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The NBA regular season starts on Oct. 22. Teams around the league have a pretty good understanding of what their regular season roster will look like, and they also have a pretty good idea of how they will go about reaching their goals for this season. Whether those goals are to win the championship, make the playoffs, or even tank for next season, each NBA team has built a roster that they fill will get them to where they need to get.
With that said, no NBA roster is perfect. Even the Boston Celtics, who are returning their core from their championship team of last season, have question marks about how their 2024-25 season will go. In this article, we are going to look at one fatal flaw that each NBA team must fix this season.
Boston Celtics: End-of-the-bench depth
The Celtics are the best team in the NBA, and they proved that when they won their 18th championship last year. Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown form a star duo, Jrue Holiday and Derrick White are elite defensive players, and Kristaps Porzingis is a unicorn. The starting five of their championship core is back, as are key reserves such as Al Horford, Sam Hauser, and Payton Pritchard.
That is the best top-eight in basketball, but things are a little murkier at the end of the bench. The team will need some depth pieces to step up, especially considering how grueling an 82-game season is and Porzingis' injury history. The rest of the roster is pretty unproven, but end-of-the-bench reserves won't have to do too much in Boston, considering how much elite talent is already on the roster. Joe Mazzulla will likely deploy a nine or 10-man rotation; it is just a little unclear who will get the last handful of minutes off of the bench.
Brooklyn Nets: Lack of star power
The Nets traded their star this offseason, as Mikal Bridges will now be suiting up for the New York Knicks. While the move drastically improves Brooklyn's future, as they now have a plethora of future draft picks, it leaves them without a clear leader. A tank job seems inevitable for the Nets, so in all likelihood, Brooklyn will find their next star in the draft.
There is still potential for Cam Thomas to become an All-Star caliber player this year. At times, he looks like a sixth man spark plug scorer, but at other times, he has looked like one of the best scorers in the league and a star talent. The Nets will be able to find out if he can truly lead a team as the top guy over an 82-game season this year.
New York Knicks: Playing the starters too much
Tom Thibodeau is known for playing his starters a lot of minutes. While this grind-it-out style of play is ingrained in his players, it has also led to over-usage. That was evident last season. Julius Randle's season came to a premature ending, and Mitchell Robinson, Jalen Brunson, OG Anunoby, and Josh Hart were all beat up by the end of the playoffs, which led to the team's postseason exit.
Thibodeau might need to sacrifice some regular season wins to ensure that his best players will be good to go throughout the postseason. That means the team needs to be more reliant on depth, but if anything, New York got thinner this offseason. They improved their championship odds by going all in and trading for Karl-Anthony Towns and Mikal Bridges, but they lost some key rotation players in the process.
That won't make finding minutes outside of the starting unit easier for Thibodeau, but the team is a legitimate title contender if they can stay healthy, so ensuring that the stars are on the court at the right times will be key this year.
Philadelphia 76ers: Rotation uncertainties
The 76ers roster looks completely different than it did last season. The team underwent an offseason roster makeover that saw Paul George, Andre Drummond, Reggie Jackson, Jared McCain, Caleb Martin, Eric Gordon, Guerschon Yabusele, and Adem Bona added to the team.
That is a lot of new faces in town, so Nick Nurse has a lot of decisions to make in terms of the rotation. Obviously, Tyrese Maxey, Joel Embiid, and George deserve a fair share of the minutes, but you also don't want to play the latter two too much, considering their injury history.
With KJ Martin, Kyle Lowry, Ricky Council, and Kelly Oubre back on the team, too, there are legitimately 14 players vying for nine or 10 rotation spots. Depth is a good thing, especially considering the injury problems Philadelphia has had in the past. When everyone is healthy, though, there are going to be some tough decisions to make in regards to who plays, how much players play, and who doesn't play at all.
Toronto Raptors: Lack of potential
The Raptors blew it up last year and traded Pascal Siakam and OG Anunoby. Rather than receiving a massive haul of picks as expected, the Raptors focused on landing young but proven NBA players. This included the additions of RJ Barrett and Immanuel Quickley.
While those are solid pieces, they don't necessarily give the team a sky-high ceiling, and they've only drafted players who are viewed as role players in recent first rounds. The Raptors need to figure out what moves will improve their ceiling and help them get to championship contention, or else they might be stuck in mediocrity for a while.
Chicago Bulls: Zach LaVine trade value
The trio of DeMar DeRozan, Nikola Vucevic, and Zach LaVine never worked out like it was supposed to. Now, we are in a new era of Bulls basketball. This era might not include LaVine in their long-term plans. The Bulls have been actively shopping the guard this year, and he is one of the biggest trade candidates for the 2024-25 season.
LaVine, while extremely talented, has been untradable so far, though. He has one of the worst contracts in the league, and he has had some injury problems, too. The Bulls have not only not been able to find a trade partner, but reports suggest any trade return for LaVine will be underwhelming because of his contract.
A lackluster trade package for an All-Star caliber player is far from ideal for the Bulls. The team will need him to revitalize his trade stock this season with a big year. As a superb shooter with exceptional athleticism, LaVine can still do a lot in the league. He is still only 29 years old, and he averaged 24.8 points per game the season before last. He was even a 27.7 point-per-game scorer as recently as 2020-21.
Cleveland Cavaliers: Twin Towers offense
The Cavaliers have a huge frontcourt. Evan Mobley and Jarrett Allen make up the starting power forward and center positions. That shot-blocking duo makes life miserable on opponents in the painted area. However, there are still question marks about how they can work together on the offensive end.
In theory, Mobley can be a unicorn player. He has a decent handle for someone who is seven-foot tall, and he can hypothetically shoot the three-point shot. Mobley hasn't shown off those skills as much as people expected, though, and his offensive growth has been somewhat stagnant since his rookie year.
Allen, on the other hand, is pretty limited to typical big man duties on offense, including catching lobs and securing put-backs. Donovan Mitchell and Darius Garland can carry the burden on offense, but the Cavaliers need more from their other two stars on that end.
Detroit Pistons: Shooting
The Pistons have a lot of talented young basketball players on their roster, but they are still clearly one of the worst teams in the NBA. A big reason why is that the roster construction of the team has been atrocious. Over the last few years, the team has had way too many bigs and not nearly enough shooting. They didn't help fix that trend by drafting Ron Holland in the first round of the 2024 NBA Draft, either. While Holland is a great prospect, he is yet another player who struggles with the jump shot.
Other key Pistons, such as Jalen Duren, Ausar Thompson, and Jaden Ivey, are all in the same boat. A lack of shooting makes life even harder on other non-shooters, as the slashers all prefer to use their athleticism and interior scoring to get buckets.
The Pistons did add some shooting help this offseason. Malik Beasley, Tobias Harris, and Tim Hardaway Jr. are all capable shooters, as are returning players Simone Fontecchio and Marcus Sasser. Those players help with Detroit's biggest problem, but none of them are viewed as the future of the team, so the Pistons will need internal development when it comes to jump-shooting from their young core.
Indiana Pacers: Defense
The Pacers' offense was incredible last season. The defense wasn't. No one has any concerns about Tyrese Haliburton and Pascal Siakam's crew when it comes to scoring, but we are still unsure if they will be able to stop anybody. Myles Turner is an elite rim protector, but the Pacers will need to clamp their opponents on the perimeter more.
Milwaukee Bucks: Giannis/Lillard chemistry
Prior to last season, we predicted the Bucks would have the best duo in the league after they traded for Damian Lillard to pair him with Giannis Antetokounmpo. It didn't end up working out exactly perfectly, and the Bucks ended up being a first-round playoff exit. There is still a lot of potential for this to work, though, and with a year together under their belt, perhaps Lillard and Antetokounmpo's chemistry will improve.
Antetokounmpo is one of the best players in the NBA right now, and he even has a case as one of the greatest players ever. His physical traits are unmatched, as he is as tall as a center, but he runs the floor like a guard. Lillard – who is one of the best point guards in league history – has incredible shooting touch, especially from deep. In theory, their skill sets complement each other perfectly, but they need to prove it sooner rather than later. The Bucks championship window won't last forever.
Atlanta Hawks: Zacharrie Risacher's “star” power
Number one overall picks are not only supposed to be franchise players but they are supposed to be eventual Hall of Fame-caliber players. Unfortunately for the Hawks, who ended up with the top pick in the 2024 NBA Draft, there wasn't a clear-cut generational prospect at the top of this year's draft.
The team is surely happy about ending up with Zacharrie Risacher, but he isn't looked at as a franchise-altering player like most top picks are. Instead, he is more of a high-floor player. The Hawks traded Dejounte Murray for draft picks and role players, so they need another All-Star caliber player if they are going to compete for championships. Risacher needs to prove that he is being underrated right now and showcase that he can become a legitimate superstar.
Charlotte Hornets: LaMelo Ball's ankles
LaMelo Ball is wearing new ankle braces this season. The Hornets hope that is the change that will fix their biggest problem. Ball is their best player, but he has continuously sprained his ankles over the last few seasons. The 2020 third-overall pick already has an All-Star appearance to his name, but he has only played in 58 of a possible 164 over the last two seasons.
With Brandon Miller looking like a future star, the Hornets can build something special, but none of it matters if Ball can't stay on the floor and healthy.
Miami Heat: Regular season lulls/mediocrity
The Heat tend to turn things up in the postseason. This was evident after they went from eight-seed to competing in the NBA Finals back in 2023. Miami has now been an eight-seed two years in a row, they were a sixth-seed back in 2021, and they were the five seed in 2020.
While saving your best for the postseason isn't a terrible strategy, Miami's lack of regular season success has left them with tough roads through the playoffs in recent years. Just last year they had to play the eventual champion Celtics in just the first round. Miami should push for a better regular season record so they don't have such tough early-round playoff matchups. With Jimmy Butler, Bam Adebayo, and Tyler Herro leading the way, the Heat do have the talent to collect some more regular season wins.
Orlando Magic: Shooting
The Magic are an exciting young team, and they seem ready to make some noise in the Eastern Conference. The young duo of Paolo Banchero and Franz Wagner is exciting, and other players, such as Anthony Black, Jonathan Isaac, Wendell Carter Jr., Goga Bitadze are all solid pieces. None of them are known as shooters, though. Three-point shooting was a clear issue last year, as the Magic ranked in the bottom five in that regard.
There are potential solutions to Orlando's problem. Jalen Suggs has improved as a shooter, and the team is hoping for more out of Jett Howard this year. Even Tristan da Silva was a good marksman in college. Additionally, the Magic signed Kentavious Caldwell-Pope in the offseason.
Washington Wizards: Inefficiency
The Wizards aren't a very good team. In fact, their two best players have often been criticized for being shot chuckers, which certainly doesn't lead to winning basketball. These players are Jordan Poole and Kyle Kuzma, the former of which didn't take the next step when handed the keys to the Wizards offense last year, and the latter of whom likely wouldn't put up as big of numbers as he does in Washington if he played for any other team.
The Wizards now have a lot of young talent that they need to develop. Alex Sarr, Bub Carrington, and Kyshawn George were all first-round picks by the team this year, and Bilal Coulibaly is still somewhat raw, too. Washington needs to focus on developing those players rather than giving free rein to Poole, Kuzma, and other veterans.
That means that those players need to improve their shot selection and force up fewer bad shots, which is an easy way to improve efficiency. The Wizards likely won't be an efficient team this year, because young players rarely are, but they should demand better shooting percentages from their established players.
Denver Nuggets: Bench play
For most of Nikola Jokic's career, the Nuggets starting unit has been historically good. It makes sense, too, as the best passing big man ever makes everyone around him better, and he also stuffs the stat sheet in his own right. Jokic is surrounded by a pretty good cast of characters in Denver's starting unit. He and Jamal Murray form one of the best duos in the NBA, Michael Porter Jr. is one of the best three-point shooters in the league, and Aaron Gordon is a superb defensive player and elite above-the-rim finisher.
Even Christian Braun, who is taking over for Kentavious Caldwell-Pope in the starting lineup, should fill in well. The free agent loss of Caldwell-Pope is more likely to hurt the bench unit, though, especially considering the bench has been bad for as long as the starting group has been fantastic. With Braun's promotion and first-round pick DaRon Holmes' season-ending injury, depth is a concern here.
Perhaps Russell Westbrook will fix that problem and provide the energy and scoring that the Nuggets need in non-Jokic minutes, but most Westbrook experiments have failed since his Thunder days. Fellow offseason addition, Dario Saric, also has question marks surrounding how impactful he will be for the Nuggets this year. Although he can do some Jokic-like things on offense, he is a poor defensive player. Denver will ask a lot out of Peyton Watson on the defensive end, and the team is desperate for Westbrook to look more like the version of himself that played in Oklahoma City.
Minnesota Timberwolves: Spacing
Rudy Gobert is now a four-time Defensive Player of the Year, which cements his case as one of the best defensive players ever. He has never been known for his offensive game, though, especially when it comes to shooting the ball. Any team with Gobert won't have the most ideal spacing, because the center has to stay close to the basket.
Karl-Anthony Towns made up for that to a degree. The recently traded center/power forward is one of the best shooting big men ever, and that helped Minnesota's spacing a lot. Even though there were some questions about Towns and Gobert's fit together when they first started playing together, the frontcourt duo seemingly answered those questions when they helped lead the Timberwolves to the Western Conference Finals.
Now, Towns is gone, and the team replaced him with an even more questionable fit alongside Gobert at the power forward position. Julius Randle is capable of making the deep ball, but he is pretty inefficient from three-point land, and he is better served playing inside and using his strength. That only jams things up even more for Anthony Edwards, who is one of the best athletes and slashers in the NBA. While there were reasons to trade Towns, including giving Naz Reid a bigger role, Randle seems like an unideal player for this roster, especially when it comes to spacing.
Oklahoma City Thunder: Rebounding
The Thunder proved that they were ahead of schedule in their rebuild last season, and now they are ready to contend for the NBA Finals. The team has one of the best young cores in the NBA and is led by an MVP candidate in Shai Gilgeous-Alexander. The roster only got better this offseason, too. Not only did they have a great 2024 NBA Draft, but they traded for Alex Caruso and signed Isaiah Hartenstein.
It is to be determined how improved the Thunder will be when it comes to their biggest weakness from last season, though. That fatal flaw of theirs was rebounding, as they finished as the fourth-worst team on the glass last year. While Chet Holmgren had a fantastic rookie year, he is certainly skinny for the center position, which led to the team having a disadvantage in hauling in misses.
Hartenstein should help in the rebounding department, whether he plays with the backup unit or alongside Holmgren. The former Knicks center averaged 8.3 rebounds per game last season.
Portland Trail Blazers: Too many centers
The Trail Blazers are rebuilding, so it is smart that they have a lot of young talent on the team. Portland has too many centers, though, and someone has to go. Deandre Ayton is a former first overall pick who is extremely talented, but a player who also hasn't lived up to those lofty draft expectations. The team just drafted another center in the lottery this year, too. Donovan Clingan is coming off of back-to-back national championship victories in college, and now he is looked at as the center of the future in Portland.
The Trail Blazers also have Robert Williams and Duop Reath. Williams, while injury-prone, is a force on the defensive end, and Reath just had a historically good season shooting the three-point shot during his age-27 rookie campaign. None of these players are made for the power forward position, so someone has to go because there aren't enough minutes to go around.
We listed Ayton as one of the most likely players to be traded this season, and there is a good chance Williams could be on the move, too. The Trail Blazers need to consolidate talent and add more weapons at the other positions because it wouldn't make sense to have so much talent wasting away on the bench.
Utah Jazz: The state of purgatory
In each of the last two seasons, expectations were low for the Jazz, but then the team got hot and won more games than expected. The team would eventually trade some assets away at the deadline, but they'd keep their most valuable players (Lauri Markkanen). It ultimately ended with late-season fall-offs that prevented them from competing for the playoffs, but the Jazz haven't been bad enough to secure high draft picks.
This state of purgatory is a tough place to be, and it is hard to get out of without adding more elite talent. Elite talent can be found in free agency, but Utah isn't known as big spenders in the open market, so more likely, the team needs to obtain elite draft prospects. The Jazz have certainly selected a bunch of first-round picks in the last two years (Taylor Hendricks, Keyonte George, Brice Sensabaugh, Cody Williams, Isaiah Collier), but none of them were top-five picks.
The Jazz have high hopes for their young NBA core, which is one of the best in the league, but they might struggle to develop a star without drafting a top-five draft pick. Embracing the tank, and potentially trading Markkanen, might be the best way to get more star potential, as the team is probably too good with Markkanen leading the way but not good enough to actually contend. Perhaps one or more of their young stars emerges as a legitimate co-star for Markkanen, but that seems like wishful thinking.
Golden State Warriors: Klay Thompson's role
The Warriors had a special thing with Stephen Curry, Draymond Green, and Klay Thompson. The trio formed a dynasty and won four championships together, but it ended this summer when Thompson was traded to the Dallas Mavericks. Curry and Thompson formed a duo called the Splash Brothers, as both of them were among the best three-point shooters ever.
Replicating Thompson's role will be next to impossible, but having an elite shooting backcourt duo in Golden State is all we know, so the Warriors will certainly try. Buddy Hield is the big-time shooter who will likely take over for Thompson. While Hield is one of the best three-point shooters in the NBA, he has been unable to find a permanent home and has often found himself in trade rumors for a reason.
Brandin Podziemski will also get a lot more minutes at the two-guard position. While Podziemski had an impressive rookie season, he is more known for his versatility than his shooting. With Thompson's departure, there are a lot of minutes and statistics up for grabs, so it will be interesting to see how the Warriors go about replacing him.
Los Angeles Clippers: No more Paul George
Paul George was the best player to switch teams this offseason. His departure from the Clippers means the team is likely to get worse. It also leaves fans wondering how the Clippers will go about replacing his production. Derrick Jones Jr., Kevin Porter Jr., and Kai Jones were the team's offseason additions, and that isn't enough to come close to replacing George.
For that reason, we ranked the Clippers as having the worst offseason in the NBA. Their offseason is even more questionable, considering Porter Jr. and Jones have off-the-court question marks and concerns.
Los Angeles Lakers: Three-point shooting
It is well known that any LeBron James-led team needs tons of deep ball shooting on the roster. Few players in NBA history have been better at collapsing the defense and kicking the ball out to shooters. Somehow, though, the Lakers' cast of pure shooters is somewhat underwhelming.
Dalton Knecht, while only a rookie, has tons of potential as a shooter. D'Angelo Russell can have big games from beyond the arc, but he is pretty streaky. Gabe Vincent has had big years shooting the ball in the past, but he is coming off of a bad season. These players, along with Austin Reaves, offer the Lakers potential in the shooting department, but they are still somewhat lacking in that regard.
Phoenix Suns: Ball movement
Everyone knew that ball movement was going to be an issue for the Suns last season. Kevin Durant, Devin Booker, and Bradley Beal are all score-first superstars who need the ball in their hands. Known of them have done too much playmaking in their careers, either. The state of the Suns roster last season forced Booker and Beal to spend some time at the point guard position, though, which not only took away from what they do best, but they also clearly weren't as good at setting up their teammates as most NBA point guards are.
Additionally, the lack of point guard play last year led to the superstar trio not getting the ball in their spots as much as they should. Tyus Jones and Monte Morris are two of the best “pure” point guards in the NBA, as they are always among the leaders in assist-to-turnover ratio.
Both are suiting up in Phoenix this year, so the Suns are hopeful that their biggest fatal flaw from last year will be fixed, but only time will tell. Fans had huge expectations for the Suns last year, and the team let everyone down drastically. There is still potential for something special in Phoenix, though.
Sacramento Kings: Hodgepodge of skill sets
Domantas Sabonis works out of the high post. He has great footwork and can score inside, but he is also an exceptional passer. De'Aaron Fox is a speed demon who most thrives in transition. DeMar DeRozan is a throwback scorer who is best known for his mid-range shot.
This varying group of offensive skill sets gives the Kings a lot of options, but it also leaves them without an identity. It is too be determined whether this group will thrive together, considering just how different their games are from each other. Additionally, all three of the Kings' stars are best with the ball in their hands, but there is only one ball to go around.
Dallas Mavericks: Point-of-attack defense
The Mavericks made a run all the way to the NBA Finals last season largely because their defense was much improved. Dereck Lively was impressive as a rim protector in year one, and the team took a big step forward on the less glamorous side of the ball after trade deadline deals P.J. Washington and Daniel Gafford.
Both players are defensive-minded players who helped turn the team around, but it was Derrick Jones Jr. who usually guarded the opposing team's best player. While he is most known for his high-flying ways, Jones Jr. has become an elite point-of-attack defender. While the team still has interior defense in Lively, Gafford, and Washington, they might take a step back when it comes to perimeter defense.
There will always be concerns about how a Luka Doncic/Kyrie Irving backcourt holds up defensively, and now they have an aging and defensively regressing Klay Thompson lined up next to them. Thompson was once one of the most elite perimeter defensive players in the league, but those days are far gone. Relying on him to lock up opposing team's best players – as Jones Jr. did – seems like a recipe for disaster, regardless of how great he will be on offense with this team.
Houston Rockets: Chemistry between their young stars
We ranked the Rockets as having the best young core in the NBA, and that is a big reason why many think the team will take the next step and make the playoffs this year. A lot hinges on their two best young players, though. Those players are Alperen Sengun and Jalen Green. Sengun had a breakout season last year with a fringe All-Star campaign that displayed a Nikola Jokic-lite skillset. However, his team made a late-season playoff push when he was sidelined, and because of his lack of ability on the defensive end, many have questioned whether the Rockets can become a winning team with him as their lead guy.
Green, on the other hand, has often been criticized since the Rockets took him second overall, but he has shown flashes of superstardom, especially post-All-Star break in each of the last two seasons. Green is a freak athlete with great shot-making ability, but he hasn't put it all together over the course of an entire season, especially when sharing the floor with Sengun.
Both of these players have star potential, but they need to figure out how to play with each other. If they don't, then the Rockets will likely have to move off of one or both of them.
Memphis Grizzlies: Health
In 2021-22, the Grizzlies won 56 games. The following season, they won 51 games. The team seemed destined to break out and potentially win a championship last season, and then the injury bug bit them. Thirty-three different players suited up for the Grizzlies last season, as nearly everyone on the roster missed significant time. It culminated in a disappointing 27-win season.
The expectation was that the Grizzlies would return to health this season, and, in turn, return to the top of the Western Conference standings. That may very well become the case, but the team has once again already started to deal with injury issues. GG Jackson, who emerged as a key piece last year while taking over for injured teammates, has already broken his foot, and he is expected to miss three months at the start of the regular season.
Even star point guard Ja Morant rolled his ankle in the first preseason game of the year. Morant's injury isn't expected to be significant, but it is far from ideal, considering injuries and suspension kept him out for nearly all of last season. The Grizzlies have tons of talent, but none of that matters if they can' display it on the hardwood.
New Orleans Pelicans: The center position
The Pelicans have the opposite problem as the Trail Blazers, as they are extremely thin at the center position. Larry Nance Jr. was traded away in the Dejounte Murray deal, and Jonas Valanciunas signed with the Wizards. Now, Yves Missi and Daniel Theis are the big men at the top of the depth chart at the five position.
That isn't enough talent to hold down the paint if New Orleans is looking to contend. Missi is a rookie, and he was only the 21st overall pick at that. Theis, meanwhile, hasn't even been a consistent rotation player in recent years. Either New Orleans plans on playing a lot of small ball, or they need to make a move for another center.
Perhaps a trade with Portland could be in line for this season, but that is not a guarantee, considering the Pelicans traded away some of their best assets in the Murray trade. They are also in an interesting place financially, as they still haven't extended Brandon Ingram yet.
San Antonio Spurs: Getting Victor Wembanyama the ball
The Spurs' biggest flaw last year was their inability to get Victor Wembanyama the basketball. They experimented with a power forward (Jeremy Sochan) playing point guard, and it became evident that Tre Jones is best reserved for backup duty. Because of this, the rookie sensation was missed on a lot of open cuts and backdoors.
It didn't matter too much as Wembanyama had one of the best rookie seasons ever en route to winning the Rookie of the Year award, and now he looks like he will be a megastar sooner rather than later. Wembanyama could certainly benefit from better point guard play, though.
The Spurs added the ultimate table setter in Chris Paul this offseason. Paul is one of the best point guards in league history, evidenced by the fact that he ranks third in all-time assists. Paul is just a bridge option, though, and the team will need more players to step up as playmakers for the best player on the team. Stephon Castle is one player who can do this, as he has been insistent on playing the point guard position. Castle was more of an off-ball player when he won a national championship with UConn last season, though, so only time will tell if he will thrive with more facilitating duties.
