NBA
Los Angeles Lakers - Off-season & Financial Moves
Of all the teams in the NBA, covering the off-season moves of the Lakers was the easiest – because they barely did anything. They are the Western Conference Champs and they have their entire rotation safely under contract, at least for another year.
Very quickly – they tendered qualifying offers to restricted free agents Sasha Vujacic and Rony Turiaf, and made initial offers on 3-year deals to both. Vujacic took his offer (3-years for about $15 million). Turiaf got a better offer from Golden State and the Lakers decided not to match it.
That was probably a tough decision. Turiaf was a main player in their rotation and brought valuable energy off the bench. He’s not an all-star, but he’s a helluva good guy to have on your roster. But the offer the Warriors made him did seem a little steep (4-years, $17 million) when you consider that his playing time in LA would likely have curtailed due to the return of Andrew Bynum to the rotation. So with reluctance, the Lakers let him go. They already have over $83 million committed to the current roster, and are already paying taxes on that.
They signed a handful of roster hopefuls to one-year free agent deals; most notably Sun Yue from China, returning 3rd string center DJ Mbenga, and 2nd round pick Joe Crawford, a shooting guard from Kentucky. The others include journeyman forward Josh Powell who was cut by the Clippers, guards Dwayne Mitchell and Brandon Heath, and center CJ Giles. Yue and Mbenga are the most likely of the group to actually make the roster.
Andrew Bynum is apparently completely healed from last year’s knee surgery. He’s still trying to get a max extension on his contract (5 years at about $80 million). The Lakers have been playing a waiting game on that until they see how he’s healed from surgery. They have until Oct. 31 to make an official decision. If they do that, expect to see Lamar Odom traded. Odom is in the final year of his contract; so he’s very moveable.
Luke Walton had surgery to clear some debris from his right ankle in July. He’s still recovering and won’t be full strength at the start of the season. This is not much of a concern for probably the deepest team in the league. It’s the same with trading Odom. Both guys are integral parts of their rotation, but they’re not irreplaceable.
One concern that may rear its ugly head during this season is Kobe’s right pinkie finger. It needs surgery and he’s decided to put it off until later. There is a complete tear of the radial collateral ligament, an avulsion fracture and volar plate injury at the MCP joint. Now I’m not going to pretend to know what any of that means – but it sure sounds painful.
Remember last year around this time, when Kobe was demanding to be traded? Now he’s putting off needed surgery because he wants to make sure Bynum is re-incorporated into the line-up smoothly, and to ensure a fast start to the season. My how things have changed! Isn’t it wonderful how loyal Kobe is to his team? And the team, of course is playing right into it, saying things like, “Kobe knows his own body better than we do, when to have surgery will be his decision.” I don’t know about you, but this whole love-fest thing kinda turns my stomach. You know Kobe will be the first to bolt if things go bad. I enjoyed it more when there was more controversy. This is just boring.
Anyway – enough about that. The bottom line is, until I see otherwise – with a healthy Bynum back on the floor, the Lakers are the best team in the league.
Los Angeles Clippers - Off-season & Financial Moves
At first glance, one could look at the Clippers’ off-season and get the initial reaction that: Elton Brand and Corey Maggette are gone – ergo – the Clippers are in trouble.
Not so fast.
When you take a closer look at their moves as a whole, you find that they may not be so bad off after all. Of course I’m not saying that a premiere power forward and leader like Elton Brand or an incredibly athletic and talented scorer like Maggette can easily be replaced. But remember Chris Kaman last year? He raised his game to a much higher level with Brand on the shelf. He has become a near all-star level performer. Now you team him with a shot-swatting rebounder like Marcus Camby. Personally, I think this starting tandem of 7-footers could really work. And, although I would never say a potent scorer like Maggette is “expendable”, his departure does ensure increased playing time for last year’s first round pick, small forward Al Thornton, who got rave reviews in his rookie season last year and the team was looking to give him more responsibility anyway.
Getting Camby the way they did was a major coup. Denver was so desperate to shed salaries that they “gave” Camby to the Clippers in exchange for the right to switch 2nd round picks next year. In essence – the Clippers got Camby for nothing. They got a center who is a real threat to lead the league in rebounding and blocked shots, and team him with a very talented 7-footer in Kaman for the next two years – for nothing – free of charge. All they have to do is pay his salary (2 years, $15.7 million), which isn’t much considering what he brings to the floor, particularly at the defensive end.
Earlier in the free agent season, actually the day after Brand signed with Philly, came the Clippers’ biggest off-season move – signing Baron Davis to a 5-year, $65 million deal. The single most glaring weakness on this team a year ago was point guard. Now at least, that problem is solved. Risky? Sure – the Clippers just committed 5 years and a ton of money to the shaky knees and often flaky personality of Davis. But you can’t argue with the numbers the guy has put up. No matter how you slice it, Davis must be considered one of the top 5 point guards in the league when he’s healthy.
So, do the math – the Clippers got a top defensive center and one of the best point guards in the league for about the same amount combined (around $81 million) that the Sixers committed to Brand (around $82 million). I’d say they came out about even, if not actually a little ahead, depending on Brand’s continued recovery from last year’s Achilles surgery and how healthy Davis and Camby can stay.
Besides Davis and Camby, the Clippers also helped themselves in other areas. They needed to start looking for an eventual replacement for aging shooting guard Cuttino Mobley. Enter first round pick (#7 overall) Eric Gordon from Indiana. At 6’4” and about 215 lbs, physically strong with an ability to score in a number of different ways, including NBA 3-point range, he was easily the most NBA-ready shooting guard available in the draft.
Their other two draft picks, center DeAndre Jordan from Texas A&M, and point guard Mike Taylor, a D-league phenom, probably won’t see much action this year. Jordan is a nice-looking 7-footer, but he’s very raw. Taylor will find it hard getting minutes at a position in which the Clips are suddenly well-stocked.
Also, useful depth was a problem last year. This off-season the Clippers signed swingman Ricky Davis, point guard Jason Williams, and center Brian Skinner; all three for very cheap. Davis signed for two years and about $5 million (far below his expected market value), while Williams and Skinner both accepted deals for the veterans’ minimum. All three should play a role here – Davis as a swingman who can provide scoring off the bench and to help further the development of Thornton, Williams as Baron Davis’s back-up, and Skinner as muscle off the bench. They also sent an offer sheet in the direction of Warriors’ athletic shooting guard Kelenna Azubuike, but Golden State matched it to keep him.
All-in-all this was actually a positive off-season for the Clippers even though all-star talents Elton Brand and Corey Maggette were lost. They got a rebounding, shot-blocking 7-footer to team with Chris Kaman without having to give up anything in return, they finally have a true leader at point guard, they did well in the draft, and they stocked up some useful veteran depth. And all of this was done while keeping the expenses low. The Clippers payroll currently comes in at about $58 million, well below the salary cap. And, besides Baron Davis and Kaman, nobody is signed past 2010, meaning the Clips have, and will have plenty of financial flexibility to continue building.
So don’t go feeling all sorry for the Clippers. Health permitting, they should be a competitive team this year. Playoffs? I won’t go that far. This is a tough conference and it might take some time for all these new pieces to gel. But they’re not going to be push-overs.
Golden State Warriors - Off-season & Financial Moves
Wow, where do you begin? This was one busy team this off-season. And it all started with Baron Davis. He turned down his player option for next year in hopes of landing a longer term extension with the team. But the Warriors were hesitant to go long term with Davis, fearing his age and history of injuries. So when the Clippers came calling with the kind of offer BD was looking for, he bolted - thus forever changing the face of the Golden State Warriors.
Heading into the off-season, the Warriors’ main concern was getting restricted free agents Monta Ellis and Andris Biedrins inked long-term. They were hoping Davis would take his player option and stick around for at least one more year, long enough for them to be sure Ellis was ready to be a full-time point guard. But when he left, it created a very, very big hole in the rotation. On the good side, it also created a sizeable opening in the team’s payroll that gave Chris Mullin not only the room he needed to give Ellis and Biedrins lucrative, long-term deals, but also enough room to make competitive offers on a couple free agents.
Ellis re-signed for 6 years, $66 million, and Biedrins for 6 years, $63 million. From the free agent market they got swingman Corey Maggette for 5-years, $50 million, and center Ronny Turiaf for 4 years and $17 million when the Lakers chose not to match the offer. The Warriors also matched the Clippers’ 3-year, $9 million offer to retain Kelenna Azubuike, and they traded a conditional first rounder to New Jersey for point guard Marcus Williams, who they expected would back up Ellis at point.
The Warriors also spent the off-season stocking up on more young athletes, starting with 1st round pick Anthony Randolph from LSU. At 6’10” and 205, Randolph impressed during the summer league with not only his superior athleticism, but also with ball-handling ability that had many envisioning him as a point-forward in the future.
Also coming to camp this year are 2nd round pick, rugged power forward Richard Hendrix from Alabama, and four free agent rookies who impressed the Warriors this summer – forwards Dion Dowell from Houston, Rob Kurz from Notre Dame, and guards Anthony Morrow from Georgia Tech, and DeMarcus Nelson from Duke. These five will be battling for roster spots with each other, as well as rotation spots with other youngsters like Randolph, Brandon Wright, Marco Belinelli, Azubuike, and CJ Watson.
All of these additions (Maggette, Turiaf, all the rooks and 2nd or 3rd year players) look very interesting. But in reality, all of the Warriors’ many off-season moves have just left more questions than answers – namely:
- Is Monta Ellis really ready to take over as a leader here? Can he be the type of point guard that can not only get his, but also make sure others get theirs? Ellis definitely showed last year that he is an all-star level player. But that was mostly in a secondary role, only manning the point when Davis was resting. Now he’s been handed the reigns to this circus. Can he massage team chemistry like a veteran point guard and lead this young group to the playoffs? Unfortunately, his tenure hasn’t started out so well. He suffered a serious ankle injury that required surgery in a “non-basketball related” incident during the off-season. Not only will Ellis miss up to the first two months of the season, but he also faces possible sanctions from the league because he originally lied about the cause of the injury. In any case, starting the season without the guy to whom you just gave a $66 million contract to replace the heart and soul of your team does not bode well for a very successful start to the upcoming season.
- What on Earth does Don Nelson do with all of these kids? Nelson has never been much for using young players until they’ve figured out how to play at this level. But because of how last season went, with Nelson using exclusively 7 and 8-man rotations but failing to make the playoffs, there has been a mandate from upper management to play young guys like Brandon Wright, Belinelli, and Azubuike more. Now you throw Turiaf, Maggette, Marcus Williams, and 6 rookies into the mix. The Warriors head to camp with nothing close to resembling a set rotation. Most teams spend camp making small tweaks to their rotation, only incorporating one, two, maybe three new players. The Warriors, because of the Ellis injury and all the new faces, will spend most of camp just figuring one out, which will inevitably result in some trial and error early in the season.
- What do you do with Al Harrington and Stephen Jackson now? These two guys excelled here in large part due to their on-court relationship with Davis. Now he is gone. Harrington has two years and about $19 million left on his contract. How is he going to react to losing minutes to guys like Turiaf, Brandon Wright, and Anthony Randolph? Harrington will expect to be played as much as his contract dictates, and he’ll be expecting his appropriate share of touches. I just don’t see him being a very happy camper this year. It says here that Mr. Harrington is on the trading block. And Jackson, now that Biedrins and Ellis have signed their long-term deals, finds himself as only the 5th highest paid player on the team behind those two, Harrington, and Maggette. And apparently, he’s none too pleased about it. He has already stated publicly that it is “something that needs to be addressed.” With Davis gone, Jackson is more or less the emotional leader of the team. An emotional guy who is not happy about his contract can make for one uncomfortable locker room.
Davis was more than just points and assists for this team. He was their leader, primary ball-handler, and 4th quarter go-to guy. Someone will have to step into the vast leadership void that was created when he left for LA or else the Warriors will just be a collection of athletes running amok with little direction. Who is it going to be? Ellis, who is a fantastic one-on-one player, but who hasn’t proven for sure that he can be a ball-distributor, or emotional leader. And, who is already on the shelf for a non-basketball-related injury. Or Jackson, who has become unhappy with his contract.
Your left to wonder – why did Mullin invest so heavily in young players this off-season? Was it because he knows without Davis, this will a “rebuilding” year; so he better stock up now? How many of you believe Don Nelson will still be coaching this team in 2010? Put your seatbelts on Warriors’ fans – this season is already promising to be one bumpy ride.
San Antonio Spurs - Off-season & Financial Moves
The biggest news in the Spurs’ off-season was Manu Ginobili’s left ankle. He underwent surgery to repair a posterior impingement on September 3rd and will miss 2-3 months of action. This is a ligament injury that originated during the playoffs and obviously hobbled him in the Conference finals against the Lakers. Then in the Olympic game against the USA, the injury was aggravated when Ginobili took a weird fall on it. Immediate reports said that the injury was not made worse, but was also not going to get any better without surgery.
In the brutal Western Conference, playing the first 15 or so games without Ginobili is very bad news. Ginobili brings an element to their offense which no other player or collection of players can replace. The Spurs are feigning confidence that they can tread water until Ginobili comes back. And we all know that this team typically coasts through the regular season anyway, focusing most of their attention on keeping their stars healthy enough for the heavy minutes they’ll log in the playoffs.
But without Ginobili, the Spurs will almost certainly be starting the season out very slowly. This is an old team. Most of their main rotational players are over 30. Ginobili brings a ton of energy and the other players feed off of it. Without him, this team will just look lethargic.
The huge hole left by Ginobili’s absence will have to be filled by 37-year old Bruce Bowen, who has definitely lost a step and never did provide much on offense; 35-year old Michael Finley, who has lost more than just a step, and is little more than a spot-up shooter anymore; Ime Udoka and newcomer Roger Mason Jr.
Udoka’s role increased towards the end of last year. He’s a strong defender and a decent spot-up jump shooter. But he’s not a ball-handler and can’t be expected to create much offense. Mason, who played the last two years for the Wizards, is a nice athlete and a competent 3-point shooter. But he also isn’t a guy who will create much offense. These guys make up a fine group of role players. But none of them, either individually or collectively, will be able to replace what Ginobili does. The pressure for carrying this team will of course fall to Tony Parker and Tim Duncan until Manu works his way back to full speed.
Aside from the Mason signing, and re-signing Finley, the Spurs also re-signed power forward Kurt Thomas to a two-year deal worth about $8 million. He could have gotten more on the open market, but at 35, he wanted to make sure he ended his career with a winner. His role here as Duncan’s defensive minded sidekick is ideal for Thomas. He’s been around long enough, and has already made enough money that it’s more important to him now to just have a comfortable role on a good team.
The draft brought quick point guard George Hill, who played very well in the pre-draft camp in Orlando. He will compete with Jacque Vaughn for minutes behind Parker. And small forward Malik Hairston from Oregon, whose game is actually very similar to Udoka’s. They also drafted power forward James Gist from Maryland. But when he couldn’t get a guaranteed deal from the Spurs, he signed a contract to play in Italy for one season. The Spurs retain his NBA rights.
It doesn’t look like Robert Horry or Damon Stoudamire will be back. Horry is 38 and never really did get into game shape last year. Stoudamire, who is 35, also looked very slow in his short tenure here last year, and was never able to take Jacque Vaughn’s backup minutes. Kurt Thomas, Fabricio Oberto, and Matt Bonner will be counted on to play the majority of minutes beside Duncan. But the Spurs are also expecting one of their younger bigs, Ian Mahinmi or Anthony Tolliver to step into a more important role.
Memphis Grizzlies - Off-season & Financial Moves
If last year’s Pau Gasol trade didn’t make it obvious enough, their off-season moves should clear it up – Memphis is rebuilding. They won 22 games both of the last two years, and have no hope of winning more than 25 games this year. Their goal this off-season was to get younger, faster, and more talented. GM Chris Wallace and Coach Marc Iavaroni are talking about a 3-year plan. That’s code for – “we’re going to be terrible for the next two years, but hopefully fans will still come to the arena to see the young talent we’ve assembled; and hopefully that young talent starts growing together into a cohesive unit that could challenge for a playoff spot in three years.”
They succeeded in getting younger and faster. Of the current 13 players on the roster, 9 are 23 or younger. Their projected starting line-up looks as follows: Darko Milicic (23) at center, Hakim Warrick (26) at power forward, Rudy Gay (22) at small forward, OJ Mayo (20) at shooting guard, and Mike Conley (20) at point guard. That’s a starting lineup with an average age of 22.
Will they be faster? Absolutely – Warrick, Gay, Mayo, and Conley are all speed demons, and Milicic is under-rated as an athlete. And that’s not counting other greyhounds off the bench like Jarvis Crittenton, Kyle Lowry, and rookie Darrell Arthur.
The biggest move they made in the off-season was getting Mayo in a trade with Minnesota. Financially the deal favors the T-Wolves since the Grizzlies took back more unfavorable contracts in the 8-player trade; namely those of Antoine Walker, Greg Buckner, and Marko Jaric. And they gave up a team leader in Mike Miller, and a talented young big man in rookie Kevin Love. The Grizzlies’ frontline is very weak. They could have used Love, and they’ll definitely miss Miller.
But the Grizzlies targeted Mayo, and I can see why. Conley, Mayo, and Gay make for one hellacious trio out on the perimeter. They have speed, size, athleticism, and talent, and will be a difficult matchup for anyone to keep up with. Once (or if) these three become a cohesive unit on the floor, wins will follow. Then the Grizzlies can look at improving their anemic frontline, possibly with some free agent signings. They tried to do that this off-season by making an offer to Atlanta Hawks’ restricted free agent Josh Smith, but Atlanta quickly matched the offer. Memphis has a couple roster spots still open before training camp, and they badly need some big bodies.
One potential trade still out there on the rumor mill has the Grizzlies trading Milicic and Jaric to the Knicks for Zach Randolph. Although Randolph would bring needed inside points and rebounds, this would be a very bad move for Memphis. Randolph has 3 years and $48 million left on his contract, and he has a well-earned reputation for trouble, both in the locker room and off the court. $48 million is too much money to risk ruining the potential harmony these young players might develop together. They’re not going to win with or without Randolph. Let the Knicks keep their own headaches.
In another move, Juan Carlos Navarro is headed back to Europe. He made a fairly big splash in his NBA debut for the Grizz last year as a guy who can shoot the long ball and make things happen in the open court. But he was a little disenchanted with his initial sniff of NBA life, particularly on a team he deemed not dedicated to winning. Plus he will make much more money back home. Honestly, it would be nice to see him back in the NBA in the future. He’s a helluva player.
Also, the Grizz lured 7’2” Iranian center Hamed Haddadi, who played very well in the Olympic qualifiers this year for Iran. Like most foreign centers, he’ll probably struggle at first adjusting to NBA speed. But he looks like he’s got some skills, and of course, you can’t teach size. He’ll battle with Pau Gasol’s brother Marc for backup center. Gasol, making his NBA debut as well this year, is nowhere near as talented as his big brother. But he’s 7’0” and 280 lbs, can score a little around the basket, and will grab his share of rebounds.
Houston Rockets - Off-season & Financial Moves
Houston Rockets
The Rockets pulled off one of the real blockbusters this off-season getting Ron Artest in a trade with Sacramento. No player has had his name thrown around more in trade talks in the past year than Artest. Rumors had him going everywhere from LA to the Lakers, Denver, Utah, New York, Dallas, Phoenix, etc. But not up until a few days before the trade was announced did I hear any rumors that something was in the works with Houston.
The skinny – The Rockets got Artest, Patrick Ewing Jr., who was subsequently traded (given) to the Knicks, and Sean Singletary, who was later traded to the Suns for DJ Strawberry. In return Houston gave the Kings veteran combo guard Bobby Jackson, promising rookie Donte Green, and next year’s first round pick. The Kings didn’t want to take on any big salaries, and they wanted a first rounder out of the deal. Some of the other potential deals with other teams fell through because of that stipulation. The Rockets didn’t place a ton of value on next year’s draft, assuming their first round pick wouldn’t be very high.
This was a good deal for both teams. The Kings wanted rid of Artest, and the Rockets were the first to offer what they were looking for in return. The Rockets needed another scorer to relieve T-Mac and Yao, and were willing to part with a #1 pick to get him. You could easily compare this trade to the deals the Celtics made last year teaming KG and Ray Allen with Paul Pierce – three all-stars on one team. If T-Mac, Yao, and Ron-Ron can stay healthy and co-exist as compatibly as those three have, the Rockets have the potential to perform at the same level, up to and including a championship.
The Rockets steam-rolled through the league during the 2nd half of last season – and that done mostly without Yao Ming, who missed the post-season as well. But the playoffs are different. Beating a high quality opponent like Utah 4 games without a 2nd scorer to help Tracy McGrady is impossible. Not even Houston’s suffocating defense was going to win that series unless someone else like Shane Battier or Rafer Alston all of the sudden became a potent scorer; which obviously didn’t happen.
Now, with Ming back healthy and the arrival of Artest, not only will the Rockets be even nastier on defense, but they’ll also be much more potent on offense with three competent scorers in the lineup. Artest is not just a defensive ace who can guard 3-positions with an awful temper, he’s also a decent shooter and he can score with power moves in the paint. At the very least, you can expect the Rockets to finally make it out of the first round this year.
In a minor move, the Rockets signed Brent Barry to a 2-year deal to be the designated bomber off the bench – another tool they could have used last year. Luthur Head and Shane Battier were supposed to do that but proved to be too inconsistent as 3-point shooters.
And one last note – Dikembe Mutombo is reportedly still open to the idea of playing one more season. He hasn’t signed a contract, and apparently wants at least a little more than the veteran’s minimum to come back. It would be worth it for the Rockets to meet his demands since the current roster contains no other backup centers, and Yao is injury prone. If old Deke doesn’t come back, the Rockets will need to sign another center pronto. I know Rick Adelman doesn’t want to start the season with 6’9” rookie Joey Dorsey as his backup center.
Oklahoma City Thunder - Off-season & Financial Moves
Obviously almost all of the news surrounding this franchise during the off-season centered on their move from Seattle to Oklahoma. I tried to follow all of the in court and out of court wrangling between the new owners, old owners, and the city of Seattle. But to be honest, it just wasn’t interesting enough to keep me awake. The bottom line is, the team has moved and they’ll probably be better off in their new home.
Oklahoma City hosted the Hornets for a time after Katrina wrecked New Orleans, and the venture was wildly successful. With the fan support they got, it became clear that Oklahoma City would be a more than suitable home base for an NBA team. So a bunch of rich guys from Oklahoma, led by Clay Bennett looked for NBA franchises in trouble and eventually bought the Supersonics. Then they used all the legal tools rich people have at their disposal to get the team moved to Oklahoma City. And now here they are – the Oklahoma City Thunder.
Honestly I’m not much for the name, but it’s certainly better than the other choices – Bison, Energy, Wind, Marshals, and Barons. Could you imagine the Oklahoma City Energy? or Wind? What would the logo be? At least with Thunder, you can have a guy wearing a ridiculous looking lightning bolt outfit jumping off a trampoline through a fiery hoop and dunking during the halftime show while AC/DC’s “Thunderstruck” blares through the speakers. Cliché yes, but fun to watch; especially after a couple Budweisers. What would be the theme song for the Oklahoma City Wind – “You are the wind beneath my wings?” Would that inspire you to get another beer?
The basketball related news was minimal. This team was obviously in no position to be playing in the free agent market. It’s not that they didn’t have roster spots available, or room under the salary cap – they had both. It’s more about the amount of money those rich guys had to dole out just to get the team here. They’ll need to start getting some return on that investment. It was more important for now just to get the team established in their new digs before they start worrying about things like winning. Make no mistake – this will not be a good team; but it’ll be interesting to watch how the fans here react to a team that will actually be staying in town long term instead of heading back somewhere else after a brief teaser.
The draft (and subsequent trades) brought versatile and defensive minded combo guard Russell Westbrook from UCLA, muscular power forward DJ White from Indiana, defensive minded shooting guard Kyle Weaver from Washington State, and raw center Devon Hardin from Cal. They also drafted Congo native Serge Ibaka, a very interesting 6’11” forward who played in Spain last year. The 18-year-old signed a 3-year deal to stay with that Spanish team, but the Thunder will retain his NBA rights.
Many experts thumbed their noses at the Westbrook pick at #4 since it looked like this team needed more help up front but passed on Brooks Lopez and Kevin Love. But they were very high on Westbrook from the start, and for good reason. He’s an outstanding all-around talent who really excels on the defensive end. This was the worst defensive team in the league last year, by far. Watching Westbrook hounding opposing point guards and disrupting offenses will be a welcome sight for Coach PJ Carlesimo.
In a 3-team trade with Milwaukee and Cleveland, the Thunder unloaded point guard Luke Ridnour and aging swingman Adrian Griffin. In return they picked up power forward Joe Smith and swingman Desmond Mason. This was a good move for OKC. The oft-injured Ridnour lost his job to Earl Watson last year. With the arrival of #4 overall pick Westbrook, Ridnour and the $13 million left on his 2-year contract had to go. Smith and Mason are good-guy veterans who won’t mind working with a young team; plus both of their contracts expire after this season.
The last two moves they made this off-season were a bit puzzling.
First, they gave a $3.5 million qualifying offer to restricted free agent center Robert Swift. He has played a grand total of 8 regular season games in the past two seasons because of two separate and very serious injuries to the same right knee. He was a former first round (top ten) pick so I can understand keeping him around to see if he has fully recovered from the latest surgery and actually has something to offer on the court. But they didn’t have to give him $3.5 million to do so. No other teams were going to make him any offers. He’s damaged goods. They could have offered him the minimum for one year and he would have been dumb not to take it. And, if another team did make him an offer, so what? Even when he was healthy he sucked. They’ve already paid him over $8 million. Don’t get me wrong, I sympathize with anyone who had to spend two years in a row rehabbing the same knee. But $8 million is enough to compensate his pain. It’s time to see him play.
The second move was waiving Donyall Marshall. OKC is going with a youth movement and it was obvious Marshall didn’t fit. Looking to get rid of him is not my beef with the move. My problem is – he’s in the last year of his contract, and he can still shoot 3-pointers. Yes that one year will cost $6 million which I’ll be the first to admit is exorbitant for him. But expiring contracts of guys who can hit 3-pointers are valuable commodities to have about a month before the trade deadline. By waiving him, they’re still obligated to pay him the $6 million, and it still counts against their salary cap. Why not hold on to him and trade him during the season? At least then you’d get something in return. It just doesn’t make good business sense. You waive the guys you’re not obligated to keep paying after they’re gone. You don’t waive guys you still owe $6 million.
Utah Jazz - Off-season & Financial Moves
The Jazz had only one thing they absolutely needed to take care of this off-season. They had to get Deron Williams inked long-term, which they quickly did with a 4-year, $70 million deal. Williams would have been a restricted free agent at the end of this season. Obviously, the Jazz weren’t about to let other teams get the chance at making him offers. With that out of the way, they did make a couple other minor moves on their bench.
One move that came as no surprise, they exercised their option on backup power forward Paul Millsap. He played all 82 games, averaged 21 minutes, 8 points, 5.6 rebounds, and 0.9 blocks last year off the bench. He’ll only make about $797K this year. This makes him not only the lowest paid player on the Jazz payroll (lower even than Kyrylo Fesenko), but also makes him as far as I’m concerned the single most underpaid player in the NBA. You can be quite comfortable that after this season he’ll be getting some lucrative offers as a free agent. You can also bet that the Jazz will be matching those offers unless they wisely decide to just beat the rush and re-sign him long term before the season ends. With Mehmet Okur and Carlos Boozer getting older and needing longer breaks during games, Millsap is a player Jerry Sloan cannot do without.
In another move, they traded backup point guard Jason Hart to the Clippers for 32-year-old journeyman point guard Brevin Knight. Hart was losing minutes to Ronnie Price toward the end of last year. The fact that he was traded for a veteran point guard tells me that Sloan wasn’t very high on Hart or Price. Knight and Price will battle for minutes in training camp to back up Williams. Sloan has a serious distaste for mistakes from the point guard position. Knight has always ranked very high in the assist-to-turnover ratio category. Something tells me he’ll be the #1 backup, no matter how many circles the more fleet-of-foot Price runs around him in training camp. Knight isn’t the most exciting player around. But he doesn’t make mistakes. Price can be a little out of control sometimes.
In an interesting move, Utah matched Oklahoma City’s 4-year, $15 million offer to CJ Miles. In his third season last year, Miles finally cracked the regular rotation. But when you consider the hype that followed him when he was drafted straight out of high school three years ago, you’d pretty much have to consider Miles a bust so far. Plus, he’s spent a good portion of his time in Sloan’s doghouse during his three years in Utah, for various reasons but most notably – work ethic. Miles has refused to play in the summer leagues the last two years.
But, Miles is still by far the best athlete of Utah’s perimeter group, and Matt Harpring isn’t getting any younger. Matching OKC’s offer intimates that Sloan is expecting Miles to take another step forward this year.
The Jazz had three draft picks to play with, numbers 23, 44, and 53. They spoke a little with some other teams about trades, and inquired about a couple free agents like Corey Maggette and Ronny Turiaf. But they didn’t make any moves. They weren’t really hard-pressed to do anything here. They have a full roster with good chemistry and no financial problems on a team that has won 105 regular season games the past two years, including consecutive 2nd round playoff appearances.
Instead, they decided to use the 3 picks to grab some young and talented big bodies. None of these guys will help anytime soon. But, Mehmet Okur is 29 going on 38, Jarron Collins will never be a starter, and Kyrylo Fesenko is certainly no sure thing. So, the Jazz took this opportunity to start looking towards the future of their frontline.
With the 23rd pick they took 19-year-old 7-footer Kosta Koufos, a Greek-American who played one season at Ohio State last year. With the 44th pick they took 21-year-old 7-footer Ante Tomic from Croatia. And with the 53rd pick they took 22-year-old 6’9” power forward Tadija Dragicevic from Serbia.
When you look at the resumes of these three guys, you see the type of characteristics Sloan likes in his big men. All three are noted as having a wide range of offensive skills, and all three are considered high in the basketball IQ department. However, all three are considered only “average” athletes who need to get stronger, which is code for - they’d get abused in the NBA right now. Koufos will play mostly in the NBDL this year, while Tomic and Dragicevic will continue their development overseas.
Portland Trail Blazers - Off-season and Financial Moves
GM Kevin Pritchard lived up to his reputation this off-season as a guy constantly looking to make trades and not afraid to pull the trigger. Since the end of last season, the Blazers have made 5 trades, 4 of which occurred on a busy draft day, June 26th; and another occurring July 9th with the Indiana Pacers.
Instead of going through and trying to make sense of each trade, it would be easier to look at the sum total of all 5 trades.
In essence, the Blazers traded Jarrett Jack, Josh McRoberts, and the draft rights for Mike Taylor, Omer Asik, Darrell Arthur, Joey Dorsey, and Brandon Rush for Ike Diogu, the draft rights for Jerryd Bayless and Nicolas Batum, and 4 future 2nd round picks, 1 from the Clippers, and 3 from the Bulls, one of which will be when Denver’s turn comes to pick next year.
Basically, the Blazers got the two rookies they wanted in Bayless and Batum, 4 future 2nd round picks (and the trading flexibility that comes with them), and Ike Diogu, who they didn’t really want, but had to take in order to get Bayless. In return they gave up 5 rookies they didn’t need, Josh McRoberts, who they didn’t want anymore, and Jarrett Jack, who has been a valuable player for the Blazers, but would have lost minutes in the rotation due to the arrival of Rudy Fernandez from Spain.
Speaking of whom, Nate McMillian enjoyed a first hand look at Fernandez during the Olympics, especially when he dropped 22 on USA in the gold medal game. It must have been hard to keep from smiling on USA’s bench while watching his player torch NBA all-stars during the game. This guy can play. And McMillian guarantees he will, a lot.
The former draft pick of the Suns, whom the Blazers bought with cash, agreed to accept about half the money he would have made in Spain this year for his chance to prove himself in the NBA. And McMillian could not be more pleased about the thought of seeing Fernandez alongside the likes of Brandon Roy and Bayless. The Blazers needed help on offense more than anything else. Fernandez and Bayless are guys who can break a defender down one-on-one with speed and ball-handling and score without help. Last year, Roy was the only guy who could do that on a regular basis for the Blazers. They have way more options this year offensively and will be able to expand their rotation to attack from a number of different angles.
But maybe the biggest off-season move for the Blazers wasn’t a move at all. It was the continued recovery of Greg Oden from knee surgery. He’s been working out with coaches in Portland since early August in one-on-one and two-on-two drills with other Blazer players. And everyone who has seen him so far has come away totally awestruck not only by his combination of size, strength, and agility, but also by the work ethic he has exhibited. When a guy that big with that athleticism wants to be great – good things are going to happen.
The Blazers are going to be a different team this year. Certainly additions like Bayless and Fernandez will make a difference, especially on offense. But the biggest difference, and the one that Blazer fans are most excited about - is Oden. This guy is a monster, and he’s already being compared to Dwight Howard in terms of strength and athleticism. Understand though - all of that talk is coming out of Portland. The rest of us will have to wait and see.
On the bad news front – Roy underwent arthroscopic knee surgery August 14th to repair a torn left meniscus. The surgery went well and the Blazers are hoping he’ll be ready for the season opener October 28th.
Minnesota Timberwolves - Off-season and Financial Moves
It was a very positive off-season for the Wolves. Kevin McHale has definitely taken his share of abuse over the years for the deals he’s made. But I would have to give him a passing grade for his work this off-season.
This time last year, the Wolves were inundated with the unfavorable contracts of guys like Antoine Walker, Troy Hudson, Juwon Howard, Marko Jaric, and Mark Blount. This was at a time when what they really needed to be doing was rebuilding with young players and more tenable contracts. It took a year of hard work, but it does look like the Wolves have now set themselves up nicely for the future financially.
McHale’s best move this off-season was a big trade with Memphis that sent Jaric, Walker, Greg Buckner, and the draft rights of OJ Mayo to the Grizzlies for Mike Miller, Brian Cardinal, Jason Collins, and the draft rights for Kevin Love. McHale did receive some unfavorable views from experts for this trade because it seemed as if Mayo could have played a big role in Minnesota as a combo guard who could score; something the Wolves could have certainly used to help Randy Foye. And, McHale did have to swallow Cardinal’s bad contract here, but it is only for two more years, and it was worth it to get rid of Walker.
But from a financial view, this was a great move for the Wolves. They parted with the bad contracts of Jaric, Buckner, and most notably Walker, and they got a young big in Love who looks like he might turn out to be a good partner for Al Jefferson in the Wolves frontcourt; something they needed worse than another perimeter player; even one as good as Mayo might turn out to be. Jason Collins will help defensively and provide frontcourt depth, and getting Mike Miller will give the Wolves not only a crack 3-point shooter, but also a smart, veteran presence to help develop the Wolves talented but young group of Rashad McCants, Rodney Carney, Corey Brewer, Randy Foye, and Ryan Gomes.
McHale’s next move was to sign crucial returning players Gomes, Sebastian Telfair, and Craig Smith to relatively cheap contracts that won’t hamper the Wolves ability to play around in the free agent market as soon as next year, and definitely in 2010.
The Timberwolves are still not going to be a very good team this year, but at least the road to redemption is paved now. You couldn’t say that last year. The Kevin Garnett trade did land them young superstar Al Jefferson, but it also left them a financial mess that looked like would take years to clean up. But to his credit, McHale did it in less than a year.
What the Wolves have now is a stable of hungry young players who will play hard and begin to rebuild the faithful Minnesota fan base. But more importantly what they have now is financial flexibility. McHale couldn’t even dream of making offers to free agents this year. That will change next year, and definitely in 2010.
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