Mid-Season Report: Silverhawks

Let's start our look at each division as the playoffs start creeping towards us -- only seven weeks away. The first division up is the Silverhawks, which features a few flip flops, especially at the top! Here was their pre-season preview.

Fob Stars (7-4-1)
After going 1-11 last season, Jimmy's team is leading the division, a shift that came without any warning. The Fob Stars started off the year in familiar fashion, limping out of the gates with two losses in three tries, but then they ripped off six straight wins -- including taking down the mighty NJ All Stars in WK5. They've recently stumbled a bit, with two losses and a tie, but already they've impressed with their turnaround this year. The big mystery is how they're winning. They're not top ranked in any category, and their strongest stat is TOs, where they rank fifth.

The strength of this team is in the frontcourt, where Zach Randolph and Joakim Noah are both averaging strong double doubles. Noah has 2.0 BLKs and 1.3 STL each game too. Perhaps the real reason for the turnaround is the shocking emergence of Kemba Walker, who is averaging 17.4 PTS, 5.8 AST, 1.9 STL, 1.2 3PT a game during his sophomore campaign. And with young guys like Dion Waiters and Tyler Zeller starting to step up, the Fob Stars could be getting stronger, even though they just lost Louis Williams for the season. Can the Fob Stars finish off a strong 2013 and win the division?

Sour Snails (7-5)
Understanding that the division was wide open, Trieu swung for the fences and made a splashy trade last week. Of course, that resulted in a disjointed WK12, as they got manhandled by Eddie's team, 0-6-3. The Sour Snails had control of the division early, vaulting out to a 6-2 start, before falling back to the pack recently. We could talk about their rankings in the various categories -- dominant in 3PT, second in PTS, third in AST, dead last in FG% and TO -- but none of that really matters as the team is clearly totally revamped.

Steph Curry is the cornerstone here, with 20.5 PTS, 6.6 AST, 3.1 3PT, 1.7 STL, and even 4.1 REB. With Damian Lillard and Monta Ellis flanking him, Curry just might lead the best backcourt in the league. The Snails are a high powered run and gun team, with everyone averaging in the mid-teens. Now to see what low post presence DeMarcus Cousins can add to the mix. A year after finishing out of the playoffs, Trieu has rebuilt and is ready to challenge once again.

Fat Jubas (6-6)
It's not looking good for the defending champs. They're only one game out of the division lead but management has not been happy with the effort they've seen. Sure they started strong and they've won three out of their past four games, but that was against opponetns who had a combined seven wins. Eric-L's team hasn't been able to handle the contenders this season and that doesn't bode well for their championship defense. Are they the 2011 Mavericks? The GM has been working the waiver wire, and made a big trade already this season, but that has all amounted to a roster that is suddenly quite unbalanced. The Jubas are good at protecting the rim, excellent putting down their free throws, but can't rebound or steal the ball. Everywhere else they are mediocre.

Swingman Nicolas Batum fills up the stat sheet, with 16.8 PTS, 5.9 REB, 4.4 AST, 2.5 3PT, 1.5 STL, and 1.1 BLK per game, but he's not going to carry a team. Kevin Garnett has been slow to start, Steve Nash has only played sixteen games so far, and Gordon Hayward has regressed badly. The jury is still out on the Marc Gasol and Tyreke Evans acquisitions, as neither has wowed their new owners with their play. The bench is a deep pit of lost souls. Is it time for the Jubas to rebuild? Or is there one final gasp left in them?

Jedi Knights (3-8-1)
Before the season, Superlum made a number of big moves. They had their sights on playoff contention and weren't afraid to shake things up to get out of their doldrums. The good news is that after back to back four win seasons, the Jedi are on pace to eclipse that figure. The bad news is, they are probably not heading to the postseason. After starting off 0-4-1, the team is trending up, but very slowly. Mostly, there isn't a solid identity here. These Knights have great FG% and terrible FT%, but nothing of note anywhere else.

We'd say that trades for Luis Scola, DeAndre Jordan, Amare Stoudemire, Greivis Vasquez, and Danilo Gallinari are all positive, but the real growth this season has been from an impressive draft. O.J. Mayo is averaging 18.2 PTS, 4.1 AST, 2.1 3PT, and 1.3 STL this season. Thaddeus Young has emerged as a very useful forward behind 15.0 PTS, 7.3 REB, 1.7 STL, 0.9 BLK. And then there's David Lee, who is the only player averaging a 20-10. Heck, we even love Chandler Parsons and his very even all around game. On top of that, Mo Williams was very good before he got injured. Looking over this roster, we see a lot of interesting pieces, and the potential is there for maybe a very competitive small ball team. Right now though, the Jedi seem to be content emerging from the shadows, and just picking up side pieces, before shaping what they have into a post-season run.