(Photo by Jonathan Daniel/Getty Images)
What an offseason it has been for the NBA, and we're only in July.
How do you say "Sorry, Kevin Pritchard!" in Turkish?
Hedo Turkoglu spurns the Blazers in favor of going to the Toronto Raptors of all teams, allegedly due to his wife's liking of a city, which is very nice, but certainly not a basketball town. Well, at least he has some excuse other than money that we're aware of.
The Portland Trail Blazers are a very good team with a whole lot of youth that desperately need an above-average, to All-Star caliber veteran, that can take them to the next level.
Whether that veteran they need comes to them this year or 2010 remains to be seen.
How about the Lake Show?
A look at the 2009-2010 Los Angeles Lakers:
Well, the Lakers added Kobe Bryant's former playoff opponent and Houston Rocket Ron Artest, to their already stacked squad. Throw in the possibility of a returning and healthier Lamar Odom, and you've got yourself a huge chance to repeat.
Let's not forge Phil Jackson a.k.a. the same coach that won seventy two games with the Chicago Bulls, who had Michael Jordan, Scottie Pippen, and Dennis Rodman on his team is returning for another year on the bench. Oh, and he has also won ten championships as a coach if you didn't already know.
Ron Artest may seem like he doesn't respect that many people, but he's got to bow down to the Zen Master's bling-bling.
The Cleveland Cavaliers also made a splash by getting one of greatest centers of all-time in Shaquille O'Neal via trade. Shaq certainly adds the inside presence the Cavs were lacking this past season, although another move could have definitely assisted them in their championship quest.
The Cavs could have signed Ron Artest. Whoops. Oh well, there's always Rasheed Wa...oh wait, he's already gone to another team too! You see, the Cavs had a chance to sign another piece to their championship puzzle, but are now stuck behind Boston and Orlando for best in the East.
Don't get wrong me: I am someone that believes that Vince Carter replacing Turkoglu isn't necessarily the best move. However, Vince Carter is a scorer at heart and will get much more open looks than he did in New Jersey, due to the commanding presence of the Magic's reigning Defensive Player of The Year Dwight Howard.
I see big things for Ben Gordon's future
The Detroit Pistons did themselves favors by negotiating with former Dallas Mavericks coach and current ESPN analyst Avery Johnson, who helped the San Antonio Spurs win their first NBA Championship as a player in 1999. Likewise, he led the Mavericks to the 2006 Finals as a coach.
Johnson and Pistons head honcho Joe Dumars agreeing to a deal remains to be seen.
In other Pistons news, they somehow snagged Ben Gordon from the Chicago Bulls, which to me, is more surprising than Turkoglu ditching the Blazers.
Based on reports prior to Gordon's agreement to a five-year deal worth $55 million, it seemed as though the former UConn standout would continue his career in Chicago. I guess that's not the case anymore.
And the Pistons were also able to agree to a deal with former Milwaukee Bucks forward Charlie Villanueva, who has shown potential to be a valuable contributor to any team, but was slowed down by injuries this past season.
As far as the real winners in the 2009 NBA free agency period go, I would put the Boston Celtics and San Antonio Spurs at the top thus far.
The Celtics and Spurs were the biggest winners in free agency thus far.
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