NBA Free Agency 2018: Rumors and Predictions for Available Players
The basketball world is buzzing with less than a week remaining before the 2018 version of NBA free agency.
It's a peculiar class in that it doesn't have great depth in terms of available stars or win-now shoppers with cap space yet still possesses the potential to reshape the basketball landscape.
Any summer when LeBron James can hit the open market automatically becomes a can't-miss offseason.
It's no surprise, then, that the latest batch of rumors includes two attached to the King.
Lakers Aiming for the Stars
Yes, plural stars—as in not one, not two, but three potential fortune-changers.
Naturally, this all starts with James, who has until June 29 to make a decision regarding his $35.6 million player option for next season. Should he decline it, he'll likely tie his future to one of three teams—the Los Angeles Lakers, Cleveland Cavaliers or Houston Rockets.
Plugged-in ESPN reporter Brian Windhorst thinks it might only be a two-team race.
"It may come down to choosing between the future of the Lakers and the Cavs," Windhorst wrote.
Should James opt for L.A., that could trigger an ambitious strategy for the organization.
"The crux of that plan, according to league sources, has been twofold: 1) Hope the Lakers can persuade the Spurs to trade them disgruntled All-Star Kawhi Leonard, and 2) Let James work his magic and convince a third All-Star (e.g. [Paul] George) to join him there," Bleacher Report's Ken Berger wrote.
So far, the Lakers have been shut down in their attempts to engage the San Antonio Spurs on Leonard talks, per ESPN's Ramona Shelburne:
And even though George, a Palmdale, Calif. native, has long been connected to the Lakers, USA Today's Sam Amick said there is "all sorts of optimism" inside the Oklahoma City Thunder that George will re-sign.
In other words, there are many hurdles to clear for the Lakers' grandiose plan to come to fruition. But if everything comes together how they hope, the storied franchise could sky-rocket back into title contention.
Prediction: LeBron James signs with the Lakers.
Paul George Plan B for Houston?
The Houston Rockets will be closely monitoring James' decision on his player option. Given their cap situation, their potential path to James gets much trickier if he opts out.
Despite the long odds, the Rockets haven't abandoned their pursuit of James, a source told Amick. But if that window closes, Houston general manager Daryl Morey could quickly pivot to his next priority.
"Rival execs tell B/R they fully expect Morey to move quickly and aggressively to Plan B if LeBron says no to Houston, perhaps even putting on a full-court press to pry Paul George from Oklahoma City," Berger reported.
While George isn't James, the former would be an interesting fit in Houston.
The Rockets live by the long ball; George has the sixth-most triples over the past three seasons (649) and a 38.9 percent conversion rate over that stretch. The Rockets fueled their defensive climb (from 18th to sixth in defensive efficiency) by loading up on multipositional defenders; George is a three-time All-Defensive selection with the length and athleticism to handle assignments of all types.
George also doesn't dominate the basketball, so he could slot right in alongside Houston's two-headed monster at point guard of Chris Paul and James Harden.
But Houston's level of interest only matters if George is willing to leave OKC and able to resist L.A.'s recruiting pitch.
Prediction: Paul George signs with the Lakers.
DeAndre Jordan On His Way Out?
Jordan has yet to make a decision on his $24.1 million player option for next season, but his future with the Los Angeles Clippers is already in doubt.
The Clippers acquired Marcin Gortat from the Washington Wizards in exchange for Austin Rivers on Tuesday. Gortat arrives in L.A. having started 527 of his 529 games over the past seven seasons and is owed $13.5 million for 2018-19.
It sounds like the Clippers just picked up their new starting center.
"Gortat ... gives the Clippers a starting-level center should DeAndre Jordan opt out of his $24.1 million contract before Friday's deadline," ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski wrote. "Even if Jordan opts in to the deal, the Clippers and Jordan would work together to find a trade out of Los Angeles, preferably well before the February trade deadline."
Jordan might be better off avoiding the open market, given the dearth of free-agent shoppers. But he'd have his share of suitors in a potential trade with averages of 14.2 rebounds, 11.9 points (on 68.9 percent shooting) and 1.9 blocks per game over the past five seasons.
One team that would make a lot of sense—the Dallas Mavericks. Sure, they were scorned by him amid the great emoji war of 2015, but they seem willing to put any hurt feelings aside, per Marc Stein of the New York Times:
With Luka Doncic and Jalen Brunson joining a roster already featuring Dennis Smith Jr., Harrison Barnes, Wesley Matthews and Dirk Nowitzki, this team is both on the rise and in dire need of an athletic anchor.
Prediction: DeAndre Jordan opts in and gets traded to the Mavericks.
Statistics used courtesy of Basketball Reference and NBA.com. Salary information obtained via Basketball Insiders.
