Now, with Holmgren out for the season following a Lisfranc injury…not as much.īut, of course, because some of y’all just want to be willfully obtuse, caveats follow.Īs this just covers the offseason, here’s what these rankings are not: For example: Oklahoma City had a chance to be much improved this coming season with Chet Holmgren playing 65-70 games. Did it hire a new coach, or general manager, or move into a new (or renovated) revenue-generating building? Is a key player returning from injury? And is it better now, after those moves, than it was at the end of last season? That’s the only question I’m addressing here. I’m evaluating how much a team improved, either via trades, free agency, the draft or in some other way. Very different offseason priorities for each. The Golden State Warriors’ season ended in June, with a championship the Orlando Magic’s in April, with a 60-loss season. This compilation addresses a very specific time frame: between when a team’s season ended and when you’re reading this. Not its future - or, for that matter, what happened last season. As ever, what follows is a ranking of each team’s offseason. Journalism being but the first draft of history, though, I have to make the best call I can with the information I have. It won’t matter this year, as Ayton has veto power over any potential trade for a year, but the long-term prospects between the 24-year-old center and Phoenix are not encouraging. No, I do not think everything is now kumbaya between the big man and his franchise. Yes, the Suns matched his offer sheet from Indiana. I mean, the Lakers are going to send Westbrook somewhere…right? And the Pacers could well move either or both of long-rumored trade chips Buddy Hield or Myles Turner before camps start.Īnd we’re not even talking about players who are, ostensibly, “settled” where they now are - like, say, Deandre Ayton in Phoenix. I’ve already made changes to my annual exercise in ranking the 30 NBA teams’ offseasons – it will not shock you that I’ve moved Cleveland up from its original position, I hope – and will tweak further if needed. His updated rankings will run this week on Tuesday (30-21), Wednesday (20-11) and Thursday (10-1).Įven though the plot of the NBA’s never-ending soap opera involving Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving was kinda-sorta resolved (for now, anyway maybe KD will develop amnesia in the fall!), and the Jazz moved Donovan Mitchell to Cleveland, the fates of Russell Westbrook and a half-dozen other guys on the next talent tier are still, a month before the start of training camps, unresolved. ![]() Editor’s Note: Following a late-summer flurry of activity, David Aldridge updated his annual offseason-move rankings, which originally ran in early August.
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