The Warriors appear to be on the verge of finalizing a deal to keep free agent big man Kristaps Porzingis in the organization, report Marc Stein and Jake Fischer of The Stein Line (subscriber link). Like Trae Young, Al Horford, and others, Porzingis is likely to reach an agreement with his team during the exclusive negotiating window before Tuesday’s official start to free agency.
Golden State is also still expected to pursue Lakers free agent LeBron James, who, as of Friday, reportedly had yet to engage in serious discussions with L.A. on a new deal. Previous reporting had indicated that the Warriors were expecting James to stay with the Lakers, but his plans remain unclear. The Warriors are banking on a pitch that includes the fact that their team would be the closest James could be to his home base in L.A. without going to the Clippers.
Golden State is limited by what they can offer the 22-time All-Star, though. They are expected to have the $15MM mid-level exception available, but the final amount will be determined by what happens with Draymond Green and Porzingis.
The Warriors are also expected to explore other free agent alternatives while they wait to see what James decides to do. Reserve big man Jock Landale, and guards Anfernee Simons and Collin Sexton are considered targets, with the latter two reflecting Golden State’s interest in acquiring another scoring ball-handler to insert in the backcourt rotation.
On that note, Kevin Porter Jr. would have likely been a target for them had he not picked up his player option with Milwaukee, Stein and Fischer say.
We have more news from around the NBA, courtesy of The Stein Line:
- The Timberwolves have interest in free agent John Collins as they continue to look for a power forward to replace Julius Randle, but it’s unlikely they’ll be able to afford him, Stein and Fischer report. The Magic, Spurs, and Sixers are all expected to pursue Collins, with Stein and Fischer noting that San Antonio and Philadelphia continue to be linked to the top forward options in free agency.
- Mavericks assistant coach Jay Triano is drawing interest from the Trail Blazers to join newly hired Micah Nori‘s coaching staff, the Stein Line reports. Nori worked under Triano when the latter was head coach of the Raptors. Triano is a very experienced coach, having spent over 20 years as an assistant in the NBA, with multiple head coaching stints both in the NBA and with the Canadian national team.
- Besides Porzingis, another free agent expected to come to a pre-Tuesday agreement with his current team is Cavaliers guard James Harden. Stein and Fischer previously reported the expectation that a deal would get done soon, and they now say an agreement could “come to fruition any minute.”
