With the big NBA Free Agency names officially off the board, we look back and crown the biggest winners from the crazy period
It’s fair to say that this year’s NBA Free Agency period has been pretty crazy. So many moves and unexpected things have happened, making way for an incredibly interesting 2017-18 NBA season.
It’s also pretty clear that some teams have done better than others. Some organisations are just clear winners this offseason.
1. Oklahoma City Thunder
This one was easy.
It seemed like the whole league was pursuing Paul George and just about no one expected him to be moved to the Thunder.
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He is the second star that they needed to put next to Westbrook, allowing him to rest without the team crumbling. George should also fit well with Russell. He’s a great three-point shooter, who can also play off the ball, spotting up or cutting to the rim. PG is also one of the lockdown perimeter defenders in the NBA.
When Westbrook goes to the bench, George can control the offence more with the ball in his hands. He’s a decent playmaker and can also create his own shot.
Apart from this blockbuster deal, OKC have also done a good job adding complementary pieces. They re-signed Andre Roberson, brought in a backup point guard in Raymond Felton and a stretch 4 in Patrick Patterson.
Overall Grade: A
2. Minnesota Timberwolves
The T-Wolves were a little disappointing last season, finishing the year with just 31 wins.
However, this should be the year for them. They get another year of development from Karl-Anthony Towns and Andrew Wiggins, plus they’ve been busy adding talent around those two.
Most notably, they traded for Jimmy Butler. He brings experience and can act as a mentor for the young guys. He’s also played under head coach, Tom Thibodeau before, and knows his system. Butler will no doubt have an immediate impact on the defensive end, even if it takes a little while for him to gel offensively with the other guys.
The Wolves have also upgraded at point guard, signing Jeff Teague. Teague is an unselfish floor general who is comfortable playing at pace, and should be perfect playing alongside their big 3. Jeff is also a capable defender, so you can expect that Thibs can get the best out of him on that end.
That goes for the whole team actually.
They’ve most recently signed Jamal Crawford, who adds some explosive scoring off the bench and some much-needed depth.
Minnesota arguably has the second best starting 5 in the NBA and has now added some depth too. Big things appear to be on the horizon for these guys.
Overall Grade: A+
3. Golden State Warriors
It seems impossible to be able to say this, but the Warriors might have gotten even better.
Not only have they managed to re-sign all of their key guys, but they drafted a potential steal in Jordan Bell, and they’ve added shooters Omri Casspi and Swaggy P himself, Nick Young to bolster the bench.
Most of this was made possible by Kevin Durant’s unselfishness – taking a $9M per year pay cut to allow them to re-sign the other guys.
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Other teams have made a real effort to gain ground on Golden State, but that’s kind of hard to do, especially when they are making moves themselves to bolster their championship roster.
Overall Grade: A+