The 10 NBA players facing the most pressure during the 2024-2025 season

The NBA is one of the most popular leagues in the world, which inherently adds pressure on players to perform. With that being said, certain players will be watched way more closely by the basketball world than others, and will be expected to step up. We’ll look at the 10 players who face the most pressure as the 2024-2025 gets underway. All statistics are sourced from Basketball Reference.

It might come as somewhat of a surprise to find the Mavericks star on a list like this. Doncic has already proven that he’s one of the best players in the NBA, and is on the short list to win MVP once again. The pressure Doncic will face this season is a little bit different than almost anyone else, given the success he had a year ago.

Doncic led Dallas to an NBA Finals appearance last season, but was held in check by a Boston Celtics team who seemed to have answers for him at each turn. It’s not uncommon for players to struggle in their first Finals, but the goal for Doncic will be to make a return trip there this year, and bring the title back to Dallas. Anything less will be viewed as a failure.

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Athlon Sports wrote that Harden is “ready to be the number one option all over again.” He doesn’t have much of a choice, seeing as though Kawhi Leonard will start the season on the sidelines, and it’s anyone’s guess as to when he will return. Harden is going to have the ball in his hands an awful lot, and will need to channel the type of play he produced back with the Houston Rockets.

Harden has had a history of demanding trades when he feels like a situation is no longer to his liking. Leonard’s injury puts the Clippers in an uncomfortable spot as they move into the Intuit Dome. It’ll be fascinating to see whether Harden fully buys into what might be a rebuilding year, or starts to show signs of discontent.

The Hawks had somewhat of a miraculous run to the Eastern Conference Finals in 2021, led by Young and his offensive prowess. Atlanta hasn’t come close to recapturing the magic since, and questions about Young’s ability to get the team back into contention have to be asked. This is a big season for him as he enters his seventh season in the league.

It’s hard to know exactly what to make of the Hawks heading into the 2024-2025 season. Yahoo Sports believes Atlanta is destined for another 30-something win season, which won’t exactly get the fanbase riled up. The hope is that the roster is better calibrated to fit around Young’s strengths on offense and weaknesses on defense.

The Hawks decided to move on from Murray after two seasons, trading him to the Pelicans towards the end of June. New Orleans had a ton of talent on paper, and Murray’s addition only adds to the notion that they have one of the best rosters in the NBA. With that said, there’s still a lot of uncertainty regarding what Murray brings to the table.

Murray played on a San Antonio Spurs team that made the Western Conference Finals in 2016-2017 as a rookie, but has not been out of the first round since. The perception of what Murray brings to the table as a lead guard seems to be a little bit higher than the actual results. We’ll see if that changes this season in New Orleans.

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Whether it’s right or wrong, Henderson is going to be compared to his 2023 NBA Draft classmates, such as Victor Wembanyama and Brandon Miller. Both of the latter names had impressive rookie seasons, which give San Antonio and Charlotte hope for the future respectfully. Henderson’s rookie season wasn’t great, to say the least, and will need to show a lot more in year two.

Swish Theory and Sports Illustrated believe that Henderson went through the normal trials and tribulations of a 19 year old NBA point guard. It’s true that the former second overall pick was handed the keys to a car without many bells and whistles, but Henderson is supposed to be the engine.

It’s been a rough spring and summer for the Nuggets star guard. Murray performed below expectations in the second round of the 2024 NBA playoffs, and was a complete non-factor for Team Canada in the Olympics. This season is an important one for Murray to reclaim his reputation as a clutch performer.

“I am a little worried that something’s going on with his knee,” NBA Insider Keith Smith said on the NBA Front Office podcast. Murray has battled knee injuries throughout the course of his career, which may have impacted the lift he gets on his jump shot and his ability to remain in peak condition.

Lillard got everything he wished for ahead of the 2023-2024 NBA season. He was dealt to an NBA title contender in Milwaukee, with a chance to achieve the only thing he hasn’t done in his career. He still averaged over 24 points per game, but the fit with the Bucks wasn’t quite as seamless as he or the team would have hoped.

Lillard is entering his age-34 season, in a year in which the Bucks are hoping to significantly rebound from a flat playoff performance. He’s not going to make his money on defense, so Lillard will need to light up the scoreboard with unstoppable shooting when it matters most. He’s still capable of it, but will need to dial it up consistently.

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The Suns were one of the most feared teams on paper heading into last season, as many thought that their offense would be unstoppable. Devin Booker and Kevin Durant are still two of the most dynamic offensive players in the NBA, but Beal did not carry his weight in his first year with Phoenix.

In addition to Beal not playing up to par, Sports Illustrated points out that the Suns are in a tough spot with his mammoth contract. Beal is set to make just over $50 million this season, which is the fourth highest total of any player in the NBA. Things could turn ugly for him if he doesn’t bounce back in a major way.

The Knicks and Timberwolves completed a blockbuster trade in late September which sent Towns to the New York Knicks. He had spent his entire nine-year NBA career in Minnesota, and the change of scenery comes with an immense boost in pressure. New York is hoping that Towns in the missing piece that will get them back into the NBA Finals.

Athlon Sports and many others are wondering whether Towns can shoulder the massive expectations that are following him and the current Knicks team. It’s a legitimate question, but if he focused on playing winning basketball and the Knicks are in the running for the top seed in the East, Towns might not face as much scrutiny as he would otherwise.

The player with the most pressure in the NBA this season has to be Embiid. The 76ers have tried time and time again to make a deep postseason run, and it just hasn’t happened. This is in large part because Embiid just hasn’t been healthy enough to carry Philadelphia when the games matter in the spring.

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Embiid told ESPN in October 2024 that he doesn’t think he will play in back to back games for the rest of his career, which is a concerning statement for a player who is tasked with leading his team to a title. For what it’s worth, The Ringer also believes that Embiid is the player under the brightest spotlight heading into the new season, and it makes sense.