The deals are coming in thick and fast in the NBA Free agency this summer as teams and players are agreeing on potential moves. Although the deals signed over this period will not become official until Thursday, July 6, a host of big names have chosen to re-sign and stay put with their beloved franchises, while some have struck life-changing deals elsewhere.
Kyrie Irving, 2016 NBA champion, has agreed to a three-year deal worth around $126 million to remain with the Dallas Mavericks, where he played the remainder of the 2022–23 season following his trade from the Brooklyn Nets in February.
Free agent Kyrie Irving has agreed to a three-year, $126 million contract to return to the Dallas Mavericks, with a player option in third season, @TheAthletic @Stadium learned.
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) June 30, 2023
The 31-year-old played 40 games with the Nets last season before his move to Dallas, where he averaged 26.9 points, five rebounds, and six assists across 20 games, including making his eighth All-Star appearance.
Irving will be joined in Dallas by former Nets teammate Seth Curry, who has reportedly agreed to a two-year deal to return to the Mavericks for his third stint with the club.
In San Francisco, veteran power forward Draymond Green has agreed to a four-year deal worth $100 million to return to the Golden State Warriors, the team that drafted him in 2012.
The 33-year-old, who has enjoyed a stellar career in the NBA, having won four titles, has received a lot of backlash over the last year for physically assaulting his younger teammate, Jordan Poole, who has subsequently been traded to the Washington Wizards.
Free agent forward Draymond Green has agreed to a four-year, $100 million contract with a player option in the final season to re-sign with the Golden State Warriors on the first day of free agency, sources tell ESPN’s Andscape. Green, Stephen Curry & Klay Thompson stay together. pic.twitter.com/0wvfQOspV3
— Marc J. Spears (@MarcJSpears) June 30, 2023
Green’s new deal with the Warriors contains a player option in the fourth year, and he will remain with the only club he’s ever played for over his 11-year career in the league after he declined his $27.6 million player options with the Warriors on June 19 to work out a new deal.
In the East, Khris Middleton has also agreed to a three-year deal worth up to $102 million to return to the Milwaukee Bucks after he declined his $40.4 million player option last month to become a free agent.
Three-time All-Star Khris Middleton has agreed on a new three-year, $102 million deal to stay with the Milwaukee Bucks, his agents Mike Lindeman and Jeff Schwartz of @excelbasketball tell ESPN. Middleton keeps franchise a championship contender with his return. Player option. pic.twitter.com/o2E7vXXQj8
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) June 30, 2023
The 31-year-old was an integral part of the Bucks team that won the championship in 2021 and will return to continue his ten-year partnership with two-time MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo as Milwaukee looks set for life under new head coach Adrian Griffin.
Despite suffering from numerous injuries, Middleton averaged 15.1 points, 4.9 assists, and 4.2 rebounds in 33 games last season.
Canadian basketball star Fred VanVleet has shifted boats after agreeing to a three-year deal worth around $130 million with the Houston Rockets.
The 29-year-old, who was part of the Toronto Raptors team that won the title in 2019 and was undrafted in the 2016 NBA Draft, has agreed to a mega deal that will see him earn around $525,000 per game over the next three years.
VanVleet will bring championship experience and leadership to the Rockets, whose average age in the just concluded season was just under 24 years old, and are looking to return to the top after hiring former Boston Celtics head coach Ime Udoka.
Likewise, Jerami Grant has agreed to a huge five-year deal worth $160 million to remain with the franchise his father Harvey Grant played for for three years.
Grant moved to Portland in 2022 following a sign-and-trade deal from the Denver Nuggets to the Detroit Pistons two years earlier.
The 29-year-old played in 63 games for the Trail Blazers last season, averaging 20.5 points and 4.5 rebounds while shooting 40.1% from beyond the arc to finish as the team’s third-leading scorer behind Damian Lillard and Anfernee Simons.
