It’s almost halfway through the 2023-24 NBA season, and it’s time for Division II. The athleticsA mid-term review, with future projections.
Today, we’re diving into the upcoming trade deadline, the players and teams that have a lot to prove, and the teams we expect to make it to the NBA Finals.
To keep things moving, we’ve rounded up three of our writers: Kelly Aiko in houston, Jason Quick in Portland and Josh Robbins in Washington.
Part One: We recap the 2023 offseason, review what worked and what didn’t, and look at the league’s biggest surprises..
Which league story has you most excited about this season?
Kelly Eco I think Tuesday’s slate — the highly-anticipated Joel Embiid/Nikola Jokic matchup, the incredible Kevin Durant-led fourth-quarter comeback for the Suns and the wire-to-wire Thunder/Clips tilt of vintage Paul George — underscores the upside. The state of the game today and, more importantly, the MVP debate.
After another masterclass performance by Embiid — 41 points, seven rebounds and 10 assists, and Jokic also filling his stat line with 25 points and 19 rebounds — it was heartwarming to hear Embiid heap praise on Jokic after the final buzzer. A healthy change from the usual vitriol that plagues social media when discussing these two superstars. These two generations of big men have dominated the MVP scene for the past three seasons and are top candidates in 2023-24. Embiid has improved his game thanks to new head coach Nick Nurse, and Jokic continues to put up video game numbers in his sleep and carry a top-10 offense.
But it’s important that Embiid shower Jockey with plaudits. The reigning MVP sees Jokic as the best player in the world after the regular season and carrying that good form into the postseason, something Embiid has yet to do. And these aren’t the only players in the league playing at the peak of their powers — Durant, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Jayson Tatum, Giannis Antetokounmpo, the list goes on. The league is in good shape right now.
Jason Quick: Call me sicko, but I’m caught up in the Pistons’ 28-game losing streak. I checked at night to see how they were doing, and if they were in a game, I tried to tune in. For most of the Pistons rotation, the Spurs were also rotating, at one point they had 18 losses. I can’t say I remember two teams being as bad at the same time, so I was curious to see how bad they were.
Josh Robbins: I was impressed with the planned excellence and execution of the first NBA In-Season Tournament. League officials are faced with a challenging question: What is the best way to introduce a concept that is largely foreign to North American audiences? Soccer fans in Europe and soccer lovers in North America are familiar with tournaments like England’s FA Cup and Spain’s Copa Del Rey, but the idea of a tournament parallel to the regular season (and in this case) is a largely unheard of concept in North America’s major sports leagues.
So, naturally, the league had a lot of learning to do, and given the complexity of the task — considering teams’ regular-season records in regular season games aside from the championship — there was some confusion among fans and Some playersEspecially at first.
As noted elsewhere, especially on “Sorry to Interrupt,” the tournament gained credibility mainly because of LeBron James competing hard and the team winning, and Tyrese Halliburton cementing himself as one of the game’s rising stars.
The truth is, it’s too early to tell if the tournament will be what most NBA fans look forward to year in and year out. Whether or not this will happen can only be determined over time. But I don’t think there’s any doubt that the competition is at least a novel experiment and has had a chance to mature and improve.
Which team or person has the most proof between now and the end of the regular season?
Available at: It seems like a cliché every season, though This It’s the season. This should be the year where the stars align – no pun intended – and finally go to the NBA Finals we’ve been waiting for after Kawhi Leonard and George join forces.
Now that they’ve added James Harden to the mix and seemingly linked their entire roster’s efficiency to these three, there’s no turning back. Yes, They have the league’s No. 1 offense this month. We have been here before with this group. Can you make it in the game? This may be their best – and last – chance.
Quick: Draymond Green. Can the mercurial Golden State hold his temper and anger after his suspension and 16-game absence? And if he can, will the new, muted Green have the same impact as a key part of the Warriors’ dynasty? The only certainty is that Green has plenty to prove on both sides as he tries to walk the fine line between flamboyance and distraction.
Robbins: It’s the Lakers — and James in particular — whose legacy on the court has often been safe. But now he’s 39 years old, and now that the Lakers are 21-21 and on the brink of elimination in the Western Conference playoffs, the question of whether he can carry the team grows stronger. This is the case with older athletes, even the great ones.
There are several people currently under investigation at the Lakers, including executive Rob Pelinka and coach Darwin Hamm. But Jacob covered them all. Can he and Anthony Davis lift the Lakers back into the regular eight-team playoffs, avoiding the playoffs entirely or playing their way through the playoffs? There is no doubt that James will hear the doubt. And he will no doubt use that doubt as motivation. The great ones always do. But is it still enough to bring that motivation to fruition? That’s a question he and his shippers have to answer.
The trade deadline is three weeks away. Name the group that needs to make an impactful move.
Available at: I know it’s forbidden to point fingers or point fingers at the bull market, but haven’t we learned anything from the past? There are no guarantees in this league. You have to strike when you’re hot. Especially when you can make a strong argument that it is the conference of the western world Wide open up.
Tuesday night’s loss to the Clippers, an entertaining game, gave a glimpse of what the postseason Thunder could look like. Teams are going to load up on Gilgeous-Alexander and control the paint, forcing shots on someone else and daring them to beat them. Jalen Williams, Lou Dort and Isaiah Joe have been great and have been this season, but I still think Oklahoma City could use another three-tier scorer to even ease the burden on SGA’s shoulders. He was amazing. But his 31.1 percent usage rate is sky-high, and we’ve seen what happens to guards in the regular season with this much weight on their shoulders. I’m sure Thunder fans shudder at the thought of a Zach LaVine type addition, but what about Dejounte Murray? It’s not the most crazy thing in the world.
Quick: Lakers. After outstanding seasons with LeBron and Davis hovering around .500, the Lakers need some help before the championship window closes. The Lakers in particular could use some shooting. The Lakers are 28th in the league in 3-pointers per game (10.9), 20th in 3-point percentage, and 22nd in offense.
Robbins: I’m more optimistic about the 76ers’ chances of reaching the NBA Finals than most people. Yes, the Celtics have been awesome this season. And yes, having Damian Lillard will help the Bucks create offense when the pace slows down in the playoffs. But I believe that the Sixers are right on the heels of the Celtics’ and Bucks’ and can win both of those teams in the best-of-seven series. as a The athletics Seen beforeI think it pays to trade a two-way wing with Philly’s size – someone who can hit the open 3 And Make the likes of Tatum and Jaylen Brown work hard to earn their points. There’s a reason everyone wants those 3-and-D types: they are. It is what he says. Important, especially come playtime.
A couple of caveats before the next question: the impact of the trade deadline and how injuries affect teams. Unfortunately, injuries cannot be taken out of the game. But given what you’ve seen so far this season, which Eastern Conference team do you expect to reach the NBA Finals?
Available at: As exciting as the 76ers were, I still don’t think it’s good enough to make the trip, but I don’t see why the Bucks don’t have enough firepower to get out of the East. It’s a stretch to call a superstar like Damian Lillard an X-factor, but Milwaukee has never had a shooter of that caliber, reminding us once again that “damn time” hasn’t stopped, it just moved from the Pacific to the Central Time Zone. He would single-handedly win multiple playoff games with his clutch genes.
Their defense has fallen without Jrue Holiday as well as the age of Brook Lopez, but the Bucks still have a top-two offense and I don’t think we’ve even seen the best version of that. Spammy Lillard/Giannis pick-and-roll
Quick: Boston. The most complete team in the league. The Celtics are ranked second in scoring defense and third in scoring offense and have won their first 20 home games. After losing in the 2022 NBA Finals and Conference Finals last season, the Tatum and Brown tandem should be strong and determined for the upcoming playoffs. That run should benefit from Holiday’s defense, which will come in handy in the playoffs, eliminating potential matchups with East guards Lillard, Tyrese Maxey and Jalen Brunson.
Robbins: I’m going with the sixers. Joel Embiid is a matchup problem for anyone, and I think he will be the number one player in the East in these playoffs.
Which Western Conference team will reach the NBA Finals?
Available at: I think the Suns, who have quietly won seven of their last 10 games, will continue this upward trend and secure themselves for the postseason. Head coach Frank Vogel deployed Durant at center in the return game against the Kings, and it certainly looks like a tactical tool to keep. Between Durant and Devin Booker alone, they have enough firepower to beat any opposing team in seven straight games.
Is Bradley Beal healthy and available? That’s the real question. But the Suns’ two-headed monster can beat you from anywhere and has shown enough play to take a back seat and facilitate when the other one gets hot. I don’t like their depth from the starters (Grayson Allen!) and still think they should make one more move before the deadline, but I don’t want to be on the other side of these guys in May.
Quick: Clippers. If the Harden merger is complete, the Clippers look terrible. It’s hard to see a team with the personnel to stop Harden, Leonard and George in a seven game series, and you have to figure Russell Westbrook, Norman Powell or Tre Mann will have a game-changing performance on the road. See if LA can improve up the middle. With Ty Lue’s game-plan on the sidelines, the Clippers will be very difficult.
Robbins: The Denver Nuggets are headed back to the NBA Finals. The Timberwolves and Thunder have been incredible stories, and will be fierce opponents in the postseason. But they’re also young, and the NBA has traditionally been a league where big, talented teams have had to make some playoff appearances and build playoff experience before finally making it.
The Nuggets have done it before. What worries me about them is their depth. But I still think Jokic, Jamal Murray and their teammates will make it out of the West. It would make things more comfortable for them if they secured home-court advantage for the game, but given their experience, I don’t think that’s important to them.
(Top photo Nikola Jokic and Joel Embiid: (Bill Streicher/USA Today)