The meat of the NBA offseason is over. Most of the discussion has centered around the New York Knicks, Paul George and the Philadelphia 76ers, the end (for now) of the LA Clippers, the Los Angeles Lakers standing pat, the crowded tank race, the Oklahoma City Thunder loading up and aprons. So many aprons.
Here are seven teams that have gone underdiscussed this offseason — each with critical storylines and moves yet to play out.
WEST POWERHOUSES, PAST AND (MAYBE?) PRESENT
If he’s healthy, Melton has a chance to start — though I’d guess the most likely starting five is Stephen Curry, Brandin Podziemski, Andrew Wiggins, Jonathan Kuminga, and Draymond Green. The Wiggins-Kuminga combination found its rhythm in smaller lineups with Green at center; the Curry/Wiggins/Kuminga/Green quartet finished plus-115 in 403 minutes. Starting this way forces Green to open at center and leaves two traditional bigs — Kevon Looney and Trayce Jackson-Davis — fighting for backup minutes.
That’s the price of starting Kuminga. Any combination of Kuminga, Green and a paint-bound center cramps Golden State’s spacing beyond the point where even Curry can save it. The roving gravity of the Splash Brothers could make almost any lineup work. Thompson is gone, and Hield is the only elite shooter Golden State added. Curry and Hield make for a potent combination, but the cost would come on defense. Podziemski and Melton offer better two-way balance.
