NBA Free Agency Roundup: KCP a Huge Win for Lakers; Rajon Rondo Next?
The Los Angeles Lakers are surging to center stage, and not because of any missed shots or triple-doubles from Lonzo Ball.
Cap space is coveted at this point in the NBA offseason, and the Purple and Gold were swimming in it. They were one of the few teams left that could offer a free agent upward of $15 million, and they flashed some of that cash while luring prominent players into Tinseltown for meetings.
Whether they ink anyone else remains to be seen, but getting the top available free agent into the building and then signing him has to be considered a major win. It could be the first step toward the rebuilding organization reclaiming its former place in the league-wide hierarchy.
Don't worry, though. This article isn't all about the Lakers.
We're still covering all of the big happenings of the NBA offseason for your viewing pleasure.
Lakers Get Their Man
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The Los Angeles Lakers had already enjoyed a solid offseason and figured to enter the 2017-18 season with Lonzo Ball, Jordan Clarkson, Brandon Ingram, Julius Randle and Brook Lopez in the starting lineup. Better still, they were guaranteed to have Josh Hart, Larry Nance Jr., Ivica Zubac and other promising players coming off the pine.
Is that lineup ready to compete in the Western Conference? Much to LaVar Ball's chagrin, it's not.
But it was a step in the right direction, and the Lakers weren't yet done trying to upgrade their troops.
According to ESPN.com's Adrian Wojnarowski, the team met with Rajon Rondo on Tuesday afternoon, but it can now only sign him to its $4.3 million room exception at best. That's because, per ESPN.com's Brian Windhorst, Los Angeles is bringing in Kentavious Caldwell-Pope on a one-year deal worth $18 million.
Adding Rondo makes less sense for a Lakers team still trying to move up the standings. Not only has the passing wizard trended in the wrong direction since leaving the Boston Celtics and moving out of his prime, but he'd take touches away from Ball and the roster's other guards.
Nevertheless, they're still trying. Per Wojnarowski, they're looking into using their room exception and adding him to the ever-growing backcourt.
Caldwell-Pope, however, is a phenomenal find.
Though the 2-guard entered the offseason as a restricted free agent, the Detroit Pistons rescinded his qualifying offer after they acquired Avery Bradley from the Boston Celtics. Unfortunately for Caldwell-Pope, the market had grown barren by that point, failing to give him the long-term money his upside demands.
Now, his cash comes in the form of a one-year contract, which gives the former Georgia Bulldog the opportunity to prove himself before hitting the open market again in 2018. This is his best chance at a massive financial windfall.
Plus, the Lakers were missing a shooting guard. Ingram can slide down a position. Hart has upside on the wing. But they didn't have anyone of Caldwell-Pope's caliber, and acquiring him gives the organization positional bingo.
Ball, Caldwell-Pope, Ingram and Randle could all eventually blossom into stars.
Paul George to Los Angeles Isn't Set in Stone
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Paul George killing the Indiana Pacers' leverage is now all but confirmed.
Remember when he was a mortal lock to eventually join the Los Angeles Lakers? Do you recall how that immediately depressed any offers the Pacers received because inquiring teams treated George as little more than a one-year rental?
Welp. About that.
As George told Sports Illustrated's Lee Jenkins, that story might be a bit overblown:
"I grew up a Lakers and a Clippers fan. I idolized Kobe. There will always be a tie here, a connection here. People saying I want to come here, who doesn't want to play for their hometown? That's a dream come true, if you're a kid growing up on the outskirts of L.A., to be the man in your city. But it's definitely been overstated. For me, it's all about winning. I want to be in a good system, a good team. I want a shot to win it. I'm not a stats guy. I'm playing this game to win and build a legacy of winning. I've yet to do that. I'm searching for it. If we get a killer season in Oklahoma, we make the conference finals or upset the Warriors or do something crazy, I'd be dumb to want to leave that.
"It's too early for L.A. It would have to be a situation where the ball gets rolling and guys are hopping on. This guy commits, that guy commits. 'Oh s--t, now there's a team forming.' It has to be like that. I'm in OKC, so hopefully me and Russ do a good enough job and make it to the conference finals and love the situation, why not recruit someone to come build it with us? I'm open in this whole process."
That doesn't sound like a player looking to bolt next summer when he hits free agency.
Plenty can change between now and then. The George-Russell Westbrook pairing could turn sour (it won't). Injuries could force the Oklahoma City Thunder into a lottery finish. The ridiculous pressure to compete within the Western Conference could create locker room issues.
But for now, it appears as though George is committed to making things work in his new home. He genuinely wants to win after falling down the standings in his old half of the NBA.
That's the right attitude to have. Play out the season, then—and only then—worry about what comes next.
Atlanta Hawks Land a Bargain
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During the 2016-17 campaign, the Atlanta Hawks' defensive rating (103.1) lagged behind only the marks of the Utah Jazz (102.7), Golden State Warriors (101.1) and San Antonio Spurs (100.9).
This offseason, they shipped Dwight Howard to the Charlotte Hornets. In his place is now a player who helped earn that league-best mark: Dewayne Dedmon.
Per Sam Amick of USA Today, the 27-year-old center is coming to Atlanta on a two-year, $14 million contract, with a player option for the second season. It's a bargain for someone who emerged as such a defensive stalwart, as the Hawks were rewarded for their patience and willingness to let the market cool before striking.
Dedmon won't rebound quite like Howard. Nor will he be able to provide as many points per game, since his contributions are limited almost entirely to finishing easy plays around the hoop. But he's a legitimate shutdown defender on the interior, coming off a year in which he held the opposition to 44.5 percent shooting at the rim.
The beauty of the ex-Spur is his defensive versatility. He has the lateral mobility necessary to hedge and recover on pick-and-rolls, dominates when left alone around the basket and can capably switch onto smaller players before baiting them into shots he'll block.
Dedmon isn't a two-way star, but his defensive acumen makes him a significant upgrade over Miles Plumlee and Mike Muscala.
New Orleans Pelicans Want Another Point Guard?
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The New Orleans Pelicans already inked Jrue Holiday to a new deal this offseason worth at least $126 million over the next five years. Naturally, they want another point guard who's on the books for $51.1 million across the next three seasons.
Wait.
What?
There's no punchline coming. The Pelicans are reportedly interested in acquiring Reggie Jackson from the Detroit Pistons, per Basketball Insiders' Michael Scotto. Under the reported framework, they'd be trading Alexis Ajinca and E'Twaun Moore for the veteran floor general. Quincy Pondexter could also find his way into the deal, according to Scotto.
Holiday can work with another 1-guard. He's proved that in the past, and his skill set lends itself well to functioning as either a lead ball-handler or a spot-up threat on the wings. But that's beside the point, because this would be a massive misallocation of resources for the Pelicans.
They need to win before DeMarcus Cousins decides he'd rather play for a third franchise, and doing so requires the acquisition of depth to fill out this threadbare outfit. Instead, New Orleans is apparently looking to stack its roster with overlapping talent at both point guard and center.
Making matters worse, Jackson had a disastrous campaign last year. He spent much of the season recovering from a knee injury that clearly held him back after his delayed debut, and he struggled on both ends of the court. When he wasn't functioning as a sieve, he was failing to finish plays around the rim.
Jackson could bounce back and form an incredible tandem with Holiday. But given the Pelicans' need to build up depth, they shouldn't make that gamble.
New York Knicks Find a Guard
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The New York Knicks desperately need to upgrade their backcourt, but they've struck out on nearly every big-name target this summer. Tim Hardaway Jr. is their biggest acquisition, and it took a massive overpay to lure him away from the Atlanta Hawks.
Now, the Knicks are spending almost all their remaining money to re-sign Ron Baker, who struggled immensely during his rookie season after joining the organization as an undrafted free agent. According to ESPN.com's Adrian Wojnarowski, they're bringing him back for two years and $8.9 million, including a player option for what would be his junior campaign.
Baker better cook up some boosted production, because New York doesn't have much more cap space to use this summer.
"The Knicks used their full room exception to bring back Baker, who announced on social media that he'd agreed to stay with New York on July 1," ESPN.com's Ian Begley reported. "... Barring a trade, New York has under $1.5 million left in cap space and veteran's minimum exceptions to offer free agents."
Whispers about Carmelo Anthony leaving are still flitting around, and New York pulling the trigger on a blockbuster trade could increase its amount of cap space. But for now, the Knicks are likely to go into the 2017-18 season with Baker, Hardaway, rookie Frank Ntilikina, Chasson Randle and Courtney Lee anchoring the backcourt.
If Baker is unable to do anything more than replicate his 2016-17 numbers, that's problematic.
Lest we forget, the Wichita State product only showed flashes of quality play as a first-year contributor. He averaged just 4.1 points, 2.1 assists and 1.9 rebounds while shooting 37.8 percent overall and 26.7 percent from downtown.
If that shot doesn't quickly improve, Baker will opt into the second year of his deal without hesitation, thereby making the Knicks' latest decision look even more questionable.
Detroit Pistons Improve Their Bench
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The Detroit Pistons landed themselves a steal by signing Anthony Tolliver to a one-year deal worth $3.3 million, per The Vertical's Shams Charania.
Though the power forward doesn't boast household-name status, he's become quite the useful player during the tail end of his career. With the Sacramento Kings in 2016-17, he did enough to emerge as one of the league's more underrated players, showing off a game that fits in well with everything that's happening in the modern NBA.
Sure, Tolliver's per-game stats were merely mediocre. He averaged only 7.1 points and 3.6 rebounds while shooting 44.2 percent from the field. But dig in deeper, and you quickly realize why Detroit was willing to hand him a spot on its bench.
Tolliver is capable of stretching out a defense from his spot in the frontcourt, and he's coming off a season in which he took 3.5 triples per game and connected at a 39.1 percent clip. In fact, he was one of only 30 qualified players to remain that accurate while taking at least five deep tries per 36 minutes. Plus, the 32-year-old has enduring athleticism that allows him to capably defend players at multiple positions.
He's not a game-changing signing by any stretch of the imagination. But especially at this price, it's hard to imagine the Pistons landing a player who fits into their schemes more seamlessly and has proved willing to occupy a role with the second unit.
List of Tuesday's Signings
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Not many signings came to pass Tuesday, but at least we didn't experience a complete drought:
- Ron Baker signed with the New York Knicks for two years and $8.9 million, per Wojnarowski.
- Anthony Tolliver signed with the Detroit Pistons for one year and $3.3 million, per Charania.
- Dewayne Dedmon signed with the Atlanta Hawks for two years and $14 million, per Amick.
- Kentavious Caldwell-Pope signed with the Los Angeles Lakers for one year and $18 million, per Windhorst.
Top Remaining Free Agents
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The talent pool is dwindling quickly, but a few impact players are still looking for homes. These are the top 10 free agents remaining from our original Big Board:
- Nerlens Noel, PF/C, Restricted
- JaMychal Green, PF/C, Restricted
- Pau Gasol, PF/C, Unrestricted
- Mason Plumlee, C, Restricted
- David Lee, PF, Unrestricted
- Jonathon Simmons, SG, Restricted
- Manu Ginobili, SG, Unrestricted
- Nikola Mirotic, PF, Restricted
- Marreese Speights, PF/C, Unrestricted
- Luc Mbah a Moute, SF, Unrestricted
Adam Fromal covers the NBA for Bleacher Report. Follow him on Twitter: @fromal09.
Unless otherwise indicated, all stats from Basketball Reference, NBA.com, NBA Math or ESPN.com.
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