It is almost unfair to compare what the Golden State Warriors did in the offseason with what every other team in their division did. After all, the Warriors just set the NBA single-season record for wins and went to Game 7 of the NBA Finals so adding one of the top-five players in league in Kevin Durant clearly makes them the obvious favorite to win a championship this coming season. How did the rest of their division fare? Here is a look at the offseason grades for every NBA Pacific division team.
Golden State Warriors
Grade: A+
How can Golden State possibly contend for an NBA championship after losing Leandro Barbosa, Harrison Barnes, Andrew Bogut, Festus Ezeli, Brandon Rush and Marreese Speights? The Warriors certainly lost a substantial amount of bench talent but they landed the gem of free agency in Durant and will feature a starting five that will feature Durant, Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson and Draymond Green. Golden State also benefits from the fact that a number of veteran players are willing to take pay cuts in order to join their championship quest, as was the case with landing a couple of key pieces in David West and Zaza Pachulia. The Warriors also added a high-upside center at the NBA Draft in Damian Jones and will have the opportunity to solidify their roster with a couple more veteran additions with Ray Allen reportedly among those interesting in signing with them. Golden State clearly won the offseason and there is no doubt at this point they deserve to be the prohibitive favorites to win another championship this coming season.
Los Angeles Clippers
Grade: D
It’s hard to completely ignore what the Warriors did when grading the other playoff contenders from the Pacific division – especially when it comes to the Clippers. Los Angeles was supposed to be a prime championship contender in the Western Conference over the past couple of years but they have failed to capitalize on their potential based on internal conflicts, injuries and a lack of depth. Chris Paul, J.J. Redick, Blake Griffin and DeAndre Jordan remain the key core pieces but Luc Mbah a Moute moves in to the starting lineup in place of the departed Jeff Green while Brandon Bass and Marreese Speights were brought in to join Jamal Crawford as key rotation players. The Clippers once again failed to significantly upgrade their roster this offseason and their inability to do so is that much more glaring in comparison with what Golden State accomplished.
Sacramento Kings
Grade: D-
The Kings were one of the busier teams this offseason but it wasn’t necessarily for the right reasons as they clearly failed to capitalize on the opportunity to substantially upgrade their roster. Sacramento lost Rajon Rondo after he led the NBA in assists last season and they spent their top draft pick on yet another big man in power forward Skal Labissiere when they clearly needed help at point guard and small forward. An obvious failure to add at positions of need combined with some very questionable decision-making at the NBA Draft left the Kings as the obvious pick for the worst offseason grade in the Pacific division.
Phoenix Suns
Grade: B+
Phoenix brought back a pair of veteran favorites and Leandro Barbosa and Jared Dudley and they hit big in the NBA Draft with the additions of Dragan Bender, Tyler Ulis and Marquese Chriss. Ulis thrived in the Las Vegas Summer League and he has the potential to be one of the steals of the draft. The Suns still have a talented starting five with Eric Bledsoe, Brandon Knight, Devin Booker, Dragan Bender and Tyson Chandler and their strong young additions this offseason have put them in an excellent position moving forward.
Los Angeles Lakers
Grade: B-
The Lakers handed out one of the worst contracts of the free agent period by giving Timofey Mozgov a four-year, $64 million deal but overall they did have a solid offseason. Mozgov will fill a need in their starting lineup while Jordan Clarkson was brought back to start at the shooting guard spot in an intriguing backcourt tandem next to D’Angelo Russell. Los Angeles landed another top pick in Brandon Ingram and signed Luol Deng to add a veteran presence at the power forward position. The purple and gold aren’t ready to contend for the playoffs just yet but they did improve enough to earn a positive grade this offseason.
