Due to being tied up I didn't get to do a liveblog of the NBA draft, so instead here is my attempt at reacting to Round 1 of Unrestricted Free Agency.
ATLANTIC DIVISION:
BOSTON CELTICS - The biggest story of free agency, for better or for worse. The Celtics were basically capped out coming into free agency, and had declined the option on Carlos Boozer so they could re-sign him long-term this off-season (when they scraped up enough points to pay their luxury tax) instead of next off-season (when they almost certainly wouldn't have been able to). Unfortunately for them, Boozer left a supermax - and almost $40 million - on the table to get out of Beantown and head West for Minnesota to team up with Chris Bosh. The Celtics did manage to turn their sliver of cap space into Jose Calderon, who filled a need they had at point guard, but I assume they figured Boozer would have been back as well.
GRADE: Disaster. The Celtics were probably planning on retooling as luxury tax payments kept piling up, but probably assumed they would be retooling around a Hunter-Boozer frontcourt. The only good news here is that they have an outside chance of getting under the cap this season and stopping that huge repeater tax.
NEW JERSEY NETS - They didn't make a big, flashy signing, but the Nets did a nice job picking up two very versatile pieces in Gerald Wallace and Lamar Odom, forwards that are not really scoring threats but are athletic and can play multiple positions. The Nets look lke they have shored up their rotation pretty nicely without having to spend big to do it.
GRADE: Underrated. The Nets don't have any obvious lineup holes after these pickups.
MIAMI HEAT - They struck out in Round One, but since they only had minimum contracts to offer, were probably playing with one hand behind their back. They're probably looking for a starting quality 4 or 5 (so they can let Jefferson play the other position) and backup wings. Not sure if they can find a starter but they should still have a chance to fill their backup wing spots.
GRADE: Incomplete. After a nice run last season, some sort of reinforcements would have been nice.
NEW YORK KNICKS - Sometimes it's difficult to get "fit signings" in Free Agency, but the Knicks pulled it off. they needed another big to add to Anderson Varajeo and a point guard - and landed both in Kevin Garnett and Earl Watson. Garnett is getting up there in years, but can still play and has a nice all around game. Watson is a solid, if unspectacular point guard, but with a team featuring scorers like Carmelo Anthony and Stephen Jackson, all you want is a point guard who will give them the ball and get out of the way.
GRADE: Satisfactory. They might have overpaid slightly for Garnett, but in terms of value, flexibility, and fit, it's hard to find anything else wrong with these signings.
ORLANDO MAGIC - Signed no one. Still have a decent chunk of cap space to work with (8 million) but may have to use that to overpay mediocre talent. Could probably use a true PF if they can find one. Of course, to find one, you have to actually look.
GRADE: Unsatisfactory. Players don't bid for you.
PHILADELPHIA 76ERS - The Sixers had a very quiet free agency day, inking a couple of backup point guards on the back end of their careers. Then came the Chandler trade. The Sixers had made it no secret they were in the market for a big, and boy did they get one. Chandler immediately becomes the team's defensive anchor and with an undersized backcourt - Ellis is 6-3 and Robinson is 5-9 - they're going to need him.
GRADE: Telegraphed. Chandler-to-the-Sixers was the chatter even before Free Agents could officially sign, but it made total sense for the Sixers after they locked into Nate and Monta in RFA.
WASHINGTON WIZARDS - You kind of wonder if Xist might have decided not to match Granger in RFA if he knew he'd be picking up both Maggette and Ricky Davis on the cheap in UFA. The Wizards now have surprising depth on the wing; I expect at least one of those players will be out the door before to long because there's no way Granger, Maggette, Roy, and Davis will all get enough minutes.
GRADE: Surprising. But in a good way. The question will now be what the Wizards will do on Dec 15 to make the pieces fit a little better, but they have a pretty nice raw talent base.
Other divisions as I write them up.
Wig Liveblogs 2009 UFA
Wig Liveblogs 2009 UFA
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Re: Wig Liveblogs 2009 UFA
CENTRAL DIVISION
ATLANTA HAWKS - The Hawks came into the offseason needing to add a defensive wing to slot next to Rudy Gay and to re-sign Pau Gasol. It was probably more than cheapskate Wig likes to spend, but he threw his entire cap space at Shane Battier and got him. More importantly for Wig, Battier signed before Gasol signed and ate the Hawks' cap space. Bringing back Josh Howard on a modest one-year deal means the Hawks will have a little bit of depth as well.
GRADE - Poacher. Battier was about the perfect signing for the Hawks - he fits their need of a 3-and-D wing perfectly AND they stole him from division rivals Milwaukee. You have to thing the cat is smiling like the Grinch.
CHICAGO BULLS - The Bulls' biggest offseason move was jettisoning Hugo for the well-travelled RoboGM1. They added Michael Olowokandi with what little cap space they had. It's not an electrifying signing, to be sure, but the Bulls' biggest need was a true center.
GRADE - Patient. With bad contracts to Jerome James and Rasheed Wallace, the Bulls are just biding their time this year. Once those contracts fall off the books, they'll be able to do more reconstituting the team. But this is probably a lost season
CLEVELAND CAVALIERS - They made one modest signing, Eddie House. But the Cavs made all their moves on the trade market and only had veteran minimums to use and they already had a full complement of 13 players going into free agency, so any free agent signings they got would be gravy.
GRADE - Gravy-less. House will be a competent backup in the 4 minutes per game CP3 isn't on the floor.
DETROIT PISTONS - Picked up Jeff Foster on a minimum deal. It's a nice signing for the Pistons, as Foster means they won't have much of a dropoff when Dwight Howard comes off the floor. Foster's a guy who knows his role - get some rebounds, foul hard, maybe block a shot here and there. The Pistons were basically capped out, so no reason to expect big moves from them.
GRADE - B. B is for boards, blocks, and banging.
INDIANA PACERS - Made a big splash by bringing in Joe Johnson. The plan in Indy seems to be to either let Deron Williams penetrate or Yao Ming post up then surround the arc with three point shooters for either one to kick out to. This observer is concerned, however, that the Pacers are extremely soft on the boards and will probably need to move one of their wings for a player that at least pretends to like rebounding.
GRADE - Sniper. Indiana should be launching a ton of 3's this season.
MILWAUKEE BUCKS - They signed Tony Parker to a lucrative deal - which makes sense since sentiment around the league is that Parker helped put them over the top last season and also because there are a lot of teams after point guards right now. For sentimental value, they brought Jalen Rose back into the fold. Unfortunately for them, they underestimated the market for Battier and lost him to division rivals the Hawks.
GRADE - Champions. Despite with the loss of Battier, the Bucks are still champs until proven otherwise.
NEW ORLEANS HORNETS - Brought back Z-Bo on a supermax deal but weren't able to add anyone else. Still have a substantial amount of cap space, but are now stuck trying to find a point guard, a center, and a bench from the players left in Free Agency. The question is whether they can assemble enough pieces around Z-Bo and Iggy to make another deep playof run.
GRADE - Scrambling. Dunleavy and Giricek are expiring this season, their core is already in their primes, and the pressure is on for the Hornets to win now.
TORONTO RAPTORS - Handed out a max contract to Tim Thomas; clearly they weren't keen on losing him for nothing. However, they hedged their bets because the second year ins't guaranteed. The Raptors have a very promising - if expensive - core of young talent with Perkins, Bynum, DeRozan, and George Hill and will either look for Thomas to be the focal point of their office while the young players develop or (more likely) they'll try to ship Thomas out for more young assets.
GRADE - Expensive. The Raptors have thir twin towers, but it's not clear to me that going way over the cap to retain Thomas for a year or two is the best decision.
ATLANTA HAWKS - The Hawks came into the offseason needing to add a defensive wing to slot next to Rudy Gay and to re-sign Pau Gasol. It was probably more than cheapskate Wig likes to spend, but he threw his entire cap space at Shane Battier and got him. More importantly for Wig, Battier signed before Gasol signed and ate the Hawks' cap space. Bringing back Josh Howard on a modest one-year deal means the Hawks will have a little bit of depth as well.
GRADE - Poacher. Battier was about the perfect signing for the Hawks - he fits their need of a 3-and-D wing perfectly AND they stole him from division rivals Milwaukee. You have to thing the cat is smiling like the Grinch.
CHICAGO BULLS - The Bulls' biggest offseason move was jettisoning Hugo for the well-travelled RoboGM1. They added Michael Olowokandi with what little cap space they had. It's not an electrifying signing, to be sure, but the Bulls' biggest need was a true center.
GRADE - Patient. With bad contracts to Jerome James and Rasheed Wallace, the Bulls are just biding their time this year. Once those contracts fall off the books, they'll be able to do more reconstituting the team. But this is probably a lost season
CLEVELAND CAVALIERS - They made one modest signing, Eddie House. But the Cavs made all their moves on the trade market and only had veteran minimums to use and they already had a full complement of 13 players going into free agency, so any free agent signings they got would be gravy.
GRADE - Gravy-less. House will be a competent backup in the 4 minutes per game CP3 isn't on the floor.
DETROIT PISTONS - Picked up Jeff Foster on a minimum deal. It's a nice signing for the Pistons, as Foster means they won't have much of a dropoff when Dwight Howard comes off the floor. Foster's a guy who knows his role - get some rebounds, foul hard, maybe block a shot here and there. The Pistons were basically capped out, so no reason to expect big moves from them.
GRADE - B. B is for boards, blocks, and banging.
INDIANA PACERS - Made a big splash by bringing in Joe Johnson. The plan in Indy seems to be to either let Deron Williams penetrate or Yao Ming post up then surround the arc with three point shooters for either one to kick out to. This observer is concerned, however, that the Pacers are extremely soft on the boards and will probably need to move one of their wings for a player that at least pretends to like rebounding.
GRADE - Sniper. Indiana should be launching a ton of 3's this season.
MILWAUKEE BUCKS - They signed Tony Parker to a lucrative deal - which makes sense since sentiment around the league is that Parker helped put them over the top last season and also because there are a lot of teams after point guards right now. For sentimental value, they brought Jalen Rose back into the fold. Unfortunately for them, they underestimated the market for Battier and lost him to division rivals the Hawks.
GRADE - Champions. Despite with the loss of Battier, the Bucks are still champs until proven otherwise.
NEW ORLEANS HORNETS - Brought back Z-Bo on a supermax deal but weren't able to add anyone else. Still have a substantial amount of cap space, but are now stuck trying to find a point guard, a center, and a bench from the players left in Free Agency. The question is whether they can assemble enough pieces around Z-Bo and Iggy to make another deep playof run.
GRADE - Scrambling. Dunleavy and Giricek are expiring this season, their core is already in their primes, and the pressure is on for the Hornets to win now.
TORONTO RAPTORS - Handed out a max contract to Tim Thomas; clearly they weren't keen on losing him for nothing. However, they hedged their bets because the second year ins't guaranteed. The Raptors have a very promising - if expensive - core of young talent with Perkins, Bynum, DeRozan, and George Hill and will either look for Thomas to be the focal point of their office while the young players develop or (more likely) they'll try to ship Thomas out for more young assets.
GRADE - Expensive. The Raptors have thir twin towers, but it's not clear to me that going way over the cap to retain Thomas for a year or two is the best decision.
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Re: Wig Liveblogs 2009 UFA
DALLAS MAVERICKS - Didn't make any signings. The Mavericks are transitioning into the Lopez era but still need to surround him with pieces. With lots of cap space and few quality players left on the board, they'll have to walk the line between overpaying and not getting any decent help for Lopez this year.
GRADE - Limbo. That's where this team will be until Lopez and maybe Holiday show they can do more than put up numbers on a bad squad.
DENVER NUGGETS - They threw a lot of money around but wound up striking out in Free Agency. Guess the great real estate prices in the Mile High City weren't enough to convince players to join forces with Rajon Rondo. The Nuggets will probably try to overspend on one year deals in Round 2 to gather together some pieces they can use to field a squad this year.
GRADE - Disappointed. That's how the Nuggets faithful feel right now.
HOUSTON ROCKETS - Somehow forgot to bid on franchise icon Zydrunas Ilgauskas but did bring in Mcihael Redd and Kobe Bryant on a couple of hefty deals. They have proven scoring punch on the wings now, the question is going to be how fast their young core of Horford, Lawson, Young, and Diogu can grow up to match them.
GRADE - Bittersweet. The Rockets made a couple of sweet signings but the loss of Big Z adds a touch of bitter.
VANMEMPHIS GRIZZLIES - Did a nice job grabbing one of the two young UFAs with considerable potential out there when they convinced Gerald Green to sign on at 6 million per season. The Grizzlies entered Free Agency as the Kyle Lowry show and adding Green gives them another young piece next to Kyle Lowry. They may have overspent a bit to keep Bobby Simmons in the fold, but Bobby is on a flat contract that will look better the longer it goes. Their contract to Al Harrington is nice as well - Harrington's defense is atrocious but he can put the ball in the hoop. The Grizzlies (like a few other teams) will turn their attentions now to finding some big men.
GRADE - Green. Adding a solid young piece on a modest deal is a great win for this team.
MINNESOTA TIMBERWOLVES - Made two huge signings (literally and figuratively) by bringing in "Big Cat" Jamaal Magloire to clog up the middle and get rebounds, and that wasn't even their biggest move. They convinced Carlos Boozer to abandon Celtic Green for T-Wolf... whatever color the Wolves wear. Yes, their backcourt needs some work, but the Bosh-Boozer combination looks positively frightening.
GRADE - Sheen. As in Charlie "Winning" Sheen. If you had to pick a team that "won" Free Agency, it's Minnesota.
SAN ANTONIO SPURS - Threw a ton of money at relatively young SG Gilbert Arenas. They'll basically return a team that finished 42-40 last year and hope that another year of seasoning is enough to help them make the jump. A Spurs trade is rarer than a blue moon, but don't be surprised if the Spurs actually make a move this year - they have a lot of pieces that are a bit redundant and would probalby like to use some of their wing depth to upgrade at C.
GRADE - Zero. If Arenas can find a way to get back to his glory days circa 2003 the Spurs will be dangerous no matter what. The bet here is that he won't and the Spurs won't be dangerous without a trade - Westbrook isn't going to be ready to carry the team yet.
UTAH JAZZ - They needed a Center. They got two in Big Z and Shaq. They needed a forward. They got one in Donyell Marshall. The problem with these guys? They're all 5+ years past their primes. While they'll likely see more floor time than C.J. Miles, who will be stuck behind Bonzi Wells, make no mistake... the gem of this free agent period for the Jazz will be Miles, whom they got very cheap and who has a lot of growing left to do. The Jazz are long in the tooth and waiting for some of their old guys to move on and see their contracts fall off the books so they can move on, so to pick up a young piece like Miles is a huge get for them.
GRADE - Discordant. The Jazz' mix of age and youth probably won't work this season, but at least they will finally have huge gobbets of cap room to work with next season.
Pacific Grades coming tomorrow - going to sleep now.
GRADE - Limbo. That's where this team will be until Lopez and maybe Holiday show they can do more than put up numbers on a bad squad.
DENVER NUGGETS - They threw a lot of money around but wound up striking out in Free Agency. Guess the great real estate prices in the Mile High City weren't enough to convince players to join forces with Rajon Rondo. The Nuggets will probably try to overspend on one year deals in Round 2 to gather together some pieces they can use to field a squad this year.
GRADE - Disappointed. That's how the Nuggets faithful feel right now.
HOUSTON ROCKETS - Somehow forgot to bid on franchise icon Zydrunas Ilgauskas but did bring in Mcihael Redd and Kobe Bryant on a couple of hefty deals. They have proven scoring punch on the wings now, the question is going to be how fast their young core of Horford, Lawson, Young, and Diogu can grow up to match them.
GRADE - Bittersweet. The Rockets made a couple of sweet signings but the loss of Big Z adds a touch of bitter.
VANMEMPHIS GRIZZLIES - Did a nice job grabbing one of the two young UFAs with considerable potential out there when they convinced Gerald Green to sign on at 6 million per season. The Grizzlies entered Free Agency as the Kyle Lowry show and adding Green gives them another young piece next to Kyle Lowry. They may have overspent a bit to keep Bobby Simmons in the fold, but Bobby is on a flat contract that will look better the longer it goes. Their contract to Al Harrington is nice as well - Harrington's defense is atrocious but he can put the ball in the hoop. The Grizzlies (like a few other teams) will turn their attentions now to finding some big men.
GRADE - Green. Adding a solid young piece on a modest deal is a great win for this team.
MINNESOTA TIMBERWOLVES - Made two huge signings (literally and figuratively) by bringing in "Big Cat" Jamaal Magloire to clog up the middle and get rebounds, and that wasn't even their biggest move. They convinced Carlos Boozer to abandon Celtic Green for T-Wolf... whatever color the Wolves wear. Yes, their backcourt needs some work, but the Bosh-Boozer combination looks positively frightening.
GRADE - Sheen. As in Charlie "Winning" Sheen. If you had to pick a team that "won" Free Agency, it's Minnesota.
SAN ANTONIO SPURS - Threw a ton of money at relatively young SG Gilbert Arenas. They'll basically return a team that finished 42-40 last year and hope that another year of seasoning is enough to help them make the jump. A Spurs trade is rarer than a blue moon, but don't be surprised if the Spurs actually make a move this year - they have a lot of pieces that are a bit redundant and would probalby like to use some of their wing depth to upgrade at C.
GRADE - Zero. If Arenas can find a way to get back to his glory days circa 2003 the Spurs will be dangerous no matter what. The bet here is that he won't and the Spurs won't be dangerous without a trade - Westbrook isn't going to be ready to carry the team yet.
UTAH JAZZ - They needed a Center. They got two in Big Z and Shaq. They needed a forward. They got one in Donyell Marshall. The problem with these guys? They're all 5+ years past their primes. While they'll likely see more floor time than C.J. Miles, who will be stuck behind Bonzi Wells, make no mistake... the gem of this free agent period for the Jazz will be Miles, whom they got very cheap and who has a lot of growing left to do. The Jazz are long in the tooth and waiting for some of their old guys to move on and see their contracts fall off the books so they can move on, so to pick up a young piece like Miles is a huge get for them.
GRADE - Discordant. The Jazz' mix of age and youth probably won't work this season, but at least they will finally have huge gobbets of cap room to work with next season.
Pacific Grades coming tomorrow - going to sleep now.
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Re: Wig Liveblogs 2009 UFA
Great stuff on a whole, Wig! For me it was Parker or Battier. I actually offered Battier the same amount as you, but just couldn't commit to a 3 year deal. Oh well, good luck to yaWigNosy wrote:CENTRAL DIVISION
MILWAUKEE BUCKS - They signed Tony Parker to a lucrative deal - which makes sense since sentiment around the league is that Parker helped put them over the top last season and also because there are a lot of teams after point guards right now. For sentimental value, they brought Jalen Rose back into the fold. Unfortunately for them, they underestimated the market for Battier and lost him to division rivals the Hawks.
GRADE - Champions. Despite with the loss of Battier, the Bucks are still champs until proven otherwise.
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Re: Wig Liveblogs 2009 UFA
PACIFIC DIVISION
GOLDEN STATE WARRIORS - Another team that struck out in Free Agency despite having money to spend. The Warriors would have loved to get in one of the excellent Power Forwards that were available this season but came up empty in Round One. They still have a defensive anchor in DeAndre Jordan and shooters all over the floor, but a steady inside presence would have done a lot to help them out sooner rather than later.
GRADE - Kempless. Wonder if they'll try to address their need at PF by bringing back the Reign Man.
LOS ANGELES CLIPPERS - With all the attention on the Kings' trades in the Pacific Division, the Clippers continue to quietly and sneakily make quality signings. They brought back Francisco Garcia on a short-term deal to give them backcourt depth, then picked up Calvin Booth, David Lee, and Jarvis Hayes on meager deals to give themselves tons of depth in the front court. The Clippers have been quietly excellent for quite some time now and with the Kings breaking up the band and the Sonics apparently paying attention to the tax man, could this be their year?
GRADE - Deep. The Clippers have a ton of depth around Kevin Durant, and once he morphs into the superstar we all anticipate is coming soon, the Clippers will be title contenders.
LOS ANGELES LAKERS - As TrayWithAnA said, the J.R. Smith era has begun in LA, whether he wanted it to or not. Kobe Bryant took an enormous contract offer to go to Houston and while that probably helped that Lakers save themselves a ruinous tax bill, it does hurt their team talent in the short term. Kobe was the engine behind the LA offense and without him, Tray is left to scramble for a new offensive focus. LA's defense is still nasty, but their offense now looks a litle suspect.
GRADE - Spread. The Lakers will have to spread Kobe's scoring around to duplicate last year's success - J.R. smith isn't going to carry the load himself.
SEATTLE SUPERSONICS - The Sonics made a sneaky-good signing of Andre Miller that really helps them out - Miller's production was great last season and he gives them the true point guard that last year's Rondo-for-Wade deal made them miss. Not bad for a capped-out team. The Sonics are probably looking to bring in another big - Asik and Griffin aren't exactly Bosh and Boozer - and are shopping Richard Jefferson hard.
GRADE - Savvy. Miller is a savvy player and signing him was a savvy move. If the Sonics have a move up their sleeve for a big, watch out.
PHOENIX SUNS - In a year where everyone was bemoaning the lack of good point guards on offer, the Suns picked up Chauncey Billups and Jason Terry - two veterans that can still shoot and dish effectively and fit the Suns' group of young bigs to a T. The Suns now have the ability to stretch the floor with just about anyone and if they commit to the three, could well be on to a high-scoring alternative play style.
GRADE - Points. The Suns' offense should light it up this year if coached properly.
PORTLAND TRAILBLAZERS - Didn't come up with a round 1 signing in Free Agency. Even with Antawn Jamison in the fold, they had plenty of cap space to try to kickstart a rebuild around Blake Griffin and Derrick Rose. Guess they're taking the long approach. They have a roster with a ton of young pieces and you assume they're hoping one or two hits it big in training camp before they start spending money. They can affod to be patient as their young core is still locked up on rookie deals for three plus years, but sooner or later, they have to make moves to get guys signed before they have to pay their rookies.
GRADE - Disappointing. Seeing what CJ Miles and Gerald Green signed for makes you think the Blazers should have been in the mix for those young guys.
SACRAMENTO KINGS - Made the one signing they had to make - supermaxxing Tyson Chandler - before trading him and beginning the process of blowing up the team. The trade of Chandler to the Atlantic was followed the next day by a trade of McGrady to the Atlantic. If the Kings can find one more Atlantic team to give them young assets for Kirk Hinrich, he'll officially be like an arms dealer profiteering off war by selling to all sides.
GRADE - Reset. Now that McGrady has finally been moved, the Kings have officially begun to reset. It's only taken them what, about 10 seasons, to reset?
GOLDEN STATE WARRIORS - Another team that struck out in Free Agency despite having money to spend. The Warriors would have loved to get in one of the excellent Power Forwards that were available this season but came up empty in Round One. They still have a defensive anchor in DeAndre Jordan and shooters all over the floor, but a steady inside presence would have done a lot to help them out sooner rather than later.
GRADE - Kempless. Wonder if they'll try to address their need at PF by bringing back the Reign Man.
LOS ANGELES CLIPPERS - With all the attention on the Kings' trades in the Pacific Division, the Clippers continue to quietly and sneakily make quality signings. They brought back Francisco Garcia on a short-term deal to give them backcourt depth, then picked up Calvin Booth, David Lee, and Jarvis Hayes on meager deals to give themselves tons of depth in the front court. The Clippers have been quietly excellent for quite some time now and with the Kings breaking up the band and the Sonics apparently paying attention to the tax man, could this be their year?
GRADE - Deep. The Clippers have a ton of depth around Kevin Durant, and once he morphs into the superstar we all anticipate is coming soon, the Clippers will be title contenders.
LOS ANGELES LAKERS - As TrayWithAnA said, the J.R. Smith era has begun in LA, whether he wanted it to or not. Kobe Bryant took an enormous contract offer to go to Houston and while that probably helped that Lakers save themselves a ruinous tax bill, it does hurt their team talent in the short term. Kobe was the engine behind the LA offense and without him, Tray is left to scramble for a new offensive focus. LA's defense is still nasty, but their offense now looks a litle suspect.
GRADE - Spread. The Lakers will have to spread Kobe's scoring around to duplicate last year's success - J.R. smith isn't going to carry the load himself.
SEATTLE SUPERSONICS - The Sonics made a sneaky-good signing of Andre Miller that really helps them out - Miller's production was great last season and he gives them the true point guard that last year's Rondo-for-Wade deal made them miss. Not bad for a capped-out team. The Sonics are probably looking to bring in another big - Asik and Griffin aren't exactly Bosh and Boozer - and are shopping Richard Jefferson hard.
GRADE - Savvy. Miller is a savvy player and signing him was a savvy move. If the Sonics have a move up their sleeve for a big, watch out.
PHOENIX SUNS - In a year where everyone was bemoaning the lack of good point guards on offer, the Suns picked up Chauncey Billups and Jason Terry - two veterans that can still shoot and dish effectively and fit the Suns' group of young bigs to a T. The Suns now have the ability to stretch the floor with just about anyone and if they commit to the three, could well be on to a high-scoring alternative play style.
GRADE - Points. The Suns' offense should light it up this year if coached properly.
PORTLAND TRAILBLAZERS - Didn't come up with a round 1 signing in Free Agency. Even with Antawn Jamison in the fold, they had plenty of cap space to try to kickstart a rebuild around Blake Griffin and Derrick Rose. Guess they're taking the long approach. They have a roster with a ton of young pieces and you assume they're hoping one or two hits it big in training camp before they start spending money. They can affod to be patient as their young core is still locked up on rookie deals for three plus years, but sooner or later, they have to make moves to get guys signed before they have to pay their rookies.
GRADE - Disappointing. Seeing what CJ Miles and Gerald Green signed for makes you think the Blazers should have been in the mix for those young guys.
SACRAMENTO KINGS - Made the one signing they had to make - supermaxxing Tyson Chandler - before trading him and beginning the process of blowing up the team. The trade of Chandler to the Atlantic was followed the next day by a trade of McGrady to the Atlantic. If the Kings can find one more Atlantic team to give them young assets for Kirk Hinrich, he'll officially be like an arms dealer profiteering off war by selling to all sides.
GRADE - Reset. Now that McGrady has finally been moved, the Kings have officially begun to reset. It's only taken them what, about 10 seasons, to reset?
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