Hoops Rumors Originals

Community Shootaround: Top 60 NBA Players Heading Into 2019/20

Magic Johnson turns 60 this week and he’s celebrating the milestone by unleashing a bevy of top-60 lists on Twitter (it’s truly a blessing that the NBA legend stepped away from his Lakers role in order to tweet freely). In honor of Johnson’s birthday, I’ve put together a top-60 list, ranking NBA players heading into next season.

The list is based on recent production as well as projections for the upcoming season. Kevin Durant, Klay Thompson, and Jusuf Nurkic all would have easily made the top 60, but the trio was kept out due to their respective injuries and uncertain return dates.

Here are my top 60 players heading into the 2019/20 campaign:


60. Steven Adams (Thunder)

59. Bojan Bogdanovic (Jazz)

58. Jaren Jackson Jr. (Grizzlies)

57. Andre Drummond (Pistons)

56. Montrezl Harrell (Clippers)

55. Otto Porter Jr. (Bulls)

54. Julius Randle (Knicks)

53. Zach LaVine (Bulls)

52. Zion Williamson (Pelicans)

51. Brook Lopez (Bucks)


Where do we place Zion Williamson before he officially steps on an NBA court? He could immediately showcase the talent that made him one of best prospects in recent memory or he could come in the league with a bit of learning curve and struggle to live up to the loftiest of expectations.

Sandwiching Williamson between Brook Lopez, who’s proven to be valuable in today’s game. and Zach LaVine, who had an underrated 2018/19 campaign and is still building on his own game, seems like the best way to balance the risk vs. reward in Zion’s debut season.


50. Buddy Hield (Kings)

49. John Collins (Hawks)

48. Justise Winslow (Heat)

47. Kevin Love (Cavs)

46. Eric Bledsoe (Bucks)

46. Jamal Murray (Nuggets)

45. Lauri Markkanen (Bulls)

44. Clint Capela (Rockets)

43. Myles Turner (Pacers)

42. Kyle Kuzma (Lakers)

41. DeMar DeRozan (Spurs)


Jamal Murray improved his game over his first three seasons in the league, parlaying his time in Denver into a five-year, $171MM extension. Further improvement will be needed to justify this ranking (and the extension), though he’ll have the opportunity to do just that as he looks to help Denver navigate through a loaded Western Conference.


40. Chris Paul (Thunder)

39. Kristaps Porzingis (Mavericks)

38. Tobias Harris (Sixers)

37. Khris Middleton (Bucks)

36. Devin Booker (Suns)

35. D’Angelo Russell (Warriors)

34. Al Horford (Sixers)

33. Jayson Tatum (Celtics)

32. CJ McCollum (Blazers)

31. Luka Doncic (Mavericks)


With Kyrie Irving and Al Horford out of Boston, Jayson Tatum is expected to see an expanded role in a system that he knows well. He has a polished game and with the added opportunity, it would be an upset if he’s not in the All-Star conversation next season.


30. Jrue Holiday (Pelicans)

29. Pascal Siakam (Raptors)

28. Danilo Gallinari (Thunder)

27. Kyle Lowry (Raptors)

26. Draymond Green (Warriors)

25. LaMarcus Aldridge (Spurs)

24. De’Aaron Fox (Kings)

23. Victor Oladipo (Pacers)

22. Mike Conley (Jazz)

21. Ben Simmons (Sixers)


Simmons, like Murray, received a massive extension this offseason and he’ll need to further improve on his game to make the $171MM deal a team-friendly arrangement. Yet, that’s the kind of upside the 23-year-old possesses. Simmons could easily find his way onto numerous All-NBA teams throughout the deal and it wouldn’t be shocking if his first anointment comes at the end of 2019/20 season.


20. Nikola Vucevic (Magic)

19. Blake Griffin (Pistons)

18. Bradley Beal (Wizards)

17. Donovan Mitchell (Jazz)

16. Kemba Walker (Celtics)

15. Karl-Anthony Towns (Wolves)

14. Russell Westbrook (Rockets)

13. Rudy Gobert (Jazz)

12. Jimmy Butler (Heat)

11. Kyrie Irving (Nets)


Rudy Gobert‘s ranking might seem high, especially after he was snubbed during last season’s All-Star selections, though he’s a defensive force that’s unmatched by anyone in the league. He was fourth in NBA Math’s Total Points Added, a metric which measures the impact a player has on the court and he could be the defensive presence that allows the Jazz to integrate their new parts and become one of the best teams in basketball next season.


10. Paul George (Clippers)

9. Damian Lillard (Blazers)

8. Nikola Jokic (Nuggets)

7.  Joel Embiid (Sixers)

6. Anthony Davis (Lakers)

5. Giannis Antetokounmpo (Bucks)

4. James Harden (Rockets)

3. Stephen Curry (Warriors)

2.  LeBron James (Lakers)

1. Kawhi Leonard (Clippers)


The top of this list could go a number of ways. Which NBA players do you think should be in the top five? Are there any players on this list who are badly misplaced?

Take to the comment section below to share your thoughts and opinions. We look forward to what you have to say!

NBA G League Affiliations For 2019/20 Season

The NBA G League is moving one step closer to having 30 teams – one for each NBA franchise – in the 2019/20 season. While the league isn’t quite there yet, it’s getting close now that we can add the Pelicans to the list of NBA teams with their own affiliates.

The Pelicans’ NBAGL affiliate will be the league’s 28th franchise, leaving just two NBA teams that don’t have a one-to-one relationship with a G League club — the Trail Blazers and Nuggets.

Of those 28 NBA teams, 26 fully own and operate their NBAGL affiliates, after the Celtics reached an agreement this year to buy the Maine Red Claws. Only the Rockets and Pistons still have “hybrid” affiliations with their G League teams, meaning they manage and fund the basketball operations while local ownership maintains the control of the business and its community relations.

Here’s the full list of G League affiliates for the 2019/20 season:

Atlanta Hawks: College Park Skyhawks (relocation)
Boston Celtics: Maine Red Claws
Brooklyn Nets: Long Island Nets
Charlotte Hornets: Greensboro Swarm
Chicago Bulls: Windy City Bulls
Cleveland Cavaliers: Canton Charge
Dallas Mavericks: Texas Legends
Detroit Pistons: Grand Rapids Drive
Golden State Warriors: Santa Cruz Warriors
Houston Rockets: Rio Grande Valley Vipers
Indiana Pacers: Fort Wayne Mad Ants
Los Angeles Clippers: Agua Caliente Clippers of Ontario
Los Angeles Lakers: South Bay Lakers
Memphis Grizzlies: Memphis Hustle
Miami Heat: Sioux Falls Skyforce
Milwaukee Bucks: Wisconsin Herd
Minnesota Timberwolves: Iowa Wolves
New Orleans Pelicans: Erie BayHawks (expansion)
New York Knicks: Westchester Knicks
Oklahoma City Thunder: Oklahoma City Blue
Orlando Magic: Lakeland Magic
Philadelphia 76ers: Delaware Blue Coats
Phoenix Suns: Northern Arizona Suns
Sacramento Kings: Stockton Kings
San Antonio Spurs: Austin Spurs
Toronto Raptors: Raptors 905
Utah Jazz: Salt Lake City Stars
Washington Wizards: Capital City Go-Go

2019 NBA Draft-And-Stash Signings

Free agent signees, trade acquisitions, and 2019 draftees are the most common additions to NBA rosters this summer. However, a small number of players will come via the draft-and-stash route, as teams bring aboard players drafted in previous years.

While first-round draftees from the last three years are limited to the 2019 rookie scale, there are no draft-and-stash signings who fit that bill this year. Players who were previously selected in the second round of a draft are free to sign any type of contract via cap room or exceptions.

Listed below are the draft-and-stash prospects who have signed so far this offseason, with contract details noted. If and when more teams add draft-and-stash players, we’ll update this list, which can be found at anytime on the right-hand sidebar of our desktop site under “Hoops Rumors Features,” or in the “Features” page in our mobile menu.

  • Denver Nuggets: Vlatko Cancar, F (2017 draft; No. 49) (story)
    • Cancar was just 20 years old when he was selected by the Nuggets in 2017. After spending two more seasons with Mega Leks (Serbia) and Burgos (Spain), he’s considered a little more NBA-ready. He received a guaranteed contract that makes him a virtual lock to earn a regular season roster spot.
    • Contract: Three years, $4.2MM (minimum salary). First two years guaranteed. Signed using mid-level exception.
  • Oklahoma City Thunder: Devon Hall, SG (2018 draft; No. 53) (story)
    • Hall spent his first professional season in Australia and the G League after being selected in the second round of the 2018 draft by the Thunder. His agent said when he first headed overseas that they expected him to be in Oklahoma City for the 2019/20 season. That will indeed be the case, though it’ll be on a two-way deal rather than as part of the standard 15-man roster.
    • Contract: Two-way contract.
  • Oklahoma City Thunder: Kevin Hervey, PF (2018 draft; No. 57) (story)
    • Hall didn’t last long on his two-way deal with the Thunder, having been waived in December to make room for fellow 2018 second-rounder Hervey. The former UT Arlington standout spent his rookie season and the first part of his second season with the Oklahoma City Blue, the Thunder’s G League affiliate.
    • Contract: Two-way contract.
  • Utah Jazz: Nigel Williams-Goss, PG (2017 draft; No. 55) (story)
    • Despite playing his college ball in America (at Washington and Gonzaga), Williams-Goss was willing to head overseas after the Jazz drafted him in 2017. He won a Serbian Cup with KK Partizan during his rookie season, then spent his second year playing for EuroLeague club Olympiacos. Williams-Goss projects to be in Utah’s point guard mix, though he’ll have to battle Dante Exum and Emmanuel Mudiay for minutes behind Mike Conley.
    • Contract: Three years, $4.8MM. First-year salary ($1.5MM) guaranteed. Signed using cap room.

Multiple draft-and-stash players from previous drafts have had their NBA rights renounced this offseason. We’ll keep tabs on those players here too:

Community Shootaround: Schedule Changes

The NBA formally unveiled every team’s schedule on Monday, as well as its national broadcast schedule for the upcoming season. Other than earlier start times for many of its nationally-televised games, there weren’t a whole lot of surprises.

That could change in a couple of years.

Back in June, numerous team executives brainstormed how it could spice up the schedule, particularly during the league’s 75th anniversary season in 2021/22.

A couple of intriguing ideas included a midseason cup and a postseason play-in tournament. That would require a reduction in the usual 82-game schedule for each club.

A midseason tournament would certainly bring more intrigue, though there would have to be some kind of reward for the victor or victors in the tournament. An automatic playoff berth at stake? Home court advantage in the playoffs if the winner is already a virtual lock for the postseason? A big money prize going to the team/players that prevail?

Lots of kinks would have to be worked out and the owners, players and TV partners would have to sign off on it. The play-in tournament could give a few extra teams hope of making the postseason and reduce the incentive to tank or rest players.

Tweaks could always be made and if the tournaments are a flop, the NBA could always go back to the norm.

Altering the amount of games might keep the players fresher but franchise’s revenues are built around playing 41 home games. Local TV partners also pay for a stable amount of games, presenting more complications.

While NBA records are not as revered or as memorable as Major League Baseball marks, it would impact players achieving milestones and single-season bests. Some players also have incentives in their contracts based upon an 82-game season.

That leads us to our question of the day: Would you like to see the NBA hold a midseason cup and/or postseason play-in tournament or would you prefer to keep the schedule the way it is?

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

Poll: Which Team Will Win Northwest In 2019/20?

On Friday, we explored whether the Clippers, Lakers, or Warriors look like the favorites to win the Pacific Division in 2019/20. However, the Pacific isn’t the only Western Conference division that figures to be hotly contested.

Over in the Northwest, four of five teams made the postseason in 2018/19, with Denver (54-28) edging out Portland (53-29), Utah (50-32), and Oklahoma City (49-33) for the division crown.

Heading into next season, the Thunder appear likely to take a step back. That’s not a certainty, since there’s still plenty of talent on the roster, but losing Paul George and Russell Westbrook will hurt. They’re a long shot to win the Northwest, and so are the Timberwolves, the only Northwest team to miss the playoffs last season. With Jimmy Butler long gone, the ’19/20 season should be a little more smooth and drama-free in Minnesota, but the team is still a ways off from legit contention.

That leaves three teams that look like strong contenders to win the division next season, led by the Nuggets. After finishing atop the Northwest this spring, the Nuggets retained all their key contributors and added a couple more intriguing pieces. Jerami Grant was acquired in a trade with Oklahoma City and projects to be a go-to frontcourt option. Denver is also optimistic that 2018 lottery pick Michael Porter will be healthy and ready to claim a spot in the rotation in his sophomore season.

Of course, in the Western Semifinals, the Nuggets fell to the Trail Blazers, who seem to be perennially underrated by oddsmakers. Portland’s over/under for the 2019/20 is just 46.5 wins, per betting site BetOnline.ag. After topping their projected win total by about 10 games last season, the Blazers will look to outperform expectations again in 2019/20, led by Damian Lillard and CJ McCollum. Jusuf Nurkic won’t be ready to start the season, but Portland fortified its frontcourt by adding centers Hassan Whiteside and Pau Gasol.

Meanwhile, the Jazz might have had the best offseason of any Northwest team, having acquired standout point guard Mike Conley to join Donovan Mitchell in their backcourt. With veteran role players like Ed Davis and Jeff Green joining the mix, and Mitchell expected to take another step forward, this may be the best Utah team of the last few years, and the club hasn’t won fewer than 48 games since 2015/16.

What do you think? Which team do you expect to sit atop the Northwest Division when the regular season ends? And will that team make a deep playoff run, perhaps even reaching the NBA Finals?

Vote in our poll, then head to the comment section below to share your thoughts!

Trade Rumors app users, click here to vote.

Notable Free Agent Big Men Still Available

We’re six weeks into the NBA’s 2019 free agent period, and the market has been just about picked clean. None of our top 50 free agents of 2019 remain on the board, and news of free agent signings within the last couple weeks has focused primarily on non-guaranteed training camp invitees.

Still, our list of remaining 2019 free agents features some interesting names. Roster spots around the NBA are becoming scarce, but a number of unsigned players could help out contending teams. Some of these players could sign in the coming days or weeks, while others may have to wait for injuries to open up opportunities.

In a series of posts, we’re taking a closer look at some of the most noteworthy free agents still on the board, breaking them down by position. That series started last Thursday when we focused on a handful of the best free agent guards available, and continued on Friday as we turned to the top free agent wings. Now we’re closing things out by examining some of the most intriguing veteran big men on the open market.

Let’s dive in…

  • Nene: After he made the surprising decision to turn down his $3.8MM player option for 2019/20, Nene hasn’t had any luck finding a new contract on the open market. He also hasn’t indicated that he plans to retire, despite some rumors that he might end up going in that direction. The big man will turn 37 in September, so we’ll see if another NBA deal is in his future.
  • Amir Johnson: Johnson logged minutes in 51 regular season games for the Sixers last season, but had fallen out of the rotation by the playoffs. He’s a smart, heady player and he’s still just 32 years old, so I doubt we’ve seen the last of him in the NBA. Still, the fact that he doesn’t thrive in any one particular area – such as protecting the rim or shooting three-pointers – may hurt his market.
  • Joakim Noah: Noah was surprisingly effective in 42 games for the Grizzlies last season, averaging 7.1 PPG, 5.7 RPG, and 2.1 APG in just 16.5 minutes per contest. That performance hasn’t earned him an NBA job yet, but he’d have options overseas if he’s interested — a club in New Zealand was said last month to covet him.
  • Kenneth Faried: Faried experienced a renaissance in Houston last season, averaging 12.9 PPG and 8.2 RPG in 25 games for the Rockets. He’s also been working on adding an outside shot to his game. At age 29, Faried can still be a solid contributor for an NBA team, and I’d be surprised if he’s not on a roster by opening night.
  • Ryan Anderson: This would have been the fourth and final year of Anderson’s four-year, $80MM contract, which he signed in 2016. Instead, he’s back on the open market. His ability to stretch the floor from well beyond the three-point line is valuable, but it doesn’t always make up for his poor defense. On top of that, he wasn’t even making shots last season, knocking down just 9-of-40 threes (22.5%).
  • Marcin Gortat: Gortat started 43 games at center in 2018/19 for the Clippers before being waived at the trade deadline. While he has talked in the past about wanting to join the Magic to finish his NBA career, Orlando’s frontcourt is pretty crowded at this point, and the veteran big man had also suggested earlier in his career that the 2018/19 season might be his last. There’s no guarantee he’ll return to an NBA team.
  • Zaza Pachulia: At age 35, Pachulia’s NBA days may be numbered, but he appeared in 68 games for the Pistons as a backup center last season.

Jonas Jerebko would be an intriguing target for a team seeking frontcourt shooting, but last we heard, he was close to signing with a Russian team. (Update: Jerebko’s deal with Khimki is now official.)

Justin Patton is 22 years old and is just two years removed from being drafted 16th overall. If he can get – and stay – healthy, he might be worth a flier. Health hasn’t been an issue for Marquese Chriss, a 22-year-old who was a lottery pick in 2016, but he has yet to develop into a positive contributor. Perhaps a new club could get more out of him.

Another former first-round pick, Jarell Martin, doesn’t have Patton’s or Chriss’ upside, but was a regular rotation player as recently as 2017/18 and is still just 25.

Salah Mejri, Jon Leuer, Eric Moreland, Jason Smith, Tyler Zeller, and Guerschon Yabusele are among the other bigs who remain unsigned.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

2019/20 NBA Waiver Claims

Waiver claims are something of a rarity in the NBA. In order to claim a player off waivers, a team generally must be able to fit the player’s entire salary into cap room, a traded player exception, or a disabled player exception. While there are a few teams with sizable trade exceptions available, disabled player exceptions can only be granted during the season, and the Hawks are the only team with any cap room left.

Given those limitations, the players most frequently claimed on waivers are those on minimum salary deals, since any club is eligible to place a claim on those players using the minimum salary exception. Even then though, there are exceptions — the minimum salary exception can only be used to sign players for up to two years, so the same rules apply to waiver claims. If a player signed a three-year, minimum salary contract, he can’t be claimed using the minimum salary exception.

Taking into account all the rules that reduce the odds of a waiver claim – not to mention the limited roster spots available for NBA teams – it makes sense that nearly all of the players who get released ultimately clear waivers. The 2018/19 league year featured 10 waiver claims, but the number of claims in a year typically falls short of that. During the 2017/18 league year, only four players were claimed off waivers. That number was six in 2016/17 and seven in 2015/16.

Despite how infrequent they are, we still want to track all the waiver claims that take place during the 2019/20 league year, so we’ll do so in the space below. This list will be updated throughout the offseason and regular season to include the latest claims.

Here’s the list:

  • Timberwolves claim Tyrone Wallace from Clippers (July 8) (story)
    • Having missed out on their top free agent target – D’Angelo Russell – the Timberwolves gave themselves a low-cost depth option at the point guard spot by claiming Wallace from the Clippers. His $1,588,231 salary remained non-guaranteed following the claim though, so Minnesota eventually decided to cut Wallace before opening night and wasn’t on the hook for his cap charge.
  • Pistons claim Christian Wood from Pelicans (July 17) (story)
    • Wood has been claimed off waivers twice in 2019, with the Pelicans nabbing him when the Bucks initially waived him in March. Wood impressed down the stretch in New Orleans, averaging 16.9 PPG and 7.9 RPG in eight games, but apparently wasn’t in the plans for new head of basketball operations David Griffin. Now he’ll start the regular season with the Pistons, who won’t have to fully guarantee his $1,645,357 salary until January.
  • Lakers claim Kostas Antetokounmpo from Mavericks (July 21) (story)
    • Antetokounmpo was on a two-way contract with Dallas, and now occupies one of the Lakers‘ two-way slots. It’s unclear if the Lakers would’ve placed a claim if he had a different last name — his connection to older brother Giannis Antetokounmpo was probably a factor in the team’s decision, since L.A. will want to target the reigning MVP in free agency in 2021.
  • Mavericks claim Aric Holman from Lakers (August 29) (story)
    • A month after the Lakers claimed a Mavericks player, Dallas returned the favor by claiming Holman off waivers. The Lakers had intended to bring Holman to training camp but had to cut him to make room for Dwight Howard. The Mavs took advantage of the opportunity to take an extended look at Holman themselves, but eventually released him.
  • Rockets claim Ray Spalding from Hawks (October 10) (story)
    • A 2018 second-round pick, Spalding joined his fourth team in the span of 16 months when he was claimed off waivers by the Rockets less than two months before the season began. Because Spalding was on a non-guaranteed, minimum-salary contract, it was a simple process for Houston to bring him in and consider him for a regular season roster spot. He was waived before the regular season though.
  • Cavaliers claim Tyler Cook from Nuggets (October 18) (story)
    • After the Nuggets waived Cook to open up a two-way contract slot for PJ Dozier, the Cavaliers took advantage of having their own open two-way slot to claim Cook. The undrafted rookie out of Iowa joined Dean Wade as Cleveland’s players on two-way deals.
  • Cavaliers claim Alfonzo McKinnie from Warriors (October 21) (story)
    • The Cavaliers‘ second claim in less than a week was on one of the most popular waiver targets of the offseason — Cleveland likely wasn’t the only team that put in a claim on the forward, who became the victim of a roster crunch in Golden State. McKinnie opens the regular season as a member of the Cavs’ standard roster.
  • Kings claim DaQuan Jeffries from Magic (October 21) (story)
    • One of five players waived by the Magic just before the regular season, Jeffries may have ended up playing for Orlando’s G League team if he hadn’t been claimed by the Kings. Because he was on an Exhibit 10 contract, Sacramento was able to convert Jeffries to a two-way contract after claiming him.
  • Hawks claim Tyrone Wallace from Timberwolves (October 23) (story)
    • The first player claimed during the 2019/20 league year, Wallace also became the first player to be claimed a second time since July. His minimum salary contract and NBA experience has made him a popular target, and the Hawks had the regular season roster spot available to give him an audition to start the year.
  • Pistons claim Jordan McRae from Nuggets (March 4) (story)
    • The Nuggets didn’t have much of a role for McRae after trading for him at the deadline, so they let him go on the evening on March 1 to allow him to seek a new opportunity. It looked like that opportunity would come in Phoenix, but the Pistons placed a waiver claim of their own and had a better waiver priority than the Suns.
  • Knicks claim Jared Harper from Suns (June 25) (story)
    • This waiver claim was over three months in the making — the Suns initially decided to waive Harper in March, right when the NBA’s transaction moratorium went into effect. When the move finally become official in June, the Knicks were ready with a claim, cutting Kadeem Allen to open up a two-way contract slot.
  • Knicks claim Theo Pinson from Nets (June 26) (story)
    • A day after nabbing Harper, new Knicks president of basketball operations Leon Rose made the second waiver claim of his tenure, waiving free-agent-to-be Allonzo Trier to make room for Pinson. The former Net has a minimum-salary team option for 2020/21. There’s no guarantee New York will pick it up, but the claim signals that the club likes him.

Hoops Rumors Originals: 8/3/19 – 8/10/19

Every week, the Hoops Rumors writing team creates original content to complement our news feed. Here are our original segments and features from the past seven days:

  • We updated our lists of the NBA’s longest-tenured head coaches and longest-tenured heads of basketball operations. The same name – Gregg Popovich – tops both lists.
  • Half of the NBA’s teams face hard caps during the 2019/20 league year. We broke down the full list of teams and explained how each club imposed that hard cap on itself.
  • We checked in on some of the most notable free agent guards and free agent wings who remain unsigned, nearly six weeks into the 2019/20 league year. We also looked at which members of this year’s draft class have yet to sign their first professional contracts.
  • No NBA player has a no-trade clause in his contract. However, a number of players have veto power on trades during the 2019/20 league year. Here’s the list.
  • Chris Crouse profiled former Sixers guard Tony Wroten in the wake of news that he’s expected to continue his playing career in Europe.
  • We examined the five most valuable traded player exceptions from around the NBA to see which ones are worth keeping an eye on in trade talks in the coming months.
  • In this week’s polls, we asked:
    • Which team will win the Pacific Division? (link)
    • Will Carmelo Anthony be on an NBA roster by opening night? (link)
  • In this week’s Community Shootaround discussions, we explore the following topics:
    • Which 12 players should make Team USA’s 12-man World Cup roster? (link)
    • Which team has the better group of role players, the Lakers or Clippers? (link)

Community Shootaround: L.A.’s Complementary Players

Los Angeles will be the center of the basketball universe during the upcoming season.

The Lakers’ acquisition of Anthony Davis to pair up with LeBron James and the Clippers’ coup in signing Kawhi Leonard and trading for Paul George has created a new level of excitement in Tinseltown.

The flip side to having two superstars is that it’s difficult to surround them with quality pieces due to salary cap restrictions. However, getting the right role players is essential to winning the championship.

The Lakers, of course, had to trade away several young players in order to secure Davis’ services with Kyle Kuzma being the notable exception. They were heavily criticized for some of the veterans they signed to short-team deals last summer but several have returned.

Rajon Rondo, JaVale McGee and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope were re-signed. The Lakers also brought in a batch of new free agents, including DeMarcus Cousins and Danny Green.

If Cousins can regain some of his All-Star form prior to his Achilles injury two seasons ago, he’d be a steal. But that’s a huge if. Green, of course, was a prominent member of the Raptors’ championship team and is the likely starter at shooting guard.

Avery Bradley, Quinn Cook and Jared Dudley are some of the other reserves signed to fortify the bench.

The Clippers gave up potential star point guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander in the George trade but has a little more roster stability with Sixth Man of the Year Lou Williams, Montrezl Harrell and Landry Shamet returning.

They re-signed restricted free agents Ivica Zubac and Rodney McGruder and unrestricted free agent Patrick Beverley, who attracted a lot of interest around the league due to his defensive prowess. JaMychal Green was also re-signed to back up Zubac, while Maurice Harkless was acquired in a trade.

That leads us to our question of the day: Which of the two Los Angeles teams has the best group of role players surrounding their two superstars?

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

Poll: Which Team Will Win Pacific In 2019/20?

While it’s far less impressive than their run of five consecutive appearances in the NBA Finals, the Warriors have also won the Pacific Division five times in a row. However, that streak may be in jeopardy heading into the 2019/20 season.

The Warriors figure to be a contender again next season, with perennial MVP candidate Stephen Curry, newly-extended big man Draymond Green, and newly-acquired All-Star D’Angelo Russell leading the way. But the Dubs don’t have quite the same amount of star power that they’ve had in recent years. Kevin Durant is gone. So are veteran stalwarts Andre Iguodala and Shaun Livingston. And Klay Thompson isn’t expected to be back until sometime after the All-Star break as he recovers from a torn ACL. A step back seems likely.

The Suns appear to be on the right track in their rebuild, and the Kings added some intriguing veteran reinforcements after taking a big step forward last season, but it’s probably safe to assume that the biggest threats to Golden State’s streak of five straight division titles are in Los Angeles.

No Western Conference team has a higher projected win total, according to oddsmakers, than the Clippers. Gambling site BetOnline.ag has the Clips’ regular-season over/under listed at 54.5 wins, and it’s easy to see why — the team essentially replaced Danilo Gallinari and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander with Kawhi Leonard and Paul George this offseason after winning 48 games last season.

Of course, the Clippers aren’t a lock to be a powerhouse. Leonard was limited to 60 games last season and battled an apparent leg injury in the playoffs. George, meanwhile, underwent surgery on both shoulders at season’s end, and isn’t guaranteed to be 100% by opening night. If either of those players is forced to miss extended time, the Clippers’ “under” is probably a safer bet than the “over.”

As for L.A.’s other team, the Lakers have a superstar duo of their own, with Anthony Davis joining LeBron James. Assuming both players stay healthy, the Lakers will be a force to be reckoned with in 2019/20. However, there will be a lot of new pieces besides Davis for new head coach Frank Vogel to incorporate.

DeMarcus Cousins, Danny Green, Avery Bradley, Quinn Cook, and Jared Dudley are among the incoming free agents signed by the Lakers to join returning players like Kyle Kuzma, Rajon Rondo, JaVale McGee, and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope.

What do you think? Which team will ultimately end up atop the Pacific Division at the end of the regular season? And will that same team make the deepest postseason run, perhaps representing the West in the Finals next spring?

Vote in our poll, then head to the comment section below to share your thoughts!

Trade Rumors app users, click here to vote.