NBA Player News

The Kings signed Ben Simmons to a one-year deal Friday, adding another bench option who will challenge Karaban for playing time.

Simmons will return to The Association after sitting out the 2025-26 campaign. With the three-time All-Star in the mix, Karaban faces increased competition for playing time off the bench. Karaban, the No. 29 overall pick in the 2026 NBA Draft, could see increasingly steady minutes as the season progresses, though the UConn product isn't guaranteed a meaningful role early on, especially if Keegan Murray (ankle) is healthy to begin the campaign.

The Kings signed Ben Simmons to a one-year deal Friday, adding another playmaker to Sacramento's second unit who could challenge Monk for playing time.

Simmons ended up sitting out the entire 2025-26 campaign but will return to The Association this season. He's a versatile defender who could take on a meaningful role thanks to his playmaking ability, though Simmons' arrival may result in fewer minutes for Monk. Monk averaged 12.5 points, 3.0 assists and 1.9 rebounds in 22.0 minutes per tilt across 62 regular-season games (three starts) last season, marking his fewest minutes per game since he played for the Hornets in the 2020-21 campaign. Aside from Simmons, Monk also faces competition for playing time from rookie No. 7 overall pick Darius Acuff, Nique Clifford and Emanuel Sharp. Monk has a $21.6 million player option for 2027-28 and remains a candidate to be traded after having been the subject of trade rumors throughout the 2025-26 season.

Black is lined up for a significant role off the Orlando bench in 2026-27.

Black's breakout 2025-26 campaign had already begun to take off before Franz Wagner (calf) got hurt in December, but the ankle injury to the latter cleared the way for the former to start a career-high 40 regular-season games. However, a late-season abdominal strain curtailed much of the momentum Black had built, as it wasn't until the final contests of the first round of the playoffs that he resumed handling full workloads following a monthlong absence with the issue. The 2023 first-rounder is positioned for a reserve role to begin his fourth year with the Magic, but he still stands out as one of the league's premier sixth men and makes sense as a late-round fantasy pick.

Morant (elbow) is set to share the playmaking duties with Damian Lillard (Achilles) in Portland's starting backcourt after being traded from Memphis.

Chris Haynes of NBA TV reported when the trade went down that the Trail Blazers had a Morant and Lillard backcourt pairing in mind, so it'll be interesting to see how the ball-handling responsibilities are divvied up in 2026-27 should they stick to that plan. Morant endured yet another injury-plagued campaign with the Grizzlies in 2025-26, making just 20 regular-season appearances while shooting a career-low 41.0 percent from the floor and 23.5 percent from deep, and he's reached the 60-game mark just one time over the past five seasons. With plenty of questions surrounding his fit in his new digs, the dynamic 27-year-old point guard is shaping up as a difficult fantasy player to rank as a high-risk, high-reward gamble in the second half of drafts.

Nelson signed a two-way contract with the Nets on Friday, Michael Scotto of HoopsHype.com reports.

Nelson appeared in four regular-season games for the Nets during the 2025-26 campaign and will link up with the franchise again. He's expected to spend the bulk of his time with the club's G League affiliate to open the season.

Davison agreed to an Exhibit 10 contract with Orlando on Thursday, Jason Beede of the Orlando Sentinel reports.

Davison was let go by Houston in early August, but he's since earned an opportunity to compete for a roster spot in training camp with the Magic. He played in 28 regular-season games a year ago with the Rockets, averaging 2.5 points, 1.2 rebounds and 1.3 assists in 7.8 minutes per contest.

Middleton got in a workout Thursday ahead of his second season with Washington.

Middleton is in line for a different role with the new-look Wizards this time around, though. The veteran forward started each of his 34 appearances in Washington a year ago before being shipped to Dallas as part of the Anthony Davis trade, and he's positioned initially as Davis' primary backup at power forward heading into training camp. Middleton also routinely sat out one leg of back-to-back sets with the Wizards, so it remains to be seen if the team will have a similar workload management plan in store for him as well.

Maxey could spend more time playing off the ball during the 2026-27 season, Chris Hine of The Philadelphia Inquirer reports.

The additions of LeBron James and Jaylen Brown should reduce Maxey's responsibilities as Philadelphia's primary ball-handler, potentially allowing him to generate more catch-and-shoot opportunities. Maxey converted 41.7 percent of his 3.4 catch-and-shoot three-point attempts per game during the 2025-26 regular season compared to just 33.5 percent on 5.2 pull-up attempts, so a change in shot profile could lead to improved efficiency from beyond the arc.

Thompson agreed to a five-year, $208 million extension Thursday, Shams Charania of ESPN reports.

The deal will include a 10 percent trade kicker. An extension always seemed inevitable, as Thompson's two-way upside is through the roof. Across 79 regular-season appearances in 2025-26, he averaged 18.3 points, 7.8 rebounds, 5.3 assists and 1.5 steals.

Mangas signed a contract with the Hornets on Wednesday.

The exact terms of the deal are unclear, though it's likely a non-guaranteed deal to secure Mangas' G League rights. Over 45 appearances with the Austin Spurs in 2025-26, he averaged 17.1 points, 3.9 rebounds, 2.9 assists and 1.9 combined steals-plus-blocks across 32.3 minutes per contest.