Here's a look at teams who have either kept their team core intact and made minimal movement to their team, as they ride their success from last season. Not much noise with superstar acquisitions, as they don't need much of it.
Memphis Grizzlies
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| Grizzlies' best defender is still an fantasy option for steals |
Who they got in the market: Mike Miller, Tony Allen (Re-signed), Jon Leuer (Re-signed), Nick Calathes (Draft), Jamaal Franklin (Draft), Jannis Timma (Draft)
Who they traded for: Kosta Koufos
Who they lost: Austin Daye, Darrell Arthur (Waived)
Projected starters: Mike Conley, Tony Allen, Tayshaun Prince, Zach Randolph, Marc Gasol
Bench depth: Quincy Pondexter, Jerryd Bayless, Jon Leuer, Kosta Koufos, Mike Miller, Ed Davis, Donte Greene
The grit-and-grind crew kept their "grit" by keeping Tony Allen in their fold. With Allen re-signing, they have kept their starting line up and short playoff rotation intact. They replaced Darrell Arthur's size with Kosta Koufos, who'll probably spell for Zach Randolph up front more than Ed Davis and Jon Leuer.
One of their weak spots last year was outside shooting, where Quincy Pondexter was a revelation. In the offseason, they tried to fill that hole by signing Mike Miller back to the Grizzlies' fold. Not sure if the rooks will get a chance to crack this lineup, but they still look pretty strong even if they don’t.
Fantasy Prospects: Mike Conley provides elite steals and assist numbers, and the frontcourt of Gasol and Randolph will give you big man stats you need despite them being on the floor together. Randolph will provide more scoring but Gasol has more blocks, so you get to pick your need. All the rest of the team will get minutes depending on their performances, but with a new coach, there may come a new coaching philosophy. With his performance during their playoff run, Pondexter may get some burn at the 2 spot when they need offense. Bayless may not have as much animosity with the new coach compared to when he was coached by Lionel Hollins. These guards, plus Koufos, can be under the radar picks from the middle to late in the draft.
Chicago Bulls
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| You can't claim to be the best and not back it up; expect a big season from Rose |
Who they got in the market: Mike Dunleavy, Nazr Mohammed (Re-signed), Erik Murphy (Draft), Tony Snell (Draft)
Who they traded for: N/A
Who they lost: Marco Belinelli, Nate Robinson, Rip Hamilton (Waived), Malcolm Thomas (Waived)
Projected starters: Derrick Rose, Jimmy Butler, Luol Deng, Carlos Boozer, Joakim Noah
Bench depth: Taj Gibson, Kirk Hinrich, Mike Dunleavy, Nazr Mohammed, Marquis Teague, Tony Snell, Erik Murphy
Derrick Rose is coming back, and that's enough to say that the Bulls are still strong. They made a second-round playoff appearance led by their 3rd point guard in the rotation (Nate Robinson), and what's to stop them aiming higher with their former MVP back and "100%" healthy?
They somehow re-tooled, losing Nate Robinson (who had that amazing game against Miami) and Marco Belinelli to free agency and waived Rip Hamilton and Malcom Thomas (if you know him) but managing to get Mike Dunleavy off the market. The SG spot has always been their position of weakness, but that may have changed with the emergence of Jimmy Butler. They further strengthened that spot by adding Dunleavy who may also play some SF to spell for Luol Deng. Their rookies look like they're NBA-ready (at least from what I've been reading), and Marquis Teague can only improve as the years go by. Tom Thibbodeau's magic easily makes this team among the top three teams in the East with Miami and possibly Indiana or Brooklyn.
Fantasy Prospects: Rose said he won't come back unless he's 100%. Now that he's coming back, we expect him to do Derrick Rose things and fill up the stat sheets to validate his statement that he's "the best player in the NBA" today. Deng might continue to disappoint, so I'd rank Butler higher than Deng in my Fantasy depth chart. Joakim Noah is a guy I initially didn't like in my team when I started out in Fantasy basketball, but you gotta love the guy's energy that also translates to stats. Very late in the draft, if you're still looking for a guard to fill up your roster, Teague may be an option; Kirk Hinrich would be a primary option off the bench for Rose, but given his injury history, you might want to keep Teague on your bench. Tony Snell is said to be a Thibs kind of guy, so he may be able to earn minutes at the SF or PF spot.
Miami Heat
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| A mini-Twitter War with Gatorade ad buddy Kevin Durant may fuel Flash to show that he is still one of the best shooting guards in the league |
Who they got in the market: Greg Oden, Chris Andersen (Re-signed), James Ennis (Draft), Micheal Beasley (Waivers)
Who they traded for: N/A
Who they lost: Mike Miller
Projected Starters: Mario Chalmers, Dwyane Wade, Shane Battier, LeBron James, Chris Bosh
Bench Depth: Ray Allen, Norris Cole, Chris Andersen, Micheal Beasley, Greg Oden, Udonis Haslem, Joel Anthony, Anthony Varnado, James Jones
With a loaded starting lineup, their position of weakness remains the Center and Point Guard spot. Still, they did manage to win a couple of titles with Mario Chalmers and Norris Cole at the point, while they had to learn to play small ball with Chris Bosh up at Center with Joel Anthony not really working out too well for them. In an offseason gambling move, they rolled the dice on two risky moves, signing former No.1 draft pick Greg Oden, and giving former No.2 pick Michael Beasley yet another chance in the league.
Despite showing signs of brilliance that made the Blazers pick him over Kevin Durant, Oden has spent more time on the training room than on the floor. The Heat, with their intact lineup, do not figure to exactly "need" Oden, but it would be nice if he works out for them. Their Eddy Curry experiment didn't work a couple of years back, and this is another low risk-high reward experiment they are taking on their way to seeking their third straight title.
They signed Michael Beasley off waivers, which gives them back the highest draft pick (both literally and figuratively…credit to @NotBillWalton for that joke) in the Heat’s franchise history. The talented forward’s off court issues have plagued his career countless times and most recently caused the Phoenix Suns to cut him loose, paving the way for Miami to make a move on him. It didn’t look like he was attracting a lot of suitors though.
Mike Miller is their only casualty, but that means more Ray Allen and Shane Battier threes when needed. Who knows, maybe James Jones would be dusted off and gets to play again.
Fantasy Prospects: Apart from the big three, the only immediate help you can get from this team are Chalmers and Allen's two to three 3-pointers per game. Haslem won't get much burn, and Birdman is a bit erratic, so their production from game to game will be varied. Battier will give a couple of games out of the 82 in the season where he'll hit an insane number of shots, but his production is not always seen in stat sheets, something you don't want when you're playing Fantasy basketball. If the Heat rolled the dice on Beasley, why can’t you? He can be a productive scorer and a decent rebounder off the bench for a late pick, and can play the JR Smith role in Miami if they decide to limit the minutes of their veterans during the regular season.
Oklahoma City Thunder
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| Not a lot of things can keep this guy off the court |
Who they got in the market: Derek Fisher, Ryan Gomes
Who they traded for: N/A
Who they lost: Kevin Martin
Projected Starters: Russell Westbrook, Thabo Sefolosha, Kevin Durant, Serge Ibaka, Kendrick Perkins
Bench Depth: Derek Fisher, Nick Collison, Reggie Jackson, Ryan Gomes, Jeremy Lamb, Daniel Orton, Perry Jones III
Next to Miami’s inactivity, Oklahoma might be the least inactive team in the league. And yet, they remain a top contender in the West with their solid lineup. Russell Westbrook is one tough SOB, so he'll be back before we know it. I’m not even sure if he’s healthy enough to start the season but I’m assuming he’ll be there. They lost Kevin Martin in free agency, validating the perception that they lost that James Harden trade badly. They essentially let him go for picks or something. That is, unless, Jeremy Lamb turns out to be a baller.
The Thunder will definitely bounce back, but I think they're not done moving pieces just yet. I think they're gearing to move someone in the middle of the season or a couple of weeks before the season starts. From where they are now, they still look like one of the best teams in the West.
Fantasy Prospects: Westbrook and Kevin Durant should definitely not be on the board by the 8th pick in a 14 -team draft. People have fallen in love with Serge Ibaka's stat lines, and may continue to do so despite a poor showing last year. Apart from them, it's difficult to assume who'd warrant playing time in that lineup, and how they're going to fill the stat sheets. Sefolosha gets a lot of playing time at the SG spot despite not showing much in the stat sheet. He does have three pointers and steals every once in a while, so he could still warrant a roster spot, but he can’t produce as much as you’d want from a starting SG. Lamb and Reggie Jackson are getting offseason love that may warrant them some regular season playing time.
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