In the NBA, more than perhaps any other sport, depth is essential. While star players garner much of the media attention and contract dollars, they are often dependent on their team’s role players to maintain production while they are not on the court.
We’ve seen time and time again that any one star player, even a generational talent such as LeBron James, is not enough to will a team to the pinnacle of the sport; it takes help in large quantities from the other 14 men on the roster.
Injuries or other circumstances may also force backups into larger roles than expected, and a team without talent behind its main contributors will be a squadron quickly exposed on the court.