NBA overreactions: LeBron is no All-Star, Hornets for real, Kuminga-Warriors back?

We’re just a couple of days away from the NBA trade deadline on Thursday, and instead of the usual annual blockbusters, we may be looking at minor moves to set the course for the rest of the season.

Part of that is because of the maelstrom of badly-timed injuries. Ja Morant, Anthony Davis, Jimmy Butler, Jonathan Kuminga and Giannis Antetokounmpo were going to directly or indirectly impact the deadline, but they’re sidelined.v

What does this mean for the league? And who should stand to benefit from what seems to be unlucky situations?

Let’s check it out in this week’s overreactions!

LeBron James doesn’t deserve to be an All-Star

All-Star reserves were announced this weekend, and probably the most controversial name is one LeBron James. It sounds crazy, but there are some players who have legitimate claims to be chosen over the Chosen One. He’s averaging the fewest points since his rookie year, missed the first few weeks of the season, and is a defensive liability for a Lakers team that is bleeding defensively. He is minus-31 for the season, third worst on the squad.

Add the fact that Kawhi Leonard and James Harden are having better seasons and should be locks to play on their home court and it’s hard to statistically justify LeBron being on the team.

Verdict: CAP

Counterpoint: Who gives a damn? 

The All-Star Game is about entertainment, and for that purpose it’s pretty impossible to not have James play in what may be his last year in the league (as unlikely as that may seem) and, at the very least, his last year as a Laker. These situations aren’t great for a lot of deserving talent (I think the Houston Rockets’ Alperen Sengun, who is looking for his first All-Star appearance, has more of a reason to be upset at the denial). But this is LeBron James we’re talking about. If anyone deserves a legend’s appearance, it’s him.

The Hornets are finally building a contender

Don’t look now, but the Charlotte Hornets are…good? They’ve won seven games in a row, including a legitimately great win against the Spurs over the weekend, thanks partly to the under-the-radar, all-purpose big man Moussa Diabaté, who held Victor Wembanyama to 4-of-13 shooting as the primary defender. It was the Hornets’ best win of the season, which includes a 55-point win against the Utah Jazz last month.

The Hornets had the best offense in the league in January and a top-10 defense. The LaMelo Ball/Kon Knueppel/Brandon Miller/Miles Bridges/Diabate lineup is plus-120 and scoring 140.2 points per 100 possessions for the year.

Verdict: NO CAP

The Hornets have become the type of energetic, relentless, well-coached team that’s going to be a headache in any game. Many of us owe LaMelo Ball apologies for the way we talked about him as an empty-stat dude and having the audacity to put him in trade talks. And by “us” I mean “y’all” because I never stopped believing in the talent. He still has some growing to do, in particular the one-legged, floating threes, and his decision-making under the basket. But that young core can develop together and be a real threat in the East in the very near future.

The Pistons should be patient at the deadline

The Detroit Pistons are the best team in the Eastern Conference. Partly it’s their own greatness – the best defense in the East is nothing to sneeze at. But part of it is the way the rest of the conference has fallen off: The Knicks are dragging themselves out of a slump; the Cavs have been a disappointment; and as great as the Celtics have been, there’s still a concern about what they’ll look like without Jayson Tatum in the playoffs…if Tatum does in fact miss the playoffs.

The Pistons are primed to make a real deep playoff push in the East, maybe even making it to the Finals if the cards fall the right way.

But …

Verdict: CAP

They need to make a move. I get the idea that the Pistons have big contracts coming up and they want to see what they have with their young core and want to build for years to come. But this is the new NBA. It’s a windowless league. You can’t bank on what will happen down the line with such volatility. There’s a reason we haven’t had a repeat champion since the Warriors’ dynasty. If you have a shot, you have to take it.

The Pistons also have concerns to address: They have been 17th in the league in half-court offense in January, and they’re only shooting 34.8% from 3 this season while taking fewer than all but four teams. These blemishes will show up in the playoffs. So while the Pistons are still at the top of the East and can very well make the Finals, they should aim for a shooter and offensive help at the trade deadline.

My vote? The Brooklyn Nets’ Michael Porter Jr. He is the perfect offensive lever that the Pistons can pull. Yes, it may be costly, but this is a legitimate championship year for them. Go for it.

With Jimmy Butler out, the Warriors should give Jonathan Kuminga another chance

Much like the Bucks-Giannis Antetokounmpo situation, the Warriors-Jonathan Kuminga drama feels like it’ll never end. The Warriors potentially trading Kuminga has been a source of discussion since even before he was drafted. This season, though, saw the situation come to a head: After starting the season as a real contributor, things fell apart. By the time we got to 2026, Kuminga was racking up DNPs and everyone was biding time until he got traded. The Warriors were looking like real buyers.

Then disaster struck.

Butler tore his ACL and the bottom fell out for the Warriors’ season. They were going to be definite buyers at the deadline, looking to bolster the chances of the elder players making a real playoff run. And you best believe Kuminga was going to be part of the trade packages.

Now with Butler out, that may change things for the Warriors and their options for Kuminga.

Verdict: CAP

Maybe this is just my own exhaustion, but I want off the Warriors-Kuminga boat. ASAP. The relationship is as dysfunctional as my dating history. It’s unrealistic to all parties to suddenly integrate Kuminga back into the lineup after he’d hardly played for the past month. Also, Kuminga is injured (left knee bone bruise).

I think we may have seen the last of him in a Warriors jersey, and if that’s the case it’s a fitting end to a “two timelines” fiasco that has defined the tail end of the Warriors Era. The idea that a franchise can build a contender in the present while building a championship team for the future is a notion built out of hubris. It’s quite literally never happened in the NBA. The young core in the Warriors’ future timeline should have always been used to maximize Stephen Curry’s present.

Curry is averaging 27 points a game and playing very much like a guy who’s in an extended prime. Imagine these past few years of having established players instead of projects that don’t fit head coach Steve Kerr’s system. With all due respect to Kuminga and Moses Moody, but it’s been a waste of their talents and Warrior roster spots. All this unnecessary attempt to figure out Kuminga’s fit on the team will accomplish is more frustration. Cut the loses now.

People point to the Tim Duncan-era Spurs as a team that was built for the future while winning in the present. That team, however, didn’t win a championship before Duncan and hasn’t won one since. Yes, they extended Duncan’s championship window, but to return to the playoffs post-retirement they still needed draft luck like everyone else.

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