My own main item would be an expansion of “ugly.” The injury issues were bad enough, just hopelessly bad, last year, with Kawhi out from the beginning, then PG getting hurt. It seemed like it should have built up some immunity for the squad this year. Things had to be better, and it all looked good enough through training camp and the preseason. But this 30 game stretch has been insidiously brutal. The Kawhi knee, early on, was slightly weird, but then turning the ankle is the type of thing I’m talking about. The Norm groin injury was the second quietly excruciating example, a tweak that didn’t even seem to happen, cutting off a truly remarkable stretch of outstanding performances after he had gotten a slow, even horrendous start, just as he was winning that Portland game himself. And then.he was gone. Poof! Paul George out. And then Zu–that one really hurts, since Zu has been indestructible and reliable for so long, and the backup situation is problematic. There are faint signs that the Clips have finally turned the corner on this, with Kawhi back. But it has been a lot worse than it has seemed, or that people talk about–it’s been weird, and deeply unfortunate. Good to get it out of the way early in the season, I guess, but it will be a huge drag if it continues.

Another item on my list, following everybody’s comments, is Moses Brown. I’m gonna go against the grain and say that I don’t mind watching him and I even find him slightly intriguing. His defense is atrocious and even worse than that, and he has no offensive skills. He can’t move well enough to become an adequate defender, and it’s upsetting to see mediocre teams get effortless midrange jump shots against him. But he has brought energy–although he can’t muster a sufficient effort on defense–and the ball sometimes bounces his way. So, for me, he’s adequate regular season end-of-the-bench fodder, and he’s getting enough time that on occasion there are faint signs that he can make plays around the rim and get rebounds. There are flashes that he’s improving, which seems amusing, since he has been so viciously dismissed by Lucas and Robert and everybody. The equation with Moussa is simple enough. Moussa has played 14 G-League games, 439 minutes (248 pts, 163 rebs), a lot of valuable reps, and he will be even better in February. He could be on the edge of the rotation–but there’s a long way to go before then. Let’s enjoy Moses’ effort as a placeholder, is all I’m saying. Yes, Zu’s injury (see above) has made it all tougher to watch, but he should be back soon. I’m hoping that Zu regains the sharp edge that he had with shots around the rim during the first 10 games, when he was such a bright spot.

The Roco mystery needs further sleuthing. My main objection is overplaying MMorris, and wearing him down, which makes no sense. One possible explanation would be that the “consolidation trade” would be for Roco and MMorris, for a superior player, but the logjam is at the guard position. Still, maybe you overplay and grind down Morris (who started fresh and frisky, and is still doing well enough–but why would he play 35 minutes?) if you’re going trade him, and then Roco is the guy who’s fresh. That’s a crazy and inane theory, of course.

I liked the way that John Wall seemed to get over his first few games jitters, and he had a good early run (something Kawhi never got), but the wheels got shaky soon enough, if they didn’t come all the way off. Reggie was being overplayed too, so his rest and recovery here has been good and should pay dividends. But I’m with RFlom, and I think Wall ends up outside of the rotation when Norm and Reggie and PG all come back. Or he should be, at least, but it will probably take some time before things get there. He doesn’t seem to have the right tools. It’s too bad. I was hoping that he would be the next version of Nick Batum, a rare discounted prize. Batum is a miracle.