NBA Basketball Wiretap

Peyton Watson is considering whether to sign a $6.5 million qualifying offer and return to the Denver Nuggets next season, sources told Marc Stein of The Stein Line.

The Nuggets have been offering Watson deals in the range of four years and $70 million this offseason. 

Watson has been looking to exceed Christian Braun's five-year, $125 million deal. 

The Nuggets matched Spencer Jones' offer sheet from the Thunder on Sunday night, making them the only team projected to be in the second apron next season.

The Philadelphia 76ers' proximity to New York City played a role in LeBron James' decision to sign with the team, sources told Marc Stein of The Stein Line.

Establishing a presence in NYC was a "longstanding itch" for James and his family.

James signed a two-year deal with the Sixers last week. 

Kentavious Caldwell-Pope is also set to join the Sixers after agreeing to a buyout with the Grizzlies. 

The Cleveland Cavaliers have agreed to a one-year deal with wing Mario Hezonja for $2.8 million. Hezonja returns to the NBA with Cleveland after spending the last six seasons playing for teams in Greece, Russia and Spain.

The 6-foot-8 last played in the NBA during the 2019-20 season with the Portland Trail Blazers. Hezonja started his NBA career with the Orlando Magic and also played for the New York Knicks.

Last season, Hezonja averaged 15 points, 4.3 rebounds and 2.1 assists for Real Madrid. The 31-year-old helped Real Madrid to the EuroLeague championship game, where they fell to Olympiacos.

Kobe Bufkin and the New Orleans Pelicans have agreed to a one-year deal.

Bufkin appeared in 16 games last season with the Los Angeles Lakers, averaging 2.9 points and 0.8 rebounds in 7.5 minutes.

Bufkin was the 15th overall pick in the 2023 NBA draft by the Atlanta Hawks.

Kentavious Caldwell-Pope has agreed to a buyout with the Memphis Grizzlies and plans to sign a one-year, $3.9 million deal with the Philadelphia 76ers once he clears waivers. The Grizzlies and Caldwell-Pope's agent, Klutch Sports CEO Rich Paul, finalized the buyout Saturday.

The move gives Philadelphia a veteran wing shooter and defender just one day after the team signed LeBron James. Caldwell-Pope, a two-time NBA champion, won his first title with the Lakers in 2020 alongside James during the league's bubble format before capturing a second ring with the Denver Nuggets in 2023.

Caldwell-Pope, 33, underwent surgery in February to address a misalignment in his right pinkie finger, sidelining him for the final 31 games of last season. Before the injury, he averaged 8.4 points, 2.7 assists, 2.5 rebounds and 21.3 minutes across 51 games with Memphis, marking his lowest scoring and minutes averages since his rookie season. He shot 49.5 percent on two-point attempts and 31.6 percent from three-point range.

Caldwell-Pope has long been regarded as one of the league's top 3-and-D players, though his three-point shooting has declined in recent seasons. After shooting at least 39 percent from beyond the arc every season from 2020 to 2024, he has failed to top 34.2 percent over the past two seasons.

Spencer Jones and the Oklahoma City Thunder have agreed to a two-year, $12 million offer sheet.

The Denver Nuggets will have the opportunity to match the offer sheet as Jones is a restricted free agent.

Jones appeared in 64 games last season with the Nuggets, averaging 5.5 points and 3.3 rebounds in 22.1 minutes while shooting 39.6 percent on three-point shooting.

The Nuggets also have Peyton Watson in restricted free agency this offseason.

With their pursuit of LeBron James having come up short, the Golden State Warriors are expected to pivot to re-signing Draymond Green. The expectation is the Green will re-sign at a figure close to the $28 million player option that he opted out of at the beginning of the offseason.

Green has always been expected to stay with Golden State. The question was what kind of contract the veteran forward would re-sign for. The Warriors had been keeping flexibility, in case James chose to sign with them. Now that James has picked the Philadelphia 76ers, Mike Dunleavy Jr. can turn to re-signing Green, De'Anthony Melton and filling out the rest of his roster.

The Cleveland Cavaliers have maintained contact with free agent forward Jonathan Kuminga and his agent throughout LeBron James' free agency, with mutual interest existing between the two sides.

Kuminga, 23, became a free agent after the Atlanta Hawks declined their $24.3 million option on his contract. He averaged 12.2 points, 5.6 rebounds and shot 33 percent from three-point range across 36 games split between Atlanta and the Golden State Warriors last season.

Kuminga's agent, Aaron Turner, described his client's affinity for Cleveland in a brief interview.

"Jonathan likes the Cavs, likes (coach) Kenny Atkinson, and (star) Donovan Mitchell likes him," said Turner, noting that Kuminga trained in Cleveland for two months last summer.

Kuminga also has a prior relationship with Atkinson from the coach's time as a Golden State assistant under Steve Kerr.

The financial structure of any deal remains complicated. Cleveland could offer Kuminga roughly $6 million using cap space it would have otherwise directed toward James, or theoretically up to $15 million through a salary cap exception, though doing so would significantly limit what the team could offer unsigned veteran James Harden. The Cavaliers and Harden have intentionally left his new contract unfinalized to preserve roster flexibility, with a two- or three-year deal expected once Cleveland's broader plans take shape.

Kuminga, however, is believed to prefer a sign-and-trade involving Atlanta, which would allow him to earn closer to the $20 million to $23 million range he would have received had the Hawks exercised his option.

Both Cleveland and the Los Angeles Lakers have been linked to Kuminga as sign-and-trade candidates, though sources indicated the Lakers' potential trade package is considered underwhelming compared to what Cleveland could offer. The Cavaliers have been connected to possible trades involving veteran forward Max Strus and point guard Dennis Schroder as part of a potential deal. Any sign-and-trade would require Cleveland to remain under the NBA's roughly $209 million first apron, which is part of why Harden's new contract has not yet been finalized. Kuminga could also return to Atlanta on a short-term deal, with the Los Angeles Clippers and Milwaukee Bucks mentioned as additional potential destinations.

Cleveland reached the Eastern Conference finals for the first time since 2018 last season before being swept by the eventual champion New York Knicks. The team has since lost forward Dean Wade to Philadelphia, guard Keon Ellis to Brooklyn and forward Larry Nance Jr. to Indiana in free agency, in addition to missing out on James.

"There isn't much left out there," said a league source with knowledge of the Cavaliers' thinking. "They have to get their young guys ready to play."

Cleveland's young players include third-year wing Jaylon Tyson, who broke out last season, second-year guard Tyrese Proctor and rookie Meleek Thomas, the team's second-round pick who was named among the top players at NBA Summer League in Las Vegas.

The Portland Trail Blazers signed John Tonje to a two-way contract, sources told Shams Charania of ESPN.

Tonje averaged 2.5 points and 1.0 rebounds for the Celtics last season. 

Kentavious Caldwell-Pope is negotiating a buyout with the Memphis Grizzlies, sources told Chris Haynes.

Caldwell-Pope intends to join LeBron James and sign with the Sixers.

Caldwell-Pope averaged 8.4 points and 2.5 rebounds last season.