Thoughts on the NBA Season so Far

Last night, another ho hum night in the NBA-—a Monday night no less that usually should be dominated by Monday Night Football (Patriots-Bills was a snooze fest), Klay Thompson decided he was going to go absolutely bonkers and set the record for three pointers made in a game. After starting the season shooting 5/36 from three, Klay decided to hell with that and shot 14/24 from three last night for 52 points and breaking his teammates' record (Steph Curry that is) for threes in a game. So much for a slump. In the first half alone, again the FIRST HALF, he was 10/14 from three with 36 points. Casual. Oh, and the half time score read like this:

Warriors-92, Bulls-50

Read that again everyone because it's not a typo. 92-50. 92 points in a half; just completely absurd. The fact that if the Warriors did't take their feet off the gas they realistically could have scored 200 points in a regulation NBA game (I don't care of it came against a Bulls team that is bad and incredibly bad on defense; they are still NBA players) is just wild.

This is after Steph Curry just went bonkers against Washington (51 points in 3 quarters against the Wizards) and Kevin Durant lit up MSG. It's not even Halloween and we have already had the Steph game, the Klay game and the KD game; against it's not even November yet. To have a team have 3 guys on the roster who can score 60 in a game, well, that's just crazy. It has been well documented how many things had to happen for this Warriors situation to be able to take place. It may or may not be good for the NBA (depending how you feel about parity and super teams) but we as sports fans should appreciate just how remarkable this team is.

What is amazing about the current state of the NBA, is that, every night, there is something amazing going on. Every single night. The league is so ridiculously flush with talent. Even with the Warriors being head and shoulders above the rest of the league, there are still incredible story lines to watch out for. So in honor of Klay Thompson's performance tonight, I figured I would break down a few early season story lines. It's been 3 weeks since my NBA preview podcast (an awesome episode with my guy and fellow hoops head Ben Siegel. Episode 34, For the Love of the Game, listen and download) so here is where we are in this NBA season so far:

• This year's rookie class looks like an all timer. Luka Doncic has been awesome for the Mavericks and is the leader of this class and he's proving what I said before the draft that he should have gone number 1 overall. But he's not alone. DeAndre Ayton, Marvin Bagley, Miles Bridges, Trae Young, Mo Bamba, Jarren Jackson have all shown flashes about being really really good players too. That's a lot of guys in one class and that doesn't even include Wendall Carter and Kevin Knox; 2 guys who pre season, looked like they could be future all stars as well.
• The Celtics have chemistry issues. This team was projected to be the top team in the east with all the talent they have but the offense has not gelled yet. Gordon Heyward still does't look right after missing all of last year, Kyrie Irving looks rusty and their seems to be a power struggle now that Jayson Tatum is Boston's best player (not Kyrie or Heyward). Brad Stephens is arguably the best coach in the league and I am sure they will figure it out but they are a team to keep on eye on.
• The Houston Rockets are a mess, especially on the defensive end. Even though I called betting their over 54.5 wins a lock pre season, the fact that they stink makes me so happy. I hate James Harden, I hate Chris Paul and I hate this Houston team.
• Kawhi Leonard is back and the Raptors are stacked. Now will he stay in Toronto after this year, who knows, but for right now, they look and feel like a serious contender.
• Giannis and Anthony Davis are must watch television. Both the Bucks and the Pelicans are off to hot starts and they will probably finish 1 and 2 in the MVP race in some order.
• Oklahoma City needs a shooter in the worst way. They are in a tough spot right now; 1-4 to start the year and a super thin roster without much cap flexibility. Russell Westbrook is now back from injury and he will shake off the rust but with the Western Conference being the way it is, they do not have a lot of time to get their shit together.
• Jimmy Butler still has not been traded; just a hilariously awkward and dysfunctional situation in Minnesota. Credit to him, he is still busting his ass every night because he's a pro and they got a good win last night against the Lakers in which he outplayed LeBron James but the vibe there is just bad and something needs to happen.
• The Warriors are still awesome.

And most importantly, the NBA as a whole is awesome. The best league in all the land and I sing it from the rafters.