14-2! Quietly rose to the top of the league! The NBA's most championship-winning team was born, and there was no weak point to be found
The NBA has played nearly 20 rounds in the new season, and unlike in the past, this season has been joined by the addition of a mid-season tournament format. In addition to the teams that decided to break down early, whether it is a team with absolute strength to break into the playoffs, or a dark horse team that has finished its rebuilding and is ready to impact the playoffs, they have all played high-quality games. Even before the most exciting and intense playoffs begin, teams around the league are already making the playoffs. In order to play more points and occupy an advantageous position, many games can still see stars on the field after losing suspense, and they can also see the stars on the field to spare no effort to increase the score, which is also a gluttonous feast that fans want to see.
Of course, the ultimate goal of each team's efforts is still the playoffs or even the championship, so the wins accumulated in the regular season are also very important. The Eastern Celtics firmly occupy the No. 1 spot in the East after taking the 76ers without Embiid and Maxey. With such a huge disparity in strength between teams in the East, the more stars in their prime, the better the team's record. However, with the exception of the Bulls, the Bucks and 76ers, as well as last season's Eastern Conference champion Heat, unexpectedly grabbed the top 8 spots in the East. The situation in the West is the opposite, and the Warriors, who have Curry, Thompson, and Green, have had a very bad season. The team has a record of only 9 wins and 11 losses, ranking 11th in the West.
The Clippers, who have the Big 4 of Leonard, Harden, George and Wei Shao, are also half-hearted, and after winning 1-1 in 2 matchups with the Warriors, the Clippers are ranked 10th in the West with a 9-10 record. The Lakers and Suns are relatively good, finishing 7th and 6th in the West, respectively. The traditional giants are frequently caught in the whirlpool of losses, which means that there will be some dark horse teams that can seize the opportunity to emerge. With Holmgren's return and strong paint play, Alexander's all-around offensive and defensive play, the team has eight players shooting more than 40% from three-point range this season, and they have rushed to the third place in the West. 14-2! Quietly rose to the top of the league! The NBA's most championship-winning team was born, and you can't find a weak point!
However, the Thunder are not the most surprising team, as the Timberwolves, who finished eighth in the West last season and won one win from the Nuggets, have risen to the top of the West so far this season. And the Timberwolves have proven that they are not a short-lived team, and they have been in the No. 1 position in the West for nearly half a month. So far in the regular season, the Timberwolves have won four in a row after winning the Hornets. The Timberwolves have won the last two games without the core Edwards, thanks to the play of Towns and Gobert.
Towns is averaging 22.2 points, nine rebounds and 3.1 assists per game this season while shooting 50.3 percent from the field, 41.8 percent from the outside and 91.1 percent from the free-throw line. Downs has been extremely efficient on the pitch and he is the only starter in the league to have reached the "180 Club" so far. Downs has played a dominant game on both ends of the floor this season, with a net efficiency of 9.9 per game. Defensive titan Gobert is also strong, averaging 13.3 points and 11.6 rebounds per game while shooting 60.3% from the field. After all, Gobert hasn't made a three-point shot so far this season, and Gobert has provided solid defense in the paint area. In the absence of Edwards in the past two games, Gobert also stepped up to share the offensive pressure, scoring 26 points and 15 points respectively.
The Timberwolves have won 14 of their last 16 games with a 14-2 record. The team's core Edwards has been improving at a breakneck pace in recent seasons, and one of Edwards' biggest takeaways this season has been to strengthen his mid-range shooting. This has led to an improvement in his scoring and shooting percentage per game, with Edwards averaging 26.2 points, 5.9 rebounds and 5 assists per game this season while shooting 46.4% from the field. Edwards' improvement is also evident on the playmaking end, averaging a career-high of five assists per game. It also has to do with a series of players with offensive threats around Edwards.
In addition to Towns, Reed and Conley also shot over 40 percent from three-point range. McDaniels also shot 58 percent from the field. However, the key factor for the Timberwolves to play such a good performance is not the offense, but the team's solid defense. So far in the regular season, the Timberwolves have played 106.7 defensive efficiency, ranking first in the league. Of course, the Timberwolves also have something to improve, and that is that the team lacks more scoring points, and they can't just rely on their stars to open up the game from the paint zone. There will always be a time when the power goes out in this single way of attacking. Milton's performance was not satisfactory, and Lee Kyle lacked the desire to score, or the confidence to score.