Every Team's X-Factor (Northwest Division)

I recently came across this article on Yahoo! where the author vehemently argued that the NBA preseason doesn't matter, at all.  I don't feel that way, and if you can read in between the lines, there's already a lot being revealed about the upcoming season.

But I'd be lying if I said that up until this point, I've been intimately following the preseason.  That won't really be necessary for some teams until it comes time to make the actual predictions for next season.

Also, that's not what the Every Team's X-Factor series is about.  Rather, I'm trying to identify the biggest deficiency on each roster and therefore point out the player, no matter how obscure, who most needs to perform to mitigate that gap, based on each organization's current setup, according to Wikipedia.

DENVER NUGGETS: ZEKE NNAJI

In all of these years of the Nuggets' Jokic era, one thing they've never been able to do is get a backup C to mitigate Nikola's defensive deficiencies, and so it appears to be entering this season also.  Their wing rotation is pretty solid, and depth at the 4 also seems to be more or less straight.  But when it comes to interior defense, I don't think Denver is intimidating anybody.

Like let's say Wemby is killing them.  Who are they going to put in specifically to defend him?  I guess we're in for another round of 'the best defense is a good offense'.

That said, if Jokic goes down, then there's really going to be a problem, because you wouldn't want Gordon or Bagley trying to hold down the post against a bigger team.  So, enter Zeke Nnaji.  I can't confidently say I ever heard of dude before, but get this - he's already been on the Nuggets for six seasons(!).  And last time around, he had a career year of sorts, averaging roughly 4pts and 3rbs.

Nnaji is tied for second-tallest person on the roster, tied with Coleman Hawkins and Trevon Brazile.  The latter is a (second-round) rookie and apparently is going to get a chance to prove himself this season.  So he's a honorable mention as the x-factor.  But either way, it doesn't appear that Nnaji is going anywhere any time soon.  And since he's the vet, the onus has to be more on him.

MINNESOTA TIMBERWOLVES: JOAN BERINGER

Beringer has already been singled out by the mainstream as the player the Wolves are banking on making a sophomore leap, so I'm not going to deviate from that.  He's a tall, yellow dude from France, which are like in high demand these days.

Minnesota's G rotation appears to be straight, especially once DiVincenzo comes back.  But the frontcourt depth leaves something to be desired.

Kuminga, as athletic and lengthy as he may be, has already proven that he's not an actual big.  So by the looks of things, there are currently none of particular note behind Gobert . The T-wolves just drafted a couple of dudes, but neither one of them can play C.

OKC THUNDER: JAYLEN WILLIAMS

Even after losing two or three rotation players this summer, including a starter, while not really getting anyone of note in return, OKC remains one of the deepest squads.  Both of their starting bigs are two-positional, besides Jaylin Williams and rookie Aday Mara (who I'm kinda high on) backing them up.  And as for their G rotation, if healthy there doesn't appear to be any lack there.  Dort is a celebrated defender, but I would argue that Caruso is even more effective on that end.

One thing about their plethora of 2s tho is that they aren't that tall, thus not making ideal 3s, even in the increasingly-positionless age.  And considering that the Thunder's main nemesis is Wemby, size does matter.  Even Holmgren and Hartenstein, with an average height of 7'1"(!), couldn't stop him.

So I'm gonna go with Jaylen (not to be confused with Jaylin) Williams.  He's a big, versatile body who would definitely make a difference against bigger teams if he regains allstar form.

He played sparingly last offseason, and things all considered, it may have been better if he didn't.  A healthy Jaylen has to be x-factor, as it's possible that OKC would have made to the Finals two years in a row if he wasn't hobbled.

PORTLAND TRAILBLAZERS: MICAH POTTER

Speaking of shorts Gs, the Blazers have four who may be starter worthy, but height-wise you wouldn't want to move any of them to the 3.  I would imagine that maybe Sharpe would end up starting at SF, and Avidja would be slotted over to the 4(?).

This roster has depth, even at the 5, which is rare in today's NBA.  But only a couple of bigs on that list have name recognition, and none are stars.  So one of them is going to have to fill the void.

And I'm gonna go with Micah Potter because, besides Williams III, he's the only other player listed as both a forward and center.  I'm not going to go with Robert himself because even though he is more or less a highlight machine, we pretty much already know his limitations and what he's going to bring to the table.

Potter meanwhile had sort of a career year last season.  He averaged 10pts, 5rbs, 20mins and 47 games, all highs.

The implication, if he could actually remain on the court, is that he could excel, especially on a roster like this, where so much defensive attention is going to focused on smaller players.  And unlike Williams III, Potter appears to have a three-point shot that demands respect.  Man, could the Blazers use this dude, which is likely why they picked him up.

UTAH JAZZ: JOSH OKOGIE

The Jazz has been 'one of the most promising teams' in the NBA for years now ,only to inevitably end up bottom feeding.  Some of that was tanking, which has now been disincentivized or whatever.  And unlike previous iterations, for the first time ever Utah appears to be mostly young and speedy(?).

That said, their depth isn't really anything to write home about.  But the good news is, in terms of bigs, they appear to be pretty straight, even after the departure of Kessler.

On the smaller side, they have, excuse me to say, promising guys who have yet to definitively prove themselves.  Man, could they use a veteran amongst the wings.  And on that note, I'm going to go with Josh Okogie.

Besides being a 2, he's one of the older players on this team.  All things considered,  he probably going to get a lot of run.  His stats don't jump off the page, but he has carved out a permanent place in the league, being about to enter his tenth season.  And I think he's also known as somewhat of a defensive specialist(?), which is going to be needed amongst a bunch of young scorers.

Either way, whenever his number is called, he needs to make an impact.  28 year olds are like old-timers in today's NBA.  And in the backcourt/wings, he's going to be surrounded by a bunch of dudes with a lot less experience than he has. 

Every Team's X-Factor (Southeast Division)

ATLANTA HAWKS: JOCK LANDALE

The Hawks have gotten arguably deeper but failed to address their biggest issue, which is lack of size.  There's only one pure C - Jock Landale - on the entire roster.  Behind him is a rookie named Henri Veesaar, who's already out for the season basically.

Okongwu is slated to once again start, and whereas he may be a promising player, he can't stand alone against a frontline like the Knicks' for instance.  So the onus has fallen on Landale, who isn't the worst C in the world but obviously has injury issues.

After showing progress last season, it's hard to get excited about Atlanta, considering that a number of competitors have gotten bigger, while they continue to play musical chairs.

CHARLOTTE HORNETS: COBY WHITE

The Hornets have done pretty good for themselves, in that four of their expected five starters (Reid, Knueppel, Miller and Diabaté) are two-positional. But I don't think any of those guys would ideally play point.

Schröder has the prettiest game in professional basketball.  When he cuts down a defense, it's almost like watching ballet.  But he's too good to be a role player and in a way, too good to be a starter also.  He deserves to have a team built around him, but at the same time he doesn't.  So we know what we're going to get out of Schröder and can't realistically expect him to change now, as one of the greatest international players in history.  So it'd be better to just give him the keys to the second unit, though again, he can start also.

So the next man in question is Coby White. His role is also unpredictable in that, you can't rationalize putting the onus on hi, with the same kind of liberty he enjoyed in Chicago.  So he's gonna have to focus more on distribution than scoring.  He's going to have to play more like a traditional, level-headed PG, instead of a product of the 2020s, to maximize this roster.

MIAMI HEAT: PELLE LARSSON

The Heat's frontcourt is set, and yes, it does appear wembyproof - at least as big, on average, as what the Knicks rolled out last season.  Both Giannis and Bam are basically really-tall wings.

The backcourt, however... and it's funny how this team sorta mimics the Heat from the 1990s.  They too, at least for a time, were focused upfront though reliant on a formidable backcourt.  And that's the key word - formidability, because nobody back there is a takeover-a-game type of player, unless you're banking on a resurgence of Klay, which I'm not.

The G who is slated or most needed to step up is Pelle Larsson.  I know that yeah, everyone needs to step  up, but I mean like the one who can catch defenses most off guard, sorta like Jacquez did.  We already know what Mitchell and Thompson and Hardaway - the latter of whom also needs to have a really good season - are bringing to the table.  So that makes Larsson, out of the lot of them, the x-factor.

The said, it appears that Mitchell is the only actual PG on this squad, meaning that he's going to have to shoulder a lot also and should prolly be dubbed the x-factor.  Oh well.  Like I said, there's a lot of pressure on Miami's backcourt, unless they intend to rollout lineups with like four bigs.

ORLANDO MAGIC: FRANZ WAGNER

It's been a long time since the Magic, at least imo, rolled out an enviable roster - and when I say long time, I mean 30 years type shit.  Yet they did make the Finals in the late-aughts.  And if given the right pieces, these guys like outplay their talent.

In other words, they can use help across the board.  Neither the frontcourt nor backcourt are anything to write home about in terms of depth (though the back is even thinner).

So the x-factor has to be Franz Wagner.  Again, if he were around versus the Pistons, I doubt Detroit would have won.

I don't want these posts to be about expecting established vets to suddenly move up a class, you know, go from a B-list statline to A-list.  It's more realistic to be like 'okay, we already have the pieces, now let's keep them healthy'.  That's more of the issue with the Magic.  We can't know if the Bane experiment was truly a good move if the core players can't even make it through a series together.

WASHINGTON WIZARDS: TRE MANN

Not many shortcomings here, folks.  Even if some key dude does get hurt, like they literally have a backup for everybody.  This team is half-vet/half-youngster like no other in the NBA, and no individual player should be under any tremendous amount of pressure.

If this were 20 years ago, maybe we could say that too much talent is concentrated at the 5.  But presently, in the small ball era, if you have a big C (of which Washington has three!), virtually any other tall dude on the roster can play the 4.

Where things are a little more shaky is in terms of pure point.  We already know what Tre can do -Young, not to be mistaken with Mann - so the latter is more of the x-factor.  He probably isn't going to be called upon to shoot at lot, but when he does needs to make his shots.

If the scouting report says something like 'oh sh*t, we have to keep an eye out for Tre Mann', then by that point, it'd be hard for any team to take advantage of the Wizards.  The NBA truly is becoming positionless, in that there's a number of teams now when a 1 would be better served acting as a 2.  Someone like Coby White may need to focus more on passing, but the same is not true if he were on a roster like this.

Every Team's X-Factor (Central Division)

After giving the totally unknown Ariel Hukporti a shoutout in the inaugural edition of this series, not only did he start the Sixers' first preseason game but ended up suffering a season-ending injury and having that misfortune splashed all over national headlines.  Wow.  That wasn't the type of inception I was envisioning.

CHICAGO BULLS: TRE JONES

For the first time in years, the Bulls' roster appears to be progressive, but it definitely isn't deep.   Giddey is going to start at the 1, and behind him, behind all of the starters basically, the only other PG of note is Tre Jones.  Wait a minute  I accidentally mistook dude for Tre Mann.  But looking at his stats, even though Jones is an unknown, he's actually better than Mann and apparently one of the longer-tenured current members of the Bulls.

Meanwhile, Josh is known to semi-regularly end up on the injured list.  This team appears to have more depth in the backcourt than in the front.  There's other guys, like maybe Buddy Hield, who can play backup PG as a last resort, if you will.  And oh shit, is Jaden Ivey's career really over?

But in this case, I'm going with Jones.  Out of all the unpredictables or unknowns on this roster, he's slated to be the one whose impact and progression will matter most.  Chicago doesn't have the type of bigs per se that can really take over games.

CLEVELAND CAVALIERS: THOMAS BRYANT

Wow.  The Cavs have a stellar starting lineup, but as for the bench, man oh man.  There's really only two names I recognize, Thomas Bryant and Mario Hezonja, and oh yeah, that dude Sam Merrill.

I'm tempted to dub Sam the x-factor, as he's a tenured member of the Cavs who had a career year last season.   But the backup big rotation doesn't look promising at all, and there appears to be a more pressing need upfront.  So as much as it hurts, I'm gonna have to go with Bryant for now.

I have nothing against dude and even remember him being underrated in the not too distant past (i.e. with the Lakers).  But he's been in similar types of situations recently, getting a golden opportunity to represent on the Pacers for instance but failing to do so.  Maybe he's suffering from being bounced around too much.

DETROIT PISTONS:  UGONNA ONYENSO

Imagine if Jalen Duren did leave, and the Pistons didn't get a starter-worthy big in return?  That wouldn't have been pretty at all.

This is yet another team, as is common in today's NBA, where the backcourt is a lot deeper than the front.  Yes, Paul Reed made a name for himself this past postseason playing the 5, but he isn't an actual C.  And of course, Collins can also serve as C, but none of those dudes are wembyproof, like playing them against some bigger lineups may not be ideal.

The only other pure C currently on the roster is a two-wayer named Ugonna Onyenso(?).  And notice, by the way, how many centers these days, especially the obscure ones, seem to be from Africa.

As the NBA now appears to be prioritizing height again, as made necessary by the presence of Wembanyama, yes, Detroit obviously needs someone like Onyenso.  He's taller than everyone else on the team, including Duren.  But all things considered, don't expect him to get much run.  The Pistons, like many of their competitors, are more likely to continue going small, not so much out of choice as it is necessity.

INDIANA PACERS: TYRESE HALIBURTON

The Pacers, man.  At least they've more or less kept their deep G corps intact.  And as for C, outside of Zubac, who may or may not be overrated, there are a couple of backups who aren't exceptional but are at least respectable.  So the bigger depth issue appears to be in the 3 area.

By the looks of things, with Haliburton back, Indiana is going to continue along the lines of running three-guard lineups.  That isn't ideal, because most of their Gs are undersized more or less.  Or let's just say, more simply, that their F rotation leaves something to be desired.

So I'm just going to go with Tyrese in this case because, like it or not, he may end up having to serve as a de facto 3.  And if he ends up getting injured again, despite their other talents, the Pacers may wind up becoming more obscure than even the Nets.

I'm sorely disappointed in this braintrust, after their fairytale showing in 2025.  That's the kind of luck that most teams never experience.

MILWAUKEE BUCKS: KYLE KUZMA

I recently came across this headline arguing something like the Bucks being in an enviable position, due to having two coveted Cs on their roster.  Reading in between the lines, what's being implied is that Ware and Turner shouldn't even make an effort type shit, like everyone is just expecting this squad to be garbage and accordingly for them to be eventually traded.

But okay, let's say that for now, Milwaukee is set at C, and their wing corps is even deeper.  So then, the 4 becomes a problem.

What's to logically be expected is that Ware will start at the 5 and Turner at the 4.  They can more or less interchange positions.  But then, who's the backup at either spot?

Holy sh*t, Kyle Kuzma(!), who can at least play respectable 4 in the modern NBA.  If Milwaukee ever needed you, buddy, it's now.  If only he was as aggressive on the court as he is on social media.