Q’s Column: Early Season NBA Impressions

After another high stakes, drama filled offseason, we are now two weeks into the NBA season. The games have been exciting, their are some new faces in new roles, and familiar ones making career advancing strides. I want to fire out some early impressions a few teams that interest me, or are worth discussing.

 

MILWAUKEE BUCKS (6-0)

This is the difference of having a legitimate coach. Last year the Bucks scraped together a playoff spot and pushed an early-playoff Celtics team to their limit with what some of the worst offensive, and defensive schemes in the league.  

New Coaching hire Mike Budenholzer has unleashed a three point hungry team of role players to compliment their soon to be two, in all-stars Giannas Antetokounmpo and Kris Middleton. Middleton is averaging 21.8 ppg, which is only about 1.5 more than last season, but he is doing it while shooting 53.1% from the field and an unsustainable, but impressive 57.1% from three, while shooting seven a game.

This team will slow down in the coming weeks/months due to a combination of playing some tougher teams, and falling victim to a few mid-season slumps here and there that are nearly inevitable in an 82 game season. However, this team is for real. They will linger among the league’s elite and will be dangerous come April for whichever other Eastern heavyweight that draws them in the second round.

TORONTO RAPTORS (6-0)

I’ve been high on the Raptors since the Kawhi trade. He is the best player in the East, and the Danny Green sweetener has provided nice wing minutes for them already. Leonard was my preseason pick for the MVP. It’s looking like he won’t have the raw numbers to out do Anthony Davis or Giannis, but watch him. He has not returned to full form Kawhi yet, and he’s still balling. We’ve seen some flashes but sometime in mid-January, he’ll get some MVP buzz, and by the playoffs, teams are going to be scared of playing against him, like how Houston and Memphis felt in the 2017 playoffs.

Kyle Lowry has looked spry. He’s making 52.8% of his trey, but we’ve seen this before from early season Lowry. I would like to see new head coach Nick Nurse curtail his minutes as the season drags on. This is the deepest team in the league. Jonas Valanciunas has been solid and more active on defense. But this roster runs deep behind their two all-stars. This is literally how teams win championships. They’re good for awhile, and then make an unexpected trade or free agent signing, taking them to the next level. If Kawhi is healthy, the Raptors will demonstrably possess the one seed in the East.

WASHINGTON WIZARDS (1-5)

Just wow. They’re baddddddd. They have the second worst defensive rating (only better than the Cavs), at 114.5. They’re pairing this with the non-redeeming twenty-third ranked offensive rating of 104.9. This team needed to trade John Wall last summer before he inked his super-mega-max contract, but now, swapping him for some assets or another star player seems improbable. He’s shooting a whopping 12% from three through their first six games.

There will be a second chapter to this season, whether that is a full blown tank job or a playoff push is TBD. But Wall and Bradley Beal have not shown any inhibitions to speak their mind in the past so something will leak out of that locker room sooner or later.

Oubre has been good. Porter needs to be more active and more included in the offense. Dwight has yet to be seen…Maybe not the worst thing.     

GOLDEN STATE WARRIORS (6-1)
They’re way more fun than last year. I love red hot Steph. KD has been really good, flying a bit under the radar. Klay will bounce back from his shooting slump. I’m excited for the Cousins comeback, and how Steve Kerr fits him in.

NEW ORLEANS PELICANS (4-1) / UTAH JAZZ (4-2)
I don’t want to get too deep into analysis on these two teams, because it is so early, and the West is a cruelly fickle, rocking ocean. I’ll leave it at this: both of these teams look really scary. They incubated last year, and are now more polished versions of what we saw last year.

HOUSTON ROCKETS (1-4)

I’m not that worried about the Rockets. They’ll figure it out. Their two best players, Chris Paul and James Harden, have been suspended and injured. The West is so tight, this start will cost them the number one seed already, but it has not condemned their season entirely. They will bounce back, either via a trade acquisition (holla Jimmy Butler), or just by naturally finding their rhythm.

OKLAHOMA CITY THUNDER (1-4)

I have been bagging on the Durantless Thunder since they became the Durantless Thunder. Losing back to back first round playoff series, without putting up much of a fight, only validated my criticism. They have the same issue every season: allowing an unchecked, off the leash, Russell Westbrook to do whatever he wants, when he wants. He does not move the ball enough. He does not move off the ball at all. He takes rushed, contested, low percentage shots. He is shooting 9.1% from three, folks, along with an uncharacteristic 57.7% from the free throw line. And he just does not play defense, even a little, anymore. He is coming off a knee surgery, and is playing his way back into shape, so there should be some improvement in the coming weeks, but even still, I hate watching this team. They have no flow, every other player on the floor alongside Russ doesn’t seem to know what to do.

Steven Adams is under utilized on offense. He has shown flashes during his career of being an absolute pick and roll terror, but it seems OKC never seeks out a play for him when they need a bucket, which harms his value since he cannot create his own shot. And this is a man getting paid $77+ million over next three years. He has a 15.8% usage rate. That’s ranked 243rd in the league thus far.

Paul George has been fine. Dennis Schroder is still finding himself on his new team. I’m hoping Patrick Patterson is more aggressive this season, as he showed during stretches of the Suns game.