NBA opens investigation into trades in Chicago, Miami according to ESPN
The NBA has opened investigations into possible tampering in sign-and-trade deals from free agency, according to ESPN. The deals being investigated are Chicago’s acquisition of Lonzo Ball from New Orleans and Miami’s deal to add Kyle Lowry from Toronto.
The NBA’s trade investigation will involve determining whether contact was made between teams and players prior to the official opening of free agency at 6 p.m. EST Monday. The penalty for tampering includes a maximum fine of $10 million as well as possible loss of draft picks and void contracts.
Sign-and-trade deals require a lot more discussion because of the extra details involved. It’s entirely possible the teams could have entered talks prior to free agency due to how quickly the deals were announced. Reports of both trades surfaced Monday evening when free agency began.
Chicago received Ball, signed to a new four-year $85 million contract, in exchange for Garrett Temple and Thomas Satoransky. Temple was also signed to a new three-year $15 million deal. The deal has yet to be finalized by the NBA and could ultimately look different, according to ESPN.
The Heat accepted Goran Dragic’s $19.4 team option, then traded him and forward Precious Achiuwa for Lowry, now on a three-year $85 million contract.
Last season, the Milwaukee Bucks lost a 2022 second-round pick after the NBA found the organization guilty of tampering with restricted free agent Bogdan Bogdanovic. Bogdanovic ultimately signed with the Atlanta Hawks, which the NBA factored into the penalty given to Milwaukee.
A 16-year NBA veteran, Lowry has spent the past nine seasons with the Raptors. He won an NBA championship in 2019 during Kawhi Leonard’s lone season in Toronto. He is no doubt on the hunt for another with the Heat, where he’ll team up with Jimmy Butler and Bam Adebayo.
The former No. 2 pick, Ball will join his third NBA team in five seasons. He began his career with the Los Angeles Lakers, but was traded after two seasons to New Orleans in a deal for forward Anthony Davis. Ball has grown as a shooter with the Pelicans, with a 37.6% clip from 3-point range after 31.5% in two seasons with the Lakers.
The NBA notified team executives, players agents and players of the league office’s trade investigations. The results are likely to come soon, though no official date has been set.
Photo courtesy of Stacy Revere/Getty Images.