Recapping the Busy First Night of 2023 NBA Free Agency

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6 p.m. ET on Friday night saw the opening of the 2023 NBA Free Agency period. The biggest news to come within minutes of the period starting came out of California, with Draymond Green returning to the Golden State Warriors on a four-year, $100M deal (with a player option included in the deal). This comes after a season filled with a rumor and drama-filled season for Green and the Warriors. A key part of the Warriors four championships, Green’s re-signing extends Golden State’s championships window another few seasons.

Coming in near the end of the first hour of the free agency period starting, news came out that the Dallas Mavericks re-signed Kyrie Irving to a three-year, $126M deal. After a couple of controversial seasons in Brooklyn and a trade request that landed him in Dallas, Irving did not have many reported suitors heading into free agency. Wanting a bigger and long-term deal, many teams were not willing to take a chance on Kyrie. Having traded away Dorian-Finney Smith, Spencer Dinwiddie, and an unprotected 2029 first-round pick, as well as being in win-now mode with Luka Doncic, Dallas was able to retain on a deal that gives Dallas a chance to run things back for the 2023-24 season while giving Irving the chance to rehabilitate his image around the league.

After several weeks of rumors linking several stars to the team, the Houston Rockets made a huge signing, inking Fred VanVleet to a three-year, $130M deal. Rumors early Friday suggested the Raptors would be offering the guard a $120M deal, but with Toronto almost at a crossroads, VanVleet chose Houston as his new home. Averaging 19.3 PPG, 7.2 APG, and 4.1 APG, VanVleet will bring his championship pedigree to a young and hungry team looking to take the

Another big, but unexpected dealing being signed, forward Kyle Kuzma returned to the Washington Wizards, inking a four-year, $102M deal. While this is a great deal for Kuzma after averaging 21.2 PPG (a career-high), 7.2 RPG, and 3.7 APG, there are questions about if Kuzma will end up playing his entire contract. With Washington just initiating their rebuilding by trading Bradley Beal as well as trading away Kristaps Porzingis (who is finalizing a two-year, $60M extension with Boston), Kuzma will be returning to a team with low expectations. In Milwaukee, Khris Middleton was inked to a three-year, $102M extension. After opting out of the last year of his deal (worth nearly $40M), Middleton returns on a friendlier contract. This comes as a win for Milwaukee as they re-sign the second biggest piece of their championship run to keep him alongside superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo. With reports noting teams monitoring the Giannis situation in Milwaukee, Middleton’s re-signing will silence any reports for the time being.

Another deal to come in early on saw guard Bruce Brown sign with the Indiana Pacers on a two-year, $45M deal (with a player option for the second year). This comes after Brown’s one season in Denver, where he was a pivotal part of their championship run, averaging 11.5 PPG, 4.1 RPG, and 3.7 APG. Rumors following the end of the season suggested that Brown could return to the Nuggets on a team-friendly deal, but Indiana’s offer was too great to turn down for the NBA champion. While Denver lost a significant role player in Brown, they were able to retain veteran center DeAndre Jordan on a deal reported by Chris Haynes, as well as re-signing Reggie Jackson to a two-year, $10.25M deal.

In Portland, forward Jerami Grant inked a five-year, $160M deal. While many expected Portland to re-sign Grant, no one expected the number to be what it was. With Portland losing out on players such as Draymond Green, they will be a team to watch in the coming days, with Damian Lillard’s future in Rip City being on the line. Several smaller deals came in for role players, with Cleveland’s Caris LeVert and Chicago’s Colby White signing a two-year, $32M and three-year, $40M deal, respectively. Both role players were important for their team’s success throughout the season, with LeVert averaging 12.1 PPG and 3.1 RPG and White averaging 9.7 PPG off the bench. An unexpected addition to Chicago, the Bulls signed Jevon Carter to a three-year, $19M deal. A guard averaging 42% from three on four attempts per game, this signing begins to address some of Chicago’s issues on the court. Cleveland also inked a deal with forward George Niang, signing the former Sixers forward to a three-year, $26M deal.

The other following free agency deals have been reported by various sources:

Drew Eubanks signs with the Phoenix Suns on a two-year deal
Keita Bates-Diop signs two-year, $5M deal with the Suns
Damian Lee re-signs with the Suns on a two-year deal
Josh Okogie returns to the Suns on a new deal
Chimezie Metu signs one-year deal with the Suns
Cam Johnson re-signs with the Brooklyn Nets on a four-year, $108M deal
Jakob Poeltl re-signs with the Toronto Raptors on a four-year, $80M deal
Nickeil Alexander-Walker re-signs with the Minnesota Timberwolves on a two-year deal
Taurean Prince signs a one-year, $4.5M deal with the Los Angeles Lakers
Trey Lyles re-signs with the Sacramento Kings on a two-year, $16M deal
Tre Jones re-signs with the San Antonio Spurs on a two-year, $20M deal
Troy Brown Jr signs a deal with the Minnesota Timberwolves
The Lakers sign Gabe Vincent to a three-year, $33M deal
Yuta Watanabe agrees to deal with the Suns
Shake Milton signs with the Timberwolves on a two-year, $10M deal
Herb Jones re-signs with the New Orleans Pelicans on a four-year, $54M deal
Joe Ingles signs two-year, $22M deal with the Orlando Magic
Josh Richardson signs with the Miami Heat on a two-year deal
Kevin Love re-signs with the Heat on a two-year deal
Rui Hachimura re-signs with the Lakers on a three-year, $51M deal
Cam Reddish signs with the Lakers on a two-year deal
Julian Champagnie re-signs with the Spurs
The Boston Celtics sign Oshae Brissett to a two-year deal
Seth Curry signs with the Mavericks on a two-year deal
Dennis Schroder signs two-year, $26M deal with the Raptors
Derrick Rose signs a two-year deal with the Memphis Grizzlies
Gary Trent Jr. and the Toronto Raptors are finalizing a multi-year deal
Desmond Bane signs a five-year, $207 extension with the Grizzlies
Tyrese Haliburton signs a five-year, up to $260M extension with the Pacers