Yesterday was a huge day for the NBA as more than $US1 billion dollars in free agent signings were made in 24 hours.
There was not much major player movement but there were some the big re-signings in the multimillion dollar race for signatures.
Anthony Davis signs for $145 million over five years
An absolute must signing for the New Orleans Pelicans, Davis is an All-Star at 22 years. The Pelicans took Davis as number one pick overall in 2012 and he has since become a two time All-Star, won a gold medal with the American team in his rookie year and led the Pelicans to the NBA playoffs.
The Pelicans will hope the prolific shot blocker and dominant scorer will become a franchise player, one they can build a team around for years to come.
Kawhi Leonard stays with the San Antonio Spurs
The San Antonio Spurs have got their man for another five years at $90 million. Leonard’s extension was priority one for last year’s championship team as it begins to build for life beyond Tim Duncan. Leonard was the final’s MVP last year, has a strong following with the San Antonio faithful and will be asked to fill Duncan’s big shoes.
Paul Pierce heads off to the Clippers
With the rumours growing louder each day that Clippers will lose their centre DeAndre Jordan, the LA franchise will be glad to have added this veteran scorer to their roster for a tidy $10 million over three years. In this year’s playoffs for the Wizards, Pierce showed signs he still has a lot to offer. However at 37, Pierce is certainly not the All-Star he once was and these three years are likely to be his last.
Other signings from yesterday
Jimmy Butler re-signed with the Bulls for five years $95 million
DeMarre Carroll signed with the Raptors for four years $60 million
Danny Green returned to the Spurs for four years $45 million deal
Goran Dragic returned to the Heat for five years $90 million deal
Thaddeus Young re-signed with the Nets for four years $50 million
Brandon Knight re-signed with the Suns for five years $70 million
Brook Lopez is back with the Nets for three years $60 million
Iman Shumpert re-signed with the Cavs for four years $40 million
Khris Middleton re-signed with the Bucks. five years $70 million
Damian Lillard re-signed with the Blazers. five years $120 million
Draymond Green re-signed with GSW for five years $85 million
– Compiled from web sources by Jackson Thomas
Top photo from Keith Allison’s Flickr photostream.
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