3 guards who will command plenty of attention this free agency period
A Loaded Free Agency
When Draymond Green of the Golden State Warriors declined his player option for the 2023-2024 campaign, he became the first big name to potentially hit free agency once it opens on July 6th. But he’s unlikely to be the only big name to test the waters this summer.
Kyle Kuzma of the Washington Wizards has joined the frenzy- declining his $13M player option for next season. Kuzma averaged 21.2 points and 3.7 assists for the Wizards last year. And with teams permitted to begin negotiating contracts as early as June 30th, NBA fans will be glued to their Twitter feeds waiting for those Woj bombs from ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski.
Below are the top guards who could become free agents starting July 6th.
James Harden
Last year, James Harden of the Philadelphia 76ers declined a player option and signed a new deal with another player option he can pick up for the 2023-2024 campaign. Declining the player option wouldn’t guarantee he will join another team. However, Harden’s name has been linked to several teams consistently, especially after the Sixers lost to the Boston Celtics in the Eastern Conference semifinals.
The former league MVP averaged 21 points, 10.7 assists (best in the league), 6.1 rebounds, on 44.1% field goal shooting. However, inconsistency hit Harden, especially in the Boston series. He scored over 40 points twice in the series but failed to reach the 20-point mark the rest of the way.
But while his scoring suffered a drop, his playmaking remained remarkable- leading the league in assists and passes (9.1 passes).
If Harden declines the player option and joins free agency, the Houston Rockets are believed to be in the works for a reunion with their former star player.
Austin Reaves
Austin Reaves upped his regular season averages to 13 points, 3.4 assists, three rebounds, and 39.8% three-point shooting during his stint with the Los Angeles Lakers. His increased production helped the Lakers transform from a team missing the play-in tournament to one that made the 2023 Western Conference Finals.
The 25-year-old Reaves averaged 16.9 points, 4.6 assists, 4.4 rebounds, and 44.3% three-point shooting in the 2023 playoffs. These numbers helped boost his stock as a potential big catch in free agency.
Los Angeles insinuated that they’ll match any offer made to Reaves and with the numbers he put up last season alone, the Purple and Gold can’t afford to lose another young star to free agency. Again.
Fred VanVleet
Analysts thought the Toronto Raptors should have sent Fred VanVleet packing elsewhere at the trade deadline due to the belief he could decline his player option for next season. If FVV walks this year, the Raptors lose his 19.3 points, 7.2 assists, 4.1 rebounds, and 39.3% field goal shooting averages he put up last season at a position that they’re precariously thin at.
FVV also led the league in deflections. That’s why he’ll have numerous suitors this summer, and could be looking at a $30M+ pay day. He’s a guard that can do everything. The San Antonio Spurs are a potential suitor for the undersized guard after drafting Victor Wembanyama this week.
Bonus: Khris Middleton
With Chris Paul headed to Golden State, another Khris could garner plenty of attention on the free agent market this summer. Middleton, 31, declined his player option with Milwaukee and is poised to test the waters of free agency. You can quibble over whether he’s truly a shooting guard or a small forward all you want, but the fact remains that his position will largely depend on what team he ultimately signs with.
While a reunion with the Bucks isn’t out of the question, the the 6’7” sharpshooter is doing the responsible thing by looking to secure a multi-year contract given his run of injuries of late.
Limited to just 33 games in 2022-23, the Texas A&M alum put up 15.1pts/4.9ast/4.2reb per game on a .436 shooting percentage from the field as he was eased back into action. All of those figures represent lows over the last several years for Middleton, so some may question why he would opt out of a $40.4M player option this year. However insiders have labelled the Bucks losing Middleton to free agency as potentially “catastrophic”, so this is likely a case of a player using leverage to hopefully secure a longer term deal now that he’s on the wrong side of 30.
-Iggy Gonzales
Photo: Iam_chihang. This file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic license.