Now that the biggest names are off the board, here’s a look at the biggest winners and losers of the 2017 NBA free agency period.
Now that we’re officially four weeks into the 2017 NBA free agency period, most of the big names are already off the board.
Though we’re still waiting on a few notable players like Tony Allen and restricted free agents Nerlens Noel and Nikola Mirotic to land contracts, for the most part, we know the lay of the land for the upcoming season.
From Chris Paul to Jimmy Butler to Paul George, we’ve seen plenty of star names change hands on the trade market. We’ve seen stars like Stephen Curry, Gordon Hayward and Kevin Durant make their free agency decisions, and we’ve seen the balance of power tip even further in favor of the Western Conference.
The question is, which teams emerged as the biggest winners and losers during 2017 NBA free agency?
In order to sort out this summer’s flurry of offseason activity, it’s time to compare some of the summer’s biggest winners and losers heading into the upcoming 2017-18 NBA season.
Winner: Boston Celtics
Yes, the Boston Celtics had to trade Avery Bradley, renounce Kelly Olynyk, waive Tyler Zeller and Jordan Mickey, and let Jonas Jerebko, Amir Johnson and James Young walk in free agency. Yes, they have two starting-caliber wing players now, one of whom will either have to come off the bench or play down a position at the 4.
But was it worth it to add a two-way upgrade on the wing like Gordon Hayward? Absolutely. His 21.9 points per game provides Boston with another option on offense, which cratered whenever Isaiah Thomas sat last year. His 39.8 percent three-point shooting spreads the floor and his perimeter defense bolsters the wing. Having another multi-positional wing alongside Jae Crowder is definitely not a bad thing, given the way the league is trending.
The only way signing a 27-year-old to a four-year max would have been better is if the Indiana Pacers hadn’t crapped the bed and waited for a better return on a Paul George trade. If the Cleveland Cavaliers wind up trading Kyrie Irving, the Celtics — who still have youth and added Marcus Morris, Aron Baynes, Ante Zizic, Guerschon Yabusele and Jayson Tatum this summer — could finally be a legitimate threat to end LeBron James‘ reign in the East.
Loser: Utah Jazz
The biggest loser of the Gordon Hayward sweepstakes was obviously the Utah Jazz, who had little means to replace their go-to scorer, secondary playmaker and designated wing stopper on the open market. Simply put, they were never going to replace an All-Star loss like that.
General manager Dennis Lindsey rebounded from Hayward’s departure about as well as could be expected. The Jazz got a defensive-minded, pass-first replacement for George Hill thanks to the Ricky Rubio trade, re-signed Joe Ingles, landed Jonas Jerebko and Thabo Sefolosha to team-friendly deals and brought Ekpe Udoh back stateside.
However, this Jazz team that won 51 games last season despite all its injury woes will be significantly worse without Hayward next year, and a promising core on the rise has been reduced to a fringe playoff team — even with Rudy Gobert serving as the new centerpiece for the long haul. Unless Donovan Mitchell is even better than anyone thinks, it’s back to the drawing board for next season and the seasons to come.
Winner: Golden State Warriors
Barring injury, the Golden State Warriors are winning the 2018 NBA Finals. After a summer spent re-signing Stephen Curry, Kevin Durant, Andre Iguodala, Shaun Livingston, David West, Zaza Pachulia and JaVale McGee, not to mention signing Omri Casspi and Nick Young, the defending champs had a better summer than anyone.
After breezing their way to a 16-1 playoff record and their second championship in three seasons, the Dubs had star players and auxiliary pieces to lock down. They were able to do that and more thanks to Durant’s one-year discount, allowing them to give Curry the super-max he’s long deserved while also finding space for fair deals to keep crucial bench pieces like Iggy and Livingston.
Adding more three-point shooting off the bench with Casspi and Swaggy P only makes this summer even sweeter, even if they wind up losing Ian Clark on the open market. Between all of this, the drafting of Jordan Bell and internal improvement from guys like Patrick McCaw and Kevon Looney, the Warriors did everything they needed to (and more) to keep a potential dynasty intact.
Loser: Every other hopeful title contender for the next 3-5 years
The Houston Rockets and maybe the Boston Celtics are really the only teams that made blockbuster moves this summer to directly challenge the Warriors’ reign of terror, and even the Celtics only have one foot in the door thanks to all the young pieces they have to fall back on. Why? Because the Dubs aren’t going anywhere.
More from NBA
- Meet Cooper Flagg: The best American prospect since LeBron James
- Are the Miami Heat laying the groundwork for their next super team?
- Sophomore Jump: 5 second-year NBA players bound to breakout
- Constructing the NBA’s perfect all-under-25 starting five
- Grading every NBA team’s highest draft pick in the last five years
The San Antonio Spurs were never able to make a play for a game-changing free agent, and though they’re generally good for 55-60 wins regardless, they didn’t close the gap on Golden State. The same goes for the Cleveland Cavaliers, who are now dealing with Kyrie Irving trade requests and the prospect of LeBron James leaving in free agency next summer.
With its core locked in for the next few seasons, the Warriors sent a message to the rest of the league: Try to contend if you wish, but more than likely, developing your youth, hunkering down in the bunker and waiting out this holy war on our preconceived notions of greatness is the way to go.
This inevitable dynastic rule matters, especially to a team like the Cavs, since now the allure of playing in L.A. as his career winds down might be greater for LeBron James than continuing to toil away for a Cleveland franchise that appears to be crumbling.
Winner: Western Conference
Jimmy Butler and Jeff Teague are joining the Minnesota Timberwolves. Paul George is with the Oklahoma City Thunder. Paul Millsap is heading to the Denver Nuggets. Chris Paul, Blake Griffin, Kevin Durant, Stephen Curry, Jrue Holiday are all remaining in the West as well.
Even notable role players like P.J. Tucker, Taj Gibson, Patrick Patterson, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, Thabo Sefolosha, Jonas Jerebko, Rajon Rondo are ALL out West.
My God, the Western Conference is loaded.
Loser: Eastern Conference
Jimmy Butler and Jeff Teague left the Chicago Bulls and Indiana Pacers, respectively. Paul George was hastily dealt from the Pacers. Paul Millsap left the Atlanta Hawks to their rebuild. Chris Paul, Blake Griffin, Kevin Durant, Stephen Curry, Jrue Holiday stayed away from the East as well.
Even notable role players like P.J. Tucker, Taj Gibson, Patrick Patterson, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, Thabo Sefolosha, Jonas Jerebko, Rajon Rondo ALL left the East.
My God, the Eastern Conference is trash.
(In all seriousness, the East did add Gordon Hayward, J.J. Redick, Jonathon Simmons, D’Angelo Russell, Victor Oladipo and Allen Crabbe this summer, but does that list really compare to the first one? Especially when the balance of superstardom was already so heavily skewed toward the West?)
Winner: Minnesota Timberwolves
At long last, Tom Thibodeau and Jimmy Butler are together again. And unlike most hypothetical trade scenarios put forth up to that point, the Minnesota Timberwolves barely even had to give anything up for a certified top-15 player in the league.
In exchange for Zach LaVine (who’s coming off an ACL injury), Kris Dunn (coming off perhaps the most disappointing rookie season in the league last year) and the No. 7 pick (the one-dimensional Lauri Markkanen), the Wolves bolstered their 26th-ranked defense and made their top-10 offense even more potent with Butler’s 23.9 points, 6.2 rebounds, 5.5 assists and 1.9 steals per game.
For the first time since 2004, the T-Wolves are seriously poised to return to the postseason. Adding Jeff Teague, Taj Gibson and Jamal Crawford only helps matters, and that’s before considering the impact of another year of development for Andrew Wiggins and Karl-Anthony Towns.
Loser: Chicago Bulls
As was the case with every superstar trade this summer, the team shipping away its franchise player lost — decisively. The Chicago Bulls finally made good on their promise to get younger, but they did so by trading a top-15 player for peanuts, without a blue-chip prospect to build on for the future.
LaVine is better than people realize and he’s still only 22 years old, but will he be the same after his ACL tear? Dunn isn’t a draft bust after only one season, but at 23, he was supposed to be far more NBA-ready than he showed as a rookie. Markkanen will spread the floor, but his defense might make him unplayable.
Neither Denzel Valentine, Cameron Payne, Paul Zipser, Cristiano Felicio‘s inflated contract nor Bobby Valentine will step up as the next savior this franchise needs. After failing to build around their old one, Chicago’s front office then failed to at least get a respectable return to jumpstart the next phase. But hey, at least they still have a 35-year-old Dwyane Wade!
Winner: Oklahoma City Thunder
How the Oklahoma City Thunder swooped in for Paul George over superior potential offers from the Boston Celtics or Los Angeles Lakers, the world will never know. But for some reason, new Pacers general manager Kevin Pritchard thought Victor Oladipo and Domantas Sabonis were enough compensation for one of the best two-way players in the league.
Now, to be fair, OKC isn’t out of the woods just yet. Remember, the Thunder could never win a title with Russell Westbrook, the reigning MVP, and Kevin Durant, the second-best player in the world and reigning Finals MVP. A slight downgrade from KD to PG-13 means Oklahoma City remains on the outside looking in among the bonafide title contenders.
It’s also worth noting that George could very well be a one-year rental — a fact made worse by Russell Westbrook also being a possible departure next summer if he doesn’t accept OKC’s contract extension. But between the Paul George heist, signing Patrick Patterson to the best bargain deal of the summer, retaining Andre Roberson for a fair price and adding Raymond Felton, this was an excellent bounce-back summer for Sam Presti.
Loser: Indiana Pacers
People initially laughed at Danny Ainge and the Celtics for not putting all those assets to use on a star, but it was the Indiana Pacers that screwed the proverbial pooch by trading a top-15 player for nothing more than Oladipo and Sabonis.
Unlike the Bulls, at least the Pacers got a quality player who isn’t coming off a season-ending injury (Oladipo). Unfortunately, their return wasn’t that better overall, even if Sabonis winds up becoming a quality NBA player entering his second season.
Maybe Oladipo will finally have the breakout year we’ve been waiting for. Maybe Sabonis reaches his ceiling as a capable stretch-4. But even in those best-case scenarios, and even with their backs up against the wall, the Pacers still didn’t get enough of a return or even a blue chip prospect for their franchise star. What’s worse is after years of failing to put an adequate team around PG-13, Indiana has no one to blame but itself.
Winner: Denver Nuggets
The Denver Nuggets‘ playoff push sputtered at the end last year, but with another season of development for Nikola Jokic, Jamal Murray and Gary Harris, plus the signing of Paul Millsap to address the team’s biggest position of need, the hatches have been battened down.
Whether it’s actually enough to make Denver a playoff team in 2018 remains to be seen, but Millsap is an excellent two-way addition, especially for the Nuggets’ 29th-ranked defense.
Although he’s already 32 years old, Millsap was only signed to a three-year deal as the Nuggets’ biggest free agency acquisition in decades. This young team on the rise needed a talented power forward, a defensive presence and a veteran leader, and it checked off every box by adding Millsap.
Loser: Atlanta Hawks
Remember two years ago, when the Atlanta Hawks didn’t trade Al Horford and lost him for nothing in free agency? And then remember the most recent trade deadline, when the Hawks didn’t trade Paul Millsap and lost him for nothing in free agency? Good times!
To be fair, re-signing a 32-year-old Millsap to a three- or four-year max deal wouldn’t have helped anything, but Atlanta’s front office messed up by not moving its assets when the sun had clearly set on its time as Eastern contenders the moment Kyle Korver was traded away.
The writing was on the wall, but the Hawks refused to read it. Now, they enter a rebuild without a single starter from the 60-win team from three years ago, or a sure thing to build around. (No offense, Dennis Schroder and John Collins.) They have two 2018 first round picks coming from Houston (top-three protected) and Minnesota (lottery-protected), but those probably won’t be particularly valuable either.
Winner: Houston Rockets
As the rest of the league takes shelter, the Houston Rockets proudly walked into the void, looked up at the hellfire raining down around them and heroically raised two middle fingers. Most teams are content to take the patient approach, but with James Harden submitting some historically great seasons, it was time to make more moves to capitalize on the prime of his career.
Aside from that eye-popping extension for the Beard himself, GM Daryl Morey pulled off the power move of the summer by executing a trade for Chris Paul. Though it cost Patrick Beverley, Sam Dekker, Lou Williams, Montrezl Harrell and a first round pick, the Rockets now have perhaps the two best facilitators in the NBA on the same roster.
There are questions about how CP3 and Harden will mesh, since both are ball-dominant players, but under Mike D’Antoni, there’s too much basketball intelligence for it to not work. Throw in the defensive improvements that will come from P.J. Tucker, Luc Mbah a Moute and Clint Capela‘s internal growth, and few teams had a better summer than Houston.
Loser: San Antonio Spurs
When Pau Gasol opted out of his $16.2 million player option to give the San Antonio Spurs salary cap flexibility, the league braced itself for what power move would come next. Unfortunately for the team that was once Golden State’s greatest threat, it never came.
There were no Chris Paul or Kyle Lowry power plays, nor was there a LaMarcus Aldridge trade. Instead, the Spurs re-signed Patty Mills and an aged Manu Ginobili, landed Rudy Gay and Joffrey Lauvergne, lost Jonathon Simmons to a completely manageable deal and wound up re-signing Gasol for nearly the same amount he opted out of ($16 million).
Expecting the Spurs to pull off home run after home run every year is unfair, but they also did nothing to close the gap on the Warriors. Meanwhile, their biggest Texan rival did. Maybe we’re underestimating Kawhi Leonard, but San Antonio arguably got worse as the Warriors somehow got better.
Winner: Philadelphia 76ers
The Process has never been more trustworthy. Forget about adding No. 1 draft pick Markelle Fultz, getting a healthy Ben Simmons and Joel Embiid on the court or bringing Furkan Korkmaz stateside. From a pure free agency perspective, the Philadelphia 76ers still emerged as winners.
Just a few summers ago, Philly was basically the NBA’s Siberia, where basketball careers were banished away and sentenced to die. Now, reputable free agents and veteran locker room leaders like J.J. Redick and Amir Johnson actually want to play for the 76ers, with Redick even tweeting the trademark phrase to announce his decision.
Redick provides the shooting, floor spacing and locker room presence this young team needed, while Johnson will add frontcourt depth and veteran experience as well. On one-year deals, they keep Philly’s cap space intact for the foreseeable future, and suddenly, it seems like the playoffs are a realistic expectation. Sam Hinkie had to die for their sins, but the Sixers’ day of redemption is finally at hand.
Loser: Restricted free agents and big men
To be fair, there were a few success stories for restricted free agents this summer. Tony Snell (four years, $46 million), Cristiano Felicio (four years, $32 million) and Joe Ingles (four years, $52 million) were re-signed rather quickly, while massive offer sheets for Otto Porter Jr. (four years, $106.5 million) and Tim Hardaway Jr. (four years, $71 million) were matched by their respective teams.
However, the rest of the restricted free agency class either got the short end of the stick or is still awaiting a summer payday.
Andre Roberson got three years and $30 million from OKC, which seems fair for both the Thunder and their one-dimensional defender, but also seems like less than his value on the open market. Then there’s Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, who was renounced outright by the Detroit Pistons and had to settle for a one-year “prove it” deal with the Lakers (even if it is worth $18 million).
Meanwhile, Nerlens Noel, Nikola Mirotic, Alex Len, Mason Plumlee and JaMychal Green all have yet to receive an offer sheet, let alone reach an agreement to re-sign with their respective teams.
Next: 2017 NBA free agency tracker - Grades for every deal so far
As for the big men, it’s not a surprise to see their money dry up after A) last summer’s irresponsible spending spree and B) the current direction of the league. But Willie Reed (one year, $1.5 million), Dewayne Dedmon (two years, $14 million), Nene (three years, $11 million), Mike Muscala (two years, $10 million), Aron Baynes (one year, $4.3 million) and Tarik Black (one year, $3.5 million) show just how bad it’s gotten for backup centers.