25% complete, 1st in the NW Div...

[Driew]

Millsap hasn't been a good fit, Utah list Hayward, Minnesota is solid but lacks shooting and Butler+Wiggins is an awkward wing pair, and OKC is less than the sum of their pieces because of their lack of bench and cohesion.

It should be a lessen to everybody that simply adding a very good player doesn't necessarily make a team that much improved. Cohesion is underrated, and having players who's skillsets compliment each other and who's games work well off each other is very important.

Basketball is more than paper. Most "experts" or "analysts" don't realize this though.

Oh right I forgot about Utah and them losing Hayward.

 

[Wizard Mentor]

I think the soft starting schedule means you could probably shave a win or two off if they were playing a more robust set of opponents with the same level of production. So, what does that mean? I have no idea. Maybe they'll start putting it together on offense, and maybe the defense isn't a mirage? Ultimtely though, I still think they'll have about 43 wins when it's all said and done; there's just too many "so-called" good teams in the West that still feel like they're getting it together (OKC, most notably) and it's all going to make for a very crowded field in slots 3-10, without a lot of separation.

Here's what I've noticed:
Pat is a very good role player. He hustles, he cuts to the rim, he hit's 3s.
Shabazz is also a good role player. He hits the 3, and plays smart, stays within himself.
I don't miss Crabbe and his poor all around game, especially for the price.
Ed Davis is back, and a big part of our rebounding success.
Vonleh is playing like a beast, though still driving me nuts by not looking at the basket when he's more than 10 feet from the rim.
ET is occasionally crazy good, sometimes mediocre.
Our bench seems to be OK and occasionally very good, even with Aminu out and Harkless playing "unevenly."

Our defense is much better. Here's hoping defense wins championships.

I was disappointed in losing to Sacramento and Brooklyn, but the concept of the bad team seems to be a myth this year. LAL, Brooklyn, NY, and several other teams
thought to be "trash" at the beginning of the year are beating quality teams. Right now, GS is in a dogfight in the 4th with Sacramento who has been leading much of the game.

(update Sac and GS tied with 1 minute left in the game. Edit: Sac wins)

 

[ripcityboy]

Here's what I've noticed:
Pat is a very good role player. He hustles, he cuts to the rim, he hit's 3s.
Shabazz is also a good role player. He hits the 3, and plays smart, stays within himself.
I don't miss Crabbe and his poor all around game, especially for the price.
Ed Davis is back, and a big part of our rebounding success.
Vonleh is playing like a beast, though still driving me nuts by not looking at the basket when he's more than 10 feet from the rim.
ET is occasionally crazy good, sometimes mediocre.
Our bench seems to be OK and occasionally very good, even with Aminu out and Harkless playing "unevenly."

Our defense is much better. Here's hoping defense wins championships.

I was disappointed in losing to Sacramento and Brooklyn, but the concept of the bad team seems to be a myth this year. LAL, Brooklyn, NY, and several other teams
thought to be "trash" at the beginning of the year are beating quality teams. Right now, GS is in a dogfight in the 4th with Sacramento who has been leading much of the game.

(update Sac and GS tied with 1 minute left in the game.)

When we put Aminu back in the rotation I think we will look a lot better. Switch him at both forward positions, but for the love of all that is holy.... don't have Turner and Harkless on at the same time. Our offense dies when that happens. Hell, use Layman for the odd 5-10 minutes if you have to. They stuck him out there today.