Every Team’s Biggest Problem After Free Agency (BR)
A few days ago, Bleacher Report made an article talking about every single team’s biggest problem after free agency. Today, I will be reviewing all of those and seeing how many I agree and disagree about. If I agree with what BR said, the header will be green. If I don’t agree, it will be red. Pretty simple.
Atlanta Hawks: Backcourt Stoppers
The Hawks just don’t have good perimeter defenders. They lacked it last year and things didn’t improve this offseason. Teams can pick on the Hawks guards and Atlanta has to hope their frontcourt is good enough to carry the defense.
Trae Young, Lou Williams, Delon Wright, Kevin Huerter, and Bogdan Bogdanovic have never been good defenders. Not to mention they drafted Sharife Cooper, another undersized guard in the draft. All of these guards are great offensively, but they really can’t defend.
In the BR article, they suggested a trade for Marcus Smart, which would be great, but him signing a 4-year extension means that’s probably not going to happen. Hawks fans can dream, though. Smart would be perfect for them.
Perimeter defense is one of the few weaknesses left for this Hawks team, one of the few things that will be a thorn in their side for the upcoming 2022 season. Don’t be surprised if they address it during the season as they try and make a run for a title in the Eastern Conference.
Boston Celtics: Bench Experience
This is a problem the Celtics have, but I would go with another one. Yes, their bench is young. Payton Pritchard and Aaron Nesmith are entering their sophomore season. Robert Williams is good, but 2021 was his first chance to get substantial minutes. Romeo Langford and Grant Williams are also young. The only veterans off the bench are Enes Kanter and Josh Richardson.
A solution to that problem may be putting Schroder/Horford off the bench to add some veterans who are actually good (sorry Kanter and Richardson) to mix in with that youth pool. But I do think the Celtics have a problem a little more pressing than that.
That problem is scoring outside of their two All-Stars. They lost Fournier and Kemba Walker and their only replacement was Dennis Schroder. Schroder is decent but the Celtics really only have 3 guys who can score the ball well. Al Horford is decent, but he’s not the player he once was and at best he’s giving you 13-16 ppg. The guys off the bench are, like Bleacher Report mentioned, young and mostly unproven.
I’m guessing the offense will struggle at times in 2022 because two guys just can’t do it alone. They’re going to need young guys off the bench to step up, some veterans to outperform, or they’ll have to make a move at some point. The latter of those choices seems likely.
So while I do agree that the Celtics lack bench experience, their questions on who is going to score outside of their two All-Stars is a little concerning.
Brooklyn Nets: Wing Defenders
This one is obvious, although I would argue defense in general is pretty weak for the Nets. Last year it was size down low. When their offense lost their fire, Giannis just bullied them down low. With the loss of Jeff Green is off-season, the defense is looking thin all-around.
Blake Griffin looked like a pretty good defender at times last year, but can he keep that up? KD is a really good defender, but because of the Nets lack of size, he’ll have to guard bigger guys, instead of on the wing where he’s at his best. Bruce Brown and Nicolas Claxton are pretty good, but there’s a lot more “non-defenders” than there are good defenders. The good defenders are stretched thin, leaving room for opposing teams to attack.
So, the Nets have to get guys to buy in and play defense. Harden, Irving, Joe Harris, rookies like Cam Thomas and Day’Ron Sharpe, Patty Mills, you get the point. The Nets need their “non-defenders” to really give 100% and push themselves on that end. I know that sound cliché, but it’s true.
The Nets don’t have a lot of good defenders, that’s the price for all the offense they have, so they’re going to have to ask guys to just give it their best. I know that’s now reassuring with guys like Embiid and Giannis in the Eastern Conference, but that’s the reality. That’s why health for the Nets will be so important because of their defensive shortcomings, because as we saw, when that offense loses it’s weapons, the Nets are a lot more vulnerable.
Charlotte Hornets: An Alpha Scorer
This Hornets team doesn’t lack offense, but they don’t exactly have “the guy” late in games. Sure, Lamelo Ball is your young, super-star point guard, but he doesn’t take over games with his scoring. The Hornets don’t have that role filled on their team. If Ball becomes a scorer in the future, great, but as of right now, who is getting the shot late in games?
As of right now, you have Hayward, Rozier, and Ball as candidates. You have great complimentary scorers like Bridges, Bouknight, and Oubre, but those 3 guys are your candidates and they are all are valid options.
I assume it’s going to be different every time. If one guy is hot, you give him the ball. If one matchup is favorable, you hive him the ball. I don’t think that not having an Alpha Scorer is going to hurt the Hornets, but it does make the end of games a lot easier when you know who’s getting the ball.
Chicago Bulls: Frontcourt Depth
While adding talent like Lonzo Ball, DeMar DeRozan, and Alex Caruso, along the way it meant sacrificing some pieces. In the DeRozan deal specifically, they lost Thaddeus Young and Al-Farouq Aminu, two pretty solid wing players. Now the Bulls are looking pretty weak up front, depth wise.
The Bulls are now left with Vucevic, Patrick Williams, and Tony Bradley down low. Not exactly ideal. Assuming this rotation stays the same until the season starts, you’re likely going to see DeMar DeRozan playing power forward, something he has never done before. Obviously having Lauri Markkanen would help a little but even though he hasn’t signed, I think he would rather not play in 2022 than re-sign with the Bulls.
The Bulls don’t have a lot of depth at the forward/center positions, so signing guys like Paul Millsap, Mike Scott, Ed Davis, Bismack Biyombo, Luke Kornet, Harry Giles, etc. They need some more bodies down low and there are some decent options for cheap still available for the Bulls to snag.
The Bulls are going to need good wing and center depth in the East, where Giannis and Embiid lie waiting to dominate. While adding the star talent was cool, it’s time to fill out the roster a little more.
Cleveland Cavaliers: Three-Point Shooting
The Cavs were last in 3-PT% last year and 29th in 3-PTM. They traded away Taurean Prince, who shot 40% from 3 last year, for Ricky Rubio, who shot 31% from 3. Safe to say the Cavs will have to add shooting during their rebuild.
I do expect guys like Isaac Okoro to improve as a shooter. He shot just 29% from 3 last year. Jarrett Allen was 6/19 from 3 last year, maybe he shoots more 3’s. Evan Mobley is a pretty good shooter for a big out of the draft. He’s shown flashes to shoot off the dribble, he’ll likely add some sort of shooting.
So, it is possible for the Cavs young core to develop, but they desperately need to add real shooters. Their only good shooters currently are Sexton and Garland in the backcourt. So it’s either developing young guys or get somebody who can shoot. You can’t win in the NBA if you shoot that poorly, something the Cavs have to address for the future.
Dallas Mavericks: A Reliable Second Star
Again, pretty obvious. Luka Doncic is incredible and while he has some decent role players like Hardaway, Bullock, and Jalen Brunson, he needs a 2nd All-Star to support him.
We all thought that that would be Kristaps Porzingis, but he hasn’t worked out in Dallas. Unless we see some sort of big turn around, giving him that 5-year contract was a mistake. He has the skillset, but injuries have slowed down the 7’3″ unicorn.
Jason Kidd saying this makes me a little hopeful, but keep in mind, this is Jason Kidd;
“I think he’s excited, he’s ready to work, and I think you’re going to see a different KP. This is a positive summer for him. He’s healthy. I think he’s really excited about this opportunity. I think he’s a perfect fit for Luka. He has a skill set that a lot of people don’t have in this league. As a coach, I’m very excited to be able to work with him.”
The Mavericks tried to go after Kyle Lowry this offseason with their money, but they only added some more role players. Luka signed his max extension, but assuming that Porzingis isn’t the 2nd star behind him, the Mavericks need to find a viable 2nd option and fast.
Denver Nuggets: Rim Protection
I think that this is the one weakness for the Denver Nuggets. With a healthy Jamal Murray, they are lethal. Obviously Murray will miss some time in 2022, but Denver is a very complete team. But they just haven’t had a good rim protector behind Jokic. Mason Plumlee was decent enough, but they desperately need rim protection and they haven’t had a good replacement yet.
Denver ranked last in opponent field-goal percentage within six feet (64.7%). They also ranked 21st in blocks per game. Unless they plan on using 7’2″ demigod Bol Bol, who has hardly played in two seasons, they need some help down low.
But I do believe, if Jamal Murray is healthy, it likely won’t matter. Look at their rotation with a healthy Murray;
Jamal Murray
Will Barton
MPJ
Aaron Gordon
Nikola Jokic
Monte Morris, Austin Rivers, Nah’Shon “Bones” Hyland, Jeff Green, JaMychal Green, Campazzo, PJ Dozier
That is such a deep team. They have wing depth with MPJ, Gordon, and Jeff Green. They have a platoon of guards behind Murray that can score well off the bench. Sure, they are small, but they are one of the deepest teams in the league. Whenever Murray comes back, if he’s close to what he was before, the Nuggets are contenders. I don’t know if rim protection matters that much with that lethal of an offense, with that deep of a team.
I know defense wins championships, but as long as it’s average or slightly below average, the Nuggets should still be a very good team if Murray comes back healthy. All of this banks on Murray still being an All-Star level player after his injury, but I don’t think the defense will matter all that much with this offense.
Detroit Pistons: Patience
Easy to agree with this one. The Pistons aren’t exactly in a win now mode, if that wasn’t obvious. They have collected a lot of young talent over the past couple of seasons, the crown jewel being Cade Cunningham, the #1 overall pick in this year’s draft. Cunningham was just 6 years old the last time the Pistons won a playoff series, so the Pistons have waited a long time to try and look promising. But they just need to let things play out and not mess things up.
Cunningham and Saddiq Bey are great and if Killian Hayes can develop an outside shot, he’s also going to be key going forward. Jerami Grant was great last year and Kelly Olynyk is a boom or bust signing from this offseason that gives the Pistons some spacing.
But the Pistons front office should take their time. Cunningham is 19 and Hayes is 20. They shouldn’t look at a team like the Bulls and just try to wildly add talent overnight. This is a process that will take a long time. I know this is a very simple concept, but I wouldn’t put it past the Pistons to mess this up somehow.
They just have to take their time and soon enough, Motown will once again become a basketball powerhouse like it was in the 2000s. If not, Dan Campbell is a very entertaining coach and Casey Mize is good at pitching.
Golden State Warriors: A Win-Now Center
The Warriors are trying to contend and their core of Curry, Wiggins, Thompson, and Green is great. Curry is the best player in the league, Draymond remains an elite defender, and Andrew Wiggins played perhaps his best all-around season last year. Sure, Thompson might not be the same player after missing 2 years, but that core 4 is great.
What they need is a center and James Wiseman isn’t the answer. Wiseman should prove to be great down the line, but the Warriors were much better last year with Kevon Looney, a veteran center. Wiseman is recovering from a knee injury last year and I don’t know if they can contend with him starting.
Looney worked last year and Draymond Green can play center, but they need one more reliable center, somebody like Andrew Bogut. Again, Wiseman should be a great player years down the road, but the Warriors need somebody like Myles Turner or even Christian Wood. I don’t know if it’s possible to get either of them, but they would help a lot.
The Warriors are trying to contend and Wiseman, although talented, doesn’t fit their current timeline. Maybe you trade him for somebody like Wood or Turner, if the Rockets or Pacers would be into that, but I don’t think the Warriors can be contenders with James Wiseman starting. He’s just too inexperienced at this point in time.
Houston Rockets: Too Many Veterans
The Rockets are rebuilding, but they still have John Wall (30), Eric Gordon (32), DJ Augustin (33), Danuel House Jr. (28), David Nwaba (28), and newly signed Daniel Theis (29). So the Rockets haven’t really gone full rebuild when they should, instead of trying to keep older guys. I get the appeal, but most of these guys shouldn’t be on the team.
I doubt they can move the more than $90 million left on Wall’s contract, but the rest of the guys should go. Make way for Jalen Green, Kevin Porter Jr, Alperen Sengun, Usman Garuba, and Josh Christopher. The Rockets need to really embrace the rebuild instead of going halfway.
Maybe you even capitalize on Christian Wood’s value. He’s 26, which is a little bit older than the Rockets draft picks/rebuild trend. You drafted Garuba and Sengun down low, why not trade him when he’s a very valuable asset to most teams? His contract is very moveable (2yrs/$28 million left), so maybe you really lean in and trade your best player. I doubt they do that and I’m not saying that they should do it, but it’s a possibility.
But I do think they should try and shed most of their older players. There’s really no use to have them other than just trying not be really terrible. Just go full rebuild and make sure all the players on your roster (save John Wall), are players that you want for the future.
Indiana Pacers: The Domantas Sabonis-Myles Turner Frontcourt
This is one of the worst takes on here. The Pacers have been disappointing the last few seasons. They have dealt with a lot, from getting swept a lot, injuries, and a jerk head coach, they’ve been through a lot. But I really don’t think that the Sabonis-Turner duo is the problem.
In 2021, Nate Bjorkgren was an awful coach and TJ Warren missed the whole season. They traded for Caris Levert but he had cancer and didn’t play that much in Indiana. This season was a roller coaster. The BR article said that Sabonis-Turner had a -2.3 net rating with over 1,000 minutes played together. I have a counter to that.
In 2019-20, with Nate McMillan as coach, the Pacers’ forward duo was a +2.1 net rating with over 1,000 minutes played. Maybe it was just that Nate Bjorkgren was awful and that the season was awful? I think the duo works well together and I think the Pacers will be good with Rick Carlisle, a pretty good coach, at the helm.
They have Brogdon, Turner, Sabonis, Levert, Warren, Justin Holiday, rookies like Chris Duarte and Isaiah Jackson, they have a pretty solid team. They have a pretty good coach and I think they can be a pretty good team this season. I don’t think that one rough season defines a duo. I think Sabonis and Turner are just fine for the time being.
Los Angeles Clippers: Kawhi Leonard’s Recovery Time
This one goes without saying. Kawhi Leonard is very good and with him missing most/all of 2022, the Clippers cannot be title contenders. They are likely still a playoff team with the likes of Paul George, Marcus Morris, Reggie Jackson, and Terance Mann at the helm, but they can’t win a title without the Klaw.
Leonard is locked up long-term, which is great for LA, but this is a lost season for them in terms of winning a title. The Clippers can’t replace Leonard at all. His on/off rating of +12.5 last year was a career best for him and ranked in the 97th percentile among NBA players.
The Clippers are just praying that whenever he comes back, he’s still somewhat like Kawhi Leonard and they can try and contend next year.
Los Angeles Lakers: Youth
Breaking News: The Lakers are old. But you already knew that. It’s no secret that the Lakers are an old team. They could be the oldest team in NBA history and average nearly 32 years of age among the 12 players on the roster. No team had previously signed six players age 32 or older in a single offseason, and 4 Lakers (James, Melo, Howard, and Ariza) joined the league before Twitter launched in 2006.
But with the NBA going back to it’s normal 82 game schedule, this old roster could face problems. The roster will likely get slowly worse over time as the older guys naturally slow down over the course of a grueling season. So the Lakers really need big things from Kendrick Nunn, THT, and Malik Monk to succeed. Those are the 3 youngsters for the Lakers and depending on how good they’re playing, the Lakers could be a completely different team.
The Lakers are deep, but they are old and injuries could once again steal the headlines for them. If they remain healthy, they’ll be a great team. If not, they fall down the same rabbit hole they had last year when they just dragged themselves to the playoffs. They need AD to not be made of glass and hopefully, they can win a title with this retirement home.
Memphis Grizzlies: Isolation Scoring
I agree with this one. The Grizzlies have a very, very full roster but most of the guys on their team are complimentary players. The Grizzlies lack guys who can score on their own and their lack of isolation scoring/shot-creation will hold them back from being a great team. They are deep, but they still need some more isolation scoring.
Ja Morant had 132 isolation attempts last year. The next closest Grizzly? Dillon Brooks with 63. The Grizzlies ranked 28th in the league in isolation points, as they just don’t that many shot-creators.
The Grizzlies have Ja Morant but they need more from others. Dillon Brooks, maybe Jaren Jackson Jr? Desmond Bane? Rookie Ziaire Williams? The Grizzlies have to become a better isolation team because you need that in the playoffs. Team basketball can only get you so far, you need guys who can make the tough shots late in playoff games. They can make broken plays work, they can make life a lot harder for defenses when they can just bail you out time and time again.
Memphis doesn’t have that and they’re going to need to do so otherwise I don’t think they can be very successful in the playoffs.
Miami Heat: Point Guard Depth
The Heat added a lot this offseason, primarily Kyle Lowry in that big sign-and-trade deal. But they lost Dragic, Nunn, Iguodala, and Achiuwa in the process. The Heat are a little thin, especially behind Lowry.
Lowry is going to be 36 before the 2022 NBA Playoffs are supposed to begin. Right now, his backup is Gabe Vincent, which isn’t ideal. Lowry is aging and while Butler and Adebayo can handle the ball, another true point guard to rest Lowry a bit would help.
He sure isn’t getting any younger, so keeping his legs as fresh as possible before the playoffs is key. The Heat did great things this offseason, but a backup PG would really go a long way for not only their rotation, but making sure the aging Lowry can be at his best when the stakes are the highest.
Milwaukee Bucks: A Healthy Milwaukee Bucks Team
I think this one speaks for itself. The defending champs got better over the offseason. Losing PJ Tucker hurts them a lot, especially in a matchup against the Nets, but they added a lot of depth. Rodney Hood, George Hill, Semi Ojeleye, re-signing Bobby Portis. They also made a really nice trade for Grayson Allen, not to mention Donte DiVincenzo is coming back from injury next season.
But we all know if the Nets were healthy, the Bucks wouldn’t have won that 2nd round series. It’s certainly not a slight against the Bucks, it’s just true. Not even the Bucks have enough defenders for the Big 3 and all the other weapons they have and I wouldn’t put it past Mike Budenholzer to mess things up even if they did. I still find ways to dislike Mike Budenholzer even after he won a title.
The Bucks are the 2nd best team in the East. But if they run into the Nets, which is inevitable, they are likely going to lose if both sides are healthy.
Minnesota T-Wolves: Backup Point Guard
I do agree with this, but Minnesota solved this problem. They traded 2019 lottery pick Jarrett Culver and Juancho Hernangomez to the Grizzlies for Patrick Beverley. I love this move for the T-Wolves. Get a experienced, gritty defender for your backcourt. He’ll be a very good backup guard and should help mentor some of the younger guards like Edwards or Jaylen Nowell.
On the note of Culver, the writing was on the wall. He’s just been a bust. The T-Wolves traded the #11 overall pick and Dario Saric to get the #6 pick in 2019. They wanted Darius Garland, but he went at #5, so they just went with Culver. It was a reach, but the trade looks worse now because of what they gave up.
Dario Saric was the backup center for the Suns during their Finals run. The #11 overall pick? That became Cam Johnson, another piece for the Suns and their finals run this past season. That kind of hurts. The T-Wolves passed up on guys like Cam Reddish or Rui Hachimura, forwards that the T-Wolves kind of need right now.
This is a win-now move. I know the T-Wolves aren’t contenders, but they’re not waiting for Jarrett Culver. They know what they’re getting in Beverley and they’re trying to find some sort of success. They’re hoping D-Lo and Towns can stay healthy so that they push for a play-in seed. I like this move and now it’s just time to show some results.
New Orleans Pelicans: Frontcourt Spacing
Unless you’ve been living under a rock, this is a major problem the Pelicans have. The Pelicans need to give Zion more space and they’ve done that, kind of. Devonte Graham’ is a downgrade from Lonzo Ball, but he can shoot. Brandon Ingram is also a good shooter and they drafted Trey Murphy III in the first around, another solid shooter.
But Zion doesn’t have much spacing from his frontcourt peers. 70% of his shots came from within 3 feet of the basket last year and while he shot 70% from within 3 feet and 61% overall, getting him spacing would help a lot.
Jonas Valanciunas is better than Steven Adams and while he’s technically a better shooter, he only shoots one 3-pointer per game. Going to have to bump that up for things to work. Valanciunas is also great at eating up space down low with rebounds. That with not help with the spacing.
Jaxson Hayes isn’t a shooter, so the Pelicans really don’t have a stretch big of any type on their roster. Lauri Markkanen would be perfect on a short-term deal to add some shooting, as he shot 40% from 3 last season. The Pelicans spacing around Zion still needs work, especially down low.
New York Knicks: A Center Who Can Shoot
I don’t really think the Knicks need this. The Knicks have one of the best defenses in the league and it’s anchored by Nerlens Noel and Mitchell Robinson. Both are great interior defenders and are a big reason for the Knicks being so great defensively.
In the BR article, it talks about them not being that offensive, which is true. Robinson’s average shot distance was 1.3 feet last year and Noel’s was 3.7 feet. So they’re not floor spacers, but I don’t think that is really a problem anymore.
Julius Randle turned himself into a 40% 3-PT shooter last year after shooting just 28% from 3 in 2019-20. I get that he might not shoot 40% again, but he’ll still be good. I doubt he goes back to shooting <30% from 3 again. But last year Randle didn’t have much spacing around him and maybe the Knicks not having a stretch big would be a problem. But the Knicks offense was rebuilt this offseason.
Evan Fournier has shot 38% from 3 on 6 attempts per game since the 2016-17 season. He’s a really good shooter. Kemba Walker had shot 38% from 3 on 8 attempts per game since 2015-16. Both of those guys add a lot of shooting. Not to mention the Knicks brought back Alec Burks and Derrick Rose. They drafted a shooter in Quintin Grimes and another scorer in Miles McBride in the draft.
Last year, not having a stretch big hurt the Knicks. But they added a lot of offense this season, so Robinson and Noel not being “good” offensive players is fine. They can just focus on defense and chip in wherever they can offensively. I don’t think this will be a problem for the Knicks. This was a problem for them last year, but not this year.
OKC Thunder: Experience
The Thunder got younger this offseason, somehow. With the departure of both Al Horford and George Hill, they lost some veterans. Sam Presti is deciding to pay Kemba Walker $54 million over the next two seasons to not have him in OKC. The one old guy left is Derrick Favors, who the Thunder acquired along with some draft picks.
The Thunder only have 3 players over 24 years old and they have a lot of rookies/unproven players. This is going to be an ugly season. I know how I said that the Rockets should lose some of their veterans, having a few veterans at least is helpful. They are good mentors who can give young guys advice on how to play in the NBA.
That is very invaluable stuff, so maybe OKC just signs a couple of older guys to ride along for 2022, a season that is going to involve a lot of losing.
Orlando Magic: Backcourt Shooting
The Orlando Magic have a lot of young talent, like a lot. They had two top 10 picks in this year’s draft, adding to a growing pool of young talent that has been collected over the past few seasons. Their rebuild is about to begin but they aren’t exactly going to be great this season.
They are likely going to be one of the worst shooting teams in the league. Of the 4 returning guards (Cole Anthony, Markelle Fultz, Gary Harris, RJ Hampton), none shot better than Harris’ 34% mark from deep last season.
Fultz is a career 27% 3-PT shooter coming off of an ACL tear. Cole Anthony shot 33% from 3 as a rookie. RJ Hampton shot just 31% from 3 last year. The guards they have now aren’t exactly shooters (yet).
They drafted Jalen Suggs, who isn’t exactly a sniper from deep. While Suggs didn’t shoot that well from 3 in college, his mechanics look good, so he should be a good shooter down the line.
But with this limited spacing, guys like Jonathan Isaac, Wendell Carter, Franz Wagner, and Mo Bamba will have a lot less space to operate. The Magic need a Fred Vinson like assistant coach to help them. Vinson really helped Lonzo Ball in New Orleans, making him a great shooter. They either have to improve internally or make some moves, because you need good shooting to win nowadays.
Philadelphia 76ers: A Reliable Third Scorer
This one is no secret. The 76ers have their one-two scoring punch in Embiid and Harris. Harris and Embiid averaged 48 points per game last year and 49.9 points per game in the playoffs. Those two are one of the few reliable things about the 76ers offense. The guys around them need improvement.
Behind Embiid and Harris, there are six players averaging between 8.0-14.3 points per game. Ben Simmons is supposed to be the 3rd scorer, but that role went to Seth Curry in the playoffs. But even Curry wasn’t the 3rd option in the playoffs all the time. One night it was Danny Green, another it was Tyrese Maxey, or even the occasional Shake Milton sighting.
The 76ers need a reliable 3rd scorer and I don’t think Ben Simmons is that guy. I think Seth Curry is the perfect 4th option, but they need one more guy who can give you 15-20 points per game a night. Since Ben Simmons can’t do that and he doesn’t want to be in Philly anymore, the 76ers should just trade him.
I don’t get why Daryl Morey is trying to get so many picks/players for Simmons. His trade value isn’t that high and the 76ers don’t even need a guy like Damian Lillard or Bradley Beal. They can trade Simmons for somebody like CJ McCollum, Buddy Hield, or Collin Sexton. Sure, they aren’t superstars, but they could be that 3rd scorer who could alleviate some pressure from Embiid and Harris, who do so much offensively.
Adding a guy like Hield/Sexton would make the 76ers a lot better. Their offense would greatly benefit from it and I think that’s one of the only ways for them to contend with the Bucks/Nets of the world. Keeping Simmons isn’t the answer, although it looks like that’s where we’re heading.
Phoenix Suns: Power Forward Clarity
This is one of the worst ones on the list. Essentially, BR is saying that the Suns need to choose their power forward. Either the defensive, veteran Jae Crowder or the young, more offensive Cam Johnson. I like both of these players but I do think Crowder should be starting. His defense alone is great and he’s a seasoned veteran. Cam Johnson looked very good off the bench in the playoffs, I don’t think this is a problem at all.
The problem is the Suns lack of size down low. Deandre Ayton was all alone when it came to guarding Giannis and we all know how that turned out. The Suns won’t have Dario Saric for most, if not all of 2022 as he recovers from that ACL tear he suffered in the Finals.
They signed Javale McGee, which I suppose is fine, but unless they expect big things from Jalen Smith in his 2nd season, they’re going to need at least one more body down low. If they want to beat the Lakers with AD, the Bucks with Giannis, the 76ers with Embiid, they’re going to need size. They don’t have that right now and I think they should address it.
Portland Trail Blazers: Commitment To Defense
As a Blazers fan, I am kind of numb to defense in general. I am going to stop hoping that one year we just figure things out. We traded two first round picks for Robert Covington after finishing 27th in defensive rating in 2020. In 2021, we slipped to 29th and had a historically bad defense, the biggest reason for our demise against Denver. That an Terry Stotts.
The starting lineups features 3 guards under 6’3″, so I’m not expecting some sort of defensive revolution from Chauncey Billups. Billups saying this about the defense doesn’t give me the biggest shot of confidence;
“If you’re going to take the next step you gotta have some investment in the defense and actually want to be better there, and we will be. That’s the only way you take the jump and playing at time like this [the conference finals] is to focus on the defensive end of the basketball. I’m looking forward going into games with a defensive-minded mindset. We’ll prepare for it every day and guys will begin to enjoy it.”
It’s cliché, but who cares. I don’t think Blazers fans can expect much defense, but there is one thing I am banking on. To end the year last year, the defense looked a lot better with Powell in the starting lineup. That starting 5 of Dame-CJ-Powell-Covington-Nurkic had a +15.5 net rating, one of the best starting lineups in the league.
So while adding Cody Zeller and Tony Snell won’t change things, I think that the starting lineup will be pretty good. Now it’s up to the bench to not play awfully. We don’t have Enes Kanter and Carmelo Anthony anymore, so hopefully the bench’s defense won’t be absolutely horrible anymore. So I don’t think the defense will be that important if the starting lineup plays as well as it did to end last year.
Sacramento Kings: Wing Depth
The Kings have been going a different way than the trend of the NBA. Most teams want versatile wings that can do it all, but the Kings have a very stacked guard/center corps. They have drafted a lot of guards recently and they stacked up on centers this offseason. But that leaves them pretty vulnerable at the wing position.
Let’s look at the Kings guard rotation;
De’Aaron Fox
Buddy Hield
Tyrese Haliburton
Davion Mitchell
Terence Davis
The Kings drafted Haliburton in 2020, re-signed Davis this offseason and drafted Mitchell 9th overall. They have a lot of playable guards and their center rotation is also pretty full;
Richuan Holmes
Tristan Thompson
Alex Len
Damian Jones
The Kings signed a lot of centers this offseason, insurance for the possibility of Richuan Holmes leaving, which he didn’t. On the wings, they are pretty vulnerable. Harrison Barnes is very good and Mo Harkless is decent in doses, but they need more, specifically wing defenders.
My solution? Trading Hield/Bagley to try and get somebody. Kelly Oubre would really help them, maybe a guy like Derrick Jones Jr? The Kings need more on the wings besides just Barnes and Harkless. Preferably somebody who is good defensively, but they have too many guards and centers. It’s time they balance out their personnel.
San Antonio Spurs: Pick-and-Roll Partners
The Spurs problem is that they’re trying. They should just rebuild around Dejounte Murray, Keldon Johnson, and rookie Joshua Primo, among others. Signing guys like Zach Collins and Doug McDermott to 3 year deals isn’t going to help them. They are going to be pretty bad next season, but they’re going to try and win, which is bad.
They should just bite the bullet and rebuild. But they’ll probably have to let Greg Popovich retire before that happens, because I doubt he wants to sit around and rebuild. But they just need to rebuild. I don’t want to hear about their lack of pick-and-roll partners. Just rebuild, please.
Toronto (Tampa Bay) Raptors: Rebounding
As the Raptors try and transition past the Kyle Lowry era, they have guys like Fred VanVleet and Malachi Flynn to man the guard position for the future. The backcourt is in good hands. Pascal Siakam is an All-Star caliber player and Scottie Barnes is the rookie swiss army knife forward who can do it all. But the one thing the Raptors need is rebounding, like really badly.
The Raptors were 28th in rebounding percentage last season (47.9%). They did re-sign Khem Birch which is good and Chris Boucher is a decent rebounder. But Boucher’s rebounding percentage last year was 15.3%, the highest on the team. Russell Westbrook had a rebounding percentage of 16.8% with the Wizards, so the Raptors need more down low.
The Raptors just needed to get some center who could help them down low. As much as it pains me to say this, getting Andre Drummond for cheap wouldn’t have been the worst option in the world. The Raptors just need rebounding badly and with this current roster? It’s going to be another poor rebounding season for the Raptors.
Utah Jazz: A Post-Up Threat
This one is also completely wrong. I get that the Jazz were a very good regular season team with their shooting, their defense, and their All-Stars. Adding Rudy Gay is great, but they aren’t a title contender. While the Jazz don’t have a post presence and that would make them better, they have a much more pressing need.
Perimeter defense. When the Clippers went small in the playoffs, the Clippers perimeter players just went by Mitchell, Conley, and Clarkson. This left Gobert between a rock and a hard place, which led to Terance Mann scoring 39 points in Game 6 of that series because Gobert couldn’t make decisions fast enough.
The Clippers don’t have wing defenders other than Royce O’Neale. Donovan Mitchell isn’t a very good defender and Mike Conley has regressed as a defender as he’s gotten older. While Gobert is amazing defensively, the Jazz need some better perimeter options. While their offense is simple, I doubt a post-up option really pushes them over the top.
But because they have put literally all of their money into this flawed team, they don’t have much flexibility. They gave up Derrick Favors to avoid paying as much of a luxury tax. Oh yeah, they also don’t have a backup center now. The Jazz aren’t a title contender and without a good set of perimeter defenders in the Western Conference? Good luck.
Washington Wizards: Quantity Over Quality
The Wizards have been collecting young talent over the past few seasons because they haven’t been good. But the Russell Westbrook trade brought them 3 players who are veterans and are proven in the league to some degree. Now they have a choice. Lean on the veterans for a low playoff seed, stunting the growth of the younger guys, or go full rebuild mode, which won’t sit well with Beal and the other veterans.
Who is going to be starting in the frontcourt for the Wizards? At small forward, you have KCP, sophomore Deni Avdija, and rookie Corey Kispert. At power forward, you have Kuzma, Hachimura, and Davis Bertans. At center, you have Gafford, Harrell, and Thomas Bryant who is coming back from an ACL tear.
The Wizards have too much depth for their own good and they have to make some choices. Here is my ideal lineup for them;
Dinwiddie
Beal
KCP
Hachimura
Thomas Bryant (Gafford if he’s not healthy)
Kuzma
Harrell
Gafford (if Bryant is healthy)
Kispert
Avdija
Bertans
I don’t really know what to do. I would love for them to play around Hachimura, Avdija, Kispert, Gafford, and Bryant, but the Wizards likely won’t do that. My suggestion would be to trade a couple guys, maybe Harrell or Bertans, just to free up some space for other guys to play. Either way, the Wizards aren’t going to be great, but since they insist on being mediocre, they can’t develop their young guys and their veterans aren’t taking them anywhere.
Why can’t just trade Beal and rebuild? Would that be so hard?
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Link To The BR Article: https://bleacherreport.com/articles/2947140-every-nba-teams-biggest-problem-after-free-agency-madness
