The NBA season is just over two weeks old, but that doesn’t mean there haven’t already been a few surprises. From the Magic’s success to the “Greek Freak’s” utter dominance to Ben Simmons‘ channeling of Magic Johnson, there has been no shortage of eyebrow-raising moments in the early going.
- Frank Vogel has the Magic playing well above what anyone expected. ESPN’s preseason power rankings slotted Orlando at 24. To his credit, Vogel has strayed from the physical, grinding style that defined his best Pacers teams in favor of a fast-paced attack predicated on ball movement and good floor spacing. Perhaps that explains Aaron Gordon‘s newfound accuracy from long-range – in his first three NBA seasons, Gordon never cracked 30% from three-point range. This season, he’s hitting over 57% from deep. It is a guarantee that Gordon will regress, but will the same be true of the Magic?
- Giannis Antetokounmpo was a star last season, averaging about 23 points, nine rebounds, and five assists per contest. But his performance through eight games this season has made those numbers look pedestrian. The “Greek Freak” is leading the league in scoring at 31.3 PPG, pulling down 10.6 RPG and handing out 5.1 APG. His superior athleticism is evident, but his efficiency – he is shooting 60% from the floor – is deadly. If these early season numbers hold, he’s a near lock to earn MVP honors.
- Ben Simmons missed his entire rookie campaign due to injury. The No. 1 pick in the 2016 draft, Simmons obviously had the talent to project greatness, but a year off from basketball can build up rust on even the greatest athlete (see: Jordan, Michael). This makes Simmons’ dominance through eight games a surprise. He is stuffing the stat sheet at 18.5 PPG, 9.6 RPG and 7.9 APG. Lonzo Ball garners a lot of attention for basketball and non-basketball reasons, but Simmons is the one with the dominant game reminiscent of Magic Johnson in style and stature.
We want to know what you think. Which early-season player or team performances have surprised and impressed you? Which are likely to last and which are a flash-in-the-pan? Please share your thoughts in the space below.
Was Lavarr at the game tonight? Damon Lilliard tore up Lonzo bad!
Even though the Bulls as a whole, from top to bottom, is as dysfunctional as it gets, they very well may have struck gold with Lauri Markkanen!! The young stud has looked very good thus far, and has actually rebounded alot better than most initially projected coming out of college…
As far as their positives go, it is LM, maybe Robin Lopez, and David Nwaba’s ridiculous rebounding numbers, but that’s definitely all!!
In other news:
**The Bucks need Bledsoe to compete for the East.
**The Celtics have picked it up, and have really started to gel well together after losing GH.
**Simmons and Embiid look like one of the best young, future duos in the NBA.
**The Greek Freak is currently unstoppable, and is looking more like the Green Freak aka the Hulk.
**The Magic’s on court production has Vogel looking like the early favorite for Coach of the Decade.
**The Bulls are a dysfunctional disaster from top to bottom, except Markkanen.
**Ironically, and quite comically, the Cavs are even more dysfunctional without Kyrie.
**The so heavily covered dynamic duo of Harden and CP3 is still a big question mark.
**The Lakers are showing some early promise, although Julius Randle is still being disrespected and undervalued, unless he is dealing with a minor injury, then I apologize..lol
**I have no clue what to make of the Thunder, does anyone know how good they are or can be??
**The Paul George trade somehow, miraculously is actually looking like a win-win for both teams, especially for the Pacers…Which no one thought was possible, except the Indiana Pacers.
**The Bulls are a dysfunctional disaster from top to bottom, except Markkanen.
**The Knicks are not the biggest laughing stock in the NBA any longer.. (see: The Bulls)
**The Kings are talented and fairly deep, yet still cannot quite figure out how to win games..But they are greatly improved from last year, and they have done an excellent job of quickly re-tooling their roster after trading away their superstar.
**The 76ers cannot go a season without their number one pick getting injured early on..Despite some changes and progress, somethings will never change.
**The Hawks have quickly demoted themselves to the bottom of the Eastern Division, yet they still are not as bad as the Bulls…even though Markkanen managed to beat Atlanta single-handedly..
**The Wizards will forever be a #3-#4 seed, and won’t ever get over the hump.
**Kenneth Fried needs to be traded immediately!!
**Finally, the Bulls are a dysfunctional disaster from the very top to the very bottom, except Markkanen
Bledsoe doesn’t deserve to go to a winner and nobody is going to give up good young talent and picks to get him. Sixers are doing well, but losing close games. Markenen is doing well too!
Wtf was this just now? Do you have a condition? Is that you Gar?
Hint: I go by GarPax…shhh..
Someone asked me this the other day. No surprises so far. I think the shortened training camp/preseason definitely had an effect on teams, but nothing all that surprising has happened. I’m sure we will be seeing articles soon about how there are more possessions, and pace being up around the league. Most everyone is using more optimal lineups. Scoring around the league is up. The game is becoming even faster and more skill oriented through every position. There will be a lot of close games, that decide seeding…a lot can be said there. I think if you paid attention to the off-season, nothing that’s happened should have been unexpected
If Bledsoe hadn’t sat out trying to get the max, get sent home for this, and missed half a season every other year, I could see teams being more interested. The Suns owners asking price of young players (low salary) and picks is unrealistic. Seriously why would the Bucks give up last seasons rookie of the year, who makes $13 million less than Bledsoe, and is getting 15 ppg now and is the Bucks second option (Bledsoe only averaged 15 ppg in the 3 games he played), knowing Bledsoe might get 15 ppg playing with Giannis and Middleton?
Bottom line: Bucks team salary is $124 million. Suns $86.7 million. Bledsoe makes $14.5 million, Brogdan $1.3 million. Bledsoe has missed 1/2 season every other year due to injuries, and Brogdan is healthy and knows the Bucks playbook. Both are averaging 15 ppg. (Bledsoe would not be the first option for the Bucks). Bledsoe is not an Eastern All-Star. He has Kyrie, Dragic, Wall, Kemba Walker, and Brogdan ahead of him.
I think your top line said it all! They didn’t want what detroit offered, denver’s going with Murray, and so Bledsoe is getting a nice paid vacation!
Brogdan is a better player
Also the Bucks are winning with Brogdan. The Suns were losing with Bledsoe and are winning with Mike James! That doesn’t help trying to get a better offer!
I like Bledsoe to the Lakers for Luol Deng and a future pick!!
The suns want more young players, not deng. But i can see a Bledsoe and a second rounder going to the lakers for deng, Randle, and a first rounder.
That would be fair.
Think the Lakers are afraid Randle is going to ask too much money this summer!