Some say it’s the most peaceful time of the year. Knowing that the marathon has just started, everyone is chilled out and more or less happy with their current roster (Except for the Cavs and the Wizards. They are super unhappy, miserable teams condemned to sit on a sad island very far from the league, and listen to endless Dwight Howard jokes about his penis). Playoff contenders have still months to fix their holes and figure things out chemistry-wise, while bad teams are just bad, but now this is part of their plan. Perhaps we expected more encouraging play from certain teams and players (what’s up with KAT? What is happening to the Rockets?), but instead of lamenting on their lack of progress and slow start, let’s celebrate others who just kicked in the door and demanded the spotlight right out of the gate.
That being said, here is our official All NBA Unexpectedly-Overperforming Team of the early season.
Guard - Derrick Rose
PTS 18.8 TRB 3.7 AST 4.7
Not a long time ago the Timberwolves counted as one of the most promising young teams in the West. Having two consecutive number one picks, Wiggins and Towns, some exciting role players, and a pass first point guard, the future seemed brighter than ever. On the top of that, they acquired one of the best defensive specialist coach in the league, Tom Thibodeau who quickly accommodated himself in the GM position, and traded for his former star player, Jimmy Butler who was supposed to be the final piece of the team building puzzle. Are we happy? Not exactly.
Although, Wiggins and Towns have reached the age to sign max contract extensions, the Wolves couldn’t get any better on defense (or offense by the way) when Butler was off the court. The shitstrom escalated quickly when Jimmy announced that he’s fed up with everyone in the organization from the cleaning staff to the owner, and demanded a trade right away. In the meantime, Thibs could not give up his bad habit of collecting former Bulls players and slowly turned his promising young squad into some weird nostalgy train. Jimmy’s trade request is still pending which makes everyone pretty uncomfortable, especially the young stars in the team who just didn’t understand...
who the fuck is this guy?
why is he yelling all the time?
and why did he spray “you can’t win without me” on the team bus?
In the midst of all this drama, Derrick Rose seems to be the unlikely hero of this season and the only reason for Wolves fans to get excited and feel good about their team. Of course, he is not an anchor who could solve any problem in defense or coordinate an efficient offensive system, but at least he plays with heart… which may sound sentimental, but significantly better than watching “$ 25 million / year” aimlessly running up and down the court. Apart from his early years in Chicago, Rose brings his best PER average (19.3), offensive plus/minus (+2.9), and highest true shooting (56%) in his career. Against the Lakers (loss) he finished with 31 points, sinked 7 three-pointers, trash-talked to Lonzo, and played like a leader again. His legs are still dancing in mid-air, like a Russian folk dancer during his jumpshot (especially from long-range), but he looks much more confident at shooting than ever before.
https://youtu.be/yvA0ME8vF0Q
What’s more, last week he just went off and scored career high 50 points with a game saving block to seal the deal. Rose burst into tears at the end of the game and the whole thing was truly amazing. I know, I know... it was only one game, he was on fire and made insane shots, and most probably it will never happen again.
Honestly, I just don’t care. It felt good to be 18 years old again.
Guard - Zach Lavine
PTS 27.4 TRB 5.0 AST 3.8
A few weeks ago I was mocking Gary Forman and the rest of the Bulls management to match the (at that time) extensive offer sheet for Zach in the summer, but you know what? This guy has guts. Heck, he’ll never be good at defense, but this fully recovered, healthy version of one of the most athletic players in the league is certainly a force on the court.
Besides his mind-blowing average, he delivered a career high against the Knicks a couple of days ago. He simply couldn’t be stopped (the Knicks is not famous for stopping anyone though) and scored all sorts of way: fadeaways, quick and strong drives to the hoop, mid-range jumpers, 3-pointers in the face of various defenders… didn’t matter.
https://twitter.com/chicagobulls/status/1059659841340235776?s=09
Needless to say, he’s producing career high in all major areas by a huge margin (PTS, AST, TRB, FG%) and his BPM (Box Plus/Minus) is a positive number the first time in 5 years.
Is LaVine just a guy with good numbers on a bad team? Is he going to level off by January? Maybe. Dunn coming back will ceratinly have an effect on his playmaking, but at the moment he is the alpha “guy” of this team and seems like someone who believes in himself and wants to prove wrong all of the critics and naysayers. He’s on a mission. Man, he is good.
The full team:
Guard: Derrick Rose
Guard: Zach LaVine
Come back next week to check out what we have to say about the frontcourt players in the next part of the series.
