The offseason is well and truly underway. How do I know that? Because the NBA world is currently filled with smoke screens, rumours, trades and all kinds of crazy shit. All to keep us entertained.
So here's what went down today:
Trades
- The Celtics agreed to trade the number one overall pick in Thursdays draft to Philadelphia for the 76ers 2017 3rd pick, as well as the Lakers 2018 first round pick which Philly already own. This pick has some interesting protections on it though. Boston will only receive the pick if it lands between 2 and 5. If not, the pick will be held by the 6ers, and the Celtics will then receive the 2019 Kings first round pick. (This didn't happen today but I thought I'd throw it in anyway)
- The Los Angeles Lakers traded D'Angelo Russell and Timofey Mozgov to the Brooklyn Nets for Brook Lopez and the 27th pick in the draft.
This trade has surprised most people. The Lakers lose Russell, a young guard entering his third NBA season. While he has had some issues off the court, he's shown promise on the court, averaging 16/4/5 last season.
Mozgov was a major liability for the Lakers, and he's a main part of why this trade went down. The Lakers stupidly signed him to a 4 year, 64 million dollar contract last offseason, for a centre that averaged a mere 7 points and 5 rebounds.
So why did the Nets want to rid Lopez, a top tier centre for these two players? Well, the Nets are stuck at the bottom of the league at the moment. They had the worst record in the league and have no good draft picks. So from their point of view, they've traded a class big man for a young talent that will help them rebuild, while also taking on a big, fat contract in Mozgov's. As a rebuilding team, it doesn't matter if you have a big contract tied to a bad player.
The Lakers managed to clear plenty of cap space, which will allow them to sign Paul George next season when he becomes a free agent who has said he'll be joining them when he is able to. Trading Russell also means they won't need to extend his contract, which will create more cap space to sign a certain King in the NBA who may be heading out West. It's all speculation at the moment, but with the way the Cavs franchise is shaping, there's a small chance LeBron takes to the Lakers. It may only be a small chance, but it's a chance.
- The Indiana Pacers are actively shopping superstar Paul George. We know that much. He's picking up interest from plenty of teams but having stated that he plans on leaving whichever team signs him for the Lakers next year when he's a free agent, teams are cautious. It'll be a lot to give up for a one year rental of Paul George.
- The Atlanta Hawks trade Dwight Howard and the 31st pick to Charlotte for Miles Plumlee, Marco Belinelli, and the 41st pick.
This is a bit of a nothing trade right now. But it may be important later on. The Hawks manage to shed Howard's contract, while the Hornets now have a defensive anchor to pair with their offensive gunner Kemba Walker. At this stage, it seems like the Hawks are going to blow it up and start a rebuild, but we won't know for certain until Paul Millsap decided whether he wants to sign on with the Hawks or not.
Free Agency
- Bulls guard Dwyane Wade exercises his player option and takes another year with Chicago.
After the Bulls disappointed a lot of NBA fans last season, finishing eighth in the East and getting bounced by the Cs in the first round, there isn't many reasons Wade would want to stay right? Wrong. There's 24 million reasons. If Wade entered free agency to sign with a championship contender, he wouldn't be worth much more than a veterans minimum contract. Maybe he'd scrape $6-8 million if he was lucky. But, luckily enough for him, Chicago's incompetent front office offered a two year, $48 million deal last offseason, with a player option after one year. So it's no surprise he took the money.
- Pau Gasol opts out of his contract worth $16.2 million this season with the Spurs.
Gasol isn't going to leave the Spurs though. Well, not at this stage at least. He plans on re-signing with them, but wants a longer contract than one year.
- Langston Galloway declines his player option with the Kings and will become a restricted free agent.
This means he can sign with whichever team he likes, but the Kings will have the opportunity to match any deal to keep him. However, as a 25 year old point guard averaging eight points per game to go along with one assist per game, he won't be receiving much attention in the free agency market.
Rumours
The Knicks are testing the market to see what return they could get for promising young forward Kristaps Porzingis. The Celtics could potentially be a candidate but it's unlikely anything goes down at this stage.
Jimmy Butler. The Cavaliers and the Celtics have been reported to be very interested in trading with the Bulls for Jimmy Butler. Rumours suggest the Cavs and Bulls haven't made it past initial talks at this stage, which isn't surprising as the Cavaliers don't have any real assets to give up. Unless they're willing to break up the big three and deal one of Kyrie Irving or Kevin Love. The rumours with the Celtics are picking up a little more traction as they have more assets to give up, but again, a trade doesn't seem imminent. NBA executives believe that Butler will be dealt on Thursday before or during the draft.
The Clippers are trying to flip DeAndre Jordan for fourth pick which Phoenix currently owns. The Suns aren't biting at this stage.
I'll try to post one of these every day, or every day something major happens. Hope you all enjoy it as much as I'm enjoying the pandemonium!