The NBA offseason is all but complete after eight weeks of drafts, trades and signings. So we are ready to assign grades to each NBA team, division-by-division, to see which teams flunked the offseason and which deserve the honor roll for their moves. First, we'll take a look at the Pacific division.
Golden State Warriors | Grade: B- Players in: Buddy Hield (G/F), Kyle Anderson (F), De'Anthony Melton (G) | Players out: Klay Thompson (G), Chris Paul (G), Dario Saric (F/C) The Warriors lost Klay Thompson, a 13-year Warriors veteran, in a sign-and-trade to the Dallas Mavericks. But they rebounded by turning the trade into a five-team affair to land sharpshooter Buddy Hield (22nd all-time in made three-pointers) and forward Kyle "Slow-Mo" Anderson, who can play a point forward role a la Draymond Green. To round out their moves, they brought in De'Anthony Melton, a 26-year-old three-and-D guard coming off an injury-plagued season with the 76ers.
The moves should make up for losing Thompson, whose defense had fallen off a cliff, but ultimately, Golden State had bigger ambitions. The Warriors couldn't get a trade done for Paul George or Lauri Markkanen, or get anything in return for veteran point guard Chris Paul. Ultimately, the Warriors seemed content to reduce their league-leading luxury tax payments and perhaps drop under the tax line entirely during the season.
Los Angeles Clippers: D+ Players in: Nic Batum (G), Derrick Jones Jr. (F), Mo Bamba (C), Kevin Porter Jr. (G) | Player.