On Day 13 of NBA free agency, here's our team-by-team analysis of the major and minor deals.
Updates on each deal will be posted here throughout the day.
All deals listed alphabetically by team.
Atlanta Hawks
1. Agreed to a one-year, $6 million deal with forward Ersan Ilyasova
The Hawks' decision not to make an offer to forward Paul Millsap in free agency, followed by taking on Jamal Crawford's contract in order to secure a first-round pick, seemed to signal the beginning of a rebuilding period in Atlanta. By contrast, the Hawks' past two moves -- signing center Dewayne Dedmon and now re-signing forward Ersan Ilyasova -- represent a hedge on such plans.
Atlanta certainly isn't taking on much long-term salary here. Ilyasova got a one-year contract, while Dedmon's most likely will be a one-year deal as well. (He'll have a player option for 2018-19.) The Hawks may think their money will be better spent in the summer of 2018, when cap space will be tighter around the league, than this season.
Still, the primary motivation to re-sign Ilyasova at age 30 is the hope of winning now. I don't think Atlanta is capable of doing that, so unless the Hawks are able to flip him at the deadline, I suspect they may wish they had used their money on someone with more long-term potential.
Atlanta still has about $11 million in cap space remaining to fill out the final three spots on the roster and may save some of that to take on salary in a midseason trade.
Dallas Mavericks
1. Signed forward Maxi Kleber
From Las Vegas, the Mavericks have doubled down on German stretch 4s, adding Kleber to legendary Dirk Nowitzki; they are teammates on the Germany national team. Coming off a strong season for Bayern Munich that projects him as a rotation-caliber player in the NBA, Kleber signed a deal that is partially guaranteed for the minimum, according to ESPN's Tim MacMahon.
From a statistical standpoint, Kleber is interesting because he combines frequent 3-point attempts (he's projected to take nearly as many 3s as 2s in the NBA next season) with a high offensive rebound rate. We'll see if Kleber can continue to get on the offensive glass while stretching the floor in Dallas.
Kleber may be something of a volume 3-point shooter in the NBA; based on his translated EuroCup stats, my SCHOENE projection system estimates he'll shoot 33.1 percent beyond the arc as a rookie, limiting his efficiency.
Los Angeles Lakers
1. Agreed to a reported two-way contract with guard Alex Caruso
Caruso turned his opportunity to start -- and star -- for the Lakers in Lonzo Ball's absence earlier this week at the Las Vegas Summer League into a two-way contract with the team.
Caruso is far more than just a one-game star. Translated to its NBA equivalent, his performance in the D-League (now known as the G League) last season suggests Caruso will be an excellent third-string point guard and possibly a capable backup.
Playing for the Oklahoma City Blue last season, Caruso shot 40.1 percent from 3-point range and led the league in steals. Caruso doesn't necessarily have a track record for the kind of dynamic playmaking he showed in Vegas, but he is a capable ball handler who can run an offense.
Utah Jazz
1. Agreed to a two-year, $6.5 million deal with center Ekpe Udoh
Compared to when Udoh (and his plus-minus) was last seen stateside averaging 3.9 minutes per game for the 2014-15 LA Clippers, I don't think his game has substantially changed during two highly acclaimed years in Turkey playing for Fenerbahce. (Udoh was named the EuroLeague Final Four MVP last season after leading his team to the EuroLeague title.)
My projections based on Udoh's performance in the EuroLeague and the Turkish Basketball Super League show he is a little more efficient than he was in the NBA, somewhat better on the defensive glass and much more effective as a playmaker. (Though, at the same time, he's no longer as much of a shot-blocking threat.)
Instead, what's really changed to make Udoh valuable enough to get paid about twice as much as the veteran's minimum is the NBA itself. As the league has gotten smaller and become increasingly enamored with switch-heavy defenses, Udoh's exceptional agility for a player capable of protecting the rim as a center is now more valuable than it was a couple of years ago. After the EuroLeague Final Four, Mike Schmitz of Draft Express did a nice job of breaking down how Udoh's game fits this style of play.
Despite his development as a passer, Udoh remains a limited offensive contributor, so don't expect too much from him. The Jazz surely envision him playing almost exclusively as a backup to Rudy Gobert, a role in which Udoh should be an upgrade on incumbent Jeff Withey.
Utah has signed three players in the past 24 hours who will likely be reserves, adding Udoh to Jonas Jerebko and Thabo Sefolosha. The timing of those moves -- almost immediately after the NBA board of governors announced a reduction in the maximum number of timeouts per game from 18 to 14 -- is intriguing.
While the Jazz may have planned to spend their cap space on multiple contributors no matter what -- there really wasn't a free agent left on the market who made sense for Utah to spend it all on -- the rule change figures to make depth somewhat more important, particularly for a team that plays at altitude. After Gordon Hayward's departure, the Jazz's game plan is now clear: They're going to try to grind out wins with an elite defense and hope thinner teams wear out down the stretch against their ability to go two-deep or better at every position.