The Biggest Sleepers Of This NBA Season! [2024-'25]

[@lucaslonchampt613]

I'm banking on the Boston Celtics. I guarantee that this team will finally be on people's radar!

[@BillWithers-hu3zz]

Nah, they’re a poverty franchise. Should prob move the team

[@ThinkingCap_]

i think that if they work hard enough they definitely have a playoff opportunity for sure!

[@agustinperalta2126]

Especially with that kid Jayson Tatum who's ONLY 19!!!

[@drupieuwu2203]

​@@BillWithers-hu3zzyeah, tatum and brown both seem like busts

[@lukewatts3997]

Fake contenders man, how could this team win a ring

[@uthamanj]

I wouldn't necessarily call Orlando a surprise team. They could've easily been the 4th seed last year.

[@rohandunbar2072]

How so?

[@uthamanj]

@@rohandunbar2072 Most people expect them to be good 🙄

[@rohandunbar2072]

@@uthamanj yeah not 4th seed good

[@uthamanj]

@@rohandunbar2072 They were literally the 5th 🤣🤣🤣

[@rohandunbar2072]

@@uthamanj they were tied with the 8th seed 76ers but were the division champs

[@4FrogsStacked]

(Hornet's Fan) The Hornet's also have a new coach, Charles Lee, that has 10 years of assistant coaching experience, and coached both the Bucks team that won and and the Celtics this past year where they won. They have a new GM. They have new ownership that is trying to change the losing culture that the Hornets have had. They also have a bunch of new health and performance staff, getting rid of some of the NC guys that were hired because of Michael Jordan. They have new guys from top to bottom pretty much, some with prior experience. There are still a lot of question marks for the Hornets this season, but I'm excited to see what happens

[@richie8127]

another hornets fan here and i co-sign everything you just said. this is the most promising our future has looked in years.

[@lukatosic09]

And you have the goat Vasilje Micic

[@4FrogsStacked]

@@lukatosic09 true but he doesn't wanna be in Charlotte 😭

[@liftbread]

get rid of that fucking bum lamelo. watch the team FLOURISH.

[@Sqeaky6969]

I'm glad ur hopeful but I'm just saying at one point Jim Boylen was considered the best assistant coach in the league and a shoe In to be a good coach. So yeah u never really know being a good assistant doesn't always mean you'll be a good head coach

[@mh4oliveira]

you're nuts if you think the spurs will be anything more than a 10th seed in this stacked conference

[@GoatLife755]

CP is a winning player, and I think Castle will have a great first year

[@mh4oliveira]

@@GoatLife755 cp will miss at least 30% of the season with injury

[@DaintyBroom2233]

Wemby operating as a clear cut top 10 player, CP helps win percentages a ton if you look over his career, added a good vet in Barnes, and Castle is a top 4 pick. Add that to the young players taking jumps, it’s really not that crazy.

[@Z-score8786]

People are too optimistic about the spurs players outside of Wemby, Vassell and Sochan. Zach Collins is a shameful backup center, Champenie is a poor forward etc. Our bench isn't good enough to make up the non wemby minutes, of which there will be a lot. But maybe I'm just a pessimistic spurs fanb

[@kjjr3270]

​@@mh4oliveira its actually embarassing how many delusional NBA fans are out there 🤦‍♂️ (anyone who disagrees with you)

[@eriknguyen1116]

you're HEAVILY sleeping on the rockets

[@corriganmetcalf7335]

Idk if the rockets will be a surprise if they do decent but look forward to them hopefully having a good season

[@ASBeef]

The fact the Rockets aren’t being mentioned shows how much we’re being slept on…

[@supermerio8335]

Fortunately or not you do kinda suck

[@firestar9650]

If the Raptors have a great regular season, I think we can push into the 9-10 seed in the notoriously weak Eastern conference. We have a young squad and if Scottie Barnes jumps to around 25 ppg scoring while keeping his APG and RPG he could even be an All-NBA talent. But hey, I might be biased.

[@prodbyicha]

i think even if scottie does that the raptors are gonna need rj and iq to step it up aswell. if rj can hit 22/23 ppg on good efficiency with a jump from scottie then i can see them being a playoff team.

[@firestar9650]

@@prodbyicha Yeah I agree but I think if Scottie does take a leap in his skill within the NBA, he will be able to improve his other teammates like RJ, Quickley, Dick, and even the older players in Poeltl and Olynyk because he does play the stereotypical Point Forward that Lebron made oh so popular.

[@calebburt180]

I think it is hilarious that Sacramento has an underrated starting 5. Literally every person in their starting 5 is so underrated. Like they genually have up to 4 (depending on how high you are on Murray) top 30ish players and 2 of the most clutch players by stats in the league. Im really excited for this team

[@fireshadowblade9]

Has Okongwu been the starting center for Atlanta yet? He's long overdue for that if not already. Capela is at the age that he should be a reserve, and it would improve their defense too

[@arcanus5120]

He has not yet. He had some significant minutes starting last year when Capela got injured. Maybe 5-6 games? Then OO got a toe sprain and Bruno Fernando started for us for like 3-4 games till Clint came back. (we were so injured bruh) So the sample size is small. Imo, OO looked better than Clint starting. I think OO is the better option, but Capela still clearly has 20+ pounds over OO, so there are clearly matchups where Clint still makes more sense. By the end of the season Clint was getting maybe 24-28 minutes a night and OO was getting 20-24ish.

[@Leo63847]

It’s gonna be the rockets

[@ronniekillertone]

That was gonna be my comment Jalen green and jabari are going to look great this year.. if amen fixes his shot and whitmore gets some playing time the west better look out... That's not to mention the shiny new toy that they got in the draft either

[@horky1]

Sabonis is a floor spacer, but not in the traditional shooting sense. Sabonis is a floor spacer as a playmaking hub at the top of the key which forces defenses to put a man on him.

[@winter9242]

Not when they faced the warriors in 2023

[@psyhki2005]

@@winter9242 As a Kings fan Harrison Barnes and Huerter shooting 20% from 3 and Keegan having no impact in the first 4 games doomed the Kings spacing in that series, not Sabonis. Credit to the Warriors tho they defended the dribble hand-off actions just about as well as possible.

[@MrWithmere]

Actually, LaMelo has played 65 games before. In his 2nd season, he played 75 games and made the All-Star team. Not sure where you're getting your info from.

[@youknowwhaaat329]

No rockets is crazy dude, you’ve been sleeping on them all offseason

[@koiiev9413]

Kings bench woulda been cool with Micic and Vezenkov.

[@JoshHart316]

The Houston Rockets are the biggest sleeper and by a considerable margin. Orlando (as you said with a 3 seed) are second. Spurs third. Grizzlies fourth

[@rayneozier]

21:31 I’m a Hornets fan. I want to see the team develop winning tendencies under coach Charles Lee. I would love to make the playoffs/play-in and still get a high pick like Atlanta just did. But most of all I just want to see everyone stay relatively healthy. And buy in to what Coach Lee is selling.

[@arshsehgal9445]

Rusty Oiled up 4K 60 FPS when?

[@Bkgiest]

I like the Pistons climbing into mediocrity. Another team to keep an eye on is the Raptors.

[@jons1278]

Hold up. If Zion, Ingram, and CJ are negative rating in the regular season, how are they "untapped potential" in the harsher playoffs? You don't have to see a lot of games to see that something just isn't working - if we look at the actual games.

[@mandatedmemes13]

Bro these are some wild takes. Pistons winning 40 games??

[@lubbers825]

It’s Tim hardaway jr time 😎

[@urbaindelva7869]

There's nowhere to go but up for them.

[@darren806]

Thanks for the vid boss, you've got a new sub. Just a note on sochan, i understand your reluctance to back his 3 ball, but I think hes such a special player, with a drive and passion you just don't see that often. I personally was a real hustle player, absolutely no talent but worked as hard as i could and put my body places others wouldn't think of. I love to see that in an NBA player no less, and i would love to see him suceed alongside a crazy talent like Wemby :)

[@reptileking6767]

I’m a massive Pistons fan and saying they will get 38-40 wins is batshit insane. Love the optimism but if Detroit hits 30 wins alone I’d consider that a massive success.

[@InsiteVFX]

Lamelo played 75 games in his 2nd year so he has reached that 60 game thresh hold

[@MindAndMyth]

I dont really think the Mavericks success this season was that surprising. The only concern ever really was Luka and Kyrie fit and that worked out extremely well and then they kept making improvements to the roster. Like when the playoffs started i didnt really see any team besides the nuggets beat them and that was just cuz the one place they're thin at is where jokic plays.

[@austineunice8881]

I also think the pelicans might end up keeping Ingram if they’re top 6 around the deadline like I’m projecting them. I think Murray will mesh with CJ in the backcourt seamlessly, allowing CJ to go back to being an off ball shooter more than a lead ball handler. I think they are likely a 50 win team assuming health. Same with the grizzlies. They could be a top 3 seed and finals contender if they can stay healthy

[@kingoffedoras9932]

I'm gonna say the Clippers. Lot of people writing this team off cause they lost PG, but you still got Kawhi who's gonna probably have his highest shot volume in YEARS, Harden is still a great 2nd option, Zu will hopefully continue to get more looks in the post, and they added good defensive depth pieces in DJJ Batum, Dunn, and a legit Wildcard in Kevin Porter Jr, who is gonna be very interesting to watch this year.

[@calebnothin67]

They let pg go for absolutely nothing, I genuinely don’t see how they can be better 🤷

[@MrPixelMonster]

Kawhi not gon be playin for half the season big dawg

[@SeanDiego]

More shots for kawhi, which means a faster track to be shut down for the season around March. Just in time for spring

[@drupieuwu2203]

On paper the clippers are a serious threat even without PG, unfortunately kawhi (who's known as a playoff riser) has been one of the most unreliable superstars come playoff time due to injuries, and its really hard to trust harden's skills come playoff time.

[@SeanDiego]

@@drupieuwu2203 on paper, that piece of paper would tear to pieces with kawhi’s name on it 😂

[@travismcnamara8919]

It's San Antonio. Wemby and CP3 are gonna be a nightmare!

[@Sqeaky6969]

The wemby and cp3 dynamic is being massively overrated i say this as a spurs fan, wemby is not DeAndre Jordan. He likes to get the ball at the 3 point line and play like KD and cp3 also has been mostly a spot up shooter the past 2-3years he shot 40 times in the paint the last 2 seasons which means he literally can't get downhill anymore. Also wemby was 7th in the league in lobs as his shooting % gets better he'll be at the rim less and less

[@spojsvojs]

Play in the most they can do. Don't forget they are in western conference

[@youknowwhaaat329]

It’s wemby, retirement home cp3 and a lot of stuff. Rockets I’m a lot higher on

[@AustinOlson2814]

Minnesota isn't being talked about by nobody. Wolves had the best defense in the league last year in a offensive league. They swept a suns team that was projected to beat them in 5 to 6 games and then got matched up with the team that beat them in the playoffs the year before. The defending champs, the nuggets and the best defense in basketball wolves battled to a 7 game series which some people consider the best series in the playoffs last year. The wolves won in Denver after blowing a 2-0 lead and went down 3-2 at one point in the series as well. I admit they did get kinda whacked by dallas as luka was able to dominate gobert and towns defensively and the wolves didn't have the firepower to match the mavs. They only lost Anderson and Morris and gained top scoring guards dillingham and TSJ. This wolves team will be dangerous not only next year but many years after.

[@malcolmhoover1654]

How tf don't they have the power to win😂😂😂Gobert and Kat are better than anybody on dallas aside of kyrie,so really it was 3 stars vs 2 stars

[@kingbear1812]

The Pistons love 👌👌👌. Love you Rusty

[@MeeftheBeep]

Bro said spurs but didn’t mention rockets 😭

[@JmssBraendle]

this West might be the greatest guard group a season has ever had, Shai, Luka, Kai, Booker, Ant, Steph, Ja, Harden, Fox, Murray , Bane etc

[@malcolmhoover1654]

Only won winner amongst them the rest our hype jobs and one hit wonders except maybe luka who let's be honest is a foul baiting,push off cheating, no defense having cry baby, but the rest of them guys u name outside of luka and curry aren't accomplishing shit but selling tickets😂😂😂

[@MisterJerry34]

Zion and Steph are gonna torch the league🔥

[@bashxr]

Heat fan, I feel like the jazz have an amazing and deep roster. I'm assuming you're not including the grizzlies for the sleeper teams.

[@DeLGhXst]

Why not Houston??

[@Sqeaky6969]

Jeremy stopped playing pg by Thanksgiving can we stop with this narrative that he played half of the season at pg, even when he was pg he'd play like 2-3 minutes a quarter as pg and then Tre would come in. The main problem was adjusting to wemby, the teams offense was actually better when he was off the court for most of the season

[@BlackHubery-d3y]

Daugherty Overpass

[@vigilancenyoni3944]

Rusty, why is the podcast not available in my region

[@oyasumipunpunk]

rockets snub

[@4ktkaram395]

Hawks Top 3 seed Trae Young MVP candidate 🤫

[@lorenzocastillo3699]

I wish 😂

[@jamonkees]

brandon ingram does not need a healthy zion for us to know they’re better off starting trey murphy because of his fit with zion and actual potential. ingram shoots too low a volume of 3s and every shot is a contested midrange. rough video in general but at least most of it was based on hypotheticals, this is just wrong. ESPECIALLY after the dejounte acquisition

[@youngorochi]

It's gonna be the Kings because they are gonna make the WCF 🫡

[@WmWardinsky-r7m]

Brennan Skyway

[@jons1278]

I don't see how LaMelo Ball is a sleeping beast if he rarely plays games and is a turnstile on defense.

[@MrKenneththeking11]

Lots of great teams wont make the playoffs unfortunately. Wonder if restructuring playoffs talk will emerge d/t the competition disparity btwn east vs west.

[@greatgreentea]

i’m tired of these casual takes about the kings defense, we HAVE a great defense, since ellis was inserted into the starting lineup we had a top 5 ish defense in the league, the problem last year was the offense because harrison barnes and kevin huerter were such nothings on the floor.

[@supercasualgamer513]

If you're not first, you're last 👀

[@Glumsly]

CLT gonna win the title

[@afuturemodern]

what about suprises to the downside? i could see indiana not making the playoffs

[@urbaindelva7869]

A lot of things would have to go wrong for the Pacers in order for them to miss the playoffs after the run they just had. They kept the nucleus of their team intact. Haliburton and Siakam will have a full season together (provided they both stay healthy). Myles Turner is there. Bennedict Mathurin will be back. Nembhard and Obi Toppin both showed out during the postseason. They kept McConnell. They may not reach the ECF again, but I highly doubt that they'll miss the playoffs.

[@ryybott]

Hiiii rusty

[@Fiddaa69]

Just say you hate the Rockets bro

[@jules.c168]

you’ve got too many teams as top 5 playoff finishers. First off just the teams that are bonafide better than kings/spurs (DEN, OKC, MIN, DAL, PHX) would have to fall out and then they have to battle against houston, GSW, and both LA teams

[@LivinProoof]

Kings are gonna be better than Phoenix for sure. I don't see Kings dropping below the 6th seed this season for sure, I really see them in top 4-5, have a feeling nuggets are gonna drop off a bit. Most people are sleeping on Keon Ellis for the Kings he dramatically impacts their defense, incredible on ball defender and crazy instincts. Disrupts entire offenses. He's gonna start this season. Phoenix is gonnna be injured you know it, I know it, we all know it.

[@urbaindelva7869]

​​@@LivinProoofThey were injured last season and still finished ahead of the Kings. So, obviously, injuries didn't slow them down that much.

[@LivinProoof]

@@urbaindelva7869 Kings lost Monk and Huerter last season brody c'mon now. The Kings were ahead of the Suns before those injuries. But generally the Kings aren't very injury prone, Fox Sabonis and DeRozan barely miss any games too.

[@ThinkingCap_]

If the NBA didn't swollow the whistle on Curry last year he would have averaged 60 points per game homie attempted more contested layups than any player in the league and the void that is now going to be the Warriors will lead to the most boring year in the NBA that we've witnessed in a decade

[@CahlilWesson]

i think curry should take it easy next year, let brandin and kum bucket be the engines, we all know they wont be good this year no point in him scoring 33ppg or anything

[@urbaindelva7869]

​@@CahlilWessonWiggins needs to step it up this year for them, especially with Klay now gone. And don't call Kuminga that nickname ever again. That is nasty as shit.

[@CharlesSwain-g7x]

Garcia Donald Young Mary Wilson Brian

[@rohandunbar2072]

😂😂😂 bruh take is wildly insane what powers on earth gonna make the Magics a higher seeded team than the Bucks & 76ers?... Embiid missed 40 games last season and the 76ers were still able to finish in a tie with the Magics now with the addition of PG the Magics will finish a head of them 🤦🏾‍♂️...Giannis and Dame missed several games due to injuries plus Bucks changed coach mid-season and was still able to get more wins than the Magics

[@urbaindelva7869]

There is more reason to believe in the Magic than the Bucks or Sixers right now. They're younger, have better depth, better defense, more chemistry, more continuity, etc.

[@rohandunbar2072]

@@urbaindelva7869 Magics best case scenario play-in-tournament

[@LongMeatZ]

@@rohandunbar2072 They just made da playoffs nga and they got better

[@cuppy6000]

Wizards erasure

[@kjjr3270]

Boston will walk through the east and win the finals in 6 games MAX again.

[@urbaindelva7869]

They could win the East again, but walk through it? No.

[@callumr-w3885]

Woah

[@mrvxg4820]

Everyone hates on the Lakers so much y’all have turned them into sleeper underdogs now. As long a Lebron and AD are healthy, and they were healthy the last 2 years, and they avoid Den, they have a punchers chance just like everyone else in the west.

[@alex77195]

wemby shot 35.6% from midrange and 32.5% from 3. has not won over 20 games in his career. was 5th in turnovers per game. his assist to turnover ratio is on par with KAT, JJJ, Ayton, etc. Some rookies come in and they have to figure out the league. It was the other way around for wemby. the league had to figure him out. and it did. you just have to move him. Compared to the heavyweight bruisers of the NBA, he's really wimpy. He doesn't weigh that much.

[@winter9242]

Bait used to be believable 😂

[@coolman9245]

[@bernardesalomon2502]

Thompson Jason Walker Timothy Smith John