ICYMI: Wiggins get hot, the Warriors are flawed, and Chris Paul is primed

The content machine here at The Step Back is running in high gear and it can be difficult to keep up with all of the great stuff we’re putting out. To make your life easier, we’re going to be running a regular Friday post that curates some of our favorite stories from the week. Please enjoy.

YES, AND: The evolution of offensive schemes and defensive responses is an endless cycle. In the here and now, it is has become incredibly important for primary ball-handlers to be able to attack the basket and step behind a screen and knock down an off-the-dribble 3-pointer. Andrew Wiggins has been doing the latter to an absurd degree this season and his limitless potential appears to finally be within reach.

THE UNITED STATES OF SWISH: J.R. Smith is continuing to set new personal records for likability.

NICE GUYS FINISH IN THE LOTTERY: The Denver Nuggets would appear to be in a perfect position. They have youthful talent, they have financial flexibility, they have tradable assets, and they have a team that looks like it could grow into something pretty good. What they don’t have is a star or a surefire way to acquire one. The Nuggets are a reminder that you can do everything right in the team-building department and still not be guaranteed a championship contender.

NOPE AND NOPE: Omer Asik is not the answer to any of the New Orleans Pelicans’ problems. An angry Markieff Morris isn’t much help to the Washington Wizards either.

YOU HAD ME AT RIM PROTECTION: The Golden State Warriors have rounded into form, picking up that shroud of inevitability we all assumed they’d have from Opening Night. However, while their offense has been the best the league has ever seen, their defense has been merely average. Obviously, they’d make the Kevin Durant – Andrew Bogut swap a thousand times over but if the Warriors get beat in the playoffs it will probably be because of a lack of interior defense.

LONZO BALL CAN BALL: The crop of point guards in this year’s draft class is incredible. Get to know UCLA’s Lonzo Ball who may be off to the best start of anyone in college basketball. It’s never to early to start preparing for the draft so also check out our scouting reports on Lauri Markkanen, Svi Mykhailiuk, and Alec Peters.

NBA D-LEAGUE CALL UP RANKINGS: If your NBA team could use some help at point guard, they don’t necessarily have to wait for the draft. Plenty of solid help is waiting in the D-League.

OTTOMATIC: Would you believe me if I told you that Otto Porter had the best game of this young NBA season?

THE BEST SCREEN DOORS AROUND: DeMar DeRozan’s start to the season has been incredible. Last year it seemed like he really put the formula together for how to be an efficient scorer (or at least as efficient as possible) without a 3-point shot. He’s hit a new level this season, in part because of his excellence in the pick-and-roll. He deserves plenty of credit, but a savvy screening strategy by his teammates is one of the reasons he’s been so good.

FLIP-FLOPPERS: The Atlanta Hawks were fantastic, and then they were terrible. Which version of those Dwight Howard-led Hawks should we expect to see over the rest of the season?

HOT SAUCE: Nik Stauskas is Sauce Castillo again, maybe for good this time?

PATENTLY ABSURD: How do you beat the Golden State Warriors when Klay Thompson, wearing his shoes on his hands and balancing a half-full dixie cup of Gatorade on his head, is flinging in a 38-footer while falling out of bounds and sneezing?

GREAT BALLS OF FIRE: Can I interest you in highlights of Jimmer Fredette burning the Chinese Basketball Association to the ground?

MORE THREES, PLEASE: At age 31, Chris Paul is on track for a career year. A simple tweak to his shot distribution has been a big part of his success.

SOMETHING FOR YOUR EARHOLES: 

I TOLD YOU SO: To me, it seemed pretty clear that the Indiana Pacers were in trouble this year. While the Pacers may have added talent this summer, the fit was less than ideal. Jeff Teague was a defensive downgrade from George Hill and, on offense, duplicated a lot of what Paul George, Monta Ellis, and Rodney Stuckey do. Thad Young is better than anyone the started at power forward last year but his lack of an outside shot would only serve to cramp spacing. Myles Turner, for all his potential, is only 20 and his lack of experience seemed like a downgrade from Ian Mahinmi this year. So far, pretty much all of that has been true.

THE LEAGUE IS NOT GETTING SMALLER: Our own Philip Rossman-Reich talked with Gregg Popovich, Rick Carlisle, and Quin Snyder about why small ball is not the solution to everything.

GO YOU OWN WAY: Don’t miss Wes Goldberg’s regular Friday column, stitching five smaller stories together to find one larger narrative. This week, Wes is on Sam Hinkie, LeBron James, and finding your own way to succeed in the NBA.

CLEAR EYES, FULL HEARTS, CAN’T MISS: Derrick Williams was a can’t miss prospect, selected just behind Kyrie Irving in the 2011 NBA Draft. Five years later, he’s desperately trying to hang on to an NBA career, playing on a one-year deal for Erik Spoelstra and the Miami Heat — his fourth team and eighth NBA head coach. What would it have looked like if he could have just started his career in a stable situation like this one?