The Boston Celtics defeated the Dallas Mavericks on Monday to win the NBA title for 2023–24. Some basketball fans are already considering next season, even as Jaylen Brown, Jayson Tatum, and the rest of the Celtics continue celebrating Boston’s NBA-leading 18th title.
The 2024 NBA draft, which takes place over two days beginning on June 26, is the official start of the 2024–25 NBA season. It selects the league’s next generation of stars. Teams can use free agency to add missing pieces and use the draft to improve their roster.
Teams can formally begin negotiating with free agents on Sunday, June 30 at 6 p.m. ET, which marks the start of NBA free agency. Free agent signings may begin by teams on Saturday, July 6 at 12:01 p.m. ET.
But by then, some free agents might already be signed. A rule that was put into place by the NBA permits teams to begin negotiations with their own free agents the day following the NBA Finals. On Tuesday, June 18, teams can begin negotiations with “upcoming free agents who finished the just-completed season on its roster” as the 2024 Finals came to an end on Monday with Boston’s victory over Dallas in Game 5.
1. Any club can sign an unrestricted free agent.
2. A restricted free agent may accept an offer sheet from a different team, but his previous team has the option to match the offer and keep him. The original team has the “right of first refusal,” according to the NBA.
3. A player who has a player option for the following season has two options: he can play out the remaining season under his current contract or he can opt out and become a free agent.
4. A player whose contract has a team option in its last year gives the team the option to either keep him or allow him to sign with another team as a free agent.
Some of the biggest stars in the NBA could end up on another team next season. Tyrese Maxey, LeBron James, and Paul George headline the list of 2024 NBA free agents. Here’s the top 10:
• Klay Thompson, Golden State Warriors: Unrestricted free agent
• Tyrese Maxey, Philadelphia 76ers: Restricted free agent
• LeBron James, Los Angeles Lakers: Player option
• Paul George, Los Angeles Clippers: Player option
• Pascal Siakam, Indiana Pacers: Unrestricted free agent
• DeMar DeRozan, Chicago Bulls: Unrestricted free agent
• James Harden, Los Angeles Clippers: Unrestricted free agent
• Tobias Harris, Philadelphia 76ers: Unrestricted free agent
• Jrue Holiday, Boston Celtics: Player option
• OG Anunoby, New York Knicks: Player option
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