With the offseason coming to a close and the regular season just around the corner, it’s time to see how each team did this offseason.

Atlanta Hawks:  

Notable Additions – Bogdan Bogdanovic 4 years 72 mil, Danilo Gallinari 3 years 61 mil, Rajon Rondo 2 years 15 mil, Kris Dunn 2 years 10 mil and drafted Onyeke Okongwu.

Notable Losses – Jeff Teague and DeAndre’ Bembry.

Grade – A. Atlanta is making moves that a small market rebuild never does … they’re spending money. Trae Young, their stud young Point Guard (PG) wanted help around him and the Hawks wanted to make sure he is happy, so they went out and got Gallinari to fill the Power Forward (PF) role with shooting from the three point line, making their offense one of the most lethal in the league. They also acquired Bogdanovic in a steal of a move. He fits their system perfectly, being a three point shooter at the Small Forward (SF), which was something that De’Andre Hunter didn’t show in his rookie year. Acquiring a restricted free agent like Bogdanovic is hard to do without giving up assets. The fact they pulled it off speaks wonders of their front office. Then they acquired two wildey veterans in Rondo and Dunn to sure up the defense in the back court, something they desperately needed for this team to win. Finally they drafted Okongwu, a very talented C to backup Clint Capela, which is amazing value to have off your bench.

Boston Celtics: 

Notable Additions- Triston Thompson 2 years 18 mil, Extended Jayson Tatum and Jeff Teague 1 year 2 mil.

Notable Losses – Gordon Hayward.

Grade – C. The Celtics have been known for having an elite front office with Danny Ainge at the helm. He is infamous for his ability to acquire first round picks. The only problem with having a bunch of first round picks is that you have to use them to get something in return, which the Celtics haven’t really done under Ainge.  The Celtics very rarely trade their first round picks for unknown reasons, which hurts them in competing for a championship. The other reason they get a C is because they botched a sign and trade with Hayward due to the greed they show for their first rounders. In the proposed trade they could have acquired Pacers Center Myles Turner (C) and Shooting Guard (SG) Victor Oladipo, which would have made them favorites in the East. They finally fill the center position with a competent big by signing Thompson (Cleveland Will Miss You Double T) and they still remain contenders, but overall, a pretty mediocre offseason.

Brooklyn Nets:

Notable Additions – Joe Harris 4 years 75 mil, Jeff Green 1 year 2 mil, Tyler Johnson 1 year 2 mil and Landry Shamet through trades.

Notable Losses – Garrett Temple.

Grade – D. The Net’s main goal was to retain Harris in free agency which is what they did, but is Harris worth 75 millions dollars? Harris is a great three point shooter don’t get me wrong, but that’s a lot of cap for someone who had a down season. If you want to make a lot of money in the future, learn to shoot the three because the Nets are willing to overpay you to get that talent. The main reason for bad rank though is the fact they didn’t make a big move this offseason. They may get James Harden, but who knows. This is the biggest season in franchise history, you think Shamet is going to put you over the top? Go and get Bradley Beal from the Wizards if you want to win a championship with Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving.

Charlotte Hornets:

Notable Additions – Gordon Hayward 4 years 120 mil, Bismack Biyombo 1 year 3 mil drafted LaMelo Ball.

Notable Losses – Dwayne Bacon, Nicolas Batum and Willy Hernangomez.

Grade – B. The Hornets did the right thing getting a gem in the draft with Ball. What prevents them from getting an A is the Hayward contract. Here’s a fun fact for you, in four years with the Celtics, he played just over 100 games, translation he can’t stay on the court. When he’s on the court he’s a really solid playmaker and shooter, but you don’t throw 30 mil a year at that kind of talent Charlotte. Batum, Biyombo and now Hayward, are all huge overpaid players the front office has made moves that have hindered their financial flexibility for the future, which will more than likely lead to a lack of ability to provide talent around Ball outside of the draft.

Chicago Bulls:

Notable Additions – Garrett Temple 1 year 2 mil, Noah Vonleh 1 year 2 mil and drafted Patrick Williams.

Notable Losses – Kris Dunn.

Grade – A. While it may not look like the Bulls had a big offseason, this was the biggest offseason in the past five years for the Bulls. Firstly, they moved up in the lottery and got the fourth overall selection, which they picked Williams with, who is someone who is very “boom or bust,” and assuming that pick works out, the Bulls have a very solid core for the future. Secondly, they brought in some solid veterans in Temple and Vonleh who will add depth to the SG and PF position. Lastly and most importantly, they got rid of general manager Gar Forman and head coach Jim Boylan who’s incompetence had led the franchise to new lows in defense. They brought in Billy Donovan who has a great skill set in turning struggling teams around and being a former college coach will help him work with a younger group of people. Chicago is finally making the moves needed to improve their chances of a playoff berth.

Cleveland Cavaliers:

Notable Additions – Damyean Dotson 2 years 4 mil, Matthew Dellavedova 1 year 2 mil, JaVale McGee through a trade and drafted Isaac Okoro.

Notable Losses – Tristan Thompson, Alfonzo Mickinie and Nik Stauskas.

Grade – C. The Cavs just had a middle of the road offseason with no big moves being made. They drafted Okoro at 5 in the draft who will bring defense to a team that desperately needs it being last in almost all categories. They retained Andre Drummond who opted into his 28 million dollar player option and will be our starting five. Sadly, in this we lost Thompson to the Celtics because of the backup at the 5 position. The trades they made were very minor, taking on contracts for second round picks and signing veteran Delladova back to the team. No big moves, just another non-notable offseason for Cleveland, which you can argue is what they should be doing.

Dallas Mavericks:

Notable Additions – Trey Burke 3 years 9 mil, Willie Cauly-Stein 2 years 8 mil, James Johnson through trades and Josh Richardson through trade.

Notable Losses – Seth Curry.

Grade – A. The Mavericks arguably had the best offseason that no one is talking about. By trading away Curry’s longer deal for Richardson’s deal they freed up a bunch of cap space for the 2021 free agency, where they plan to get a third star next to Kristaps Porzingis and Luka Doncic. James Johnson is another expiring deal which will free up a bunch of cap space for 2021 and help them win now. The Mavs found a good balance of players who will help them win this season and also give them great cap flexibility for the future.

Denver Nuggets:

Notable Additions – JaMychal Green 2 years 14 mil and Paul Millsap 1 year 10 mil.

Notable Losses – Jerami Grant, Mason Plumlee and Torrey Craig.

Grade – C. Another example of a team that didn’t make any big moves this offseason, it’s a good move bringing back Millsap and Green, as they will provide help for what they lost in Jerami Grant being a PF who can shoot the three.

Detroit Pistons:

Notable Additions – Jerami Grant 3 years 60 mil, Mason Plumlee 3 years 24 mil, Josh Jackson 2 years 9 mil, Jahlil Okafor 2 years 4 mil, Delon Wright through trades and drafted Killian Hayes.

Notable Losses – Christian Wood, Langston Galloway and Luke Kennard.

Grade – F. Words can’t describe how horrible of an offseason this was for the Detroit Pistons but try I shall. The error of their ways began with signing every Center in free agency, their roster at one point was 13 front court players and only 2 guards and then they signed Grant to the biggest overpay of the offseason. Grant had a great postseason, but that doesn’t mean you pay him 20 million a year to play garbage minutes for their bottom five team. They should have targeted a young restricted free agent with that money like Bogdonovic or Brandon Ingram. Another thing, they let their best PF in Christian Wood leave in free agency in a contract they could have paid him the money from any of the Plumlee or Okafor contracts. The Pistons had the third most cap space going into this offseason and they spent it all on ensuring they would be bad for the year, it’s blatant that their intentions are to get a high draft pick next year.

Golden State Warriors:

Notable Additions – Kent Bazemore 1 year 2 mil, Drafted James Wiseman and Kelly Oubre Jr. through trades.

Notable Losses – No big losses.

Grade – C. They had the second overall pick and they selected arguably the best player in the draft, Wiseman, while also filling a position of need at the Center position. They also brought in Kelly Oubre to fill in for Klay Thompson who is going to miss the entire season with an achilles injury in a move that is going to cost them 40 million in contracts. They didn’t lose anyone either, so it was a pretty relaxing free agency for the Warriors, I give them a C for not making a move with the second overall pick and getting pieces to help them win now which they claim is what they want to do.

Houston Rockets:

Notable Additions – Christian Wood 3 years 41 mil, Demarcus Cousins 1 year 2 mil and John Wall through trades.

Notable Losses – Austin Rivers, Jeff Green and Russel Westbrook.

Grade – D. Houston, we have a problem. When Westbrook (one of James Harden’s best  friends) wants out of your organization and your solution is to take on Wall’s giant contract and only get a top 10 protected first rounder for him, you’ve been fleeced. Think of all of the Houston greats who left–Daryl Morey, Mike D’Antoni and now possibly Harden. This is hands down one of the worst things to happen in Rockets history because they didn’t fire D’Antoni or Morey they bailed on the organization. They swung and missed on the top coaching candidates and are now filling their roster with past their prime stars in Cousins and Wall who are both coming off achilles injuries, which are notorious for their difficulty to rehab and their impact on athleticism. The only thing preventing them from getting an F is because they brought in Wood on a really good deal.

Indiana Pacers:

Notable Additions – Justin Holiday 3 years 18 mil.

Notable Losses – No big losses.

Grade – C. They almost made a trade for Gordon Hayward but the Celtics refused to give up picks unless they got Victor Oladipo, that’s about all that happened besides resigning Holiday to a solid deal.

Los Angeles Clippers:

Notable Additions – Marcus Morris Sr. 4 years 64 mil, Serge Ibaka 2 years 18 mil, Nicolas Batum 1 year 2 mil, Reggie Jackson 1 year 2 mil and Luke Kennard through trades.

Notable Losses – Montrezl Harrell and JaMychal Green.

Grade – D. The Clippers are a joke as contenders in the Western Conference and this offseason showed that. The locker room became the biggest issue for this team as many players were angry with others which eventually led to the firing of Doc Rivers, a basketball savant. They replaced him with Tyron Lou, a former championship winning coach, who will be a solid replacement, but that’s where the positives end for this team. They lost sixth man of the year winner Harrell to their in city rival Los Angeles Lakers on a deal they definitely could afford, they overpaid for Morris Sr. out of fear of losing another asset and the worst thing of all is the only PG they brought in was Jackson who historically hasn’t showed the ability to lead teams to wins. Kawhi Leonard spoke to the fact that they lack a real play maker and it angers him that he has to take so much of the load on offense. With him being upset he may leave if no playoff success. It just seems like another case of the Clippers being cursed as a franchise. With this roster they are going to at least make a Conference Finals or there is no hope for Steve Balmer to see his team win a championship.

Los Angeles Lakers:

Notable Additions – LeBron James extension 2 years 85 mil, Anthony Davis 5 years 189 mil, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope 3 years 39 mil, Montrezel Harrell 2 years 18 mil, Marc Gasol 2 years 5 mil, Wesley Matthews 1 year 3 mil and Dennis Schroder through trades.

Notable Losses – Avery Bradley, Rajon Rondo, Danny Green and Dwight Howard.

Grade – A. This was the best offseason in the NBA this season. The general manager of the Lakers Rob Pelinca lost aging veterans Rondo, Bradley and Howard and basically filled those positions with younger and better players on cheaper deals. The three things the  team that won the championship did  this season to get even better are  A.) Extended their best 2 players for longer deals making them competitors for even longer B.) Brought in more championship experienced players with Caldwell-Pope and Gasol and C.) Brought in two of the three sixth man of the year last season in Schroder and Harrell. The problem with most championship teams is they are handicapped by a lack of cap but the Lakers looked at that and said, nope, “we’re just going to bring in people to make a championship winner even better.”

Memphis Grizzlies:

Notable Additions – De’Anthony Melton 4 years 34 mil.

Notable Losses – Josh Jackson

Grade – C. Memphis did what they should have done and made no big moves to improve a young roster that is on the rise. Bringing back Melton is a good move as he is the primary wing defender on the team and losing Jackson isn’t bad because he’s a bust as of now.

Miami Heat:

Notable Additions – Goran Dragic 1 year 18 mil, Meyers Leonard 1 year 9 mil, Avery Bradley 1 year 5 mil and Maurice Harkless 1 year 3 mil.

Notable Losses – Jae Crowder and Derrick Jones Jr.

Grade – A. The Baltimore Ravens always have a good defense, The Green Bay Packers always have a good quarterback and The Miami Heat always have grit. Pat Riley has installed a no nonsense attitude into the organization and he does that through personnel on his roster. Coming off a finals run that no one sought coming, bringing back Dragic and Leonard was huge for the Heat. Then they added two players, in Bradley and Harkless who match the defensive intensity that the team always plays with. The only problem is losing Crowder but besides that it was a pretty perfect offseason.

Milwaukee Bucks:

Notable Additions – D.J. Augustin 3 years 21 mil, Pat Connaughton 3 years 16 mil, Bobby Portis 2 years 7 mil, Bryn Forbes 2 years 4 mil, Torry Craig 1 year 1 mil and Jrue Holiday through trades.

Notable Losses – George Hill, Eric Bledsoe, Ersan ilyasova, Sterling Brown, Robin Lopez and Wesley Matthews.

Grade – A. You can argue all you want about the talent that was lost or gained on the actual roster, but you can’t argue that Milwaukee is going all out to make a case for Giannas Antetokounmpo to stay. Bringing in Holiday solidifies a big 3 in Milwaukee, he’s a great defender and can shoot the 3 pointer really well. With the rest of the roster they filled it with solid veterans and wing defenders. Coach Mike Budenhozer will have his work cut out integrating all his new players into the system, but the Bucks made their case to the Greek Freak to stay and that’s all you can ask.

Minnesota Timberwolves:

Notable Additions – Malik Beasly 4 years 59 mil, Juan Hernangomez 3 years 21 mil, traded for Ricky Rubio, Ed Davis through trades and drafted Anthony Edwards.

Notable Losses – Evan Turner.

Grade – B. After losing Jimmy Butler a couple seasons prior, the Timberwolves have fallen from grace going back into the bottom of the Western Conference. But this offseason was a good turning point for the team to make a playoff push, by bringing in Edwards with the first overall selection in the draft the Wolves have a young big three to build around. They also brought in Rubio and Davis who will provide good scoring and defense off the bench when Karl Anthony Towns and D’Angelo Russel need a break. They solidified their rotation by getting Beasly back who is a well rounded SG. The offseason could have gone better but overall they didn’t lose much.

New Orleans Pelicans:

Notable Additions – Brandon Ingram 5 years 159 mil, Willy Hernangomez 1 year 1 mil, Wenyen Gabriel 1 year 1 mil, Steven Adams through trades and Eric Bledsoe through trades.

Notable Losses – Jahlil Okafor, Jrue Holiday, Frank Jackson and Derrick Favors.

Grade – B. The Pelicans did just what they needed too to build a good team around Zion Williamson this offseason. With the Jrue Holiday trade not only did they bring back good veterans to put around Williamson, they also acquired a bunch of first round picks from Milwaukee. Then they re-signed Ingram, their new budding star, to a long term deal, ensuring the Pelicans will have another All-Star to put around young Williamson. With the moves they’ve made the Pelicans are going to make a run for the eighth seed in the West as well as build for the future which they did both this offseason so overall a pretty well done offseason.

New York Knicks:

Notable Additions – Austin Rivers 3 years 10 mil, Alec Burks 1 year 6 mil, Nerlens Noel 1 year 5 mil and drafted Obi Toppin.

Notable Losses – Bobby Portis, Damyean Dotson, Maurice Harkless and Wayne Ellington.

Grade – D. Classic Knicks. For far too long the incompetence of the ownership has led to another horrific offseason. The Knicks drafted Toppin, another PF to add to a stacked front court which is backlogged with other forwards and centers so he won’t get much playing time which means he’s going to take longer to develop. Then they signed some veterans to make up for the veterans the team lost in the offseason. This team didn’t get any better and the only reason they aren’t an F is because they somehow managed to save cap space for 2021.

Oklahoma City Thunder:

Notable Additions – Traded a lot of pieces for first round picks in drafts, Justin Jackson through trades, George Hill through trades, Trevor Ariza through trades and Al Horford through trades.

Notable Losses – Danilo Gallinari, Steven Adams, Dennis Schroder, Nerlens Noel and Chris Paul.

Grade – A. For what the Thunder are doing, they are doing it at an elite level. The mass exodus of talent is apparent with them basically trading away their starting five and all-star PG Chris Paul, but they got a massive amount of first round picks in exchange for their players. The Thunder will look to rebuild with over 20 first round selections going through 2026.

Orlando Magic:

Notable Additions – Michael Carter-Williams 2 years 6 mil, Dwayne Bacon 2 years 3 mil and Gary Clark 2 years 4 mil.

Notable Losses – D.J. Augustin.

Grade – C. Losing D.J. Augustin does hurt the magic as he was their sixth man, but it was time to let him go so PG Markell Faultz could get more playing time. Besides bringing back Carter-WIlliams and Clark to be bench players, they also added Bacon who is a young talent who could become something off the bench.

Philadelphia 76ers:

Notable Additions – Dwight Howard 1 year 2 mil, Seth Curry through trades and Danny Green through trades.

Notable Losses – Alec Burks, Al Horford, Josh Richardson and Zhaire Smith.

Grade – A. The 76ers may actually be able to compete again because of the offseason they had. Horford was making way too much money for the production he is making off the bench and starting. Dumping his contact and also getting Green in return who can space the floor for Joel Embiid and Ben Simmons is a great move. They also traded Richardson for more floor spacing in Curry which they desperately needed to make up for Simmons and Embiid’s lack of shooting. Lastly, bringing in Howard gives this team a player with championship experience to help will this team through the playoffs.

Phoenix Suns:

Notable Additions – Jae Crowder 3 years 29 mil, Dario Saric 3 years 27 mil, Langston Galloway 1 year 2 mil, Chris Paul through trades and drafted Jalen Smith.

Notable Losses – Aron Baynes, Kelly Oubre and Frank Kaminsky.

Grade – B. The Suns want to make the playoffs for the first time in a decade, so they brought in a group of guys who can make that happen. Trading Oubre for Paul forms a big three in Phoenix next to Devin Booker and DeAndre Ayton. They also have even more spacing on a good shooting team with the additions of Crowder and Galloway. If the Suns intend on competing, they did a good job building around Booker.

Portland Trail Blazers:

Notable Additions – Rodney Hood 2 years 20 mil, Carmelo Anthony 1 year 2 mil, Derrick Jones Jr. 2 years 18 mil, Harry Giles 1 year 2 mil, Enes Kanter through trades and Robert Covington through trades.

Notable Losses – Hassan Whiteside and Wenyen Gabriel.

Grade – A. The Trail Blazers always have had an issue at the PF position ever since they lost Lamarcus Aldridge, but in adding Covington, they have shored up that position and also brought in more talent around him to have Damian Lillard compete for a championship. Kanter will be a solid backup Center, Anthony will be a great sixth man and all the others will fill out now an elite bench unit that can complement the starting five, which is something Portland hasn’t had in a while.

Sacramento Kings:

Notable Additions – Hassan Whiteside 1 year 2 mil, Frank Kaminsky 1 year 1 mil, extended De’Aaron Fox and drafting Tyreese Haliburton.

Notable Losses – Kent Bazemore, Alex Len, Harry Giles and Bogdan Bogdanovic.

Grade – F. The Kings have been a mismanaged, horrible, bottom feeder team for so long and with offseasons like this it makes sense why. Bogdanovic is this team’s sixth man and one of their best offensive players so to lose him for nothing is a huge issue. Then they brought in two bigs to try and sure up the frontcourt even though they have two young players starting at the PF and C, so why sign them? Haliburton will be a good PG but he isn’t going to fill Bogdanovic’s role right out the gate. Hopefully this new front office will help build this team through another rebuild.

San Antonio Spurs:

Notable Additions – Jakob Poeltl 3 years 26 mil, Drew Eubanks 3 years 5 mil and drafted Devin Vassell.

Notable Losses – Bryn Forbes and Marco Belinelli.

Grade – C. Not a lot of moves made by this declining Spurs team. They did bring in Vassell which is someone head coach Greg Popovich can mold into a piece for the future as the Spurs may be facing their first rebuild in over 20 years.

Toronto Raptors:

Notable Additions – Fred VanVleet 4 years 85 mil. Aron Baynes 2 years 14 mil, Chris Boucher 2 years 13 mil, DeAndre’ Bembry 2 years 3 mil and Alex Len 1 year 2 mil.

Notable Losses – Serge Ibaka and Marc Gasol.

Grade – C. Their primary goal was to resign VanVleet which is what they did. Bringing in Baynes to replace Gasol and Ibaka was good but after losing those players to their championship roster, they won’t be as good as they were last year. A pretty mediocre offseason but keeping VanVleet keeps their future bright.

Utah Jazz:

Notable Additions – Jordan Clarckson 4 years 51 mil, Extended Donovan Mitchell and Derrick Favors 3 years 29 mil.

Notable Losses – No big losses.

Grade – C. Besides securing Mitchell for the future they didn’t do much else. They overpaid to get Clarkson and Favors to return to Utah and that’s the only knock on them.

Washington Wizards:

Notable Additions – Davis Bertans 5 years 80 mil, Robin Lopez 1 year 7 mil, Raul Neto 1 year 1 mil, Russel Westbrook through trades and drafted Deni Avdija.

Notable Losses – John Wall

Grade – B. After the Westbrook trade I wanted to give them an A, but Bertans contract is way too high for someone who’s only ability is elite 3 point shooting. Westbrook coming to Washington will make them a playoff contender in the Eastern Conference but their ceiling is really a sixth seed. While they did this to make Bradley Beal happy it’s not going to pay off immediately. Still they should be rewarded for finding a way to dump Wall’s contract on someone else.