Free Agency Roundup: Part 1
*Note: Contract information is yet to be finalized, and the initial reporting is often most favorable to the player. It’s possible that some of the deals below will end up containing non-guarantees and/or team options that will only be publicized when the contract is officially signed*
Sixers plant their flag as a championship contender:
F/G Paul George: 4 years (fourth year player option), 30% max (projected $212M)
G Tyrese Maxey: 5 years, 25% max (projected $203M)
F/G Kelly Oubre: 2 years (second year player option), $16.3M (full use of Room Exception)
C Andre Drummond: 2 years (second year player option), ~$10M
G/F Eric Gordon: 1 year, minimum ($3.3M)
Last summer, when Philadelphia refused to give James Harden the big-money extension he was looking for, Sixers’ President Daryl Morey positioned his team for this moment. Using the cap space he preserved by not extending Harden, Philly was able to convince Paul George to move across the country, forming what might be the league’s most prominent big three alongside Joel Embiid and Tyrese Maxey. George is a perfect fit on the wing, as his shooting ability allows him to thrive in an off-ball role, he’s a competent multi-positional defender, and he provides an additional outlet for Philly as a secondary shot-creator. He’ll be 34 in ‘24-25, so this deal is almost certain to be an overpay in the final seasons, but the Sixers can’t be worried about that right now. With Joel Embiid in his prime, Philadelphia is all-in for a championship, and they have as much top-end talent as any team in the NBA. An added bonus? By taking George away from the Clippers, Philly also strengthened the value of the draft picks they received from LA (1st round picks in ‘26 and ‘28, rights to swap 1st-rounders in ‘29) in return for Harden.
Re-signing Tyrese Maxey in restricted free agency was always a foregone conclusion, but there was some question about the structure of the new deal. Maxey’s new contract will apparently be a straight five-year pact, with no player option on the final year. This is a definitive win for Philadelphia, especially after they transferred some risk onto Maxey by not extending him last summer, in order to aid in their cap space aims.
Kelly Oubre was rock solid as a starter on the wing in his first season with Philly, so retaining him for less than $10M in ‘24-25 is excellent value for the Sixers. We’ll see how the rest of their roster shakes out, but I would imagine that Oubre will start at the two in between Maxey and George, and his blend of on-ball defense and competent shooting off the catch should be a nice fit in Philly’s starting lineup. While Oubre might have been able to sign for more with another team, he’ll get a chance to compete on a big stage with the Sixers, and assuming he has another solid season, he can decline his player option for ‘25-26 and re-up for more money, as Philadelphia will then hold his Early Bird Rights.
Andre Drummond has never been my favorite player to watch, but he was one of the top backup center options available on the market, and ~$5M per season is totally fine value for Philly. Drummond can take some of the workload off of Joel Embiid in the regular season, and he’s a capable starter in the 25-30 games that Embiid will inevitably miss. Locking up Drummond also makes it easier for Philly to waive Paul Reed, whose $7M salary for ‘25-26 is non-guaranteed, should they need to open up a little more space to continue adding to their team.
Daryl Morey’s familiarity with Eric Gordon from their time together in Houston surely helped push his deal over the line, as Gordon probably could have gotten slightly more than the vet minimum elsewhere. Even at age 36, Gordon is a capable bench scorer, and his strong frame allows him to hold up in most defensive matchups on the wing.
After their moves on day 1, Philly has roughly $10M left below the $141M cap line, but they can open up an additional $9.5M or so if they waive Paul Reed and Ricky Council IV. The Sixers still have work to do, as they need to add a fifth starter to replace Tobias Harris, and they could use at least one more wing beyond that to fortify their depth. However, they’re off to a flying start, and are the unquestioned winners of the first 18 hours of free agency.
Clippers enter a new era:
G James Harden: 2 years (second year player option), $70M
F Derrick Jones Jr.: 3 years, $30M (partial use of Non-Taxpayer Mid-Level Exception)
G Kevin Porter Jr.: 2 years (second year player option), minimum (~$4.7M)
Although it seems like Paul George would have preferred to stay in LA, the Clippers’ reported unwillingness to give him a fourth guaranteed year on a new deal meant he departed for Philadelphia. It’s an extremely strange line to draw in the sand for LA, as given their lack of future draft capital, and financial outlays to Kawhi Leonard/James Harden, they are pot committed to their current core regardless of the money they are theoretically saving by not retaining George. The Clips might not have been championship contenders even with George, but they certainly aren’t without him, and given Leonard’s injury history, they might not even be a lock to make the playoffs in the brutal Western conference. If letting George walk opened up significant flexibility elsewhere I might feel better about this for LA, but as is, I don’t really understand the thinking behind holding such a firm negotiating stance.
James Harden’s new deal was probably negotiated at the time of the Clippers’ trade for him at the start of the ‘23-24 season, so it’s not a surprise that it was one of the first moves to be announced yesterday evening. $35M is more than Harden is worth at this point in his career, but this is a short-term deal, and the player option for ‘25-26 could lead to the two sides negotiating a longer-term deal for less money per season next summer. Especially without George, LA desperately needs Harden’s playmaking and shot creation, but if the thought is that he can still be the second-best player on a championship team, that thought is incorrect.
Derrick Jones Jr. is a good player, and 3/$30 represents strong value on the team side. This contract will cover Jones Jr.’s age-27 through 29 seasons, and he should have positive trade value throughout the life of the deal. I’m assuming the plan is for Jones Jr. to take over for George as the Clippers’ starting small forward, and while he’ll certainly help LA’s defense, the lack of shooting in their starting lineup is a major concern. With Jones Jr., Terance Mann and Ivica Zubac surrounding Harden and Leonard, the floor is going to be extremely cramped.
After a season spent in Greece following a domestic violence-related arrest, Kevin Porter Jr. will make his return to the NBA with the Clippers in ‘24-25. In theory, Porter Jr. can provide a spark as a shot creator off the bench, but given his character concerns, I’m not really sure he’s worth talking about, nor do I really want to, so let’s move on.
Orlando Reels in KCP
G Kentavious Caldwell-Pope: 3 years (third year player option), $66M
As I wrote about in their offseason primer, Orlando entered this summer in prime position to add significant veteran talent to their young core. While they’ll miss out on Paul George, KCP represents a worthy consolation prize, and one whose shooting and point of attack defense will be an excellent fit with the rest of the Magic’s starting lineup. Caldwell-Pope also brings a wealth of high-level playoff experience to the table, as he’s been an integral part of championship teams in both Los Angeles and Denver. This deal will cover his age-31 through 33 seasons, and with a player option for ‘26-27, Orlando could potentially work with him to opt out and take a longer term deal at a lower annual rate, as that’s the season when Paolo Banchero’s extension will kick in. Even after this move, Orlando still has roughly $25-$30 million left to spend, and they could add an additional $17M to that total if they waive Jonathan Isaac’s fully non-guaranteed contract. I’d love to see the Magic add some additional shot creation to the roster, and they could potentially use their cap flexibility to absorb a player like Anfernee Simons or D’Angelo Russell in a financially unbalanced trade.
Losing Caldwell-Pope is a significant blow for the Nuggets, as although they’ll be able to duck the second apron by letting him walk, they don’t have any real means to replace him outside of the Taxpayer Mid-Level Exception. Yes, Denver would have been looking at an exorbitant tax bill if they had paid up to retain KCP, but with Nikola Jokic in his prime, this feels like a time where paying through the nose is justified. The Nuggets were already light on shooting even with KCP in the 2024 postseason, and it’s hard to see how they’re going to simultaneously replace his floor spacing and point of attack defense. My number one target with the tax MLE would be old friend Gary Harris, but his market might end up being beyond the ~$5M per season Denver can offer him.
CP3 teams up with Wemby:
G Chris Paul: 1 year, $11M
Although it may not have huge implications on the 2025 title chase, the pairing of Chris Paul and Victor Wembanyama should be one of the coolest storylines to follow next season. Even at an advanced age, Paul is still one of the best pure passers in the NBA, and he’ll be a massive upgrade as a pick-and-roll initiator over anybody the Spurs played with Wemby last season. Of course, the Spurs’ spacing around the Paul/Wembanyama two-man game is still highly questionable, and with Paul’s limited ability to create off the dribble at this point in his career, defenses will likely have the option to just switch onto him with their big. However, he’ll still make life much easier on Victor by setting him up for at least a few easy buckets per game, and as the only real veteran voice in San Antonio’s locker room, Paul should be able to help set a culture for the Spurs in the same way he did for the Thunder back in 2020.