NBA free agency 2024: Every signing, trade and rumor from the first week of the NBA offseason

In their statement announcing Paul George's departure, the Clippers acknowledged his All-Star appearances and strong play in the 2021 postseason that led the franchise to their only conference finals appearance. But they also acknowledged several other challenges: the age of the stars, the annual postseason disappointments, the new collective bargaining agreement that would hamstring the team's flexibility if George got what he wanted in his next contract, and the team and George being unable to close the gap on a new contract. The Clippers also acknowledged that they explored opt-in scenarios to trade George, but that the situation would not improve in those circumstances.

The new era of Intuit Dome, which was also acknowledged by the Clippers, will have Kawhi Leonard and James Harden. But today's events mean that George and Russell Westbrook will move on. It is a nice gesture from the Clippers, but George is leaving the team he rooted for growing up and wanted to be drafted by.

Eric Gordon has agreed to a deal with the Philadelphia 76ers, sources tell The Athletic.

After five NBA seasons, the LA Clippers have conceded that Paul George will move on to another team.

"Heading into the offseason, our roster was constructed three (sic.) great players 33 and over, two of whom could become free agents," the team said in a statement. "We wanted to retain them on contracts that would allow us, under the constraints of the new CBA, to continue building the team. We negotiated for months with Paul and his representatives on a contract that would make sense for both sides, and we were left far apart. The gap was significant. We understand and respect Paul's decision to look elsewhere for his next contract."

With the signing of two-time NBA champion Kentavious Caldwell-Pope to the Orlando Magic, that clears the way for the Philadelphia 76ers to sign George outright.

The Detroit Pistons and Cade Cunningham are discussing a five-year, $226 million maximum rookie extension that would be the richest contract in franchise history, league sources confirmed to The Athletic on Sunday.

The deal is not finalized and could take time to iron out the details, but both sides are optimistic something will get done in the near future. Cunningham, the No. 1 pick in the 2021 NBA Draft, has been one of the few bright spots for an organization that has spent the last few years in the gutter.

Read more here.

Denver offered Kentavious Caldwell-Pope a salary pretty similar to what he ended up getting from Orlando, and I’m told the Nuggets offered three years. The Nuggets definitely tried here.

Now that we know that the Kentavious Caldwell-Pope contract has a player option on the third season, I wonder if the Magic structured it so that it's declining. If it's a flat $66 million contract, then KCP can get $23.158 million in year 1 and $22 million in the second season, locking in his two highest-paying seasons before getting a chance to opt-out ahead of the lowest-paying season. He'd head to free agency at 33 and into a salary cap that could be $170.11 million (if 10 percent projections prove right), which is about $30 million more than the 2024-25 season.

In May, Clippers president of basketball operations Lawrence Frank alluded to the team's willingness to sign talented younger players with off-the-floor troubles, due to the team's lack of resources to otherwise add talent to the roster. Joshua Primo, a 2021 lottery pick, was on the team for most of the 2023-24 season after being suspended by the NBA for exposing himself to women while with the San Antonio Spurs in 2022. Primo was waived while injured in the last week of the season so that the Clippers could sign 2021 first-round pick Kai Jones, who the Hornets waived in October after multiple instances where Jones criticized teammates on social media and requested a trade.

"We have to take some swings on young players. Maybe right, maybe wrong, but we developed that kind of third line of players... some fallen angels, guys that may have been lottery picks that showed in the NBA minutes that they can do it."

Now, the Clippers have Kevin Porter Jr. on the roster and back in the league.

After agreeing to a three-year deal with Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, Orlando still has roughly $30 million left in room to pursue other options. That takes them out of the running for Paul George, but they could still be a major player for center Isaiah Hartenstein, or use their space and picks in trade scenarios.

The Magic add Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, and based on his recent track record, that makes them the title favorites in 2026. (He has won championships with the Lakers in 2020 and the Nuggets in 2023).

But in all seriousness, that's a smart signing by the Magic. KCP is a perfect fit for them. He gives Orlando 3-point shooting (a 40 percent shooter over the last four seasons) without compromising its defense, which was a strength this past season. The Magic also got KCP at a little less annually than the Pacers gave Bruce Brown last offseason, based on the reported numbers right now. Will be curious to see how Orlando structured that deal and if they frontloaded it so the contract is declining as it starts to sign its core players to their extensions.

Russell Westbrook has interest in playing for the Denver Nuggets, and that interest appears to be mutual, league sources told The Athletic.

Westbrook, the mercurial 35-year-old LA Clippers point guard, recently opted into the final year of his contract. He and the Clippers are actively exploring trade scenarios, according to league sources.

The Nuggets are in the market for a backup point guard after trading Reggie Jackson to the Charlotte Hornets. Westbrook's pace, athleticism and ability to provide energy offer an intriguing contrast to their starting lineup, which relies more on cerebral skill. Westbrook also offers rim pressure off the dribble that the Nuggets lost when Bruce Brown departed in free agency last summer.

Denver is preparing to lose starting shooting guard Kentavious Caldwell-Pope in free agency. The Nuggets have offered him a three-year deal, but it's unclear if that will be enough to convince him to stay in Denver.

Free agent center Andre Drummond plans to sign a two-year, $10-plus million deal with the Philadelphia 76ers, sources tell The Athletic.

The Nuggets could work Russell Westbrook's $4 million salary into a three-team trade by combining it with the already-agreed but not yet completed deal to send Reggie Jackson ($5.2M) to Charlotte; doing so would let them swap Jackson for Westbrook without aggregating or using a trade exception, and thus prevent them from being capped at the first apron.

Luke Kornet is returning to the Celtics on a one-year deal, team sources confirmed to The Athletic. This will be Kornet’s fifth season in Boston after a brief hiatus away in 2022, where he has been a reliable backup center and a valued part of the locker room culture. Beyond the fact that this was the first signing to break once the clock struck 6 p.m., it’s peculiar signing because the Celtics want to retain Xavier Tillman Sr., who cost them two second-round picks at the trade deadline in February.

GM Brad Stevens said last week that Boston made trades for Tillman and Jaden Springer at the deadline in part because the second apron would drastically limit their free agency tools this summer. Tillman has a chance to drum up a market beyond the minimum, so locking Kornet in now gives the Celtics a safety net if Tillman gets other offers. With the team retaining Neemias Queta on a multi-year deal, per The Athletic’s Shams Charania, Boston has some options here to fill out a center rotation that is going to see the floor plenty with Kristaps Porziņģis out for the first few months of the season.

The Oklahoma City Thunder are in Eugene, Ore. to meet with free-agent center Isaiah Hartenstein, league sources say.

Among cap space teams, Orlando is focused on wing free agents and Utah on current roster decisions. The Knicks, Hartenstein's current team, are working to un-hardcap themselves.