Paolo Banchero, Trae Young: Breaking down 10 names that could define NBA season

With less than three weeks until the start of the 2025-26 season, the New York Knicks and Philadelphia 76ers kicked off the NBA’s preseason schedule on the other side of the globe in Abu Dhabi on Thursday.

In an offseason full of movement, many players and personnel are stepping into uncharted waters: a point guard adjusting to a new home, a new coach in charge of a team with massive expectations and some young talent staring at massive opportunities. It sets them up to be among the people who will define the NBA this season.

We published our first version of this list a year ago, featuring names such 76ers center Joel Embiid, Los Angeles Lakers coach JJ Redick and (now former) Boston Celtics majority owner Wyc Grousbeck, among others.

This is not a list of the best or most important people in the league. Names such as Denver Nuggets center Nikola Jokic, Oklahoma City Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, and Lakers guard Luka Doncic won’t be found on this list.

Let’s break down 10 names who will play major roles in defining the upcoming season — both on the court and as far as the trade deadline, draft and free agency play out.

The NBA universe has collectively waited to see if the Greek superstar will ever choose to leave Milwaukee, the only city he has called home across his 12-year NBA career.

The Bucks have satisfied Antetokounmpo’s desires for upgrades, first by landing Jrue Holiday in 2020 and then using Holiday to acquire Damian Lillard in 2023. But will waiving-and-stretching Lillard’s deal to land former Indiana Pacers star Myles Turner — one of the most shocking moves of the summer — be good enough to do so a third time?

Speaking via videoconference Monday because of a bout with COVID-19, Antetokounmpo acknowledged he spent the summer thinking about his future after three straight first-round playoff exits.

“It’s a disservice to basketball and just to the game, to not want it to compete in a high level, to want your season to end in April,” he said. “It’s pretty much the same. It’s not the first time. I had the same thoughts last year. I had the same thoughts two years ago.”

Later, when asked about Bucks owner Wes Edens saying he and Antetokounmpo had a conversation in June in which the superstar said he was “committed to Milwaukee,” Antetokounmpo said he couldn’t recall the conversation.

The irony of this is that, on the court, Antetokounmpo could be on the brink of his best statistical season. With Lillard sidelined late last season, Antetokounmpo’s numbers skyrocketed with the ball in his hands all the time. Expect coach coach Doc Rivers to do that again this season, and for Antetokounmpo to be a massive stat machine as a result.

With now less than two years separating Antetokounmpo from unrestricted free agency — and a roster that, outside of Turner, is littered with questions — it’s safe to say the topic of Antetokounmpo’s future won’t be going away anytime soon.

In May, Magic president of basketball operations Jeff Weltman in a radio interview said: “We’re ready to kind of turn the page on our rebuild and enter the next stage of our team and look through a more win-now lens.”

Weltman then took action, sending several future draft picks to the Memphis Grizzlies in a blockbuster trade for Desmond Bane. It was lauded by multiple respondents in last week’s offseason survey as one of the best moves of the summer.

But if that move is going to pay off in the way he and the Magic hope it will, it won’t be because of Bane, Jalen Suggs or even Franz Wagner. Instead, it will be because Banchero, fresh off landing a five-year, $239 million maximum contract extension this offseason, is blossoming into full-blown superstar status. Could he lead Orlando to winning a playoff series for the first time since 2010 and possibly reach the NBA Finals for the third time in franchise history?

That path is possible. Banchero, the No. 1 pick in the 2022 NBA draft, has a rare blend of size, strength and skill within his 6-foot-10, 250-pound frame, and doesn’t even turn 23 years old until Nov. 12. But, in his three seasons, Banchero has hit 3-pointers at a career 32% clip and barely crept over 50% true shooting last season for the first time in his career.

The addition of Bane, a terrific outside shooter and additional ballhandling threat, will help plenty. Having Wagner end a two-year cold streak shooting from deep — he went from 36% three seasons ago to under 30% each of the past two years — will, too.

Orlando will go as far as Banchero can carry them. And, in a wide-open Eastern Conference because of Achilles injuries to the Indiana Pacers‘ Tyrese Haliburton and the Celtics’ Jayson Tatum (a theme of this list that will come up again), that could be quite far — assuming he takes the steps forward the Magic believe he can this season and beyond.

When you fire a coach after he led your team to playoff victories in three consecutive seasons for the first time in a generation and to the Eastern Conference finals for the first time in a quarter century, it’s clear what the expectations are for his successor.

That’s the situation Brown has walked into after replacing Tom Thibodeau this summer. And while Brown has repeatedly said, including at last week’s media day, that “no one has higher expectations than he does,” that’s not exactly true.

There’s a unique symbiosis between the Knicks and their fans, who have been waiting more than half a century to snap their championship drought. It might be the best chance to do so since the Patrick Ewing-led Knicks reached the NBA Finals in 1994. Unlike the past couple of seasons when the Knicks surpassed relatively low expectations, a wide-open East could make anything short of a Finals appearance a lost season for New York.

Brown is no stranger to high-pressure situations. He coached LeBron James to an NBA Finals in 2007, and he was the head coach of the Lakers. But he arguably has never faced the kind of pressure he is under this season — and no one on his roster has either.

Dybantsa is one of four players — alongside Kansas guard Darryn Peterson, Duke forward Cameron Boozer and Tennessee forward Nate Ament — who will spend the season being debated for the top spots in a loaded 2026 NBA draft class.

While there will be plenty of eyes on what’s happening across the league, there also will be plenty on the scouting trail, with several teams — including the Washington Wizards, Brooklyn Nets and Utah Jazz — probably in positions to fight for the top odds in next spring’s draft lottery. And that doesn’t include teams such as the New Orleans Pelicans, Phoenix Suns and Philadelphia 76ers. If they fall lower on the standings, they could be sending their pick to the Atlanta Hawks, the Memphis Grizzlies and the Oklahoma City Thunder, respectively (in Philadelphia’s case, if it lands outside of the top four picks in next June’s draft).

Teams had visions of picking Cooper Flagg last season before the Dallas Mavericks unexpectedly landed the No. 1 pick, but the three-or-four-way competition for the No. 1 pick in 2026 could add extra intrigue.

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There remains a tremendous amount of excitement and anticipation about Spurs center Victor Wembanyama‘s return, especially after he leaped to No. 5 in ESPN’s annual NBA Rank.

But for as brilliant as Wembanyama is, landing on Most Valuable Player ballots and All-NBA teams doesn’t just come down to individual excellence. It also requires a team being able to make strides alongside its young star, and be in a position to make the playoffs — even in the ultracompetitive Western Conference.

For the Spurs to reach those heights this season, it’s very likely to be because Fox is a good enough co-star alongside Wembanyama.

In the brief time the two shared the court in February, the results were mixed (though the sample size of 120 minutes should be taken with a grain of salt). Fox was acquired in a blockbuster trade in February and then bestowed a maximum contract extension in August when he was eligible to receive it. Their investment in him is a sign they believe he is an optimal right-hand man for Wembanyama. Fox will also have to fit alongside No. 2 pick Dylan Harper and reigning Rookie of the Year Stephon Castle. The lack of consistent shooting between the three could make that an awkward fit.

(As an aside, I’m proposing a nickname for Wembanyama: The Anomaly. I’d say he qualifies as an anomaly, and I like it a lot more than calling him an alien).

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For the first time since he was in middle school or so, James — about to enter his 23rd NBA season — is not the focal point of his team. That, of course, is Luka Doncic, whom the Lakers inked to a three-year contract extension this summer and have openly oriented their franchise around going forward.

It’s an entirely understandable position. But this is LeBron James we are talking about.

As this season goes along, expect there to be nonstop questions about James and his future — questions that began in June when his agent, Rich Paul, gave a cryptic statement to ESPN’s Shams Charania about James’ future.

Until one side or the other definitively says what the future of this partnership will look like after this season — one way or the other — expect those questions to continue. And if the Lakers struggle this season, expect the intensity surrounding this topic to ramp up between now and February’s trade deadline.

The investigation into potential salary cap circumvention by the Clippers involving Aspiration, a former Clippers sponsor, will continue to be a topic of discussion throughout the season.

But then there’s the on-court part of the story. Leonard again sat out much of last season because of injuries but returned to be an impactful player down the stretch and in LA’s seven-game loss to the Denver Nuggets in the first round. With a very deep (albeit old) roster around him, if Leonard can stay on the court, the Clippers could be a true factor in the West.

And, with this being Leonard’s age-34 season, there won’t be many chances for him to make his Clippers tenure a success if it doesn’t happen in 2025-26.

Adam Silver

Even before the Clippers investigation took center stage, it was already setting up to be a consequential season for the NBA commissioner as he enters his 12th full season on the job. How Silver chooses to rule on the case will be one of the enduring stories of this season and possibly his tenure as commissioner.

But that’s not all. Over the past several months, Silver has repeatedly talked about the league’s interest in expanding into Europe and creating a new league there to challenge EuroLeague, the best league outside of the NBA. That league could potentially see the creation of several new expansion teams, with billions in expansion fees for the 30 NBA owners and new deep-pocketed options to buy NBA teams.

Then there’s domestic expansion, which remains a hot topic within league circles. When Silver was asked about whether Europe was a priority over domestic expansion last month, he vociferously shot the idea down, saying both projects can operate on parallel tracks — and that they are.

Expansion is still seen as something that is a matter of when, not if. Seattle continues to be an obvious market to expand into, while several ownership groups are interested in pursuing a team in Las Vegas. But the next several months will potentially show us just how legitimate Silver’s argument about parallel tracks is, and how long it might take for expansion to arrive in the NBA.

The No. 4 pick in the 2023 NBA draft, Thompson took no time to establish himself as one of the NBA’s most intriguing talents and is primed for a breakout season.

Fred VanVleet suffered a torn ACL in offseason workouts, meaning Houston will be without his outside shooting, defense and leadership this season. But it creates a massive opportunity for Thompson. Last season, he took on a larger ballhandling role, third on the team in terms of bringing the ball up behind VanVleet and the since departed Jalen Green. The stage is set for Thompson to lead the team and set the table for All-Stars Kevin Durant and Alperen Sengun in Houston.

The Rockets didn’t make the Kevin Durant trade for this season to be a gap year. And if Thompson — a legitimate Defensive Player of the Year contender and a terrific passer — seizes this opportunity, he could easily be an All-Star, the NBA’s Most Improved Player this season and have Houston remain as a true threat to challenge Oklahoma City in the West.

Not too long ago, Young would have been seen as an automatic candidate for a maximum extension. But those days were before the current collective bargaining agreement. Since the spring of 2023, teams are more hesitant to hand out that type of deal.

Atlanta is entering the most anticipated Hawks season in years after a lauded offseason under new lead basketball decision-maker Onsi Saleh, which could drive Young’s market in free agency next summer if the two sides don’t come to an agreement.

We could be entering a new era of team building and spending in the NBA, and Young’s deal could be at the epicenter of it.