As I'm sure you are aware we are roughly 1 month into the 2018/19 NBA Season and what a season it's been so far. While it's still a relatively small sample size it's still a big enough sample for me to overreact to certain things we've seen. I will be looking at 8 things we've seen this season and predict whether they are here to stay (Trend) or if they are just an anomaly (Dead End)
1. The OKC Thunder are better without Russell Westbrook
Oklahoma currently have a 10-6 and sit 5-3 with and without Russell Westbrook. Without Westbrook for opening night, they lost to GS in a close match-up and have also beaten the Houston Rockets which were arguably their hardest games. However with Westbrook they did manage to beat the Pelicans, Clippers and lose a close game to the Celtics.
In my opinion there is no way that OKC are better without him, he still is a top 10 player and the main man for this team.
Verdict: Dead End
2. Blake Griffin is back
The day Blake Griffin was traded to Detroit seemed like the day that a lot of people gave up on him. I wasn't so sure about that as I knew how good he was and what he could offer. Blake is averaging 24-10-5 which are all higher than his career average while leading Detroit to a 8-6 record. He's hitting 3's a rate he hasn't done before and is healthy. With a 50 point game to his name this season I'm confident he will be an All Star and has a good chance at making back into one of the All NBA teams.
Verdict: Trend
3. The Cavaliers miss LeBron James
The Cleveland Cavaliers currently sit bottom of the NBA with a dismal 2-13 record. They are on track to win 11 games this season and the main reason is the gap left by a certain Mr. James. I mean the 4 seasons he came back to Cleveland they won atleast 50 games every year whereas the 4 before that when he was in Miami, Cleveland won 19,21,24,33 games respectively. His value is unmatched and it is clear how much of an impact he had on this franchise. At least he left them a parting gift, the chance to draft Zion.
Verdict: Trend
4. Kemba Walker will be the scoring champion
Averaging a league-leading 29.6 ppg is Kemba Walker, with 103 points over his last 2 outings this has pushed him past everyone else in the league. He really has the offence to himself in Charlotte and I'm happy he is getting some well deserved attention. With games with 60,43,41,39 and 37 points he has cemented himself as one of the premier scorers in the league and I can see him having anywhere from 10 to 15 40 point games this season. It may be a long shot but I'm looking this one in.
Verdict: Trend
5. Hassan Whiteside will average 3 Blocks Per Game
With Hassan Whiteside currently averaging 3.13bpg he is on track to average over 3bpg for the first time since 2015/16 when he achieved this. He is doing this all while only playing 28 mins per night which is promising. On his day he is an elite shot blockers and the fact he has already done this once, I'm sure he can do this again.
Verdict: Trend
6. The Memphis Grizzlies will get Home Court Advantage
After an injury plagued season last time out, the Grizzlies returned this year with their 2 stars back and are making up for lost time. 16 games in and they sit joint top of the West with an 11-5 record. They have the best defense in the league and are grinding results out in typical Memphis style. They have the experience and I'm sure theyll hang on to a playoff spot but over the course of a season I'm not sure if they can keep up and get a top 4 seed.
Verdict: Dead End
7. James Harden will lead the league in Steal Per Game
The Beard sits 3rd behind teammate CP3, and Paul George and is one of only 6 players to average over 2 spg. He has missed a few games this season and as time goes on I'm sure he will get his rhythm back. He is normally mocked for his defence and I'm going to go out on a limb here and say he does it.
Verdict: Trend
8. Luka Doncic is the ROY
19-7-4 is even better than I expected from Luka. He's clearly a very good player and I'm pretty confident he will win ROY, although he does have some competition. He currently sits top of the NBA's ROY Ladder and I'm sure he will be at the come come the end of the season.
Verdict: Trend
