NBA Storylines: How 14 offseason additions are faring

These 14 players joined new teams and are trying to establish themselves in new systems and locations.

John Schuhmann

Karl-Anthony Towns & Mikal Bridges – New York Knicks

At 5-6, the Knicks are off to a disappointing start, though not because their big addition (Towns) hasn’t shot well.

Towns is one of two players – Kyrie Irving is the other – who’ve shot better than 50% on at least 50 3-point attempts. That includes 28-for-49 (57%) on catch-and-shoot 3s. But Towns has taken just 30.1% of his shots from 3-point range, down from 35.6% over his last two years in Minnesota.

Bridges is tied for second with 16 corner 3-pointers, but while he’s shot 16-for-34 (47%) from the corners, he’s just 5-for-33 (15%) on above-the-break 3s.

The Knicks’ starting lineup has (unsurprisingly) played the most minutes (196) of any lineup in the league, but it hasn’t been great. It’s allowed 122.3 points per 100 possessions, the worst defensive mark among 14 lineups that have played at least 100 minutes. One issue is that opponents have shot 64.0% in the paint (where the league average is 56.6%) in Towns’ 373 total minutes on the floor.

Fortunately, their disappointing start is still good for fourth place in the Eastern Conference. The Knicks will look for their second NBA Cup victory when they host the 5-7 Nets on Friday (7:30 ET, NBA League Pass).

Julius Randle & Donte DiVincenzo – Minnesota Timberwolves

The Wolves have a better record (6-6) than the Knicks, but that includes two losses in Portland this week, and their record has them in 11th place in the West.

Randle is having the most efficient season of his career, registering a true shooting percentage of 62.0%. He’s shot a career-best 38.0% from 3-point range (though just 2-for-12 over the Wolves’ three-game losing streak), with improvement in the paint (59.2%) from last season (56.2%).

The Wolves have been great offensively (119.1 points scored per 100 possessions) when Randle has been on the floor without Rudy Gobert, and great defensively (98.3 allowed per 100) when Gobert has been on the floor without Randle.

DiVincenzo has had the worst shooting season of his career, registering an effective field goal percentage of just 45.9%. That includes just 46.2% shooting in the paint and 1-for-10 from the right corner, from where he shot better than 50% last season.

After a double-digit loss in Portland to start NBA Cup play, the Wolves will look to rebound when they visit the Kings on Friday (10 ET, NBA League Pass).

Klay Thompson – Dallas Mavericks

Klay Thompson made an emotional return to the Bay Area to face the Warriors.

Thompson had one of his best games with the Mavs (22 points, 6-for-12 from 3-point range) during his return to Golden State on Tuesday, but Dallas is another team off to a disappointing (5-6) start, having lost their last three games (all to good teams) by a total of six points.

Thompson has taken a career-high 67.6% of his shots from 3-point range, having seen a jump in 3-point rate in each of the last four seasons. Relatedly, his free throw rate of just 6.5 attempts per 100 shots from the field is the lowest of his career and the eighth lowest among 176 players with at least 75 field goal attempts.

He ranks fourth in the league with 32 catch-and-shoot 3-pointers, with his 45.1% on catch-and-shoot 3s ranking ninth among 37 players who’ve attempted at least 50.

Thompson has played 307 (92%) of his 335 minutes with Luka Dončić, a big reason that the Mavs’ offense has been at its best (117.9 points scored per 100 possessions) with Thompson on the floor.

The Mavs will look to end their losing streak when they visit the 2-8 Jazz on Thursday (9 ET, NBA TV).

Tyus Jones – Phoenix Suns

Jones was brought in to help the Suns take care of the ball, and he’s done just that.

Phoenix has seen the league’s biggest drop in turnover rate, from 15.0 per 100 possessions (sixth highest) last season to just 13.1 (sixth lowest) this season. Jones leads the league in assist/turnover ratio (5.57) for the seventh straight season, though that’s his lowest mark of the last four.

Though the Suns are 9-3, their starting lineup (when healthy) has been outscored by 12.8 points per 100 possessions, the second-worst mark among 21 lineups that have played at least 75 minutes.

Not surprisingly, Jones’ usage rate (14.0%) is his lowest mark of the last six seasons. But he does need to make shots, and he’s a solid 38.3% from 3-point range, including 20-for-45 (44.4%) on catch-and-shoot 3s.

The Suns will face their toughest test of the season when they visit the Thunder in NBA Cup play on Friday (8 ET, NBA League Pass).

DeMar DeRozan – Sacramento Kings

The Kings have a top-10 offense again, and their new, 35-year-old addition is a big reason why.

DeRozan leads the league in midrange field-goal attempts for the fourth straight season, having taken 29 more than any other player. And his 49.5% from mid-range would be the best mark of his career.

The Kings’ offense has been at its best (118.7 points scored per 100 possessions) when he’s been on the floor, though they’ve been better overall (plus-5.3 per 100) when he’s been off the floor because they’ve allowed less than a point per possession in the 148 minutes that he’s been on the bench.

DeRozan ranks second in total clutch points (36), having shot 13-for-24 (54%) with the score within five points in the last five minutes. But that includes an 0-for-5 mark on shots to tie or take the lead in the final minute of the fourth quarter or overtime, with the Kings 3-4 in clutch games overall.

The 7-5 Kings will open NBA Cup play when they host the Wolves on Friday.

Chris Paul – San Antonio Spurs

It’s all about the development of Victor Wembanyama in San Antonio, so why not bring in one of the best point guards in NBA history?

Paul has 33 assists to Wembanyama, third most from any player to a single teammate and just one fewer than the two leading combinations (James Harden to Ivica Zubac and LeBron James to Anthony Davis). His 3.9 assists to Wembanyama per 36 minutes on the floor together is about one more per 36 than Tre Jones averaged to Wembanyama per 36 minutes on the floor together last season (2.9).

Paul has shot a career-best 63.6% (21-for-33) inside the arc, even though only four of those 33 shots have come in the restricted area.

The Spurs have been 21.0 points per 100 possessions better with Paul on the floor (plus-8.2 per 100) than they’ve been with him off the floor (minus-12.8 per 100).

The Spurs will open NBA Cup play on Friday when they host the defending NBA Cup champion Lakers (7:30 ET, ESPN).

Russell Westbrook – Denver Nuggets

The former Kia MVP was brought in to help the Nuggets’ bench, but the Nuggets have the league’s 30th-ranked bench through 10 games.

Westbrook has an effective field goal percentage of just 40.6%, the third-worst mark among 176 players with at least 75 field goal attempts. He’s 1-for-14 (7%) from mid-range and 10-for-33 (30%) from 3-point range, while also shooting just 47% in the paint (his worst mark since his rookie season).

The Nuggets have averaged 105.8 possessions per 48 minutes with Westbrook on the floor and just 99.3 per 48 with him off the floor. But they’ve somehow averaged more fast break points per 48 when he’s been off the floor.

After four days off, the Nuggets will open NBA Cup play (and a three-game road trip) in New Orleans on Friday (8 ET, NBA League Pass).

A few more newcomers of note …

Dyson Daniels (ATL) leads the league in deflections, both per game (7.6) and per 36 minutes (8.3), and both of those would be the highest marks in the nine seasons for which deflections have been tracked. He’s also seen huge jumps in points per game and per 36 minutes.

Returning from a knee injury in the preseason, Paul George (PHI) has played just 38 minutes alongside Tyrese Maxey and just 15 with Joel Embiid. Trying to shake off the rust, George has shot just 11-for-36 (31%) from 3-point range. The Sixers have scored just a point per possession in his 146 minutes on the floor.

Buddy Hield (GSW) has been a pretty good replacement for Thompson, averaging a career-high 25.9 points per 36 minutes and shooting 47% from 3-point range (third-best among 39 players with at least 75 attempts).

Alex Caruso (OKC) has played just 19.5 minutes per game for the Thunder. He ranks second behind Daniels with 7.2 deflections per 36 minutes, up from 4.7 last season.

Kentavious Caldwell-Pope (ORL) hasn’t (yet) provided the shooting that the Magic need. His 13-for-58 (22%) from 3-point range is the worst mark among 102 players with at least 50 attempts.

* * *

John Schuhmann is a senior stats analyst for NBA.com. You can e-mail him here, find his archive here and follow him on X.

The views on this page do not necessarily reflect the views of the NBA, its clubs or Warner Bros. Discovery.