NBA free agency is officially underway. Players were legally allowed to begin negotiating with teams across the league as of Monday evening, and there will be a flurry of activity this week. The most surprising free agency news to date happened Tuesday morning when the Bucks said they were signing big man Myles Turner, who had spent his career to date with the Pacers, to a four-year deal. How did Milwaukee make space for that shocking move? By waiving Damian Lillard (and stretching his contract) in a move that effectively makes the nine-time All-Star a free agent.
Wednesday’s biggest move involved the Lakers. Los Angeles reached a deal with former No. 1 overall pick Deandre Ayton, per reports, after Ayton had his contract bought out by the Portland Trail Blazers on Sunday. Ayton will now join Luka Dončić and LeBron James in L.A., giving the Lakers a much-needed big man. On Thursday, according to ESPN, the Lakers added depth at center by agreeing to bring back Jaxson Hayes on a one-year deal.
The Nuggets, Hawks and Rockets have been some of the most active teams since the start of free agency. The Nuggets added Cam Johnson via trade (with the Nets for Michael Porter Jr.) and acquired Bruce Brown and Tim Hardaway Jr. in free agency. The Hawks’ summer continued with the additions of Nickeil Alexander-Walker and Luke Kennard, and the Rockets are set to sign Dorian Finney-Smith and Clint Capela after landing Kevin Durant in a trade less than two weeks ago.
The 2025 NBA free agency class is not star-studded. The biggest names who could’ve been part of the free-agent pool stayed put without testing the waters. LeBron James, James Harden, Kyrie Irving, Julius Randle, Naz Reid and Fred VanVleet all agreed to contracts for the 2025-26 season with their incumbent teams. James opted into his $52.6 million player option for the 2025-26 season with the Lakers. However, the NBA superstar is still going to be the subject of trade speculation after his agent, Rich Paul, told ESPN that LeBron’s camp will “evaluate what’s best for LeBron at this stage in his life and career.” So LeBron could be on the move, just not as a free agent.
With a lot of stars out of the picture, who’s left in free agency? Warriors wing Jonathan Kuminga, Bulls guard Josh Giddey and Celtics big man Al Horford are among the best players remaining on the market as of Tuesday night. Notable veterans like Chris Paul and Russell Westbrook are also looking for new homes.
CBS Sports will be keeping tabs on the latest moves throughout NBA free agency and posting all the notable player movement below in our NBA free agency tracker.
