The NBA offseason is a time of drastic variation in strategies from franchise to franchise. Some teams swing for the fences through free agency and trades. Others stock up on young talent in the draft. Even more make moves and still find themselves stuck in mediocrity. This year has been no different with teams like the Houston Rockets and Denver Nuggets making ‘win-now’ moves, teams like the Brooklyn Nets and Washington Wizards building for the future and teams like the Milwaukee Bucks and Chicago Bulls ending up in the middle after most of the dust has settled.
The first few big moves of the year came in the form of trades before the playoffs had even ended. On June 15, the Memphis Grizzlies sent guard Desmond Bane to the Orlando Magic in exchange for Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, Cole Anthony and five first-round picks – still the most expensive trade of the year thus far. This move signals Orlando is betting big on their current roster led by Paolo Banchero and Franz Wagner. Bane is a good shooter, filling the team’s biggest outstanding weakness.
Next, on the day of Game 7 of the finals, the Phoenix Suns sent Kevin Durant to the Rockets in exchange for Jalen Green, Dillon Brooks, two first-round picks and five second rounders. This deal puts the Rockets in a prime position to compete for a title as they won 52 games last season and held the second seed in the West. Now, they’ve added an all-time great offensive weapon in Durant who has the eighth most career points in NBA history.
In the days leading up to the draft, the Boston Celtics made the tough decision to trade away a few players from their 2024 championship-winning roster. After their star player Jayson Tatum tore his achilles in the playoffs, they decided to lower their roster salary for a season where they were likely not going to win without their leader. In quick succession, they sent Jrue Holiday to the Portland Trail Blazers in exchange for Anfernee Simons and Kristaps Porziņģis to the Atlanta Hawks for Georges Niang. While their roster will look rather different next year, their front office will pay a lot less.
In the draft, the Dallas Mavericks took Duke star Cooper Flagg with the first overall pick. They will look to slot him into a championship-ready roster alongside Kyrie Irving and Anthony Davis. With the Dallas Wings taking Paige Bueckers first overall in the WNBA draft earlier this year, this marks the first time the first overall pick from both leagues arrived in the same city in the same year since LeBron James and LaToya Thomas both went to Cleveland in 2003.
The Bucks have had a disappointing offseason. Their superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo has been in trade rumors for an extended period. Instead of dealing him for a bevy of picks (especially after the Bane trade set the market high), they waived their other star, Damian Lillard, who also tore his achilles in the playoffs, using the money they saved to sign center Myles Turner from the Indiana Pacers. This move doesn’t bring them to the same level as the top dogs of the East and keeps them in mediocrity.
On the other hand, some teams have improved their rosterto compete next season. One such team is the Nuggets. They have one of this generation’s best players in three-time MVP Nikola Jokić, and they’ve made moves to build around him. They brought back an important player from their 2023 championship in Bruce Brown Jr. Then, they traded for Cameron Johnson from the Nets and Jonas Valančiūnas from the Sacramento Kings. These moves give them good depth around their superstar.
Another team to have a good offseason is the Atlanta Hawks. First, they got Porziņģis from the Celtics, giving them a star center to play next to Trae Young. Porziņģis will give Young good spacing as a center who can also shoot well from beyond the arc, having shot a career high 40.4% from three last season. Next, the New Orleans Pelicans sent them an unprotected first-round pick for 2026 in exchange for moving back 10 spots in the draft where they took forward Asa Newell. Newell can become a good backup to forward Jalen Johnson in the future. In free agency, they brought in Luke Kennard from the Grizzlies as guard depth and Nickeil Alexander-Walker from the Minnesota Timberwolves to bolster their group of wing players.
In an eastern conference with multiple star players out next year with injuries, the new and improved Hawks have a chance of flying high. Atlanta has yet to capture the magic of their 2021 run to the conference finals, but this roster has youth and depth in equal parts, which give new hope for a playoff run.