Free Agency Boons, take 2!

 

Last week we took a look at a handful of free agency targets, mostly in the lowest bracket of pricing, the minimum guys. Of course, there were a couple of Taxpayer MLE guys there too which means that they can also be signed by everyone. This week, we branch out a little further and pick up a look at some of the next bunch as well as some missed minimum guys from last week. Get hyped guys, these guys can really help push your team to the next level!

 

Ty Jerome

Jerome was all but set to hit the open market a couple of months ago as the cash strapper Bulls were going to struggle to fit his deal in under the triggered 2^nd apron. But now we’re here and it’s looking increasingly likely that they will go all in for their guy, despite him having 0 bonus head start and basically a free for all that can afford more than the tax payer MLE. He’s a$8.78mil this coming year, which is still well below the full MLE and makes him a juicy target on a multi year deal after a strong break out last year.

 

Guershon Yabusele

Ordinarily I wouldn’t include an RFA guy on this list, but Yabusele is an interesting one as he’s going to force his retaining team to use an MLE to bring him back due to lack of bird years. This might make him a guy that hits the open market for real if the Suns decide down the stretch that they can instead target someone else they feel will be cheaper and/or more of an impact maker. The likelihood is that he remains a Sun, but it’s worth looking at.

 

D'Angelo Russell

DLo wasn’t on the last article and generated immediate conversation and speculation as to why. He’s a strong 2k scorer and his contract is now down at the Tapx payer MLE level which means everyone can afford him. He has no signing bonus to his retaining team, the Minnesota Timberwolves, and is an impact player to a contending team looking for PG and scoring help. He will get bids!

 

Mason Plumlee

Big Mason always lands a deal in the NSL as he’s a tall, long, rebounding guy with good speed for his position and he makes that bench impact. He’s just another of those athletic vet big men that gets results and is worth bolstering your big man stock with. How many GMs he’ll get this year in a strong big man FA pool remains to be seen, but someone will pick him up whether it’s expensive or cheap, and he will make a court impact when healthy.

 

Lonzo Ball

Ball the forgotten man? Everyone is keeping whisper quiet on this one as anyone who can afford his modest $10mil contract is licking their lips at the prospect of bolstering their PG position with a now healthy guy who was highly sought after before his years of injury woes. He’s big for the position, can shoot, loves a pass and is a defensive impact guy too which makes him a very interesting piece to those contending teams that can afford the deal. It’s still well below the Full MLE, too. Ball will be paid as no one has any rights on him and it’ll be a free for all.

 

Brook Lopez

Lopez has the size and skills to keep getting deals and passed around in trades, even when his contract was outlandish. Now, it’s sitting at a modest $8.75mil this coming year and he has no connections to any team which makes him a useful commodity to a team looking for size and watching the many teams who can’t afford that deal just sit and wish. He’s not the perfect guy, but he’s worth the contract to bolster a big man department.

 

Doug McDermott

Who? Yep, Doug hasn’t played an NL game for a couple of years now as no one wanted to put that contract on the books for what he would offer as a role player. They might still not, or he’ll just be a body on a minimum to fill a roster, but maybe at minimum he actuall is handy to a team looking for shooting and spacing when you have guys like Sam Merrill, Duncan Robinson, Garrison Mathews and other floor spacers who have started handfuls of games over the last couple of years in a Doug McDermott role. He might be a sneaky get.

 

Chris Paul

Paul is always a sought after free agent and now he’s a minimum guy, he’s going to be right up there with Russell Westbrook as one of the top minimum PG options going round. He won’t hurt you defensively and he won’t try to jack up too many shots taking the ball from your star players, so he’ll play the perfect complimentary role in a star studded Championship contender. He’s going to get a lot of points dropped on him as he looks for one last year before retirement.

 

Kevon Looney

Looney moved teams in the offseason, much to the dismay of his owning team as he now has no rights to return via. The $8mil contract might be enough to dissuade some and flat out be too much for others to even consider, but you know what you’re getting if you go after Kevon and that’s a rock solid athletic rebounding monster who always puts up numbers in 2k.

 

DeAndre Jordan

And finally, one of the creams of the crop. Jordan was actually removed from the roster of the Thunder due to no NBA contract at the start of the NBA season, our annual roster finalisation cut off, but has since penned a minimum deal in the NBA and thus is hitting the pool as a free man entirely. That said, the Thunder would only have has 2 points head start on any team due to his signing with a new NBA team, so the damage is minimal. Jordan though is still huge. Still loves to rebound. Still is athletic and still won’t play enough in the NBA to get injured which is a strong trait for any player, availability. He’s going to a big bid getter now he’s back in time for our FA.

 

 

Only a week and a half now until we finalise our NSL rosters on FA day. Who are you targeting and how lucky are you feeling felling that 15 point random factor? Go get your guy. Bring the big bids!