2024-2025 PRE SEASON REPORT DRAFTWith the #1 overall pick we chose Brennen McDuffie(PG/Kansas) and then traded our 2014 1st round pick, 2025 2nd round(WAS) and 2025 2nd round pick to the Houston Rockets for the rights to Justin McCuthison(C/Texas A&M). Everyone was raving about McDuffie and so I pulled the trigger, but I was a little disappointed when his projected rating was only three stars. I suppose that could improve, but right now I'm thinking this was a blown pick. I'm not suggesting he will be a bust, but certainly not worthy of being picked #1 overall. Only time will tell. McCuthison seems to have the bigger upside and he could be the center of the future, but right now I'm not comfortable with him as the starter, so I'm going to try and sign a veteran center to fill in while he develops.
TRADESTraded Shai Gilgeous-Alexander(PG) and Jonas Valanciunas(C) to the Toronto Raptors for Kevon Looney(C), Rick Peterson(SG), Justin Shin(SF), Darryl Phillips(SG) and Ivan Dickerson(PG). This allowed me to get some depth on the team and clear some much needed cap space. The owner is adamant about staying within the cap and he wants a four star player, so this is the first step in achieving those two goals. I'm not sure it will result in a successful season, but the cap and a four star player seem to be more important to the owner than wins. So, if I want to keep my job, he gets what he wants.
FREE AGENCYSo, the owner has a hard on for four star players. That's just great, but four star and above players aren't just falling out of the sky. There are only 32 four star and above players in the entire league and only six available in free agency. Three of them are restricted free agents, which means there is no chance in hell of signing one away from their parent teams. That leaves three true free agents and one of them, Devin Booker, is injured and out for 281 days! I'm not paying a player upwards of $30m per year to go to rehab for an entire season.
FOUR STAR+ TARGETS- Code: Select all
FA
C | Karl-Anthony Towns | 5.0/5.0 | Wanted $38m/5y, resigned with MIN for $43.9m/5y ($219,910,450)
SG | R.J. Barrett | 4.0/4.5 | Wanted $31m/5y, resigned with NYK for $36.6m/5y ($183,258,710)
SG | Devin Booker | 4.0/4.0 | Wanted $38m/5y, signed by SAS for $35.2m/4y ($150,575,824)
RFA
C | Jason Robertson | 4.5/4.5 | Wanted $31m/5y, resigned with OKC for $36.1m/5y ($180,810,485)
PG | Marlin Taylor | 4.0/4.5 | Wanted $31m/5y, resigned with CHA for $35.7m/5y ($178,780,970)
PF | Bernard Person | 5.0/5.0 | Wanted $31m/5y, resigned with PHO for $36.6m/5y ($183,258,710)
As you can see, I didn't have a shot at signing any of the four star and above players. I didn't even attempt to go after Devin Booker, because I didn't want to pay him to go through rehab for a year. I'm not sure how the owner is going to react to not having a four star player, but it doesn't seem like it's going to happen through free agency.
Going into the free agency period, I had $28+ million to spend and since we are a fairly young team, I decided to add some veteran players to key positions on the roster. I ended up signing Stephen Curry(PG) to an $11,000,000 one year contract and Steven Adams to a three year $51,493,335 contract with a team option. I signed Adams simply because I wasn't comfortable with a rookie starting at center. This might cause some friction though, as McCuthison is going to want starters minutes and he will get them in time, but he isn't ready right now. Curry was almost an impulse signing. I saw he was available and although he was asking for $15+ million a year, I offered him $11m for a year and he signed. Curry will likely start, simply based upon reputation, but Donovan is the future and he should still see significant minutes during the season.
STARTERS - Code: Select all
PG | Stephen Curry
SG | Zach Lavine
SF | Rui Hachimura
PF | Jimmy Dixon
C | Stephen Adams
BENCH- Code: Select all
PF | Chris Miller
PG | Marcus Donovan
SF | Justin Shin
C | Justin McCuthison
PG | Brennen McDuffie
C | Kevon Looney
SG | Darryl Phillips
PG | Ivan Dickerson
SG | Rick Peterson
CONTRACTS (TEAM SALARY $134,403,163 / CAP STATUS $501,466)- Code: Select all
Player | PS | CUR | POT | HGT | LBS | AG | EX | SALARY | CONTRACT
Rui Hachimura * | SF | 3.5 | 4.0 | 6-8 | 230 | 26 | 5 | $27,052,710 | $84,652,977/3y
Zach LaVine * | SG | 3.5 | 3.5 | 6-6 | 181 | 29 | 10 | $23,744,984 | $46,031,942/1y
Steven Adams * | C | 3.0 | 3.0 | 6-11| 265 | 31 | 11 | $16,745,800 | $51,493,335/3y (TO)
Jimmy Dixon * | PF | 3.5 | 3.5 | 6-8 | 229 | 24 | 3 | $11,402,000 | $20,436,866/1y
Stephen Curry * | PG | 3.0 | 3.0 | 6-3 | 185 | 36 | 15 | $11,000,000 | $11,000,000/1y
Brennan McDuffie | PG | 2.0 | 3.0 | 6-2 | 165 | 21 | 0 | $9,735,803 | $20,201,703/2y (RO)
Justin McCuthison | C | 2.5 | 4.0 | 6-11| 280 | 20 | 0 | $6,385,155 | $13,249,155/2y (RO)
Marcus Donovan | PG | 3.0 | 3.5 | 5-11| 168 | 23 | 2 | $6,227,079 | $19,942,715/2y
Chris Miller | PF | 3.5 | 4.0 | 6-9 | 241 | 23 | 1 | $6,023,400 | $12,468,438/2y (RO)
Darryl Phillips | SG | 1.0 | 2.0 | 6-7 | 190 | 20 | 0 | $4,850,063 | $10,063,863/2y (RO)
Kevon Looney | C | 2.0 | 2.0 | 6-9 | 222 | 28 | 9 | $4,377,792 | $4,377,792/1y
Justin Shin | SF | 2.5 | 2.5 | 6-5 | 216 | 24 | 1 | $3,071,800 | $3,071,800/2y (RO)
Rick Peterson | SG | 1.5 | 2.0 | 6-6 | 205 | 22 | 2 | $2,881,189 | $2,881,189/2y
Ivan Dickerson | PG | 1.5 | 1.5 | 6-7 | 207 | 24 | 0 | $905,388 | $2,296,063/2y
Angel Delgado | C | 2.0 | 2.0 | 6-10| 245 | 30 | 5 | $75,000 | $150,000/2W-DLG
---------------------
