Analyzing Potential 2023 Unrestricted Free Agent Class
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It's almost an entire calendar year away, but in the NBA world, you always have to think 2-3 steps ahead of schedule. So now that we know where most 2022 free agents are headed, it's time to take a look ahead to the 2023 class. Next year's class of unrestricted free agents could be one of the most exciting free agent classes in recent history. It's chock full of intrigue and interesting possibilities, so let's hop right on into it.
Disclaimer: We will only discuss known unrestricted free agents.
Let's get to the biggest name to look out for next offseason, LeBron James. Yes, folks, that is right. The King is in the last year of his deal with the Los Angeles Lakers and could be on the move next offseason. In all likelihood, King James probably wants to play out the rest of his career in LA until his son gets to the league. However, if things go as bad as they did for the Lakers last season, maybe one final return to Akron is in the cards for James.
The idea of an aging James suiting up for one last championship run with the Cavaliers could be attractive considering Cleveland's roster. His pal Kevin Love is still around, although he is a free agent after next season. In addition, they have talented young players such as Evan Mobley and Darius Garland, along with veterans like Jarrett Allen and Caris LeVert. Is that enough to lure the king back to Akron? I would guess not, but it's an intriguing possibility.
Following James, there's a slew of top-tier players that could potentially be on the move next offseason. Kyrie Irving, Russell Westbrook, Andrew Wiggins, and D'Angelo Russell, to name a few. Could we see a James-Irving reunion in LA? Highly probable. But what does Russell Westbrook's market look like? Great question. If he can get back close to the Westbrook of old, he could still grab a max contract from somebody with cap space.
Will Andrew Wiggins leave the Warriors? That depends on whether the Warriors' front office is willing to pay upwards of $400 million in salary.
Can Minnesota afford to keep Russell? They've got a lot of money tied up in their frontcourt duo of Karl-Anthony Towns and Rudy Gobert. They'll also likely have to pay young guard Anthony Edwards a supermax in the future, so Russell may be the odd man out.
There are also plenty of high-quality players that sit behind the top-tier guys and will command a lot of money. Players such as Nikola Vucevic, Harrison Barnes, Caris LeVert, Reggie Jackson, Myles Turner, Bojan Bogdanovic, Steven Adams, Christian Wood, and Al Horford could find themselves on the open market after next season.
2022 was a solid year for free agency. 2023 could turn out to be a fascinating year.