Tons of Big NBA News!!

Lots of NBA news!

Here is what has happened recently:

Trades

The Los Angeles Clippers traded Kawhi Leonard to the Toronto Raptors for Brandon Ingram, Gradey Dick, 2 first-round picks, and 2 second-round picks!
Kawhi Leonard is an amazing player. He is a 7x All-Star and averaged 28 points on over 50% shooting last season. However, the Clippers as a team haven't been that great recently, so it seems like they are trying to rebuild towards a younger roster.
Brandon Ingram is also a great player. He is a 2x All-Star who averaged 22 points and 4 assists on 48% shooting last season.

The Memphis Grizzlies traded 2x NBA All-Star Ja Morant to the Portland Trail Blazers for Jerami Grant and Kris Murray. Ja Morant has had some great seasons, but only played 20 games last season before getting injured. In those 20 games, he averaged a solid 19.5 points and 8 assists, but his shooting percentage has declined in each of the last few seasons. The Grizzlies have already traded away other great players like Jaren Jackson Jr. and Desmond Bane, so it seems they're trying to rebuild their whole roster. (Also, Ja Morant has had multiple off-court issues, including suspensions and league investigations, which certainly doesn't make the Grizzlies any more likely to keep him.)

The Utah Jazz are trading Walker Kessler to the Los Angeles Lakers for two first-round picks and two first-round pick swaps. Kessler averaged 14 points, 11 rebounds, 3 assists, and 2 blocks on 70% shooting for the Jazz last season. Great trade for the Lakers as they badly needed a center.
The Charlotte Hornets traded Miles Bridges, a 2029 first-round pick, and a 2027 second-round pick to the Phoenix Suns for Grayson Allen, Royce O'Neale, and a 2033 first-round pick.
Miles Bridges averaged 17 points, 5.8 rebounds, and 3.2 assists for the Hornets this past season.

Free Agency Signings

Mitchell Robinson has signed a three-year, $47.4M deal with the Boston Celtics. Robinson had played his whole career with the Knicks and had been with the team since they were the worst in the league. He played a key role in the franchise’s rise to an NBA championship. This is a huge loss for the Knicks.

Norman Powell has agreed to a two-year, $45M deal with the Chicago Bulls. He made his first All-Star appearance last season, averaging 22 points and 3 assists on 47% shooting and 38% from 3.

Quentin Grimes has agreed to a four-year, $60M deal with the Los Angeles Lakers. He averaged 13 points, 4 rebounds, and 3 assists for the 76ers this past season.

Collin Sexton has agreed to a two-year, $19M deal with the Los Angeles Lakers. He averaged 15 points, 3 assists, and 1 steal, while shooting 49% and 40% from 3 for the Bulls last season.

Marcus Smart is signing a two-year, $13M deal with the Houston Rockets. He was Defensive Player of the Year in 2022.

Tim Hardaway Jr. is signing a one-year, $6.5M deal with the Miami Heat. I think this is a great signing for the Heat, adding a very good shooter next to Giannis and Bam.

Ariel Hukporti has agreed to a one-year, $3.4M deal with the Philadelphia 76ers. Karl-Anthony Towns is currently the only center on the Knicks.

John Collins has agreed to a three-year, $51M deal with the Detroit Pistons. He averaged 14 points on 55% shooting for the Clippers this season.

Branden Carlson is signing a one-year $2.5M deal with the Portland Trail Blazers. I don't know much about this guy, but he's 7 feet tall, so that's something.

Re-signings/Extensions

All of these free agents re-signed with the same team that they played for this past season:

That's all for now, folks! ✌️

More news coming very soon!

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