Evaluating the NBA's winners and losers this summer

	If Knicks fans weren't upset after a 23-win season, they sure were after the team drafted little-known Renaldo Balkman and named Isiah Thomas head coach. Steven Freeman/NBAE via Getty Images
	MAILBAG Marty Burns will periodically answer questions from SI.com users in his mailbag. Your name: Your e-mail address: Your home town: Enter your question:

It's an immutable law of sports: For every winner, there must be a loser. The NBA offseason is no different. For every team, player, coach, executive or city that skipped into August feeling great about its summer business, there is a counterpart who is ready to drink a bottle of Clorox.

With NBA summer business all but complete and two months to go before the opening of training camp, it's a good time to take a look back at the biggest winners and losers of the offseason.

Team

Winner: Bulls

They landed the big fish in free agency, prying Ben Wallace away from the Pistons. The fact that they dealt a blow to a conference rival only made it a bigger coup. Throw in top draft pick Tyrus Thomas, and there's a hoops buzz in the Windy City again.

Loser: Knicks

GM Isiah Thomas has taken over for Larry Brown on the bench, but that's about the only significant change from a year ago. Meanwhile, Thomas' selection of Renaldo Balkman with the team's top draft pick (No. 20 overall) didn't exactly excite the masses.

Free Agent

Winner: Peja Stojakovic

Despite a sub-par season and an ill-timed knee injury that forced him to miss four of Indiana's six playoff games, the 6-foot-10 veteran snagged a five-year, $64 million deal from the Hornets. Given that so few teams had cap room, it was a coup for the Serbian sharpshooter.

Loser: Bonzi Wells

The opposite of Stojakovic: The veteran swingman had a sensational playoff series against the Spurs but apparently has failed to cash in. He rejected a reported five-year, $32 million offer from the Kings only to have Sacramento move on and sign John Salmons instead.

Coach

Winner: Larry Brown

His reward for going 23-59 in his first season in New York? He gets to walk away from the mess he created while likely keeping a large portion of the $40 million or so remaining on his contract. What can Brown do for you!