NBA Free Agents 2015: Rumors and Predictions for Top Players on the Move

NBA free agency is in full swing as rumors are flying around some of the game's biggest players. Plenty of pros have had contracts settled on Thursday, including Dwyane Wade staying in Miami, per ESPN.com, and Greg Monroe making his way to Milwaukee, per ESPN's Ohm Youngmisuk. 

The deals are far from being finished, though. Continue below for rumors and predictions surrounding some of the best remaining free agents.

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Robin Lopez

Predicted Landing Spot: New York Knicks

While his Portland Trail Blazers teammate Damian Lillard has been locked up long-term, Robin Lopez looks like he is on his way to the opposite coast, according to Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo Sports:

Wojnarowski later heard that the Knicks could be offering Lopez a deal worth anywhere between $12-13 million. Late on Thursday night, ESPN's Marc Stein reported that Lopez will go to the Knicks after DeAndre Jordan makes his decision.

The Knicks are still a mess despite acquiring Arron Afflalo with a two-year, $16 million deal, according to Youngmisuk and Royce Young of ESPN. 

After a draft that saw them select big man Kristaps Porzingis, the Knicks are still lacking a strong center that possesses good defensive instincts. Of course, that's just one of the many things the Knicks need. 

Lopez can provide that legitimate presence at center. He is not a big help offensively—he has averaged 8.2 points per game in seven NBA seasons—but he can play defense. And that's something the Knicks have not seen much of. They allowed 101.2 points per game last season with a points differential of minus-9.3, worst in the league.

Having a player like Lopez could certainly help improve that number. He has been ranked in the top 20 in blocks in each of the past three seasons. 

He can also help on the boards. The Knicks were second worst in the league last season with 40.4 rebounds per game. Lopez alone has averaged 7.6 rebounds per game in the past two seasons.

If Lopez does sign, it might mean that Porzingis will not be playing in the NBA next season. If he does, Porzingis would be coming off the bench and could help the Knicks provide a different look from the center position. While Lopez is a stay-at-home kind of center, Porzingis is capable of running the floor and shooting from deep.

When the time comes that Porzingis does start, he might be playing the 4, which would give the Knicks an extremely large lineup. 

Patrick Beverley

Predicted Landing Spot: New York Knicks

The Knicks are showing that they are at least interested in fixing their mess. While they pursue Lopez, they also are going after guard Patrick Beverley, as Basketball Insiders' Alex Kennedy reports:

After the departure of Stephon Marbury in 2008, the point guard position has been a bit of a revolving door for the Knicks. In the past seven years, the Knicks have had starting point guards ranging from Chris Duhon, to Raymond Felton, Jeremy Lin and Jose Calderon. That's just to name a few. 

Beverley could provide a consistent starting point guard for more than two years—that is, if he stays healthy. Entering his fourth year in the league, Beverley has not started more than 56 games in a season on a Houston Rockets team that is becoming one of the elite sides in the Western Conference. Last season, they made the conference finals before falling to eventual champions Golden State.

He does not light up the scoreboard—Beverley has averaged 10.2 points per game in the past two seasons—but he can play very good defense. He is capable of playing both guard positions, which would allow the Knicks to keep Calderon if they desire to and feed him decent minutes. 

His acquisition could prove to be a depth move as not only Calderon, but also Langston Galloway could be vying for playing time next season. An improbable story, Galloway started the season in the D-League before impressing the organization by recording 13.5 points per game in 45 appearances.

Wesley Matthews

Predicted Landing Spot: Dallas Mavericks

Guard Wesley Matthews does not have just the Dallas Mavericks trying to woo him. According to Jason Jones of the Sacramento Bee, there is another suitor:

On paper, the Sacramento Kings are a very attractive spot for free-agent shooting guards. With an All-Star forward in DeMarcus Cousins most likely staying in Sacramento and a scorer like Rudy Gay, Matthews could help develop the Kings into an offensive force. 

But friction between head coach George Karl and ownership regarding the desire to trade away Cousins, per Wojnarowski, has driven a wedge into the franchise. It's possible that the Kings could be looking for a new head coach before the season starts if Karl continues to rebel. 

It would not be a healthy situation to enter for Matthews. 

That could be one of the reasons why Matthews desires to go elsewhere, according to ESPN's Marc Stein:

The Mavericks are without their leading scorer Monta Ellis, who agreed to a four-year, $44 million with the Indiana Pacers on Thursday, according to Stein and Chris Broussard. 

Matthews will be needed to come in and fill the void left by Ellis. In fact, if he does go to Dallas, he would be the only shooting guard listed on the roster.

He is capable of putting up big numbers, but they have been limited due to his role on a Portland Trail Blazers team that had scorers like Damian Lillard and LaMarcus Aldridge. After a rookie campaign with the Utah Jazz in 2009 that saw him average 9.4 points per game, Matthews' move to Portland yielded a 15.4 points-per-game mark in the next five years. 

If he is able to enter a system that allows him to shoot the ball more, there will be a spike in his numbers. Matthews was able to enjoy success offensively while averaging just 11.1 field-goal attempts so far in his career. Acquire him to play like Monta Ellis, who shot the ball 16.9 times per game last year and Matthews could be a 20-point man nightly. 

Stats courtesy of Basketball-Reference.com