NBA Updates PH – The NBA summer is still going strong. Amidst the draft and Summer League, “Kristaps Porzingis” and other players’ futures raise five crucial questions. Even with the normal season two months away, these uncertainties will shape the league in the upcoming season and beyond.
What will happen to James Harden and Damian Lillard?
Two of the best guards in the NBA and both members of the league’s 75th Anniversary Team have asked to be traded and made it clear that they want to go to the same team. Damian Lillard’s favorite team is the Miami Heat, while James Harden’s favorite team is the Los Angeles Clippers. How these requests are finally dealt with will greatly affect how the league works next season and beyond.
Lillard had played his whole career with the Portland Trail Blazers, but he asked to be traded earlier this summer when it became clear that the team couldn’t quickly build a good team around him. Lillard’s agent has made it very clear that Miami is the only place he wants to go if he is traded.
Even though Lillard’s request came a month ago, it looks like a deal is still ongoing. In the end, the Blazers have full control over the situation because Lillard’s current deal has three years left, plus a player option, and he doesn’t have a no-trade clause. So, Portland could send Lillard anywhere they want. It doesn’t have to be Miami. At the same time, Lillard is the best player in franchise history and has been very important to the team for more than a decade, so there is some desire on the team’s part to accommodate his wishes.
Portland wants to trade for Lillard, so it makes sense that they want a lot in return. Their asking price is around four first-round picks and two good players who can play in a cycle. In the same way, the Philadelphia 76ers are still asking for a lot for Harden, who asked to be traded this summer. Harden has been on the Sixers for over two years, but he needs help with the front office and ownership. As a result, he wants to continue his career somewhere else.
Harden is said to want to play for the Clippers in Los Angeles, but the Sixers have yet to make much progress on a deal with him. With reigning NBA MVP Joel Embiid on their team, the Sixers are still focused on winning. They only want to make a move if it helps them right now, which limits the number of possible deals.
Both Lillard and Harden may have already played their best basketball, but it’s clear that they can still make a big difference on a good team, so their careers are still big stories.
How will Kristaps Porzingis fit into Boston?
The Boston Celtics may have taken the biggest risk of the summer when they traded Marcus Smart, who had been with the team the longest, for Kristaps Porzingis, who had been a lottery pick. During the recent string of long playoff runs by the Celtics, Smart was often called the “heart and soul” of the team. He set the tone for the team with how hard he worked on defense, which is usually hard to replace.
It appears that Kristaps Porzingis had a successful season with the Washington Wizards, scoring a career-high of 23.3 points, 8.4 rebounds, 2.7 assists, and 1.5 blocks per game in 32.6 minutes. However, there are concerns about his past injuries, lack of defensive skills, and ability to handle the pressure of playing for a championship-contending team like the Celtics. Notably, Kristaps Porzingis has only played in 10 playoff games throughout his career, while Smart has played in 108.
With this move, it’s clear that the Celtics gave up some defense to get a more offensive punch. Will they come to regret it? Only time will tell. Boston is likely a big part of the Eastern Conference playoff picture again, and how well Kristaps Porzingis fits in with his new team could have a big impact on how well they do.
What will Chris Paul’s job be in Golden State?
In the offseason, the Golden State Warriors made a big change by trading for former foe and 12-time All-Star Chris Paul. Paul, who is 38, is one of the best point guards ever and will be in the Hall of Fame. But it’s fair to wonder what exactly his job will be with Golden State since they already have Stephen Curry, one of the best point guards of all time, on their team.
Given Golden State’s size and defensive limits, it doesn’t seem likely that coach Steve Kerr will start both Curry and Chris Paul in the backcourt. This has led to a lot of talk that Paul could come off the bench for the Warriors. Chris Paul has played in 1,214 regular season games so far in his career, and he has never come off the bench. So, Paul would have to make a big change if he was moved to a bench role if that’s what ends up happening.
Paul is still determining what his job will be with his new team, so for now, he’s just waiting to see what happens.
“At the end of the day, it’s just basketball,” Paul said after the deal, according to ESPN. “I’m going into a situation with a group of guys who have been playing together for a long time. I’m not as worried as everyone else is about it. All of that will be worked out at camp. Right now, you don’t know what to do. We’ll practice, and I’m sure I’ll have things to learn about them, and they’ll have things to learn about me, but that’s true of every team.”
Even if Paul doesn’t start, that doesn’t mean he won’t play a lot of minutes or help win games in the end. It will likely depend on the situation, and Kerr will have to figure out how to use his new piece best.
How well will Victor Wembanyama do as a first-year player?
In the 2023 NBA Draft, Victor Wembanyama, a basketball prodigy from France, was selected as the top pick. He has been generating a lot of buzz and is considered to be the most highly anticipated NBA player since LeBron James in 2003. It’s worth noting that James had already spoken favorably about Victor Wembanyama even before he had made his NBA debut.
Earlier this year, James made a comment about Wembanyama stating that everyone has been referring to themselves as unicorns, but Wembanyama is more like an alien. He is unique in the sense that no one has seen someone as tall as him move so fluidly and gracefully on the floor. Regardless of whether he is 7-4, 7-5, or 7-3, he can put the ball on the floor, shoot stepback jumpers from the post, hit stepback 3-pointers, catch-and-shoot 3-pointers, and block shots. He possesses a talent that is once-in-a-generation.
Wembanyama has high hopes for his first season. He recently said, “I’ve been looking at all the information about the past No. 1 picks and how they turned out.” “I’m trying to be better than every guy who came before me.”
So, how good will Wembanyama be when he first plays? Many people think he will be one of the best, if not the best, ever. This is a very interesting question. Any player who has never played in the league before should have low hopes, but Wembanyama has played professionally before and has skills that no other player his size has. Because of these things, he should be a very good player and quickly affect the team.
Most likely, the San Antonio Spurs will limit his playing time early on, so don’t expect him to play a lot of minutes right away. It will be interesting to see how quickly he can start to look like the star or great player that most people expect him to become.
How much is left in LeBron James’s tank?
The NBA player with the most points in history is 38 years old and in his 21st season. At this point in his long and successful career, it’s natural to wonder how much more he has left. James hasn’t changed much in the game, if at all.
He scored 28.9 points, 8.3 rebounds, and 6.8 assists in 55 games last season. After the Lakers made changes at the deadline, he was able to lead the team to the Western Conference finals. But after being very healthy for the first 15 years of his career, James has had some trouble with injuries in the last few years, and after last season, he publicly toyed with the idea of retiring for the first time.
James is still preparing to retire his iconic Nike shoes, and he possesses the physical capabilities to continue playing effectively in the league for many years. But how long can he keep being the best player on a team that wants to win? That’s what the Los Angeles Lakers need him to be. Anthony Davis is there but still needs to take over as L.A.’s best player.
LeBron James has held that title for a long time. As it stands now, L.A.’s team depends on James being, well, James. If he gets hurt for a long time or his production starts to go down, the Lakers’ chances will go down at the same time.
James will continue to shape the Lakers’ title hopes and the Western Conference playoff picture in the ’23-24 season, just as he has since he joined the team in 2018.
