Post by ucfinfan86 on Mar 1, 2019 13:25:55 GMT
This is a loaded free agent class with a lot of big time players. Most of them are coming off of their 2nd contracts though and are in their late 20s or early 30s already. I expect there will be a lot of regret near the end of these contracts, but in the meantime there is some real talent to acquire. Here is my list of top 11 free agents available.
1. George Yardley SF 6'5'' 195 30 A- A+ B A+ A- C
Yardley is one of the best SFs in the league and doesn’t really have any holes in his game. He’s an elite 3pt shooter (45% career) and rebounder (8.4 career) to go along with A+ defense and 2 All-Defensive team awards on his resume. He’s been then #1 option on 3 straight conference finals teams.
Expected Contract: Max
2. Jesus Shuttlesworth. SG 6'6'' 200 33 B A A A+ C D
Jesus will go down as one of the best SGs in NBN history. I give the nod to Yardley on this list because of age (33 v 30). Jesus has been a good scorer since he joined the league, but the thing that really separates him from a lot of other scorers is his elite defense. He averages over 3 stocks game, minimal turnovers and elite scoring. At age 33 with D potential, you do have to be cautious on how long of a contract to give him.
Expected Contract: $70,000,000 / 4
Expected Contract: $70,000,000 / 4
3. Kresimir Cosic C 6'11'' 230 27 A- A- D A A B
I was a big fan of Cosic early in his career and then my fandom faded somewhat over the past few seasons. His rebounding and shot blocking stalled for a few years, but he’s coming off one of his best seasons. He’s a true stretch 5, shooting 38% on 3’s last year at nearly 2 attempts a game. He scored 23ppg on a bad Magic team last season. At only 27 with B potential, there is still room for him to grow a little. The Magc are in a position where they can’t afford to lose him in free agency.
Expected Contract: Max
Expected Contract: Max
4. Don Barksdale PF 6'6'' 225 31 A- C+ C A+ A C
Barksdale often goes overlooked in the league when the best PFs are mentioned, but he’s been very good over the past few seasons. He averages over 20ppg, 13+ rebounds and 3.5 blocks. He does have some holes with his FG% is a little lower than you’d want (usually around 40%-41%) and turnovers (2.5), but some of this may be attributed to the lack of scoring talent he’s been surrounded with. He’s made 3 straight all-star games and just a season ago won DPOY. He adds some good mentor ability.
Expected Contract: Max
Expected Contract: Max
5. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander PG 6'6'' 190 29 C+ A A+ A+ C C
Alexander is coming off the best season of his career. He shot 48%, 43% from 3, while committing a career low 2.1 turnovers a game. He also brings A+ defense and a consistent 2+ steals a game. If that’s who he consistently was as a player, he’d probably be in the top 3 on this list. Unfortunately, historically he’s closer for a 45% shooter, sub 40% from 3 and hovers closer to 3 turnovers. He’s also played on a GM-less team for a few seasons. He’s played in a PG heavy era, but there seems to be a weakening at the position over the past few seasons until the new young crop fully develops. I expect some team will pay him big money.
Expected Contract: $75,000,000 / 5
Expected Contract: $75,000,000 / 5
6. Arnie Risen C 6'10'' 230 27 A- C+ D- A A C
During his early years with the Hornets, Risen looked like he would be become a top tier center. He’s been passed around recently having been on 4 different teams in 4 seasons. His shot blocking returned this year matching his career high 3.7. He’s never been an elite rebounder (11 career) and his scoring has faded nearly every season since his early 20s. His shooting has been inefficient when on bad teams, but on a loaded Clippers team last season he shot 45%.
Expected Contract: $70,000,000 / 5
Expected Contract: $70,000,000 / 5
7. Jack Kerris PF 6'6'' 230 30 A- C+ B- A+ A- C
Kerris was a very valuable piece in his prime on a flat $9mil contract. He’s a 4-time all-star and was one of the best rebounding/blocking bigs a few seasons ago. He’s started to fade some with age, going from high 3ish blocks to lower 3’s and seen his rebounding drop from 13 to 12 a game. He’s never been a huge volume scorer, but has always been efficient (46% career). I would be weary of paying him too much money on a long term contract as he mostly ages into a defensive big.
Expected Contract: $60,000,000 /5
Expected Contract: $60,000,000 /5
8. Drazen Dalipagic SF 6'6'' 215 27 B+ A D A- B- C
Drazen is a very efficient scorer and one of the best 3pt shooters in the league. He’s been over 45.5% the last 3 seasons and around 48% from the field. The reason he isn’t higher on this list is because aside from his efficiency, he doesn’t really excel in any other area. He’s an average rebounder, average defensively and below average playmaker. He is in that sweet spot like a lot of others on this list of being right in the middle of his prime at age 27 and will land a big deal from somebody.
Expected Contract: Max
Expected Contract: Max
9. Bill Mlkvy SF 6'4'' 205 27 A- A B C+ B B
I’m happy to see Mlkvy become exactly what he was destined to be when he joined the league with his draft notes. He’s a very good scorer, excellent rebounder, and terrible defensively. I think it’s very difficult to build a winner around a SF with C+ defense who averages about 1 stock a game (Kudos to PJ for almost doing it last season and I think the only reason he won this year was the Mlkvy/Calder swap). Along with the bad defense, he also turns it over quite a bit (2.8 last year). All that being said, if you have a very strong defensive team and need some scoring, I think Mlkvy can help. At 27yo with B potential still, I think some team will max him out.
Expected Contract: Max
Expected Contract: Max
10. Brooklyn Vick PG 6'2'' 200 33 B+ A+ A A- C D
Vick is excellent offensively, scoring 29 ppg last season and is a career 47.5 shooter and 42% from 3. There are no qualms about him offensively, but defensively he’s average at best. He hovers around 1.4spg, but the real issue is the turnovers. Over the past 2 seasons he’s averaged 2.7 and 3.4 turnovers as a PG. He is a good rebounder for a Guard at nearly 6 a game and he might be better suited to finish his career as a SG where he may be able to limit his turnovers. If he was closer to 30, than 35 he’d be higher on this list.
Expected Contract: $50,000,000 / 3
Expected Contract: $50,000,000 / 3
11. Jalen Newhouse SG 6'6'' 215 35 B+ A C A- C- D
Normally these lists only go 10 deep, but I think Newhouse is worthy of a shout out here. At age 35, he’ll probably only land a 1 or 2 year deal, but he’s been one of the better scorers in the league over the past decade. In 2038 he shot 47% from the field and 3 and averages 31.6ppg. He definitely had a down year last season on a mostly inactive Rockets team, dropping to 45% and 40% from 3 and 23ppg. Defensively he still recorded 3 stocks a game. 35 year olds aren’t in high demand in FA and think someone may get a real good deal if they can land him for 1 or 2 years.
Expected Contract: $20,000,000 / 2
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