Community Shootaround

As our tracker shows, eight notable veteran players were waived at some point after last month’s trade deadline and subsequently landed with teams that have playoff or championship aspirations. Those players are as follows:

• Danilo Gallinari: Signed with Bucks
• Delon Wright: Signed with Heat
• Patty Mills: Signed with Heat
• Shake Milton: Signed with Knicks
• Spencer Dinwiddie: Signed with Lakers
• Kyle Lowry: Signed with Sixers
• Thaddeus Young: Signed with Suns
• Mike Muscala: Signed with Thunder

Unlike last year, when Russell Westbrook joined the Clippers after being let go by Utah, there are no former MVPs in this year’s group of buyout-market additions. But Lowry is a six-time All-Star; he and Mills have won titles; Gallinari, Dinwiddie, and Young have strong career résumés; and guys like Wright and Muscala have been consistent, reliable contributors for years.

Of course, it’s rare for any buyout market acquisitions to play important roles for championship-caliber clubs, and several of these players likely won’t be part of their respective teams’ playoff rotations. Still, Lowry is starting for the Sixers, while Gallinari is playing semi-regular minutes for a Bucks team that appears capable of making a deep postseason run. Others could emerge as key contributors, especially in the event of injuries.

This was also the first season that a new rule was in place prohibiting players who were earning more than the non-taxpayer mid-level exception ($12.4MM) before they were waived from joining teams whose salaries are above either tax apron.

That rule applied to Lowry and Dinwiddie, who weren’t eligible to sign with the Celtics, Nuggets, Warriors, Clippers, Heat, Bucks, or Suns. Those seven teams are also prohibited from signing a couple of veterans still available in free agency: Marcus Morris and Joe Harris.

Those tax-apron teams were still able to be players on the buyout market, but they were only able to target free agents whose pre-waiver salaries had been below $12.4MM, such as Gallinari, Wright, Mills, and Young.

Now that the NBA’s buyout season is just about over, we want to know what you think about this year’s moves. Which buyout market addition has the potential to make the biggest postseason impact? Will any of the players still on the free agent market play rotation roles for playoff teams? Did you appreciate the new restrictions placed on apron teams in the buyout market or find that rule unnecessary?

Head to the comment section below to weigh in with your two cents!

When we checked in on the Western Conference playoff race on Sunday, the main takeaway was how wide open the conference looks, with several teams bunched together at the top of the West and a handful of playoff-tested clubs (and stars) lurking further down the standings.

Over in the East, the picture looks a little different. Whereas several teams have a legitimate case to be considered best in the West, it’s hard to argue that any team besides Boston deserves that honor in the East.

Entering play on Tuesday, the Celtics‘ 45-12 record gives them a 7.5-game cushion on their next-closest competitor in the Eastern standings. Their home record of 26-3 record is the best in the NBA, as is their 19-9 mark on the road. The Celtics haven’t lost in nearly four weeks and will put an eight-game winning streak on the line on Tuesday vs. Philadelphia.

Boston has been led by a dominant top six of Jayson Tatum, Jaylen Brown, Kristaps Porzingis, Jrue Holiday, Derrick White, and Al Horford. The team’s top eight most-used lineups feature some combinations of those players and/or Sam Hauser, and seven of those eight lineups have net ratings of +11.7 or higher. The Celtics’ overall net rating of +10.5 is more than five points per 100 possessions better than any other team in the East.

The question in the East then isn’t “Which team will emerge in a wide-open field?” but rather “Which team has the best chance to take down the Celtics?” Currently, betting site BetOnline.ag has Boston as the +100 favorite to come out of the East, essentially giving the C’s even odds against the field.

For now, the “field” is led by the Cavaliers (37-19), who have come on strong after a sluggish start and have won 19 of their past 23 games (despite losing two of their past five). Cleveland was eliminated in the first round of the playoffs last season, but has loftier aspirations this spring in Donovan Mitchell‘s second year as a Cav. They have the East’s second-best net rating at +5.4.

It has been a shaky season in Milwaukee, where the Bucks replaced their head coach midway through his first season with the team, but any club with Giannis Antetokounmpo and Damian Lillard on its roster – along with several more players who were part of a championship team in 2021 – has to be taken seriously. Despite their ups and downs, the Bucks hold the No. 3 seed with a strong 37-21 record and are considered by BetOnline.ag to be the second-best bet to come out of the East (+300).

The Knicks (35-23) have been hit hard lately by injuries, but they looked like one of the best teams in the conference when they were (nearly) fully healthy in January. If Julius Randle and OG Anunoby are back on the court to team up with Jalen Brunson and a solid cast of supporting players, New York has a chance to make some real noise in the postseason.

At Nos. 5 and 6 in the East, the Sixers (33-24) and Heat (32-25) are intriguing dark horses. Philadelphia needs Joel Embiid to get healthy before the playoffs begin, while Miami will need to recapture the magic that saw the team make an NBA Finals run last spring after initially needing a play-in win to claim the No. 8 seed.

It’s hard to imagine any team further down in the Eastern standings – including the Pacers (33-26), Magic (32-26), Bulls (27-30), and Hawks (25-32) – making a Heat-esque run in this year’s postseason due to their relative lack of talent and/or postseason experience compared to the top teams in the conference. But at least a couple of those teams could cause problems for first-round opponents.

We want to know what you think. Are the Celtics coming out of the East this season or is there a team you feel confident can take them down? If not Boston, which club is representing the conference in the NBA Finals in June?

Head to the comment section to weigh in with your thoughts and predictions on the Eastern Conference playoff race!

We are fast approaching a significant deadline for some veteran players.

A player on an NBA contract must be waived by the end of the day on Friday in order to retain his playoff eligibility.

As our 2024 Buyout Market Watch shows, there have been seven players bought out or simply waived since the trade deadline expired who have hooked on with other teams – Daniel Theis, Bismack Biyombo, Spencer Dinwiddie, Kyle Lowry, Danilo Gallinari, Delon Wright and Thaddeus Young.

Our Buyout Market Watch also lists numerous players who were recently waived that are still looking for another opportunity. That free agent group includes Ryan Arcidiacono, Danny Green, Joe Harris, Danuel House, Cory Joseph, Kevin Knox, Furkan Korkmaz, Robin Lopez, Chimezie Metu, Frank Ntilikina, Ish Smith, Aleksej Pokusevski and Juan Toscano-Anderson. They could be joined by a few more veterans in the coming days.

While none of the names on the list are likely to make a huge splash on a playoff team, some could provide a boost to a second unit.

House, for example, appeared in 34 games for the Sixers this season and Korkmaz saw action in 35 games for Philadelphia. Either one could fortify a contender’s wing depth. Ditto for Knox, who started 11 games for the Pistons this season.

Smith, Joseph and Ntilikina are all quite capable of stepping in and playing solid minutes at the point.

If a contender needs another power forward, Metu could fill that role. He played 37 games, including five starts, for the Suns this season. Toscano-Anderson was a rotation player two seasons ago on the championship Warriors team. Pokusevski is a young big who has made 65 starts in his career.

That brings us to our topic of the day: How many of the above-mentioned free agents are likely to be signed by a contending team? Which one do you think would make the biggest impact?

Please take to the comments section to weigh on this topic. We look forward to your input.

While the Celtics have built an eight-game lead over the No. 2 seed in the East, no such separation exists over in the Western Conference, where the top four seeds are all within four games.

Entering play on Sunday, the Timberwolves (40-17) narrowly hold the conference’s top spot over the Thunder (39-17), with the Clippers (37-18) and Nuggets (38-19) in tight pursuit.

It’s an unlikely top two. Minnesota has made the playoffs in each of the past two seasons, but needed a play-in victory both times and didn’t make it out of the first round in either 2022 or 2023. After finishing with a 42-40 record last season, the Wolves are poised to blow by that win total with several weeks to go in 2023/24. Oklahoma City, meanwhile, hasn’t finished above .500 or made the playoffs since 2020, but the addition of Chet Holmgren to a rapidly improving core has helped accelerate the team’s rise up the standings.

Both the Wolves and Thunder lack postseason experience compared to the Clippers, whose three stars – James Harden, Paul George, and Kawhi Leonard – have appeared in a combined 405 playoff games, and the Nuggets, who are coming off a championship run a year ago. While neither of those clubs holds a top-two seed for the time being, both Los Angeles and Denver look like legitimate contenders to come out of the West.

A few games back of the top four seeds, another quartet of Western teams is separated by a single game from Nos. 5-8. The Pelicans (34-23) currently top that group, followed by the Mavericks (33-23), Kings (32-23), and Suns (33-24).

New Orleans has no shortage of depth or star power – led by forwards Zion Williamson and Brandon Ingram – but is another young team that lacks postseason experience, having made the playoffs just once in the past five seasons. Sacramento is in a similar boat — Domantas Sabonis, De’Aaron Fox, and the Kings snapped a lengthy postseason drought last season, but didn’t make it out of the first round.

The stars in Dallas and Phoenix are a little more playoff-tested. While he hasn’t won a title like teammate Kyrie Irving, Luka Doncic has already appeared in 28 total postseason games and won a pair of playoff series in 2022. For the Suns, Kevin Durant is at two-time NBA Finals MVP, while Devin Booker came within two victories of a title in 2021. Even Bradley Beal compiled 45 playoff appearances during his time in D.C.

Of course, there’s no guarantee that those eight teams will be the ones that ultimately make the playoffs out West. A pair of title hopefuls are lurking further down in play-in territory, with the Lakers (31-27) and Warriors (29-26) filling out the top 10 in the West.

While both clubs won playoff series last spring – with the Lakers advancing to the Western Finals – neither has looked as dangerous so far this season. But Golden State is certainly heading in the right direction as of late, having won eight of nine games over the past three weeks as head coach Steve Kerr finally found a series of lineup combinations he liked. And Los Angeles can’t be entirely ruled out as a contender as long as LeBron James and Anthony Davis are healthy and available.

BetOnline.ag views the Western race as relatively wide open. The Nuggets and Clippers (+240 each) are considered the favorites, but the Thunder (+650), Suns (+750), and Timberwolves (+800) aren’t far back in the betting odds, with the Mavs (+1200) and Warriors (+1400) lurking as well.

We want to know what you think. Which eight teams will ultimately make the playoffs in the West? Which club will claim the top seed? How many teams have a legitimate chance to come out of the conference, and which one would you pick if you had to choose a Western winner today?

Head to the comment section below to share your two cents!

The NBA’s 2024 trade deadline came and went on Thursday, with 18 deals officially completed on deadline day. It was a busy day filled with teams moving draft capital in exchange for rotation players to bolster playoff runs.

The Pistons made the most trades at the deadline, bringing in the likes of Quentin Grimes, Simone Fontecchio, Evan Fournier and Shake Milton. In the process, they moved on from Bojan Bogdanovic and Alec Burks, along with waiving former No. 7 overall pick Killian Hayes.

Bogdanovic was one of the top talents moved on deadline day, having been traded to the Knicks alongside Burks in exchange for Grimes, Fournier and more. New York, who is 16-4 since the New Year, bought in on its roster while maintaining flexibility to pursue a star in the offseason by adding a large, but partially guaranteed, salary in Bogdanovic ($19MM with $2MM guaranteed).

The Hornets, like Detroit, sold a pair of players in P.J. Washington and Gordon Hayward for various players and picks, including bringing in Grant Williams, Tre Mann and a 2027 first-rounder. Charlotte got a decent return in exchange for two players who likely weren’t in their long-term plans while sending Washington (to Dallas) and Hayward (to Oklahoma City) to a pair of Western Conference contenders.

In addition to getting Washington, the Mavericks brought in Daniel Gafford from the Wizards for a first-round pick. The Thunder moved off a handful of players who weren’t seeing minutes for Hayward, who can still pass, dribble and shoot at a high enough level.

The Sixers made a handful of deals at the deadline, acquiring Buddy Hield — who earlier requested a trade from Indiana — in exchange for some second-round picks and salaries. They then swapped Patrick Beverley for Cameron Payne and traded Jaden Springer to Boston, recouping up a second-round selection in both deals.

Brooklyn didn’t end up trading Dorian Finney-Smith, who was a popular target, but sent out Spencer Dinwiddie and Royce O’Neale in separate deals to Toronto and Phoenix, respectively. The Nets brought in Dennis Schröder, as well as Keita Bates-Diop in the series of moves. The Raptors later waived Dinwiddie, but were able to move off future salary by sending out Schröder. They also added Ochai Agbaji and Kelly Olynyk from the Jazz in exchange for Otto Porter, Kira Lewis and a first-round pick.

Other veterans on the move at the deadline included Simone Fontecchio (to Detroit), Xavier Tillman (to Boston), Doug McDermott (to Indiana), Monte Morris (to Minnesota) and Yuta Watanabe (to Memphis).

While there were plenty of storylines from the teams that did make trades, some of the names who weren’t moved were equally intriguing. The Hawks didn’t make a deadline-day deal after having conversations regarding the likes of Dejounte Murray, Clint Capela and AJ Griffin. Murray, the biggest name on the list, was sought after by teams like the Pelicans and Lakers, but neither team got a deal done.

The Lakers didn’t make any moves after being one of the more active teams at last year’s deadline. They’ll be banking on the team’s health improving over time and improved play from their rotation to make a postseason run akin to last year’s Western Conference Finals appearance.

The Bulls didn’t make a trade deadline move for the third year in a row despite having conversations regarding Zach LaVine, DeMar DeRozan, Alex Caruso and Andre Drummond and will instead continue to try and compete for a playoff spot.

Most of the available talent on the trade market was moved before deadline day. Nine in-season deals were completed before Thursday, including All-Stars James Harden and Pascal Siakam switching teams. The Knicks might not have been as aggressive if they hadn’t already acquired OG Anunoby and moved toward the top of the Eastern Conference standings. Meanwhile, the Heat got one of the top guards on the market in Terry Rozier a couple weeks ago.

In total, Thursday capped off an NBA trade season with 27 in-season deals.

We want to hear from you. Which teams do you think did the best for themselves at the trade deadline? Which teams made the wrong moves? Were there any trades that surprised you? How do you feel about the teams who stood pat?

Personally, I’m most impressed with the additions the Celtics, Thunder and Knicks made without having to sacrifice many assets and staying flexible for the offseason.

Sound off in the comments below with your picks.