Heading into the 4th of July weekend, not a lot of action has gone down, but it seems that Tyreke Evans will be playing for the New Orleans Pelicans next season, with the Sacramento Kings almost 100% not matching the offer sheet given to the former rookie of the year.
In terms of retaining players – Manu Ginobili used twitter to tell everyone he isn’t retiring and planning to stay with the San Antonio Spurs, while the Atlanta Hawks didn’t let too many teams make offers to Kyle Korver before re-signing.
Tyreke Evans Almost a Pelicans Player
Tyreke Evans has agreed to a four-year, $44 million deal from the New Orleans Pelicans, but it doesn’t make him their player just yet. The Sacramento Kings do prefer a different shooting guard after years of pretty much regression on Evans’ part, but they still have time (until July 13) to match the offer, which means that if they can’t find anyone they like in the postseason (Monta Ellis?) to fill the shooting guard position, or they can’t work out a trade with the Pelicans for one of their guards (possibly Eric Gordon), eventually they might actually match the offer for Evans.
There’s also Ben McLemore that the Kings selected with the 7th overall pick, which makes Evans expendable according to some. In any case, the Kings were first interested in Andre Iguodala, but rescinded their offer to him after realizing he wasn’t interested in playing for them. Evans averaged 15.2 points per game last season for the Kings.
Spurs & Manu Still Together
According to Yahoo, Manu Ginobili took a 50% paycut and will make $14 million for the next two seasons, getting over games 6 & 7 in the NBA finals and deciding to come back for two final runs at winning a fourth NBA title along with Duncan, Parker and Popovich. Ginobili looked, more than others, quite broken from his own performances in the final two games, remembered for quite a few turnovers in clutch moments as the Spurs lost a five-point lead in the last 28 seconds of game 6.
Ginobili’s injuries have also slowed him down last season, averaging 11.8 points per game on 42.5% from the field, in what was probably his worst season since his first year in the NBA. Still, when healthy, Ginobili is a valuable combo-guard with outside shooting abilities that has had his share of clutch moments (including the game winning shot against the Warriors in the conference semifinals), and it feels like the Spurs value cohesion and continuity more than anything when it’s someone they appreciate.
Kyle Korver Remaining in Atlanta
At 32, Korver is probably getting to sign his last meaningful NBA contract. Initially, it looked like the Brooklyn Nets might be able to offer him a mid-level exception, but the three-year deal worth just under $10 million wasn’t enough to move him.
Especially considering other offers he got, like the three-year deal worth $21 million from the Milwaukee Bucks. Korver considered but quickly refused, as many players simply don’t want any part of the Bucks next season. He decided to stick with the Hawks, signing a $24 million deal spread on four years. Korver was a starter for the first time in almost a decade last season in Atlanta, averaging 10.9 points per game while shooting 45.7% from beyond the arc.