NBA Rosters with the Most Reshuffling to Do This Offseason
The winds of change will soon sweep over all corners of the NBA, but some segments will feel the breeze more than others.
Those are the teams we're putting under the microscope.
Continuity and subtle tweaks aren't options for these haphazard organizations. Rebooting is a must—a process that not only overhauls the roster, but also establishes a missing identity.
For some, that means demolishing the current setup down to the foundation. For others, it's about filling in the numerous gaps around the few building blocks they have in place.
Addressing those deficiencies might involve savvy drafting, smart free-agent signings, shrewd maneuvers on the trade market or any combination of the three. No matter which path they pursue, these six need it to lead to a dramatic reshuffling of their current ranks.
Brooklyn Nets
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The Brooklyn Nets tried shopping their Big Three, but they couldn't find a buyer willing to meet their price at the trade deadline. So for now, they're set to proceed with the aging, expensive and not-all-that-productive trio of Deron Williams, Joe Johnson and Brook Lopez.
(Lopez holds a $16.7 million player option for next season, but he might wait a year to test the market until the new TV money kicks in—and, ideally, his numbers creep back toward their previous levels.)
The Nets have never been great since first forming this triumvirate in 2012, and merely being good is suddenly a measure they're struggling to reach. They still have a playoff pulse by virtue of calling the Eastern Conference home, but this franchise didn't foot a massive luxury tax bill to sneak into a postseason party where (almost) everyone is invited.
Coach Lionel Hollins has donned his chef hat and experimented with every ingredient in Brooklyn's pantry. But scrambling rotten eggs doesn't make them any better.
"The only consistency in the Brooklyn Nets' starting lineup is the inconsistency. Coach Lionel Hollins can't find a starting unit he likes," wrote Bleacher Report's Fred Katz. "It seems like half the roster has been benched and then promoted and then benched again. Or the reverse."
Hazmat suits will be required for this massive cleanup.
The Nets need youth, but they'll have to find it without their own first-round pick. That will be swapped out for the Atlanta Hawks' selection, as Brooklyn continues settling the draft debts left from the Johnson trade and similarly short-sighted deal with Boston Celtics for Kevin Garnett and Paul Pierce (neither of whom are still with the Nets).
Their salary-cap situation looks bleak. If Lopez and Thaddeus Young exercise their player options, Brooklyn will have more than $78 million tied up between those two, Williams, Johnson and Jarrett Jack. Any possible trades involving these five should be explored.
The market might not bear much, but anything seems preferable to proceeding as currently constructed.
Denver Nuggets
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The Denver Nuggets haven't embraced a total rebuild, but they haven't stood pat, either. They're lingering somewhere in the middle, which is almost always a request for disaster in the NBA.
In two deadline deals, the Nuggets cut ties with Arron Afflalo, JaVale McGee and Alonzo Gee. Former coach Brian Shaw was given his walking papers shortly thereafter, seemingly unable to connect with his players or mold his coaching system around them.
The changes won't stop there.
"I think they are going to move some components, move some—hopefully not key pieces—but major pieces on the team that need to be moved," Kenneth Faried said, per Christopher Dempsey of The Denver Post.
The Nuggets need to thin their ranks. If possible, they should package some of their redundant pieces in a deal that delivers the star power they've lacked since Carmelo Anthony's exit.
There aren't enough frontcourt minutes or touches to warrant keeping Faried, Wilson Chandler, Danilo Gallinari and J.J. Hickson. And that would be true even if rookies Jusuf Nurkic and Joffrey Lauvergne weren't pining for more playing time.
The backcourt isn't quite as crowded, but it's still frustrating to see 30-somethings Jameer Nelson and Randy Foye grab floor time at the expense of youngsters Gary Harris, Erick Green and Will Barton. Free agency might help make some necessary cuts, but the Nuggets need to clear the path for their prospects—or quickly refashion themselves as playoff participants.
Oh, and somewhere along the way Denver must decide if interim coach Melvin Hunt is worth keeping around. This should be a hectic summer for the Nuggets. If it isn't, it's hard to imagine them changing their fortune.
Los Angeles Lakers
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The Los Angeles Lakers might be hard to recognize next season. If they aren't, that might qualify as a worst-case scenario. Since the start of 2013-14, they have more than twice as many losses (109) as wins (47).
Change is essential. It's also a near-certainty.
Only four players hold guaranteed contracts for next season: Kobe Bryant, Nick Young, Julius Randle and Ryan Kelly. Picking up rookie Jordan Clarkson's minimum team option should be a no-brainer. The options on Jordan Hill ($9 million), Robert Sacre (minimum), Tarik Black (minimum) and Jabari Brown (minimum) won't be as easy calls to make.
Ed Davis also holds a $1.1 million player option, but the athletic big man has already decided to decline it, per Mark Medina of the Los Angeles Daily News. The Lakers could still bring Davis back, but it's too early to pencil the 25-year-old into their plans.
Even if all of the above stick around, LA would only have nine roster spots filled. Ideally, one of those remaining voids will be filled by the Lakers' first-round pick, but it will belong to the Philadelphia 76ers if it falls outside the top five. The purple and gold are also set to receive a first-rounder from the Houston Rockets.
That's potentially a massive amount of youth, which isn't likely what Bryant wants for what could be his final NBA season. The franchise could go big-game hunting in free agency, and apparently head coach Byron Scott thinks it would be a successful venture.
"You have a lot of free agents out there who would love to play for us. They've been making it pretty clear," Scott said, per Medina. "You have guys during the games come by the bench saying, 'Hey Coach, I would love to be in L.A. next year.'"
There's no law against dreaming, I guess.
New York Knicks
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Fear not, Big Apple faithful. New York Knicks president of basketball operations Phil Jackson has a blueprint to pull this team out of the NBA cellar.
"We have a clear plan and expect our efforts to really take shape as we enter the 2015 draft and free agency in the months ahead," Jackson said, per ESPN New York's Ian Begley. "I ask that you remain optimistic and hope you will join us on our continued journey as we build a team that once again reflects the spirit of being a New York Knick."
It sounds promising, right? Well, it had to. Jackson's words came during a video message to 'Bockers backers that, as Begley put it, "doubled as a pitch to season-ticket holders to renew for the 2015-16 season."
The Knicks needed a marketing boost. Their on-court performance—dead last in both winning percentage and net efficiency—hasn't come close to generating any optimism. Outside of Carmelo Anthony's return, there aren't a lot of reasons to expect dramatic improvement next season.
New York's hope is tied to the uncertain worlds that are the draft and free agency. The Knicks should be selecting at or near the top of the draft board, and they have substantial cap space to burn, but there are no guarantees their pick will make an immediate impact or that they'll be able to attract top-tier targets.
That being said, Knicks fans should expect a significant amount of activity. Standing pat isn't possible with only four players holding guaranteed contracts for 2015-16 (Anthony, Jose Calderon, Tim Hardaway Jr. and Cleanthony Early).
Jackson is right to have hope. Anything that distracts from this unsightly stage of New York's rebuild is a good thing.
Philadelphia 76ers
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There's little doubt a plan exists somewhere near the bottom of the Philadelphia 76ers' mountain of losses. Philly's often-ghastly efforts inside the lines are simply necessarily evils along general manager Sam Hinkie's winding road to relevance.
But nearly two full seasons into this self-destruction, the proof of its effectiveness is almost nonexistent. So far, the Sixers have collected a defensive ace in Nerlens Noel, a slew of question marks and enough tosses at the draft dart board to make your elbow hurt.
This radical approach clearly remains a work in progress.
Noel was a nice find, and his rookie campaign has been a series of ceiling-shattering statistical onslaughts. Head coach Brett Brown, a Gregg Popovich disciple, has proven to be a valuable voice on the Sixers' sideline. Joel Embiid and Dario Saric could be the next gems unearthed by the franchise, though no one will know for sure until the two actually step foot on the NBA hardwood.
After that, there's...well...not much to speak of.
The Sixers have trotted out 25 different players this season, and it's hard to say how many outside of Noel will still be around for life after the tank job. Six are on the books for 2015-16, but that could certainly change if Hinkie finds a trade to his liking. Teams might not be fawning over many of Philly's players, but Hinkie has some powerful trade chips at his disposal.
"With as many as four possible first-round picks among the top 19, Hinkie could put together an enticing trade package," wrote The Inquirer's Mike Sielski. "He could do so even with two first-rounders."
Everything is on the table for the Sixers. By the time they break camp this fall, their roster could be radically overhauled by draft picks, signings and trades. We'll have to wait and see whether that team will be built to compete for a playoff spot—or prime draft lottery position.
Sacramento Kings
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In All-Star center DeMarcus Cousins, the Sacramento Kings have one of the best building blocks in the business.
ESPN.com's real plus-minus rates Cousins as this season's ninth-most effective player. His 25.5 player efficiency rating checks in at seventh overall.
But his individual brilliance hasn't translated to any team success. Despite possessing such a wildly productive centerpiece, the Kings have been unable to build something of substance around him. Boogie averages almost as many points (24.1) as the team has wins (26).
"It's whatever," Cousins said of his statistics, per Jason Jones of The Sacramento Bee. "If you don’t get the W, it don't really matter."
The Kings need to make it matter. They have to fix a roster that's light on three-point shooting and rim protection, arguably the two areas that could help Cousins the most.
Sacramento will shed some salary at season's end, but it will still have more than $40 million committed to Cousins, Rudy Gay, Carl Landry and Jason Thompson. If either of the last two could be traded, the Kings would have to make that move.
If not, they'll have to uncover some free-agent bargains. Nailing their first-round pick (i.e., not drafting a perimeter shooter for the third straight year) would be another cost-effective way to expand their talent base.
The Kings already completed the toughest task of a rebuild by drafting and developing a superstar. They just have to take better advantage of having a transcendent talent on the roster.
Unless otherwise noted, statistics used courtesy of Basketball-Reference.com and NBA.com.
