The NBA season is now in full swing. After more than a week of action, there has been plenty to of newsworthy items on the former Blue Devils in the Association.
Miles Plumlee, Phoenix Suns: After recording two double-doubles to start the season, Plumlee has slowed down a bit. Regardless, he is still averaging 11.2 points per game and 8.8 rebounds in five games as the starting center for the 3-2 Suns. Expect Plumlee to average close to a double-double if not a full double-double, this season as he gets more and more comfortable as the primary center for Phoenix.
Mason Plumlee, New Jersey Nets: Plumlee has logged minutes in two of the Nets' first four games this season, scoring his first NBA basket on Sunday in a 21-point loss to the Orlando Magic and scoring five points and grabbing four rebounds in 17 minutes in Brooklyn's 16-point win over the Utah Jazz on Tuesday. As the team's third string center behind Brook Lopez and Andray Blatche, Plumlee's opportunities will likely be limited the rest of the season and only come in games with lopsided scores such as the two he has played in thus far for the 2-2 Nets.
Gerald Henderson, Charlotte Bobcats: As the Bobcats starting shooting guard and main wing threat, Henderson had a woeful start to the season from the field, going 10-of-36 in the team's first three games. He has drastically improved his play in the team's last two games, scoring 18 points and grabbing eight rebounds in Charlotte's 102-97 win at New York on Tuesday and scoring 23 points on 10-of-17 shooting on Wednesday in a 92-90 win over Toronto to help propel the Bobcats to 3-2.
Josh McRoberts, Charlotte Bobcats: Henderson has shared a lot of court time with his former Duke teammate so far this season. McRoberts has seen increased minutes this season up front for the Bobcats because of starting center Al Jefferson's injury, and has taken advantage of increased minutes with his versatility. He made three 3-pointers and scored 15 points in the team's first game, a 13-point loss to Houston. McRoberts then dished out eight assists in the team's next game, a 90-84 win over Cleveland, and had 13 points, six rebounds and five assists in the team's fifth and most recent game.
Carlos Boozer, Chicago Bulls: Boozer had one of the best first weeks of the NBA season as the starting power forward for the Bulls. He scored 31 points on 13-of-18 shooting and grabbed seven rebounds in Chicago's opening night loss to Miami. Boozer added 14 points on 5-of-7 shooting with seven rebounds in the team's 82-81 win over New York, and totaled 22 points on 9-of-16 shooting with 10 rebounds in Chicago's 107-104 loss to Philadelphia. Boozer came back down to earth in Wednesday's game, a 97-80 loss to Indiana, in which he finished with just six points on 3-of-10 shooting, though he still grabbed nine rebounds.
Luol Deng, Chicago Bulls: While Boozer has been extremely efficient for the most part this season, the normally efficient Deng has struggled mightily so far, going 24-of-62 from the field in four games this season. It is no coincidence that Deng's best performance—a 17-point effort on 8-of-15 shooting with six assists—came in the team's only win; in recent years, Deng's play has usually been a barometer for the Bulls.
Kyrie Irving, Cleveland Cavaliers: The Cavaliers starting point guard and franchise player, Irving has been battling an elbow injury so far this season and his shooting
has taken a hit as a result. Nonetheless, his rebounding numbers and assist numbers have increased; he is averaging 7.0 assists and 5.4 rebounds per contest. As his elbow heals, Irving should also get back to being the normally proficient shooter he has been throughout his career when healthy. In his last game, a 109-104 loss to the Bucks on Wednesday, Irving had 29 points on 10-of-20 shooting, adding eight assists and five rebounds. Such tremendous performances will likely become more and more common as the season progresses for the 2-3 Cavaliers as long as Irving can stay healthy.
JJ Redick, Los Angeles Clippers: Redick is having a tremendous start to his first season with the Clippers, beautifully playing off of Chris Paul and Blake Griffin as the team's starting shooting guard. In six games this season, Redick is averaging 16.8 points per game on 47.2 percent shooting and 35.3 percent from 3-point range in 30.2 minutes per contest. His best game of the season was a 26-point effort on 8-of-15 shooting and 8-of-8 from the free throw line in the Clippers' 137-118 win over Houston on Monday. Redick continually made Rockets All-Star guard James Harden pay for his defensive laziness. Being in Los Angeles has definitely agreed with Redick thus far this season.
Ryan Kelly, Los Angeles Lakers: A third string forward for the Lakers, Kelly saw his first NBA game action on Tuesday and made the most of his brief opportunity, knocking down his first and only shot, a 3-pointer, and grabbing a rebound in three minutes in the Lakers' 123-104 loss to the Mavericks. Like Mason Plumlee, Kelly will likely only see action when the 2-3 Lakers are playing one-sided games.
Shane Battier, Miami Heat: Battier seems poised once again to take on the role of being a solid wing defender and timely 3-point shooter for the 4-2 Heat this season. Though he struggled after making all four of his 3-pointers in Miami's opening night victory against Chicago, Battier has bounced back nicely in the past two games, drilling three of his six attempts from beyond the arc.
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