With the Toronto Raptors making history in the recently concluded National Basketball Association (NBA) Finals 2019, basketball enthusiasts now shift their focus to the offseason. The offseason can be the most anticipated or dreaded time of the year for loyal supporters of certain teams. Unexpected trades and sudden moves by stars and clubs from the Eastern and Western conferences can make for thrilling moments during these months.
The 2019 NBA Free Agency is set to begin on June 30, Sunday, 6 pm Eastern Time (ET). The LaSallian sat down with Green Paddler Daniel Ocon, Green Fencer Tyrone Nieto, Lady Archer Lauryn DelCampo, and Animo PEP Squad Xymone Torres to get their forecasts on the offseason decisions by high-quality free agent players in the NBA.
Green Paddler Daniel Ocon
Boston Celtics and Kyrie Irving: Feel ko si Kyrie, since maganda naman performance niya, siguro mags-stay siya sa Boston [Celtics].
(I feel that Kyrie, since his performance was good this season, will stay with the Boston Celtics)
Golden State Warriors, Kevin Durant, Klay Thompson, and DeMarcus Cousins: Si KD, Klay, tsaka si DeMarcus since nag-finals appearance sila, feel ko mags-stay pa rin yan sa Golden State [Warriors].
(KD, Klay, and DeMarcus, since they just appeared in the Finals, I feel like they will be stay with the Golden State Warriors.)
Kawhi Leonard: Si Kawhi naman since mahal na mahal siya ng Toronto and feel ko napamahal na rin siya sa Toronto, feel ko mags-stay yan sa Toronto [Raptors].
(For Kawhi, since the city of Toronto loves him and I think he has enjoyed playing in Toronto, I feel like he will stay with the Toronto Raptors)
Green Fencer Tyrone Nieto
New York Knicks and Kyrie Irving: I think si Kyrie Irving pupunta siya sa New York Knicks knowing na New York is a big city and yung quote unquote ‘spotlight’ nandun. So mag-grow siya as a player and a superstar.
(I think Kyrie Irving will go to the New York Knicks is a big city and the quote unquote ‘spotlight’ is there. He will grow as a player and a superstar there.)
Los Angeles Lakers and Kemba Walker: I think Kemba Walker sa Lakers. Since tinrade na yung mga young core, lalo na si Lonzo Ball. Naging isang point guard na [lang ang Lakers]–si Rajon Rondo. Medyo matanda na and hindi na siya effective so I think Kemba Walker will be a great fit to the Lakers. Isa sila sa magiging contenders sa West or sa NBA mismo if ever si Kemba Walker mag-land sa Lakers.
(I think Kemba Walker will go to the Lakers. Since the Lakers traded away their young core, including Lonzo Ball, they have only one point guard left — Rajon Rondo. He’s not as young and effective as before so I think Kemba Walker will be a great fit to the Lakers. The Lakers will become title contenders in the West, even the entire NBA league if Kemba Walker lands with the Lakers.)
Los Angeles Clippers and Kawhi Leonard: Siguro babalik [si Kawhi] sa Western Conference, sa LA Clippers. Kasi may nababalitaan [ako] na bumili siya ng apartment sa Los Angeles.
(I think Kahwi will return to the Western Conference and join the LA Clippers. I heard that he recently bought an apartment in Los Angeles)
Lady Archer Lauryn DelCampo
Brooklyn Nets, Kevin Durant, and Kyrie Irving: I follow KD a lot. He’s like my all-time favorite player and recently I heard rumors that him and Kyrie are gonna be teaming up together. I think that they’re going to the Brooklyn Nets. Probably because they work well together offensively. KD’s a really good scorer, Kyrie’s really good at distributing the ball.
Los Angeles Lakers and Kemba Walker: I also heard something about Kemba Walker that he’ll be joining Anthony Davis and LeBron in the Lakers because he’s such a great player. He makes such a great compliment to LeBron and to Davis.
The Toronto Raptors and Kahwi Leonard: I honestly [think that] he’s gonna stay. He just won a championship with the Raptors. So that’s really good for him and I’m pretty sure that the fanbase behind the Raptors would be pretty upset if he left. So I’m pretty sure the Raptors are gonna do the best to try to keep him, give him enough salary so that he doesn’t want to go.
Animo Squad Xymone Torres
Los Angeles Lakers, Anthony Davis, Chris Paul, and Kyrie Irving: I believe that most players will be going to the Lakers for the offseason, mostly because the entire young core is already gone; it’s only [Kyle] Kuzma left. Now that they have Anthony Davis with LeBron [James], I think that CP3 [Chris Paul] might actually follow. Same with Kyrie [Irving] because being in Boston, like being a major player, isn’t really playing out well as he expected so he might want to get another ring with LeBron in the West.
Cleveland Cavaliers: Although I also have another feeling the Cavs can also be a good contender because their currently rebuilding the entire roster again from scratch but I don’t think it’s gonna be enough.
Toronto Raptors and Kawhi Leonard: I also believe that the Raptors will be [where]all the players will go to because, well, they just won the championship so everyone wants to be in the winning team with Kawhi. There’s a high chance he will stay because he did just win a championship there so you don’t want to fix something that’s not broken, so of course he’s gonna stay. It will be surprising if he’ll move to the Lakers because they didn’t even get in the Western conference playoffs.
