NBA season is back and many star players will be ready to produce results going forward as we’re heading to the end of the preseason. The 2023/24 season will start on October 24 with two games. The NBA reigning champions Denver Nuggets will meet the Los Angeles Lakers in a repeat of the Western Conference Finals and the star-studded Phoenix Suns will clash vs. the Golden State Warriors in Bay Area.
In any case, we’re expecting a fascinating season with many star-studded teams and several players being ready to make the leap and become the next best new thing in the NBA. With that in mind, Hedgeout.net presents five potential breakout stars that could make that leap this year.
Jonathan Kuminga- Golden State Warriors
The Golden State Warriors hope to return to contention this year as the core of Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson and Draymond Green is growing older. However, there is hope that new blood will be injected soon into the Warriors’ old core, that includes Chris Paul who joined the team this summer.
Jonathan Kuminga entered the league with high hopes to become the next two-way initiator of the Warriors’ team. The promising forward experienced many ups and downs during his three-year tenure, while he had a minimal influence in the postseason stage staying on the floor for 6.1 minutes per through 10 games in the last NBA playoff appearance. That was less than what he had (8.6 MPG) as a rookie in the playoffs during the Golden State’s 2022 NBA championship run.
So far, Kuminga has been impressive in the 2023 preseason as he’s leading the league in points with 26.0 through 28.6 minutes per. Moreover, his number are produced efficiently, shooting excellently from the floor on 54/47/75 splits. He’s still not capable of creating plays for others as Steve Kerr put the ball in his hands and utilized him in a play-creating role averaging more turnovers than assists (2.7 APG to 4.3 TOV). However, under normal circumstances, his playmaking duties will be at minimum capacity in the regular season.
Josh Giddey – OKC Thunder
Josh Giddey will have the chance to contribute in a winning effort as the OKC Thunder are hoping to return to NBA playoffs this season. With a young and star-studded roster headlined by Shai Gilgeous-Alexander. Giddey was also impressive last season averaging 16.9 points, 7.9 rebounds and 6.2 assists as he ran his team’s backcourt alongside SGA.
Giddey was utilized as a full-fledged point guard with team Australia this summer in the FIBA Basketball World Cup and he will be called to bring some of that play in the NBA. Giddey will also need to shoot the ball better, as he made 32.5% of his shots from beyond the arc on just 3.1 threes per contest.
Giddey will also have the chance to play minutes alongside Chet Holmgren, who has returned from injury and he will be a Rookie of The Year candidate this season. The PNR between Giddey and Holmgren is expected to be lethal with the combination of size, speed and basketball IQ. As a result, the Thunder will be among the teams to watch this season and Giddey may be in for a memorable run.
Deandre Ayton – Portland Trail Blazers
Deandre Ayton was selected 2nd overall in the 2019 NBA Draft ahead of Luka Doncic and Trae Young and he has yet to have a memorable season in his young NBA career, at least stat-wise. The Suns’ status quo of Devin Booker and other talented perimeter players did not help Ayton blossom, as he was mostly used in secondary role.
This will likely change this season as Ayton was moved to Portland and he will be the “veteran” in a young team consisted of super explosive and talented guards like Scoot Henderson, Anfernee Simons and Shaedon Sharpe. Ayton has been accused of lacking willingness to work on his game and put more pressure on both ends of the floor. However, Ayton, stat-wise, was profoundly good in a star-studded squad averaging a double-double of 18.0 points and 10.0 rebounds through 67 NBA games last season.
With that in mind, the expectations are bigger for him because of being drafted ahead of generational talent like Young and Luka. This variable has been crippling his reputation, despite having great numbers. With Portland on a rebuilding state after the Damian Lillard trade, Ayton should be able to make a real statement to the rest of the league.
Tyrese Maxey – Philadelphia 76ers
Tyrese Maxey has been through this path too many times in his young career after another disgruntled star demanded out of Philadelphia. Maxey will be asked to do more, especially if the president of basketball operations Daryl Morey could not snatch another high caliber talent in a potential James Harden trade. Maxey went through the same situation during his sophomore year when Ben Simmons asked out of Philadelphia.
He responded well to the situation then and elevated his game averaging 17.5 points. He was also good alongside James Harden last season being the legit third-tier star in the Philadelphia 76ers roster averaging 20.0 PPG on excellent shooting splits. The Sixers will be a good team even without Harden but if Maxey is able to unlock the next level and become an All-Star then Philadelphia can be considered a team that have an outside chance at the NBA title.
The Sixers haven’t gone through the Conference Semi Finals since the Allen Iverson era and the demand for success will be pretty high as Joel Embiid is going through the peak of his career. Subsequently, Maxey, who is entering a contract year this season, will be crucial to any 76ers’ success.
Austin Reaves – Los Angeles Lakers
The Los Angeles Lakers desperately needed an upgrade in their roster after being unable to build around the duo of stars in LeBron James and Anthony Davis. After their 2019 championship run, the Lakers failed to bring talent that would be able to help Davis and LeBron James repeat their success.
Starting the previous season with underwhelming expectations, the Lakers’ fans saw the emergence of Austin Reaves. A beloved face in Staples Center, Reaves gradually became the so-called pillar under David and James through the 2022-23 regular season putting up 13.0 PPG and being a two-way presence through 64 games. He was also excellent in the NBA playoffs helping a revamped Lakers roster to reach the Western Conference Finals.
He even asked to do some heavy lifting during the FIBA Basketball World Cup in the summer. Not only that, but he was also one of the top performers of Team USA disappointing effort that end up with a fourth place in the tournament. Reaves will be vital for the Lakers going forward as they need to reduce James’ minutes in the NBA regular season. With that in mind, the two-way guard may have in store a breakout season for us.
