From a team that was supposed to be bad that's looking good and a club that was supposed to be good that's struggling, the NBA is as interesting as ever.
Here are a few storylines to watch right now in The Association.
Oklahoma City Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is making the leap from star to superstar.
On Wednesday evening, he dropped 42 points on 14-of-22 shooting while adding seven assists and six rebounds, and even hit a stepback triple to give the Thunder a one-point lead with 1.1 seconds left to play, giving Oklahoma City its third victory in its last four games.
Gilgeous-Alexander is averaging 32.3 points per game on 54.6 per cent shooting from the field and a 40 per cent clip from deep so far this season.
He’s looking like a franchise cornerstone Oklahoma City can build around. The Thunder’s recent success — which has them now sporting a 7-8 record and in the mix for the play-in threshold — is solid proof of that.
This is a great story for Gilgeous-Alexander and the Thunder early in the season, but you have to wonder: Is this what Oklahoma City’s front office actually wants?
The Thunder came into the season with the expectation they weren’t going to win many games as they try to make a run at top French prospect Victor Wembanyama in the draft. Ideally, the plan would be you have Gilgeous-Alexander paired up with Wembanyama, creating what could be one of the most dangerous screen action combinations in the NBA.
Gilgeous-Alexander’s ascent this season is obviously a good thing for the Thunder, but it might be too much of a good thing because he’s become so dominant a player, he can win games for his team on his talent alone at times now — something that runs counter to what looked like Thunder general manager Sam Presti and his front office’s initial plan.
Of course, there is the possibility Gilgeous-Alexander could be traded, especially because he was reportedly unhappy with all the losing he’s experienced in Oklahoma City, but would you really want to give up a 24-year-old budding superstar just beginning to understand the full scope of his powers?
Wembanyama looks like a generational talent in the waiting, but there’s no guarantee the Thunder could land him, even if they trade Gilgeous-Alexander and completely plummet to the bottom of the standings. That’s a very risky proposition.
After beginning the season 1-4, the Philadelphia 76ers have gone 6-3 and look to be more like the title contenders they were billed to be before the season began.
The reason for this turnaround has been a better overall play from the Sixers, as well as Joel Embiid’s return to the lineup from an illness.
Philly has won three of its last four games, coinciding with Embiid’s return as he’s averaged 40 points, 11 rebounds, 5.3 assists and 2.8 blocks per game during that stretch while shooting 54.3 per cent from the floor. Included during this time, was a 59-point, 11-rebound, eight-assist masterpiece in a win over the Utah Jazz.
This could be a sign of things to come for the Sixers now. Their opening-season malaise could be rendered moot if Embiid gets going again like he did last year. With James Harden sidelined with an injury, Embiid will need to take on a larger workload. Ultimately, that might be better for Philadelphia as role definition within the team becomes that much clearer.
Don’t be surprised if you see the 76ers shoot right up around the top three or four of the Eastern Conference standings by the time December rolls around.
Stephen Curry is second in scoring this season, averaging 32.8 points per game, and is doing so at a remarkably efficient rate, shooting 53.1 per cent from the floor, 44.7 per cent from three-point range and 92.9 per cent from the free-throw line.
With numbers like that, you’d expect his Golden State Warriors to be among the best teams in the league, but that hasn’t been the case. The Warriors are only 6-9 and sport the NBA’s fourth-worst defence, conceding 114.1 points per 100 possessions.
Offensively, the Dubs boast a top-10 attack in the league, thanks largely to Curry’s brilliance, but that means nothing if they can’t get stops.
The dreadful overall defensive rating the Warriors have is largely because of how poorly they’ve played on the road. Golden State is 0-8 away from home and is giving up 120.8 points per 100 possessions. A stark contrast to the 6-1 record and 106.7 defensive rating it owns when playing at Chase Center.
If the Warriors can correct their awful road record and keep things going on the home then things will be fine. However, the fact remains that the defending champs aren’t even in a play-in picture right now and will have a lot of ground to make up in an ultra-competitive Western Conference that’s seen some new contenders such as the Portland Trail Blazers, Utah Jazz and New Orleans Pelicans rise up this season.
Getting back to where they want to be won’t be a walk in the park for the Dubs.
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