Thread: NBA 2024 25 Season

Jayson Tatum Gets 5-Year $315 Million Extension, Biggest Deal In NBA History

Jayson Tatum's summer just got even better -- the Boston Celtics champion just secured a 5-year, $315 MILLION extension ... making it the biggest contract in NBA history.

News of the negotiations broke minutes ago ... with the 26-year-old agreeing to a supermax deal to stay put in Beantown -- quite possibly the biggest no-brainer of the offseason.

Tatum is fresh off winning his first title with the Cs after eliminating the Dallas Mavericks in Game 5 of the NBA Finals last month ... and while he didn't win MVP honors, he was crucial to Boston's success this postseason -- averaging 25 points, 9.7 rebounds and 6.3 assists a game.

The huge payday will start in the 2025-26 season ... with Tatum slated to make $54 million. It will increase roughly $4-5 milli each year, which means he'll rake in a whopping $71 million in 2029-30.

Sources: Donovan Mitchell, Cavaliers agree to 3-year, $150.3M extension

Cleveland Cavaliers All-Star guard Donovan Mitchell has agreed on a three-year, $150.3 million maximum contract extension that includes a player option for the 2027-28 season, sources told ESPN.

The deal delivers the Cavaliers the stability of having their franchise player under contract beyond next season. For Mitchell, it delivers a guaranteed four years, $185 million total now and a chance to reach the league's 10-year service criteria that would allow him to pursue a five-year extension worth more than $380 million in 2027.

Mitchell and his agent, Austin Brown -- co-head of CAA Basketball -- met with Cavaliers president of basketball operations Koby Altman on Saturday in Los Angeles and reached an agreement on the extension, sources said. A significant part of Mitchell's belief in committing on a new deal comes with his and his representative's confidence in the organization to keep building the Cavaliers into a championship contender and an alignment on a partnership of how they'll play a part in doing it together, sources said.

Since acquiring Mitchell from the Utah Jazz at the trade deadline two years ago, the Cavaliers have made consecutive playoff appearances -- including advancing to the Eastern Conference semifinals last season.

NBA Summer League

Game Recap: Heat 102, Kings (2) 86

The Heat defeated the Kings (2), 102-86. Kel'el Ware, the 15th pick in the 2024 NBA Draft out of Indiana, recorded a game-high 26 points and 11 rebounds for the Heat, while Cole Swider added 21 points and five 3PM in the victory. Jordan Ford tallied 22 points, four rebounds and four 3PM for the Kings (2) in the losing effort. The Heat improve to 1-1 in the Summer League California Classic, while the Kings (2) fall to 1-1.

Standout players from Day 1 in Salt Lake City

Competition opened on the 2024 SLC Summer League as players competed at altitude in Salt Lake City, with the hometown Jazz polishing off the action with an OT win.

Reports: Denver Nuggets 1st-round pick DaRon Holmes II tears Achilles in NBA Summer League opener

Denver first-round pick DaRon Holmes II is expected to miss the season after tearing his right Achilles on Friday night in the Nuggets' NBA Summer League opener, The Athletic and multiple other media outlets reported.

Traded to Denver after being selected No. 22 overall by Phoenix, the 6-foot-10 former Dayton center-forward had 11 points and seven rebounds in 26 minutes in the Nuggets’ 88-78 loss to the Los Angeles Clippers.

The Athletic was the first to report the injury.

Holmes was the Atlantic 10 Conference's co-player of the year last season as a junior, averaging 20.4 points and 8.5 rebounds.


NUGGETS vs CLIPPERS | NBA SUMMER LEAGUE | FULL GAME HIGHLIGHTS

AUSTRALIA vs USA | USAB SHOWCASE | FULL GAME HIGHLIGHTS

Team USA defeated Team Australia, 98-92.

Here's What Stood Out in Celtics' Summer League Opener vs. Heat

The reigning NBA champions made their Summer League debut on Saturday in Las Vegas.

It represented the first chance for Celtics fans to see the team's draft class, Baylor Scheierman and Anton Watson, suit up for Boston.

While the Sin City C's came up short, falling 119-114 to the Heat, the rookies provided plenty of positives. Several veterans who were with the Celtics last season also impressed while showcasing their growth.


HEAT vs CELTICS | NBA SUMMER LEAGUE

Team USA vs Germany Full Game Highlights - 2024 Olympics

Chris Paul to join Spurs on 1-year, $11M deal after being waived by Warriors, per report

The San Antonio Spurs spent the first few months of Victor Wembanyama's rookie season experimenting with Jeremy Sochan at point guard. It didn't work, and some observers wondered if they might make a move to get a more traditional table-setter. In Year 1 of the Wemby era, they decided not to do that, choosing instead to simply put Tre Jones in the starting lineup in early January.

In Year 2 of the Wemby era, Chris Paul will throw lobs to the French sensation. Hours after being waived by the Golden State Warriors on Sunday, the 39-year-old future Hall of Famer agreed to sign with San Antonio, as first reported by Bleacher Report's Chris Haynes. Paul will join the team on a one-year deal worth upwards of $11 million, according to ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski.

Paul, per Haynes, wants to elevate Wembanyama's game and show that he can still play at a high level. Entering his 20th season in the NBA, he should not be expected to create the same amount of space as he used to or stay in front of the league's quickest guards defensively. During his one year with the Warriors, though, Paul shot 48% from midrange, per Cleaning The Glass, and made 42.3% of his catch-and-shoot 3s. He's still a weapon, and he will make sure the Spurs are organized.

NBA strikes $77B TV deals with Disney, Comcast and Amazon

The NBA has signed new 11-year media rights deals with Disney, Comcast and Amazon that are worth a combined $77 billion.

Why it matters: The new contracts are a hefty increase over the NBA's current TV deal and represent the biggest change to the league's TV presence in decades.

Zoom in: The contracts will begin with the 2025-26 season and run through the 2035-36 season, the league announced Wednesday.

• The NBA announced the new deals following a last-ditch attempt from Warner Bros. Discovery to match Amazon's deal, which was rejected by the NBA.
• "We are grateful to Turner Sports for its award-winning coverage of the NBA and look forward to another season of the NBA on TNT," the league said.
• Financial details were not disclosed, but a source with knowledge of the deal terms confirmed $77 billion to Axios, a three-fold increase from its current deal, after multiple reports pegged the total value to be $76 billion,
• Comcast and Amazon will join incumbent Disney in carrying NBA games. TNT, the league's longest-tenured rights holder, will no longer broadcast NBA games after next season.
• Amazon gives the league it's first streaming-only partner and Comcast's NBC has a celebrated history of airing the league throughout the 1990s during the height of the Michael Jordan era.

Between the lines: Far more games will be on streaming and broadcast television after more than 20 years of cable networks being the main home for games.

• Disney's ABC will remain the home for the NBA Finals and will have one of the conference finals for 10 of the 11 years of the deal.

• Amazon will be the exclusive home of the NBA Cup, the league's in-season tournament and have a significant amount of regular season and playoff games, including a conference final in five of the years.
• Comcast will have games on both NBC and Peacock, including All-Star weekend coverage and a conference final in five of the years as well.

The big picture: Leagues are slicing up their rights to more partners than ever as a way to increase their total payout.

• Much of that is coming from deep-pocketed tech giants like Amazon, Apple, YouTube and Netflix.
• For Amazon, the NBA deal is the latest salvo in the tech behemoth's growing sports portfolio, which also includes the NFL, WNBA and, starting next year, NASCAR.

Russell Westbrook signs reported 2-year deal with Nuggets

The Denver Nuggets added some depth to their backcourt in a deal that had long been expected.

Russell Westbrook agreed to a deal with the Denver Nuggets reported to be for two years, $6.8 million and they officially inked their pact on July 26.

Westbrook was dealt to the Utah Jazz on July 18 but was waived two days later. His move to Denver had been reported since the initial deal that allowed the LA Clippers to work a sign-and-trade deal with the Jazz to acquire guard Kris Dunn.

Westbrook, a nine-time All-Star and the 2017 MVP for Oklahoma City, was traded for the fifth time in his career. He has now been traded to Utah by both franchises in his native Los Angeles in the past 18 months.

The 35-year-old Westbrook has reportedly opted into the final year of his contract with the Clippers, who were to pay him just over $4 million. The point guard averaged a career-low 11.1 points per game while mostly coming off the bench last season for the Clippers, who were bounced by Dallas in the first round of the playoffs while Kawhi Leonard was injured.

NBA unveils schedule for 2024-25 season

The NBA today released its complete game schedule and broadcast schedules for TNT, ESPN, ABC, NBA TV and ESPN Radio for the 2024-25 regular season. The day-by-day and team-by-team schedules are attached and available at NBA.com/schedule. Fans can purchase tickets to games at NBATickets.com.

The 79th NBA regular season will tip off on Tuesday, Oct. 22, 2024, and conclude on Sunday, April 13, 2025. The SoFi NBA Play-In Tournament 2025 will take place from Tuesday, April 15 – Friday, April 18, followed by the start of the NBA Playoffs 2025 presented by Google Pixel on Saturday, April 19. Game 1 of the NBA Finals 2025 presented by YouTube TV is set for Thursday, June 5.

The regular-season schedule includes defined dates and opponents for 80 of each team’s 82 games, along with two games designated as TBD dates and opponents. Those two games for each team, to be played Dec. 10-16, will be determined based on the results of Group Play games in the Emirates NBA Cup 2024. The Group Play schedule, which comprises 60 games that will be played on Tuesdays and Fridays from Nov. 12 – Dec. 3, was announced on Aug. 13.

NBA Schedule: https://www.nba.com/schedule?cal=all&region=1

Guerschon Yabusele, Sixers Agree To One-Year, Veteran Minimum Deal

The Philadelphia 76ers and Guerschon Yabusele have agreed to a one-year contract for the veteran minimum, per Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN. Shams Charania of The Athletic first reported that Yabusele and the Sixers were in serious talks on a contract.

Philadelphia can cover up to $850,000 of that buyout this season. The 76ers can offer Yabusele only a veteran minimum contract for this season of approximately $2.1 million.

After excelling for France as the 2024 Paris Olympics, Yabusele was clear that he'd like another shot at the NBA. The 6-foot-8 forward averaged 14 points on 51.9% while helping France to the silver medal.

Last season in 64 games across all competition for Real Madrid, Yabusele averaged 9.7 points and 3.9 rebounds per game. He shot 53.1% from the field and 44.5% on three-pointers.

Yabusele hasn't appeared in an NBA game since he was waived by the Boston Celtics in 2019. Boston waived the former 16th overall pick in the 2016 NBA Draft after 74 appearances over two NBA seasons.

Lauri Markkanen signs multiyear extension to remain with Jazz

Lauri Markkanen received a multiyear contract extension with Utah on Wednesday, ensuring the Jazz have a key element in their rebuilding plans.

The deal is worth $238 million over five years, Markkanen’s agent told ESPN. Agent Michael Lelchitski of Sports International Group also said the deal includes $220 million in new money, and his salary for next season increases by $24 million. Markkanen’s deal had one year left at $18 million before the new agreement, and he can’t be traded until at least the 2025 offseason.

“I’m excited to get this extension done,” Markkanen said in a video message posted on X. “I’m ready to get back to work and build with this franchise.”

He also thanked Jazz management for getting the deal done.

“Lauri’s ability to score in multiple ways and his versatility as a player makes our team better,” Jazz CEO Danny Ainge said in a statement. “He embodies our team’s core values on and off the court. We’re glad that he wants to be a part of our future and what we’re building here in Utah.”

Utah locks up a player who has averaged 24.5 points since being traded to the club two years ago. Markkanen, a 7-footer who can extend the court with his 3-point prowess, was named the NBA’s Kia Most Improved Player in his first Jazz season and appeared on his first All-Star team.

He played his first five seasons with the Cleveland Cavaliers and Chicago Bulls. His highest scoring average was 18.7 points in the 2018-19 season in Chicago.

Netflix to Launch NBA Sports Series 'Starting 5' Featuring Star Players

Netflix said on Wednesday it will launch a sports series titled "Starting 5" that will showcase behind-the-scenes moments from the National Basketball Association games' 2023-2024 season.

Streaming services have been increasingly investing in sports content to drive up viewership and advertising revenue.

Netflix signed new content deals with World Wrestling Entertainment and National Football League this year, expanding its sports slate with live programming.

The new series will be divided in 10 parts and follow popular NBA stars Jimmy Butler, Anthony Edwards, LeBron James, Domantas Sabonis and Jayson Tatum.

Set to premiere on Oct. 9, the series will be produced by James' digital media company, Uninterrupted, in association with Barack and Michelle Obama's Higher Ground Productions and former NFL quarterback Peyton Manning's Omaha Productions.

Netflix has had success with behind-the-scenes shows, such as the 'Formula 1: Drive to Survive' documentary series that fueled the sport's global popularity.

https://www.usnews.com/news/technolo...g-star-players

Suns waive Nassir Little and EJ Liddell to create open roster spot ahead of season, per report

The Phoenix Suns have broken the monotony of late August by waiving veteran forward Nassir Little and second-year guard EJ Liddell, according to Shams Charania. As a result, the Suns now have an open roster spot heading into the 2024-25 season.

After a number of high-profile moves in the last few years, the Suns have the highest payroll in the league by a wide margin at $219 million. They have soared well past the infamous "second apron," which has severely limited their flexibility. In addition to the tax bill, they can no longer aggregate salaries in trades, trade for more money than they send out, use any version of the mid-level exception or sign players on the buy-out market whose initial salary was more than non-taxpayer mid-level exception.

Signing free agents to minimum contracts is the easiest way for them to add players, as we saw earlier this summer when they added Tyus Jones. With an empty roster spot, they can now add someone else -- either now or in the middle of the season. Charania added that the Suns have been impressed with rookies Ryan Dunn and Oso Ighodaro, who will have more opportunities to play with Little gone.

NBA Seeks Dismissal of Warner Sports-Rights Lawsuit

This game may never start.

The NBA moved Friday to shut down Warner Bros. Discovery’s ambitious legal effort to force the league to restore some portion of its media rights to the company. In documents filed in the Supreme Court of the State of New York, the NBA sought dismissal of the case, alleging that Warner had in fact failed to match the terms of a package of games that have been earmarked for Amazon‘s Prime Video, detailing in a letter how the company, its former longtime sports-media ally, had tried to craft an alternate deal that did not in fact offer the same things that Amazon did.

Spokespersons for the NBA were not able to respond immediately to queries seeking comment. The NBA said in its filings that it intended to move for dismissal at an October 4 hearing in New York City.

Klay Thompson Reveals Biggest Reason For Joining Dallas Mavericks

For the first time in his career, Klay Thompson will open up the NBA season in a jersey other than a Golden State Warriors jersey. The Dallas Mavericks wing is in the latter half of his career, which has seen quite a bit of a step back.

Still an elite 3-point shooter, Thompson can provide high-level floor spacing. The Golden State Warriors' ability to compete at a championship level feels non-existent, though. Stephen Curry is obviously still a superstar, but the team invested so much in the dynasty that it seems the franchise is in for a rebuild after Curry's career concludes.

Thompson wanted one more chance to compete alongside a title-contending team, and he joined the Mavericks in free agency with a chance to do so. Playing alongside Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving is certainly a strong appeal for such an incredible shooter, too. Thompson explained this during Hometown Favorites weekend.

“Playing with Luka and Kyrie, that’s what was attractive, especially watching their championship run. I was really shocked to see the chemistry with their teammates,” Thompson said to Austin Miller.

The chemistry Thompson is referring to is the guards' abilities to throw lobs to their big men, though primarily Dereck Lively II, who posted an incredible rookie season. The same level of chemistry is what made the Warriors' dynasty teams so special. It'll also help Thompson get high-level looks from deep when considering the scoring gravity Irving and Doncic provide.

With Lively's vertical spacing and Thompson's floor spacing, the Mavericks' opponents will have to pick their poison when playing Dallas. The former Warriors wing understands that, too.

“I might not be able to run as fast or jump as high, but I can still knock down open shots, and I think I can be that missing piece for them,” Thompson continued. “They can’t send as many double teams. They got to worry about playing the backside and giving up wide-open looks.”

Just how good can Dallas be next season?

“I think we have a chance to do something really special and win a championship,” Thompson said.

Pacers, T.J. McConnell agree to 4-year extension

The Indiana Pacers took another step in keeping their team together for the immediate future.

Veteran guard T.J. McConnell and the Pacers have agreed to a four-year, $45 million extension, his agents told multiple outlets on Friday. McConnell averaged a career-best 10.2 points per game last season as well as 5.5 assists and 2.7 rebounds per game as Indiana reached the Eastern Conference Finals.

The Pacers have been busy in the offseason, inking star forward Pascal Siakam to a four-year, $189.5 million max deal, forward Obi Toppin to a four-year deal and swingman Andrew Nembhard to a three-year extension as well. Last summer, the team inked All-Star guard Tyrese Haliburton to a five-year, $260 million extension and of its core players, only center Myles Turner is facing free agency in 2025.

McConnell was particularly valuable to the Pacers in the playoffs, when Haliburton battled injuries at times. He posted 11.8 ppg, 3.1 rpg and 5.1 apg while shooting 48.6% overall and was strong in the Pacers’ Game 7 win at Madison Square Garden in the Eastern Conference semifinals. As a reserve in that game, he posted 12 points, seven assists and shot 6-for-8 to help fuel Indiana’s victory.

Is Jeff Bezos in the mix to buy Celtics? NBA reportedly wants team to sell for $6B with expansion in mind

Amazon founder Jeff Bezos could be in the mix to buy the Boston Celtics, according to The Ringer's Bill Simmons, who said on his podcast on Sunday that the NBA wants the franchise to sell for $6 billion. On July 1, two weeks after winning the 2024 NBA championship, the Celtics announced that their ownership group, led by Wyc Grousbeck, planned to sell the team.

Simmons said he had "a bunch of information" about what he described as "a huge, huge topic right now in the circles of people that would want to buy a team." Here's what he told Chuck Klosterman on the podcast:

• Irving Grousbeck, Wyc's 90-year-old father, is "driving the sale," Simmons said, and "he just wants the highest price," so prospective buyers with ties to Boston will not have an edge. In recent days, there has been "legitimate buzz" about Bezos being interested in buying the franchise. "I think it's real," he said. "I think he's going to be one of the suitors."
• The NBA wants the sell price to be $6 billion. "They don't own their arena," Simmons said. "It's a crazy price, but they're probably going to get it."
• Why $6 billion? The league wants to "establish a price" with this sale as a precursor to expansion, according to Simmons. "They want to get $6 billion apiece" in expansion fees for teams in Seattle and Las Vegas, "which would mean a check of $400 million to every NBA owner, all 30," he said. Simmons also said that Mexico City is "kind of looming as a third team."

For context, mortgage lender Mat Ishbia bought the Phoenix Suns and the WNBA's Mercury in 2022 for $4 billion. The Nets and Liberty were valued at $6 billion when owner Joe Tsai sold a minority stake in June.

Stephen Curry expected to eventually sign contract extension with Warriors, per report

Stephen Curry is fresh off a starring role on Team USA's gold medal winning Olympic team, which served as the perfect reminder that, yeah he's still one of the best players in the entire universe. In between all of his clutch shot making, it was difficult not to notice how well Curry and LeBron James played together. Of course it got people thinking about the possibility of the duo teaming up together, but if that were to happen it likely wouldn't involved Curry leaving the Golden State Warriors.

Curry is expected to sign an extension with the Warriors, per Marc Stein, but the timeline of it is unclear right now. The four-time champion is eligible to sign a one-year, $62.6 million extension between now and before Opening Night on Oct. 22, or he could wait for a slightly more lucrative extension that could be two years and around $130 million, per Stein.

Whatever he decides, though, it seems to be clear that Curry's committed to staying with the Warriors past the two years left he has remaining on his current contract. That should be a sigh of relief for the Warriors, who missed out on their two main targets this summer, Paul George and Lauri Markkanen, and lost franchise staple Klay Thompson to the Dallas Mavericks. But while Golden State was unsuccessful in trying to trade fro Markkanen to sign George, they did bring in some quality role players in Kyle Anderson, Buddy Hield and De'Anthony Melton.

Los Angeles Lakers Sign Vincent Valerio-Bodon

The Los Angeles Lakers have signed guard-forward Vincent Valerio-Bodon. Terms of the contract were not released.

Valerio-Bodon (6’9”, 200) appeared in 25 games (five starts) for the South Bay Lakers last season, averaging 6.0 points, 2.4 rebounds, 1.3 assists and 1.2 blocks in 18.3 minutes. The 23-year-old scored in double figures in seven regular season contests, including a season-high 19 points at Santa Cruz on March 27. On the international stage, he appeared in 83 games across four seasons (2019-23) playing for the Hungarian A League, averaging 5.9 points, 3.3 rebounds and 1.3 assists in 19.8 minutes.

Valerio-Bodon most recently suited up for the Lakers’ 2024 summer league team, appearing in four contests (one start) and averaging 4.5 points, 4.0 rebounds and 1.3 assists in 13.5 minutes.

NBA introduces additional video review for referees on out-of-bounds violations

The NBA expanded the use of instant replay on out-of-bounds review.

If a coach challenge requests the game officials to review an out-of-bound violation, they can check for an uncalled foul and continue the game accordingly.

The new rule will take effect in the upcoming 2024-25 season.

Details were announced on Tuesday.

Per the press release: “The NBA Board of Governors today approved an expanded use of the Coach’s Challenge when reviewing out-of-bounds violations, beginning with the 2024-25 NBA season.
Under the new rule, if instant replay of an out-of-bounds violation is triggered by a Coach’s Challenge, the on-court officials and Replay Center will be able to review the video to determine whether a foul proximate to the violation should have been called. The factors that will be considered in determining whether a prior uncalled foul is proximate to the out-of-bounds violation are below:

• Whether the players involved in the uncalled foul are the same or different players than the ones involved in the out-of-bounds violation under review.
• The distance between the uncalled foul and the out-of-bounds violation under review.
• The time elapsed between the uncalled foul and the out-of-bounds violation under review.

Here is an example of a play from last season and how the new rule will be applied. On this play, the Dallas Mavericks challenged the ruling on the floor that awarded the Minnesota Timberwolves with possession following an out-of-bounds violation. When reviewing the play, although Dallas guard Kyrie Irving made illegal contact with the left arm of Minnesota forward Jaden McDaniels, the officials and the Replay Center correctly determined that the ball was last touched by McDaniels, ruled the Mavericks’ challenge to be successful and thus awarded possession to Dallas. Under the new rule, Dallas’ challenge would be unsuccessful, a personal foul would be called on Irving and Minnesota would retain possession or shoot free throws if the Mavericks were in the penalty.

The NBA’s Competition Committee – which consists of players, representatives from the National Basketball Players Association, coaches, governors, team and league basketball executives, and referees – unanimously recommended this rule change to the Board of Governors.”

Lakers hire new coach to develop Bronny James in G League

Los Angeles Lakers hire a coach to help Bronny James and the South Bay Lakers in the G League.

After last season’s disappointing early exit in the first round of the playoffs, the Los Angeles Lakers decided to part ways with head coach Darvin Ham and hire JJ Redick as his replacement.

However, the coaching changes didn’t stop there. The Lakers also made a key move in their G League affiliate, the South Bay Lakers, where Bronny James is expected to spend much of the upcoming season.

According to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski, “The Los Angeles Lakers are hiring Zach Guthrie as the coach of the franchise’s G League affiliate in South Bay.” Guthrie is no stranger to the NBA, having served as an assistant coach with the Washington Wizards, Dallas Mavericks, and Utah Jazz.

Now, he’s set to take charge of the Lakers’ G League team, focusing on the development of young talent—including Bronny James, who is likely to spend significant time honing his skills in the G League before potentially joining the NBA full-time.