The 2024-25 NBA season is here! We present the biggest questions, best- and worst-case scenarios, and fantasy predictions for all 30 teams. Enjoy!
End of year 2023–24
Off-season moves
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Enrichment: Head coach Jordi Fernandez, Bojan Bogdanović, Shake Milton, Ziaire Williams
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Subtraction: Mikal Bridges, Lonnie Walker IV, Keita Bates-Diop, Dennis Smith Jr.
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Complete squad
The most important question: who will even be on these networks in two years?
The Brooklyn Nets are a team in transition. Kevin Durant, Kyrie Irving and James Harden are long gone. The same goes for Mikal Bridges, their best player on a 32-win team last season. In their place will be Ben Simmons, Cameron Johnson, Dorian Finney-Smith and a whole group of selected players who may one day come to fruition.
But not that day. Over the past three seasons, Simmons has played in 57 games, most of them poorly. Johnson and Finney-Smith are placeholders. Don't be surprised if one or both are replaced with more designs. Goal for now: Pray that one or more of these types – their own or someone else's – will become a Guy.
That's why they traded several picks to the Phoenix Suns to regain the rights to theirs in 2025 and 2026 from the Houston Rockets. They couldn't have signaled louder that they wanted to refuel. They want the NBA's worst record, which could get Cooper Flagg or Ace Bailey the No. 1 pick in the draft.
In the meantime, they should assess how few prospects they have. In recent years, they drafted Cam Thomas, Noah Clowney and Dariq Whitehead in the first round. Thomas is the Nets' closest scoring threat, although that may be because he's the one willing to take All shots. Can he improve his efficiency enough to convince us that his output will translate into winning basketball?
Clowney is a big name who bounced around the G League last season. Can he shoot well enough to justify playing alongside center Nicolas Claxton? If not, can Clowney impress enough to consider moving on the four-year, $97 million contract they just signed Claxton to?
Foot and shin surgeries cost Whitehead almost his entire rookie season. Can the 6-foot-7 Duke product rediscover the potential that made him the top wing player in the high school class of 2022?
Don't waste your time trying to win matches with Dennis Schröder and Bojan Bogdanovic. Flyers for Killian Hayes and Ziaire Williams, a pair of recent top-10 picks who failed to make the teams that drafted them, was a smart move. Why not see if they can rebuild their value as losses mount?
And then there's Simmons. He's the only person on the roster to make the All-Star team, and he managed to make three of them – before his back gave out, he lost his confidence, or both. Three years ago, he finished second in the Defensive Player of the Year category. Is any of that still there? He is 28 years old. Last season, he averaged 9-12-9 per 36 minutes in 15 games and barely showed up on the radar. His career has one of the strangest storylines in league history. He is in the final year of a max contract. Will he even be a minimum wage player next season? We should know the answer to this question at least by April.
Who knows who will be on this team in two years' time. They are the ones who have to reflect this season.
Best case scenario
Thomas is legal. Maybe Whitehead too. Clowney is a stretch four who can play with Claxton, and the two of them together can form the backbone of a strong defense. The Nets are finding suitors for Johnson and Finney-Smith, adding to their draft stock. Either way, Simmons is finding peace in his basketball career. And the team is absolutely terrible, so bad that enough ping-pong balls land to get Flagg.
If everything falls apart
No one is that good, but the Nets are trying like hell. First-year head coach Jordi Fernandez falls in love with his veterans, beating out Schröder and Johnson, Finney-Smith, Bogdanovic and Claxton to another 30 wins – enough to get into the lottery late. And we're back here next season in the same situation, wondering who should even play in Brooklyn.
Spin fantasy
Thomas is having a breakthrough season ahead of him. The 23-year-old bucket collector was one of four Under-23 guards to average at least 20 points per game last season with a 30% usage rate. Add to that his evolving game, and he'll be a strong pick in the sixth round.
Claxton is a good source of blocks, rebounds and FG%, while Johnson will look to build on a disappointing and injury-riddled season. Johnson ranked 128th in per-game value, largely due to an overall decline in his efficiency.
Clowney is an intriguing late-inning flyer, but he will become even more valuable once the Nets fully commit to the Cooper Flagg sweepstakes. Schröder will also have his moments and I have more faith in his contributions this season than Simmons. — And Tytus
2024–25 schedule
Whatever the number, take it below.
