The NBA announced that it has reached a settlement agreement with the NBA Players Association of the recent arbitration proceeding filed on behalf of Chauncey Billups, J.J. Hickson, Jeremy Lin and Steve Novak.

Under the settlement, the union agreed to limit the scope of the ruling by arbitrator Kenneth Dam in exchange for the league's agreement to drop its appeal. The rule will now be that players who are claimed from waivers will have the same "Early Bird" rights as if they had been traded, but will not have full "Bird" rights unless they are claimed through the league's amnesty procedure.

Below are the players on whose behalf the arbitration proceeding was brought and their status when free agency opens on July 1:

Chauncey Billups - Bird
J.J. Hickson - Bird
Jeremy Lin - Early Bird 
Steve Novak - Early Bird 

Negotiations are ongoing but two sources briefed on the talks tell the New York Times that the NBA and players union are moving closer to an agreement that would resolve the dispute between the two sides over whether any Bird rights would remain attached to players claimed off waivers.

An arbitrator ruled in the union's favor and the league office announced its intention to appeal the ruling, which would create uncertainty just when teams are set to begin contract discussions with the affected players.

A settlement would likely grant some form of Bird rights to players claimed off waivers.  An agreement could be announced Friday but no later than Sunday at midnight when free agency officially opens.

The matter is particularly important to the Knicks who could be granted new exceptions to sign Jeremy Lin and Steve Novak.  Chauncey Billups and J.J. Hickson are also impacted by the rule.

"They're not going into free agency with this out there," said one person with knowledge of the negotiations.

The Thunder have improved their contract offer to Scott Brooks, including a fourth year to the extension on the table. But sources say the two sides remain apart significantly on salary.

Brooks' contract will expire on Saturday if he doesn't sign an extension.

Sources say Brooks would immediately become a candidate for the Blazers if a deal isn't reached.

Brooks had been offered a three-year extension worth around $11 million. Brooks made $2.1 million in the final year of his deal this season.

Neil Olshey said he intends to use both the 6th and 11th picks in the first round of the draft.

"Right now, what we can net back just isn't enough to justify moving the picks," Olshey said. "I'm pretty comfortable (figuring picks) 1-2-3-4. After that, it's going to be a crapshoot."

Olshey sees the Blazers as being in the asset acquisition phase of their rebuild plan.

"The whole league is about having assets," Olshey said. "It's about having good young players, liquid contracts and cap flexibility. And right now, we have some of those. We don't have all of them, we have some of them."

Jamal Crawford has officially exercised his opt-out to become a free agent.

Crawford had waited to do so in order to give the Blazers an opportunity to trade him.

Damian Lillard had an excellent workout with the Blazers earlier this month, according to two sources.

"It's the best workout we've had here since Kevin Durant," said another source.

The Blazers are interested in picking Lillard with the No. 6 selection, but Sacramento could pick him at No. 5.

Victor Claver will likely leave Valencia Basket with a $600,000 buyout to play for the Blazers during the 12-13 season.

Portland drafted Claver with the 22nd overall pick in the 2009 NBA Draft.

The Sixers, Timberwolves and Celtics have inquired about the availability of Jamal Crawford, according to a league source.

Crawford has an opt out option at the end of year one.

The Clippers and Suns have also reached out to the Blazers about a potential deal involving Crawford.

Brandon Roy will attempt a comeback to the NBA and his top suitors are the Bulls, Mavericks, Pacers and Wolves, according to sources.

Roy's recovery from chronic knee problems has been recently spurred by undergoing the platelet rich plasma therapy procedure, sources said.

The Golden State Warriors have also expressed strong interest with Roy. The Warriors' general manager, Bob Myers, was Roy's agent with the Wasserman Media Group.

Several teams could be willing to use their full-mid level exception for Roy, sources said.

Indiana could have an advantage in pursuing Roy due to the presence of Kevin Pritchard, who was general manager of the Blazers when he was drafted.

The Portland Trail Blazers have extended a qualifying offer to forward Nicolas Batum.

Batum will become a restricted free agent on July 1, ensuring that the Trail Blazers will have right of first refusal should another team try to sign him. The move gives Portland the right to match any contract offer he will receive.