Assessing the NBA at the quarter mark, Pt. I

Chris Paul's Hornets, Knicks' rookie Landry Fields and Thunder point guard Russell Westbrook have all exceeded expectations so far this season. (Layne Murdoch, Jordan Johnson, Ron Hoskins/NBAE via Getty Images)

Unbelievably, this week will bring us to the one-quarter point in the season, which means it’s time to take stock of the league and the various awards races. (We’ll do it again at each quarter mark.) While our front-runners for the NBA’s official awards — MVP, Rookie of the Year, Sixth Man, etc. — will be unveiled Monday, here’s a look at The Point Forward’s early-season surprises and disappointments.

(All stats and records are through Dec. 3)

MOST SURPRISING TEAM

1. New Orleans Hornets
I had them pegged as a .500 club and a lottery team unless the bottom of the Western Conference sputtered. Guess what? The bottom of the conference has sputtered, but that means little at this point for New Orleans, which sits at 13-6 behind the best point guard in the world and an out-of-nowhere elite defense. Friday night’s home loss to the Knicks and the apparent collapse of a deal to sell the team to local oil man Gary Chouest put a huge damper on a ranking I had settled on earlier in the day. 

The league itself is reportedly considering taking over the team, which would be unprecedented for the NBA, raise potential complications in collective bargaining talks and create at least the possibility that the franchise relocates. 

2. Indiana Pacers
At 9-9, Indiana’s record isn’t surprising; someone had to emerge from the jumble at the bottom of the Eastern Conference, after all. But few expected road wins against the Heat and Lakers, or for the Pacers to be a top-10 defensive team. Indiana will have to improve on a below-average offense to keep the good run going.

3. Utah Jazz
They get very little from their starting shooting guard, Mehmet Okur hasn’t played a game and their healthy bench players would draw little interest around the league. And yet, Utah is 15-6 against a fairly tough schedule.

Honorable mention: New York Knicks, San Antonio Spurs. I had the latter among my five title contenders when the season opened, but even I didn’t expect this.

MOST DISAPPOINTING TEAM

1. Portland Trail Blazers
Another season-ending injury for Greg Oden and the lack of cartilage in Brandon Roy’s knees push the level of disappointment in Portland above that of any other team. But it’s not just the injuries. The team has played listlessly for long stretches, and some key players — including Nicolas Batum, Roy and Rudy Fernandez — have been inconsistent.

2. Milwaukee Bucks
I was excited to watch this team when the season started. And, wow, has it been ugly. The offense has been historically wretched, John Salmons and Corey Maggette are both shooting worse than 40 percent and recovering from nagging ankle injuries, and Andrew Bogut can’t get healthy. But there is reason for hope: Milwaukee’s health should improve, its defense remains imposing and Scott Skiles’ teams have a history of finishing strong.

3. Charlotte Bobcats
They are playing average defense after finishing last season as the league’s stingiest team, and this bunch can’t win many games playing average defense. They also refuse to play Tyrus Thomas enough minutes. He makes some poor decisions, yes, but Michael Jordan’s team needs a dose of offense and athleticism — badly.

Honorable mention: Houston Rockets, Miami Heat. The latter are only a disappointment relative to outsize expectations. This is a good team, and their scoring margin reflects it.

MOST SURPRISING ROOKIE

1. Landry Fields — G, New York Knicks
Folks laughed when those silly Knicks drafted Fields with the 39th pick in June, but only Blake Griffin, John Wall and DeMarcus Cousins are averaging more points per game than Fields (and Cousins has him by only the slimmest of margins). Fields, who leads all NBA guards in rebounding, can swing between both wing positions, and New York is playing better on both ends with him on the floor. Great work, Donnie Walsh & Co.

2. Derrick Favors — F, New Jersey Nets
He was raw, he wasn’t ready and the Nets might regret drafting him over the more polished Cousins, regardless of Brook Lopez’s presence at Cousins’ position. Wrong. Favors is averaging a 13-and-10 line per 36 minutes, gobbling up rebounds on both ends (but especially on offense) and holding his own on defense.

3. Gary Neal — G, San Antonio Spurs
What a story. Neal has gone from college pariah to undrafted free agent to key member of the rotation for one of the best teams in the league. Wow, the guy can shoot. He’ll be in the wrong place at the wrong time occasionally on defense, but he’s working hard and he doesn’t appear to be hurting San Antonio much on that end.

Honorable mention: Gary Forbes (Nuggets), Al-Farouq Aminu (Clippers), Armon Johnson (Trail Blazers)

MOST DISAPPOINTING ROOKIE

1. Evan Turner — G, Philadelphia 76ers
In a class that has been slow to develop, we have to start at the top, where Turner, the No. 2 overall pick, has struggled to grasp a role in Philly. It’s not all on Turner, who has logged time at three positions in the Sixers’ crazy lineups and rebounded pretty well, but he’s shooting poorly, playing so-so defense and is disappearing on offense for long stretches. It’s early. Be patient.

2. ??
I’m punting on this for now, simply because Turner is really the only rookie to have played enough uninspiring ball to deserve a spot on this list. I could see the argument for DeMarcus Cousins or Wesley Johnson, but they are performing within reasonable expectations. Other guys — such as Detroit’s Greg Monroe, Utah’s Gordon Hayward and many others — are going through the normal growing pains, and a bunch of rookies haven’t played because of injuries or depth-chart issues.

BIGGEST NON-ROOKIE SURPRISE

1. Russell Westbrook — G, Oklahoma City Thunder
We knew he was good, but no one expected him to be second in the league in Player Efficiency Rating at the 20-game mark. He has improved his shooting from all over the floor, made more free throws than anyone in the league, played fierce defense and displayed uncommon rebounding. He’s also managed to improve his passing numbers while cutting down on turnovers, and he’s carried Oklahoma City’s offense while Kevin Durant has been out with injuries. What a start.

Note: Oklahoma City’s defense allows fewer points with Westbrook on the bench, but that appears to be more of a problem with the starting lineup as a whole than with Westbrook individually.

2. Tyson Chandler — C, Dallas Mavericks
An absolute force on both ends after two seasons in which it looked as if his career as a productive NBA player was about over. A total revelation, particularly on defense, where Chandler is everywhere and the Mavericks are allowing fewer points per possession than any team in the league permitted last season. I can’t say enough good things about Chandler.

3. Shannon Brown — G, Los Angeles Lakers
In 20 games, Brown has made half as many three-pointers as he did all of last season and more than double the number he made in any season before 2009-10. Can he keep it up? The math says he should regress a bit from deep (and that regression has already started), but he’s clearly spent a ton of time honing his shooting form. If he settles in as a high-volume, 40 percent shooter from deep, that’s a huge win for the defending champs.

Honorable mention: San Antonio’s Richard Jefferson (settling down a bit); Minnesota’s Michael Beasley (not totally shocked he’s piling up points on a bad team) and Kevin Love (he just needed the minutes); Boston’s Shaquille O’Neal (the low-post option the Celtics didn’t have last season); Utah’s Paul Millsap (not surprising he has produced at this level with Carlos Boozer gone); Orlando’s Brandon Bass (it’s not just his mid-range scoring); Philadelphia’s Elton Brand (the numbers have come down a bit after a hot start); Memphis’ Darrell Arthur (doing good things in his increased floor time).

BIGGEST NON-ROOKIE DISAPPOINTMENT

1. Tyreke Evans — G, Sacramento Kings
In retrospect, my expectations were probably a little high, especially considering the reigning Rookie of the Year is dealing with ankle issues and the dreaded plantar fasciitis. I’m hoping those injuries are the only reason Evans is shooting poorly, taking too many jumpers and only looking intermittently interested in playing defense. Evans is generally a hard worker, and, given good health, his play should return to form. 

2. Ron Artest — F, Los Angeles Lakers
Lakers fans expected improved shot selection in Year No. 2 of Artest in the triangle. Instead, they have gotten sub-40 percent shooting, and they are starting to get restless. Artest’s defense has also suffered a bit this year, but that is in part because he has been miscast for long stretches as a power forward because of the Lakers’ thin, Andrew Bynum-less frontline. Even so, his rebounding rate shouldn’t be all the way down in Ray Allen territory. If Artest doesn’t start playing better, Phil Jackson may continue to go to with Shannon Brown in crunch time.

3. Terrence Williams — G/F, New Jersey Nets
Williams clashed with the New Jersey coaching staff last year and threw Twitter fits, so perhaps we shouldn’t be surprised he is playing for the D-League’s Springfield Armor as punishment for habitual lateness. There is so much all-around talent here, and New Jersey should have one of the most exciting second units in the league when Williams rejoins Favors, Jordan Farmar and Damion James. But Williams needs to make that happen.

Honorable mention: Denver’s Chauncey Billups (starting to warm up); Detroit’s Ben Gordon (good shooting numbers, but a victim of an overcrowded backcourt); Phoenix’s Josh Childress (playing fewer than 20 minutes per game); Philadelphia’s Andre Iguodala (not shooting enough, for some reason); Orlando’s J.J. Redick (still not hitting much); Oklahoma City’s Kevin Durant (by his standards, he’s been frigid); Houston’s Kyle Lowry (horrid shooting, mitigated somewhat by injuries); Milwaukee’s John Salmons (same as Lowry); Dallas’ Brendan Haywood (Mark Cuban probably wants his money back); Toronto’s Amir Johnson (still fouling like crazy); New Jersey’s Travis Outlaw (maybe the most disappointing signing, per dollar, among free agents who switched teams last summer) and Jordan Farmar (still can’t shoot as well as he thinks he can); Atlanta’s Joe Johnson (not a good start to his huge contract).