The NBA season is rolling on.
And the West, as it has been in recent history, is loaded. This weekend offer fans another tempting slate of games in the conference.
The defending Western Conference champion Dallas Mavericks, despite starting slowly, have a Friday night showdown against the Denver Nuggets. It also presents another chance for good friends Nikola Jokić and Luka Dončić to renew their cordial rivalry.
The Nuggets then will hop on a plane for a quick back-to-back against the Los Angeles Lakers Saturday night, a rematch of last year’s first-round playoff series and the previous season’s Western Conference Finals.
On Sunday, the marquee game features Anthony Edwards and the Minnesota Timberwolves against MVP-candidate Jayson Tatum and the Boston Celtics.
Here are some takeaways from the fifth week of the NBA regular season.
Are the 76ers teetering toward a breaking point?
The 76ers, with their loss Wednesday night against the Grizzlies, now own the NBA’s worst record (2-12).
Philadelphia held a meeting Monday in which guard Tyrese Maxey called out star teammate Joel Embiid for tardiness and urged him to be a better leader. The offense, at times, plods through games; Philadelphia ranks 27th in pace (97.79) and is dead last in offensive rating (104.7).
Granted, the team’s big three simply hasn’t been on the floor. Wednesday’s loss was the first time Embiid, Maxey and offseason signing Paul George started the same game; George played 17:27 minutes, scored two points and left the game after hyperextending the same knee he injured in the preseason. Maxey played almost 20 minutes and scored eight points, missing all six of his 3s.
It’s still early, but there are obvious signs of concern. Memphis was without star Ja Morant and impact rookie Zach Edey. The Sixers, however, despite everything, are only four games back of the six-seed in the East, which is the final guaranteed playoff spot.
Lakers finding rhythm
Winners of six consecutive games, the Lakers (10-4) are keeping pace in the loaded Western Conference. And, they’re getting key contributions from all over the roster.
Rookie sharpshooter Dalton Knecht is soaring up the NBA Rookie of the Year ladder and has averaged 24.3 points per game over his last four. His 37-point outburst Tuesday against the Jazz — in which he tied the NBA rookie record for made 3 pointers (nine) in a single game — showed L.A. is far more than LeBron James and Anthony Davis; at one point, Knecht had scored 22 straight for the Lakers.
Austin Reaves has been another bright spot, leading the team with nearly three made 3s per game.
That this has come with a pair of contributors, forward Rui Hachimura and backup center Jaxson Hayes sidelined with ankle injuries, shows the depth of this team and how well rookie coach JJ Reddick is managing his rotations.
The real test starts now for Cavaliers
Cleveland became the fourth team in NBA history to win their first 15 games. And with that, the Cavaliers (16-1) sent a statement, though the real test starts now.
Each of the other three teams to accomplish the feat made the NBA Finals. Only one, — the 1993-94 Rockets — won a title; the Cavs now must show that their start was not merely a fluke, but a marker for future success.
Their loss against Boston Tuesday was an interesting case study. In May, the Celtics shredded Cleveland in the Eastern Conference semifinals in five games. Tuesday, by the third quarter, the Celtics had opened a 21-point lead. The Cavs, however, battled back and outscored Boston by 12 in the period to bring it to within two.
In defeat, the Cavaliers showed they have an offense built for a postseason run. Evan Mobley has handled the ball more, freeing up Darius Garland and Donovan Mitchell to create mismatches with off-ball movement. The Cavs own the NBA’s top-rated offense (123). They are tied with the Warriors for the lead in assist ratio (20.3%) and true shooting percentage (63.6%).
Still, that doesn’t mean a trip to the Finals is in the forthcoming. Cleveland must back that up the rest of the way, and beating Boston will be the barometer.
The Suns can’t overcome injuries to two of ‘Big Three’
Wednesday’s blowout loss against the Knicks marked the seventh consecutive game missed for Kevin Durant and the fifth consecutive for Bradley Beal — both out with calf strains. The Suns (9-7) have lost all five that both Durant and Beal have missed.
Phoenix is averaging 105 points per game with Durant and Beal out, compared to the 115.3 they had been posting the rest of the season.
The defense has taken a hit, too — especially because Durant’s length makes him an excellent perimeter defender and weakside rim protector. Through the first nine-and-a-half minutes Wednesday against the Knicks, the Suns had allowed 16 fast break points. By halftime, New York had poured in 76 points, overall, and was shooting 63% from the field and 52.6% from 3.
The good news? Phoenix now has five days off because of a scheduling quirk, and Durant and Beal could be on the verge of returning.
Warriors keep rolling and record-pace bench is big reason why
Led by Lou Williams, who averaged 20 points per game off the bench, the 2018-19 Clippers set the single-season NBA record for highest-scoring bench, pouring in 52.3 points per game.
Through 14 games, the first-place Warriors (11-3) are averaging 55 bench points. While that number has been steadily dipping as the season wears on, the team’s depth — led by Buddy Hield, Jonathan Kuminga and Brandin Podziemski — has been essential to its hot start.
Golden State’s bench also leads the NBA per game in field goals made (20.7) and attempted (46.4), 3 pointers made (7.2) and attempted (20.9), rebounds (25.4) and — perhaps most importantly — trails only the Cavaliers (4.9) in plus-minus (4.3).
Russell Westbrook reaches new heights
Nuggets guard Russell Westbrook on Tuesday accomplished something no one in league history has ever done: Record his 200th career triple-double.
He scored 12 points, grabbed 10 rebounds and handed out 14 assists in a 122-110 victory over the Grizzlies.
Westbrook, 36, passed Oscar Robertson for the most career triple-doubles with his 182nd back in 2021, but his all-around production has slowed somewhat over the past few years. Tuesday’s triple-double was his first of this season and just the second since leaving the Lakers in a trade last February.
