In a league that was supposed to be boring and lack competition because of a top-heavy Western Conference, the NBA is sporting some confusing losses for notable playoff teams. After a week of tight games and troubling losses for teams like the Golden State Warriors, San Antonio Spurs and Cleveland Cavaliers, the week shows everyone that the turnover of the crazy 2017 summer has everyone adjusting.
Meanwhile, the Minnesota Timberwolves had to try to find wins without All-Star Jimmy Butler. It did not end well. Now that he is back, how do the Timberwolves string some wins together? In short, there’s plenty to look for in week three.
1. Can Towns Stay Dominant? Even though Hassan Whiteside is out for the Heat, Karl-Anthony Towns still has to play the duo of DeMarcus “Boogie” Cousins and Anthony Davis in New Orleans, then plays host to defensive specialist Nerlens Noel. Having Butler back is huge, but Towns’ consistent play on the glass and offensively can help this team turn the corner. But in order to accomplish that, Towns has to play physical basketball on the glass, and continue to show real improvement defensively.
2.Timberwolves Starters With Heavy Minutes. Through the opening two weeks, bench players like Jamal Crawford, Tyus Jones and Nemanja Bjelica have seen double-digit minutes, but not in the most recent matchup with the Thunder. This could be when the script flips to full regular season mode and head coach Tom Thibodeau bulks up the starter’s minutes. It is something to watch with Butler coming off of illness, and Taj Gibson playing the heaviest minutes he has pulled over the last three seasons. Look this week for the effect, especially on Gibson.
3.Teague Continuing to Contribute. Jeff Teague went for 17 points and 10 assists in his last showing. The question for him going forward will be if he can stay consistent as a distributor. The Timberwolves looked great on offense with both Butler and Teague passing the ball around, using their combined effort to pen up the offense for their teammates. Going forward, Teague should strive to continue shoot for seven to 10 assists, impacting the game outside of scoring.
4. Deep Shots from Wiggins. The intermediate shooting in the 18-foot range belongs to Butler, but screening to the rim and shooting from behind the arc belongs to Andrew Wiggins. In the opening games, Wiggins has shot far better on the catch and shoot, particularly from deep. Per NBA.com, he is a 75 percent shooter from three off the assist, only shooting 25 percent when creating his own deep shot. But he has averaged just 5.2 shots per game from deep, a stat that needs to go up.
5. Can the Clippers Keep Winning? The Los Angeles Clippers traded All-Star point guard Chris Paul while retaining forward Blake Griffin, but the buckets keep coming. They are one of the best-looking teams in the NBA through two weeks, sitting at 4-1 and averaging 106.2 points per game. Not only has the offense hummed but the defense has looked crisp after the additions of Patrick Beverly and Danilo Gallinari, leading the league in defensive rating thus far. Can they continue to win games on a tough week against the Warriors and Memphis Grizzlies in week three? They will show plenty about themselves against two very good opponents.
6. Where Bledsoe Ends Up. If you did not catch it, point guard for the Phoenix Suns, Eric Bledsoe, hit social media after 50 point blowout loss to the Portland Trail Blazers and a 42 point loss to the Clippers in the first three games. He has since been benched and now the team will look to move the unsatisfied guard. The problem, much like with Kyrie Irving over the summer, is that everyone now knows they have to ship Bledsoe out of Phoenix. Now, as the Suns’ find potential trade suitor, the organization needs to decide if they are looking for talent or draft picks as they rebuild the team.
7. Cavaliers Are Deep, but Not Great… Yet. When taking a look at the Cavaliers roster, the team seems to be better than last season. With Derrick Rose, Dwyane Wade and (the still injured) Isaiah Thomas joining the team at guard, while Jae Crowder and Jeff Green add depth at forward. The team still has LeBron James, Kevin Love, Tristan Thompson, J.R. Smith and Kyle Korver returning, but the team has struggled. With both point guards going down at one point, the team was forced to adjust, making moves like putting James at point guard. The Cavaliers’ record is deceiving; with the injuries they have sustained, paired with a supporting cast full of streaky shooters, this team is still finding itself. This week and over the next month, the Cavs will look for a format that maximizes their scoring on what is now a deep roster.
8. Time For Green To Settle Down. After a fist fight with Washington Wizards shooting guard Bradley Beal, both Draymond Green and Beal were ejected. Green has been hailed for the passion he brings to the Warriors team, but after his incidents with kicking players in the groin, and getting ejected several times -most notably in the 2016 Finals- it may be time for him to cool off. He is too valuable as the Warriors’ real defensive presence in the paint that can also score and make plays for his teammtes. Green helps his team the most by being on the court, not by letting his emotions get the better of him.
9. Warriors With A Continued Slow Start. This is not as complicated last the Cavaliers problems. With four All-Stars on the roster, this team is just taking every team’s best shot while the Warriors try to stay healthy for the playoffs. Maybe there are a few more good teams than we thought, maybe the Warriors bench is not as good as last year. Either way, this team will still cruise to 60-plus wins.
10. Detroit Is Coming Back. Looking back as recently as Sunday, the Detroit Pistons took out the Golden State Warriors. Whether the defending champs are coasting or not, that is a sign of major improvement for a team that has seen its share of woes the last few years. They head into week three with a 5-2 record and wins over the Clippers and Timberwolves, and the aforementioned champs. The defense of the Andre Drummond, Tobias Harris and Avery Bradley has been impressive, holding three of their first six opponents to under 100 points. This team has played tight defense and is turning the ball over just 13.8 times per game, a league best. Look out for the return of Motor City basketball.
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