Basketball Insiders Week in Review 11/6

New Warriors, New Identity

By Moke Hamilton

As it relates to the Golden State Warriors, the prevailing sentiment is that the rich only got richer by adding Kevin Durant. That perception will be challenged, especially if the Dubs fail to win the Western Conference this season.

And as crazy as that may sound, Stephen Curry and Steve Kerr now know better than anybody.

In the NBA, there are no guarantees.

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Best Numbers Still Not Retired

By Joel Brigham

Dikembe Mutombo was honored in Denver this past weekend in having his #55 uniform retired there, and it’s something that made plenty of sense considering his place as one of the most important and influential Denver Nuggets of all time. Shaquille O’Neal will have his number retired in Miami later this year, as well, and it won’t be long until recently retired players like Tim Duncan, Kevin Garnett and Kobe Bryant receive similar treatment (though it’s hard to know whether L.A. will send up #8 or #24 for Bryant).

Even with this flurry of jersey retirement ceremonies on deck, there remain a number of great NBA players who have yet to see their own uniforms retired. The following are some of the better players in league history to go without seeing their numbers hang in their teams’ rafters.

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Damian Lillard as MVP?

By Cody Taylor

It hasn’t even been a week since the NBA season started and we’ve already seen plenty of incredible performances.

Russell Westbrook has already dropped two triple-doubles, Anthony Davis recorded a 50-point outing on Opening Night and LeBron James turned in a triple-double of his own. If the first week is any indication, this season could go down as one of the most memorable in recent years.

One player who has certainly made his own headlines through the first three games of the season is Portland Trail Blazers point guard Damian Lillard. Given the outstanding performances of Westbrook, Davis and James, it seems as though Lillard’s play so far has gone a bit unnoticed.

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Turner Eyes Top-Four Seed, Most Improved Award

By Michael Scotto

The Cleveland Cavaliers have been the class of the Eastern Conference for the past two seasons, but Indiana Pacers center Myles Turner believes there may be a new sheriff in town.

“I think we can be a top-four seed in the East,” Turner told Basketball Insiders. “We can challenge Cleveland and I think we can make a big push to be in the Eastern Conference Finals. My expectations are high.”

Turner believes the revamped Pacers can contend with Cleveland thanks to the acquisitions of Jeff Teague, Thaddeus Young and Al Jefferson.

Young echoed Turner’s belief that Indiana can be a top-four seed.

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Tim Quarterman Making Most of His Opportunity

By Oliver Maroney

This offseason, the Portland Trail Blazers made headlines with their big-money acquisitions and re-signings. They decided to go all-in on continuity and fostering their chemistry, building a team that can stay together for the foreseeable future. In signing free agents Evan Turner and Festus Ezeli, and re-signing C.J. McCollum, Maurice Harkless, Allen Crabbe and Meyers Leonard, the Trail Blazers amassed $112 million in used cap space (which is the third-highest in the league).

With 14 of 15 roster spots already locked up, there was only one spot for three potential players: Grant Jerrett, Greg Stiemsma and Tim Quarterman all had to battle for the 15th chair.

In the end, it was the 22-year-old Quarterman who made the cut. The former LSU guard, who went undrafted in the 2016 NBA Draft, earned a place on one of the league’s most promising teams.

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What’s Next for Ray Allen?

By Alex Kennedy

On Tuesday, shooting guard Ray Allen officially announced his retirement from the NBA after a remarkable 18-year career in the league.

The future Hall of Famer walks away with career averages of 18.9 points, 4.1 rebounds, 3.4 assists and 1.1 steals, while shooting 45.2 percent from the field, 40 percent from three-point range and 89.4 percent from the free-throw line.

He’s a two-time champion, 10-time All-Star and a gold medalist. Allen is arguably the greatest shooter ever to play the game, as evidenced by the fact that he ranks first in NBA history in three-pointers made with 2,973. The next closest is Reggie Miller at 2,560 threes, and the closest active player is Jason Terry at 2,169.

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A Look at the NBA’s Top ‘Energy Guys’

By Jake Rauchbach

Great NBA teams require a leading scorer, a captain and veteran leadership. However, in today’s ultra competitive league, a player who can lift the play of his teammates through effort and passion is an invaluable commodity. Having players like this, who are willing to do whatever it takes to win, can be the difference between mediocre and playoff-bound.

A player who brings a high level of energy while simultaneously positively affecting the game without necessarily needing the ball in his hands is considered an “energy guy.” This type of player generally has a high level of intangible attributes.

Maybe the best energy guy of all-time was Dennis Rodman. Rodman could likely be the benchmark for all other hustle players to be measured against. Despite being an undersized big, Rodman’s relentless approach to the game produced absurd rebounding numbers and fueled championship runs for both the Detroit Pistons and Chicago Bulls. At the height of his career with both teams, Rodman averaged 18.7 rebounds (and 9.8 points) during the 1991-92 season with the Pistons, and 16.1 rebounds (and 5.7 points) during the 1996-97 season with the Bulls.

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Galloway Tries To Find Rhythm In New Orleans

By Lang Greene

Through the first week of the 2016-17 campaign, the 0-4 New Orleans Pelicans are one of the NBA’s five remaining winless teams. Joining the Pelicans are the Philadelphia 76ers, Washington Wizards, Phoenix Suns and Dallas Mavericks.

It has been a rough start for New Orleans, but the Pelicans have been in a funk since recording 48 victories and reaching the playoffs during the 2014 season. At the time, many expected the franchise to be one of the next teams on deck to move up the standings, but then last season the team posted a disappointing 30-52 record and missed out on the playoffs – seemingly stalling all of their favorable momentum in the process.

To get back on track, the Pelicans made wholesale changes to the roster this past summer by signing Solomon Hill, E’Twaun Moore and Langston Galloway in free agency. The team also took risks by bringing in talented, but inconsistent prospects Lance Stephenson and Terrence Jones on low-risk, high-reward deals.

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Pick and Pop with Knicks’ Marshall Plumlee

By Tommy Beer

This season, Basketball Insiders is rolling out a new interview series called Pick and Pop. The goal is for readers to get know the players on their favorite team a bit more.

As opposed to typically serious ‘Xs and Os’ questions, these queries will be of a more personal, off-the-court nature.

On Saturday, we sat down with New York Knicks rookie Marshall Plumlee at Madison Square Garden. Plumlee, like his two brothers Miles and Mason who also play in the NBA, spent his college years at Duke. He went undrafted in the 2016 draft, but signed on with New York to play for the Knicks in the Las Vegas Summer League. On July 7, he signed a three-year contract with New York.

Without further ado, here’s our Pick and Pop interview with Marshall Plumlee:

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Russell On Consistency, Leadership, Lakers’ Future

By Ben Dowsett

Fresh off the L.A. Lakers’ first loss of the season, D’Angelo Russell is the final player to dress and speak with assembled media. Powered by his heroics, the Lakers had shocked some people a couple nights prior with a win over the Houston Rockets to open the year, but they – and he – ran out of gas on this night against a more disciplined Utah Jazz team.

Russell’s first question is on progression in his individual game from last year to this one; he talks instead about how much better certain areas of the game felt for the team as a whole, even in a loss. He carries it well, but Russell is clearly throwing himself head-first into a leadership void left over from a strange culture last season. Most young guys say the right things, but Russell has a unique way of sounding older as he’s saying them. This is a 20-year-old already without a hint of doubt about the level of expectations on him. Not just today – every day for as long as he can imagine. Not just on the court, but off it as well.

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Projecting Cap Space Under Potential Labor Deal

By Eric Pincus

The NBA and NBA Players Union are nearing labor peace, working towards an extension of the Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) by December 15. The goal for both the owners and players is to reach a new, long-term deal early, avoiding a lockout next summer.

Exact details of an agreement that has yet to be reached are obviously unavailable, but some of the working concepts have leaked. The basic split of basketball related income (BRI) is expected to remain unchanged from the 49-51 percent band in the current deal.

The sooner a new CBA can be hashed out, the better for teams who need to make decisions based on salary-cap projections for the offseason and the summers to come. Leading up to previous lockout years, teams were essentially working in the dark, hoping future rule changes wouldn’t blow up their plans.

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