NEWSLETTER
With the calendar turning to December, we’re starting to get some pretty good reads on teams around the NBA.
For example! appears the Lakers need a whole bunch of help! Things have started to go off the rails for LeBron James and Company after a hot start. Speaking of which, the New Orleans Pelicans are looking pretty desperate, but it doesn’t seem like they will be getting reinforcements any time soon. Let’s go around the NBA!
Lakers Keep Losing
- After a rosey start to the JJ Redick era in Los Angeles, the thorns have started to expose themselves pretty quickly. Just over two weeks ago, the Lakers were 10-4 and riding a six-game winning streak. Fast forward to today, they’re 12-10 (2-6 in their last 8) and are fresh off losing by 41 (!!) to the Miami Heat, who are just 10-10 this year. What’s gone wrong? Naturally, LeBron James had some thoughts:
- Things just sound like a mess right now, but can we really be all that surprised? Sure, seeing the Lakers lose by 29 points and by 41 point in back-to-back games is eye-opening. But this is a group that was a Play-In team last year. They made it to the playoffs and got rolled through by Denver. Then in the offseason, they hired a new head coach who’s never coached before and did very little to add to a roster that was quite flawed. Not only are there growing pains with a new group, but the roster itself still isn’t anything special. If we’re going to take a positive from this, it’s probably that the Lakers’ interest in (and potentially desperation for) Zach LaVine is increasing by the day. If the Bulls are going to part ways with LaVine, the more the Lakers flounder the better for that asking price. LeBron won’t hesitate to strongarm the front office to move future assets to win now, and LaVine might be the best piece on the market with how he’s played so far in 2024. Something to keep an eye on?
Pelicans Need Zion Back
- Things with the Lakers are bad, but they don’t have anything on the Pelicans! New Orleans is off to a brutal 4-18 start this season and has the second-worst record in the NBA. This team was a Zion Williamson late injury away from beating the Lakers in the Play-In last year, but it seems like that injury has induced a bit of a tailspin. When Zion went down late in that Play-In game, the Lakers were able to seize momentum back and get the win. Zion has played in only six games this season and has been out since November 6 with a hamstring issue. Earlier this week, Shams Charania told us that Williamson is nowhere near coming back:
- Not great, New Orleans! Any time you hear “chronic issue” that’s a big problem. And when you have a chronic issue associated with a guy who’s played only 190 of a possible 401 regular season games since being drafted … that sure feels even worse. Injuries have been an issue all year for them, but that doesn’t really excuse the 4-18 start. It’s a little tough to see where they go from here. Brandon Ingram is their biggest trade chip, who I’m sure they’ll try to move at some point, but his value also isn’t exactly at its highest. And, for the record, Williamson is in year two of a five-year, $197 million contract that runs through the 2027-28 season!
More Star Injury Updates
- There’s some more unfortunate injury news around the NBA, though not nearly to the extent of what’s going on in New Orleans. Kevin Durant suffered a sprained ankle Tuesday in the Suns’ win over the Spurs. Durant is only expected to miss 1-2 weeks, however, so that’s not the end of the world. The Suns are off to a 12-8 start and sit in 4th place in the Western Conference. Durant has been doing Durant things for them this year, averaging over 25 points per game and shooting better than 53 percent from the field. Their schedule over the next two weeks is fairly light, so they may be able to weather the storm without their best player for that time period.
- Now for some positive injury news! After a pair of offseason ankle surgeries, it appears Khris Middleton is ready to make his season debut for the Bucks. ESPN’s Bobby Marks reported that the Bucks’ star forward will play his first game of the 2024-25 campaign on Friday night against the Boston Celtics. After a brutal 2-8 start, Milwaukee has righted the ship in a big way and is 9-2 in their last 11 games, which included a seven-game winning streak!
- The Bulls will miss Victor Wembanyama tonight when they visit the San Antonio Spurs. The 20-year-old phenom hurt his back in that same game against the Suns in which Kevin Durant sprained his ankle. The Spurs don’t seem to know the extent of the injury just yet, but with back issues, it’s always smarter to take things on the safer side, especially when you’re dealing with a 7’3, 20-year-old. I’d imagine they’ll hold him out as long as he needs.
