A full lakers rebuild from trading AD and Lebron
Why the Lakers? Although the Lakers big market dissuades them from entering a rebuild, they have a duo whose time is about to expire. Although Lebron is still good, he’s about to retire. With Him gone, AD can’t hold down a team on his own. Rather than contending for the play-in, they go for Cooper Flagg and get their pick plus a bunch of others.
Why the Pelicans? The Pelicans have been desperate for a true center. With the resurgence of the Dominant Bug Man in the modern NBA, no matter how much front court and wing defenders they have, they are going to get cooked by bigger teams on defense. Not only does AD come back to the team that drafted him, he is an All-NBA level talent and a DPOY contender that can work in a duo with Zion. With AD there, they become one of if not the best defense in the NBA. The Pelicans also gain Josh Richardson who fills the lost depth from trading away Alvarado too.
Why the Heat? Not only does Lebron return to the team that brought him his first chip, he goes to a team that desperately needs another shot creator. Even in his age Lebron can still do this. Because of his age he’s relatively cheaper, which makes it more worthwhile for the heat. If it doesn’t work out, the Heat will simply get off of their two biggest contracts (depending not the POs), and have all the cap space in the world to start new.
Why the Rockets? The Rockets were on the fringe of the playoffs last year, and this offseason they seemed like they really wanted to make a move. With Sengun being in MIP convos and all of their players remaining great and/or taking great steps. BI gives them an extra push without costing them their entire future.
Why the Pacers? The pacers were a top offense last year, but they were one of the worst defenses aswell. They alleviate this by adding Brooks and Alvarado, two great defensive guys that are bot yet aging. They can provide defensive resilience that can give the pacers that extra spark to make huge runs, which they already can do on offense.