NBA Season Preview Capsules: Pacific Division – Field Level Media – Professional Sports Content Solutions

1. SACRAMENTO KINGS

Projected 2024-25 record: 53-29

Last season: 46-36, T-9 in the Western Conference

Last time…
The Kings won one playoff series, in the 2004 first round against the Mavericks, the same team that ended Arvydas Sabonis’ career in the postseason a year earlier. Arvydas had 23 NBA playoff victories in his career; his son Domantas only has seven – three for the kings.

FanDuel Championship Odds: +5500

Roster call
Draft pick:
No. 13, G Devin Carter, Providence

DEPARTURES: F Harrison Barnes, G Chris Duarte, G Davion Mitchell, F Sasha Vezenkov
VETERAN ADDITION: G DeMar DeRozan, F Jalen McDaniels, G Jordan McLaughlin, F Doug McDermott

Big picture
The Kings did something no other team in the Pacific Division managed to do in the offseason: make a big splash. The importation of DeMar DeRozan was a heist; All it cost them was Harrison Barnes, Chris Duarte and two second-round picks. For that bargain price, they got one of the league’s best closers in DeRozan, a player who finished second to Stephen Curry in the 2024 NBA Clutch Player of the Year Award voting. DeRozan will join De’Aaron Fox, a near-unanimous choice as the 2023 Clutch Award winner, on a team that won just six games by three points or fewer last season. The Kings now feature Fox, DeRozan and dominant big man Domantas Sabonis inside, middle and outside.

Meet: F Keegan Murray
Few players are better positioned to be a difference-maker this season than Murray, who may draw less attention on defense even though his scoring average rose from 12.2 points as a rookie to 15.2 last year is. With defenses struggling to stop Fox’s drives to the basket while dealing with the one-on-one threats of DeRozan and Sabonis, Murray can expect the quality of 3-point shooting he had as a rookie . He sank 41.1 percent of his long-range shots this year and was one of the main reasons the Kings surprisingly raised a division banner. It wouldn’t be a surprise if it happened again this year.

2. LOS ANGELES LAKERS

Projected 2024-25 record: 45-37

Last season: 47-35, 8th in the Western Conference

Last time…
The Lakers made a coaching change after the 2021-22 season – from Frank Vogel to Darvin Ham – they improved in 10 games but fell in the Pacific Division (from fourth to fifth place).

FanDuel Championship Odds: +4000

Roster call
Draft picks:
No. 17, F Dalton Knecht, Tennessee
No. 55, G Bronny James, Southern California

DEPARTURES: G Spencer Dinwiddie, F Taurean Prince
VETERAN ADDITION: C Christian Koloko

Big picture
LeBron James had options in the offseason but chose to stay with a team that no longer appears to have the energy to play a full 15 rounds with the heavyweights. The Lakers also had a choice and decided to spend the entire summer on Bronny James instead of starting a rebuilding process like they did in 2018, the last time they imported a member of the James family. The regular season will be historic, but will anyone really be interested in watching them again if there’s a 15-point deficit in the fourth quarter? Bronny should be able to surpass his father in one area: the Lakers won just 37 games in LeBron’s first season in LA

Meet: F Dalton Knecht
When Knecht debuted for Tennessee last November, he joined a team that had been eliminated in its last two postseason tournaments against Michigan and Florida Atlantic. Although he essentially came out of nowhere – he transferred from northern Colorado – the new guy gave the Volunteers instant notoriety, leading them in the scoring in each of his first five games and nearly handing them a loss to national finalist Purdue . Could he do it again with the Lakers? In the preseason, he led the team in total points and hit 50 3-point attempts, which undoubtedly left LeBron and Anthony Davis reeling at times. But if he can hit – pardon the pun – 39.1 percent of what he did in Summer League, or, better yet, about 40 percent like he did at Tennessee, he could be the new’s first five-star recruit coach JJ Redick.

3. GOLDEN STATE WARRIORS

Projected 2024-25 record: 44-38

Last season: 46-36, T-9 in the Western Conference

Last time…
Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson were both healthy and didn’t start alongside each other on opening night, the Curry-Monta Ellis tandem being outscored by the Clippers’ Chauncey Billups and Chris Paul in a 19-point home loss in 2011.

FanDuel Championship Odds: +4500

Roster call
Draft pick:
#52, C Quinten Post (acquired from Trail Blazers for cash)

DEPARTURES: G. Klay Thompson, G. Chris Paul, F. Dario Saric
VETERAN ACCESS: F Kyle Anderson, G Buddy Hield, G De’Anthony Melton, G Lindy Waters III

Big picture
Expectations for the Warriors haven’t been this low in more than a decade, and yet they’ve decided to end Stephen Curry’s career with their old pal Draymond Green and a number of players not yet ready for prime time bring to. By surrounding Curry with a more energetic cast, more proficient in ball-handling and taking on more demanding defensive duties, coach Steve Kerr hopes the Olympian’s season will be remembered for his 4,000th 3-pointer rather than his 3,000th turnover . No one is saying Brandin Podziemski, Jonathan Kuminga and Trayce Jackson-Davis are the next Curry Thompson Green yet, but the Warriors are hoping that will change by April.

Meet: F Jonathan Kuminga
Kerr wants the Warriors to play faster this season, and few are playing faster than Kuminga, who was easily Golden State’s most entertaining player last year, even if his older teammates preferred to wait for them. The leash is now off, which could give the 22-year-old the opportunity to compete with Curry for team honors and secure the big contract extension he was hoping for in the preseason. It could also lead to a series of ill-advised 3-pointers that knock the Warriors out of games. How much did he fall in love with standing outside the arc last season? Despite a 49 point drop in scoring percentage, he shot 19 more three-pointers than the year before.

4. PHOENIX SUNS

Projected 2024-25 record: 43-39

Last season: 49-33, T-6. in the Western Conference

Last time…
Kevin Durant won a gold medal, he played only 55 games in the following regular season (2021-22). That was even less than the season after he spent the summer chasing his previous gold, when he made just 62 appearances in the 2016-17 season.

FanDuel Championship Odds: +2000

Roster call
Draft picks:
No. 28, SF Ryan Dunn, Virginia (acquired from Nuggets)
#40, C Oso Ighodaro, Marquette (acquired from Knicks)

DEPARTURES: C Drew Eubanks, G Eric Gordon, F David Roddy
VETERAN ACCESS: G Tyus Jones, G Monte Morris, C Mason Plumlee

Big picture
Like every other team in the West, the Suns definitely look good in the team photo. They have one of the best players of the modern era, a key link to the youngest Olympian, a guy who has competed for championship titles multiple times, even a decent big man, and a handful of former college stars. So where are the trophies? The problem is: The team photo was taken in October; The trophy will be awarded in June… and Kevin Durant is no longer burning both ends of that candle. The Suns had hoped that signing Bradley Beal would allow Durant to score more points during the regular season, but instead it merely added to opponents’ point totals last year. And in the playoffs, a weak Durant and a benched Beal beat no one.

Meet: G Collin Gillespie
The Suns took a step in the right direction with the signing of Grayson Allen last year and were able to upgrade their depth to a “D” level after failing the previous season. Now they followed a similar script with Gillespie, another proven winner who, like Allen, will have to figure out whether he’s capable of leading a second unit or whether he’s better suited to fill a supporting role among much more talented starters. Allen effectively became the latter last season, making it more likely that Gillespie will stick with the backups whether he likes it or not. He certainly offered little to nothing to an equally needy Nuggets bench last season, but if new coach Mike Budenholzer is looking for guys who know how to win, it would be wise to use Gillespie in a similar manner to the former Phoenix -I coached Frank Vogel with Allen last year.

5. LOS ANGELES CLIPPERS

Projected 2024-25 record: 36-46

Last season: 51-31, 4th in the Western Conference

Last time…
The Clippers were the defending Pacific Division champions in 2014-15, waived current Pelicans coach Willie Green in the offseason, retained current Lakers coach JJ Redick and finished the season in second place.

FanDuel Championship Odds: +10000

Roster call
Draft pick:
No. 46, G Cam Christie, Minnesota

DEPARTURES: F Paul George, G Russell Westbrook, C Mason Plumlee, C Daniel Theis
VETERAN ACCESS: C Mo Bamba, F Nicolas Batum, G Kris Dunn, G Derrick Jones Jr., G Kevin Porter Jr.

Big picture
Of the Thunder’s seemingly dozens of draft picks, how many do you think the Clippers could go after Kawhi Leonard? Doesn’t that sound like a perfect combination? When you put the ultimate winner on a team ready to take the next step, even the Celtics start to sweat. Meanwhile, if four of the five teams in your division are in dire need of a rebuild, why not be the first to start the process? The Kings did that two years ago and look where they are today. Maybe the Clippers tried to do just that by getting rid of Paul George and Russell Westbrook. But now we just need to convince Leonard how sore his knee is. That leaves the reigning Pacific champions with an aging James Harden and… uh, a guy named Jordan Miller led them in points in the preseason. Take a look below.

Meet: G Kevin Porter Jr.
When Porter was last seen in Los Angeles, he was so good he thought he was a member of the James family – it only took one season at USC to make him an NBA star. It didn’t go as planned, but there were some bright moments. For example, when he scored 30 or more points four times in eight weeks towards the end of the 2021-22 season and then three more times in 36 days at the start of the 2022-23 season. He was unable to last in Houston due to a domestic violence incident, but resurfaced in Greece this spring and averaged 22.0 points in limited action. As temperamental as they may be, Porter now returns to his second home (he was born in Seattle) with a heavy blow on his shoulder like the one he had against the first NBA team to give up on him – the Bucks , before burning them for 50 points in a showdown in April 2021. He’s been on bad teams before and knows the recipe for happiness: keep shooting.

–Field level media