NBA free agency is one day away and there is a lot of speculation over where the best free agents will land. With rumors appearing left and right such as Klay Thompson won’t be returning to the Warriors, and the Warriors are going all in on Paul George, this free agency is set to be exciting.
Here are the most likely destinations for the five best 2024 NBA free agents.
LeBron James is once again a free agent after declining his $51.4 million player option.
Before the start of the NBA Draft, there was a lot of speculation over how Bronny James’ eventual draft selection could impact his father’s free agency. After it was reported, however, that Rich Paul called teams to inform them not to select Bronny, it has now become an almost virtual certainty that James will end up re-signing with the same team that Bronny James is now a member of, the Los Angeles Lakers.
There may be question marks at this stage as to whether or not this Lakers team can still compete for a championship, but it remains clear that James’ goal is to stay in LA and play with his son.
Had Bronny been drafted elsewhere, there could have been a serious debate as to where LeBron would go next. But Bronny in LA leaves no doubt that The King will be returning to the Los Angeles Lakers
Prediction: Los Angeles Lakers
Paul George is entering his 15th season in the NBA, at the age of 34, and is seeking one last max contract in this year’s free agency. The Los Angeles Clippers, however, have not shown a ton of interest in giving the All-Star a full four year max. While talks are still ongoing, it seems like there are other teams that are willing to go all in for George.
One of the first teams that comes to mind is the Philadelphia 76ers, as Philadelphia is one of the few teams right now that have, not only enough cap space for a full max player, but are also still competing for a championship. George could fit seamlessly in Nick Nurse’s system and could help both Tyrese Maxey and Joel Embiid finally go beyond the second round, something neither player has done in their career.
Another team to look out for in the George sweepstakes is the Golden State Warriors.
The Warriors had a disappointing end to their season last year as they lost their play-in game to the Sacramento Kings and fell short of making the playoffs.
There are two directions this Warrior team could go after their disappointing end to the season. They could choose to go for a full rebuild, or they could send future assets away and go for an all-in move. Trading for George is exactly the type of move the Warriors could make to make their way back to the playoffs next season. The trade could look something like this.
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Warriors-Clippers Mock Trade for Paul George |
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|---|---|
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Golden State Warriors Receive |
Los Angeles Clippers Receive |
|
Paul George |
Chris Paul |
|
Andrew Wiggins |
|
|
2025 FRP |
|
|
2027 FRP (top-three protected) |
|
|
2026 SRP (via ATL) |
|
Since the Warriors don’t have the cap space to sign George outright, they would need to make a trade in order to acquire him.
On the Clippers side of things, this trade would allow LA to get some assets back for George instead of losing him for nothing in free agency.
The only other likely option for George is that he settles for a contract slightly below the max and resigns with the Clippers. Whatever team George decides could vastly impact the Clippers’ future, as losing George could spark the Clippers to start a full rebuild in which they trade Kawhi Leonard and let James Harden leave in free agency.
George seems set on getting a four-year max contract, something the Clippers are refusing to budge on. The Warriors, however, are in a more desperate position and will likely give George a max extension via trade.
If George decides to go to Golden State, he would still remain in California, the state he grew up in, and could compete for a championship with former MVP Stephen Curry. This feels like the most likely route for George and the beginning of the next phase of his career.
Prediction: Golden State Warriors
The Chicago Bulls have finally started to enter a rebuilding phase after sending out Alex Caruso to the Oklahoma City Thunder for Josh Giddey. The next step for the Bulls is trading away their current star player in Zach LaVine. With the Bulls trading away both Caruso and likely LaVine in the near future, it makes little to no sense for the Bulls to retain DeMar DeRozan.
DeRozan still has a lot of value to add to a contender as he is still capable of putting up 20 points a night. If the 76ers are unable to sign Paul George, they may pivot to DeRozan.
DeRozan would pair nicely with his potential backcourt teammate in Tyrese Maxey and could be a very strong third option for this 76er team. With there being relatively little interest from most teams in giving DeRozan a long term contract, the most likely outcome is DeRozan signing with the 76ers on a two-year deal.
Prediction: Philadelphia 76ers
There are only a few teams this offseason who have enough cap space for a near max player; as such, James Harden has limited options for next year. The remaining teams that do have cap space would all be a poor fit for Harden, making his options either a sign and trade or returning to the Clippers.
A return to LA is almost solely reliant on Paul George’s choice this offseason. If George remains a Clipper, then the most logical choice for LA would be to keep this core intact and re-sign Harden. George returning to LA is far from a certainty, however, and if George ends up joining Golden State like he is heavily rumored to do, then Harden re-signing with the Clippers is highly unlikely.
One team that could have interest in trying to steal the former MVP away from the Clippers is the Houston Rockets. The Rockets don’t have the cap space to sign Harden outright, but they could be interested in a sign and trade.
The Rockets were zoned in on making a move for Harden last offseason before a deal was finalized that made Harden a Los Angeles Clipper, so the Rockets making another move for Harden is certainly plausible. If the Rockets were to pull off a trade for Harden, it would look something like this.
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Clippers-Rockets Mock Trade for James Harden |
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|---|---|
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L.A. Clippers receive |
Houston Rockets receive |
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Fred VanVleet |
James Harden (via sign-and-trade) |
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Bones Hyland |
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For the Rockets, bringing Harden back to the franchise is something they have wanted for a while, and pairing him with the collection of young talent in Houston is very promising.
As for the Clippers, they swap one former All-Star for another and still give themselves a chance to compete in the loaded West. If a core of VanVleet and Leonard ends up not being strong enough, they can trade VanVleet for future draft capital down the line.
Harden returning to the Rockets feels like a long time coming, as his short time with the Clippers will likely be coming to an end.
Prediction: Houston Rockets
Klay Thompson had a disappointing season in which he was starting to show signs of regression, including an abysmal final performance in this year’s play-in game when he scored zero points on 0-of-10 shooting from the field.
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Klay Thompson Stats |
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|---|---|---|
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Category |
2023-2024 |
Career |
|
PPG |
17.9 |
19.6 |
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FG% |
43.2% |
45.3% |
|
3PT% |
38.7% |
41.3% |
|
Corner 3PT% |
39.6% |
44.5% |
|
PER |
13.9 |
16.0 |
It’s no secret that the relationship between Thompson and the Golden State Warriors is not nearly as strong as it was, as there have even been reports coming out that Thompson unfollowed the Warriors on Instagram. Due to this, it seems more and more likely that Thompson will leave the Warriors and sign elsewhere.
Thompson has been a pretty highly coveted free agent as there have been rumors of many teams going after the five-time All-Star including, the Orlando Magic, the Dallas Mavericks, and even the Denver Nuggets.
While all of these teams could be solid fits for Thompson, an under the radar team that the sharpshooter could join is the Los Angles Lakers. LeBron James is reportedly willing to sign a smaller contract to allow the Lakers to obtain the full midlevel exception. This would create enough cap space for LA to go after Thompson, depending on what type of contract he is looking for.
Joining the Lakers would be the perfect fit for Thompson and could give the Lakers the missing piece they need to begin competing for a championship again. Pairing LeBron James with an elite three-point shooter is a dangerous combo, one that could help revitalize Thompson’s confidence and help him to play closer to his former self.
Prediction: Los Angeles Lakers
Related
Reports indicate that James may be willing to give up money if it means improving the Lakers’ chances to compete for a championship.
