We did it — one week down without a major NBA scandal!
Nice work, nice effort.
So, with that in mind, it’s time for our weekly NBA Stock Watch.
Emerging: joel embied
“Rise” might be a bit of an understatement here. After a tough start to the season – one that included some lackluster performances against lesser teams, an off-season foot injury, the revelation of the flu, and more losses than anyone sixes—land thought he would face in the first month of the season — Embiid exploded for the best regular season back-to-back performances of the year.
It started with a 42-point, 10-rebound, six-assist masterpiece on Saturday night atlanta hawksAfter which Embiid literally followed up with one of the greatest box scores in NBA history:
Most of those points came in the mid-range, where Embiid has now rediscovered his touch. But what Sixers fans should be most excited about is Embiid looking bouncy and busy once again.
He was hustling under the floor and fighting for post position. His excellent pick-and-roll defense was back. When the effort comes, no one is better than Embiid at manning the back line of a cat-and-dive or navigating the cat-and-mouse battle that comes with sliding off the weak side.
The two wins put the Sixers back up to .500 at 7–7. Not what they expected, but respectable at least, and a record that keeps them just one hot stretch away from the top third of the conference. The defense, after a slow start – mostly due to historically poor transition defense – has stabilized a bit. The Sixers now boast the fifth best defensive rating in the league.
However, the offense remains sluggish (28th in points per game), and james harden While nursing his foot injury, Embiid has become overly reliant on dominance. The Sixers clearly need Harden back to have a chance to deliver on any preseason expectations they may have. The question is whether Embiid can continue to play with such gusto when playing alongside his co-star and for an offense where not every play is designed for him.
The Fall: Tom Thibodeau’s Chances to Finish the Season
To be clear, I’m not sure new York KnicksLeon Rose, the president of basketball operations, is seeking a head coach change. For one, Thibodeau and Rose are – or at least were – friends. Besides, there’s nothing like firing a head coach at GM.
If the teams continue to struggle, it is clear who ends up on the chopping block next.
But — rightly or not — Thibodeau’s seat entering the season was already hot. There are a lot of people in the ear of Madison Square Garden president James Dolan, who blamed Thibodeau for the Knicks’ struggles dating back to last season. you can be sure lost last week Brooklyn Nets up to 27 and then by giving 145 points (!) oklahoma city thunder On Sunday – at home! – didn’t help Thibodeau’s case.
Sure, the Knicks are 6-7, which was to be expected. But they’re about to start a five-game West Coast swing where it looks like they’ll be lucky to come away with a win.
It’s important to note that the Knicks are not struggling That’s why Thibodeau’s. This is a definition of roster Nonsense, It’s not bad, but it lacks shooting and capable perimeter defenders. Too, Julius Randle is still there. But some of Thibodeau’s replacement patterns and plans — keeping Quentin Grimes Randall on the bench obi toppin – not really helping matters.
rise: the Houston RocketsVictor Vembanyama’s chances of landing
Everyone focuses on the Thunder’s tank work, but what the Houston Rockets are doing is even more terrifying.
The Rockets are currently 2-12, the worst record in the NBA. It’s also the worst in the NBA, after posting a league-low 20 wins last season and 17 wins the season before. Even the “Process Sixers” have never achieved this level of defeat.
The Rockets are 23rd on offense and 28th on defense. They have some good young players (hello, jalen green), but no one who really set out to contribute to victory. Bricks for Vic is in full effect!
it’s falling: kyrie irving’s (basketball) case for return
For the time being, let’s leave aside Irving’s off-court actions and comments. Instead, let’s take a look at how the Nets have performed since Irving was suspended:
In fact, over the past two seasons (including play-ins and playoffs), the Nets are 17–25 (.405) with Irving and 34–25 (.576) without him.
I’m not saying the Nets are better without Kyrie. They have played a bunch of bad teams and some opponents need to make more shots. But it is also clear that without Irving – and even with ben simmons being moved to the bench – that the Nets have found some more energy and cohesion. That said, it is also becoming clear that Nets owner Joe Tsai would like to bring Irving back to the team.
rise: the Celtics‘ Crime
I think Ime Udoka was not the key to the Celtics’ offense.
How good has Boston’s offense been? How about “best” good.
The Celtics scored 3.4 more points per 100 possessions than any other team, a mark that would go down in history as the largest difference between a first- and second-order offense.
keys? One is that the Celtics are shooting 38.2% from deep, which is the fourth best mark in the NBA. What makes it most impressive, however, is that nearly 47% of his shots came from deep, tops in the league. The other is that he has cut down on his turnover rate and is sharing the ball more (his team assist rate has also gone up).
The Celtics, at 11-3 and winners of seven straight, look the class of the East.
fall: the wolves‘grand experiment’
Minnesota, after making that huge Rudy Gobert Business is only 6-8. Things are not going well. We could break it down completely, but instead, let’s introduce this metaphor for the Timberwolves’ season:
Yaron Weitzman is an NBA writer and writer for Fox Sports Tanking to the Top: The Philadelphia 76ers and the Most Loud Process in the History of Professional Sports, follow him on twitter @YaronWeitzman,
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Data Source www.foxsports.com
