Which teams are doing far better than you thought? Which teams are doing worse than you thought they would? Exceeded Expectations: Detroit - I thought they would be good, but not this good. 20-3 is amazing. I was thinking along the lines of 17-6. Philadelphia - I thought AI would be broken down, but 14-12 is better than I thought. Clippers - Even with their last two losses, they are looking better than I imagined. 15-10 Phoenix - I didn't think they can keep up their running game with all those players traded and Amare injured. 15-9 Memphis - Doing a lot better than I thought they would. 15-9 New Orleans - Obviously 11-14 Below Expectations: Miami - Sure Shaq was injured, but look at their role players. A lot of them would be our 3rd scoring options. Their bench would be our starters. 15-11 is a poor start, even with Shaq injured. Houston - With all those injuries, who can blame them. But still, they fall greatly short of my expectations. 10-14 Sacramento - I always enjoyed their style, though not their fans. They have imploded. 10-16
above what ive expected: CLIPPERS - as long as they have a better record than the lakers, they've exceeded my expectations. their not the "other team" in la anymore. MEMPHIS - i thought the trade with miami put them back a couple of steps by getting an old eddie jones. guess im greatly wrong with this one. PHOENIX - i thought without amare, they would collapse. NEW ORLEANS - who would've thought?! PHILADELPHIA - i thought the ai-webber combo wouldnt work. im wrong again. below what ive expected: MIAMI - this team sorta reminds me of the lakers with malone/gp/kobe/shaq. just too many stars that needs the ball and not enough role players. HOUSTON - with all the injuries happening day after day, im expecting lottery. the team looks so good on paper, but alas, the result is way different.
The Charlotte/NewOrleans/Oklahoma City Hornets. Unbelievable. and plus they gave up Maglorie. truly outstanding job.
above expectations: suns clippers hornets hawks (yes, exceeded) grizzlies below expectations: kings rockets heat nuggets
From comments earlier on this board, I thought for sure that the lakers had exceeded expectations so far.