NBA Player News

The Suns exercised Dunn's fourth-year option for 2027-28 on his rookie contract Thursday.

This was the expectation as Dunn plays out the final year of his rookie deal in 2027-28 ahead of restricted free agency the following year. He figures to be contending for a bench role with the likes of Jordan Goodwin, Haywood Highsmith, Rasheer Fleming and perhaps even rookie first-rounder Koa Peat at training camp this fall.

The Rockets waived Castro on Thursday, per Michael Scotto of HoopsHype.com.

The move vacates a two-way roster spot for Houston. The undrafted rookie now sets his sights toward finding other opportunities around the league this preseason.

Podziemski said at Warriors media day he wants to shoot more threes per game, per Luca Evans of the San Francisco Chronicle.

Head coach Steve Kerr is in full support as well, offering Podziemski encouragement Wednesday to fire away from downtown. Podziemski opened last season as a part-time starter before moving into a full-time position with the first unit post-All-Star break, averaging 17.5 points, 6.2 rebounds, 4.1 assists and 1.0 steals in his final 27 regular-season games, and he could become a lethal threat from deep especially once Jimmy Butler (knee) and Kristaps Porzingis (undisclosed) are both in the mix.

Melton revealed this offseason that he underwent surgery on each of his thumbs, per Danny Emerman of SFStandard.com.

Melton is fully recovered now, but playing through the discomfort resulted in him shooting just 29.4 percent from deep during the regular season, his lowest mark since 2019-20 with Memphis. The swingman is competing at training camp with Gui Santos and Yaxel Lendeborg for a starting role, and Melton has shown he is capable of being an effective nine-category fantasy player when healthy after averaging at least 10.0 points, 3.0 rebounds, 2.5 assists, 1.0 steals and 1.5 three-pointers in five straight seasons.

Smith said Thursday he is 100 percent healthy after a lingering calf issue ended last season early, per Will Gottlieb of CHGO Bulls.

Smith got a chance to start for the Bulls at times in 2025-26 as they searched for Nikola Vucevic's replacement, averaging 12.1 points, 7.1 rebounds, 1.0 assists and 0.8 blocks in 24.6 minutes per tilt across 21 regular-season games as a starter last season. Now that Claxton is in the picture, Smith appears primed to revert to the No. 2 center role in 2026-27, which could cap his upside from a fantasy perspective. Availability has also been a concern for Smith throughout his career, as he's never reached the 70-game mark in any of his first six seasons and couldn't finish last year with the aforementioned calf problem.

Head coach Ty Lue said Wednesday the Clippers are going to give Wagler a lot of on-ball opportunities, per Joey Linn of SI.com.

With Brandon Ingram (Achilles) sidelined to begin the season, Los Angeles is already short on proven playmakers beyond Darius Garland. Bradley Beal (knee) appears ticketed for a reserve role, meaning Wagler has a chance to be the team's second scoring option behind Garland while Ingram is sidelined and carries plenty of upside in the late rounds of fantasy drafts.

Head coach Ty Lue has been very impressed with Garland's offseason, per Ohm Youngmisuk of ESPN.com.

Lue also notes he'll push Garland when needed, so it sounds like the Clippers are planning to give the star guard all the usage he can handle amid Brandon Ingram's (Achilles) absence. Provided he stays healthy after playing a career-low 45 regular-season games last year, Garland has the upside for a career campaign with a rebuilding Los Angeles team.

Sam Amico of Hoops Wire believes Knecht is on the Lakers' roster bubble.

Despite LeBron James' offseason exit, Knecht still likely finds himself behind newcomers Quentin Grimes, Collin Sexton, Cameron Carr, Matisse Thybulle and Ziaire Williams on the depth chart. A different situation may be needed for Knecht to attain fantasy relevance in 2026-27.

Head coach JB Bickerstaff said Thursday the plan is for Thompson to play more this season, per Omari Sankofa II of the Detroit Free Press.

Thompson already averaged a career-high 25.9 minutes per game last regular season, but it sounds like the Pistons are ready to trust him with an even larger workload. His shooting form remains a work in progress -- Thompson has never shot higher than 65 percent from the foul line or 25 percent from deep -- but the swingman has seen his assist and steal totals rise in each of his first three seasons and carries plenty of multi-category upside in the mid-to-late rounds of fantasy drafts.

Gonzalez is looking to take a step forward in his second season, per Bobby Krivitsky of Forbes.com.

The door is open for Gonzalez to claim a larger role at training camp in the wake of Jaylen Brown's departure to Philadelphia. The camp battle between Gonzalez, Baylor Scheierman and Sam Hauser will remain one for fantasy managers to keep tabs on this fall, though it's possible Boston will ultimately take a hot-hand approach with the three throughout the course of the year.