Dwight Howard agrees to $70.5M deal with Atlanta

Free agent center Dwight Howard agreed to a three-year, $70.5 million deal with the Atlanta Hawks, multiple media outlets reported Friday.

Howard is a native of Atlanta, and Howard agreed to join the Hawks after his first meeting with an NBA team.

“It was a really, really, really good meeting,” a source told ESPN.com. “Very impressive. Dwight’s going to look at all his options. But it went very, very well.”

Howard had drawn interest from the Boston Celtics among others. Howard had scheduled meetings with other clubs on Saturday, but canceled them after agreeing to the deal with Atlanta.

The deal averages $23.5 million per year in salary.

If the Hawks renounce the rights to Kirk Hinrich and Kris Humphries as expected, they will have $22.4 million in salary cap space. The Hawks could probably sign only one of their own free agents, either Al Horford or Kent Bazemore.

Howard was one of several free-agent big men this summer, which also includes Hassan Whiteside, Joakim Noah, Bismack Biyombo,Timofey Mozgov and Al Jefferson. Biyombo is the only one who has not agreed to terms with a team.

Howard is an eight-time All-Star who has won three Defensive Player of the Year Awards. Howard has averaged 17.8 points and 12.7 rebounds in his career with the Orlando Magic, Los Angeles Lakers and Houston Rockets. This past season for the Rockets, Howard averaged 13.7 points and 11.8 rebounds.

—The New York Knicks and Joakim Noah have the framework of a four-year, $72 million contract worked out.

Noah, 31, spent his entire career with the Chicago Bulls and could average $18 million per season.

He played only 29 games last season and has been prone to injury.

— Hassan Whiteside returned to the Miami Heat on the first day of NBA free agency, agreeing to terms on a four-year, $98 million contract.

Whiteside, who played internationally and bounced around the developmental league before blossoming with the Heat, made $980,000 with the Heat last season.

— Jeremy Lin booked his return to New York, agreeing to a contract with the Brooklyn Nets on the opening day of free agency.

The verbal agreement can be made official on July 7, when the league moratorium on contract signings is lifted. Yahoo Sports reported the three-year deal was worth $36 million with a fourth-year player option.

— Forward Chandler Parsons has agreed to a four-year maximum contract with the Memphis Grizzlies worth a projected $94.8 million, ESPN reported.

Parsons averaged 13.7 points and 4.7 rebounds in 61 games, including 51 starts, for the Dallas Mavericks this past season.

Parsons had arthroscopic knee surgery in March that ended his season prematurely. It was the second straight seasons that his season ended early because of surgery to the same right knee.

— The Toronto Raptors and DeMar DeRozan reached agreement on a deal that could be worth between $139 million and $145 million over six years, pushing his annual earnings to about $30 million per season.

While terms of the deal can be finalized with verbal agreements, DeRozan cannot re-sign until the NBA moratorium on free agent signings is lifted July 7.

—The Los Angeles Lakers and free agent center Timofey Mozgov reached an agreement on a four-year deal worth $64 million, according to multiple reports.

In addition, the Lakers and restricted free agent shooting guard Jordan Clarkson agreed on a four-year, $50 million deal.

— Restricted free agent Bradley Beal and the Washington Wizards were near a five-year, $128.5 million contract at the outset of free agency.

—Restricted free agent center Andre Drummond and the Detroit Pistons reportedly reached agreement on a five-year maximum contract in the $130 million range.

The deal would make the 22-year-old Drummond the highest-paid player in Pistons history.

— Free agent forward Nicolas Batum agreed to a five-year, $120 million deal to re-sign with the Charlotte Hornets, according to multiple reports.

The deal reportedly includes a player option on the final season.

— Free agent backup point guard D.J. Augustin agreed to a four-year deal with the Orlando Magic, according to reports Friday.

—The Portland Trail Blazers have agreed to terms with swingman Evan Turner on a four-year, $70 million contract, according to published reports.

Turner, 27, averaged 10.5 points, 4.9 rebounds and 4.4 assists for the Boston Celtics last season while starting just 12 games.

—Restricted free agent Evan Fournier has agreed to a five-year, $85 million deal to remain with the Orlando Magic, multiple media outlets reported. The contract will include a player option for the fifth year that will allow Fournier to become a free agent following the 2019-2020 season.

—Forward Mirza Teletovic reached an agreement on a three-year, $30 million deal with the Milwaukee Bucks, ESPN.com reported.