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Introducing the 2016 NBA Free Agency All-Bargain Teams
Bargain is a relative term, especially in the NBA’s new salary cap era.
When Robin Lopez signed a four-year, $54 million deal with the New York Knicks in 2015, many considered it a tad too high for a rim-protecting center with clear offensive limitations, but imagine that salary ballooned by 34 percent this summer, the same way the cap will skyrocket from $70 million to $94 million on July 1. That’s an $18 million annual commitment to Lopez through 2020.
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Now, consider that cap could exceed $110 million in 2017-18 — a 57 percent increase in the span of two years — and suddenly the final two seasons of Lopez’s deal at an average annual rate of $14 million seems like a bargain, especially since inflation would push his 2015 deal to four years and $85 million. All of which is why the Chicago Bulls sought Lopez as the centerpiece of their trade of Derrick Rose.
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Come Friday, general managers will not only offer contracts based on the $24 million salary cap increase this year, but also take into consideration another $16 million increase (or more) in 2017. So, what might seem like a tad too high this summer could actually be a bargain moving forward.
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We tried to find a couple handfuls of those in compiling our 2016 NBA Free Agency All-Bargain Teams.
FIRST TEAM
C: Ian Mahinmi
Mahinmi will be a nice barometer of this Lopez theory. At 29 years old, he’s slightly older than Robin, although Mahinmi has 5,000 fewer NBA minutes on his 6-foot-11 frame. Averaging 13.1 points, 10.1 rebounds, 2.1 assists, 1.5 blocks and 1.3 steals per 36 minutes, his numbers are nearly identical to Lopez, and Mahinmi anchored a defense that ranked among the league’s best with him on the floor.
And I don’t anticipate Mahinmi even approaching the $13.5 million annual salary Lopez received last year, so the team that lands him for something like four years and $32 million will be acquiring value.
F: Marvin Williams
Beware the veteran who submits a career year in a contract season, which is precisely what Williams did as an invaluable member of the Charlotte Hornets’ success in 2015-16. But it really does seem as though the 30-year-old finally found his niche as a small-ball four in Charlotte. He played the vast majority of his time at power forward this past season, shooting 40 percent from 3-point range for the first time in his career and rebounding at his highest clip during 11 seasons in the league.
How much that production has to do with playing in space opposite less athletic forwards versus increased effort in a contract year is the question suitors will have to ask this summer. If it’s the latter, as I suspect, then three years and $45 million for the former No. 2 pick doesn’t seem so outrageous.
F: Mirza Teletovic
Speaking of small-ball fours, Teletovic is 6-foot-9 and shot 39 percent on 460 attempts from 3-point range for the Phoenix Suns this past season. That alone is worth millions on the open market. The biggest question is Teletovic’s age at 30 years old, but he has 18,000 fewer NBA minutes than the aforementioned Williams and should cost significantly less than the Hornets forward this summer.
Teletovic accepted a one-year, $5.5 million deal from Phoenix, in hopes of cashing in this summer, so what exactly is cashing in for the Bosnian? Double his current salary and triple the years? As startling as it may sound, even that may be a bargain for a forward who averaged 20 points per 36 minutes.
G: Allen Crabbe
The 24-year-old has become the go-to guy when people ask, “Who could be the backup who breaks out in a more starring role next season?” And that’s a dangerous game. Because it’s usually not the guy everyone assumes it will be. And what are the chances Crabbe was in the same 2013-14 backcourt as two other guys who lived up to that breakout billing this past year: C.J. McCollum and Will Barton?
Or maybe the Portland Trailblazers are just really good at identifying talented guards, and Crabbe will ultimately be worthy of the double-digit millions it will take to pry him away in restricted free agency.
G: Kent Bazemore
The better backcourt bang for your average annual value of $15 million might be Bazemore, who proved his value in a more significant role than Crabbe on the Atlanta Hawks this past season. Although, Bazemore may not have the same upside. The 26-year-old averaged 15.1 points, 6.6 rebounds, 3.0 assists and 1.7 steals per 36 minutes, and those numbers held steady in the playoffs.
That’s worth $15 million a year, you say? Again, this isn’t your older brother’s NBA salary cap, and the market for talented free-agent guards — in a league that relies on them — is shallow this summer.
SECOND TEAM
C: Boban Marjanovic
I couldn’t decide whether to go with Bismack Biyombo or Boban for our Second Team center. Biyombo or Boban. Boban or Biyombo. The age-old question. When in doubt, always go Boban, though, right?
Boban became a punchline when the 7-foot-3 center’s gigantic hands became a meme, but his production in limited minutes — 21 points and 13.7 rebounds per 36 — was also monstrous. Granted, many of his minutes came in garbage time, but Gregg Popovich trusted him in big spots, too, which should tell you something. It’s proven nearly impossible to pluck skilled talent from San Antonio, even above market rates, but if the Spurs go star shopping, they may not have space to re-sign Boban.
F: Moe Harkless
Another one of several underrated additions to the Blazers’ remarkable rebuild last summer, Harkless showed real progress in the playoffs, serving as a primary defender opposite Golden State Warriors guard Klay Thompson and improving his 3-point stroke to a still-below-league-average 34.1 percent. At 6-foot-9, he’s versatile enough to defend three positions, and he’s a solid rebounder on both ends.
And he’s still only 23 years old. There’s a lot to like about Harkless, but he’s a restricted free agent, so the Blazers will probably benefit from this bargain once again this summer. Although, there’s still a chance someone could overpay Harkless on the chance he keeps improving and exceeds his value.
F: Dwight Powell
Somehow, Powell proved the more valuable asset in the Dallas Mavericks’ trade for Rajon Rondo in December 2014, averaging 14.5 points and 9.9 rebounds per 36 minutes. The 24-year-old Stanford product is a workhorse whose midrange jumper should improve with time. Like Harkless, though, he’s a restricted free agent, but might be had at short money if the Mavs chase big names with their space.
(Apologies to Solomon Hill here, who maintained his solid per-36 production after stepping back behind Paul George on the Indiana Pacers this past season. He just missed the All-Bargain cut.)
G: Jordan Clarkson
See what I mean by shallow guard waters in this year’s free-agent class? Beyond Mike Conley, who will get a max contract from someone, there’s not much beyond a 34-year-old Dwyane Wade and the oft-injured Bradley Beal, both of whom will most likely land mega-deals to stay with their current teams.
Because Clarkson is restricted and the Lakers only own his early-Bird rights, he meets the Gilbert Arenas provision, meaning other teams can only offer a mid-level exception for the first two seasons. However, any team who really wants the 24-year-old’s services can drop poison pills on the final two years of the deal — up to his max salary. It probably won’t come to that for a team who really wants to steal him from Los Angeles, especially since the Lakers are chasing bigger names, and there’s a salary sweet spot somewhere that makes Clarkson’s 17.3 points per 36 minutes a valuable commodity.
G: E’Twaun Moore
When the Boston Celtics drafted Moore 55th overall in 2011 — a whole round ahead of Purdue teammate JaJuan Johnson — they obviously didn’t foresee he’d be the one still playing, in a Chicago Bulls backcourt alongside All-Star Jimmy Butler, who was taken three spots after Johnson. Who is now playing in Italy. If that isn’t a swift kick to Danny Ainge’s you-know-what, I don’t know what is.
Anyhow, Moore shot 45 percent on nearly two 3-point attempts per game. Only a handful of guys in the NBA can make that claim. He’s a willing defender, and at 6-foot-4 he’s big enough to body up most guards. You can’t ask much more from a guy who will “only” command seven figures annually.
Overspending begins in T-minus 13 hours. Buckle up.
See also: Introducing the 2016 NBA Free Agency All-Cap-Killer Teams
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is a contributor for Ball Don’t Lie and Shutdown Corner on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at rohrbach_ben@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter! Follow @brohrbach
