The NBA regular season begins on Tuesday night, and two Eastern Conference teams locked in key players on their roster. Starting with the Indiana Pacers giving Myles Turner a four-year, $72 million extension late Monday night. The contract does include the possibility of raising to $80 million, that's if Turner meets certain incentive clauses. The 22-year-old reacted to the news on Twitter, saying "I BLEED BLUE AND GOLD! I LOVE YALL INDY!"
The 2015 draft pick was eligible for his rookie extension, but got much more after averaging 12.7 points and 6.5 rebounds, along with 1.8 blocks in three seasons with the Pacers. He was the 11th overall pick out of Texas, where he spent just one season with the Longhorns. If he wasn't offered anything by July 1st, he could've entered restricted free agency. Instead, he will continue to partner with Victor Oladipo in making the Pacers a consistent contender in the East.
Meanwhile, the Cleveland Cavaliers may have lost LeBron James to Los Angeles, but they kept another high-flying addition from last season in Larry Nance Jr. The Cavs gave the former Los Angeles Lakers forward a four-year, $44.8 million extension, which was announced on Monday morning. Nance was acquired at last season's trade deadline, but it does favor the organization more. That is because his contract is set up just like Kevin Love's, with the annual salary going down as they get later in the deal.
The defending Eastern Conference Champions did it this way to have some leverage when the salary cap rises to $116 million in 2020. The 25-year-old is in his fourth NBA season and is entering his first full season with the new-look Cavs. He has averaged 7.1 points and 3.9 rebounds in his career, and could see his role increased in a major way this season.
Elsewhere, out west, the Phoenix Suns added a veteran presence to their bench by signing Jamal Crawford to a one-year deal on Monday. Crawford is a three-time Sixth Man of the Year Award winner and will earn $2.4 million in his lone season in the desert. He comes in to the season averaging 15.0 points, 3.4 assists, and 1.7 three-pointer per game in his career.
The 2015 draft pick was eligible for his rookie extension, but got much more after averaging 12.7 points and 6.5 rebounds, along with 1.8 blocks in three seasons with the Pacers. He was the 11th overall pick out of Texas, where he spent just one season with the Longhorns. If he wasn't offered anything by July 1st, he could've entered restricted free agency. Instead, he will continue to partner with Victor Oladipo in making the Pacers a consistent contender in the East.
Meanwhile, the Cleveland Cavaliers may have lost LeBron James to Los Angeles, but they kept another high-flying addition from last season in Larry Nance Jr. The Cavs gave the former Los Angeles Lakers forward a four-year, $44.8 million extension, which was announced on Monday morning. Nance was acquired at last season's trade deadline, but it does favor the organization more. That is because his contract is set up just like Kevin Love's, with the annual salary going down as they get later in the deal.
The defending Eastern Conference Champions did it this way to have some leverage when the salary cap rises to $116 million in 2020. The 25-year-old is in his fourth NBA season and is entering his first full season with the new-look Cavs. He has averaged 7.1 points and 3.9 rebounds in his career, and could see his role increased in a major way this season.
Elsewhere, out west, the Phoenix Suns added a veteran presence to their bench by signing Jamal Crawford to a one-year deal on Monday. Crawford is a three-time Sixth Man of the Year Award winner and will earn $2.4 million in his lone season in the desert. He comes in to the season averaging 15.0 points, 3.4 assists, and 1.7 three-pointer per game in his career.
