LeBron James has informed the Cleveland Cavaliers that he'll opt out of the final year of his contract and become an unrestricted free agent this summer, reports ESPN's Brian Windhorst. The forward plans to re-sign with the Cavs but will wait to "see how the team's free agency plays out over the first weeks of July" before doing so.
LeBron's agent, Rich Paul, has also confirmed to SB Nation that he will opt out.
James signed a two-year deal including an opt out after the first year with Cleveland last summer after leaving the Miami Heat. He's going to take advantage of that option now, either to push for a bigger short-term deal or to move on, depending on how the next few weeks play out.
All indications are that James will re-sign with Cleveland after leading the team to the NBA Finals this year, and Chris Broussard of ESPN reports that he won't even visit with other teams. Most likely, he's opting out in order to sign a new short-term deal with a bigger annual salary that still allows him to hit free agency once the salary cap increases significantly from the league's upcoming television deal.
The Cavaliers have a lot of moving pieces this summer, including James, Kevin Love and J.R. Smith, and seem determined to retain most of the current core to make another run. Re-signing LeBron is obviously the top priority, but there seems to be a small chance that the team fails to put together the right set of moves to make that worthwhile for him. It's also possible that the forward is simply giving those indications in order to motivate the team to be aggressive this summer with no intention of considering leaving.
So while James will be among the unrestricted free agents to hit the market on July 1, his near future with the Cavaliers doesn't appear to be in danger. The forward will likely sign to a new short-term deal with the team soon and continue his quest to bring a title to Cleveland.
You can (probably?) breathe easier, Cavs fans, Kevin Love plans on coming back to the Cavaliers next season. That's the word from Fox Sports Ohio's Sam Amico, who tweeted, "Kevin Love has indicated to [the] Cavs recently he plans to return."
Questions about Love's future popped up when he opted out of his contract last week, making him a free agenct on July 1. While Love said as recently as May 31 that he planned to remain with the Cavaliers, doubt began to creep up when national reports surfaced that teams such as the Lakers, Celtics, Blazers and Rockets would make a run at him.
The thought was if Love actually visited with other teams, could they convince him to leave his seemingly ideal situation in Cleveland? Maybe? Perhaps?
No, as Cavaliers GM David Griffin indicated last week, "I think he has been very clear with what his intentions are all along."
The Cavaliers are expected to offer Love a five-year max deal worth about $100 million, The Plain Dealer reported. Or he could sign a 1-and-1 deal, giving him the maximum salary for next year with a player option the following season.
Amico also reported the Cavaliers hope to trade Brendan Haywood and his unique $10.5 million contract quickly after July 1. That would give the Cavaliers the ability to add a player making up to about $14 million. The team acquiring Haywood could then waive him without paying him the full amount while clearing a big chunk of cap space.
The Los Angeles Lakers are days way from taking a shot at landing an elite free agent, and LaMarcus Aldridge is emerging as their top priority. Aldridge has reportedly made it clear to the Portland Trail Blazers he intends to sign elsewhere this summer, and Los Angeles is said to be one of his top destinations. The Lakers will offer Aldridge a four-year, $80 million contract when they make their pitch to the big man, reports Mike Bresnahan of the Los Angeles Times.
Aldridge would give the Lakers' frontcourt and future a stable presence while their young core develops. It might be difficult to pitch joining what appears to be a rebuilding franchise, however, creating a challenge for the front office to overcome. LaMarcus turns 30 in July and has yet to make a deep playoff run. The Lakers are a storied franchise with the championship trophies to back it up, but they've also missed the playoffs for back-to-back seasons and have been rolling through low points.
Is LA to LA that far-fetched, though? He already owns a home in southern California and apparently is quite familiar with the Lakers' victory song, according to Bresnahan:
All their financial eggs now go into the big-man basket. They want to talk to LaMarcus Aldridge, he wants to listen, and if all goes well for both sides, the four-time All-Star signs a four-year, $80-million deal to be the Lakers' power forward. Free agency begins Tuesday and Aldridge turns 30 two weeks later, a minor asterisk for a player who averaged a career-high 23.4 points last season and also 10.2 rebounds.
Portland made it past the first round once in Aldridge's nine years there, and though the Lakers were coming off their worst season ever (21-61, ugh), you can bet they'd pitch him on a rapid revival. Aldridge already owns a home in Orange County, his initials are tailor-made for the Lakers, and it just so happens that his good plays were rewarded at Portland home games by an audio snippet of Randy Newman's "I Love L.A."
There are certainly fit concerns here, especially if the indications are that Aldridge will be slotted as the Lakers' power forward. Depth in the frontcourt is great, but there's a gaping hole at center that was not addressed on draft night when the team decided D'Angelo Russell would be the talent to lead their rebuild. The Lakers are expected to decline the $9 million option on Jordan Hill, while Ed Davis will opt-out of his final year with the team. That leaves Tarik Black, Robert Sacre and Las Vegas Summer League invitee Robert Upshaw as the lone centers on the roster.
Aldridge has traditionally been slotted at power forward with another big playing center, but he's also spent time at the five throughout his career. It's still too far out to have a clear idea about what kind of rotation would work, and if both the Lakers and LaMarcus are open to envisioning an Aldridge-Randle pairing. Considering the Lakers would be spending a huge chunk of their available salary cap, it will definitely be a point of discussion while Aldridge maps out his next career move.
The Lakers are expected to make their case to unrestricted free agent center DeAndre Jordan, who's arguably a clearer fit for the current state of their roster, but he's considered "Plan B." They could also seek out a center in free agency or via trade, depending on how things progress once teams can officially make their pitch.
Signing a player as talented as Aldridge would be a big step for the Lakers, though. Even if he doesn't address their need for a center, Los Angeles is working toward constructing an appealing roster for the foreseeable future as well. LaMarcus might be looking for a more established situation after spending his career without a championship run, but if he's willing to hear out the vision Mitch Kupchak has for the future, they might be on the cusp of making one of the biggest signings of the summer.
Kevin Garnett was brought back to the Minnesota Timberwolves in a trade last season that had everyone feeling pretty nostalgic. However, with his impending free agency ahead, some wondered whether or not Garnett would be making his way back for another season with the team that he started his career with.
Well, have no fear, Timberwolves fans. It appears that Garnett will be back for another year.
According to TwinCities.com, Garnett will “definitely” be re-signing with the Timberwolves once the free agency period opens up.
Although it hasn’t been announced, pending free agent Kevin Garnett definitely will re-sign with the Wolves, and Saunders definitely will return as coach.
In the grand scheme of things, this is terrific news. Just having the No. 1 overall pick in the Draft this past week, the Timberwolves chose big man Karl-Anthony Towns to be their anchor in the middle for years to come. While Towns obviously possesses a world of talent, it could take things to a whole other level to have Garnett around showing him the way. A veteran presence can go a long way on a team such as this, and Garnett has shown once before that he has no issue in mentoring young talent.
It’s good for the team as a whole as well to have him around for at least another year. Not only is Towns in the fold now, but you have the Rookie of the Year in Andrew Wiggins returning, plus Zach LaVine, as well as Ricky Rubio from injury.
The Los Angeles Lakers would love to get their hands on a big man in free agency this summer, and one of the potential targets is Marc Gasol, who is an unrestricted free agent. But it doesn’t look as if a marriage between the two parties is going to happen, because Gasol wants nothing to do with one.
According to a report from the Los Angeles Times, Gasol has no interest whatsoever in joining the Lakers, mainly because of how they treated his brother before he left.
Marc Gasol has no interest in the Lakers because of the uneasy last few years his brother spent with them, according to numerous people familiar with the situation.
For those that need a refresher, during the last few years Pau Gasol was in Los Angeles, he was constantly rumored to be being shopped by the Lakers. So having seen this first hand, you really can’t blame Marc for wanting to take a pass on anything the Lakers might have to offer.
Even without the animosity, though, there’s little chance that Marc Gasol is going anywhere next season. The Memphis Grizzlies are apparently ready to pony up the cash to keep their talented big man around to continue competing for an NBA Championship in that tough Western Conference.
So with this little bit of news, now, you can expect the Lakers to really make a strong push for LaMarcus Aldridge. When they drafted D’Angelo Russell this past Thursday with the No. 2 overall pick in the draft, it became pretty clear that the target this summer is a big man down in the paint.
Един от двамата МVP на финали през миналите години с 3 милиона на година - Клипърс са с яка далавера 
Потресаващ е договора на Веждата - 139 млн. за 5 години 
