36. Patrick Beverley, G, Houston (Restricted): Last summer, Rockets GM Daryl Morey played chicken and lost with RFA Chandler Parsons but somehow landed on his feet thanks in part to the contributions of Beverley, whose season ended early with a wrist injury. Morey cannot afford to do the same this summer with “Mr. 94 Feet,” who isn’t close to being a pure point guard but is among the top defenders at the position, a valuable commodity given the number of scoring point men in the league right now. And with James Harden operating as a de facto point guard for the Rockets, it is imperative that they keep someone who is young and can operate efficiently at both ends of the floor. Plus, Pablo Prigioni and Jason Terry aren’t getting any younger. JULY 1 UPDATE: Knicks have “major interest,” and the feeling is mutual, SportingNews reported. Sacramento and Dallas also have called, and Cavs are interested, the Houston Chronicle reported. JULY 2 UPDATE: Knicks have interest in signing Beverley at the right price, but won’t overpay with three point guards on the roster, our Mike Scotto reports. JULY 3 UPDATE: Beverley agreed to a four-year, $25 million deal to stay with the Rockets, Yahoo reports.
37. Corey Brewer, F, Houston (Unrestricted): He had a player option for $4.9 million for next season but agreed to waive it to facilitate the in-season trade from Minnesota to Houston. Turning his back on nearly $5 million looked like a bad move at the time but may end up being a good one for Brewer, who had a solid season as a reserve and got off to a flying start in the postseason. He still cannot make 3-pointers with any regularity but runs the floor as well as any wing in the league and is a very good defender. The Rockets need him to ease the burden on Harden and Trevor Ariza but also have possible extensions coming due for Terrence Jones and Donatas Motiejunas. more likely the latter. JULY 1 UPDATE: Had talks with the Rockets, Celtics and Knicks. JULY 3 UPDATE: Brewer agreed to a three-year, $24 million deal to stay with the Rockets, Yahoo reports. According to CBS Sports, there are no options included in the agreement.
38. Marco Belinelli, G, San Antonio (Unrestricted): An interesting case, because if the Spurs lose Danny Green in free agency and Many Ginobili retires, the cupboard is bare at shooting guard. He made only $2.87 million last season when his minutes dropped to 22.4 — his fewest in five years — and his 3-point shooting dropped to .374 from .430 the previous season. He has been with five teams in his eight-year career, but he has been a good playoff performer for the Spurs to past two postseasons, shooting .421 and .467 from behind the arc. The Bulls reportedly have him as a fallback in case Mike Dunleavy departs, and he should be a fallback for a few other teams who stand to lose shooting guards (Dallas, Portland). Seems like a mid-level candidate. JULY 1 UPDATE: The Hornets placed their first call of free agency to him, and may have presented a take-it-or-leave-it offer, the Charlotte Observer reported. JULY 3: Heat have reached out, too, but he wants to return to the Spurs, the San Antonio-Express-News reported. Belinelli agreed to a three-year, $19 million contract with the Kings, ESPN reports.
39. Al-Farouq Aminu, F, Dallas (Unrestricted). A year ago, this guy sat on the shelf for most of July before the Mavs swept in and grabbed him on a one-year deal for $980,000. He then made two starts in the postseason (he started only three games in the regular season) while doubling his scoring average from 5.6 to 11.2 ppg and shooting 63 percent from the 3-point arc. A tough rebounder and consummate glue guy, there are a number of teams who wouldn’t give him a sniff last season who are ready to bring him in over the first few days of July. They include the Celtics, Knicks, Blazers, Raptors and Pelicans. A return to Dallas is not out of the question, but there could be a bit of a bidding war here. JULY 1 UPDATE: Signing with Portland for four years, $30 million, Yahoo reported. “Rip City here I come,” Aminu tweeted.
40. Mike Dunleavy, G, Bulls (Unrestricted). The 13-year veteran started 63 games for the Bulls last season and made nearly 41 percent of his 3-point shots, but he is getting up in years to the point where he may be 12 to 24 months away from being the next Mike Miller. He wants to compete for a championship, and the jury is out on whether he feels Chicago is the best place to have that opportunity. The Bulls want him back, but there may be a team (San Antonio) with a hole to fill at shooting guard who give him a welcome change of scenery after spending the last two seasons enduring the drudgery of playing under Tom Thibodeau. If someone other than Chicago prioritizes him, it’ll get interesting. JULY 1 UPDATE: Washington and Cleveland were pursuing, but Dunleavy agreed to a $14 million, three-year deal to remain with the Bulls.
41. JaVale McGee, C, Sixers (Unrestricted). Everyone needs a rim protector. Not everyone has one. This is a guy who was traded to Philadelphia so that Sam Hinkie could get to the salary floor, then was waived after March 1 to keep him from being playoff eligible after he refused to take a buyout. As of now, he is the highest-paid player on the Sixers’ roster for next season at $12 million, and there is no doubt he will join Josh Smith as a double-dipper (a player receiving paychecks from two teams). You could actually make an argument that he deserves to be ranked higher than No. 42 because of the dearth of available 7-footers, but the fact of the matter is that he has underachieved throughout his career, and as a double-dipper, he may not be motivated to change. A major risk/reward guy who could go boom or bust depending on who signs him.
42. Jae Crowder, F, Boston (Restricted): Is he the next DeMarre Carroll? In an admittedly small sample size, Crowder averaged 9.5 points and 4.6 rebounds in 57 games for the Celtics – pretty much double what he averaged in two-plus seasons in Dallas. His 3-point percentage slipped as his volume increased, and that will have to get better if he is going to be a true “3-and-D” guy. But he seems like a rotation piece worth keeping. Boston had 20 active or waived players on its payroll at the end of the season, and Crowder ranked 17th at $920,000. GM Danny Ainge extended the qualifying offer, but he is in line for a big raise, and no one should be surprised if someone offers him the mid-level exception. JULY 1 UPDATE: Crowder and the Celtics agreed to a five-year, $35 million deal according to RealGM.
43. Jordan Hill, F-C, LA Lakers (Unrestricted): Someone had to score and rebound for the Lakers, and Hill did his share with career highs of 12.0 points and 7.9 boards in 26.8 minutes, primarily as a starter. While that clearly is not his long-term role, he could play into his mid-30s as a team’s fourth big. The Lakers declined the $9 million option on Hill for 2015-16 to create more cap room, and turning Hill loose would allow GM Mitch Kupchak to possibly make a run at two top-tier free agents, although not both at max salaries. JULY 3 UPDATE: A fallback guy for Lakers and Mavs if they lose out on Aldridge/Jordan.
44. Brandan Wright, F-C, Phoenix (Unrestricted): He played for three teams last season, and the only one that used him properly was Dallas, which made Wright the roll man and threw him easy lobs when opponents didn’t help off corner shooters. The Mavs also turned him loose on defense, where he had the best stretch of rim protection of his career. Wright will never be a starter in this league, and he should be a better scorer given his physical gifts. But in some ways he is a better fit for today’s NBA than plodders such as Al Jefferson and Roy Hibbert. He also may be in line for a mid-level exception deal. JULY 1 UPDATE: He goes to the Grizzlies at the mid-level for three years.
45. Brandon Bass, F, Boston (Unrestricted): A highly professional player who has missed just eight of 312 games since arriving in Boston four years ago and hasn’t said one discouraging word through a rebuilding process that isn’t quite done. It would be nice if GM Danny Ainge brought him back, but you have to figure that this is the summer that the Celtics go big-game hunting for a star, and they may need Bass’ cap slot to do it. He made $6.9 million this season, just turned 30 and would make an ideal backup big on a contender, a role he has held in both Orlando and Boston. Someone may give him the mid-level, which will be a bargain a year from now.
46. Amar’e Stoudemire, F-C, Dallas (Unrestricted): His days as a starter or even a 30-minute player in this league are over. But you could see the bounce in his step return after arriving in Dallas. Maybe Stoudemire was just happy to get out of New York, where he did more good than title-hungry Knicks fans gave him credit for. Or maybe it was because the Mavericks reduced his minutes by 33 percent and brought him off the bench, where his scoring savvy obliterated opposing reserves and his limited lateral movement wasn’t as much of a liability. With a similar role moving forward, there’s no reason to believe he cannot be an effective backup big for three or four more years at the mid-level exception. JULY 2 UPDATE: Stoudemire has received interest from the Rockets, Mavericks, Clippers and Suns, ESPN reports. JULY 3 UPDATE: Interest also coming from Lakers, who appear as though they will miss out on Jordan and Aldridge.
47. J.J. Barea, Mavericks (Unrestricted): You may have noticed this list is chock full of Mavericks. And here are a bunch (not including Monta Ellis) who could be heading back to Big D if Mark Cuban strikes out on his big targets. (Note to Cuban: Is DeAndre Jordan really twice the player that Tyson Chandler is? Because he is going to cost twice as much money.) Barea is the original Delly, a guy who has gotten it done in the playoffs (and in FIBA competitions) without ever having been considered a must-have player. But when there is a guy who is beloved in the locker room and can play mistake-free ball (Barea is much better at this than Dellavedova), he has value. He made only $1.3 million last season, less than Richard Jefferson and Charlie Villanueva, and is looking to double that in a multi-year deal. He will be a smart pickup for a contender. JULY 1 UPDATE: Barea is leaning towards signing with the Miami Heat, David Aldridge reports. JULY 3 UPDATE: Barea was reportedly working out details on a deal with the Mavericks, David Aldridge reports.
48. Ed Davis, F, Lakers (Unrestricted): With El Lay opting not to pick up Jordan Hill’s option, I could see the Buss siblings and Mitch Kupchak deciding to bring this guy back if the price is right. He averaged 8.3 points and 7.8 rebounds, and he actually could be the Opening Night starter at power forward if he beats out Julius Randle in training camp. But that is a big “if,” and if somebody likes him to the tune of $5 million per year, it’ll have been a smart move for Davis to have declined his $1.1 million player option. Definitely a big-time mystery man on this Top 50 list. JULY 1 UPDATE: Several teams might make offers sooner rather than later, testing the Lakers resolve, Yahoo reported. JULY 2 UPDATE: Davis made an excellent decision to decline his player option after signing a three-year contract with Portland worth $20 million, Yahoo reported.
49. Paul Pierce, F, Wizards (Unrestricted): Showed he still has something left in the tank by averaging 14.6 points in 10 playoff games for the Wizards, being a particular thorn in the side of the Toronto Raptors as that series ended in a sweep. He will be 38 next season as he begins his 19th year in the league. Peter May reported for this site in March of 2013 that Pierce would “without a doubt” welcome a return to the Celtics. He turned down a $5.5 million player option for next season, and the Wizards could offer him $6.6 million. But the Clippers could be an option. JULY 1 UPDATE: Indeed it is the Clippers, a three-year deal worth $10 million.
50. Matthew Dellavedova, G, Cleveland (Restricted): When LeBron James describes you as basically the most feisty player on the team, that is a heck of an endorsement. He showed his value — and David Griffin’s skill in assembling a roster full of quality, capable backups — by filling in for Kyrie Irving at the end of the second round vs. Chicago, during the conference finals against Atlanta, and in Games 2-6 of the Finals. He is smart, can shoot, defends like a puppy nipping at your ankles and is fearless. Give me a team with two guys like him, and I’ll take my chances against anyone. The big question is what kind of an offer will he receive — and whether Gilbert will match it given the luxury tax implications. JULY 1 UPDATE: One big piece of business was taken care of by Cavs as they signed Iman Shumpert to a $40 million, four-year deal, and then another item was cleared from the ledger as Tristan Thompson re-signed. Delly is next, along with J.R. Smith, before the Cavs look to trade Brendan Haywood’s non-guaranteed contract. They’ll be back in the Finals next season for sure. JULY 2 UPDATE: Dellavedova and the Cavaliers are progressing on a multi-year contract between $3 million to $5 million range, RealGM reports.
TOP 50 FREE AGENTS: Nos. 1-18 | Nos 19-35
Chris Sheridan is the publisher of SheridanHoops.com. Follow him on Twitter.