David Stern has insisted for years the Western Conference dominance both during the NBA regular season and in the playoffs was just a phase. In a quickly changing landscape, it now appears he was right.
|
|
| New Clipper Baron Davis is all smiles, but will it last without having Elton Brand and Corey Maggette? (Getty Images) |
With most teams over the salary cap and many within arm's length of the luxury-tax threshold, there wasn't much movement in the first two weeks of free agency. Almost all the headlines were scripted by wannabes rather than serious contenders.
What's to conclude? There's really no reason at this point to believe the Celtics aren't the favorites to repeat in 2008-09. In fact, for teams that tasted postseason success last season, that rumbling in the distance isn't a new challenger mounting a charge; it's their own fans grumbling over where any improvement is coming from.
With still a handful of impact players unsigned, the current team champs and chumps of NBA free agency 2008:
Champs
1. 76ers. Forget the rekindling of the Celtics-Lakers rivalry. Here we go again with the Celtics and 76ers. With Brand balancing a team that did most of its damage from the perimeter last season, the 76ers very well might have vaulted from No. 7 in the East to the Celtics' primary reason for concern.
2. Spurs. Coming off his best season, Roger Mason Jr. is exactly what Tim Duncan ordered. The ex-Wizards swingman hits open perimeter shots (39.8 percent on 3-pointers last year), which is exactly what Michael Finley, Brent Barry and Robert Horry failed to do more often than not in the Spurs' unsuccessful title defense. And he comes at half their combined cost.
3. Magic. Mickael Pietrus is a luxury in Orlando for the same reason he was a headache for Golden State: He's frustratingly ineffective when asked to do a lot, but surprisingly helpful when focused on doing what he does best. With Rashard Lewis, Hedo Turkoglu and Dwight Howard showing the way offensively, the Magic will afford the Frenchman an opportunity to exhaust his endless energy where he enjoys burning it most -- on the defensive end. He complements a good thing.
4. Celtics. The club's path to the crown took it through Atlanta, Cleveland, Detroit and Los Angeles, four franchises that have been paddling feverishly just to keep from floating downstream. When the talk of the early free-agent signing period focuses on a 40-42 team (Philadelphia) taking a big step forward, you've got to know the guys at the top of the mountain aren't being shaken by the reverberations. Who says standing pat is a bad thing?
5. Hornets. The only thing Hornets fans would like more than returning the same fun group next year would be locking up Chris Paul & Co. for the foreseeable future. Getting the shockingly good point guard to sign a four-year extension a full 12 months before free agency is a big-time move in that direction. Everything else that happens this offseason -- if it's anything at all -- will be gravy.
Chumps
1. Clippers. Baron Davis left Golden State for the Clippers with hopes of forming a Western "Big Three" with Brand and Corey Maggette. Alas, even in the shadow of Disneyland, not all dreams come true. The perennial laughingstock is far worse off today than it was when it started piling up the money to send Davis' way. Sadly, it's the way L.A.'s other team does business.
2. Warriors. After Chris Webber walked out on them in 1994, the Warriors spent 12 years looking for another star player. When they finally lucked into him, Davis and coach Don Nelson teamed to bring playoffs back to Oakland after a dozen-year drought. Just 14 months later, with Nelson now in the final year of his deal and Davis having headed south, there once again appears to be no rain (or reign) in the Warriors' immediate future.
3. Cavaliers. The model for winning NBA championships is clear: Get yourself at least a couple of star players, then use them to attract talented complementary pieces at less-than-market prices. The Spurs and Celtics have both taken that path to the hardware in recent years. But as much as they talk about following in those footsteps, the Cavaliers haven't been able to use LeBron James as such a magnet. Maybe that says something about James -- or perhaps it says something about the city of Cleveland.
4. Wizards. The Wizards have solidified themselves as a middle-of-the-playoff-pack club in the East. Apparently that's good enough for them. Re-signing Gilbert Arenas for $111 million seems reasonable, but not when he comes attached to Antawn Jamison at $10 million a year. Instead of shaking things up and shooting for more, the Wizards opted to pencil in 44-38 and a short postseason visit for years to come.
5. Pistons. Here's the problem with acquiring Rasheed Wallace at a bargain price: When you inevitably grow tired of him, the best you're going to get in return is some of that same garbage you dumped to acquire him originally. Given this grim reality, the fact the Pistons are weighing their options on Wallace and Chauncey Billups rather than fishing the deep waters for a difference-making free agent indicates a white flag has been raised.
Dave Del Grande is a freelance NBA columnist based in Oakland.
