In Boston, Christopher Gasper writes F Gordon Hayward joining the Celtics is the "most significant free agent signing in franchise history." The Celtics not getting Hayward would have been a "bust of an offseason," as the "entire complexion and perception of the Celtics’ offseason hinged" on his choice. It marks the "second straight summer the Celtics have lured a coveted free agent," as they signed C Al Horford in '16 (BOSTON GLOBE, 7/6). Also in Boston, Chad Finn writes Hayward’s arrival is the "culmination of a remarkable post-New Big Three rebuild" by Celtics President of Basketball Operations & GM Danny Ainge, one that "managed to set up the Celtics remarkably well in both the present and future." The Celtics and Ainge pulled off "perhaps the highest-degree-of-difficulty franchise rebuild that the NBA has seen" since the days of Red Auerbach (BOSTON GLOBE, 7/6).
POSITIVE MOMENTUM: NBCSPORTSBAYAREA.com's Ray Ratto wrote the Kings seem to have "had themselves a sensible, orderly and potentially interesting offseason for a change." The Kings this week signed G George Hill and F Zach Randolph in free agency, spending a total of $81M over five years for the pair. The team also "showed enough interest" in F Andre Iguodala to "help him get leverage over the Warriors and extract" a $4M improvement in his per season salary and a third year on his contract. The team has "done fairly well between trolling the back end of the free agent market and drafting well." The Kings now "look more like a progressive and thoughtful organization than they have since the high-water mark of the franchise 12 years ago." Ratto: "They may actually know what they’re doing" (NBCSPORTSBAYAREA.com, 7/5).
RETURN ON INVESTMENT? In Atlanta, Michael Cunningham noted the Hawks in back-to-back offseasons have lost Horford and F Paul Millsap to free agency, getting "nothing" in return for their services. Cunningham: "Not one draft pick, not one lesser-but-cheaper veteran player, not one promising younger player." The "problem for the Hawks is they were left empty-handed while saying goodbye to Millsap after they did the same with Horford" (AJC.com, 7/3). Also in Atlanta, Mark Bradley wrote the Hawks are in "tank mode." Bradley: "Being the Hawks, they might have botched even that." The team "waited too long to acknowledge the obvious, and now the competition to stink -- and thereby land the most ping-pong balls in the lottery -- will be fierce" (AJC.com, 7/3).
