NBA SIMS LEAGUE
Free Agency - Drive, Reverse or Neutral
What a torturous, intense, epic event the 2025 Free Agency Day was!
Arguably the most efficient we have had in recent memory, but one of the more dynamic in regard to bids, too. Plenty of hard-earned GM-point cash was thrown at the players, with some teams leaving full, and some left full of questions.
Simple concept: ‘drive’ means the team moved forward, ‘reverse’ means the team lost momentum and ‘neutral’ means that this team probably didn’t worry themselves too much with the FA day shenanigans (or didn’t need to). Drive typically means the team has added some surprise success over what was expected. Sometimes, neutral can be as good as doing what was expected. Reverse means teams either missed out on crucial archetypes for their build, lost their free agents and/or mismanaged their GM points.
Atlanta Hawks - neutral
Full roster, didn’t have anything to prove during FA! We missed bulldog’s astute commentary, though.
Boston Celtics - neutral
Closed an outstanding deal to bring in Okongwu and shed some weight. Toby didn’t have much else to do.
Brooklyn Nets - neutral
Portis returned, which was a MUST. The Nets paid up the GMs to ensure no one else could beat them, which was the right move. Landale was a nice add, but they missed a few other targets. Still at 13 players.
Charlotte Hornets - drive
It might be subtle and not sexy, but I think the Hornets did well enough. Okogie and Boucher will both play minutes in the Charlotte rotation.
Chicago Bulls - drive
The Bulls told the world all along that they were hot for their guy Ty Jerome. Fresh off a breakout season, Jonathan wasn’t kidding - 99 gms were dropped, and Jerome was secured. Nance Jr was a sought after PF, too. Well done.
Cleveland Cavaliers - reverse
Was it the leveller? Bad luck? Bad targeting? The Cavaliers, fresh off a dominant season, weren’t able to secure a player outside of Nigel Hayes (who?). The FA-day trade for depth papered over the cracks. Still at 13 players.
Dallas Mavericks - neutral
LJ, with a full roster, didn’t have much work to do today! However, he was able to grab guard Sam Merrill to be his 15th player.
Denver Nuggets - drive
I feel that most FA Days, Digga holds off until the end and luckily is able to scrape up a few free agents to complete the roster. To ease the anxiety of the fans, Digga got to work early. Watford, Brown, Holiday and Hyland, good stuff.
Detroit Pistons - reverse
The word about town is Sheed is going to war against winning, and has welded himself inside the tank. In a financial landscape where salary cap space is dead, and every asset has value, dumping Schroeder is not good business.
Golden State Warriors - drive
Everything Daz does is careful and calculated, and this FA Day was no different. Like a surgeon with a blade, he makes moves without much noise or notice. Adding NAW and Lopez for 30 something GMs is splendid.
Houston Rockets - neutral
Vitt wasn’t about to let his boy LaRavia be taken and enjoyed by someone else. 99 GMs were thrown down to secure his services in Houston. Jake feels loved, but Vitt is a player shy of a legal roster.
Indiana Pacers - drive, baby, drive!
In total wildcat-Yeet fashion, our beloved basketcase stole the show and won the day in a daring and dashing display of calculated risk-taking and aggressive manoeuvring. Staring the Spurs in the eye and blinking last saw them steal Kornet in a daylight robbery. Yeet didn’t stop there, cashing in all of his 2nd rounders to load up on GM points and win the services of Hardaway Jr, Achuiwa and AJ Green - all sought after FAs. Yeet’s emotions and sanity balance on a knife’s edge, but today, Yeet laughs last and loudest.
Los Angeles Clippers - neutral
Andrew had a flurry or two on some prospective FAs but they didn’t have to do anything. Their roster was locked and loaded already.
Los Angeles Lakers - drive
Titles is ultra-competitive, and he sees 2025-26 as his year. Wemby was able to make huge growth with the help of CP3 in real life, and they have been paired again here to win a title. One of the FA prizes went to LAL and they have a Floor General.
Memphis Grizzlies - reverse
Rough day for Rootsey, as the typically steady hand of the Memphis’ GM seemed to wobble. They re-signed who they were expected to in Thomas, Hayes and TJ, but lost two big, heartbreaking bids to leave FA Day empty handed and wallet-ed.
Miami Heat - drive
Pistol’s concentration is predominantly focused on flying the plane/not crashing it, and for this selflessness I really do admire him and what he does for us in the NSL. However, karma landed when D-Lo was in the last wave of FAs and Pistol was the only one with dry gun powder.
Milwaukee Bucks - drive
IN RUSS WE TRUST! Ethan is disappointed with his FA day due to missing many a bid, but I think what is most important is the bid he DID get. Westbrook is a star in 2k. He beat out another max bid and got the prize of FA. Bucks have a team that can win the title.
Minnesota Timberwolves - reverse
Shay had arguably the worst day of any GM. Sure, they didn’t lose as many GMs as Rootsey, but they don’t have the talent and security on the roster that he does. Did he do all he could? He now has to scrounge and pay a premium to fill his roster.
New Orleans Pelicans - drive
Leeroy will say it was a ‘humdrum’ kind of FA but I see the value in what he added. Leeroy was able to land two coveted ‘2k’ bigs in Jordan and Looney to play off his bench, giving him consistent ‘+’ impact of Cs for his team and potentially a great trade chip.
New York Knicks - neutral/drive
I read a simile today that I agree with… ‘Smokey is like a dealer in Las Vegas, in control, mysterious, focused, and the House always wins.’ Sure, the Knicks didn’t do much during FA, but they had an awful algorithm (and Smokey would know this). They are going to add a great veteran guard into their MLE for next to nothing. If that happened on FA day, they would have gotten a ‘drive’ rating.
Oklahoma City Thunder - drive
I have to admit, I was worried when the text rolled across my screen… ‘how do I bid on players?’. The show had already started, and I feared that Cake may have been overcooked before the fun even began. However, the rookie steadied the ship and ended up landing some very useful role players in Batum, Melton and Exum.
Orlando Magic - neutral
Most importantly, and not surprisingly, Mailo was able to bring her two best players back, Kyrie Irving and Naz Reid. A great day for Orlando.
Philadelphia 76ers - reverse
The typically efficient Nenjabin wobbled a little during FA day, with some bids of a peculiar size that felt like hedges more than commitments. Thankfully, he was able to bring back all his guys and has his affairs in order and his core locked in.
Phoenix Suns - drive
Laddas, our faithful host, wanted nothing but a lowly PG to fill out his roster and man the 1-spot. Instead of lowly, he did even better, and traded the L in for an R and convinced Kyle Lowry to play a huge mentor/Floor General role for his Suns. Win!
Portland Trail Blazers - neutral
Portland had but one RFA to take care of and that was a given. Was able to buy two 2nds during the FA lead up and event.
Sacramento Kings - drive
Klemm keeps dancing around the bullets that are ricocheting off the asphalt and he doesn’t even spill his drink. Levert, Plumlee and GTJ is an ELITE haul for any team. If not for Yeet becoming a man on this wild evening, Klemm would wear the FA crown.
San Antonio Spurs - reverse
For even the coldest of hearts, you’d have to feel for Nels losing Kornett in such a dramatic and costly way. A twist of fate of a rival bid and random factor misfortune, and the FA plans were toast. He copped it on the chin and I admire his ability to push on, but it was a big hit and will cost the Spurs.
Toronto Raptors - drive
Dylan had a great day, taking half a roster to a full roster with a huge six free agent additions. In this climate of ridiculously tough FA Day conditions, securing the services of 40% of a roster is a job well done.
Utah Jazz - drive
Ignoring the panic-station narrative, Jase took care of business, bringing back his stars, cheap bench depth and adding veteran big Al Horford. A good, efficient day’s work.
Washington Wizards - drive, baby, drive!
Leveller, be damned! Joshua came away with more than he would have been expecting. Sure, he handled business and brought Capela, Mitchell back, but Prince was at the death and received no attention. He also added Ingles, Bryant, Coffey and Garza. Quality depth.