Every NBA Team's Biggest Question Ahead of Media Day – Bleacher Report

Following Wednesday’s Damian Lillard trade, it feels like NBA rosters are almost entirely set heading into 2023-24 training camps.
The offseason moves that contributed to those rosters didn’t eliminate all of the questions, though. In fact, they generated new ones for some organizations.
With media days right around the corner for all 30 NBA teams, here are the questions that each will have to answer this season.

The Atlanta Hawks were the definition of average last season. They broke the NBA record for the most consecutive games within a game of a .500 record.
This summer, their most significant move was trading John Collins to the Utah Jazz for little more than a bigger cushion between themselves and the luxury-tax threshold.
Are incoming rookie Kobe Bufkin and absence of Collins going to make this team any different than it was last season?
Atlanta can point to a year of experience with the Trae Young-Dejounte Murray partnership as a source of optimism. Head coach Quin Snyder came in midway through the 2022-23 season, so maybe a full offseason and training camp will help him make a bigger impact.
Things could eventually look different, but it’s hard to look at the current roster without thinking Atlanta didn’t just hit the repeat button on last season.

With Kristaps Porziņģis essentially replacing Marcus Smart in the Boston Celtics’ rotation, you might think reigning Sixth Man of the Year Malcolm Brogdon would be excited about a bigger role in 2023-24.
Apparently, that’s not the case.
Brogdon is reportedly angry with the Celtics about their failed attempt to trade him this offseason, according to Gary Washburn of the Boston Globe. ESPN’s Ramona Shelburne said his frustration might stem from the way they handled his elbow injury, too.
Someone figures to ask him about that alleged tension on media day, but that’s likely to return little more than a “nothing to see here” kind of line.
With Payton Pritchard and point Jayson Tatum potentially waiting in the wings, Brogdon’s satisfaction (or lack thereof) with his current situation is worth paying attention to throughout the early portion of the 2023-24 campaign.

The post-Kyrie Irving and Kevin Durant Brooklyn Nets are a favorite among NBA hipsters thanks to their wing-heavy, switchable and modern rotation. But as presently constructed, it’s hard to imagine them pushing the East’s top-tier contenders for a shot at the Finals.
That is, unless Ben Simmons is healthy and anywhere near the All-Star version of himself.
In that case, lineups with Simmons creating as something of a point center and surrounded by tons of perimeter defense and catch-and-shoot prowess would make Brooklyn one of the most interesting teams in the league.
It may take more than optimism to expect that from Simmons at this point. After missing all of the 2021-22 campaign, he averaged only 6.9 points in 42 appearances last season.
Getting back to around the 16.4 points, 8.3 rebounds, 8.0 assists, 1.7 steals and 0.8 blocks per game he averaged from 2017-18 through 2019-20 would be a monumental comeback story.

In terms of individual production, LaMelo Ball’s career couldn’t have gotten off to a much better start.
In his 162 career games, he’s totaled 3,149 points, 1,188 assists and 1,034 rebounds. Oscar Robertson and Luka Dončić are the only players in NBA history who matched or exceeded all three marks in their first 162 games.
But throughout his career, his impact on the Charlotte Hornets’ plus-minus has been minimal at best. During his three seasons, they’re 23rd in the league in winning percentage.
Injuries and Miles Bridges’ season-long suspension (stemming from a domestic violence arrest) contributed to that mark, but Charlotte’s success or failure will be at least partially connected to Ball for as long as he’s there.
If he can’t lead the Hornets to a more competitive campaign in 2023-24, questions about his leadership or durability are going to ramp up.

Nikola Vučević, Zach LaVine and DeMar DeRozan have now been together on the Chicago Bulls for two full seasons. The youngest of the three, LaVine, will turn 29 in March.
In the nearly 3,000 minutes that trio has shared the floor, the Chicago Bulls are minus-1.3 points per 100 possessions.
The clearest fix appears to be playing them with Lonzo Ball, but he’s reportedly expected to miss his second straight season with a knee injury.
So, why is Chicago essentially running this back? Isn’t it time for a fresh start? Shouldn’t the Bulls be seeing what they can get for any of Vučević, DeRozan and LaVine?
They might not come right out and answer those questions verbally, but another slow or mediocre start in 2023-24 could force them to answer through front-office action.

The regular-season numbers on Evan Mobley and Jarrett Allen are firmly behind the idea that they can coexist.
The Cleveland Cavaliers had the NBA’s best defense in 2022-23. When Mobley and Allen were on the floor, the Cavs were plus-8.2 points per 100 possessions.
But that trend certainly didn’t hold in a five-game first-round loss to the New York Knicks. Cleveland was minus-two when the twin towers shared the floor and got outrebounded by 41 for the entire series.
In today’s NBA, it’s hard to thrive with two non-shooters on the floor. If your roster forces you to play that way, the weakness is more exploitable in the playoffs, when coaches have the luxury of in-series scheming and adjustments.
Cleveland can sidestep this problem if Mobley develops a consistent outside shot, but his 23.2 three-point percentage through two seasons suggests that’s far from a guarantee.
Otherwise, the best long-term option might be moving Mobley to the 5 and trading Allen for someone who can space the floor.

The Dallas Mavericks are facing a potential problem similar to Cleveland. They have a duo that showed positive signs in 2022-23 without completely convincing the jury.
Dallas was a respectable plus-3.3 points per 100 possessions with Luka Dončić and Kyrie Irving on the floor last season, but that number comes from a sub-500-minute sample.
While Kyrie has shown a willingness and ability to play alongside other ball-dominant stars in the past—including when he won a championship with LeBron James in 2016—Luka hasn’t.
The learning curve for how to play together might not be behind them, and that’s just in reference to offense. The partnership is truly in question on the other end of the floor.
Neither Luka nor Kyrie has ever been known for defense, and the West is loaded with explosive guards these two will have to guard.
There’s a world in which the Mavs are able to outscore most opponents and piece together enough defense from Josh Green, Dante Exum and other perimeter stoppers, but we need to see it.

The Denver Nuggets are bringing back their entire starting five, which was the most important step on the way to a potential repeat. But they’ll almost certainly need some help from a young core that includes Christian Braun, Peyton Watson and incoming rookies Julian Strawther, Jalen Pickett and Hunter Tyson.
Expecting that of Braun shouldn’t be that surprising. He’s already shown chops as a perimeter defender, was in the playoff rotation and had a 15-point game in the Finals. But he probably won’t be able to make up for the losses of Bruce Brown and Jeff Green by himself.
Watson has the potential to be a game-changing rim protector, Pickett may eventually overtake Reggie Jackson as the backup 1, and Tyson and Strawther could become floor-raising floor-spacers.
But right now, all of that is theoretical.

Any chance at a second-year leap for Cade Cunningham was undercut by a shin injury that limited him to 12 games in 2022-23.
Now fully healthy and coming off an impressive run at Team USA’s minicamp ahead of the FIBA World Cup, Cunningham will get a chance to prove himself worthy of his 2021 No. 1 overall pick status.
There’s plenty of high-upside players elsewhere on the Detroit Pistons’ roster like Jalen Duren, Ausar Thompson and Jaden Ivey, but the team’s ultimate upside likely depends on Cunningham becoming a superstar.
This season should provide more evidence of whether he can get there.

The question about Chris Paul starting is only the beginning of the inquiry for the Golden State Warriors.
They already have arguably the greatest point guard of all time in Stephen Curry, so it’s tricky to know how another player who’s top 5-10 at the same position fits in.
Curry is also an all-timer in terms of off-ball movement, so the pairing with CP3 might work seamlessly on offense. But when those two are sharing the floor, Golden State will be small (and old) in the backcourt, which could cause some defensive issues.
Some of those could be avoided by dramatically staggering the minutes of Curry and Paul, but playing them together will be unavoidable. The Warriors will have to figure out who makes the most sense alongside them.
Will that be the super-small-ball lineup with Klay Thompson, Andrew Wiggins and Draymond Green? Or will they need a little more beef from a big man like Kevon Looney?
We should get some answers early in the season.

The Houston Rockets decided to expedite their rebuild this offseason. Instead of relying on natural or internal development of their young core, they splurged in free agency.
The starting salaries of their new additions—Fred VanVleet, Dillon Brooks and Jock Landale—add up to $81.0 million, or around 59.6 percent of the 2023-24 salary cap.
Their usage, particularly that of VanVleet and Brooks, will take a lot of shots away from Jalen Green, Jabari Smith Jr. and Alperen Şengün. That’s not necessarily a bad thing.
The presence of veterans could speed up the development of that core. Getting a taste of winning, or at least competitiveness, could drive the young players to want more in a way that losing often doesn’t.
Conversely, things could unfold like they did for the 2017-18 Sacramento Kings, who signed veterans Zach Randolph and George Hill to boost their experience quotient. That team still went 27-55.

Tyrese Haliburton is already an All-Star, and it feels safe to assume that the 23-year-old playmaker will be in that game several more times.
Above all else, that’s what makes the Indiana Pacers’ future so interesting. But there are several other young players on this roster who add to the intrigue.
Despite below-average shooting numbers, Bennedict Mathurin feels like a relatively safe bet to at least be helpful to Haliburton over the near future. He’s a forceful, athletic scorer who can take some backcourt pressure off Haliburton.
Then you add Andrew Nembhard to that mix of guards. Over his last 16 games in 2022-23, he put up 15.3 points, 6.8 assists and 1.5 threes per game while shooting 42.9 percent from deep.
Since all three of them are at least 6’5″, it’s reasonable to think they can play together.
Beyond them, Indiana has Jarace Walker, Obi Toppin and Aaron Nesmith. If even one of them becomes a high-end rotation piece, the Pacers will be in great shape going forward.

There was plenty of hype when Kawhi Leonard and Paul George joined the Los Angeles Clippers in 2019, but four years later, they’ve still yet to reach their potential.
The Clippers made the Western Conference Finals in 2021, but Kawhi and PG are 48th and 29th in the league, respectively, in playoff minutes during their four years together. They’re also now four years older than they were when this partnership started.
If their title window is still open, it’s probably not open wide. That may be why we haven’t heard a ton of chatter about them signing extensions with the Clippers this offseason, even though they’re both eligible to do so.
If the Clippers don’t sign them to new deals and they flame out early again, there’s a real chance that both could decline the player options they have for 2024-25.

LeBron James will turn 39 this season. Anthony Davis is 30 and has averaged 44 appearances per season over the last three years.
Both managed to stay healthy enough to carry the Los Angeles Lakers to the Western Conference Finals in 2023, but they were swept there. They’ll now be a year older in 2024.
There’s certainly some potential in a refreshed supporting cast that includes Austin Reaves, Gabe Vincent, Rui Hachimura and Taurean Prince. But if James and/or Davis aren’t as good or available as they were last year, the Lakers could be in trouble in the ever-crowded West.

Ja Morant and Tyus Jones are first and tied for third, respectively, among Memphis Grizzlies in wins over replacement player over the last two years. Jones is now on the Washington Wizards, while Morant is suspended for at least the first 25 games of the 2023-24 season.
That puts a lot of responsibility on the shoulders of newcomers Marcus Smart and soon-to-be 35-year-old Derrick Rose to get the Grizzlies through the first third of the season. But the real key might be Desmond Bane.

When Morant was off the floor last season, Bane averaged 25.5 points and 5.7 assists per 75 possessions with a 61.8 true shooting percentage.

Despite a summer packed with rumors about Damian Lillard’s desire to end up with the Miami Heat, he wound up on the Milwaukee Bucks.
Given the offseason losses of Gabe Vincent and Max Strus, both of whom started throughout a postseason run that ended in the NBA Finals, Miami seemed almost more pot-committed to a Lillard trade than it was before free agency began.
And now they have to go through the potential awkwardness of a media day and training camp without Lillard and with a number of players (including Tyler Herro) who may have spent all summer waiting for a trade.
Some notable younger stars could become available in the next few years, though. Would the package Miami had teed up for Lillard get Miami part of the way to a Joel Embiid or Donovan Mitchell trade?

Giannis Antetokounmpo has sent plenty of confusing signals about his future this offseason.
Right after his Milwaukee Bucks were eliminated by the eighth-seeded Miami Heat in the first round of the Eastern Conference playoffs, Antetokounmpo lectured a media member about how “there’s no failure” in sports.
Four months later, Giannis told Tania Ganguli of the New York Times that he wouldn’t sign an extension without knowing “everybody’s going to sacrifice time away from their family like I do.” A few weeks after that, he told the 48 Minutes podcast that he’d be open to leaving Milwaukee for a “better situation for me to win the Larry O’Brien.”
Got all that? Bucks fans surely must have.
But now that Damian Lillard is on the team and Milwaukee has ascended to the shortest championship odds in the league, should their minds be more at ease?
During the two remaining guaranteed seasons on Antetokounmpo’s current contract (he has a player option in 2025-26), the Bucks should be inner circle contenders. And if they fall short, it’ll be tough for Giannis to put any blame on the organization.

The Minnesota Timberwolves faced this same big question last season. We just didn’t get much of an answer because a calf injury limited Karl-Anthony Towns to only 29 regular-season games.
Even if you’re OK with using small samples, the two-man plus-minus of Towns and Rudy Gobert doesn’t really tell us much. They were plus-9 in 529 regular-season minutes and minus-21 in 119 postseason minutes against the eventual champion Denver Nuggets.
Will they look better after more time together? Will a full season with a steadier hand at the 1 help? Mike Conley’s arrival after the D’Angelo Russell trade stabilized the team last season. He could have a similar impact in 2023-24. Anthony Edwards’ star rise could help too.
The runway probably shouldn’t be too long, though. If the first 30 or so games look as uninspiring as last season’s limited sample, Minnesota may have to gauge the value of either big man.

After playing in only 85 games across his first two seasons, Zion Williamson missed all of the 2021-22 season because of a foot injury and played only 29 games last season because of a hamstring injury. For his career, he’s averaging fewer than 30 games per year.
At this point, it’s impossible to have any confidence in his health until we actually see him on the floor for an extended period of time. No amount of offseason workout pictures, videos or reports can change that.
When Zion plays, he’s one of the most dynamic, explosive scorers we’ve ever seen. He transforms the New Orleans Pelicans from a plucky middle-of-the-West competitor to a borderline contender.
He’s just so rarely available. Will that change this season?

The addition of a third Villanova Wildcat in Donte DiVincenzo should help the New York Knicks’ second unit, but the rest of the team is essentially the same as last year’s.
So, what makes these Knicks different than the ones who came up just short of 50 wins and lost in the second round of the playoffs? Nothing would change their fortunes as quickly and thoroughly as RJ Barrett finally living up to his status as the No. 1 high school prospect in his recruiting class.
Barrett has never come close to average scoring efficiency in the NBA. His minus-2.4 career box plus/minus—and the minus-3.1 he posted last season—suggests he’s played like an “end-of-bench player” during his four NBA seasons.
If Barrett makes a fifth-year leap, starts hitting some shots and creates a little more for others, New York’s ceiling would undoubtedly be higher than it was last year.

In each of the last two seasons, Josh Giddey has led the Oklahoma City Thunder in rebounds per game. That’s both a credit to Giddey and an indictment of OKC’s big-man rotation.
Giddey is 6’8″, but he’s a point guard on a rookie contract. A power forward or center should be able exceed the 7.8 and 7.9 rebounds he averaged in 2021-22 and 2022-23, respectively.
Incoming 7’0″ rookie Chet Holmgren could change that. The Thunder selected him with the No. 2 overall pick in 2022, but he missed all of last season with a foot injury.
If he can supplement the wealth of playmaking and defensive switchability provided by Giddey, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Jalen Williams with above-average rebounding, finishing and rim protection, OKC could threaten the 50-win threshold.

The Orlando Magic are good enough to push for the postseason in 2023-24.
Franz Wagner and Paolo Banchero could both be in the mix for All-Star nods. Wendell Carter Jr. is quietly developing into a solid, two-way center. And they have a few interesting veterans around them who could speed up this team’s timeline.
Markelle Fultz emerged from the bizarre start of his career to become a good defender and playmaker. Gary Harris and Joe Ingles will bring playoff experience and outside shooting.
If even one of Jalen Suggs, Cole Anthony or Anthony Black exceeds expectations, Orlando could surprise some people.

It’s hard to remember an NBA player who came out more aggressively against his own team than James Harden did this summer.
“Daryl Morey is a liar, and I will never be a part of an organization that he’s a part of,” Harden said during a public appearance overseas. “Let me say that again. Daryl Morey is a liar, and I will never be a part of an organization that he’s a part of again.”
While Harden could show up for training camp and play hard enough to rehab his trade value, we’ve seen him tank his final days with the Houston Rockets and Brooklyn Nets. What’s to suggest he’ll do anything different in Philly?
Does the Sixers really want to welcome that version of Harden onto a team that should be trying to contend as long as Joel Embiid is around?
As painful as it might be to accept a trade that doesn’t seem to push them closer to a title, the Sixers might have to do it to avoid the drama of Harden’s presence and unleash Tyrese Maxey.

The Phoenix Suns deserve credit for a slew of moves aimed at bolstering the team’s depth after they acquired Bradley Beal.
This week, they took advantage of the Damian Lillard trade and turned Deandre Ayton and Toumani Camara into Jusuf Nurkić, Nassir Little, Keon Johnson and Grayson Allen.
And before that, they signed a number of potential rotation players to minimum-salary deals.
Keita Bates-Diop, Yuta Watanabe and Drew Eubanks have all had their moments at previous stops. Then again, there’s a reason they signed for minimums.
All three have had below-average careers, according to box plus/minus. It’s far from guaranteed that they’ll be positive contributors this season.
The outlook is probably a little better for Nurkić and Allen, but the former certainly isn’t guaranteed to be better than Ayton (even if he might fit a little better with star wings). And the latter could be the mark opposing offenses attack in a playoff setting.
Eric Gordon feels like a relatively safe bet to help. But as good as Kevin Durant, Devin Booker and Bradley Beal are, Phoenix will need at least two or three others to provide positive contributions.

With Damian Lillard gone, the Portland Trail Blazers’ short- and long-term prospects largely depend on incoming rookie Scoot Henderson.
Henderson averaged 16.5 points and 6.5 assists in 30.7 minutes per game for the G-League Ignite in 2022-23, and he was touted as a potential difference-making playmaker entering the draft.
If he can make an immediate impact with his size (6’2″ with a 6’9″ wingspan) and athleticism in spite of what appears to be a shaky long-range jumper, Portland fans may not have to mourn the end of the Dame era for too long.

The addition of 2022-23 Euroleague MVP Sasha Vezenkov notwithstanding, the Sacramento Kings are largely the same team they were last season.
While they have opportunities for internal development all over the roster, none are as potentially game-changing as Keegan Murray.
Murray has already shown high-end three-point shooting ability. He took 6.3 long-range attempts per game in 2022-23 and made 41.1 percent of those shots.
If he can develop into a multipositional stopper who can provide a little more off the dribble, De’Aaron Fox and Domantas Sabonis may have the third star (or near-star) they need to break into the legitimate contenders tier.

The sports and NBA media machine foisted an almost unbelievable level of hype onto Victor Wembanyama this summer.
Now, the supposed “greatest prospect in the history of team sports” has to try to live up to that hype with a San Antonio Spurs team that had the worst point differential in the NBA last season by far.
If Wembanyama can make this team competent right away with his length and fluidity as a 7’4″ rim protector and potential creator, it’ll be hard to deny the upside.
But if he looks overwhelmed by the physicality of the NBA, his jumper is shaky and guards are able to swoop in and steal his high dribble, some fans will start to have their doubts, fair or not.

The Toronto Raptors can’t seem to decide between the present and the future. That indecision proved costly this summer.
Instead of moving on from Fred VanVleet ahead of last year’s trade deadline and getting something for him, the Raptors lost him for nothing in free agency. It’s starting to look like that same scenario is in play with Pascal Siakam, who’s going into the final year of his contract.
If the Raptors stay the course with this current roster, or even supplement it like they did when they picked up Jakob Poeltl last season, they probably won’t finish much higher in the standings than they did in 2022-23.
Instead of spinning their wheels again, they have to at least consider moving Siakam (and maybe O.G. Anunoby) and going all-in on the idea of playing Scottie Barnes as a lead playmaker and surrounding him with as much shooting as possible.

After averaging 15.4 points over the first five seasons of his career, Lauri Markkanen exploded for a career-high 25.6 points and 8.6 rebounds while posting a 64.0 true shooting percentage in 2022-23.
He was one of the league’s best and most efficient scorers, and his sudden transformation into an All-Star made the Utah Jazz one of last season’s biggest surprises.
Now, the question is whether he can pass the age-old “best player on a title contender” test.
With the lack of playmaking currently in his arsenal (he’s more of a finisher than creator), the natural answer to the above might just be “no.” But he’s still just 26. There’s time for him to improve as a ball-handler, passer and defender.
If he does reach another level beyond what he showed in 2022-23, the Jazz’s rebuild will suddenly look a lot different.

The Washington Wizards tipped off a rebuild when they traded Bradley Beal and Kristaps Porziņģis this summer.
In the wake of those moves, they still have (or received) veterans like Kyle Kuzma, Tyus Jones, Delon Wright and Mike Muscala. That could make them more competitive than most people expect in 2023-24.
After that, the roster is loaded with young question marks, including Corey Kispert, Deni Avdija and Bilal Coulibaly. This season will give those players an opportunity to prove themselves, and it should help the Wizards establish a pecking order.
Heck, even 24-year-old Jordan Poole may fit into that mix. After a breakout 2021-22 campaign, Poole took a step back last season and eventually got traded from the Golden State Warriors.
A big year for a better-than-expected Wizards team would go a long way toward rehabbing his value and reputation around the league.
Unless noted otherwise, all stats provided by Basketball Reference, PBPStats.com, NBA.com/stats and Cleaning the Glass.

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