Kevin Durant is among the notable players set to enter free agency this offseasonNBAE/GETTY IMAGES
The NBA is "expected to move up the start" of its annual free-agent negotiating window from midnight ET on July 1 to 6:00pm on June 30, according to sources cited by Tim Bontemps of ESPN.com. While the decision "isn't finalized, the expectation is that it will be implemented for this year's free-agency period." The move is "long overdue, as the current system has forced players and teams to work into the early-morning hours on July 1 to conduct the opening rounds of business in free agency." Moving up the start will "allow people to have a more normal schedule" (ESPN.com, 5/15). However, NBCSPORTS.com's Kurt Helin wrote moving up the end of the moratorium six hours "will not change how teams reach out to potential players in advance of the start of free agency." Helin: "Not in the least. Those back-channel conversations go on for months and years, it’s part of the game now." This will put "everyone on a more reasonable timeline," but "don’t expect it to impact tampering" (NBCSPORTS.com, 5/15).
