Monday Headlines: NBA Free Agency Edition

By John Morgan Francis@MonJorgan Aug 2, 2021, 8:16am EDT

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With NBA free agency is now officially underway, there are several former Kentucky Wildcats ready to seek their big pay day. As the week unfolds, we’ll have live updates tracking the latest with each former Wildcat. For now, here’s what we know so far.

Oklahoma City Thunder guard and rising star Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is expected to sign his 5-year MAX extension, locking him in place as the center piece of what appears to be a massive rebuild for the small-market team.

The Dallas Mavericks have decided to pick up Willie Cauley-Stein’s $4.1 million team option for the upcoming season, marking the calendar for Cauley-Stein to hit unrestricted free agency next summer.

Unfortunately for Malik Monk, the Charlotte Hornets extended a qualifying offer to Devonte Graham instead. However, that doesn’t mean the Hornets and Monk can’t reach an agreement on a deal. It does, though, open the door for another team to take a shot on Monk without worrying about the Hornets stepping in.

Other former Wildcats set to hit the market include Nerlens Noel (Knicks), Demarcus Cousins (Clippers), Hamidou Diallo (Pistons), Patrick Patterson (Clippers), Enes Kanter (Blazers), Trey Lyles (Spurs) and Jarred Vanderbilt (Timberwolves).

Though the market won’t likely be as hot for these players, several of them should land solid contracts on competitive teams.

Tweet of the Day

So far, 20 American college athletes with remaining NCAA eligibility have won medals at the Tokyo Games. That will set them up nicely for new NIL money opportunities -- and under longer-standing NCAA rules, they are assured of $637,500 in prize money from USOPC alone.
— Steve Berkowitz (@ByBerkowitz) August 1, 2021