With the All-Star game coming up this weekend, the first half of the NBA season coming to a close. We thought we’d have a discussion about some of the important storylines from the Association’s first half. In this edition of NBA Roundtable, we have NBA Staff Writer Bryce Warner (@BryceWarner1), NBA Contributor Matthew Cardenas (@CardenasMaLWOS), and Basketball Editor Harrison Marcus (@HarMarcusLWOS).
NBA Roundtable
1) There have been lots of good to great teams in the first half of the season, but which team is having the most surprising first half to you?
Bryce Warner, Staff Writer: With apologies to the Warriors, Grizzlies, Bucks, and some others, it has to be the Atlanta Hawks. No one anticipated this kind of first half from the Hawks. They have built a sizeable lead in the East, and their 3 home losses is second only to the Warriors. Mike Budenholzer has his team playing Spurs-style basketball and it has resulted in a system that has allowed all of the players to excel, resulting in three all-star selections, with Korver as a possible fourth if an injury sidelines another player. I don’t know if they’re favorites to win the East, but they’ve been the biggest surprise so far this season.
Matthew Cardenas, Contributor: The Atlanta Hawks are by far the most surprising team of the first half. While they are always in the playoffs, no one expected the Hawks to take this big of a leap. They had a 19 game win streak, and they currently own the best record in the NBA. Four of their five starters will be participating in All-Star Weekend, which is an honor that is well deserved. Mike Budenholzer was able to bring over the Spurs system after being there for so long. Ball movement has been key for their success. The Hawks are legit, and don’t be surprised to see them make a deep playoff run.
Harrison Marcus, Basketball Editor: The Atlanta Hawks, and it really isn’t close. A borderline playoff team in the East that finished with 44 losses last season has turned into the best team in the entire NBA. The Hawks are 8-2 against the West’s top 8 teams, so it isn’t like they have taken advantage of a soft schedule. Led by a true players’ coach in Mike Budenholzer, the Hawks have redefined team basketball, and they have also proved that a superstar-less team can succeed in the NBA.
2) On the flip side, there are some teams that have not gotten off to the start they wanted or many predicted. Which team has been the biggest disappointment so far in your eyes?
Warner: A lot of teams were expected to be bad this year, but the Miami Heat were a team that people were predicting could make some noise in the Eastern Conference. The loss of LeBron James has completely changed that team. They will likely make the playoffs due to the East being atrocious collectively, but a sub .500 record is unacceptable for a team with future hall of fame players. Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh were supposed to prove to the world they could still carry a team. They have dealt with injuries, but this season has to be considered a major disappointment to everyone in Miami. Runners up: Indiana, Oklahoma City.
Cardenas: I’m going to stay in the Eastern Conference for this answer and go with the Miami Heat. Obviously, a team is going to take a step back after losing the best player on the planet, LeBron James. But did people really expect the Heat to take this far of a step back? They were off to a solid start at the beginning of the season, but the injury big has hit the Heat. After signing with Miami in the offseason, Josh McRoberts only played in 17 games before tearing his meniscus and now missing the rest of the season. Dwyane Wade has missed significant time with a nagging hamstring injury. It really sucks seeing Wade hurt after having a great season. For Chris Bosh, he has not lived up to his max contract. Hopefully he gets it together soon. On the bright side, Hassan Whiteside has been a bright spot for the Heat this season. The Heat are tied with the Brooklyn Nets for the eight seed in the East, and the chances of them missing the playoffs are very high.
Marcus: The Miami Heat. After Lebron James ditched Miami to go back home, everyone certainly expected regression in South Beach, but were the Heat supposed to be this bad? Miami is eight games under .500, which is especially surprising considering the all-star caliber play of both Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh; both have shown that they are still able to put up excellent stats, yet it hasn’t translated to wins. The Heat have certainly disappointed.
3) Many players are enjoying career seasons this year; which player has been the most impressive in the first half of the season?
Warner: I’m going to go with James Harden. He has put himself in the thick of the MVP race and is having easily his best season as an NBA player. He has carried a Houston team that has seen Dwight Howard miss substantial time with injury. With Howard out 6-8 weeks, we will see if Harden can really carry his team and get a top four seed in a loaded Western Conference. Steph Curry and Anthony Davis have had huge years, but the Warriors have improved drastically as a team, and Davis’s team sits outside the playoff picture. LeBron James is also coming on strong lately, but I will still give Harden the nod for most impressive first half.
Cardenas: Jimmy Butler has had a great season for the Chicago Bulls. While Butler has been more of a defensive player, he has taken his offensive game to a whole new level. He has helped the Bulls have one of the better records in the Eastern Conference. His play is key to the success of the Bulls in the postseason. While I could easily put Anthony Davis in this category, Davis was already expected to have a great season.
Marcus: I’d say Jimmy Butler. I used to think he was overrated on offense, but he has definitely shut me up so far this season. I have been very impressed with his versatility and reliability on the offensive end, which are mainly results of his much improved ability to score. In his fourth professional season, Butler has emerged into Chicago’s best scorer, with over 20 per contest. He has developed into the best two-way shooting guard in the league and is well deserving of his first all-star selection.
4) Which team that is close to being a contender most needs to make a trade before this year’s deadline to become a contender this season? What piece would they need to add?
Warner: Right now, I think the Clippers are a team that is missing one piece before they can seriously contend for a championship. Chris Paul and Blake Griffin are great, and there aren’t many better interior players than DeAndre Jordan. What I feel like the Clips are missing is a solid wing rotation player. Jamal Crawford is great off the bench, but JJ Redick has been hurt, the Austin Rivers move didn’t make any sense to me, and Matt Barnes isn’t the same player he used to be. They are in desperate need of a “3 and D” wing player, but unfortunately I don’t see them acquiring one this season.
Cardenas: While the Rockets are already a contender in a stacked Western Conference, just one more move needs to be made. The point guard position has held the Rockets back from making a deep run in the playoffs. Patrick Beverley is a solid player, but he is more of a spot up shooter and defender. The Rockets desperately need another playmaker to help take the slack off of James Harden. If I’m GM Daryl Morey, I’m making some phone calls to Phoenix about acquiring Goran Dragic. Dragic has already been in Houston, and would make this Rocket team very difficult to beat in a seven game series.
Marcus: The Portland Trail Blazers. Not many people will highlight the Blazers when choosing favorites to win the Western Conference, but with one or two moves, that may change. Their playoff experience from last year, in which they defeated Houston but then got rocked by San Antonio, should help Damian Lillard and co. this time around in the postseason. However, the Blazers still lack depth in the frontcourt and the backcourt. Up front, Portland may want to keep Brooklyn’s GM Billy King at the top of their contacts just in case Brook Lopez or Kevin Garnett become available (again). Pairing Brook Lopez with his twin brother Robin would provide an ideal offense-defense combination, similar to what the brothers shared at Stanford. Garnett, on the other hand, could bring intangibles like veteran/championship leadership and defensive intensity, two things Portland lacks, as well as the tangibles that are still present in his game, such as rebounds and that sweet midrange jumpshot. As for the backcourt, look for the Blazers to try and acquire someone like Arron Afflalo from Denver. He is a solid scorer (15 ppg) who won’t come at a very expensive price.
5) Which teams currently in the playoff picture do you see falling off in the second half, and who takes their spot?
Warner: I’m really rooting for Detroit to sneak in the East playoffs because I picked them preseason to make it and they’ve been hot, but realistically I don’t see them getting in. I think Oklahoma City finds a way to make it into the eighth spot in the West, knocking out Phoenix. Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook are too good and I can’t imagine the playoffs without them. If they can avoid any more injuries I can see them going on a run to take the last playoff spot. Look out, whoever is number one in the West!
Cardenas: The only team I see falling out is the Phoenix Suns, and that is simply because of how loaded the Western Conference is. They would easily be a top five team in the East, which is why the playoff format has been questioned. Even though the New Orleans Pelicans are ahead of the Oklahoma City Thunder in the standings, the Thunder have the better chance of taking the Suns’ spot. The Thunder are only two games back. They have been in this position before, and Russell Westbrook and Kevin Durant are going to do whatever it takes to lead the Thunder to the playoffs.
Marcus: I feel like both the Clippers and Mavericks will regress in the second half, but I’m not ready to say they will fall out of the playoff picture. In fact, I’m confident that neither team will lose its playoff spot, but both teams’ seeding will fall and their chances of winning the West will diminish significantly. The Clippers haven’t been as good as we’ve become accustomed to, and the Mavs haven’t quite been themselves since acquiring Rondo. The most likely teams to lose their playoff spots are the Hornets, Heat, and Suns, simply because they are already at the bottom of the playoff seeding; the Nets, Pistons, Pacers, Celtics, Pelicans, and Thunder all loom large underneath. In particular, look for OKC to take over Phoenix for the 8th seed in the West.
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