NBA Free Agency 2012: Teams Who Made Right Decisions to Keep Rosters Intact

The NBA free-agency period has been marked by a bevy of player movement for most teams. For a select few, however, it can be characterized by just the opposite.

In a league where building a contender from the ground up—through the NBA draft—has become all but obsolete, there are a few organizations that have continued to resist the urge to "blow things up."

Though this entails the absence of capturing a marquee free agent, it does endorse the nearly-extinct art of common sense and understated ingenuity.

And more often than publicized, that can be the difference between championship contention and unflattering mediocrity.

Denver Nuggets

Offseason Transactions: Re-signed Andre Miller

UPDATE: JaVale McGee agreed to a four-year, $44 million deal with the Nuggets on Wednesday night.  

The Nuggets are already in possession of a promising core, which is why there was no need to tinker with the current dynamic.

Andre Miller is already on his way back, JaVale McGee doesn't appear too far behind and Denver is about to lock up Ty Lawson with a long-term contract extension (Denver Post). After ensuring mere months ago that Wilson Chandler and Danilo Gallinari wouldn't be going anywhere anytime soon, the Nuggets are clearly on the right track.

Flashy names and new faces are tempting avenues to explore, but with a slew of budding youth and a healthy dose of veteran leadership, the perfectly-balanced Nuggets have opted to keep their current group intact instead.

And in this case, that was all Denver needed to secure its spot among the league's title contenders.  

Milwaukee Bucks

Offseason Transactions: Re-signed Ersan Ilyasova; acquired Samuel Dalembert from Rockets

The Bucks are another team that hasn't changed the shape of its roster drastically.

Aside from acquiring Samuel Dalembert for peanuts and re-signing Ersan Ilyasova, all has been quiet on the Milwaukee front.

And you know what? That's OK.

While Dalembert's arrival will be a welcomed addition in the paint, retaining Ilyasova was a must. After a wildly inconsistent and entertaining season, the Bucks need to see what exactly it is they have.

Monta Ellis and Brandon Jennings present an interesting backcourt dynamic, while Ilyasova headlines a front line with a wealth of potential.

Remaining relatively inactive has allowed the Bucks to keep their core intact, thus ensuring they can gauge their roster's ceiling unimpeded.

San Antonio Spurs

Offseason Transactions: Re-signed Boris Diaw, Tim Duncan, Danny Green and Patty Mills; signed Nando de Colo.

The Spurs may have gotten pummeled by the Thunder in the Western Conference finals, but even after the fact, they're a team you don't want to break up.

And that's why San Antonio took care of business this offseason by re-signing every free agent it had, including the ever-impressive Tim Duncan.

Though the Spurs didn't make any substantial upgrades, players like Green and Leonard will be one year wiser next season, while veterans like Duncan, Stephen Jackson, Tony Parker and Manu Ginobili will be hungry for a championship ring as their careers wind down.

Just like last year and the year before, San Antonio has focused on upgrading from within its own ranks.

And you have to respect that.

Oklahoma City Thunder

Offseason Transactions: Signed Hasheem Thabeet and Hollis Thompson.

After falling to the Miami Heat in five games and missing out on obtaining an NBA championship, it's time for Oklahoma City to blow it up, right?

Wrong.

The Thunder's execution throughout the last four games of the finals was questionable at best, but they're still an incredibly young team with an enormous amount of upside. And why would you want to mess around with that?

Oklahoma City is nearing a crossroads now more than ever. After all, if the New York Knicks cannot afford Jeremy Lin, how can the Thunder afford James Harden and Serge Ibaka?

However, it's important to note Oklahoma City hasn't reached that juncture just yet. There's still time to—for lack of a better word—salvage what little time the Core Four has left.

The Thunder are correct for worrying about later, later.

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