Evan Mobley leads Cavaliers into 2023 NBA playoffs: Tracking former USC players
The 2023 NBA playoffs start this week and the USC Trojans basketball program is well represented. Eight former USC players will be in the playoffs, including Evan Mobley of the Cleveland Cavaliers. Mobley helped lead the Cavs to the No. 4 seed in the Eastern Conference.
Here's a recap of how every former USC player fared in the NBA season, as well as what to watch for the eight players who will be playing in the playoffs. Players are listed in alphabetical order.
FORMER USC PLAYERS IN THE NBA
DeMar DeRozan, Chicago Bulls
DeMar DeRozan
DeRozan’s Bulls claimed the 10th and final spot in the Eastern Conference playoffs, meaning they will have to play their way into the eight-team bracket. The Bulls will face the Toronto Raptors on Wednesday. If they win, they’ll play the loser between the Miami Heat and Atlanta Hawks for the No. 8 seed, which would lead to a series against Giannis Antetokounmpo and the Milwaukee Bucks. DeRozan finished the regular season by averaging 20.3 points across his last seven games. He averaged 24.5 points per game on the season, earning All Star honors for the second consecutive year.
Dewayne Dedmon, Philadelphia 76ers
Dedmon hasn’t played much since being acquired by the 76ers midway through the season, but perhaps he earned more time with his performance of late. The 76ers rested their stars in the final two games of the regular season. Dedmon played 32 minutes across those contests. He scored 14 points, grabbed seven rebounds and dished four assists Sunday, a win over the Brooklyn Nets. Those scoring and assist figures both represented season highs. The 3-seed 76ers will again face the Nets in the first round of the Eastern Conference playoffs.
Taj Gibson, Washington Wizards
Gibson finished his 14th NBA season by sitting out the Wizards’ final four games. In the last contest he played, an April 2 loss to the New York Knicks, Gibson scored 14 points in 16 minutes. The Wizards did not make the playoffs. For the season, Gibson averaged 3.4 points and 1.9 rebounds per game.
Jordan McLaughlin, Minnesota Timberwolves
McLaughlin continues to serve as a spark and a facilitator off the bench for the Timberwolves, who enter the postseason as the No. 8 seed in the Western Conference. They will face the Los Angeles Lakers in a play-in game Tuesday. The winner will get a first-round series against the Memphis Grizzlies, while the loser will have to face the winner of the Thunder-Pelicans play-in game to avoid elimination. McLaughlin averaged 3.2 points and 4.7 assists per game during his final six contests of the season.
De’Anthony Melton, Philadelphia 76ers
Melton sat out the 76ers’ final two games in preparation for the postseason, but he continued his reliable play before that, averaging 7.3 points in 25-plus minutes in the previous six games. Melton finished his fifth professional season averaging 10.1 points, 4.1 rebounds, 2.6 assists and 1.6 steals per game, with the latter figure ranking fifth-best in the NBA.
Chimezie Metu, Sacramento Kings
Metu finished the regular season on a high note, logging 15 points and nine rebounds in the Kings’ penultimate game of the regular season and scoring nine points in Sunday’s finale. The backup forward finished the season averaging 4.9 points and 3.0 rebounds in a little more than 10 minutes per game. He will look to keep that momentum rolling in the playoffs, where the Kings will make their first appearance since 2006. Despite earning the No. 3 seed in the West, the Kings will face a tough first-round opponent in the defending champion Golden State Warriors.
Evan Mobley, Cleveland Cavaliers
Mobley played sparingly in the Cavaliers’ final two regular-season games, but he was his usual productive self before that. In the previous five games, he averaged 15.5 points and 11.3 rebounds. Mobley improved his scoring and rebounding numbers in his second NBA season, averaging 16.2 points and 9.2 boards. If the Cavs are going to make a run in the postseason, they’ll need Mobley to be a significant reason. The team faces the New York Knicks in its first-round series.
Onyeka Okongwu, Atlanta Hawks
Okongwu closed his breakthrough third NBA season with a flare. He scored at least 10 points in nine of the Hawks’ final 10 games. Over the past seven, he averaged 12.0 points and 7.0 rebounds, with the best outing being when he went for 21 points and nine boards in a win over the Cavaliers on March 28. For the season, Okongwu set career-best marks in scoring (9.9 points per game) and rebounding (7.2). He and the Hawks will look to play their way into the playoff field, either by beating the Heat on Tuesday or the winner of Wednesday’s matchup between the Bulls and Raptors.
Kevin Porter Jr., Houston Rockets
While the Rockets have been out of playoff contention for a while, the team at least got some good news in the closing weeks of the regular season, as Porter showed he had fully recovered from the foot injury that sidelined him for almost two months. In his last six games, Porter averaged 26.0 points, 3.5 rebounds and 4.5 assists. He topped 30 points in back-to-back games on March 29 and March 31. Porter finished his fourth NBA season second on the Rockets at 19.2 points per game and added 5.3 rebounds and 5.7 assists per contest.
Nikola Vucevic, Chicago Bulls
Vucevic played sparingly in the Bulls’ regular-season finale, but in the seven games prior, he averaged 20.4 points and 9.9 rebounds. He topped 20 points in five of those contests and logged five double-doubles. Vucevic finished the regular season sixth in the NBA in rebounding and third in the league with 51 double-doubles. He and fellow former Trojan DeRozan will try to string together consecutive wins this week to get the Bulls into a first-round series.
