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Right after the NBA Draft, a long, drawn out, calculated affair, the world rushes into NBA Free Agency. Prodigal Punk explains part of the absurdity here, in his Downbeat. But just because some people are whining about a guy not making a huge, franchise and legacy changing move quickly enough (btw, that's a good look). I guess I'm a LeBron James supporter because I recognize that he would get killed no matter what he does. He's trying to stay out of the headlines now, but imagine the hate he'd get if he instead went the route of "The Decision 2.0". A dude that notable can't win. Unless, of course, we're talking about championships. He has two already, which equals the total number of championships the New York Knicks franchise has. And we all know how hyped up the Knicks are . . .
The world doesn't have to wait for LeBron, and NBA teams aren't. Some moves are being made. Because you deserve to have all of this information handy, I've decided to monitor this situation for those of you who aren't glued to the internet.
Let's start with the Eastern Conference. (Western Conference post can be found here.)
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Atlantic Division:
This division has the cities in the largest tradition media markets. They get the most pub in print and on the radio. They expect to be good, or, well, at least 40% of their fans think so. So what's been going on here?
| Boston Celtics | |||||
| Player | Situation | Total | Yr | Avg | |
| 1 | Avery Bradley | RFA | $32.00 | 4 | $8.00 |
| Brooklyn Nets | |||||
| Player | Situation | Total | Yr | Avg | |
| 1 | Andrei Kirilenko | Opts in | $3.33 | 1 | $3.33 |
| 2 | Lionel Hollins | New Coach | |||
| 3 | Two 2nd round Picks | Trade In | |||
| Jason Kidd | Trade Out | ||||
| New York Knicks | |||||
| Player | Situation | Total | Yr | Avg | |
| 1 | Jose Calderon | Trade In | $22.21 | 3 | $7.40 |
| 2 | Samuel Dalembert | Trade In | $4.05 | 1 | $4.05 |
| 3 | Wayne Ellington | Trade In | $2.75 | 1 | $2.75 |
| 4 | Shane Larkin | Trade In | $5.86 | 3 | $1.95 |
| Tyson Chandler | Trade Out | $14.85 | 1 | $14.85 | |
| Raymond Felton | Trade Out | $7.74 | 2 | $3.87 | |
| Carmelo Anthony | Opts Out | ||||
| Toronto Raptors | |||||
| Player | Situation | Total | Yr | Avg | |
| 1 | Kyle Lowry | Re-signed | $48.00 | 4 | $12.00 |
| 2 | Lou Williams | Trade In | $5.45 | 1 | $5.45 |
| 3 | Lucas Nogueira * | Trade In | $1.47 | 1 | $1.47 |
| John Salmons | Trade Out | $7.00 | 1 | $7.00 | |
Avery Bradley re-upped with the Cs, Andrei Kirilenko opted in with the Nyets, the Knicks shook things up, and the Raps showed Kyle Lowry the money. The Philadelphia 76ers haven't made any big moves since the NBA Draft, but that's okay because the rest of the world can't get enough of the whole Carmelo Anthony free agency trip and the Jason Kidd coaching fiasco.
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Central Division:
So . . . LeBron James will . . . no. Let's not even start. All five teams here have been "active" making smaller moves. Some with the hope of improving what's already there. Others with the hope of making a big leap.
| Chicago Bulls | |||||
| Player | Situation | Total | Yr | Avg | |
| 1 | Nikola Mirotic | ? | ? | ? | ? |
| Cleveland Cavaliers | |||||
| Player | Situation | Total | Yr | Avg | |
| 1 | Kyrie Irving | Extended | $90.00 | 5 | $18.00 |
| Detroit Pistons | |||||
| Player | Situation | Total | Yr | Avg | |
| 1 | Jodie Meeks | UFA | $19.00 | 3 | $6.33 |
| 2 | Cartier Martin | UFA | Min | 2 | Min |
| Indiana Pacers | |||||
| Player | Situation | Total | Yr | Avg | |
| 1 | C.J. Miles | UFA | $18.00 | 4 | $4.50 |
| 2 | Damjan Rudez | UFA | ? | 3 | |
| 3 | Shayne Whittington | UFA | ? | 1 | |
| Milwaukee Bucks | |||||
| Player | Situation | Total | Yr | Avg | |
| 1 | Jason Kidd | Trade In | |||
| Two 2nd round Picks | Trade Out | ||||
Detroit took the early "what are they doing?" lead with their signings of Jodie Meeks and Cartier Martin. Milwaukee is currently in the lead right now with their whole coaching disaster. Chicago continues to wait on a guy best known for throwing a punch and then running backwards 94 feet. Cleveland has shown Kyrie Irving the money. And all of this happened while the Pacers have quietly added a bunch of guys for cheap. C.J. Miles is a legit floor spacer, and in the right role will help their bench depth.
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South East Division:
I guess it really does start and end with what Miami does in the Eastern conference. It only makes sense because . . .
| Atlanta Hawks | |||||
| Player | Situation | Total | Yr | Avg | |
| 1 | Thabo Sefolosha | UFA | $12.00 | 3 | $4.00 |
| 2 | John Salmons | Trade In | $7.00 | 1 | $7.00 |
| Lou Williams | Trade Out | $5.45 | 1 | $5.45 | |
| Lucas Nogueira | Trade Out | $1.47 | 1 | $1.47 | |
| Miami Heat | |||||
| Player | Situation | Total | Yr | Avg | |
| 1 | LeBron James | Opts Out | |||
| 2 | Dwyane Wade | Opts Out | |||
| 3 | Chris Bosh | Opts Out | |||
| Orlando Magic | |||||
| Player | Situation | Total | Yr | Avg | |
| 1 | Ben Gordon | UFA | $9.00 | 2 | $4.50 |
| 2 | Evan Fournier | Trade In | $3.77 | 2 | $1.89 |
| 3 | "Picks" | Trade In | |||
| Arron Afflalo | Trade Out | $15.00 | 2 | $7.50 | |
| Washington Wizards | |||||
| Player | Situation | Total | Yr | Avg | |
| 1 | Marcin Gortat | Re-signed | $60.00 | 5 | $12.00 |
Yeah, having James, Dwyane Wade, and Chris Bosh all opt out gives you a lot of cap space. Atl got solid defensive wingman Thabo Sefolosha, and overpaid wingman John Salmons. Orlando signed Ben Gordon, after sending away Arron Afflalo. And D.C. kept their bigman Marcin Gortat. Which is the sensible thing to do. The Charlotte Hornets have been talking to a number of players, but no moves yet. But really, all these moves will pale in comparison to what the Heat decide to do. The biggest stars make the biggest news. Sad but true.
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These free agency round up posts will be more useful in the future when actual moves are being made. I get it. But I will still report on what actually happens. You guys deserve at least that.