Just about every team in the Western Conference spent money in free agency.
Some were trying to close the gap on the NBA champion Golden State Warriors. Some were trying to jump from the lottery to the playoffs. And some were merely trying to keep pace in the arms race.
But while some teams spent smartly and found bargains, others threw bad money after good, overreaching and overpaying for players who may not provide the expected bang for the buck.
The Sheridan Hoops staff tells you who made the West’s best and worst moves for the money in this edition of the Three-Man Weave.
1. Which move was the best value for the money?
CHRIS SHERIDAN, PUBLISHER: David West joining the Spurs for the veteran’s minimum after opting out of a $12.6 million final year on his contract with Indiana. When we look back on basketball in general in a few years – or a few decades – this will be one of the few examples cited of a player who sacrificed a ton of money just to have a legitimate chance at that championship ring.
CHRIS BERNUCCA, MANAGING EDITOR: While it is hard to argue with getting a player as good as David West for the veteran’s minimum of $1.5 million, the San Antonio Spurs outdid themselves by re-signing Tim Duncan for $10.8 million over two years. Duncan was All-NBA Third Team last season, which means he is still a top-15 player, even at 39 years old. His per-game averages may not be that impressive, but his 22.6 PER also was top-15 and his rating differential of plus-16 is absurd. And playing alongside West and LaMarcus Aldridge instead of Tiago Splitter and Aron Baynes should allow Gregg Popovich to rest him even more.
MICHAEL SCOTTO, COLUMNIST: What if I said I will give you a guy who averaged 14 points, nine rebounds, three assists and two blocks while shooting 51 percent from the field for a two-year, $10.85 million deal? You’d do it in a heartbeat! By the way, that player is Duncan. Other veterans who took dramatic paycuts for a chance to win a ring were West with San Antonio and Josh Smith with the LA Clippers, both of whom signed one-year minimum deals.
RELATED: East’s best moves for the money
2. Which move was the worst value for the money?
SHERIDAN: I will admit that he brings a level of charisma and intensity that few (OK, none) can duplicate, but Minnesota giving Kevin Garnett $16 million over two years is throwing good money out the window. The guy hasn’t been able to contribute anything of significance for three or four years now, and keeping him out of retirement for two years is no more than a boost to his ego – and an expensive one.
BERNUCCA: The Denver Nuggets giving Wilson Chandler a four-year, $46 million extension. I have a pretty 
good idea of what an $11 million player looks like, and it’s not Chandler, whose numbers – conventional or advanced – are ordinary at best and inefficient at worst. With two extra first-round picks coming possibly as soon as next year. Nuggets GM Tim Connelly should be looking to rebuild a team that has missed the playoffs two straight years. Instead, he now has four players making at least eight figures who have combined for zero All-Star berths.
SCOTTO: What were the Dallas Mavericks thinking when they gave Wesley Matthews – coming off a season-ending torn Achilles tendon – a four-year, $70 million deal? Simply put, they overpaid. Yes, the Kings made a valiant run at Matthews and offered him a large deal as well. However, when in the past decade has operating like the Kings been a sound basketball strategy? The Mavericks were as desperate as the Kings to make a free agency splash when they ultimately could have kept Monta Ellis for much cheaper. Jameer Nelson’s three-year, $13.5 million deal with Denver deserves honorable mention. He hasn’t been the same player since he left Orlando.
3. Which move was the biggest head-scratcher?
SHERIDAN: Jameer Nelson getting three years and $13.5 million from the Nuggets – and this coming even before Ty Lawson’s second DUI arrest. Nelson is a great guy and all, but don’t you have to be a decent NBA player to get locked up for three more years? Nelson hasn’t even qualified as a decent NBA player for three years.
BERNUCCA: The Suns giving Brandon Knight $70 million over five years. Don’t get me wrong; by and large I like what the Suns have done, and retaining Knight had to be a part of their offseason to-do list to justify the Goran Dragic mess from last season. But his production dropped off alongside Eric Bledsoe (granted, in a small sample size), and Knight was a restricted free agent. If the Suns were willing to go to $14 million annually, why didn’t they allow another team to set the market? They just seemed overeager on this one.
SCOTTO: The Suns signing Tyson Chandler to a four-year, $52 million deal was a shocker. At 33, Chandler will be entering the twilight of his career as the contract progresses. Why would he want to spend that time with a team that’s not a title contender? Also, what message does this send to former No. 5 overall pick Alex Len? Sacramento signing Kosta Koufos was a double head-scratcher because of the deal (four years, $33 million) and because the Kings already have centers DeMarcus Cousins and Willie Cauley-Stein. Could this be insurance should the team trade Cousins? Who knows what the real plan is in Sacramento, or if there is one?