Browsing: 2year

Oct 24, 2025, 04:41 PM ET

LAS VEGAS — Carter Hart is signing a two-year, $4 million contract with the Vegas Golden Knights.

Hart agreed to the deal last week, becoming the first of the five 2018 Canada world junior hockey players to land an NHL contract since they were acquitted of sexual assault in a high-profile case.

Hart, Michael McLeod, Dillon Dube, Cal Foote and Alex Formenton are not eligible to play in games until Dec. 1 as part of the league’s reinstatement process.

Hart is resuming his career at age 27 after spending his first six seasons in Philadelphia. The Flyers last month ruled out bringing back Hart, whose camp communicated to general manager Danny Briere that a fresh start was a better option.

That turned out to be Vegas, where Adin Hill and Akira Schmid serve as the goalies.

Hart went 96-93-29 with the Flyers, posting a 2.94 goals-against average.

Hart and the others were charged in 2024 in connection with an incident in London, Ontario, in 2018. The judge overseeing the trial said that the prosecution could not meet the onus of proof to convict them and that the complainant’s allegations lacked the credibility needed to justify the charges.

The league conducted its own investigation beginning in 2022 when the allegations came to light.

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Aaron Nesmith was a key part of the Indiana Pacers’ run to the NBA Finals last season, and the team is rewarding him accordingly heading into the 2025-26 campaign.

ESPN’s Shams Charania reported Monday that Indiana agreed to a two-year, $40.4 million extension with the forward that keeps him with the team through the 2028-29 season. The deal includes a trade kicker and features the maximum amount of salary that was allowed with the extension.

ESPN’s Bobby Marks added more context:

Indiana acquired Nesmith via trade from the Boston Celtics ahead of the 2022-23 season, and he immediately played his way into the rotation after he was nothing more than a secondary contributor during his first two years in the league.

Across three seasons with the Pacers, he has averaged 11.3 points and 3.8 rebounds per game while shooting 47.3 percent from the field and 40.2 percent from deep.

His ability to stretch opposing defenses and connect from deep has been an ideal pairing with Tyrese Haliburton, who is always looking to facilitate and set his teammates up for good looks when opposing defenses collapse on his penetration.

Nesmith became something of a household name during the Pacers’ stunning run to the NBA Finals last season.Â

His biggest individual moment came during Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Finals when he caught fire from beyond the arc and spearheaded a dramatic comeback win over the New York Knicks. He finished with 30 points on 8-of-9 shooting from three-point range and set the tone for a series in which he connected on 53.3 percent of his triples.

In addition to his shooting in the postseason, he played lockdown defense against multiple positions. His ability to stick with smaller ball-handlers or challenge bigger forwards on the wings allowed the Pacers to mix and match their lineups depending on the opponent in different rounds.

Nesmith figures to be even more important for the team in 2025-26 with Haliburton sidelined with an Achilles injury, and he will assume those additional responsibilities with a new contract extension in his pocket.

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Kevin Durant was part of history in July when he was the crown jewel of an NBA-record seven-team deal that delivered him from the Phoenix Suns to the Houston Rockets.

Now the 2013-14 NBA MVP has agreed to a two-year, $90 million extension with the Rockets, according to ESPN’s Shams Charania, turning a potential one-year stay into an opportunity to ride off into the sunset. The deal also contains a player option for the 2027-28 NBA season. The Rockets announced the extension Sunday but did not provide details on the deal.

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Durant turns 37 in September. He has played 17 seasons in the league, made 15 All-Star teams and earned NBA Finals MVP on both Golden State squads he won championships with.

Durant was on an expiring contract worth $54.7 million for the 2025-26 season. He was eligible to sign a two-year deal worth $122 million when he was traded. Had he waited until six months after that deal, he could have made an additional two million. Ultimately, that didn’t matter.

At this point, that kind of contract minutiae is secondary to Durant. He hopes to win a championship with the Rockets, who broke through under head coach Ime Udoka last season. Houston won 50-plus games for the first time in six seasons and secured the No. 2 seed in a strong Western Conference. Although the Rockets bowed out to the Warriors in the first round of the playoffs, the present and future are bright in Houston.

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Udoka was signed to a long-term extension that makes him one of the highest-paid coaches in the NBA, as reported by Charania on June 19.

The Rockets got older, essentially swapping a 23-year-old Jalen Green for Durant, but Father Time hasn’t stripped KD of his consistency. The versatile, 6-foot-11 forward has averaged at least 25 points, 50% shooting and a 40% 3-point clip in each of the past three seasons — that’s the longest such streak in NBA history, per ESPN Research, and Durant has strung it together from ages 34-36.

While Houston also gave up a tenacious but sometimes reckless 3-and-D wing in Dillon Brooks, it signed another productive, two-way veteran wing player in Dorian Finney-Smith.

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Plus, the Rockets beefed up the center position behind All-Star Alperen Åžengün with the sign-and-trade addition of Clint Capela. It’s a Houston reunion for Capela, who spent the first six years of his NBA career with the Rockets.

Houston’s newcomers will join not only Åžengün, but rising guard Amen Thompson — an NBA All-Defensive First Teamer — and Jabari Smith Jr., among others.

As for Durant, he’s getting ready to play for his fifth franchise. Before joining the Rockets, he suited up for the Seattle SuperSonics/Oklahoma City Thunder (2007-16), Warriors (2016-19), Brooklyn Nets (2019-23) and Suns (2023-25).

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Last season, Durant averaged 26.6 points, 6 rebounds and 4.2 assists per game in 62 outings. While the Suns had the highest payroll in league history, they finished just 36-46 and missed the playoffs for the first time since 2019-20.

Durant could put Phoenix’s disappointments in the rearview mirror with a memorable final chapter in Houston. The Rockets helped set him up for that opportunity with Sunday’s extension.

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Kevin Durant agrees to 2-year extension, days before Rockets debut: Report originally appeared on NBC Sports Boston

Kevin Durant is fully committed to the Houston Rockets.

Just two days before the team’s regular-season opener on NBC, the 15-time All-Star reportedly agreed to a two-year, $90 million contract extension.

ESPN’s Shams Charania first reported the news Sunday morning.

Durant will have a player option for 2027-28, giving him the choice of reaching free agency in either 2027 or 2028. The deal comes in around $30 million under the maximum extension that he could have signed, saving the team $15 million per season.

The 37-year-old Durant, now with three years and $144.7 million total on his contract, now holds the record over LeBron James for the highest career earnings in NBA history ($598.2 million).

Extending Durant gives the Rockets some security after trading for the former Phoenix Suns forward over this past summer. He was set to hit free agency next summer, with no long-term assurance that he had to stay in Houston.

Durant’s scoring ability and veteran presence should elevate the young Rockets roster, which went 52-30 last season under head coach Ime Udoka. The Rockets then lost a grueling seven-game series to the Golden State Warriors in the first round after a four-year playoff drought.

Durant is a future Hall of Famer looking to add to his legacy, which already includes two championships, two Finals MVP awards, four scoring championships, an MVP, 11 All-NBA teams and more than 30,000 points scored (currently eighth all-time).

The Rockets’ 2025-26 season begins Tuesday, Oct. 21, against the defending champion Oklahoma City Thunder on NBC and Peacock.

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The Florida Panthers took care of a little business on Sunday.

While much of the league was enjoying an off day, and the Panthers were preparing to hit the road for the first time this season, the team announced a contract extension for forward Jonah Gadjovich.

The big, bruising winger signed a two-year extension to stay on with the Cats through 2028 after establishing himself as a reliable option on Floridaâ€s fourth line.

“Jonah has become an integral part of our locker room and a strong contributor for our group on the ice,†Panthers GM Bill Zito said in a statement released by the team. “He possesses a fearless attitude and unrelenting competitiveness, and we are excited for Jonah to continue with us in South Florida.â€

The two-year extension carries an AAV (average annual value) of $905,000, which is a nice little pay bump from the $775 AAV his previous deal came with.

News of the deal came on Sunday, which also happened to be Gadjovichâ€s 27th birthday.

During his first two seasons with the Panthers, Gadjovich accumulated six goals, eight points and 164 penalty minutes over 81 regular season games while adding another two goals and an assist in 16 playoff outings during Floridaâ€s latest Stanley Cup run.

So far this season, heâ€s picked up an assist and a plus-one on-ice rating over the Cats†first three games.

Gadjovich and the Panthers will be back in action on Monday night when Florida begins a five-game road trip against the Philadelphia Flyers.

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Photo caption: Oct 2, 2025; Tampa, Florida, USA; Florida Panthers left wing Jonah Gadjovich (12) warms up before a game against the Tampa Bay Lightning at Benchmark International Arena. (Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images)

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Ending a summerlong stalemate, restricted free agent Jonathan Kuminga has agreed to a two-year, $48.5 million deal to return to the Golden State Warriors, agent Aaron Turner of Verus Basketball told ESPN on Tuesday.

The deal includes a team option in the second year that is designed for the Warriors — or another team if and when Kuminga is traded during the upcoming season — to rip up and complete a fresh new contract after the 2025-26 campaign, sources said.

Also Tuesday, the Warriors agreed to a one-year deal with free agent Seth Curry, sources told ESPN, teaming Stephen Curry with his younger brother as training camp begins Wednesday. However, the Warriors cannot enter the season with 15 standard players on the roster unless they make a trade, but Seth Curry is expected to be on the roster for the majority of the campaign.

Ahead of Wednesday’s qualifying offer deadline, Kuminga chose the two-year deal over a proposal of three years and $75 million so he can maintain a higher level of control over his immediate Warriors future. The Warriors never wavered on their team option frameworks during negotiations. Now, both sides understand the likelihood of exploring trades when Kuminga is eligible to be moved in mid-January. As part of the deal, he is waiving his inherent no-trade clause.

Kuminga missed media day Monday and the first day of Warriors practice Tuesday as the sides finalized the deal.

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Warriors general manager Mike Dunleavy Jr. and Kuminga’s side have been locked in a stalemate throughout the offseason over the framework of the contract, but Golden State ultimately increased its two-year offer by a total of $8 million between July and September and guaranteed Kuminga approximately $15 million more than his one-year, $8 million qualifying offer would have for this season.

Over the past two months, the Warriors have had a standing offer of two years and $45 million with a team option, and earlier this month offered a three-year, $75 million contract with a team option and a three-year, $54 million fully guaranteed deal. Kuminga and his side wanted a player option throughout the negotiations, or a higher annual salary with a team option, requests that were denied by the Warriors.

Choosing the two-year structure allows Kuminga to create a decision for whichever team he is on next summer or get to 2027 unrestricted free agency.

The Warriors made a jump to $48.5 million total over two years in the latest and last round of these drawn-out negotiations. Kuminga’s deal becomes the fourth-highest salary on the Warriors’ books next season behind Curry, Jimmy Butler III and Draymond Green, escalating the team’s luxury tax penalty by $70 million to a total of over $80 million.

By signing Kuminga to a salary of $22.5 million next season, Golden State will still have the flexibility to use its $5.7 million taxpayer midlevel exception and sign two players to the veteran’s minimum. Gary Payton II signed a one-year, veteran’s minimum contract with the Warriors on Monday, and Al Horford, De’Anthony Melton and rookie Will Richard have agreed to deals, too.

Jonathan Kuminga’s two-year deal with the Warriors comes with the understanding that trades will be explored when Kuminga is eligible to be moved in mid-January. Noah Graham/NBAE via Getty Images

The Phoenix Suns and Sacramento Kings were the strongest suitors for Kuminga in trade talks, with the largest sign-and-trade offer coming via the Suns as a four-year, nearly $90 million deal with a player option, sources said. The Warriors never showed interest in either team’s trade proposal, however, declining concepts of Royce O’Neale and second-round picks from the Suns and Malik Monk and a protected first-round pick from the Kings.

Kuminga was largely out of the rotation in the Warriors’ first-round series against the Houston Rockets, playing just 50 minutes total across seven games, including four that he sat out due to coach’s decision. He averaged six points on 30.4% shooting against Houston. However, Kuminga shined in the Warriors’ Western Conference semifinals series against the Minnesota Timberwolves with Curry sidelined. He averaged 20.8 points on 54.3% shooting against the Timberwolves, including three straight games scoring over 20 points to end the series.

Kuminga has led the Warriors in paint points per game in each of the past two seasons as he averaged 10 points in the paint in 2023-24 and 8.5 last season, per ESPN Research — a major boost for a team that was fifth worst in paint points last season. Among players from the 2021 draft class, Kuminga ranks fifth in points per 36 minutes (minimum 150 games).

Kuminga is also one of eight players with 3,000 points and 1,000 rebounds from the 2021 draft class, and he is one of five players to score 3,000 points before turning 23 in Warriors history.

Kuminga has shown an ability to raise his performance when the Warriors are missing a key cog, increasing his scoring average from 14.1 points in games Curry played to 19.6 points in 10 games without Curry, which was second on the team in this situation behind only 20 points per night from Butler, who played just three contests without Curry. Kuminga also increased his shooting percentage from 44.5% with Curry to 48.2% without him.

Kuminga becomes the third restricted free agent to find a resolution in September, after Cam Thomas signed a one-year, $6 million qualifying offer to return to the Brooklyn Nets and Josh Giddey reached a four-year, $100 million deal to stay with the Chicago Bulls. Philadelphia’s Quentin Grimes remains the final outstanding restricted free agent.

In the span of 48 hours, the Warriors, who had nine standard contracts all offseason, finalized their expected 15-man roster: Kuminga, Horford, Melton, Payton, Richard and Curry.

Entering free agency this summer, only a few teams had salary cap space, which created a freeze for the restricted market. The Nets have operated as the only team with real salary cap space for the majority of the offseason.

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Golden State Warriors wing Jonathan Kuminga isn’t going anywhere after all.

Kuminga reached a two-year, $48.5 million deal to return to the Warriors on Tuesday afternoon, according to ESPN’s Shams Charania. The deal includes a team option that is designed “to be ripped up and renegotiated next summer.” The new contract came after months of a contract dispute between the two sides that felt like it was going nowhere.

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Kuminga, according to Charania, chose this deal over a three-year deal worth around $75 million in order to maintain control over his immediate future. He will be eligible to be traded in January, which is something that is still likely to be explored.

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The Warriors selected Kuminga with the No. 7 overall pick in the 2021 NBA Draft, taking him one spot ahead of the Orlando Magic’s Franz Wagner, who showed All-Star potential prior to an injury last season.

Kuminga has not consistently shown the same promise, though he has flashed glimpses of the athleticism and creativity that made him one of the highest-upside players in his draft. He has averaged 15.8 points (on 50/31/71 shooting splits), 4.7 rebounds and 2.2 assists per game over the past two seasons.

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It is no secret that the Warriors have long been shopping Kuminga in various trade scenarios, as he completely fell out of their playoff rotation in a seven-game, first-round series with the Houston Rockets.

Most recently, the Miami Heat and Sacramento Kings have been linked as suitors for Kuminga.

For his part, Kuminga wants a consistent role, which he believes will grant him the chance to be great.

“Things take time, but I feel like Iâ€m at the point where that has to be my priority, to just be one of the guys a team relies on,” he told The Athletic. “Aiming to be an All-Star. Multiple times. Aiming to be great. … Wherever Iâ€m going to be at, it donâ€t matter if itâ€s the Warriors or if itâ€s anywhere else, itâ€s something I want. I want to see what I could do. I know I got it. So I want to really see. Iâ€ve never got that chance.”

It has been difficult on a Warriors team that now boasts Stephen Curry and Jimmy Butler, both of whom have earned their share of scoring opportunities. Butler also plays the same position as Kuminga, whose commitment to defense and sharing the ball within Golden State’s motion offense have raised concerns.

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For all the concerns, though, when Kuminga was thrust into a higher-profile role — as Curry was sidelined to injury over the final four games of their Western Conference semifinals series against the Minnesota Timberwolves — he stepped up, averaging 24.3 points on 55/39/72 shooting splits in 31 minutes a night.

It is that potential for which he received this lucrative contract.

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Sep 17, 2025, 10:18 PM ETCHICAGO — Wyatt Kaiser has agreed to a $3.4 million, two-year contract with the Chicago…