THE free agent merry-go-round had the available talents remain with their mother teams or find new homes. Technically, Anthony Davis is still a free agent and had remained unsigned up to this date, but he is widely expected to re-sign with the Los Angeles Lakers.
The Lakers lost five rotation players in Danny Green, Rajon Rondo, Dwight Howard, JaVale McGee and Avery Bradley. In comes Dennis Schroeder, Montrezl Harrel, Wesley Matthews, Marc Gasol and Alfonso McKinnie.
LAL got really loaded with the reigning sixth Man of the Year in Harrel and runner-up Schroeder. With Matthews, they improved their point production and ease the scoring load off LeBron and AD. Gasol, whom the Lakers picked in 2007 but was dealt to Memphis in exchange for brother Pau, will probably start at center. Slower than Howard and McGee, he’s an upgrade at the post with his defense, excellent passing and well-selected three-point shooting.
It was reported that Pau would like to be signed by the Lakers for the coming season and then retire as a Laker. Sidelined last season due to a foot injury, Pau, now 40, played six years with LAL and won two titles.
The Toronto Raptors lost Gasol and Serge Ibaka, who signed with the Clippers but they quickly filled the void when they agreed to terms with the vastly improved Aaron Baynes and the when-can-he-improve Alex Len. More importantly, they kept Fred VanVleet. Nick Nurse cannot be underestimated with handling his resources.
The Atlanta Hawks, with the deal for Bogdan Bogdanovic still pending, are setting their sights to a meaningful run by adding Rajon Rondo, Danilo Gallinari, Kris Dunn and Clint Capela. Youngsters Trae Young, Cam Reddish, John Collins and Kevin Huerter will be looking forward to a playoff appearance, especially if the Bogdanovic deal pushes through.
Rondo has two championship rings and at 34-years old, a bigger paycheck is better than another ring. The two-year, $5.1 million deal he got from the Lakers is pittance compared to what he is getting now from the Hawks, which is $15 million for two years. Like what he often did with the Lakers, he would also be an on-court coach for Atlanta’s young crew.
Joel Embiid now has a legit back-up in Dwight Howard in lieu of the ineffective Al Horford. Their lineup improved from last season with the addition of Danny Green and Seth Curry. If only Embiid and Ben Simmons can stay healthy.
The Charlotte Hornets only made it to the playoffs three times for the past 16 years and committed the strangest move yet by giving Gordon Hayward a four-year, $120 million contract. If not for his injuries, Hayward would probably stay in Boston.
The Hornets had become a retreat home for All-Star caliber players nearing the end of their careers. Remember Tony Parker? As a player, Michael Jordan is unrivalled but how to run a team is not yet on his playbook.
The thunder is now but a whimper in Oklahoma with the departure of Gallinari, Chris Paul and Steven Adams. We won’t be seeing them in the playoffs for a few years but their rebuilding process had just begun. OKC will now be Shai Gilgeous-Alexnder’s team./PN
