NBA free agency has only been alive for mere hours, but there’s already been a handful of surprises. Paul George is staying with the Thunder, Chris Paul is still a Rocket, DeAndre Jordan is finally a Maverick. A lot went on late into the night on the East coast.
It’s super early into the verbal agreement season, and things can and will change, but there are already some clear winners and losers. We’re still waiting on whoever the biggest winner of the summer will be — that’s whoever inks LeBron James — but some of the other dominoes have already fallen.
Here’s a cheat sheet if you missed last night:
And here’s who won and who lost, just hours into the first day of free agency.
Golden State Warriors
Yup, nobody is going to be happy to hear this unless you live in the Bay Area, but things got even easier for the Warriors. They agreed to a deal with Kevin Durant for at least another season (he will sign a deal with a player option in Year 2). That was expected, and Golden State fans can breathe easier knowing that’s almost put to rest. But the big move came elsewhere.
The Rockets lost a key starter, Trevor Ariza, to the Suns on a one-year deal. Houston may have kept Chris Paul on a four-year deal, but they lose a 3-and-D vet, and that hurts.
Oklahoma City Thunder
Woo-boy things could’ve gotten ugly fast if Russell Westbrook and Carmelo Anthony were stranded in OKC without a third star. The Thunder would’ve dealt the Most Improved Player of the Year Victor Oladipo for a one-year rental on Paul George in a disappointing season had the forward fled to L.A., but Oklahoma City’s bet paid off. George truly bought into the OKC atmosphere and Russ.
George is there to stay on a lengthy contract that will save OKC money in the long term too!
Chris Paul
Paul didn’t get a five-year max deal, but he did get four, meaning he’ll earn $40+ million into his mid-to-late 30s. That’s a LOT of cash, and I’m sure he even understands he’s unlikely to be worth that then. But he needed to get paid on his final big deal.
Dallas Mavericks
The Mavs and DeAndre Jordan seemed destined for each other ever since free agency rumors started buzzing after the Finals ended. The sides agreed on a one-year deal, which is super favorable for Dallas, which doesn’t have to commit long-term money if things don’t work out with the then-30-year-old next season.
The Mavs have a nice balance with young talent in Luka Doncic and Dennis Smith Jr., and both should pair nicely with Jordan. And if they don’t, it’s fine!
Denver Nuggets
Nothing really changed for Denver, and that’s perfect. The agreed to a long-term deal with Nikola Jokic, and ditto with Will Barton. That team is good! Keeping its core was essential.
Houston Rockets
They lost Trevor Ariza. Ugh.
At least they didn’t give CP3 a fifth year on that deal.
Paul George
George gets to stay on the team he wants to play for, and that’s great. But he likely won’t be winning a championship next season on that roster, and he agreed to a four-year deal that’s substantially smaller than a supermax he could’ve gotten to lose in the playoffs in Indiana. Oh yeah, and there’s a Carmelo Anthony problem left to deal with.
The $137 million he’s about to take home is outstanding money for any one human. Good for Paul! This deal just seems unwise.
Philadelphia 76ers
Philly lost Ersan Ilyasova to the Bucks, Marco Belinelli to the Spurs and WAY more importantly Paul George, who could’ve been a perfect fit. That stings. It’s possible they come up empty this offseason if they whiff on LeBron AND Kawhi Leonard, too.
Los Angeles Lakers
The LeBron-Kawhi-PG pipe-dream is all but dead now. Things could change in a heartbeat if James does sign in L.A. and the summer could be a huge win. But night one was disappointing to say the least.
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