The Chicago Bulls received sign-and-trade interest on Lauri Markkanen from a number of teams before eventually sending him to the Cleveland Cavaliers.

The Dallas Mavericks, New Orleans Pelicans, Minnesota Timberwolves, San Antonio Spurs, Sacramento Kings and Boston Celtics all expressed interest in Markkanen.

But the Bulls refused several trade offers and eventually were hung up on a second round pick also being included from Cleveland.

Markkanen is joining the Cavaliers on a four-year, $67.5 million deal with a partial guarantee on the fourth year. 

Markkanen fully expected to be part of the DeMar DeRozan sign-and-trade to the Spurs, but Chicago is believed to have pulled him from the porospal. 

A trade of Ben Simmons by the Philadelphia 76ers remains an apparent inevitability, but no deal is imminent.

The 76ers conducted expansive discussions with several teams, including the Minnesota Timberwolves and Toronto Raptors, but neither package was found appealing enough for an agreement to be reached.

The 76ers have told teams they are comfortable bringing back Simmons for the 21-22 season, but rival executives believe it is a matter of when and not if he is traded.

The Timberwolves have been motivated to find a deal for Simmons but would likely require a third team given their asset pool of Malik Beasley, Jaden McDaniels and D’Angelo Russell might not entice the 76ers.

The 76ers continue to seek Damian Lillard, but the Portland Trail Blazers want to build around him. The 76ers may be stuck between waiting out Lillard or trading Simmons now.

The Memphis Grizzlies have not asked Juancho Hernangomez to report or take a physical after his trade from the Minnesota Timberwolves.

The Grizzlies similarly did not ask Rajon Rondo to report and he has subsequently been bought out.

Hernangomez has two seasons remaining on his deal at $12.8 million, but hte final season is not fully guaranteed. 

Hernangomez averaged 7.2 points and 3.9 rebounds in 17.3 minutes over 52 games last season with the Wolves. 

Despite recently trading for Patrick Beverley, the Minnesota Timberwolves continue to be engaged with the Philadelphia 76ers on trading for Ben Simmons. The Wolves lack of win-now talent that they are willing to trade has been a stumbling block in the talks.

It's assumed that Minnesota would need to bring in a third team to deliver win-now players to Philadelphia. It's also possible that Patrick Beverley could be eventually be traded as part of a package for Simmons.

The Memphis Grizzlies are flipping newly acquired guard Patrick Beverley to the Minnesota Timberwolves in exchange for Jarrett Culver and Juancho Hernangomez. Memphis had Beverley for less than a day before moving him to Minnesota.

Beverley replaces Ricky Rubio as the veteran point guard on the Wolves roster. Minnesota is hopeful of making a climb into playoff contention and Beverley should help bolster those hopes.

The Grizzlies now have 18 players on guaranteed contracts, after they completed a second trade in a matter of days. Hernangomez is currently recovering from a shoulder injury suffered with the Spanish national team. When healthy, he'll add some additional frontcourt depth for Memphis.

Jarrett Culver hasn't panned out as hoped for after being a high lottery pick. It's unclear if he'll stick with the Grizzlies, who have a crowded backcourt.

Jordan McLaughlin remains optimistic he and the Minnesota Timberwolves will eventually agree to a deal in restricted free agency.

McLaughlin appeared in 51 games last season, averaging 5.0 points, 2.1 rebounds and 3.8 assists in 18.4 minutes.

The Golden State Warriors, San Antonio Spurs and Minnesota Timberwolves are among the teams who have discussed a trade for Ben Simmons with varying degrees of interest, sources tell Zach Lowe of ESPN.

The 76ers haven't progressed far with a trade of Simmons as they likely view him as their path to a trade for Damian Lillard. 

Simmons appears to be the only All-Star player truly available via trade as Lillard and Bradley Beal haven't signaled a preference to be dealt. 

Simmons is a two-time All-NBA Defensive First Team selection and three-time All-Star. Last season, Simmons averaged 14.3 points, 7.2 rebounds and 6.9 assists in 32.4 minutes per game.

Lauri Markkanen remains in free agent with most teams lacking cap space and the Chicago Bulls seeking a first round pick for facilitating a sign-and-trade, sources tell Jake Fischer of Bleacher Report.

The Bulls are also requiring Markkanen's new team to find a third trade partner to take on the outgoing salary needed to create space for his contract. The third team would seek draft pick compensation, which means any team interested in Markkanen must send a first to Chicago and likely another first or two second rounders elsewhere.

"Chicago is playing this masterfully from no other perspective than a contract management standpoint," said one team capologist. "It won't do any favors relationship-wise, but they're bleeding his market based on their tax situation, and nobody else can offer him any kind of money without them."

The Dallas Mavericks, New Orleans Pelicans, Minnesota Timberwolves and Boston Celtics have all shown interest in Markkanen at deals worth around $15 million in average annual value. 

Markkanen may be forced into accepting a one-year qualifying offer that would pay him approximately $9 million and he could then become an unrestricted free agent next summer. Markkanen, however, is believed to not have interest in a return to Chicago on that structure.