Moves That Should Happen This Offseason (Part 3)
Today if the final installment of my moves that should happen this offseason. We will be covering the biggest names from the 2020 offseason and seeing what teams should do with them.
DeMar DeRozan Should Stay With The Spurs
DeMar DeRozan’s career has been much more quiet since his trade to the Spurs. He and the Spurs haven’t been bad by any means, but not great either. DeRozan has a player option worth about $27,800,000. And while DeRozan will likely accept this, I don’t think the Spurs should be looking to move DeRozan.
The Spurs have often been counted out these past few seasons, but they have remained a solid team in the West. They nearly knocked out the Nuggets in the first round of the 2019 playoffs, forcing a Game 7. This season the Spurs went 6-2 in the bubble, but were just short of the NBA Playoffs. But the Spurs haven’t been bad by any means.
DeRozan has been solid, and the Spurs have some talent around DeRozan. The won’t be contenders anytime soon, but they will remain decent with DeRozan. So I think that the Spurs will keep DeRozan unless they go into full rebuild mode.
The Cavs Should Move Andre Drummond
Andre Drummond was traded to the Cavs, giving them another over-paid star. Drummond used to be a solid center, but seems to have fallen off in recent years. The Cavs remain in rebuild mode and having Drummond makes no sense.
Drummond has a player option that he would be stupid not to accept, worth about $25,400,000. Drummond is one of the most overrated players in the league, and deserves almost none of this money. The Cavs are in fill rebuild mode, and having Drummond each that much cap space is dumb.
I think the Cavs should look to ship Drummond for young players and picks, trying to find success without Lebron. The Cavs have the 5th pick, meaning another young player. I don’t see Drummond working well with this young cast, and the Cavs should exile him off this team, so that they can actually rebuild.
The Raptors Need To Keep Serge Ibaka
The Raptors season ended bitterly, but Serge Ibaka was wonderful. He was a threat on offense with his jumpshot and he gave you that reliable interior defense. Ibaka will be a hot topic on the market, and the Raptors need to keep him.
Ibaka hasn’t slowed down with age so far as he seems like a capable starter. With no Marc Gasol next season, the Raptors need to retain him. Ibaka is an unrestricted free agent and he will get his money. My only worry for the Raptors is that they might ignore Fred VanVleet, who should be there #1 priority in free agency.
If Ibaka doesn’t go back to the Raptors for some reason, teams like the Celtics will be available. But the Raptors will likely keep Ibaka, a smart move as Ibaka will likely be the starter next season for the Raptors.
The Heat Should Get Rid Of Goran Dragic
The Heat were the surprise team of the year as they made it to the Finals and made a good fight against the LA Lakers. Dragic was the 3rd best player on this team, and was a valuable piece. But it is clear that the Heat don’t necessarily need Dragic, and I don’t think they should get him back.
Dragic was great in the playoffs, until he got hurt in the Finals, which threw him off. But not the Heat who managed to win two games without Dragic and seemingly never missed a beat. I don’t think that the 34 year old Dragic will be useful to the Heat, a team rumored to be gunning for Giannis Antetokounmpo in 2021.
Dragic will eat up cap, and if the Heat really want Giannis, they will not retain Dragic. Dragic is entering the final stages of a great career, and I don’t think this final portion will be with the Heat. I still see the Dragon being valuable to many teams across the league, just not with the Heat.
(Note: If the Heat keep Dragic, that tells me that they may not want Giannis).
The Thunder Should Let Danilo Gallinari Go
While the Thunder’s season ended very, very poorly, they were a solid team. But with Coach Billy Donovan already out the door, and with Chris Paul likely being traded, the Thunder seem like they are going into full rebuild mode. And I don’t think that they should pursue Gallinari in free agency.
Gallinari struggled in the playoffs and him eating up cap space wouldn’t make sense for a (likely) rebuilding Thunder team. Gallinari was paid nearly $22 million dollars last season, and I don’t think he’s worth that much at the age of 32.
Gallinari has said he wants to win a ring more than getting a bag, which is why he will likely not stay on the Thunder. He will more than likely take a massive pay-cut to finally play for a title. So the Thunder shouldn’t even bother and focus on their rebuild.
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