Quietly achieving so far in the 2016 season

[Andrew]

With Stephen Curry's amazing numbers and the Golden State Warriors' dominating 25-1 start, it's only natural that that's what's capturing most people's attention. However, glancing around the league, there are some other players and teams quietly off to strong starts this season. To name a few...

The San Antonio Spurs are 22-5. In any other year, we'd probably be talking about how they're off to such a great start, especially for a team with many key players who are close to hanging it up. Kawhi Leonard continues to develop into a star, and I expect this is the season when he gets his first All-Star nod, leaving Cedric Maxwell as the only Finals MVP to never receive that honour. The Spurs quietly achieve at the best of times, but with the Warriors' season, they're really flying under the radar.

Kevin Durant is averaging 27 points, eight rebounds, and four assists per game. He's shooting 53.3% from the field, 43.6% from three, and 89.1% from the free throw line. He's got an eFG% of 60.5, a true shooting percentage of 66.4%, and a PER of 30.1. In another year, he's probably neck and neck with someone else in the MVP talk, if not out in front. Unfortunately for him, Curry's got him beat in most categories, with some historically significant advanced stats. The Thunder are also 17-8 which isn't terrible - and good enough for third in the West - but again, 25-1, including 24 in a row.

Speaking of the Thunder, Russell Westbrook isn't doing too badly, either. He has a PER of 30.5, ahead of Durant and second behind Curry's 33.4, while averaging 25.6 ppg, 9.4 apg, and 7.3 rpg. His raw and advanced shooting numbers aren't as brilliant, but they certainly aren't awful, either.

Blake Griffin's averaging around 24, 9, and 5, while shooting over 50% from the field. The Clippers are a bit underwhelming at 16-10, but outside of the Warriors and Spurs, and to a lesser extent the Thunder, that's pretty much how the West is at the moment.

It bears mentioning that the East is looking the best it has in years. They've got a winning record against Western teams, and they have ten teams above .500 - all of them at least a couple of games above .500, too - compared to just six in the West. I wonder if the Western teams (and their fans) who were complaining about the Playoff format and wanting it to change to a new format that ignored the Conferences are still championing that argument?

Among those Eastern teams, the Charlotte Hornets, Detroit Pistons, and Orlando Magic are faring better than a lot of people probably expected. They're currently all in the top eight, ahead of two teams that were in the postseason last year, the Boston Celtics and Atlanta Hawks (who were of course the top seed). The Miami Heat have also bounced back this year.

LeBron James is still doing his thing. He's basically posting the same numbers he did in Miami, give or take a few percent in his shooting numbers. In fact, aside from his shooting numbers and PER, his performance isn't that far off his last MVP season. The Cavs are off to a more than respectable start at 16-7, another record that wouldn't look quite as ordinary if the Warriors weren't storming through everyone.

You've definitely got to mention Andre Drummond, too. His numbers have dropped off slightly from almost averaging 20 and 20, but 17.7 ppg and a league high 16.2 rpg isn't too shabby. He might be becoming a little more dependable offensively, though his free throw shooting is still atrocious.

Rajon Rondo's temper may still be getting him into trouble, but he's having his best season in some time. A few triple doubles, a double-double average with 12.6 ppg and a league leading 11 apg. By his standards, he's even shooting the ball decently, though like Drummond he remains a liability at the free throw line.

Hassan Whiteside has more blocks than some entire teams, currently averaging 3.9 per game. He's shooting above 60% from the field, giving the Heat a double-double with 12 points and 10 rebounds a game, and as noted elsewhere, is going to command a lot of money in the upcoming offseason.

Among the rookies, Kristaps Porzingis is off to a solid start. Karl-Anthony Towns and Jahlil Okafor are also having good freshman campaigns, so it should be a good competition for Rookie of the Year.

[stereoxide]

Paul George is also worth mentioning although his scoring has dropped in the last bunch of games for the Pacers. He is having a great season especially after coming back from that gruesome injury.

[Andrew]

I knew there was someone I'd forgotten. Yes, he's bounced back nicely after that terrible injury limited him to some token appearances in six games at the end of last season. He's had some good shooting games as of late, scoring 26 per game on the year, and his other numbers are solid. It's nice to see his career back on track like that.

[NovU]

The Spurs honestly are playing above my expectations. Kawhi seems to be making a progress to be a true franchise player.

Durant and Westy are probably the best one two punch in this league at the moment.

Yep, The Clippers are bit underwhelming. Despite their record their plan hasn't really worked out too well so far. Their starters still play HUGE minutes together. Iirc they rank 2nd in minutes played together among league's starters. This is a concern because their core isn't really young.

The Cavs are solid and this to me kinda confirms Irving and Waiter's ball heavy playing style didn't really help much last year. As a result of Irving-less season helped Kevin Love to get his game back and is playing like a superstar once again. Irving's due back soon and will work slowly back into the rotation. We will see where it leads to but healthy Irving definitely gives Cavs new height to reach despite seldom collapse due to inconsistency.

Rondo! It's surprising how he has stepped up and playing better again this year. He's allegedly took on the leadership role too and the Kings are now shopping Caron Butler because they don't need his leadership anymore.

Whiteside is amazing. It's unbelievable how Riley found this gem out of nowhere and developed him to be one of the best centers in the league, when nobody wanted to give him a look especially with known attitude problem. What's funny is that this guy was drafted together with DeMarcus Cousins as a late rounder by the Kings back in the days(but they had issues together sometimes), and the Heat wants to trade him now for DeMarcus Cousins. While I can't say he's better than DeMarcus or Dwight, I will go on to say he has helped his team win a lot more games this season than those two, even on per game basis.

[benji]

Jeremy Lamb delivering on some of that potential finally.

Kent Bazmore has become an actual basketball player.

Pachulia averaging a double double.

Will Barton has been a monster at times for Denver. Gary Harris found his shot finally.

Speaking of the Pacers, they realized finally that C.J. Miles can obliterate teams from outside and that Stuckey provides a reasonably good facsimile of their starting guards. They could have made the playoffs if they had played them more last year.

While nobody was looking Luis Scola added a three point shot at age 35.

[NovU]

Well, speaking of Scola, we also had Humphries going for 3s. This small ball is just...

You also gotta love the Blazers. They are one of the youngest teams in the league and still demands respect from opponent each and every night.

And lastly but not leastly, CELTICS! Now, that's how you build assets and winning team at the same time from shit turmoil. Hinkieologists needs to look, feel, and love the ways of Ainge to unHinkie themselves. The Celts got picks, good players, nice young core, vets, and great outlook for the season. Kudos.

[benji]

1. The Celtics had a player considered a superstar to trade.

2. Four of their key rotation players they drafted.

3. They used their cap space to absorb players other teams didn't want. In exchange for basically nothing many times.

4. They're hoarding future draft picks too.

5. Ainge did this same thing, shitty years stockpiling through the draft, before KG and Allen dropped into his lap, that's why he had all the young assets to ship out for them like Al Jefferson. When he came to Boston he gutted a team that had gone 49-33 and reached the Eastern Conference Finals two years prior.

Don't you remember Pierce demanding a trade because they were so bad?

[NovU]

You know, I was a fan of early day Hinkie who cleared out contracts, piling up draft picks, and not adding another bad contract. But the process is getting monotonous and taking way too long without imminent worthwhile return in sight. The shit the Celtics didn't do was aiming to break their own record of become worser and worserer.

Hinkie Apologists make it look like it was the only and best way to rebuild but he could have done things differently to be a less of joke. Tanking deserves mockery for any season for any team. He could have aimed for 30 wins so when your draft hits, you're closer to contention.

[benji]

What exactly do you want the Sixers to do? Try and sign a bunch of slightly better veterans to one year contracts so they try and win five more games rather than trying to find young players that they can use down the road? Should they drop $10 million on Carlos Boozer and shove him ahead of Noel and Okafor in the rotation? Throw some money at Ben Gordon and Michael Beasley? Role out Rashard Lewis, Hedo Turkoglu and Mickael Pietrus and pretend it's the 2009 Magic? Is Like Ridnour still out there? Nazr Mohammed?

Actually, Beasley isn't the worst idea. It seems insane that he can't become at least a sixth man level player. What was going on in those first two years of his that vanished?!?

[Spree#8]

He could have aimed for 30 wins so when your draft hits, you're closer to contention.

30 wins knocks them down in the lottery though (and bumps the Lakers up). If they win 30 because of progress made by young guys, so be it - that means they're doing something right. But signing mediocre veterans in an honest attempt to win 30 games is a path straight back to mediocrity. After going through the shit we're going through, ending up back in mediocrity will just make it all a tremendous waste.

The team is a joke because, having made no offensive progress to speak of, they've regressed on the defensive end... which can be traced to pulling Noel away from the rim and replacing him with Okafor, who is an awful defender. That and the PG situation is really all there is to it. Wroten and Marshall are back, but still rusty and on pretty heavy minutes restrictions.

[NovU]

The 76ers aren't skipping 'mediocrity' part of the rebuilding process. 30-40 wins team is what they will eventually aim for sooner or later.

I actually find saner argument to be "I BELIEVE Hinkie probably tried to sign undervalued players through trade/FA". Everything else is OH WELL excuse which work in favor of owners saving $ while refusing to take that next step because LBJ is yet to be found from draft.

I don't think I'm wrong here. 1+1 is 2. Discussing why it's 2 is not needed. The team's a joke simply because they have been seriously bad and intends/happy to be seriously bad. Doing it more subtly would have avoided pissing off 29 other teams, entire players even their own, fans, and Silver, don't you think? And you think Hinkie's all right. I will go bang my head into wall now. Thanks.

[benji]

You still aren't answering what you want them to do.

And you act like the team is being bad on purpose when they easily could be good by just...being good. They have nobody to create consistent offense especially without Wroten. Their two best players are 20 and 21 and are figuring out how to play together. And one isn't exactly an offensive superstar.

They were dead last on offense when they had Turner, MCW, Young and Hawes starting and playing 35 mpg.

Part of why they're extra bad this season is they've fallen from 13th on defense to 25th. And the losing probably hasn't helped.

They aren't saving huge bundles of money, they're paying $60 million this season, same as Utah. Portland's only paying $40 million.

[NovU]

And you act like the team is being bad on purpose when they easily could be good by just...being good.

Are you trying to tell me they are bad unintentionally? Say you are right, why isn't Brett Brown not fired but awarded? I tell you why. Because the management put the roster together that is supposed to lose and lose and lose and they know there's not a damn way in this world Brett could have turned the tide against their will. Being historically bad each year is purely by their design. Now if you allow me, I will slowly get up from chair, walk away from computer, and shake my head in disbelief.

[benji]

Because Brown spent 11 years as the Spurs director of player development and was very hands on with all the gems they've turned up out of nowhere over the years. And that's exactly what they need him to do, cultivate young talent.

What, are you going to bring Tom Thibodeau for big bucks in to squeeze 25-30 wins out of the team for four years by loading up on 30+ year old veterans he can run into the ground?

[NovU]

Exactly benji. You acknowledge their intention with Brett isn't to win. But to lose while cultivating leftover of young talent that didn't turn into picks yet.

[benji]

No, I don't. The entire point of cultivating young talent is to win.

You have yet to explain what you think the Sixers should be doing instead of stocking up on young talent like the Thunder did. The team won 35 and 31 games with two All-Star caliber players, then dumped them to accumulate Durant, Green, Westbrook, Ibaka and Harden while winning 20 and 23 games. Once their five core pieces were together and they added some others around the edges (Sefolosha, Krstic) they jumped to 50 wins as the young players developed into quality players. (Except Green.)

The Sixers have been unfortunate in that Noel was injured, Embiid has been injured for two years and Saric has yet to come over. But with 2016 they get a gaggle of picks and they'll get another shot at having Embiid and Saric on the team. Then they can figure out what they have, what they need and who to move to get it.

[NovU]

No, I don't. The entire point of cultivating young talent is to win.

This is ultimate epitome of 'Trust the Process' Hinkieologists. How do you even know it's working? Should we not more focused on the result and its damaging process? Especially if we don't know what their ends are?

Hinkieology is so nebulous that it could be anything.

[Spree#8]

The 76ers aren't skipping 'mediocrity' part of the rebuilding process. 30-40 wins team is what they will eventually aim for sooner or later.

Only for a short while and only with development of young guys. Then it's possible to use mediocrity as a step on the way to contention. Signing mediocre veterans to go for 30-40 wins is how you fall into the mediocrity quicksand that's hard to get out of in any other way than blowing everything up and rebuilding... which, again, is precisely what the Sixers have been for a long time before Hinkie came and precisely what they don't want to become now.

Again, they're even worse this year because of their regression on the defensive end. Centers generally have the most impact on the defensive end, so a bad defensive center gives you ultra bad defensive impact... enter Jahlil Okafor. As nice as his post moves are, he's a net negative right now (and will continue to be a net negative until he becomes a passable defender which may or may not happen) and that's what Philly is proving at the moment.

This is also a good time for yet another reminder that the Sixers haven't been historically bad the last two years. They haven't even been the worst team in the East either of those seasons.

[big-shot-ROB]

I think its worth mentioning CJ Mcollum's season. With Wesley Matheews gone, he has replaced him in the starting spot with more than an acceptable playing. I'm lazy checking his stats,but something like 2 weeks ago he was averaging 21 ppg.

[Andrew]

Definitely. The shooting/efficiency isn't eye-popping, but he is averaging 20 ppg and producing now that he's getting some more minutes. I expect he'll be in the running for Most Improved this season.

Anthony Davis is having another fine season for the struggling New Orleans Pelicans. Probably not a surprising that he's flying under the radar, given they seem to have taken some steps backwards this season. Notably, he's already taken and made more three-pointers than he did all of last season, while shooting them at a 40% clip. He's dipped under 50% from inside the arc though, so his scoring is actually down a point from last season. Still pretty good across the board, though.

[benji]

This is ultimate epitome of 'Trust the Process' Hinkieologists. How do you even know it's working? Should we not more focused on the result and its damaging process? Especially if we don't know what their ends are?

Hinkieology is so nebulous that it could be anything.

Says the guy who refuses to suggest an alternative path the Sixers should be taking to instead throw tantrums about non-existent strawmen.

Maybe you prefer the Kings method? With the Hall of Fame coach and the Superstar they've had for six seasons? Oh, wait, they can't count either since they've dumped six of their last eight lottery picks. (And Isaiah Thomas. And a certain 2010 second round pick...)

The result looks pretty good for a team that started from nothing, rights to four potential All-Stars, a gaggle of picks in 2016, unending cap space.

[deihatein]

Pachulia averaging a double double.

My Mavericks have been surprisingly decent so far. Dirk is still Dirk (only 30 points away from passing Shaq!!!), D-Will has been rejuvenated, Pachulia is OP and RAY RAY!!

[NovU]

benja. The result you claim 'pretty good' is practically new sets of losing record, bankrupt credibility, mad bruhs, prime time comedy central issues, and a forced regime change by external influence. Potential is not result but easiest asset you can build by tanking and penny pinching. Problem is mindless Hinkieologists will believe it's all about championship and it's working. Bigger problem is they don't even know when and how it will come about.

My honest gut feeling is that new owners were 100% in on this shameless tanking years as they're business first new yorkers that cares little about phiila or bball. Stole the franchise under market value which some called a shady deal, then the best/easiest way to flip your investment is to land LBJ and be like Mike, or Cleveland. You also take the hint when they came out and said at some point they have to start trying to win games.

[benji]

Strawman bashing, insults, appeals to others' greed, complaints about methods without providing a single alternative, check, check, check, check.

Not every team gets three superstars who agree to team up and then every ring-chasing free agent dropped in their laps. Some of them actually have to work to acquire talent.

I just don't understand why you're so angry over a team being like the Spurs and employing smarter concepts others are too afraid of not being seen as cool to use. The Sixers are like Rick Barry.

I mean seriously here, it's Draft Day 2013, you're GM of the Sixers. What do you do from then through Draft Day 2014?

[NovU]

Strawman bashing, insults, appeals to others' greed, complaints about methods without providing a single alternative, check, check, check, check.

LoL, come on, no seriously you come on. Reading between the lines in one thing, adding to the lines is another. That is just absurd accusation and has absolutely nothing to do with what I said.

Not everyone has to agree to your religious worldview of holy Hinkieology. Apparently many agreed it was becoming detrimental and should be intervened before joke got bigger. Building the culture and reputation is also part of building the future, because this isn't 2K16 where it's completely ok to be a dickhead and trade, lowball, tank all you want. Zero consequence. Yep, let's apply that to real world and ignore the fact that things are always done under human to human basis where your track record and reputation matters. Everyone's crazy to be jealous and overreacting because 76ers employ superior and smarter concepts.