NBA Player News

Butler has been relatively quiet as a scorer since going off for 69 points in two games against the Pacers. He’s hit (or exceeded) the 20-point mark twice in his last five games, providing 7th-round per-game value in 9-cat formats in the previous two weeks, according to Basketball Monster. His season-long value remains high, but Butler’s recent efforts may be underwhelming to fantasy managers hoping for more with Bam Adebayo (hip) sidelined. Butler and the Heat finish Week 8 with another game against the Bulls on Saturday.

Smith, the ninth overall pick in the 2017 draft, returns to the city where he began his NBA career. The athletic point guard last played in the NBA during the 2023-24 season, appearing in 56 games for the Nets. Last season, Smith played for Real Madrid. He is going into training camp hoping to earn a standard contract, potentially offering additional depth while the Mavericks await Kyrie Irving’s return from a torn ACL. Brandon Williams is on a partially guaranteed deal and may have the most to worry about regarding his chances of making the opening night roster.

Not long after waiving DaQuan Jeffries, the Hornets added Johnson to their roster for training camp. He’ll be on an Exhibit 10 deal, which guarantees the wing $85,300 if he’s waived and then spends 60 days with Charlotte’s G League affiliate. The 50th overall pick in the 2023 draft, Johnson has appeared in nine NBA games, all with the Thunder during the 2023-24 campaign.

While Davis missed a significant amount of time last season due to a strained adductor, he was also playing through a detached retina that would require offseason surgery. And with Mavericks training camp scheduled to open on September 30, there’s no guarantee that the team’s prized power forward will be a full go. “Based on everything I’ve been told, he’s not fully back on the court yet,” Stein said on September 10. “He can’t be fully back on the court, yet. When practices start on September 30, will AD even be ready to practice at that point? We don’t know that yet.” While Dallas won’t begin its regular season until October 23, the prospect of potentially being without Davis when Kyrie Irving (knee) is already out has to be concerning. Davis can offer top-five fantasy value when healthy, but managers are taking a considerable risk in selecting him due to his injury history.

Jeffries appeared in 47 games for the Hornets last season, making 20 starts. In those appearances, he averaged 6.7 points, 2.9 rebounds, 1.1 assists and 1.2 three-pointers in 22.8 minutes, shooting 40.5 percent from the field and 80.0 percent from the foul line. With a healthy LaMelo Ball back in the fold and the Hornets adding Collin Sexton, Kon Knueppel and Liam McNeeley this offseason, there was unlikely to be much room for Jeffries in the rotation.

Johnson played a prominent role for the Nets last season, but they added four guards in the first round of the draft and just traded for Kobe Bufkin. Johnson will have the opportunity to sign elsewhere, but it’s unlikely he finds a situation that will allow him a larger role than what he had for Brooklyn last year.

Evbuomwan, who finished last season with the Nets on a two-way deal, was waived in late August. Over two NBA seasons, he’s appeared in 45 games for the Grizzlies, Pistons and Nets, averaging 8.2 points, 4.0 rebounds and 1.6 assists in 22.9 minutes. Evbuomwan will likely be on an Exhibit 10 contract, putting him in a position to earn additional money if he’s waived and then spends 60 days with the Knicks’ G League affiliate.

Bufkin, the 15th overall pick in the 2023 NBA Draft, struggled to get his NBA career off the ground in Atlanta. Of course, this wasn’t the best spot for the point guard, as Trae Young is a franchise cornerstone and Dejounte Murray was also on the roster during Bufkin’s rookie season. Injuries were also an issue for him, having appeared in 27 NBA games during his two seasons in Atlanta. Bufkin’s 2024-25 campaign ended in mid-December due to a shoulder injury, but he did start at the point for the Hawks’ Summer League team. The trade to Brooklyn gives the former Michigan guard a fresh start and a legitimate opportunity to earn consistent playing time on a rebuilding team. The Nets did use two of their five first-round picks on playmakers in Egor Demin and Nolan Traoré, and they stand to be Bufkin’s competition for rotation minutes when training camp opens.

Hyland split last season between the Clippers and Timberwolves, with the latter signing him to a two-way contract in late February after Atlanta waived him. The former first-round pick appeared in 24 games, averaging 6.2 points, 1.0 rebounds and 1.3 assists in 10.0 minutes. Hyland will compete for rotation minutes off the bench, which limits his fantasy potential.

Biyombo, who was signed in February and finished last season with the Spurs, will return to San Antonio for another year. HoopsHype’s Michael Scotto reports that the veteran center’s contract is non-guaranteed. Provided Victor Wembanyama remains healthy, Biyombo’s opportunities to impact fantasy basketball this season will be limited. In 28 appearances for the Spurs in 2024-25, he averaged 5.1 points and 5.6 rebounds in just under 19 minutes per game.

The Warriors and Kuminga, a restricted free agent, remain at a stalemate over a deal that would keep the sides together for the next few years. According to Monday’s report, the three-year agreement includes a team option for the third year, and the first two seasons would be similar to the deal Josh Giddey recently agreed to in Chicago regarding average annual value. Previously, Golden State offered Kuminga a two-year deal worth $45 million, including a team option. The option is likely one of the hangups for Kuminga, who holds more leverage now than he has at any point in his NBA career. The failure to get this deal done has kept Golden State from attending to other business. While the widespread assumption is that they’ll sign Al Horford and De’Anthony Melton and re-sign Gary Payton II, those deals can’t happen until there’s a conclusion regarding Kuminga. Another option is to sign his qualifying offer, making the forward an unrestricted free agent next summer. Per ESPN, Kuminga and his agent proposed a one-year, $8 million deal allowing Golden State to use him as a potential trade chip during the season.