Bear Sports News

NBA fans have already been waiting for this summer’s free agency period for a while now. Since last season’s trade deadline, it seems like every team had June 30th on their calendars circled. June 30th is the first formal day where teams can negotiate with players and set verbal agreements. From July 1st to July 6th, 12:00 PM ET, no new contracts will be able to be signed or finalized. Starting at 12:01 PM ET on July 6th, teams can officially begin work as normal.

This year just feels like it has a bit of a different anticipation towards it. LeBron James is reportedly open to joining the Warriors, if they can acquire Anthony Davis in a trade. The Clippers are currently engaged in conversations with the Mavericks and Raptors in a trade that would reportedly send Kawhi Leonard to either team. That’s just the tip of the summer NBA iceberg as well. Let’s break all this down and more of what BSN has been hearing as we approach the first official day of NBA free agency.

LeBron James to GSW?

Multiple reports have stated that the 22x All Star is reportedly open to joining the Golden State Warriors under one strict condition. That’s if they can acquire Anthony Davis from the Wizards in a trade. It’s currently believed that the Wizards would have to offer Davis a max-contract in order for him to think about staying, otherwise, he’d be open to a trade to the Warriors. The Warriors are expected to offer James an offer in the vicinity of 15m.

LeBron James has said that he is prioritizing his happiness over money this upcoming season, and this could mean for a possible scenario where the Warriors can keep Jimmy Butler. Coincidentally, Draymond Green opted out of his 27.7m player option today, freeing up some money in the Warriors cap space. Is this all a coordinated plan to stay below the cap and bring LeBron James and Anthony Davis to the Warriors? We will have to wait and see, but it’s becoming more and more likely that LeBron will be returning for another season, and a pursuit for a fifth NBA Finals trophy.

A Reunion in Toronto

The rumors start swirling around last week that the Mavericks and Raptors were both heavily interested in Kawhi Leonard. Today, it seems like a reunion in Toronto is going to likely be the case here, as over the past few days. Conversation between the Mavericks and the Clippers have begun to fall further and further away from the main trade.

Kawhi Leonard would reportedly be open in signing an extension, if a trade to the Raptors were to happen. The Clippers have said they would not be offering Leonard an extension, and a trade is essentially as good as done between both sides. It’s just a matter of figuring out an offer that could work for both sides as Toronto will be offering Leonard a long-term deal.

UPDATE: (2:38 PM ET)

The Clippers have the framework completed to move Kawhi Leonard to the Raptors, in exchange for Brandon Ingram, Gradey Dick, and a first round pick.

The holdup is whether Jamal Shead will be added into the deal and draft compensation. If Shead isn’t added into the deal, then the Clippers want two firsts, with one being in the future, (after 2030) and the other being in 27’ or 28’. Regardless of what happens, the Clippers know what they are selling and are taking full advantage of the opportunity.

Ja Morant Traded

If you’ve been wondering what Ja Morant was worth, well it wasn’t much. the Grizzlies will save about 11m in total salary by acquiring Kris Murray and Jerami Grant. Sending Morant away, not only puts the Trail Blazers in a decent spot, but also saves the Grizzlies the stress that Morant has caused them over the years. How will Morant pair up with Damian Lillard? Has Scoot Henderson turned into one of the top players available in the trade market? It will be very interesting to see, but i hope to see Morant be open to passing the ball around. He is easily the best passer on the Trail Blazers now and this could be the move they were waiting for.

Qualifying Offer Update

Note: Qualifying offers marked with an asterisk (*) are based on a projected $165,000,000 salary cap and would increase or decrease if the cap comes in higher or lower than that.

Jalen Duren, Pistons ($9,615,393)
Mark Williams, Suns ($9,615,393)
Note: Williams reportedly has a three-year, $38MM contract agreement in place with the Suns.
Bennedict Mathurin, Clippers ($8,774,590)
Tari Eason, Rockets ($8,014,182)
Walker Kessler, Jazz ($7,064,702)
Peyton Watson, Nuggets ($6,534,714)
Jaylen Clark, Timberwolves ($2,959,061)
Note: Clark reportedly has a three-year, $10MM contract agreement in place with the Timberwolves.
Jordan Miller, Clippers ($2,738,126) *
Spencer Jones, Nuggets ($2,650,000) *
Quinten Post, Warriors ($2,650,000) *
Mohamed Diawara, Knicks ($2,385,633) *
Note: Diawara reportedly has a multiyear contract agreement in place with the Knicks.
Kobe Sanders, Clippers ($2,385,633) *
Jamir Watkins, Wizards ($2,385,633) *

Note: Qualifying offers for two-way players are one-year, two-way contracts with a guarantee of approximately $91K unless otherwise indicated.

Taran Armstrong, Warriors
Note: Armstrong didn’t play in the NBA in 2025/26, but the Warriors issued him a QO in order to retain his RFA rights in case he returns to the league.
Brooks Barnhizer, Thunder
Koby Brea, Suns
Colin Castleton, Magic
Moussa Cisse, Mavericks
Isaiah Crawford, Rockets
Hunter Dickinson, Pelicans
Enrique Freeman, Timberwolves
Vladislav Goldin, Heat
Chucky Hepburn, Raptors
Note: Hepburn has accepted his two-way qualifying offer.
Harrison Ingram, Spurs
Note: Ingram’s qualifying offer is a one-year, minimum-salary contract with a partial guarantee of approximately $109K.
Chaney Johnson, Nets
Note: Johnson has accepted his two-way qualifying offer.
David Jones Garcia, Spurs
Nico Mannion, Warriors
Note: Mannion hasn’t played in the NBA since 2021, but the Warriors issued him a QO in order to retain his RFA rights in case he returns to the league.
Chris Manon, Lakers
Alijah Martin, Raptors
Daeqwon Plowden, Kings
Jalen Slawson, Pacers

Did not receive qualifying offers:

Players on standard contracts:

Ochai Agbaji, Nets
Ousmane Dieng, Bucks
Hayden Gray, Jazz
Ariel Hukporti, Knicks
Andre Jackson Jr., Bucks
Keshad Johnson, Heat
Bez Mbeng, Jazz
Jonathan Mogbo, Raptors
Julian Phillips, Timberwolves
Jalen Pickett, Nuggets
Max Shulga, Celtics
Pat Spencer, Warriors
Keaton Wallace, Hawks
Amari Williams, Celtics
Jahmir Young, Heat

Players on two-way contracts:

Trey Alexander, Pelicans
Alex Antetokounmpo, Bucks
Branden Carlson, Thunder
Sharife Cooper, Wizards
Tyson Etienne, Nets
Elijah Harkless, Jazz
Trey Jemison, Knicks
Curtis Jones, Nuggets
Yuki Kawamura, Bulls
Trevor Keels, Heat
Christian Koloko, Hawks
E.J. Liddell, Nets
Isaiah Livers, Suns
Caleb Love, Trail Blazers
Tyrese Martin, Sixers
Mac McClung, Bulls
Kevin McCullar Jr., Knicks
Josh Oduro, Pelicans
Lachlan Olbrich, Bulls
Norchad Omier, Clippers
Antonio Reeves, Hornets
Rayan Rupert, Grizzlies
Olivier Sarr, Cavaliers
Drew Timme, Lakers
John Tonje, Celtics
Oscar Tshiebwe, Jazz
Nate Williams, Warriors
Jalen Wilson, Nets

Jaylen Brown + Nikola Jokic?

Over the past few days, despite the trade interest around the league dying out for Jaylen Brown. One suitor has remained with their hand in the Jaylen Brown sweepstakes. That team is the Denver Nuggets, and they reportedly have “deep interest” in Brown. The Blazers were reportedly open to the idea of trading for Brown, but the asking price was higher than they would’ve liked. They ended up trading for Ja Morant instead. The Clippers were rumored to have shown interest but those rumors were quickly shot down. The Nuggets seem like the likely landing spot if a trade were to emerge. It’s very possible that the Nuggets would have to move either Cameron Johnson, Christian Braun or Aaron Gordon to make this a possibility. A few reports even see the possibility of swapping Jamal Murray and Jaylen Brown, but that remains to be decided. The next few days will be crucial for both sides, and it seems like a trade is bound to happen for Brown.

Tidbits From Around The League

• Spurs interested in adding Sandro Mamukelashvili, Tobias Harris, Rui Hachimura, Dean Wade, or John Collins
• Blazers are expected to retain Jrue Holiday, despite heavy trade interest around the league
• Bulls are a strong landing spot for Normal Powell, have interest in Jonathan Kuminga, as well as the Cavaliers.
• Wizards would like to add Russell Westbrook to the team
• The Clippers and Raptors spent a portion of Monday’s business day getting closer to a deal that would send Kawhi Leonard to the Raptors. A deal is expected to possibly be done in the next 24 hours.
• The Houston Rockets and Marcus Smart are rumored to be close to a deal, reuniting Smart and Ime Udoka.
• Donovan Clingan is rumored to have been made available in trade talks by the Blazers.
• Tobias Harris is unlikely to return to the Pistons and will test free agency elsewhere.
• Miami Heat have interest in Bradley Beal after declining his player option.
• Landry Shamet reportedly turned down larger deals from other teams to re-sign with the Knicks.
• Jalen Duren will meet with the Kings today and reportedly discuss a sign-and-trade. It’s possible that this would see Damontas Sabonis be moved to the Pistons. The Pistons are believed to be uninterested by this idea, but aren’t opposed to it, and both players wouldn’t mind, if the swap were to happen.
• The Lakers are now set to pay Bronny James 2.3m, after his contract became fully guaranteed.