by Nearly half of the 2025-26 NBA regular season is finished, and it has been must-watch television every night.
There have been notable developments during the season, including the Boston Celtics competing for contention despite Jayson Tatum‘s injury, as well as breakout seasons for players like Austin Reaves, Alex Sarr, and Dillon Brooks.
Jaylen Brown-Led C’s Fight for No.1 Seed
After Jayson Tatum’s Achilles injury in the 2025 playoffs, many expected the Celtics to treat this season as a reset. But despite trading former all-stars Jrue Holiday and Kristaps Porzingis, Jaylen Brown and the Celtics are just 0.5 games away from the No. 2 seed in the Eastern Conference.
Outside of Brown, Boston has found a few diamonds in the rough in Jordan Walsh and Neemias Queta. Walsh has become a premier perimeter defender and an efficient offensive player. After the loss of Al Horford and Porzingis, many speculated that the heavy inclusion of Queta would sink the C’s, but he has done the opposite; Queta is averaging 10 points and eight rebounds while shooting over 65% from the field.
The Celtics are second in offensive rating (122.2), third in NET-rating (7.7), and have the second-lowest turnover percentage in the league (12.4%). Their potent offense, led by the nearly 30-point-per-game scorer Jaylen Brown, has put Boston in a strong position, especially if Tatum returns to action this year.
Breakout Performances Shine Light Onto New All-Stars
Every season, new players reach new heights of stardom, and this season, Dillon Brooks, Alex Sarr, and Austin Reaves have taken this mantle.
Dillon Brooks has long been in the headlines for his unique personality, but this season, he has been a star. Brooks is averaging over 21 points per game, shooting a career-high 45.7% from the field, and has been a primary contributor to a surprising 22-15 Phoenix Suns team.
Alex Sarr’s second season has been everything the Washington Wizards could ask for. Sarr has improved in every category; most importantly, his field goal percentage has gone up over 10%. With his continued elite shot blocking (2.3 per game) and drastically improved scoring, Sarr is making himself a serious all-star case.
Austin Reaves has become one of the elite scorers in the NBA. Reaves is averaging over 26 points and six assists, shooting an extraordinary 66.6% true shooting percentage. With LeBron James and Luka Doncic missing considerable time this season, Reaves has kept the Los Angeles Lakers afloat and has been a pivotal part of their 23-12 record.
Injuries Surely Shake Up End-of-Season Awards
With the 65-game minimum of games played, there will be multiple faces of the league guaranteed to miss out on end-of-year honors.
Players projected to miss All-NBA are Victor Wembanyama (14 games missed), Giannis Antetokounmpo (14 games missed), and Nikola Jokic, who is likely to miss at least four weeks.
With these superstars missing out on the awards, new players are rising to the top of award lists.
Chet Holmgren has become the heavy favorite for Defensive Player of the Year, with Wemby likely not meeting the games played requirement. Even if he were healthy, Holmgren would have had a great shot at the award. He is anchoring the league’s best defense and has been one of its best rim deterrents.
For All-NBA, emerging superstars Tyrese Maxey and Jaylen Brown are making themselves terrific cases for First-team All-NBA. Maxey is having an otherworldly season, averaging over 30 points and seven assists per game, while making 3.8 threes a night.
Before Nikola Jokic’s injury, the MVP race was neck-and-neck between him and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander. Now, it seems that SGA is a shoo-in for the award.
The 65-game minimum has been a significant problem for the NBA since its implementation, and this year may be the wake-up call that’s needed to abolish the rule.
