At 6 a.m. Beijing time on July 1, the NBA free agency market officially opened. Harden signed a two-year, $70 million contract extension with the Clippers, with a second-year player option, which is simply 1+1. It's the best outcome for both parties, with Harden able to jump out of contract and become a free agent next summer, and the Clippers have room to manoeuvre.
In the 2023-24 regular season, Harden averaged 16.6 points, 5.1 rebounds, 8.5 assists, 1.1 steals and 0.8 blocks per game, shooting 42.8%, 38.1%, and 87.8% from three. In the playoffs, he averaged 19.5 points, 6.8 rebounds, 4.8 assists, 1.2 steals and 0.5 blocks per game, shooting 41.1%, 36.7% and 84% from three. A short contract of 70 million in 2 years is not expensive!
Kevin Porter Jr. joins the Clippers with a two-year salary and a second-year player option. Locker room cancer, back to the NBA. In the 2022-23 season, Porter averaged 19.2 points, 5.3 rebounds, 5.7 assists and 1.4 steals per game for the Rockets. In the 2023 offseason, Porter was mired in a domestic violence scandal, and the Rockets sent him to the Thunder, and Porter went to Europe to play after being cut.
Why is he said to be the No. 1 cancer in the NBA? 1. In the Cavaliers locker room, he fought with teammates and the general manager, and was directly traded to the Rockets; 2. After a heated argument with assistant coach Lucas in the Rockets, he drove away from the arena at halftime and was banned by the Rockets for 1 game; 3. Assaulted his girlfriend in a hotel, causing his girlfriend to fracture his cervical vertebrae, and Porter was arrested by the New York police.
This morning, the Warriors officially announced that Paul was officially cut, and he became a complete free agent! Paul is on a $30 million non-guaranteed contract next season, and the Warriors don't have to pay him for it. In the 2023-24 regular season, Paul averaged 9.2 points, 3.9 rebounds, 6.8 assists, 1.2 steals and 1.3 turnovers per game, shooting 44.1%, 37.1%, and 82.7% from three.
The Warriors originally wanted to keep Paul and trade George with his contract, but the Clippers refused. The Warriors looked around and found that there was no trade suitable for Paul, so they simply cut it. Here's the point: Paul joined the Spurs for 1 year and $11 million and teamed up with Wembanyama! The coach has said before that Paul will not go to the Lakers to get a base salary contract.
Christie signed a four-year, $32 million extension with the Lakers, with a last-year player option. His original contract was two years and $2.74 million, which expires this summer. Christie was born on February 10, 2003 and is the No. 35 pick in 2022. In the 2023-24 season, Christie averaged 4.2 points, 2.1 rebounds and 0.9 assists in 14.1 minutes per game.
There are also several operations in the East: Toppin signed a four-year, $60 million extension to the Pacers, Love to a two-year, $8 million extension to the Heat, and Drummond to a two-year, $10 million extension to the 76ers. In the 2023-24 season, Topping played in 82 regular season games, averaging 10.3 points, 3.9 rebounds and 1.6 assists per game, shooting 57.3%, 40.3%, 77% from three.
Pope joins Magic for $66 million in 3 years, with a player option for the third year! In the 2023-24 regular season, he averaged 10.1 points, 2.4 rebounds, 2.4 assists, 1.3 steals and 0.6 blocks per game, shooting 46%, 40.6%, and 89.4% from three. In the playoffs, he averaged 8.1 points, 2.9 rebounds, 2.6 assists, 1.4 steals and 0.4 blocks per game, and shot 39.5%, 32.7%, and 100% from three.
The Pistons re-signed Cunningham with a five-year contract of $226 million. He averaged 22.7 points, 4.3 rebounds, 7.5 assists and 0.9 steals per game this season while shooting 44.9%, 35.5% and 86.9% from three. If Cunningham is named to the All-NBA team next season, the contract will be five years and $270 million, the same contract the Raptors gave Barnes.
Valanciunas signed with the Wizards for 3 years and 30 million, and Eric Gordon joined the 76ers with a 1-year salary! This year's free agency market is relatively deserted, George is likely to sign the 76ers, and the Clippers are peddling Wei Shao! Who do you think is the biggest winner so far?