For every single free agency period, there are usually a noticeable amount of teams who can be considered as the “winners” and “losers” of free agency. Since August 2nd at approximately 6 p.m. ET, multiple NBA free agents have begun and completed deals for the upcoming years of their careers. As the list of NBA free agents continues to diminish with players signing deals to play in different cities, it’s worthwhile seeing which teams greatly improved through free agency to this point and who perhaps was lacking in their offseason moves. We’ve watched the madness unfold through twitter reports and sources coming from everywhere, and it’s time to decide who best put their team in a position to compete for a title next season.
Chicago Bulls:
Without a doubt, many can agree that the Chicago Bulls are the kings of free agency for the 2021 offseason as they looked to revamp and improve their roster after a disappointing season. However, when it comes to the Bulls’ free agency signings, they absolutely hit it out of the park. It started by signing free-agent PG Lonzo Ball to a four-year $85 million contract. Adding Ball filled a big need for the Bulls, which was perimeter shooting and size at the point guard position. Even if Chicago stopped there, they would have had a decent free agency, but GM Marc Eversley and the organization had more aggressive intentions in mind. The Bulls landed one of the best and most sought-after free agents on the market in DeMar DeRozan in a three-year sign-and-trade deal. On top of this huge pick-up, the Bulls acquired Alex Caruso on a four-year contract, traded Daniel Theis, and signed Tony Bradley. The moves Chicago were able to make in the offseason catapulted them from a team that would struggle to make the playoffs into serious contenders in the East. With a lineup consisting of Ball, LaVine, DeRozan, Williams, and Vucevic, it’s hard to think this team won’t be able to win consistently in 2021-22. One of the best results from building a winning team is that it is more likely that Zach LaVine would consider staying in Chicago for the future. If there were any medals to be given to teams for their free agency performance, there’s no question the Chicago Bulls would have the gold!
Brooklyn Nets:
The Nets haven’t had the most exciting free agency out of all the NBA teams, which makes sense given the caliber of players they already have a plethora of, but the moves that Brooklyn was able to make are sure to put them at the top of the East this upcoming season. Two of the key role players from Brooklyn are returning on one-year deals, including Blake Griffin and Bruce Brown, and to replace the veteran presence of Jeff Green will be James Johnson on a one-year deal as well. Where the Nets really improved is by bringing in PG Patty Mills from the San Antonio Spurs. Mills was one of the prospects many contenders had their eye on as a solid backup point guard who could shoot the three, and he ended up signing with Brooklyn on a two-year deal. Mills has impressed many viewers of the 2020 Tokyo Olympics with his play for team Australia and has been a great role player for years in the NBA. Additionally, Brooklyn was able to re-sign Kevin Durant on a contract extension worth $198 million over four years, which means they will be able to compete in the East so long as Durant continues to be healthy and play at an elite level like he has for years. This offseason, the odds on favorites remained that way and have geared up for another season of basketball dominance with their big three.
Miami Heat:
The way Miami’s season ended in 2021 was disappointing for Heat fans after being in the NBA Finals the year prior. Luckily, the Heat made some fantastic moves during free agency with a combination of big-name signings and excellent role player signings as well. Starting off with the big names for the Heat, Miami landed free-agent PG Kyle Lowry on a three-year $85 million deal and re-signed Jimmy Butler to an extension of $184 million over the next four years. For their role players, Miami re-signed Duncan Robison, a pivotal three-point marksman for them and one of the best shooters in the league, as well as securing recent NBA champion P.J. Tucker from the free agency market. The Heat also now have Markieff Morris and will have Victor Oladipo returning as his future with the team was previously in question. Similar to Chicago, Miami’s expectations are high for next season, and they’ve narrowed the gap between teams in the Eastern Conference.
Honorable Mentions:
There are some teams worth mentioning here as well who did a well enough job in this NBA free agency period. The Lakers made a ton of moves this offseason, essentially signing their entire squad while trading for Westbrook, and it’ll be interesting to see how that team operates, so they are definitely worth the mention. The Warriors resigning Steph Curry to that enormous four-year, $215 million extension was enough for them to be mentioned as well. The Suns did a fantastic job resigning Chris Paul and Cameron Payne from their Finals run and also added JaVale McGee in the process. Lastly, the New York Knicks made some decent moves in signing Evan Fournier and Kamba Walker and also retaining Derrick Rose, Nerlens Noel, Taj Gibson, and Alec Burks. The Hawks and Clippers should also be considered winners this year due to who they were able to retain this offseason.
Of course, where there are winners, there are losers too, and these are just a few of the teams that didn’t quite make a large splash with their offseason moves.
Portland Trail Blazers:
It hasn’t been the greatest offseason for Portland Trail Blazers fans in 2021. Not only have they had to deal with every franchise interested in liberating Damian Lillard from the city of Portland, but the few moves they have made aren’t ones that would help make it hard for Lillard to walk away from the organization. They did a good job resigning Norman Powell on a five-year contract, but the only other moves they have yet to make have been signing Cody Zeller and Tony Snell to one-year deals. Zach Collins and Carmelo Anthony have left Portland for different teams, and I don’t see how much they could’ve improved from these deals alone. The Blazers aren’t winners of this free agency because the moves they have made may end up costing them their superstar in Damian Lillard in upcoming years. Dame is 31 years old, and the farthest he’s gotten with the team is to the Western Conference Finals. Surely the Blazers have more planned, but they are, in my opinion, the biggest losers of this year’s free agency because what they have to lose is arguably the franchise’s greatest player.
Boston Celtics:
The Boston Celtics have made one move this offseason, which was signing Enes Kanter to a one-year deal to play for them once again. Other than that, the Celtics now have to deal with a severe hole in their point guard depth with Evan Fournier and Kamba Walker jumping over state lines to New York. The Celtics are a franchise that have had the pieces necessary for a title run but haven’t been able to completely put it all together. They’ve been in the Eastern Conference Finals a couple of times during the time Brad Stevens was head coach, but now the future is a lot less clear in Boston. Sure, Tatum and Brown still will run the show, which will lead them to wins, but that isn’t going to last forever. Teams in the East like the Bulls and Heat have potentially leapfrogged this current Celtics team, which is only going to make competing for a title harder and harder. Not to mention there are already multiple contenders in the East from last year, including the Nets, 76ers, and champion Bucks. Boston runs the risk of running into a situation that Portland is on the brink of with their stars Brown and Tatum. This offseason hasn’t really helped fix that problem either. Boston runs the risk of remaining in mediocrity while other teams acquire talent, which makes them losers, at least for this offseason.
San Antonio Spurs:
The Spurs have had a mixed offseason with their moves, but it trends more on the negative side. The main issue is considering the future of that organization in the next 3-4 years. This offseason, the Spurs acquired Bryn Forbes from the Milwaukee Bucks, Doug McDermott from the Indiana Pacers, and Zach Collins from the Blazers, as well as Jock Landale and Chandler Hutchison. Having Bryn Forbes return to the Spurs is a welcome sign for their organization, and Doug McDermott has proven himself to be a capable scorer in the NBA. Signing Zach Collins after not playing for the past year due to injuries does raise some question marks for the Spurs, as his injury history has been terrible at this point in his career. San Antonio’s losses will prove more impactful than who they’ve signed, however, as they lost DeMar DeRozan, Patty Mills, and Rudy Gay to different teams. With these three huge losses, the Spurs’ best players are now the likes of Dejounte Murray and Keldon Johnson. Who knows if they are ready to make that leap into stardom, but it will be tough sailing for Coach Popovich this upcoming season, which is why the Spurs are one of the summer’s losers in free agency.
Dishonorable Mentions:
Some other teams that haven’t had quite the offseason their fans would hope for are also worth highlighting here as well. The Dallas Mavericks had huge expectations going into the offseason of finding a star to put next to Luka Dončić. Names like DeMar and even Kawhi were floated out there, yet Dallas has only been able to re-sign Tim Hardaway Jr. and Boban Marjanovic and acquire Sterling Brown and Reggie Bullock. The Sacramento Kings also didn’t do quite well this offseason when it seems like everyone else in the Pacific Division got better and improved their rosters. It has also been a quiet offseason for the Grizzlies, who have only traded Grayson Allen to Milwaukee for picks, and the Minnesota Timberwolves, who traded away Ricky Rubio, a 2022 second-round pick, and cash to the Cavaliers for Taurean Prince. Not every offseason is a teams’ best, and it varies from year to year, but for 2021, most of the fans for these franchises have had to sit back and watch their rivals get much better, hoping that their drafted players turn out well. Of course, there are still a few names waiting to be picked up by an NBA team in the free agency pool, so not all hope is lost for a franchise who perhaps hasn’t had much success in free agency up to this point.
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