I know the NBA chatter has died down as Summer League ends and NFL training camp begins but like, there are still a handful of game-changing players without rosters right now just sitting by their phone waiting for the right team to givethem a call.
So let’s put those last remaining free agents with the teams who should be calling them.
Here are the 5 best remaining NBA free agents and their best potential landing spots:
1. Jonathan Kuminga: Phoenix Suns
Jonathan Kuminga does not, under any circumstances, want to play for the Golden State Warriors ever again.
Here’s a little excerpt from an ESPN report about Kuminga’s contract situation:
“Beyond the contract demands, Kuminga is in search of a more guaranteed, consistent starting role and featured opportunity, sources said. That’s something both the Suns and Kings have pitched. Kuminga would be a significant part of the Warriors’ rotation to open next season, and they’ll need his supplementary scoring on nights that either Steph Curry, 37, or Jimmy Butler, 35, rest. That’s something head coach Steve Kerr has voiced to Kuminga in recent weeks. Kerr has been one of the leading voices trying to patch this together, sources said.
But Kuminga no longer wants to be a secondary option or a fallback plan, fearing a minimization in important moments.”
I feel Kuminga.
As long as Steph Curry is still capable of scoring 30 on any given night, Steve Kerr will always run the offense around him.
Jonathan Kuminga was miscast from the beginning.
He doesn’t catch and shoot and run around screens.
He wants to iso, not get the ball and immediately look to pass to Curry in fear of being benched if he dares take a midrange jumper.
The Phoenix Suns are the home of stupid isos.
Kevin Durant, Devin Booker and Bradley Beal didn’t work.
3 guys with 3 different personalities and motivations and expectations and egos.
But Devin Booker, Jalen Green and Jonathan Kuminga are kind of interesting.
Phoenix wouldn’t win 50 games next season, but Jalen Green is only 23.
Jonathan Kuminga is only 22.
I know it feels like we’ve been talking about these cats for a decade but most men their age aren’t doing shit.
These two have proven they can score at the NBA level and in a situation where an organization has no choice but to focus on their development, they could turn into a really nasty team.
2. Cam Thomas: Milwaukee Bucks
Damian Lillard out.
Cam Thomas in.
Okayyyyyy.
Milwaukee’s offseason focused more on securing role players with postseason experience.
Bringing back Gary Trent and Bobby Portis for depth is smart.
Myles Turner replaces Brook Lopez.
Cool.
I don’t love Kevin Porter Jr but that’s a guaranteed double-digit off the bench.
Signing Cole Anthony is cute but he misses 20 games almost every season.
Depth doesn’t matter if that depth isn’t available every night.
But who is replacing Dame’s 36 minutes and 24.9 points a game?
Milwaukee seems content running out a frontcourt-heavy squad relying on Giannis, Kyle Kuzma and Myles Turner to lead them in scoring.
The same Kyle Kuzma who scored 0 points in a playoff game last season.
The same Myles Turner who basically sucks without Tyrese Haliburton attracting all of the opposing defense’s attention.
For an organization dedicated to keeping Giannis until he retires, they are surrounding him with inconsistent big men with wavering confidence.
Cam Thomas’s confidence never wavers.
Cam Thomas put on a show.
– 43 points
– 16/22 FG
– 7 threes made (ties career-high)
– Back-to-back 40-point games at MSG pic.twitter.com/gk7xIuPtZp— Brooklyn Nets (@BrooklynNets) November 16, 2024
Cam Thomas wants a big contract but teams don’t have money like that.
If Cam wants that big deal, he can show 30 NBA execs he’s worthy of that salary by, for once, scoring all those points in a meaningful playoff game instead of random Tuesday nights against the Wizards in front of 8-9 fans.
3. Gary Payton II: New York Knicks
On December 12th, 1997, Rick Brunson’s Portland Trail Blazers traveled to Seattle to play Gary Payton’s SuperSonics.
Seattle won 111-98.
Gary Payton scored 21 points to go with 8 assists and 3 steals.
Rick Brunson fucking sucked.
He scored 1 point on a technical free throw.
He had 3 assists but gave away 3 turnovers with 3 terrible passes.
He was so bad, he only played the 2nd quarter and never touched the court again.
Fast forward to 2025, Rick Brunson’s son is an MVP candidate and Gary Payton’s son isn’t on a team right now.
Here at Deadseriousness, we support all pettiness.
Big fan of revenge.
Let the Knicks sign Gary Payton II and have Rick Brunson riding his ass in practice every day.
I want it to get so bad that Payton has to file a formal complaint with the NBA.
I’ll pay Rick’s fine.
4. Al Horford: Atlanta Hawks
Shout out to Chris Paul for returning to LA and Dame returning to Portland but let’s get Al Horford back to the franchise that drafted him no. 3 overall in the 2007 NBA Draft.
Horford spent the first decade of his career dominating in Atlanta.
I see a lot of rumors connecting him to Golden State and it makes sense for both parties.
The Warriors need front-court help.
Jimmy Butler and Draymond Green cannot be your starting frontcourt against Chet Holmgren and Isaiah Hartenstein or Nikola Jokic and Aaron Gordon or Alperen Sengun and Kevin Durant.
You’re going to lose every game.
But Al Horford just turned 39.
Jimmy, Steph, Draymond, these aren’t young men you can rely on for an entire 82-game season and a deep playoff run.
Enter the Atlanta Hawks.
Between Jalen Johnson, Kristaps Porzingis and Onyeka Okongwu, Al Horford can play like, 10-20 minutes a night, stretching the floor for Trae Young to penetrate the paint, capable of spot starts for the inevitable Porzingis week off with Hay Fever or whatever.
The Atlanta Hawks will have a better record than the Warriors next season.
This is Horford’s best opportunity for one last NBA Finals run in an Eastern Conference where the Celtics and Pacers are without their best players.
5. Russell Westbrook: Dallas Mavericks
Kyrie Irving tore his ACL last season.
He may miss the entire 2025-26 campaign.
Who is running the Mavericks offense next season?
We’ve seen enough Anthony Davis to know he plays his best basketball with a point guard like Rajon Rondo or LeBron James getting him the ball in his spots.
Max Christie is suddenly throwing pocket passes next year?
Dallas experimented with Cooper Flagg at the point in Summer League but you’re asking a lot of the rookie to run the offense for a team that just traded the most talented player in franchise history.
The Mavericks have playoff expectations.
They’re relying on veterans to bring them to the Promised Land and there’s a veteran point guard sitting there waiting to save them from Naji Marshall trying to play point guard.
Russell Westbrook may be a maniac who believes he is far more talented than he actually is but no one has ever questioned his toughness, his heart and you want a guy like that in your building to compete with all these young teams in the West.
(At least until Kyrie returns…)
Thanks for reading.
Let me know where you think these free agents should sign, leave a comment below. Respond on Twitter, Facebook or Instagram. Or shoot me an email at Deadseriousmailbag@gmail.com. Let’s chat, bay-beeeee.
