Superteams We Could See by End of 2013-14 NBA Season

NBA superteams have been around as long as the league itself.

From Bill Russell's Boston Celtics to Kobe Bryant and Shaquille O'Neal's Los Angeles Lakers, the greatest teams in league history have unsurprisingly fielded rosters littered with all-time great talents.

The way those rosters are put together, however, has changed in recent years. These new-age superteams are more manufactured dynasties than self-made powers, with trades and free-agent signings playing an equal (or larger) role in talent acquisition than the draft.

Take the two superteams that this offseason yielded for instance.

The Brooklyn Nets and Houston Rockets threw their names in the championship race with nothing more than a single late first-round pick in the 2013 draft between them.

The Nets traded for two future Hall of Famers, Kevin Garnett and Paul Pierce, to complement the perennial All-Star they traded for last summer, Joe Johnson, and the one they traded for in 2011-12, Deron Williams. The Rockets invested more than $160 million in a pair of elite talents, Dwight Howard and James Harden, over the last 12 months—neither of whom was drafted by the franchise.

History says neither Houston nor Brooklyn is guaranteed to see a return on its investment (see: 2012-13 Los Angeles Lakers). History also tells us that these two teams won't be the last ones that will try to buy a title.

The next superteam is never more than one trade away. A quick glance at the league unearths several superstars in limbo. Whether their trade stock is falling or the need for their franchise to embrace a rebuild is rising, any number of them could be on the move between now and the 2014 trade deadline.

Which players could be next to join a superteam roster? And what organization will be the next to crack the ranks of the elite?

Detroit Pistons

The target

Rajon Rondo

Why he'll be available

The Boston Celtics may not be outright tanking, but they've clearly entered rebuilding mode. Since last summer, Boston has seen the departure of three future Hall of Famers in Ray Allen, Paul Pierce and Kevin Garnett and a perennial Coach of the Year candidate in Doc Rivers.

Rondo hasn't missed the postseason since his rookie campaign in 2006-07. Yet even in the franchise's best times, he's been a headache.

A rift between Rondo and Allen reportedly drove the most prolific long-range shooter in league history to the rival Miami Heat. Rivers' "intense dislike" of Rondo nearly turned physical, according to SheridanHoops.com's Chris Sheridan, before the coach left Boston for the Los Angeles Clippers.

With first-year head coach Brad Stevens set to lead Rondo and the rest of the likely lottery-bound Celtics, there's legitimate concern over how Rondo will react when the losses start piling up.

Boston was a mediocre three-point shooting team last season (35.8 percent, tied for 15th), and that group had Pierce and Jason Terry flanking the perimeter. Even with Garnett the Celtics were a subpar shot-blocking team (4.5 per game, tied for 22nd) and the worst rebounding club in the league (minus-4.3 differential on the glass).

Jeff Green and Avery Bradley could each have career years in 2013-14, and Boston would still be fighting for a playoff berth in an Eastern Conference that looks to be as deep as its ever been.

How a deal gets done

According to Gary Washburn of The Boston Globe, the Detroit Pistons could offer newcomer Brandon Jennings as part of a trade package to pry the two-time assists leader away from Boston.

Jennings alone won't move the needle for Boston team president Danny Ainge, but the inclusion of 23-year-old big man Greg Monroe could make this deal impossible to resist.

The 6'11", 253-pound Monroe could give Ainge his piece to build around for the future. He's closing in on a career double-double average (13.5 points and 8.9 rebounds) and is already one of the best passing bigs in the NBA (3.5 assists per game last season).

Monroe has one year left on his rookie contract, and his agent, David Falk, reportedly plans to wait until next summer to entertain talks on a new deal. Ainge might not want to muddle Boston's finances that soon, but he'd be better off making a major investment in a player with room to grow like Monroe as opposed to overpaying for veteran talent that will stunt Boston's rebuilding effort.

With Josh Smith added to Detroit's frontcourt rotation, there are some logistical floor-spacing issues for the Pistons to overcome. Rondo's ability to find Smith and Andre Drummond for lobs creates better vertical spacing for this time, while the addition of an extra shooter in the starting lineup (Kyle Singler, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope or Luigi Datome) helps open the floor for Drummond and Smith underneath.

Pistons general manager Joe Dumars has three years left before he'll need to pay Drummond. Rondo's remaining two years and $25 million should make that an easier task then throwing max money at Monroe next summer.

Golden State Warriors

The target

LaMarcus Aldridge

Why he'll be available

Portland Trail Blazers general manager Neil Olshey has tried to extinguish the trade rumors that have engulfed his All-Star forward LaMarcus Aldridge this summer, but there's an awful lot of smoke for there not to be at least some smoldering embers.

Olshey attacked this summer with a clear plan to solve his team's biggest problem: fixing the league's worst second unit. He added a number of seasoned veterans (Mo Williams, Robin Lopez, Dorell Wright and Earl Watson) and continued stockpiling young assets (Thomas Robinson, C.J. McCollum and Allen Crabbe).

Grantland's Bill Simmons perhaps said it best when he wrote that Portland's offseason reserve overhaul could propel this team all the way to "potentially a No. 7 seed."

Despite addressing a pressing need, the Blazers still project to be a team fighting for their playoff lives. Even that relatively disappointing prognosis relies on the assumptions that Damian Lillard will be better as a sophomore than he was as a rookie, that Meyers Leonard and Robin Lopez can replace J.J. Hickson's production, and Robinson and the rookies will each contribute something.

Outside of Lillard and Leonard, there just isn't much upward mobility for the rest of Portland's starters. Aldridge, Nicolas Batum and Wesley Matthews have already spent a combined 16 seasons in the NBA. If this trio hasn't already peaked, it can at least see the summit.

Portland has enough talent that gutting the roster might be a little too extreme. But if Aldridge is moved for multiple assets who can help the Blazers win now and later, Portland can maintain relevance and add to a championship core down the line.

How a deal gets done

The Golden State Warriors have to start these talks with David Lee. His salary nearly matches Aldridge's ($13.8 million to $14.8 million), both forwards produce at all-star levels, and Lee's passing ability hastens Lillard's already rapid rise to stardom. 

But a Lee-for-Aldridge swap won't cut it for Portland's side. For that the Warriors will have to break up their Splash Brothers backcourt and pair Lee with third-year sharpshooter Klay Thompson. 

The addition of Thompson gives Portland the instant offense second-team sniper that this roster still lacks. Whether it's Thompson or Matthews who ultimately fills that role is up to coach Terry Stotts and his staff to decide.

As for the Warriors, that extra starting spot frees up sophomore Harrison Barnes for major minutes. With Barnes and Aldridge joining Stephen Curry, Andre Iguodala and Andrew Bogut in the opening lineup, the Warriors are legitimate title contenders for the near future.

Summer league stars Kent Bazemore and Draymond Green and newcomers Toney Douglas and Nemanja Nedovic ensure that Mark Jackson's bench remains a strength.

Houston Rockets

The target

Dirk Nowitzki

Why he'll be available

The only difference between last season's one-year rentals and this summer's longer investments is the fact that the Dallas Mavericks just added a few years to their cycle of mediocrity. Any gains in terms of talent were marginal at best.

Jose Calderon brings ball control and three-point shooting but at the expense of athleticism in the backcourt. Monta Ellis adds a scoring touch but has the same problems with consistency as O.J. Mayo minus the size and shooting stroke. Samuel Dalembert might be a better defensive partner for Nowitzki, but Dallas still replaced a former All-Star with a fringe starter.

Nowitzki knows he can't keep playing forever. He told the Star-Telegram's Mac Engel earlier this summer that he thinks he's "gotta a couple good years left."

Given the less-than-impressive roster improvements this summer, that puts the 35-year-old on course to play out the twilight of his career on a team with no championship hope.

He's spent all 15 of his NBA seasons in Dallas, which means any potential move at this point won't happen easily.

He has a no-trade clause and told ESPN Dallas' Tim MacMahon that he "could never see myself playing for another franchise." Also, owner Mark Cuban told reporters via ESPN.com, "There's no way I would trade him, no matter what."

But Cuban owes it to Nowitzki to give the former MVP what he wants, which he told USA Today's Sam Amick, is not "playing for the eight or nine seed." A No. 7 seed—really the most optimistic outcome for this roster in 2013-14—is not what Nowitzki has in mind.

Cuban and Nowitzki realized their championship dreams together in 2011. If either wants to make it back to that glorious stage, then this relationship has to end.

How a deal gets done

For Nowitzki to get back into the championship chase, he won't even need to leave the state of Texas. With James Harden and Dwight Howard on board, the Houston Rockets are legitimate contenders without Nowitzki.

Houston has a gaping hole at the power forward spot. Nowitzki's perimeter game would create optimal spacing for Howard and Harden to attack. His $22 million contract expires at season's end, meaning he could still take this title run with Houston then return and ultimately retire back in Dallas if that was his wish.

For Cuban and Co. to swing a deal for Nowitzki, they'll have to remember that they are trading the 35-year-old version of him. Nowitzki is an ideal third option on a championship club, maybe the No. 2 man with a stacked supporting cast, but he's not a leading man and won't be bringing a superstar return.

Houston's Omer Asik would headline Dallas' trade haul. He had two starts on his NBA resume before last season and still left 2012-13 as a walking double-double (10.1 points and 11.7 rebounds per game).

Jeremy Lin's contract is necessary to make this deal work financially. Patrick Beverley could assume Lin's starting role, something he could do even if Lin isn't traded, and veteran Aaron Brooks would battle rookie Isaiah Canaan for the backup point guard spot.

Understandably, the Mavericks just signed Jose Calderon to a four-year deal, brought back Devin Harris and drafted Shane Larkin, but Lin gives something Dallas still severely lacks: a tradable asset.

Flipping Lin in a subsequent deal with an expiring contract like Shawn Marion or Vince Carter only strengthens the initial Nowitzki trade. Along with future draft considerations, Dallas could have its pick of second-year forwards Terrence Jones and Donatas Motiejunas. 

If Cuban and Mavericks fans remember which Nowitzki they're trading, a package of Asik, Lin, Jones/Motiejunas and draft picks is a respectable haul. It will sting at first, but expect that pain to diminish as Asik makes his next step and Donnie Nelson finds a taker for Lin and an expiring contract.

Indiana Pacers

The target

Eric Gordon

Why he'll be available

Prior to this summer, Gordon has done everything he can to make sure his tenure with the New Orleans Pelicans was quick and painless.

After landing in the Big Easy as part of the trade that sent Chris Paul to the Los Angeles Clippers, a knee injury limited him to just nine games in the 2011-12 season.

He spent the ensuing summer shopping for a new home and thought he'd found one with the Phoenix Suns. The Suns signed the then-restricted free agent to a four-year, $58 million offer sheet, and Gordon quickly pleaded with his old team to not match the offer.

New Orleans ultimately did match, and when a presumably unhappy Gordon returned to the franchise with yet another knee injury, he was forced to defend the legitimacy of his ailment. He wound up missing a total of 40 games in 2012-13.

One of the 42 he did play ended prematurely after he was benched following a verbal confrontation with head coach Monty Williams early in the third quarter of New Orleans' 95-83 loss to the Utah Jazz on April 5.

But now that New Orleans has assembled an intriguing collection of talent (Jrue Holiday, Tyreke Evans and Anthony Davis), has Gordon suddenly turned into a company man? Sounds a little too good to be true.

That's sort of the feeling I get from these roster improvements too. The Pelicans should have enough to compete for one of the final playoff spots in the West, but even those postseason hopes could be dashed if Williams can't find enough touches to appease Gordon, Holiday, Evans, Davis and Ryan Anderson.

Can Gordon keep his spirit high through the turbulent times that every NBA team encounters? History says it's a long shot.

How a deal gets done

The Indiana Pacers have their own hobbled scorer to find a place for, and that place could ultimately be the Crescent City.

Danny Granger played only five games last season (four less than Gordon did the year prior) and has become extremely expendable after the ascent of All-Star Paul George. Granger's knees may force him into a one-dimensional shooting role, but you could argue that having a knockdown sniper would add more to the Pelicans roster than a third slasher.

Indiana could sweeten the pot with a draft pick, which should hold serious value to a New Orleans team that traded away its 2014 first-round choice to acquire Holiday.

Neither Granger nor Gordon have a particularly high trade value right now, but swapping the pair would help free these franchises from the temptation to take pennies-on-the-dollar in other moves—not to mention that each player's value should be higher on the opposite roster.

Gordon's reputation as a malcontent is at least partially self-inflicted but could be somewhat undeserved.

He was stripped from a team in L.A. that looked like it was just starting to turn the corner—a move that Gordon told Yahoo! Sports' Marc J. Spears the Clippers initially lied to him about—and landed on a rebuilding roster.

The Suns' situation was a public relations nightmare, but as Gordon told BourbonStreetShots.com's Joe Gerrity, it had less to do with wanting to leave New Orleans than it did with his desire to go somewhere he felt wanted.

Making a dramatic roster shakeup like this should certainly give Gordon's ego the massage that it, along with countless other NBA players, needs. Plus, he'd finally be a member of a championship contending team, back in his hometown of Indianapolis no less.

Granger's value in this deal lies in the economic impact he'd have on the Pelicans. New Orleans has eight-figure commitments to both Holiday and Evans for the next three seasons, so Granger's expiring $14 million contract would bring needed salary cap relief.

Oklahoma City Thunder

The target

Kevin Love

Why he'll be available

If it was up to the Minnesota Timberwolves, Kevin Love wouldn't be available.

The executive who infamously opted not to give Love the full five-year maximum contract when he had the chance, David Kahn, is out. Flip Saunders is in now, along with a long overdue perimeter scoring punch in the forms of veterans Kevin Martin and Corey Brewer and rookie Shabazz Muhammad.

Combine Saunders' finds with the talent already on hand (Ricky Rubio, Nikola Pekovic), and Minnesota is poised to have the most successful season of Love's five-year career.

Putting a ceiling at that potential success, though, highlights the Timberwolves' problems and may ultimately force their hands with Love.

A path to the playoffs has never looked brighter, but anything beyond that gets murky. A first-round series victory figures to be as good as it gets for this team in the stacked Western Conference.

Love has never hidden his desire to play for a winning team. But would a single series victory—or worse, a first-round exit—pacify his competitive appetite?

Considering that the two-time All-Star can opt out of his contract after the 2014-15 season, is that a risk that the Timberwolves would be willing to take? Is it even one they'd have the choice to debate, or would Love follow the path of his fellow superstars (Carmelo Anthony, Dwight Howard, Chris Paul, Deron Williams, etc.) and demand to be dealt to a legitimate title contender?

How a deal gets done

The Los Angeles Lakers may be the casual fan's choice to land Love, but the Oklahoma City Thunder might have the firepower to facilitate a trade.

Serge Ibaka would be the centerpiece here, as the 23-year-old comes with loads of potential at both ends of the floor. He could be an athletic finisher on Ricky Rubio's lobs, a floor spacer with three-point range and the second half of one of the league's most physically imposing front lines.

To sweeten the pot, Oklahoma City could dangle Jeremy Lamb and Perry Jones III along with draft considerations. Lamb and Muhammad can battle to be the first scorer off the bench, while Jones and Derrick Williams give Minnesota two freakish athletes with upside for its roster or as potential trade pieces down the line.

As for Love, he would now have the roster to compete for a title, and the option to do so with players that he knows. He roomed with Russell Westbrook at UCLA and captured Olympic Gold last summer with both Westbrook and Kevin Durant in London.

Kendrick Perkins' contract also comes off the books in 2015, meaning Oklahoma City general manager Sam Presti may find enough money to keep Westbrook, Durant and Love laughing all the way to a title.

Washington Wizards

The target

DeMarcus Cousins

Why he'll be available

The new Sacramento Kings regime is saying all of the right things about mercurial big man DeMarcus Cousins. They've lauded his talent and spoke of an eagerness for the chance to work with him.

The problem is that they'll have to rush what could be a franchise-defining decision. Cousins' agent, Dan Fegan, has set his sights on a maximum contract extension by the Oct. 31 deadline to lock up members of the 2010 draft class. According to The Sacramento Bee's Jason Jones, Fegan's already threatening a trade demand if his desired deal is not offered.

Cousins has enough red flags of his own to make this front office wary of making that big of an investment in him (roughly $80 million for five seasons). The Kings may opt to move their polarizing star rather than be strong-armed into paying a steep premium that they're not sure he's worth.

How a deal gets done

The Kings won't have to go looking for a buyer. Several have already expressed interest, including the Washington Wizards.

According to what sources told USA Today's Sam Amick in December 2012, a trade to Washington would be considered "ideal" for both Cousins and Fegan. A move would reunite Cousins with his former college teammate and fellow Fegan client John Wall.

A trio of Wall, Cousins and Bradley Beal gives Washington a tantalizing collection of young talent. With Otto Porter and Emeka Okafor rounding out the starting five, the Wizards' basement still puts them in the playoff picture.

But how does Cousins get to Washington?

The Wizards would lead with Nene, a player they could sell both for his production (16.6 points and 8.8 rebounds per 36 minutes last season) and his character. Sacramento could then have its pick of young Washington forwards: Jan Vesely, Trevor Booker or Chris Singleton. 

If the Wizards throw in a future first-round pick and take back some salary (Chuck Hayes or John Salmons perhaps), Fegan could have two $80-million men in the nation's capital.