NBA Free Agency Update: 07/01/08

Baron Davis chooses to ditch Golden State in favor of the Los Angeles Clippers. Not really surprised to see Davis move on, he opted out for a reason.  Despite what everyone was saying it appears that Davis was truly ticked about Nelson benching him.  The Warriors were reportedly interested in negotiating an extension but the two sides were rumored to be very far apart.  Surely the Warriors were trying to bide their time until they knew what it was going to ultimately take to re-sign Monta Ellis.  I like this acquisition for the Clippers and it likely means Elton Brand stays put and all but signals the end of Corey Maggette’s days with the Clippers.  With the additon of Davis the Clippers now have a solid starting five in place and if Brand stays healthy there is no reason they cannot compete for a playoff spot next season.

As was widely expected to happen Jose Calderon has agreed to stay in Toronto. Calderon had a breakout year with the Raptors this past season averaging just over 11 points and 8 assists per game and emerging as a reliable 3-point shooter.  Calderon’s play made mercurial point guard T. J. Ford expendable.  The Raptors had to do everything in their power to lock Calderon up immediately as he was the only remaining point man on the roster.  Toronto will now likely look to pluck a servicable backup off the free agent pile to back Calderon up.  Expect them to make a run at someone like a Chris Duhon or Carlos Arroyo or they may try to lure a veteran like Damon Stoudamire or Sam Cassell into the fold.

Beno Udrih is no longer an option for the Raptors as he decides to stay with Sacramento after the Clippers made a push to sign him. The Kings could do worse than Udrih but they really had few options available and with Ron Artest opting to play out his contract in Sacramento next season they have no real cap flexibility to go out and pick someone up and the current alternatives they have under contract still need some seasoning and are not yet ready to run an offense.

The Knicks are rumored to be interested in Chris Duhon’s services. With a bevy of backcourt players already in the fold and the Knicks only rumored to be offering a two year deal I don’t know how much legs this is going to have.  At 25 one has to think Duhon is going to be wanting a deal along the lines of 5 or 6 years at around $30 million.  This could be his only shot at getting some semblence of a long term deal from someone.

Josh Smith is the Hawks’ top priority this offseason. Unfortunately for them the Sixers also have an interest and apparently have the wherewithal to offer Smith a more attractive offer than the Hawks can.  It will be interesting to see how this unfolds and if it potentially affects Iguodala’s status in Philadelphia.  Acquiring a talent like Smith could be the guy to put the Sixers over the top and put them amongst the Eastern elite if they manage to re-sign Iguodala.