NBA free agency winners and losers: The Celtics managed to win again

The billion-dollar gold rush that typically accompanies the opening of NBA free agency didn’t materialize Sunday, the first day that teams and free agents were able to strike agreements. Instead, the first few hours were spent in relative silence until the Philadelphia 76ers agreed to sign Paul George early Monday morning, thereby dissolving the nine-time All-Star forward’s partnership with Kawhi Leonard after five injury-plagued seasons with the Los Angeles Clippers.

There were several factors driving the slow start. Pascal Siakam and OG Anunoby were among the notable players who underwent “pre-agency” by getting traded before February’s deadline and subsequently agreeing to lucrative pacts with their new teams. What’s more, a new rule that allows teams to negotiate with their own free agents as soon as the NBA Finals conclude led to early signings that thinned out the field.

Most importantly, the NBA has instituted a new salary cap system that includes onerous financial penalties and restrictions upon the league’s highest-spending teams. With an eye toward greater strategic flexibility, rich ownership groups such as those of the Golden State Warriors and Clippers decided to cut payroll rather than spend as freely as they have in the past.

Despite those hurdles, enough business was conducted on free agency’s opening night to alter the championship landscape. Here’s a rundown of the winners and losers from Day 1.

Winners: Boston Celtics

The Celtics will boast a superpower as they seek to become the first repeat champions since the Warriors in 2017 and 2018: continuity. Boston will return its entire starting lineup and all of its key reserves next season, which is a rarity for recent title winners. The 2019 Toronto Raptors, 2020 Los Angeles Lakers, 2021 Milwaukee Bucks, 2022 Warriors and 2023 Denver Nuggets all suffered at least one major defection following their championships.

Meanwhile, the Celtics can survey the landscape and conclude that none of their major rivals made transformational jumps in the early going. The 76ers agreed to sign George to a four-year, $212 million maximum contract, but they will struggle to match the Celtics’ depth because of their pricey core trio of Joel Embiid, Tyrese Maxey and George. The New York Knicks solidified their standing as a leading challenger by trading for Mikal Bridges last week, but the Celtics still have superior top-end talent. The Bucks and Miami Heat didn’t make any moves of consequence Sunday.

In the Western Conference, the Nuggets, Warriors and Clippers all took major hits to their rotations while other challengers such as the, Minnesota Timberwolves, Oklahoma City Thunder and Lakers failed to add stars. On paper, Denver looked like the biggest threat to Boston thanks to three-time MVP Nikola Jokic and an excellent, tested starting lineup. But Kentavious Caldwell-Pope’s exit for the Orlando Magic robs the Nuggets of an experienced wing defender and outside shooter they would need to match up with the Celtics if they were to meet in the 2025 Finals.

Boston’s window won’t last forever because its payroll, which is already among the league’s highest, is set to grow substantially over the next two years because of new contracts for Jaylen Brown, Jayson Tatum, who signed a five-year max extension to become the highest-paid player in the league Monday, and Derrick White, who agreed to a four-year, $125.9 million extension. Owner Wyc Grousbeck’s surprising decision to sell his stake in the storied franchise is a reminder the Celtics will eventually be forced to make the same hard choices as the Warriors and Clippers, but for now they’re in the pole position.

Loser: Stephen Curry

After four championships and six Finals appearances in their 13 years together, the Splash Brothers are headed their separate ways. The writing was on the wall once the Warriors lost to the Sacramento Kings in the play-in tournament, but Monday brought word that Klay Thompson will join the Mavericks on a three-year, $50 million agreement. Evidently, Golden State wasn’t willing to pay Thompson, 34, what he believed he was worth to remain alongside Curry.

Although the Warriors have run up huge luxury tax bills for years in hopes of extending their dynasty, Curry must now process the departure of a beloved teammate in Thompson and the cost-cutting loss of Chris Paul. It’s unclear whether Mike Dunleavy Jr., Golden State’s new general manager, has a quick pivot in mind. As it stands, the Warriors seem to be getting their bearings amid the changing salary cap landscape.

That’s a prudent approach from an organizational perspective, but it comes directly at the expense of Curry’s hopes of winning a fifth ring. The 36-year-old guard can lick his wounds with a trip to Paris and a shot at his first Olympic gold medal; once he returns stateside, the focus will shift to whether Golden State is headed for another maddening run to the play-in tournament.

Winner: Joel Embiid

Embiid’s rotten luck with sidekicks – most notably Jimmy Butler, Ben Simmons and James Harden – is well known. Harden’s ugly exit last year left the 76ers high and dry, and their season proved unsalvageable once Embiid underwent knee surgery in February. Enter George, whose perimeter scoring, 3-point shooting, playoff experience and two-way abilities make him a vast upgrade over Simmons and outgoing forward Tobias Harris. Embiid’s supporting cast needed a jolt of talent to complement 2024 most improved player Maxey, and General Manager Daryl Morey pulled another rabbit out of his hat by landing one of this offseason’s headliners.

The offensive fit among Embiid, Maxey and George should come together quickly, because George has played with high-usage stars such as Russell Westbrook and Leonard. Defensively, George will give Philadelphia a better answer to Boston’s Tatum and Brown. Of course, George brings with him a lengthy injury history. The 76ers’ chances of reaching their first Eastern Conference finals since 2001 are fully reliant upon Embiid and George remaining healthy, which is a daunting proposition.

Still, Embiid is 30 years old, and there’s no telling how long his prime years will last given his health concerns. Handing George a max contract that will run through his age-37 season could blow up in Philadelphia’s face down the road, but that’s not really Embiid’s concern. The 2023 MVP needed more help to make the first deep postseason run of his career, and George was the best he could have hoped for this time around.

Loser: Steve Ballmer

Ballmer, the Clippers’ billionaire owner and a former Microsoft executive, deserves credit for admitting his team wasn’t good enough to win a championship. That had to be an incredibly bitter pill to swallow after he spent five years, hundreds of millions of dollars and countless draft picks to acquire Leonard, George, Westbrook and James Harden.

That star-studded group was too old and too injury prone to compete with the NBA’s best. Since landing Leonard and George in 2019, the Clippers won a total of three playoff series and never reached the Finals. As they decided that a four-year maximum contract for George would box them in under the new collective bargaining agreement rules, the Clippers agreed to re-sign Harden to a two-year, $70 million contract and signed Derrick Jones Jr. on a modest three-year, $30 million deal. When the dust settles, the Clippers should still have a chance at reaching next year’s playoffs if Leonard remains healthy.

Even so, the loss of George was such a blow that it prompted the Clippers to issue a lengthy statement explaining their thought process and admitting to their shortcomings. Ballmer had hoped to rival the crosstown Lakers with his bold moves for Leonard and George. Instead, LeBron James, Anthony Davis and the Lakers won the 2020 championship and proceeded to dominate the discourse while Leonard and George nursed constant injuries and came up short in the playoffs. The Clippers have spent years hyping their new Intuit Dome, yet now they won’t have George, a Southern California native who was popular with the fan base, to help christen the billion-dollar building when it opens this fall.

The worst part, though, is that Ballmer must come up with a new strategy to build a contender. The NBA’s new rules have made it much harder to land superstars who are in their primes, and the Clippers still haven’t paid off all the draft picks they used to land George and Harden. With Leonard recently signing a three-year extension in January, the Clippers will be tied to their unreliable franchise forward for the foreseeable future. Despite Ballmer’s limitless resources, this could take years to turn around.

Winner: James Harden

The big winner of the Clippers’ collapse is the 34-year-old Harden, who landed a major payday despite his advancing age and declining game. Flash back to last summer, and the 10-time All-Star was embroiled in a stare down with the 76ers, who weren’t willing to meet his asking price. After successfully elbowing his way out of Philadelphia, Harden returned to his hometown of Los Angeles and signed a new contract that will push his career earnings past $400 million.

George’s departure should shield Harden from further scrutiny over his playoff shortcomings because the Clippers will no longer face championship expectations. At the same time, Harden should enjoy more opportunities to function as a scorer because the Clippers will need him to fill George’s shoes as Leonard’s lead sidekick.

Losers: Atlanta Hawks

Much like the Clippers, the Hawks found themselves reckoning with the aftermath of a splashy trade that didn’t quite go as planned. Two summers ago, the Hawks sent three first-round picks to the San Antonio Spurs so they could acquire Dejounte Murray as a backcourt partner for Trae Young. The pair never truly meshed, and the Hawks wound up changing their coach and overhauling their front office while failing to win a playoff series in 2023 or 2024.

Forced to cut its losses, Atlanta shipped Murray to the New Orleans Pelicans for Dyson Daniels, Larry Nance Jr. and two first-round picks. That return package lacked a signature asset, and the Hawks remain stuck in an identity crisis: They must decide whether Young is still worth building around, but they can’t fully tank because they still owe their 2025 first-round pick to the Spurs. Even though they lucked into drafting No. 1 overall pick Zaccharie Risacher, they don’t have enough talent to be good and don’t yet have a clear path to a deeper rebuild. It’s going to be a long season.

Winners: New York Knicks

The Knicks’ addition of Bridges, which came at the cost of significant draft capital, still has a chance to go down as the move of the summer. While George is a more accomplished player and superior scorer, Bridges landed on a deep, cohesive and well-balanced New York team that fell one win short of the Eastern Conference finals.

There are some open questions to work through. How will Julius Randle, who missed the playoffs with a shoulder injury, fit into the new-look rotation? Can Anunoby stay healthy for a full playoff run? Do the Knicks have enough inside if they lose energetic center Isaiah Hartenstein in free agency? But with Bridges in place alongside former Villanova teammates Jalen Brunson, Josh Hart and Donte DiVincenzo, the Knicks could win 55 games for the first time since 1996-97.

Losers: Denver Nuggets

Jokic is 29 years old and widely regarded as the NBA’s best player. He carried the Nuggets to the 2023 title and is talented enough to single-handedly keep them among the league’s top 2025 contenders. Unfortunately, the Nuggets have struggled mightily to retain talent around their franchise center.

Bruce Brown, a sparkplug guard on the 2023 title team, bounced last summer when he unexpectedly landed a huge contract from the Indiana Pacers. Then, Caldwell-Pope, a key starter for two seasons, claimed a three-year, $66 million contract from the Magic on Sunday and didn’t look back. In another cost-cutting move, Denver sent three second-round picks to the Charlotte Hornets to shed Reggie Jackson’s $5.3 million last week.

The Nuggets still appear poised to sign Jamal Murray, their second-best player, to a long-term extension, and their skimping now could make it easier to re-sign Aaron Gordon once he’s due a new deal. Still, it’s hard to shake the feeling that Jokic will be headed into next year’s playoffs with one hand tied behind his back.

Winners: Orlando Magic

Simply put, the Nuggets’ loss is the Magic’s gain. Caldwell-Pope will plug cleanly into a defensive-minded Orlando team that entered the offseason hoping to acquire more shooting around franchise forward Paolo Banchero. The Magic is in good position to spend this summer because so many of its rotation players are on affordable rookie deals, and it could still have enough cap space left over after adding Caldwell-Pope to target a backcourt playmaker.

Caldwell-Pope’s new contract represents a meaningful pay raise from his $14.7 million salary last season, but he’s a durable wing who has enjoyed near perfect health throughout his 11-year career. If the Magic can add a secondary ballhandler to its backcourt, Banchero should be able to lead the team to its first playoff series victory since 2010.

Losers: Phoenix Suns

As other big spenders such as the Warriors and Clippers began their tear-down efforts, the Phoenix Suns will be paying three players – Kevin Durant, Devin Booker and Bradley Beal – more than $150 million next season when the league’s salary cap is set at $140.6 million. As a result, Phoenix is on track to be well over the $188.9 million line for the “second apron,” the spending zone that carries the most punitive penalties and restrictions.

Such largesse would represent a big problem for any team, but it’s an absolute disaster for the Suns given that they didn’t win a single playoff game last season. Things are bleak on every level: Durant will turn 36 in September, Beal never looked like a star last year, and a second coaching change is unlikely to address the team’s turnover issues and poor interior defense. Without a painful reshaping of their star trio, the Suns are a good bet to deliver the league’s worst return on investment next season.

Winner: Chris Paul

Believe it or not, Paul will suit up for his seventh franchise after he agreed Sunday to sign a one-year, $11 million deal with the Spurs following the Warriors’ decision to waive him. This has been quite the circuitous journey for a future first-ballot Hall of Famer, but San Antonio will grant Paul, 39, the option of winding down his career in a rebuilding situation that desperately needs his veteran leadership and enduring pick-and-roll skills.

Paul should help provide some of the structure on offense that was missing during Victor Wembanyama’s phenomenal rookie season. San Antonio’s experiment with Jeremy Sochan at point guard was an utter failure, and it would have been foolish to entrust Wembanyama’s second season with Tre Jones, who is capable but unspectacular, and rookie Stephon Castle. If this is Paul’s last dance, some quality time with Gregg Popovich could prove valuable if he decides to pursue a second career in coaching.