{"id":239027,"date":"2025-10-25T10:39:08","date_gmt":"2025-10-25T10:39:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/239027\/"},"modified":"2025-10-25T10:39:08","modified_gmt":"2025-10-25T10:39:08","slug":"victor-wembanyama-luka-doncic-and-10-more-nba-players-primed-for-breakout-seasons","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/239027\/","title":{"rendered":"Victor Wembanyama, Luka Don\u010di\u0107 and 10 more NBA players primed for breakout seasons"},"content":{"rendered":"

Is a \u201cbreakout year\u201d really possible when you\u2019re already a superstar? I\u2019m going to say yes.<\/p>\n

There are levels to this, of course. Still, a player ascending from top-15 or top-10-ish status in the league to a legit MVP candidate is arguably an even more difficult, more challenging and vertiginous jump than making the leap from random scrub to solid starter. The player might only move up past a few other players in the elite pecking order, but the degree of difficulty is off the charts.<\/p>\n

That takes us to the duo of Victor Wembanyama and Luka Don\u010di\u0107, both of whom were lights out in their season openers after an offseason where each already seemed on a trajectory pointed upward. As such, they are the linchpins of my All-Breakout Team for 2025-26. But before we talk more about Don\u010di\u0107 and Wemby, let\u2019s take a quick timeout for my annual performance review.<\/p>\n

Last year was a good one for All-Breakout Team projections: I had the league\u2019s Most Improved Player winner (Atlanta\u2019s Dyson Daniels), the guy who would have finished second if he had played enough games (then-LA Clipper Norman Powell) and the fifth-place finisher for Defensive Player of the Year (Houston\u2019s Amen Thompson). I had first-time All-Star Jalen Williams of the Oklahoma City Thunder and listed Chicago\u2019s Josh Giddey. At the upper tier, I also highlighted then-Los Angeles Laker Anthony Davis, who only played 51 games but statistically had his best season since the pandemic at age 31.<\/p>\n

On the downside, I highlighted Toronto\u2019s RJ Barrett (was I a year too soon?), New Orleans\u2019 Zion Williamson (do waist breakouts count?), Charlotte\u2019s injured Tre Mann and Denver\u2019s Julian Strawther (low-key yikes ).<\/p>\n

But enough about me, let\u2019s talk about Wemby. I mean, what in the name of\u2026<\/p>\n

EMPHATIC BLOCK.<\/p>\n

ISO STEPBACK 4-POINT PLAY.<\/p>\n

10-0 WEMBY RUN\u2026 HE’S GOT 31! pic.twitter.com\/VP4HwuDLNn<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 NBA (@NBA) October 23, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n

About six different things happen in the clip above that are unique and left me cackling in wonder. That started with the volleyball spike of a 7-foot-1 player\u2019s hook shot and continued to the tallest player in the league calmly breaking into a left-handed push dribble, coming under control and then hitting a complex six-dribble sequence and stepback 3-pointer plus the foul.<\/p>\n

And yet, none of those are the reasons I have Wembanyama on my All-Breakout Team. The reason I like him to improve on his already staggering level of play so much is that he seems much more capable of completing mundane plays in between the jaw-dropping highlights.<\/p>\n

The thing that I noticed most in his 40-point virtuoso performance in the opener against Dallas was the lower-body strength, that he can take the first hit on his way to the cup and stay on balance and complete the play. A couple of times, he even mashed. For instance, watch him get into Davis\u2019 body here and then rise for an easy bank shot:<\/p>\n

These were the plays on which the younger Wembanyama would end up shooting an off-balance fade that left him on the floor and the opponent going five-on-four the other way. I didn\u2019t really see any of it in the Spurs\u2019 opener. Instead, he made seven non-dunk 2s in his 15-of-19 shooting performance, and the clips show him playing through some degree of contact on all seven of them \u2014 including taking multiple bumps from Naji Marshall to hit a midrange jumper and twice going through Davis to get into a short bank shot.<\/p>\n

That, for me, is that piece that changes everything. I had Wembanyama fifth in my top players in the league rankings<\/a> for the coming season, and that already feels like I might have massively shortchanged him. There\u2019s a chance he\u2019s the best player in the league right now. He just had 40 points, 15 rebounds and no turnovers in a 29-minute stint against arguably the most defensively able two-center frontcourt in the league in Davis and Dereck Lively II; if that\u2019s the case, what on earth is he going to do to teams like Charlotte or New Orleans?<\/p>\n

So, yeah, let\u2019s put Wemby on the All-Breakout Team. And let\u2019s put Don\u010di\u0107 on there too.<\/p>\n

Let\u2019s start with an underdiscussed fact: After the trade last year, Don\u010di\u0107 wasn\u2019t really that good relative to his usual lofty standard. He only shot 49.3 percent on 2s as a Laker, and his 23.9 PER as a Laker was his lowest since his rookie year. It was the same in the playoffs, with a 21.5 PER in the Minnesota series and a notably lower usage rate than in his time in Dallas.<\/p>\n

The reason seems fairly obvious: Don\u010di\u0107 was coming to a team built around LeBron James and had to adjust, rather than having the system built around his own skills. That won\u2019t be the case this season; the Lakers are all-in on Luka heliocentricism, with James\u2019 early absence due to sciatica making that commitment even more necessary.<\/p>\n

That is the reason I\u2019m bullish on the 26-year-old Don\u010di\u0107\u2019s chances of a career year. His overall stats were a far cry from the previous two full seasons he had as a Maverick, but there is no reason to believe he can\u2019t get back to that level or shoot right past it. That\u2019s where the \u201cSkinny Luka\u201d reports from the offseason are encouraging, as Don\u010di\u0107\u2019s conditioning was obviously a thing that held him back at times. We should note that one of Don\u010di\u0107\u2019s puzzling issues, going back to his days in Madrid, was a tendency to add weight in-season, so this is still something worth monitoring. But the fact that he seems a lot more committed to staying in peak shape is another reason to believe in him busting out.<\/p>\n

That certainly seemed the case in the opener, where Don\u010di\u0107 was awesome despite the Lakers\u2019 defeat to Golden State \u2014 and despite making only two of his 10 3-point attempts. (Surely that percentage will level out.) Don\u010di\u0107 finished with 43 points, 12 rebounds and nine assists and was basically unstoppable inside the arc: He finished 15-of-17 on 2s and drew 17 free-throw attempts. Tape nerds will note that Don\u010di\u0107 also made six 2s from the left side of the free-throw area. Historically, his left-hand dribble has been mainly a vehicle to get to stepback 3s, but he hasn\u2019t been too keen on taking a hard bounce in that direction and then rising up Dirk Nowitzki-style from 15 feet.<\/p>\n

On Tuesday, he did it multiple times:<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

The rest of the Lakers\u2019 roster has a lot of questions, and it may ultimately leave Don\u010di\u0107 languishing when it comes to MVP consideration. But as far as the overall level of play? Yes, he seems primed to go up another level from the heights that saw him drag Dallas to the 2024 NBA Finals. Like Wemby, it\u2019s a post-stardom breakout.<\/p>\n

For the rest of the squad, I\u2019m trying not to just hit on players who will get more minutes and touches (i.e. Scoot Henderson and Andrew Nembhard), although that\u2019s a factor in a few cases. Instead, this is an effort to really drill down on guys who will truly be better in 2025-26.<\/p>\n

Ausar Thompson, Detroit Pistons<\/p>\n

Thompson missed the start of last season due to a blood clot issue, joined a crowded wing rotation mid-stream while playing himself into shape and ended up averaging 10.1 points in 59 games.<\/p>\n

With a full offseason of conditioning, the twin of Houston\u2019s Amen Thompson should be ready to emerge the way his brother did a year ago. While Ausar is maybe not quite on Amen\u2019s level as a freak athlete, he\u2019s an awesome defender who can get out in transition and score at the rim, and he has a point guard\u2019s handle. His shooting may be more salvageable than Amen\u2019s as well, though he shot 64.1 percent from the free-throw line last year. Baby steps.<\/p>\n

Detroit\u2019s offseason losses of Malik Beasley and Dennis Schr\u00f6der should force Thompson into a bigger role, and while the questions about his impact as a shooter won\u2019t go away, he contributes in enough other ways that he\u2019s likely a long-term starter at worst. He had 11 points, nine rebounds and seven dimes in the Pistons\u2019 opening loss in Chicago and 19 points and four assists in their win Friday against Houston.<\/p>\n

Sandro Mamukelashvili, Toronto Raptors<\/p>\n

Last season, 50 NBA players averaged at least 20.0 points per 36 minutes while playing at least 500 total minutes. Most of them are players you\u2019ve heard of, like Nikola Joki\u0107 or Pascal Siakam or Desmond Bane. Some of them are players you know of but maybe think about a little less, like Coby White or De\u2019Andre Hunter.<\/p>\n

And then, sticking out like a sore thumb amidst all these names, is Mamukelashvili. He averaged 20.2 points per 36 last season, more than Domantas Sabonis or Rookie of the Year Stephon Castle, among others, and then signed with the Toronto Raptors in the offseason to back up Jakob Poeltl in the frontcourt.<\/p>\n

Mamukelashvili is a good passer from the elbows who can handle the ball and distribute. He\u2019s also turned an iffy, wristy 3-point motion into a reliable weapon, making 37.3 percent of his 11.4 attempts per 100 possessions last season, and that helps open the floor for his plus handle. Since Mamukelashvili isn\u2019t an elite athlete, he needs his skill level at 6-11 to do the work. At 26, he might be ready for a low-key breakout.<\/p>\n

All the conditions are there: He has the backup center job to himself, behind a guy not exactly renowned for his offense or floor-spacing repertoire in Poeltl, and he can also move to power forward and play next to Big Jak. Mamukelashvili had seven points and three assists in 17 minutes in Toronto\u2019s opening night rout of Atlanta, but I expect bigger things as the year goes on.<\/p>\n

Bennedict Mathurin, Indiana Pacers<\/p>\n

I didn\u2019t dwell on this too much in my recent rookie extensions analysis<\/a>, but Mathurin was one of the most interesting non-deals at the deadline. The 2022 lottery pick had a strong postseason during the Pacers\u2019 NBA Finals run and is a starter this year in the wake of Tyrese Haliburton\u2019s Achilles injury.<\/p>\n

Mathurin erupted for 36 points and 11 rebounds in the Pacers\u2019 season-opening loss to Oklahoma City and could end up being Indiana\u2019s go-to scorer in half-court situations because he gets into the paint so easily and draws heaps of fouls (17 free-throw attempts against the Thunder!). Per minute, he scored nearly as much as All-Star Pascal Siakam last season, thanks to his elite free-throw rate (only four guards had more free throws per field goal attempt than his 0.389 last season). The issue for Mathurin will be shooting consistently from the perimeter (34.0 percent last season, 34.2 percent career) and improving the shoot-pass decisions that historically have only been \u201cshoot\u201d decisions.<\/p>\n

Indiana needed more information before committing big money to Mathurin as a long-term piece, even if that certainly costs the Pacers more a year from now. In his fourth season and coming off a playoff run where he seemed to turn a corner, I\u2019m betting he can average over 20 a game on plus efficiency and get his payday.<\/p>\n

Nikola Jovi\u0107, Miami Heat<\/p>\n

Jovi\u0107 only played 46 games in his third pro season, starting just 10 of them, but he has steadily improved since arriving in Miami as a raw teenager and should be ready to emerge. Opportunity-wise, he\u2019s the only true power forward left on Miami\u2019s roster with Kyle Anderson and Haywood Highsmith gone.<\/p>\n

At 6-10 with the ball skills of a smaller player, Jovi\u0107 presents a nice inside-outside combo who can toggle between both forward spots depending on Miami\u2019s lineup needs; crucially, he\u2019s also developed enough as a shooter (37.2 percent career from 3, 80.3 percent from the line) to keep opposing defenses honest.<\/p>\n

The biggest challenge now will just be upping his volume to the point that he\u2019s a more consistent threat, especially with Miami missing Tyler Herro to start the season. Usage rates in the teens aren\u2019t going to cut it anymore.<\/p>\n

I\u2019m optimistic he can pull it off, and based on the four-year, $64 million extension they gave him this offseason, so are the Heat. Jovi\u0107 had a relatively quiet opener against Orlando\u2019s stout defense (nine points in 23 minutes) before going for 20 points, six rebounds and four assists off the bench Friday.<\/p>\n

Cam Whitmore, Washington Wizards<\/p>\n

I\u2019m extremely bullish on Whitmore this year because he\u2019s finally found the right situation for his attacking game, on a Washington team that is desperate for a downhill scorer like him. He\u2019s almost the left-handed, bizarro version of Mathurin, with extreme free-throw rates and a high overall scoring rate. Whitmore didn\u2019t start in Washington\u2019s season-opening loss to Milwaukee but scored 14 points in 19 minutes; I won\u2019t be remotely shocked if he ends up as the team\u2019s leading scorer while only ranking fifth or sixth in minutes.<\/p>\n

The two keys for Whitmore are that the lefty is a reliable shooter, which adds to the threat of his explosive drives going left to the cup, and that he can defend his position, which limits the risk of keeping him on the floor for extended run and playing through some of his mistakes. Those mistakes unquestionably include bouts of tunnel vision, and he\u2019ll need to improve his distribution to be more than an empty-calorie scorer long term. But after withering on the Houston bench for two years in an overcrowded forward rotation, he\u2019s primed for a leap in Year 3.<\/p>\n

Kyshawn George, Wizards<\/p>\n

Two Wizards? That seems kind of high for a team that I expect to be jaw-droppingly awful, but George turned a corner in summer league and had a fantastic preseason. He\u2019s ready to go up a level.<\/p>\n

To be clear, he\u2019ll need to: The 2024 late first-rounder had some pretty brutal numbers last season while he figured out the NBA game. However, George has size, shooting ability and a pretty good feel for defense, plus enough ball skills to make it as a long-term combo forward. He put up 34 points and 11 rebounds in Washington\u2019s win Friday in Dallas, shooting 11 of 15 overall and 7 of 9 from 3. At the very least, he seems to have a lock on a starting job while Bilal Coulibaly is out. On a Wizards team where the young draft picks have largely underwhelmed so far, he is clearly emerging.<\/p>\n

Matas Buzelis, Chicago Bulls<\/p>\n

Provocative hot take: Will Buzelis end up being the best player from the 2024 draft? Faint praise, sure, but the 11th pick came on strong late last season after a very shaky start and has only gained more steam since.<\/p>\n

Buzelis was awesome in preseason, for what that\u2019s worth, and his 21-point, three-block performance in the opening night win over Detroit included several highlight-worthy clips. The 6-8 forward needs to make perimeter shots more consistently and continue adding strength, but he can handle the ball, make plays around (and above) the rim and read the game. There\u2019s a right-tail scenario here where he ends up a prominent Most Improved Player candidate.<\/p>\n

Terrence Shannon Jr., Minnesota Timberwolves<\/p>\n

After Shannon Jr. supplied some back-end rotation minutes in the 2025 playoff run and looked too good for summer league, the Wolves have pushed the second-year pro into a more prominent role, and he seems ready for it.<\/p>\n

Shannon followed a strong preseason with a 10-point, five-rebound, five-assist effort in the season opener. Shannon is too left-dominant, and the \u201cwill he shoot it\u201d questions will linger until we get more sample size, but Shannon is a plus athlete who can defend and get downhill to the cup. This, in a nutshell, is why the Wolves let Nickeil Alexander-Walker walk and paid their two free-agent bigs (Naz Reid, Julius Randle) instead: They had the replacement waiting for Alexander-Walker and no ready alternatives in the frontcourt.<\/p>\n

Donovan Clingan, Portland Trail Blazers<\/p>\n

I\u2019m deeply conflicted on Clingan\u2019s teammate Shaedon Sharpe, whom I think will put up numbers and possibly win Sixth Man of the Year if Scoot Henderson\u2019s return sends Sharpe to the bench, but I\u2019m not as sure about how he impacts winning at a high level. So let\u2019s roll with Clingan here, the second-year big man who takes over in the middle after the Blazers let Deandre Ayton go.<\/p>\n

Clingan\u2019s breakout wouldn\u2019t be a traditional one due to his offensive limitations \u2014 I don\u2019t see any 50-point nights coming \u2014 but he low-key had a very solid rookie season as a rebounder and rim protector. I don\u2019t think he\u2019s destined to be a total dud on offense either. He can pass, which is something I always gravitate toward with young bigs, and his sheer size should eventually translate into more production in the paint. He also has a nascent 3-point shot that may be game-ready at some point this season.<\/p>\n

Finally, there\u2019s the fact that the Blazers are handing him the gig, with Clingan playing 30 minutes in the opener against Minnesota. I expect him to establish himself as a legit starting center this season.<\/p>\n

Brandon Miller, Charlotte Hornets<\/p>\n

Hey, remember Miller? The second pick in the 2023 draft only played 27 games last season due to a season-ending wrist injury. However, Miller averaged 21.0 points per game pre-injury and had sharply ticked upward as a passer.<\/p>\n

Now he\u2019s back for Year 3 on a Charlotte roster that seems more coherent than the last two he\u2019s been on, and he\u2019s the clear second option on the Hornets behind the oft-injured LaMelo Ball. Miller had 25 points and seven assists in the Hornets\u2019 opener against the Brooklyn Nets, and while that isn\u2019t the toughest opposition he\u2019ll face this season, it\u2019s an encouraging proof-of-concept that a big year lies ahead.<\/p>\n