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Last updated: 9/30/2019
Last updated: 9/30/2019
Last updated: 9/30/2019
2022 Free Agents - Bismack Biyombo
Summary
After going unsigned as a free agent in 2021, Biyombo signed a 10-day hardship exemption contract with Phoenix and played well enough to turn that into a contract for the rest of the season.
Biyombo's eFG% of 61.8% in '21-'22 was a career high, as he finished better at the rim than he ever had previously. That's partly due to the situation, as he has never played with a point guard as good as Chris Paul, so he's getting more open dunks. His hands have improved, allowing him to catch more passes and finish inside. He also has a very good offensive rebounding rate.
Defensively, Biyombo isn't the biggest center at 6'9", but he has decent enough length to bother some shots inside. He has always had a good block rate, but could have better defensive awareness and instincts to be a true rim protector.
Biyombo can move his feet decently on the perimeter, and can survive when switching in late-clock situations, but you probably want him in drop coverage the majority of the time. In the Mavericks series, the Suns started playing Biyombo over JaVale McGee because of his superior ability to hold defend on the perimeter.
Biyombo has proven that in the right situation he can still be a serviceable backup center, which should allow him to stick in the league a little longer. He'll be going into his age-30 season in '22-'23, so some age-related regression could be coming, but is not something that should be all that concerning on a short-term contract.
Cap Considerations
Biyombo will be an unrestricted free agent with a $1.8 million cap hold and Non-Bird Rights. This means that the highest starting salary the Suns could offer him using the Non-Bird Exception is $3.4 million. This should be enough to retain Biyombo, since he settled for the minimum to come to Phoenix. Alternatively, the Suns could use their their Mid-Level Exception to re-sign Biyombo if he demands more than $3.4 million.
Other teams will have multiple ways to sign Biyombo as even teams without cap space could possibly use any of the Non-Taxpayer MLE, Taxpayer MLE, Room MLE, or Bi-Annual Exception to sign him. It's also likely that Biyombo only gets minimum offers.
Potential Teams: Suns, Raptors, Trailblazers, Lakers, Bulls
Predicted Contract: 1-year, $2.9 million ($1.8 million cap hit) with the Suns
Actual Contract: 1-year, $2.9 million ($1.8 million cap hit) with the Suns
As expected, the Suns were able to retain Biyombo on a minimum contract, and he will move into the backup center spot with JaVale McGee signing with Dallas.
Last updated: 7/2/2022
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