Player Goals for NBA's Worst Teams Down the Stretch
Are you a fan of a bad NBA team, patiently waiting at home for the May 16 lottery while your team gets slaughtered night after night? Have you grown numb to turnovers, missed shots and the optionality of defense?
Fear not, you fans of the Charlotte Hornets, Detroit Pistons, Houston Rockets, Orlando Magic and San Antonio Spurs, there are still reasons to watch over the final month of the season.
For this exercise, we're highlighting three promising young players on each roster while assigning a goal for each before the offseason begins. This could include working on a certain skill set, fighting to earn a starting job, improving efficiency, tightening up some loose defense or anything else we deem necessary.
Reaching these goals will give the players a jump on the 2023-24 season, perhaps leading to more team success as well.
Charlotte Hornets
1 of 5
P.J. Washington, PF: Get paid
Washington and the Hornets failed to reach an agreement on a contract extension last fall, meaning the 24-year-old will be a restricted free agent this summer.
For Washington, these final 15 games will be his final chance to cash in.
A career-high 15.1 points per game this season is a nice start, and Washington is up to 18.0 points, 7.0 rebounds, 2.3 assists and 1.6 blocks while shooting 41.7 percent from three over his past eight games.
He hasn't taken a star leap like most in Charlotte would have hoped after selecting him 12th overall in 2019, and Washington doesn't possess an elite skill in any one area. Still, with his ability to play multiple positions, stretch the floor and offer some rim protection, Washington can increase his value mightily with a strong finish to the season.
Mark Williams, C: Start to expand the offensive game
Finally named the starting center after Charlotte traded Mason Plumlee at the deadline, Williams has become a bright spot in an otherwise dreary season.
The 21-year-old has flashed his skills as a rim-running center while serving as a valuable pick-and-roll partner, rebounder and defender. He's holding opponents to 59.9 percent shooting at the rim, a solid number for a rookie center.
While things have been simplified on offense for Williams, it's time to start trying to expand his game.
A whopping 93.8 percent of Williams' shot attempts have come within 10 feet this season, including 67.0 percent within three feet of the basket alone.
With nothing to lose the rest of the way, it's time to let Williams make mistakes while opening up the playbook.
Dennis Smith Jr, PG.: Prove he belongs in an NBA rotation
Smith briefly considered a career in the NFL before signing with the Hornets this season, but he will once again become a free agent this summer.
The 25-year-old is averaging 8.6 points, 2.9 rebounds, 4.6 assists and 1.4 steals in 25.2 minutes across 45 games including 12 starts.
While Smith has the athleticism and passing chops to stay in the league, he's a horrendous three-point shooter (21.1 percent on 2.0 attempts per game) who may need to at least reach an average level to stick in the league.
Detroit Pistons
2 of 5
Jaden Ivey, G: Continue growth as a playmaker
Cade Cunningham being lost for the season in early November due to shin surgery has meant more playmaking responsibility for Ivey, the No. 5 overall pick in 2022.
Although he's been better as of late, Ivey ranks just above the 30th percentile as a pick-and-roll ball-handler this season. He's good at taking defenders off the dribble and getting into the paint, but his 18.3 percent turnover frequency is still too high.
The good news? There's certainly been noticeable growth as of late.
Ivey is averaging 6.8 assists over his last five games, including hitting double digits three times. The game is likely slowing down, and opponents have to respect Ivey's own three-level scoring attack.
More of a combo guard than pure floor general, these final few weeks of the season are Ivey's best chance at playing more point guard before Cunningham returns next season.
James Wiseman, C: Get as much court time as possible
The Pistons will eventually need to sort through their frontcourt logjam at some point, but that's a problem for another day.
For now, getting Wiseman playing time is of the utmost importance before the season ends.
So far, head coach Dwane Casey is doing just that, as Wiseman has been inserted into the starting lineup the last six games and is averaging 12.7 points, 7.8 rebounds, 1.2 blocks and shooting 63.5 percent in 26.3 minutes.
Despite playing just eight games in Detroit following his trade from the Golden State Warriors, Wiseman is closing in on the same amount of total minutes (205) that he logged in 21 games with the Dubs (262).
The Pistons can work on specific areas of Wiseman's game this summer. For now, it's all about just getting on the floor and letting the game come back to him.
Marvin Bagley III, F/C: Fight for minutes for next year
Injuries to Jalen Duren and Isaiah Stewart have helped open up a bigger role for Bagley, who's made the most of his opportunity as of late.
Bagley is putting up 15.8 points, 10.8 rebounds and 1.2 blocks with 54.8 percent shooting over his last six games, proving he still belongs in this rotation even when all the bodies come back.
With Wiseman now in the fold, however, Bagley's playing time next season isn't promised. Improving his defense and three-point shooting the rest of the year would go a long way in making his case for a starting spot in 2023-24 as well.
Houston Rockets
3 of 5
Jalen Green, SG: Increase shot efficiency
Billed as one of the next great scorers after being selected No. 2 overall by the Rockets in 2021, Green has only sort of lived up to the hype thus far.
The 21-year-old is putting up 21.7 points per game in his sophomore season, but on a Houston team desperate for offensive structure and playmaking, Green's efficiency has suffered.
Both his two-point (50.2 percent to 47.1 percent) and three-point (34.3 percent to 33.6 percent) shot efficiencies have fallen in Year 2, a bad sign for someone whose primary skill is scoring.
Green is getting to the rim less this season and settling for more mid-range jumpers. He is also seeing far fewer of his shots come off assists (just 34.2 percent of his twos and 57.7 percent of his threes, compared to respective marks of 43.8 and 66.2 last season).
He needs to have far more shot discipline, something that's admittedly not easy to do on such a young team.
Alperen Şengün, C: Better rim protection, overall defense
Şengün has been awesome in Year 2 for Houston, a 20-year-old who's already become one of the best passing big men in the NBA.
Averages of 14.8 points, 8.8 rebounds and 3.8 assists per game have placed Şengün in the company of Luka Dončić, Nikola Jokić, Ben Simmons and Blake Griffin as the only five players to reach these numbers in their first two seasons since 2000.
Şengün's primary improvements need to come on the defensive end, where he's allowing opponents to shoot 64.5 percent at the rim, the sixth-highest mark among the 26 players who have faced 300 shots or more.
If Şengün can get this number down a few percentage points while working on his lateral quickness, he'll at least be a capable defender to go along with a soon-to-be premier offensive game.
Jabari Smith Jr., F: Show any sign of improvement
It's been an ugly rookie season for Smith, the No. 3 overall pick in the 2022 draft.
Billed as a potential two-way star coming out of Auburn, Smith is shooting just 38.9 percent overall this season and 29.6 percent from three, with the Rockets also allowing 2.8 more points per 100 possessions with him in the game.
Getting off to a bad start would have been one thing, but there's been an alarming lack of improvement overall this season. Both Smith's overall numbers and shooting efficiency have been consistent from month to month, not ideal for a 19-year-old with this kind of upside.
Orlando Magic
4 of 5
Paolo Banchero, F: Stick a fork in Rookie of the Year race
A lot would have to go wrong for Banchero not to win Rookie of the Year at this point.
The No. 1 overall pick leads all first-year players in scoring (20.0 points) while ranking fourth in rebounding (6.6) and third in assists (3.6). He's the only rookie to lead his own team in points per game as well.
He's not without his flaws, of course.
Banchero isn't a good defender at this point, and he's shooting just 27.5 percent from three. The advanced stats also prefer fellow draft classmates Walker Kessler and Jalen Williams instead (first and second among rookies in win shares and value over replacement player, whereas Banchero is respectively seventh and eighth in those categories).
If there's even a shred of doubt in voters' minds, Banchero needs to remove it with a strong finish.
Franz Wagner, F: Improve isolation scoring
There's not much Wagner can't do on a basketball court, despite just being in Year 2.
The 21-year-old is averaging 18.8 points, 3.9 rebounds and 3.5 assists, while he's also shooting 37.0 percent from three and can play and defend multiple positions. He's good in the pick-and-roll, transition and can post up.
His one-on-one scoring is still a work in progress, however.
Wagner ranks just above the 15th percentile as an isolation scorer this season, with just 7.1 percent of his attempts coming this way. While Banchero looks like he'll be one of the premier big men iso scorers in the league (already in the 48th percentile as a rookie), having Wagner join him as a second 6'9"-plus forward who can score off the dribble effectively would make the Magic a nightmare matchup over the next decade.
Jalen Suggs, G: Establish a permanent role
After serving as a starter for the majority of his rookie season, the return of Markelle Fultz and Orlando's desire to go big has Suggs playing mostly as a reserve this year.
We still don't know what Suggs, the fifth overall pick in 2021, could become moving forward.
For what it's worth, Suggs has played better when inserted into the starting lineup, averaging 12.1 points, 3.4 rebounds, 4.8 assists and 1.5 steals while shooting 44.0 percent overall in 16 contests compared to 7.7 points, 2.6 rebounds, 2.1 assists, 1.1 steals and a 33.8 shooting percentage off the bench.
While he's shown he can start, Suggs needs to force head coach Jamahl Mosley to keep him there.
San Antonio Spurs
5 of 5
Keldon Johnson, F: Take advantage of his No. 1 scorer status
Johnson has taken over as the alpha scorer in San Antonio, with his 21.6 points per game leading the team and ranking 32nd overall in Spurs history.
Unfortunately, we don't know if these are empty scoring numbers or not yet given San Antonio's poor record and Johnson's drop in efficiency (55.0 true shooting percentage, the lowest of his career). We also don't know how long Johnson can keep his title of leading scorer, given the amount of young talent on the roster with significant cap space and a high draft pick awaiting this summer.
The opportunity to have the green light in the NBA can be a fleeting thing. Johnson needs to prove he deserves it, and not just because of the lack of veteran talent around him.
Jeremy Sochan, F: Make an All-Rookie team
Sochan has been one of the more enjoyable rookies to watch this season thanks to his defense, intensity and ball-handling ability.
All of these factors and more should have him in line to make one of the two All-Rookie teams, provided he can maintain a high level of play into the middle of April.
With the first team likely consisting of Paolo Banchero, Bennedict Mathurin, Jalen Williams, Jaden Ivey and Walker Kessler/Keegan Murray, this leaves Sochan to compete for a second-team spot with players like Jabari Smith Jr., Mark Williams, Tari Eason and Jalen Duren.
Malaki Branham, G: Keep his starting job
Another rookie quickly climbing up the ladder, Branham was inserted into the Spurs' starting lineup on Feb. 3 and hasn't looked back.
The 19-year-old is averaging 15.3 points, 4.5 rebounds, 2.6 assists and 0.8 steals in these 12 starts, doing so on solid 48.4/36.4/82.4 shooting percentages.
The key now becomes keeping the job given the amount of uncertainty this summer will bring. For now, the Ohio State product looks like a draft steal at No. 20 overall.
