Which NBA stars could shine above the rest as the second half of the 2018-19 season comes underway
The final push towards the NBA Playoffs is underway, as there are roughly 20 games remaining, give or take, in the regular season. That means players and teams will attempt to flip a switch and take their performance to the next level.
With that said there are also teams who are more than content to continue tanking and tanking in order to get one step closer to a top draft pick in June. On top of a playoff berth, there is more that certain players are striving for in the remainder of the season.
The NBA MVP race this year is incredibly close with each star in the hunt to get the edge on the others for that prestigious award. With so many narratives still left to unfold the NBA fanbase is in for a really exciting second half of the season.
Here are eight stars with eight different stories to focus on as the season concludes.
Honorable Mention – Isaiah Thomas
Isaiah Thomas isn’t really anticipated to go off the rest of the season, but to see him play as a whole is a sight for sore-eyed NBA fans. I.T.’s story is one that has captured hearts from all over the NBA world. He went from being an MVP candidate and number one option on the Boston Celtics to jumping from team to team recovering from a lingering hip injury.
Everybody is rooting for I.T. and he finally stepped on the court for the first time this season, fully recovered, as a bench player for the Denver Nuggets just before the All-Star break. There are a lot of people out there that believe the 5-foot-9 point guard could still return to the player he once was on Boston and there’s an equally large group of the contrary that think he will never be the same. Regardless of what everyone else thinks Isaiah Thomas is motivated to prove that he’s back and ready to resume playing at his maximum potential.
With so many storylines and a variety of aspirations, it is going to be a really exciting second half of the season. A tight MVP race, players coming back from adversity ready to prove themselves, and undervalued sleepers prepared to take the league by storm is a recipe for a dramatic high staked transition into the postseason.