WE have officially reached the midway point of the 2016-17 season. Some teams are living up to the hype and exceeding expectations, others not so much as they plummet towards the bottom of the lottery. Teams will be reviewed at the quarter, halfway and three-quarter mark of the year. Let’s quickly wrap the second portion of the season so far for the teams from the Southwest division.
San Antonio Spurs (32-9)
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SAN Antonio hasn’t skipped a beat this year, and we shouldn’t have expected anything less. They are giving up the 2nd fewest PPG (points per game) to opponenets at 98.4 and Pau Gasol looks five years younger slotting perfectly into the Spurs ‘extra pass’ team first’ mentality.
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WHILE it doesn’t come as a huge surprise San Antonio ranks 3rd last in the league for points scored in the paint, beating only Dallas and Cleveland. As I have said countless times the way the league is transition means that there is less of an emphasis from scoring inside as apposed to hitting a three, but If you shots aren’t falling you need to be able to score in the paint to get your offense rolling.
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WHAT does San Antonio have to do to get recognition from us, seriously? They have arguably the 2nd best defense and look like the only team out West that can handle the Warriors and Kawhi Leonard is barely even mentioned as a MVP candidate. If the Spurs keep winning could he garner some attention for the coveted individual award?
Houston Rockets (33-12)
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THE Houston Rockets lead the league in made and attempted three’s with Harden, Gordon, Anderson and Ariza combining to make 12.3 per game themselves. If they were their own team that give them the 3rd most makes out of anyone in the league. Gordon’s productivity (17.8 points a night, 3.7 three’s) has especially been a bonus, deservedly putting him in All Star reserve conversations.
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THE shootout mentality that Houston opt for might ultimately be their undoing in the long run. They allow their opponents to shoot the 5th highest amount of total shots and let them convert at 0ver 45%. The Rockets have been prone to starting slow as well, ranking in the bottom third of the league for 1st half scoring.
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HOUSTON should set their sights on attaining a top two seed in the Western Conference. Looking ahead to their schedule the rest of January features a lot of road games, but February has a big chunk of home games. If they can survive the road trip, their home stand could result in a massive winning streak.
Image from rockets.clutchfans.net
Memphis Grizzlies (25-19)
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WHEN it comes to stopping opponents from scoring inside the paint no one does it better than Memphis, with the Grizz allowing just 37.4 points a game. Defensively as a whole the Grizzlies have it locked down, ranking among the top five in most major defensive categories.
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THERE is a similar trend with teams that dominate defensively, they struggle to score the ball. Memphis is no exception. Their 99.6 points a game are the 26th highest average and they shoot the worst field goal % in the league.
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CHANDLER Parsons’ season from hell hasn’t got any better over the past half a dozen weeks. While he has been able to string a few games together he is shooting a career low from the field and putting up just six points a night in 17 minutes. Can he get his shit together and give Memphis the offensive boost they so desperately need?
New Orleans Pelicans (17-26)
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WITH a healthy squad the Pelicans actually look like a capable NBA team on given nights. Granted they aren’t challenging for the title yet, but guys like Jrue Holiday and Tyreke Evans provide stability that Anthony Davis desperately needs. The play of certain bench guys (E’Twaun Moore, Terrance Jones, Langston Galloway) has New Orleans scoring the 4th most bench points in the league.
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ALLOWING the 4th highest amount of average three’s a game hurts (10.5) a team that ranks in the middle of most major stat categories. Their defense is solid but not great, and the same can be said for their offense. They shoot the 25th best percentage from the field which makes it hard to put up challenging points totals.
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THERE are two paths that New Orleans can take at the mid way point of the season. They can cut their losses, bottom out and get another high draft pick to pair with Davis and a reasonable supporting cast. Or they can swing for the fences bring in other pieces that can compliment their teams structure and try to make the playoffs. Currently sitting in 10th place in the West I think the former plan of action makes the most sense, but Anthony Davis’ numbers may mean they challenge for the 2nd postseason berth of his career.
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Dallas Mavericks (14-27)
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THE ship has steadied slightly in Dallas with the team floating around .500 for the past month plus. They allow the 4th fewest PPG on defense and make the 6th most points off threes a game. A large bump in both of those stats has been because the team is finally approaching full health and having capable bodies to help contribute nightly.
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THERE are bad factors surrounding this Mavericks team though. They score the fewest points a game, and also rank dead last in rebounds each night. With Dirk’s expected decline in production and the uncertainty surrounding Bogut’s whole situation there is no clear resolution to fix those issues for the struggling squad.
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THROUGH 41 games this is the worst season in the 17 years that Mark Cuban has owned the team, and Dallas seems destined to stay anchored to the bottom of the standings. The big issue remain what to do with Bogut? Do they trade him to a contender who needs some help or try to get him to buy in and help win a few games for the pleasure of the fans/team?
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