Biggest Questions for NBA Superstars Down the Stretch

It's about the rings.

Let's be honest; no NBA superstar is out there busting his hump just for fun and exercise. Sure, they're earning paychecks, but elite players set their eyes firmly on one thing: a title.

Kobe Bryant is visibly lusting after a sixth ring. Kevin Garnett and LeBron James eagerly jumped ship from their teams to pursue a title on a bona fide contender.

Winning is a compulsion, and winning a title is the ultimate vindication.

In considering the biggest questions down the stretch, I imagined what the main man on each top playoff team had to be wondering. And I saw eight bold question marks.

Some of these players are nagged by injuries, while others are nagged by their teams' inability to score. But it's much more complicated than that.

Tony Parker

Will Parker be at full strength for the playoffs?

Tony Parker was on the short list of MVP candidates until he suffered a left ankle sprain on March 1. Since then, the San Antonio Spurs are 3-1. But aren't the Spurs always 3-1 in any given four-game stretch?

With Tim Duncan growing a little long in the tooth, the sun is setting on the Spurs' shot at another title. At least for this dynasty. 

Parker was running the offense like a Swiss watch. He had been averaging 21 points on 53.3 percent shooting and 7.6 assists per game. He was also posting markedly better averages from three-point range and the foul line.

Good thing Parker's already running on a treadmill.

Backcourt mate Manu Ginobili said, “We can’t have him limping or not being him. So it’s great to see him running already and we are counting the days" (per Mike Monroe of the San Antonio Express-News).

Ginobili may be counting the days more carefully than others. The 35-year-old has slowed over the last few seasons, and as his scoring average has dipped, Parker's has peaked.

Without the Frenchman in the lineup and playing near 100 percent, the Spurs' well-oiled machine could grind to a halt once the playoffs roll around.

Carmelo Anthony

Can Melo will his team to a desirable playoff spot without Amar'e?

After sitting out for three games with a sore knee, Carmelo Anthony managed just 14 points on 4-of-15 shooting (26.7 percent) against the Golden State Warriors Monday night.

Though Anthony hauled in 10 boards, he also failed to dish a single assist. Melo had been averaging 28.2 points and 2.8 assists per game.

With Amar'e Stoudemire sidelined due to another knee debridement procedure—he had the same arthroscopic on his left knee in November; this one is on his right knee—the chips are down to see if the New York Knicks really are better without Melo and STAT together.

Stoudemire will definitely miss the remainder of the regular season and some of the playoffs (per Marc Berman of the New York Post). He took about nine weeks to recover from the operation on his left knee, so his prospects for the playoffs look grim, regardless of fire extinguishers.

Anthony will have to sustain the Knicks through a tough final five weeks in the season. His imperative is clear: finish in second or third place.

A fourth-place finish places New York on a collision course with the Miami Heat in the second round of the playoffs. That matchup should be postponed for as long as possible. 

LeBron James

How will the Heat handle top defenses in the playoffs?

LeBron James has been playing on a superhuman level lately. He averaged 29.7 points (on 64.1 percent shooting), 7.5 rebounds and 7.8 assists per game in the month of February.

But James struggled facing the elite defense of the Indiana Pacers on Sunday. He scored 13 points and attempted only 10 shots (season average: 18 shots per game).

King James was also held down by the Memphis Grizzlies' stout defense back on March 1. LeBron had 18 points and 10 assists but shot just 4-of-14 from the field.

Perhaps that was a fluke, but prior to facing Memphis, LeBron had posted a shooting percentage of 45 percent or better in every game since January 10 (6-of-15 from the field at the Portland Trail Blazers). 

Despite James' relatively quiet performances against Indy and the Grizz recently (he still flirted with a triple-double in both games), the Miami Heat won and continue to steamroll opponents. And in both matchups against top defenses, Dwyane Wade put on fine performances (9-of-16 shooting each time). 

The question is, do the Heat have enough depth and balance to sustain a playoff series against a top defense? Indiana and Memphis are Nos. 1 and 2 in points allowed per 100 possessions. The Chicago Bulls are fourth; the Boston Celtics are fifth (per ESPN). 

Essentially, the game plan against Miami necessitates trying to contain LeBron and worrying about D-Wade and the rest later. The Heat look invincible right now, but at least the top defenses are speed bumps in the road.

Kobe Bryant

Can the Lakers win a playoff series?

After falling to the Memphis Grizzlies on January 23, the Los Angeles Lakers found their record at just 17-25.

Since then, they have gone 16-6 and vaulted themselves into the eighth spot in the West. The defense has improved, the pick-and-roll is coming together, and Kobe Bryant has continued to be otherworldly. 

But the only really good team they defeated was the Oklahoma City Thunder on Jan. 27, and they subsequently lost to them on March 5.

Through five games in the month of March, Kobe is averaging 33.2 points, 5.8 rebounds and 7.8 assists per game. He sometimes appears to be carrying the entire team to the playoffs upon his back. 

That certainly seemed the case against Toronto on Friday night, as the Black Mamba made a trio of three-pointers in the final two minutes to force overtime, leading to a Laker victory.

But can this team really sustain? At times, they seem held together by little more than Bryant's will to win and Mike D'Antoni's mustache wax. They are sorely lacking in depth, and they rely on bench scoring from the likes of Jodie Meeks, who can't play a lick of defense.

Though the Lakers currently sit in eighth, they would be doomed against the San Antonio Spurs. And likewise versus the Oklahoma City Thunder. Perhaps their best hope is for a blockbuster showdown against the L.A. Clippers.

Derrick Rose

Will D-Rose play at all this season?

On March 9, Melissa Isaacson of ESPNChicago.com reported that Derrick Rose's doctor had cleared him to play. Chicago Bulls fans rejoiced. 

But according to Isaacson, the former MVP "told the Bulls that until he feels 'in his mind' he can confidently dunk off his left foot in a game situation, he is not 100 percent mentally ready to return to competition."

And Rose told ESPN's Doris Burke on Sunday that his hamstrings felt like they were "on fire" (per Nick Friedell, ESPNChicago.com). 

Rose has not addressed the media since Feb. 13. Since then, he has consistently taken part in scrimmages and been filmed dunking off both his right foot and his left.

While coach Tom Thibodeau trusts Rose, it's hard to say whether he really trusts the rest of his backcourt in a tough playoff series.

Richard Hamilton and Kirk Hinrich are currently dealing with injuries; Nate Robinson (41.8 percent shooting this season) and Marco Belinelli (40.6 percent) practically define the adjective "streaky."

Thibodeau is already giving a taxing workload to Luol Deng and Joakim Noah. Deng leads the league in minutes per game, while Noah is ninth.

Last season, Jeremy Lin was castigated for not playing in the playoffs after saying his knee was only "85 percent" (per Ian O'Connor, ESPNNewYork.com). I wonder what percentage Rose would currently rate his own knee.

Regardless, the Bulls are one of four teams separated by two games between fourth and seventh place, a significant gulf come playoff bracket time.

Kevin Durant

Where does the rest of the offense come from?

The Oklahoma City Thunder have played stellar basketball this season.

After receiving a sound beating from the Miami Heat in the 2012 finals, OKC shook off the sting and have streaked to 30 games above .500. 

But despite Kevin Durant's continued scoring barrages and the mercurial Russell Westbrook dazzling defenses, they're still missing the beard. 

Kevin Martin has provided solid scoring off the bench, and Serge Ibaka even developed a mid-range jumper, but the absence of James Harden echoes throughout the roster.

And nowhere is it more apparent than against the top-flight contenders. 

The Thunder are 8-4 in their last 12 games, with the most recent losses being at the San Antonio Spurs, at the run-and-shoot Denver Nuggets and Houston Rockets and home to the Miami Heat.

Against the Spurs, Durant scored 26 points, Westbrook had 25, Ibaka notched 13 and everybody else contributed 29. Obviously, Martin, though a competent scorer, is not anywhere near the threat off the bench that Harden was.

In the loss to the Heat, KD dropped 40 and Westbrook had 26. No other Thunder player scored in double digits as Miami completed the season sweep of their finals rival.

We know Durant will bring the scoring, but can OKC find enough offense in the crevices to carry it to another NBA Finals?

The final five weeks of the season will be a crucial trial run, as Martin's shooting has slumped significantly. Durant may have to hope for yet another renaissance from Derek Fisher.

Chris Paul

How can the Clippers beat the elite?

The Los Angeles Clippers have won 10 of their last 14 games.

But those losses came at the hands of the playoff elite: Miami Heat, San Antonio Spurs, Oklahoma City Thunder. And the obligatory loss to the Denver Nuggets in the thin air at the Pepsi Center (they're 28-3 at home). 

The Clippers have tremendous depth, play formidable defense and can kill you in transition. But they struggle in the half-court offense when Lob City is not in full effect.

Chris Paul has missed 12 games due to injury, mainly a sore knee. Obviously, he will need to be healthy for a deep playoff run to occur. But he will also have to figure out a way to lead his team past the toughest competition in the league.

CP3 totaled just seven points on 2-of-11 shooting combined in the recent losses to San Antonio and Miami. He scored 26 points against OKC, but it came on 8-of-21 shooting. Paul is averaging only 12 field-goal attempts per game.

This team is meant to contend for a title, but no DeAndre Jordan dunk can save them from being third best in the West.

Danny Granger

Can a healthy Granger fill the offensive holes?

The Indiana Pacers have exceeded all expectations in the absence of Danny Granger. Their league-leading defense has propelled them into a fight for second place in the East with the New York Knicks.

But they still struggle to score on a nightly basis. As a team, Indy gets few assists per game, commits a lot of turnovers and is in the bottom third of the league in effective field-goal percentage (via ESPN).

That's why the Pacers desperately need their leading scorer for the past five seasons to return to form. The supporting cast has risen to the occasion, but they're in need of a boost on offense.

Granger missed the first 55 games of the season with a knee problem. He returned on February 23 and shot just 1-of-10. He was shut down after playing limited minutes in five games due to soreness in his left knee.

When asked about the possibility that Granger could be done for the season, coach Frank Vogel said, "We're not anywhere near [crossing that bridge]…I don't think we're going to have to" (per Jeff Zillgitt of USA Today). 

That's not exactly a ringing endorsement, but the Pacers will have to try and remain optimistic. 

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