
Karl-Anthony TownsNathaniel S. Butler/NBAE via Getty Images
The 2024-25 NBA season is barely underway, but we don’t need much of a sample size to get spicy with the takes.
Dozens of players switched teams this past offseason, and several of them will be difference makers. Some are likely to have an impact on the title race.
Hot takes on the biggest names that switched teams can be found below.
Alex Caruso Will Finish Top-3 in Defensive Player of the Year Voting

Alex CarusoBart Young/NBAE via Getty Images
Following Rudy Gobert’s fourth Defensive Player of the Year nod in 2023-24, there may be a little pushback on bigs having such a stranglehold on the honor. Marcus Smart won it in 2021-22, but that was just the 10th time in the award’s history that a non-big won it.
Now, the pushback probably won’t be strong enough to prevent Victor Wembanyama from securing his first DPOY trophy, but it may get some less conventional options in the conversation.
After finishing in the top 11 in voting in each of the past two seasons, Alex Caruso is going to be one of the finalists in 2024-25.
The Oklahoma City Thunder already had a top-five defense last season, and they have more than enough talent to stay there. Finishing near the top of the league has long been a borderline requirement for this award.
But more specifically, Caruso really is one of the league’s best and most dynamic perimeter defenders. While he doesn’t quite have the size Josh Giddey does, he’s still 6’5″ and will be able to spare Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Luguentz Dort some difficult matchups on the wing or in the backcourt.
Expect to hear the two-time All-Defense selection’s name a lot more than you typically have in this conversation.
Isaiah Hartenstein Will Become a Full-Time Starter

Isaiah HartensteinBart Young/NBAE via Getty Images
Isaiah Hartenstein has only started 61 games in his career, and 49 of those came in 2023-24. Even after signing a three-year, $87 million deal with OKC, there was some question about how many games he might start.
Chet Holmgren had that role last season, and the ability to play five-out is part of what made the Thunder so difficult to defend last season. There’s been some discussion about a sort of malleable starting five that would include Hartenstein against bigger teams like the Denver Nuggets, but OKC not wanting to forfeit that small-ball advantage is understandable.
Eventually (and it’s been delayed a bit by a broken hand for Hartenstein), the new big man is going to force the Thunder to pick a more permanent starting unit, and it will include him.
Part of this team’s ability to accommodate Hartenstein comes from the versatility of Holmgren. His ball-handling and shooting make him an interesting option at the 4. And his shot-blocking would still be valuable. It might just come from the weakside more often than it did last season.
But the biggest reason Hartenstein will become a full-time starter is the man himself. He’s not an outside shooter, but his underrated passing and quick decision-making could keep OKC’s offense just as potent as it was last season—just in a different way. His rebounding would go a long way toward eliminating one of this team’s only 2023-24 weaknesses, and a frontline that includes both him and Holmgren could be a nightmare to score on inside.
Donte DiVincenzo Will Finish Top-3 in Sixth Man of the Year Voting

Donte DiVincenzoMelissa Tamez/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images
Donte DiVincenzo broke out in 2023-24, forcing his way into the New York Knicks’ starting five in 63 of his 81 appearances and averaging 15.5 points, 3.5 threes and 2.7 assists.
On his new team, barring injuries, it’ll be tougher to secure that kind of role. Mike Conley’s steady-handed leadership was a big part of the Minnesota Timberwolves getting all the way to the conference finals last season. Jaden McDaniels’ defense is crucial to the team’s identity. And of course, Anthony Edwards is the face of the team.
But even if DiVincenzo is the first or second Timberwolf off the bench, his impact should be immense. You can replace him with any of the three names above, and lineups will still be functional because of his ability to play both the 1 and the 2. His shooting will be critical on a team that has to play multiple non-shooters (or shaky shooters).
And even though reigning Sixth Man of the Year Naz Reid is still on the squad, DiVincenzo’s production will still warrant a finish near the top of the Sixth Man of the Year race (teammates Jordan Clarkson and Joe Ingles were first and second in voting for this award in 2020-21).
Buddy Hield Will Outperform Klay Thompson

Buddy HieldEthan Miller/Getty Images
There’s some evidence to suggest Buddy Hield has been better than Klay Thompson for a while.
For example, Hield’s 1.2 box plus/minus since the start of 2022-23 is well ahead of Thompson’s minus-0.3 over the same span. Hield also had a slightly higher three-point percentage in those seasons. And though Hield is no lockdown defender himself, Thompson’s slide on that end has cost him the edge there.
So, while Thompson clearly tops Hield in name recognition and reputation, and his legacy with the Golden State Warriors is more than fine, he’s going to be outperformed by his replacement this season.
Hield looked more than at home in his debut with the Warriors, scoring 22 points and hitting five threes off the bench. He moved well off the ball and even channeled Lightyears-era Thompson with some of his catch-and-shoot opportunities coming off screens.
Eventually, Hield’s efficiency and volume from deep should even force coach Steve Kerr into putting him in the starting five. And while that won’t recapture the magic of the peak Warriors on the defensive end, having Hield on the floor with Draymond Green and Stephen Curry should make the offense reminiscent of those title-winning seasons.
Julius Randle Won’t Finish the Season with Minnesota

Julius RandleMichael Reaves/Getty Images
It’s too early for definitive statements about whether Julius Randle will fit with the Minnesota Timberwolves, but it didn’t look good on opening night.
All of the valid concerns that were expressed when the trade was made resurfaced. His jump shot doesn’t command a ton of respect, which made the floor pretty cramped in lineups with Rudy Gobert. He held the ball a bit too long on some possessions, which takes it out of the hands of Anthony Edwards. And being just a few inches shorter than Karl-Anthony Towns took away one of the team’s strengths on the defensive end.
Last season, they were huge, swarming and often intimidating. On opening night, they often looked stuck on offense and lost on defense.
Again, things could get better. Randle is a good playmaker for his position. And there may be some value in taking a little on-ball responsibility off Edwards’ plate.
But nothing that happened in that loss to the Los Angeles Lakers was out of character with how Randle has played for years. It’s going to be tough to fit him in with the rest of the T’Wolves.
He also happens to have a very tradeable contract that pays him $28.9 million this season and could end this summer (he has a $30.9 million player option in 2025-26).
If Minnesota can turn Randle into a couple of useful role players, or even one high-level outside shooter, it should take the deal.
Leave a Reply