Miles Plumlee, Phoenix Suns: The eldest Plumlee continues to be the pleasant surprise of the early NBA season thus far. He managed another double-double (18 points, 11 rebonds) in a win against Denver, and he had a remarkable statline—eight points, 12 rebounds, five blocks—as the Suns topped the Pelicans. As Phoenix rises to the top of the Pacific Division early on, Miles' contributions (11.7 PPG, 9.6 RPG) are a major reason for the team's success. In Wednesday's game versus the Trail Blazers, Miles continued his strong play, notching another double-double with 10 points and 10 rebounds in a last-second Suns loss.
Mason Plumlee, Brooklyn Nets: Mason has received inconsistent playing time early on this year. He scored six points in 16 minutes against the undefeated Pacers but didn't receive any time as the Nets lost to the Wizards. On Wednesday, he played a season-high 18 minutes, totaling three points and five rebounds as the Nets lost to the Kings.
Gerald Henderson, Charlotte Bobcats: Henderson once again finds himself putting up good stats for a middling team in Charlotte. He dropped 18 points and corralled nine rebounds as the Bobcats fell to the Knicks, and he had 11 points as they lost to the Hawks. However, his best game of the week came in the lone win for Charlotte, as he had 13 points, nine rebounds and five assists in the Bobcats' victory against Boston Wednesday. Henderson has settled in and established himself as a strong option for Charlotte behind point guard Kemba Walker and power forward Al Jefferson.
Josh McRoberts, Charlotte Bobcats: The starting power forward for the Bobcats, McRoberts played his best game of the season in the loss to Atlanta--scoring 19 points on five threes, and also totaling seven assists and six rebounds. He missed Wednesday's game versus Boston for personal reasons.
Elton Brand, Atlanta Hawks: Brand had been benched for previous two games, but managed to accumulate six points and seven boards in a victory over the Bobcats. Still, he was right back to the bench on Wednesday as the Hawks fell to the Knicks.
Carlos Boozer, Chicago Bulls: Boozer has been consistent this past week, providing a double-double against Utah with 18 points and 10 rebounds, and he threw together a nice statline against Cleveland with 17 points, seven boards and four assists. Although Boozer's defense has been criticized during his career, his plus/minus numbers have been impressive: against Utah he was +21, and he had the best plus/minus for Chicago in the win against Cleveland.
Luol Deng, Chicago Bulls: While he hasn't been cheering on Duke basketball from the stands, Deng has been a huge contributor for Chicago on the hardwood. Against Utah, he had a near triple-double with 19 points, 11 rebounds and nine assists to go with his five steals. He had a solid 12 points and five rebounds in the win against the Cavaliers.
Mike Dunleavy, Jr. Chicago Bulls: Dunleavy has been providing solid minutes off the bench for the Bulls all season. In the win versus the Cavaliers, he provided 15 points, four rebounds and two assists, and he followed that up with a nine-point showing against Utah. On the year, he's shooting 41.7 percent from beyond the arc.
Kyrie Irving, Cleveland Cavaliers: It's been an up-and-down start to the year for the flashy point guard. He had a sensational game against Philadelphia—with 39 points, 12 assists, and five rebounds, and the game-winning layup on Michael Carter-Williams—in the Cavs' double-overtime victory. However, that phenomenal performance was sandwiched beyond losses with mediocre efforts from Kyrie—10 points and nine assists on 4-of-17 shooting against the 76ers, and 16 points and four assists on 5-of-19 shooting against the Bulls. Irving also added 20 points but just two assists in a blowout loss to the Timberwolves. As the Cavaliers look to push for a playoff spot this season, look for a more consistent Irving to provide an extra boost for the squad.
JJ Redick, Los Angeles Clippers: Redick has settled into a nice role in the Clippers backcourt alongside Chris Paul. Although he only shot 4-for-11 in their loss to the Heat Thursday, he had 22 points and 5 rebounds in the win over Houston—a game in which he was the leading scorer for Los Angeles. He also contributed seven points and three assists in a win over Minnesota, and Redick dropped in 15 in the Clippers' comeback win over the Thunder on Wednesday.
Ryan Kelly, Los Angeles Lakers: Kelly didn't play in the Lakers' first three games this week, but he hit his second NBA 3-pointer Tuesday in a win against New Orleans. It was his second appearance of the season.
Shane Battier, Miami Heat: Battier is still playing more than 20 minutes per game for Miami and making valuable contributions. He was +13 in the win over the Clippers, dropping in seven points, and he had the best plus/minus of the team in the Heat's last-second loss to Boston. Battier also contributed six points, three rebounds and two steals in a win against Milwaukee.
Kyle Singler, Detroit Pistons: On a newly-constructed team full of big guys—Andre Drummond, Greg Monroe, Josh Smith--and little guys—Rodney Stuckey, Brandon Jennings, Will Bynum—Singler has struggled to find a role. The Pistons are 2-5 on the season, and Singler has done little of note off the bench. He's averaging 6.8 points and 3.0 rebounds and per game, with shooting percentages well below his career averages.
Austin Rivers, New Orleans Pelicans: With Eric Gordon, Jrue Holiday, Tyreke Evans and Anthony Morrow all fighting for minutes in the crowded Pelicans backcourt, Austin has been relegated to the bench for most of the season. Rivers received his first playing time of the season this week, but he managed to score just once in three appearances. On Tuesday, he totaled seven points and two assists in a loss against the Lakers.
Lance Thomas, New Orleans Pelicans: Thomas has received sparse minutes in the frontcourt for New Orleans and was released by the Pelicans earlier this week. He appeared in five of New Orleans' nine games, but was cut in favor of swingman Josh Childress.
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