NBA rumors: 76ers losing interest in PG, Bulls blew it with Alex Caruso, Bronny isn't the key to LeBron

NBA rumors: 76ers losing interest in Paul George pursuit

Despite reportedly focusing on him for months, the Sixers could be giving up on Paul George in favor of pursuing other free agents with the $65+ million they could have in cap space this summer, according to Shams Charania of The Athletic.

Obviously, this is a bad sign for George who is looking to command as much as $223 million over four years from the Clippers but will likely need offers from other teams to get that number from L.A. As it currently stands, the Clippers don't seem interested in offering more than a three-year, $152.4 million contract like the one teammate Kawhi Leonard accepted.

George could still receive long-term max contract offers from teams like the Orlando Magic but this entire situation is close to becoming a one-horse race. In the end, L.A. could end up giving George the four-year max contract that he wants but it seems like the franchise might take this down to the wire with no one really competing against them.

NBA rumors: Bulls blew Caurso trade as franchise give him away for scraps

Fans everywhere are mocking the Bulls' trade return for Caruso, and the deal becomes worse when considering the other offers that the Bulls had this offseason. According to Will Gottlieb of CHGO Sports, the Chicago Bulls "passed on multiple offers to trade Alex Caruso for multiple picks" in favor of the single trade return of Josh Giddey.

Giddey, a 21-year-old averaged 12.3 points, 6.4 rebounds, and 4.8 assists per game on 47 percent shooting from the floor this season. When he was drafted in 2021 with the No. 6 overall pick, the prospect seemingly had All-Star-level potential, showcasing that in his rookie campaign. In the two years since the forward hasn't been able to improve his play and he was an issue in the Thunder's rotation during the playoffs.

Yes, Giddey might end up a star for the Bulls but it's hard to see this based on his recent play. He was played off the court in Oklahoma City's second-round series against the Dallas Mavericks. Instead of the Thunder's trade offer, Chicago could have likely received "multiple protected first-round picks" with one of those offers possibly coming from the Golden State Warriors.

This deal came as a clear shock to fans around the league as Alex Caruso has been one of the top role players in the league, averaging 10.1 points, 3.8 rebounds and 3.1 assists per game on 46 percent shooting (40 percent shooting from 3) this season, while also providing some of the best perimeter defense in the league.

NBA rumors: Teams will not be drafting Bronny James with the hopes of signing LeBron

Rumors had circulated for months that teams would consider drafting Bronny James in the hopes of luring LeBron as a free agent but one NBA insider has thrown cold water on this theory. According to Mark Medina of Sportskeeda, there is no "validity" to any rumors suggesting that the older LeBron James will sign with the franchise that drafts Bronny James because of the opportunity to play with his son.

Bronny James came into this college basketball season with a good chance to be drafted in the first round but things changed quickly after the guard missed a good chunk of his lone college season with the USC Trojans due to a health scare. Once on the court, the younger James only averaged 4.8 points, 2.8 rebounds and 2.1 assists per game on 36 percent shooting, clearly affected by the time away recovering.

Before this NBA season, the older James had made claims for years that playing with his son could be a big part of his free agency calculus.

After this report and James' agent making it abundantly clear that the older James will not automatically go to the franchise that drafted his son, the league will likely back off this pursuit. With this in mind, the younger James will probably be drafted within the last 10 picks of the NBA draft. There is a chance that the prospect could go undrafted with the Lakers and Mavericks being possible landing spots at No. 55 overall and No. 58 overall respectively.