NBA Quick Look At The Best & Worst
The 2020 – 2021 NBA has been a season like no other, following the recent All-Star break the teams are now getting back into the action. Between the commencement of the second half and the postseason, there are 547 games spanning over a 10 week period.
The first half of the season consisted of 533 games over a 73 day period, meaning that on average there were 7.3 games played per day. The pace is set to ramp up even more with the average now exceeding eight games each day, including rescheduled games like the postponed Chicago – Toronto game.
Let’s remind ourselves of the power rankings that some of the best and worst teams found themselves in at the end of the first half:
The Minnesota Wolves – position 30
Things were not looking great for the Minnesota Wolves at the start of the All-Star break. They were on a nine-game losing streak and had just made their biggest loss yet with a loss of 33 points against the Hornets.
New coach Chris Finch has his work cut out for him if he is to make any significant difference to their ranking over the coming weeks.
The Houston Rockets – position 29
Well, the Rockets have set one record but certainly not one that they had hoped to. The team has the longest losing streak of the entire season with 13 games in a row being lost. Also, the league’s worst is their 100.8 points per 100 possessions.
At the other end of the table are Utah Jazz, Phoenix Suns, and the Brooklyn Nets, all of who went into the All-Star break in a comfortable position…
Utah Jazz – position 3
At the close of the first half things had taken a less than perfect turn for Utah, they ended on a 1 – 3 road trip with the worst defensive record of the season. However, in the second half, they have what is probably the easiest schedule in the league and are playing both the Minnesota Wolves and the Houston Rockets.
Utah Jazz rank in the top five for the most shots made in a 3-point range, they also have an impressive record for outsourcing the other teams by 18.6 points per game.
Phoenix Suns – position 2
At the end of the first half, the Phoenix Suns had lost only two of the last 15 games. They are in the top 10 spots for both their offensive and defensive efficiency and at 50.5% they ranked second in field goal percentage.
It has been a promising season so far for Phoenix, let’s see if they continue to fare this well now that the All-Star break has passed.
Brooklyn Nets – position 1
At the close of the first half, the Nets ranked top of the league and had won 10 of their last 11 games. Their effective goal field percentage is an NBA history record at 58.8%.
They played The Celtics at the start of the second half and their next five games in the season are against teams that rank no higher than 18 in terms of offense, putting the Nets in an even stronger position for the postseason.
With many citizens across the states including those in New Jersey and Illinois being able to wager on sports matches, now is a great time to look at some of the predictions for the second half of the season if you fancy your chances on an NBA match. Here are just are few milestones that see likely to happen in the weeks ahead:
Joel Embiid will win the MVP title
Philadelphia star player Joel Embiid is a clear favorite for the MVP, he is dominating the league with an average of 30.2 points and 11.6 rebounds per game. He is currently shooting 52.1% in the field and with him in the game the Philadelphia Sixers have a net rating of 11.1.
What else could Embiid possibly do to prove himself worthy of the MVP?
James Harden is a shoe in to secure the assist title
Speaking of titles, Brooklyn Nets player James Harden is very likely to take home the assists title. As a former MVP himself, Harden is currently shooting 52.4% on drives to the rim and has certainly played the best in his career this season thus far.
He is currently in the leagues for assists so this is perhaps not the most out-there prediction, however, the player’s remarkable record is certainly worth a shoutout.
The Washington Wizards will make it to the play-in tournament
This season is set to include a play-in tournament in order to ascertain which of the teams will fill the seventh and eighth playoff seeds in each of the conferences.
It is obvious that the Wizards did not get off to the best of starts, having lost 12 out of 15 games. However, they made a turnaround and finished the first half with eight wins in 11 games. If they continue this uphill trend, they are bound to jump ahead of Atlanta and Indiana and potentially even find themselves in the playoffs.
Currently in third position is last year’s winners the LA Lakers, having won 25 games against 13 losses. With Anthony Davis injured they are struggling to score and they have some difficult games ahead, making either Phoenix or Utah firm favorites for the finals win.
