Knicks Continue to Lose, Spurs Continue to Improve-NBA Free Agency

Larry Rooney

Now that the free agency moratorium has finished, players are beginning to officially sign with teams they verbally agreed with, well at least for the most part. Some players are also just agreeing to deals with teams, while others are meeting with team owners looking for the right squad to play for next season. So, who are the early winners and losers of the free agency period?

Winners:

1. The San Antonio Spurs:

The San Antonio Spurs, after being eliminated in the first round of the NBA Playoffs, went out and made major moves this summer. For starters, the team was able to bring back key pieces of their team in Danny Green and Manu Ginobili. They were also able to sign their star small forward Kawhi Leonard and their star power forward Tim Duncan. These deals alone amassed to roughly $152 million guaranteed to returning players. But, the Spurs did not settle for just their returning players. Popovich and team ownership were able to land the biggest fish in the free agency pool. The San Antonio Spurs signed Tim Duncan’s heir apparent LaMarcus Aldridge. Aldridge will be able to play alongside Tim Duncan for at least another year, and then take over as the next feared San Antonio power forward. The Spurs were also able to reach a deal with big man David West. West signed for the veteran’s minimum, while LaMarcus Aldridge signed an extravagant 4 year $80 million deal with the team. The Spurs have quickly become one of the favorites not only to win the Western Conference but also the NBA Championship.

2. The Los Angeles Clippers:

While the Los Angeles Clippers did not make many moves this summer, the team was able to fleece DeAndre Jordan away from the Dallas Mavericks. This resigning will prove to be the biggest of this free agency period. DeAndre Jordan is a decent free throw percentage away from being the league’s best all around center. During his very brief stay with the Dallas Mavericks, Jordan hit 1,000 free throw shots. While no one knows just how many were taken, I can’t imagine he’d be celebrating and sharing this accomplishment if it wasn’t actually an accomplishment. DeAndre Jordan and the Clippers have a very bright future ahead of them building off of their last few years of success. As well as resigning Jordan, the team signed the former 4th overall pick from the 2010 draft, Wesley Johnson.

3. Wesley Matthews:

Before DeAndre Jordan ditched the Dallas Mavericks, many believed Wesley Matthews was already overpaid. Matthews is coming off a gruesome torn Achilles injury, which many players struggle to come back from. This, however, didn’t stop Mark Cuban from offering Wesley Matthews a four year $57 million offer sheet. According to league sources, this deal was contingent on Jordan coming to the Mavericks as well. After Jordan spurned the Mavs, Cuban allowed Matthews to back out of their commitment to pursue a contract elsewhere. Rather than jump ship, Matthews intelligently declined the offer and stayed true to the organization. Cuban proceeded to up the shooting guard’s offer to four years on $70 million. Not only was Matthews overpaid originally but he was then given a raise which would obviously make him even more overpaid. Matthews made off with a great payday, and he may have stolen the free agency spotlight away from the two previously mentioned teams.

Losers:

1. The Dallas Mavericks:

Perhaps one of the biggest loser of the free agency period so far has been Mark Cuban and the Dallas Mavericks. A team known for their ability to rebuild through free agency rather than the draft, failed to address major needs in free agency. The team lost key pieces to the hands of free agency. Starting center, Tyson Chandler, left the team, as well as star shooting guard Monta Ellis. The team also had no intention of bringing midseason acquisition, Rajon Rondo, back after a failed tenure featuring clashes with Coach Carlisle and other members of the organization. The losses, however, do not stop there. With Rondo leaving, the team also lost out on PG Jameer Nelson, SF Jae Crowder, and C Brandan Wright who they traded to acquire Rondo in the first place. But perhaps the biggest blow came hours before the free agency period officially opened, when C DeAndre Jordan rescinded his verbal agreement to join Dallas next season. Small forward and all star recruiter Chandler Parsons was particularly offended by the center’s actions, and he is quoted saying, “I’m shocked, very disappointed, frustrated, disrespected”(ESPN). On top of all of these downfalls and setbacks, the team also managed to overpay their new starting SG Wesley Matthews.

2. The Los Angeles Lakers

The absolute biggest losers of free agency were the Los Angeles Lakers. Coming off of an up and down draft, the Lakers seemed poised to jump back into Western Conference relevance due to a huge amount of cap space and potential DeMarcus Cousins trade rumors. The team, up to this point, however, has drawn a blank in both departments. The Lakers couldn’t lure big name free agent PF LaMarcus Aldridge to LA. The team also couldn’t lure fellow big men PF Kevin Love, PF Greg Monroe, or C DeAndre Jordan. The team failed to resign backup guard Jeremy Lin, which to be honest wasn’t a huge loss. Los Angeles chose not to resign SG Wesley Johnson. While the team signed reigning Sixth Man of the Year Lou Williams and traded for C Roy Hibbert, the team frankly failed free agency. The Lakers have quickly learned that the big market location, a lot of money, and an aging Kobe Bryant isn’t enough to lure big name free agents anymore. It’ll be interesting how the Lakers rebound next season when they will still have a significant deal of cash available.

3. The New York Knicks

Much like the Los Angeles Lakers, the New York Knicks have come to realize that a significant amount of cash, an often-injured star SF Carmelo Anthony, and a big market city is not enough to lure big name free agents to a team. The Knicks missed out on PF Greg Monroe, who prior to free agency was a “sure thing” to come to the team. After missing on Monroe, it seemed as if the team threw in the towel all together and went to plan C. To please fans, the Knicks threw a meaningless offer to C DeAndre Jordan, which they knew would be shot down and focused their efforts on C Robin Lopez. I, in the article titled “Phil Jackson: A Genius? Or an Imbecile?”, thought that Robin Lopez was a good fit for this team, if it were coupled with some other moves. Unfortunately, Derrick Williams and Kyle O’Quinn were not the guys that I had imagined Phil Jackson would pair with Robin Lopez. The New York Knicks failed in the draft, failed in free agency, and failed to put a winning team together. Jackson’s Knicks went from a 17 win team to a 25-30 win team this offseason, which is not the change that fans and many sports analysts, this one included, had in mind. It will not be a pretty season at the Garden for Carmelo Anthony, whatever Knicks’ fans are left, and the rest of this less than stellar team assembled by Phil Jackson.


While free agency is not over, I imagine these winners and losers will remain mostly unchanged. The biggest winner of this free agency period would probably be former Portland Trailblazer, now Dallas Maverick SG Wesley Matthews. And, the biggest loser would have to be the Los Angeles Lakers. One thing is for sure; the Lakers and Knicks will be mired in another losing season barring a miracle.