After 10 days, the NBA free agency market has been picked through pretty cleanly. The big names have all found homes and most teams have filled up their cap space — and many have filled out their big exceptions. As is always the case with free agency’s game of musical chairs, some guys get left without a seat after the early frenzy and have to strike a balance between finding the best situation and the most money, because it’s not always in the same place at this point.
Most of the attention has shifted to the trade block, where some star wings are available and could be on the move. That said, there are still some genuinely helpful players on the free agent market, some who will likely end up on veteran minimum deals, while others are hunting for their chunk of the mid-level (or more).
Here, we’re going to look at the 10 best players left on the board, with an awful lot of guards still available and looking for a roster. It’s possible some of them will try to wait out the trade market to see if a team misses out on a star and ends up looking to them for a smaller upgrade, but with the NBA world descending on Las Vegas for Summer League and the men’s Olympic team’s training camp, it’s a good time to get deals hammered out by way of a little face time.
Tyus Jones
Jones is a sign-and-trade candidate, but he hasn’t seemingly found a team willing to pay him to be a starter like he was reportedly hoping. Jones is in that fringe starter range, but hasn’t been able to find that kind of money and it’s hard to see it being out there at this point this summer. He could very well end up back with the Wizards, but it’s not clear exactly what the price tag will end up for him. Perhaps he tries to take a shorter, prove-it deal and bet on himself by giving it another year or two before he hits the market again, or he could look for a longer-term deal that would give Washington another trade chip in their rebuild once a team realizes they need some high-end point guard depth.
Gary Trent Jr.
One of the top shooters on the market is still available as he, like Jones, has not been able to find the money he hoped for this summer. Reports indicate Toronto’s held firm at an offer around $15 million per year for Trent Jr., and while he’s tried to find more elsewhere, to this point it hasn’t happened. He, maybe more than anyone else on this list, might be best served waiting out trade decisions and the extension deadline of August 6 to see if a team seeking a shooting upgrade falls short on the trade market and is willing to pay a bit more for him.
Kyle Lowry
Lowry was solid for the Sixers last year and while he’s not the dynamic offensive player he once was in his prime in Toronto, he still can provide a team some quality minutes at the point guard spot. He’s still crafty on both ends of the floor, picking up his trademark charges on defense, and was excellent shooting the ball last year, hitting 40.4 percent of his threes. Philly is certainly in play to bring him back, but if he’s willing to take a minimum deal, a team like Phoenix would certainly make a strong pitch for him to join their star trio as they have a glaring need at the point guard position.
Luke Kennard
Kennard was expected to be back with Memphis after the team declined his option to work out a new deal, but almost two weeks in and he’s still not re-signed. That could be a matter of Memphis keeping all options open for other additions before re-signing Kennard with Bird rights, or it could indicate Kennard is waiting to find out if a bigger offer is out there from a team seeking his shooting ability. The Grizzlies have an obvious need to keep one of their best floor spacers, but that’s a skill just about every team is hoping to add.
Isaac Okoro
The best RFA still on the market is Okoro, who is learning the lesson so many players in his position have in recent years, which is offer sheets just don’t exist anymore for mid-tier RFAs. As a result, Okoro is presumably going to have to return to Cleveland and it’s up to the Cavs to put up a number that is just good enough to keep him from signing the qualifying offer to hit free agency next summer. Okoro is coming off the best shooting season of his career (39 percent from three), and perhaps a surprising sign-and-trade emerges from a team looking for a defensive upgrade on the wing. Or maybe a team like the Jazz or Pistons throw an offer sheet at him to fill their cap space. However, it seems more likely he ends up back on the Cavs on a relatively team-friendly deal.
Justin Holiday
Holiday was a trusted rotation piece for Michael Malone in Denver last season and had his best shooting year (40.4 percent) in Denver. He should have plenty of contenders calling him about vet min offers, but those will be there no matter how long he waits. Right now he may be waiting to see if someone comes calling with some exception money that’s above the minimum, and if that never comes, he’ll line up a deal with Denver or another contender.
Markelle Fultz
Fultz was able to get his career back on track in Orlando and, while he hasn’t reached the star status expected of a No. 1 overall pick, he has carved out a nice spot as a strong defensive-minded point guard who can put pressure on the rim on offense. That said, the jumper remains an issue, which limits what he can provide a team offensively and his injury history will scare teams from giving him a significant deal. Still, Fultz has become a steady hand and is a good defender when healthy, which should interest at least a few teams in need of guard help.
Dennis Smith Jr.
This list is full of point guards, which is probably hurting their individual causes as teams likely see a lot of these guys in the same tier and aren’t rushing out to grab one. Dennis Smith Jr. has, similar to Fultz, moved past the “bust” tag after not panning out as a star and carved out a career as a quality backup point guard who can put pressure on the rim and provide high level point of attack defense. However, like Fultz, the jumper has just never come around and is the limiting element of his game. Smith is likely hoping to avoid a min deal, but will have plenty of contenders calling him about his services if bigger money doesn’t present itself.
Cam Payne
We continue the parade of point guards with Cam Payne, who had another very solid year in Milwaukee and Philadelphia and has become a trusted backup point guard for contenders ever since he resurrected his career in Phoenix. My assumption is, once Tyus Jones and Kyle Lowry are officially in new homes, the run on point guards will begin and the rest of this group will fall into place.
Patrick Beverley
The man who Milwaukee traded Payne to get rounds out our list, as Beverley continues to bounce around from team to team ever since leaving the Clippers in 2021. He’s still a pest at the point of attack and can shoot it just well enough to keep teams honest on the other end. He wants more than the minimum but, as with all of these guys, the depth of point guards available is making it really hard for players to find leverage in talks to get more than that right now.
