2014 NBA Free Agency Buzz

[The top of this post will update regularly as news breaks during the day. For immediate updates, read the comments at the bottom!]

- Marc Stein of ESPN.com reports on Twitter that the Blazers have expressed interest in Sixers unrestricted free agent center Spencer Hawes.

- Joe Freeman of The Oregonian reports: "Unrestricted free agent Channing Frye, who played for the Blazers from 2007-2009, told The Oregonian on Monday he would be open to returning to Portland. 'Of course coming back would be an option,' Frye wrote in an e-mail to The Oregonian. 'I love the city, the fans, and the players they have are top notch.'"

- Marc Stein of ESPN.com reports on Twitter: "I'm told Portland has serious interest in a sign-and-trade for [Pistons forward/center Greg] Monroe."

- Shams Charania of RealGM.com reports that the Spurs have decided to keep forward Austin Daye.

- The Warriors have allowed guard Jordan Crawford to become an unrestricted free agent.

- The Sixers have released guard James Anderson.

- The Bucks have allowed forward Ekpe Udoh to become an unrestricted free agent.

- The Pistons have allowed veteran guard Chauncey Billups to become an unrestricted free agent.

- The Magic have released veteran point guard Jameer Nelson, whose $8 million contract was only guaranteed for $2 million. Orlando has also claimed former Clippers guard Willie Green off of waivers.

- Jeff Zillgitt of USA Today Sports reports on Twitter that the Pacers will allow guard Evan Turner to become an unrestricted free agent.

- Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo Sports reports on Twitter that Grizzlies power forward Ed Davis will become an unrestricted free agent.

- Tim MacMahon of ESPNDallas.com reports that the Blazers will join the Heat, Thunder and Raptors in pursuing Mavericks guard Vince Carter. Dallas is seen as the favorites to retain him.

- Chris Haynes of CSNNW.com reports that Damian Lillard's free agency "wish list" is: Mo Williams, Channing Frye, Vince Carter, Spencer Hawes and Trevor Ariza.

- Haynes also reports on Twitter that Mo Williams' "only goal" is to reach an agreement to return with the Blazes and that he hasn't yet set up any other meetings.

- [Plug alert: Carter, Hawes and Ariza are all on my top 25 free agents of 2014 list if you're interested. -- Ben]

- The Hawks have agreed to trade guard Lou Williams and center Lucas Nogueira to the Raptors in exchange for forward John Salmons, according to multiple reports. Salmons will be waived. [More here]

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Welcome to free agency!

At 9pm PDT on Monday, June 30, NBA teams are cleared to have contract discussions with players. No contracts can be signed until a week later, but verbal agreements are common in this stage. With very rare exceptions, verbal agreements are generally considered binding for purposes of news reports.

Last summer, Neil Olshey got business started early, as he completed a trade with the Houston Rockets for Thomas Robinson before the free agency opened. Things worked out relatively well for the Rockets, as they landed Dwight Howard. Of course, that didn't stop the Blazers from beating them in the playoffs anyway. Burn.

Cap space available to the Blazers: None.

Barring any trades, they will have the following cash to use:

- Mid-Level Exception: Approx. $5.3 million (can be split among multiple players)
- Bi-Annual Exception: Approx $2 million
- Other players can be signed at the minimum salary

- They can also re-sign Mo Williams without affecting their available cash, using the Non-Bird Exception. Unless he gets a good offer from another team, there's a decent chance he works out a deal with Portland.

Hang out here and chat about all the news and rumors. If any major news involves the Blazers, Dave, Ben or I will have a new post for that as quickly as possible. In the meantime, feel free to discuss here.

For purposes of the next few days, please don't post transaction news in the Fanposts and Fanshots. Post it here in the comments, and we'll add it to this article in a one-stop shop! Thanks! -- Tim