The Orlando Magic had, arguably, the fantasy pick of the year on their squad and finally made the playoffs, but contracts expire and the future is confusing. Ethan Norof and Dan Besbris break down Orlando’s next moves, whether anyone on the team can benefit from players departing, and, of course, the Raptors-Warriors 1-1 Finals tie.

(06-03-19)

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Michael Kidd-Gilchrist - F - Charlotte Hornets

Hornets forward Michael Kidd-Gilchrist has opted into his $13M player option for the 2019-20 season.

Ugh! This comes a week after Marvin Williams exercised his $15 million player option putting the Hornets in a tough financial situation. It’s highly unlikely that MKG would have commanded a salary anywhere close to $10 million per year in an open market so this was a no brainer for him. Kidd-Gilchrist is only 25 years old and is coming off a couple seasons where he struggled with injuries while the lack of a reliable jumper makes it hard for him to have value in today’s space and pace offense.

Source: Shams Charania on Twitter

Khris Middleton - F - Milwaukee Bucks

Bucks All-Star forward Khris Middleton is declining his $13M player option and will become an unrestricted free agent this summer.

Middleton is expected to command a five-year max contract but he and the Bucks are planning to work together toward a new long-term deal. Middleton recently bought a new property in Milwaukee and Giannis has openly vouched for his teammate so we’d be shocked if the two parties don’t end up agreeing on a new deal. There will be plenty of suitors that can only offer him a four-year max deal, with the Lakers rumored to be one of them.

Source: Adrian Wojnarowski on Twitter

Jayson Tatum - F - Boston Celtics

The Celtics are looking to trade one or more of their three first-round draft picks, according to Steve Bulpett of the Boston Herald.

The Celtics currently hold picks Nos. 14, 20 and 22 and don’t seem to have a strong desire to bring three rookies on guaranteed contracts next season despite the expected departures of Kyrie Irving and Al Horford in free agency. Dealing the draft picks may enable Celtics president Danny Ainge to land another veteran to offer immediate help to the group of Jayson Tatum, Jaylen Brown and Marcus Smart that reached the Eastern Conference finals two seasons ago.

Source: Boston Herald

Jimmy Butler - G/F - Philadelphia Sixers

Brian T. Smith of the Houston Chronicle is reporting that the Rockets are expected to be aggressive in their pursuit of Jimmy Butler, since he is viewed as an ideal fit on both ends of the court.

Butler is coming off a strong season in which he averaged 18.7 points, 5.3 rebounds and 4.0 assists while shooting 46.2 percent from the floor. The Sixers are reportedly interested in re-signing Butler while he has been linked to the Lakers and the Nets as well. Houston has been actively exploring the trade market for Clint Capela, Eric Gordon and PJ Tucker, as Daryl Morey will have to manufacture the necessary cap space in order to offer Butler a max or close-to-max contract. A potential big-three of James Harden, Chris Paul and Jimmy Butler looks great on paper but the fantasy implications will probably not be ideal for all of them.

Source: Brian T. Smith on Twitter

Gordon Hayward - F - Boston Celtics

Jackie MacMullan of ESPN cited Brad Stevens “force feeding” Gordon Hayward to help him come back from his gruesome ankle injury as what started the Celtics' chemistry issues that seemingly plagued the team all year long.

“You hate to pick on Gordon Hayward because he was coming back from injury and he was doing the best he could, but I really think that’s where it started," said the longtime reporter. Basketball is a game of chemistry, and the Celtics seemed to lose theirs over the course of the year. At least externally, it appeared that Boston was disintegrating and now we might have some confirmation of this rift. Hayward returned and never really looked like himself, and Stevens devoting his faith to his former Butler Bulldog was obviously misplaced. The Celtics are trying to pick up their pieces from the aftermath of a disaster offseason so far as Kyrie Irving is likely gone and Al Horford is rumored to sign elsewhere once free agency begins on June 30th.

Source: NBC Sports Boston

Tomas Satoransky - G/F - Washington Wizards

As expected, Tomas Satoransky was included in Czech Republic’s preliminary squad for the FIBA Basketball World Cup which will take place in China this summer.

The 20-man roster also includes former first round pick Jan Vesely and big man Petr Herman, who is back in Europe after playing four years of college basketball at Loyola Marymount. Czech Republic will participate in Group E against the United States, Turkey and Japan. Sato is entering free agency this summer and it’s likely that he is able to secure a deal before the start of the World Cup.

Source: Sportando

Al Horford - F/C - Boston Celtics

A. Sherrod Blakely of NBC Sports Boston, is reporting that a team to keep an eye on in the Al Horford sweepstakes is the Nets.

Horford is close to head coach Kenny Atkinson while the team has the cap space to offer him a max contract but this is simply a rumor at this point. The belief around the league is that Horford already knows there is a four-year contract worth in excess of $100 million waiting out there for him on June 30h and that’s why his negotiations with the Celtics fell apart. The sudden appearance of the Dominican center in the free agent market seems to have caught many of us off guard but it’s likely that some NBA teams have been preparing for this turn of events.

Source: A. Sherrod Blakely on Twitter

Kevin Love - F/C - Cleveland Cavaliers

According to Brian Windhorst, Kevin Love has been in some trade talks and the chances that he's on the Cavs next season are 50/50.

Windhorst mentioned that it's hard to find the right deal for Love, who is set to start a 4-year $120 million contract this fall, but that's a much bigger chance of him leaving than had been recently reported. The Cavs likely have some summer deals to make, but as it sits now, the fantasy values of Larry Nance Jr. and Ante Zizic would be on the rise with a Love departure.

Source: Aaron Goldhammer on Twitter

Bobby Portis - F - Washington Wizards

Bobby Portis, who will likely become a restricted free agent after the Wizards extend a qualifying offer, is expected to be pursued by at least 5-10 teams once free agency begins.

Among the teams that are reportedly interested in Portis are the Lakers, Clippers, Jazz, Bucks, Magic and the Knicks among others. If the Wizards extend the $3.6 million qualifying offer to Portis, they will have the chance to match any contract offer Portis receives from another team.

Source: NBC Sports

Kyrie Irving - G - Boston Celtics

Marc Stein of The New York Times is reporting that the Nets believe they are the favorites to land Kyrie Irving in free agency.

Irving to the Nets has been on overdrive the past few weeks, and it's looking almost certain that Irving will be on the Nets, Lakers or Knicks come July 1st. D'Angelo Russell may be playing elsewhere next season if the Nets acquire Irving in free agency. Stay tuned.

Source: Marc Stein on Twitter