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The NBA season is almost a month old. What standouts are here to stay?
The Eastern Conference standings are full of early-season surprises, including impressive starts from the Chicago Bulls, Washington Wizards and Cleveland Cavaliers. Meanwhile, the defending champion Milwaukee Bucks are dealing with injuries as they work their way out of the conference’s bottom 10.
The Western Conference isn’t as topsy-turvy as the East, but the Los Angeles Lakers’ woes are starting to raise concerns about one of the preseason title favorites. Will the star-studded Lakers break out of their early hole before Giannis Antetokounmpo and the Bucks?
Our NBA experts are examining some early-season storylines, including which contender — the Brooklyn Nets or Philadelphia 76ers — is better equipped to handle its star absence, and which players’ hot starts are flying under the radar.
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1. Which surprise team’s early success is the most sustainable?
Tim Bontemps: The Wizards. Turning Russell Westbrook into Spencer Dinwiddie alone is arguably an upgrade at this point in their respective careers. Throw in getting Kyle Kuzma, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope and Montrezl Harrell, and it’s a clear win for Washington. Having a rotation full of solid NBA players is a recipe for regular-season success, and new coach Wes Unseld Jr. has done an excellent job. This looks like a clear playoff team, even in a much more competitive Eastern Conference.
Andrew Lopez: The Wizards have gotten major contributions from all four of their big offseason acquisitions. Dinwiddie is working his way back into his 2019-20 form, but the three players picked up in the Westbrook trade have all stepped up: Kuzma (14.8 points and 9.1 rebounds per game) and Harrell (18.3 points and 9.3 rebounds) look as comfortable as ever, while Caldwell-Pope is still hitting his 3s at close to a 40% clip.
Bobby Marks: The Bulls. I am buying stock in what Chicago has been able to do….
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Source : espn
