Welcome to another article from kawntent sports. Today we will be reflecting on the signings and deals from the first day of free agency: discuss how I see each move and how they could impact the league. Yes, that is an interrobang in the title - I think it's an underused piece of punctuation and this is the perfect way to bring awareness to its existence. It's basically "?!" in one character. Anyway, enough rambling about punctuation, let's get into it.
Joe Harris to Detrioit
The Nets dealt Joe Harris to Detroit with two second round picks in exchange for a trade exception. I respect this move for Brooklyn and I feel like there's another move coming, which I'm interested to see what it will be.
Draymond re-signs with GSW long-term, 4yr/100M
This is not a good move by Golden State. Sure, Draymond may be the heart and soul of this team, but is he going to be worth $25M per year once he's on the wrong side of 35? Something tells me he won't be. For a team as close to the second apron as Golden State, this doesn't leave the team much flexibility. Also, when is Jonathan Kuminga going to get a chance? I was hoping this offseason would result in Draymond's departure resulting in a bigger role for Kuminga, but where does this signing leave his career? We'll find an answer to that question in the coming days; whether or not the Warriors will find a Kuminga trade partner.
Drew Eubanks, Keita Bates-Diop, Chimezie Metu to the Suns
Solid signings assuming Jock Landale is gone. Better than the rumored interest in Jabari Parker. I like that they're actually managing to get guys who are in the league.
Kyle Kuzma re-signs with WAS for 4yr/102M
Really? Are the Wizards this desperate to stay mediocre? Kuzma didn't need to stay, he needed to be a sign-and-trade. The Wizards should try and be bad this year and go for Matas Buzelis or whoever they want in '24, and this is a step in the wrong direction. Kuzma is 27, this signing is silly for Washington.
Coby White stays in Chicago, 3yr/40M
Honestly surprised Coby couldn't get any more money than this. Maybe it's just bias from following the nbasburner instagram account. Who knows? Anyway, good re-signing, but I'm not loving the Bulls offseason. Why are they trying to be the new Wizards, desperate to be mid? Pick a direction, Chicago, and this team isn't a contender.
Damion Lee re-signs in Phoenix
I don't think Lee will have a heck of a lot of opportunity behind Beal and Booker, but this Suns supporting cast is ending up slightly better than expected.
Taurean Prince to the Lakers, Troy Brown to the Wolves
I would've preferred for the Lakers to keep Brown because he's younger, but Prince will be a fine end-of-bench piece for LA. The Wolves have a solid guy in Brown, he should have opportunity there. This wasn't a trade, but the news came out around the same time.
Bruce Brown to Indy for 2yr/45M
Bruce got a BAG! I like the defensive signing alongside Haliburton and Mathurin. Could the Pacers be a play-in team next year? They also got a great rookie in Jarace Walker. Hali/Mathurin/Bruce/Jarace/Turner sounds significantly better than the bottom of the East.
Jerami Grant re-signs in Portland for 5yr/160M
I remember when these types of contracts were reserved for guys like pre-injury John Wall or Kemba Walker. How have we gotten to a point where Jerami Grant warrants this? Do the Blazers really want to pay Grant $32M in his 35 year old season? Who were they bidding against? What was that team's logic? This trade leaves so many questions that might never be answered.
Jevon Carter to Chicago, 3yr/20M
Good for Jevon Carter getting his bag, he deserves it. But do the Bulls need another PG? They have Coby White and Ayo Dosunmu, what's the point in diluting their minutes? That's also a little more than I'd pay Jevon Carter who I wouldn't project as a starter in Chicago.
Georges Niang to Cleveland on 3yr/26M
I like this signing for Cleveland. With Dean Wade's status up in the air post-injury, small forward depth will always be helpful. Does this open up a Caris LeVert trade for the Cavs?
Kyrie returns to Dallas on 3yr/126M
That's 42 million dollars a year for a man who hasn't played more than 60 games in a season since his time in Boston. Really, Dallas? He's not even a good fit alongside Luka. Once again, same question as Jerami Grant: who were you bidding against? No one else but you had the cap space to sign Kyrie, so this is a completely wild deal to me.
Jakob Poeltl returns to Toronto 4yr/80M
Poeltl is such a solid piece for Toronto. I love the fit with all the forwards there, and 20 million a year is an extremely fair contract. Once again, good job Masai Ujiri.
Khris Middleton returns to Milwaukee, 3yr/102M
This is a solid maintaining of the status quo for a Milwaukee team that would've made a deep postseason run if Giannis was healthy this year. It allows flexibility in three years and is just a really solid move to keep the core together.
Cam Johnson staying in Brooklyn on 4yr/108M
27 million is a bit steep for Cam Johnson, but nothing too wild. I suppose the Nets see him as a secondary star alongside Mikal Bridges if they're paying him this much. It will be interesting to see how this goes. I thought Cam was going to be a trade piece. Is that still his role?
Tre Jones returning to San Antonio for 2yr/20M
Solid value for both sides, the Spurs keep their starting PG and Tre Jones gets 2 more years to earn himself a huge contract. Brings solid stability for Wemby's first year.
Gabe Vincent to the LAKERS for 3yr/33M
SCAM ALERT! How did Gabe Vincent manage to sign for this little? On a three year deal? The Lakers are looking at another great player to maximize the back end of LeBron's prime, with Finals experience as well. Great signing, LA! But I wonder, why is Vincent's market value no higher?
Joe Ingles to Orlando on 2yr/22M
WHY is Joe Ingles getting paid the same amount per year as Gabe Vincent? This signing makes no sense for Orlando. They already have a deep roster and now they gave a solid amount of money to a 35 year old coming off a major injury. Is there more to this I'm not seeing?
Shake Milton to MIN on 2yr/10M
Solid signing for Minnesota, Milton needed a change of scenery as this Sixers backcourt has gotten more crowded. If I were Shake, I would've went with a one-year deal to prove worth, but solid for him nonetheless.
Herb Jones re-signs with New Orleans for 4yr/54M
Solid team-friendly contract to retain a young roleplayer in New Orleans. This team just needs to stick together and they will contend someday, and this deal seems to show a mutual understanding of this fact.
Josh Richardson and Kevin Love to Miami
These two are solid signings as the Heat lose some of their roleplayers in free agency this offseason. Retaining Love was important and Richardson is a good replacement SG who is experienced in Heat culture and thus shouldn't need too much time to acclimate. Funny that he was traded for Jimmy Butler and now they're teammates, that doesn't happen too often.
Julian Champagnie to Spurs
I don't know much about Champagnie, but the signing isn't for too much money so it's not too bad I suppose.
Rui Hachimura returns to LAL on 3yr/51M
Good re-signing for the Lakers. They seem to be starting a spectacular offseason.
Fred VanVleet to the Rockets on 3yr/130M
That contract is north of FORTY MILLION dollars per year, more than KYRIE IRVING got paid earlier today for another guy who isn't a great fit alongside Jalen Green and Kevin Porter Jr. I hated the Harden rumors and I hate this even more for the Rockets, who have practically no defense in the backcourt. This stifles a lot of opportunity for 4th overall pick Amen Thompson, unless they just paid 43 million dollars a year to a sixth man. This is a terrible contract from a terrible front office.
Cam Reddish to the Lakers
It's a two-year deal for a guy with huge potential, and it seems it's probably for a small sum of money. Another great signing from LA.
Dennis Schroder to the Raptors on 2yr/26M
This feels like a desperate attempt to replace VanVleet's production short-term, but it's not a bad valuation for Schroder. Solid move as usual from Masai Ujiri.
Thanks for reading this far if you've made it! Overall, my opinions are that I'm so confused by half of these signings that I considered subtitling this article "Everyone's an Idiot" but some teams had a great day, like the Lakers. Let me know how you feel about the day's signings in the comments!