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Atlantic Division
Boston Celtics
Key Additions: Deion St John, Larry Nance, Johnny Dawkins, Jim Spanarkel
Key Subtractions: Johnny Davis
The Celtics made a bet-on-yourself move by shipping out all their future picks for Johnny Dawkins and future Nuggets pick. They pick up some strong players from free agency and look to make a run into the playoffs after a couple years of rebuilding.
Miami Heat
Key Additions: Richard Washington, Greg Dreiling
Key Subtractions: Clemon Johnson
Last year didn’t go as well as they would’ve hoped due to some injuries during the playoffs but they’re back with basically the same roster and look to build upon their growth last year.
New Jersey Nets
Key Additions: Sly Williams, Mitchell Jordan, Rory Sparrow
Key Subtractions: None
Injuries derailed what this defensive juggernaut could do last season but they reload with young budding star Mitchell Jordan and more defensive stalwarts. Will they have enough offense to make it deep in the playoffs this year?
New York Knicks
Key Additions: Kevin Duckworth, Chandler Reeves
Key Subtractions: None
After trading away Laimbeer, the New York Knicks still proved to be a strong team in the East taking the Cavaliers to 6 games and hope to build upon their strong season with the addition of promising rookie Kevin Duckworth and guard depth in Chandler Reeves.
Orlando Magic
Key Additions: Rich Kelley, Rick Mahorn
Key Subtractions: Mike Gminski, Kelly Tripucka, Dan Issel, Sleepy Floyd
Dan Issel called it a career and Gminski left in the off-season, but the Magic were able to recoup some frontcourt depth with Kelley and Mahorn. They let their starting guard Sleepy Floyd leave in free agency for a minimum contract and look to move in a different direction.
Philadelphia 76ers
Key Additions: Cedric Maxwell
Key Subtractions: Mychal Thompson, Jamaal Wilkes
Moses Malone is finally happy and got his ring in Philly. The 76ers look to defend their championship run with the addition of Cedric Maxwell on the wing. Moses is still prime to be the MVP of the league for at least a couple more seasons, and the Sixers are making moves to keep him happy with a strong supporting cast.
Toronto Raptors
Key Additions: Roy Tarpley
Key Subtractions: President Howard Carter
Despite telling president Howard Carter that they’d rather have dead cap space than have him on the roster, the Raptors build upon a solid core and add promising big man Roy Tarpely who’s been making a lot of noise in training camp. Look to see the Raptors make a few steps forward this season.
Central Division
Atlanta Hawks
Key Additions: Trent Tucker, Jeff Hornacek, Chuck Person
Key Subtractions: None
The Hawks blew up their main core of Birdsong and King last season and go into this season with a ton of young wings and a lot of future picks. The Hawks were able to take away star SG Trent Tucker from the Cavaliers and will now need to make some decisions on who will get the playing time on the wing.
Charlotte Hornets
Key Additions: Dwayne Washington, Jarrett Hobson
Key Subtractions: None
There’s been some rumblings that the Hornets will be looking to blow it up after a couple of strong seasons but not much playoff success. They add two young guards in hope to bolster their backcourt - it remains to be seen which direction this team will go this upcoming season.
Chicago Bulls
Key Additions: Clemon Johnson, Dan Roundfield, John Salley, Quintin Dailey
Key Subtractions: None
A team that last season looked like Isaiah Thomas and the 1984 Vancour Grizzlies, they add a ton of high quality starters to group with Thomas, Ballard, and newly signed star SG Quintin Dailey. This team might start to build up a rep of being a dirty team with Isaiah Thomas and John Salley, but that toughness will prove to give them more success as a team moving forward.
Cleveland Cavaliers
Key Additions: Darren Tillis, Dennis Johnson, Mitch Kupchak
Key Subtractions: Trent Tucker
After Trent Tucker had a one-hour ESPN special about his free agency at the Boys and Girls club in Cleveland, he spurned the Cavaliers to take his talents to Georgia. There was some worry that the Cavaliers might not be able to replace him, but they reload with Dennis Johnson and Mitch Kupchak to replace Tucker’s production, and provide even more defensive power.
Detroit Pistons
Key Additions: Ron Harper, Melvin Turpin, Kevin Porter
Key Subtractions: Fat Lever
Took the reigning champions Sixers to 7 games and look to build on that momentum from last season. Despite the entire league wanting to see a 4 man PG lineup, they ship out Fat Lever to pick up big man Melvin Turpin which will raise this team’s ceiling.
Indiana Pacers
Key Additions: Mike Gminski, Sleepy Floyd
Key Subtractions: Ricky Pierce, Jamie Benshoof
Ricky Pierce left them in free agency after laboring last season but they pick up Mike Gminski and Sleepy Floyd as the team begins to embrace their rebuild and look to pick up the pieces left after Kareem Abdul-Jabbar decided it was time to sip on some drinks in his vacation home.
Milwaukee Bucks
Key Additions: Juan Antonio Corbalan, Dell Curry, Dennis Rodman
Key Subtractions: Rick Mahorn
The Bucks rebuilt their team last season but now have an interesting new concept the league has yet to embrace - they have a bunch of outside shooters and a psycho maniac rebounder and defender in Dennis Rodman to gobble up all those long misses. We’ll see how this new system translates to success in the current NBA.
Washington Bullets
Key Additions: Ricky Pierce, Brad Daughterty, Johnny Davis
Key Subtractions: Quintin Dailey
Might have had the best off-season in the league picking up a stud in Brad Daughterty and bringing in star SG Ricky Pierce along with PG Johnny Davis to have a solid core to move forward with. Once a team that looked like they needed a complete new rebuild, they seemed to have done it overnight.
Midwest Division
Dallas Mavericks
Key Additions: Bill Wingate, William Bedford, Fat Lever, Ben Coleman
Key Subtractions: Kevin Porter, Melvin Turpin
A surprising lottery team after having so much success two seasons ago, they lose Mitchell Jordan but pick up Fat Lever who will help stabilize this team. They have a ton of promising big men and found the perfect team to trade with in the land of PGs of Detroit. They will look to be back in the playoff race in the wild West.
Denver Nuggets
Key Additions: Dave Corzine, Arvydas Sabonis, Maurice Cheeks, getting rid of Seth Dickerson
Key Subtractions: None
They have a very interesting young core of Sabonis and Barkley, along with athletic wing Xavier McDaniel. They picked up two reliable veterans in Dave Corzine and Maurice Cheeks, but rumors are they might already be on the move. This team if they keep their core together will make some strides this season and have a bright future ahead.
Houston Rockets
Key Additions: Scott Skiles, Tim Kempton
Key Subtractions: None
Scott Skiles seems to have heard the hate in the draft recap and came out with a strong training camp and looks to be a very promising young guard. The Rockets had a lot of success last season even after trading McHale with Tom Chambers also hearing the hate and stepping up his game to the next level. They will be back in the contender race this season.
Minnesota Timberwolves
Key Additions: World B. Free, Greg Kite
Key Subtractions: Richard Washington
The Timberwolves were able to re-sign their pillar in Mark McNamara and want to utilize the remaining years of Junior Bridgeman and Norm Nixon as they finally have their 1st round pick again as a backup in case it doesn’t pan out. Once Nixon and Bridgeman expire, look for this team to build around McNamara to get back to relevance in the West.
Phoenix Suns
Key Additions: Mychal Thompson, Kevin Willis
Key Subtractions: Julius Erving, Ben Coleman, Dennis Johnson, Mitch Kupchak
After seeing Father Time start to have effect on Julius Erving, the Suns decided to pull the trigger on a complete rebuild and began their firesale. Almost all of their starters have been shipped out for future picks, and they seemed to have lucked out with Kevin Willis exploding in a new environment and looking to make huge strides this season.
San Antonio Spurs
Key Additions: None
Key Subtractions: Dave Corzine
After making some moves to make a playoff run last season, the Spurs had a disappointing end seeing their lottery pick jump to the 3rd overall pick. They still have the superstar wings in Worthy and Gervin, but they seem to need to add one more star in order to really make noise.
Utah Jazz
Key Additions: Mark Price
Key Subtractions: None
The Jazz are doing a rebuild while still being somewhat good, picking up promising young guard in Mark Price. Rumors are that some of their veterans are on the block, but look for the Jazz to still have a solid season as they begin their re-tooling, rather than re-building.
Pacific Division
Golden State Warriors
Key Additions: Kevin McHale, Nate McMillan
Key Subtractions: Cliff Robinson, Juan Antonio Corbalan
The Warriors were able to improve their team despite their hard-cap situation, picking up star Kevin McHale and hoping to make one more run with the boys before possibly breaking up the team next year. Let’s see if the upgrade from Cliff Robinson to Kevin McHale can help take this team over the top.
Los Angeles Clippers
Key Additions: Len Bias
Key Subtractions: None
The Clippers decided to start rebuilding last season, shipping out star Larry Smith and picking up young promising prospect in Len Bias. They will rebuild slowly and will look to move their veterans right now as they build around their new young stud.
Los Angeles Lakers
Key Additions: Jamaal Wilkes, Jamie Benshoof
Key Subtractions: Bill Wingate
Dominique Wilkins got injured in the finals which didn’t allow this team to go back-to-back. Rumors are that Bill Wingate was hurling expletives towards the GM as he left the team this off-season and spurned the Lakers to go to the land of big men Dallas Mavericks. The Lakers were able to pick up some more depth on the wing and replacement Wingate Jamie Benshoof as they make another run for a title this year.
Portland Trailblazers
Key Additions: Julius Erving, Freeman Williams, Rob Williams
Key Subtractions: Kevin Willis, Maurice Cheeks, Larry Nance
The Blazers seem to be a cursed team in terms of shipping out their young players only to have them explode on other teams, but picking up Erving, Freeman Williams, and Rob Williams to pair with their superstar frontcourt of Sampson and Cartwright will still give them a strong squad going into the season. The Blazers may be getting a phone call from the Grizzlies to evaluate their team and do the opposite of what their scouting team recommends
Sacramento Kings
Key Additions: Mark Alarie, Ben Poquette, John Williams
Key Subtractions: Dan Roundfield
Oscar Schmidt showed that he can carry a team into the playoffs even with not that much support around him and in the tough West. This team is set up well with young prospects Mark Alarie and John Williams along with superstar Oscar Schmidt, hiring a GM for this team will set this team up for success as they have multiple picks this year as well.
Seattle SuperSonics
Key Additions: Alton Lister, Othell Wilson
Key Subtractions: Bill Laimbeer
Had a tough season last year not getting into the playoffs but another year of development from young stud Wayman Tisdale and swapping out Laimbeer for a more offensive minded big man, the Supersonics are looking to make another push into the playoffs without their 1st rounder this year. They got a bit more depth in the guard spot with Othell Wilson, we’ll see what this team is capable of and what Alex English has left in the tank.
Vancouver Grizzlies
Key Additions: Bill Laimbeer, Brad Sellers, Cliff Robinson, Drzen Petrovic
Key Subtractions: Alton Lister, Kevin McHale
Grizzlies were able to go from the worst team in the league to a 50 win team, but showed that they weren’t built for playoff success after being bounced in the first round. They made some moves looking for more defensive minded centers and hoping for development from some of their lottery picks this year to make a deeper run in the playoffs.
