Grizzlies comeback, 76ers success? Biggest questions for NBA opening week

The NBA season officially began Tuesday night with a New York Knicks–Boston Celtics and Los Angeles Lakers–Minnesota Timberwolves doubleheader.

Karl-Anthony Towns debuted with the new-look Knicks and Bronny James made history alongside his father, LeBron James. The night was full of 3-point action and rookie debuts, and that was only the beginning. Several other teams kick off their seasons tonight, including the Milwaukee Bucks and Philadelphia 76ers (7:30 p.m. ET, ESPN) and the Phoenix Suns and LA Clippers (10 p.m. ET, ESPN).

Injuries have already taken a toll on several stars this season. The 76ers’ new duo of Paul George and Joel Embiid will have to wait on their debut, as both are sidelined with injuries. George’s former teammate, Kawhi Leonard, will be out indefinitely as he continues to rehab a lingering knee injury. And the Bucks will open the season without Khris Middleton.

But the Chicago Bulls, however, will open the season getting one star back from a prolonged injury. How does Lonzo Ball fit into the Bulls’ offense after two years?

Can Mike Budenholzer turn the Suns into contenders? Has Steve Kerr found the Warriors’ starting five? Are the Sixers and Clippers in trouble without their stars?

ESPN’s NBA insiders break down the biggest questions for Wednesday’s slate of games.

How have Giannis and Dame found ways to connect during the offseason?

Giannis Antetokounmpo and Damian Lillard have one season under their belts playing alongside one another, and they’re counting on that experience to benefit them in Year 2 of this partnership. Bucks fans were disappointed to learn the two did not spend any time with each other during the offseason — Antetokounmpo was busy playing in the 2024 Paris Olympics, rehabbing an injury after and then got married — but the two stars said they were in constant communication about their goals for this season. Combine their increased familiarity along with a full season under Doc Rivers, who was brought in because of his history coaching stars, and the Bucks believe continuity will lead to a bounce-back season. — Jamal Collier

How will the Joel Embiid and Paul George injuries impact Philadelphia’s start to the season?

The story of Philadelphia’s season was always going to be centered around the health of Embiid and George. But the team certainly was hoping to have its stars in uniform rather than on the bench in street clothes to start the season. Both players have said they don’t believe they’re far away from playing, and this could just be a small speed bump for the 76ers. At the same time, though, there’s already lots of skepticism around the league about these two making it to the playoffs healthy. Opening the season with both on the bench will do nothing to quiet the skeptics who think this will just be another disappointing season for the Sixers. — Tim Bontemps

What’s Chicago’s plan to keep Lonzo Ball healthy this season and how will he fit on the team?

After more than 1,000 days, Ball is back on an NBA court. The Bulls and Ball have acknowledged managing his health will be a work in progress throughout the season, especially considering Ball is the first NBA player to return to action after a cartilage transplant surgery. Ball played without issues through two preseason appearances and said he hasn’t had to think about his knee during game action. He will start the season on a strict minutes restriction coming off the bench and he is almost certain to avoid back-to-backs. But if his first two preseason games are an indicator — 21 points, four assists and 5-of-11 from 3 — he can be a valuable contributor for the Bulls coming off the bench. — Collier

Do Ja Morant and the Grizzlies look poised for a bounce-back season?

There’s little doubt that Memphis will bounce back after bottoming out as a 27-win team last season, when the Grizzlies stumbled out of the gates during Morant’s 25-game suspension and had any hopes of rallying doomed by all sorts of medical misery.

Can the Grizzlies return to their 50-plus-win standard from the previous two seasons? That will be tough in a loaded Western Conference that saw the Dallas Mavericks, Oklahoma City Thunder and Timberwolves blossom into contenders since the Grizzlies last made the playoffs (and fizzled out in the first round).

If the Grizzlies are granted at least reasonable injury luck — and it’s not a great start that a hamstring injury will sideline Jaren Jackson Jr. to open the regular season — rookie center Zach Edey might be the determining factor in Memphis’ ceiling. If his 23-point, nine-rebound preseason performance against the Pacers is a sign of things to come, the Grizzlies could be as good as ever. — Tim MacMahon

Can Mike Budenholzer turn the Suns into contenders?

The biggest problem that Budenholzer needs to fix is Phoenix’s fourth-quarter offensive woes. With all that firepower, the Suns ranked dead last in fourth-quarter offensive efficiency last season, scoring only 105.1 points per 100 possessions.

But Budenholzer isn’t the only newcomer in Phoenix who should have a major hand in cleaning up that mess. He has a luxury that one-and-done Suns coach Frank Vogel — who also brought a championship pedigree to the desert — did not enjoy: A legitimate, seasoned NBA point guard. Tyus Jones, the league’s all-time leader in assist-to-turnover ratio, should instantly provide a sense of calm and structure down the stretch of games that the Suns lacked last season.

Assuming Jones starts and closes alongside the three stars, the Suns lack a primary perimeter defender in the lineup. Budenholzer has earned a reputation as an elite defensive coach, and he’ll need to live up to it for the Suns to emerge as contenders. — MacMahon

What should the Clippers expect from Kawhi Leonard this season?

It is difficult to set expectations on Leonard this season due to the inflammation he is dealing with in his right knee. Entering training camp, Lawrence Frank and Leonard said they felt they had a better handle on the inflammation than they did during the postseason when he was limited to two games in the six-game first-round loss to Dallas. They both said they wanted to take every precaution to get all of the inflammation out of the knee before returning to action.

With Leonard out indefinitely to start the season, the two-time Finals MVP won’t return until his knee is back to 100%. And then once he is on the court again, Leonard must be able to keep the inflammation from returning in his surgically-repaired right knee. — Ohm Youngmisuk

Has Steve Kerr found his go-to starting 5?

The lineup Kerr uses in the opener against Portland isn’t guaranteed to be the five players he starts every night. Kerr has been transparent on the difficult choices he faces naming starters and an 11-man rotation, saying he feels he could play every player on his roster.

Stephen Curry and Draymond Green are guaranteed starting jobs, but the other three spots could be filled by a combination of Andrew Wiggins, Jonathan Kuminga, De’Anthony Melton, Trayce Jackson-Davis and Kevon Looney. Kerr has also said there are some nights where the starting lineup will be determined by their opponent, but his goal is to still find a group he can count on on any given night — a luxury the Warriors did not have last season. — Kendra Andrews