Ten rounds into NBL22 and you could make the case we are no closer to figuring out who the genuine contenders are for this year's title.
Outside of the results, some trends are starting to form. After another wild weekend of hoops highlighted by the Tasmania JackJumpers shocking the defending champs at home, I've decided to highlight three curious stats from the season so far.
WHAT'S UP WITH THE RIMS IN TASSIE?
The JackJumpers are quickly becoming one of the stories of NBL22. With a four-game winning streak in hand, the league's newest franchise is on the march.
In last week's 3x3, I wrote that a successful season for the JackJumpers would be to establish a brand and an identity. Thus far, it's been simply playing harder than any other team in the league on a night-to-night basis. While the rest of the league rides the inconsistency rollercoaster, Scott Roth's squad bring it every single night.
Despite their 6-6 record, the JackJumpers 99.5 points per 100 possessions is the fewest in the league. A big part of the offensive struggles is their 29.8 percent shooting from long range, while holding the fourth highest 3-point rate in the league at 42.2 percent.
However, it's not just the JackJumpers who have struggled to find the mark from long range down south. After a brutal 3-for-23 shooting night from deep for the Kings at MyState Bank Arena on Friday night, Sydney star Xavier Cooks lamented the team's inability to knock down open shots.
"We just couldn't get anything to fall. They got them brand new rims out here, they're stiff as hell so we paid the price," Cooks said while head coach Chase Buford chuckled.
It was a light hearted moment after what was a frustrating night for the Kings, but it was the continuation of a trend in the first 10 rounds of the season.
From ten combined games at MyState Bank Arena, teams are shooting a horrid 159-for-550 from long range. That's 28.9 percent for those who are reaching for the calculator. It's brutal.
Maybe Cooks has a point?
THE WILDCATS FIRST QUARTER MYSTERY
Take a peek at the NBL standings after 10 rounds and you will be presented with the shocking sight of the Perth Wildcats looking down at the rest of the league.
With an 8-3 record and a league-best point differential of +93, it's been the resumption of status quo for Bryce Cotton and co. That is, if you ignore the first quarter.
Scott Morrison's squad have been outscored 156-94 over their past six first quarters, with the team facing a double-digit deficit in five of those six encounters. On Saturday night at John Cain Arena, the Wildcats obliterated an undermanned South East Melbourne Phoenix unit to pull off a 34-point turnaround over the final three quarters.
"One of the guys suggested we find another gym and play a full quarter of an inter-squad game. Maybe we'll try that next game," Morrison joked postgame.
"I don't know. I don't know what to do. No disrespect, but I don't really care right now because we did enough in the other three quarters to get the win."
They did on Saturday night, but their 3-2 record over those five games is not exactly sparkling, with the two losses coming to the Adelaide 36ers and Sydney Kings in blowout fashion.
You don't need to look too far into the numbers to understand one of the major causes of the sleepy starts. Across the course of those six games, the dynamic duo of Cotton and Vic Law have combined for 22 points. Total.
Two of the top three scorers in the league this season, Cotton and Law are putting up 43.7 points per outing. In two of the last six games, they have both been scoreless through one quarter, in five of the six games at least one of them has been yet to register a point.
The solution may not be how to get Cotton and Law going as much as it is the supporting cast. Luke Travers breakout 24-point outing against the Phoenix was huge, but the search continues for a reliable third scoring option, with Todd Blanchfield the only other Wildcat putting up double-digit scoring per game, averaging 11.0.
The alternative is Cotton and Law putting the ball in the bucket from opening tip. If that happens, I wish the rest of the league well.
WHICH END OF THE FLOOR IS MORE CONCERNING FOR THE HAWKS?
Brian Goorjian has hardly minced words when raising the alarm over Illawarra's stuttering start to the season.
A title favourite for many in the preseason, the Hawks are 6-5 on the season with an 0-3 record against Melbourne and Perth (story written prior to Monday night's meeting with the Phoenix).
Defensively, only the New Zealand Breakers and Adelaide 36ers are giving up more points per 100 possessions, with Illawarra's leaky defence struggling to find it's chemistry through 11 games. The 110.8 defensive rating is raising serious questions around the viability of the big line-ups that uses combinations of Duop Reath, Sam and Harry Froling.
But what about the offence?
The Hawks are stacked with individual talent. With Reath, Tyler Harvey, Xavier Rathan-Mayes, Justinian Jessup and Antonius Cleveland, the Hawks are loaded with bucket getters.
But who's facilitating? Who's moving the ball?
Illawarra are dead last in assist percentage by a wide margin, with their 41.6 percent mark well below the ninth ranked South East Melbourne at 47.5 percent.
Harvey leads the team in assists per game at 3.3, which ranks 15th league-wide. Having too much talent is hardly a problem if stars are willing to accept an unselfish mentality for the benefit of the team - think Jock Landale and Chris Goulding in Melbourne last season.
"I'm taking it as alarm bells...something has gotta happen here pretty quick or we're in deep, deep trouble," Goorjian said after last week's loss to New Zealand.
The Hawks are still trying to figure it out, but you feel there's no better man to solve the puzzle. A win over the Phoenix would serve as a pretty nice turning point for the Hawks.
*All advanced stats via SpatialJam