NBA business stalls out while waiting on LeBron James’s free agent decision, Kawhi Leonard investigation

If you’re wondering why there are several free agents still remaining on the market waiting for calls, the NBA calendar has been stopped for two main reasons.

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The league is waiting on the free agent decision of LeBron James, who continued to deliberate about his next and perhaps final stop while a handful of interested teams are waiting and holding up their league business. The Warriors, for example, have yet to re-sign Draymond Green, who opted out of his contract to create flexibility to sign James.

The second reason is the uncertain status of Kawhi Leonard, who was traded by the Clippers back to the Raptors for Brandon Ingram, Gradey Dick, two first-round picks, two second-rounders, and a pick swap. Both teams have put that trade on hold while the league continues a marathon investigation into accusations that the Clippers and Leonard collaborated to circumvent the salary cap by having the player earn side money on an endorsement deal with now-defunct Aspiration, a banking company.

The Raptors are unsure if Leonard will be suspended or have his contract voided, which would directly impact the trade. The NBA alerted both teams about a potential penalty for Leonard before the deal but it was consummated anyway. There appears to be regret because the investigation — being conducted independently by the Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz law firm — has stretched into the deep summer.

“As I’ve said previously, we all have an interest in wrapping this up,” commissioner Adam Silver said during the week. “I think I’ve most recently said in an interview that I’m hopeful that it will wrap up this summer. So that would continue to be the goal here.

“I just want to clarify so everyone understands: The league did not pause the trade. The parties to the trade made a decision not to go forward, given that the investigation remained open and any possible impact on Kawhi or his contract was yet to be known. They chose not to live with that uncertainty. But that was well known before the trade was proposed. I didn’t think there was any reason for people to believe that the status of Kawhi Leonard would change merely because he was traded. The investigation needs to run its course.”

That brings up a fascinating question: Did the Raptors and Clippers believe a trade would discontinue the investigation, with Toronto believing the league wouldn’t penalize Leonard because he’s with a new team? Silver made it clear that’s not the case.

The league takes salary cap circumvention seriously, especially one with a $48 million payout for the player.

Settling this matter will allow several other teams to continue making moves depending on the players available. Players such as Peyton Watson, Jalen Duren, James Harden, DeMar DeRozan, and Jonathan Kuminga are waiting as the futures of James and Leonard are settled.

The question that Silver couldn’t answer is why the Leonard investigation has lasted 11 months.

“It is realistic to think that this can be wrapped up, and I would say needs to be wrapped up, before the beginning of the next season,” Silver said. “On one hand, as the commissioner in this league, I’m the one who ultimately engaged Wachtell. So sure, I could tell them to stop, and I’ve read those reports where people are saying, just tell them to stop.”

While Silver said James’s free agency is holding up the building of next year’s schedule — because his new team will have several premier games — the Leonard issue has more at stake for the league because of credibility issues. If the Wachtell firm clears Leonard and the Clippers completely of any wrongdoing, it could set a potential precedent for how teams attract major free agents and whether endorsement teams could be indirectly attached to those contracts.

“It’s gone on longer than I would have hoped, there’s no question about that,” Silver said of the investigation. “Part of it [are] things that are out of their control and our control, dealing with bankruptcy courts, dealing with reluctant witnesses. It’s a long process, and it is complicated and complex.

“I understand why people who haven’t lived in these kinds of investigations are frustrated. But also, on one hand, we want to respect everyone’s rights here. We want to be able to answer to our teams and our fans and to all of you that this is comprehensive and that to the best of our ability, we’ve discerned what actually happened in this situation. And so that’s where we are.”

James’s free agency and the Leonard investigation are elements that keep NBA fans intrigued deep into the offseason. The league enjoys being part of the sports news cycle with NFL training camps set to open and MLB beginning the second half of its season.

But perhaps not this way.

Whenever the league decides to expand, and it is expected to do so in the next five years, the NBA Players Association is good with 34 additional jobs. There doesn’t appear to be a fear from either the league or players that the talent pool will be drained with two additional teams.

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Roster spots are difficult to come by in the NBA and there are players, such as the Celtics’ John Tonje, who have proven good enough to make a roster but are still competing for opportunity and minutes.

Two additional teams should expand those chances for cusp players.

“I think this is the best talent we ever had,” NBPA president Fred VanVleet said. “I think the game is in a great place. I think that players are increasingly getting better. The young guys are pretty much turning pro earlier, so they’re getting paid as college athletes. The pipeline is better than ever, so I don’t think there’s going to be any concern of watering down the talent by adding two more teams.

“We have to see what that looks like in terms of expansion drafts and things like that, but the game is in a beautiful place. The business is growing, and it’s our job to negotiate our rights within the ever-changing business that we’re in. But I have no worries about the talent level of basketball over here at all.”

The league has been riddled with gambling scandals, involving the likes of Chauncey Billups, Terry Rozier, and Damon Jones — all ex-Celtics. VanVleet said education is critical, stressing the consequences for players who willingly participate in sports betting.

“I think more information is always better,” VanVleet said. “Educating our guys on you know the dangers, the risks. I also think it’s important for the world to understand. … Gambling is an addiction, too, by the way. I know we never talk about it because it’s, you know, it’s a part of our business, but like that’s a real thing. It’s a real addiction. So I think the more education we can give to the guys the better. More resources we can put behind guys the better, and then we’ll work toward better resolutions with the league.”

One of Silver’s benchmarks as a commissioner was partnering with gambling companies, which has also invited an unwanted element, especially when it comes to prop betting. Coaches such as the Celtics’ Joe Mazzulla have said they’ve been chided by fans courtside for removing a player before he meets projected statistics. Rozier was accused of leaving a game with the Hornets due to illness to intentionally lower his statistics and increase the odds for bettors who wagered on him to fall short of his projected numbers.

“One thing we can agree on is it’s not good for anybody,” VanVleet said. “If you know things go south, it’s like that’s bad for business, for us, for them, for the sport, for all professional sports. We’re not alone. We saw some legislature, you know, being floated around this year in regards to prop bets, so that may be an angle you can attack in terms of how do you want to monitor prop bets. So we have a few things. … We’re going to talk to the league about, but we’re working on it for sure.”

The NBA has basically shifted from free agency to summer league, giving fans a chance to observe some of its future stars in competitive games. This is considered a banner rookie class and several of those first-year players were impressive during their stints in Las Vegas.

Let’s take a look at six of the top picks and how they fared:

▪ AJ Dybantsa, Wizards: The Brockton native played just two games, but showed enough to prove he’s going to make an impact in Washington’s starting lineup next to Anthony Davis and Alex Sarr. The No. 1 pick averaged 25 points, 7 rebounds, and 2 assists, with most of his work coming in attacking the paint. Dybantsa is going to have to work on two primary things: his handle as he attacks the basket and 3-point shooting. He was 1 for 11 from beyond the arc. But the athleticism and skill set is apparent and he plays with a nastiness that should translate well for the rising Wizards.

▪ Caleb Wilson, Bulls: Wilson was somewhat overshadowed in the draft process because he sat out the final month of his freshman season at North Carolina with a hand injury and wasn’t considered for the No. 1 pick. He appeared destined for Chicago at No. 4 and began his summer with a 35-point game and averaged 23.5 points and 7.8 rebounds. The reshaped Bulls are looking for a reason for optimism and Wilson provided that in four contests. The club hired Tiago Splitter as coach and signed veteran Norman Powell to stabilize the backcourt, and Wilson plays with a fire that is going to impress long-suffering Chicago fans.

▪ Darryn Peterson, Jazz: The No. 2 pick showed that he can get his shot off, but he just didn’t make them. He made only 30.8 percent of his shots and 23.1 percent of his 3-pointers in four games. The question is whether that lack of efficiency will spread to the regular season. The hope with better teammates around him, Peterson will flourish. He has a natural scorer’s mentality but forced some shots and missed others that were open. Perhaps it was fatigue from playing in the Salt Lake Summer League, but it wasn’t an encouraging start for the former Kansas star.

▪ Cameron Boozer, Grizzlies: New-look Memphis is looking for adults in the room and Boozer has immediately provided stability and hope for a franchise that recently moved on from the mercurial Ja Morant. Boozer didn’t try to do too much during his stint and it ended up being the perfect amount. He averaged 20 points on 51.9 percent shooting along with seven rebounds and 3.3 assists. The forward paired with second-year swingman Cedric Coward for a nice duo that will play a lot of minutes together in the regular season. Boozer entered the draft with perhaps the best basketball IQ of any prospect and that has translated immediately to his first professional experience.

▪ Darius Acuff Jr., Kings: It was a struggle at times for Acuff, the Kings point guard of the future. While he did show the ability to score but wasn’t efficient from the field — 36.5 percent, 26.3 percent on 3-pointers — and was not always an engaged defender. The Arkansas product is coming off a year where he won SEC Player of the Year and the Bob Cousy Award for the nation’s top point guard, but like many young prospects, efficiency will be an issue. One concern was Acuff’s assist-to-turnover ratio of nearly 1:1. There are things to work on but Acuff showed flashes of being a franchise cornerstone with time.

▪ Brayden Burries, Bucks: He could emerge as an All-Rookie Team candidate because of the freedom to grow he’ll receive in Milwaukee. He averaged 22.3 points on 50 percent shooting and 44.4 from the 3-point line. After the top four picks, there was a line of quality points taken; Burries was the last but may be the most talented in the end. He also committed just one turnover in his three games as the Bucks move forward from the Giannis Antetokounmpo era.

The Bucks signed Gary Trent Jr. to a four-year, $64 million extension which has been flagged by the NBA because of the exorbitant amount and length of contract for a player who signed a minimum deal last season. Milwaukee traded away Antetokounmpo for Tyler Herro and a package of young players that included Jaime Jaquez and Kel’el Ware, and draft picks. With Antetokounmpo’s salary going out, the Bucks decided to reach the salary floor by acquiring the final season of Caris LeVert’s contract while Kyle Kuzma is also on the final year of his deal. Milwaukee will also continue paying Damian Lillard for four more seasons under the waive-and-stretch provision. The Bucks are in a rebuild and are seeking their next star but decided to fill their roster with expiring contracts and perhaps overpaid veterans to prepare to chase a maximum free agent next summer. Why the Trent contract? It’s a curious deal and the league will investigate any potential salary cap circumvention. There has been cases in the past of players signing minimum deals with a handshake promise of a major raise in coming years. The Trent contract appears to be a little lofty for a player who averaged 8.1 points per game and shot 36 percent from the 3-point line … The NBA decided not to punish the Heat’s Bam Adebayo, who reportedly punched former teammate Herro at an AAU game in Las Vegas. Adebayo apparently had issue with some social media comments Herro made after his trade to the Bucks about Adebayo’s game and being Miami’s preferred player. The incident happened in front of Herro’s AAU team, but he continued to coach and even conducted a television interview hours after … The Timberwolves signed former Duke standout Isaiah Evans to a multiyear deal as the guard was one of multiple second-round picks who flourished at NBA Summer League. The Cavaliers also signed former Arkansas guard Meleek Thomas to a multiyear deal after he fell to the second round. The Celtics will have to consider their plans for second-rounder Dillon Mitchell, who played well in summer league. He could agree to one of the club’s remaining two two-way contracts or sign a similar NBA contract. Jordan Walsh signed a multiyear deal three years ago and has played his way into the rotation.

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