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Sports
Dwight Howard Seeks A Deal With A $24M Starting Salary
Joakim Noah, Knicks Near Agreement On 4-Year, $72 Million Deal
JOAKIM NOAH
Joakim Noah and the New York Knicks are nearing agree- ment on a four-year deal worth $72 million, sources said .
Noah met with the Knicks on Friday in Orlando, Florida, sources said.
The Knicks had emerged as the strong favorite to sign the free-agent big man, league sources previously told ESPN. Sources said multiple teams in- terested in the native New Yorker had all but conceded that the Knicks were his run- away preferred destination.
No deals can be signed until July 7, but teams and free agents could start coming to verbal agreements on con- tracts.
Andre Drummond, Pistons Closing On Five-Year Max Deal
ANDRE DRUMMOND
Andre Drummond and the Detroit Pistons are nearing agreement on a five-year maxi- mum contract in the $130 mil- lion range, according to league sources.
Drummond and the Pis- tons have quickly moved to the final stages of negotiations on a verbal agreement since free agency.
The deal can't be officially signed until a leaguewide moratorium on signings and trades is lifted July 7, but sources said any outstanding minor details would be wrapped up later Friday.
BEAUTY UNLIMITED
JENEVA
Beauty may be in the eyes of the beholder, but there’s no denying this weeks’ Beauty Unlimited fea- ture. This young lady makes it look easy to be beau- tiful, and at the same time ambitious, courageous, and highly motivated. Congratulations to Geneva as this week’s Beauty Unlimited feature.
When Dwight Howard starts having his free-agent meetings Friday, he'll seek a contract starting at $24 mil- lion a season, according to a source.
Howard is expected to con- duct his meetings in his home- town of Atlanta, with the Hawks and Celtics having se- cured the first discussions with the center.
The Portland Trail Blazers and Charlotte Hornets also have expressed interest in Howard, who declined a player option with the Hous- ton Rockets at $23.2 million.
The amount Howard is seeking isn't that far from what he declined with the Rockets. However, the Rockets didn't believe Howard was worth $23.2 million and wanted the 30-year-old to take a contract with a reduced fi-
DWIGHT HOWARD
nancial package.
Howard averaged 13.7
points and 11.8 rebounds per game last season. He averaged just 8.5 field goal attempts per game, his lowest output since 8.3 his rookie year in 2004-05.
DeMar DeRozan, Raptors Agree On Reported 5-Year, $139M Deal
All-Star shooting guard DeMar DeRozan has agreed to re-sign with the Toronto Raptors, according to ESPN's Brian Windhorst and mul- tiple reports.
The deal is for five years, $139 million-plus, according to The Vertical.
DeRozan expressed a de- sire to return to Toronto after the Raptors were eliminated from the playoffs, and a source told ESPN's Tim MacMahon in late June that the shooting guard was focused on re-sign- ing with the team, rather than setting up meetings with oth- ers once free agency started.
Toronto general manager
DEMAR DEROZAN
Masai Ujiri also said retain- ing the veteran swingman was the team's No. 1 goal.
Nicolas Batum Agrees To 5-Year, $120 Million Deal To Stay With Hornets
Timofey Mozgov, Lakers Reach Agreement On 4-Year, $64M Deal
Forward Nicolas Batum has agreed to a five-year, $120 million deal to re-sign with the Charlotte Hornets, according to a league source.
The Vertical first reported the agreement.
Batum had scheduled a Fri- day meeting with the Dallas Mavericks but struck a deal hours into free agency to stay in Charlotte.
The Hornets were always widely considered the front- runners for Batum because they owned his Bird rights, al- lowing Charlotte to offer a fifth year on the contract. The fifth season of the contract is a player option, the source said.
Nicolas Batum averaged 14.9 points, 6.1 rebounds and 5.8 assists for the Hornets last sea- son and resumed his role as one of the top two-way small forwards in the game.
The Los Angeles Lakers and free-agent center Timofey Mozgov have reached a ver- bal agreement on a four-year deal worth $64 million.
The deal was first reported by The Vertical.
The Cleveland Cavaliers traded two first-round picks to the Denver Nuggets for Moz- gov in January 2015.
His two seasons with Cleve- land were relative opposites. In 2014-15, the 7-foot-1 center averaged 10.6 points and 6.9 rebounds in 46 games. He started all 20 games during the postseason, in which Cleveland lost to the Golden State Warriors in the NBA Fi- nals.
Timofey Mozgov, left, had a dramatically reduced role in Cleveland last season, includ- ing just 25 combined minutes in the Cavs' seven-game Finals win over the Warriors.
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