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15. Josh Richardson (Player Option)
When Seth Curry and Josh Richardson were traded for each other last offseason, it seemed like a deal with classic win-win potential. The Philadelphia 76ers would get a floor-spacer to put between Ben Simmons and Joel Embiid, and the Dallas Mavericks would get a perimeter defense boost. For Richardson, open catch-and-shoot looks created by Luka Doncic had to be enticing too.
Things went according to plan for the Sixers, but Richardson never seemed to settle in with Dallas. He posted a career-low box plus/minus (BPM is “…a basketball box score-based metric that estimates a basketball player’s contribution to the team when that player is on the court,” according to Basketball Reference), and the Mavs’ point differential was comfortably worse when he played.
Still, if Richardson can regain the outside shooting prowess he showed early in his career, he can be a helpful three-and-D addition.
14. Victor Oladipo
Victor Oladipo has played in just 88 games for three different teams over the last three seasons. And on top of the red flags that come with that lack of availability, he’s had a below-average true shooting percentage in each of those three campaigns.
There have been flashes of the slasher and disruptive perimeter defender we once knew, but they were few and far between in 2020-21. At this point, he’s a bit of a gamble, but some team will take that.
13. Alex Caruso
A career mark of 37.7 percent from three is nice, but most of Alex Caruso’s basic numbers don’t really leap off the screen. And that makes him a good illustration of why we can’t always rely on basic numbers.
Caruso is one of the game’s grittiest defensive guards, can create a bit in a pinch and is a reliable floor-spacer for lineups with ball-dominant wings. It’s no wonder that the Los Angeles Lakers’ point differential per 100 possessions has been better with Caruso on the floor in each of his four seasons.
12. Patty Mills
Patty Mills will turn 33 in August. He’s a career reserve with a career-high scoring average of 11.6 points (which he accomplished in 2019-20). Teams may not be lining up to acquire his services, but the Australian guard is about as reliable as backups get, and he could raise his profile a bit at the Tokyo Olympics.
Mills already led the Boomers to an exhibition upset over Team USA earlier this month, and the freedom with which he plays for the national team could be something that intrigues suitors around the league.
As a cog in Gregg Popovich’s highly structured San Antonio Spurs system, Mills has been a plus-minus wonder, but he could be a bona fide heat-check guy with a bit more leeway.
11. Dennis Schroder
Fresh off a strong 2019-20 campaign in which he finished second in Sixth Man of the Year voting, Dennis Schroder experienced something of a regression to career norms alongside LeBron James with the Los Angeles Lakers.
So, the question now is whether he’s the slashing, mid-range assassin he was with the Oklahoma City Thunder or the up-and-down, borderline ball-stopper he’s been just about everywhere else.
If any organization ponies up for the $100-120 million Schroder is reportedly after, it’ll certainly be hoping for a return of the former.
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