Takeaways From The First Two Months Of The NBA Season

This is the NBA season where anything goes. Down go the Golden State Warriors and new powers rise. Faces in new places and old faces reigning supreme. What has gone on in the first two months of the NBA season?

• How The Mighty Have Fallen: Once a dynastic team that reigned supreme over the NBA landscape (and mainly the Cleveland Cavaliers), the Golden State Warriors have fallen on hard times. Sitting at 5-20 and without both Klay Thompson and Stephen Curry, the Warriors have mostly been Draymond Green and a listless group of players. Steve Kerr should expect more from players such as Kevon Looney (3 PPG while averaging 11 minutes a game), but injuries have hampered a once-mighty team. Will this Warriors team be back to form once Curry and Thompson return in the future?
  
• Kawhi's Rest: A big source of controversy for this NBA season has been Kawhi Leonard's load management. Doc Rivers and the Los Angeles Clippers have rested Kawhi for a chunk of the first two months to prevent 'overworking' the NBA Finals MVP. Not that it's a problem; the Clippers are 18-7 and are in second place in the Western Conference. But this may be a problem for fans who want to see superstars such as Kawhi or LeBron James and are disappointed in their absence.
  
• The NBA's New Top Dogs: The Los Angeles Lakers and the Milwaukee Bucks both reside at the top of the NBA hierarchy with records of 21-3. Milwaukee's fast-paced style and presence of Greek Freak has the Bucks atop the Eastern Conference. As for the Western Conference, it hasn't just been LeBron and Anthony Davis as the dynamic duo. Role players such as Dwight Howard (seven rebounds a game, 1.4 blocks per game) and Rajon Rondo (8.5 PPG, 5.8 APG) have contributed nicely for the Lakers. However, there are surprise teams that you should watch for...
  
• The Pleasant Surprises: The 16-7 Dallas Mavericks, led by MVP candidate Luka Doncic, are sitting in third in the Western Conference, while the 18-6 Miami Heat, coached by Erik Spoelstra, are sitting in third in the Eastern Conference. There are other teams like the Phoenix Suns and the Oklahoma City Thunder who are surprisingly playoff teams right now. But how long will their positions hold?