SUMMARY
- The 2023-24 NBA regular season recently came to end and there were many surprises.
- Some of the winners of this season include the Knicks, Spurs, and Celtics.
The 2023-24 NBA season has officially come to an end and multiple teams are preparing for a highly competitive playoff run that lies ahead. We’ve seen far too many surprises and upsets this season starting with the Miami Heat. After making a huge run to the 2023 NBA Finals, this team had a lot of issues over the course of 82 games. Now, they have to go through the dreaded Play-In Tournament.
In the Western Conference, almost every team between the 1st and 11th seed had good chances of making it to the playoffs at various points in time. Watching the Golden State Warriors and Los Angeles Lakers struggle during the season was probably the hardest, however, they still have a chance to make a playoff run through the Play-Ins. The Houston Rockets ended their season with a 41-41 record which is better than a few Play-In teams in the East. But they got pushed to the 11th seed by the end of the regular season.
Playoffs @NBA 2024 pic.twitter.com/aX8Aiz5LxK
— Sphera Sports (@SpheraSports) April 15, 2024
The Minnesota Timberwolves and Oklahoma City Thunder were huge surprises out of the West. Both teams top the rankings are various points during the season. And in the East, the Boston Celtics won hearts after achieving the best record in the league this season. However, the Milwaukee Bucks had the worst season despite securing the 3rd seed. Now let us take a look at five of the biggest winners and losers this year.
Top Five Winners of the 2023-24 NBA Season
James Harden and the Los Angeles Clippers
James Harden did not have a great season after experiencing deal botched backdoor deal with Daryl Morey and the Philadelphia 76ers. He ultimately pushed his way out of the Sixers franchise with his heart set on the LA Clippers the whole time. He was shipped to LA for multiple draft picks, Nicolas Tatum, Robert Covington, KJ Martin, and Marcus Morris Sr.
PLAYOFFS BOUND 🎟️
The @LAClippers have clinched a spot in the 2024 NBA Playoffs! pic.twitter.com/FK6C6YZcTN
— NBA TV (@NBATV) April 10, 2024
Before Harden’s arrival, the Clippers were not having the best run. However, the 2018 MVP’s presence unlocked a window of opportunities for the Clippers which included a guaranteed playoff run. The Clippers were able to replace the lack of a star point guard in the starting lineup since Russell Westbrook was coming off the bench. Now, the Clippers are a dangerous playoff team and people believe Russell’s presence off the bench is what will lead them to a title.
Oklahoma City Thunder
Last season, Shai Gilgeous Alexander established himself as the next great leader of OKC averaging 31.4 points, 4.8 rebounds, and 5.5 assists per game. And it was certain that if OKC had a winning record, he would make a run for the MVP at some point. After Chet Holmgren missed an entire season due to a Lisfranc fracture, he made his debut this season averaging 16.5 points, 7.9 rebounds, 2.4 assists, and 2.3 blocks per game.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander propelled the Oklahoma City Thunder from missing the playoffs last season to claiming the top seed in the West this year 🔥
Should he be the MVP? 🏆 pic.twitter.com/UWXJcOtdYo
— The Athletic (@TheAthletic) April 15, 2024
Just like Harden opened up a lot of possibilities for LA, Chet had the same effect on the Thunder. With him being a dangerous figure within the paint, he has helped create plays and open looks for SGA as well as Jalen Williams. OKC finished first in the West while SGA could be named this year’s MVP.
San Antonio Spurs
While this may be a controversial pick to be deemed a winner, the San Antonio Spurs actually won the jackpot last off-season. Victor Wembanyama was considered the greatest NBA Draft prospect since LeBron James and he has lived up to the hype. In fact, Wemby might’ve had a better rookie season than the 4x NBA Champion as well. He averaged 21.4 points, 10.6 rebounds, 3.9 assists, 1.2 steals, and 3.6 blocks per game.
🚨🚨🚨 New Franchise Record! pic.twitter.com/jPrimDRzBp
— San Antonio Spurs (@spurs) April 11, 2024
While he still has a lot to prove, Victor is possibly the best thing to have ever happened to the Spurs since Tim Duncan. Right now, they are dealing with a potential franchise player given they surround him with the right situation. Wembanyama is the frontrunner for the 2024 Rookie of the Year Award. He also made an incredible case for this year’s Defensive Player of the Year title. However, he most likely won’t become the first rookie to hold the DPOY since the Spurs haven’t seen much success.
Jalen Brunson and the New York Knicks
Jalen Brunson showed a lot of potential and leadership qualities during the Dallas Mavericks’ playoff run against the Golden State Warriors in 2022. Scott Perry made an incredible move by acquiring Brunson on a four-year $104 million deal. Despite Brunson being in his second year with the team already, there isn’t a chance that the Knicks don’t see a future with him.
Brunson has averaged 28.7 points, 3.6 rebounds, and 6.7 assists per game on 40.1% shooting from the three-point arc. The Knicks also secured the 2nd seed in the East ranking above the Bucks. They’re the only other team besides the Celtics to have won at least 50 games. Additionally, Perry also added OG Anunoby and Bojan Bogdanovic to the roster which immediately had a positive impact and helped them win more efficiently.
Boston Celtics
The winner list would not have been complete without mentioning the East’s highest-ranking team, Boston. Ever since Jayson Tatum took over the their number-one option, the Celtics have had immense success in the playoffs. They made the Eastern Conference Finals twice and the NBA Finals in 2022. Tatum has also been a great MVP candidate averaging 27.6 points, 8.1 rebounds, and 4.6 assists per game over the last four seasons.
Your 2023-2024 Boston Celtics ☘️ pic.twitter.com/5UHFDxFQho
— Boston Celtics (@celtics) April 13, 2024
During the off-season, Brad Stevens made an incredible move by acquiring Kristaps Porzingis via a three-team trade involving the Washington Wizards and Memphis Grizzlies. Even though people believe giving up Marcus Smart was a bad decision because he was a former DPOY, Porzingis filled in quite well. Boston also acquired Jrue Holiday to fill up the vacant starting point guard position. KP has worked wonders on offense are their third option averaging 20 points per game.
Top Five Losers of the 2023-24 NBA Season
Damian Lillard
Damian Lillard only pushed himself out of the Portland Trail Blazers just to win a championship. For 11 seasons, the point guard stayed true to the organization without them making any effort to improve the roster around him. The Milwaukee Bucks silently facilitated a blockbuster trade involving the Phoenix Suns and acquired Lillard as a second star. Giannis Antetokounmpo and Damian Lillard held one of the best offenses this year averaging a combined total of 55.7 points per game.
Milwaukee Bucks league rankings by coach:
Bud: Griffin: Doc:
ORTG: 2nd 2nd 18th
DRTG: 1st 20th 13th
NETRTG: 1st 10th 15th
WIN%: 1st 2nd 19th pic.twitter.com/OszzFA2CrS— StatMuse (@statmuse) April 10, 2024
However, they made a huge mistake by firing head coach Adrian Griffin. The mistake was made after they hired Doc Rivers as a replacement for Griffin. Rivers has a history of making poor decisions and playoff runs. During Griffin’s tenure, the Bucks were 30-13 in the East. They also secured the top spot in the conference at one point. However, Rivers’ tenure yielded a 17-19 run with the Bucks. Defensively, he wasn’t able to bring the team to a higher level, nor did he coach the team well during games.
Los Angeles Lakers
The Lakers have an exceptional roster led by LeBron James and co-run by Anthony Davis. While the team has been dealing with multiple injuries, James and Davis haven’t been terrible this season. James fought through an ankle ailment while Davis appeared for 76 games. Everything was headed in the right direction in terms of talent, especially with the emergence of Austin Reaves, D’Angelo Russell, and Rui Hachimura on the offensive end.
Found Rui for the one hand jam 🫡 pic.twitter.com/3OeVhs0nHZ
— Los Angeles Lakers (@Lakers) April 10, 2024
However, Darvin Ham was the issue that needed to be dealt with. Ham only realized much later than he should’ve stuck to bringing Reaves and Russell to the starting lineup along with Hachimura once they began winning more. However, earlier in the season, he would Cam Reddish and Taurean Prince despite being far less productive on the floor than the other athletes mentioned. The Lakers are facing yet another Play-In run.
Washington Wizards
As much as people wanted to see Jordan Poole sprout his wings as a top option on the Wizards’ roster, that hasn’t happened. Poole was a breakout star during the 2021-22 season while he played for the Warriors. He averaged 18.5 points per game while shooting 36.4% from deep that season. The following year, Poole averaged 20.4 points per game while shooting 33.6% from deep on 7.8 attempts.
Year 7 for @kylekuzma ✔️ pic.twitter.com/ctuqTnyyWE
— Washington Wizards (@WashWizards) April 15, 2024
However, they should’ve kept Chris Paul rather than trading him for Poole during the off-season. Paul would have been a great mentor and his history of bringing up young teams still stands strong. Chris was successful with a losing Phoenix Suns team. He managed to bring them to a 64-18 record starring alongside Devin Booker. Who knows what he could’ve brought out of Kyle Kuzma?
Victor Wembanyama
While the Spurs celebrate securing a generational talent, the No.1 overall has shown a little frustration with how things have been with the team. The Spurs nearly had the worst record in the West but somehow finished above the Blazers with a 22-60 record. San Antonio was one of the worst defensive teams in the league despite Victor leading the league in blocks per game.
Victor Wembanyama has become the first player in NBA history to record:
1500+ PTS
250+ BLK
100+ 3PMIn the same season
Is this the best season by a rookie EVER? pic.twitter.com/ie7LcVC4FZ
— ClutchPoints (@ClutchPoints) April 13, 2024
Unfortunately, this was a trend with the Spurs even when DeMar DeRozan was on the roster. They did not have much talent to support DeRozan who averaged 21.6 points, 6.2 rebounds, and 5.3 assists per game over two seasons. The Spurs are a comparatively smaller market and they will have to build a team over time. Hopefully, it doesn’t get too late before they do.
Memphis Grizzlies
This team had one of the biggest upsets last season despite securing the second seed in the West with a 51-31 record. The Lakers surprised the world by defeating them in the first round of the playoffs and moving into the conference finals eventually. Memphis had to let Dillon Brooks shortly after their season concluded, but he was a strong defensive asset. Ja Morant also had an off-season mishap that had his suspended for 25 games this season.
“I think we can (win a championship) next season. Honestly, God-willing. If everyone stays healthy.”
-Ja Morant
👀‼️ pic.twitter.com/ItGmXrmsab
— Ja Muse (@MuseMorant) April 15, 2024
The Grizzlies were losing terribly before Morant returned to the floor and led to them a 6-3 record while he was available. Unfortunately, Morant suffered from a torn labrum which ruled him out for the rest of the season. They concluded their run with a 27-55 record as the 13th seed in the West. Though injuries weren’t in their control, they had a terrible decline from being a projected playoff team.