Stock Up, Stock Down for Every NBA Team After 2012 Free Agency

We all know how some of the summer's biggest movers came out of the offseason, but every team had at least some business to tend to.

Some of those teams, like the San Antonio Spurs and Oklahoma City Thunder, didn't do much at all, but that was for good reason. Facing off in the Western Conference finals is generally a sign that things are going well.

Now that the Los Angeles Lakers have seemingly improved by leaps and bounds, though, does standing pat still look like a good decision?

Time will tell.

Few teams took a legitimate step backward, but a number of organizations made moves that may take some time to yield results. For now, we can only take our best guesses about whether every organization's decisions made sense.

Here's one such best guess for each team. Did your favorite club improve?

Atlanta Hawks

The Atlanta Hawks' most significant offseason move wasn't an addition at all. It was parting ways with Joe Johnson's massive contract.

Now that new general manager Danny Ferry has some cap flexibility going forward, Atlanta will have the opportunity to build upon its youth and reshape the roster after four years of coming up just short of being a legitimate contender.

The organization also traded for Kyle Korver, acquired Anthony Morrow in the Johnson trade, and drafted Vanderbilt's John Jenkins. All of a sudden, the Hawks have one of the league's most dangerous platoons of sharp-shooting role players.

Add free agent combo-guard Lou Williams to the mix, and this team looks better prepared to score points than it has in a long time, even without Johnson.

Finally, the club also sent forward Marvin Williams to the Utah Jazz for Devin Harris in a move that will create some additional cap space next summer. How that affects an increasingly crowded backcourt in the short term is unclear, but it's a smart long-term move at the very least.

Stock: Way up, especially over the next few years.

Boston Celtics

Re-signing Kevin Garnett was the most important priority of the offseason, but the Boston Celtics made some changes that could help this team return to the NBA Finals.

At first, losing sniper Ray Allen appeared to be a step in the wrong direction, but the Celtics replaced him with free agent Jason Terry and worked out a sign-and-trade to acquire Courtney Lee. Between the two, Boston actually upgraded its backcourt. 

Terry is better than Allen at creating his own shot off the dribble at this point in their respective careers, and Lee is a significantly better defender who also drills corner treys for a living.

Boston will also get free agent Jeff Green back after a season lost to an aortic aneurysm, and it re-signed power forward Brandon Bass for some nice depth up front. In the draft, the organization acquired a couple of more bigs to further that cause. Jared Sullinger and Fab Melo may not make the team significantly better right away, but they should be able to play some minutes over the course of the regular season so KG can stay rested.

Stock: Up, and more than any of us expected it to be.

Brooklyn Nets

Given that the Brooklyn Nets began the summer at risk of losing superstar point guard Deron Williams, re-signing him alone makes the offseason a success.

Additionally, though, the organization acquired an All-Star second option in Joe Johnson, re-signed Gerald Wallace, Kris Humphries and Brook Lopez, and picked up free agent point guard C.J. Watson to add some depth.

A full season of Wallace and a healthy Lopez will make a huge difference, and it goes without saying Johnson will take a load of pressure off Deron Williams, especially in the scoring department.

Johnson's contract means the Nets probably won't be able to make many roster adjustments going forward, but this team could already be good enough to make some serious noise in the playoffs.

Stock: Definitely up, for now at least.

Charlotte Bobcats

Adding Kentucky's Michael Kidd-Gilchrist instantly made the Charlotte Bobcats a better team, and new head coach Mike Dunlap's defense-oriented, up-tempo philosophy will take full advantage of the forward's skill set.

Charlotte also swapped underachieving Corey Maggette for Ben Gordon in what is probably more or less a wash.

The bigger question is what will become of the point guard position.

Youngster Kemba Walker can play the point, but he's more of a shoot-first guy, so it's unclear what his role will be. Meanwhile, the team lost free agent D.J. Augustin to the Indiana Pacers and signed Ramon Sessions to replace him.

That seems like something of a draw.

Stock: Up, but not nearly enough.

Chicago Bulls

The Chicago Bulls tinkered with the margins of their rotation more than anything else, so the most important factor going forward will simply be how quickly Derrick Rose can get back on the floor.

The team lost Omer Asik, Ronnie Brewer and C.J. Watson to free agency and traded away Kyle Korver. At first glance, Chicago's once formidable second unit appears to have been decimated. But, the damage really wasn't as bad as it might look, and these decisions all enabled the team to remain more competitive in the long term.

The Bulls made up the difference by signing Kirk Hinrich, Marco Bellinelli, Nazr Mohammed, Vladimir Radmanovic and Nate Robinson. And, they also drafted Kentucky point guard Marquis Teague.

The backcourt probably got better and certainly deeper, but the painted area took a step back. The difference one way or the other shouldn't be too significant though.

Stock: Slightly down for now, but it's not as bad as it might look.

Cleveland Cavaliers

While the Cleveland Cavaliers added some strong rookie talent in shooting guard Dion Waiters and center Tyler Zeller, the organization didn't make many other moves worth noting.

Forward C.J. Miles should improve the club's underwhelming depth, but Cleveland didn't make any free-agent acquisitions that will turn the team around.

Losing Antawn Jamison to the Los Angeles Lakers shouldn't hurt too badly. Tristan Thompson will be able to spend more time at power forward with Anderson Varejao healthy, and the Cavaliers will have a solid, young starting lineup.

If Waiters doesn't justify his selection with the fourth-overall pick, Cleveland could be in trouble, though.

Stock: Up a little bit, but don't expect huge improvements just yet.

Dallas Mavericks

When the Dallas Mavericks missed out on Deron Williams, their offseason appeared to be headed for disaster.

It didn't take long for that to change.

The Mavericks signed center Chris Kaman, acquired Darren Collison from the Indiana Pacers for Ian Mahinmi, signed shooting guard O.J. Mayo and picked up Elton Brand off waivers. That's a pretty good haul, and it's hard to argue last season's aging veterans were better than this mix of young and experienced talent.

Dallas also re-signed Delonte West and still has Shawn Marion and Vince Carter roaming the wing.

This is a deep team, and it could be in better position to make a playoff push next season. Losing Jason Kidd and Jason Terry looks bad on face, but Collison and Mayo should be an upgrade when all is said and done.

Stock: Up ever so quietly.

Denver Nuggets

The Denver Nuggets were already much better than most realized, and the Los Angeles Lakers took note in the first round of the playoffs.

Denver's young core of Ty Lawson, Danilo Gallinari, Wilson Chandler and JaVale McGee was young to begin with, so they'll only get better. Keeping that group together was key, even if it required handing JaVale McGee a $44 million deal. 

Bringing veteran point guard Andre Miller back won't hurt either.

But, this team's biggest move was acquiring Andre Iguodala in the four-team deal that sent Dwight Howard to the Lakers. Denver had to give up Arron Afflalo and Al Harrington, but it was worth it to get such a game-changer in Iggy. 

Harrington's departure will free up more minutes for Gallinari, Chandler and Kenneth Faried anyway, so no harm there.

Stock: Up, up and away.

Detroit Pistons

Not much has changed for the Detroit Pistons, but general manager Joe Dumars has this team steadily improving around a young core comprised of Greg Monroe, Brandon Knight and, now, center Andre Drummond.

Landing Drummond with the ninth pick was a steal, and even if it takes this guy some time to develop (and it almost certainly will), he could be well worth the investment in time.

Otherwise, all was quiet in Detroit but for a meaningless swap of Ben Gordon for Corey Maggette. The move will help create some cap space, but it won't do much for this team in the short term.

Look for another below-average season from the Pistons.

Stock: Up technically, but down given how much teams around them are improving.

Golden State Warriors

The Golden State Warriors didn't become overnight contenders, but they've positioned themselves to be an impressive young team with loads of upside.

Building around an up-and-coming backcourt of Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson, the Warriors added center Andrew Bogut to the mix last season, and he'll actually step foot on the floor next season. The skilled seven-footer should make an instant impact.

Meanwhile, Golden State landed UNC small forward Harrison Barnes in the draft, re-signed Brandon Rush, traded for point guard Jarrett Jack and drafted Draymond Green and Festus Ezeli to round out the bench.

The Warriors will be deeper and more well-rounded, but they may not be a playoff team just quite yet.

Stock: Up, although gradually so.

Houston Rockets

The Houston Rockets were making a play for Dwight Howard, but now they'll have to play for the future unless another deal for a superstar comes along.

Adding Jeremy Lin was a nice, albeit expensive, move, and signing Omer Asik may be just plain expensive. Such is life going after restricted free agents.

On the more affordable end of the spectrum, the Rockets drafted Jeremy Lamb, Royce White and Terrence Jones, which will instantly provide the roster with one of the most talented young cores in the league. They also came away with a valuable draft pick in exchange for disaffected point guard Kyle Lowry.

Losing Lowry will hurt, but it probably had to happen, so getting a first-rounder from the Toronto Raptors isn't bad. Houston also lost free agent Gordan Dragic, center Marcus Camby (via sign-and-trade), Luis Scola (via amnesty), Chase Budinger (via trade) and Samuel Dalembert (also via trade).

The Rockets got younger, and it could pay off in time. For now, this team hasn't gotten any better though.

Stock: Down at the moment, and after that: Who knows?

Indiana Pacers

The Indiana Pacers spent a lot of money to match the Portland Trail Blazers' offer to Roy Hibbert, but the organization still found a few other ways to improve.

It added some depth in the paint by sending Darren Collison to the Dallas Mavericks for Ian Mahinmi, while making up for Collison's loss by signing free agent D.J. Augustin. The Pacers won't look all that different this season, but that's not such a bad thing.

After claiming the third seed in the Eastern Conference last time around, not much needed changing.

The bench may have gotten slightly better after the addition of free-agent wing Gerald Green, and re-signing guard George Hill was a wise move.

Stock: No change, maybe slightly up.

Los Angeles Clippers

Lamar Odom is back where he belongs.

Who cares which team he's playing for? As long as he's in Los Angeles, he'll be closer to the reality television stars dearest to his heart.

The Clippers did make some more important moves, though. Free-agent signee Grant Hill brings some defensive prowess and experience to the rotation, and Jamal Crawford should provide a scoring punch in the backcourt.

Meanwhile, though, Los Angeles lost free agents Nick Young, Randy Foye, and (probably) Kenyon Martin, while sending Mo Williams packing in the deal to land Odom.

A healthy Chauncey Billups will also help, assuming he can stay healthy.

Stock: Up, but maybe not enough to finally contend.

Los Angeles Lakers

After a sign-and-trade for Steve Nash, picking up free agent Antawn Jamison and re-signing Jordan Hill, you might have thought the Los Angeles Lakers would call it a day.

Not so fast.

Trading for Dwight Howard makes this a significantly better defensive team and will give Nash an explosive high-flyer to pull down some lobs. The Lakers just got a whole lot better...obviously.

Bringing in sharp-shooting free agent Jodie Meeks to pad the bench was a nice move too.

Stock: Up... obviously.

Memphis Grizzlies

The Memphis Grizzlies had a quiet offseason, but they slightly improved their depth and kept some key pieces together.

The organization re-signed power forwards Darrell Arthur and Marreese Speights to maintain a solid rotation in the paint and did its best to replace O.J. Mayo's presence in the backcourt. The Grizzlies signed Jerryd Bayless, drafted Tony Wroten and acquired Wayne Ellington from the Minnesota Timberwolves.

The improvement of Summer League star Josh Selby may make the biggest difference of all, though.

Was it all enough to replace Mayo? Probably not, but the Grizzlies probably won't take a huge step back. Mayo wasn't a fan of coming off the bench anyway, so this may work out after all.

Stock: Down just a little but, but Memphis still looking good.

Miami Heat

The Miami Heat didn't need to do much to their title-winning roster, but they tweaked it a bit by signing free-agent shooters Ray Allen and Rashard Lewis.

Will they make this team any better?

Sure, marginally. Their most important contribution will be creating some insurance in the event Shane Battier or Mike Miller succumbs to injury at some point. And, of course, Allen brings a big-shot clutch ability to the table that will come in handy come the postseason.

Stock: Up (as if it could go much higher).

Milwaukee Bucks

After making a big splash last season by trading center Andrew Bogut for the high-scoring Monta Ellis, the Milwaukee Bucks had a pretty quiet summer.

They traded for Samuel Dalembert, drafted John Henson, re-signed Ersan Ilyasova and brought in free agent Joel Przybilla. None of those additions may be groundbreaking, but they'll improve a mostly young roster that seems to be headed in the right direction.

Ilyasova has proven himself a talented forward, and Henson's a big-time defender who loves to rebound and block shots. They could create a solid one-two punch at the 4.

At some point, this team should probably look to trade some of its depth for another impact player or two.

Stock: Up by a tiny bit.

Minnesota Timberwolves

The Minnesota Timberwolves had a busy offseason, but it's not yet clear they'll have very much to show for it.

Signing Brandon Roy could solve a number of problems at shooting guard, but that's assuming he can remain healthy and effective after an extended absence from the game. And, signing Andrei Kirilenko would have been nice if it didn't involve two years and $20 million.

Minnesota also acquired forward Chase Budinger prior to the draft, and he'll enjoy playing under Rick Adelman once again.

Losing Wesley Johnson and Michael Beasley won't hurt all that much, though it's a bit frustrating to see a team give up on young talent. Maybe it was smart for the T'wolves to cut their losses, but they'll be kicking themselves if one of those guys goes on to do big things.

Do any of these moves make this team a contender? Absolutely not.

Good enough to reach the playoffs? Probably.

Stock: Up, sort of.

New Orleans Hornets

The New Orleans Hornets would have been significantly better simply by virtue of the fact that Eric Gordon will return to health. He's the team's best player, and matching the Phoenix Suns' offer sheet was essential.

The draft will still make a huge difference to this club's fate, though.

First-overall pick Anthony Davis will become a dominant presence inside, especially on the defensive end. And Austin Rivers could turn into a quality starter if he can take to playing the point.

Quietly, the Hornets also worked out a nifty sign-and-trade to acquire spread-4 Ryan Anderson. He should help space the floor to help Davis go to work inside. Robin Lopez and Hakim Warrick will also pay serious dividends in the paint.

New Orleans still has a ways to go before everything fits together, but it took some huge steps forward this summer.

Stock: Most definitely up.

New York Knicks

Though free-agent acquisitions Jason Kidd and Raymond Felton may not fully replace Jeremy Lin, the New York Knicks still had a solid all-around offseason.

They picked up Marcus Camby in a sign-and-trade deal with the Houston Rockets and signed swingman Ronnie Brewer away from the Chicago Bulls. Those two additions alone should make the Knicks a much better defensive team, especially on the bench.

The club opted not to match Toronto's three-year, $20 million offer to Landry Fields, but that was probably a good decision. Losing him will hurt, but overpaying Fields would have hurt more.

Re-signing J.R. Smith may have been the most important move of all, especially with Iman Shumpert recovering from an ACL tear.

Stock: Up, but maybe not enough to contend.

Oklahoma City Thunder

The Oklahoma City Thunder didn't change much, but you wouldn't expect them to after last season.

They were already fantastic, and they'll only to continue to grow with some more experience and polish. When Kevin Durant is just 23 and already in MVP consideration, you know this squad will only get better.

Nevertheless, OKC made a smooth move by stealing Baylor's Perry Jones III after he slipped through the first round all the way to No. 28 on account of concerns about his knee.

If he lives up to his potential, the Thunder could have yet another star on their hands.

Stock: Unchanged, and that's a good thing.

Orlando Magic

In case you impossibly missed it, the Orlando Magic traded Dwight Howard. The rebuilding process is now fully underway.

General manager Rob Hennigan has taken a lot of heat for the deal, but there was pressure to get one done as soon as possible, and the haul (or lack thereof) actually makes some sense.

Rather than taking on contracts (like Brook Lopez's) that would have clogged up cap space for years to come, Hennigan opted to preserve the club's cap flexibility. He wound up getting ahold of Arron Afflalo, Al Harrington, rookie Maurice Harkless and Nikola Vucevic in the swap, along with three first-round picks.

The Magic also shed Jason Richardson's contract in the deal and avoided re-signing Ryan Anderson. They'll have money to spend in the near future.

Other than re-signing Jameer Nelson, Orlando didn't do much that would indicate an interest in winning now. 

In case you've forgotten, the organization also drafted Andrew Nicholson at No. 19 in June's draft. At the end of the day, Orlando positioned itself to do pretty well down the road. Be patient.

Stock: Way down for now, but just wait.

Philadelphia 76ers

The Philadelphia 76ers cut Elton Brand loose via their amnesty clause, signed shooting guard Nick Young and traded for small forward Dorell Wright in this summer's earlier moves, but the organization was just getting started.

Philly also acquired center Andrew Bynum as part of the Howard blockbuster, while giving up Andre Iguodala—something that was bound to happen sooner or later anyway.

The club's perimeter shooting should be much better and its inside presence will be exponentially improved.

Stock: Up, maybe enough to land a top-four seed in the East.

Phoenix Suns

The Phoenix Suns lost Steve Nash to the Lakers, but they managed to score some draft picks in the deal, so that wasn't a total loss—especially for an organization that needed to get younger.

From there, the team was quite busy, signing restricted free agent Goran Dragic, picking up forward Michael Beasley and adding amnestied power forward Luis Scola on the cheap. After re-signing shooting guard Shannon Brown, the Suns all of a sudden have a pretty good lineup.

Marcin Gortat was already proving himself at the center position, and now he'll have some help (including holdover swingman Jared Dudley).

Don't forget rookie Kendall Marshall, either. The UNC product may have been the draft's best passer, and he's not a bad option to run the second unit.

Stock: Up, and way up if Beasley finally reaches his potential.

Portland Trail Blazers

Did the Portland Trail Blazers overspend ($46.5 million) to retain RFA Nicolas Batum and keep him away from the Minnesota Timberwolves? Maybe.

Did they have a choice in the matter? Not really.

Portland is desperate to surround talented big man LaMarcus Aldridge with young talent, so Batum definitely fits into the equation. Rookies Damian Lillard and Meyers Leonard should do so as well.

Lillard will be an especially valuable add given the team's need at point guard. He'll run the offense, but he'll also score from all over the floor. Though guys like Anthony Davis have gotten a lot more attention, Lillard could quietly position himself for some Rookie of the Year consideration.

Meanwhile, Portland lost free agents Jamal Crawford and Raymond Felton, but those experiments had run their course and made little sense to bring back given the franchise's new direction.

Stock: Down at the moment, but that could change by season's end.

Sacramento Kings

Outside of drafting Thomas Robinson, re-signing Jason Thompson and adding free agent point guard Aaron Brooks to the fold, the Sacramento Kings didn't have an especially active summer.

That's just as well.

The Kings won't be significantly better any time soon, but they have a bright future ahead of them. If this team can spend some time together and work out some major defensive kinks, it could come out of nowhere before anyone realizes it.

Stock: Up, but the Kings still have a long way to go.

San Antonio Spurs

The San Antonio Spurs were extremely quiet this summer, but general manager R.C. Buford understands just how good last season's team was.

It was two more wins away from another trip to the NBA Finals.

The Spurs re-signed Boris Diaw, Danny Green and Patty Mills. And, that's all.

Could there be some more moves in the team's future? Absolutely. San Antonio could add a bargain free agent at some point, or it could look to move some of its young assets (like DeJuan Blair) if the right deal comes along.

Stock: Unchanged, which is a good thing for the team and fans.

Toronto Raptors

The Toronto Raptors got better—it's just hard to imagine this team ever being that good.

Perhaps they'll surprise us.

They acquired Kyle Lowry from the Houston Rockets, will finally get a look at former draftee Jonas Valanciunas, signed restricted free agent Landry Fields and took shooting guard Terrence Ross with the eighth-overall draft pick.

That's a lot of talent for one summer's worth of work.

It also happens to be a lot of young talent (Valanciunas is still just 20). Toronto may not turn back into a playoff team overnight, but this organization is doing its best to return to respectability, and this offseason was a huge success in that respect.

Stock: Up, but be patient.

Utah Jazz

The Utah Jazz acquired guard Mo Williams and forward Marvin Williams in separate deals without having to give up much in the process (save Devin Harris). They also signed guard Randy Foye to strengthen a weak shooting-guard spot.

But, did this team really get any better? It's still flush with talented young big men with not nearly enough minutes to play them all. Meanwhile, the wing will depend on the development of youngsters Gordon Hayward and Alec Burks.

If those guys continue to improve, the Jazz will be better. If anyone on this roster takes a step back, it may not make it back to the postseason.

Both Mo and Marvin Williams will help. So will Foye. Still, Utah lacks a legitimate distributor, and it just seems like a matter of time before we see some big trades shaking things up.

Stock: Given how much Phoenix and Golden State improved, down.

Washington Wizards

The Washington Wizards have been as busy as anyone since getting off to yet another atrocious start last season. Gone are young talents like JaVale McGee and Nick Young.

Older veterans like Nene, Emeka Okafor and Trevor Ariza have arrived to take their places. It's still too soon to have a very good sense of how that will work out, but there's no question Okafor and Ariza (acquired in the Rashard Lewis trade) will make this squad much better on the defensive end.

Jordan Crawford needs to continue his improvement, and the Wizards' fate ultimately hinges upon just how good star point guard John Wall will be.

He'll have some extra help in the backcourt after the team selected scorer Bradley Beal with the third-overall pick in June.

Stock: Up, but there really wasn't any other direction to go.