Deals, steals and early trades underway

Spurs, Rockets, Hawks, Magic and Mavericks among those making early moves as free agents hit the market

Victor Wembanyama has another big man to help him out in San Antonio, the Houston Rockets continued their offseason overhaul and Orlando and Atlanta made moves with eyes on contending this coming season, as the NBA's free agency period got underway on Monday.

The Spurs lured center Luke Kornet away from Boston with a four-year, $41 million deal, a person with knowledge of the agreement told reporters. The person spoke on condition of anonymity because the team cannot announce the deal until the league's signing moratorium for most contracts is lifted on Sunday.

Kornet was part of Boston's 2024 NBA title team and has shot 68 percent from the field in 205 games, mostly off the bench, over the last three regular seasons. He is likely to add frontcourt depth to the Spurs, who are hoping to have Wembanyama — the 2023-24 NBA Rookie of the Year and an All-Star this past season — back and ready to go after he was diagnosed with deep vein thrombosis in his shoulder back in February.