Live Thread: NBA Free Agency Midnight Madness 2017

In just a few hours… when the moon is out and the clock strikes twelve… the madness of NBA Free Agency will once again descend upon the Land (and 29 other cities). In some places, though, the madness has already taken hold. If you’re a Bulls fan, a Clips fan or a Pacers fan… you’ve already been a witness to some early lunacy. With Jimmy Butler transforming into a Timberwolf, Chris Paul shooting for the moon as a Rocket and Paul George essentially turning into a pumpkin for Indy, will there be any sort of madness that can compete when Friday turns into Saturday, and June turns into July?

Odds are, the answer is a resounding yes. While last year’s Free Agency period had the huge ripple effect of Kevin Durant joining the best regular season team in the League… this year’s crop of possible team-jumping players is measuring up as an attempted answer to that league-altering salvo. Big names like Blake Griffin and Gordon Hayward have already opted out of their deals to test the market, and plenty of other impact players like Paul Millsap, Kyle Lowry, Jeff Teague and Jrue Holiday are also unrestricted. Not to mention two major buyout candidates who could theoretically join the Cavs in Carmelo Anthony and DWayne Wade.

About the only thing for sure is that Joe Lacob is about to outspend Dan Gilbert by handing out upwards of $350M to his two Free Agents, Kevin Durant and Steph Curry. The Cavs have been rumored to be extremely active (especially for a team with no GM in place) on both the trade front (the myriad of Kevin Love for PG-13 swap machinations) and the potential buyout front (the aforementioned Melo and Wade).

What’s in store for this midnight deadline? All signs point to madness…

Check back regularly for rumors, updates and speculation.