Standings -
Best Teams: Philadelphia 76ers (6-1), Toronto Raptors (6-1), Golden State Warriors (6-2)
Worst Teams: Los Angeles Lakers (0-8), Charlotte Bobcats (1-7), Orlando Magic (2-6)
Statistical Leaders -
1 - Carmelo Anthony, New York Knicks (20.4)
2 - Kobe Bryant, Los Angeles Lakers (20.4)
3 - David Lee, Golden State Warriors (17.3)
4 - Glen Davis, Orlando Magic (16.9)
5 - Kevin Martin, Houston Rockets (16.5)
Assists Per Game (minimum 5 games played):
1 - Chris Paul, Los Angeles Clippers (8.8)
2 - Rajon Rondo, Boston Celtics (8.3)
3 - Greivis Vasquez, New Orleans Hornets (7.4)
4 - Russell Westbrook, Oklahoma City Thunder (6.8)
5 - Jrue Holiday, Philadelphia 76ers (6.5)
Rebounds Per Game (minimum 5 games played):
1 - Omer Asik, Houston Rockets (11.5)
2 - Joakim Noah, Chicago Bulls (10.1)
3 - Anthony Davis, New Orleans Hornets (9.9)
4 - Enes Kanter, Utah Jazz (9.4)
5 - Tie between Kosta Koufos, Denver Nuggets/David Lee, Golden State Warriors/Nikola Vucevic, Orlando Magic (8.7)
Notes:
-Dwight Howard of the Los Angeles Lakers committed 10 turnovers over the 2 games he played in. That's a preseason-high average of 5 turnovers per game.
-Ray Allen of the Miami Heat made all 12 of his free-throw attempts and led the preseason with a perfect 100 percent free-throw percentage.
Rookies -
-Anthony Davis, New Orleans Hornets (1st pick, 1st round, 2012)
14.9 ppg, 9.9 rpg, 1.6 bpg, 46.6 FG% - 32.4 minutes per game
The first overall pick of the 2012 draft played about up to par with his expectations.
-Damian Lillard, Portland Trail Blazers (6th pick, 1st round, 2012)
16.2 ppg, 5.8 apg, 2.5 rpg, 45.8 FG%, 95.0 FT% - 31.5 minutes per game
The co-MVP of the 2012 NBA summer league is off to a hot start and is currently my pick for Rookie of the Year in 2013.
-Harrison Barnes, Golden State Warriors (7th pick, 1st round, 2012)
10.4 ppg, 3.3 rpg, 49.2 FG%, 48.0 3P% - 25.1 minutes per game
-Andre Drummond, Detroit Pistons (9th pick, 1st round, 2012)
9.0 ppg, 5.9 rpg, 1.4 bpg, 62.3 FG% - 16.5 minutes per game
-Meyers Leonard, Portland Trail Blazers (11th pick, 1st round, 2012)
6.4 ppg, 4.3 rpg, 76.2 FG%, 86.7 FT% - 15.7 minutes per game
Rookie bigman's averages aren't overwhelming, but he played efficiently and demonstrated superior shot selection.
-Andrew Nicholson, Orlando Magic (19th pick, 1st round, 2012)
10.6 ppg, 5.1 rpg, 47.1 FG% - 20.3 minutes per game
-Jared Sullinger, Boston Celtics (21st pick, 1st round, 2012)
10.9 ppg, 7.0 rpg, 56.1 FG%, 84.6 FT% - 26.1 minutes per game
-Perry Jones III, Oklahoma City Thunder (28th pick, 1st round, 2012)
9.8 ppg, 3.2 rpg, 1.5 apg, 57.1 FG% - 21.3 minutes per game
-Jae Crowder, Dallas Mavericks (34th pick, 2nd round, 2012)
11.4 ppg, 4.5 rpg, 1.9 spg, 1.6 apg, 47.2 FG% - 22.1 minutes per game
-Quincy Acy, Toronto Raptors (37th pick, 2nd round, 2012)
1.8 ppg, 1.3 rpg, 0.5 spg, 100 FG% (3-3 FG's) - 6.0 minutes per game
This bigman from Baylor made excellent use of limited preseason minutes with the Raptors. He strikes me as hard-working.
-Tyshawn Taylor, Brookyln Nets (41st pick, 2nd round, 2012)
8.0 ppg, 3.0 apg, 50.0 FG% - 17.7 minutes per game
I've gotten some good vibes from this rookie point guard that almost won the 2012 NCAA Championship with Kansas earlier this year.
-Brian Roberts, New Orleans Hornets (Undrafted, 2008)
9.1 ppg, 3.8 apg, 2.6 rpg, 80.0 FT% - 23.4 minutes per game
This 26-year-old guard particularly impressed me from what I saw from him in the preseason. In my opinion, he outplayed lottery pick Austin Rivers.
-Chris Copeland, New York Knicks (Undrafted, 2006)
15.5 ppg, 2.8 rpg, 51.7 FG%, 81.3 FT% - 24.8 minutes per game
This 28-year-old rookie came out of nowhere to have a solid preseason with the Knicks. His best game was a loss to Boston in which he scored 34 points and grabbed 6 rebounds.
Rookies Who Struggled (minimum 3 games played):
-Michael Kidd-Gilchrist, Charlotte Bobcats (2nd pick, 1st round, 2012)
5.8 ppg, 5.0 rpg, 1.5 apg, 1.0 spg, 1.2 turnovers per game, 31.9 FG% - 20.9 minutes per game
I am a fan of Kidd-Gilchrist's game and I think that he should still have a solid rookie season.
-Austin Rivers, New Orleans Hornets (10th pick, 1st round, 2012)
7.3 ppg, 2.7 rpg, 2.0 apg, 1.1 spg, 27.1 FG%, 11.8 3P% - 27.0 minutes per game
I haven't felt very good about Rivers since he was in high school. He strikes me as a player who wants to control the ball and be a star, but he doesn't seem to have the talent to do that at the NBA level. He doesn't seem like he's in any shape to be a contributor and actually help an NBA team win games.
-Royce White, Houston Rockets (16th pick, 1st round, 2012)
2.3 ppg, 1.5 rpg, 1.0 apg, 1.5 turnovers per game, 27.3 FG% - 12.3 minutes per game
This rookie who is afraid of flying and suffers from anxiety didn't impress during the preseason.
-Fab Melo, Boston Celtics (22nd pick, 1st round, 2012)
0.3 ppg, 1.3 rpg, 1.0 turnovers per game, 12.5 FG% - 5.9 minutes per game
-Marquis Teague, Chicago Bulls (29th pick, 1st round, 2012)
0.6 ppg, 0.4 rpg, 0.3 apg, 1.0 turnovers per game, 18.2 FG% - 5.6 minutes per game
Notable Players Who Got Cut -
Both young players who were first-round draft picks in 2009. Though both of them have had trouble playing up to their expectations, I'm surprised that both of them were waived.
-Darnell Jackson, Utah Jazz (Free Agent)
Personally, I'm a fan of the 26-year-old bigman who won an NCAA Championship in college with Kansas, but he didn't play very well and even got ejected at the end of one game.
-Chris Smith, New York Knicks (Free Agent)
The younger brother of J.R. Smith was held back by an injury that has him out for 3-6 months.
-Anthony Carter, Denver Nuggets (Free Agent)
I'm guessing that this last preseason was the 37-year-old's last taste of the NBA. However, I am a fan of Carter's scrappy playing style.
-Derrick Brown, San Antonio Spurs (Free Agent)
Brown is a talented, young forward that I feel is being overlooked because he was on that awful Bobcats team last season.
-Blake Ahearn, Indiana Pacers (Free Agent)
This 28-year-old guard hasn't quite been able to make it in the NBA, but has played very well in the D-League. He averaged 23.8 points and 5.1 assists with the Reno Bighorns last season.
-Chris Douglas-Roberts, Los Angeles Lakers, then the Dallas Mavericks (Free Agent)
This talented young player got a bit unlucky and hasn't been able to capture a spot on an NBA roster. CDR was a member of the Derrick Rose-led Memphis squad that lost to Kansas in the 2008 NCAA Championship.
-Eddie Gill, Milwaukee Bucks (Free Agent)
The 34-year-old point guard hasn't played in the NBA since 2009.
-Adam Morrison, Portland Trail Blazers (Free Agent)
Read: "NBA: Blazers Waive Adam Morrison"
Preseason Awards (Opinion) -
MVP: David Lee, Golden State Warriors
-He averaged 17.3 points, 8.7 rebounds, and 2.3 assists per game while shooting 50.5 percent from the field. His team finished with a 6-2 record, third best in the preseason.
Rookie of the Preseason: Damian Lillard, Portland Trail Blazers
Have any thoughts on the 2012 NBA Preseason? Leave a comment below and tell me what you think.
