NBA Free Agency Update - July 7th
SteemSports Presenter: Scott Frank, @scottybuckets
SteemSports General Manager: Nolan Jacobson, @theprophet0, STEEM Witness, PeerPlays Witness & DECENT Miner (Witness)
The NBA Free Agency action is moving fast and furious this summer. Today's trade between Detroit and Boston moves Marcus Morris to the Celtics and Avery Bradley to the Pistons. This makes the finances of the Celtics easier so Gordon Hayward can take his talents to Boston in hopes of taking down Lebron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers. The arrival of Hayward could help the Celtics narrow the gap between Boston and Cleveland at the top of the East. And budding super star, Isaiah Thomas, couldn't be happier with the signing.
The Celtics now have a dynamite core. Thomas being a deadly scorer, Al Horford is a proven veteran with inside out skills, young swingmen Jaylen Brown with a huge upside, 1st Round draft pick Jayson Tatum, who can make an immediate impact on the offensive end, and now Gordon Hayward.
Hayward and Thomas will need to hit the court immediately to get down their timing. Last year, Hayward excelled at the pick and roll and that is where the majority of his scoring came from. It will take some time for Hayward and Thomas to figure out how they complement each other on the court. Hayward will definitely relieve pressure on Thomas who won't have to shoulder as much of the load anymore.
This is also a great fit as Hayward played for his head coach, Brad Stevens, for 2 years at Butler. Stevens will love the versatility that Hayward adds to switch happy wing players. A strong relationship between a coach and his players in a league like the NBA is extremely underrated. Can't wait for Boston and Cleveland to face off in the playoffs next summer.
Signings Over The Past Couple Days
- LA Clippers acquire Danilo Gallonari on a 3 year, $65 Million contract
- Washington Wizards resign Otto Porter Jr $106 Million
- Indiana Pacers sign Darren Collison to a two year $20 Million deal
- Golden State extends Kevin Durant for 2 more years for $53 Million and he could have taken a lot more, but left $ to help re sign Shaun Livingston and Andre Iguodala
- Denver Nuggets sign Paul Millsap for 3 years and $90 Million
- Memphis Grizzlies sign Ben McLemore for 2 years and $10.7 Million
- Chicago Bulls sign Justin Holliday for 2 years and $9 Million
- Chicago Bulls sign Cristiano Felicio for 4 years and $32 Million
- Philadelphia 76ers sign JJ Redick for 1 year and $23 Million
- Detroit Pistons sign Langston Galloway to a 3 year $21 Million deal
And Here Are The Biggest Deals of The Summer So Far!
There is plenty of action left. Carmelo Anthony is open to waiving his no trade clause to join the Houston Rockets or Cleveland Cavs. Derrick Rose have visited the Milwaukee Bucks and the LA Clippers. The off-season has been more entertaining than the regular season. Who made good moves and who made bad ones? Tell us what you think! Cheers!
I have my own article about the NBA free-agency period so far that I am working on and will likely post Monday/Tuesday, but this is a good primer. Hoping mine will go a bit more in depth on each deal and how it affects the team.
That's awesome! Let me know when you decide to post it and I will definitely give it a read. I'm also an avid nba fan and plan on doing a lot of quality posts in the near future. Please follow and support the content and we can grow the basketball community on Steemit together! I've followed you as well. Cheers!
Thanks @sportsenthusiast! I followed you as well. The post just went live here: https://steemit.com/sports/@brandonp/nba-free-agency-update-july-10th . Hope you enjoy it!
How do they pay them so much to play basketball...It blows my mind.
Im just jealous I guess. Ill have to make that type of money the old fashion way. WITH MY BRAIN
Gordon Hayward is a great pick up for Boston; they will challenge Cleveland in the East. I don't know what Toronto is doing, why would you give Lowry that much money? That team will never win anything!
I'm not sure about the Boston situation yet to me - it's a bit early to speculate! Boston's still wheeling and dealing with their roster. They just lost Avery Bradley, an All-Defense caliber player. I believe he was the primary defender of Kyrie back in the ECF! The Morris brother fits well with trying to contain LeBron though so it's not too bad I guess. They also still need to clear some more cap space for the Hayward contract to fit! Look for more moves from Ainge!
I think our GM Bobby Webster and President Masai Ujiri are going all-in with the current core of team. (FYI - BIG Raps fan here haha!) so he doesn't mind offering Kyle that amount, going over the tax, IF it means keeping our continuity, culture, and fan base. In hindsight, Steph and Mike Conley are hovering around the $35-40 M range per season, so giving him $33 isn't a big deal in my opinion.
I also think the contracts we have wrapped up long-term are hurting us to make moves and have roster turnover. I don't think we're finished yet though!
How do you feel now? Lowry and Ibaka have signed on for relatively long deals. We kept our core. We just traded away Carroll and our future picks basically unloading him to the Brooklyn Nets paving the way for Norman Powell to step up. Cory dealt for C.J. Miles giving us a wing defender along with a promotion for Delon Wright. I too am a big Raps fan! It would mean a lot if you could follow and support my future NBA content. I've followed you as well. Cheers!
First off, I followed you and will definitely support your future NBA content! Thanks for sharing :)
To be honest, I don't know what to feel about the moves because I know for a fact Masai is not done with roster turnover yet. I still think we're one to two pieces away from seeing the entire roster for next season!
I like what Masai and Bobby have done so far with the moves, ultimately getting under the Tax. Giving away DC and 2 future picks is a pretty hefty price for getting under the tax; but, I'll take it. DC was not productive and was benched pretty much in the big chunk of last season's playoffs.
I like the CJ to CJ trade for sure! We were a bit saturated at the Point, and we had some young bucks that seem ready for a bigger role in Delon and FVV. CJ Miles adds a big wing that can flat out shoot! I remember him killing us in regular season games for sure. Sucks to have CJ go though, a fellow Canadian; but, as Jack Armstrong says "a team's only loyalty should be to win", and I agree!
Thanks for the share! Cheers, and will definitely be on the lookout for your future content!
Agreed. That contract sunk the Raptors.
Man, there has been so much trading going on in the NBA. Next season is going to be very interesting.
Lots of moves in the NBA this offseason, no doubt. Probably the most entertaining free agency period that I've witnessed in my short lifetime.
I think several teams made good moves but I'm not confident that any of the moves made will change the NBA Finals matchup in 2018--I still believe it'll be Cavs-Warriors.
In the West
The Rockets got better with the CP3 addition, but they STILL don't have enough to overcome the Warriors.
The Spurs were unable to make big splashes, but they retained some players--though they still need to cross their fingers and hope Simmons resigns for a 3yrs $30M contract. Unfortunately his market value is closer to 3yrs $40M. Long story short...the Spurs aren't ready to overtake the Warriors either.
My FAVORITE moves has been by the Timberwolves, simply because I'm super excited about the young core developing there, and I believe in Thibs system as long as he has the right players.
And also, with OKC keeping Roberson (a super elite defender) and signing George, I believe they match up the best defensively against the Warriors. Not saying they'd beat them in a best of 7, but I think they'll be surprisingly stout against them.
In the East
I'm not going to say the Celtics got WORSE, but I don't believe they got extraordinarily better with the Hayward addition. Why? Because of the saddening Avery Bradley disposal. He is an All-NBA defensive caliber player who was able to average over 19 points per game against the Cavaliers in the playoffs. Thats an incredible loss, but the Celtics were looking long term and realizing that they weren't going to be able to pay him the money he'll demand on the market following next season.
Overall, I think the season as a whole will be much more fun to watch because of the groups of star power now relocated across the league. In the end though, we'll be seeing a fourth consecutive Finals rematch in what I HOPE will be AT LEAST 6 games, but if we're lucky 7.
Thanks for sharing your post--I love talking NBA!
Good stuff man , I like new waves on nba 🙂keep.it real.
Thank you @freshstuff!
@SteemSports Love the update and the page. My agency represents athletes and always has sports news and updates to distribute. Maybe we can connect and work together.
oh cool play offs will be so exciting next season, maybe the gsw will lose 1 game or maybe even 2 till the finals?
can the cavs lose more then 3 games?
can the cavs win a game vs gsw ? (i don't think so)
(all teams staying healthy)
still appreciate this post, free agency was surprising and exciting, maybe 2018 we get a real competition..
Let's hope so! Thank you for reading!
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Golden State's power team disrupted the NBA this offseason. Teams are making big moves just to adapt and be competitors. GS won't be crowned for long. Give it a year or two.