Changes of scenery in the NBA are so often talked about in star-player terms. Marquee Name X needs to be on a squad with a more fitting timeline. Team Y needs to trade Star Z and begin rebuilding and/or to avoid bankrolling his next deal." So on and so forth.
Even when the calls for new digs venture beyond concrete stardom, they're usually focused on established talents—role players, ascending youngsters or could-be finishing touches for one of the league's premier (or most desperate) contenders.
In reality, though, it's lesser-proven names and youngsters with distressed value who need new situations more than anyone.
This thought exercise is for them.
Star potential is not a prerequisite for cracking this list. On the contrary, all or most of the these players fall well short of that benchmark.
Overcrowded rotations and diverging timelines will be prevailing themes. Players on teams who have fairly sizable roles now and could soon usurp people in front of them will not be considered. (Think: Onyeka Okongwu in Atlanta.) This process is more about identifying promising talents who don't have a ready-made pathway to peaking with their current team.
R.J. Barrett, New York Knicks
R.J. Barrett signed a four-year, $107 million extension, with unlikely incentives that can inflate it to $120 million, before the start of this season. That financial commitment from the New York Knicks infers big-picture intent.
Or rather, it used to.
Jalen Brunson's caps-lock ARRIVAL coupled with Julius Randle's All-NBA-worthy renaissance significantly diminishes both the 22-year-old Barrett's long-term importance and leeway. He is best served getting more on-ball reps, but he's not yet earned them on a team looking to win now. His finishing around the rim remains decidedly below average, he continues to bailout or indulge weird takeoff points on his drives and he has no pull-up jumper of which to speak.
Keeping Barrett would be more palatable, for both sides, if he actualized his value as a three-and-D wing. He has done the opposite. His defense slipped this year; he can still hunker down on-ball, but his screen navigation is a seesaw, and he caught the poor-closeout bug. Complementary shooting, meanwhile, is just not something he offers. Barrett knocked down just 27 percent of his wide-open triples from Feb. 1 onward.
Force-feeding him and stomaching the learning curve, sink or swim, is a non-option with Brunson, Randle and Immanuel Quickley all on the roster. Barrett is better off somewhere that promises better spacing for his attacks, baptism-by-fire creation opportunities and, above all, the license to fail without seeing his role reimagined or cut altogether.
Isaiah Jackson, Indiana Pacers
Isaiah Jackson made more appearances and logged more minutes during his second season with the Indiana Pacers than he did as a rookie. Yet, his spot in the rotation with Myles Turner healthy was, to say the least, topsy-turvy. Playing him at the 4 is essentially a no-go, and the presences of Jalen Smith and, to a lesser extent, Daniel Theis capped not only Jackson's role but his guarantees.
This could technically become a non-issue. Theis isn't part of Indy's bigger picture, and Smith can play some 4. But while Jackson brings a lot of bounce, mobility and one-part hidden gem, 1.5-parts chaotic ball skills, he isn't nearly consistent enough yet on the defensive end. That will be a deal-breaker in plenty of situations, as Basketball, She Wrote's Caitlin Cooper expertly unpacked:
"According to Cleaning the Glass, Jackson ranks in the 98th percentile among bigs in block percentage, but he can be overzealous in his desire to swat everything…Laterally, he can keep guards in front. Where the struggle becomes real is with his backward mobility, as he can be too quick to open his stance and oftentimes has to rely on his recovery speed…Meanwhile, there are also moments where he seems confused as to what the coverage is supposed to be."
Youth is a viable excuse here. Jackson doesn't turn 22 until January, and the Pacers with a healthy Tyrese Haliburton run spacier lineups that can make use of the former's best offensive attributes. Still, with heaps of cap space and a fast accelerating timeline, Indiana figures to add multiple frontcourt bodies—which would foment further uncertainty for a raw-ish big who already has no path to a much higher-volume role so long as Turner remains in town.