NBA Free Agents 2016: Top Rumors and Predictions Before NBA Draft

It didn't take long for the NBA rumor mill to get cranking after the Cleveland Cavaliers dispatched the Golden State Warriors on Sunday to win the 2016 NBA championship. 

While the city of Cleveland will be celebrating harder than it has in 52 years on Wednesday, front offices around the league will be busy monitoring the latest on the top free agents in the hopes that they too can someday enjoy that sweet, sweet championship feeling.

Thursday's NBA draft will reshape the free-agent landscape a bit as teams take care of needs with young talent, but it likely won't have much of an effect on the teams clamoring for the biggest names of the summer.

Here's a look at some of the latest rumors before draft day.


LeBron James

Let's start with the man who's responsible for bringing the 2016 season to a Cleveland-centric close.

LeBron James isn't yet a free agent but could opt out of the second year of his contract and test the market this summer, per Spotrac. He's all but guaranteed to do this, at the very least to engineer a more lucrative deal and take advantage of the league's rising salary cap.

However, considering the fact it's "mission accomplished" in bringing a title to Cleveland, James could leave Ohio for a second time in his career.

ESPN's Stephen A. Smith floated the Los Angeles Lakers as a potential destination on Monday, per First Take:

The New York Post's Marc Berman noted that Smith also mentioned a return to Miami as a possibility. 

James proved this postseason that even at 31, he's capable of bending the NBA to his whims. He went supernova in the NBA Finals, leading all players in five major statistical categories, per ESPN Stats & Info:

He's always marched to his own beat as a superstar, more than willing to change franchises in order to get what he wants, regardless of how some might perceive him. If he truly wants another challenge, he'll certainly go after it.

Bringing a title to Los Angeles or Miami would certainly make him a hero in those towns, and a speculative sojourn to the New York Knicks, per NJ Advance Media's Matt Lombardo, would make him a basketball immortal, but those options aren't any better than sticking around in Cleveland. 

Tony Dejak/Associated Press

James can take time to enjoy the phenomenal goodwill he's now secured in his home state, and the Eastern Conference doesn't appear capable of really challenging the Cavaliers for another year or two if he stays put. Kyrie Irving proved himself a worthy champion and fine deputy in this postseason. 

Plus, if James really wants to play with his friends again, he can always sign another short-term deal and then ride off into the sunset on another superteam in his later years. King James may indeed opt out, but he's not going anywhere. He'll sign a new short-term deal and stay in The Land.

Prediction: James opts out, signs new deal with Cleveland


Dirk Nowitzki

Rick Bowmer/Associated Press

Having fallen short of a championship despite a record 73-win regular season, the Warriors are apparently ready to get after it in free agency and make sure that a title and immortality don't escape them this time next year. 

According to the San Jose Mercury News' Tim Kawakami, the Warriors are potentially interested in bringing in Dallas Mavericks star Dirk Nowitzki:

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This is why the Warriors want Dirk Nowitzki.

Did I surprise you with that name? I was surprised when I heard that a run for Nowitzki was bouncing around the Warriors’ thought process recently, but it makes sense.

"

Nowitzki did indeed opt out of his contract on Tuesday, per ESPN.com's Marc Stein. The 38-year-old averaged 18.3 points and 6.5 rebounds per game this season while shooting 44.8 percent from the field and 36.8 percent from three.

His shooting skills and deft passing touch would make him an excellent fit for the Warriors, who saw Festus Ezeli disappear in the NBA Finals and have seen Andrew Bogut miss time in each of his four seasons with Golden State. Nowitzki can stretch the floor in a way those two or Marreese Speights simply cannot.

An admittedly aging Nowitzki wouldn't have to play heavy minutes as the focal point of the offense on a team featuring Steph Curry and Klay Thompson, keeping him fresh later in the season and in the playoffs.

Still, the Forth Worth Star-Telegram's Dwain Price doesn't think there is a chance he'll depart Dallas:

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An 18-year veteran, Nowitzki has said on numerous occasions that unless the Mavericks plan on going through a rebuilding process, he plans to play his entire career with the Mavericks. And owner Mark Cuban has said on numerous occasions that he will NEVER go into a rebuilding process as long as Nowitzki is with the Mavericks.

So, there you have [it]. Period. Paragraph. End of story.

Please stop the nonsense!

"

Indeed, Nowitzki has said that it would essentially take a cratered, Philadelphia 76ers-esque roster for him to even think of leaving Dallas, per comments to ESPN.com's Tim MacMahon in April:

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I'm not sure where that came from. I never said I was going to leave this franchise. The only way I would ever leave is, like I've always said, if we start five rookies. Obviously, that's not something that I want to be a part of, but as long as we go for it and compete, then I'll be a Mav.

"

The Mavericks finished 42-40 this season, good for sixth in the Western Conference.

Though it's unlikely Nowitzk will leave, this situation is still very much one to monitor, as Price reported that both Chandler Parsons and Deron Williams have (unofficially) opted out of their contracts.

If the Mavs fail to retain them and don't appear capable of replacing them to remain competitive in a stacked Western Conference, Nowitzki may have to consider the possibility of skipping out on a rebuilding squad. Nowitzki's services would be attractive to a number of teams, not just the Warriors. 

According to Price, at least one source knows nothing is ever final until there's pen to ink:

(Cue nightmarish flashback to the DeAndre Jordan saga).

Barring any signs of a major exodus from Dallas, expect Nowitzki to finish out his career with the only team he's ever played for.

Prediction: Nowitzki sticks with the Dallas Mavericks


Kevin Durant

The Great Kevin Durant Sweepstakes of 2016 has been the talk of the NBA long before even this past season, with his contract's end coinciding with the ballooning of the league's salary cap and making him a potential target of just about everyone. 

Naturally, only a few teams will capture Durant's interest, as the 27-year-old has yet to win an NBA title. The Larry O'Brien Trophy will be foremost in his mind this summer, so it's perhaps not terribly surprising that the Warriors will go after him, per Stein: 

"

The Golden State Warriors, after their NBA Finals defeat, are going ahead with their long-held plans to pursue Kevin Durant in free agency, according to league sources.

Sources told ESPN that Durant is by no means Golden State's lone target in free agency but stressed that he'll indeed be the Warriors' top target when the offseason marketplace opens July 1.

"

Durant is pretty much top-priority for Golden State (and everyone else), with Kawakami even noting that the aforementioned Nowitzki "would be a next-tier discussion for the Warriors" and not the main focus of their offseason.

Andrew D. Bernstein/Getty Images

The New York Daily News' Frank Isola noted that Durant will likely meet with suitors in Los Angeles, per a source, and that he could indeed prefer the Warriors: "The same source maintains that if Durant doesn’t re-sign with the Oklahoma City Thunder he would prefer to join the Warriors, a team that has reached two straight NBA Finals and could rule the Western Conference for the next five years if Durant goes to the Bay Area."

Stein also reported that like the Warriors, the San Antonio Spurs are on "the short list of teams expected to secure a face-to-face meeting with Durant," suggesting that a title-ready team is all that matters to the Oklahoma City Thunder superstar. 

The always lurking Lakers and Knicks will probably make their pitches, especially since Durant will be in the former's backyard, but it's difficult to see Durant leaving the Thunder to play savior somewhere else.

Consider the fact that he just witnessed a 73-win team lose a Game 7 in the NBA Finals. There are no guarantees in the Association. Getting to the mountaintop is too hard, too fraught with peril. Durant is entering his prime years and wants to win now. The Warriors are closer to that summit than any other team not playing in Cleveland, so maybe he really will set off for the Bay Area.

Prediction: Kevin Durant leaves Oklahoma City, signs with Golden State