Trade & Free Agency 2026/2027

[Mavs2021]

Is it just me or did it feel like the whole league and the journalists took a two week vacation and told nobody about it? Seems like Monday it started to pick up again.

[SleepingHero]

Is it just me or did it feel like the whole league and the journalists took a two week vacation and told nobody about it? Seems like Monday it started to pick up again.

After the Lebron news it did kind of feel like that.


Still August is such a dead time for NBA news.

[Dundalis]

Agree with pretty much all of this.  I think there is a reason we have heard rumors of Gafford and PJ on the trading block and nothing on Kyrie or Naji.  I'm not worried that Masai is going to get a bad return for PJ.  If anything, his history indicates he has a tendency to set the price too high and wait too long to sell.  I'm on the fence whether PJ is likely to rehabilitate his value this coming season.  As it stands (assuming Klay is gone) there will be a roster crunch and given the need for shooting and creation, he might find his minutes getting cut.

I think PJ's defense gives him a clear advantage over every other forward on the roster in line for his spot/minutes though (that include Morez who I think will have growing pains on both ends). And as for his shooting, if you look at his shooting historically, it's more likely than not the shooting rebounds to something solid than it stays bad, especially if you aren't giving him a role that burdens him with significant offensive creation, which is obviously more likely this season than last.

Like Im not sure whatever advantage Aldama has with his overall offensive game gives him any advantage over PJ playing time wise given the gap in defensive capability, especially if PJ is even just shooting at his career average, which I think is pretty reasonable to assume.

[mvossman]

I think PJ's defense gives him a clear advantage over every other forward on the roster in line for his spot/minutes though (that include Morez who I think will have growing pains on both ends). And as for his shooting, if you look at his shooting historically, it's more likely than not the shooting rebounds to something solid than it stays bad, especially if you aren't giving him a role that burdens him with significant offensive creation, which is obviously more likely this season than last.

Like Im not sure whatever advantage Aldama has with his overall offensive game gives him any advantage over PJ playing time wise given the gap in defensive capability, especially if PJ is even just shooting at his career average, which I think is pretty reasonable to assume.

It's not so much that I think they will choose to play Aldama over PJ (I agree its a tradeoff at best), its that there are so many guys that will demand significant minutes.  They didn't pay assets and 17 mil for Aldama not to play him.  Morez will get significant minutes soon if not immediately, and the other guys that PJ competed for minutes with are still on the roster (including Naji who just got an extension).

[F Gump]

It's not so much that I think they will choose to play Aldama over PJ (I agree its a tradeoff at best), its that there are so many guys that will demand significant minutes.  They didn't pay assets and 17 mil for Aldama not to play him.  Morez will get significant minutes soon if not immediately, and the other guys that PJ competed for minutes with are still on the roster (including Naji who just got an extension).

Yeah, I'm still not buying the "newcomers get priority" assumption that says PJ will be fated to the back of the line for minutes (or sent packing). That's what you are basically wanting us to assume, even if you won't put it in those words.

Injuries will inevitably make way more minutes available than we expect, so EVERYONE should get plenty of opportunity, but I don't think PJ's body of work will be dismissed because he has been the starter here already. More likely the opposite. That's how the NBA tends to work.

I tend to think PJ will end up playing a TON of minutes because he is a superb defensive player with some O as well, and MM say that's what they want the most. Not sure any of the others are anywhere near the defender he is. I think that will matter way more than it may look on paper - good legit 2-way players are very hard to find.

Yes they were able to add some interesting new pieces - but it can't be ignored that other teams were willing to let them go and the price was incredibly low on all of them. There's probably a significant "why" that will become quite apparent for each when the games begin. No one is guaranteed anything just because they came in a trade. Other than Morez, none of the newcomers owns much of a Mavs commitment, which puts the Mavs in the position of being able to treat them as a tryout of sorts and see what happens. (See Wood C. for a notable similar example.)

[Dundalis]

It's not so much that I think they will choose to play Aldama over PJ (I agree its a tradeoff at best), its that there are so many guys that will demand significant minutes.  They didn't pay assets and 17 mil for Aldama not to play him.  Morez will get significant minutes soon if not immediately, and the other guys that PJ competed for minutes with are still on the roster (including Naji who just got an extension).

I personally don't think any of the forwards demands minutes (obviously excluding Coop). There are development guys who we would like to see get minutes, but ultimately I do not think May is a coach who is going to hand those minutes over simply because they are young and need development.

I think May will reward the best players with minutes. Whatever advantages any of the other 3/4s may or may not have offensively (I don't really think any of them will necessarily have any kind of significant offensive advantages unless someone like Risacher takes some ginormous development leap, or Biberovich is some kind of Peja Stojakovic clone day one), PJ's defense will be so much better than the others that he will demand heavy minutes from that alone.

I think Naji leads the ball handling of the second unit alongside De Laria, and plays predominantly at the guard spots, with some 3 behind Coop, so I don't think he will really compete with PJ for minutes much at all.

[Knutsen]

Yeah, I'm still not buying the "newcomers get priority" assumption that says PJ will be fated to the back of the line for minutes (or sent packing). That's what you are basically wanting us to assume, even if you won't put it in those words.
Injuries will inevitably make way more minutes available than we expect, so EVERYONE should get plenty of opportunity, but I don't think PJ's body of work will be dismissed because he has been the starter here already. More likely the opposite. That's how the NBA tends to work.
I tend to think PJ will end up playing a TON of minutes because he is a superb defensive player with some O as well, and MM say that's what they want the most. Not sure any of the others are anywhere near the defender he is. I think that will matter way more than it may look on paper - good legit 2-way players are very hard to find.
Yes they were able to add some interesting new pieces - but it can't be ignored that other teams were willing to let them go and the price was incredibly low on all of them. There's probably a significant "why" that will become quite apparent for each when the games begin. No one is guaranteed anything just because they came in a trade. Other than Morez, none of the newcomers owns much of a Mavs commitment, which puts the Mavs in the position of being able to treat them as a tryout of sorts and see what happens. (See Wood C. for a notable similar example.)

I think it’s quite easy: 

PJ - as almost every player that has been here in the Luka years - has to prove himself again in two regards, that are connected:

Can he perform next to Cooper Flagg, like he could with Luka - not in the same style, but adding similar value?

Can he perform in Dusty May‘s system, ideally on offense and on defense, like he could under Jason Kidd in the Luka years? 

If that turns out to be a „no“, he’s gone - at the latest after the season, maybe at the trade deadline.

[Dundalis]

I think it’s quite easy: 

PJ - as almost every player that has been here in the Luka years - has to prove himself again in two regards, that are connected:

Can he perform next to Cooper Flagg, like he could with Luka - not in the same style, but adding similar value?

Can he perform in Dusty May‘s system, ideally on offense and on defense, like he could under Jason Kidd in the Luka years? 

If that turns out to be a „no“, he’s gone - at the latest after the season, maybe at the trade deadline.

I think there's zero world where he can't perform on defense in any system. But sure, there will be question marks on how he fits in on offense. I just like the historical data on PJ to bounce back at least with his shooting. But I think most of us still have absolutely zero clue what kind of system May is gonna implement. I feel like he may not even know yet, since he said he implements a system based around the strengths of his players, rather than implementing a system and shoe horning players into it, even if there might be core elements stylistically that won't be negotiable.

[HoosierDaddyKid]

Shams Charania: Lonnie Walker IV has agreed to a one-year, $3.3 million deal with the Denver Nuggets, agent George S. Langberg of @GSLSportsGroup told ESPN. Walker was with Maccabi Tel Aviv in the EuroLeague after last playing in the NBA in 2024-25 and now enters his 8th season in the league.

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[HoosierDaddyKid]

Shams Charania: Phoenix Suns forward Dillon Brooks has agreed to a three-year, $73 million contract extension through 2029-30, Mike George of Klutch Sports tells ESPN. Brooks has become a key part of the Suns' two-way, hard-nosed culture under Jordan Ott and lands a new guaranteed long-term deal. Dillon Brooks will get about 13.98% of the cap in Year 1 on his extension if the current 27-28 salary cap projection holds and he's got a flat AAV. That's a little more than Josh Hart got on his extension, two ticks up on PJ Washington, less than Brooks got on his Rockets deal. Yossi Gozlan: One of my most precise contract projections of the offseason. Dillon Brooks gets roughly 13 percent of the salary cap annually. Reasonable AAV at just three years should maintain positive trade value over the length of the deal.

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[HoosierDaddyKid]

The Los Angeles Clippers are waiving two-way guard Sean Pedulla, league sources told @hoopshype. Pedulla was the NBA G League Rookie of the Year, averaging 23.6 points, 6.8 assists, 5.1 rebounds, and 1.6 steals per game during the G League regular season.

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[HoosierDaddyKid]

The Celtics just announced that they have signed second-round pick Dillon Mitchell to a two-way deal.

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[HoosierDaddyKid]

Michael Scotto: The Houston Rockets have waived guard JD Davison. Brings them under the tax.

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[HoosierDaddyKid]

The Sixers have officially signed Kentavious Caldwell-Pope. He will wear no. 1.

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[HoosierDaddyKid]

Wembanyama went off to France after the NBA Finals, signing his contract extension there as he began his offseason training. He then returned to Texas and participated in workouts at Fox’s home gym, with Harris and Barnes included. Wembanyama also spent more time working with Hakeem Olajuwon, who helped him build out his post-game last summer.

New York Times

If he learns Dream's footwork, look out.

[HoosierDaddyKid]

Front Office Sports: The Detroit Pistons' G League affiliate, the Motor City Cruise, is holding one-day open tryouts Sept. 13. The price of a shot at the G League: A nonrefundable $250.

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[HoosierDaddyKid]

Heat Central: Kevin Durant says Giannis Antetokounmpo is his favorite player to watch in the NBA: “Greek Freak probably the number 1 guy I like to watch. — Greek Freak, I think, is a force, and I’ve never seen anything like him. His ceiling, he could be the best player to ever play if he really wanted to. That’s pretty scary to think about, but he’s by far my favorite player to watch”

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[Knutsen]

Heat Central: Kevin Durant says Giannis Antetokounmpo is his favorite player to watch in the NBA: “Greek Freak probably the number 1 guy I like to watch. — Greek Freak, I think, is a force, and I’ve never seen anything like him. His ceiling, he could be the best player to ever play if he really wanted to. That’s pretty scary to think about, but he’s by far my favorite player to watch”

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Durant is just a weirdo - with everything he says he‘s just opening up more questions, be it with his burner accounts or in real life.
 
So he suggests now, that Giannis could be much better if he only wanted it more…? What a take… After saying the 76ers are much more talented than the Warriors he was on.