The NBA Southeast Division is a garden of thorns and flowers. There’s a little something for everyone in this division, with three teams that could make a run at the East Finals, an intriguing member of the underclass, and a dead-end team which could provide the bizarre fascination associated with watching a trainwreck.
Which non-superstar players hold the keys to the Southeast?
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CHARLOTTE HORNETS: CODY ZELLER
Few franchises in the Association have a darker outlook than Charlotte, given the injury to Michael Kidd-Gilchrist. That’s the player the Hornets simply could not afford to lose. In MKG’s absence, the Hornets obviously need their best players to raise their games, but that alone can’t produce a season which will exceed a now-lowered set of expectations. The Hornets need an unproven and not-fully-known quantity to emerge at a level which hasn’t yet been witnessed on the floor.
Zeller, now 23 and with a few seasons under his belt, is as good a choice as any. This is, one must be reminded, a No. 4 overall draft pick, not someone taken in the middle of the first round. Kidd-Gilchrist, as a point of comparison, was a No. 2 pick the year before. If MKG made himself so valuable to the Hornets, when do we get to say the same about Zeller?
The answer is simple: If he delivers a huge 2015-2016 campaign and makes the Hornets a credible threat to snatch the No. 8 seed in the East.
ORLANDO MAGIC: AARON GORDON
Speaking of No. 4 overall draft picks with a lot to prove…
… Cody Zeller’s not the only one.
Gordon endured a difficult first season in Orlando, but that’s hardly a final verdict on a young man who just turned 20. (Heck, it isn’t even an intermediate verdict.) Nevertheless, it remains that on a team with some promising young players such as Victor Oladipo and Elfrid Payton, Gordon lags behind. If he can make some substantial forward strides this season, the idea of Orlando competing for the No. 8 seed in the East should pick up a lot of credence. The Magic should remain in the hunt when March rolls round, and maybe even the first week of April. Gordon’s rebounding prowess at the University of Arizona is something the Magic can definitely use; in Gordon, one sees the mold of a player Scott Skiles likes having on his roster.
It’s up to Gordon to steer his career in the right direction. He doesn’t have to figure everything out, but he does need to make a far bigger impact on the glass and in the painted area.
WASHINGTON WIZARDS: KRIS HUMPHRIES
Crossover Chronicles senior writer Joe Manganiello assessed the Wizards here, and he rightly spent some time focusing on what Jared Dudley could give the team. Joe also touched on what Kris Humphries could bring to D.C., and while both players are extremely important to this club, I’m going to lean toward Humphries.
It might be — scratch that, it is — simplistic to value Humphries over Dudley solely because of position (one plays the four, the other the three), but the Wizards have suffered precisely because their fours and fives have not been as reliable as they need to be. Randy Wittman — as Joe Manganiello said in the linked piece above — should pursue small-ball lineups and a faster pace, but in the meantime, Washington does need its fours and fives to be better. Getting better-than-expected contributions from Humphries and Dudley would naturally be welcome in the Verizon Center, but if forced to choose, Wizards fans would probably prefer to see a big season from a four rather than a three.
Simplistic? Yes. Wrong? I don’t think so.
ATLANTA HAWKS: DENNIS SCHRODER
Schroder isn’t the most important non-star on the Atlanta roster because of this:
Hawks PG Dennis Schröder says he wants to start, will look for other opportunities if he doesn’t https://t.co/aqyfKcCsbb
— Kurt Helin (@basketballtalk) October 21, 2015
That said, the desire to be a starter makes it easier to focus on why Schroder isn’t a starter… and what he needs to do to get to that point.
Schroder needs to develop his jump shot. We can discuss all sorts of structural issues, such as how faithfully he runs (or doesn’t run) Mike Budenholzer’s sets or commits to a responsible way of managing the game, but if Schroder becomes a markedly better jump shooter, his quickness off the dribble will become that much more lethal, and the Hawks will have a player every bit as good as Jeff Teague, which would give them so much more lineup flexibility.
The 2015 Eastern Conference Finals against the Cleveland Cavaliers turned based on the inability of Atlanta to hit jump shots. Kyle Korver was taken away, so Schroder and Teague had to shoot the rock — you have to be able to take and make at a reasonable clip if an opponent’s defense is based on BEGGING you to shoot 18-footers or beyond. If Schroder can develop his game in ways that would justify the transition to a starting role, Atlanta will be pretty darn good, maybe even “East Finals” good.
We’re skeptical, however.
MIAMI HEAT: MARIO CHALMERS
Goran Dragic seems too easy, but you might immediately tell me, “Matt, whatever happened to the simplistic approach you used with Kris Humphries? Shouldn’t you stick with the obvious answer, instead of trying to be clever?”
It’s a fair point.
The answer is based on a competing need for the Heat. Obviously, Dragic — as the big new piece in a loaded starting five — becomes a hugely important player. Yet, the Heat will go as far as their bench takes them, and Chalmers — now a reserve — has the ability to own his role and transform his career.
Chalmers has consistently been an enigmatic player. He left a considerable imprint on the 2012 NBA Finals and was sometimes the guy who found enough guts to step into the breach when Dwyane Wade was struggling and LeBron needed a teammate to help him out. Yet, Chalmers is also the player who has been chewed out by Wade and Chris Bosh more than any other over the years. He has often embarrassed himself on the court.
Chalmers is exasperating and exhilarating to watch. He’s anything but a monochromatic player, and now that he’s coming off the bench, he has a chance to anchor Miami’s second unit and make it easier for guys such as Amare’ Stoudemire and Gerald Green to get the ball in positions where they can score. If Chalmers can do that and not get torched on defense, the Heat’s bench will not hurt them.
If the Heat’s bench doesn’t prove to be a liability, and can at least be a value-neutral presence this season, that would bode well for Miami’s chances at a spot in the East Finals and a LeBron reunion that would be ratings gold for (checks schedule) ESPN.
