NBA Free Agency

If You Can't Beat 'Em, Join 'Em.

What in the world? What just happened? In what has to be one of the wildest Free Agencies since "The Decision", we have missed quite a bit while being off for the Fourth of July. With so much to cover, let us hit the high points and discuss.

Kevin Durant to Golden State

Wow! In the biggest surprise, Kevin Durant leaves the only franchise that he has ever known. We all knew that Durant would be visiting teams, but I don't think that anyone would have imagined that he would have gone to Golden State: the team that his OKC Thunder took to the brink in the Western Conference Finals only to lose in Game 7 after having a 3-1 lead. Sure, we had heard early reports that Durant might consider going, but I cannot believe yet that he signed. Just because the bully on the playground beat the crap out of you does not mean that you should be his friend. Durant signed a two-year contract worth $54.3 million with a player option after the first year. Durant has since stated that he intends on staying with the Warriors throughout the rest of his career. A hard pill to swallow if you remember the last time Durant had a contract negotiation. While LeBron was having his decision on ESPN, Durant tweeted his extension with the Thunder out over Twitter. Best of luck to the young man, but we're still scratching our heads over this one.



Dwayne Wade Leaves Heat for Bulls

Dwayne Wade returns home as he signs a contract with the Chicago Bulls. For the first time in his long career, Wade will be the highest paid player on the team. Feeling unwanted and unappreciated in Miami, Wade goes to Chicago where it was rumored he might sign with the last time he was a free agent. Joining him will be Rajon Rondo who also signed with the Bulls to the tune of two-years $28 million. Wade will now make $47.5 million over the next two seasons when he could have stayed in Miami for about $7 million less. Wade is known for taking pay cuts to bring in talent. Now, he has decided that it is time for him to earn his due. Congratulations on returning home!




Next post, we will look at some of the more puzzling signings of this Free Agency Period. Tune in next time to see the busts!




-Dug
@chansm1th

DONE with Draymond Green

This is the last time I'll utter Draymond's name. I'm #DONE with him (h/t @barstoolbigcat). I was unhappy with him for kicking Steven Adams in the sack, but I wasn't going to be completely finished with him. This is the last straw though. He overstepped his boundaries. KANTER IS AN ANGEL! 

Draymond just made the biggest mistake of his life. Aside from my #done status with him, he has also brought on the wrath of Turkey because they will stand for their favorite son and fight this injustice. I will not utter his name anymore because it is disrespectful to speak poorly of the dead. RIP in peace and sorry you screwed up. Your team will be able to join you in the afterlife soon. 

All my love,

@corbeech

Haha the NBA is a joke!

This made me chuckle. Way to be consistent with the punishments boys. Thank the lord you got the terror that is Dahntay Jones aka the Cavs last man off the bench suspended for his below the belt. It's good to see that the NBA is showing the players who is in charge and not accepting these low blows from anyone. Oh, wait. Apparently that's not the case if you're a star player. 

Glad to know the NBA is taking Draymond seriously. With this massive $25,000 fine I'm sure that he won't do this again. Much like Doug telling Shooter about Happy getting suspended, I am envisioning Adam Silver trying to justify only fining Draymond rather than suspending him because "the ratings are the highest they've ever been." I'm laying the challenge down to OKC, someone had better dropkick Draymond in the sack or else they look weak. We'll be watching, don't let us down. 

All my love,

@corbeech

Late Morning Wake Up

Get Out of Bed!!

Good Morning! Yes, it's almost afternoon, but we're getting a late start today. Lot of playoff action on the table, including a pair of intriguing baseball games today. Let's get started with what happened while you were asleep. 

Pittsburgh Finishes Off Washington

The Penguins beat the Caps in overtime last night to win the series 4-2, but it wasn't easy. Pittsburgh watched as their 3-0 squandered before the Caps forced overtime. With the win, they are now 8-1 all-time in the playoffs against Washington. Next up will be the Eastern Conference Finals where they will face a Tampa Bay team that they went 0-2-1 against during the regular season. 

OKC Takes 3-2 Over San Antonio

The Spurs had lost only one game at home through the entire regular season. They have now lost two straight in a single series to the Thunder. Last night was Russell Westbrook's night. Westbrook torched the Spurs for 35 points, 11 rebounds, and 9 assists. Game 6 sees the series return to OKC on Thursday where the Thunder will try to advance to the Western Conference Finals for the first time since 2014. 

Looking to tonight, we have two Game 5's in the NBA. Miami heads back north of the border to take on Toronto while Portland limps on their last leg into Golden State. Game 7 of the NHL Western Conference second round match up between the St Louis Blues and Dallas Stars will also be on the slate. 

Looking to baseball, we have two intriguing match ups. In one, we have two undefeated pitchers facing off. In the other, opposing pitchers facing their former team. 

The Chicago White Sox and the Texas Rangers combined last night for 24 runs. Today, the two starters meeting are each undefeated and have a sub-3 ERA. Mat Latos (5-0, 2.62) takes the mound against Cole Hamels (4-0, 2.68) in what should be a great game. First pitch is at 2:05. 

In the night cap, we turn our eyes toward our nation's capital again for another match up between the Tigers and the Nationals. Jordan Zimmerman (5-1, 1.10) faces the team he spent the last six seasons with for the first time tonight. His opponent on the mound will be Max Scherzer (3-2, 4.60) will also be facing his former team in the Detroit Tigers. Both pitchers have recently signed huge off-season contracts with their current teams. Should you watch this game, you will be seeing a combined $320 million worth of pitching arms out of the two starters. 

That's all I have at the moment. Keep a lookout for posts throughout the day. As always, thanks for reading. 

-Dug

@chansm1th