my philadelphia 76ers, I know a lot of y’all will clown me but here is why: Talent-wise: obvious answer is the Golden State Warriors. They will likely be starting four of the NBA’s top ten players on a nightly basis, all of whom are in their mid-twenties and at the top of their games, if not arguably still improving. Financially, they’re not as solid and their depth has suffered a bit, but they still have two versatile key contributors in Iguodala and Livingston, and they’ll have no shortage of veteran options for the rest. Financially, the Boston Celtics’ front office executives are likely high-fiving themselves for their contractual foresight. Two years ago, fans and analysts were skeptical about the Celtics “overpaying” defensive specialist Avery Bradley with a 4-year, $32 million deal. Now Bradley is a first-team all-defender with an improved offensive game, and is very reasonably compensated when Matthew Dellavedova (a defensive-minded player who is inferior on both ends of the court) is getting 4 years and $38 million from the Bucks. Jae Crowder’s 5-year, $35 million deal signed before the beginning of the season appears to be one of the biggest bargains in the NBA, as he narrowly missed the defensive team while producing respectable offensive output, and his backup Evan Turner went on to sign a 4-year, $70 million deal with Portland. And the trade for Isaiah Thomas yielded an all-star who is making less than $7 million a year for the next two years, while their multitude of draft picks allows them to fill out the back end of their roster with high-upside potential contributors like Marcus Smart and Jaylen Brown on cheap rookie deals, with more future lottery picks still to come. The team has serious talent, especially with the acquisition of all-star Al Horford filling a significant need, but their financial management is what has laid the foundation for a darkhorse contender.
Kommentare