Miami Heat superstar Jimmy Butler seems to love creating madness within organizations. After all, Butler has exited three different teams in disgrace and is attempting to make it a fourth. After it seemed like the hard working Butler and the tough and gritty Miami Heat were a match made in heaven the first five years of their partnership, things have soured between the two. Butler has made it clear on multiple occasions that he would like out of Miami, which the Heat responded to by slapping him with a seven game suspension. He later returned for two games with the team until being indefinitely suspended. Now the question isn’t if he’ll get traded, it’s when.

No basketball team spends more on their players than the Phoenix Suns. They have been in and out of the playoff picture throughout the season. That is an unmitigated disaster for a team that is supposed to be a juggernaut. Ever since trading for basketball legend Kevin Durant and subsequently trading for the massively overpaid Bradley Beal, nothing has gone right for this team. They have tried everything to fix this mess; firing coaches and signing veterans haven’t worked. At this point, the Suns would be better off trading their high priced, underperforming players and going into a rebuild, because as currently constructed, this team is a mess.

No team in professional basketball this season has been as good as the Cleveland Cavaliers. They have been the biggest surprise of this NBA season after back to back underwhelming previous seasons, due in large part to new head coach Kenny Atkinson. The other thing that has helped them become a dominant force is the chemistry of their four stars. Star guards Donovan Mitchell and Darius Garland make up a lethal offensive backcourt, and are paired perfectly with the stellar frontcourt of Jarett Allen and Evan Mobley. Surround those players with great role players, and it isn’t hard to see why this team is a title contender. They’ve cooled a bit in January, but that can be chalked up to midseason complacency. Now the only question is whether they can get over their past playoff woes and go on a deep run.  

There have been three defining players of this generation; Steph Curry, Kevin Durant, and LeBron James. In the 2010s, these three won seven of ten championships in the decade. However, time has begun to catch up to all three future hall of famers. While all three are still individually excellent, their respective teams have struggled to stack wins in the loaded western conference. These three are on borrowed time in the league, so the fact that they are still all star level is an accomplishment in itself. However, their time is quickly running out, so enjoy all three before their inevitable retirements.

The Chicago Bulls really have no identity. The coaching has been mediocre at best since Tom Thibodeau in 2014. The Bulls have the opportunity to go towards a rebuild but they still are in the race for the play-in tournament, and that is something the organization values right now with young talent, point guard Coby White and shooting guard Ayo Dosunmu. The veteran pieces like center Nikola Vucevic and guard Zach Lavine have been very consistent in keeping Chicago in the race for a chance at the playoffs in the Eastern Conference. With veterans carrying the team, how will the Bulls reach goals of being a playoff team with no balance of young, developed talent?

Hitting the halfway point of the 2024-2025 NBA season, some players have shown many reasons why they deserve to be nominated for the beloved “Most Valuable Player” award. One of these talented athletes can be found in Denver, in the Nugget’s starting center Nikola Jokic. Jokic currently holds third place for most points per game in the league, averaging 30.6, which isn’t common for big men in the league. He is also second in the league for assists, dishing the ball out to perimeter guards, like Jamal Murray and Russell Westbrook. Jokic is considered to be one of the most skilled centers that the NBA has seen in a while, using this season as an anchor to prove that.

Looking at the guard position, Oklahoma’s young and talented team has been led by Shai-Gilegous Alexander, who has shown why he is considered to be “Mr. Consistent.” SGA is averaging 31.4 points per game, which is the second most in the league. His 6’6 frame allows him to be more versatile in many different categories, especially defense. He is currently averaging the third most steals in the league, which is the second most for point guards in the NBA. With guys like Jalen Williams, who can be utilized on the perimeter and down in the paint, Shai averages six assists per game. The Thunder have presented themselves as a team to beat, with young guys who have all star potential. With Alexander leading OKC, many other NBA teams have a major threat on their hands.