Pictured from Top Clockwise:
Ron Artest - Houston to LAL
Richard Jefferson - Bucks to Spurs
Shaquille O'Neal - PHX to Cavs
Rasheed Wallace - Detroit to Boston
The NBA offseason has proven to be as exciting as this past year's playoffs were. Here is some quick analysis of whether the biggest movers and shakers are moving closer to the promised land, or closer to Clipperland.
EAST
Cavs - Made the biggest splash, (pun intended) by trading for Shaq while only giving up mothballs in Pavlovic and a rusty Big Ben. They missed out on top-level wings Ariza & Artest but did sign underrated Raptors SG Anthony Parker which should help some of the size mismatches in the backcourt. However, one can question the steep financial commitment they just made to Anderson Varejao (6 years, $50million), a hustle player with no apparent offensive upside. Verdict - UP
Celtics - The biggest additions for the C's will come with a healthy Kevin Garnett throughout the season and playoffs. They pushed East finalists Orlando to the max without KG and now add Rasheed Wallace to the mix. If Big Baby Davis can be resigned at a reasonable price, their frontcourt depth should be restored. However, they are still lacking a veteran off the bench to back up Ray Allen and Paul Pierce, both of whom will need substantial rest during the regular season. If Grant Hill accepts less money to rejoin Doc Rivers, banner number 18 could be on its way. Verdict - WAY UP
Magic - First of all, trading Hedo Turkoglu for an aging, notoriously selfish Vince Carter already downgrades the Magic. Much of their unconvential offense revolved around putting the ball in Hedo's hands and letting him create for teammates, something Vinsanity isn't exactly known for. Second, to make this switch, they had to give up a capable big man (Marcin Gortat), a starting-quality point guard (Rafer Alston) and a promising two-way backcourt player (Courtney Lee). Unless Dwight Howard suddenly does become Patrick Ewing, this team won't come close to the success it had last year. Verdict - WAY DOWN
Pistons - Detroit lost Rasheed Wallace and AI but added Ben Gordon and tweeter Charlie Villanueva at the dawn of free agency. However, the biggest move this offseason is not signing Avery Johnson and instead choosing Cavs assistant John Kuester to run the show on the bench. A rookie head coach won't win next season, especially with this collection of role players; they'll again exit the playoffs in the first round. Verdict - PUSH
Bulls - Sure, Luol Deng will be healthy and Derrick Rose will only get better, but they let their biggest go-to scorer leave for a division rival. The Bulls can't count on their youth growing up fast under Vinnie Del Negro to overcome the other juggernauts in the East, at least not next year. Once again, the Baby Bulls will scrap just to make the playoffs. VERDICT - DOWN
WEST
Lakers - Picked up Ron Artest, but lost underrated glue guy Trevor Ariza. While it may seem like a great move, will Artest's combustibility be the demise of the Lakers? As long as he stays somewhat sane and refrains from stalking Kobe in the shower, they should be a better team. However, the most intriguing Laker subplot will be the development of Andrew Bynum, who's shown flashes of greatness, but not for an entire season. If he makes a big leap and stays healthy, expect a repeat. Verdict - UP
Rockets - Also basically traded Artest for Ariza, who may not find the same success out of the triangle offense. They have also yet to deal with the loss of Yao and Dikembe Mutombo, leaving a gaping hole on the inside. I love Chuck Hayes, but if he's your starting center in the playoffs, you're team has issues. Some may expect the return of a healthy and motivated Tracy McGrady could lead Houston on a march through the playoffs, but don't hold your breath! Verdict - WAY DOWN
Spurs - Added Richard Jefferson, DaJuan Blair, and Antonio McDyess this offseason while getting rid of some dead weight. While none of them may singularly catapult the Spurs to the top, each person will inject some new blood to the elder statesmen of the West Elite. If the bodies of Parker, Ginobli, and Duncan can hold up, expect the Spurs to at least return to the West Finals. Verdict - WAY UP
Mavs - Signed Marcin Gortat to an offer sheet and added Shawn Marion while also dumping Devean George, Jerry Stackhouse, and Antoine Wright. They did hold on to Jason Kidd, but there's no way this roster will jump the Spurs or Lakers. At best they'll reach the Conference Semis. Verdict - PUSH
Clippers - Ironically, the Clips may have had one of the best offseasons in the NBA. Adding Blake Griffin and dumping perennial malcontent Zach Randolph is the best thing this franchise may have ever done. As long as Mike Dunleavy lets Baron Davis play up-tempo they will be way up, and could possibly sneak into the postseason. Although, with Mike Dunleavy in charge, don't expect any miracles. Verdict - UP
7 comments:
The Cavs have made some good moves in this offseason to put them in the top 3 in the East, however they still need to sign/trade for a big man to play the forward position. Varejao, although may have gotten a ridiculous amount of money for being nothing but a flopping artist he is not someone who is going to be a viable starter to make the Cavs compete. What the Cavs need is someone who can start at the forward position and get some valuable offensive time with Varejao being the first big man off of the bench. JJ Hickson, although a highly thought of rookie last year is not someone you can count on to give Mike Brown productive minutes. Hedo would've been a nice wish for the Cavs to get and with Joe Smith hopefully not coming back, they need to make another splash in signing or trading for that last piece. A starting lineup of Williams, West, James, ? and O'Neal would look quite nice when matching up with the Celtics or Magic.
- Rat Boy
Way to include my beloved Clippers Y2!
As for the Cavs, Varaejo will start at the 4, there are no other options. Z will come off the bench and greatly improve the Cavs' 2nd unit, where they struggled mightily last season. It was silly to give Andy that amount of money, but he plays well with LeBron and the Cavs have to do everything to placate the King. Parker is perhaps the key cog to give them some backcourt size.
As far as the rest are concerned...I see a Spurs/Celts finals as long as both teams can stay healthy, but that's a big if.
Mr. Y 1,
You missed my general point. The point was that with no other options they need to look elsewhere for someone to replace Andy if they are going to be a viable team deep in the playoffs. He would be better suited to be the first guy off the bench.
- Rat Boy
First of all... one thought for "rat boy:" I would agree with you that Varejao may not have been the most productive offensive player, but he did start for a 60 win team this past season.... not bad, not bad at all. That said, they didn't make it to the finals despite the best record sooo I suppose I can't completely disagree with your opinions. To have Varejao AND Z come off the bench would be pretty cool.... don't exactly see that happening though. Maybe Andy will suddenly become an offensive genius.
Next, I would agree with Mr. Yoder II that Orlando giving up Hedo seems silly. I didn't see him a whole lot in the regular season, but he sure was integral in their playoff run..... Not that I mind Orlando going "way down"....
cavs vs. celtics in the conference finals!!
Just to put a final bow on this Cavs talk, I don't think the Cavs will mortgage their financial flexibility in 2010 to add any more pieces this offseason. Signing Andy to that ridiculous contract may have already done some damage in that respect. That being said, the starting 5 should be Shaq, Andy, LeBron, Anthony Parker, and Mo Williams. Parker will give some backcourt size and be able to guard the opposing team's best player. Delonte West and Z will move to the bench and as Y1 said, improve the 2nd unit.
However, don't underestimate the loss of assistant coach John Kuester. Much of the credit for the Cavs improved offense (at least during the regular season) went to Keuster. Thus, more responsibility will go to Mike Brown (maybe not a good thing) and of course LeBron. If I was a Cavs fan, I'd not only worry about LeBron staying after next year, I'd worry about him this year! His behavior lately has been erratic at best...maybe Cleveland would be better off without King James...(future article tease)
The Cavs were just bought by a Chinese billionaire who all reports say is not stingy with the billfold. If they need to put forward some green to get a guy they will do it.
- Rat Boy
The Cavs were just bought by a Chinese billionaire who all reports say is not stingy with the billfold. If they need to put forward some green to get a guy they will do it.
- Rat Boy
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