Pipe-Dream Destinations for NBA's Top 2015 Free Agents
Fire up those pipe-dream machines. The totally invented, not-at-all NBA free-agency apocalypse is nigh.
Most of this summer's big names won't be switching teams. There are rumors to the contrary, but the most likely scenario for almost every free agent entails him signing with whoever offers the most cash. And that's usually his incumbent franchise.
Offseason prospects are nothing without imagination, though. So we're here to put a fun spin on the most unlikely of possibilities.
Our seven candidates are the cream of the free-agency crop and were plucked from this year's player pool by looking at statistics and the potential impact they can have on their "new" squad.
Reputations also matter. Only the biggest names are included.
With the exception of a certain someone (cough, Dwyane Wade, cough), formalities such as Tim Duncan and LeBron James are excluded from consideration.
For the sake of keeping things kind-of-sort-of-but-not-too realistic, cap situations will be weighed. In a select few cases, salary dumps and sign-and-trades will be necessary. But by and large, proposed destinations will need to have substantial cash already in hand.
Finally, the destinations in question are pipe dreams insofar as they're not popular rumor-mill fodder. They make sense in terms of fit for both the player and team or are based off obscure speculation.
Mind you, this is mostly about the listed teams—not the free agents. The following represents ideal or just plain awesome outcomes for them.
Those of narrow minds and little whimsy need not proceed. Things are about to get weird.
LaMarcus Aldridge: Detroit Pistons
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Sorry, Portland Trail Blazers.
And San Antonio Spurs.
And Dallas Mavericks.
And, well, you get the point.
LaMarcus Aldridge is apparently open to leaving Portland, according ESPN.com's Tim MacMahon and Marc Stein. And though the teams most often linked to his free agency are those above, the Detroit Pistons make a ton of sense.
Coach and president Stan Van Gundy can open up as much as $26.5 million in cap space this summer, per Basketball Insiders' Steve Kyler. Re-signing Greg Monroe and/or Reggie Jackson would erase Detroit's ability to sling max-contract offers, but there is a solution to that quandary: not re-signing Monroe or Jackson.
Monroe, specifically, is whom the Pistons should cut loose. He's a traditional power forward in the sense he cannot shoot threes, making him a poor fit for Van Gundy's one-in, four-out offense.
More than 89 percent of his shot attempts came inside eight feet last season. Nearly 93 percent of Andre Drummond's looks came from that same range. Playing those two together doesn't just create traffic jams; it gives way to 18-car pileups on a one-way road.
Placing Aldridge alongside Drummond makes far more sense. He made more three pointers (37) in 2014-15 than through his previous eight seasons combined (24).
That additional range gives Detroit's point guards—Brandon Jennings, Jackson or someone else—more room to operate while ensuring the Pistons' floor spacing never resembles any line at an amusement park.
Goran Dragic: Los Angeles Lakers
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Imagining a world in which Goran Dragic signs with the Los Angeles Lakers isn't cutting edge. They've long been one of the many teams expected to chase him.
But while Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald says the Lakers' interest hasn't subsided, Dragic is a virtual lock to re-up with the Miami Heat. So, you know, this counts.
Owners of the No. 2 pick in this year's draft, the Lakers are expected to consider selecting a point guard, according to ESPN.com's Dave McMenamin. Planning an all-out assault on Dragic would allow them to draft one of the consensus top-two picks in Kentucky's Karl-Anthony Towns and Duke's Jahlil Okafor without hesitation.
Dragic is the ideal point man to place on a roster that's trying to balance rebuilding with Kobe Bryant's swan song. At 29, he's young enough to be part of a longer-term project but experienced enough to push Los Angeles' bill closer toward playoff contention.
He's also the perfect complement to the ball-dominant Bryant. More than 16 percent of his shot attempts came as spot-up threes last season, of which he drilled a respectable 37.8 percent.
Being displaced from the rock may not have sat well with Dragic while playing for the Phoenix Suns, but this is different. He isn't battling for touches with two other point guards. He would still be the primary pilot among Jordan Clarkson and Bryant.
Working off the ball would be his secondary responsibility. He can flank a guy such as Clarkson while on the break, and his three-point stroke will allow him to capitalize on passes Bryant, Okafor or Towns and Julius Randle fire from inside the post.
Bonus luxury: By signing Dragic, the Lakers would definitively remove themselves from the Rajon Rondo sweepstakes.
Five years ago, that wouldn't be a good thing. In 2015, it's a great thing.
Marc Gasol: Boston Celtics
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Elite-level rim protection is the one thing keeping the Boston Celtics from really turning the contender-famished Eastern Conference inside out.
Truth be told, they could also stand to up their collective beard game.
If that's not proof of how perfect Marc Gasol is for their roster, nothing will ever be.
Sideline sage Brad Stevens helped the Celtics maintain a top-12 defense last season despite deploying a medley of misfits, castoffs, inexperienced talent and Kelly Olynyk. He didn't have a top-tier paint-policer at his disposal either, making Boston's defensive standing that much more impressive.
The Celtics ranked 25th in iron protection, an issue they need to address over the offseason. Though president Danny Ainge has the means to create max-contract space and intends to spend serious cash on big names, Kyler has him pursuing resident turnstiles Kevin Love and Monroe above everyone else.
Bringing in Gasol would do a lot more for their defense. He's a former Defensive Player of the Year and coming off a playoff campaign in which he limited opponents to noticeably below-average shooting clips inside six feet of the hoop.
Gasol also fills the Celtics' superstar quota. They've lacked a franchise cornerstone since trading Paul Pierce and Kevin Garnett (sorry, Rondo), and Gasol gives them the in-his-prime superstud they haven't employed since before Pierce and Garnett left.
Even his offensive versatility promises an immediate boon. He doesn't have the shooting range of Love, but he can outgun Monroe, and his court vision inside and outside the post rivals or exceeds that of Boston's primary free-agent pipe dreams.
Already 30, Gasol admittedly isn't in position to slog through an intense, time-consuming rebuild.
Good thing, then, that the Celtics would go from pleasant project to instant conference contender if he joins their cause.
DeAndre Jordan: New Orleans Pelicans
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DeAndre Jordan and Anthony Davis on the same team?
Yes, please.
Unlike most of the other listed suitors, the New Orleans Pelicans don't have the requisite flexibility to forge max cap space this summer. Any love affair with someone such as Jordan begins and ends with sign-and-trade proposals.
Indeed, sign-and-trades aren't that popular anymore. There is no financial incentive for the players; they can still only receive a maximum of four years from their new team.
Sign-and-trades do, however, allow free agents to pursue opportunities with squads that don't have enough spending power to land them outright. And with Jordan expected to aggressively test the free-agent market, per MacMahon, he's as strong a sign-and-trade candidate as anyone else.
If he wants to leave Los Angeles, New Orleans is a good place for him to end up. The Pelicans already boast a top-10 offense, and the newly hired Alvin Gentry runs a fast-paced, pick-and-roll-packed offensive system for which Jordan is a perfect fit.
Lining him up beside Davis creates a defensive duo unlike any other. The Pelicans ranked 22nd in points allowed per 100 possessions during the regular season and relied on Davis to protect the rim in addition to pestering ball-handers both inside and outside the paint.
With Jordan behind him, Davis wouldn't have to worry about doubling back to the rim as much. The 26-year-old behemoth blocked 5.4 percent of all shots when on the floor, more than doubling the rate at which Omer Asik sent field-goal attempts back.
There could be some spacing issues on the offensive end, but they'll be minimal, if they exist at all. Davis comes complete with a face-up jumper and could expand his arsenal to include regular three-point barrages, per the New York Times' Scott Cacciola.
All of which makes this marriage a no-brainer—provided both the Clippers and Pelicans find common ground on a Tyreke Evans and Ryan Anderson-for-Jordan swap.
Kevin Love: San Antonio Spurs
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Because, why not?
If you believe the words that are coming out of Love's own mouth, he will not be leaving the Cleveland Cavaliers in free agency this summer.
Asked by a reporter if he planned on suiting up for the Cavaliers next season, Love offered a simple yet poignant response, per Northeast Ohio Media Group's Chris Haynes: "Yes sir."
Maybe, just maybe, Love backs off his two-word quip if the San Antonio Spurs are in play.
Sources told Stein the Spurs are preparing to make runs at Gasol and Aldridge as they look to solidify their status as immortal galloping giants. Opening the necessary cap space will prove difficult after factoring in the probable returns of Manu Ginobili and Duncan, but it's not yet out of the question.
Nor should Love be entirely off the Spurs' radar.
He doesn't offer the same defensive value as Gasol—or even Aldridge—but he's a floor-spacing rebounding machine who can drop dimes like an oversized point guard. And while much is being made of his statistical drop-off in Cleveland, he still averaged 16.4 points and 2.2 assists per game...as a third option.
In other words, from a tactical standpoint, he's Spurs material.
Not yet 27, Love is younger than both Aldridge and Gasol, meaning he could remain in San Antonio, complementing the 23-year-old Kawhi Leonard, well beyond his next contract. And if Love himself is looking for a chance to win titles without being used almost solely as a spot-up shooter, he'd be remiss not to at least consider the Spurs.
This, of course, assumes that they come calling.
Which they totally should.
Paul Millsap: Toronto Raptors
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Entering the conversation for an All-Star such as Paul Millsap will take some maneuvering by the Toronto Raptors. They can create $10 million-plus in spending power rather easily but will likely need to dump a Greivis Vasquez or Patrick Patterson to be genuine contenders for any household names.
Few players are worth that kind of tinkering. Millsap is one of them—especially given what the Raptors need.
On the heels of yet another first-round exit—this one a sweep at the hands of the Washington Wizards—they remain ill equipped to space the floor on offense or even defend stretch forwards.
To make matters worse, that's before factoring in the potential departure of Amir Johnson, an unrestricted free agent. Yet even if he stays, little about one of the team's greatest flaws changes.
As Bleacher Report's Christopher Walder wrote just after Toronto's playoff exodus:
"Power forward is such a deep position across the NBA that the Raptors are probably better off looking for someone who can offer more production on a regular basis. Johnson's numbers have capped off at roughly 10 points and seven rebounds in recent years, and with a litany of quality 4s hitting free agency, an upgrade can certainly be had.
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Only two players averaged at least 16.5 points, 7.5 rebounds, three assists and 1.5 steals per game during the regular season: DeMarcus Cousins and Millsap. The latter's three-point range, passing acumen and lateral quickness address every one of Toronto's frontcourt needs.
More than that, he gives the Raptors a core of DeMar DeRozan, Kyle Lowry, Jonas Valanciunas and himself.
Can you say "third straight Atlantic Division title"?
Better still, can you also say "Goodbye, recurring first-round exits"?
Dwyane Wade: Los Angeles Clippers
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No need to pretend like the Clippers have cap space. They don't.
But if Wade does the unfathomable and leaves the Heat, he won't be journeying elsewhere for the money. Not this summer at least. Dollar-sign surfing would come later, in 2016, after the salary cap erupts.
To that point, all is not peachy keen between Wade and the Heat. He owns a player option for next season and is apparently seeking a longer, more lucrative deal that Miami isn't dangling right now.
We turn to Bleacher Report's Ethan Skolnick (via Bleacher Report's Scott Polacek) for the lowdown:
"Some Heat officials had held out hope Wade would take the Dirk, Duncan approach late in career: below-market, 1-year deals. That was never a given. Wade made it clear when he opted out (costing himself $6M in '14-15), he had TV windfall in mind. If Dragic signs to #'s expected, Wade wd be 3rd-highest paid on team in 15-16. If Whitesidedevelops, cd be 4th/5th in 16-17. This is a rare situation where neither side really has the leverage. Management & the player r both incredibly popular. Finally, if Wade went anywhere, at any point, I've typically heard L.A. as an option. But I still expect Heat to sort this out.
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Skolnick's sentiments are shared by the New York Daily News' Frank Isola, who says that if Wade were to leave sunny Miami, he would do so for just-as-sunny Los Angeles—specifically the Clippers.
Long shots don't get any longer. The Clippers would have to dump Matt Barnes, Jamal Crawford and probably Spencer Hawes without taking back anyone in return just to enter the conversation for Wade.
Still, Wade remains a two-way player who can add depth to the Clippers' puddle-deep rotation, even if it comes at the expense of some glue guys.
And in the event the Clippers kept Jordan and added Wade, the possibilities for a quartet comprising Blake Griffin, Chris Paul, Jordan and Wade are seemingly endless—depth be darned.
Stats courtesy of Basketball-Reference.com and NBA.com unless otherwise cited. Salary information via Basketball-Insiders.
Dan Favale covers the NBA for Bleacher Report. Follow him on Twitter: @danfavale.
