10 NBA players under pressure to perform in 2023-24 include Joel Embiid, Damian Lillard
Every NBA season presents an opportunity for a star to take the next step, to cement a legacy and to prove the hype was worth it.
Denver’s Nikola Jokic did it last season, backing up his MVPs in 2021 and 2022 with an NBA championship and Finals MVP in June.
Milwaukee’s Giannis Antetokounmpo earned MVP in 2019 and 2020 and led the Bucks to a title in 2021.
Is there a player or players who are ready to elevate their team the way Jokic and Antetokounmpo did? Philadelphia’s Joel Embiid? Dallas’ Luka Doncic? Memphis’ Ja Morant? New Orleans’ Zion Williamson? Milwaukee’s Damian Lillard?
Let’s take a look at 10 players who enter the season with pressure to perform and make their teams better than they were last season:
Philadelphia 76ers center Joel Embiid
Embiid has his MVP, beating out Jokic and Antetokounmpo in 2022-23. But Embiid has never won a second-round series, and Philadelphia’s drama has obscured some of Embiid’s playoff performances: 42.1% from the field, 20% on 3-pointers, and scoring and rebounding declines (compared to the regular season) in last season's conference semifinals. It's time for Embiid to carry the Sixers deeper in the postseason.
Memphis Grizzlies guard Ja Morant
Morant begins the season with a 25-game suspension after he was shown on Instagram with a handgun for the second time. First, he put himself in a difficult position, and second, he put his team in a problematic situation. The Grizzlies are a team with championship aspirations and were the No. 2 seed in the Western Conference last season. The Grizzlies can manage those 25 games without him, but they also need Morant, one of the league’s outstanding players, to be an All-NBA performer who avoids off-the-court issues if they want to do something special in the playoffs.
Dallas Mavericks guard Luka Doncic
Doncic is a star, an MVP-caliber player who wants to win. But the Mavericks didn’t make the playoffs last season after reaching the Western Conference finals in 2022. Doncic is entering the second season of a five-year, $215.1 million contract. He can become a free agent after 2025-26, and the Mavs need to start winning if both sides want to avoid a situation where he is seeking a different team. Doncic is just 24 years old so he hasn’t even reached his prime, but the Mavs don’t want to be a team that’s trying to get the No. 8 seed. They have bigger goals.
New Orleans Pelicans forward Zion Williamson
When Williamson plays, the Pelicans are a strong team. Problem is, he doesn’t play often enough. Some injuries can’t be avoided, but it’s also necessary for the player to take care of himself and put himself in the best position to be as healthy as possible for as long as possible. There’s concern Williamson doesn’t do enough on his end. If he can deliver 25 points, 7.0 rebounds, 4.6 assists and shoot 60% from the field for a full season, the Pelicans can be a factor in the West.
Atlanta Hawks guard Trae Young
The Hawks reached the Eastern Conference finals in 2021 and then were a .500 team that exited in the first round of the playoffs in 2022 and 2023. With Quin Snyder, Atlanta is on its fourth coach in as many seasons. Though Young averaged 26.2 points and a career-high 10.2 assists, he had the second-lowest field-goal and 3-point shooting percentages (.429 and . 335) in his five-year career. Will Young return to All-NBA performer and help the Hawks get a better seed and playoff result this season?
Los Angeles Clippers forwards Kawhi Leonard and Paul George
Time is running out for Leonard, 32, and George, 33, to make a run at a title with the Clippers. Since acquiring Leonard and George in the summer of 2019, the Clippers have reached the West finals once, lost in the second round, missed the playoffs and lost in the first round. The duo hasn’t been on the court enough together to yield max benefits. But this is a season when both should play more, if healthy, as the NBA tries to curtail load management among its stars.
Boston Celtics forward Jayson Tatum and guard Jaylen Brown
Tatum and Brown have had massive team and individual success − playing in the NBA Finals, the East finals multiple times (including the past two seasons), and earning All-Star and All-NBA selections. Brown just got a lucrative extension (five seasons, $288 million that begins in 2024-25), and Tatum is headed for a massive contract. But winning the franchise’s 18th title has been elusive for the star duo.
Milwaukee Bucks guard Damian Lillard
Lillard wanted a trade to a contender, and he got it, joining Milwaukee and two-time MVP Antetokounmpo. Lillard has all the credentials: seven-time All-Star and seven-time All-NBA performer, and a career high in scoring last season at 32.2 points per game. He led Portland to a Western Conference finals in 2019, and it’s on him (and Antetokounmpo) to get the Bucks to at least that point this season.
Follow NBA reporter Jeff Zillgitt on X @JeffZillgitt