2025-26 Team Developments: Trades / Free Agents / News / Rumors / Ideas

The roster does look very good. I think that with Luka and Reaves at the wing postition, we would be better served strengthening our POA defnese and with players who could also shoot decently. Smart is hopefully 50% of that area, but I think we could use one more player here, that could shoot too.

 

I for one want to be a good defensive team. Thats what increases your floor and gives you a larger margin of error to win games in case your offense is off.

There is a few ways to be a good defensive team, effort, great concepts, but really the one that’s easiest is jsut having defensive personnel.

So we can build a great defensive team in two ways, having two athletic bigs that can take away the interior shots, we did this with AD/McGee/Dwight and OKC did this with Hartenstein and Chet, Cleveland with Mobley and Allen. Or you can have strong perimeter defence like the Bulls did, or how GSW played or Indiana last year.

It’s easier to get a few good 3&D wings than it is to get two mobile, shot blocking and spacing centers. When we had AD, I wanted Turner. Now I’d prefer we get some good defensive players around Luka, Lebron, Reaves and Ayton. Even if that means Reaves might have to go out.

 

Yeah, that two-big model is an extremely difficult needle to thread. Just having one that could shoot is difficult alone, let alone having two of them that could defend. That AD/Turner combo could have been good for about 2-3 years, but would also have Lebron moving to the 3 in the short-term, which is not ideal either.

 

That's going to be a deadly foursome though, with Luka and Lebron, we are just built differently than anyone else. Ayton makes it click IMO. We have 4 of the better rebounders and scorers, at their positions. That's going to be huge late in games, and in the playoffs.

Rui,Vando, Smart, Gabe, Hayes, and Laravia, just need to play their roles. We are going to be fine defensively IMO. We don't have to be a "great" defensive team, better than average is enough. The offense is going to be elite, because Luka, Lebron and Austin, are also high end facilitators. I think our squad is going to better on both ends of the floor. Just slotting in a dual threat at 5. This doesn't mean that I consider Ayton to be a star or something, he's just a great fit, for the role we needed at 5, after picking up Luka. I'd start Vando and bring Rui off the bench.

 

Basically me signaling why this was such a huge injury to Houston and their playoff chances in the playoffs and winning a championship.

All the fill in point guards are gone or traded to respective teams. Deangelo Russell Anferenee Simmons Jrue Holiday.

And they can’t just outright sign somebody.

You still need a vet around Sheppard.

 

Now Kevin Durant has to guard guys straight up. What yall don’t see is Kevin Durant having to get 3 fouls guarding Lebron James.

because you’re going to get fouls guarding Lebron James. He’s gonna get those calls. And Lebron initiates contact.

I know they have DFS but Lebrons gonna destroy that.

They can’t afford to get Thompson and Durant into foul trouble. But with LeBron and Luka you gotta have that.

I will argue now with Van Fleet down their best defenders are Thompson and Durant.

Durant went to Houston so he didn’t have to play defense and just focus on offense. They just needed that scorer. Pure scorer.

Now he’s gotta play defense.

it’s really a different team.

Sheppard

Thompson

Durant

Smith

Sengun


Sengun is slow as a** Ayton will cook him

Lebron Durant is a wash

Sheppard will get destroyed by Luka I still think Luka will give Thompson some.

And then you got Reaves going against Sheppard or Thompson

Who’s guarding Hachimura we are a matchup problem for them.

 

Sheppard is starting. They need him at the 1.

I will emphatically say this LeBron will cook DFS!!!!!!!! So much more than Giada De Larentis.

 

They’re fine, they can jsut trade for one. We’d happily do Gabe for Adams. I’m sure other teams would too. I bet they could get something for Josh Green and a first. And if they want to go big fish hunting, Josh Green, Tari Eason, Steven Adams plus five firsts can get you a lot.

 

Really don’t see it like this at all. Their whole team is full of athletic switchable defensive young guys.

Eason, Jabari and Amen can all guard any of LeBron, Luka and Reaves on a switch. Then you’ve got DFS who is an awesome team defender and good at guarding 4’s straight up (Rui) and then Durant can go on Ayton. Ayton isn’t some kind of crazy scorer and with Lebron, Luka and Reaves - why would we ask Ayton to score a ton.

If anything I think they match up great with us and they’re probably the team I’d least like to see in the playoffs. I think we have OKC’s number with our playmaking size on the wings with LeBron and Luka, I think with a decent 5 we got Denver and Minnesota now. GSW, Clippers and the rest of the top 8, we are better than. But Houston has the size to defend our main guys.

In saying that, Luka has eviscerated better defenders with less. So if he is in form and healthy, we might jsut dog walk everyone anyway.

 

Lots of good points on our offense Slick.

 

Of course Brodie will be on the menu for the firecrackers.

 

KD’s head would probably explode.

 

Jaxson Hayes is about to have a breakout year

 

Agreed. We will need at least three of our top rotation guys to take a big improvement step on D. On the other hand, somehow JJ got the group last year playing better defensively, for a span, after losing AD and Max.
We need to hope for a “sum better than it’s parts” return with this year’s squad as well.

 

For sure. Smart hopefully could return to his first-team all-defense form. Many are saying he is more of a wing defender at this point of his career, but unfortunately, he is the still the best option we have, in terms of anybody with any semblance of a three-point shot. Maybe he will show he is still an elite POA defender, or maybe he won't. I mean, he is still only in his ag 31 season, but he has been in the league for 10-11 seasons now. If one or more of the defenders that we already have on our team show in training camp, and/or at the start of the season that they have significantly improved their three-point shots, and if Smart shows he is sufficient at POA, then maybe we don't have to do anything. Right now, it's a question mark though, and a trade might be on the horizon. In terms of the Wiggins talk. He might be similar to Smart at this point in his career in terms of POA defense, but getting Wiggins would ad another switchable option, who is also a huge offensive upgrade, and offers much better overall defensive balance. I wouldn't trade the farm for him, but I could see why the Lakers are interested. Rui + Vincent + Knecht + 2032 2nd + 2028 swap + 2030 swap for Wiggins + Johnson. Or if push comes to shove, and Lakers feel that Wiggins is really that missing piece to a championship, then I could see them considering: Rui + Vincent+ Knecht + 2031 1st (top-13 protected 1st) for Wiggins + Johnson + 2027 2nd. That still seems like an over-pay though. Riley is going to try and squeeze us though. Another trade for a similar type of player would be Reaves to Indiana for Nesmith. Both Wiggins and Nesmith are not elite point-of-attack defenders, but are very switchable, and have an elite balance of shooting and defense. Having multiple players like this are another way of getting it done defensively. Nesmith is more valuable, because he is a lot younger, had more upside, and has a cheaper contract. So, he would cost Reaves. Indiana could use a guy who could play point-guard for a season, and then move over to shooting guard, when Haliburton comes back. They have shown the ability to play very well together already in their team USA stint.

 

Zion looking good - sigh I would have made a move for him when his stock was really low. This could still blow up in my face but he's a true generational talent and very few of them are out there.

 

Yeah, would have been a good "buy-low" opportunity. I would have been a little concerned about the spacing issues, with the way our team is currently constructed. But sometimes, you just have to do stuff like that. Especially with a player that young, and who's skills are a perfect match with Luka.

 

Kleber is the chosen one