Ever since the clock struck midnight (on the East Coast where everything matters), free agency has been very exciting.
According to multiple reports, the Los Angeles Lakers called Timofey Mozgov at 12:01 AM to begin courting him, and he was the first player to sign.
Sources confirm the terms on Timofey Mozgov, per @WojVerticalNBA: 4 years, $64 million. Mozgov wanted to start, get multi-year deal. He did.
— Tim Bontemps (@TimBontemps) July 1, 2016
Wow. Good for Mozzy.
We all have to remember that 4 years, $64 million under the new salary cap is much different than what it was in recent years. The NBA will utilize a $94 million salary cap for the 2016-17 season, a 34.3 percent increase from the $70 million number in 2015-16. A $16 million per year salary this year equates to $11.9 million last year.
So, while it's true that players will receive more on the open market, we must be careful before judging high salary values too quickly. Oh, and Mozzy can still do this:
Other deals to report
Nicolas Batum re-signs for 5 years, $120 million – This is a good deal for Charlotte as it comes under max contract value for Batum. I personally would have offered him a max deal to come to Denver, but it seemed like he wanted to get a contract done quickly in order to player international basketball.
Free agent Nicolas Batum has reached agreement with Charlotte on a five-year, $120 million deal, league sources tell The Vertical.
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) July 1, 2016
DeMar DeRozan has agreed to a five-year, $139 million-plus deal with Toronto, sources tell The Vertical.
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) July 1, 2016
Jordan Clarkson re-signs for 4 years, $50 million – Holy cow. Was Clarkson’s agent playing the same game everyone else was? That’s an incredibly team-friendly deal for Clarkson. The Lakers still have over $35 million in cap room after this deal and the Mozgov deal, so they may not be done adding talent. Nice job LAL.
Jordan Clarkson has reached agreement on a four-year, $50M deal to return to the Los Angeles Lakers, league sources tell The Vertical.
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) July 1, 2016
Hassan Whiteside re-signs for 4 years, $98 million – This was the expect MAX contract value for Whiteside. He has become a fearsome shot blocker and above-the-rim scorer for the Miami Heat, and they rewarded him as such with a large deal. No word yet on Dwyane Wade’s status, but in my opinion, he’s just as likely to leave as he is to stay.
Source tells AP that is a four-year MAX for Hassan Whiteside to stay with the Heat.
— Tim Reynolds (@ByTimReynolds) July 1, 2016
Ish Smith signs with Detroit for 3 years, $18 million – What a deal made by Stan Van Gundy. Ish Smith was one of the only players to perform well for Philadelphia last season, and he will be an elite backup for Reggie Jackson in Detroit. I said this earlier in the offseason, but watch out for Detroit to make a major leap in 2016-17.
A source said Smith will get a three-year $18 million deal with the #DetroitPistons. He made $1.1 million last season.
— Keith Pompey (@PompeyOnSixers) July 1, 2016
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