Bledsoe is shooting 50 percent from the field through five games, an incredibly impressive number for a point guard, scoring 21 points per game to go with over seven assists and five rebounds per contest. How else is Bledsoe excelling? To the StatBox!
| Eric Bledsoe | Number | League Rank |
| Assists | 36 | 7 |
| Free Throw’s Made | 40 | 7 |
| Free Throw Attempts | 31 | 8 |
| Assists Per Game | 7.2 | 10 |
| Assist Percentage | 36.9 | 10 |
| Win Shares | 0.8 | 11 |
| PER | 25.1 | 12 |
| Points | 105 | 13 |
| Steals | 9 | 15 |
In the extended minutes he could not get last season with the Clippers, Bledsoe has proven to be a very capable scorer, distributor, slasher into the lane and a pesky defender as well. I can’t wait to see how he performs as the season progresses.
(RELATED: No extensions for Bledsoe, Vazquez will upgrade free agency PG market)
8) Anthony Bennett Hit A Shot!
That’s right, one shot so far this season. He’s taken 20 of them. He missed his first 15 field goal attempts. Did I mention Cleveland made him the top overall draft pick in June?
Bennett was so embarrassed and phased by his poor shooting start that he even went “ghost” on Twitter (no avatar picture). The 20-year-old Canadian has only played in 12.2 minutes per game and will continue his development off the court for the 2-3 Cavs. But it’s been a while since a healthy first overall pick made such a small impact over his first several games. He’ll get his next opportunity to make some more noise on Friday night against Carter-Williams’ Sixers.
9) Anthony Davis Is (Nearly) Unstoppable
Speaking of top overall picks, it seems like New Orleans nailed its selection of Davis. He was a stud on the defensive end last season, like George was for Indiana, but so far this season The Brow has taken his offensive game to new heights. Check the year-to-year comparison so far:
| Anthony Davis | Minutes | FG % | FGA | Pts | Reb | Blk | Stl | TO | PER | O Rtg | D Rtg | WS/48 |
| 2012-2013 | 28.8 | 51.6 | 10.6 | 13.5 | 8.2 | 1.8 | 1.2 | 1.4 | 21.7 | 113 | 104 | 0.159 |
| 2013-2014 | 37.8 | 42.9 | 16.8 | 21.2 | 11.4 | 4 | 2.2 | 1.4 | 28.3 | 116 | 95 | 0.26 |
Davis’ markedly worse field goal percentage is definitely a cause for concern, but he’s scoring more, rebounding more and blocking more than twice as many shots per game. Davis has become and even better defensive player and a more efficient player to go with his bump in minutes played. Even while playing nine more minutes per game, the number of turnovers he’s committed has remained the same. It’s become popular to anoint Davis the best-center-in-the-league-to-be, and his dazzling progression in year two so far has only legitimized those claims.
10) The Denver Nuggets Are Inept
What the hell has happened to the fast and fun Denver Nuggets under George Karl. The team showed some flashes of the fast-paced style we’ve all grown accustomed to, and fond of, in Thursday night’s win over Atlanta, but things have started slowly under new head coach Brian Shaw.
| Denver Nuggets (league rank) | Points | FG % | 3 FG % | FGA | FTA | Pts Per Shot |
| 2012-2013 | 106.1 (1) | 47.8 (5) | 34.3 (25) | 85.2 (2) | 26.2 (3) | 1.25 (6) |
| 2013-2014 | 97.3 (17) | 42.4 (23) | 44.2 (3) | 86.8 (7) | 22 (19) | 1.12 (26) |
The points and field goal percentages are way down, and it’s unlikely that they’ll be able to take that many field goal attempts per game. Players just have to start taking better shots and getting to the line more in order for the Nuggets to get back to the postseason.
Because slipping from 6th to 26th in points per shot is a surefire recipe for disaster.
Shlomo Sprung is a national columnist for Sheridan Hoops who loves advanced statistics and the way they explain what happens on the court. He is also the web editor of the Brooklyn Daily Eagle. A 2011 graduate of Columbia University’s Journalism School, he has previously worked for the New York Knicks, The Sporting News, Business Insider and other publications. His website is SprungOnSports.com. You should follow him on Twitter.