TIER 1: LIGHT YEARS AHEAD
1. Golden State Warriors
Key additions: DeMarcus Cousins (FA), Jonas Jerebko (FA)
Key losses: Javale McGee (FA), Zaza Pachulia (FA)
I guess a four-year run with a league-record 263 wins and three titles (they were likely one groin kick away from a fourth) wasn’t enough to keep Joe Lacob, Bob Myers, Steve Kerr, and the rest of Warriors brass from becoming complacent. The Warriors took a minimal gamble by agreeing to terms with star center DeMarcus “Boogie” Cousins on a one-year, $5.3 million deal; the freaking midlevel exception.
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A group of guys who signed for more annually this offseason: Rajon Rondo, Montrezl Harrell, Joe Harris, Aron Baynes, Mario Hezonja. Javale McGee, the champs’ starting center last year, unthinkably signed an identical contract with LA. I’m woozy. Is it really possible there was this little interest in this guy? Sure there are legitimate attitude concerns, he’s coming off the worst injury in sports, weighs at least 270 pounds, and is yet to participate in playoff basketball during his eight-year career.
But he’s still the most talented center in the world and coming off a historic season: 25.4 PPG, 12.9 RPG, 5.4 APG, 1.6 SPG, 1.6 BPG, 58.3 TS%. Nobody in NBA history has matched that for a full year. And he got less than a third of what Timofey Mozgov will make in 2019.
The New York Times’ Marc Stein did report that the Pelicans made Boogie a two-year, $40 million offer, which he supposedly rebuffed. The same report says the Lakers had a chance to get him at a similar price to what he ended up signing for but ultimately chose to pass due to concerns about attitude and fit. The Mavericks had interest in Cousins but ultimately signed Deandre Jordan, whom the Warriors originally intended to pursue with their MLE. Outside of those three teams, it doesn’t sound like there was much buzz surrounding Cousins.
Boogie himself swears he didn’t receive a single offer. Similar to the Durant signing, it seems like most other franchises didn’t think Golden State was a legitimate possibility; they were already too loaded. But the Warriors swooped in and got one of the league’s top twenty guys on a great deal with minimal risk. If he fits, he will push them from unstoppable to hysterically unbeatable. If he doesn’t, their overwhelming talent and cohesiveness likely wins them another championship anyways.
Either way, Boogie will be motivated to use this year as a pillar for 2019 free agency (likely his last chance for a large contract) when almost half the league is projected to have $25 million or more in cap space. Given Golden State’s upcoming tax concerns, it’s a near guarantee this will be his only year in the Bay. Boogie likely won’t have a huge impact on the Warriors; although he’s targeting a return by training camp, it’s more probable he comes back by December or January and shouldn’t play more than 25-28 minutes per game. Even with injuries, Golden State should still cruise through the regular season and turn it on in the playoffs to complete their three-peat.
Kevin Durant, Steph Curry, Klay Thompson, Draymond Green, and Cousins are all in their primes. That’s two of the top five and five of the league’s top twenty players. This is the most talented team in NBA history. They truly are light years ahead of every other franchise, and while they’ll sleepwalk through another regular season, they should win another title going away.
Warriors projected record: 64-18
Warriors chances of winning the West: 55-60 percent