This article looks at the new NBA landscape for the 2015-2016 season for the Western Conference. With the draft and the first wave of free agency in the past, it is time to take a preliminary look at how the rosters are shaking out and whether or not the moves that teams made will have a significant difference in how those teams performed from last season.

Each team will be separated by their nominal starting five (PG = point guard, SG = shooting guard, SF = small forward, PF = power forward, C = center), with most important players followed by the more replaceable parts (i.e, franchise player of the Big 3, followed by the other two starters). Also included are the rotation (6th man through 8th man), followed by the rest of the bench (up to the 13th man). New additions and re-signings are marked by an asterisk*, rookies by a (1). Players who are uncertain to be ready for the season opener are kept out of the starting lineup and rotation and marked with a (+). Because of the heavy coaching and management turnover, those figures are listed as well.

To see my Offseason Preview from before the Draft, open here:

NORTHWEST DIVISION

Portland Trail Blazers (2014-2015: 51-31, 1st in Northwest, 4th in Western, First Round Loss to Memphis)

Starters: PG Damian Lillard, C Mason Plumlee*, SG C.J. McCollum, PF Meyers Leonard, SF Al-Farouq Aminu*

Rotation: SG Allen Crabbe, C Ed Davis*, SF Maurice Harkless*

Bench: SG Gerald Henderson* (+), PF Noah Vonleh*, PG Tim Frazier, C Chris Kaman, SF Pat Connaughton (1)

Head Coach: Terry Stotts

General Manager: Neil Olshey

Well, at least Lillard is still here. Portland saw four starters walk (five if you include Arron Afflalo), and the replacements ensure that this team is rebuilding now. Four-time All-Star LaMarcus Aldridge bolted, and Davis appears to be the replacement. Davis is a defensive upgrade, but he has yet to show that he can play 25 minutes a game, and his range is just about nonexistent outside the paint. Nicolas Batum was traded for Henderson, who will replace Wesley Matthews at SG. Henderson doesn’t have Matthews’ range offensively and isn’t a playmaker defensively, although he has great size and explosiveness at the rim. Aminu replaces Batum, and while Batum struggled with his jumper last season, Aminu is a clear downgrade offensively. Aminu does give Portland a playmaker defensively, and he’s one of the best rebounding SFs in the league. Plumlee replaces Robin Lopez, and he’s similar to Davis in that he can be an effective rebounder, defender, and finisher. Also like Davis, Plumlee makes only half of his FTs and struggles to avoid foul trouble. Harkless replaces Afflalo, and while Harkless is only 22 years old with optimum length and athleticism, he’s another Trail Blazer with a severely underdeveloped offensive game. Vonleh only played 259 minutes after being the #9 pick of the 2014 NBA Draft; he replaces Joel Freeland. Miller replaces Dorell Wright. Connaughton, a second-round pick, takes Steve Blake’s spot on the roster. Lillard and McCollum are going to be doing a lot of heavy lifting offensively.

September Addendum: I had to switch Leonard into the rotation in Kaman’s place. It’s clear that he’s going to get a lot of run. It’s unclear what Kaman’s role will be on a team that is much younger this season.

October Addendum: Mike Miller was waived. Henderson is recovering from hip surgery and is not a lock to be ready to start the season.

November Addendum: Leonard is starting at power forward.

Oklahoma City Thunder (2014-2015: 45-37, 2nd in Northwest, 9th in Western)

Starters: PG Russell Westbrook, SF Kevin Durant, PF Serge Ibaka, C Steven Adams, SG Andre Roberson

Rotation: SG Dion Waiters, C Enes Kanter, PG D.J. Augustin

Bench: PF Nick Collison, SF Anthony Morrow, PF Mitch McGary, SF Kyle Singler, PG Cameron Payne (1)

Head Coach: Billy Donovan*

General Manager: Sam Presti

As you can see, Oklahoma City didn’t really add any new players after the draft. Payne will replace Jeremy Lamb on the roster, which means you probably won’t see much of him until players start dropping with injuries like last season. Speaking of last season… Morrow was the only player who was on the team from the beginning of the season that didn’t miss at least ten games. Kanter, Waiters, Augustin, and Singler were all midseason acquisitions in a season that saw Westbrook miss 15 games, Ibaka miss 18 games, and Durant miss 55 games. The Thunder used the opportunity of missing the postseason to replace Scott Brooks at head coach with Donovan, which will hopefully improve the factors other than injury that saw Oklahoma City underachieve four seasons in a row. Durant has one year left on his current deal, and Westbrook and Ibaka can reach free agency in 2017. Fun times ahead!

November Addendum: Adams is starting ahead of Kanter, and Augustin is in the rotation ahead of Morrow.

Utah Jazz (2014-2015: 38-44, 3rd in Northwest, 11th in Western)

Starters: SF Gordon Hayward, PF Derrick Favors, C Rudy Gobert, SG Rodney Hood, PG Raul Neto (1)

Rotation: SG Alec Burks, PF Trevor Booker, PG Trey Burke

Bench: PG Dante Exum (+), C Tibor Pleiss (1), SF Joe Ingles, PF Trey Lyles (1), SG Elijah Millsap

Head Coach: Quin Snyder

General Manager: Dennis Lindsey

The Jazz are another team that was quiet on personnel moves, drafting Lyles in the lottery and signing Pleiss, a 2010 2nd round pick who will make his NBA debut next season. Lyles replaces Jeremy Evans on the roster. While the Jazz will get Burks back after he missed 55 games, they lose Exum to a torn left ACL. Exum had a statistically brutal rookie season, but his on-ball defense was key to the team’s improvement on that end of the floor after the All-Star break; now he’ll lose much needed developing time due to injury.

November Addendum: Bryce Cotton failed to make the team. Neto, a 2013 2nd-round pick, and Hood start over Burke and Burks. Ingles is back on the team this season.

Denver Nuggets (2014-2015: 30-52, 4th in Northwest, 12th in Western)

Starters: PF Kenneth Faried, SF Danilo Gallinari, PG Emmanuel Mudiay (1), SG Gary Harris, C Joffrey Lauvergne

Rotation: SG Will Barton, PF Darrell Arthur, PG Jameer Nelson

Bench: C Jusuf Nurkic (+), SF Wilson Chandler (+), PF J.J. Hickson, SG Randy Foye, C Nikola Jokic (1)

Head Coach: Michael Malone*

General Manager: Tim Connelly

Denver is yet another squad that is keeping most of the squad intact. But the two changes they did make were significant. The Nuggets used their lottery pick on Mudiay, and he replaces the best player on the team in Ty Lawson, who was traded for a future 1st round pick and throw-ins from Houston. The Nuggets also have a new head coach in Malone, who was fired by Sacramento in December. Malone replaces Melvin Hunt, who took over when Denver fired Brian Shaw in March. The Nuggets may actually be better defensively with the 6’5″ Mudiay in the lineup, while the locker room should be better. But they’re going to miss Lawson’s offense, and the Nuggets are going to be one of the worst shooting teams in the league.

October Addendum: Nurkic is still recovering from surgery to repair a partially torn patellar tendon.

November Addendum: Harris and Lauvergne started the season as starters with Nurkic and Chandler (hip) injured. Nelson is in the rotation over Foye. Jokic is a 2014 2nd round pick. Erick Green was released.

Minnesota Timberwolves (2014-2015: 16-66, 5th in Northwest, 15th in Western)

Starters: SG Andrew Wiggins, C Karl-Anthony Towns (1), PG Ricky Rubio, PF Kevin Garnett, SF Tayshaun Prince*

Rotation: SG Kevin Martin, PF Nemanja Bjelica (1), SF Shabazz Muhammad

Bench: C Gorgui Dieng, PG Zach LaVine, PF Adreian Payne, PG Andre Miller*, C Nikola Pekovic (+)

Head Coach: Sam Mitchell*

General Manager: Milt Newton

Saunders has announced that he will continue his normal duties as he fights cancer. There’s nowhere to go but up for the Timberwolves, and there is an interesting mix of veterans and young talent. Top overall draft pick Towns takes Justin Hamilton’s roster spot, so that’s one major upgrade. Rubio missed 60 games due to injury, while Martin missed 43 games. Garnett only played in five games after coming back to Minnesota midseason. Pekovic missed 51 games and had Achilles surgery in April; he may not be ready to start the season on time, but Dieng and Payne allow the Timberwolves to take their time with Pekovic. Miller replaces Gary Neal. Jones takes the roster spot of Arinze Onuaku; the addition of two PGs means that LaVine should focus more on playing off the ball next season.

September Addendum: Saunders is experiencing a setback in his battle with lymphoma, leading to the appointment of assistant coach Sam Mitchell as interim head coach.

October Addendum: Saunders is not expected to be able to return as head coach, which puts a cloud over the franchise as Mitchell prepares to lead the team for perhaps the entire season. The Timberwolves waived Anthony Bennett after signing Prince. I was looking forward to the last three #1 overall draft picks playing on the same team too. Oh well.

November Addendum: Sadly, Flip Saunders passed away at the age of 60. Wiggins is at SG, and Prince is starting over Martin. LaVine is back at PG. Bjelica, a 2010 2nd round pick, is in the rotation over Dieng. Tyus Jones is on the roster but will probably spend time in the D-League.

PACIFIC DIVISION

Golden State Warriors (2014-2015: 67-15, 1st in Pacific, 1st in Western, NBA Champions)

Starters: PG Steph Curry, SG Klay Thompson, PF Draymond Green, SF Harrison Barnes, C Andrew Bogut

Rotation: SF Andre Iguodala, C Festus Ezeli, PG Shaun Livingston

Bench: PF Marreese Speights, SG Leandro Barbosa, C Jason Thompson*, SG Brandon Rush, PF Kevon Looney (1) (+)

Head Coach: Steve Kerr

General Manager: Bob Myers

The defending champs are going to hold onto the bulk of their roster. Good idea? Yup. The Warriors traded David Lee and wound up with Jason Thompson. Thompson is bigger and cheaper, which is what matters here after former All-Star Lee wound up on the fringe of the rotation last season. First-round pick Looney replaces Ognjen Kuzmic.

September Addendum: Looney is out until 2016 after undergoing hip surgery.

November Addendum: Kerr is out indefinitely due to back surgeries; assistant coach Luke Walton is keeping the trains on the track. Ezeli is in the rotation ahead of Speights and Jason Thompson.

Los Angeles Clippers (2014-2015: 56-26, 2nd in Pacific, 3rd in Western, Semifinals Loss to Houston)

Starters: PF Blake Griffin, PG Chris Paul, C DeAndre Jordan, SG J.J. Redick, SF Lance Stephenson*

Rotation: SG Jamal Crawford, PF Paul Pierce*, PG Austin Rivers

Bench: C Josh Smith*, SF Wesley Johnson*, C Cole Aldrich*, PG Pablo Prigioni*, PF Luc Mbah a Moute*

Head Coach: Doc Rivers

General Manager: Dave Wohl

You couldn’t escape the condescending “Doc the GM” mentions last season, and most of it was directed toward the paper thin bench from last season. We’ll get to that, but the starting lineup was toast for about a week. Jordan’s indecision nearly torpedoed L.A.’s offseason, but fortunately for everyone involved here, he’s back. Without Jordan, the other moves either don’t matter or don’t get made. The first domino to fall for the Clippers was the trade of Matt Barnes and 2014 free agent bust Spencer Hawes for Stephenson, who was immediately not promised a starting job. Pierce comes home to replace Barnes and ride off into the sunset. Pierce is older than Barnes, and he has been better as a small ball PF since leaving Boston two teams ago. But Pierce, reunited with Rivers, is a clear offensive upgrade on Barnes. Smith replaces Hawes, a major coup for the Clippers. Smith’s shooting is notoriously questionable, but he produces across the board; Hawes shot 39% from the field and was basically unplayable once Griffin returned from elbow surgery in the spring. Stephenson takes Hedo Turkoglu’s roster spot. Aldrich replaces Glen Davis, which should be less entertaining but more effective. Dawson, a second-round pick, replaces Ekpe Udoh. Johnson, a starter across the hall last year, replaces Dahntay Jones. Prigioni replaces Lester Hudson; Prigioni would arguably be a better option than Rivers as the backup PG. There is some boom-or-bust here for the Clippers, but there is certainly more to play with on this roster than the one that choked in Houston.

September Addendum: This doesn’t have anything to do with the roster, but covering City Year Los Angeles’ Opening Day was cool.

October Addendum: This does have to do with the roster – Johnson may start in an effort to manage Pierce’s role this season. Stephenson may be the odd man out of the rotation initially.

November Addendum: Nearly the entire bench is new, and that includes Mbah a Moute. Stephenson is starting ahead of Pierce and Johnson, and the Clippers have gone small off the bench with Smith at center. C.J. Wilcox and Branden Dawson are on the roster but will spend time in the D-League.

Phoenix Suns (2014-2015: 39-43, 3rd in Pacific, 10th in Western)

Starters: PG Eric Bledsoe, C Tyson Chandler*, SG Brandon Knight, PF Markieff Morris, SF P.J. Tucker

Rotation: SF T.J. Warren, C Alex Len, SG Devin Booker (1)

Bench: PF Mirza Teletovic*, PG Ronnie Price*, PF Jon Leuer*, SG Archie Goodwin, SF Sonny Weems*

Head Coach: Jeff Hornacek

General Manager: Ryan McDonough

Phoenix had some major chemistry issues last year, as they failed to make it through a full season with Bledsoe, Goran Dragic, and Isaiah Thomas. Gerald Green fell out of favor during the season as well, and the trade of Marcus Morris has twin brother Markieff Morris wanting out by training camp. Welcome to the desert, Tyson Chandler! The Suns made the move on Marcus Morris after agreeing to terms with Chandler, and the thought was that maybe they would be able to sign LaMarcus Aldridge. Like most of Phoenix’s moves since 2010, it didn’t work out. Chandler replaces Brandan Wright and pushes Len, the 5th overall pick in the 2013 NBA Draft, to the bench. Lottery pick Booker replaces Green. Teletovic replaces Marcus Morris. Price takes Marcus Thornton’s roster spot, which pushes Goodwin into his more natural role (he’s not a PG). Weems, who spent the last four years in the Euroleague, replaces Reggie Bullock. Phoenix needs to figure out what they’re going to do with Markieff Morris; simply giving him away isn’t going to work, especially after he just signed a 4-year deal in September.

October Addendum: Markieff Morris was fined by the NBA for demanding a trade. Morris is with the team now, so the Suns appear to have successfully called his bluff.

Sacramento Kings (2014-2015: 29-53, 4th in Pacific, 13th in Western)

Starters: PF DeMarcus Cousins, PG Rajon Rondo*, SF Rudy Gay, SG Ben McLemore, C Willie Cauley-Stein (1)

Rotation: PG Darren Collison, C Kosta Koufos*, SG Marco Belinelli*

Bench: PF Omri Casspi, SF Caron Butler*, PF Quincy Acy*, PG Seth Curry*, SG James Anderson*

Head Coach: George Karl

General Manager: Vlade Divac

It’s been a circus in Sacramento under owner Vivek Ranadivé. The team fired Michael Malone, placed Tyrone Corbin in a figurehead role for 28 games, then watched Karl and Cousins’ relationship turn into a soap opera. The man who had to answer to the drama was Divac, who wound up with final say on personnel decisions as the organization greased former GM Pete D’Alessandro out of the picture. It’s going to be interesting on the court as well. Koufos, who Karl coached in Denver, replaces Jason Thompson. This allows Cousins to play PF and gives Sacramento a rim protector, though Cousins is coming off his first 100-block season of his career (despite missing 23 games). Cauley-Stein, the 6th overall pick in the draft, is another rim protector; he replaces Reggie Evans. The locker room gets Rondo, a former All-Star and champion who has struggled mightily since tearing his ACL in 2013. Rondo flamed out in Dallas, and settled for a one-year deal with Sacramento; he replaces Ray McCallum. Curry replaces Andre Miller. The Kings brought in another NBA champion in Belinelli. While Belinelli is an upgrade on Nik Stauskas, it’s disheartening to see that the Kings gave up on 2011 lottery pick Jimmer Fredette, 2012 lottery pick Thomas Robinson, and 2014 lottery pick Stauskas before the end of their third seasons. McLemore and Cauley-Stein better not get comfortable. Collison has two more years left on his deal; he started every game he appeared in last season, but he’ll be back up Rondo after missing 37 games last year. Butler replaces Derrick Williams; he’s a three-point shooter only at this stage of his career. Acy returns to Sacramento, replacing Carl Landry. Anderson takes Ryan Hollins’ roster spot near the end of the bench after spending a year overseas.

November Addendum: Cauley-Stein will start ahead of Koufos.

Los Angeles Lakers (2014-2015: 21-61, 5th in Pacific, 14th in Western)

Starters: SF Kobe Bryant, PG D’Angelo Russell (1), C Roy Hibbert*, PF Julius Randle, SG Jordan Clarkson

Rotation: PG Lou Williams*, PF Brandon Bass*, SG Nick Young

Bench: C Tarik Black, SF Ryan Kelly, PF Larry Nance Jr. (1), SF Metta World Peace*, C Robert Sacre

Head Coach: Byron Scott

General Manager: Mitch Kupchak

The Lakers were so banged up last season that they got a hardship waiver exception. Bryant returns for his 20th NBA season, and he’s moving to SF to accommodate Russell, the second overall pick in the 2015 NBA Draft. Russell replaces Wesley Johnson in the starting lineup. Hibbert may be the most impactful free agent addition, as he replaces Jordan Hill; the Lakers’ interior defense has been a major reason why the team is coming off the worst two-year stretch in franchise history. Hibbert’s rebounding has left a lot to be desired the last two seasons, though, especially after the All-Star breaks. Randle, the 7th pick of the 2014 NBA Draft, returns after breaking his leg in his first career game. Williams, the 2014-2015 Sixth Man of the Year, replaces Jeremy Lin. Bass replaces Carlos Boozer. Nance, a late first round pick, replaces Ed Davis. This could be the swan song for Bryant, who is entering the last year of his contract and has played in only 41 games since tearing his Achilles tendon in 2013.

November Addendum: Metta World Peace is back in the NBA after a year overseas, and he takes JaBari Brown’s roster spot.

SOUTHWEST DIVISION

Houston Rockets (2014-2015: 56-26, 1st in Southwest, 2nd in Western, Conference Finals Loss to Golden State)

Starters: SG James Harden, C Dwight Howard, SF Trevor Ariza, PF Terrence Jones, PG Ty Lawson*

Rotation: SG Corey Brewer, C Clint Capela, SF Marcus Thornton*

Bench: PF Donatas Motiejunas (+), PG Patrick Beverley, C Chuck Hayes*, PG Jason Terry, SF Sam Dekker (1)

Head Coach: Kevin McHale

General Manager: Daryl Morey

The big move here is the acquisition of Lawson, who replaces Pablo Prigioni. Obviously, Lawson could easily be the starter in Houston, but I have him as the backup for two reasons. First of all, the Rockets did just fine with Harden starting with defensive-minded Beverley. There’s nothing wrong with bringing Lawson off the bench to power the second unit. Second of all, Lawson has some major personal challenges right now, and he may be suspended to start the season due to his multiple DUI arrests. Hopefully, the trade and Lawson’s stint in rehab keep him on a path towards sustainable wellness. Josh Smith signed with the Clippers, and it remains to be seen how Houston plans on filling out the bench. Jason Terry, the starting PG in the postseason due to an injury to Beverley, entered August as a free agent. Thornton replaces Nick Johnson. Dekker, a first round pick, replaces Kostas Papanikolau. All of Houston’s big men missed time last season due to injuries or inexperience, so there’s a chance the Rockets come back even better next season.

September Addendum: Terry re-signed with the Rockets.

October Addendum: Motiejunas is still recovering from back surgery, and he may not be ready for the start of the season.

November Addendum: Lawson is the starting PG, and Thornton is ahead of Beverley in the rotation. Hayes is back on the roster after four seasons away. K.J. McDaniels is at the end of the roster.

Memphis Grizzlies (2014-2015: 55-27, 2nd in Southwest, 5th in Western, Semifinals Loss to Golden State)

Starters: C Marc Gasol, PF Zach Randolph, PG Mike Conley, SF Tony Allen, SG Courtney Lee

Rotation: SF Matt Barnes*, PF Jeff Green, PG Beno Udrih

Bench: C Brandan Wright*, SG Vince Carter, PF Jarell Martin (1) (+), SG Jordan Adams, PF JaMychal Green

Head Coach: Dave Joerger

General Manager: Chris Wallace

Just when you thought Memphis couldn’t grit or grind any harder, they acquire Barnes, who takes the roster spot of Nick Calathes. Barnes played the most minutes of his career last year for the Clippers, starting a career-high 74 games. He’s much better suited for a backup role at age 35, and his career-high 136 made 3s (36%) would have led the Grizzlies last season. Memphis will be quite old on the wing next season, with Allen, Lee, Barnes, and Carter all 30 and over by the start of the season. Conley will be 28 when the season starts, and he’ll be the youngest player in the rotation. Wright will also be 28 in October; he replaces Kosta Koufos.

September Addendum: Martin, the team’s first-round pick, is out indefinitely after undergoing foot surgery.

November Addendum: Carter is out of the rotation. JaMychal Green is an undersized big man, but he’s looking at more time on the active roster than Jarnell Stokes.

San Antonio Spurs (2014-2015: 55-27, 3rd in Southwest, 6th in Western, First Round Loss to Los Angeles Clippers)

Starters: C Tim Duncan, PF LaMarcus Aldridge*, PG Tony Parker, SF Kawhi Leonard, SG Danny Green

Rotation: SG Manu Ginobili, C Boris Diaw, PG Patty Mills

Bench: PF David West*, SF Kyle Anderson, PF Matt Bonner, PG Ray McCallum*, SF Rasual Butler*

Head Coach: Gregg Popovich

General Manager: R.C. Buford

In the playoffs, the Spurs couldn’t even play Tiago Splitter and Aron Baynes 24 minutes per game combined. Those two have been replaced by Aldridge and West. Talk about a reload. While Aldridge shouldn’t expect 20 shots per game, and West shouldn’t expect 20 minutes per game, both players have the size and skill that should make San Antonio one of the best interior offenses in the NBA. Duncan and Ginobili are back as well; along with Parker, the trio will enter their 14th season together with Popovich. McCallum was also acquired, as the Spurs watched Marco Belinelli and Cory Joseph leave in free agency. People felt sorry that the Spurs didn’t take care of their seeding at the end of the regular season, and people actually complained about San Antonio failing to advance in the first round. Now folks are ready to crown the Spurs. It’s hard to blame them, though they’ll need players like Anderson and McCallum to step up.

November Addendum: Butler made the team over Reggie Williams.

Dallas Mavericks (2014-2015: 50-32, 4th in Southwest, 7th in Western, First Round Loss to Houston)

Starters: PF Dirk Nowitzki, SF Chandler Parsons, SG Wesley Matthews*, PG Deron Williams*, C Zaza Pachulia*

Rotation: SG Devin Harris, C Dwight Powell, PG Jose Barea

Bench: PF Charlie Villanueva, SF Jeremy Evans*, C JaVale McGee*, PG Raymond Felton, SG Justin Anderson (1)

Head Coach: Rick Carlisle

General Manager: Donnie Nelson

Dallas is used to striking out in free agency. After their experience with DeAndre Jordan, they actually have an excuse to start rebuilding. Of course, one look at the roster doesn’t suggest a rebuild at all. Matthews got a huge contract to replace Monta Ellis, even though he’s coming off a torn Achilles. It’s questionable whether or not Matthews or Parsons will be ready in October, but Dallas doesn’t seem worried about either player right now. Pachulia is set to be Tyson Chandler’s replacement. Pachulia is an effective pro, but he’s quite ground bound. Dalembert replaces Amar’e Stoudemire, and he’s another option at the rim. Williams replaces Rajon Rondo after both experienced their worst seasons as starters. Williams should be an offensive upgrade over the poor-shooting Rondo, but Williams isn’t the scorer he once was. Anderson, a first round pick, replaces Richard Jefferson. 

September Addendum: The Mavericks struck out on DeAndre Jordan, but added a poor man’s version in oft-injured, oft-ridiculed McGee. Al-Farouq Aminu’s departure opens up a spot for a player like Powell to play more.

October Addendum: The Mavericks don’t seem as concerned with Parsons coming off of something called “a minor hybrid” microfracture procedure on his right knee. But the timetable for Matthews is all over the map. Either way, Anderson is going to get a lot of run for a late first-round rookie.

November Addendum: Williams, Matthews, and Parsons made it back to the starting lineup, though each has had their minutes managed. Powell is in the rotation ahead of Villanueva. Evans is a small forward in the Al-Farouq Aminu role. Samuel Dalembert did not make the team.

New Orleans Pelicans (2014-2015: 45-37, 5th in Southwest, 8th in Western, First Round Loss to Golden State)

Starters: PF Anthony Davis, PG Jrue Holiday, SG Eric Gordon, C Omer Asik, SF Dante Cunningham

Rotation: PG Ish Smith*, PF Ryan Anderson, SF Alonzo Gee*

Bench: SF Tyreke Evans(+), SG Quincy Pondexter (+), PG Norris Cole (+), C Alexis Ajinca, PF Luke Babbitt

Head Coach: Alvin Gentry*

General Manager: Dell Demps

New Orleans still has some business to attend to, like handling PG Norris Cole’s restricted free agency. In the meantime, the biggest move the Pelicans made was replacing head coach Monty Williams with Gentry, who was Golden State’s associate head coach last season. Gee replaces Toney Douglas, while Perkins takes Jeff Withey’s roster spot. Gentry needs Holiday to stay on the court, as Holiday has only been able to play 74 games over the last two seasons. Everything the Pelicans do revolves around Davis going forward. Hopefully Gentry doesn’t ruin him by having him take too many threes.

September Addendum: Holiday (leg) and Pondexter (knee) are going to be handled with care going into training camp. New Orleans is quite shallow even when those two players return to action.

October Addendum: Cole was re-signed in time for training camp.

November Addendum: Injury is destroying New Orleans to start the season. Holiday is starting, but on a minute limit. Evans is probably out until late December due to another knee surgery. Cole has a high ankle sprain. Smith has to play due to the lack of depth in the backcourt. Kendrick Perkins nearly tore his pectoral, and now he’s out indefinitely.

NBA 2015 Summer Moves: Eastern Conference

-1SKILLZ