2018 – 2019 NBA Off Season Review

Ivan Gonzalez, Reporter

It’s been three months since the Golden State Warriors lifted the Larry O’Brien trophy for the third time in four years, and as another NBA season is upon us it’s smart to see what teams have done throughout the offseason to improve their rosters.

It was an offseason full of blockbuster trades, signings, and with that, some teams clearly became better, and some got worse.

One of the biggest stories this season is Lebron James signing to the Los Angeles Lakers. This comes after four seasons with his hometown Cleveland Cavaliers.

¨It was a good move for him to leave Cleveland, he has a better team in LA.¨ said, Andres Gonzalez,

¨Lebron’s family loves LA, they have two homes there, and it’s a great environment for his son to get exposure.¨ said LEBRONWIRE. The Cavaliers lost in the NBA Finals to the champions Golden State Warriors in 4 games.

On July 1st at around midnight it was reported by websites like ESPN, and Bleacher Report that Lebron James had signed with the Los Angeles Lakers for $153.3 million dollars over 4 years.

Another big story this offseason was Demarcus Cousins signing with the reigning champions Golden State Warriors. Demarcus Cousins is coming off a season with the New Orleans Pelicans, on January 26th, 2018 with less than 15 seconds left on a regular season game against the Houston Rockets he tore his Achilles’ tendon. This injury would sideline him for the rest of the season which this eventually led to the pelicans being eliminated in the second round of the NBA playoffs by the eventual champions Golden State Warriors.

Demarcus Cousins was set to become a free agent that summer, people expected him to re-sign with the Pelicans for a near max contract, but after how severe his injury was he would have to expect a lot less money. He signed for the veteran minimum $5.3 according to various sports news sites. This signing has shaken up the NBA landscape. Now the Warriors have 5 All-Star players as their starting 5. ¨Ï think itś just unfair for the other teams¨ said Andres Gonzalez, this a popular opinion because of the star power they possess now. ¨A team like that shouldn’t even exist¨ said, Andrew Le.

A big move by the Houston Rockets was the Carmelo Anthony signing with the Houston Rockets. This comes after 1 season with the Oklahoma City Thunder. Anthony was traded from the Thunder to the Atlanta Hawks where he was bought out of his $27.9 million dollar salary and got back $2.4 million (the veteran minimum.) this was first reported by insider Adrian Wojnarowski. Anthony’s lone season with the Thunder ended with a first-round exit against the Utah Jazz. This was his worst season in terms of numbers of his entire career., 16.2 points per game,  and a field goal percentage of .404. This is the reason many people believe he won’t be of much help to the Rockets who lost in the Western Conference Finals to the eventual champion Golden State Warriors. “I think he’s washed up,” said Junior Lance Trujillo.

This was an eventful offseason, full of blockbuster trades, and signings. The season starts October 16, 2018. Until then all we can do is wait and see what the season hold for these teams and players, all of them hoping to claim the Larry O’Brien trophy in June.