Two Giant Red Flags for Each NBA Team

Now that we're more than a fifth of the way through this shortened and exciting (although slightly sloppy) NBA season, I think it's time to take a serious look at what's going on around the league.

Some teams we thought would do well are doing just that—Oklahoma City, Chicago and Miami (despite their recent losing streak) have impressed while others have exceeded our expectations (I'm talking to you Philly).

Then there are those teams out there who are struggling from game-to-game, not living up to expectations and just playing sloppy basketball (New York Knicks).

So, as we head towards the All-Star break, what is it that's going to trip up each of these teams? That is, what aspect of each team's game is going to cause them problems if they don't fix it?

Atlanta Hawks

Leadership

At this point with the Atlanta Hawks, it's a bit hard to say who the leader on the floor is.

Joe Johnson's impact on the floor has gone downhill, Josh Smith has always seemed like a second option at best and Jeff Teague is still too young to take the reins.

This team seems to have no direction for long stretches of time, and it seems to be because they have nobody to rally behind.

Injuries

Al Horford's injury taking him out of action for three to four months is devastating for this Hawks team.

Zaza Pachulia and Ivan Johnson have done their best to fill his role, but they can't equal up to having the presence of an All-Star-caliber player in the paint.

Plus, if they were planning on making a move for Dwight Howard, they've just lost their best trade chip for a possible deal.

Boston Celtics

Slow Starts, Fizzling Finishes

The Celtics have found themselves on the unhappy end of some slow starts and some even slower finishes in games where they've worked their way to a close game in the second and third quarters.

Boston is averaging just over 20 points in both the first and fourth quarters while putting up an average of 48 in the middle quarters.

They have been playing in some low scoring games, so it's hard to blame them too much for early and late struggles, but they'll need to turn it around sooner or later.

Points in the Paint

It's a problem that pretty much everyone foresaw coming into the season, but the Boston Celtics just aren't putting the ball in the hoop from close range.

With just 33.7 points in the paint per game, Boston is 28th in the league and are averaging seven fewer paint points than last season.

This sort of non-presence in the paint allows teams to take advantage down low and keep Boston from getting easy looks.

Charlotte Bobcats

Lack of Leadership

When you look at the team the Charlotte Bobcats are trotting out on the floor, there's no doubt that it's an interesting, young team, but it's also nearly impossible to nail down a real leader.

Could you call the gargantuan Boris Diaw playing point-center the leader averaging just nine points a game?

How about the poor shooting D.J Augustin?

Gerald Henderson or the injured "Bad Porn" Maggette?

How about Kemba Walker?

Nobody really fits the role of a guy to center the team around.

Extreme Youth

Youth has its advantages. It allows teams to run longer and with more intensity, but it also lends itself to bad decision-making and slumps that seem to go on for ages.

A young team with no leader is going nowhere in this league, so Charlotte will continue to struggle until they develop more.

Chicago Bulls

Injury Issues

It's no secret that the biggest weakness of the Chicago Bulls last season was that they were almost never playing with a full squad due to multiple injuries to Carlos Boozer and Joakim Noah.

Noah seems to be fine this season, but there will always be questions about Boozer now that he's played in fewer than 60 games in two of the past three seasons.

Now you have a nicked-up Derrick Rose who sat out for the second time in four games, which didn't end well against the Grizzlies yesterday.

Free Throws

A trip to the free-throw line is a team's chance to put extra points on the board when the clock isn't moving, but that's something Chicago has had a tough time taking advantage of this season.

They're only getting slightly over 21 attempts per game, and of those 21, they're making just 15, good for around 74 percent from the line, which is 20th in the league.

Cleveland Cavaliers

Inconsistent Shooting

Cleveland hasn't been a particularly bad shooting team this season, which has been a bit surprising, but they have been an incredibly streaky shooting team. They're shooting just 43 percent, which is in the bottom third of the league.

Where Cleveland gets in trouble is when they play teams with long defenders, which hurts their shooting.

Cleveland will go out and shoot 57 percent against a team like the Pistons, but when they go up against the likes of Portland or the Lakers, they end up shooting in the 30s. Oh, and that 29 percent outing against the Raptors didn't help them much.

Sinking Freebies

Much like the Bulls, Cleveland isn't taking advantage of easy chances at points from the free-throw line. However, unlike the Bulls, they are attempting more than most of the league.

While taking more than 25 freebies a game, Cleveland is making just 18, putting them at a 70 percent clip for the season.

Dallas Mavericks

Old Guys Running Around

It's no secret that the Dallas Mavericks are old.

In fact, they are the oldest team in the league based on both average age and weighted for minutes played by each old dude.

This makes them instantly more injury prone, and I would say it is a big reason for their early season struggles.

Post Presence

Unfortunately for Dallas, Tyson Chandler went for the security of a long-term deal with the Knicks rather than a huge one-time payday with the Mavericks, and they're definitely feeling the effects at this point.

Dallas is resting in the bottom third of the league in points in the paint, offensive rebounds and blocks per game, although they are keeping their opponents out of the lane, giving up just 33 points in the paint per game.

Denver Nuggets

Offensive Glass

With just 8.5 offensive rebounds a game, Denver is sitting near the bottom in the league when it comes to cleaning up the offensive glass.

At 28th in the league, Denver needs to refill their Windex bottles so they can get more possessions for themselves.

Defensive Efficiency

While the Denver Nuggets are one of the most efficient offensive teams in the league (shooting nearly 49 percent), they are also allowing teams to run over them on defense.

Denver has a very interesting team that could end up surprising some people throughout the rest of the season and possibly into the playoffs, but they would be keen to buckle down on defense if they want a chance of really turning heads.

Detroit Pistons

Offensive Output

There are so many things wrong with the Detroit Pistons right now that it's hard to narrow it down to just two things, so my first red flag for them would just be offensive output in general.

Their overall offensive ineptitude is overshadowed by only the Wizards, as they are averaging just over 85 points a game while Washington can't quite make it to that 85 points.

Plus, they are shooting just 43 percent from the floor and averaging just 19 assists a game, both numbers in the bottom third of the league.

Turning Back Opponents

One of the most important things a team can do is either end an opponent's offensive possession with a steal or a blocked shot. That is, turn them back before they are able to get the ball anywhere near the basket. It's demoralizing and leads to the other team questioning the moves they make.

However, Detroit is averaging just 6.6 steals and three blocks per game, good enough for 24th and dead last in the league. 

Golden State Warriors

Defense

I may sound like a broken record here with the Golden State Warriors, but truth be told, they haven't played defense up to league standards since before the Charlotte Bobcats were even a professional basketball team.

Golden State is giving up just a shade under 100 points a game, and in a season where nearly every team is struggling offensively early on, that puts them at 27th in the league.

I would single out one thing specifically that they are doing wrong, but the only thing they are doing well is keeping opponents out of the paint, mostly because they're getting wide-open looks and they've spent two games hacking any big man who comes near the basket.

Coach's Confidence

Now, this is a case where if it would have worked, everyone would have been praising Mark Jackson, but after two games of hacking his opponents' big man, and losing both games, it's time to question Mark Jackson.

When he plays Hack-a-Shaq on opposing big men, it shows he has confidence in his offense, but also doubt in his defense down low.

I like Jackson giving it a shot, but I'd also like to see him give his men a full vote of confidence in allowing them to play the games straight up.

Houston Rockets

Getting to the Line

Houston has taken just 205 attempts from the free-throw line so far this season. That is good enough for last in the league, nearly two attempts per game behind the Phoenix Suns.

If Houston wants to make the playoffs this season, their aggressiveness must be taken up a notch and they need to get to the line.

Defending the Paint

Last season, the Rockets had an interesting defensive identity with Chuck Hayes down low, which made them play like a scrappy kind of underdog.

Now, with Sam Dalembert down low, they've lost that identity. Teams are getting into the paint and scoring at will on the Rockets who have given up nearly 50 points per game in the paint, just a shade better than the worst paint defending team, the Sacramento Kings.

Indiana Pacers

Ball Movement

On paper, it would seem like the Indiana Pacers would have tons   of assists.

With Darren Collison and George Hill teaming up at point guard, Danny Granger dishing out passes at forward and David West's soft hands down low, they should be swimming in ball movement.

However, Indy is having difficulties running their offense as well as they could be, which leads to stagnant offensive possessions and fewer assists, for which they are sitting at 25th in the league.

Scoring Efficiency

One of the most interesting things I've seen so far in the league this season has been the ability of Indiana to win games while shooting so poorly.

The 9-3 Pacers are shooting just 41 percent from the field, which is good for 27th in the league, and they have an effective shooting percentage of just below 45 percent, which is also 27th.

Once shots start to fall more often, this team could turn into a juggernaut in the East.

Los Angeles Clippers

Head Coaching Situation

Every year now it seems we have to pick a coach on a good team to single out and poke at all season long. Two years ago it was Mike Brown, last year it was Erik Spoelstra and this year it's Vinny Del Negro.

Of those three guys, Vinny Del Negro is by far the worst.

He has not grasped the concept that he has a great team and he has yet to run his offense to full capacity this season. Beyond that, he can't get guys (ahem...Chauncey Billups) to stop chucking when they're obviously cold.

Defensive Rebounding

It seems insane to me that the Clippers are 27th in the league at grabbing boards on the defensive end with just 28 a game, but they are.

With Blake Griffin and DeAndre Jordan down low and Chris Paul (an above-average rebounding guard) and Caron Butler (a decent rebounder himself) roaming the floor, they should really be able to suck them down with more efficiency.

They need to stop letting Brian Cook see floor time and give Reggie Evans every one of his minutes. Evans will get every loose ball by any means necessary.

Los Angeles Lakers

Dependence on and Overuse of Kobe Bryant

The Lakers' dependence on Kobe has really shown in the past few days as he has scored at least 40 points in four of his past five games and at least 30 in seven of his past nine.

Then last night they see him struggle shooting and the Lakers miraculously muddle their way to a 73-70 win over Dallas thanks to a game-winning three-pointer from Derek Fisher.

I want to give Kobe all the props in the world first and foremost before every Kobe fanboy decides to flip out, but he shouldn't be used this much.

Coming into the season, Kobe already had over 40,000 regular season minutes on his knees. This year he's already played 566 minutes in 22 days.

I want to see Kobe drop 40 as much as anyone else, but not if it means he won't be all there physically in May.

Shallow Bench

After Metta World Peace and Josh McRoberts, the Lakers bench is a barren wasteland of old guys and unproven youngsters.

There's way too much pressure on these guys at times to hold the lead the first unit builds up, it seems.

Memphis Grizzlies

Injury Concerns

Obviously, the biggest red flag concerning the Memphis Grizzlies has to be over the injuries that are nagging at them.

Zach Randolph is out for the foreseeable future with a torn MCL, an injury that could very well linger after he does rehab and comes back to the team.

Beyond that, Rudy Gay seems to be mostly over his shoulder surgery from a season ago, but he still has a bit of a nag here and there.

Finishing on the Road

The 6-6 Grizzlies are 5-2 at home, and even though I can't do math, I can understand that makes them just 1-4 when they're on the road.

Whether they are rattled by the road crowds or if they've just played good home teams (not untrue), Memphis seems to struggle away from Tennessee.

The biggest issue they seem to have is coming out in the second half and keeping pace with their opponents as they are averaging just 39 points per game in the second half on the road, which is the worst mark in the league.

Miami Heat

Late Game Issues

This is a red flag that's going to hang around all season long, even if they go on a streak of hitting game-winner after game-winner at the buzzer.

The fact is, people don't care at this point what Miami does during the regular season, they're only interested in what they do in the playoffs.

However, if the Heat do continue to struggle to close out games (see at Golden State, at LAC and at Denver), the world will continue to gawk at their struggles.

It would make things easier on themselves if they start kicking things up a notch late in games.

Turnovers

One of the surprising things I've found over the past few days is the high rate of turnovers Miami seems to have.

At 17.8 turnovers per game, Miami is worst in the league at holding onto the ball and when you adjust that number to their pace of play, they still turn the ball over on more than 17 percent of their possessions, third-worst in the league.

Milwaukee Bucks

Missing Players

The biggest thing that has harmed the Milwaukee Bucks so far this season has been players missing games.

Andrew Bogut has played in just seven of their 12 games while dealing with personal issues back in Australia and Luc Richard Mbah a Moute has played in just two games this season.

These two missing games has put a huge dent in their defensive presence, as they were one of the top defensive teams last season, now just 18th in the league in opponents' points per game.

Road Woes

First the good news: Milwaukee is undefeated at home with four wins and zero losses.

Now the bad news: They are winless on the road with eight losses.

At 0-8, Milwaukee is worse than even the Wizards when they take a trip out of their home state.

Minnesota Timberwolves

Ball Movement

While the hoopla around Ricky Rubio would have you thinking Minnesota was one of the best passing teams in the NBA, quite the opposite is true.

With so much focus on Luke Ridnour and J.J. Barea in their offense, Minny is averaging just over 17 assists a game, 26th in the league.

Interestingly enough, Rubio has nearly half of the team's assists with 100, while the team has totaled just 206 so far this season.

Playing on the Break

Averaging just over nine points a game, Minnesota is one of the worst teams in the league on the fast break.

The interesting thing about this is that Minny doesn't have too much trouble coming up with steals, as they record nearly eight a game (a decent number), they're just not pushing the ball quickly enough, I suppose.

New Jersey Nets

Paint Presence

It's not surprising at this point that the Nets have struggled down low with Brook Lopez out after having foot surgery, but they are struggling something awful.

Jersey is last in the league (by a lot) in points in the paint per game with just under 30 while giving up the fourth-most points in the paint per game at 42.

No wonder they're sitting at just 3-10.

Shot Swatting

A blocked shot does so much more than turn back an attempt at two points. It demoralizes the guy who's getting his shot blocked, it pumps up the team's defense and the crowd goes wild.

That's why a team blocking fewer than four shots per game (as the Nets are) will almost always struggle to find wins.

New Orleans Hornets

Offensive Output

At just 87 points a game, the New Orleans Hornets aren't exactly lighting up the scoreboard or giving away free corn dogs.

In fact, just four teams are scoring fewer points per game than New Orleans, but at least the Hornets can use the excuse that Eric Gordon has been out for most of the season.

Halftime Hangover

Compared to the rest of the game, the Hornets seem to have terrible third quarters.

They actually have decent starts to games, averaging just over 23 points in the opening period, have decent second quarters, and then they go into the locker room.

For some reason they come out sluggish and shoot terribly in the third quarter, when they average a measly 20.7 points.

New York Knicks

Getting it Down Low

Although they have two seven-footers in their starting lineup and a small forward who can score from anywhere on the court, New York just can't score in the paint.

Their 37 points per game in the paint is both embarrassing and inexcusable, and it should be enough for the people of New York to start calling for Mike D'Antoni's head, I know I would be.

Ball Security

Beyond the problem with scoring down low, the Knicks have just been playing uninspired, sloppy basketball.

Their 16 turnovers per game speaks more to their sloppy play and Mike D'Antoni's role as an anti-disciplinarian more than anything else. Pair that with just 18 assists a game and this team just seems to be more careless than anything. 

Oklahoma City Thunder

Superstar Showdown

I hate to play this up more than it should be (after all, Michael Jordan and Scottie Pippen feuded plenty) but the throw-downs between Russell Westbrook and Kevin Durant are hard to ignore.

After the two were spotted arguing on the bench earlier this season, it made it seem that this was two guys who both see themselves as leaders of the team.

This will be an interesting sub-plot to watch unfold over the next few months.

Down Low Defense

While they have both Serge Ibaka and Kendrick Perkins as big bangers down low, Oklahoma City hasn't been great at stopping opponents from getting into the paint.

In fact, opponents are scoring nearly 43 points a game while in the lane and are pulling down nearly 10 offensive rebounds a game over the Thunders big men.

If they can tighten this up then they should look like the most well-oiled machine in the league.

Orlando Magic

Non-Dwight Big Men

I know we all just saw Ryan Anderson put up 30 points on the Knicks, but he plays as more of a stretch big like Rashard Lewis once was.

The real concern I have is on the defensive end, where nobody but Dwight has the ability to intimidate the other team and block shots.

The Magic are the second-worst shot-blocking team in the NBA with 3.7 swats a game, Dwight is responsible for just more than two of those blocks each game.

Fast-Break Scoring

Along with their inability to block shots, Orlando is just as bad at poking the ball free, compiling fewer than six steals a game.

That has led to subpar fast-break numbers to the tune of just nine points on the break per game this season.

Philadelphia 76ers

Keeping up the Pace

Out of nowhere it seems, Philadelphia is one of the best teams in the NBA and is blowing out opponents left and right.

Their average margin of victory is nearly 15 points when nobody else in the NBA is even near double digits. Meanwhile, their average biggest lead throughout the course of a game is over 20 points.

The only concern I really have for this team is that they won't be able to keep up that pace. 

Offensive Rebounding

Okay, I suppose I can give you another small red flag for the 76ers (besides the fact that they can't seem to give their tickets away).

With just 9.2 offensive rebounds per game, Philly comes in at 27th in the league at cleaning up the offensive glass.

Get a few more second-chance looks each night and they'll be virtually flawless.

Phoenix Suns

An Aging Superstar

It's impossible to ignore the fact that the biggest concern with the Phoenix Suns is that they have no direction.

With Steve Nash as their go-to-guy, they have a superstar who is going to be around for a few more years, but doesn't really play a part in their rebuilding process down the line.

It will be interesting to see if either side eventually breaks and Nash ends up getting shopped around a bit.

Grabbing Boards

Phoenix's inability to grab rebounds is a major problem for the team.

The Suns are pulling down just 47 missed shots per game, giving them the third-fewest in the NBA. They can't keep up that pace and expect to win many games this season.

Portland Trail Blazers

Paint Defense

With guys like the aging Marcus Camby and Kurt Thomas along with journeymen Chris Johnson and Craig Smith filling holes down low, it's not that surprising that the Blazers defense down low is struggling.

They're not terrible compared to the rest of the league, although they are giving up over 41 points a game down low.

Starting Games

Quite honestly, if Portland started off games the way they finish off games they would probably be a top-five team in the league.

However, scoring just 23 points on average in the opening quarter is putting them in the bottom third of the league compared to 27 in the fourth quarter, which is second in the league.

Sacramento Kings

Ball Movement

Not surprisingly, everything I'm planning on talking about with the Sacramento Kings relates to their offensive deficiencies, although that doesn't mean they're playing well on defense.

The black-hole type of offense the Sacramento Kings run has resulted in staggeringly low assist numbers, as the team as a whole is dishing out fewer than 15 a game and Tyreke Evans leads the whole team averaging a measly 3.6 dimes.

Scoring Efficiency

What makes their lack of ball movement even worse is that they aren't even shooting well to at least make up for that.

Sacramento is scoring just 90 points a game on 39 percent shooting, 29 percent from beyond the three-point rainbow. Horrifically, their effective field goal percentage is even below 40 percent.

When you have an offense from 2012 putting up percentages like it's the 1950s you know there's something wrong.

San Antonio Spurs

Old Guys Aging

It shouldn't be a shock to anyone that the old San Antonio Spurs' biggest concern should be keeping their old guys young for as long as possible.

They are doing well keeping Tim Duncan's minutes as limited as they possibly can, as he's down to just 26 a game while others pick up the slack.

Freebies

One of the biggest issues with the older, wiser, more fundamentally sound players playing fewer minutes is more young-guy mistakes, like missing free throws.

San Antonio is one of the worst teams in the league from the line, shooting just 72 percent on 25 attempts per game.

Toronto Raptors

Paint Points

Toronto's lack of two real, physical big men on the floor at the same time is really continuing to hurt them.

Andrea Bargnani has had a surge the likes of which I certainly didn't expect, but he still can't play down low as you would expect a seven-footer to in the NBA, which has led to Toronto's 34 points per game from the paint.

Foul Troubles

Toronto being a very young team is easily prone to fouls, but the rate of which they are hacking their opponents is starting to get out of hand.

The only teams who commit more fouls than them are Golden State (who spent two games playing Hack-A-Shaq) and Utah (more on them momentarily). They're fouling at a rate of 24 times a game.

Utah Jazz

Player Control

With the amount of youth that is on display when the Jazz take the floor it's no surprise that they are the second-most foul-prone team in the NBA.

Utah commits 24 fouls per game and the only team that hacks more than them just set a record by sending Dwight Howard to the line for 39 free throws.

First Quarters

Being the young team that they are, Utah is constantly struggling to get up on the scoreboard early on.

Their 22.8 points per game in the first quarter is well below the rest of the league, putting them in the bottom third of the NBA.

Washington Wizards

Everything

I figured I would save us all time and pick just one red flag for the Washington Wizards.

The season started out with eight straight losses and their record has now run to 1-12 with a single win coming over the Toronto Raptors.

Washington is in the bottom third of the league in points per game (84.2, which is the worst in the NBA), points allowed (98.1), rebounds, assists, personal fouls, shooting from anywhere on the floor and allowing three-pointers.

If it's any consolation, Washington leads the league in blocks with nearly eight a game, so good work there.

You know it's going to be a rough season when the captain of your team gets benched before the team has played 10 games.

Let me rephrase that, you know it's going to be a rough season when Andray Blatche is your team's captain. 

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