It's been less than a week since NBA free agents have been allowed to officially sign contracts with their new teams, but with the big name players all off the board, it's time to grade teams on their offseason moves thus far. Note that for many of these teams the offseason is still incomplete, as there is still work to be done to fill in their rosters. However, barring a blockbuster trade, the remaining moves should be relatively minor enough that they likely would not alter these grades much.
Atlanta
Grade: C-
Who would have thought when the free agent frenzy began that Joe Johnson would be the one to walk away with the biggest pay check? After last season's disappointing playoff exit, in which Johnson performed poorly, it was not expected that he would be back in Atlanta. Rumors swirled of JJ moving to New York or Chicago, among other places, but none of these teams considered him to be a max contract type of player. He's not worth that kind of money now, at 28 years old, and he certainly won't be near the end of that 6 year $119 million contract.
The plus side for Atlanta is that if they had let Johnson walk away then they likely would have taken a step back for a team that finished with the third best record in the East last season. For the short term it keeps them in the picture as a contender. In the long term though, this contract could become a burden, especially if Johnson begins to decline.
For a team unwilling to pay the luxury tax, this move will prevent them from doing much to improve a roster that seemingly only has a second round playoff ceiling. Because of this deal they already were forced to give away the rights to restricted free agent Josh Childress (who is returning from Europe) for a second round pick because they couldn't afford to match the offer he was given by Phoenix. It may also impact their ability to re-sign some of their other core players, such as Josh Smith and Al Horford, when their contracts come up a few years down the line.
Boston
Grade: B+
A team that came within 6 minutes of winning a title shouldn't need to do a whole lot to improve. Their grade isn't as much about what they gained this offseason as it is about what they didn't lose. The Celtics entered the offseason with a lot of question marks, but they did what they needed to do by convincing coach Doc Rivers to return for at least another year, as well as agreeing to new deals with stars Paul Pierce and Ray Allen. They kept the core together to try to extend the window they have to try to win another championship with this group. Thanks to Kevin Garnett's cap clogging contract, the Celtics didn't have many options to replace those guys if they left. They convinced Pierce to take less money this year by opting out of the last year of his contract in order to sign a 4 year deal that should ensure he finishes his career in Boston. Allen may have gotten more money and years elsewhere, but he is determined to try to win in Boston, agreeing to a very team friendly two year deal, which will expire the same time that KG's contract does.
They also used their mid-level exception on a two year deal for veteran Jermaine O'Neal. He may be a far cry from his former All-Star form, but he's still a defensive presence with shot blocking ability, which will be greatly needed for a team that may be without Kendrik Perkins until January due to offseason surgery.
They were able to re-sign Nate Robinson to a two year deal that falls in line with the team's plan to re-build after that time. He can provide a spark off the bench and bring some needed energy to the 2nd unit.
The one blemish on their offseason so far has been letting defensive stopper Tony Allen get away. The three year $10 million deal he received from Memphis doesn't seem like a lot to match for a guy that helped shut down Dwayne Wade, Lebron James and Kobe Bryant in the playoffs, but given his injury history the team did not want to commit to that many years.
Since they are over the salary cap it may be difficult to find suitable players to fill in the roster, but one luxury the team may have is the ability to trade Rasheed Wallace's contract to a team looking to shed salary and receive a player that makes around that same $6 million salary. Wallace intends to retire, which would allow the team that trades for him to drop his salary from their books. This should allow Boston to obtain a better player than what they would likely afford in free agency.
Charlotte
Grade: D-
It's hard to fathom what the plan is for Michael Jordan and the Bobcats. First they nearly went through with trading Tyson Chandler and Boris Diaw for Jose Calderon. Then when that fell apart they instead traded Chandler for Erik Dampier's non-guaranteed contract, Eduardo Najara and Matt Carroll. Dampier will likely be waived to cut costs, but the contracts of Najara and Caroll will cost them more over the next three years than Chandler's expiring contract would have. So they traded their starting center away without getting any long term financial relief. They could still salvage the situation by trading Dampier's contract for something better than Chandler, but if that option was currently available then Dallas would have done it instead. They would have been better off keeping Chandler and trading him at the deadline if they weren't in contention. Instead they will likely waive Dampier and end up with nothing but a couple of bad contracts.
Chicago
Grade: B+
Chicago was one of the teams that shed contracts to get far enough under the cap to afford two max free agents, so to come away without any max players must be a bit of a disappointment. They ideally would have liked to bring in LeBron and Bosh to form an outstanding starting unit that already includes Rose and Noah. I still think those two would have been better off with this team rather than joining Wade in Miami. The Bulls still did pretty well, by bringing in Carlos Boozer to fill their biggest need of a low post scorer. He should be a great complement to the defensive minded Noah in the frontcourt.
The Bulls still have plenty of cap room remaining to fill in the rest of their roster, with their biggest need being a shooter. They recently added Kyle Korver to help with that and are also looking at JJ Reddick.
Cleveland
Grade: F
Anything that didn't involve keeping LeBron James has to be considered a failure. The team went all in to try to win the past couple of seasons with him. Now that he's gone they have not only become a likely lottery team, but they are burdened with the contracts like Antawn Jameson and Mo Williams. They aren't good enough to be a playoff contender, but don't have the money to start rebuilding unless they can trade those guys to contenders for younger players or draft picks.
It also can't help the team that their owner ranted like a lunatic after learning that James had agreed to flee for Miami. Dan Gilbert wrote a letter to Cavs fans that called out LeBron for his "shameful" and "disgusting" behavior, not just for the fact that he was leaving Cleveland, but for the self promoting way he showcased "The Decision" on national television. He felt James was rubbing it in their faces and he was quick to retaliate, going as far to belittle James' accomplishments and accuse him of quitting on his team during the playoffs. While some of what he said may be true, it doesn't exactly paint the picture of a stable environment. It's hard enough for a city like Cleveland to attract free agents, but this episode likely won't help with that.
The one good move they made was agreeing to a sign and trade with Miami for LeBron James, which allowed them to get a few future draft picks and a large trade exception.
Dallas
Grade: B+
The Mavs handled their biggest priority by bringing back Dirk Nowitzki with a very reasonable 4 year $80 million deal. They also re-signed Brendan Haywood to a 6 year $55 million deal, which seems like a lot except when you consider the cash that teams were throwing around to other role players. If Darko Milicic is worth $5 million per year (he's not, but more on that later) then maybe Haywood's deal isn't too bad.
The rumors of trades for LeBron James or Steve Nash were long shots, so it's unfair to fault them for not getting those done, but I still expected Mark Cuban to be more aggressive. Perhaps he still will.
His most valuable trading chip, Erik Dampier's non-guaranteed contract, was just traded to Charlotte for Tyson Chandler. He should add some defensive toughness to the bench, but if he doesn't work out then his expiring contract could make him another trade asset. The trade also rid them of the dead weight contracts of Najara and Carroll, which helps give them some financial flexability after this year.
Golden State
Grade: B-
The Warriors are a mess and did not have the cap room to go after a top free agent, yet they managed to get one anyway via a sign and trade with New York to acquire All-Star big man David Lee. The up tempo style they play is similar to what Lee was used to in NY, and he should thrive on offense off pick and rolls from Stephan Curry. As good as he is on the offensive end, Lee is dismal on defense. It's not from lack of effort, he's just slow to react and lacks good defensive instincts. The Warriors traded away promising youngster Anthony Randolph, as well as their best defensive big man in Ronnie Turiaf. This team isn't likely to be any less dysfunctional and will lose a lot of high scoring games, but getting a player the caliber of Lee is a step in the right direction.
The Warriors also lost Anthony Marrow, one of the game's best three point shooters, who was sent to New Jersey in a sign and trade. They have lost a lot of good young talent without getting much in return besides Lee.
Miami
Grade: A
Miami made the biggest coup of the offseason, by getting the top three free agents on the market: Dwayne Wade, LeBron James and Chris Bosh. The trio is unlike anything the league has ever seen assembled through free agency and makes them instant contenders. The three All-Stars will attempt to put egos aside to co-exist as they strive to form a dynasty that could result in multiple titles. They each agreed to take less money in order to facilitate adding all three of them, while still leaving a little extra left over to fill out the rest of the roster.
The team also found a taker for Michael Beasely, freeing up another $5 million, which they used on free agent Mike Miller. This will give them a versatile shooter that can rebound and pass the ball well.
The rest of the roster will need to be filled out with rookies and veterans willing to play for cheap. The hope is that there are some veterans eager to win a title that will be willing to jump on board for cheap. Udonis Haslem appears to be the first to do so, turning down the full mid-level exception from other teams in order to re-sign with the Heat for much less. Zydrunas Ilgauskas appears to be willing to join them as well.
There are still too many holes on the roster to consider them the favorite right now (most notably the lack of an interior defender that would get them killed by the likes of the Lakers or Magic), but they will be able to piece together more of a supporting cast later in the season when veterans from other teams get waived, or in future offseasons using their mid-level exception.
There is also the question of how well James and Wade will fit together. Bosh is the perfect compliment to both of them, but they themselves may be too similar to co-exist. They both thrive with the ball in their hands and both want to be the alpha dog. On the other hand, they are both unselfish players (both averaged over 6 assists per game despite minimal help to pass to) that can learn to play together. It may take some time, but these guys are too good not to figure it out eventually. If they truly want to win titles then they need to sacrifice some of their own stats. To find an example of three star players compromising their own personal stats in favor of the team's goals they need only to look back two years to when the Celtics big three won the title.
Minnesota
Grade: C-
The Wolves apparently liked what they saw out of Darko Milicic after they traded for him last season, but 4 years $20 million is too much. The former #2 overall pick (who was drafted ahead of Carmelo Anthony, Dwayne Wade and Chris Bosh) has proven to be a bust compared to others in his draft class, but he still holds value as a defender, which is something the Wolves desperatly needed. It's unclear who they were competing against for Milicic though, so they likely could have gotten him for less, but apparently were not willing to take that risk.
Al Jefferson and Kevin Love have shown that their lack of defensive ability makes them impossible to play together, so it was clear that Jefferson had become expendable. It appears they will be sending him to Utah in exchange for two first round draft picks (one of which Utah had received from Memphis). While one of those draft picks could end up being a lottery pick, it still seems that they should have gotten more than draft picks and salary relief for a player that was supposed to be their franchise player after they traded Kevin Garnett for him 3 years ago. Big Al is still not completely healthy from a knee injury he sustained 2 seasons ago, so it's clear they sold him while his value was still low.
I do like the move they made with Miami to trade for Michael Beasley. He is another former #2 overall pick that has yet to live up to expectations, but he's still only 21 years old and showed glimpses of his potential. Maybe living in Minnesota will provide less opportunities for him to get in trouble off the court. If he can focus on his game on the court then he still has a lot of upside, and it only cost them a second round pick.
Adding Luke Ridnour to a four year deal was a curious move. The team is already overloaded with point guards, so adding another isn't likely to entice Ricky Rubio to return from Europe to join that log jam. They are looking to trade Ramon Sessions, but with Jonny Flynn still on the roster it could still be a crowded backcourt if Rubio ever joins. The success of this signing may be determined on what they are able to acquire for Sessions. It may also be a sign that they don't expect Rubio to ever want to join them, which means he may become a trade candidate as well.
New Jersey
Grade: C-
Their new Russian billionaire owner was looking to make a big splash in his debut season and came away empty handed. LeBron was their plan A of course, but plan B, C, D and E also fell through. If they couldn't get one of the top free agents then they would have loved to get David Lee, because it at least would allow them to steal some fans from the Knicks by signing their former fan favorite All-Star. Unfortunately he went to Golden State in a sign and trade, so once again NJ missed out.
Their biggest offseason acquisition has been Travis Outlaw. He's a nice young role player, but probably not worth the 5 year $35 million he received. They also received sharpshooter Anthony Morrow in a sign and trade with Golden State.
They still have a nice young core to build around, with Devin Harris, Brook Lopez and Derrick Favors. They didn't unnecessarily blow all their cap space for the sake of using it up, so they can still be in the running for free agents next year, especially since they will be another year closer to moving to Brooklyn, which will make them a much more attractive destination.
New York
Grade: B+
The Knicks had been looking forward to this offseason more than anyone. They started tanking over two years ago by shedding salary and sacrificing draft picks to put them in position to get LeBron James, but despite being one of the leading contenders to acquire him, they ended up being one of the many teams that were left disappointed. That didn't stop them from making a splash in the free agent market though. They still managed to sign Amare Stoudamire to a 5 year $100 million deal. That seems like a lot of money for a guy with multiple injury concerns that has often been questioned for his lack of intensity on defense and rebounding, but the Knicks were desperate to spend their money on something big this offseason. They had been promising their fans for too long that there was a light at the end of the tunnel and they couldn't disappoint them by doing nothing. Stoudamire is an offensive force, who had his best seasons playing for Mike D'Antoni (who now happens to coach the Knicks), but with Phoenix he had Steve Nash delivering him the ball. New York lacks a point guard capable of getting the best out of Stoudamire, at least for now. The hope is that he'll be able to draw other stars to join him in NY. When he signed with NY he made it known that his intentions were to lure Carmelo Anthony and Tony Parker to join him next year.
The irony is that for as good as Stoudamire can be, he may not be much of an upgrade over the guy he replaced - David Lee. Stoudamire is a more explosive offensive player, but he can't create for himself as well as Lee and doesn't rebound nearly as well. He's a flashier name, but may not give them more production.
Despite having the cap room for another free agent signing, the Knicks decided to let Lee go, knowing that a pairing of him and Stoudamire in the front court would be a nightmare on defense that wouldn't be able to stop anybody. They just don't fit well together. But instead of letting him go for nothing they managed to do a sign and trade with Golden State that brought them back some nice assets. Anthony Randolph is a young promising athletic player that was never utilized correctly in Golden State. They may have given up on him too early and he could become a good player. Ronnie Turiaf gives them some defensive muscle to help in the frontcourt, and Kelenna Azubuike is a versatile wingman that can be useful off the bench.
Phoneix
Grade: C-
For a team that just made it to the Western Conference Finals, the Suns have undergone a pretty big makeover this offseason. Their biggest loss was letting Amare Stoudamire leave, without even working out a sign and trade that could have brought them back something in return (such as David Lee?). They at least could have gotten some future draft picks and a large trade exception. Having GM Steve Kerr resign at the start of the offseason, leaving owner Robert Sarvar to handle the team himself, has really hurt the Suns.
Channing Frye was due for a raise after he proved useful as a big man that can stretch the floor, but overpaying for Hakim Warrick seemed odd, especially since it happened before Stoudamire had made a decision on where he would sign.
The Suns just traded a 2nd round pick to the Hawks for Josh Childress. It will be interesting to see how Childress adapts to the NBA game after taking a brief hiatus to play in Europe, but there isn't much risk with this move, thanks to the Hawks being unable to afford to keep him.
They also traded for Hedo Turkoglu, who is coming of a disappointing season and is signed to a big contract for 4 more years. It was reported that he waived a $5 million trade bonus and will accept less guaranteed money in the final year of the contract in order to facilitate the trade, but it's still a risky investment for a declining player that has proved to be most effective in a system where he can play a "point-forward" role. Unfortunately the Suns already have a guy that does pretty well bringing the ball up.
It seems like after letting one of their best players walk away they ended up spending a lot of money on a bunch of role players without having another star around to help Nash carry the team. This could make things difficult for them to start rebuilding once Nash eventually retires, assuming Nash doesn't get frustrated by these offseason moves and demand a trade. That's unlikely given his nature and loyalty, but it would be hard to blame him if he did.
Toronto
Grade: B-
It's hard to downgrade their offseason much for losing Chris Bosh, since they essentially had no chance at keeping him. Even if he hadn't been able to join the Super Friends in Miami, Bosh had plenty of good options available and likely never gave much serious consideration to staying in Toronto. They were able to recover some draft picks for him by agreeing to a sign and trade in Miami, which includes their own 2011 draft pick that was sent to Miami in a previous trade and will likely be a top lottery pick, as well as get a large trade exemption.
Perhaps the best part of their offseason was finding a taker for Hedo Turkoglu's massive contract. He never fit in well with that team and was miserable there. It's time for Toronto to rebuild, which means there is no need for a high priced underachieving veteran to be locked up for multiple years on a losing team.
Utah
Grade: B-
Utah seemed content to let Carlos Boozer walk away, knowing that his replacement, Paul Milsap, was capable of putting up similar numbers at a cheaper price. With the uncertainty of Mehmet Okur's recovery from an injured Achilles, Boozer's departure left the Jazz without much depth in the front court. To rectify this they sent two first round draft picks to Minnesota for Al Jefferson. They were able to absorb Jefferson's $13 million contract without giving up any players because of the cap exception created in the sign and trade with Chicago for Boozer. So they essentially swapped Boozer and two draft picks for Jefferson and a 2nd round pick from Chicago.
Boozer is a risk as a long term investment, so it's not hard to see why they were willing to let him go, but Jefferson is still not fully recovered from a serious knee injury. If he's not 100% then he's a downgrade from Boozer. If they knew Boozer was going to get away from them then Jefferson isn't a bad back up plan considering it only cost them draft picks, and if he's healthy he's a potential All-Star player, but it's not without risk.
The Jazz also lost Kyle Korver, who signed with Chicago. They don't have a lot of room to sign a replacement shooter.
This article will continue to be updated throughout the offseason, as more signings and trades seem to be happening almost every day. Stay tuned.
No comments:
Post a Comment