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Rule #1

Pacers Digest is intended to be a place to discuss basketball without having to deal with the kinds of behaviors or attitudes that distract people from sticking with the discussion of the topics at hand. These unwanted distractions can come in many forms, and admittedly it can sometimes be tricky to pin down each and every kind that can rear its ugly head, but we feel that the following examples and explanations cover at least a good portion of that ground and should at least give people a pretty good idea of the kinds of things we actively discourage:

"Anyone who __________ is a liar / a fool / an idiot / a blind homer / has their head buried in the sand / a blind hater / doesn't know basketball / doesn't watch the games"

"People with intelligence will agree with me when I say that __________"

"Only stupid people think / believe / do ___________"

"I can't wait to hear something from PosterX when he/she sees that **insert a given incident or current event that will have probably upset or disappointed PosterX here**"

"He/she is just delusional"

"This thread is stupid / worthless / embarrassing"

"I'm going to take a moment to point and / laugh at PosterX / GroupOfPeopleY who thought / believed *insert though/belief here*"

"Remember when PosterX said OldCommentY that no longer looks good? "

In general, if a comment goes from purely on topic to something 'ad hominem' (personal jabs, personal shots, attacks, flames, however you want to call it, towards a person, or a group of people, or a given city/state/country of people), those are most likely going to be found intolerable.

We also dissuade passive aggressive behavior. This can be various things, but common examples include statements that are basically meant to imply someone is either stupid or otherwise incapable of holding a rational conversation. This can include (but is not limited to) laughing at someone's conclusions rather than offering an honest rebuttal, asking people what game they were watching, or another common problem is Poster X will say "that player isn't that bad" and then Poster Y will say something akin to "LOL you think that player is good". We're not going to tolerate those kinds of comments out of respect for the community at large and for the sake of trying to just have an honest conversation.

Now, does the above cover absolutely every single kind of distraction that is unwanted? Probably not, but you should by now have a good idea of the general types of things we will be discouraging. The above examples are meant to give you a good feel for / idea of what we're looking for. If something new or different than the above happens to come along and results in the same problem (that being, any other attitude or behavior that ultimately distracts from actually just discussing the topic at hand, or that is otherwise disrespectful to other posters), we can and we will take action to curb this as well, so please don't take this to mean that if you managed to technically avoid saying something exactly like one of the above examples that you are then somehow off the hook.

That all having been said, our goal is to do so in a generally kind and respectful way, and that doesn't mean the moment we see something we don't like that somebody is going to be suspended or banned, either. It just means that at the very least we will probably say something about it, quite possibly snipping out the distracting parts of the post in question while leaving alone the parts that are actually just discussing the topics, and in the event of a repeating or excessive problem, then we will start issuing infractions to try to further discourage further repeat problems, and if it just never seems to improve, then finally suspensions or bans will come into play. We would prefer it never went that far, and most of the time for most of our posters, it won't ever have to.

A slip up every once and a while is pretty normal, but, again, when it becomes repetitive or excessive, something will be done. Something occasional is probably going to be let go (within reason), but when it starts to become habitual or otherwise a pattern, odds are very good that we will step in.

There's always a small minority that like to push people's buttons and/or test their own boundaries with regards to the administrators, and in the case of someone acting like that, please be aware that this is not a court of law, but a private website run by people who are simply trying to do the right thing as they see it. If we feel that you are a special case that needs to be dealt with in an exceptional way because your behavior isn't explicitly mirroring one of our above examples of what we generally discourage, we can and we will take atypical action to prevent this from continuing if you are not cooperative with us.

Also please be aware that you will not be given a pass simply by claiming that you were 'only joking,' because quite honestly, when someone really is just joking, for one thing most people tend to pick up on the joke, including the person or group that is the target of the joke, and for another thing, in the event where an honest joke gets taken seriously and it upsets or angers someone, the person who is truly 'only joking' will quite commonly go out of his / her way to apologize and will try to mend fences. People who are dishonest about their statements being 'jokes' do not do so, and in turn that becomes a clear sign of what is really going on. It's nothing new.

In any case, quite frankly, the overall quality and health of the entire forum's community is more important than any one troublesome user will ever be, regardless of exactly how a problem is exhibiting itself, and if it comes down to us having to make a choice between you versus the greater health and happiness of the entire community, the community of this forum will win every time.

Lastly, there are also some posters, who are generally great contributors and do not otherwise cause any problems, who sometimes feel it's their place to provoke or to otherwise 'mess with' that small minority of people described in the last paragraph, and while we possibly might understand why you might feel you WANT to do something like that, the truth is we can't actually tolerate that kind of behavior from you any more than we can tolerate the behavior from them. So if we feel that you are trying to provoke those other posters into doing or saying something that will get themselves into trouble, then we will start to view you as a problem as well, because of the same reason as before: The overall health of the forum comes first, and trying to stir the pot with someone like that doesn't help, it just makes it worse. Some will simply disagree with this philosophy, but if so, then so be it because ultimately we have to do what we think is best so long as it's up to us.

If you see a problem that we haven't addressed, the best and most appropriate course for a forum member to take here is to look over to the left of the post in question. See underneath that poster's name, avatar, and other info, down where there's a little triangle with an exclamation point (!) in it? Click that. That allows you to report the post to the admins so we can definitely notice it and give it a look to see what we feel we should do about it. Beyond that, obviously it's human nature sometimes to want to speak up to the poster in question who has bothered you, but we would ask that you try to refrain from doing so because quite often what happens is two or more posters all start going back and forth about the original offending post, and suddenly the entire thread is off topic or otherwise derailed. So while the urge to police it yourself is understandable, it's best to just report it to us and let us handle it. Thank you!

All of the above is going to be subject to a case by case basis, but generally and broadly speaking, this should give everyone a pretty good idea of how things will typically / most often be handled.

Rule #2

If the actions of an administrator inspire you to make a comment, criticism, or express a concern about it, there is a wrong place and a couple of right places to do so.

The wrong place is to do so in the original thread in which the administrator took action. For example, if a post gets an infraction, or a post gets deleted, or a comment within a larger post gets clipped out, in a thread discussing Paul George, the wrong thing to do is to distract from the discussion of Paul George by adding your off topic thoughts on what the administrator did.

The right places to do so are:

A) Start a thread about the specific incident you want to talk about on the Feedback board. This way you are able to express yourself in an area that doesn't throw another thread off topic, and this way others can add their two cents as well if they wish, and additionally if there's something that needs to be said by the administrators, that is where they will respond to it.

B) Send a private message to the administrators, and they can respond to you that way.

If this is done the wrong way, those comments will be deleted, and if it's a repeating problem then it may also receive an infraction as well.

Rule #3

If a poster is bothering you, and an administrator has not or will not deal with that poster to the extent that you would prefer, you have a powerful tool at your disposal, one that has recently been upgraded and is now better than ever: The ability to ignore a user.

When you ignore a user, you will unfortunately still see some hints of their existence (nothing we can do about that), however, it does the following key things:

A) Any post they make will be completely invisible as you scroll through a thread.

B) The new addition to this feature: If someone QUOTES a user you are ignoring, you do not have to read who it was, or what that poster said, unless you go out of your way to click on a link to find out who it is and what they said.

To utilize this feature, from any page on Pacers Digest, scroll to the top of the page, look to the top right where it says 'Settings' and click that. From the settings page, look to the left side of the page where it says 'My Settings', and look down from there until you see 'Edit Ignore List' and click that. From here, it will say 'Add a Member to Your List...' Beneath that, click in the text box to the right of 'User Name', type in or copy & paste the username of the poster you are ignoring, and once their name is in the box, look over to the far right and click the 'Okay' button. All done!

Rule #4

Regarding infractions, currently they carry a value of one point each, and that point will expire in 31 days. If at any point a poster is carrying three points at the same time, that poster will be suspended until the oldest of the three points expires.

Rule #5

When you share or paste content or articles from another website, you must include the URL/link back to where you found it, who wrote it, and what website it's from. Said content will be removed if this doesn't happen.

An example:

If I copy and paste an article from the Indianapolis Star website, I would post something like this:

http://www.linktothearticlegoeshere.com/article
Title of the Article
Author's Name
Indianapolis Star

Rule #6

We cannot tolerate illegal videos on Pacers Digest. This means do not share any links to them, do not mention any websites that host them or link to them, do not describe how to find them in any way, and do not ask about them. Posts doing anything of the sort will be removed, the offenders will be contacted privately, and if the problem becomes habitual, you will be suspended, and if it still persists, you will probably be banned.

The legal means of watching or listening to NBA games are NBA League Pass Broadband (for US, or for International; both cost money) and NBA Audio League Pass (which is free). Look for them on NBA.com.

Rule #7

Provocative statements in a signature, or as an avatar, or as the 'tagline' beneath a poster's username (where it says 'Member' or 'Administrator' by default, if it is not altered) are an unwanted distraction that will more than likely be removed on sight. There can be shades of gray to this, but in general this could be something political or religious that is likely going to provoke or upset people, or otherwise something that is mean-spirited at the expense of a poster, a group of people, or a population.

It may or may not go without saying, but this goes for threads and posts as well, particularly when it's not made on the off-topic board (Market Square).

We do make exceptions if we feel the content is both innocuous and unlikely to cause social problems on the forum (such as wishing someone a Merry Christmas or a Happy Easter), and we also also make exceptions if such topics come up with regards to a sports figure (such as the Lance Stephenson situation bringing up discussions of domestic abuse and the law, or when Jason Collins came out as gay and how that lead to some discussion about gay rights).

However, once the discussion seems to be more/mostly about the political issues instead of the sports figure or his specific situation, the thread is usually closed.

Rule #8

We prefer self-restraint and/or modesty when making jokes or off topic comments in a sports discussion thread. They can be fun, but sometimes they derail or distract from a topic, and we don't want to see that happen. If we feel it is a problem, we will either delete or move those posts from the thread.

Rule #9

Generally speaking, we try to be a "PG-13" rated board, and we don't want to see sexual content or similarly suggestive content. Vulgarity is a more muddled issue, though again we prefer things to lean more towards "PG-13" than "R". If we feel things have gone too far, we will step in.

Rule #10

We like small signatures, not big signatures. The bigger the signature, the more likely it is an annoying or distracting signature.

Rule #11

Do not advertise anything without talking about it with the administrators first. This includes advertising with your signature, with your avatar, through private messaging, and/or by making a thread or post.
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Zach Lowe's Early Season Trends

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  • Zach Lowe's Early Season Trends

    http://www.grantland.com/story/_/id/...king-questions

    Trendsetters
    We're far enough into the season to start seeing a few patterns and make the call on whether they are fact or fiction
    By Zach Lowe on November 12, 2013
    PRINT
    We're approaching the point where it's OK to at least tap the glass on some surprise early-season trends, gauge their staying power, and investigate what might be driving them. The focus here is on trends at the team and league levels that sources across the league consider at least semi-surprising. That means we'll mostly be giving short shrift to the predictable1 and the individual.2 Other stuff missed the cut because of injury-related sample size issues, factors that raised doubt about whether the trend in question is/was real, or future pieces in the works.3

    Here's what we're left with:

    Miami stinks on defense.

    Miami ranks a putrid 27th in points allowed per possession, and its opponents have hit a tidy 37 percent on a ton of 3-pointers. If this sounds familiar, it's because this is what happened during the first 20 games of last season. Miami was not prepared to dial up its ultra-aggressive defense early in the season, and opponents, increasingly wise to the need for next-level ball movement against the Heat's trapping style, sliced them up for open perimeter looks. But the Heat mostly tightened things up when it mattered, unleashing that dreaded "another gear" at high-pressure moments. Lesson learned.

    There's one difference so far this season: Opponents are destroying Miami at the basket, the very chunk of real estate Miami is determined to protect above all others. Heat enemies are hitting nearly 66 percent of their shots in the restricted area, the second-worst defensive mark in the league. Last season, Miami experienced no such prolonged regression in this aspect of defense during its early-season doldrums.

    So what's up? It's a little of everything, which is both encouraging and discouraging. There's no fatal flaw, meaning it's likely the Heat merely have to summon Erik Spoelstra's "warrior" energy levels in order to rediscover their form — as they did in eviscerating the Clippers' offense during the second half of Miami's home win last Thursday.

    Perimeter defenders have been sloppy negotiating screens, traps have rated only so-so on the disruption scale, and rotations behind the play have been tardier and softer than usual. They are also integrating new rotation cogs in Rashard Lewis and Michael Beasley, and playing smaller three-guard lineups more often — making them vulnerable to post-ups.

    Not only are the Heat still crappy at rebounding, they are getting roasted in transition. Like, borderline humiliated. The Heat have allowed 1.28 points per possession on transition chances, good for last in the league, per Synergy Sports. You guys will never believe this, but Wade has often neglected to get back on defense after a miss in order to mope, hold his face, or argue with officials. I know! I'm shocked, too! The Heat's collective first step has been below its standards, and Mario Chalmers especially has gambled for steals in semi-transition, leaving him flailing in the wrong direction when those gambles bust like a hit on 17. Miami also hasn't paid as much attention as normal to floor balance, leading to multiple sequences like this one:

    Miami Heat

    And this one:

    Miami Heat

    It has been ugly, but Miami has earned the benefit of the doubt.

    What if the Suns are … good?

    It's early, and the schedule has been friendly, with only two of Phoenix's first seven games coming against sure playoff teams. But Phoenix was competitive in losses to the Spurs and Thunder, and any allegedly tanktastic team outscoring opponents by five points per 100 possessions — typically a top-seven overall differential — merits a closer look. Multiple executives from other Western Conference teams have expressed concern that Phoenix might — gulp — be for real.

    The Suns have totally revamped their shot-selection profile after jacking the second-most long 2s in the league last season. Three of Phoenix's four rotation bigs have 3-point range, and the Suns are spreading teams thin, letting Eric Bledsoe attack on the pick-and-roll, launching corner 3s, and urging Markieff Morris to attack the basket instead of settling for midrange shots. 'Kieff is averaging nearly 23 points per game on 70 percent shooting over his last four games, and while that can't last, he'll maintain some level of efficiency so long as half his shot attempts are coming in the restricted area.4

    But the Suns have really shined on the other side, where they're fifth in points allowed per possession. Mike Longabardi, an assistant coach who worked under Tom Thibodeau in Boston, has Phoenix playing a standard Thibodeau system with shocking success. Everyone is following the rules, Bledsoe is a freaking menace, and opponents are shooting only about 40 percent on close-range shots when Channing Frye, Morris, or Miles Plumlee is near the rim, per SportVU. That's not quite Roy Hibbert–level intimidation, but Tyson Chandler–level work is a giant surprise for this frisky bunch. They're probably not a playoff team, and they certainly wish not to be, but they are way better than anyone anticipated.

    James Harden

    Everyone is running, the 3s are bombing, and the whistles are sounding.

    Holy hell. Six teams are averaging over 100 possessions per game this season, per NBA.com. None did so last season. The league hasn't played this quickly in decades.

    What's going on? It could be a host of things. Offense typically lags behind defense to start the season, as teams work out the kinks, find their shooting strokes, and settle rotations. Teams can come out of the gate coughing up the ball a ton, and quick possession-ending turnovers increase the league's overall pace. Turnovers are indeed much higher now than they will be at season's end, but the league also had butterfingers during the early part of last season, without any massive jump in pace at the same time.

    Another potential culprit: Offensive fouls, and particularly illegal-screen calls, are up compared with the same period last season, according to several executives tracking this stuff and league numbers provided to Grantland.5 The league, so far, has followed through on its threat to police picks. Picks come early and often on each possession, and a bundle of illegal-screen calls might also lead to more changes in possession.

    A third possible contributor: The league is on pace to break last season's all-time record for 3-point attempts, with teams on average jacking about one more triple per game. Perhaps teams are pulling the trigger at the first good chance, especially in semi-transition.

    There has also been an influx of new coaches and GMs who understand the value of shooting early. New coaches on bad teams with no expectations tend to view pushing the pace as an experimental way of introducing some unpredictability and closing the night-to-night talent gap.6 But pace is up just as dramatically in lots of places with incumbent coaches still on board.

    All these things are probably playing into the hectic pace to some degree. But it could also be that the league is just getting smarter about how best to score points.

    Some Funky Stuff in the Eastern Conference Playoff Morass

    1. The Cavaliers can't score.

    Cleveland ranks 29th in points per possession, and just about all of the Cavs' offensive metrics are bad. That's disappointing for a team that scored at a league-average rate when Kyrie Irving and Anderson Varejao played together last season, per NBA.com.

    Things will get better when Irving finally heats up, and Varejao is clearly working himself back into peak condition — and trying to find his way, again, with another interior-oriented pick-and-roll big in Tristan Thompson. Combine those two with a shaky shooting small forward, whether it's new starter Alonzo Gee or demoted Earl Clark, and spacing is tight for the Cavs. C.J. Miles has helped a bit, and the three-guard combination of Irving, Dion Waiters, and Jarrett Jack has blitzed the league in limited minutes. But that group will have trouble sustaining defensively, Andrew Bynum looks like Frankenstein's monster, and Anthony Bennett basically does nothing on the court. I'm worried.

    2. Accio points!

    Would you look at the Wiz! One year after ranking last in points per possession, the Wiz are up to ninth and launching more 3s than anyone. They're averaging more corner-3 attempts, at 9.3 per game, than any team ever has over a full season. John Wall creates good looks for everyone, even when he's cold himself, and Bradley Beal has found his shot after an icy start. The team's D has slipped with Emeka Okafor's absence and some foggy guard/wing play, but Trevor Ariza has snatched the starting small-forward role for a reason, the team has long been worlds better whenever Nene is available,7 and it's been insanely stingy with the Nene–Marcin Gortat combo. Fingers crossed.

    3. The Pistons' big lineup stinks … at everything?

    Um, so, opponents have outscored the Pistons by 22 points in the 135 minutes that Josh Smith, Andre Drummond, and Greg Monroe have been on the floor together. Everyone expected scoring to be a chore as the Pistons sorted out their spacing issues, and Detroit indeed has shot fewer 3s and turned the ball over at a ghastly rate when all three play together — indicative of all the passing through small creases required for a single good shot.

    But the Pistons have given up 114.4 points per 100 possessions while playing big, so far beyond the second-worst team you can barely see it, and that just shouldn't be with all the sheer size, shot-blocking, and rebounding here. But it be. Smith will have a hard time keeping up with some small forwards, Drummond's footwork on the pick-and-roll is unsteady, and Monroe remains below average.

    Let's give them time to jell with Brandon Jennings, and for Maurice Cheeks to figure out the optimal rotation. He gets points for realizing quickly that Rodney Stuckey, hot start notwithstanding, should not be on the court with the three big guys, but there's lots more to discover here.8

    Some Funky Stuff in the Western Conference Playoff Morass

    1. Wolves will eat you.

    It might be time to lift the Wolves out of "morass" status, pending continued good health. The offense looks great, even as Ricky Rubio and Nikola Pekovic work to rediscover their fit in a Kevin Love–centric world, and the Love-to–Corey Brewer outlet passes (see below) are a sexy YouTube hit. But the real story comes on defense, where when the ground-bound Love/Pekovic duo shares the floor, the Wolves have allowed just 96.2 points per 100 possessions — one of the stingiest numbers any team put up over last season. Kevin Martin is a minus on defense, and Brewer is a feast-or-famine type, leaving Rubio the only certified above-average defender in the team's starting five.

    Chalk one up to the power of smarts, discipline, and a workable scheme lifting up a raft of uneven defenders. The Wolves know their pick-and-roll coverages — the big men drop on almost everything, and force ball handlers to the side — they never foul, and they clean the glass. The Wolves started last season very well defensively before falling off, mostly as result of injuries. Can they maintain this level, even with a so-so bench?

    Anthony Davis

    2. Anthony Davis is a golden god.

    The Pellies are a mystery at 3-4 — just about average on both ends, despite a world of issues. Jrue Holiday has shot poorly and gotten to the line less, Ryan Anderson is hurt (turning the Pellies into the Grizzlies from deep), and though Eric Gordon is attacking the rim like mad, he's still trying to find his killer shooting touch and pick-and-roll chops. Tyreke Evans has been worse than uneven, and Monty Williams has played his three perimeter stars together for only 41 minutes total on the season. The pack-the-paint defense is a work in progress that has yielded a ton of 3s.

    But in Davis, this team has a guy who should emerge in some season not too far off as one of the half-dozen best players in the league. And that is probably pessimistic. The dude's arms are so long, it's like having a sixth defender on the floor.

    3. Denver is a mess.

    Behold the anti-Suns. Denver has seen its shot selection revert in a bad direction as Brian Shaw tries to impose a grind-it-out, post-heavy style that doesn't fit this roster. Only 33 percent of Denver's shot attempts have come in the restricted area, down from the team's league-high 48 percent mark under George Karl's dribble-drive style attack last season. Ty Lawson doesn't have the same spacing on his drives, and the team has essentially swapped in midrange looks — ugly Kenneth Faried turnarounds in the post, jumpers from its bigs — for the go-go rim attacks that flustered the league under Karl. The team's defense at the point of the attack on pick-and-rolls has been as bad as feared for a team that relied on the JaVale McGee/Faried pairing. (A pairing now on hold in the wake of McGee's diagnosed stress fracture.)

    Some of this was inevitable given a coaching change of this magnitude and the gaping hole at small forward, where Shaw has tried almost everyone available while juggling his rotation night to night. But for now, this looks like a lottery team, which isn't on its own a huge surprise.

    Brooklyn looks … mediocre?

    The Nets have an early "signature" win at home against Miami, but they've been uninspiring all season, with a negative scoring margin, average or worse play on both ends, and disappointing individual play from a number of big names.

    But a lot of those big names are old (Paul Pierce, Kevin Garnett) or coming off injuries (Deron Williams, Andrei Kirilenko), and may simply need time before finding their oomph within what should be a deep, versatile roster. Garnett's play has been especially troubling. The Nets have been far worse on both ends when he has played, but the damage has been most severe on defense — Garnett's specialty. The Nets have allowed 96.6 points per 100 possessions with KG sitting and 107.6 when he's been on the floor, roughly the difference between a top-three defense and Sacto's league-worst outfit.

    Sure, it's early. But Garnett's defensive skills have been eroding (slowly) for years. He doesn't have the speed to consistently contain guards on the pick-and-roll anymore, and his help-and-recover dexterity just isn't the same. The midrange shot will come. The defense probably will, too. But the early returns are discouraging.

    Benefit of the Doubt at the Top of the Western Conference

    1. What happened to Grit-n-Grind?

    The Grizz, the league's stingiest defense last season after adjusting for schedule strength, rank a yucky 24th in points per possession after becoming the latest victim Monday of the Pacers' meat grinder — a dispiriting loss that came after what appeared to be a strong get-well win over the Dubs last weekend. The system and personnel are mostly in place from the last three seasons of grit-n-grind goodness, and that kind of continuity earns these guys the benefit of the doubt — for now. But the collective age of several rotation players is worrisome. Tayhhaun Prince has looked slow trying to contain dynamic wings, and Zach Randolph, never a plus defender, hasn't looked himself on either end of the floor; David West exploited Randolph's lack of footspeed with several hard cuts to the rim last night, and the A-plus communication that usually characterizes this defense just hasn't been there.

    The Grizz are only generating an average number of turnovers after ranking first or second in forced turnover rate in each of the last three seasons, and they need to win the turnover battle just to survive. Opponents are roasting the Grizz in transition, clearly eager to exploit their quickness advantage on the plodding bears. Integrating new rotation pieces is always dicey, and the Grizz have overextended Mike Miller, a fading defender, because they so badly need anyone who can shoot the ball on offense. Nick Calathes is also new (and intriguing!), and Dave Joerger still has to work out how to best use Kosta Koufos and Ed Davis.

    Bottom line: These guys will get better, but it won't matter much if they can't improve the offense. Joerger has introduced a bit more spice on that end, but no amount of spice can mask the stench of bricky shooting and horror show spacing in the starting lineup. Stay tuned.

    Kawhi Leonard

    2. The Spurs' shot selection is a bit off.

    The Spurs are last in free throw attempts per field goal attempt, and this pleasing 3-point shooting machine ranks just 19th in 3-point attempts per game — and that's after 56 combined triple tries against the Knicks and Sixers on a Sunday-Monday back-to-back. Those 3-fests underscore the danger in early overreaction.

    But still, lacking in free throws, forced turnovers, offensive rebounds, and 3-point shots is dangerous, even for such a polished crew. Part of this is rotation-based. Matt Bonner isn't playing, and the Spurs have swapped Gary Neal, a guiltless gunner, for a more thoughtful ballhandling type in Marco Belinelli. Kawhi Leonard is easing into his larger role and still has a tendency to pull up early on drives and pick-and-rolls. Gregg Popovich has been cranky enough to start Boris Diaw, shockingly trigger-happy after his success at EuroBasket, and Belinelli over Leonard and Tiago Splitter on Sunday in what probably amounts to classic early-season Pop experimentation.

    Again: It's early, these guys are 7-1, and they're up to seventh in points per possession. The system is the same, designed to generate the same shots. Doubt the Spurs at your peril.

    Contenders with benches?

    1. Fare thee well, Sam Young and D.J. Augustin.

    The Pacers' bench hasn't quite been as killer as advertised; the team still has a negative scoring margin when either Paul George or Roy Hibbert hits the bench (and when both do), and the backup big combo of Luis Scola/Ian Mahinmi is minus-5 on the season.

    But those margins are barely negative, and George Hill's minor bumps forced the Pacers to elevate C.J. Watson into temporary starter status. Watson has introduced a new level of stability here, and the Pacers' potent play with Watson and Lance Stephenson together bodes well going forward, since Frank Vogel has often left Stephenson as the lone starter on bench-heavy units. Vogel is already having fun using the wily Scola, and the team's general depth allows for more mixing of multiple starters and bench players. All signs are good, and Danny Granger lurks.

    2. Kiwis for everyone!

    The Thunder kiddies have shown some intriguing glimpses of late. Steven Adams had two straight solid games before coming back to earth Sunday, and the Adams/Jeremy Lamb/Nick Collison bench trio has scored a robust 108.3 points per 100 possessions for the season.9 Lamb is shooting well enough, and hit a couple of big ones in the Thunder's silly comeback against the Wiz on Sunday.

    Adams especially intrigues, since the Thunder's starting center is, um, not exactly an All-Star. Adams isn't the smoothest cat, and he has been a bit tentative and awkward negotiating larger distances with the ball. But he's also smart about sliding into the right space at the right time, he's a killer on the offensive glass, and he sports a soft touch on hook shots with both hands. Again: These guys are young, and things could go south, fast. But the Thunder all of a sudden don't look so shallow.

    10 Things I Like and Don't Like

    1. Kevin Love to Corey Brewer

    This is what happens when you pair the world's premier outlet passer with the league's most unapologetic leak-out heat-seeking missile. I want the SportVU cameras tracking every Love-to-Brewer assist that travels at least 50 feet in the air. In fact, we need a nickname for these babies — one that's better than "Love Connection." Brewer Bombs? Love Lofts? This is clearly not my strong suit. Help me, people.

    Love's mega-bomb to Brewer against the Lakers made basically every blog in existence, but this stuff is happening every game:


    2. Eric Bledsoe's muscle flex

    Some guys do this after absorbing contact for an and-1, and it feels lame or unearned — a bit of false bravado from someone aware of his strength limitations. When Bledsoe does it? Just nod, accept, suppress your terror, and move on with life.

    3. Omri Casspi dribble attacks

    The Rockets are using Casspi as an undersize power forward, with the idea that Casspi can spot up for open 3s around pick-and-rolls that penetrate the defense. But Casspi isn't a great 3-point shooter, and some power forwards are mobile enough to contest those open looks. Casspi is generally quicker than those big men, and when the initial look isn't quite as open as he'd like, Casspi should have enough off-the-bounce creativity to keep the play moving:


    4. The spacing in Utah

    Oh, for the days of summer, when Utah fans on Twitter would insist the Jazz weren't tanking. How dare anyone levy the accusation against such a regal franchise? The Jazz bench, shackled too long, would push for a .500 record and a bottom-rung playoff spot!

    Jazz fans, reality. Reality, Jazz fans. The team is 0-8, sporting the very worst offense in the league. Why? Well, check out how cramped the spacing is on this Jamaal Tinsley drive from the right corner:


    This is the downside of starting two big men with unreliable midrange jumpers, a point guard who can't shoot (Tinsley), and an over-the-hill Richard Jefferson. Only Gordon Hayward garners respect beyond 15 feet. It's going to be a long year. Buckle up, and track those lottery odds.

    5. The continued demise of Derrick Williams

    The Wolves picked up Williams's $6.3 million option for next season despite the fact that it endangers their ability to use the full midlevel exception, but they're barely playing him now. The presence of Love and Pekovic basically requires Williams to play small forward, and he just doesn't appear to have the combination of quickness, ballhandling, jump-shooting, and passing vision to play the role. I've highlighted his poor assist numbers before, and you catch a lot of missed passes when you track Williams closely. Watch him miss a wide-open Kevin Martin under the rim on this fast break before whipping something that looks like a shot off the glass:


    Other front offices have been monitoring Williams for a while, sensing a buy-low opportunity, but there's not much to monitor right now.

    6. The no-tie look

    Basketball takes place in a sweaty gym, amid rowdy fans and trash-talking athletes. Why the need for such sartorial formality among coaches? Kudos to the increasing number of guys going without a tie, a group that includes Rick Adelman, Kevin McHale, Gregg Popovich, Mike Brown, and others.

    7. The in-play "my bad"

    There are two universal symbols players use to indicate they've just screwed up, especially on defense: the raised hand of acknowledgement and the chest pat of shame. They usually occur during safe moments when urgent attention is not required — right after the other team has scored, for instance. But sometimes you'll get a delightful in-play "my bad" like the one Lamb signals with his right hand here after missing a teammate open under the basket:


    Or how about Paul Millsap, always a favorite in this space, giving Cartier Martin the "my bad" point of forgiveness after shooting instead of hitting Martin open in the corner. No matter that Millsap made the shot!


    8. Gigi Datome as Charlie Villanueva

    The Pistons found some punch last season surrounding Andre Drummond with a point guard and three shooters, and then running Drummond down the lane in pick-and-rolls that were impossible to defend. Villanueva served as the power forward in those lineups, and it looks as if Cheeks has Datome pegged for that role this season. Watch how the Pistons have Datome lift up toward midcourt on this Will Bynum/Drummond pick-and-roll, taking a help defender with him:


    Datome has started 0-of-6 from long range, and the Pistons benched him last night in Portland in favor of Villanueva. But the dude can shoot! He's not the quickest guy, but he's smart and he battles on defense. Free Gigi!

    9. Portland's quick-seal post-ups

    A few other teams do this with their guards, and Portland has worked the out-of-nowhere corner-to-post cut early in the shot clock for both Wesley Matthews and Nic Batum.

    The loosening of illegal defense over the last decade has made scoring out of the post harder, but post-ups remain an effective way to bend a defense, draw attention, and open up opportunities elsewhere. They can, on their own, generate scoring chances or fouls — if they are designed as quick-hitting flashes built to produce an instant shot upon the catch. And if nothing materializes, one can go to something else right away, as Batum does here in scampering away from a pinned-down Evan Fournier, around a Joel Freeland screen, and into an easy triple:


    10. "Plum-Dog"

    The Suns' otherwise very good announce crew is pushing this as a nickname for Miles Plumlee. We can do better, can't we?
    Some Pacers love in the footnotes:

    That means we'll mostly be giving short shrift to the predictable:

    Indiana's defensive colossus, Derrick Rose's rust level, Sacramento's early struggles to pick up Mike Malone's defense, the Clippers' scoring machine, Houston's interminable parade to the foul line and possible record-setting aversion to midrange jumpers, Utah's stinky offense, Golden State's improvement on D, Dallas and Portland scoring at a top-five level.
    I love that bolded quote. Pure gold.

  • #2
    Re: Zach Lowe's Early Season Trends

    Thanks.

    Comment


    • #3
      Re: Zach Lowe's Early Season Trends

      You guys will never believe this, but Wade has often neglected to get back on defense after a miss in order to mope, hold his face, or argue with officials. I know! I'm shocked, too!
      bahahaha
      "And Tottenham do not know what hit them...well I can tell you, it's Theo Walcott!"

      "And it's Tony Adams put through by Steve Bould, WOULD YOU BELIEVE IT?! That...sums it all up."

      Comment


      • #4
        Re: Zach Lowe's Early Season Trends

        Good read.
        Time for a new sig.

        Comment


        • #5
          Re: Zach Lowe's Early Season Trends

          Yes Zach, we can do better. I'm gonna make The Big Dapper happen if it's the last thing I do.

          Comment


          • #6
            Re: Zach Lowe's Early Season Trends

            It took everything out of me not to bold the section on the Pistons bigs

            I have far too much fun trolling Kstat. That being said, these are early season trends that lead to questions of sustainability, and I agree with Lowe that Cheeks isn't exactly doing that team any favors with his rotations. Of all the Pistons offseason moves, that was the biggest head scratcher imo.

            Comment


            • #7
              Re: Zach Lowe's Early Season Trends

              Fun read.

              The Kevin Love bombs to Corey Brewer ARE incredible by the way.
              //

              Comment


              • #8
                Re: Zach Lowe's Early Season Trends

                The defensive and shooting issues on the pistons are due to the guards, not the bigs.

                Smith, drummond Monroe and Jennings are all playing pretty well. The problem is we're getting nothing from guys 5-12 on this roster. We get blown up at the SG position every night and out bench gets throttled because they can't shoot or defend anybody.
                Last edited by Kstat; 11-12-2013, 04:01 PM.

                It wasn't about being the team everyone loved, it was about beating the teams everyone else loved.

                Division Champions 1955, 1956, 1988, 1989, 1990, 2002, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008
                Conference Champions 1955, 1956, 1988, 2005
                NBA Champions 1989, 1990, 2004

                Comment


                • #9
                  Re: Zach Lowe's Early Season Trends

                  http://www.basketball-reference.com/...order_by_asc=Y

                  That defense is on some good crack right now.

                  Comment


                  • #10
                    Re: Zach Lowe's Early Season Trends

                    Originally posted by picasso View Post
                    http://www.basketball-reference.com/...order_by_asc=Y

                    That defense is on some good crack right now.
                    the current Warriors and Spurs are 17th and 18th of all time, jus'sayin

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