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Love, Butler agree to stay put but Chandler moves
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KEVIN Love has unfinished business in Cleveland and Tyson Chandler will make Phoenix a new contender in the NBA’s tough Western Conference.
The first full day of NBA free agency featured skyrocketing salaries and a flurry of moves, though no decision yet from Portland star LaMarcus Aldridge. Players and teams agreed to more than US$1 billion worth of deals on Wednesday.
During free agency, players who are out of contract can sign new deals with either their current team or a different one, unless they are restricted free agents, meaning their club can match any offer received.
Love made his decision quickly, opting to stay with the Cavaliers on a five-year deal that could be worth more than US$110 million. He revealed his decision in a piece in The Players’ Tribune, former baseball star Derek Jeter’s new sports digital venture.
“We have unfinished business and now it’s time to get back to work,” Love wrote.
Jimmy Butler and Mike Dunleavy also stayed put in Chicago for around US$115 million combined, Slovenian guard Goran Dragic is remaining in Miami and Paul Millsap will stick with Atlanta.
But Paul Pierce and plenty of players were on the move with salaries soaring ahead of next year’s new TV contracts that might make Wednesday’s action seem tame next summer.
Chandler will get his pay rise in Phoenix, taking US$52 million over four years to leave Dallas, while Atlanta’s DeMarre Carroll agreed to a deal with Toronto for US$60 million over four years.
Pierce then left Washington to reunite with former Boston coach Doc Rivers by joining the Los Angeles Clippers on a US$10 million contract.
Millsap was rewarded for his strong play in Atlanta with a three-year deal worth US$59 million, as the Hawks made sure not to lose both starting forwards after Carroll’s exit.
Aldridge was busy meeting with teams for a second straight day while he decides whether to leave Portland. His representatives wrote on Twitter on Wednesday afternoon that he had made no decisions, even following reports that the Lakers had been eliminated.
The Spurs were among the teams hoping to land him and were making moves to entice him. They dealt Tiago Splitter to Atlanta to clear cap space and re-signed guard Danny Green to a four-year US$45 million deal.
Among the guards on the market, Dragic accepted a five-year deal that will ultimately be worth between US$85-90 million to stay with the Heat.
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