Early NBA Free Agency Moves
by 
Even though players can’t officially sign with teams until July 8th some have already agreed to terms with new teams. While next offseason is the one everyone is waiting for there are still some impact players available this year. Here is a look at the biggest names to commit or appear to be on their way to doing so thus far this offseason and what it means for the teams involved.
Ben Gordon – Detroit Pistons
Gordon has agreed to a five year 55 million deal with the Pistons. This is a big move for Detroit who has lacked a true scorer for a while and Allen Iverson was not able to fill that void. The Bulls still have a lot of talent but losing Gordon takes away some of their explosiveness. Gordon was the go-to-guy down the stretch for Chicago and will probably continue that role on the Pistons.
Charlie Villanueva – Detroit Pistons
Villaneuva has agreed to a five year 40 million deal with the Pistons. He leaves the Bucks where he averaged 16ppg and 7rpg. Milwaukee now appears to be one of the worst teams in the NBA and certainly video game wise. Combined with Gordon the Pistons look like they’ll be back as a playoff team.
Hedo Turkoglu – Portland Trailblazers
One of the youngest but most talented teams in the NBA appear to be on the verge of adding an experienced player who showed he was clutch and on the brink of becoming a superstar this post-season. This move certainly makes them a top-tier contender and probably one of the teams that will be most used online next year. He is expected to agree to terms with the Blazers within the next few days. It was clear he wasn’t returning to Orlando when they traded for Vince Carter.
July 2, 2009 at 1:14 am
First
The NBA is gonna look really different this year.
July 2, 2009 at 1:54 am
The faces might be different but the same teams will be the only contenders.
July 2, 2009 at 12:44 pm
I agree
July 2, 2009 at 1:30 am
Wait.. Is Turk on the blazers????
July 2, 2009 at 1:34 am
most likely where turk will end up
July 2, 2009 at 1:38 am
o ok.
July 4, 2009 at 12:21 pm
No,last night he signed with Toronto.
July 2, 2009 at 1:36 am
It's amazing to me that owners constantly complain about player salaries yet every year they spend enormous amounts of cash on mediocre players. Gordan is a good player but he's one dimensional and Villanueva can score 50 one game and 0 the next. Who wants a player that inconsistent? They have 3 shooting guards on the team and none of them can play point guard. This is the reason their is very little parity in the NBA because teams strap themselves done with mediocre talent and can't get over the hump from all of their guaranteed contracts. There are only five teams that can win it next year BOS, CLE, ORL, SA, LAL, & maybe DEN/DAL. The rest are just fool's gold waiting for one of their 19 year old draft picks to turn into Kobe or LeBron. Detroit would have been better served just waiting into next year for the big free agent class not they are stuck with Stuckey's 10 points per game, Hamilton's no ball handling, Gordon's no defense, and Villanueva inconsistency. Good luck Detroit.
July 2, 2009 at 1:36 am
hopefully the cavs get artest. they would be a killer video game team playing a small lineup with lebron at 4 and artest at the 3.
July 2, 2009 at 1:40 am
Getting Artest would be a good move for Cleveland. He's a hard nose player who can hit the occasional 3. Cleveland just needs that one more guy who who has size.and can draw out the defense
July 2, 2009 at 2:00 am
what sucks about getting artest for real though is that the cavs still don't address their PF need. they could resign anderson i suppose…maybe another vet like mcdyess or something for a year before they try to make another splash in 2010 free agency
July 2, 2009 at 2:25 am
Yeah their PF Varejao was a huge liability against the Magic. I know that this is much but a R.Wallace would be a nice fit for the Cavs as well. He would give them a another low post scorer, defense and a 3 point shooter
July 2, 2009 at 1:36 am
It's amazing to me that owners constantly complain about player salaries yet every year they spend enormous amounts of cash on mediocre players. Gordan is a good player but he's one dimensional and Villanueva can score 50 one game and 0 the next. Who wants a player that inconsistent? They have 3 shooting guards on the team and none of them can play point guard. This is the reason that there is very little parity in the NBA because teams strap themselves done with mediocre talent and can't get over the hump from all of their guaranteed contracts. There are only five teams that can win it next year BOS, CLE, ORL, SA, LAL, & maybe DEN/DAL. The rest are just fool's gold waiting for one of their 19 year old draft picks to turn into Kobe or LeBron. Detroit would have been better served just waiting into next year for the big free agent class not they are stuck with Stuckey's 10 points per game, Hamilton's no ball handling, Gordon's no defense, and Villanueva inconsistency. Good luck Detroit.
July 2, 2009 at 1:36 am
It's amazing to me that owners constantly complain about player salaries yet every year they spend enormous amounts of cash on mediocre players. Gordan is a good player but he's one dimensional and Villanueva can score 50 one game and 0 the next. Who wants a player that inconsistent? They have 3 shooting guards on the team and none of them can play point guard. This is the reason that there is very little parity in the NBA because teams strap themselves down with mediocre talent and can't get over the hump from all of their guaranteed contracts. There are only five teams that can win it next year BOS, CLE, ORL, SA, LAL, & maybe DEN/DAL. The rest are just fool's gold waiting for one of their 19 year old draft picks to turn into Kobe or LeBron. Detroit would have been better served just waiting into next year for the big free agent class not they are stuck with Stuckey's 10 points per game, Hamilton's no ball handling, Gordon's no defense, and Villanueva inconsistency. Good luck Detroit.
July 2, 2009 at 1:37 am
It's amazing to me that owners constantly complain about player salaries yet every year they spend enormous amounts of cash on mediocre players. Gordan is a good player but he's one dimensional and Villanueva can score 50 one game and 0 the next. Who wants a player that inconsistent? They have 3 shooting guards on the team and none of them can play point guard. This is the reason that there is very little parity in the NBA because teams strap themselves down with mediocre talent and can't get over the hump from all of their guaranteed contracts. There are only five teams that can win it next year BOS, CLE, ORL, SA, LAL, & maybe DEN/DAL. The rest are just fool's gold waiting for one of their 19 year old draft picks to turn into Kobe or LeBron. Detroit would have been better served just waiting into next year for the big free agent class now they are stuck with Stuckey's 10 points per game, Hamilton's no ball handling, Gordon's no defense, and Villanueva inconsistency. Good luck Detroit.
July 2, 2009 at 2:01 am
i think charlie could be pretty good if he learns how to play defense and has better players around him than he did with the bucks. but ya sometimes he doesn't know when to stop shooting…
July 2, 2009 at 2:34 am
When you look at Villanueva you see another Lamar Odom a guy with enormous talent but doesn't play up to his talent. What's worse is that he's not even as good as Lamar Odom so why pay this much for a mediocre player? He's not even a starter on a bad Milwaukee Bucks team. Good Luck Detroit. I can't wait to see that LeBron vs Villanueva matchup in the playoffs.
July 2, 2009 at 2:23 am
Well it's been a long time since Joe Dumars has maid a smart move. A way over rated manager for sure, remember this guy passed on Wade and Melo for Darko….. give me a break. there additions won't matter much in my opinion. The blazers made the smarter move.
July 2, 2009 at 2:42 am
Yeah, I don't know what Dumars is doing. He won one championship and everyone labeled him a genius. He fired 2 good head coaches who won a lot of games (Rick Carlisle & Flip Saunders) and let one HOF coach (Larry Brown) walk away. I can understand passing on Wade as nobody knew he would become the player he has become today but passing on Anthony was just pure madness. Anthony was considered a sure thing coming out and to pass on him for an unproven Darko with little actual game tape is ridiculous.
July 2, 2009 at 6:24 pm
Yup, over rated GM. Oh but don't get me started on that hack of a coach Larry Brown. This guy is great for ruining careers especially good ones. It time to stop recycling this sorry ass coaches and bring in the new blood.
July 2, 2009 at 1:40 am
Mavs need players
July 2, 2009 at 1:54 am
Yeah but who are they going to get? They need someone to play alongside Dirk because he is not a post up player. I have been waiting 4 years for Bass to develop some low post moves but to no avail he is what he is. Their best bet is to wait until next year and snatch up a Stoudamire or Bosh.
July 2, 2009 at 2:10 am
so true. But they're tempo is gettin slower and slower
July 2, 2009 at 2:14 am
Charlie V signed for 35 mil not 40…
July 2, 2009 at 4:34 am
still a lot more than ill ever make
July 2, 2009 at 4:45 pm
ESPN said 40
July 2, 2009 at 2:49 am
Don't think VC going to O-Town mean Turk is out. I think they made the trade for VC incase Turk leaves, but I'm sure they would like to keep him because they would field arguably the best starting 5 assuming Nelson comes back to form. I think it would be a bad move for Turk to leave because he isn't good enough to be the star player on a team and he's a good fit in Orlando. Obviously, if he leaves, he will be chasing the dough and you can't hate on a guy for looking out for himself, but if winning means anything to him, he would stay in Orlando even if he needs to take a little less money.
July 2, 2009 at 2:58 am
Hedo Turkoglu has only made 28.1 million in his career. He has a family to take care of so he will have to leave for another city to ensure the financial security of his family.
July 2, 2009 at 5:13 am
Its pretty sad to think that a 'mere' $28 million earned in a few years isn't enough to secure a few generations of Turkoglus.
July 2, 2009 at 5:13 am
Its pretty sad to think that a 'mere' $28 million earned in a few years isn't enough to secure a few generations of Turkoglus. I hope he works a deal out with the Magic.
July 2, 2009 at 2:58 am
Hedo Turkoglu has only made 28.1 million in his career. He has a family to take care of so he may have to leave for another city to ensure the financial security of his family.
July 2, 2009 at 3:05 am
I heard that line from Spree
July 2, 2009 at 3:05 am
Screenshots are basically the only thing NBA 09 is useful for.
July 2, 2009 at 2:30 pm
are you kidding me? 2k9's player models completely obliterate live!! just put a side by side comparison and you will see.
its time we get some 2k9 screenshots of these players!
July 2, 2009 at 6:34 pm
Not saying that 09's are better than 2k9's, just that NBA Live 09 is terrible in every other way.
July 2, 2009 at 3:31 am
You got that right…NBA Live…blah.
July 2, 2009 at 4:11 am
Zach Randolph to the Grizzlies for Q Richardson.
July 2, 2009 at 4:59 am
Who is gonna get Trevor ariza is what Im waiting for.
July 2, 2009 at 6:15 pm
The lakers are resigning him as far as know.
July 2, 2009 at 5:01 am
stupid bulls, gordon is an awesome player and i guess we have hinrich to replace him but hes still a big loss
July 2, 2009 at 10:13 am
really??? id be happy he's gone. if he was gone you probably could've beat the celtics. ben gordon does not play defense
July 3, 2009 at 6:07 pm
He is a guy that is not needed. Out of all the points he scores, look at how many shots he takes a game. He is a ball hog. John Salmons will now be the starter at SG. The bulls line up is better without him…. PG Rose, SG Salmons, SF Deng, PF Thomas, C Noah. Plus we have really good backups so idk how long thomas will be starting with miller and 2 new rookies on his tail.
July 2, 2009 at 5:07 am
Live Has sucks since PS3 has launched I don't think it will ever catch up to NBA2K..but the NBA will look different this year.. i think this is the best roster update for a new basketball game in a long time!!! cant wait to 2K10.. hope they bring back presentation and facial dunks.. better crowd interaction put celebritites
July 2, 2009 at 7:18 am
I miss my sonics
July 2, 2009 at 9:43 am
what about the nhl free agency moves?
July 2, 2009 at 9:56 am
I don't know why the Pistons spent all their dough on second tier players like Gordon and Villanueva. They could've waited for next year and spend that money on a better free agent class…
July 2, 2009 at 10:14 am
I know right they're gonna be so bad this year it won't even be funny.
July 2, 2009 at 12:43 pm
Looks like ariza is strongly considering leaving the lakers. dumb move cause he is gonna go to a sub par team for more money. ariza flourishes in the lakers gameplan because the opponet is focused on bryant and gasol leaveing ariza all by himself. if he were to go to a team like toronto or portland they would pay much more attention to him because neither one of those teams has a superstar like the lakers who have 2.
July 3, 2009 at 12:36 am
But lakers dont have enough money either for ariza
July 2, 2009 at 12:54 pm
Sorry to burst your bubble quiknick but Cleveland is running in pole position in the Ariza signing sweepstakes. Maybe your a Lakers fan and consider every other team "sub par" but Cleveland should make alot of noise next year if they do land Ariza.
July 2, 2009 at 5:23 pm
i dont think he will en up in cleveland because they can only offer the mid-level exception which is what the lakers are offering him right now, but the lakers can offer more if they chose and i think they will cause ariza was a prime piece in our title run. screw cleveland, lebron will be gone next yera and the cavs will go back to sucking like they know how to do best. kobe will finish with more rings than lebron.
July 2, 2009 at 6:19 pm
You got that right, well said quicknick
July 2, 2009 at 7:37 am
Hedo hasn’t signed with Portland yet guys. I hope he does though because that would be great addition for the the Blazers. He’s not gonna be their Star Player of course because they still have Brandon Roy but they needed another player with the ability to take control of the game and that’s what Hedo is going to give them. I don’t know who their going to play at the PG but no matter who it is their going to have one hell of a Starting Lineup.
July 2, 2009 at 3:01 pm
Come Trevor, stay with L.A.!!!! Please!!!
Also, what if AI goes to the bulls. That might be interesting
July 2, 2009 at 3:03 pm
Ariza is kind of like what Posey was to Boston. Don't make the same mistake L.A.
July 2, 2009 at 3:29 pm
Hedo has not been signed yet.
July 2, 2009 at 4:21 pm
Hey Pasta, you know what I think would be cool is if EA Sports were to make the Draft Classes for Live or Madden Downloadable on the XBOX Live Marketplace. That would be cool because not everyone is a fan of the NCAA Basketball games therefore they would'n t have the correct Draft Class after their Franchise's. I love NCAA Football so it would''nt really matter to me if that Draft Class were Downloadable because i do it myself but tell me what you think.
July 2, 2009 at 1:07 pm
cleveland has shaq now too. shaq is hungry to go out with a last finals chmpionship. Lebron is hungrier to win his first. if they get ariza they’ll be pretty good.
July 2, 2009 at 9:51 pm
the cavs are in talks with ariza which would be huge for them but i would rather go for artest
July 3, 2009 at 2:11 am
awww too bad…. Ariza went to houston, and arest is comming to LA baby!!! REPEAT BABY!!! LETS GO
July 3, 2009 at 4:53 am
ehh i dont care anway..not a fan of either team but wow the lakers rele answered the cavs by getting artest and they are pretty much safe in keeping odom..so wow thats a stacked team
July 3, 2009 at 12:35 am
y can't 2k have the crowd act real in the game
July 3, 2009 at 2:12 am
Cant wait to see artest's picture posted here… 2009-10 championship… here we come!!!
July 3, 2009 at 2:25 am
Cavs get neither player they wanted. Artest to the lakers i f"n love it. not as good as a teamate as ariza but a better scorer and rebounder. Ariza to the rockets damn, sorry to see you go trev you were one of my favs but we got artest to replace and hopefully adam morrison will get that touch back and will c some quality minutes.
July 3, 2009 at 2:50 pm
2K has da REALEST crowd in a VG wut U talkin bout
July 3, 2009 at 4:28 pm
i like that players r bein move to other teams it make da game more fun. im tire of people pickin Lakers or Cavs now u can play with more teams like Por,Mem, Orl, Det, Lac, Spurs, Mil,Bos, Den,Chi,Dal, Sac, Was, Phx, Hou, Phi and even da Knicks so i say keep traden and signin FA it opens up da playgound to everybody
July 3, 2009 at 5:02 pm
is that in english?
July 4, 2009 at 12:22 pm
Hedo signed with the Raptors last night.
July 4, 2009 at 6:20 pm
If I didn't follow the NBA closely, I couldn't possibly have identified Ben Gordon on the cover of this article. EA has horrible graphics compared to 2K. I honeslty wouldn't give you a ham sandwich in trade for that game. Awful!