Thirty NBA teams took the first step in retooling their rosters for next year's title chase, drafting the best young talent available in the 2006 Draft. Now, teams turn their focus to free agency and trades to fill holes and needs.
It took most of the summer to materialize, but the Pacers completed a long-rumored sign-and-trade for Atlanta's Al Harrington on Aug. 22. Harrington, a former Pacer and one of the top free agents on the market, was sent to Indiana along with center John Edwards in exchange for a future first-round pick.
Having already acquired Charlie Villanueva from the Raptors, the Bucks added another piece to their frontcourt on Aug. 10, dealing 11-year forward Joe Smith to the Nuggets for small forward Ruben Patterson, who split last season between Portland and Denver.
The final day of July saw a former All-Star find a new address as the Trail Blazers acquired center Jamaal Magloire from the Bucks in exchange for guard Steve Blake, forward Brian Skinner and center Ha Seung-Jin. Magloire, a reserve All-Star in 2004, is the latest addition to the revamped Trail Blazers, one of the busiest teams this offseason.
The Raptors have been one of the most active teams this offseason and that continued on July 26. Fred Jones, who won the 2002 Sprite Rising Stars Slam Dunk Championship and averaged a a career-high 10.6 points a game for Indiana last season, signed on with Toronto. The club created a roster spot for Jones by releasing the oft-injured Alvin Williams. There was plenty of other news on Wednesday, as the Hornets continued their shopping spree by signing Bobby Jackson. New Orleans/Oklahoma City also re-signed Rasual Butler. A pair of undrafted free agents also found homes as Kevin Pittsnogle signed on with the Celtics, and Yakhouba Diawara inked a deal with the Nuggets.
The Denver Nuggets were a busy bunch on July 20, re-signing restricted free agent Nenê to a mult-year deal. Hours later, Denver completed a trade with Chicago for guard J.R. Smith. The Bulls received Howard Eisley in exchange for Smith, who was traded for the second time in six days.
July 12 was the first day players could make their new addresses official and several big names decided they weren't going anywhere. One day later, all that changed when Ben Wallace was introduced as the newest Chicago Bull.
Trades took center stage on July 14 as the Bulls and Hornets remained the two most active teams on the market. Chicago obtained 13-year veteran forward P.J. Brown and 2004 first-round pick J.R. Smith in exchange for five-year veteran Tyson Chandler.
Earlier that day, New Orleans/Oklahoma City sent 6-foot-6 shooting guard Kirk Snyder to Houston for a conditional second-round draft pick in 2008.
The Bulls continued their makeover on July 19 when forward Darius Songaila left Chicago to sign a deal with the Washington Wizards.
Arguably the biggest name on this summer's free-agent market, Wallace immediately anchors an already-stingy defense which led the league in opponents' field-goal percentage, allowing the opposition to hit only 42.6 percent of its shots in 2005-06.
If Chicago's defense gets better, it stands to reason Detroit's suffers significantly from the loss, as former NBA coach Kevin Loughery says.
Among those players saying put, Finals MVP Dwyane Wade signed a contract extension with the Heat on July 13, keeping him in Miami for the foreseeable future. Meanwhile, teammate Alonzo Mourning vowed to remain in Miami on July 15, helping to fortify the Heat's repeat chances.
Wade and Chris Bosh, who signed his extension on July 14, follow in the footsteps of their classmates from the 2003 Draft who signed earlier in the week: LeBron James and Carmelo Anthony.
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James announced he wouldn't be leaving Cleveland any time soon as he signed an extension with the Cavaliers. Anthony agreed to stay with the Nuggets as well.
Also not going anywhere is point guard Sam Cassell, who re-signed with the Clippers after a successful first go-round in L.A.
Peja Stojakovic was the biggest player to announce a new address on the first day of Player Movement, as he went to the Hornets. Meanwhile, Speedy Claxton, coming off a fine Hornets season, inked a deal with the Hawks. Things didn't slow down at all on Day 2 as the Raptors picked up Anthony Parker, the two-time reigning Euroleague MVP. Meanwhile, the Lakers nabbed Vladimir Radmanovic from the cross-town Clippers and also added Shammond Williams. The Clippers found a quick replacement for Radmanovic, coming to terms with Tim Thomas. The Suns looked to fill Thomas' void by signing sharpshooter Eric Piatkowski.
Several trades were finalized, with Shane Battier heading from Memphis to Houston in exchange for Stromile Swift and the rights to first-round pick Rudy Gay. The Pacers also made a move, sending Austin Croshere to Dallas for Marquis Daniels.
Derek Fisher is on the move, with Utah acquiring him from the Warriors in exchange for three players. The Jazz were busy, also re-signing Matt Harpring and Jarron Collins.
Aside from free agency, blockbuster trades will invariably cause players to file change-of-address cards this summer, as a number of names are being floated in trade scenarios. Among the biggest is Philadelphia's Allen Iverson, but Sixers president/general manager Billy King said on July 25 that he expects Iverson to return this season. The Bucks and Raptors already pulled off a T.J. Ford for Charlie Villanueva switcheroo.
Experts Gail Goodrich, Kevin Loughery and Don Casey offered their opinions on the moves so far and NBA.com also offers a look at the fantasy impact.
Follow the movement of Wallace, Iverson and the rest of the league with NBA.com's Player Movement 2006. To help you keep tabs, any moves, rumors, official news or unofficial web reports will be updated on this page. Please keep checking back.
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