Biggest 2013 NBA Surprises That Won't Happen Again in 2014

Before every NBA season, observant league followers already know who the legitimate candidates are for all the major awards. We know who the top rebounders are, which superstars will battle for Most Valuable Player and which teams are actually contending for a championship. 

But being that it's professional sports, with the human element ever present on a nightly basis, dozens of surprising developments take place within each season. Here are five that happened last year that were probably just one-year events. They're ranked in no particular order.

Carmelo Anthony’s High-Volume + High-Efficiency Play

According to Basketball-Reference.com, last season Carmelo Anthony posted the loftiest usage percentage of his career (a league-high 35.6 percent) while simultaneously manufacturing the second-highest effective field-goal percentage of his career (50.2 percent). His PER also went to a career-best 24.8.

Anthony is a fantastic offensive player who more times than not is utterly unstoppable with the ball, sans a double-team. But this type of efficiency is rarer than rare for a high-volume shooter.

Very few players in league history have attempted as many shots per game as Anthony did last season while maintaining a respectable effective field-goal percentage. (Here's that list). Next year we'll see if Anthony's fantastic play from 2013 is repeatable in 2014. Chances are he won't be able to sustain it. 

Kobe Bryant’s Offensive Renaissance

Whether you believe it to be meaningful or insignificant, Kobe Bryant’s Achilles tendon will be a great topic of discussion next season. Even though he and his Los Angeles Lakers have a slight chance at making the playoffs, let alone sniffing the air of title contention, Bryant remains one of the league’s biggest names, and the clock is ticking on his historic career.

Last season we saw him scratch and claw through the most difficult season of his career. Even though the expectations went from Los Angeles hanging its 17th banner to “we will make the playoffs”, Bryant was fantastic individually on offense, posting the third-highest True Shooting percentage of his career with the third-highest usage percentage in the league, per Basketball-Reference.com.

Defensively he continued to decline, but with the ball in his hands, the 34-year-old Bryant transcended age, refusing to lose on occasions where losing felt inevitable. He also averaged six assists per game, which tied his career high.

All this was phenomenal, but after combining his grave injury with the “shoot first ask questions later” style of play he's had his whole career, it’s unlikely we see a repeat performance next season.

Marc Gasol Winning Defensive Player of the Year

This proclamation is less about Marc Gasol’s innate ability to alter offensive strategy than it is an affirmation of how many equally talented, equally dominant defensive players exist in the NBA today.

Heading into next season, we’ll have a healthy Dwight Howard, a healthier Joakim Noah, a motivated Tim Duncan and an improved Roy Hibbert. If that weren’t enough, LeBron James has yet to win a Defensive Player of the Year trophy, basically the last notch needed for a Greatest of All Time belt.

Gasol was fantastic on the defensive end last season, but it should also be noted that he wasn’t even on the All-Defensive first team. If he wins Defensive Player of the Year again, it’d be mildly shocking.

Greivis Vasquez Leads League in Assists

One of the most unbelievable developments in all of basketball last year was Greivis Vasquez's sudden emergence as a capable playmaker. 

In his third year, and first as a full-time starter, Vasquez averaged 9.0 assists per game, logging 704 in the season. The total led the league, and his average was more than one per game higher than Tony Parker, Russell Westbrook, LeBron James, Deron Williams and Ricky Rubio. (Only Rajon Rondo and Chris Paul averaged more assists per game).

Next season Vasquez will be on the Sacramento Kings, playing beside less talent and more guards who need the ball in their hands to thrive. Given the fact he might not even start at point guard, the chances Vasquez stays atop the league's assist leaderboard are slim to nil. 

Andray Blatche Posts a Top-20 PER

Last season Andray Blatche posted a career-best PER of 21.9. It ranked 13th among all those who qualify, according to Basketball-Reference.com, ahead of Kyrie Irving, Anthony Davis, Stephen Curry, LaMarcus Aldridge and Deron Williams. 

PER is not an end all, be all measurement of a player's value or worth, but it does paint an accurate picture in terms of per-minute production. Before becoming a member of the Brooklyn Nets, Blatche was a talented offensive player who lacked consistency and motivation.

In his first seven seasons, Blatche never shot higher than 47 percent, but last year he was up to 51.2. Even though it was in a reduced role, playing with more competent teammates, it's unlikely Blatche keeps up his efficient play next season.