NBA Player News

Ayton exercised his $8.1 million player option Monday, Shams Charania of ESPN reports.

This isn't a huge surprise, but it doesn't mean the Lakers won't try to flip him later on. During his debut season with the Lakers, he made 72 regular-season appearances with averages of 12.5 points, 8.0 rebounds and 1.0 blocks on 67.1 percent shooting from the field. As things stand heading into free agency, Ayton is penciled in as the starting center.

Sharpe (thumb) will sign a two-year, $20 million deal with the Nets, Shams Charania of ESPN reports.

The Nets will quickly lock up their new starting center after previously trading away Nic Claxton. Sharpe is coming off a career-best season in 2025-26, posting regular-season averages of 8.7 points, 6.7 rebounds, 2.3 assists and 1.1 steals. He could offer a lot of appeal in fantasy formats depending on how the rest of the offseason shapes up.

The Heat extended a two-way qualifying offer to Goldin on Saturday, according to Anthony Chiang of the Miami Herald.

Goldin is now guaranteed a two-way contract salary from Miami this season, although he could still accept a standard deal from another team. Goldin logged a total of 24 minutes for the Heat last season, compiling seven points, nine rebounds, three assists and three blocks.

Hartenstein intends to sign a three-year, $75 million contract with the Thunder, Shams Charania of ESPN reports Friday.

Hartenstein will return to the Thunder after spending the last two years in Oklahoma City. The big man was a key piece in the team's championship run in 2025, and he figures to continue operating in a starting role next season. Over 47 regular-season appearances (46 starts) in 2025-26, he averaged 9.2 points, 9.4 rebounds, 3.5 assists and 1.8 combined steals-plus-blocks in 24.2 minutes per contest.

The Pelicans are expected to decline the $8 million team option on Looney's contract, Chris Haynes of NBA TV reports.

After spending the first 10 years of his career with Golden State, Looney joined New Orleans for the 2025-26 campaign. The veteran big man played a limited role for the club and appeared in just 21 regular-season games (eight starts), averaging 2.8 points, 5.6 rebounds and 1.6 assists across 14.7 minutes per contest. He's now expected to enter unrestricted free agency.

Bittle agreed to an Exhibit 10 deal with Toronto on Thursday, Ryan Wolstat of the Toronto Sun reports.

Bittle spent his entire college career at Oregon, where he most recently averaged 16.8 points, 6.9 rebounds, 2.6 assists, 1.8 blocks and 0.9 steals over 31.1 minutes in 25 games in the 2025-26 season.

Quaintance (knee) said he's uncertain whether he'll play in Summer League, Tom Orsborn of the San Antonio Express-News reports.

Quaintance added that the Spurs continue to stress "their priority is to make me 100 percent healthy," so it wouldn't be surprising to see him sit out Summer League action. The 18-year-old began his college career at Arizona State, though his freshman season was cut short after he tore the ACL and meniscus in his right knee. The big man was a high-risk, high-reward pick as the 20th overall selection in this year's draft after playing only four games at Kentucky last season due to severe complications and persistent swelling in the knee, and it appears the Spurs could slowly ease him back into action. Even if he's forced to miss additional time beyond Summer League, the Spurs still have Luke Kornet and Tarris Reed to back up Victor Wembanyama.

Hansen is expected to play in the 2026 NBA Summer League, Sean Highkin of Rip City Radio 620 Portland reports.

Hansen will join Portland's Summer League squad after he is done playing for China in the FIBA World Cup qualifier. The 2025 No. 16 overall pick is coming off a quiet inaugural campaign during which he averaged 2.2 points, 1.5 rebounds, 0.5 assists, 0.2 blocks and 0.1 steals across 7.0 minutes in 43 regular-season appearances. With the Trail Blazers in need of depth behind Donovan Clingan, Hansen will need to impress during Summer League and throughout training camp if he hopes to earn a meaningful role for the team in the 2026-27 season.

Ngoy (not injury related) plans to play for Auburn during the 2026-27 campaign, Law Murray of The Athletic reports.

The Clippers traded for Ngoy's draft rights but will stash him at the collegiate level, as he had already committed to playing at Auburn prior to the 2026 NBA Draft. The No. 57 overall pick most recently played for Poitiers in France's LNB Pro B.

Kyle agreed to an Exhibit 10 deal with the Lakers on Thursday, Dave McMenamin of ESPN.com reports.

Kyle made stops at South Dakota State and UCLA before spending his final collegiate season at Syracuse in 2025-26. The 22-year-old appeared and started in 32 games with the Orange, averaging 8.4 points while posting career highs in rebounds (7.1) and blocks (2.5).