Free-agent cash splash hits high gear

KD, Kyrie and Lillard futures decided as deals total $2 billion and counting

Damian Lillard wasn't a top-five draft pick. Tobias Harris wasn't a lottery pick. And Khris Middleton wasn't even a first-rounder.

Their bank balances soon won't know the difference.

NBA free agency opened on Sunday with more than $2 billion in deals getting struck in the opening hours - and that's even without Kyrie Irving officially joining the Brooklyn Nets, as had been expected, or any word from Kawhi Leonard about his future plans to either stay with the newly crowned league champion Toronto Raptors or move elsewhere.

Lillard agreed to a four-year, $196 million extension with the Portland Trail Blazers that will kick in for the 2021-22 season. Harris is staying in Philadelphia for $180 million over the next five years while Middleton gave Milwaukee a bit of a discount in agreeing to a five-year deal worth $178 million - $12 million shy of what he could have commanded.

Even injuries couldn't derail the spending.

Kevin Durant announced he's leaving Golden State and joining Brooklyn on a four-year, $164 million deal - even though he'll miss next season with an Achilles injury and could have gotten $221 million for five years from the Warriors.

Kristaps Porzingis, who hasn't appeared in an NBA game since Feb 6, 2018 because of a knee injury, agreed to a five-year $158 million contract to stay with Dallas.

All deals were confirmed to Associated Press by sources with direct knowledge of the agreements, speaking on condition of anonymity because the NBA moratorium prevents new contracts from being signed until Saturday.

"From the trade in February, through the regular season and playoffs and now free agency, this is a culmination of so much in my life and basketball career," Harris wrote in an essay published on ESPN.com. "It's also a new beginning."

There were a lot of new beginnings on Sunday.

Jimmy Butler agreed to a four-year, $142 million deal that will send him to Miami. Butler - a close friend of retired Miami guard Dwyane Wade - made it clear to the Heat that he wanted to be in Miami, and it took just three hours to work out the basic framework of a trade.

Miami is sending Josh Richardson to Philadelphia and Goran Dragic to Dallas to make the Butler move happen.

Irving and Leonard remained on the market, at least technically in Irving's case, after the initial flurry of free agency.

Even with their deals still not closed, nine players agreed to contracts worth $100 million or more. Lillard, Harris, Middleton, Durant, Porzingis, Butler, Kemba Walker (four years, $141 million with Boston), Al Horford (four years, $109 million with Philadelphia) and Nikola Vucevic (four years, $100 million with Orlando) were the big early winners, with more likely to come.

Once the parameters of the Butler trade to Miami were complete, the 76ers moved quickly to add Horford.

Point guards did particularly well.

Lillard, Irving (when he gets his $141 million for four years from Brooklyn) and Walker guaranteed themselves nearly a half-billion dollars.

Terry Rozier left Boston for Charlotte - essentially the swap for Walker - on what will be a three-year deal worth $58 million that will be completed via trade.

Ricky Rubio also cashed in, getting $51 million for three years from the Phoenix Suns while restricted free agent D'Angelo Russell was believed to be a target for both Minnesota and the Los Angeles Lakers.

Meanwhile, the Leonard watch continued with no hints from his camp. The MVP of last month's NBA Finals and now two-time champion will meet with the Raptors in the coming days, according to Toronto coach Nick Nurse.

Nurse didn't reveal where the Raptors will be sitting down with Leonard, but said the NBA champs believe they "have a really good chance" to keep him in a Raptors jersey.

"I think he had a tremendous year," Nurse said at an event in Jefferson, Iowa, near his hometown.

"I think Toronto is a great place. You guys can see our fans and ownership is great. Our front-office leadership is great, his teammates. You know, everything went well for him to re-sign. And probably mostly, on top of that, would be his health. He was a guy that missed a whole season, and he had a good, healthy year and played his best basketball in the playoffs."

In other key developments on Sunday:

The Indiana Pacers are set to acquire 2017 rookie of the year Malcolm Brogdon from Milwaukee and sign the shooting guard to a four-year, $85 million deal.

Harrison Barnes, as expected, is remaining in Sacramento on a four-year, $85 million contract.

The Pacers lost forward Bojan Bogdanovic to the Utah Jazz, which agreed to pay him $73.1 million over the next four years.

New York, with Knicks fans hoping for a shot at Durant, is set to sign Julius Randle to a $63 million deal.

Former NBA MVP Derrick Rose will sign a two-year, $15 million contract with the Detroit Pistons.

San Antonio kept Rudy Gay on a two-year, $32 million deal.

Associated Press