With LeBron James still looming over its entire proceedings, the league is pressing forward, though without much real business getting done. Still, NBA free agency rumors are plentiful, and one new bit has emerged from Detroit — though it’s really not a new thing, at all.
Indeed, don’t go getting your trade machines fired up for the Pistons and big man Jalen Duren, even after veteran NBA reporter Chris Haynes’ assertion that Duren is “fed up” with the team as he negotiates a restricted free agent contract. The Pistons remain in control of the situation, and while a sign-and-trade is an option, that option does not get any more or less likely based on Duren’s mood.
The Pistons are intent on keeping Duren. That has not changed. It’s a matter of how much they’re willing to give him.
NBA Free Agency Rumors: Jalen Duren & History
As for the “fed up” stance, veterans of the RFA game have seen this before, many times. Go back to 2007 when Sasha Pavlovic of the Cavs, and his agent, Marc Cornstein, repeatedly expressed frustration with the restricted free-agent system and took it to an extreme. Not only did Pavlovic hold out of training camp, he held out a month of the season. Pavlovic eventually signed a team-friendly, three-year, $13.7 million contract with an option that the Cavs did not pick up.
The issue with restricted free agency is that most teams won’t touch other teams’ RFAs, because they’re sure to match the deals. The incumbent team has all the power.
Remember 2012, when Eric Gordon pledged his devotion to Phoenix after signing an offer sheet to play there, saying his “heart” was with the Suns and openly pleading with the Hornets not to match the deal? New Orleans matched it. Restricted free agency is a cold, cold business.
Same thing happened with Charlotte and Gordon Hayward two years later, as the Hornets made an elaborate pitch to Gordon in restricted free agency, who signed a contract offer and, though less public than Gordon, sent signals back to the Jazz not to match the deal. The Jazz matched the deal, Hayward went back to Utah.
More recently, of course, there was the Jonathan Kuminga saga with the Warriors, which dragged through the summer until Kuminga signed what was essentially the one-year deal with a team option that Golden State wanted. Kuminga was not happy about it, but the Warriors did not much care. Restricted free agency is, again, cold.
Jalen Duren has a right to be fed up after he averaged 19.5 points and 10.5 rebounds last year and earned a third-team All-NBA slot. He thought he’d be in max-contract territory. But the Pistons disagree and nothing he says is going to change the Pistons’ stance. Detroit can drag this out another month or two without breaking a sweat.
GettyJonathan Kuminga
NBA Free Agency Rumors: Who’s Left?
- LeBron James. Cynics among us might suggest that James’ decision to let his free agency slowly lurch forward is driven by his desire to gather up footage for a coming documentary. Or, hey, maybe he is just legitimately taking his time. Either way, it does still appear that the Cavaliers are the likely option, but the Warriors, Sixers and Heat are in the mix, with Denver and Minnesota the darkhorses.
- James Harden. Harden opted out of his $42 million contract, but will re-sign with Cleveland. For how much … well that is the question. The Cavs are about $33 million below the second apron, and could sign James for $6 million, giving Harden the remainder, a contract starting around $27 million.
- Jonathan Kuminga. Kuminga’s situation has gotten more complicated by the fact that the Lakers–his top possible destination–were not able to clear out extra cap space for him. The Lakers can do a sign-and-trade with the Hawks for Kuminga, but Atlanta is not that interested in taking back LA’s junk. A sign-and-trade with the Cavs would be preferred by Atlanta.
- DeMar DeRozan. The Kings let him walk and DeRozan is weighing where he could land next. A return to Toronto would be a nice story, but unlikely. He could be Door No. 2 for whichever team misses on LeBron James–the Warriors, the Heat, the Nuggets–and is a viable alternative for just about every contender in the East.
- Draymond Green. Green opted out of his $28 million deal for next season, but will be back with the Warriors. He is part of the team’s push to sign LeBron James, and will adjust his salary accordingly. Chatter that Green would leave the Warriors if they don’t land James has died off completely, and there wasn’t much to it to begin with.
- Bruce Brown. A LeBron saga victim here. When James signs, it will free up decisions on players like Peyton Watson in Denver and Jonathan Kuminga in L.A. or Cleveland. Brown is behind those guys in the pecking order. Still only 29, Brown can shoot 3s (38.5%), play defense and is a solid locker-room leader. The Nuggets would like him back.
- Nick Richards. Hard to believe Richards remains unsigned, given the market for big men, even backups. With the Lakers and Knicks having addressed backup center spots, the options for Richards are running thin. Maybe a return to Chicago?
- Russell Westbrook. He’s a minimum guy despite averaging 15.2 points last season. He’ll take what he can get, but a spot with the Heat would be the best answer for him.
- Ochai Agbaji. A former lottery pick, he never was able to establish an NBA role and he is 26 years old now so perhaps it’s too late. But he still feels worthy of a gamble by someone.
- Gary Payton II. A potential return to the Warriors is being held up by the James situation. Payton played 73 games for the Warriors, and that kind of durability must count for something. But he is not a shooter and his athleticism is fading at age 33.
- Gabe Vincent. If not Westbrook, the Heat could look for a return engagement with Vincent, who has dropped off significantly since leaving Miami. He could have trouble finding a spot if even old friend Erik Spoelstra and the Heat pass on bringing Vincent back.
- Jeremy Sochan. The decline and fall of Sochan, the No. 9 pick in the 2022 draft, remains bizarre. He was dumped by the Spurs last season, and the Knicks were eager to sign him … and then never really played him. He is 6-foot-8 and only 23, so he may be worthy of another chance in NBA free agency.
- Cam Thomas. Thomas has talent, but has pretty famously been unwilling to rein in that talent to fit in with a team. For a 24-year-old who has had a full season averaging 22.5 points to not be able to get an NBA job is remarkable. Hard to find who is going to gamble on him, though.
- Bradley Beal. He has been connected to the Heat and the Warriors, mostly because he is aging and has physically broken down, and folks just assume that’s what Miami and Golden State wants. They don’t, necessarily, but he could latch on somewhere with a non-guaranteed deal.
- Victor Oladipo. Good guy whose career was torpedoed by injuries. Dances. Sings like an angel. C’mon, someone give him a break.
GettyGabe Vincent
Big-Time Restricted Targets
- Jalen Duren, Pistons. Duren might not be happy with the state of negotiations, but that is par for the course with restricted NBA free agency. No player is ever happy. He is still the Pistons’ player to lose, though he continues to hold out hope for a sign-and-trade.
- Peyton Watson, Nuggets. Watson has been linked to the Clippers as well as the Nuggets and Hawks in NBA free agency rumors, and ultimately, he might wind up in LA on a sign-and-trade. But if the Nuggets make a separate trade to clear space, they could choose to keep him in place.
- Bennedict Mathurin, Clippers. Shooting struggles after his trade to the Clippers could complicate restricted free agency, which is always complicated enough as is. But L.A. wants to keep him in place.
NBA Free Agency Rumors: Jalen Duren ‘Fed Up,’ Plus Top Players Available