Surprising standout teams like the Cleveland Cavaliers and the Golden State Warriors have been the talk of the league to start the NBA season, but there have also been countless teams on the other side of that picture. Teams projected as top-ten units in the league, like the Milwaukee Bucks and Philadelphia 76ers, have been knocked down early and are struggling to get off the mat. Those two are a combined 3-14 and hold the worst two records in the Eastern Conference. So, when is the time to start worrying? Who are the teams underperforming the most so far, and, on a scale of 1-10, should their fans be panicking?
(as of the morning of November 10th)
Panic Meter For Five Underperforming NBA Teams
Milwaukee Bucks (2-7): 9/10
Milwaukee’s 2-7 start should be setting off major alarm bells. They have a healthy Giannis Antetokounmpo and a healthy Damian Lillard, yet they are playing like one of the worst teams in the league. Their two wins this season are over the two teams tied for the worst record in the NBA: the 1-7 Utah Jazz and the 1-7 Joel-Embiidless 76ers. Most recently, the Bucks got blown out by 22 by the New York Knicks, an Eastern Conference rival they were supposed to be competing with. Things look bleak, and it’s time to panic.
The Bucks have a 19-26 overall record with Doc Rivers as their head coach, and things don’t seem to be changing in any way. Antetokounmpo and Lillard are the highest-scoring duo in the NBA, averaging over 57 points per game together, yet the Bucks are still a bottom-ten offense in the league. The defense has been equally as bad, seemingly letting up a career night to any opposing star they face, and is also a bottom-ten unit in the league. The Antetokounmpo trade rumors have already started for the Bucks, and something needs to change, or their core will need to be stripped apart. The only hope is that the eventual return of Khris Middleton will be the spark that this Bucks roster needs to turn their season around.
Philadelphia 76ers (1-7): 7/10
The 76ers’ start to the season couldn’t have gone any worse, and it’s almost time to start worrying. Philadelphia is tied for the worst record in the league, with their only win being an ugly one over the Indiana Pacers in overtime. Their MVP-level big man, Joel Embiid, is yet to make his season debut due to injuries and, most recently, a three-game suspension. The lone bright spot for the 76ers so far this season, Tyrese Maxey, is now out for multiple weeks due to a right hamstring injury.
Entering the season, the big question surrounding this team was their ability to stay healthy, and so far, they have not quieted any concerns. Their big three of Embiid, Maxey, and Paul George have all missed at least one game so far, which will likely continue throughout the season. The sportsbooks have noticed this inability of the 76ers’ stars to stay healthy and have dropped their win total from 52.5 to 44.5. Thus, they will likely again be a play-in team that has to use every drop of energy just to make the playoffs. The only reason their panic meter isn’t higher is the fact that the talent is so overwhelming, and if they do sneak into the playoffs, one of the top two seeds in the East won’t be pleased with their first round matchup.
New Orleans Pelicans (3-7): 7/10
The Pelicans’ starting lineup in their most recent game against the Orlando Magic was Jose Alvarado, Brandon Boston Jr., Brandon Ingram, Jeremiah Robinson-Earl, and Yves Missi. In the game, only two of the 11 players who touched the floor for the Pelicans were first-round picks, five of whom had been undrafted free agents. Now, I don’t say this to doubt the ability of non-first-round guys, but it should emphasize the roster turmoil that the Pelicans are currently in, mainly due to an injury plague. They are currently down six rotation guys, five of these expected to be multi-week injuries. The icing on the cake: news just came out that Zion Williamson is out indefinitely.
Whether or not this rough start to their season is New Orleans’ fault, they have been put in a situation that will be incredibly hard to crawl out of. With ten of their next 11 games being played against teams that are currently projected to be in the playoffs, it won’t get any easier for the Pelicans. Due to their injuries, they could be staring at a 4-17 record at the end of November, something that would be nearly impossible to come back from.
Miami Heat (3-5): 8/10
There aren’t any glaring things going wrong for the Heat; they just haven’t been a very good team to start the year. Their 3-5 record is bloated by wins over the lowly Charlotte Hornets, Detroit Pistons, and Washington Wizards, as the Heat have lost to every half-decent team they have played. Maybe it’s Jimmy Butler’s fault, who has taken a backseat in the offense and is averaging 16 points on 15 percent shooting from three. Maybe it’s Bam Adebayo’s fault, who’s shooting less than 40 percent from the field and has given up some monster games to opposing big men. Or maybe Miami’s window has just closed, and they need some dramatic changes to liven up the roster. They are the fifth-slowest team in the league in terms of offensive pace and have a bottom-ten true shooting percentage. Guys like Nikola Jovic and Jaime Jaquez Jr. haven’t broken out as the front office had hoped, and the team seems to be stuck in a sort of purgatory. Things will only worsen as the season continues, and it may be time to make a panic trade at the deadline. Whether that be trading away Butler for a variety of assets or making a big splash to make one last run at a title, one thing is for sure: the Heat have to change something.
Orlando Magic (4-6): 5/10
Just a short while ago, the Magic and their young star, Paolo Banchero, were on top of the world. They were 3-1, coming off a win over the Pacers where Banchero scored 50 points; he was the talk of the league and set to become a top-ten player in the NBA. Then, Banchero tore his right oblique, and the panic alarm sounded.
News came out that Banchero would be out for at least a month, and since then, the Magic are 1-5 and now sit two games below .500. If the Magic want to avoid the wildness of the play-in this year, they need to tread water and stay afloat for when their captain comes back. They need guys like Kentavious Caldwell-Pope to step up. Caldwell-Pope has been the Magic’s biggest disappointment so far this season, being paid $23 million to average less than seven points on 33 percent shooting from the field and 22 percent from three. The Magic expected their shiny offseason acquisition to be a vital glue guy that would turn their team into a serious competitor in the East. Yet, instead, he has been a liability. Young guys like Franz Wagner, Jalen Suggs, and even Anthony Black have all shown real promise this year, but they need more from the edges of their rotation to start to get back into the win column. The Magic are still young and need time to develop, but they need to start winning games so they are not out of the playoff picture by the time Banchero comes back.
Can the 76ers and Bucks turn their season around? Can the Pelicans and Magic rebound from their injuries and make a run? What will happen in Miami? We are three weeks into the season, and multiple teams are already facing franchise-defining questions. What will be the next domino to fall in the NBA, and what will be the consequences?
Main Image: Benny Sieu-Imagn Images
