While the Warriors have just 9 players under contract, there are 7 teams with less roster continuity than Golden State.
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We’re two weeks into free agency, and things have slowed down quite a bit. But there are still plenty of free agents on the market, and there are more than 30 open roster spots (not including two-way spots) across the league.
A few teams have more than 15, but the Golden State Warriors have just nine guys under contract at this point. Still, as things stand, there are seven teams with less roster continuity than Golden State.
1. Continuity rankings
Here is how teams rank in regard to the percentage of their 2024-25 minutes that are currently under contract (or will reportedly re-sign) for the 2025-26 season …
% of 2024-25 regular-season minutes under contract for 2025-26
| Team | NetRtg | Rank | Ret. Players | Ret. Min. | %Ret.M | FA Min. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. Oklahoma City | +12.7 | 1 | 15 | 18,804 | 95% | 328 |
| 2. Minnesota | +5.0 | 4 | 13 | 17,189 | 87% | 25 |
| 3. Indiana | +2.1 | 13 | 15 | 16,559 | 83% | 1,066 |
| 4. New York | +4.0 | 8 | 10 | 15,964 | 80% | 3,378 |
| 5. Toronto | -4.1 | 24 | 15 | 15,864 | 80% | 862 |
| 6. Miami | +0.4 | 16 | 11 | 15,194 | 76% | 1,200 |
| 7. Cleveland | +9.2 | 3 | 12 | 14,715 | 74% | 594 |
| 8. Chicago | -1.6 | 20 | 14 | 14,444 | 73% | 2,894 |
| 9. Portland | -2.7 | 21 | 12 | 14,260 | 72% | 1,253 |
| 10. Dallas | -1.3 | 19 | 14 | 13,997 | 71% | 868 |
| 11. Denver | +3.8 | 9 | 11 | 13,949 | 70% | 2,985 |
| 12. L.A. Lakers | +4.9 | 5 | 12 | 13,837 | 70% | 588 |
| 13. San Antonio | -2.8 | 22 | 9 | 13,738 | 70% | 3,271 |
| 14. Sacramento | +0.6 | 15 | 9 | 13,687 | 69% | 2,070 |
| 15. Orlando | -0.2 | 17 | 11 | 13,665 | 69% | 1,840 |
| 16. Charlotte | -9.1 | 27 | 13 | 13,555 | 69% | 1,751 |
| 17. Memphis | +4.7 | 6 | 12 | 13,506 | 69% | 249 |
| 18. Washington | -12.2 | 30 | 12 | 13,430 | 68% | 771 |
| 19. Boston | +9.4 | 2 | 11 | 13,177 | 66% | 2,046 |
| 20. Milwaukee | +2.4 | 11 | 13 | 13,162 | 67% | 86 |
| 21. Houston | +4.6 | 7 | 10 | 13,091 | 66% | 94 |
| 22. Detroit | +2.1 | 12 | 13 | 13,047 | 66% | 2,429 |
| 23. Golden State | +3.2 | 10 | 10 | 12,910 | 65% | 2,416 |
| 24. Utah | -9.2 | 28 | 12 | 12,806 | 65% | 960 |
| 25. LA Clippers | +1.2 | 14 | 11 | 12,730 | 65% | 2,104 |
| 26. Atlanta | -1.1 | 18 | 9 | 12,338 | 62% | 1,331 |
| 27. Philadelphia | -6.3 | 25 | 11 | 12,026 | 61% | 3,024 |
| 28. Brooklyn | -7.3 | 26 | 11 | 11,959 | 60% | 1,246 |
| 29. Phoenix | -3.0 | 23 | 8 | 11,611 | 59% | 1,311 |
| 30. New Orleans | -9.4 | 29 | 9 | 9,971 | 50% | 3,453 |
As of completed and reported transactions through July 13.
NetRtg = Point differential per 100 possessions in 2024-25.
Ret. Min. = Minutes played by players still on roster (same contract, re-signed, or agreed to new deal)
FA Min. = Minutes played by players who are currently free agents (no reported agreements with any team). Doesn’t include players who were waived.
The Thunder are the second straight champion to, basically, run it back. A year ago, the Boston Celtics brought back 93% of their regular-season minutes from the 2023-24 season. They remained one of the best teams in the league – ranking in the top five on both ends of the floor for the third straight season – but came up short in their quest to repeat.
Two teams actually had greater continuity (returning 97% of ’23-24 minutes) than the Celtics a year ago. And those two teams – the Cleveland Cavaliers and Houston Rockets – were two of the most improved teams in the league last season.
Over the years, there have been correlations between continuity and…
- How good the team was the season prior.
- How good the team was the ensuing season.
- How improved the team was the ensuing season.
But the last of those three has been the weakest of those correlations. The Detroit Pistons ranked 27th in continuity last year and were 11.1 points per 100 possessions better last season than they were in ’23-24. The Orlando Magic, meanwhile, ranked fifth in continuity and saw a drop-off.
Still, it’s always interesting to see which teams are standing pat and which are reloading.
Here are a few additional notes:
1. If the Phoenix Suns were to waive Bradley Beal, they fall just below the 50% mark and into last place in continuity.
2. The numbers for the Pacers and Celtics include players — Tyrese Haliburton and Jayson Tatum — who were injured in the playoffs and might not play next season. The number of returning players for some teams also includes players – Brandon Ingram (TOR) and Nikola Topić (OKC), for example – that didn’t play for them last season.
3. The fact that most veteran stars aren’t hitting free agency these days (because they’re signing contract extensions beforehand) has led to greater continuity. Even though there are more than 30 empty roster spots, teams are returning an average of 70% of last season’s minutes, with that being the second highest mark of the last 15 years, topped only by last season’s 71%.
2. Outstanding free agents
These, of course, are incomplete continuity rankings, because there are still 19 outstanding free agents who played at least 1,000 minutes last season. Five of them played more than 2,000 minutes …
Most 2024-25 minutes played, available free agents
| Player | Team | GP | Min | PRASB/G | TS% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chris Paul | SAS | 82 | 2,292 | 21.3 | 58.0% |
| Malik Beasley | DET | 82 | 2,283 | 21.5 | 59.0% |
| Josh Giddey | CHI | 70 | 2,117 | 31.7 | 57.0% |
| Russell Westbrook | DEN | 75 | 2,092 | 26.2 | 53.2% |
| Quentin Grimes | PHI | 75 | 2,013 | 23.2 | 59.5% |
PRASB/G = Points + rebounds + assists + steals + blocks per game
TS% = PTS / (2 * (FGA + (0.44 * FTA)))
- Giddey and Grimes are restricted free agents who are likely to return to the Bulls and Sixers, respectively. If they do, Chicago and Philadelphia would move up to third and 23rd in the continuity rankings.
- The Pelicans lead the league with 3,453 minutes from 2024-25 coming from still-available free agents. More than half of those come from Jeremiah Robinson-Earl (1,239) and Brandon Boston (993).
- The Knicks are much higher than the Pels in the continuity rankings, but are right behind them in regard to minutes from still-available free agents, with Precious Achiuwa (1,170) and Cameron Payne (1,090) still unsigned. New York was at its best with Payne on the floor last season.
3. Still some shooters on the market
The list of available free agents also includes 19 of the 149 players who shot the league average (36.0%) or better on at least 100 3-point attempts last season. So, as things stand, only three teams — Brooklyn, Denver and Houston — have more of those shooters than they did at the end of the season.
The Thunder are bringing all eight of their shooters back, with that total leading the league as things stand. The Cavs finished the season with nine, but traded Isaac Okoro and saw Ty Jerome leave in free agency.
In cleaning house, the Utah Jazz have gone from five to just one of those 149 shooters, with Brice Sensabaugh being their lone returner.
Number of players who shot 36% or better on 100+ 3PA in 2024-25
| Team | End of 24-25 | Current | Diff. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Oklahoma City | 8 | 8 | 0 |
| Cleveland | 9 | 7 | -2 |
| Denver | 6 | 7 | +1 |
| Indiana | 6 | 6 | 0 |
| L.A. Lakers | 6 | 6 | 0 |
| Miami | 7 | 6 | -1 |
| Milwaukee | 7 | 6 | -1 |
| New York | 6 | 6 | 0 |
| Boston | 5 | 5 | 0 |
| Dallas | 5 | 5 | 0 |
| Golden State | 5 | 5 | 0 |
| LA Clippers | 5 | 5 | 0 |
| Toronto | 5 | 5 | 0 |
| Washington | 5 | 5 | 0 |
| Atlanta | 5 | 4 | -1 |
| Chicago | 4 | 4 | 0 |
| Detroit | 4 | 4 | 0 |
| Memphis | 6 | 4 | -2 |
| Minnesota | 5 | 4 | -1 |
| Phoenix | 6 | 4 | -2 |
| Houston | 2 | 3 | +1 |
| Philadelphia | 5 | 3 | -2 |
| Portland | 4 | 3 | -1 |
| Sacramento | 5 | 3 | -2 |
| San Antonio | 5 | 3 | -2 |
| Brooklyn | 1 | 2 | +1 |
| Charlotte | 2 | 2 | 0 |
| New Orleans | 3 | 2 | -1 |
| Orlando | 2 | 2 | 0 |
| Utah | 5 | 1 | -4 |
| TOTAL | 149 | 130 |
As of completed and reported transactions through July 13.
There are five available free agents – Grimes, Malik Beasley, Alec Burks, Amir Coffey and Garrison Mathews – who shot 38% or better on at least 200 3-point attempts.
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John Schuhmann is a senior stats analyst for NBA.com. You can e-mail him here, find his archive here and follow him on X.
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