As the Portland Trail Blazers plan out their most important off-season of the last decade, they have to weigh their options for every nonessential piece of the puzzle, starting with their only player in need of a qualifying offer: Joel Freeland. The extension of such an offer would make Freeland a restricted free agent, allowing Portland the opportunity to keep him on for at least one more year. Per CBA expert Larry Coon, here is how it works:
In order to make their free agent a restricted free agent, a team must submit a qualifying offer to the player between the day following the last game of the NBA Finals and June 30.