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With only less than 45 days from the NBA season, it is time to see which teams are facing specific critical questions and if those questions will get answered during the season. The next division that will be discussed will be the Central Division. This division has the Greek Freek and 2021 NBA champions Milwaukee Bucks. The other teams include the Run and Gun Indiana Pacers led by Tyrese Halliburton, the Cleveland Cavaliers and rebuilding teams like the Chicago Bulls and the Detroit Pistons. It will be interesting to see the storylines and how each team performs throughout the year. Let’s dive right in!
1 Critical Question Facing Every Team Going into the 2024-2025 NBA Season: Central Edition
Chicago Bulls- When Will Zach Lavine and Nikola Vucevic Be Dealt?
After a summer full of moves, all signs point to the Chicago Bulls looking to hit the reset button and start a rebuild. It began by trading veteran guard Alex Caruso for a young prospect in Josh Giddey. This was followed by trading DeMar DeRozan for Chris Durate and two second-round picks. This trade return was a disappointment for the Bulls. Nevertheless, Chicago got the deals done sooner rather than later because this core had reached its ceiling. The question is not if Zach Lavine or Nikola Vucevic will get traded. But when will they be traded? Both players have had a career of posting solid numbers and being #1 or #2 options. However, both players have been on average or below average for most of their careers, but both can be valuable pieces to contenders. Zach Lavine is someone who can give 20-25 points a night. However, he is coming off a year where he only played 25 games. With Vucevic, he is a guy who has been walking double-double his entire career. It will be interesting to see if Chicago commits to a fire sale and start rebuilding around the young players. Let’s be honest. It would be better for the Bulls to focus on their lottery odds since the pick goes to the Spurs if it falls outside the top 10.
Cleveland Cavaliers- Can Evan Mobley Be a Franchise Player?
Today, we all know the franchise player for the Cleveland Cavaliers is Donovan Mitchell. The man is 28 years old, is a walking bucket, and has been a 25-point-per-game scorer for the past four seasons. The big question for the Cleveland Cavaliers is their big man who just signed a 224 million-dollar rookie contract extension. Evan Mobley, the #3 pick, has proven his value as a defensive big who was the runner-up for Defensive Player of the Year in his second season. There is no question that Mobley is a superstar talent defensively. However, many of the question marks have been on the offensive end. Since his rookie year, Mobley has had very minimal improvement on offense by averaging 15-16 points a game. Sure, he had some moments last season in the Celtics series, but can he sustain that? Will new coach Kenny Atkinson require more offensive duties through the big man? Are Jaret Allen and Evan Mobley just an awkward fit together? Nevertheless, Mobley will need a big offensive season for the Cleveland Cavaliers’ justification of extending Mobley to that type of contract.
Detroit Pistons- Can Detroit Finally Turn the Corner?
The last time the Detroit Pistons improved from the season before was in 2019. Since then, the Pistons have not won over 30% of their games. After last year’s disaster, Detroit is finally looking to turn the corner with a new president of basketball operations and a brand new coach. JB Bickerstaff was able to take Cleveland from a bottom 5 team to the second round of the player in his 4.5 years as the coach. The good news is that Detroit acquired some veterans to help guide the young core with playoff experience and shooting to a young team. The young core of Detroit has some interesting young pieces. However, outside of Cade Cunningham, do any of them have star potential? Cade Cunningham proved that he can be an all-star player in this league. However, his squad will need to win more than 14 games to help prove his case to get into the all-star game in San Francisco. This team still has a ways to go before they can be relevant, but this team should have hit their rock bottom point. Hopefully.
Indiana Pacers- Can the Pacers Prove They Can Make Another Deep Playoff Run?
I don’t believe anyone except a few people in Indianapolis thought the Pacers would end their season in the Eastern Conference finals. Some may have believed their run was partially luck due to the other teams dealing with the injury bug. Nevertheless, the Pacers are a team on the rise. Tyrese Halliburton was practically playing MVP basketball up until his injury, as he was leading the league in assists and leading the offense that was flirting with historic numbers. The Pacers added Pascal Siakim last year, who was the #1 option in Toronto on a couple of playoff teams and the #2 on the 2019 championship team. The biggest area of improvement for the Pacers would be defense. Indiana ranked #2 in offensive efficiency and #1 in total points and assists. However, the Pacers were #24th in defensive efficiency. This season will be a better indicator if the Pacers can become one of the top 4 teams in the East or if they are still a piece away from getting to that point. If Tyrese can play as he did before the In-Season tournament, the Pacers will be the NBA league pass favorite.
Milwaukee Bucks- Is Age Going to Be an Issue for This Core?
It is safe to say Milwaukee had an underwhelming season. The Bucks struggled with age, injuries, and a new coaching change in the middle of the season, which led to another first-round exit. As long as the Bucks have Giannis Antetokounmpo, Milwaukee will find a way to be a relevant Eastern Conference contender. And yes, the Bucks hope a full training camp with Doc Rivers will help Milwaukee improve their team chemistry. Yes, Milwaukee is looking for Damian Lillard to have a bounce-back season after a subpar first season. Perhaps, Milwaukee might be able to find another Jrue Holliday, who was their glue guy during their championship season and is someone who can improve their below-average defense. However, will the age of this core be an issue for this team? Looking at the starting lineup, Milwaukee will have one of the oldest rosters in the NBA, where every starter will be over 30 by the start of 2025. Maybe Gary Trent Jr. will be a starter and bring youth and energy to an aging core. But let’s see if this older core has another deep run in them.
Main Image: © Rick Osentoski-Imagn Images
