Joseph Rowdis ’25
Staff Writer
And just like that, another NBA regular season successfully came to a close, and indeed this season is different. There was a lot to take in and remember from the season, so let’s get right into the action. Opening Night in the NBA already started the season with a bang. The much anticipated history for the first-ever father-son duo to play together in an NBA game came true in the Los Angeles Lakers’ home opener against the Minnesota Timberwolves. What a great moment it was for LeBron James to play with his son Bronny James, who was drafted 55th overall in the 2024 NBA Draft.
Speaking of debuts, we saw many coaches (both first-time and previous) make their debuts for new teams, such as Kenny Atkinson with the Cleveland Cavaliers, Jordi Fernandez with the Brooklyn Nets, Brian Keefe for the Washington Wizards, and most attention-worthy during the offseason, JJ Redick with the Lakers. As for players, who would’ve thought Karl-Anthony Towns, the longtime Timberwolve, and Mikal Bridges would’ve been traded to the Knicks? Or even DeMar DeRozan going to the Sacramento Kings? What about Chris Paul taking his talents to the San Antonio Spurs? How about Klay Thompson, a former champion of the Golden State Warriors, on the Dallas Mavericks as part of the first 6-team trade in NBA history? It felt strange seeing these familiar faces on new teams, but it happened.
Let’s flash forward to the 2nd annual Emirates NBA Cup, which seemed to be a success last year for it to occur again. Some great games lived up to the hype, but at the end of the day, the Milwaukee Bucks were the ones who lifted the trophy, with Giannis Antetokounmpo winning tournament MVP. Considering how Milwaukee’s season didn’t start so hot, their run at the Cup was enough to refind their identity.
Another notable day this season was of course, Christmas Day, which entailed players gifting fans performances that keep on giving. I mean what else could you want for Christmas other than watching the “Dunk the Halls” Mickey Mouse telecast of the Knicks versus Spurs in Madison Square Garden, the good-old Philadelphia 76ers versus Boston Celtics rivalry in TD Garden, or the prime time match of the night with LeBron James of the Lakers and Stephen Curry of the Warriors putting on a show? All of these games, along with the Dallas Mavericks versus Timberwolves and Denver Nuggets versus Phoenix Suns, did not disappoint on a great holiday tradition.
Staying with traditions, we cannot forget about NBA All-Star Weekend held in San Francisco. The Rising Stars Game was great for getting to know those up and coming players of the next generation. It was even better for the fourth overall pick in the 2024 NBA Draft Stephon Castle, who got MVP, and his team because they qualified as the 4th team in the newly four-team mini-tournament for the 2025 NBA All-Star Game. The four-team tournament was a change compared to other variations of the annual Game, and ultimately, Shaq’s OGs defeated Chuck’s Global Stars in the tournament championship, with Stephen Curry earning MVP.
In terms of the contests and challenges, to be frank, there was a mix of good vibes and dull moments, but that didn’t take away from the winners shining as bright stars for their events. Team Cavs (Donovan Mitchell and Evan Mobley) won the Skills Challenge for the second time in four years. Damian Lillard did not three-peat in the 3-Point Contest because Tyler Herro lived up to his name in a close final against Buddy Hield. However, Mac McClung was able to three-peat as the Slam Dunk Contest champion after scoring 50s on all four of his dunks, one of which included a backwards dunk after jumping over a car. HOW?!
February marked the annual trade-deadline, where some teams, like the Nets, started trading away their players little by little early on to tank, and other teams waited until the deadline. A good number of trades stood out, such as De’Aaron Fox leaving the Sacramento Kings for the Spurs, Kyle Kuzma going to the Bucks for Khris Middleton to the Wizards, Zach LaVine reuniting with DeMar DeRozan on the Kings from the Chicago Bulls, and Jimmy Butler regaining his joy on the Warriors after a productive tenure with the Miami Heat. But, there was no other trade this season, or for quite some time, that broke the internet more than the Luka Dončić trade. No one had Dončić going to the Lakers for Anthony Davis on their bingo card, except for the Mavericks’ General Manager, Nico Harrison. This was extremely hard to process for Dončić and Mavs fans, trading away the franchise player for the future, especially after making the NBA Finals last year.
The move was the start of a forgettable season collapse for the Mavs because right after the trade, their return for Dončić (Davis) suffered a left abductor strain in his team debut, Kyrie Irving then tore his ACL, and many other key players are out with injuries. Adding insult to injury, the Mavs announced in March an increase in season ticket prices by at least 8.5% for next season.
Even though Dallas had a miserable second-half of the season, no other team was a bigger disappointment than the 76ers. You would think that the 76ers would be a legitimate title contender after Paul George signed a four-year $212M contract to form a Big Three with Joel Embiid and Tyrese Maxey, right? Well, things didn’t go exactly as planned due to George missing time on and off from various injuries, topped with Joel Embiid only playing in 19 games because of his lingering left knee injury. What a tough season for the 76ers, missing the playoffs for the first time since the 2016-2017 season.
The Suns could relate to the 76ers since they also had high expectations with their Big 3 (Devin Booker, Kevin Durant, and Bradley Beal) who couldn’t even get the team to qualify for the Play-In tournament (thus missing the playoffs). With no surprise, the Suns fired their head coach, Mike Budenholzer, the day after the regular season ended. That firing made sense, as well as Mike Brown after a five-game losing streak for the Kings. But why in the world was Taylor Jenkins fired from the Memphis Grizzlies with nine games left in the season and Mike Malone, along with general manager Calvin Booth, from the Nuggets with three games left? These three firings came out of left field, especially since both teams made the playoffs.
Onto more positive moments, we saw players climb statistical leaderboards. James Harden passed Ray Allen for second all-time in 3-pointers made (only chasing who else but Stephen Curry), and Kevin Durant became the eighth player in NBA history with 30,000 career points. Like usual, there were those occasional game-winning buzzer-beaters that players won’t forget in their careers. Ones that stood out more than others include Jayson Tatum’s 3 in overtime against the Raptors, Darius Garland’s 3 from the logo in Detroit, LeBron’s tip-in against the Pacers (eighth career buzzer-beater), and Ja Morant’s fadeaway in Miami. Although, none were as electrifying as Trae Young’s ridiculous 50-footer against the Utah Jazz and Josh Giddey’s half court heave (while down) to stun the Lakers (the day after LeBron’s tip-in). Talk about luck, being in the right place at the right time.
The same could be said for those teams who overperformed. It would be remiss to ignore the drastic improvement compared to last year’s performance by the Detroit Pistons. Kudos to J. B. Bickerstaff, another coach on a new team, for revitalizing this squad and leading them to the #6 seed in the East for the playoffs after winning only 14 games last season. If there was a most improved “team” award, we know who that would go to.
In addition, the Cavs became the fourth team in NBA history to achieve a 15-0 start, tying the second-longest undefeated start in league history. Cleveland kept this unpredicted dominance all-season long to claim the #1 seed in the East, showcasing a great challenge to the reigning champion Celtics. It does not seem like Houston has a problem since the Rockets clinched the #2 seed in the West after building around young talent in previous years. Look at Oklahoma City Thunder with their young talent, too, they took the league by storm and rightly so finished with the best record in the NBA at 68-14 given how well-rounded and deep of a team they have.
OKC’s success can be attributed to their best player and MVP candidate Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (SGA). He has been remarkable all-season long, finishing as the scoring leader averaging 32.9 points per game. But, when you look at what Nikola Jokić has also done (averaged a triple-double for the season and led the league in triple-doubles, among other insane statlines), it is a real battle for the MVP this season. A tough decision awaits, as both players can only keep up their regular season dominance in the playoffs, as that is where all the attention is on now that the Play-In tournament concluded.
With a lot of great competition in the West, and the variety of teams that are chasing the reigning champion Celtics in the East, the upcoming games and series should be popcorn-worthy to watch, with so many stakes on the line and storylines to be found. The race to the Larry O’Brien trophy is on, you don’t wanna miss a thing.
Featured image courtesy of The New York Times
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