Report Card Grades for Paul George, Klay Thompson and NBA's Top Players on New Teams
Nearly a month into the 2024-25 season, we're nearing the end of the NBA's adjustment period, a stretch of season-opening games in which we give new faces in new places a little grace.
Now that almost 20 percent of the season has elapsed, it's fair to judge how well players like Paul George, Klay Thompson and others are faring on their new teams. We have larger samples for some than others, as George, in particular, missed a good chunk of time after ending the preseason with a hyperextended knee.
At the very least, we've now got a sense of how well each of these guys fit with their teammates, along with some early answers to preseason questions about roles and chemistry.
These aren't final grades, but they should help give a good idea of how well some of the offseason's biggest transactions are panning out.
Klay Thompson, Dallas Mavericks
1 of 5
The Dallas Mavericks haven't exactly charged out of the gates, but that has more to do with Luka Dončić's shooting struggles and some lapses in transition defense (especially off live rebounds) than anything else.
That said, Thompson is posting the worst three-point percentage (35.6 percent) and second-lowest scoring average (13.6 points per game) of his career through the season's first few weeks while doing little to dispel concerns about his defensive mobility.
It's at least encouraging that his presence on the floor seems to still be beneficial to his teammates, as the Mavs have a higher offensive rating with him on the court than off. That data can be noisy, though, and Thompson is still forcing a few too many shots in an effort to get himself on track.
It's fair to say Thompson hasn't been a transformative force in the early going, and that he hasn't regained the step or two he lost in his final season with the Golden State Warriors. Dallas had better hope that changes come playoff time.
Grade: C-
Paul George, Philadelphia 76ers
2 of 5
A hyperextended knee in his final preseason game delayed Paul George's debut until Nov. 4, and he's already missed additional time as the Philadelphia 76ers hold him out of back-to-back sets. The sample is small enough to bring an "incomplete" mark into consideration.
When on the floor, George has only occasionally looked like the max-salaried star Philly paid for over the summer—his 29-point outing against the New York Knicks on Nov. 12 standing out as his best work in an otherwise underwhelming start.
The health risks with a 34-year-old George, who averaged just 53 games per year across five seasons with the LA Clippers, were well understood. And as predictable as his struggle to get up to speed has been, it's not particularly encouraging to see him averaging a meager 16.5 points on a 51.6 true shooting percentage that would rate as his worst ever over a full season.
At least he's still making his typical all-around contributions by averaging 5.5 rebounds, 5.2 assists and 2.3 steals while playing steady defense.
Full judgment won't really be possible until we see George on the floor with Joel Embiid and Tyrese Maxey for extended stretches. Given the injury issues all three have already faced, it's hard to be optimistic about Philly getting all three of its stars on the same page before 2025.
Grade: B-
Karl-Anthony Towns, New York Knicks
3 of 5
There aren't many endeavors where a 50.0 percent success rate is a good thing, but three-point shooting is one of them.
Karl-Anthony Towns' first few weeks with the New York Knicks have gone swimmingly from an individual offensive perspective, as the 29-year-old center is averaging 26.4 points while shooting 54.2 percent from the field and 50.0 percent from long range.
It'd be nice if KAT would up his volume, as the 5.2 deep attempts he's averaging per game is right in line with last year's figure and nowhere near his career high of 7.9, set back in 2019-20. That said, Towns is also punishing opponents—particularly the lumbering bigs assigned to guard him—by putting the ball on the floor and attacking the basket with increased effectiveness.
He's shooting 63.5 percent from the field and generating 2.7 free-throw attempts per game on drives, significant increases over last year's 51.8 percent and 1.8 free-throw attempts per game, respectively.
Rim-protection is an issue, and Towns could better help a Knicks offense too dependent on Jalen Brunson by tapping into his facilitating game more often, but a 65.6 true shooting percentage built on elite efficiency beyond the arc is hard to criticize.
Grade: A
DeMar DeRozan, Sacramento Kings
4 of 5
DeMar DeRozan would have to perform at a shockingly low level to render the Sacramento Kings losers of the sign-and-trade that brought him over from the Chicago Bulls. All the Kings gave up was Harrison Barnes, Chris Duarte, two future second-rounders and a 2031 first-round pick swap while agreeing to give the six-time All-Star $74 million over three years.
As has been the refrain since that deal went down, the Kings would have been fools not to add a player with this much talent at such a low price.
Fortunately for all involved, DeRozan has continued his metronomic scoring consistency by averaging 22.9 points per game on a 52.6/40.0/85.9 shooting split. Though concerns should remain about a thin Sacramento roster that overindexes toward offense-only players, DeRozan is delivering exactly as advertised.
And that includes late-game heroics. Only teammate De'Aaron Fox, Jayson Tatum and Nikola Jokić have more than DeRozan's 36 clutch points on the season.
Grade: A-
Mikal Bridges, New York Knicks
5 of 5
The mid-rangers are falling, but Mikal Bridges isn't giving the New York Knicks anything close to the long-range volume or efficiency they expected when surrendering five first-round picks to acquire him over the offseason.
The concerns about Bridges' shooting form from beyond the arc are well-founded. It simply looks different, lacks fluidity and isn't producing results. It's pretty simple: A three-and-D player needs to hit threes, and Bridges, shooting 32.6 percent, isn't.
It's not his fault the Knicks gave up such a haul to land him, but the price paid has to be a factor here. Bridges has been a solid if somewhat inconsistent starter to this point in the season, posting averages of 16.5 points, 4.1 rebounds and 3.4 assists as something between a third and fourth option. That's certainly not objectively poor production, but it falls far short of expectations.
The good news is that there's plenty of time for Bridges to adjust to his new role. Maybe he'll iron out the hitch in his shot and climb back toward his career average of 37.3 percent from distance. For now, though, he's been far less than New York bargained for.
Grade: D+
Stats courtesy of NBA.com, Basketball Reference and Cleaning the Glass. Accurate through Nov. 17. Salary info via Spotrac.
Grant Hughes covers the NBA for Bleacher Report. Follow him on Twitter (@gt_hughes), and subscribe to the Hardwood Knocks podcast, where he appears with Bleacher Report's Dan Favale.
.jpg?w=600 "Grading every NFL team's draft")
.jpg?w=600 "Report: Pavia Accepts Ravens Invite")
.jpg?w=600 "Undrafted Free Agent Tracker ✍️")
.JPEG?w=600 "Best Late-Round Draft Steals ‼️")
