The big names are off the board: Gordon Hayward is heading to Boston, Paul Millsap is going to Denver, Stephen Curry and Kevin Durant were never leaving Golden State, Blake Griffin is staying in Los Angeles, and Kyle Lowry will remain a Raptor. Even the best restricted free agent on the market has his deal in place — Otto Porter will sign a max offer sheet from the Nets, and Washington will match.
So who is left?
Here are the top 10 NBA free agents still on the board.
1) Kelly Olynyk. A casualty of Boston’s need to clear out cap space for Gordon Hayward, he is suddenly an unrestricted free agent and the best player available. Already Atlanta and Indiana have interest, but there will be a lot more teams lining up. Olynyk is a 7-footer who is mobile and shot 35.7 percent from three last season. He is a decent defender on the perimeter but struggles physically with strong players down on the block. Olynyk is a big who fits the direction the NBA game is evolving and he’s going to get paid handsomely by someone.
2) Kentavious Caldwell-Pope. Detroit all but flat-out said it would match any offer for KCP and that seems to have depressed the market for the restricted free agent. Still, after the Langston Galloway signing the Pistons are hard capped and would have to shed salary to match a max offer for Caldwell-Pope, it’s surprising no team has stepped up to force them to do that (and take a chance they can steal him). KCP is a long and athletic defensive wing who shot 35 percent from three last year and is working to become a more varied offensive threat. A lot of teams could use a guy like that.
3) Nerlens Noel. Dallas traded for the rangy, defensive-minded center at the deadline last season and see him as part of the future., other teams known that so nobody has stepped up with an offer for the restricted free agent. It would be a waste of paperwork, the Mavs would match. With Dallas bidding against itself, the only question now is what price he re-signs for.
4) Pau Gasol. Not a lot of drama here. Gasol opted out of the $16 million he is owed next year to help the Spurs chase free agents (the Spurs have re-signed Patty Mills and are in the mix on other deals). When all that is done the Spurs will re-sign Gasol, certainly for less per year than before but for multiple years. Gasol is still a fundamentally solid big who can score inside, make smart passes, and defend the rim all with a high IQ. He’s past his prime but he’s still a quality NBA big man.
5) Tim Hardaway Jr. Another restricted free agent trying to land an offer and force his team’s hand. Hardaway has developed into a quality player at Hawks university and last year scored 14.5 points a game shooting 35.7 percent from three. He doesn’t provide much defense, but teams can always use shooting. Atlanta is heading into rebuilding mode and they want Hardaway to be part of that, the only question is the price point.
6) Dion Waiters. He played the best basketball of his career the second half of last season — when the Heat needed scoring he picked up the slack (not efficiently, but he was getting buckets). Waiters was always going to be in the second tier of free agents (when GMs strike out on better targets they come calling) and the Knicks, Bulls, Lakers, and others have their eyes on him. However, with Miami striking out on Hayward and Griffin, expect them to jump into the mix and try to bring Waiters back.
7) Derrick Rose. In a shrinking point guard market, he may be the best choice teams now have. The Clippers reportedly are interested, and the Knicks have been in touch as well, other teams may jump in over the next 48 hours, too. Rose put up solid numbers last season, on paper he looked like an average NBA point guard, but he’s still a defensive liability and kind of only plays one style. The questions now are what teams come asking him to do — start or come off the bench — and at what price?
8) Rajon Rondo. After a rocky start, he played well for the Bulls the second half of last season — after the All-Star Break he averaged 10.8 points and 7.1 assists per game. The Lakers are interested, but they will only offer a one-year deal (they want to keep their 2018 cap space) and Rondo may hope another team will come in with a longer offer. The Clippers and Knicks have been mentioned as possibilities.
9) Rudy Gay. He’s an old-school volume scorer who was already slowing down before he suffered a ruptured Achilles last January (he should be good to go around the start of next season). Both Miami and Utah have become interested since missing out on Hayward. Gay reportedly would like to play for the Thunder, but if Miami/Utah/another team come in with a larger offer he likely will take the money.
10) Andre Roberson. A restricted free agent who almost certainly will end up back with the Thunder next season — he would fit perfectly right between Russell Westbrook and Paul George, and since they need to make both those guys happy so they re-sign in OKC, the Thunder will pay what it takes to keep Roberson. Other teams know that, which means he may not get a huge offer from the outside, nobody is going to poach him. Roberson is a lock-down defender — OKC should be elite defensively next season — who can score in transition but needs to improve his jumper to become a huge threat.