In less than two weeks, the NBA’s best teams will resume their battle for the Larry O’Brien Trophy in the Orlando Bubble. While the league’s remaining teams vary widely in their makeup and player personnel, each team has a player who (whether a star or not) will inevitably be a key linchpin in the team’s success. Here is each Eastern Conference team’s x-factor in the Orlando bubble.
During this season, Khris Middleton has blossomed into a true second star beside reigning MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo. He made his second consecutive All-Star Game while setting career highs in points, rebounds, field goal percentage, and a host of advanced stats. What makes Middleton Milwaukees x-factor has been his poor performances against the Buck’s biggest rival in the east, the Toronto Raptors. His poor performance in last year’s Eastern Conference Finals against Toronto is arguably what led to Milwaukee’s downfall and he has not fared much better this season. Against Toronto this season, Middleton has shot just 42 percent from the field and 25 percent from deep, which is worse than he has shot against any other Eastern Conference opponent. For the Bucks to get past the Raptors this season, Middleton has to step his game up.
Siakam may be Toronto’s deciding factor in the playoffs
Last year’s defending champions, the Raptors, are looking primed to make another deep playoff run despite losing Finals MVP Kawhi Leonard. While they have proven themselves to be a deep and well-rounded team, they are lacking a genuine superstar to rally around. More than anything they need a player who consistently gets buckets in crunch time like Leonard last season. Pascal Siakam needs to be that guy for Toronto in the playoffs. He’s already made a huge leap in scoring from last season, up from 17 to nearly 24 points per game which is a promising sign. If Siakam can consistently show up for Toronto when it counts, they have a good chance of making their second straight finals appearance.
Before the NBA season was suspended in March, Kemba Walker was having a nightmare of a month. During his last eight games, he shot barely above 30 percent from the field and was not doing much better as a facilitator, averaging well under five assists per game. The Celtics went just .500 during those games. While he was dealing with some injuries, Walker will have to do much better if the Celtics expect to get anywhere in the playoffs. He also may be Bostons key to beating Milwaukee. In their two head to head matchups this season, Walker torched the Bucks to the tune of 37 points per game on nearly 50/40/90 splits.
Bam has been a force on both sides of the ball this season
Along with newly acquired Jimmy Butler, Bam Adebayo has been the key to Miami’s turnaround this season. He has improved on nearly every facet of his game and is the current front runner for the Most Improved Player award. Where Adebayo can make a real difference for Miami in the playoffs is on the defensive end. He has a proven track record of locking up the opposing team’s best big men, most notably Giannis Antetokounmpo who had his worst performance of the year against Adebayo and Miami at the beginning of March when he scored just 13 points on 18 shots. If Adebayo can keep up his defensive form, Miami can hang with any team in the Eastern Conference.
Just two seasons ago, Victor Oladipo was the undisputed leader of an up and coming Indiana Pacers team that nearly upset LeBron James and Cleveland in the first round. Now, after a ruptured right quad injury kept him out for the better part of a year, He has returned to a very different Pacers team. With Oladipo out, Indiana has been free to move the ball around in a score-by-committee approach. Three players this season are averaging over 15 points per game compared to just one, Oladipo himself, in 2017-2018. Oladipo is the type of player who can transform a good team into a truly great one but the question is will he be able to mesh himself into the Pacers balanced offense without disrupting their established chemistry? If he can, Indiana could be a dark horse contender in the east.
Embiid celebrates after hitting a three in his infamous protective mask. (Photo by Eric Espada/Getty Images)
The Sixers have had their fair share of struggles this season and the performance of Joel Embiid has been no exception. His numbers are down across the board from 2018-2019 when he put up over 27 points and 13 rebounds a night while making second-team All-NBA. What Philadelphia has missed most about Embiid’s game is his shot-blocking ability which has been on the decline this season. Of the 34 centers who have started at least 30 games this season, Embiid ranks just 14th in blocked shots at 1.3 per game. When he does find his shot-blocking form the Sixers often end up on the winning end, sporting an 11-3 record in games where Embiid blocks multiple shots. Philadelphia will need such games from him in the playoffs when they’ll be competing nightly with the league’s best big men.
Without their two superstars Kyrie Irving and Kevin Durant, it’s doubtful that the Brooklyn Nets will be a serious playoff competitor. But if one player on their team is capable of carrying Brooklyn to some wins, its Spencer Dinwiddie. An admittedly streaky scorer, he has proven himself as a quality first option at times, such as during the month of December when he averaged 27 points per game while leading Brooklyn to some big wins over Denver and Minnesota. Dinwiddie playing well often leads to Nets wins. While his counting stats don’t change very much between wins and losses he is a much more efficient player when on the winning side, shooting over four percent better from the field and six percent better from the free-throw line. If Dinwiddie comes out swinging in Brooklyn’s opening series, they might be able to make a fight out of it.
Fultz is finding his groove in Orlando, photo courtesy of CBS
Much like Brooklyn, the Magic do not have much of a chance of winning their first-round playoff series. Coming in as the no. 8 seed with a below .500 record, just being competitive will be enough for them. One young talent on their team who could be the key to a competitive series is former first overall pick, Markelle Fultz. After struggling with a shoulder injury and being traded away from Philadelphia, he has finally found a home in Orlando.
Fultz has had his ups and downs as Orlando’s starting point guard this season but he was really starting to find his form before the season was suspended. During the month of March, Fultz averaged over 15 points and six assists per game while shooting over 40 percent from deep. If Fultz continues playing exceptionally, the Magic have a good chance of winning some games. In Fultz’s’ 15 best games this season by Basketball Reference’s game score the Magic are 12-3.
The Wizards are not here to win games. Their only star player Bradley Beal will not be participating in the Orlando bubble and neither will their second-leading scorer Davis Bertans. Washington will most likely take this time to give their young players extended minutes. With John Wall and Beal set to be the starting backcourt next year, the Wizards are in need of quality frontcourt players to pair with their new star guards. Enter Rui Hachimura and Thomas Bryant both 22-year-old big men with lots of potential. Without Beal on the court, both Hachimura and Bryant will be getting a lot more touches and if they perform well the Wizards will be feeling a lot better about their lineup for next season.
All stats courtesy of Basketball-Reference
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