Momentous NBA trades, a nail-biting Wimbledon, and of course, a spectacular Olympics; Summer 2024 was, if anything, the Summer of Sports. To catch up before the start of the football, basketball, and hockey seasons, here’s a quick rundown of most of the biggest sports trades, moves, and other moments of the past summer.
The NBA
- Paul George to Philly: In the undisputed biggest move of the offseason, George agreed to a whopping four-year, $212 million maximum with the Philadelphia 76ers. After spending the last five seasons with the Los Angeles Clippers and making it to the Conference Finals just one time, George (34 years old), will now join Joel Embiid and Tyrese Maxey on a team looking to finally break out in the 2024-25 season.
- Alex Caruso, Isaiah Hartenstein to Oklahoma City: The Thunder, looking for a comeback after their mildly uneventful last few seasons, made headlines by signing the Chicago Bulls’ Caruso along with the Knicks’ Hartenstein. The two will join the league’s third overall point scorer of last season, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, on a squad as ready as ever to compete for the 2024-25 NBA Championship.
- DeMar DeRozan to Sacramento: In a move that shocked basketball analysts and absolutely rocked Chicago, the Bulls let go of DeRozan, their best player by far and among the top scorers in the league right now. He’s getting old, they’ve got to clear up some cap space. It was a good decision by the Bulls. Despite quickly becoming a favorite of many Bulls fans, the all-star reportedly chose to leave because of the team’s trading away Caruso. Both of these trades, along with the drafting of Matas Buzelis #11 overall, point to the club’s inclination towards a full-fledged organizational rebuild.
“He’s getting old, they’ve got to clear up some cap space. It was a good decision by the Bulls,” varsity basketball player Rayne Punzal said. “They were not going to give DeRozan a championship. Now at the Kings, he has a chance of winning.”
The NHL
- Steven Stamkos, Jonathan Marchessault, Brady Skjei to Nashville: Despite having much talent, hockey fans will tell you that the Predators have not had too great of a run over the years. Yet, after the past summer, Stamkos and Marchessault in the front will almost certainly shore up the franchise’s scoring. This, along with Skjei and the still outstanding Josi on defense, may just end up being what the Preds need to finally make it all the way.
- Brett Pesce, Jacob Markstrom, Brendan Dillon, Tomas Tatar to New Jersey: For a team that has recently needed help on the back end, this summer was all good news. Markstrom has the experience and talent to play alongside Jake Allen, likely even to start over him. Pesce will be the defensive backbone to the team’s young defensive core, and the two forwards will add extra depth on offense.
The Olympics
- Team USA Basketball prevails: In their fifth straight title, and eighth out of the last nine, Team USA took home gold once again, in a series as fierce as any. After four wins by 17+ points, including a remarkable 122-87 win against Brazil in the quarterfinals, America barely snuck by against Serbia, 95-91, to make it to the finals. The match was a hair-raiser, ending after four quarters in a resounding 98-87 victory for the Americans, led by none other than Steph Curry, Lebron James, Kevin Durant, and Devin Booker.
- Simone Biles wins gold thrice: in her third career Olympics tournament, Biles captured gold on vault, all-around, and team. She also clinched silver on floor, all of this after pulling out of the 2020 (rescheduled to 2021) Tokyo Olympics due to mental health reasons. It was a striking return, both for the seven-time American gold medalist and for Team USA’s gymnastics division, which earned 11 total medals including three golds.
From Paul George to Simone Biles, the summer was filled with tons of sports moments unlike any other. How will the 2024-25 major league seasons look? Will the Bulls gain a young talent in Giddey or instead spend the next decade continuing to search for their distant post-Jordan identity? Will the newly reimagined Predators put their hands to the plow and win the Stanley Cup, or will their high-stakes moves simply serve as a graceful platform for several aged stars to say their goodbyes? One thing is certain: the futures of most American sports will be, and already are being reimagined, all thanks to this year’s Summer of Sports.
