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On this episode of the Good Word with Goodwill, Yahoo Sports senior NBA reporter Vincent Goodwill is joined by Sam Amick from The Athletic to rundown all of the news coming out of the first night of NBA free agency.
The guys start things off with the biggest news, that Paul George is leaving the Los Angeles Clippers for the Philadelphia 76ers. The guys talk about the fit for George in Philly, and explain how losing one of their biggest contracts could end up being a silver lining for the Clippers as they open their new arena.
Speaking of the Clippers, they re-signed James Harden for less than the max and also signed Derrick Jones Jr. as an athletic replacement for Paul George in the starting lineup. The guys talk about where the Clippers go from here and how concerned they are about Kawhi Leonard playing for Team USA this summer.
Chris Paul, fresh off being waived by the Golden State Warriors, signed a one-year deal to join Victor Wembanyama in San Antonio. Sam likens this year with the Spurs to CP3’s previous one-year stop with the Oklahoma City Thunder and explains how Paul could help bridge the age gap between Wemby and Spurs head coach Gregg Popovich.
The guys talk about Kentavious Caldwell-Pope signing with the Orlando Magic, but mostly they talk about the Denver Nuggets losing talent since winning the title last year and the restraints of the new CBA.
Isaiah Hartenstein was the best free agent center on the market, and he’s a perfect fit for the Oklahoma City Thunder, who signed him early this morning. Sam Presti continues to put together an incredible roster that should be ready to compete for a title right now.
As Vince works us into “The Outlet”, where we talk about non-free agency news, the guys spend some time talking about the Detroit Pistons. The Pistons hired the recently-fired J.B. Bickerstaff as their new head coach, are working on a max extension for Cade Cunningham and signed free agent veteran forward Tobias Harris. They have a long way to go, but that’s an excellent start for a new rebuild in Detroit.
While talking about Jonas Valančiūnas signing with the Washington Wizards, the guys end up discussing Brandon Ingram on the Pelicans and where he might end up in a trade.
Finally, Sam wants to know from Vinnie what he thinks we should expect from Jimmy Butler going forward. What kind of year will he have? Is there still a chance for an extension in Miami?
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