NBA 2026-27 offseason trades, signings & rumors

[Roy H.]

Never mind.  What C21 said.

[tenn_smoothie]

How much better will our financial position be if we stand pat for one more season to really go big game hunting next summer ?
It would give all those young role players one more season to develop and, I think, put us one more year out of tax-payer status, which would allow further flexibility ?

It is crazy how quickly this current CBA puts successful teams (who built their rosters the right way) into financial difficulty and roster limitation that minimizes title windows.
Even though the league has been healthiest with a few very strong teams competing for and winning titles over the course of 6-8 years, Comrade Silver does not want that.
I do understand that he didn't invent the current rules the team owners and players association have in place, but he is strongly in favor of the current parity.
I don't think it is ever a good idea to penalize good management, but that is what the NBA is doing.

[Goldstar88]

Kesslers numbers (31mpg: 14pts/11rebs) are not that much better than Quetas (25mpg: 10pts/8rebs). Walker is also injury prone. Neemi is not. Kessler is not with that $25-30M/year. Queta will likely cost half of that.

[Who]

Kesslers numbers (31mpg: 14pts/11rebs) are not that much better than Quetas (25mpg: 10pts/8rebs). Walker is also injury prone. Neemi is not. Kessler is not with that $25-30M/year. Queta will likely cost half of that.

Queta will cost $20-25mil.

Centers who can get you double doubles with good defense command that type of salary.

I think $25-30mil is fair value for Kessler. A bit more established than Queta. Stronger defensively.

---------------------

If you did get a Kessler (or a M Turner or some other starting caliber center), that would reduce Queta's minutes. Then you might get him for $15-20mil. If you can keep his minutes closer to 20mpg than 30mpg.

If Queta pushes on another level, he could easily be worth $30mil himself in 12 months time. Just get his minutes up to 28-30mpg. He'd average a double double. He could have done so this past season if the coach didn't limit his minutes.

[Who]

I'd be happy with Kessler at that TPE money. Keep Queta as his reserve and sign Queta long term. Good 1-2 punch at center with them. Constant array of interior defense & rebounding.

Try to sign a scorer at guard to round out the team.

G: Pritchard, (FA - A Simons?)
G: D White, Baylor
F: Jaylen, J Walsh
F: Tatum, Hugo
C: Kessler, Queta

I forget the cap situation. I am not sure if they can spend the MLE if they use the full TPE. Hauser needs to go too I believe.

Although I would say that spending the TPE on a quality guard / perimeter player is probably the best use of the TPE. The team needs another offensive threat. We currently have only 4 guys in our rotation who are scoring threats. However, a starting quality center would be good too as a fallback option to give that 1-2 punch at center.

[SparzWizard]

Gary Washburn said he doesn't think Giannis is going to be a Celtic. And that Miami has the better package and better fit out there.

[Celtics2021]

How much better will our financial position be if we stand pat for one more season to really go big game hunting next summer ?
It would give all those young role players one more season to develop and, I think, put us one more year out of tax-payer status, which would allow further flexibility ?

It is crazy how quickly this current CBA puts successful teams (who built their rosters the right way) into financial difficulty and roster limitation that minimizes title windows.
Even though the league has been healthiest with a few very strong teams competing for and winning titles over the course of 6-8 years, Comrade Silver does not want that.
I do understand that he didn't invent the current rules the team owners and players association have in place, but he is strongly in favor of the current parity.
I don't think it is ever a good idea to penalize good management, but that is what the NBA is doing.

Not much better, and arguably worse.  The only players who come off the books are minimum salary.  We have to replace them with players who likely make more, or give them raises.  The Simons TPE will be gone.  We would still be over the cap, and would likely be a tax paying team, if all we do is use our MLE, sign our draft pick, and sign minimum players to fill out the roster.

The offseason goal, if the plan is to not make a giant splash, should be to add one mid-tier salary (somewhere between $15 and $27 million), avoid the tax one more season to reset the repeater, and then be in the tax the next three years.

[Chief]

How about the J's take less $ like Brunson did?

[jambr380]

Utah Jazz center Walker Kessler is at odds with the team?s front office over the current handling of his restricted free agency, league sources told The Athletic.

Kessler, the 24-year-old who was taken 22nd overall by the Jazz out of Auburn in 2022, was already known to be frustrated by Utah?s choice not to offer him an extension last summer.

And now, with the Jazz choosing to leverage the realities of restricted free agency against him as a way to minimize his market, sources say he is strongly considering the prospect of a basketball future outside of Utah.

I hope someone forces Utah's hand here. I like Kessler. The guy works hard. Works for his teammates. Does the dirty work.

Chicago or LA Lakers look his best bet.

BRAD PLEASE GET ON THE PHONE WITH AINGE ASAP

Kessler would be great for the TPE.

Kessler and Queta as a 1-2 combo at center.

TPE won't even be close to cutting it. Sounds like he wants more in the $30M/yr range. Kessler is nice, but he's not that nice

Not that the Celtics will do this, but they could sign Kessler to a 4 year, $119 million deal using the TPE.  So it absolutely would cut it.  That is too much to pay him, but it is doable.  Would require a deadline dump or two to get back under the tax, but we saw that last year.  4/104 is what the Celtics can offer in a S&T where Utah takes Hauser and a little draft compensation.  Still a bit higher than I would go, personally (Kessler has had himself pumped up by his agents in my opinion), but the Celtics could make a competitive offer if that is their prerogative.

I wrote misread and mistyped confusing the MLE for the TPE. So, yeah, you are definitely right. But I am also definitely not interested in Kessler on big money. I just don't think he is that kind of impact player worth as much as he is apparently commanding

[Who]

Ira Winderman: Your Giannis updates from the predictive markets at this moment:

Kalshi: Heat 43%, Celtics 39%, Bucks 10%.
Polymarket: Celtics 68%, Heat 40% (an interesting bit of math there).

x.com

[Celtics2021]

I'd be happy with Kessler at that TPE money. Keep Queta as his reserve and sign Queta long term. Good 1-2 punch at center with them. Constant array of interior defense & rebounding.

Try to sign a scorer at guard to round out the team.

G: Pritchard, (FA - A Simons?)
G: D White, Baylor
F: Jaylen, J Walsh
F: Tatum, Hugo
C: Kessler, Queta

I forget the cap situation. I am not sure if they can spend the MLE if they use the full TPE. Hauser needs to go too I believe.

Although I would say that spending the TPE on a quality guard / perimeter player is probably the best use of the TPE. The team needs another offensive threat. We currently have only 4 guys in our rotation who are scoring threats. However, a starting quality center would be good too as a fallback option to give that 1-2 punch at center.

We are about $16 million under the tax (accounting for Banton being released).  The MLE is $15.1 million.  The difference between pick #27 and Max Shulga is $900k.  So we can give someone the full MLE and sign our pick while ditching two fully non-guaranteed players at the end of our roster and avoid the tax, but by the smallest of margins.  That is essentially the baseline scenario.  It is not awful, as there will be starter-level players at positions of need accepting the MLE this summer. 

If we want to take on any additional salary, it requires trading someone of equal or greater salary.  So to get to $26 million and use almost the full TPE, we need to trade Hauser.  But we would not have space for the MLE in this case.

If we make a crazy trade like sending out White or Brown, then all bets are off.

[Celtics2021]

How about the J's take less $ like Brunson did?

Brunson was given the largest extension he was eligible for.

[Chief]

How about the J's take less $ like Brunson did?

Brunson was given the largest extension he was eligible for.

What he gave up: If Brunson had waited until 2025 to negotiate in free agency, he could have signed a five-year deal worth $269 million.

What he took: He accepted a 4-year, $156.5 million extension to ensure long-term stability and lock himself in early.

This gave the Knicks the cap flexibility required to build an elite roster

[Vermont Green]

How about the J's take less $ like Brunson did?

Brunson was given the largest extension he was eligible for.

I think people are referring to his original contract:

Jalen Brunson's initial contract with the New York Knicks - a 4-year, $104 million deal signed in 2022 - is widely considered significantly under market value in retrospect. While it initially seemed like a fair price for a backup point guard, his subsequent explosion into an MVP-caliber superstar made the deal one of the biggest bargains in the NBA.

If I understand things correctly, extensions are limited in terms of how much of a raise you can give a player.  Brunson took less to go to NYK in the first place or he could have waited in the extension to be eligible for more or become a full FA and get a max from somebody.  I doubt Brown or Tatum or Giannis will take anything less than their full available extensions.

[Who]

I'd be happy with Kessler at that TPE money. Keep Queta as his reserve and sign Queta long term. Good 1-2 punch at center with them. Constant array of interior defense & rebounding.

Try to sign a scorer at guard to round out the team.

G: Pritchard, (FA - A Simons?)
G: D White, Baylor
F: Jaylen, J Walsh
F: Tatum, Hugo
C: Kessler, Queta

I forget the cap situation. I am not sure if they can spend the MLE if they use the full TPE. Hauser needs to go too I believe.

Although I would say that spending the TPE on a quality guard / perimeter player is probably the best use of the TPE. The team needs another offensive threat. We currently have only 4 guys in our rotation who are scoring threats. However, a starting quality center would be good too as a fallback option to give that 1-2 punch at center.

We are about $16 million under the tax (accounting for Banton being released).  The MLE is $15.1 million.  The difference between pick #27 and Max Shulga is $900k.  So we can give someone the full MLE and sign our pick while ditching two fully non-guaranteed players at the end of our roster and avoid the tax, but by the smallest of margins.  That is essentially the baseline scenario.  It is not awful, as there will be starter-level players at positions of need accepting the MLE this summer. 

If we want to take on any additional salary, it requires trading someone of equal or greater salary.  So to get to $26 million and use almost the full TPE, we need to trade Hauser.  But we would not have space for the MLE in this case.

If we make a crazy trade like sending out White or Brown, then all bets are off.

Thank you. Okay so the choice is between TPE or the MLE. Not both.

Yeah, if we just used the TPE and got a center with it presumably someone like W Kessler, M Turner, or Nic Claxton ... I don't think that makes us a title contender by itself.

It still leaves the team with a problem on offense. Only 4 scoring threats in the rotation (JB, JT, D White, Pritchard). The rest of the guys all defenders hustle players. That offense looked too limited and vulnerable in the playoffs this year.

Yeah, it would be better if we could use the TPE on a perimeter player who can be a 5th scoring threat. Go with a budget option as backup center behind Queta.