NBA: Role Players who could become stars elsewhere

HOUSTON, TEXAS - NOVEMBER 24: Christian Wood #35 of the Houston Rockets in action during the second half at Toyota Center on November 24, 2021 in Houston, Texas. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Carmen Mandato/Getty Images)
HOUSTON, TEXAS - NOVEMBER 24: Christian Wood #35 of the Houston Rockets in action during the second half at Toyota Center on November 24, 2021 in Houston, Texas. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Carmen Mandato/Getty Images) /
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(Photo by Dylan Buell/Getty Images)
(Photo by Dylan Buell/Getty Images) /

NBA role players who could become stars elsewhere: 15. Caris LeVert

Before all of the stars aligned and joined forces with the Brooklyn Nets, there was a time that Caris LeVert and D’Angelo Russell looked to be the star duo that could get the franchise back on track. Russell made an All-Star appearance and the team made it to the postseason. Since then, both have been traded (the former twice) and now LeVert is one of the multiple decent players mired in one of the more confusing decent situations in the league.

LeVert has well-documented health issues, having played less than 50 games in each of the last three seasons. However, when he is on the court there is a truly apparent scorers’ mentality. He looked like a future All-Star paired with Kyrie Irving in their first season together, taking over during the bubble games to push the team into the postseason.

In the six seeding games LeVert averaged 25.0 points, 6.7 assists, 5.0 rebounds and 1.5 steals per game. The highlight was the final game, where he dropped 37 on the Portland Trail Blazers in a narrow loss that only the Blazers needed for standings purposes. Since then he has struggled with weird amounts of usage, but in the right system, LeVert can thrive. If all the health concerns are truly behind him now would be the perfect time to take a chance, as the Indiana Pacers should be on the brink of blowing things up.