Good morning. We have that and more in Friday’s NBA newsletter.
No matter what happens in NBA free agency, let's acknowledge this has already been a crazy summer. Two top-15 players — Jimmy Butler and Chris Paul — have already been moved. Another, Paul George, is likely to cross state lines before the season begins as well. That is a lot of star movement!
Consider that the only top-15 player to change teams last season was Kevin Durant. Consider that most good players re-sign with their incumbent teams — Al Horfords and LaMarcus Aldridges are the minority. DeMar DeRozans and Mike Conleys are more typical.
This is a means of setting appropriate expectations so that we can appropriately bug out if even more dominoes — like Gordon Hayward, Blake Griffin, DeAndre Jordan, Aldridge, and some guys we aren't even thinking about right now — fall.
We know how some teams are reacting to the Warriors' and Cavaliers' excellence. Boston has kept pressing while keeping its powder dry. Chicago has bowed out. Minnesota is rising to the challenge. Houston wants to go right now. The Clippers are retooling. We'll learn more about how teams are reacting in the coming weeks — whether big fish move around or not. Heck, we'll even learn how Cleveland reacts to Golden State's convincing finals win and how the Warriors react to their massive coming payroll.
If the fireworks are over before July 1, at least acknowledge there were fireworks. The league is already vastly different. The question now is how much different it can get.
More CP3 fall-out! I wrote that the Clippers can still build a good team around Blake Griffin. Doc Rivers speaks out. Here's Tim Cato on the Rockets responding to the NBA's arms race. Zito Madu mourns the Lob City Clippers.
I updated my top 50 free-agent rankings to reflect option decisions on CP3 and Dirk Nowitzki.
Where Gordon Hayward decides to sign could dictate what the Pacers do with Paul George.
The Knicks are talking to David Griffin. One thing to keep in mind about Griff is that he wasn't making a massive salary in Cleveland, and the Cavaliers did not pay him to go away. He's going to want to be back in the game ASAP.
Well this is interesting: The Suns have lined up meetings with Blake Griffin and Paul Millsap.
Tim Kawakami's No-Defense team, an annual treat (now that Kevin Martin is retired). There are some vicious and accurate one-liners in here.
I mentioned the Warriors' payroll concerns up above. The potential first domino in that story: It's beginning to sound like Andre Iguodala is going to leave the Warriors.
I didn't know Jimmy Butler was a brilliant marketer, but he set up an old number to take voicemail and announced the number to the world so that his haters could call him.
An obituary for the Triangle.
Woof. The Knicks really botched Frank Ntilikina's last name on his jersey. I am intrigued by the conspiracy theory that they repurposed an old Jeremy Lin jersey.
There is positively nothing more boring than the annual dance where someone in John Calipari's camp floats his name in connection with an NBA team only for Calipari to publicly deny any interest in leaving Kentucky a couple of days later. It's usually the Kings. This year it was the Knicks. Can we just skip this holiday next year? Thank you.
Players who have become unrestricted free agents in recent days due to options being declined or qualifying offers being withheld: Ben McLemore, David Lee, James Michael McAdoo, Luc Richard Mbah a Moute.
In honor of National Handshake Day, here are the best NBA handshakes.
The Kelsey Plum era in San Antonio is not off to a glory-filled start.
And finally: It's a Team USA superteam conspiracy!
