Joel Embiid made quite an impact in his Madison Square Garden debut. The Sixers star had 25 points, 16 rebounds, 3 assists and 3 blocks to lift Philly to a 105-98 win over New York on Christmas Day. Neither team shot it well but the Sixers outscored the Knicks by 7 at the free-throw line and Kristaps Porzingis missed 13 of 19 shots. The Knicks struggled from beyond the arc, hitting just 4 of 15 3-point attempts.
Ian Begley, ESPN Staff Writer
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Over the last few years, Christmas Day has become a second opening day for casual NBA fans. By casual, we mean people who don’t consume voracious amounts of basketball on a daily basis. You know, normal people.
For the norms, the various developments that we have incorporated into our thinking about the league this season are not so obvious. There’s a learning curve to every season, so consider this a cheat sheet for getting back into the game on our holiest of regular-season days.
Here’s a list of the things you may have missed:
1. The Warriors are evolving
Only a team this loaded could turn injuries to star players into a long-term advantage. The Warriors have played without Kevin Durant, Steph Curry, and Draymond Green for extended stretches and yet they keep winning games. Turns out that a team with KD and Klay Thompson as its two best players is still pretty freaking good.
Check out the best moments from last night’s win #JBLxNBA pic.twitter.com/QTBhKNf39g — Golden State Warriors (@warriors) December 23, 2017
More than keeping pace in the standings, the Warriors have tweaked and adjusted their strategy to account for who they have at any given moment. It helps to have great players, obviously, but it’s also important to have a smart supporting cast. The collective basketball IQ of Shaun Livingston, Andre Iguodala, and David West is something like the galaxy brain meme.
The Warriors are learning from one another and producing multiple hybrid monsters capable of weathering whatever the basketball gods may throw their way in 2018. They may not be fair, but they are fascinating.
Related The Warriors remain the calm center of the NBA universe
2. Chris Paul and James Harden are brilliant together
If you were with us last summer, you may remember that there was some murmuring among the chattering class as to whether CP3 and the Beard could play with one another.
Those of us who had doubts about this pairing (slowly raises hand) were not completely without merit. Take two headstrong, ball-dominant players and plug them into Mike D’Antoni’s system and we knew we’d get sparks. Turns out that Harden and Paul play together just fine. More importantly, they can take turns leading the most dynamic offense in the league.
Heard some guy on our team got player of the week @CP3 lol congrats bro. #LockedIn #RedNation pic.twitter.com/d5AznhaDBX — James Harden (@JHarden13) December 19, 2017
Like the Warriors, the Rockets have a ton of smart, heady veterans around their two superstars. They also have a super-duper wild card named Clint Capela, who is the living embodiment of every late first-round big man’s tantalizing potential. This all feels like it’s heading toward a showdown in the Western Conference Finals with legacies on the line all around. Fun.
3. LeBron is still the King
While James Harden has the MVP race on lock for now, LeBron is lurking in the shadow like a Jedi ghost reminding the kids that he still runs this league. He’s posting numbers that are in line with his very best statistical campaigns while pulling a motley collection of castoffs and vagabonds back to the top of the conference standings.
We say this every year, but taking this team back to the finals and winning a championship would rank among his greatest accomplishments. LeBron can keep this up for as long as it’s needed — the question is how long will the Cavs need him to play at this level?
4. The Celtics and Raptors are both good
The Celtics overhauled their entire roster, while the Raptors kept their core and revamped their approach. They’re both different entities than the teams that reached the conference finals the last two seasons, but they share the same space. The only real distinction is the Celtics came out hot and the Raptors have kept pace, while the C’s have come back to the pack.
Both teams are legitimately talented. Now, are they good enough to beat LeBron?
5. The Spurs are still the Spurs
They will never go away.
6. The vast middle has yet to take shape
Look beyond the top three teams in each conference and you will see a wide swath of the league competing for those final five playoff spots. That’s where the action is this season.
It’s here that you’ll find Joel Embiid, Kristaps Porzingis, Nikola Jokic, and Karl-Anthony Towns looking to attain the credibility that comes with a playoff push. You’ll also find emerging stars like Victor Oladipo and Andre Drummond staking out their turf. Giannis Antetokounmpo lives here and he’s worth the price of League Pass all by himself.
On one hand, the unclaimed middle is like a giant laboratory incubating the next generation. And on the other, it’s where the careers of Anthony Davis, Damian Lillard, John Wall, and Jimmy Butler continue to live; great players all, each with substantial tasks in front of them. The top teams will define the season, but the middle will set the agenda for the second half of the season.
7. The middle is also where you’ll find Oklahoma City
Those of us who thought the trio of Russell Westbrook, Paul George, and Carmelo Anthony would produce brilliant basketball (slowly raises hand) have to reckon with the reality that it will take longer than we thought to come together.
Time is something the Thunder don’t have a lot of, so this has become a nightly referendum on everything from Westbrook’s game to Billy Donovan’s coaching with healthy amounts of PG’s future and Melo’s legacy all mixed together. It’s the best drama the league has to offer at the moment.
8. The rookies are really good
There was some early talk that this might be the best class since the famed 1996 group that produced multiple Hall of Famers. That’s cooled a bit as injuries and the rookie wall have come into play, but the long-term outlook is still excellent.
The best is Ben Simmons, who looks like a power forward and plays point guard. The smoothest is Jayson Tatum, who is getting big minutes on a contender. Donovan Mitchell is a delight and Kyle Kuzma and OG Anunoby are revelations. Lonzo Ball is a basketball player for the Los Angeles Lakers. He’s got a chance to be really good. It would be nice if he had a chance to find himself.
Related Donovan Mitchell is becoming a legitimate Rookie of the Year candidate
9. The bottom third isn’t terrible
The Hawks project to win about 25 games this season. That’s not good, obviously, but it’s not full-on disaster bad. There’s almost a dozen other teams that will have to make decisions about whether to commit to long-term rebuilds or continue to make middling progress.
For some, like the Hawks, that decision is already baked into the equation. For others — say, the Clippers and Grizzlies — it could mean offloading veteran stars. The trade deadline will be revealing.
10. The NBA is in fine shape
Ratings are up and the games are compelling. The concentration of stars at the top promises a more exciting postseason and the young talent scattered around the league continues to evolve. These are really good times for the league and in a world gone mad, it’s the closest thing we have to a communal experience.
