Los Angeles Lakers
Watching LeBron James and Anthony Davis this summer, two of the best players on the U.S. Olympic team, you just wonder how the Lakers are not better. Everybody watching was reminded how good both those guys are and how impactful they were. I think that’s still a really imposing way to start a team.
James has evolved into more of a three-point shooter the last few years. You have to guard him more for the three-point shot. He is still going to get a ton of transition baskets, and he can create and he can drive to the basket and finish over people. As he’s gotten older, he’s taking more and more threes and making them at a high percentage. You have to guard him as a three-point shooter, whereas years ago that wasn’t the case.
AD is an absolute beast offensively; defensively he’s still one of the biggest deterrents at the rim. The Olympics were a good reminder, but AD had a great year last year. It was one of his best individual seasons. Going into games, he’s a problem. He’s so big and skilled, it’s hard for teams to just match up one-on-one on him.
D’Angelo Russell is a very skilled offensive player. He’s got his weaknesses, but people sleep on how good he is offensively. He is a really good pick-and-roll player. He is a really good passer. He’s very scary on the scouting report, at least offensively. But he’s not a defender and he can be streaky. He’s way more suited for a sixth man role. They won’t do it, but he’s a better fit there.
Because there are too many similarities with that starting backcourt. Russell and Austin Reaves are both very, very good offensive players that have defensive limitations. We really look to attack both those guys and put them in action. That puts a lot of pressure on the other three guys that are out there to cover up for them, which they do a pretty good job of. Knowing JJ Redick and everything he said, he is a big believer in Reaves and his ability to continue to grow into a bigger role with them.
The goal is to surround those great players with the right fits, and the Lakers haven’t done that. I like Jarred Vanderbilt. If he’s healthy, he will improve the defense. You always want to surround great players with energy guys and guys that you don’t need to run plays for but are still going to get points and rebounds and still impact winning. I think that’s what Vanderbilt does. You play them, they’re just really, really big. Especially when they have Vanderbilt. Rui Hachimura, too. That size makes them tough defensively.
I like Max Christie’s aggressiveness. He looks for a shot, he looks to score. He’s not scared. You watch certain young players and you say, Oh, yeah, he’s not scared. And I think Christie has kind of demonstrated that early on in his career.
If James wants to play with his son, that’s how it’s going to be. James is one of the two greatest players ever. I think players at that level, the rules are not the same for what’s normal. Nothing in his life has been normal. He’s broken barriers in a million different ways on the court, off the court, how he’s included his family in his career. I think James has earned the right to do something. It was like when Bill Russell was a player-coach for the Celtics. That 99% of the world probably couldn’t make that successful, but Bill Russell could because he was that good. If anybody can navigate that and be successful with this kind of unique situation, it’s probably LeBron.
I don’t know how Redick is going to coach. I thought it was a little arrogant of him not to coach at Summer League. He needed the reps, and he didn’t do it. He’s got a good staff, and he seems eager to learn. But coaching is one thing. Managing a locker room for 82 games is another. He’s going to have to prove to his guys that he can handle the job.
Phoenix Suns
Injuries screwed up the Suns last year. Bradley Beal, it felt like he never really got his feet under him. But he’s a very, very good player. He shot the s--- out of it from three, which is what they need him to do. Kevin Durant and Devin Booker’s stock is up again after the way they both performed in the Olympics and how Steve Kerr talked about Booker’s willingness to play any role. I’m sure they’re winners, they’re competitors. They’re motivated to bounce back from probably a disappointing year from their perspective.
Booker did the best he could as a point guard. That’s a difficult job. The hardest thing in basketball is balancing creating for other people and still looking for your shot. If you haven’t done that your whole life, I think it’s a hard balance to find. Tyus Jones was a smart signing. He’s a really, really smart player, and I’m guessing the reason was to kind of relax some of the weight from Booker to have to be a facilitator and let them just get back to their more comfortable roles.
Durant is still a killer. Every time he shoots, you think it’s going in. The stuff he’s doing, LeBron’s doing, Steph’s doing is just really, really impressive that he’s still very, very scary every time you play him.
They missed what Deandre Ayton did last year. I’m sure their thinking is that Jusuf Nurkic is one of the better defenders against Nikola Jokic, and it seemed like the kind of Deandre Ayton era had played its course and they wanted to move on from him. I don’t think Mike Budenholzer is going to like Nurkic. Bud has always been a skilled big guy from Atlanta, from Milwaukee, the Brook Lopezes, the Al Horfords. Nurkic doesn’t really fit that mold, so I think it’d be rougher for Nurk.
Grayson Allen had an awesome year last year. Shot the heck out of the ball. As for positional size, it’s not ideal that he’s a small forward, but he’s someone that you respect his shot-making ability. He has a comfort zone, too, with Coach Budenholzer from Milwaukee. I think that matters to the relationship with the coach and his belief.
Golden State Warriors
There’s a lot of pressure on Stephen Curry and Draymond Green to carry a really heavy load in Golden State. Andrew Wiggins was awful. I would just say how impressive the run he had the year before when they won the championship was. He was awesome. He was awesome in the NBA Finals. His multiple efforts, his rebounding, his defense, they missed that a lot. I thought last year they missed his energy and they missed Gary Payton II’s energy from that championship team. I’m sure they’re trying to find ways to get that back because that was an underrated part of that championship.
Brandin Podziemski is a tough sucker. He’s not scared, he’s physical. He has a really good competitive character, and he has pretty quickly earned the respect of his teammates and the respect of other players in the league. He had a great year.
Curry’s play last year was something. It was a testament to who he is as a person and his work ethic, how he takes care of his body. Just 365 days a year. He’s the ultimate professional. He seems to be one of the great teammates in basketball history in terms of somebody that really can enjoy his teammates’ successes. He’s going to have to play out of his mind again for this team to be competitive, but I think he still has it in him.
The young guys have to step up. Trayce Jackson-Davis was a legit rim threat at the end of the year. Then Moses Moody and Jonathan Kuminga need to show a little bit more consistency. Klay Thompson left a vacuum there. Kuminga’s highlights are really, really spectacular. He can finish at the rim and he’s an O.K. three-point shooter. We’ll be able to tell a lot this year because Thompson cast a big shadow on all those other guys. They’re going to be given more opportunity this year.
Sacramento Kings
The DeMar DeRozan signing in Sacramento was interesting. They have been playing really, really fast under Mike Brown. They are challenging to prepare for because of the pace that they play at, the speed of De’Aaron Fox, the quick decision-making of Domantas Sabonis and just how the ball moves. DeRozan is difficult to prepare for because of the exact opposite of all those things. He is not ever in a hurry. He is just an offensive bucket, just a killer of a scorer and he has been forever.
It’s not a combination that you see naturally complements itself. But great players can figure things out, and when you need to get a bucket at the end of the shot clock at the end of a game, he can create his own shot. That’s a nice tool to have. It will be interesting, the first 43 minutes of the game if they are able to keep up that same pace and ball movement.
Sabonis’s defensive issues are real. He has some limitations. He is a target on defense. He can’t protect the rim. He’s just not quite big enough to have the impact at the rim that some of the better rim protectors have so he can get in the way.
You feel like Fox is the fastest guard in the league when you play against him. You’re constantly afraid of him just running by your whole team. He’s gotten so good at his little pull-ups and absorbing contact and making little 15-foot jumpers, and just that speed is elite.
I was really impressed with Keegan Murray’s first year, just how competitive he was and would take the challenge of guarding some of the other best wings in the league and not backing down from them. Last year was a little bit of a step back. He’s got really good size, he can really shoot and he competes. Seems like he has a really high basketball IQ. Seems like he’s a good teammate. They have a really good group over there.
Credit to Malik Monk for turning into the kind of impact player he has become. I give credit to the Lakers for helping to rehabilitate that, too. When he went to the Lakers, he really took a step and then reuniting with Fox and playing somewhere where he really feels appreciated has been big. It seems like he and Fox have a really good chemistry together and enjoy each other as friends. Credit to him, he got paid and he deserved it.
Los Angeles Clippers
There’s no getting past it. Losing Paul George is huge. He’s very good on both sides of the ball. You could alternate with him and Kawhi Leonard on a top wing defensively. He finished a lot of games for them. He made big shots. With him gone that increases the pressure on Leonard, who is great but health-wise he’s the most unreliable star in the league.
When Leonard plays, he still has it. It’s just that he doesn’t play. He still has it with the minimal amount of games he plays. You’re thinking he’s declining, then focusing in on him to see really, O.K., where is the decline? He still can rise up on guys in those sweet spot areas. He still gets his shot off without a problem. He still makes it at a high clip. He never was overly quick. He wasn’t beating you with his quickness and speed. He was beating you with his power and his strength, and you don’t really age with that. That’s old-man basketball.
He can still get his shots up when he wants to, and he can still guard. He’s so smart. He’s got the quick hands, he keeps the guy in front of him, uses his strength, knows how to bang. They still allow him to guard the way he wants to guard. If you put 70, 75 games, he legitimately could be the MVP. His body doesn’t hold up for that. So you get that elite player with just minimal amounts of games. If you’re the Clippers, you really don’t know from game to game what you’re going to have. Is it the Kawhi show tonight or is he going to be injured? You got to figure out, O.K., James Harden, if Leonard is out, you’re going to have to go out and be the Harden of Houston. I don’t think he can be that guy anymore.
Harden doesn’t finish the way he used to. He can’t get in the paint and really finish well. He’s really good at finding guys. He can really get in, distribute, create off the pick-and-roll and find guys for shots. When he was with the Sixers, you saw the decline in his ability to finish in the paint. He just doesn’t have it anymore. There’s no lift. There’s no finishing abilities. If the Clippers are trying to win something, I don’t think more Harden is the answer.
Derrick Jones had a good playoff run in Dallas. He’s solid and he’s a vet, but don’t expect more out of him offensively than what he does. He feeds off of the other guys and he’ll be able to feed off Harden easily. If you’re focusing on Leonard or Harden, and he’s cutting back door or getting loose stuff from the weak side, he’ll get you some buckets. He’s a solid defender. He’s not a PG-level defender. I think George is better defending on the perimeter whereas Jones is more versatile. He can guard a lot of positions, but you won’t lose too much defensively.
Terance Mann, this is his year where he needs to step up and take on that bigger role and be more productive on a consistent basis. He’s a guy that needs the ball. Same thing with Bones Hyland. He can score the ball, but there’s a reason he hasn’t played. When’s he going to get his scoring opportunities? Harden is off the floor, but when’s Harden going to be off the floor if Leonard is hurt and they need Harden to be the guy?
Kris Dunn is fine as a defensive guy to help you get in your offense, and he’s really done a lot with getting back into the game. He was out of the league and worked his way back. In Utah he found a little niche. His shot isn’t great, but he is at least willing to shoot it now, which is a small step forward. He played really well last year in that role of when someone is injured and he needed to be a backup point guard and come in, he pushed the tempo and he’s really good defensively, very good.
There is a huge opportunity for Norman Powell. He’s deserving of a starting spot. He’s a two-way player who can shoot the s--- out of the ball. He’s an athlete that guards. This could be a good opportunity for him to take on more, like he did in Toronto.
How They’ll Finish
Phoenix Suns
Mike Budenholzer, who won a title with the Bucks, has been tapped to squeeze more out of an awkward fitting Big Three. Tyus Jones arrives as the true point guard the Suns were lacking last season.
Golden State Warriors
Are three better than one? That’s what the Warriors are hoping, after acquiring Buddy Hield, Kyle Anderson and De’Anthony Melton to help fill the void left by the free agent departure of Klay Thompson.
Sacramento Kings
After a disappointing play-in loss last year, the Kings turn to DeMar DeRozan—a curious fit in Sacramento’s high-octane offense—to attempt to get past the first round for the first time since 2004.
Los Angeles Lakers
All-NBA seasons from LeBron James and Anthony Davis weren’t enough to get the Lakers into the playoffs last season. Will a healthier bench and a first-time coach hired out of the broadcast booth make a difference?
Los Angeles Clippers
If Kawhi Leonard can stay healthy, if James Harden can handle a larger role, if the Clippers’ offseason signings (Derrick Jones Jr., Kevin Porter Jr., Kris Dunn, Mo Bamba) pan out, L.A. should … make the playoffs.
—Chris Mannix
This article was originally published on www.si.com as 2024–25 NBA Scouting Report: Pacific Division.
