The Western Conference is stockpiled with formidable powerhouses, therefore leaving a large group of young teams coming up short on a yearly basis. Some of these teams aren't even bad—they're just not as good as their conference counterparts.
The Oklahoma City Thunder, Memphis Grizzlies, Phoenix Suns, San Antonio Spurs, Sacramento Kings, New Orleans Pelicans, and Minnesota Timberwolves are teams looking to break through in the Western Conference and/or are in a transition period.
What will it take for one or more of these teams to rise up the conference? Here are the players whose growth is pivotal to their respective rebuilds getting over the hump.
Oklahoma City Thunder: Darius Bazley
Welcome back to rebuilding Oklahoma City. It has been 12 years since you were last in this position. Coupled with their 78 draft picks across the next five years, the Thunder have some young players by which to be enthused. All of them will need to progress under new head coach Mark Daigneault, Bazley being one of the more vital pieces to the puzzle.
The 2019 first-round draft pick had an underwhelming rookie season from a production standpoint. That said, Bazley was an athletic player on both ends of the floor who flashed an outside game and finished around the rim in style.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is the headman of the offense and wings Luguentz Dort and Hamidou Diallo are capable scorers, but their growth isn't enough to get the organization back in playoff contention over the next two years. They need a frontline threat; Bazley could be that player.
Memphis Grizzlies: Ja Morant
Morant and the Grizzlies had an encouraging 2019-20 season but came up short of making the playoffs. They're in ideal shape with their young core moving forward. It's a matter of someone establishing themselves as an All-Star. That player has to be Morant.
Yes, the Murray State product was a beast in his rookie season, surging to the rim, scoring with ease, and creating for others. At the same time, there's an overwhelming amount of prominent guards in the Western Conference. Morant has to get to their level for the Grizzlies to get through the pack.
Morant has the talent to get them to the next level. Heck, he averaged 17.8 points and 7.3 assists per game en route to nearly leading the Grizzlies to the playoffs. Still, Morant has to continue to grow.
Phoenix Suns: Deandre Ayton
Chris Paul and Devin Booker make for a stout backcourt. What they and head coach Monty Williams need is the 2018 No. 1 overall pick (Ayton) to become a star.
Ayton finishes around the rim with conviction, hits the boards at a high level, and has a capable post game. Across his first two seasons in the NBA, the big man averaged 17.0 points and 10.7 rebounds per game. As the team's third source of offense, Ayton has to become more assertive. When he gets the ball in the paint, it has to be an easy bucket. Defensively, he needs to be the team's backbone.
Paul's arrival will be beneficial in the short term as long as those around him pick up the slack and do their part; that starts on the frontline with Ayton. He needs to be part of a Phoenix big three.
San Antonio Spurs: Keldon Johnson
The Spurs have a boatload of young guards who are current or starting-caliber players (Dejounte Murray, Derrick White, Lonnie Walker, and Tre Jones). Meanwhile, rookie wing Devin Vassell's “3-and-D” skill set should transition well to the NBA game. Imagine if Keldon Johnson picks up where he left off in the NBA bubble this season?
After missing the bulk of the first five months of the regular season due to injury, Johnson impressed down the stretch. Across the Spurs' eight games in the bubble, the Kentucky product averaged 14.1 points per game while shooting 64.7 percent from beyond the arc. He showcased an ability to take what the defense gives him, stick the long ball at a high level, and defend at a competitive level.
San Antonio has some fundamentally sound youngsters. What they need is those players to become amplified versions of themselves in order to make noise in the Western Conference.
Sacramento Kings: Marvin Bagley
The Kings are all over the place. Can Bagley get them back on track?
Bagley's NBA career has been a turbulent ride. He has produced but not to the point where it's making a difference for the Kings. The big man is a slick inside finisher who hits the boards and can sky above the rim. De'Aaron Fox will run the point while Buddy Hield and rookie Tyrese Haliburton play more so off the ball. Who's doing damage inside? Bagley needs to play into his potential as a dominant inside player and become more of a defensive presence; the issues are on both ends for the Kings.
Last summer the Kings had a strikingly bright future. Now their future is as puzzling as ever. Getting back to what generated the optimism is the answer.
New Orleans Pelicans: Lonzo Ball
Brandon Ingram and Zion Williamson are a tantalizing frontcourt duo. Of course, that alone isn't enough for the Pelicans to make the playoff jump. Another progressive season from Ball could do the trick.
The UCLA product had the best season of his NBA career in his first trial with the Pelicans, averaging 11.8 points, 7.0 assists, 6.1 rebounds, and 1.4 steals per game while shooting a career-best 37.5 percent from beyond the arc. Ball is a superb passer who's shooting better from distance. Moving forward they need him to become more of a scorer off the dribble to take some attention off Ingram and Williamson.
Ball certainly has another gear in his arsenal. With the drafting of Kira Lewis Jr. with the 13th overall pick in last month's NBA draft, the Pelicans are putting the pressure on Ball: take the next step or it's Kira time.
Minnesota Timberwolves: Anthony Edwards
He's going to be Minnesota's at-best third source of offense, but Edwards needs to live up to the hype of being the first overall pick.
There's a lot of parity on the perimeter for the T-Wolves. With the likes of Malik Beasley, Jarrett Culver, and Josh Okogie already present, head coach Ryan Saunders has a bunch of players with similar skill sets as Edwards: wings who score off the dribble and can stick three-pointers. That said, Edwards becoming a force to be reckoned with changes the game.
Edwards becoming an elite scorer alongside D'Angelo Russell and Karl-Anthony Towns makes for a dynamic T-Wolves offense with firepower for days. It also prevents defenses from focusing on one player too much. The 19-year-old's growth is Minnesota's best bet to take an enormous step forward this season and break through the playoffs in the Western Conference.
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