5 NBA Teams Desperate for a Starting Lineup Change
The NBA playoffs are all about exploiting weaknesses. If you've got a vulnerable spot in the lineup, it's an absolute guarantee that a smart opponent will try to capitalize on it.
Even among starting groups, perfection is impossible to achieve. Lack of size, suspect shooting, defensive frailty—shortcomings can take many forms, but all of them show up on opposing scouting reports.
Here, we'll run through a handful of NBA teams and highlight where their starting units need help. It's telling that in addition to some squads that have been watching the postseason from home, we'll also feature a legitimate contender.
If that doesn't prove there's no such thing as a perfect starting lineup, I'm not sure what does.
Utah Jazz
1 of 5
Lineup: Keyonte George, Svi Mykhailiuk, Ace Bailey, Lauri Markkanen, Jusuf Nurkić
Good news for Utah Jazz fans who no longer want to watch the league's worst starting lineup: This unit is guaranteed to change next year as long as everyone's health holds up.
Walker Kessler will slide into the spot vacated by Nurkić, whose contract expired, assuming Utah retains its defensive anchor in restricted free agency. Mykhailiuk is still on the roster, but last year's key deadline acquisition Jaren Jackson Jr. is a lock to join the first unit in his place. Bailey isn't a sure thing, but Utah should at least be rooting for the former lottery pick to seize the 2 in what would be a ridiculously oversized starting lineup.
Change will be a positive by default. Utah's preferred starters got hammered by 10.0 points per 100 possessions across its 16 starts.
In theory, Jackson and Kessler will give this group a defensive backbone most teams would envy. With Kessler manning the lane, former DPOY Jackson roving off of nonthreatening shooters and length across every position but point guard, the Jazz should dramatically improve on the 120.6 defensive rating last year's preferred starters allowed.
With George and Markkanen no longer held back by a franchise bent on avoiding success, big scoring nights may also be in the cards.
Portland Trail Blazers
2 of 5
Lineup: Jrue Holiday, Shaedon Sharpe, Deni Avdija, Toumani Camara, Donovan Clingan
This was the Portland Trail Blazers' opening-night starting lineup, a unit that went on to take the floor for a team-high 15 tipoffs, amassing a minus-1.6 net rating across 330 possessions. That was second-worst figure among fivesomes with that many starts and possessions.
Portland went away from this group by necessity when Sharpe got hurt in early February, but the most frequent replacement lineup (with Jerami Grant in Sharpe's spot) was an even worse minus-4.0 in 13 starts.
Neither group performed well enough to inspire confidence for next year, but at least an in-house solution exists. The 178-possession sample is small, but Holiday, Avdija, Camara and Clingan looked much more dangerous with Scoot Henderson occupying that fifth spot. That group put up a plus-12.4 net rating, scored at a 64th-percentile clip and rarely turned the ball over.
The Blazers went 5-2 in the seven games these guys started.
Even if Portland doesn't want to use Henderson next to Holiday in an admittedly small backcourt, it's clear the fifth member of this starting five needs to have some downhill burst and at least the potential to run streakily hot from deep. The Blazers' offensive success depends too much on Avdija creating everything, and an additional threat to drive and score is a must.
San Antonio Spurs
3 of 5
Lineup: De'Aaron Fox, Stephon Castle, Devin Vassell, Julian Champagnie and Victor Wembanyama
File this one under "penthouse problems", as the San Antonio Spurs sported a plus-18.5 net rating with their most common starting lineup of De'Aaron Fox, Stephon Castle, Devin Vassell, Julian Champagnie and Victor Wembanyama on the floor during the regular season.
Are the Spurs truly desperate for a change? Perhaps not, but there's still no denying that a couple of obvious tweaks could make this unit even more dominant.
Start with Dylan Harper, whose craft, poise and two-way skills basically make him a starter in waiting. Swap him into Fox's spot with the other four starters above, and you get a completely absurd plus-102.0 net rating across 54 possessions.
No lineup could ever sustain that level of dominance, but it at least suggests that there's real upside for San Antonio in eventually moving on from Fox. What's more, the eventual inclusion of a real forward-sized weapon in place of either Champagnie or Vassell could juice defensive versatility and help on the glass.
The takeaway here is that San Antonio is nowhere near its final evolutionary form. With a strong track record of player development, obviously underutilized future stars in the pipeline and the tools to add real talent over the next few years, the Spurs' starters are going to change...and get better.
Toronto Raptors
4 of 5
Lineup: Immanuel Quickley, RJ Barrett, Brandon Ingram, Scottie Barnes and Jakob Poeltl
Most of the data from the regular season and playoffs does not support the idea that Collin Murray-Boyles should start at center over Jakob Poeltl, but sometimes you have to ditch the numbers, trust your eyes and go with your gut.
Oh, and you can also put faith in some smaller-sample numbers that do actually support a lineup change.
The Toronto Raptors posted a plus-2.2 net rating with Poeltl at the 5 across 369 postseason possessions and a minus-3.6 with CMB in that spot. Toronto was also 17-9 with its preferred starters during the regular season, posting a plus-2.4 with Poeltl.
Quietly, Murray-Boyles' minutes at center produced a plus-3.8 net rating during the season.
That last statistic pairs with the qualitative stance that Toronto is more versatile, athletic and unpredictable with CMB switching across defensive assignments and helping turn up the tempo. Some of the Raptors' most eye-opening playoff stretches coincided with Murray-Boyles being on the floor. In fact, all three of Toronto's playoff wins saw CMB log at least 27 minutes. He didn't crack 26 in any of its four first-round losses.
Going forward, the best version of the Raptors will feature Murray-Boyles and Barnes in a versatile and defensively dominant frontcourt.
Boston Celtics
5 of 5
Lineup: Payton Pritchard, Derrick White, Jaylen Brown, Sam Hauser, Neemias Queta
Other than Brown and White (who'll need to rediscover his three-point shot to retain this status), everyone else in the Boston Celtics' most frequently used lineup is fungible.
Obviously, Jayson Tatum will slot into one of the forward spots next year, but Pritchard and especially Queta should be on notice. Throw Jordan Walsh in there, too, as he actually appeared in Hauser's starting spot with the rest of this group 16 times.
Ultimately, this comes down to Queta, a terrific breakout story this past season but someone who still seems best utilized as a high-energy backup. A tendency to foul too often and persistent struggles to move the ball quickly in Boston's offensive scheme were real issues, particularly in the postseason. Queta averaged 10.2 points and 8.4 boards during the year, but the best versions of the Celtics have always included a big man with offensive value outside the paint as a passer or shooter.
What's more, the Celtics could tinker with the Hauser/Walsh spot, perhaps adding a paint-breaking guard to open up the offense, if they somehow replace Queta with a spacer at the 5.
Queta could be back next season for as little as $2.7 million if Boston picks up his team option. That's a bargain even if he winds up taking a reduced role behind a more capable starting center.
Stats courtesy of NBA.com, Basketball Reference and Cleaning the Glass. Salary info via Spotrac.
Grant Hughes covers the NBA for Bleacher Report. Follow him on Bluesky and subscribe to the Hardwood Knocks podcast, where he appears with Bleacher Report's Dan Favale.
