NBA free – Harrison Barnes stays with the Spurs while the Warriors lock in Kristaps Porzingis and keep Al Horford, after Draymond Green declines a $27.7 million option to open financial flexibility. In parallel, the Lakers return Austin Reaves and Marcus Smart by declini
By the time the NBA’s free agency negotiating window is set to open, teams are already moving like the clock is running out—locking in roles, shifting money, and swinging for stars before anyone else can.
San Antonio moved first at a familiar pace, bringing Harrison Barnes back on a one-year, $8 million contract. Barnes will remain a veteran presence on a Spurs roster that just made the NBA Finals, after averaging 9.9 points, 2.8 rebounds and 1.9 assists in 77 games last season.
Golden State, meanwhile, treated the frontcourt like it couldn’t be negotiated away. Kristaps Porzingis signed a two-year. $40 million deal with the Warriors. keeping the club’s 2026-27 plans rooted in the same line. Porzingis is expected to pair with Al Horford—also on a new deal—with Horford signing for two years at $14 million after joining the Warriors ahead of last season.
The Warriors also made sure the money lined up for what comes next. Draymond Green declined his $27.7 million player option. a move that offers Golden State “financial flexibility to pursue LeBron James in free agency and Anthony Davis in the trade market.” By opting out. the Warriors can offer a free agent $15 million with their mid-level exception.
Los Angeles didn’t wait for permission to build around its core. Austin Reaves agreed to a four-year. $185 million contract after averaging 23.3 points. 5.5 assists and 4.7 rebounds last season. even with injuries that caused him to miss two significant chunks of the year and carry into the postseason. Marcus Smart also declined his $5.4 million player option. choosing to test the open market after a bounce-back season with the Lakers that featured 9.3 points. 2.8 rebounds. three assists and 1.4 steals.
Across the league, other decisions came with different stakes—some were about spacing and shooting, others about survival down the roster.
Detroit kept Kevin Huerter, signing him to a three-year, $27 million contract. Huerter’s value is clear in the numbers: he’s a career 36.8 per cent shooter from three. and his role as floor spacing arrives after Detroit acquired him from the Bulls during the season. The Pistons also exercised a $4 million option on Daniss Jenkins. who broke out last season with 9.3 points per game and 37.4 per cent shooting from three. while starting 19 of 72 games.
Oklahoma City’s offseason hinged on cost and continuity. The Thunder exercised Lu Dort’s $17.7 million option after it looked. following the team’s playoff exit. as if Dort may have played his last game. Oklahoma City’s ability to keep the option came after cost-saving trades involving Aaron Wiggins and Isaiah Joe. with the move leaving the team the choice of either keeping Dort or using his cap slot in a trade. The Thunder also added Isaiah Hartenstein on a three-year. $75 million contract. a center who has been a two-year starter for Oklahoma City and averaged 9.2 points and 9.4 rebounds this past season. The team’s record is part of the pitch. too: the Thunder went 88-16 in the past two regular seasons when he plays.
Not every deal was about keeping players. Some were about moving them to fit new math.
Memphis finally closed one of the NBA’s longest-running trade sagas by agreeing to trade Ja Morant to the Portland Trail Blazers in exchange for forwards Jerami Grant and Kris Murray. The Grizzlies didn’t just pivot from Morant—they’ve already traded Desmond Bane and Jaren Jackson Jr.—and the move to Portland carries a lower risk for the Trail Blazers because Morant enters the final two years of his deal. while the Blazers also get off Grant’s remaining money and move on from an underwhelming former first-round pick in Murray.
Washington’s offseason had a different texture: movement, then uncertainty. D’Angelo Russell opted in to a $6 million player option after being traded from the Dallas Mavericks to Washington along with Anthony Davis in a three-team blockbuster last season. He didn’t play for the Wizards and remained away from the team indefinitely. Trae Young’s story also stayed unresolved on the court. with the Wizards signing him to a four-year. $212 million contract after injuries limited him to just 17.9 points in only 15 games with Atlanta and Washington; he made five appearances with Washington after being traded there by the Hawks. who had him for most of his first seven seasons.
Elsewhere, teams leaned into role players and re-signings that can decide rotation battles.
Harrison Barnes wasn’t the only shooter getting protected. Charlotte added stability through deals that also moved stars. The Hornets agreed to trade forward Miles Bridges to the Phoenix Suns in exchange for forward Royce O’Neale. guard Grayson Allen and a 2033 first-round pick for Bridges. while the Suns sent Phoenix a 2029 first-round pick and a 2027 second-round pick. Charlotte’s younger core. led by Kon Knueppel and Brandon Miller. remains the center of gravity in that shift. and the Hornets also land another 2033 first after receiving one in their deal with the Timberwolves for LaMelo Ball. Coby White stayed in Charlotte as well. signing a three-year. $74 million contract after being traded to the Hornets midway through the 2025-26 season.
Brooklyn kept its own bench pieces. Day’Ron Sharpe signed a two-year, $20 million contract after spending the first five years of his career in Brooklyn. The 24-year-old averaged 8.7 points, 6.7 rebounds and 2.3 assists in 62 games last season. Josh Minott also returns to the Nets on a two-year. $9 million deal after joining the team from the Celtics mid-season. averaging 10.8 points. 2.5 rebounds and 1.3 steals in limited time.
The East’s loudest shift came from the Bucks-to-Heat blockbuster that ends years of suspense. Milwaukee agreed to trade 10-time All-Star Giannis Antetokounmpo and big man Bobby Portis to the Heat in exchange for Tyler Herro. Jaime Jaquez Jr. Kel’el Ware. Kasparas Jakucionis. three first-round picks. a first-round pick swap and a 2033 second-round pick. The Heat’s reward is straightforward: a chance to compete for titles in the Eastern Conference with their latest superstar.
Minnesota, meanwhile, is paying for continuity the same way it traded for it. Ayo Dosunmu signed a five-year. $112 million contract after being acquired by Minnesota from the Chicago Bulls at the trade deadline. then turning into a key part of the Timberwolves’ rotation. He averaged 14.4 points. 4.2 rebounds. 3.5 assists and a steal on 52.1 per cent shooting from the field and 41.4 per cent from three in 24 games with Minnesota.
One other roster domino already fell before the first full free-agency move could be felt everywhere. The Thunder agreed to trade guard Isaiah Joe to the Detroit Pistons in exchange for two second-round picks—an exchange built around shooting needs and salary management. Oklahoma City’s need to shed salary meant Joe’s four-year. $48-million deal was cleared from their books. while the Pistons get a 40 per cent three-point shooter heading into their search for more spacing around Cade Cunningham.
In all of it, a clearer pattern emerges: teams weren’t just signing players—they were deciding what kind of offseason they’re building for, and how much risk they can afford.
That’s visible in contrasting choices—Golden State preserving its long-term options by declining Draymond Green’s $27.7 million option while still adding Kristaps Porzingis and keeping Al Horford. and Los Angeles locking in key pieces by extending Austin Reaves for $185 million while Marcus Smart declines a $5.4 million option. Meanwhile. Milwaukee fully moved on by turning the page on its franchise icon with the trade of Giannis Antetokounmpo to Miami.
Even the re-signings feel like they’re chasing that same urgency: Kristaps Porzingis at $40 million for two years. Harrison Barnes at $8 million for one. Kevin Huerter at $27 million for three. and Andrew Wiggins at $64 million for three—each one a decision designed to make the next season’s rotation feel certain. not improvised.
And for the teams still caught in their own questions—Utah’s contract timing around the Walker Kessler situation looming, or the Warriors’ open window to pursue stars—the negotiating window hasn’t even begun, yet the market is already signaling who’s ready to act first.
NBA free agency tracker Harrison Barnes San Antonio Spurs Kristaps Porzingis Golden State Warriors Draymond Green Al Horford Austin Reaves Marcus Smart Giannis Antetokounmpo Miami Heat Ja Morant trade Memphis Grizzlies Portland Trail Blazers
Draymond really turned down that option?? wild.
I don’t even know why teams do this “financial flexibility” stuff, just sign the players and be done. Also Spurs keeping Barnes makes me feel like they’re already planning next season instead of caring about the present.
So is Draymond not getting paid at all now or what? Like if he declined 27.7 million doesn’t that mean he’s basically done with the Warriors? I’m confused because Warriors also “lock in” other guys like Porzingis and Horford so it sounds like they got stronger without him.
Lakers re-signing Austin Reaves and Marcus Smart is gonna mess everything up for the rest of the league lol. Wait though, the article says “declini” something like they declined an option by the time free agency starts? Either way I feel like everyone’s just grabbing whoever they can before the window opens and then pretending it was the plan all along.