We're entering a year where I believe that every single NBA team has some questions to answer. They range from low importance to high importance, but I love an NBA season that doesn't feel set in stone (2016 - 2018 was set in stone more or less).
Every single team needs to fix an issue, whether it's surface level or deeper than Mariana's Trench.
Not the band, you fucks. The real life ocean trench.
I think we ask our questions before I go off on a pseudo-goth pop band.
Golden State Warriors
How does Draymond absolutely lamping Jordan Poole in practice play out?
The Warriors had a limited amount of questions to ask up until a week or so ago, I'm sure y'all have seen the video. I won't repost it because no ones paying me to do so.
This is a weird one because Draymond has significant value for the Warriors, I doubt they move on from him due to this incident.
The big question is what is his market value even like? How much does he help other teams? Trying to gauge that may allow Bob Myers to low-ball him an extension offer. It feels like there isn't a lot of scenarios where he leaves.
Jordan Poole recovered after being socked in the face and had 26 in a pre-season game. There's a weird aura around this incident. Odds are they work it out, but none of us truly know what's going on behind the scenes. One video of a haymaker doesn't tell us much, other than he walloped his ass.
That being said, the Warriors are really good. They win a title this year barring an implosion of some sort.
Draymond should just start hucking like 10 3's a game for no reason, I want a full Andrew Bynum type of experience.
Los Angeles Lakers
How is this supposed to work?
Like, what's the game plan really. I see them starting Westbrook, Nunn, James, Davis, Jones?? How different can this team really be with Dennis Schroeder and Patrick Beverly for the bench?
Lakers fans tell me Kendrick Nunn solves a lot of their problems, I just don't see the 3 point shooting they desperately need. How is Russ supposed to function any better? The spacing seems off still. Why do they have so many point guards? and barely any shooting guards?
This seems like a "throw something at the wall until it sticks" type of strategy and I'm here for it. Technically, they're a better team. Functionally, they look worse.
Los Angeles Clippers
Can John Wall get them over the small hump?
I say small hump because the distance between the Clippers and a Championship still seems small. Health is definitely a question too. If they stay healthy, they have one of the more complete teams in the league. I just think about how they choked a bit against the Nuggets in the 2020 WC semi-finals. Does John Wall get them past bad nights/series like that? Does he still have that juice?
If he has the sauce, it's signed, sealed, and delivered.
Even if John stumbles, the Clippers bench is electric with Luke Kennard and Norman Powell among others. They should be able to compensate.
Portland Trailblazers
Have they constructed enough pieces around Damian Lillard?
The short answer is no. However, lets view this in the realm of them being like a 4 seed in the West. That might seem like a stretch but lets theorize for a second.
Do they start Lillard/Simons/Hart/Grant/Nurkic? If so, that lineup isn't awful. They seem to lack a true power forward, but Jerami Grant is a good tweener. I didn't love the Shaedon Sharpe draft pick, but he's played pretty well in the pre-season. They have a small fire going, like the coals are hot. They need pallet fire though, like a fire that your crazy friend Dave would jump over after drinking a fifth of Canadian club whiskey, which he stole from his step dad.
Sacramento Kings
What the absolute shit are they doing exactly?
After nothing really got accomplished from the Haliburton-Sabonis trade with Indiana, I am again left wondering what this team is aiming for?
Sure, Sabonis is great. He's an excellent piece that you gave up an excellent piece for. There wasn't any measurable improvement really.
Keegan Murray however, looks exceptional. They drafted correctly for the first time in awhile, which could be a major sign. By all accounts, they SHOULD start Fox/Huerter?/Barnes/Murray/Sabonis. It's not awful, but in no way is that an ideal lineup for the Kings.
The next move for the Kings is to move the team to Anchorage, Alaska. The Anchorage Arctic Circle's draft Victor Wenyanbama with their first ever pick in team history. Think about it.
Phoenix Suns
What happens with Deandre Ayton?
I think he stays, but is Phoenix going to survive? They clearly need good vibes to eliminate last seasons playoffs. If he's got his foot out the door already, it's going to be a pain.
I like Phoenix as a team, but this video is the best thing I've ever seen.
Minnesota Timberwolves
How far does Gobert take them?
They certainly got better defensively with that trade, despite giving up a billion draft picks and their underwear to Utah.
How much better is Anthony Edwards going to be? That's arguably the better question. Gobert can only take them so far with defense alone, and Utah couldn't break the glass ceiling with him. Edwards/KAT/DLO can all score the basketball, and they could win some of those firefight games Utah always seemed to lose.
KAT defending the perimeter though, yuck.
Oklahoma City Thunder
Are we tanking again?
Chet Holmgren was injured in a pro-am game this summer when he felt the full unbridled force of standing in front of Lebron James. Now the 2nd overall pick will have to sit out the season. So what we doing? We playing Lindy Waters III 40 minutes a game or SGA 40 minutes a game?
The Scoot Henderson/Victor Wenyanbama tank parade will have a lot of participants.
Utah Jazz
How good are the return pieces they received in the Gobert and Mitchell trades?
I can do my best to answer this one.
Ochai Agbaji - Future 3 and D star minimum.
Lauri Markkanen - Could still be a piece with value moving forward.
Collin Sexton - Hard to say, empty stats on a bad team?
Malik Beasley - He can shoot! Sure why not.
Leandro Bolmaro - MVP Candidate.
Walker Kessler - Amazing defensive piece, might be able to replace Gobert in time.
Jarred Vanderbilt - Amazing defensive piece.
8 future first round picks - WHAT?
It doesn't feel like Utah fleeced Cleveland, because Donovan Mitchell is perfect for the Cavs roster. However, they definitely fleeced Minnesota. Utah will recover surprisingly quick.
Denver Nuggets
What's their ceiling fully healthy?
Jamal Murray
Kentavious Caldwell-Pope
Mike Porter Jr.
Aaron Gordon
Nikola Jokic
This is the probable starting lineup. A lot of relative success depends on how Porter develops, and how Murray responds to injury. It's hard for me to see Denver in the NBA Finals, but they seem to always be on the cusp.
New Orleans Pelicans
Does Zion take them to them to the top half of the West?
The lineup is air tight with a healthy Zion. Like, scary good. On both ends.
Considering Willy Green had these boys at the top end of the defensive/offensive ratings for the last 1/3 of the previous season, I'm all in. I'm specifically all in on Herb Jones, what a terrifying human.
Houston Rockets
What does the rotation look like?
At this point, what is stopping Houston from starting like this:
Kevin Porter Jr.
Jalen Green
Tari Eason
Jabari Smith
Alperen Sengun
Youngest NBA starting lineup in AWHILE.
Tari Eason has been cooking in pre-season, and could very well be the steal of the draft. Add some pieces like Usman Garuba and Josh Christopher off the Bench? They could be entertaining, they could also be awful. I'm a big fan of starting like this though.
Dallas Mavericks
Have they improved enough to compete for a title?
The system Jason Kidd has built around Luka has clearly been a success. The loss of Jalen Brunson really hurts though, he was a huge part of the playoff run last season. Gaining Christian Wood is great, but it's definitely a different look than a guard heavy offense.
I'm curious to see if there's improvement. If you ask me, it feels like they might be a little stuck. Stuck as a good team isn't a bad thing, but I don't see the massive improvement from acquisitions.
Javale McGee has another career season and you can forget about everything I just said.
Memphis Grizzlies
Can they make the finals?
The answer is yes, but it's very conditional. Desmond Bane and Ja Morant's combined improvement over the last couple of seasons is insane. If that keeps climbing then absolutely, they can make the finals. Not to mention drafting David Roddy and Kennedy Chandler as well, both men appearing to be huge steals. Santi Aldama looks great in pre-season, they're deep as hell, I love where Memphis is going.
San Antonio Spurs
How are we going to lose as many games as possible?
Tanking is easier said than done. You really have to have an even balance of over-resting minor injuries, and a shit lineup on paper.
The Spurs are almost there, but they need to start their young guys for experience. Which means they could be ok, and by ok, I mean better than OKC and that's it.
Tre Jones
Devin Vassell
Keldon Johnson
Jeremy Sochan
Jakob Poeltl
Now let's assume the Spurs end up trading Jakob Poeltl and Doug McDermott, that would allow them to fully play young, and likely tank.
Watching Gregg Popovich attempt to throw games will be a massive treat for all of us.
Philadelphia 76ers
Do we get 2018 James Harden?
If we do, Philly good. If we don't, Philly first round exit.
New York Knicks
Was Jalen Brunson worth it?
If they make the playoffs, yes. If not, no.
Jalen is a massive piece for the Knicks getting over the proverbial hump. My big problem is the lack of shooting, and I mean true shooting. Jalen and Evan Fournier will be reliable from deep, outside of that, Quentin Grimes is the next best shooting option. RJ Barrett and Julius Randle desperately need to figure out how to be efficient, or this team is locked at an 8 seed maximum.
Toronto Raptors
Is there a trade coming? Or are they running it back?
Toronto is always a solid darkhorse pick, because of their absolutely annoying defense. So keeping all the pieces intact wouldn't be bad, they'd likely end up in a similar position to last season.
However, Brian Windhorst said they'd be gearing up for a trade, and fuck me if I'm not going to believe that man after all the Utah nonsense this off-season.
I'm not exactly sure what pieces they'd be after, but I am excited nonetheless.
Boston Celtics
Is Malcom Brogdon the answer?
Maybe. He shoots it much better than Marcus Smart, he's a reliable decision maker, he's just a step slow. He could balance out the wildly unpredictable Marcus Smart possessions, which would make Boston a championship contender easily. Blake Griffin was a great bench addition as well, if Danillo Gallinari didn't tear his ACL that also would've been nice.
Boston is a confusing team for me. The Ime Udoka situation was confusing, their horrible start to last season was confusing, and their huge bounce back was also confusing.
Brooklyn Nets
Will they cut the bullshit?
Honestly, I don't really care to talk about Brooklyn. I've heard and read enough, so have you. They're extremely undersized, the bench is a bit hollow, but they have Kevin Durant.
Ben Simmons looked awful in pre-season, simply put. Defensively he will help, as long as he doesn't foul out in 12 minutes. I'm struggling more than ever with the jumpshot conditions right now, for whatever reason. I'm sure Ben feels the same, but make a change big guy. What is the worst that could happen? You airball some shots? You do that anyways. Try shooting with your right hand, put it behind your head and sling it, we don't care. I'm saying this because I care about you Benathon Simmons, a world with no jumpshot is desolate and lonely.
Chicago Bulls
Can they have a morsel of a healthy point guard?
Lonzo Ball will be injured to start the season, which really kills Chicago. When Lonzo and Alex Caruso went down last season, their offense and defense both suffered. They weren't the team they were capable of being. The issue is, there's no timeline on the Lonzo injury. Ayo Dosunmu has been excellent attempting to fill the starting point guard role, Lonzo just gave the Bulls more of what they needed. Transition playmaking, defense, and three point shooting.
We'll never see how good the Bulls can be unless he's healthy.
Cleveland Cavaliers
What seed will they end up as?
My guess is like 4 or 5. I see Boston, Milwaukee, Philadelphia, and maybe Brooklyn or the Hawks being better. They still have some work to do on their perimeter defense.
Indiana Pacers
Will Myles Turner and Buddy Hield get traded?
These two are the difference between Indiana tanking, and being a mediocre play-in team. Haliburton is going to have a great year regardless, trading these two for a ticket into the Wenyanbama sweepstakes isn't a horrible idea. It would really open up some floor for Benedict Mathurin and Chris Duarte as well. Mathurin specifically, who had an insanely good pre-season.
Detroit Pistons
How do Cade Cunningham and Jaden Ivey mesh?
Seeing as both of them are two key pieces moving forward, I'm a little curious. I would say Cade needs the ball to direct the offense, and Ivey needs the ball to assert himself. So in theory they should be able to compliment each other. Ivey looked a little lost in some pre-season games however, he's gonna need regular touches to get his rhythm.
Milwaukee Bucks
Who beats them if they're healthy?
Khris Middleton going down in last seasons playoffs hurt more than anyone thought it would. I'm still a firm believer in the Bucks, and realistically I don't think many of the Eastern Conference teams match-up well, outside of Boston maybe.
I don't like betting against Giannis anymore. The Bucks go to the finals again if they're healthy.
Atlanta Hawks
Does Dejounte Murray solve their defensive issues?
They can hide Trae much easier this way, I think it's going to work surprisingly well. This also allows Trae to act as a shooter on some offensive possessions, which would be way easier looks than he usually gets.
Miami Heat
Can this team get back to 2020 NBA Bubble form?
They have a lot of the same pieces, with additions of Victor Oladipo, Max Struss, and Kyle Lowry. The Heat are a very confusing team, they had some serious injury issues the past couple of seasons. This causes them to play 170 different starting lineups, It makes the offense look weird if no ones played together before.
So yeah, It's very tough to gauge what type of Miami team we're going to get. They have the same polarity problems Boston has sometimes, just two different versions of the team. Tyler Herro is finally starting, but that hardly feels like the answer.
Orlando Magic
Will they bless us with the big-fucks lineup?
Paolo Banchero, Bol Bol, and Mo Bamba. Play them together. Why not? What possible reason would Orlando have for not doing this. Even better, start Franz Wagner at the shooting guard, 6'8 -7'2 guys only. There is nothing to lose, strictly because you're the Orlando Magic.
Washington Wizards
Is this team any good?
Monte Morris
Bradley Beal
*Insert Small Forward*
Rui Hachimura
Kristaps Porzingis
Possible other starters:
Kyle Kuzma
Corey Kispert
Deni Avdija
Will Barton
Johnny Davis
Delon Wright
This is such a weird ass team LOL.
Charlotte Hornets
Can they survive without Miles Bridges?
I believe so. Ball/Rozier/Hayward is still a solid scoring core. I'm also expecting Lamelo Ball to increase his output this season. They'll end up in the play-in games again. I'm not willing to bring much more attention to the absence of an abuser, so here's Gordon Hayward's new shitty haircut.
Thanks for reading!
Comments