Free Agency 2012: Day 1.5 Recap

We’re more than 40 hours into free agency and while few big names have agreed to new contracts, most have held meetings with at least one suitor and multiple other players are expected to sign extensions. Here, we skip past the fluff and get to the action.

"This many, times 11.6 million." Roy Hibbert is making money this summer. (Reuters photo)

• Yesterday, the Philadelphia Inquirer confirmed that Lavoy Allen will make $6 million over the next two years while wearing a 76ers uniform. After being a second-round selection in the 2011 draft, Allen started 15 games last season and earned an extension with his excellent defense.

• In realizing that chasing Dwight Howard is hopeless, the Houston Rockets have made a play for another center. The club agreed to terms with Omer Asik, who spent last season with the Chicago Bulls. He’s no D12, but Asik averaged 5.3 rebounds and 3.1 points in 14.7 minutes as a backup. After he signs the contract on July 11 – the first day free agents are allowed to put pen to paper – the Bulls will have three days to match the offer and keep Asik, if management so chooses, since the Turkish big man is a restricted free agent. Kudos to the Rockets for moving quickly after Howard’s dismissal of any club outside of Brooklyn.

• Kevin Garnett technically avoided free agency all together by deciding on Saturday (the day before the process started) to stay in Boston Celtic green to the tune of $34 million over three years. Kevin Garnett put up 15.8 points and nabbed 8.2 boards per contest last year and continued to be an integral member of a team on the cusp of a Finals berth. With his new contract, Garnett will have made more salaried money than any other player in the history of professional basketball with just a shade under $325 million to his name.

• Across the country, Blake Griffin informed Los Angeles Clippers management that he intends to sign a five-year extension worth up to $95 million. Running mate Chris Paul declined to sign his extension, but things could change now that the All-Star forward has announced his plans to stick around southern California.

• Another big man, RFA Pacers center Roy Hibbert, will make a financial windfall next season no matter where he lands. The Portland Trailblazers offered the Georgetown product a maximum deal of four years and $58 million, according to ESPN’s Chris Broussard. Hibbert has not signed the Blazers’ offer sheet, but likely will, as reported by SI.com. The Pacers did not extend to Hibbert a max deal, but will have three days to make a matching offer if the 25-year-old signs with Portland. If he becomes a Blazer, Hibbert can do one of two things – 1) give Portland some much-needed consistency at the center position by keeping up his All-Star production, or 2) continue the bad luck of injuries to the team’s big men. (Yes, I’m knocking on wood for the sake of everyone involved.)

• As of this post, the most recent free agent news comes out of Indiana, where the Pacers and George Hill agreed to a 5-year deal. Few details are known, but the guard averaged 9.6 points in 50 games during his first season with the team.

• Andre Miller, the facilitator entering his 13^th NBA season, verbally agreed to a three-year contract with the Denver Nuggets. Specifics of the deal are unknown, but Miller was looking for roughly $3 million each season, as reported by Yahoo! Sports. The 36-year-old averaged 9.7 points and 6.7 assists for the Nuggets last year while sharing point guard duties with speedster Ty Lawson.

• He may not be the primary target, but the Brooklyn Nets reached a handshake agreement to retain Gerald Wallace. The swingman – obtained from the Blazers at last season’s trade deadline – declined to pick up a $9.5 million player option for 2012-13. The maneuver worked, as Wallace is expected to sign a four-year, $40 million dollar contract next week.

For a full list of players who could be changing teams, check out ESPN.com’s list of free agents for the summers of 2012 and 2013.


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