FA Grades Day 1-5

[Joe]

FA Grades Days 1 through 5

I am chronically online waiting for TC so I figured I'd kill some time. Now that a lot of these trades have been completed, we have the benefit of hindsight for these FA deals...there are a ton of these across all three sims so I will do my best to be brief! For Day 4/5, I didn’t include any of the tiny/min deals and just kept it to the ones that looked relevant. B minuses galore!


2020 181 Sacramento Ballers Sign PG Shaun Livingston for $19,000,000 over one year.

Grade: B+. Livingston still had juice in his caboose last season, but at age 35 I’d wager he’s slowing down. Totally fine 1 year expiring that can easily be turned into whatever else Jesse’s interested in.

2020 181 Utah Ballers Sign PG Fred VanVleet for $120,312,500 over 7 years.

Grade: B-. FVV is a solid game manager and good defender, just not sure he’s worth the 7-year incumbent rookie supermax that put the Jazz in a difficult HC situation - I think I would have tagged him and tried to get FVV on a cheaper contract (correct me if the Jazz didn't have their tag). That said, now that Ralph has cleared a couple of the old guys off of his books, there’s not too much clutter and this kind of deal is manageable. Deal will look fine if he sustains his shooting clip from last year – will not look so fine if he lands more around where he was the few seasons before that.

2020 181 Los Angeles Ballers Sign SF Paul George for $74,000,000 over 4 years.

Grade: A-. A year ago, a deal like this would have gotten a C or worse – might be as high as a flat A now. PG’s miraculous turnaround vaulted him into the conversation of the best wings in the league, and getting him on a flat deal like this is great for GX…that is, if he doesn’t turn back into a pumpkin once Kyrie’s inspirational speech wears off. Nice work from the Lakers here assuming this production isn't a magical fluke.

2020 181 New York Ballers Sign SF Rudy Gay for $22,000,000 over one year.

Grade: A-. Gay is awesome – definitely the unsung hero of these past few Knicks teams, but somehow doesn’t garner enough respect league wide as an elite two-way guy. Though the Knicks had plenty of salary room, Nav probably could have gotten him on a smaller deal – doesn’t particularly matter as he’s headed south to San Antonio anyway.

2020 181 Memphis Ballers Sign SG Brandon Ingram for $90,169,194 over 7 years.

Grade: A. Phenomenal deal for one of the league’s brightest young stars. A one-way player for now, though he’s got room to grow in that regard.

2020 181 Indiana Ballers Sign PF Domantas Sabonis for $101,775,108 over 7 years.

Grade: A. Stellar sub-max deal for a guy that looks a lot like a young Boogie Cousins, with plenty of potential still left in the tank.

2020 181 Minnesota Ballers Sign PG Langston Galloway for $85,023,912 over 6 years.

Grade: B+. Pretty similar in profile to FVV, the other good game manager type in this FA class, and I like this deal size a bit more. Galloway is a bit older, so he may not be worth it in the last year or two of this contract, but the Timberwolves fill a gaping hole in the roster and probably are a wing away from being back in the playoffs.

2020 181 Houston Ballers Sign SF Pascal Siakam for $69,345,900 over 6 years.

Grade: D+. A little bit of Hanessian on Hanessian violence here. Maybe Nolan saw something in Siakam that I didn’t (and clearly neither did Weston)… I’m not totally sure what he did in Washington to earn 70M other than being named Pascal Siakam.

2020 181 Chicago Ballers Sign SG Rudy Fernandez for $17,500,000 over one year.

Grade: Filler.

2020 181 Brooklyn Ballers Sign SF Marcus Morris for $5,000,000 over one year.
2020 181 Brooklyn Ballers Sign SF Markieff Morris for $5,000,000 over one year.

Grade: Great for content. Not totally sure what the Nets are up to here, but I have to believe the Morris twins will be the subject of an upcoming Swampstory.

2020 181 Brooklyn Ballers Sign C Jason Thompson for $6,000,000 over one year.

Grade: B-. This guy was kind of a flash in the pan 5 years ago and has not shown that bright since. Hopefully this is filler for something else.

2020 181 Dallas Ballers Sign SG Eric Gordon for $6,000,000 over one year.
2020 181 Dallas Ballers Sign SG Glenn Robinson III for $6,000,000 over one year.

Grade: C-. Hoff signs a couple guys that have big names (one who is yet to live up to his big name at age 32 and another whose big name belongs to his father). I fear it will be tough for the Mavs to move these guys and they might be justtttt competent enough to win Dallas a couple games here and there.

2020 181 Los Angeles Ballers Sign SF Julian Wright for $6,000,000 over 2 years.

Grade: B. A small contract for a guy who makes a small impact. Lakers wise to grab some cheap defense and rebounding depth.

2020 181 Chicago Ballers Sign C Andrew Bynum for $18,000,000 over 3 years.

Grade: B+. At this level of production, Bynum is a nice value on that deal (one of the most underrated butts in the game!). If he tails off in the next year, might be a little annoying.

2020 181 Orlando Ballers Sign C John Henson for $21,000,000 over 3 years.

Grade: A-. Have always had a crush on Henson, but he’s always been a hair overpaid at 8 figures and tough to fit on my capsheet – Merv nabs him on a friendlier deal than he’s been on in his last few FAs.

2020 181 Denver Ballers Sign SG LiAngelo Ball for $25,000,000 over 2 years.

Grade: ?? Did Kipke have to sign him to a 2 year max to get him? Probably not, but being held hostage for one Ball brother was probably enough, I imagine ol' KiBBBke didn’t want to risk further negotiations and cost. Then again, a 2-year max could end up being a steal if Gelo gets some kind of monster Big Baller Bonus.

2020 181 Seattle Ballers Sign C Joakim Noah for $1,200,000 over one year.

Grade: B. Exactly the kinda guy you get with an LLE. Pretty good, very ugly in photos.

2020 181 Toronto Ballers Sign PF Amir Johnson for $1,120,000 over one year.

Grade: B-. Amir Johnson has played for 10 teams in his career (including the Celtics) and sucked ass for all of them. He’s already been shipped off as salary to Atlanta.

2020 181 Milwaukee Ballers Sign C Hasheem Thabeet for $4,500,000 over one year.

Grade: B-. Basically the exact same guy as Joakim Noah and he’s getting paid 3X as much. A bit taller, much less ugly (low bar for Noah).

2020 181 Toronto Ballers Sign SF LeBron James for $120,300,000 over 5 years.

Grade: B. This grade’s for the Hawks, who got James in a S&T. Hard to imagine that getting Lebron with the +20 Potential could garner anything less than an A, but I’m pretty sure there weren’t a ton of teams out there bidding on Bron Bron and he could probably have been secured for a number around $20M. Still a nice get for the Hawks who will trot out a hilariously overpowered (and well-paid!) starting 5.

2020 182 Detroit Ballers Sign SG Jamal Murray for $93,713,100 over 6 years.

Grade: A. Nice move by Detroit to use their cap to get some RP and make sure a division rival doesn’t get an uber-star on a discount.

2020 182 Orlando Ballers Sign C Ivica Zubac for $40,000,000 over 5 years.

Grade: C+. I like Henson a whole lot better than Zubac, who is getting paid more and has big Jared Sullinger energy. Solid rebounder that does a lot of inefficient shooting and turning it over while only justifying that with a paltry 2 stocks a game. Still just 23, so maybe he grows into this deal.

2020 182 New York Ballers Sign PG Trey Burke for $4,500,000 over one year.

Grade: B. Totally fine MLE, who will probably get dealt for something else now that Nav’s made a move for Tre Jones’ brother.

2020 182 Washington Ballers Sign PG Sergio Llull for $11,000,000 over one year.

Grade: Filler. Llull!

2020 182 Washington Ballers Sign SG DeMar DeRozan for $8,000,000 over one year.

Grade: Filler, I think? Not sure exactly what Weston’s up to this offseason. Derozan could be decent depth for a good team, especially one playing Inside or Balanced. Should trade him to Phoenix!

2020 182 New York Ballers Sign SG Ben McLemore for $5,400,000 over one year.

Grade: B-. Still got A Outside but everyone (even bad teams) seem to be afraid to play him. Nav keeps him around as a security blanket and extra filler for down the road.

2020 182 Atlanta Ballers Sign PG Malcolm Brogdon for $1,200,000 over one year.

Grade: C+. Seems like a bit of a Celtics homer pick here, so not complaining.

2020 182 Chicago Ballers Sign C Thomas Robinson for $4,500,000 over one year.

Grade: C+. Pretty serious ratings whore who struggles to crack the 1:1 stock to TO ratio year in and year out. OK emergency depth I guess? I expect to see Matt deal this guy by day 30 for someone more useful.

2020 182 New York Ballers Sign PG Delon Wright for $1,440,000 over one year.

Grade: B. Basically a minimum for a guy whose SLN career will probably mirror his real life one – 9 teams in 10 years.

2020 182 Chicago Ballers Sign PG Rajon Rondo for $1,150,000 over one year.

Grade: D. I reserve the right to change this to an A if Matt deals him to a tanker for value, because this guy is hands down the worst PG we’ve seen in decades. If you’re a tanker, pay up – he basically guarantees you top lotto odds (worked for me!).

2020 182 Indiana Ballers Sign PG Patty Mills for $11,487,800 over one year.

Grade: Filler.

2020 183 San Antonio Ballers Sign PF Yi Jianlian for $4,500,000 over one year.

Grade: C. Safe to say Yi has lost more than a step. I think the Spurs are flipping to a tank so he’s probably a little more useful than you’d want if you’re sucking but not nearly useful enough to play if you’re trying to win.

2020 184 Golden State Ballers Sign SG Victor Oladipo for $37,677,848 over 4 years.

Grade: A+. Oladipo is a legit two-way wing and an excellent rebounder at age 28. Pretty much as good a deal as you could ask for for a guy bthat gets you 20 and 7 with positive stock to TO. If Clint is leaving Golden State, he is leaving them in a nice spot team-building wise.

2020 184 Toronto Ballers Sign SG Denzel Valentine for $4,500,000 over one year.

Grade: B+. Nice pickup for Toronto. Valentine was pretty competent on a pretty incompetent Minnesota squad. Could be a candidate for the MLE extension.

2020 184 Houston Ballers Sign SG Dejounte Murray for $28,400,000 over 4 years.

Grade: B+. Murray is pretty fun wing depth, and it’s nice that you don’t have to carry a backup PG while you’ve got him on the roster. $7M a year feels reasonable on this young roster – could get moved for a bit of value.

2020 184 Portland Ballers Sign SG Caris LeVert for $4,500,000 over one year.

Grade: B-. Surprised this guy got a contract after how much Matt trashed him on the pod. Real nice ratings, those turnovers are just preposterously high.

2020 184 Minnesota Ballers Sign C Brook Lopez for $15,000,000 over 3 years.

Grade: B. Still gets blocks! Very Borschtfart-y in his old age. Will probably carry value for a while, I would just prefer it if it were on more of a minimum deal.

2020 184 Memphis Ballers Sign SG Thabo Sefolosha for $4,500,000 over one year.

Grade: B. Still a useful defender in short stints, but his rebounding seems to have taken an unfortunate dive.

2020 184 Anaheim Ballers Sign SG Rashad McCants for $4,500,000 over one year.

Grade: B+. One of the better MLE targets out there. Should get Bobby some RP. Is he a Hall of Famer? Or is he exactly Eddie Jones?

2020 184 Orlando Ballers Sign SF CJ Miles for $4,500,000 over one year.

Grade: A-. The other really nice MLE floating around. Quality depth for Orlando who now have a ton of options at the wing.

2020 184 Phoenix Ballers Sign PF Marquese Chriss for $26,446,875 over 3 years.

Grade: B. Fun big with lots of steals but I’m kinda confused why his rebounding rate stats are so low. Weird Inside offense / pace stuff?

2020 184 Phoenix Ballers Sign C Al Horford for $12,600,000 over 2 years.

Grade: A-. Still a fun profile with his 3PT shooting and shotblocking, now on a much more appropriate contract.

2020 184 Charlotte Ballers Sign C Festus Ezeli for $4,500,000 over one year.

Grade: B+. Good use of the MLE to get some big depth not named Draymond Green.

[bobby]

Joe I'm worried about your sleep schedule

[Joe]

Joe I'm worried about your sleep schedule

You and me both brother

[heimer]

joe: “das a big deal for LeBron… think you could’ve gotten him for 20m”

jwoo somewhere: “LeBron will retire a raptor”

heimer: *ignores faint echo from toronto* “you thought, i bought. enjoy the eastern conference tier 2”

[nolan]

please Joe, Pascal is making $69m

[nolan]

surprised by the love for Henson but hate for Zubac!

Fun fact: both took less money to not have to play in Houston

[Joe]

surprised by the love for Henson but hate for Zubac!

Fun fact: both took less money to not have to play in Houston

Henson is a perfect butt - no shooting, one of the best TO rates in the game, lots of blocks, solid rebounding. The only thing Zubac does better is rebound, and he’s only slightly better per 36. Zubac has higher inside but not enough to make him efficient so he’s pulling shots away from the Magics super efficient backcourt, while Henson funnels shots to them

[Jordo]

were in pre-tank, not tank tank

[Wes]

I didn't think anyone would put in real offers for Siakam so I only bid a little over the MLE for a few years. He's a classic slow developing SF and think he'll end up being nice. Sad to lose him!

[GX.]

Woooo, might be starting to understand these contract values. You jabronies better watch out