NBA free agency, winners and out of season losers
The NBA offseason moved fast this year, so quickly that it started before the NBA finals were even over With Kevin Durant’s trade. Then there were a series of exchanges around the draft, followed by potential free agents who signed themselves with their teams (James Harden, Kyrie Irving) or that oppose (Lebron James). So, the free agency began and we quickly saw successful moves, such as TBucks renounces and stretches Damian Lillard to make room to sign Myles Turner.
There are still moves to do, but the dust is starting to settle. Who won the offseason NBA and free agency? Let’s break down.
Winner: Houston Rockets
The addition of Kevin Durant-ALTO ACCORROPLED PRICE OF JALEN GREEN, Dillon Brooks and a choice of the first round (plus five seconds)-has already made the winners of the Rockets. All those who attended their playoff loss in the first round of the Warriors understood that this team needed a combination of experience (acquired in that series) and another player who could simply bend the defenses and get a bucket in the middle of the field under pressure. Kevin Durant is good in this like anyone who has ever played the game.
Rockets have done much more. They signed Dorian Finney-Smith (four years, $ 53 million), which is at least equally good defender, if not an update, on the Brooks wing, with less technical fouls. They signed Clint Capela for a three -year agreement as a backup center. They signed Fred Vanvleet again to a new contract, extended Jabari Smith Jr. with a fair agreement and re-filed Ja’san Tate, Aaron Holiday and Jeff Green.
Rockets enter the next season as Clear Title Contenders, a team that can push Oklahoma City in the West. This is the definition of a good offseason.
Winner: Atlanta Hawks
Giving a new Orsi general manager Saleh Credit, the Hawks have had a huge offseason (now Hawks fans only need to hope for the property and their family do not intervene to help).
Building around a underpinged points guard who is not a great defender is complicated; It requires a protector of the elite rim – such as Kristaps Porziņģis, which the Hawks have acquired in the sale of Boston Fire (a bet on KP which is healthy is cooked in this). The Hawks put Nickeil Alexander-Walker from Minnesota in shirts, creating a fearsome combination of defensive wing with Dyson Daniels. The Hawks added other filming with Luke Kennard.
Then there was a draft night, when the Hawks skipped New Orleans, exchanging 10 points, from n. 13 to n. 23, and obtaining a choice of the first unprotected round of 2026 incredibly precious. This could pay a big year in a year.
Whatever happens with that choice, the Hawks will jump from “Maybe they can play the play-in” to a potential team of first four teams in the East next season, they should certainly be the first six. This is winning the offseason.
Loser: New Orleans Pellicani
What is the plan? What is the direction of New Orleans? If you can answer, you’re better than I.
There are things that the Pellicans have done well in this offseason. They maintained Williamson rather than exchange it with an offer lower than the market (many teams were interested, but only with low ball offers). They enrolled Geremiah Oklahoma fears at n. 7 and Derik Queen of Maryland at n. 13 (a great man potentially good, but with a match overlapping Zion).
However, two things still have them as losers in this list. One is the question that a couple of paragraphs: what is Joe Dumar’s plan? It is difficult to see the path they are trying to travel.
The other was the night trade project that sent a choice of the first unprotected round of 2026-the most favorable of the choices of Pellicani or dollars, therefore probably the Pellicans. While they should improve their 21-61 record from last season, in an incredibly deep West, it is very likely that this is a choice of the lottery-and if Sion is wounded again, a choice of the high-in-in lottery a very deep draft. It was a huge resource to give up and a huge bet on the queen.
Winner: Denver Nuggets
Denver was much closer than people seemed to remember to be in the final and possibly earning a second banner hung in the Arena delle Bal: Nikola Jokić and the company pushed Oklahoma City to seven games before losing.
What did the Nugget retain in that series? They needed more depth, a little more shooting and a little more defense. Denver has faced all this offseason. He exchanged Michael Porter Jr. For an update to Cameron Johnson by Brooklyn-Johnson is a good shooter as Mpj, a much better defender, and plays a higher game with less mistakes. Denver reported Bruce Brown Jr. added Tim Hardaway Jr. for filming.
And they probably exchanged with Jonas Valanciunas, giving up only Dario Saric, who was not part of the rotation of the Nuggets last season. Avalanciunas would be the best backup center that Denver had in the Jokic era, helping to slow down hemorrhage when he rests Jokic. This is still awaiting, however, because Valanciunas is taking into consideration the idea of moving away from the Nuggets and the NBA, returning to Europe, where according to what reports it would prefer to play. Doing it would leave about $ 10 million and the possibility of competing for a title on the table, but what matters more for him?
Assuming that Avalanciunas remains, the Nuggets will have given up on two rotation players (Porter Jr. and Russell Westbrook) and added four of them, also appeared during the post -station that Julian Strawther is ready to make a jump. If the Nugget give deeper to Jokic, with a better recovery and defense around him, this team can do more than pushing OKC to seven games.
Loser: Indiana Pacers
It was a few difficult weeks for Pacers fans. Tyrese Haliburton who torn Achille in the game 7 was just shocking.
So the property aggravated the situation letting Myles Turner walked. The Pacer had to be headed to the luxury tax next season to keep Turner together and the rest of a final team. So Haliburton went down, and suddenly the next season looked like a gap season. Herb Simon opposed the tax of a sabbatical year, the team has Basse Turner, who found a team willing to pay him the rate for a quality starting center in Milwaukee and has bolted. Indiana did nothing. (It could be argued that the pars put themselves at this point by paying in excess Andrew Nembhard to keep their free agent a year ago, but he lived up to the price.)
The Indiana is not finished, they have a season to supply the wardrobe for when Haliburty is healthy and there are many moves they can do. However, the Indiana worsened a bad situation and risked transforming this season into a one -off luck.
Winner: Orlando Magic
This is quite simple, but it was enough time ago that people seem to have forgotten: the acquisition of Desmond Bane was a perfect move for Orlando. They look like a team of the first four in the East next season.
Orlando has an elite defense, as well as stars forward to Paolo Banchero and Franz Wagner, but they needed more shooting and some creation of shots from the guard point. Bane is exactly this (41% career from beyond the arch and an improved creator of shots) that adapts to a hand fit to the guard next to Jalen Sugges.
The addition of Tyus Jones as a backup guard was also an intelligent move.
Winner and loser: Milwaukee Bucks
I’m not sure what to do with Milwaukee, why don’t I know the answer to this question: did the bold move to get Myles Turner made Giannis Antetokounmpo happy enough to stay and not request a trade?
My instinct says yes, it has always been loyal. My bet is that he plays another season with dollars, but it’s not a certain thing. Milwaukee, as built, is good, but it needs another creator of shots to the guard or wing to compete with teams such as Cleveland and New York on top of the East. That player will not be easy to get.
Even if Antetokounmpo remains, plays like an MVP and Bucks make a deep race to the playoffs, this is a card house. The Bucks do not control their choice of the first round until 2031 and now they have $ 22.5 million in money dead on their books for the next five years from the Lillard’s Buyout. This team is not in good long -term shape, but should be well in the short term. As long as Antetokounmpo is happy.