It took approximately three weeks into the season for a head coach to be fired in the NBA. A number of teams have found themselves on the wrong half of the standings and the Houston Rockets are a prime example. The second seed in the Western Conference Playoffs a season ago, the Rockets have struggled largely to begin the 2015-2016 season. While the Utah Jazz, Detroit Pistons, and Phoenix Suns have played good basketball early and find themselves in playoff spots the Rockets, Memphis Grizzlies, Milwaukee Bucks, and Toronto Raptors have all fallen out of the top eight.
After a 4-7 start to the season, the Rockets fired head coach Kevin McHale. Whether or not it was McHale's fault is very much up for debate but, one thing is certain, this team has shown minimal effort. A team that was three wins away from a trip to the NBA Finals has taken on a completely different identity in the early goings of the 2015-2016 season. James Harden received the majority of votes for the MVP from players around the league last year, but has been one of the laziest defenders this season, leading the Rockets' lackadaisical defensive effort. Meanwhile, reigning MVP Stephen Curry is showing his peers why they should have voted for him instead. Harden may be second to Curry in scoring thus far, averaging 28.8 points-per-game, but he has been far from MVP form. On a similar roster to last season, Harden has looked out of place and has lacked an appropriate winning attitude, causing his teammates to follow suit. Simply put, The Beard cannot be feared.
After coming over in a trade with the Denver Nuggets, Ty Lawson has also been largely ineffective. Lawson's 9.6 assists-per-game ranked third in the NBA last season but, since joining a much stronger offensive roster, that number has shrunk for the seventh-year point guard. Alongside one of the best two-guards in the league, Lawson is averaging just 5.3 assists-per-game, which is second on the team behind Harden. Lawson's scoring has been M.I.A. as well, averaging just 8.3 points-per-game. Patrick Beverley has been sidelined due to injury but, once he returns, the Rockets may opt to start him over the struggling Lawson.
The Brooklyn Nets snuck in as the eighth seed in the playoffs last year and have since gotten rid of Deron Williams. In turn, things have only gotten worse. Once thought of as a problem, the Nets could really use Williams considering the way Joe Johnson has been playing. In his 15th season in the NBA, Johnson is averaging 11.4 points-per-game, continuing the trend of deterioration that began in his first season with the Nets. The 34 year-old should be the top scorer beside Brook Lopez, but those expectations may have been unreasonable to begin with. Jo-Jo is fourth in scoring on a struggling Nets team that will need to find a replacement via trade or free agency after they traded away all of their draft picks to the Boston Celtics in 2013. Management is largely to blame for the Paul Pierce and Kevin Garnett trade and, now, Johnson is making them look even more foolish.
On a somewhat more positive note, there are players around the league who have struggled in the first three weeks of the season, while their teams have performed well. One such player is Joakim Noah. After battling injuries last season, Noah was removed from the Chicago Bulls' starting lineup. Under new head coach Fred Hoiberg, the ninth-year veteran has averaged just 2.8 points-per-game in ten games. It is fair to say the 30 year-old is past his prime and injuries are certainly responsible. While Noah is grabbing an average of 8.5 rebounds-per-game, his scoring has vanished. He has a season-high of eight points, which he tallied on two occasions. The Bulls are once again one of the top teams in the Eastern Conference and are doing so while Derrick Rose continues to overcome injuries. Noah, however, is not his old self and has entered the back nine of his career.