LeBron James return to Cleveland is the biggest free agency move of the summer. Photos/Wikimedia Commons
[dropcap]T[/dropcap]he feel good story of the summer in pro sports has to be LeBron James returning home and trying to resurrect the title hopes that have eluded Northeast Ohio for any sport in 50 years.
That move alone also began a rash of player movement in the NBA that resulted in the shift of power in the eastern conference. LeBron’s ‘Decision Part II’ represented the most important move of the NBA free agency period and started the domino effect for virtually all the other big named free agents to decide where they were going to resume their careers. Indirectly, the decision to return to the Cleveland Cavaliers shifted power in all directions in the eastern conference, and the team that benefited the most by default is easily the Chicago Bulls.
How you say? Here’s how.
From the summer of 2010 until the beginning of free agency 2014, the Miami Heat has been thought of as the team to beat in the eastern conference with good reason. Pairing LeBron James with former 20/10 big man Chris Bosh to form the “Big 3” with Dwyane Wade down in Miami is enough to put fear in any foe. Not only did LeBron’s defection from that trio weaken the stranglehold the Heat had on the eastern conference in going to the title game all four years that this unit was together, it also caused other players to make decisions on where to continue their careers. Marquee names in the East began to sign and commit almost immediately after LeBron’s decision, and the shift of balance began.
Here’s a team by team look at how the shift of balance in the upper echelon of the east took place.
Miami Heat: Eastern Conference Rank- 1st (with LBJ) 5th (without LBJ)
Lost: LeBron James
Gained: Josh McRoberts, Danny Granger
Explanation: At times in the last 2 seasons it appeared as if LeBron never left Cleveland, he became a one man show with the inconsistent play of Chris Bosh coupled with Wades deteriorating health that saw him miss 41 games over the same time period. LeBron departed, leaving team President Pat Riley to make some quick and shrewd moves, he did so by quickly making Bosh the centerpiece of the team and offering him a max contract due to the threat of him signing with the Houston Rockets, who had offered him 4 years at $88 million, which represented a max deal for a free agent not signing back with the team that owns their Bird rights. Riley had already secured the services of stretch four threat Josh McRoberts and a make good 2 year $4.2 million dollar contract with Danny Granger. Although Riley was able to salvage Bosh and Wade, any team that loses the single best player on the planet will undoubtedly take a huge step back. In the end, it all depends on Bosh returning to form as the perennial leader and all around threat he was in Toronto for the Heat to even be mentioned as a threat in the east. Predicting where the Heat will end up is purely speculation, but one thing for sure is they are no longer the team to beat in the east without LeBron, they are merely a playoff team that can get as high as the third seed but more than likely will end up in the middle of the pack.
Indiana Pacers: Eastern Conference Rank- 2nd (w/Lance) 4th (w/o Lance)
Lost: Lance Stephenson
Gained: Rodney Stuckey
Explanation: As a team operating as one of the best teams in the east without a true point guard over the last 2 seasons, the last thing that Larry Bird and company could afford was the leading playmaker and primary ball handler parting ways. With the emergence of Lance Stephenson as a blossoming star and primary playmaker, Indiana had emerged as a potential threat to beat the Heat. George Hill as the starting PG became less of a burden with Lance leading the way with 359 assists compared to Hill’s 265 in the 2013/14 campaign. Rodney Stuckey, who is not a willing passer and not even close to the rebounding stud he is charged to replace, will try to assume the role vacated by the departure of Larry Bird’s former ear blowing project. In the end, the Pacers have taken a major step back. The Pacers seemed like a team with no identity the last 32 games of last season even with Lance, so much so that people around NBA circles were questioning whether Head Coach Frank Vogel would retain his job. Losing Lance will undoubtedly decrease the chances of Indiana making much noise in the east; however, they still have one of the brightest young stars in Paul George and enigmatic big man Paul Hibbert which should allow them to fare well enough to have a very respectable record even if they don’t possess the pieces to actually be the favorites in the east. Look for the record of the Pacers to dip a bit, but their team toughness will still be high with David West being the defensive captain and muscle of the operation.
Cleveland Cavs: Eastern Conference Rank- 10th (w/o LBJ) 2nd (with LBJ)
Lost: Jarrett Jack, Spencer Hawes, Luol Deng, Tyler Zeller
Gained: LeBron James, Mike Miller, Andrew Wiggins
Explanation: Undoubtedly, the biggest winner of LeBron leaving the Heat is that fact that he joined the Cavs. While that is great news for the Cavs, it is not equivalent to him joining the Heat Back in 2010 when he had two perennial Hall of Famers as his running mates. The addition of King James automatically elevates the Cavs to contenders, but the subtraction of LeBron from the Heat also lessens the control the Heat had on the conference as well as spreading the wealth to other teams in the east. The Cavs will undoubtedly be a major player in the east as all teams who have the best player in the world on their team would, but the youth factor and inexperience of the Cavs will not allow them to make it far in the playoffs. The end result is that the Cavs have the opportunity to cash in some top 5 draft picks into Kevin Love and suddenly become the darlings of the eastern conference, but the team as currently constructed with 5 top 5 picks will only look good in the record books, but not necessarily threaten the east with a finals appearance.
The rest of the Playoff contenders:
Washington Wizards: The Wiz did themselves well by resigning Marcin Gortat to a 5 year deal. They also kept their young core together in addition to bringing back Drew Gooden who proved to be a great locker room presence. The loss of Trevor Ariza who played out of his mind in his contract year will definitely not help to advance the young Wiz into contention, but the young core will have more minutes to develop without him. With time, the dynamic backcourt of Bradley Beal and John Wall will eventually rise to the top of the eastern conference to contend with the Bulls and Cavaliers, but this year will be much of the same for the Wiz with the exception of them not meeting a hurt Bulls team to advance to the second round. As far as the 2014/15 season, the Wiz will look to be a very formidable team, with their record moving up the ladder slightly due to the loss of wins to teams like Miami and Indiana. They can possibly clinch the 3rd or 4th playoff spot with a healthy season.
Atlanta Hawks: Without many impact moves, the health of Al Horford will be the single most important development in the Hawks returning to .500 and being a playoff team worthy of mentioning. The Hawks should make the playoffs off talent alone, but the roster as currently constructed should make no noise worthy of shouting about.
Charlotte Bobcats: Michael Jordan’s newly named Hornets showed well during last season in making the playoffs for the first time in the MJ era. The loss of Josh McRoberts might sting the organization a wee bit, but the addition and more important subtraction of Lance Stephenson from perennial powerhouse Pacers should drag a couple more wins into the Hornets nest. The Hornets also brought in Marvin Williams to lessen the blow of the departure of McRoberts which should help the young Hornets continue their development and at the very least keep them in the 6th or 7th spot in the east playoff race. The addition of Lance helps the Bulls probably more than any other transaction that has taken place in the summer of 2014.
Toronto Raptors: The Raptors did well to keep PG sensation Kyle Lowry in the fold which will eventually lead other potential free agents to finally decide that playing above the border is not such a bad thing. General Manager Masai Ujiri deserves much if not all of the credit for transitioning the wayward Toronto franchise from a team that no free agent even thinks about to a landing spot that has newfound life after losing Chris Bosh in 2010 and players like Tracy McGrady and Vince Carter prior. The Toronto franchise has new life after trading away the ball stopping Rudy gay, and other dead weight acquired during in season trades. But there is more to the NBA than just making the playoffs and winning a division that occupies the tanking wonders known as the Philadelphia 76er, the forever aging Brooklyn Nets, the not so ready to compete new York Knicks, and the still undecided Boston Celtics. The Raptors have the best chance to repeat as division winners as anyone in the entire eastern conference due to the futility of the division foes, but as far as being any kind of threat, the Raptors have a long way to go.
Carmelo Anthony resigned with the New York Knicks despite speculation he may go to Chicago.
New York Knicks: The New York Knicks made the second biggest impact signing of the 2014 free agency period. Keeping Carmelo Anthony away from the Bulls was probably bigger for the eastern conference than it was for the Knicks in 2014/15 and for the eastern conference going forward (But don’t tell them that). The Knicks are probably a free agent summer away from making any impact on the conference and realizing their potential in keeping ‘Melo. The expiring contracts of Amar’e Stoudamire and Andrea Bargnani will produce $35.4 million in available money to reach out to potential 2015 free agents that may produce a winner in New York if Phil is able to convince FA’s next summer to join the his Master plan. Keeping ‘Melo in New York kept a struggling team down for at least one more year, as well as kept the shift of big named free agents from joining together to form another super power like the Celtics with Ray Allen, Paul Pierce, and Kevin Garnett and the previously mentioned Miami Heat of 2010-2014. The Knicks should be a contender in 2015 and beyond, but the Knicks team as currently constructed won’t scare anybody in the east even if they do sniff the playoffs. ‘Melo has not made it outside of the first round of the playoffs since he entered the NBA in 2003. This year will be no different, but ‘Melo sticking with the Knicks and not joining some super team allows the Bulls as well as other eastern conference teams to at least have a chance at eastern conference supremacy for at least one year.
The other teams in the eastern conference bear no mention in playoff contention or impact signings that impact the eastern conference as far as the playoffs are concerned, but some teams in the eastern conference have signed players that take away from the eastern conference powers as well as bring more talent from the western conference which has been superior for more than 20 years.
The Magic brought talent to the east in Channing Frye, but they did so in allowing Arron Afflalo to get back to the western conference, resulting in not much of an improvement over the next year or two for the eastern conference or the Magic.
Boston, Philadelphia, Milwaukee, and Detroit will simply have to make major trades and use their salary cap space in order to shift anything or even think about the playoffs.
Now, the reasons the Bulls were the biggest winners in the eastern conference after LeBron decided to go home.
The biggest competition in the central division for the Bulls was formerly the Indiana Pacers. With Lance being the biggest difference in the division with D.Rose being injured, taking away Lance only enhances the Bulls chances of conquering the central division.
The Miami Heat had been the biggest foe for the Bulls even before Rose fell injured. With LeBron leaving the Heat and Carlos Boozer moving to a non-impressive Los Angeles Lakers team out west, the Bulls, by default move ahead of the former eastern conference kings.
The likely return of Derrick Rose could lift the Bulls to a deep run in the postseason.
Acquisitions of Pau Gasol, rookie Doug McDermott, overseas sensation Nikola Mitotic, and the return of Rose to one team could easily be viewed as the best collective team improvement to this point in free agency this year. With the wealth of talent being shifted around in the east and no players teaming up like the Miami Heat of 2010, the Bulls have a clear path to the finals.
With ‘Melo going back to New York and LeBron going home, the two best available players in free agency went to places that have a lot of work to. Gasol being a top 10 player joining an already formidable Bulls team should prove to be the formula for success in the east.
Prior to free agency, no team besides the Heat had more collective talent than the Bulls in the east, and to this point in free agency, no team in the east has done more to add to their talent base. As currently constructed, if the Bulls remain healthy, the biggest problem they will have is the distribution of minutes, not any one team east.
On paper, no team in the east should be able to beat the Bulls in a 7 game series and they have definitely put themselves in position to be the team to beat. Barring any major injuries, look for the Bulls to be playing in June! You heard it here first!
