The NBA is a what have you done for me lately league. It doesn't matter if you were once viewed as a franchise star; if you aren't producing like one, questions emerge about your game and long-term viability. It doesn't matter if you just made an All-NBA team; if you can't prove your worth in the playoffs, the perception around you will quickly change.
A new season offers a new opportunity for players who, for one reason or another, have major doubts about their games. With that in mind, let's take a look at the five players with the most to prove across the league.
Jalen DurenÂ
Jalen Duren has been in the news all summer long due to his contract negotiations with the Detroit Pistons. Ultimately, he agreed to a five-year, $200 million deal. The only other centers making $40 million or more a year? Nikola Jokic, Joel Embiid, Karl-Anthony Towns, Chet Holmgren, Bam Adebayo, and Domantas Sabonis. Jokic is a generational star. KAT is a top-25 player. Holmgren and Bam are top-tier defenders, around that top-25 range. Embiid is elite when healthy. Sabonis' deal is bad value, and it's made it hard for the Sacramento Kings to trade him.
As things stand, Duren is far closer to Sabonis than any of the other listed centers.
Sure, he's a 22-year-old coming off an All-NBA season, but he was a mess in the playoffs, averaging 10.2 points while shooting 51.4 percent from the field. Duren is an elite rim-runner and a respectable rim protector. Nevertheless, he's not a transformational center in any sense of the word, and it remains to be seen if he can be a key piece of a playoff team.
Duren got paid thanks to his regular season; now it's time for him to prove himself in high-leverage moments.
LaMelo BallÂ
The Minnesota Timberwolves are banking on LaMelo Ball to be Anthony Edwards' co-star. Unsurprisingly, this is a polarizing proposition. Talent-wise, there's no doubt in my mind that Ball can fill this void, and his game should mesh well with Ant's. Furthermore, I'm very encouraged by how he closed the season with the Charlotte Hornets, and I think this bodes well for his ability to impact winning basketball.
Still, there's no denying that there are some valid criticisms about his game. Having played in more than 55 games just twice in his six-year career, a big question is: Can he stay healthy? His 180-pound frame adds concern to this and draws questions about how he'll adjust to the physicality of the playoffs. And while he did show signs of improving his decision-making, he still ranked in the third percentile for shot quality per Basketball Index.
For the first time in his career, Ball enters the season on a team with high expectations, and there are reasonable concerns about how he'll adjust to this (despite my general optimism).
Ja MorantÂ
Ja Morant has had quite the fall from grace in the past few seasons. The Portland Trail Blazers offer him a needed change of scenery and a chance to rejuvenate his career. Morant has appeared in just 79 out of a possible 246 games over the past three seasons.
In addition to simply proving he can stay on the court, Morant's scoring efficiency and rim pressure have declined immensely in recent years. Morant's biggest strength is his athletic rim finishing. He still ranks well above the league average, but his rim numbers have declined in each of the past four years, culminating in a career-low 4.2 attempts last season.
With all the injuries he's had, it's fair to wonder if this part of his game will never be the same. Unfortunately, he doesn't offer much outside scoring, so this limits his all-around impact.
While the Blazers offer Morant a chance to get his career back on track, the fit alongside another smaller guard in Damian Lillard and two other key guards (Jrue Holiday and Scoot Henderson) could make things tricky. Frankly, I wish I could buy into a Morant rejuvenation, but the Blazers are such a weird fit for him, and there are some sizable red flags.
Paolo Banchero
Is there a player more polarizing in the NBA than Orlando Magic forward Paolo Banchero? Many eye-test-slanted viewers think he's a franchise player, and I can see the vision given some of his high points in the playoffs. Still, the analytics community points out his inefficiency, bad shot selection, and poor catch-all metrics to argue that he's Julius Randle 2.0. I find myself somewhere in the middle of this debate.
Candidly, I was much higher on Paolo before last season. Banchero took a step back in the scoring department last season, averaging 22.2 points, while his shot selection got more egregious. This is particularly concerning considering the Magic added Desmond Bane and Franz Wagner barely played last season.
The Magic traded a haul of picks to get Bane. They finished as the No. 8 seed last season, and if they don't show ample improvement, that'll surely spell the end of the Paolo-Franz duo. A lot of the Magic surging up the standings hinges on Paolo proving that he can be a true No. 1 option. The trouble is, another similar season from Banchero might not just end his tenure with the Magic; it could tank his value league-wide.
Tyrese HaliburtonÂ
It feels somewhat unfair to have Tyrese Haliburton on this list since he's coming off a torn Achilles injury. Plus, the 2025 Finals run should've silenced all doubts about his game. However, the reality is that the Indiana Pacers have a wide range of outcomes this season, and much of it hinges on Haliburton's health.
If he largely returns to form with minor regression in areas like rim pressure and lateral quickness, the Pacers could find themselves back in the Finals. Their all-around roster is still elite, and Ivica Zubac is an upgrade over Myles Turner. Given that Kevin Durant largely returned to form after his Achilles injury, this outcome seems possible.
Sadly, an Achilles injury can be career-altering. If Haliburton isn't back to playing at an All-Star level, the Pacers could be a Play-In team (or worse) in a suddenly deep Eastern Conference; their offense relies so much on him as an engine.
Ultimately, I lean optimistically given Haliburton's superb shooting and feel for the game, but the more sinister possibility needs to be mentioned.
Trae Young
I think even Trae Young's biggest detractors were surprised that he was merely traded for CJ McCollum and Corey Kispert. Likewise, it's hard to complain about what the Washington Wizards gave up to get him. The four-year, $212 million contract they handed out, though? That's a bit more controversial.
And while Young is an elite playmaker, he's very heliocentric. How will this mesh with young players like AJ Dybantsa, Alex Sarr, and Kyshawn George? Anthony Davis being the mix makes things even more complicated. Sure, the Wizards have plenty of talent, but it's fair to wonder how everything will work out.
The more uncomfortable question at play is whether Young's offensive advantages outweigh his defensive deficiencies. The Atlanta Hawks clearly didn't think so, and trading him paid off as they surged late in the season and had their most successful season in five years. There's some evidence that Young can be a focal point of a winning team. Yet that largely stems from a conference finals run five years ago. As the Wizards try to compete for the playoffs, a lot will depend on Young's impact.
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