Let the maneuvering begin as free agency finally opens Sunday

Kawhi Leonard is planning meetings in Los Angeles. Kevin Durant will do the same in New York. Those are the cities where they’ll begin free agency.

Where they will end it will finally start to get clearer soon.

NBA teams will start opening their checkbooks Sunday at 4 p.m. MT, when the negotiating window for one of the most hotly anticipated free-agent periods begins and with more than 200 players — including two dozen players with at least one All-star appearance — eligible to change teams.

“Some people could say, ‘Oh, my God, look at all that player movement,’ ” NBA commissioner Adam Silver said during this past season. “On the other hand, that player movement could be very positive for a lot of teams.”

Leonard, Durant, Kemba Walker, Klay Thompson, Nikola Vucevic, Al Horford and Khris Middleton are among the top players who will be deciding whether to change addresses or not.

Boston apparently knows it will be losing Kyrie Irving, since a person with knowledge of the situation told The Associated Press on Saturday that fellow All-star point guard Kemba Walker has informed the Charlotte Hornets that he’s leaving them for the Celtics. Irving’s focus is believed to be on joining the Brooklyn Nets.

The NBA has set the salary cap for the coming season at $109.14 million, which represents a bump of just over $7 million from last season.

The luxury tax level is set for $132,627,000 and all teams will be required to spend at least $98.226 million in salary.