NBA Talk #16: The New Look Eastern Conference! Who got better and who got Worse? Part 3
What's up basketball fans! I am here again @dwin0603 to give you another exciting basketball discussion for another episode of NBA Talk, and today we will talk about part 3 of the new-look Eastern Conference, who got better and who got worse? We're gonna go over to talk about all the details here. Let's start!
Orlando Magic
The Orlando Magic got better even if they didn't do much during the off-season. They just re-sign Nicola Vucevic who just had an all-star season. The contract was a 4-year $100 million which is honestly a lot less than I thought he would get. It's a good deal for both sides and a great move by Orlando. They made some quiet move and added Al-Farouq Aminu. A versatile wing player but overall a low impact move. Also, they re-signed Michael Carter-Williams for one more year which is just fine. The Orlando Magic made it to the playoffs last season but this upcoming season, it will be much difficult for them than last year.
Washington Wizards
The Washington Wizards slightly got worse. They did not do much this offseason. They re-signed Thomas Bryant to a very team-friendly contract of three years $25 million. He improved drastically as last season progressed and going forward, he's probably gonna be their third best player behind Beal and wall. Unfortunately, they did lose Trevor Ariza. A decent 3-and-D player. But it's not a huge deal if they did pick up Isaiah Thomas but at this stage of his career, he's a huge question mark. The main lost was trading away Thomas Satoranski, a solid backup point guard. Then they signed Ish Smith, another decent backup point guard but Ish is a little bit worse. Satoranski was low-key one of the best most consistent backup point guards in the league last year. He even filled in Wall’s shoes when he got injured and he filled it in very well.
Detroit Pistons
Detroit Pistons got better. They did not do much either but getting Derrick Rose for just two years $15 million seems like a solid move. It's a low-risk high-reward move because Rose could once again bounce back and have another great season like before. At times he still looks like a star which he showed off in Minnesota. Now I don't think getting him moves the needle for the Pistons. They'll still be a low receipted playoff team and will be struggling in the Eastern Conference.
New York Knicks
And finally, the New York Knicks. Once again, the Knicks got nothing. Not really apparently James Dolan did not want to throw a lot of money at Kevin Durant because of his Achilles injury so the Knicks missed out on him. But they probably wouldn't have gotten him anyway if they missed out on Kyrie Irving. But they did get Julius Randle who just had a phenomenal season with the New Orleans Pelicans. A three-year $63 million is a great deal for him. That's approximately the same contract as what the Hornets gave Terry. The Knicks also picked up Taj Gibson. He's a bit older now reaching his mid-30s but still a solid player, a great leader, and a great teammate which this young Knicks team really needs.
Then afterwards they went out and signed Bobby Portis to two-year $31 million. The Knicks basically got three power forwards in free agency and I don't think Portis is good enough to be paid fifteen million to be Randle's backup. Then they signed Wayne Ellington to two years $16 million and Reggie Bullock for two years $21 million. They also picked up Elfrid Payton as well for two years $16 million. So, basically the Knicks missed out on all top tier free agents and instead got some overpaid role players. But overall, despite not getting any superstars, I'd still say the Knicks did pretty well. It's better than nothing. They had a lot of cap space to use up and none of these are long-term contracts either. But the Knicks will still be a non-playoff team unless RJ Barrett is a true monster who can carry this Knicks team.
That is all for today folks! I would love to hear your thoughts about this article, so drop your comments now and let's have some basketball talk. 😁
