Exploring one move from the 2023 NBA offseason that every team is already beginning to regret.
The holiday season is nearly over. 'Tis the season now to look back at all the amazing gifts you have received from loved ones and friends, and start looking for those gift receipts to return those gifts you never wanted in the first place. Oh, the holidays! I mean a digital scale for the bathroom, a standard definition DVD of the newer Starsky and Hutch, a Hoobastank CD, and a hand-knit sweater from gam gam, seriously? While NBA teams can't just return some of the moves that they regret making in the offseason, we'll do it for them here, in this article.
Whether it was a draft pick, a free agent pickup, a contract extension, or a trade, we are examining all the moves made by each team to find out which gift is getting tossed. When we discuss contract extensions and signings it's important to note that we aren't saying they don't deserve to be signed or re-signed, it's typically the length and annual contract value we are "returning."
We are not saying that the team should "return" their offer on their young wing, however, "return" the amount or the years. We are operating under the notion that each offseason move represents a gift received for the holidays.
In tandem, we are operating under the knowledge of what we know now. In-season moves have not been considered for this exercise. With that, let's take a look at your favorite team's offseason moves and pick the one that just hasn't worked out.
Atlanta Hawks: Drafting Kobe Bufkin with 15th pick in 1st round
I mean this is a tough one. Kobe Bufkin had a fine two years at Michigan and he has solid size for a combo guard, at 6-foot-5. In hindsight, there were several more worthy players to take ahead of Bufkin. Keyonte George and Jaime Jaquez Jr. were both taken shortly after Bufkin and while you can't fault the Hawks for not going after Jaquez, George was expected in some mock drafts to go top-10.
They could have stopped his slide and picked up a combo guard, who in his own right, is exceeding expectations. George is currently starting for the Utah Jazz while Bufkin has yet to truly make any difference for the Hawks. Tough look for the Hawks, and unfortunately for Bufkin, you're heading to the post office.
Boston Celtics: Signing Lamar Stevens over Mo Bamba
Two things can be true at the same time. Mo Bamba has not lived up to being the 6th overall pick in the 2018 NBA draft. The Celtics could still use his services. Lamar Stevens has not been the long, rangy, defensive difference-making wing the Celtics were hoping for when they signed him.
He rarely sees the court, and his impact is not often felt when he sees minutes. For a team as deep as the Celtics are, while being as light in the frontcourt simultaneously, they really could have used a cheap big man, who in theory plays big, blocks shots, and hits 3's. The C's could have taken a flyer on Bamba and not wasted time with Stevens.