7 NBA Lineups That Will Have to Be Scrapped by Next Offseason
Say what you will about the NBA's latest collective bargaining agreement, but there's no doubt that it's already changed the dynamics of the business of basketball and has added intrigue to the league year-round.
The never-ending intricacies of luxury tax penalties, rewards for adhering to salary cap restrictions and the like have forced front offices everywhere to reevaluate how they go about building teams and competing for championships via the draft, trades and free agency.
And this is before some of the most daunting changes to the system kick in. ESPN's Larry Coon broke it all down in some detail after the lockout ended last November.
The gist of it all, though, is that more teams will have to shuffle and reshuffle their rosters more often and more creatively on account of shorter contracts and tighter restrictions on spending.
The morphing of the league's landscape, combined with big moves already made by some teams this summer, figures to yield plenty of new and different looks for squads come July 1, 2013. These seven, in particular, seem most likely to go full Ty Pennington with extreme makeovers in the not-so-distant future.
Chicago Bulls
1 of 7It's a given that the Chicago Bulls will trot out a few lineups this next season that won't see the light of day for some time thereafter.
At the very least, Derrick Rose's continued recovery from a torn ACL will force Windy City returnee Kirk Hinrich into starting duty at point guard, with Marco Bellinelli and/or Nate Robinson subbing in for Richard Hamilton at shooting guard when (not if) he breaks down again.
Luol Deng's decision to forgo surgery on his wrist before and after the Olympics could also have significant repercussions if he dings it again during the season. Losing the All-Star swingman and ace perimeter defender for any period of time could turn things from bad to worse on the court in Chicago.
And off the court, any further injury to Deng's wrist would likely dampen his value on the trade market, which is particularly crucial to the Bulls' future. After all, GM Gar Forman may well have to entertain the thought of flipping Deng for other assets at some point if he doesn't exercise the team's amnesty waiver (I'm lookin' at you, Carlos Boozer), and owner Jerry Reinsdorf remains as averse to paying the luxury tax, as has been suggested.
Reinsdorf's penny pinching has already resulted in Omer Asik's departure and may well precipitate Taj Gibson's exit via restricted free agency next July.
All of which is to say that, win or lose next season, Chicago could be in for some serious retooling before, during and after the summer of 2013.
Los Angeles Clippers
2 of 7Blake Griffin's knee may be the Clippers' biggest concern right now, but won't be once Chris Paul's legs threaten to mosey on out of LA next summer.
Paul will be among the NBA's biggest free agents, along with Dwight Howard and Josh Smith, and may well be the biggest threat of any in that top tier to wind up with a new team.
The Clips' front office has been in disarray since now-former GM Neil Olshey—the man responsible for bringing CP3 to LA—bolted for a gig with the Portland Trail Blazers, with much-maligned head coach Vinny Del Negro chipping in with personnel decisions.
Don't forget, either, that owner Donald Sterling is still a notorious cheapskate despite what Griffin's $95 million extension may suggest. The Clippers can offer Paul more money than anyone else (i.e. more than $100 million over five years), but will they? And even if they do, will he want to stay if LA doesn't show significant improvement on the court and doesn't get its collective act together as an organization?
There's also the relatively small matter of Chauncey Billups and Lamar Odom returning to free agency next July as well.
But, again, Paul is a much bigger fish to fry, and if the Clippers don't put in some serious work this season, they may well wind up right back where they were before CP3 arrived.
Except with Blake and DeAndre Jordan cashing much fatter checks.
Atlanta Hawks
3 of 7Where might Chris Paul wind up if he leaves LaLa Land? How about Atlanta?
The Hawks will be flush with cap space next summer, thanks in large part to the Joe Johnson trade with the Brooklyn Nets. Six current Hawks—Josh Smith, Devin Harris, Kyle Korver, Zaza Pachulia, Anthony Morrow and Johan Petro—are scheduled for unrestricted free agency in 2013, while young point guard Jeff Teague will be able to field offer sheets from across the league.
And if Atlanta can land CP3, Teague will be more than welcome to sign one too.
The Hawks also figure to be on the fringes of whatever chase there is to be for Dwight Howard's services, if only because they play in his hometown.
Though, if they can lure Paul and convince J-Smoove (one of Dwight's best friends) to stay, a quick escape from LA for Superman might not be so farfetched.
Even without an unlikely blockbuster, Hotlanta is due for yet another shakeup, with Al Horford, Lou Williams and rookie John Jenkins as the only players under contract beyond this season. Who (or what) winds up filling in the rest of the team's cap space is anyone's guess at this point.
Dallas Mavericks
4 of 7Whatever chances Atlanta has of pulling off a CP3-Dwight "Daily Double" pale in comparison to those of the Dallas Mavericks. They, too, will be flush with cap space after swinging and missing on Deron Williams and treading lightly in free agency thereafter.
In the meantime, the Mavs signed Chris Kaman, O.J. Mayo and Elton Brand to short-term deals and turned Ian Mahinmi into Darren Collison and Dahntay Jones. Dallas isn't likely to compete for a top-four seed in the West with this group, but won't exactly slip into the lottery so long as Dirk Nowitzki and Shawn Marion are still around.
Which is to say, the Mavs are right back where we found them last season, just with a different cast of characters surrounding Dirk and The Matrix. One that doesn't include one-time stalwarts like Jason Kidd (New York) and Jason Terry (Boston).
Whether Mark Cuban and GM Donnie Nelson can lure a big name to Big D or not, expect the Mavs to be among the "new-look" teams again come the fall of 2013, if only because they'll have to pay someone (or, rather, someones) to play.
Houston Rockets
5 of 7Elsewhere in the state of Texas, the Houston Rockets will either be building or rebuilding next summer, depending on how the 2012-13 season shakes out.
GM Daryl Morey cashed in most of his chips in pursuit of Dwight Howard, but ultimately fell short, leaving his roster overstocked with a hodgepodge of cheap assets.
And Jeremy Lin and Omer Asik.
As currently constituted, the Rockets look bound for the lottery, perhaps even a spot in the top five in a decidedly weak 2013 draft. They're also perfectly positioned to help other teams facilitate deals thanks to their abundance of players who figure/will need to be moved at some point.
Not to mention Kevin Martin, whose expiring contract makes him a huge target for teams in search of cap relief.
All of which is to say, don't expect the Rockets to stand pat over the coming calendar year. They'll be wheeling, dealing and drafting their way to a slimmer (and, perhaps, stronger) roster by the time free agency winds down in 2013.
Utah Jazz
6 of 7The Utah Jazz are well ahead of the Rockets in the basement-to-penthouse process in the NBA.
In fact, they're well ahead of their own schedule. The Jazz were expected to spend last season rebuilding after watching Jerry Sloan walk away and trading Deron Williams to the Nets in 2011.
Instead, Tyrone Corbin guided the Jazz to the eighth seed in the West with a roster that's facing a de facto overhaul next summer. Their front-court tandem of Al Jefferson and Paul Millsap is due to hit free agency, as is Salt Lake City returnee Mo Williams.
That will leave new Jazz GM Dennis Lindsey with plenty of cap room with which to restock his roster with quality role players around a young core of Derrick Favors, Enes Kanter, Gordon Hayward and Alec Burks.
The defections may hurt in the short term, but with a few shrewd moves, the Jazz may well find themselves new and improved enough to contend in the Western Conference before long.
Oklahoma City Thunder
7 of 7The Jazz are currently trying to get to where the Oklahoma City Thunder are on the NBA's hierarchy, though climbing to the top has perils of its own, as the Thunder are soon to discover.
Specifically, James Harden and Serge Ibaka will be restricted free agents next offseason, and—assuming they don't stink it up this season—both figure to garner max money.
That could be a big problem for OKC, to say the least. It's already committed beaucoup bucks to Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook and will owe Kendrick Perkins nearly $18 million between 2013-14 and 2014-15.
Unless the Thunder can convince Harden and/or Ibaka to stick around at a discount—or owner Clay Bennett is comfortable splashing cash on the luxury tax—GM Sam Presit will likely be forced to choose between the two for the long haul.
That's not to say that OKC's window is about to slam shut, but rather that they may have to pry it open with a different lineup after another potential run to the NBA Finals.
