Hoops Rumors Live Chat: 7/23/26
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ARTHUR HILL
11:01
Welcome to this week's chat. We'll start with a question about Victor Wembanyama.
M’s Fan
11:01
What kind of money did Wemby leave on the table (in dollars, not cap %)? Is it a big deal for the Spurs or just nice?
ARTHUR HILL
11:08
Wembanyama is getting a full max extension on his rookie scale contract and will make about $252.3MM over five years. The savings come from his agreement not to include Rose Rule language, which could have increased the value from 25% to 30% of the cap if he earns All-NBA or MVP honors or is named DPOY. The potential savings for the Spurs could be around $50MM, which is significant with Stephon Castle, Dylan Harper and others in line for extensions in future seasons. In general, it's encouraging to have a team leader who's willing to sacrifice some money and allow the team to put better players around him, like Jalen Brunson did for the Knicks. Wembanyama will be well compensated during his career, and this decision gives him a better shot at winning more rings.
Hoopsfan
11:08
Do you think the Sixers having Adem Bona and Ariel Hukporti as backups to Joel Embiid is a viable plan for this season? It doesn't sound like a good plan to me.
ARTHUR HILL
11:13
For all the good moves that Mike Gansey made this summer, the loss of Andre Drummond leaves the Sixers without a reliable backup big man, which is an incredibly important position on a team with Joel Embiid. Bona and Hukporti have shown some promising signs during their brief NBA careers, but not enough to be counted on to play heavy minutes on a team with championship aspirations. Embiid played 38 games this year and hasn't been available for even half a season since he was named MVP in 2023. If the Sixers can't find another center before free agency ends, that should be a priority by the trade deadline.
Just Curious
11:14
What is Dumars' strategy down in New Orleans? Why hasn't he made any trades? Do you think there's a way for Queen and Zion to be effective together?
ARTHUR HILL
11:20
Dumars is placing a very high price on his most sought-after trade assets, Trey Murphy and Herb Jones. Even though there are plenty of interested teams, no one is willing to meet the asking price of three first-round picks or the equivalent. As a result, the Pelicans have been one of the quietest teams of the offseason when they should be aggressively seeking roster upgrades. Dumars may be confident that a coaching change and better injury luck will improve the team's fortunes, but I don't see that happening considering the quality of the opposition in the West. It's probably too early to make a decision on Queen and Zion, and maybe Jamahl Mosley can make them work better together. But if it doesn't happen this season, then maybe a change of scenery for Zion is in everyone's best interests.
JD
11:20
What team is the best basketball fit for LeBron? I don't see the Miami fit. Not enough shooting there.
ARTHUR HILL
11:28
I can understand why LeBron would want to return to South Beach and team up with Giannis Antetokounmpo and Bam Adebayo, but it's not the great fit that Heat fans and media seem to believe it is. Miami lost a lot of outside shooting in Tyler Herro and Norman Powell, and there aren't enough three-point threats to keep teams from sagging their defenses to stop the three stars. Perimeter defense is also a concern with that front line because none of them can guard opposing wings. The best basketball fit among the teams LeBron is considering is probably in Minnesota, where he'd be surrounded by a dynamic point guard, another high-volume scorer and an elite rim protector. However, he seems to be focused on moving to the Eastern Conference, so basketball fit may not be his priority.
Dan Roundfield
11:28
Is there any universe where we can get  something of merit for Buddy Hield and sign and trade of Kuminga. Would like to have someone else to provide a little rim protection
ARTHUR HILL
11:36
Several teams are interested in a sign-and-trade for Kuminga, so the Hawks should have their pick of potential deals if they decide to go that route. There may not be regular minutes for him on the current roster after the Dort deal, and we saw in Golden State how frustrated Kuminga can get when he's not in the rotation. A sign-and-trade is probably the best solution for him and the Hawks. Getting value for Hield will be much more difficult. He's a one-dimensional player, and at age 33 he's not the elite shooter he was earlier in his career. He essentially has two years left on his contract, so the Hawks may have to give up draft picks to find a taker.
Cale
11:36
If we assume Dybantsa, Peterson, Boozer, and Wilson all make the all rookie team, who's the best bet to join them as the 5th guy?
ARTHUR HILL
11:43
Any of the four point guards drafted from 5-8 could have a huge rookie season, but there are reasons for concern about each of them after watching them at Summer League. One of the best players in Las Vegas was Braydon Burries, who should have a huge role on a rebuilding Bucks team. He averaged 23.5 PPG during Summer League and showed an ability to protect the ball. A good long shot to watch is Allen Graves, who went to Toronto with the 19th pick. It may be tougher to get regular playing time with the Raptors, but he looked great in Vegas and could be the steal of this year's draft.
Esteban
11:43
The Clippers have been rumored to want to use their newly acquired John Collins trade exception to complete a sign and trade for Jonathan Kuminga and to resign their own free agent, Benedict Mathurin. If the Kawhi Leoanrd trade to Toronto were to go through and be finalized, where would you rank the Clippers with all their free agent maneuvers?
ARTHUR HILL
11:50
The Clippers have parted with a lot of veteran talent since February, but the new roster would at least be promising if they can execute all those moves. They weren't going to challenge for a title with Leonard, Harden and Zubac as their main pieces, and the new-look roster would feature a lot more youth and athleticism. Someone needs to give Kuminga a chance to see if he can develop into a star, and teaming him up with a point guard like Darius Garland may be his best shot. The new-look Clippers would still be a play-in team at best, but at least they would have a brighter future than they did a year ago.
Lance
11:50
For the Wizards; in your opinion, how much of the front office talking up AD and AD showcasing he's healthy, happy, etc. is soft posturing by both to increase AD's trade value in the event they do pull the trigger on sending AD to LeBron?

Would you rather have the return from trading AD or AD on the roster the next few seasons?
ARTHUR HILL
12:00
One of the reasons the Wizards were able to acquire Davis so cheaply is that he's extension eligible this summer and it's going to take a new contract to keep him happy. Washington has already committed big money to Trae Young, and it won't be easy to give extensions to the team's young talent with Young and Davis taking up most of the cap room. For the sake of long-suffering Wizards fans, I hope the front office has already arranged a few trade scenarios with the teams that LeBron is considering. They'll both be happier if they can team up again, and it will prevent Washington from taking a huge financial risk that may eventually hamper its chances of building a contender around AJ Dybantsa.
Tim Connelly
12:00
In the likely event LeBron chooses a different team what are some affordable power forwards I can try and get to fill this hole I have?
ARTHUR HILL
12:07
The Wolves will be searching through the free agent bargain bin for power forwards if they're not able to land LeBron. The names on the list are essentially a collection of past-their-prime veterans and unproven young players, none of whom can be counted on to fill a glaring roster need on a potential title contender. The trade market is probably a better option for Connelly, who may find a team that will part with an unwanted contract to provide a short-term solution.
Robert G.
12:07
The new lottery rules have disincentivized losing but they haven’t incentivized winning, and I think there’s a difference. The bottom 3-4 teams will be trying to win enough to get out of the bottom but teams 5-10 or 5-12 may prioritize player development over winning in the last third of the season. So I think we’ll still see some poor teams and mismatches, just not the egregious tanking we saw last year where teams signed bad players they weren’t invested in just so they could lose. Do you agree with that take, or am I missing something?
ARTHUR HILL
12:12
I agree completely. The main incentive in the new lottery rules is to avoid the bottom three, which raises the stakes in some late-season games, but doesn't really affect roster decisions otherwise. One of the consequences of the new rules is that they make reaching the play-in tournament less appealing. Why go through that effort for a hopeless playoff series against one of the league's best teams when you can take advantage of the flattened lottery odds and maybe land a top-four pick in a loaded draft. We'll see what happens over the next three years, but the league is probably going to have to make some more adjustments to its lottery system in the next CBA.
M’s Fan
12:12
I haven’t really watched the NBA since the Sonics left town… always plan on bandwagoning some team at the start of the season but usually miss the window. Who will be fun next season? Will seattle ever have a team again?
ARTHUR HILL
12:21
The Sixers will definitely be fun to watch after picking up Jaylen Brown from the Celtics. They already have an explosive young backcourt and could challenge for the top seed in the East if Joel Embiid can stay reasonably healthy. The Timberwolves will also be a great League Pass team with LaMelo Ball joining Anthony Edwards. If you don't care a lot about wins and losses, any of the top four picks will be fun to follow this season, particularly Caleb Wilson, who'll be one of the league's most exciting young players with the Bulls. And yes, I think the Sonics are coming back. The league seems to be leaning toward expansion after putting off the subject for several years. It's an injustice to the fans of Seattle that they had to live without their team for so long, but I expect it to finally be made right.
Thanks for all the great questions. We'll talk again next week.
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