Victor Wembanyama has been a must-watch during the first half of the 2023-24 season.
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We’ve arrived at the midseason stage of the 2023-24 season with the usual surprises, disappointments and the one constant that hasn’t changed in 21 seasons — LeBron James commanding a good bit of your attention.
The first 41 games won’t necessarily dictate what will happen in the next 41, but that’s the fun. Fortunes will rise and fall. The inevitable separation among playoff contenders and pretenders will swell, and the postseason picture will develop into 4K.
Here are 10 takeaways from the season’s first half, featuring the teams and players who stood out (for various reasons), a welcome diversion to Las Vegas for the NBA (and LeBron), and a familiar arm-wrestle over who’s the game’s best player:
1. Oklahoma City is more than OK. The developmental process has taken a sharp uptick in OKC, where we find the Thunder lurking in the shadows of the West penthouse. This happens when Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is Kia MVP-like and Chet Holmgren flirts with top rookie honors.
Doesn’t this make the Thunder a lot like last year’s Sacramento Kings? That’s a solid comparison. The young Kings took the league by surprise. OKC, however, has the goods to go beyond the first round of the playoffs. The Thunder are clearly playing big-boy basketball and, because of their staying power, are showing they belong with the best.
2. Phoenix plays with fire. The latest “superteam” was dealt a setback, or maybe a delay, when injuries caused the Suns to slip on a banana peel. From opening night to the start of last week, Kevin Durant, Devin Booker and Bradley Beal played a combined 88 minutes.
And of course, the expected happened — the Suns struggled and never gained traction until right after the holidays. Defense was the main problem, and when you’re missing one or two big scorers, your offense can’t compensate.
The good news for Phoenix? All finally seems well, and it’s starting to reflect on the floor. The slow climb toward respectability begins. Is it possible that a squad with three stars can qualify as “The Team Nobody Wants To Play” in the postseason?
3. Celtics are clutch at home. The 1985-86 Celtics are considered one of the greatest teams of all time and they went 40-1 at home. In that lone loss, they fell to an ordinary Blazers team, Larry Bird shot 6-for-29 and Boston had 26 turnovers. So anything’s possible.
This year’s Celtics team is headed in the same direction in terms of home protection, having run the table so far. Jayson Tatum and pals have beaten the Bucks, Sixers and Wolves and dropped 155 on the Pacers at TD Garden. Denver’s up next (7:30 ET, ESPN).
If the Celtics mirror ’85-86 and maintain home-court advantage for the playoffs, how many teams are capable of beating them in a best-of-seven?
4. It’s still Joker and Joel for Kia MVP (so far). Stop if you’ve heard this before — Nikola Jokic and Joel Embiid are heads and shoulders, almost literally, over the MVP field.
We saw as much Tuesday night in Philly when their head-to-head showdown was entertaining, with Embiid scoring 41 points in a win. However, both players have been elite all season.
No disrespect to Gilgeous-Alexander and Tatum, but this looks like a big-man monopoly once again. Joker and Embiid have won the last three. The only question is whether Embiid meets the 65-game minimum qualification.
5. In-Season Tournament “gamble” paid off in Vegas. From a critical and receptive standpoint, the first In-Season Tournament was successful. Players and coaches bought in, the TV audience turned out, and the Lakers and LeBron James took the trophy.
More than anything, this looks like a keeper. The Tournament raised the emotional and performance levels, which it was designed to do, and gave casuals a reason to watch basketball in November and December. The before and aftermath were solid, except for …
6. Lakers look for luster after getting crowned. The champagne was hardly dry when the Lakers resumed the regular season and subsequently reflected the exact opposite of their Las Vegas shine. They reached the midway point at 20-21, a losing record for a “winning” team.
The biggest head-scratcher is why this team, with James and Anthony Davis missing only a combined six games, struggled so often. Defensive issues, point guard play and shooting are problems.
Is there a shakeup coming before the trade deadline? Remember, the Lakers turned their fortunes around last season by trading Russell Westbrook and went on a tear that took them to the Western Conference Finals. Your move again, Rob Pelinka.
7. Tyrese is the name, guard is the game. Haliburton or Maxey, who you got? And does it matter? These next-gen point guards are surely All-Star-bound after showing nice first-half bounce and becoming big factors for the Pacers and Sixers, respectively.
Haliburton came of age during the In-Season Tournament when he took the Pacers to the championship game. Maxey matured while Embiid missed games with injury, flourishing into a lead-singer role.
Haliburton’s the better passer, Maxey the better scorer. But they’re both on the same level and one may have to go through the other come the playoffs. That would be fun.
8. The Pistons aren’t this bad, or are they? A record-tying losing streak is a pretty convincing sign of proof that the season isn’t exactly going well. The Pistons became an attention magnet for all the wrong reasons — 28 of them — and essentially put their season on ice by Christmas.
What’s strange is a team coached by Monty Williams and led by Cade Cunningham isn’t this dreadful. Or at least, shouldn’t be. The fallout from the streak: Detroit is already making plans for next season, even before this season’s midway point. Auditions for 2024-25 are open.
9. Wemby is (almost) worth the hype. Victor Wembanyama is averaging 19.8 points, 10.1 rebounds, 2.9 assists and 3.1 blocks per game. Those stats alone makes him one of the better rookies of late at both ends. He’s must-watch TV because of his height and athletic ability.
Plus, he’s gradually improving with each month. His efficiency is better, along with his decision-making. Keep in mind he’s just 20, and dealing with high expectations.
That said, the real heavy lifting involves the Spurs, who remain in the West basement. That’s why Wemby can’t match the rookie seasons of Spurs legends David Robinson and Tim Duncan, who each had NBA-record single-season turnarounds (35 and 36 wins).
10. These aren’t your older brother’s Timberwolves. Minnesota might own the award for biggest surprise among contenders. Wasn’t it just a year ago when they were assailed for the Rudy Gobert trade and projected to be, at best, a mid team this season? Well, that noise died quickly.
Instead, the Wolves have the league’s No. 1 defense, are blessed with a healthy Karl-Anthony Towns (unlike last season) and are led by the still-rising Anthony Edwards. They’ve beaten the Nuggets, Celtics, 76ers, Thunder and the LA Clippers. And get this: Gobert is a favorite to grab another Kia Defensive Player of the Year trophy.
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Shaun Powell has covered the NBA for more than 25 years. You can e-mail him here, find his archive here and follow him on X.
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