Hoops Rumors Live Chat: 8/24/2026
powered byJotCast
This chat is available to members only. Please log in to participate.
Luke Adams
3:01
Thanks for the early questions, guys! I don't have the full hour today, but I'll get to as many as I can over the next 30-45 minutes.
redrum
3:01
people keep assuming the dubs are "running it back" with the same 32 win team.  that's just not true!  things are different from year to year.  its all about health with every team.   Curry missed like 30 games.  Porzingis was barely there.   they get a clean slate
Luke Adams
3:04
Well, not quite "clean," since Jimmy Butler and Moses Moody are both expected to be out to start the year.

In general, I do agree that the optimism for teams that do a lot during the offseason often exceeds what it should be and that there's value in continuity, but with Butler and Moody out and no assurances of how much you'll get from Porzingis, I'm still not overly bullish on the Warriors.
Next Kings move?
3:04
Are the Kings still shopping for a point guard? Is Kuminga anywhere near the mix for them?
Luke Adams
3:06
Sounds like they still want a point guard. Last we heard, they were working out Cameron Payne and also being linked to guys like Elfrid Payton and Victor Oladipo. Payne might be their best bet if the goal is to get a veteran leader who can give them some solid backup minutes. I also like Gabe Vincent as a fit for them, though I'm guessing he'd prefer to end up in Miami.
3:07
As for Kuminga, based on their cap situation, they can really only give him a minimum-salary contract, and if he's willing to play for the minimum, he'd probably have better situations to choose from -- like Minnesota, where he could potentially be a starting power forward for a contending team.
Guest
3:08
Have the Heat contacted Chris Paul? As much as the backlash was to him potentially going there I still think Westbrook would work next to Klay.
Luke Adams
3:08
I guess there's no harm in making a call if he's a player who would appeal to them, but Paul did announce his retirement and I haven't heard anything to suggest he's second-guessing that decision or pursuing a comeback.
Thomas
3:09
The Pacers are 31-19 at the trade deadline. Do they make a Trey Murphy like move and move all of their picks?
Luke Adams
3:12
If they're on a 51-win pace in this Eastern Conference, they may not need to take another big swing -- that's more wins than they had in their Eastern Finals or NBA Finals years in 2024 and 2025!

I don't hate the idea though. Their tradable first-rounders are 2027, 2029, and 2031. Given their hypothetical 31-19 record in this scenario, the 2027 pick likely would be in the 20s, and Murphy is the sort of player who could be a quality starter for them for the next 5-10 years. Certainly no guarantee they'd find anyone nearly as good with any of those future picks.
Black Ace57
3:12
With some of the issues of the newest owners (Blazers, Mavericks, Lakers) do you think the NBA will have more league scrutiny on the potential owners for the Seattle and Vegas teams or will it be top $ no matter what? I think of for example the NHL finding a good vetted owner for the Senators who they knew wouldn’t cause issues or be a risk while still getting a good price.
Luke Adams
3:14
I don't necessarily think it will be top $ no matter what, but I also don't think the NBA would move forward with expansion for well below the fee they're looking for, even if they find the right owner. It wouldn't be worth it to the rest of the owners in that scenario.

In other words, yes, they want to find the right owner(s). But that owner will have to be willing to pay market value or pretty close to it.
Irv
3:15
Has Duop Reath resumed running and full on court activities or is he still rehabilitating stress fracture of foot?
Luke Adams
3:17
It's rare to get concrete updates on player's rehab processes during the offseason, and even rarer when the player isn't under contract. So I'm not sure exactly where Reath is at.

We might know more by the time camps open. If he's not on a roster and we haven't heard any updates from his agent at that point (if you're trying to drum up interest, it's easier to put it out publicly through the media that he's healthy rather than letting 30 teams know individually), he's probably still not back to 100%.
brad jones
3:17
Quick question, Why are guys like Bruce brown and Nick Richards still free agents ?
Luke Adams
3:20
Richards was essentially a third- or fourth-string center last season before he was traded to a team that barely had anyone else to use at the five. I think he's still a free agent because he's not being offered much - if any - guaranteed money and teams view him as a third-string guy or a subpar backup.

Brown, though... I think he's still a useful player and I'm sort of surprised that he's still unsigned. Maybe he's waiting on a specific situation. He also may not have any guaranteed offers from the teams he's most interested in.
Guest
3:21
Even though he’s on an Exhibit 9, can the Pelicans bring back Kobe Bufkin on a two-way after training camp if they cut him?
Luke Adams
3:22
Yeah, they wouldn't be able to directly convert him to a two-way contract due to the lack of Exhibit 10 clause. But if he clears waivers, they could re-sign him to a two-way contract.

Because Bufkin is a former first-round pick, he'd be an unrestricted free agent - rather than restricted - in 2027 if he signs a two-way this year.
Arcman
3:22
Who is most likely to get Warriors 14th roster spot?  Assuming they leave the 15th spot open to fill at a later time.  Any free agents are they still looking at?
Luke Adams
3:24
I wouldn't necessarily assume the 15th spot remains open to start the season, though they could hold a camp competition for it.

Kelly Olynyk, Georges Niang, and Brandon Williams are the names I've seen connected most frequently to Golden State. Won't be surprised if one of them ends up as the 14th man, though it seems like the team is in no rush to lock up any of them. The Warriors might be waiting to see if anyone interesting shakes loose at the stretch provision deadline at the end of August.
Sam
3:24
With how many blockbuster trades we've seen this offseason featuring stars moving teams for the first time in their careers, who do you predict will be the next homegrown star to get moved? We're probably done with big trades for this offseason, but can you see something happening mid-season or next summer?
Luke Adams
3:29
If we're sticking JUST to guys who have only played for one team so far...

I'd be slightly surprised if Zion Williamson is still a Pelican by opening night of the 2027/28 season. Seems like New Orleans will have to decide by next offseason whether to trade or extend him, and I'm skeptical about an extension.

If things go south in Denver and the Nuggets want to cut costs, I wouldn't rule out the possibility of a Jamal Murray trade, though there are probably other scenarios the front office would explore first.

I don't really think a Steph Curry trade will happen, but if the Warriors are bad again in 2026/27, you never know.

Before the LaMelo trade, I might've put Anthony Edwards on this list, but I think the Timberwolves bought some time with him unless the Ball trade is a total bust. He'll be super-max eligible if he makes All-NBA in 2026/27.
3:30
I'll mention Booker and Embiid too, but I don't think either are likely to be moved anytime soon. If they and their teams are playing well, their teams will want to keep them. If things are going badly or they're hurt, it probably won't be worth it to trade them because their contracts will be so hard to move.
brad jones
3:30
Tim connelly said in an interview that they have interest in some guys to fill in the power forward position for the wolves. Who do you think they will sign ?
Luke Adams
3:32
I imagine Kuminga is at the top of their list, but convincing him to accept a minimum-salary deal won't be easy. I think he's the only real needle-mover on the free agent market, so I could see them going the trade route too.
3:33
I don't hate Nic Batum for Minnesota, but he'll turn 38 later this year and I'm not sure he wants to play for the minimum in Minnesota.
Golden State Worrier
3:33
Do you expect the Warriors to make a run at Cason Wallace in FA?
Luke Adams
3:35
Too early to say. He still has a couple months to potentially sign an extension with the Thunder (which I wouldn't rule out, despite their tax/apron situation). And the Warriors could do a lot of things between now and next summer that would eat into their projected cap room.

He's a really promising young player though, so if he does reach restricted free agency, any team with cap room should think long and hard about being aggressive with an offer sheet. The Thunder would be in a really tough financial spot if they had to pay him a $25-30MM starting salary.
Keith
3:35
What's your take on DeRozan to the Nuggets and Thompson to the Heat? Think DeRozan will be there to take over the starter minutes after the trade? Is Thompson reliable enough to do more than just shoot 3's?
Luke Adams
3:37
They're fine late-August additions, especially at that price, but I don't think either way is changing the championship landscape this season.

I like the Klay fit more than the DeRozan one, given that the Heat desperately needed shooting, but I don't think DeRozan's value as a regular season "innings eater" should be overlooked. I'd be hesitant to rely on him for 25+ minutes in a playoff series, but if he can get them 17-18 points per game in the regular season and help ease the workload on guys like Aaron Gordon, that's a plus.
MaxDeal
3:37
I was wondering about extensions for Amen and Ausar Thompson. Do you see Amen accepting a 5-year extension for $200 million? Do you see Ausar signing a 5-year deal for $160 million?
Luke Adams
3:40
I wouldn't be surprised if the gap between the two is a little bigger than that. Neither player can make three-pointers, but Amen is a much more well-rounded offensive player at this point (he nearly doubled Ausar's scoring average last year).

As good as Ausar is defensively, Dyson Daniels had to accept a four-year, $100MM deal after finishing as the DPOY runner-up last year. Thompson will probably get more than that, but I don't see how you can give more than $30MM per year to a guy who might not even average double-digit points.
Thomas
3:40
How long before we see an Ant trade? Gobert is older, Lamelo is injury prone, and they’re a tax team with basically no draft capital
Luke Adams
3:41
This question came in as I was discussing potential star trades to watch for in the next year or two. A lot is definitely riding on the Wolves' success this year, but LaMelo was a guy that Edwards wanted to team up with and that he was very happy for Minnesota to acquire, which shouldn't be overlooked.

An Edwards trade down the road isn't an impossibility or anything, but if he makes All-NBA this year, I think he'll be pretty hard-pressed to turn down a super-max extension offer next summer.
MkeMike
3:42
How do da Bucks thin the herd (pun intended) of their overcrowded roster? Nance yes, but then ...?
Luke Adams
3:44
The Bucks are a team that might have one more preseason trade in them, since there's no obvious release candidate to get them from 16 players to 15. There are several players on that roster I'd view as trade candidates, starting with Kyle Kuzma.

If they can't make a deal though, I might keep an eye on Caris LeVert. He had the worst year of his career in Detroit last season and isn't owed any guaranteed money beyond 2026/27. Ideally, you'd keep his expiring $14.8MM contract on your books and try to use it in a trade later in the season, but I don't think they envision him as part of the rotation, so waiving him wouldn't be a huge loss.
3:45
Thanks for all the questions today, everyone! We'll be back next Monday afternoon to do this again. Have a great week.
Connecting…