gave up their remaining draft capital to add Williams. Paying a first-round pick in six years, plus a swap the year before, is a lot for a guy who will probably never be more than a solid starter. In addition, Los Angeles gave up Dalton Knecht, who was a prized draft pick in just this past draft.

In the immediate, the loss of Knecht isn’t that big of a deal. The Lakers weren’t going to be able to play him with two of Doncic, LeBron James and Austin Reaves very often. Not without Davis to clean up for them. That was going to limit Knecht’s role. Given those three players seem entrenched in Los Angeles for now, it was best to move Knecht while they could get something for him. Cam Reddish has been out of the rotation while, so there’s no production loss there.

The Lakers needed to do something up front. They reportedly sought out Doncic to find out what type of center he wanted to play with. Williams fits that mold. This was just a very high price to pay for a non-All-Star.

Charlotte Hornets

Incoming salary: $6.3 million in 2024-25

• Dalton Knecht (SF/SG, four years, $14.5 million (rookie scale deal))
• Cam Reddish (SF/SG, one year, $2.1 million)

Outgoing salary: $4.1 million in 2024-25

• Mark Williams (C, two years, $10.4 million)

This trade is a massive win for the Hornets. It’s not that Mark Williams isn’t a good player. He is. Williams was also a good fit with LaMelo Ball and Brandon Miller on the young Charlotte roster.

But Williams wasn’t projecting to be an All-Star. He’s also regularly out of the lineup due to injuries. Center is a spot where teams can find affordable talent almost every offseason. And the Hornets got paid handsomely to move on from Williams.

Knecht is a nice prospect to work with, even if he’s eight months older than Williams, who was drafted two years earlier. Charlotte needs more shooting and scoring on the wing. With Miller out for the season, Knecht should have a clear runway to minutes. He’ll help the Hornets with his shooting and knack for drawing contact and free throws.

The real get here though is the control of the Lakers draft in the “who knows?” years. 2030 and 2031 will be post-LeBron James and we have no idea what Los Angeles will look like at that point. That’s so far out, there’s a decent chance Doncic may have also moved on. If nothing else, it’s worth the gamble for the Hornets.

The Milwaukee Bucks shoot up their roster, while the Washington Wizards took on some salary for draft capital, while the Knicks and Spurs helped to facilitate.

Here are the particulars:

Milwaukee Bucks acquire: Kyle Kuzma, Jericho Sims, second-most favorable 2025 Pistons, Suns or Warriors second-round pick, 2026 top-55 protected Spurs second-round pick

Washington Wizards acquire: Khris Middleton, A.J. Johnson, draft rights for Mathias Lessort, right to swap least favorable 2028 Bucks or Trail Blazers first-round pick, Cash

New York Knicks acquire: Delon Wright, draft rights for Hugo Besson, Cash

San Antonio Spurs acquire: Patrick Baldwin, Cash

Let’s dive in!

Milwaukee Bucks

Incoming salary: $25.6 million in 2024-25

• Kyle Kuzma (PF/SF, three years, $64.4 million)
• Jericho Sims (C, one year, $2.1 million)

Outgoing salary: $36.6 million in 2024-25

• Khris Middleton (SF/SG, two years, $65.7 million (player option for final season))
• A.J. Johnson (SG, four years, $14.6 million (rookie scale deal))
• Delon Wright (PG, one year, $2.1 million)

The Bucks seemingly wanted to shake things up at the trade deadline. They did so by trading away beloved Buck Khris Middleton to bring in talented, but inconsistent forward Kyle Kuzma. Milwaukee also gave up first-round pick swap rights in the deal and 2024 first-rounder A.J. Johnson.

Middleton was oft-injured over the last few seasons. Milwaukee was often left without the veteran wing during key moments, including during the playoffs. This season, Middleton has struggled to find his form. Bucks coach Doc Rivers recently commented that it was hard for Middleton to get into a rhythm with being constantly in and out of the lineup.

Kuzma has largely been healthy in recent years. He’s been inefficient this season, but that’s come while playing with a lot of young players on a Wizards team with nothing to play for.

Milwaukee is hoping that Kuzma will give them more size on the wing, in addition to a player who will be more regularly available. The Bucks are also betting with better talent around him that Kuzma will find his shooting form again.

The Bucks also picked up Jericho Sims. Despite being given chances over the last few seasons, Sims has never been able to seize a rotation role for the Knicks. Still, Milwaukee was very thin behind Brook Lopez at center, and Sims will provide them with some depth at the five.

In addition to adding frontcourt depth, the Bucks were able to save some money for this year and next by swapping out Middleton for Kuzma. That’s big for a team that was above the second apron prior to their deadline deals.

Washington Wizards

Incoming salary: $34.5 million in 2024-25

• Khris Middleton (SF/SG, two years, $65.7 million (player option for final season))
• A.J. Johnson (SG, four years, $14.6 million (rookie scale deal))

Outgoing salary: $26 million in 2024-25

• Kyle Kuzma (PF/SF, three years, $64.4 million)
• Patrick Baldwin (SF/PF, one year, $2.5 million)

Like in their other deadline moves, the Wizards picked up additional draft capital for taking on some short-term salary over the next two seasons. Washington has talked about adding Khris Middleton to help with their younger roster, but this was really about getting a draft pick while shedding an additional year of salary for Kyle Kuzma.

Middleton may very well contribute to the Wizards for the remainder of this season, and possibly for part of next. He could also decide that making $34 million for a lottery team isn’t appealing and could decline his player option. That’s not very likely, but don’t take it offer the table.

If Washington can get Middleton back into form, he’ll become an attractive trade chip for next season, as he’ll have a large expiring salary. In the interim time, he can help a young group of wings including Bilal Coulibaly, Kyshawn George and A.J. Johnson learn how to succeed in the NBA.

Johnson is being treated as a throw-in part of this deal, but he could be more than that. Johnson is fairly athletic and is very young. There’s potential there and he’ll have a chance at minutes on the rebuilding Wizards.

San Antonio Spurs

Incoming salary: $2.5 million in 2024-25

• Patrick Baldwin (SF/PF, one year, $2.5 million)

Outgoing salary: None

The Spurs were in this deal to act as a facilitator. They took on Baldwin’s contract for more than enough to cash to cover it. Baldwin was already waived by San Antonio.

New York Knicks

Incoming salary: $2.1 million in 2024-25

• Delon Wright (PG, one year, $2.1 million)

Outgoing salary: $26 million in 2024-25

• Jericho Sims (C, one year, $2.1 million)

The Knicks inclusion in this deal was an odd one. New York already has a glut at point guard with Jalen Brunson, Miles McBride, Cameron Payne and Tyler Kolek. All of those players are more productive than Wright is. The Knicks did get enough cash to cover Wright’s deal, so that’s likely all this was about.

New York may very well waive Wright if they need a roster spot, but that would be a down-the-line thing. The Knicks are already working with open roster spots and apron issues at it is, waiving Wright will only come if there is a real need.

The Phoenix Suns and Charlotte Hornets became familiar trade partners during this trade season. The two teams linked up for another deal ahead of the deadline, after working a previous deal a few weeks earlier.

Here are the particulars:

Phoenix Suns acquire: Cody Martin, Vasilije Micic, 2026 second-round pick

Charlotte Hornets acquire: Jusuf Nurkic, least favorable 2026 Suns, Grizzlies, Magic or Wizards first-round pick.

Let’s dive in!

Phoenix Suns

Incoming salary: $15.8 million in 2024-25

• Cody Martin (SF, two years, $16.8 million (2025-26 non-guaranteed))
• Vasilije Micic (PG, two years, $15.8 million (2025-26 team option))

Outgoing salary: $18.1 million in 2024-25

• Jusuf Nurkic (C, two years, $37.5 million)

This trade for the Suns was about cutting their luxury tax bill, while also adding some depth to their roster. And they managed to do that while shedding Jusuf Nurkic, who was no longer part of the plans in Phoenix.

Martin enters a crowded wing mix for the Suns. Even if you subtract Kevin Durant, who plays mostly at power forward, Martin will be competing for minutes alongside Devin Booker with Royce O’Neale, Grayson Allen, Bradley Beal and Ryan Dunn. That’s a tough group to crack.

In addition, Martin is the only player from that mix that doesn’t have guaranteed money on the books for next season. Maybe Phoenix takes a look, but we’ll see.

Micic is in a similar situation at point guard. He’ll be behind Tyus Jones and Monte Morris, and whatever minutes that Beal and Allen log at point guard too.

Micic also isn’t carrying money into next season. The Suns will hold an $8.1 million team option for the veteran point guard. There are already reports that Micic hopes that option will be declined so that he can return to Europe next season.

If nothing else, the Suns saved some on their tax bill this season, while also shaving over $19 million off the books for next season. There is a chance Phoenix could use Martin’s or Micic’s salary in a trade in the offseason, but that will depend on where things are at. This trade was about savings and flexibility, and the Suns achieved that.

Charlotte Hornets

Incoming salary: $18.1 million in 2024-25

• Jusuf Nurkic (C, two years, $37.5 million)

Outgoing salary: $15.8 million in 2024-25

• Cody Martin (SF, two years, $16.8 million (2025-26 non-guaranteed))
• Vasilije Micic (PG, two years, $15.8 million (2025-26 team option))

The Hornets were miles from the luxury tax before taking on money in a few different deals. As they did in their other moves, Charlotte added draft capital. In this trade, that was in the form of a future first-round pick.

Jusuf Nurkic should have a chance to play for the Hornets. Charlotte doesn’t have much at the center position, and Nurkic is eager to prove he can still play. Look for him to get some minutes, as the Hornets would like to rebuild his trade value ahead of Nurkic having an expiring contract next season.

Throughout trade season, the Hornets have reshaped their roster while adding future draft picks. That’s what you should be doing when you’re a lottery team. In addition, Charlotte didn’t have to take back any bad salary that stretches beyond next season. That’s a win.