The quarterfinals of the NBA Cup are set, but fans will have to wait until midweek for those games.
In the meantime, Thursday night presents an intriguing East-West battle between the Cleveland Cavaliers (19-3) and the Denver Nuggets (11-8). On Friday, now that the Milwaukee Bucks (11-10) have won nine of their last 11, they’ll have a huge test against the defending-champion Boston Celtics (18-4).
And then on Sunday, a pair of Western Conference teams that have stumbled recently – the Minnesota Timberwolves (11-10) and the Golden State Warriors (12-8) – face off in a chance to course correct.
Here are some takeaways from the sixth week of the NBA regular season.
The Warriors have lost five in a row. What has gone wrong?
Tuesday night, after Stephen Curry laced a short, spinning fadeaway from the right low block, Golden State held a six-point lead against the Nuggets with two-and-a-half minutes to play. The score was 115-109.
The Warriors would miss their next five shots, commit a turnover and fail to score another point before losing the game, their fifth in a row. In many ways, that stretch against the Nuggets was emblematic of the team’s issues during the skid.
Golden State has scored 107 points per game over its last five. During its first 15 games this year, that figure was 119.1.
During this losing streak, the team has posted a true shooting percentage, a mark of offensive efficiency, of 52.2%. That ranks 28th in the NBA in that span and is below the mark the 2-17 Wizards (52.8%) have posted.
This is magnified in the clutch. Each of Golden State’s five consecutive losses have been clutch games. Of the 24 teams that have attempted three or more clutch field goals over their last five games, the Warriors are dead last, shooting an abysmal 14.3%.
Coach Steve Kerr even called out Brandin Podziemski after Tuesday’s loss against Denver, for ‘frankly, insane’ decision-making errors.
The Mavericks, on the other hand, are surging
Dallas (14-8) is on an opposite trajectory. The Mavericks have won five in a row and nine of their last 10, surging all the way to the No. 3 seed in the loaded West. And they’ve done this despite having key players missing over this span.
While some of their opponents over their last 10 have certainly been weaker, the Mavericks have also taken down the Memphis Grizzlies (14-8), New York Knicks (13-8), Nuggets (11-8) and Oklahoma City Thunder (16-5). The key factor in the turnaround has been better ball movement.
During the first few weeks of the season, the ball often stagnated in Dallas’ offensive operation. To a certain degree, this makes sense; Luka Dončić, the anchor of the offense, is a ball-dominant player. But, Dallas is swinging it more, leading to increased off-ball movement, cuts and open kickouts.
In October, the Mavericks ranked last in passes per game (237.2). Over their last 10 games, that total has spiked to 282.3 per game, 19th in the league.
Scoring has correlated, accordingly. Dallas is averaging 122.6 points per game over its last 10 games, compared to 114.25 over its first 12.
Can we already call a winner in Knicks-Timberwolves trade?
The sample size remains small, but the indicators point to the undeniable: Karl-Anthony Towns has settled into a rhythm with the Knicks (13-8) – and the Timberwolves (11-10) miss his offense, badly.
New York is 8-2 over its last 10 and leads the NBA in offensive rating (123.6) in that span. This season overall, the Knicks offensive rating is 121, which is also tops in the league.
Compare that number to last season, when New York was still in the Top 10, ranking seventh in the statistic (117.3). An interesting marker is that, last season, the Knicks relied so heavily on second-chance points, whereas this year they are relying more on their traditional sets.
Towns, who is averaging 25.1 points and 13.1 rebounds per game, has eased a massive amount of pressure off of point guard Jalen Brunson, and their pick-and-roll actions have been lethal.
In Minnesota, meanwhile, Donte DiVincenzo’s numbers are down across nearly every offensive metric, save for assists. He’s averaging 8.8 points per game on 35.6% shooting from the floor – including 33.1% from 3-point range – one season after posting a 15.5/44.3%/40.1% splits last season in New York.
Julius Randle’s numbers are similarly down, he has been an inconsistent fit, and star Anthony Edwards even voiced his frustrations recently, bemoaning Minnesota’s lack of connectivity, saying the Timberwolves had no identity and that they were ‘soft as hell.’
Jalen Johnson is emerging and Hawks are (quietly) competing in East
Although the East is nowhere near as tight as the West, the Atlanta Hawks (12-11) won their fifth game in a row Wednesday night and snapped Milwaukee’s seven-game winning streak in the process. They also won Group C of the NBA Cup.
The Hawks are doing it with depth. Atlanta is one of only three teams in the NBA – joining the New Orleans Pelicans, who have had a number of significant injuries, and the San Antonio Spurs – to have eight players averaging double figures in points. The Hawks have had six different players lead them in scoring in games this season: Trae Young, Jalen Johnson, Zaccharie Risacher, Clint Capela, Dyson Daniels and De’Andre Hunter.
Yet, while Young is just barely leading the team in scoring (20.7 points per game), the 22-year-old Johnson is emerging as a underrated star.
Johnson is putting up 20.1 points, 9.9 rebounds and 5.5 assists per game, all of which represent career highs.
Daniels has also become a lockdown defender, leading the NBA with three steals per game. Risacher has found his shooting stroke and has occasionally popped off for big scoring nights. And the Hawks are finding ways to win, notably taking down the top team in the East, the Cavaliers, twice in three days on a home-and-away tilt.
Clippers are treading water. What will they look like when Kawhi eventually returns?
The Los Angeles Clippers (14-10) are seventh in the Western Conference and have proven to be a tough out so far, with two wins this season against both the Nuggets and the Warriors.
Yet, the Clippers are thriving on defense, ranking fourth in rating (107.9). Center Ivica Zubac has protected the rim and ranks fourth in the league in rebounds (12.2 per game) and guard Kris Dunn has clamped up opposing guards; since being inserted into the starting lineup Nov. 13, the Clippers have won eight of their last 12 games.
When Leonard eventually returns, Powell’s offensive responsibility and playing time should dip. Will he be relegated back to the bench? James Harden, whose 21.6 points per game represent his highest mark since the 2021-22 season, will also likely see his numbers decrease.
