Out: Austin Rivers, DeAndre Jordan, CJ Williams, Maarty Leunen,
(I kinda thought Coach Doc would be leaving, too, but apparently he's here to stay) Rivers is one of those guys that has gone back and forth between over/under-rated pretty much his whole life; thought he gave them pretty good minutes for a while off the bench but moving him still strikes me as the right thing to do. Seems like they could've kept Jordan if they wanted to...guess they didn't want to. Williams and Leunen are fungible commodities.
In: Marcin Gortat, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Jerome Robinson, Angel Delgado, Luc Mbah a Moute, Mike Scott, Johnathon Motley, (the rights to Vladimir Veremeenko), Desi Rodriguez
Coupla intriguing youngsters in G-A and Robinson, a trio of tough guy veterans in Gortat, Mbah a Moute and Scott. Not sure what Delgado, Motley or Rodriguez bring to the table.
Re-signed: Milos Teodosic (player option), Avery Bradley, Montrezl Harrell, Tyrone Wallace
I like all these guys, they did well to bring them back. Still curious to see what Teodosic has to offer, never thought the Clippers were the right fit for him (I'd rather see him coming off the bench for the Pelicans, for example). I like Bradley but a newfound journeyman status and injuries make him a bit of an unknown quantity (and with Patrick Beverley, he seems redundant on this roster). I like Harrell and Wallace, think they can be real spark plugs for this team.
All in all
So since this time last year the Clippers have jettisoned Chris Paul, Blake Griffin, DeAndre Jordan and Austin Rivers? Dang, that's quite a turnover. And though there's no continuity at all from the 'good times', they've managed to retain a pretty good collection of talent. That said, I'm not sure how any of this fits together. We'll see if Coach Doc can make of something of this (although without any obvious superstars on the roster, its not at all clear who he sucks up to).
Starting lineup...uh...Teodosic starts at PG until Gilgeous-Alexander is ready? I mean, Lou Williams invented the 6th Man Award so he comes off the bench meaning they've got a bit of logjam at PG. And at SG: do they start Bradley or Beverley? And where exactly do Wallace, Thornwell and Robinson fit in? And are they expecting Wesley Johnson to score points? Seems like they're well stocked in defenders at that position with Mbah a Moute and Scott and Tobias Harris is a scorer, so Boban and Gortat are more for defense, too, right? There are a million permutations of lineups here, does Doc have the patience/savvy to find the rotation that works? And, oh yeah, they have Gallinari, a good player when he's not hurt (but he's always hurt).
My guess is the Clippers will be really good right away, then suck balls for several months, then get good again right at the end of the year. There's talent here, plenty of depth but the proper mix is not obvious, it'll take time for this team to come together. I think they dig too big a hole to get back to the playoffs.
Kings
Out: Bruno Caboclo, Jack Cooley, Nigel Hayes, Vince Carter, JaKarr Sampson, Garrett Temple
Oh yeah, I forgot they had Caboclo and...now they don't anymore. I always kinda liked Sampson and Temple but they've added enough talent to let those guys go. I suppose there was some benefit to having Vince Carter around for the youngsters but I kinda thought he was a waste of minutes for them. Jack Cooley and Nigel Hayes sound like cartoon pirates, they may well be better off pursuing that rather than coming off the bench for the Hawks or something.
In: Marvin Bagley, Ben McLemore, Nemenja Bjelica, Yogi Ferrell, Wenyen Gabriel, Cameron Reynolds, Kailin Lucas
I liked what I saw in Bagley (struck me as the offensive corollary of Cauley-Stein) but I bet it takes him a year or two to really get going (so, not a favorite for ROY, I'd say). Another run with McLemore, huh? Well, he's a helluva athlete, but was never much of a basketball player, (at least he knows where all the grocery stores and shopping malls are in Sacramento). I love Bjelica, not very athletic but big, smart and a good shooter, gives the Kings good depth. Ferrell, too, is a great 2nd string PG, more quality depth for this squad. I watched Gabriel at UK the last few years (I would've advised him to come back), nice athlete, gets hot every once in a while but I would expect him to be a G-League guy at least for this year. Reynolds and Lucas are likely pre-season cuts, right?
Re-signed: Iman Shumpert (player option)
Ehh, Shumpert is one of those guys that's not as good as his fans think but not as bad as his detractors would have you believe. He can fit in that rotation but feels more like trade bait.
All in all
I love a youth movement and I can tell the Kings will be a regular in my League Pass this year. PG Fox, SG Hield, SF Bogdanovic, PF Cauley-Stein, C Bagley with Ferrell/Mason, Shumpert/McLemore/Justin Jackson/Bjelica, Randolph/Giles off the bench. Lotta depth (and lotta trade bait). Yeah, I'm kinda fascinated by how all those pieces fit together. (Curious detail: the guys not signed for next year are Randolph, Shumpert, Koufos, McLemore and Cauley-Stein. Don't be surprised if any/all of those guys get moved by the deadline)
I expect the Kings to be fun, I can even see them winning some games, but I'd be pretty shocked if they had enough consistency to even compete for the 8th seed.
Lakers
Out: Tyler Ennis, Thomas Bryant, Andre Ingram, Brook Lopez, Channing Frye, Isiah Thomas, Julius Randle, (2019 2nd rd pick), Luol Deng,
Outside of Randle (buckets off the bench) and Lopez (down low defense), is anyone gonna miss any of these guys? No. In Laker-lore they will forever be remembered as guys during that horrible time between Kobe and Lebron.
In: Moritz Wagner, Rajon Rondo, Isaac Bonga, Lebron James, JaVale McGee, Lance Stephenson, Svi Mykhailiuk, Jonathon Williams, Michael Beasley
I was impressed with Wagner and Mykhailiuk last year during their NCAA tourney runs, thought they both were smart players, good ball handlers, with some outside pop; Lakers did well to nab them both. Rondo is fine when he's got players to pass the ball to and he looks to have a few of those. Lebron...I mean he's no Michael Jordan but he'll be able to help this team. Lance Stephenson, on the other hand...why? What is Lance gonna bring? I always kinda liked McGee and Beasley (though didn't Lebron hate him in Miami?), they'll be fine in limited minutes here. Bonga is an intriguing prospect, not sure if the anonymity will allow him to develop or dooms him to fall between the cracks. Williams should get some pre-season looks.
Re-signed: Kentavius Caldwell-Pope, Travis Wear
I like KCP as much as the next guy but I feel like that $12m could've been better spent (wouldn't Tyreke Evans have been a better choice here? Or JJ Reddick?). Wear is a reasonable choice for the end of the roster.
All in all
Yeah, yeah, a lot of turnover. Interestingly, we can already go ahead and assume they'll be a lot more turnover again next summer: I fully expect Caldwell-Pope, Rondo, Beasley, McGee, and Stephenson to move on (and Zubac is 50/50). (Hmm, they got any interest in packaging these expiring contracts for Hassan Whiteside?) So let's stick to the core: PG Lonzo, SG Ingram, SF Kuzma, PF Lebron, with Hart as 6th Man and Wagner, Mykhailiuk and Bonga as wild card 3-and-D guys off the bench. They still need a C but that's not a bad lineup, frankly all of those youngsters should be better than last year (though I kinda think last year will be a level Lebron doesn't reach again).
After bringing in Lebron I didn't understand the next batch of moves (dude, Lance Stephenson has sucked at basketball for a few years now), but the mix of vets and youth is a pretty good supporting cast for Lebron. I dunno, they can be pretty good right away. It'll be tough to beat the Warriors but I think they can be better than the Rockets, Jazz, and Thunder right away. So, yeah, I wouldn't at all be surprised to see the Lakers in the final four in May. That said, I kinda think Lebron is downshifting here, coasting til the post-season and then trying to drag his team past the Warriors, which I don't think he'll be able to do it. The move to LA was to facilitate his post-basketball life, not the rest of his basketball life; I don't mean to suggest that he'll tank but he's a different guy in a different situation now and I just don't see him playing with that fire from beginning to end like last season. We'll see.
Suns
Out: Elfrid Peyton, Tyler Ulis, Alec Peters, Alex Len, Danuel House, Alan Williams, Jared Dudley, (2021 2nd rd pick), Marquisse Chriss, Brandon Knight
So they let go of Peyton, Ulis and Knight...and now they need a PG? Moving on from Peters, Len and Chriss highlights their recent draft woes. And getting rid of Williams and Dudley show a disappointing appropriation of vets (and aren't Chandler and Ariza just trade bait?).
In: Deandre Ayton, George King, Mikal Bridges, Elie Okobo, Trevor Ariza, Darrell Arthur, Richaun Holmes, Isiah Canaan, De'Anthony Melton, Ryan Anderson,
I wasn't a huge Ayton guy and with Luca Doncic just sitting there, I just don't see the upside. I wasn't blown away by Bridges either--and they traded up to get him. King, Okobo and Melton are reasonable prospects, I suppose, but they won't be bringing W's any time soon. And why are they taking back Anderson to help the Rockets? What exactly are they supposed to get out of Ariza, Arthur or Holmes?
Re-signed: Devin Booker (signed extension)
I'm cool with this, except that they could've waited til next summer.
All in all
I get none of these moves. They're tanking, right? Is there any reason to think this roster is better than last year? I reckon they'll be dueling the Hawks for the #1 pick this season. They are a mix of vets that are obviously trade bait and youngsters that are empowered to do their thing but not encouraged to win games. I don't see any way that the Suns are any good at all.
Warriors
Out: Chris Boucher, Zaza Pachulia, David West, JaVale McGee, Nick Young
No big deal, they'll be fine without these guys.
In: Jacob Evans, Demarcus Cousins, Damion Lee, Jonas Jerebko, Kendrick Nunn, Danuel House, Marcus Derrickson, Alfonzo McKinnie, Tyler Ulis, Will Cherry
Bringing in Boogie Cousins was such a brilliant move I didn't even see it coming. The beauty is that Cousins doesn't even have to play and if he does, it's all gravy. He might be great again but it's hard to imagine a down side--if he's being a jackass, they can trade him! Ha! (I think we can expect the Warriors to repeat this next summer: giving an injured or unlucky vet a short term deal to chase a ring while recuperating) Going into the draft Evans was the guy that kept coming back to my eye, don't be surprised if that guy turns out to be awesome (and the rest of the league adds another name that they let slip by them). I like Jerebko, he's a good energy dirty work guy that'll be just fine coming off that bench. I love Ulis, as a Kentucky fan, I assure you when that guy is on, he's a winner, gets buckets, makes plays, makes everyone around him better. He's a bit of a longshot but I can see him as a fine 3rd string PG here. House and McKinney were well-regarded prospects just looking for a second chance. I don't know Derrickson, Lee or Nunn.
Re-signed: Kevin Durant, Kevon Looney, (extended Coach Kerr), (is Patrick McCaw coming back?),
Re-signing Durant was a bold move (ha!). I suspect these next two years (maybe just one) will be the last for him in Golden State, I think he moves on just to challenge himself. Re-upping Coach Kerr was a no-brainer, too, good coach, good guy, as long as his health is good, you keep inviting him back. I kinda liked Looney (and McCaw), the badass teams need those dirty work guys that do just enough to smooth the rough edges.
All in all
The Warriors are still good, dude. I'm not blown away by the Rockets' moves and though the Lakers will be much improved, I still think the Warriors are the team to beat in the West--with or without Cousins. Western Conference Champs...again.
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