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.