What happened in the NBA off-season?

By Kayden Martinez

The end of the 2023-2024 NBA season left the world at the edge of their seats. After the Boston Celtics won their first Championship in 16 years, people around the world wondered ‘What happens next?’ The off-season would be jam-packed from the 2024 Paris Summer Olympics to the NBA draft, and much more with unexpected trades and signings. Here, we will debrief the events, piece-by-piece, of the action-packed off-season.

The 2024 NBA Draft

Just a few weeks after the Boston Celtics and the Dallas Mavericks went head to head in the finals, the NBA 2024 draft was held in Brooklyn's very own, Barclays Center. The night started out with the Atlanta Hawks choosing Zaccharie Risacher from France as the number one pick. France had a great turnout with four of their countries' very own players being chosen in the first round. Two of them were chosen as the first and second pick in the draft. Bronny James, son of NBA star Lebron James, however, wasn’t chosen until the second round, being the 55th pick chosen by the Los Angeles Lakers. We await the father-son opening game on October 22nd.

The Basketball Paris Summer Olympic games

The long-awaited men's basketball Olympic Games did not leave basketball fans unsatisfied. The games started in late July and ended on August 10th. Team USA had some of the best current players in the NBA. The players chosen were Lebron James, Stephen Curry, Anthony Davis, Anthony Edwards, Jrue Holiday,

Bam Adebayo, Devin Booker, Kevin Durant, Joel Embiid, Tyrese Haliburton, Derrick White, and Jayson Tatum. Team USA went all the way to eventually face France in the finals winning the Gold with 98-87 as the final score. Team updates during the Off-season

Although the majority of the off-season events were nothing short of spectacular, there was still space left for less-than-ideal trades and signings.

The Boston Celtics

The Boston Celtics, over the off-season, re-signed some of their players from their previous championship season. Star small forward, Jayson Tatum has agreed to a five-year max extension. Point guard Derrick White has agreed to a 4-year extension, along with small forward Sam Hauser.

The Golden State Warriors

The Warriors made heavy decisions that will drastically change the team–but will it be  ‘in a positive way?’ We won’t know that until the 2024-2025 season starts. Starting point guard for the Warriors, Stephen Curry has agreed to a one-year extension. Buddy Hield from the Philadelphia 76ers and Kyle Anderson From the Minnesota Timberwolves have joined the

team. Chris Paul, after spending one season coming off the bench for the Warriors, left. Shooting guard drafted by the Golden State Warriors, Klay Thompson also left on a sign and trade to the Dallas Mavericks.

The Dallas Mavericks

The Dallas Mavericks have re-signed Markieff Morris and Brandon Williams. They added Klay Thompson from the Golden State Warriors, Spencer Dinwiddie from the Los Angeles Lakers, and Quentin Grimes from the Detroit Pistons. That left Tim Hardway Jr., Josh Green, and Derrick Jones Jr. parting ways with the organization.

The San Antonio Spurs

The San Antonio Spurs didn’t have a busy off-season. Their Biggest headline is the signing of Chis Paul. They also re-signed Charles Bassey and Sandro Mamukelashvil. Dominick Barlow left the team, signing with the Atlanta Hawks, and Devonte Graham went to the Charlotte Hornets.

The Cleveland Cavaliers

The Cleveland Cavaliers had no departures but had quite a few re-signings. Donavan Mitchelle, Jarrett Allen, and Isaac Okoro all agreed to a three-year extension, Evan Mobley agreed to a five-year contract, and Tristan Thompson signed a one-year deal.

The Utah Jazz

The Utah Jazz re-signed shooting guard Johnny Juzang for a four-year extension and power forward Lauri Markkanen for a five-year extension. The Jazz also added some new players to their roster; Drew Eubanks, Svi Mykhailiuk, and Patty Mills. Unfortunately, there were also some departures, Kris Dunn going to the LA Clippers, Omer Yurtseven being waived, along with NBA star point guard, Russell Westbrook.

The Denver Nuggets

The Denver Nuggets definitely had an off-season to remember. Signing Russell Westbrook and Dario Saric, re-signing Jamal Murray for four years, and DeAndre Jordan agreeing to a deal. Kentavious Caldwell-Pope signed with the Orlando Magic, and Reggie Jackson was traded to the Charlotte Hornets.

The LA Clippers

The Los Angeles Clippers also had a notable off-season re-signing of James Harden for two years, and Ivica Zubac for a three-year extension. They signed Mo Bamba for one year, Nicholas Batum for two years, Derrick Jones Jr. and Kevin Porter Jr. agreeing to a deal, and Kris Dunn joining the Clippers. There were also some major departures from the LA Clippers like Paul George joining the 76ers via free agency, Mason Plumlee joining the Phoenix Suns also via free agency,  and Daniel Theis joining the New Orleans Pelicans.

The Chicago Bulls

Josh Giddey joins the Chicago Bulls via trade with the Oklahoma City Thunder, Chris Duarte also signs with the Bulls via trade with the Sacramento Kings, and Jalen Smith signs on by free agency. Patrick Williams returns on a five-year deal. The Bulls also had major departures with Alex Caruso being traded to the Thunder, Andre Drummond joining the 76ers, Javonte Green signing to the Pelicans, and DeMar DeRozan being traded to the Kings.

The Oklahoma City Thunder

The Oklahoma City Thunder re-sign Isaiah Joe on a four-year deal, and Aaron Wiggins on a five-year deal. The Thunder signs Isaiah Hartenstein for a three-year deal, as well as Alex Caruso via trade with the Chicago Bulls. Gordan Hayward retires from the NBA. Shooting guard Josh Giddey is being traded to the Chicago Bulls, and Lindy Waters III is being traded to the Golden State Warriors.

The New York Knicks

New York City’s very own, New York Knicks, also had a critical off-season with some serious moves. Starting off, Isaiah Hartenstein refused to re-sign with the Knicks and signed with the Thunder, Bojan Bogdanovic was traded to the Brooklyn Nets. In return, the Knicks receive a small forward, and past teammate of Josh Hart and Jalen Brunson, Mikal Bridges. Alec Burks signed with the Miami Heat via free agency, and maybe the most shocking news; both Julius Randle and Donte DiVincenzo were traded to the Minnesota Timberwolves. Which led the Knicks to acquire center Karl-Anthony Towns. Cameron Payne joins the Knicks on a one-year deal, and so does Landry Shamet. There were also lots of players re-signing with the franchise. Most importantly, Jalen Brunson agrees to a four-year extension, taking a pay cut, and also being named captain of the franchise. OG Anunoby returns on a five-year deal, and Precious Achiuwa returns on a one-year deal.

The Philadelphia 76ers

The Philadelphia 76ers and Joel Embiid agree on a three-year extension, while KJ Martin and Kelly Oubre Jr. return on a two-year deal. Kyle Lowry returns on a one-year deal and Tyrese Maxey agrees to a five-year extension. One of the biggest pieces of news this off-season was Paul George joining the 76ers on a four-year deal. Andre Drummond, Reggie Jackson, Eric Gordon, Guerschon Yabusele, and Caleb Martin are also additional players the franchise acquired over the summer.

The Minnesota Timberwolves

The Minnesota Timberwolves’ most important news has been Karl-Anthony Towns being traded to the Knicks in exchange for Julius Randle, Donte DiVincenzo, Keita Bates-Diop, and a future first-round draft pick. The Timberwolves also added Joe Ingles on a one-year deal and re-signed Luka Garza. Kyle Anderson joined the Golden State Warriors via free agency, Jordan McLaughlin went to the Sacramento Kings, Monte Morris joined the Suns, and Wendell Moore Jr. went to the Detroit Pistons.  The Detroit Pistons

The Detroit Pistons re-signed Cade Cunningham and Simone Fotecchio and added Tim Hardaway Jr., Malik Beasly, Tobias Harris, Paul Reed, and Wendell Moore Jr.. Taj Gibson departures from the team via free agency, James Wiseman also departures via free agency to the Indiana Pacers, and Quentin Grimes is traded to the Dallas Mavericks. The Sacramento Kings

The Sacramento Kings acquired DeMar DeRozen via sign-and-trade, as well as Jalen McDaniels, Orlando Robinson, and Jordan McLaughlin. The franchise re-signs Malik Monk on a four-year deal, and Alex Len on a one-year deal. Harrison Barnes was traded to the Spurs, Chris Duarte was traded to the Bulls, and Davion Mitchelle and Sasha Vezenkov were both traded to the Toronto Raptors. The Memphis Grizzlies

Luke Kennard returns to the Grizzlies on a one-year deal, and Mamadi Diakite joins the team via trade with the Brooklyn Nets. Yuta Watanabe and Ziaire Williams leave the franchise. Although there weren’t many exciting trades and signings with the Grizzlies, the NBA’s youngest MVP, star point guard, and gold medalist, Derrick Rose, retires from the NBA. His career inspired and uplifted people around the world. The off-season sure was eventful, with trades and signings that left basketball fans ecstatic for the upcoming season and what's to come. But that doesn’t mean surprising trades still aren’t to come. So don’t get too comfortable with your teams just yet.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

NBA Off-season Updates. NBA.com, Oct. 2024, p. 1. https://www.nba.com/news/nba-offseason-every-deal-2024.

NBA Draft Class Picture. "NBA Draft Class Picture." NBA.com, Oct. 2024, p. 1. https://www.nba.com/draft/2024.

Olympic Gold Medal Picture. "Olympic Gold Medal Picture." Olympics.com, Oct. 2024, p. 1. https://olympics.com/en/news/paris-2024-basketball-men-top-stars-points-rebounds-assists.

Martinez, Kayden. "The 2023-2024 NBA Off-Season: A Deep Dive." Earlybard, Oct. 2024, p. 1. https://theearlybardbhsec.wixsite.com/bhsecbronxnewspaper.