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Come Fan with UsTuesday, June 23, 2026

Chandler Parsons and DeAndre Jordan are no longer bros

Good morning! We have that, free agency news and more in Friday’s NBA newsletter.

Good morning. Let’s basketball.

DECOMMITMENT FALLOUT: We began to get some on-the-record reaction out of Dallas over the DeAndre Jordan imbroglio. Chandler Parsons, who spent something like five dinners and a weekend wooing DeAndre, unloaded. He is basically the ID of Dallas at this point. He said everything Mavericks fans want to say short of calling Jordan, I don’t know, the p-word. (The hecklers will handle that the first time the Clippers visit Dallas this season.)

Mark Cuban also attempted to send a low-key message of frustration to Mavericks fans who follow him on his preferred messaging app CyberDust, which boasts extra privacy because messages are deleted 24 seconds after they are read. Cuban’s ‘Dust’ immediately made its way to Twitter and then the world because Mavs beat writer Tim MacMahon screenshotted it. It now lives in eternity. 0-for-2 there, Mark.

EVERYONE’S NOT AWESOME: Rodger Sherman lists the ways in which everyone involved in The DeCommitment failed.

IN DEFENSE OF DEANDRE: If you were considering ripping Jordan for his indecision, here’s Harvey Araton to dump some ice cold water all over that.

ENTER ZAZA: But hey, the Mavericks traded for Zaza Pachulia, which is a really good move!

BUT YEAH: As I wrote, Dallas is still screwed.

WAIT, WHAT NOW? When Jordan was still planning to be a Maverick, Wesley Matthews was going to sign a four-year, $57 million contract with Dallas. When Jordan recanted, the Mavs decided to use some of their salary space to give Matthews a raise. So he signed a four-year, $70 million deal. That’s about $1.5 million per year more than even the Kings were offering Wes! This is an insane decision that negatively effects the Mavericks’ cap space flexibility for the next four years. It looks like a rash, emotional move aimed at making Matthews feel good about Dallas and Dallas feel good about itself. (There’s been a suggestion that this was part of the Wes deal all along: you get the max if DeAndre doesn’t sign, and $57 million if he does. That is also phenomenally stupid.)

I wonder how Dirk Nowitzki, who gave up all that money to help the Mavericks make one last run, feels about it.

HOW PRECIOUS: Deron Williams is trying to get bought out by the Nets so he can join the Mavs.

INTERESTING: An argument that the timing of Jordan’s change of heart didn’t actually change anything for Dallas -- it was the decision itself that ruined the Mavericks’ summer.

HO HUM: By the way, LeBron quietly signed a new deal with the Cavaliers: max salary, two-year deal with an opt-out next summer. Meanwhile Tristan Thompson does not yet have a deal.

QUIZ TIME! Tim Duncan’s new low salary was revealed on Thursday. Test your knowledge of the players paid more than him. (I got 18 out of 20. I blame Tony Allen and a misclick.)

WOOWEE: The Blazers helped out Enes Kanter by extending a four-year, $70 million offer sheet that Kanter signed. The Thunder have until Sunday to match or decline. They’ll match at the last minute, is my prediction. John Schuhmann breaks down whether Kanter is worth it.

AND HERE I THOUGHT INDIANA WAS FLAT: The Pacers add Jordan Hill to their collection of Hills, also featuring Solomon and George. Meh, wake me up when they get a Mountain.

MORE SIGNINGS: Mirza Teletovic finds a new home, a one-time former Player Of The Week re-ups and more in our comprehensive tracker.

BEAUTIFUL: A live map showing where the top free agents who moved signed.

AHEAD OF THE PACK: One of the top 2017 NBA Draft prospects, Jayson Tatum, is prepared to pick his college before his senior year of high school. Ricky O’Donnell writes about why he’s such a big deal.

WHEN EVERYONE IS SPECIAL, NO ONE IS: Ken Berger on the artificial construct of the max contract and the devaluation of actual stars.

Happy Friday. Barring anything crazy, we’ll be back on Monday on a more normal weekday schedule. See you then.

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