Post by the original michael on Jul 28, 2020 7:44:36 GMT -8
A Preview of the Potential Free Agents for 2006 Off - Season
This article will take a look at all of the players eligible to hit the open market at the conclusion of the 2005-2006 season. After going through the list of potential free agents, the early class looks promising. It's important to note that a good amount, if not the majority of these guys will be re-signed and will never make it to free agency. But let's dive deep into this potential free agency class anyways...
Yao Ming
Amare Stoudemire
Nenad Krstic
Udonis Haslem
Zydrunas Ilgauskas
Nene Hilario
D.J. Mbenga
Jahidi White
Etan Thomas
Antonio McDyess
Scot Pollard
Erick Dampier
The crop of big men who can enter free agency is juicy and is led by the former 1st and 2nd overall picks in the 2002 draft, Yao Ming and Amare Stoudemire. Yao is the clear #1 and Amare might be #2 based on name value alone. Both have recently been traded from their original teams to new homes. While both teams hope to retain their stud bigs, should either enter free agency, both will have no shortage of max contract offers. However, one of my favorite players in this class is Nenad Kristic. Kristic is that pro-typical defensive and rebounding big that many teams will ooz over. He is currently averaging nearly 11 boards and 3 blocks a game as a 22 year old. It would not shock me to see this man get PAID in free agency, maybe even a max deal like Marcus Camby a few years back and Eddie Griffin last season. Big Z is Mr. Consistent and you'll know what you'll get there, but it's hard to envision him receiving a long term deal. Young bigs like Haslem, Nene, and Mbenga should all see big pay days as well. In a league starving for quality bigs, these guys should be rich come this off - season. It would not shock me to see Nene receive a near max deal after Skillz is done max camping him amping up his value. There is also a great deal of depth bigs in this class, like Jahidi White, Etan Thomas, Scott Pollard, Erick Dampier, and Antonio McDyess. Solid, deep class.
WINGS
Dimitris Diamantidis
Arvydas Macijauskas
Tayshaun Prince
Caron Butler
Larry Johnson
Matt Barnes
Courtney Alexander
Dajuan Wagner
Bruce Bowen
Shareef Abdur-Rahim
Mike Dunleavy Jr.
Kenny Thomas
It's a deep class headlined by former euro lottery picks Dimitris Diamantidis and Arvydas Macijauskas. Both players will no doubt receive max deals and are well deserving. We should also see max offers come in for their draft mates, Tayshaun Prince and Caron Butler. I think both guys are a step behind Dimitris and Arvyads, but aren't that far off. This class has several young interesting prospects in Matt Barnes and Dajuan Wagner. Both players have some camps left and could receive lucrative free agent offers due to their age and potential. We also could see several veteran wings enter free agency in Bruce Bowen and Larry Johnson. Both are up there in age, but are still extremely serviceable. I'm expecting both to receive a high premium 1 or 2 year deal from a contender. Solid depth pieces like Shareef Abdur-Rahim, Courtney Alexander, Mike Dunleavy, Jr. and Kenny Thomas round out the best of the rest for the wing position. A lot depends on what happens after the season with re-signings, but right now, this looks like a real good free agency class, especially at the wing position.
BREAKING NEWS: Arvydas Macijauskas has been traded from the Suns to the Memphis Grizzlies. This should shake up free agency!
POINT GUARDS
Paccelis Morlende
Milos Vujanic
Stephon Marbury
Jay Williams
Mateen Cleaves
Oof. Not a deep class at all. This is arguably the worst of the positional groups for the projected free agent class of 2006. It's headlined by a gimmick player in Paccelis Morlende. Morlende was taken in the 2nd round a few seasons ago by the Hornets and burst on the scene due to his elite production of stocks (blocks and steals). He was then dealt to New York and eventually was traded back to the Hornets. The man can not shoot the 3 ball at all (which may be a plus considering he doesn't even attempt any 3 pointers). He has only attempted 10 3 point field goals through his first 3 seasons. He looks to have a great mod range game due to his solid field goal percentages and is a two time all defensive team player. Is he max worthy? Some think yes. Me? I'm not entirely sold yet due to concerns on how he will age, but I do expect him to receive a max from someone in this league. It's going to happen, unless he decides to re-sign cheap with the Hornets. The 2nd best guard in my opinion will be Milos Vujanic. The former Pacers lottery pick found his home in Milwaukee after being traded from Indiana. He is now in Sacramento after being dealt for Steve Nash and finds himself averaging 19PPG with low turnovers for the defending champion Kings. I expect this guy to get paid, maybe even a max deal. Stephon Marbury was a cast away a few years ago, but has finally found his way in the league. His turnovers are finally under 3 and he appears to be a solid scorer. I'm very interested to see the type of deal he receives in the off-season. Will it be a long term, big money deal? I doubt it. But he should see a lucrative 1 or 2 year deal from a point guard hungry team. Rounding out the remaining free agency class for point guards, we have two younger players who did not necessary pan out how many expected. Jay Williams, the former Denver Nuggets lottery pick, then New Jersey Net is actually camped out (oof) and looks like shit. He will be lucky to receive some Mid Level Exception offers in free agency. He's not worth much. Cleaves on the under hand is intriguing. He's a bit older at 28, but has potential to improve. We are looking at a C B+ A- point guard who is nearly un camped. He only received one camp and it was in his mid range game. I except to see some smart team sign him to an under the radar, long term deal, then max camp him ASAP. We could be looking at a C+ A- A- guard on a cheaper deal. Might be worth the risk and investment for a team who is lacking a solid point guard.
