By Brett Goldman
All-Star Weekend in the NBA season always provides tons of excitement. Who could forget Kevin Hart winning 4 celebrity game MVPs in a row, or Quavo blocking Rachel DeMita into oblivion? How about Devin Booker setting the 3 point contest record, or Aaron Gordon and Zach LaVine dueling in the Slam Dunk Contest? And of course, we can't talk about the All-Star game without mentioning DeMarcus Cousins, who got traded during the 2017 game.
With the fun comes decisions and questions every team must face. Who are the contenders? Who just wants to go home? Why is Luke Kennard getting paid so much money to sit on the bench? In this series, I'll be going over one question that every team will need to answer in the second half of the season.
Sacramento Kings: How do we get Tyrese Haliburton in the starting lineup?
The answer to the question of getting Haliburton more involved is complicated. On one hand, Haliburton needs to play more with the starters. He has been the second best rookie this season behind Lamelo Ball and is clearly part of the future of this franchise. But how do you play Haliburton more without taking away minutes and usage from De'Aaron Fox and Buddy Hield? This is why Luke Walton and the Kings need to make a decision on Buddy Hield. One option is to send him to the bench to play a 6th man role like they did last season to get Bogdan Bogdanovic more playing time. However, that move to the bench created a divide between Hield and the organization, and I'm not entirely sure the relationship has recovered since. Moving Hield to the bench a second time could create irreparable damages to the player-front office relationship that could make things very messy for a team that owes Hield $20 million per year through 2024. These types of decisions are why Luke Walton and Monte McNair get paid the big bucks and I don't.
Golden State Warriors: Did we make the right pick?
With the second pick in the 2020 NBA Draft, the Golden State Warriors selected James Wiseman, a center from Memphis. Wiseman was regarded as being one of the three best players in the draft. However, the success of LaMelo Ball in Charlotte has caused people to second guess the decision. Wiseman has the potential to be one of the best big men in the league...just not yet. At this moment, Wiseman hasn't looked particularly impressive. Because the Warriors are trying to win, if he's not playing at a high enough level he's not going to play a big role. The purpose of making this draft pick and not trading it away for a player who can help now was that Wiseman should hit his prime once Steph Curry, Draymond Green, and Klay Thompson started to fade. That sounds good in theory. On the other hand, the Warriors have prime Steph Curry on their team, and he's obviously one of the best players of all time. My goal would be to win as many championships as possible right now and to worry about the future later. We obviously don't know what Ball's career trajectory looks like next to Steph Curry, but he's looking like a young star at the moment, while Wiseman, who may be the better fit in the long run, looks like he's a couple years away from being a star. Wiseman is still young (he turns 20 this month) and has missed a bit of time this season. But you do have to wonder if they made the right decision and if there is still time to pair him with the 2021 T-Wolves pick to acquire another marquee player.
Los Angeles Clippers: How do we score late in games?
There's one thing that the Clippers, Kenny Smith, and my cross country races have in common: we start out strong and don't finish well. The Clippers currently have the worst net rating in the league in clutch situations (last 5 minutes of a 5 point game or closer). That was evident in Sunday's game against the Bucks where they were held scoreless for the last 4 minutes of the contest and allowed the Bucks to come back and win. What they need is a true point guard--someone who can control the tempo of an offense and take the ball out of the hands of Kawhi and PG to set them up in positions to succeed. The Clippers often close with Beverley, Leonard, George, Morris, and Ibaka. Leonard, Morris, and George can all get their own shots, while Ibaka and Beverley are defensive specialists known offensively for their catch-and-shoot ability. The problem is, the three shot creators aren't great at setting up others late in games. The last five minutes of every Clippers game is PG and Kawhi taking turns playing iso ball and taking jump shots. They have to figure out a way to get a point guard that can get his teammates in the right positions.
Los Angeles Lakers: When do the playoffs start?
My defending champion Los Angeles Lakers, when healthy, are in a good position to repeat. They sit in 3rd place in the Western Conference and are a top defensive team even without Anthony Davis. The Lakers know that when he returns and the playoffs start, they're going to be tough to beat 4 out of 7 times no matter who they play. The Lakers just need to get healthy and stay rested for a long playoff run. There's really no other questions to be asked because they have been great with AD this season.
Phoenix Suns: Can Chris Paul stay healthy?
The Phoenix Suns are second in the Western Conference. When was the last time you could say that? James Jones, the general manager, has built a team that fits extremely well around all-stars Devin Booker and Chris Paul. Deandre Ayton looks like a good big man who can certainly go head-to-head with the best in the conference. Mikal Bridges, Cam Johnson, and Jae Crowder are playing excellent defense and hitting their 3s. You can't really nitpick what this team is doing because they've won 15 of their last 18. The question for this team is the same question every Chris Paul team faces: health. Paul has played basically every game the past two seasons. Of course, you don't have to look too far back to remember his injury history. Maybe the vegan diet is responsible for his recent health streak, but this team is so good that the only concern is the health of the 35-year-old.
Well, that's it for the Pacific Division. Stay tuned for my thoughts on the rest of the NBA over the next week!
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