Zach Lowe's 5 most intriguing NBA players in 2023-24 - ESPN

It's time for an annual preseason tradition: our five most intriguing players for the upcoming NBA season. We (mostly) avoid superstars, rookies and second-year players; everyone is intrigued by them! The goal is to find X factors whose development could swing how their teams perform today, and how those organizations approach key team-building decisions.

Two years ago, the debate over the league's best young point guards (below Luka Doncic) focused on Ball, Trae Young and Ja Morant. After a lost season due to injuries, several youngish point guards have vaulted ahead of Ball in the discourse: Tyrese Haliburton, De'Aaron Fox, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Darius Garland, Jalen Brunson.

«I don't care about that stuff,» Ball tells ESPN. «I just want to lock in for the team. We are trying to make the playoffs.»

That may sound ridiculous for a woebegone franchise that has cracked .500 once since 2016 and hasn't won a playoff series in 21 years, but the Hornets — with a similar roster — won 43 games two seasons ago. Ball was an All-Star.

Ball is a good bet to jump back up in that point guard conversation. Big ball handlers who can shoot are the NBA's apex player type. You just don't find many humans who are 6-foot-7 with genius vision and dangerous 3-point shots.

To get there — and for the Hornets to sniff .500 again — Ball has to tighten up a casual looseness in his game. It's most noticeable on defense, where Ball is an audacious gambler — lunging wayward for steals. Steve Clifford, Charlotte's coach, has favored conservatism — slow on offense, low-risk on defense.

Player and coach insist they are adaptable. «Your job is to understand your team and play in a way that gives you the best chance,» Clifford tells ESPN. Charlotte