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Free agency opens: Fox, Kings agree on $163 million deal

FILE - In this Oct. 4, 2020, file photo, Miami Heat's Meyers Leonard (0) shoots against the Los Angeles Lakers during the second half in Game 3 of basketball's NBA Finals in Lake Buena Vista, Fla. Leonard and Goran Dragic have both decided to return to the Eastern Conference champions, each telling The Associated Press on Friday evening, Nov. 20, 2020, that they have agreed to accept Miami’s offer of two-year deals -- the second year is a team option on both contracts -- to remain with the Heat. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)

On the first night of free agency, De’Aaron Fox was the first huge winner.

Huge, as in $163 million — or even more.

Fox and the Sacramento Kings agreed on a max deal Friday night, agent Chris Gaston said. It’s a five-year pact that will pay Fox $163 million, and that figure could rise to nearly $200 million if Fox makes an All-NBA team or receives other league honors.

Fox’s numbers have improved in each of his three NBA seasons. He averaged 11.6 points as a rookie, then 17.3 points two seasons ago and finally 21.1 points last season for the Kings. His field goal percentage has also risen in each of the last two seasons.

Fox’s extension will kick in for the 2021-22 season and start at $28.1 million.

Free agency opened in the NBA on Friday at 6 p.m. EST. No deals can be signed until 12:01 p.m. Sunday, and many of the biggest available names — such as the Lakers’ Anthony Davis and Fred VanVleet, who has seen his star rise meteorically with the Toronto Raptors — did not make immediate decisions on their futures.

Davis is expected to remain with the Lakers; the question there is how the new deal will be structured. VanVleet is expected to command at least $80 million over the next four seasons, if not more.

A breakdown of moves Friday:

ATLANTA

Danilo Gallinari — one of the top wings on the free-agent market — agreed to a three-year contract worth $61.5 million, a person with knowledge told AP. ESPN and the Atlanta Journal-Constitution first reported the agreement.

Gallinari averaged 18.7 points for Oklahoma City last season and is a 38% career shooter from 3-point range.

BROOKLYN

Joe Harris has agreed to re-sign with the Nets, keeping one of the NBA’s best shooters in Brooklyn.

Priority Sports, which represents Harris, announced the deal on Twitter. ESPN reported that Harris would get $75 million over four years.

Harris finished his fourth season in Brooklyn by averaging a career-best 14.5 points in 69 games in 2019-20.

DALLAS

The Mavericks and Trey Burke have agreed on a $10 million, three-year contract to bring the guard back after he played well in the NBA bubble.

DENVER

The last time Facundo Campazzo and Nikola Jokic shared a court in a real game together was during last year’s Basketball World Cup in China. Campazzo was dazzling and Argentina prevailed, ending the championship hopes for Jokic and Serbia.

Soon, they’ll be teammates in another title quest.

Campazzo agreed to a two-year deal with the Denver Nuggets,according to a person with direct knowledge of the deal.

The 5-foot-10 Campazzo has played in the Olympics twice, the Basketball World Cup twice, has a pair of EuroLeague championships and is known for passes that are spectacular.

DETROIT

The Pistons received commitments Friday night from centers Mason Plumlee and Jahlil Okafor, people familiar with those deals told AP. ESPN, which first reported the Plumlee agreement, said he would sign a three-year deal for $25 million.

Plumlee later posted a thank-you letter to Denver fans on his Twitter account, saying he “has no doubt” that big things await the Nuggets. He also said he’s excited to join the Pistons, calling them “one of the league’s most storied franchises.”

L.A. CLIPPERS

Patrick Patterson will return on a one-year contract, a person with knowledge of the deal told AP.

L.A. LAKERS

The defending NBA champions are adding Montrezl Harrell as a free agent from the Clippers, a person with knowledge of the deal told AP.

That move, when finalized, will give the Lakers the top two finishers in last season’s Sixth Man of the Year voting. Harrell won the award; Dennis Schroder, who was acquired by the Lakers in a trade with Oklahoma City earlier this week, was second.

MIAMI

The Heat got quick agreements from point guard Goran Dragic and center Meyers Leonard on two-year deals, the second year in both cases being team options. Dragic will make about $18 million next season, Leonard about $9 million.

“I simply appreciate that they care about the little things,” Leonard said.

MINNESOTA

The Timberwolves reached a $60 million agreement with restricted free agent shooting guard Malik Beasley that’s for three years plus a team option for a fourth year, a person with knowledge of the deal confirmed to AP.

ORLANDO

A person with knowledge of the negotiations said the Magic and guard Dwayne Bacon agreed on a one-year deal for about $2.5 million this coming season. The Magic hold a team option for 2021-22, the person who spoke to AP said.

PHILADELPHIA

Veteran center Dwight Howard is going to join the 76ers on a one-year deal worth the veteran’s minimum of $2.6 million, agent Charles Briscoe told AP.

Howard heads to Philadelphia after helping the Los Angeles Lakers win this past season’s NBA title.

PORTLAND

Derrick Jones Jr., the league’s reigning Slam Dunk champion, agreed to a two-year deal with the Trail Blazers. The Athletic first reported the agreement, which a person with knowledge later confirmed to AP.

Jones Jr. was a major part of Miami’s rotation for the last two seasons, and averaged a career-best 8.5 points per game for the Heat this past year.

UTAH

Jordan Clarkson is staying and Derrick Favors is coming back, according to people with direct knowledge of the transactions.

Clarkson agreed to a four-year, $52 million deal; he averaged 15.6 points in 42 games after getting traded to Utah last December. And Favors — a post player who spent most of his NBA career in Utah before playing with New Orleans last season — returned on a deal that will pay him nearly $30 million for three seasons.

MILWAUKEE

The Bucks on Thursday requested waivers on Turkish forward Ersan Ilyasova. He was one of the players reportedly involved in the Bucks’ planned trade for Sacramento’s Bogdan Bogdanovic, which fell through. Some sources say Bogdanovic is expected to sign an offer sheet with the Atlanta Hawks.

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