5. Atlanta Hawks
The big news coming out of Atlanta is the hiring of new coach Quin Snyder. With several teams making a strong push toward a playoff spot, this is a bold move by the Hawks. We don’t know how messy it was under the previous leadership but the mere fact that the organization didn’t wait until the end of the season speaks volumes of how they don’t want to be a lottery team. They want a change in culture as soon as possible and that involves trying to win their remaining regular season games.
Snyder, of course, was the coach of the Utah Jazz who he led them to six straight trips to the Western Conference playoffs. How will he immediately impact the fate of the Hawks? Will he use the same schemes he had with the Jazz? Will he run similar sets with Trae Young as he did with his former star Donovan Mitchell?
The Hawks are still outside the top six of the East. With only a handful of games remaining, they will be one of the teams to watch out for with their new head coach.
4. Milwaukee Bucks
The Bucks haven’t lost a game in February. They’ve won 14 straight and look like every bit of the championship team that won it all in 2021. Despite them being the hottest team in the league, there’s still a prevailing thought they might still be underdogs to be champs once again.
Maybe it’s because they’re not usually part of the talk of the town like the Golden State Warriors or Los Angeles Lakers. They’re not the number one team in the East like the Boston Celtics. They have Giannis Antetokounmpo but Nikola Jokic has taken the lead in MVP conversations. They didn’t have a huge midseason trade like the Phoenix Suns or Dallas Mavericks. Their biggest acquisition was getting Jae Crowder who will boost their defense and shooting. Crowder is good but he didn’t make the headlines like Kevin Durant.
In a way, the 2023 Bucks is like the 2021 Bucks: a dangerous, under-the-radar team that can suddenly win it all.
3. LA Clippers
After the trade deadline, there were several teams that you needed to watch. You can pick and choose between the Mavericks with Kyrie Irving, the new-look Lakers, and of course the Suns who will have KD sooner than later. The Clippers also made a splash with the acquisition of Russell Westbrook. But there’s a different kind of excitement when it comes to the Clippers. This is more of an eyebrow-raising kind of anticipation and curiosity about just how this will all look in LA.
Seeing Westbrook in a Clippers uniform might still take time to get used to but he has immediately made his presence felt in his first two games. In his debut, he was involved in a double overtime time frenzy with the Sacramento Kings to finish with 17 points and 14 assists. He had 17 points again in another loss to the Denver Nuggets.
We’ve seen different iterations of Westbrook since his OKC days and we might see a new version. He won’t need to shoot lights out - that’s why you have Kawhi Leonard and Paul George. He won’t even need to be the primary playmaker as the two aforementioned superstars can handle the ball. Coach Ty Lue said they want Russ to be Russ. The Lakers also said that about Westbrook and it didn’t work out. Under the lesser bright lights as a Clipper and with a different system, maybe Russ can be Russ this time around.
2. New York Knicks
Another team worth taking a peep at is the Knicks. If the Miami Heat continue to fall down the standings and the Hawks don’t figure it out, the Knicks are on their way to the postseason. Julius Randle has been playing out of his mind lately. Did you watch his 46-point performance against the Washington Wizards? Probably not if you’re not interested in the lottery-bound Wizards. But if Randle can continue to put up huge nights against playoff contenders, then the Knicks definitely deserve more love.
1. Portland Trail Blazers
The Trail Blazers have an outside shot of making the playoffs but can still definitely make the Play-In Tournament. In short, they haven’t been exactly good this season. But throw away the record and throw away all the losses. The only thing you need to focus on is Damian Lillard. He is a must-see in League Pass.
Lillard recently rewrote the scoring record books once again as he exploded for 71 points against the Houston Rockets. He became just the eighth player in NBA history to score at least 70 points.
Even if you’re watching a different game and you’re focused on let’s say, Ja Morant and LeBron James, you have to keep tabs on a Portland game. You just don’t know whether it will be the day Lillard has another huge performance. Getting 70 points again might be a challenge but you’ll still tune in if he’s going for 50 or 60, right? That’s the star power of Dame Time.
