Week five of the NBA season is officially behind us and we already have numerous confirmed spots for the second round of the in-season tournament. The Indiana Pacers, who have one of the best offenses in the league, were among the first teams to qualify from their group alongside the Los Angeles Lakers in the Western Conference.
A lot has happened in the last seven days, including injuries as well as controversial and impactful moments that took over social media.
5 Bucks eliminate 26-point deficit
In a game in which Damian Lillard played for the first time against the Portland Trail Blazers, the Milwaukee Bucks did not come into the game with full force. Khris Middleton’s absence due to an Achilles tendon injury gave rookie Andre Jackson Jr. his third career start. Jackson was drafted early in the second round of this year’s NBA draft and made a good first impression, even if his high energy and willingness to learn didn’t necessarily show in his box score.
The game didn’t start particularly well for the Bucks, conceding a five-point lead at the end of the first 12 minutes, thanks in part to Milwaukee’s star guard having difficulty getting the ball to the basket. The second quarter was even worse for the 2021 champions as Giannis Antetokounmpo failed to make an impact on the game and finished with a plus-minus of -11.
Milwaukee Bucks vs. Portland Trail Blazers – Game stats after half
First half
Second half
Points
+/-
Feldziel %
Points
+/-
Feldziel %
Giannis Antetokounmpo
18
-9
58.3
15
+18
44.4
Damian Lillard
14
-5
36.4
17
+20
30.0
Brook Lopez
7
-6
42.9
3
+9
25.0
Malik Beasley
8
-4
50,0
6
+20
25.0
When the Milwaukee Bucks returned to the court in the second half, they fell even further behind as they had to overcome a 26-point deficit. This low point marked the turning point for the Bucks, as they began to steadily reduce the lead midway through the quarter. After a monster fourth quarter from the two Bucks stars, who scored 20 of the team’s 33 points in the final 12 minutes, the comeback was finally completed with a tip-in by Antetokounmpo with 20 seconds left in the game. The final score was 108-104 for the Bucks.
4 Are the Orlando Magic real?
The Orlando Magic’s fantastic start to the season made it into the storylines last week, and the team can’t stop themselves from telling the ultimate feel-good story. Through 17 games, the Magic have a 12-5 season record and are currently the third seed in the Eastern Conference, just behind the Boston Celtics, who they defeated in their final tournament game of the season, and the aforementioned Bucks.
They are currently the second-best defense in the NBA, but are very narrowly behind the Minnesota Timberwolves. This new defense system is quite unorthodox when you think about it, as there are no infamous one-on-one defenders; Jalen Suggs is developing into one in the coming years of his career and Jonathan Isaac is still looking for consistency after missing so many games in recent seasons.
Orlando Magic – 2023/24 season statistics (after 17 games)
Defensive rating
107,3 (2.)
Opponent’s turnover percentage
15,4 (1.)
Defensive rebound percentage
78,8 (2.)
However, they have a very deep group of players that allows them to be at the top of the rankings in opponent turnover rate, opponent field goal percentage, and defensive rebounding, while also being one of the best teams at defense and Preventing Shots include preventing teams from taking shots.
Even though the Magic have a strong defense, they still need to score to win games. Orlando currently has the 12th worst offense in the league but remains at the top of the table. Whether they can keep this up for the rest of the season remains to be seen.
3 Minnesota and Boston maintain their lead
As of today, both the Boston Celtics and the Minnesota Timberwolves occupy the top spots in their respective conferences. The Celtics have been in the same position since the very first game of the year, being the last team to suffer their first loss, and have simply continued to gain momentum from there.
NBA-Teamstatistik 2023–24
Boston Celtics
The Minnesota Timberwolves
Offensive review
116,9 (8.)
112,8 (14.)
Defensive rating
107,1 (3.)
106,6 (1.)
Net valuation
9,7 (1.)
6,2 (4.)
However, the Timberwolves are a more intriguing team to pick apart. They started the year poorly, losing two of their first three games. They have been on the rise since then, only losing twice since then and currently sitting at the top of the league in defensive rating. Although the Celtics have already proven that they can be a competitive playoff team, the Timberwolves are slowly establishing a strong reputation in the league. The ultimate test will come once the playoffs begin, but until then Minnesota still has plenty of time to get more comfortable.
2 Long skid in Detroit
It hasn’t been easy for the Detroit Pistons so far this season as they take their time getting used to new head coach Monty Williams’ system. Their bright young core is still developing, but it’s clear they’re not built to win games.
It was a battle between the bottom two of the Eastern Conference on November 27th as the Pistons took on the Washington Wizards looking for their third win of the season. Despite a valiant performance from guard Cade Cunningham, who contributed 26 points, seven assists and five rebounds, Kyle Kuzma managed to lead the Wizards to victory with his near triple-double of 32 points, 12 rebounds and eight assists.
Detroit Pistons – Seasonstatistik 2023–24
Cade Cunningham
Jalen Duren
Ausar Thompson
Points
22.2
12.6
11.4
Supports
7.1
3.2
3.1
Rebounds
3.7
11.2
9.5
With the loss, the Pistons snapped a 14-game losing streak; Their last win came against the Chicago Bulls in week one. Things really haven’t been that nice in Detroit since then. Aside from the exciting young talents of Cunningham, Jalen Duren and Ausar Thompson, there wasn’t really much to cheer about in the Motor City.
1 What’s happening in Los Angeles?
Earlier this week, the Philadelphia 76ers defeated the Los Angeles Lakers by a score of 138-94. For comparison: The deficit of 44 points marked the biggest loss in LeBron James’ long career. The game — and the week — overall was a nightmare for the Lakers, who won just one of their three games and fell to seventh place in the Western Conference.
However, the Lakers aren’t the only team struggling in Los Angeles, as the Los Angeles Clippers have also had their fair share of problems. On the same night that the Lakers suffered their egregious defeat, the Clippers couldn’t beat a Denver Nuggets team without MVP Nikola Jokić and Jamal Murray. Former Clippers players Reggie Jackson and DeAndre Jordan appeared interested in reviving the deadly duo of Shaquille O’Neal and Kobe Bryant, who combined for 56 points.
After a busy offseason, it seemed like the Lakers could still be contenders, as they backed up every aspect they were lacking in their appearance in the Western Conference finals the season before. It’s taken them some time to adapt and it’s too early to rule them out, but the team still needs to improve a lot if they want to play in June.
The Clippers took their time integrating James Harden into the lineup, and while things have gotten better since then, they still need to figure out how to fit together properly as a team.
All stats courtesy of NBA.com and Basketball Reference.
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2023-12-03 21:32:39
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