NBA week 3: Five things we learnt as Miami Heat and Utah Jazz rise

The Western conference is more open this season

(Getty Images)

1) The Western Conference is more open this year

Although still in the early stages of the season, the packed Western Conference already looks like it will be even more competitive in the battle for this year’s play-off spots. Just one win separates the teams between sixth and 13th, while four of the teams that failed to make the 2014-15 post-season currently occupy a place in the top eight. Aside from the faultless Golden State Warriors and Gregg Popovich’s ever-consistent San Antonio Spurs, each team has already lost at least four games in the West.

Last year’s second-seeded Houston Rockets have endured a tough start with surprise home losses against the Denver Nuggets and Brooklyn Nets contributing to just four wins in 10. As expected, the Portland Trail Blazers are suffering from the loss of All-Star power forward LaMarcus Aldridge. Damian Lillard has been unable to help his side continue their good start as they lost all of their games this week, despite the point guard averaging 25.1 points per game.

Anthony Davis’ New Orleans Pelicans side remain rooted to the foot of the Western Conference having won just one of their first 10. They continue to be hampered by injuries, with the continued absence of Tyreke Evans, Kendrick Perkins and Quincy Pondexter. Davis also suffered a hip injury a week ago, but returned to score 36 points in last night’s loss in New York.

The struggles of some of last year’s top teams has allowed the likes of the Utah Jazz, Phoenix Suns and Nuggets to make an early claim for a play-off berth - don’t be surprised if they stick around.

2) There’s a new ‘big three’ in Miami

Well, kind of. By no means has LeBron James been replaced, nor can he ever. But in Hassan Whiteside, the Heat have a player that continues to be one of the most improved centres in the league and will be expected to lead his side back into the play-offs in partnership with ageing stars Chris Bosh and Dwyane Wade.

The second-round pick of the 2010 draft made just 19 appearances off the bench in two years with the Sacramento Kings. He then played in Lebanon and China, as well as appearing for four D-league teams, before finally settling in Miami last year and starting 32 games as his new team missed out on the play-offs by a single win. He averaged a double-double in 48 appearances overall and has improved in the first three weeks of this season, with 14.6 points per game and 11.7 rebounds per game. He also leads the NBA in blocks, with an astonishing average of four per game. Only nine others average more than two.

Whiteside has helped his side to three consecutive wins this week and a place in the top four, including a huge 19 points and 15 rebounds against the Lakers at the American Airlines Arena. Miami may still be a shadow of the original ‘big three’ side that reached four consecutive Finals with LeBron between 2010-2014, but the good times seem to be returning to Erik Spoelstra’s side.

3) Keeping players healthy is the key to success

It seems an obvious thing to say, but certain teams have noticeably struggled following injuries to important players this week. Kevin Durant picked up a hamstring injury during a road win in Washington and it showed as the Oklahoma City were comfortably beaten by the Boston Celtics on their home court Sunday night. We saw last year that the absence of Durant puts too much pressure on Russell Westbrook and it again showed as last year’s All-Star game MVP shot just 20 per cent from the field.

Then take the Atlanta Hawks, Jeff Teague’s ankle injury forced them into a change for Sunday evening’s home game against the Utah Jazz and they were beaten at home for a third time in seven games. Last year they lost just six of their 41 regular season games at the Philips Arena. And look at Sacramento, in the seven appearances made by DeMarcus Cousins this season, the Kings have won four. Without him they are yet to taste victory in four matches.

Take nothing away from the reigning NBA champions, but it’s no surprise that the Golden State Warriors were one of the healthiest teams in the league last year. They showed the impact an injury can have, with Klay Thompson missing what looked like a easy home fixture against the struggling Brooklyn Nets a few nights ago. It turned out to be anything but, with the side from the Bay Area incredibly lucky to keep their unbeaten record intact.

The Cleveland Cavaliers are an example of a side that has shown they can deal with injuries to key men, topping the Eastern Conference with an 8-2 record despite Kyrie Irving’s continued absence. Ultimately, it’s about which side has the depth to cope with injuries over the course of the season and ensuring that they are ready to compete when the post-season rolls around.

4) The champs won’t remain undefeated for much longer and a 76ers win is just around the corner

Saturday’s win against the Nets was a wake-up call for Stephen Curry and the Golden State Warriors as they needed a late Andre Iguodala three-pointer to tie the game and Brook Lopez to miss the simplest of shots to win it. They trailed by 15 points after the first quarter and looked nothing like the side that had cruised to 10 consecutive wins to begin the season, scoring at least a hundred points in each game. But a Nets side with an abysmal 1-8 record prior to the game were seconds away from an impressive early season victory. This is a Warriors side that have won 45 of their last 47 games at the Oracle Arena. They’re now just four wins away from matching the best start by an NBA franchise in history, but have a tricky spell ahead with games against the Raptors, Clippers and Bulls. If they play anything like they did against the Nets then expect their record to end over the next week.

At the opposite end of the spectrum, the 76ers have failed to register a win in their opening 10 regular season games despite the addition of third pick Jahlil Okafor in this year’s draft. Their young squad remain bottom in the East, but have welcomed Nerlens Noel’s return to fitness and they could well pick up a first win this week after a run of tough games. They’ve already faced the Cavs twice, Spurs, Thunder and Bulls in the early stages of the season but have not been embarrassed. They will hope to break their duck against the Dallas Mavericks on Monday night, but it will be another tough season for fans of the Philadelphia side with their young team’s best hope being to win more games than last year’s miserable tally of 18.

5) The Utah Jazz look like they could finally fulfil their potential

After finishing bottom of the Western Conference in the 2013-14 season, Utah Jazz have shown slow signs of improvement over the past 18 months and finally look ready for a real play-off push again this season. They currently boast the joint-second best defensive record in the NBA in terms of opponent’s points per game and have one of the league’s best young defenders in French centre Rudy Gobert. Jazz have also improved offensively and have two more young bright stars in Gordon Hayward and Derrick Favors. It has meant that they have started the season 5-5 despite losing their first-choice point guard Dante Exum to a season-ending injury after he tore his ACL.

They picked up an impressive one-point victory against Atlanta Hawks at the Philips Arena, although they could easily have lost after Paul Millsap missed a wide-open jump shot in the final seconds of regular time. But they are moving in the right direction under head coach Quin Snyder and will feel that they have the squad to make the play-offs for the first time in four seasons. Last year they were a far better side at home and it’s easy to forget that they’ve already played eight times on the road in their opening 10 games. Things could get even better for this exciting Utah Jazz team.