NBA Free Agents 2011: What to Watch For in the Opening Days of Free Agency

Circle the date December 9 on your calendars.

That's the proposed date that training camps and free agency will begin in the NBA.

If you’re a fan of following player movement, the first couple days will be fun.

What should you expect?

Probable insanity is likely. With opening day tentatively scheduled only two weeks after camp begins, teams are going to have to be aggressive as ever in signing players.

Not just the teams, but the players are going to want to get things done quickly as well. It’s been a long summer for everyone involved and both sides are going to need to be ready for the season as quickly as possible.

Right off the bat, I would look for the top-tier free agents to find homes very quickly.

They are going to need to sign while the money is still out there. Especially the guys that are going to get insane money and the longer-term deals. They will be off the board very quickly in the first couple of days.

That will have to happen before most of the second- and third-tier free agents find homes.

The middle-of-the-pack guys might take a day or two to make a final decision.

Some teams with cap room may try and go on a spending spree early, so many of the free agents may need to act quicker than normal while the good money is still out there.

So expect a whirlwind couple of days. The face of some teams could change in a blink of an eye. Key pieces that could eventually lead to a championship could be signed right away.

On the other note, some bad money will be spent as well. Guys will get overpaid and teams will be stuck with bad contracts in the future by acting so fast.

There is no doubt that the beginning of the NBA free-agency period will be exciting stuff to follow. It’s just going to happen much quicker than usual.