This hasn't been the most eventful summer of player movement in the NBA, and we knew it wouldn't have the intrigue of past summers in recent memory like 2016 and 2019. Still, we had a huge name — Kevin Durant — move teams from a moribund situation in Phoenix to a super-promising one in Houston (more on them later).
This summer has also introduced the possibility that LeBron James could be traded for the first time in one of his final seasons. I'd stay away from ESPN for a while if you don't want to hear the usual LeBron hot take factory, though.
For this piece, however, I want to focus on some players that changed teams as unrestricted free agents that are definitively below the All-Star level. This list consists of players below the top 10 on the CBS Sports free agent tracker, but who should still make an impact on their new teams.
1. Dorian Finney-Smith (Lakers to Rockets)
The Rockets were the No. 2 seed in the West last season, but they never felt like a team that was built for April through June. Predictably, after some great defensive showings in the second half of the season playoffs, the offense fell flat against the Warriors in Game 7 without an elite offensive weapon.
Now, the Rockets will go into next spring (barring injury) with an all-time offensive weapon in Durant. Houston is loaded with depth and defense, and Finney-Smith will help with both. He probably won't be a starter much with Houston's swingman and frontcourt options, but there should be crucial games where Finney-Smith can provide efficient shooting and both help and on-ball defense.
Oklahoma City will go into late October as the West favorite, but I think Houston and Denver are right there in the next tier among the West's best.
2. Ty Jerome (Cavs to Grizzlies)
Ty Jerome was one of the great individual surprises of the 2024-25 season, going from a player who had never stayed in the rotation or been healthy for a full season of games to a real contender for the Sixth Man of the Year award. Unfortunately, a terrible series against Indiana in the playoffs and a bulging cap sheet made Jerome a second apron casualty for Cleveland.
However, I think this is a great pickup for Memphis, and I've loved a lot of what the Grizzlies have done in the offseason, despite trading Desmond Bane to Orlando. Jerome now joins a team that has a mix of two core stars (Ja Morant, Jaren Jackson, Jr.), veteran role players (Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, Brandon Clarke), and promising young talent (Jaylen Wells, Zach Edey, Scotty Pippen, Jr.). This probably isn't a contender for a top-four seed in the West, but the Grizzlies definitely aren't tanking like some thought after the Bane deal. Jerome's crafty offensive game and shooting from deep should fit in well on this interesting team.
3. Tyus Jones (Suns to Magic)
Speaking of Orlando, here's an acquisition that you might have missed during the past couple weeks. The Magic are clearly ready for the next step with their Paolo Banchero and Franz Wagner-led club, pushing their draft chips to the middle of the table for Bane to boost a league-worst offense.
But Tyus Jones, an underappreciated veteran point guard, will help with that offense, too. Jones won't start once Jalen Suggs is healthy, but his past two seasons show that he's a great playmaker who scores efficiently on low usage and doesn't turn the ball over. He's exactly the type of player who can break down second-unit defenses without all three stars on the floor for Orlando.
In an East that could be as weak as we've seen since the mid-2000s, Orlando should be a top-four seed, barring injuries.
4. Jordan Clarkson (Jazz to Knicks)
The changes in scenery don't come much more dramatic than Jordan Clarkson's move from Utah to New York. There are the obvious environment and cultural shifts, but there's also the change from the Jazz, who haven't much cared about winning the last two years, to the Knicks, who might be in the biggest win-now situation in the whole league.
The Knicks are loaded at the top of the roster, and might have the strongest five-man starting lineup in the NBA, but it's one that struggled mightily in the East Finals. Of course, having solid players off the bench will help, too, and Clarkson will return to a role similar to when he won Sixth Man of the Year in 2021: top scoring and ball-handling option off the bench for a real contender.
With Utah shutting down Clarkson each of the last two seasons, he'll be especially ready to play meaningful games after the end of March. Knicks fans should look forward to him and Guerschon Yabusele contributing more key bench minutes under Mike Brown than had been the case under Tom Thibodeau.
5. D'Angelo Russell (Nets to Mavericks)
Each of the other four names on this list clearly fill a season-long need for their teams and should factor into playoff rotations if they all get there healthy. I don't know if I can actually say that with D'Angelo Russell. Depending on the development of Dallas' younger guards, there's a scenario where Russell might not see big minutes later in the season.
However, with Kyrie Irving out of action until early 2026 following an ACL tear, Russell will need to make a beneficial impact on the Mavs in the first half of the season.
I'm not sure I love this signing if the Mavs actually think they can compete in a stacked Western Conference. Russell is incredibly streaky, loves to hoist shots early in the shot clock, and isn't associated with defense. Can he feasibly co-exist on a frontcourt-dominant team with Anthony Davis, Cooper Flagg, P.J. Washington, and Daniel Gafford?
If not, Dallas might get run off the court by smaller teams in the first half of the season and be too far back in the standings to make a run at the playoffs with Kyrie in the second half.
These acquisitions won't generate headlines like the Durant trade, but they represent smart front office work that could swing playoff races. While Russell's fit remains questionable, the other four signings address clear team needs. Come April, don't be surprised if these under-the-radar moves prove nearly as crucial as the marquee moves.
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