2024-25 Central Division Preview

 We are officially less than a week away from the start of the 2024-25 NBA season! To celebrate we are doing a brief preview of each division every day leading up to opening tip-off. We will discuss projected lineups and rotations, key players, and any question marks the team may have. For the projected lineups it is a prediction of the starters and the five bench players who will play most if each team has optimal health and success. These are mostly correlated to what is expected, but I sprinkled my own personal opinion in some situations. Any player with an asterisk is someone with a somewhat prolonged injury. Without further ado, here is the Central Division preview!

CHICAGO BULLS

G: Ayo Dosunmu / Lonzo Ball / Jevon Carter

G: Coby White / Josh Giddey

G: Zach LaVine

F: Patrick Williams / Matas Buzelis

C: Nikola Vucevic / Jalen Smith

Player I Like: Zach LaVine

-While I agree his contract is not great, I think people underrate what prime LaVine provides on the offensive end.

MVP: Zach LaVine

-I love Coby White and Ayo Dosunmu but I am predicting a huge bounce back year for LaVine where he shows his explosive scoring prowess

6MOY: Jalen Smith

-I like the addition of Smith. I think he may even get more minutes than Vuc by the end of the year. With an expanded role compared to his Indiana days, I look for bigger numbers and production from Smith.

X-Factor: Josh Giddey

-While I do not like they move the Bulls made swapping Caruso for Giddey, if they can maximize the strengths of Giddey then the team will find more success.

The Bulls will once again be a middle of the road team I believe. They have quality players but not enough talent to where I think they can simply go out there and beat teams. I look to them to make some deadline moves as well, as I think they need to find a true identity. Embrace a rebuild or retool.

CLEVELAND CAVALIERS

G: Darius Garland

G: Donovan Mitchell / Caris Levert / Sam Merrill

F: Max Strus / Isaac Okoro / Jaylon Tyson

F: Evan Mobley / Dean Wade

C: Jarret Allen

Player I Like: Donovan Mitchell

-It is no secret that Mitchell is one of my absolute favorite players in the league. For how great he is I think he is still underrated and I look forward to watching him play every night.

MVP: Donovan Mitchell

-Spida is a top 15 player in the league. An elite scorer and an underrated playmaker. He is good enough to win games by himself.

6MOY: Isaac Okoro

-Okoro is a really good defender and his 3 point shooting has improved every year. They lack defensive prowess at the wing positions and his impact is very valuable.

X-Factor: Evan Mobley / Jaylon Tyson

-Fans are waiting for Mobley to take that "next step" offensively. If that can ever happen then that makes the Cavs true contenders. Tyson is someone that I think can provide a little bit of juice off the bench and give the Cavs another shot maker.

The Cavaliers are looking to make the jump to the conference finals. They need Garland and Mobley to contribute more consistently offensively in the playoffs, but I do think they have the pieces to potentially make a run to challenge the likes of the Celtics, Bucks, and 76ers in the east.

DETROIT PISTONS

G: Cade Cunningham

G: Malik Beasley / Jaden Ivey

F: Ausar Thompson / Ron Holland II

F: Tobias Harris / Isaiah Stewart / Simone Fontecchio

C: Jalen Duren / Paul Reed

Player I Like: Marcus Sasser

-A young piece who I think gets swept under the rug sometimes, I think he is someone who will eventually be a very important piece on a winning team. Whether that be in Detroit or elsewhere remains to be seen.

MVP: Cade Cunningham

-Cade seems to have a very widespread opinion of how good he is. Some people regard him as a near top 30 player and some people think he might barely be a top 100 player. I think he is somewhere in the middle. He is a really good player and with improved spacing this year I think you will see the best of Cade this season.

6MOY: Jaden Ivey

-This is just my personal opinion, but I think Ivey would be best utilized running the show for the second unit. I still believe in Ivey's tools and am rooting for him to reach his potential.

X-Factor: Jaden Ivey

-I think that if Ivey reaches his potential that can unlock the Pistons and give them a true second franchise cornerstone.

I like the moves the Pistons made this offseason. Tobias Harris and Malik Beasley should offer some spacing to open up the floor for Cade and Ivey and add some veteran presence for the young players. I do not see a huge leap in terms of wins but I think you will see some crucial development for the future of the Pistons.

INDIANA PACERS

G: Tyrese Haliburton / TJ McConnell

G: Andrew Nembhard / Ben Sheppard

F: Aaron Nesmith / Bennedict Mathurin

F: Pascal Siakam / Obi Toppin

C: Myles Turner / Isaiah Jackson

Player I Like: Tristen Newton

-A player who did all the right things for his championship team in college, I predict it will become hard for the Pacers to not find a spot in their rotation for Newton.

MVP: Tyrese Haliburton

-Haliburton exploded onto the scene last year as one of the elite young talents in the NBA. I want him to be more aggressive in looking for his own shot this season as I think that can open up the floor for the rest of his team.

6MOY: Bennedict Mathurin

-It was disappointing for Mathurins' season to end prematurely a year ago, but I look for him to bounce back and pick up where he left off as a great bench microwave.

X-Factor: Andrew Nembhard

-If we get the Nembhard that we saw in the postseason, the Indiana offense will be quite difficult to game plan for.

A very fun team to watch with their fast paced style, the Pacers are an exciting team to watch. While I

do not consider to be an elite contender yet, they are coming off an Eastern Conference Finals appearance and are looking to build off that! One problem they may have is they have too many good players worthy of minutes! I am curious to see how the rotation works out. Jarace Walker's role intrigues me. The former lottery pick seems to be log jammed behind Obi Toppin and Siakam. Nevertheless, having an abundance of talent is a good problem to have.

MILWAUKEE BUCKS

G: Damian Lillard / Delon Wright / Andre Jackson Jr

G: Gary Trent Jr. / Pat Connaughton

F: Khris Middleton / Taurean Prince

F: Giannis Antetounkoumpo

C: Brook Lopez / Bobby Portis

Player I Like: Andre Jackson Jr.

-A player who I think can run the team or play as a slashing wing defender, I like his upside.

MVP: Giannis Antetounkoumpo

-One of the best players of all time. Hard to ignore the greatness of the Greek Freak.

6MOY: Bobby Portis

-Been consistently one of the best bench players the last few years, I once again look to him to be amongst the leaders for the league's Sixth Man of the Year award.

X-Factor: Khris Middleton

-Giannis will do his thing. Hopefully Dame feels more comfortable in year 2 for the Bucks. For the Bucks to maximize their talent they need Middleton to be a reliable and consistent third option.

One of the most top heavy teams in the league, the lack of depth truly concerns me for the long term success of the Bucks. That being said they have one of the best 2 way players the game has ever seen in Giannis and his greatness will drag the team to a top 4 seed in the east. I hope to see more chemistry between Giannis and Dame as they still have the potential to be the best duo in the league.