With the NBA playoffs in the rearview mirror, many teams are thinking about how they can rebuild their rosters to increase their competitiveness during the 2022-2023 season. Since betting is such a big part of the NBA season, the league’s most dedicated fans are following rumors and speculation around the upcoming free agency period. Although the offseason isn’t a time when many basketball fans take advantage of the free bets many sportsbooks offer to new customers, it is a time for them to get an idea of how competitive their favorite team may be in the future. After all, if a team successfully recruits new talent during the free agency period, it may increase their title odds next season.
With that in mind, we’ve compiled this list of the top NBA free agents.
Kyrie Irving—Brooklyn Nets
The Nets didn’t live up to expectations during the offseason, raising many questions about the team’s future. During the past week, the internet has been abuzz with speculation about Brooklyn Nets guard Kyrie Irving. If he leaves the Nets, superstar Kevin Durant may ask to be traded too. If they lose Irving and Durant, it could take the team years to return to its current level.
Irving is one of the best scorers in the NBA, so there’s no shortage of teams hoping he’ll want to leave Brooklyn, with the Knicks and the Lakers at the top of the list. According to rumors around the league, conversations between the Nets and Irving have reached an impasse, leading many to speculate that the talented player may be packing his bags soon.
Bradley Beal—Washington Wizards
Beal finds himself between a rock and a hard place as an elite scorer on a mediocre team. The shooting guard is a three-time NBA All-Star and talented passer. Although he had a disappointing season due to injuries, he was still one of the most impactful playmakers in the league, despite playing in only 40 games. All signs point to him wanting to remain loyal to the Wizards; however, many analysts believe he’ll test the waters during the offseason and could move to Miami or LA.
Deandre Ayton—Phoenix Suns
All eyes turned to Deandre Ayton after the Suns’ embarrassing performance during this year’s playoffs. Unlike Irving and Beal, Ayton is an unrestricted free agent, so the Suns remain firmly in control of his future for now. However, a rift emerged between the Suns’ head coach Monty Williams and Ayton during the playoffs, leading many to speculate that the young center doesn’t have a future in Phoenix. Ayton wanted a five-year maximum salary contract extension after helping the Suns make the NBA Finals a year ago, but the Suns passed on it, making it possible for Ayton to leave the Suns this summer.
James Harden—Philadelphia 76ers
After the Nets traded James Harden to the 76ers for Ben Simmons in February, many believed that Harden and Joel Embiid would lead the team to an NBA Championship. However, it wasn’t meant to be. Harden struggled during the second half of the season and put up some of the worst numbers of his career.
Harden could pick up his player option and stick with Philadelphia, which is what he’s publicly expressed he would do. Plus, it would be hard for the 76ers front office to get an equal value trade for him during the offseason. The best scenario for Philadelphia would be for Harden to continue with the team and regain his old form; he was averaging over 34 points per game just two years ago.
Zach LaVine—Chicago Bulls
Although the Chicago Bulls didn’t progress as far as they would have liked in the NBA playoffs, they have built an impressive roster with Zach LaVine, Demar DeRozan, Alex Caruso, Lonzo Ball, and Nikola Vučević. However, LaVine has expressed a desire to leave Chicago, with analysts speculating that the talented guard didn’t like that the Bulls had become known as DeRozan’s team. Reports have suggested that the Blazers, Spurs, Lakers, and Hawks are all interested in signing LaVine.
