So i know the offseason isnt close to over but with no stars on the trading block and no key free agents remaining its hard to believe that too much will change. So lets start with the losers...
5. Washington. What the Wiz did this offseason was swap out Paul Pierce for Jared Dudley...who will miss months with an injury. They had the chance to get a guy in the draft who could have come in and contributed right away, but decided to go with Kelly Oubre, who may be a stud a ways down the line but is in no way ready to contribute in the NBA as of right now. Gary Neal was a nice pickup to add some scoring punch, but what the Wiz really needed was front court depth to back up the injury prone Nene and the inconsistent Gortat, which they did not get. I think the Wiz drop a Few spots in the east, unless Otto Porter harnesses his potential and has a moster year. The team is really going to miss the presence of Pierce alot more than people think.
4. New York. It all started on draft night when the Knicks took Porzingiz. While i actually think the kid will develope into a real nice player down the line, it was a huge gamble for the Knicks to take at this juncture of their rebuilding stage. I thought they should have played it safe and gone for a guy like Mudiay or Winslow (who i still cant believe dropped). Then, agter striking out in free agency, they tie up a bunch of money in Lopez and Afflalo as if theyre gunning for a playoff spot, when what they really need to do is bottom out for a couple of years like Philly and trade Carmelo (which i know isnt going to be an easy task).
3. Atlanta. Hotlantas defense is going to take a huge hit with the subtraction of Carroll, who was one of the leagues most versatile defenders last year. What they should have done in the draft is go after a guy like HollisJefferson or Andersen, but instead traded the pick for the horribly inefficient Tim Hardaway Jr. Getting Splitter and resigning Millsap were good moves, but i still dont expect Atlanta to be nearly as good as last year and may drop a few spots, and maybe even be beat put in the division by Miami or Washington.
2. Charlotte. MJ done it again. First, he trades Lance Stephenson for next to nothing. Then trades Gerald Henderson, whose on a more than reasonable contract, and Noah Vonleh (who he gives up on in under a year) for Nicolas Batum, whose a nice player, but plays the same position as MKG, who MJ put alot of stock in drafting him 2nd overall. They also passed on Winslow, Turner and others for A guy named Frank the Tank. But its okay because they got Spencer Hawes.
1. Dallas. Poor poor Dallas. And its all DeAndre Jordans fault. I can see why the cubes is attempting to put together a competitive team after they got burned. But imo they should just ship out Dirk and Parsons and bottom out instead of ensuring theyre not bad enough to keep their pick (top 7 protected). Just a crappy situation.
Winners.
5. Sacramento. The Kings would be even higher on the list if they were in the eastern conference. Then these additions would actually maybe get them somewhere. But they did a great job of adding talent after a tumultuous start to the offseason. They got a potentially elite rim protector in WCS and the perfect guy to throw him lobs in Rondo. Belinelli and Koufos were great additions and getting rid of Stauskas, Landry and Thompson was a classic case if addition by subtraction. I think the Kings will finally make the leap from a bottom 3 team in the West to a 7 or 8 seed, which is pretty impressive in that conferance.
4. Milwaukee. The Bucks sort of just came out of nowhere and snagged Greg Monroe when some were certain he"d go to New York or elsewhere. Resigning Middleton, who proved he could make big shots in last years playoffs was huge. They added Miles Plumlee and Greivis Vasquez for very little and even got some value for Zaza. Ill be honest this Bucks team fills me with fear and envy..minus the whole Jason Kidd as head coach thing.
3. Houston. It started out by the Rockets having a terrific draft. Dekker and Harrell were both steals for where they were drafted. Then they go ahead and upgrade their weakest position by trading 4 scrubs and a late draft pick for Lawson, who has been a borderline allstat talent in the past. Resigning Brewer was key.
2. LA Clippers. Lance Stephenson, Jamal Crawford, Paul Pierce, Josh Smith, Cole Aldrich. The Clippers bench be looking like a eastern conference playoff team. Its funny because The Clips were one bad decision from DeAndre Jordan away from being on the other list. Im far from a fan of Blake Griffin or Chris Paul fan but im gunna be gunning for this team just for Paul Pierce. Its also nice seeing Doc find success as a GM.
1. Cleveland. Assuming Tristan Thompson will finally resign. The Cavs are on this list mostly because of the players they were able to keep. They were able to avoid a disaster in KLove leaving after giving up a future supertar for the guy. Then they add Mo Williams back, who many thought was over the hump then acored 50 points last year! Varejao coming back is also going to make a big difference. Ill end by saying i hate this team and it annoys me greatly that this will be the 6th consecutive year we have to see Lebron in the finals.
Topic: Top 5 offseason Losers..and winners (Read 15186 times)