Last time on The New Millennium, LeBron James began to prove his critics wrong, lifting the 2012 NBA Championship alongside the likes of fellow superstars Paul Pierce and Dwight Howard. Now, the offseason is upon us and changes are coming.
Player Retirements
Biding farewell to the NBA this year were the likes of Brevin Knight, Steve Francis, Earl Boykins, Kenyon Martin, Raja Bell and Justin Galloway. No players would be inducted into the Hall of Fame.
League Realignment
The major question heading into the offseason was whether the SuperSonics would move to Oklahoma City, robbing Seattle of their franchise. In the end, I noted the relatively decent fan interest(66.6 %) and solid market size(Medium), plus the poor reception of the move in real life, so I decided to let them stay for at least one more season. Should fan interest drop to low levels in the future, they will be in serious danger.
Draft Lottery
With only the ninth best odds, the Bucks got lucky, jumping all the way up to pick number three. Seattle kept their team but dropped to fourth thanks to Milwaukee and the Jazz got the fifth pick thanks to the Goran Dragic trade with Sacramento. The Pelicans will pick second, and after trading up last year, the Spurs got the luck of the draw, winning the number one pick.
- The Utah Jazz trade 2012 5th and 17th overall picks to the Milwaukee Bucks for the 3rd overall pick-
Needing a big name, Utah moves up two spots and Milwaukee gets an extra 1st round pick, which they are very happy about.
2012 NBA Draft
1. C Andre Drummond, San Antonio Spurs(As Duncan continues to decline, the Spurs finally replace Dwight Howard)
2. SG Bradley Beal, New Orleans Pelicans
3. PF Anthony Davis, Utah Jazz(New Orleans passes on bringing back AD, as Utah's trade pays off)
4. PG Damian Lillard, Seattle SuperSonics(Is Rondo on the trade block?)
5. PF Draymond Green, Milwaukee Bucks(The Bucks needed defense and got it)
6. SF Harrison Barnes, Phoenix Suns
7. SF Michael Kidd-Gilchrist, Orlando Magic
8. SF Yuri Klimov, Cleveland Cavaliers
9. SF Zach King, Miami Heat
10. SG Austin Rivers, Toronto Raptors(Don't know about this one)
11. C John Henson, Golden State Warriors(Well that's even worse)
12. SG Dion Waiters, Charlotte Hornets
13. PG Florin Calmuschi, Golden State Warriors
14. PG Franklin Hickman, Dallas Mavericks
15. SG Khris Middleton, Detroit Pisons(That's a steal)
16. PG Marquis Teague, Houston Rockets
18. SF Terrence Ross, Portland Trail Blazers
19. SF Jae Crowder, Denver Nuggets
24. C Miles Plumlee, Indiana Pacers
27. PG Tomas Satoransky, Denver Nuggets
28. C Meyers Leonard, Chicago Bulls
30. SG Evan Fournier, Cleveland Cavaliers
35. SG Jeremy Lamb, Sacramento Kings
41. SF Maurice Harkless, Sacramento Kings
43. SG Will Barton, Charlotte Hornets
45. C Kyle O'Quinn, Dallas Mavericks
46. PF Mike Scott, Portland Trail Blazers
48. SF Darius Miller, Houston Rockets
51. PF Quincy Acy, Boston Celtics
53. C Tyler Zeller, Orlando Magic
58. C Andrew Nicholson, Phoenis Suns
Free Agency
Here are the players that switched teams in free agency:
C Sherman Conway(91 OVR), Sacramento Kings, 4 years, 145 million dollars
PG Darrel Fordham(89 OVR), Indiana Pacers, 4 years, 117 million dollars
SG Ray Allen(87 OVR), Utah Jazz, 1 year, 20 million dollars
PG Goran Dragic(87 OVR), Toronto Raptors, 4 years, 89 million dollars
PG Cliff Hobbs(86 OVR), San Antonio Spurs, 4 years, 51 million dollars
C Damon Stallworth(85 OVR), Philadelphia 76ers, 3 years, 36 million dollars
PF Bill Parks(85 OVR), Seattle SuperSonics, 4 years, 52 million dollars
SF Brandon Rush(84 OVR), Phoenix Suns, 3 years, 28 million dollars
C Jermaine O'Neal(83 OVR), Sacramento Kings, 3 years, 32 million dollars
Offseason Analysis
The Kings spent big to upgrade their big men, picking up Conway and O'Neal, two former NBA Finals MVPs in free agency. Indiana and San Antonio fill holes at point guard, and I have to like how aggressive the Jazz have been. Now with a true franchise player in Anthony Davis, Salt Lake City finally has something to cheer for. Seattle got a steal in Lillard, projected to be the second pick, but their future still looks murky at best. They're going to have to hope to get a nice package for Rajon Rondo, who is surely on the move.
2013 Draft Preview
Unlike real life, Giannis Antetokounmpo is the consensus number one overall pick, a player that surely a few teams would consider tanking for. But there is other talent in the class, including the likes of Victor Oladipo, Rudy Gobert, Steven Adams and C.J. McCollum. Still, this is a weaker class than most, with the truly elite talent at a minimum.
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