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Blake Griffin Humiliating Deron Williams
Thanks to the Brooklyn Nets beating the Los Angeles Clippers 86-76, Deron Williams could look back at being blocked by Blake Griffin in quite a humiliating fashion and take it with a smile. In the NBA, a league filled with big egos, sometimes you’ll find a player who still prefers to remember the win and not what he did himself.
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Houston Rockets – James Harden Stealing the Show
This was never supposed to happen; James Harden becoming a front row superstar in this NBA Season. Instead of standing in the shadow of two huge stars (and great players), James Harden got traded to the Houston Rockets and simply took over, showing he’s one of the better scorers in the league.
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Memphis Grizzlies – Rudy Gay Like He Needs to Be
Everyone knows the Memphis Grizzlies are a fantastic defensive team, but in order to become more than just a dark horse contender in the West, to look and play like a team that can go all the way, they need offense, and specifically Rudy Gay playing like one of the best small forwards in the NBA.
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Los Angeles Clippers – Too Good for the NBA Champions
Not just Chris Paul, not only Blake Griffin. The Clippers are beating every big team they come across thanks to a much improved defense and some wonderful play off the bench from Jamal Crawford and Eric Bledsoe, which should make them, at least in some people’s books, the best team currently in the NBA.
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Miami Heat – LeBron James Needs Dwyane Wade Healthy & Better
The road trip out West was never going to be easy for the Miami Heat, one of the oldest teams in the NBA. While a 6-3 start isn’t anything to be panicking about, the problems on defense, especially when Dwyane Wade and Ray Allen on the floor, have to be keeping Erik Spoelstra and an excellent LeBron James quite a bit worried.
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Duke Blue Devils – Seth Curry Stepping Out of his Brother’s Shadow
Not being completely healthy didn’t really bother Seth Curry, who has the back-court to himself entering his senior year for Duke. If his performance against the national champions is any indication, he’s not going to be talked about as Stephen Curry’s little brother anymore.
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San Antonio Spurs – Right Now, the Best in the West
Forget about everything said in the preseason. As long as Gregg Popovich, Tim Duncan and especially this season Tony Parker are somehow linked to the San Antonio Spurs, this team is in the running for the Western crown and the NBA title. It’s still early, but it’s pretty clear they aren’t going anywhere.
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New York Knicks – Defense no Longer a Dirty Word
While most of the New York Knicks starting the season with a 5-0 record (for the first time in 19 years) is attributed to Carmelo Anthony playing responsibly and unselfishly, a lot of it has to do with the way the team has been playing defense through the first five games, something which hasn’t been exactly a point of pride in recent seasons.
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Boston Celtics – Rajon Rondo Still Learning to be More Selfish
It was never going to be too hard of a night for Rajon Rondo, who was destined to have a big night. Not just with assists, passing at least 10 for the 31st consecutive time, something that hasn’t happened in the NBA in over 22 years, but with his scoring, leading the Boston Celtics above the .500 mark for the first time this season.
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Denver Nuggets – JaVale McGee is Great at Dunking
The problem with a lot of big men in the NBA today is the lack of offensive skills. JaVale McGee is yet another player who falls right into that stereotype, with his athleticism allowing him to be an excellent defender and shot blocker; fantastic at dunking the ball, as he proved in two consecutive plays as the Denver Nuggets lost to the Phoenix Suns.