Our Christian Wood sixth man of the year pick is looking pretty strong a couple of games in. I’ve always been a believer in his ability, and if he only plays 24 minutes a game all year I believe that’s a waste of his talent. The Joel Embid pick for MVP is off to a slower start. He is/was dealing with unreported plantar fasciitis all summer and couldn’t do much work. He will likely be playing himself into shape in the first few weeks of the season which could hurt the MVP case we believed he would make. The Tyrese Haliburton most improved pick is very much on track as well although Nick Richards might have something to say about that one if he keeps this up. That’s one I don’t think anyone could have seen him having a first week like he has. Richards was ok last year in the NBA and nearly as productive in the Gleague. It wouldn’t shock me if he has a nice season similar to what Wood was doing at the same age when he first started to get his chances. Jayson Tatum has looked great over his first four game, but I don’t believe this is sustainable personally. It’s mostly driven by unsustainable .687 true shooting. I expect some step forward and improvement but nothing like at the kind of scoring and PER level he is currently at. It’s still very early and I don’t think you can read much of anything into the teams or players yet. Utah has looked very good, and I thought they might be better than expected as well. They are going to have to move some players like Conley and Clarkson if they really want to get in the Wembanyama sweepstakes.
