On November 6, Beijing time, the U.S. presidential election, the NBA truce for one day. Let's take a look back at the first two weeks of the season from a statistical perspective and see who were the biggest surprises and disappointments in terms of teams and players.

The most surprising team

East: Cleveland Cavaliers

Before the official start of the 2024-25 season, the NBA's official website positions the Cavaliers as a "dark horse". Two weeks later, they have an 8-0 record, equalling the best start in franchise history in 1976-77. The Cavaliers are currently in first place in the East and first in the league. They are definitely the most surprising team in the East.

The Cavaliers are proving how strong a team can be when Mitchell, Garland, Mobley and Allen are all healthy. According to the stats, the Cavaliers are currently ranked No. 2 in offensive efficiency and No. 5 in defensive efficiency, and have become a team that is both offensive and defensive, having ranked 16th and 7th respectively last season.

In addition, the Cavaliers ranked No. 1 in shooting percentage at 52.3 percent; Ranked No. 2 on three-point shooting at 41.3 percent; He averaged 122.3 points per game, ranking second, and 9.9 steals per game, tied for second. Expect more surprises from the knights.

West: Golden State Warriors

In the first two weeks of the season, three teams were in the top five in the league in offensive and defensive efficiency: the Celtics (1st offensive, 4th defensive), Cavaliers (2nd offensive, 5th defensive) and Warriors (4th offensively, 2nd defensively). The Warriors are undoubtedly the most surprising team in the West.

Klay left the team, Curry missed three more games at the start of the season with an injury, but the Warriors played a 6-1 record, which was a bit of a surprise. The Warriors' new signings, especially Hield, have settled in quickly and are in hot form. Although Klay left the Warriors, the depth of the Warriors' roster continued unabated, and Kerr was even able to arrange a 12-man rotation.

The Warriors' defensive improvement has been huge, with their defensive efficiency ranking 15th in the league last season, which can only be considered a mid-table team, and in the first two weeks of the season, their defensive efficiency has reached second in the league. The Warriors currently rank fourth in the league in 9.7 steals and 6.4 blocks per game. In terms of three-point shooting, the Warriors also remained strong, hitting 16.4 three-pointers per game, tied for second in the league, and ranking fourth in the league for 39.1% three-point shooting.

The most disappointing team

East: Milwaukee Bucks

In the first two weeks of the season, the Bucks lost 6 out of 7 games and became the bottom team in the league, a scene that probably no one could have expected. After all, the Bucks have been seen as a strong contender for the championship for the past few years. The Bucks have suffered a six-game losing streak, Middleton is still out indefinitely, and Antetokounmpo has also started a sideline due to injury, and Lillard is under tremendous pressure.

The stats show that the Bucks are currently 20th in offensive efficiency and 22nd in defensive efficiency. Antetokounmpo and Lillard are seen as two major threats, one inside and one outside, but with both on the floor at the same time, the Bucks don't have the advantage they imagined. The two have played 152 minutes together this season, and the Bucks have lost by 17 points to their opponents in that time. The two played 1,756 minutes together last season, and the Bucks outscored their opponents by 378 points in that time.

In both games against the Cavaliers, the Bucks had a chance to win, but Lillard became the background emperor in a row, and was stolen by Mitchell and the Cavaliers. In Holiday in his last season with the Bucks (2022-23 season), the Bucks' defensive efficiency ranked 4th in the league, and last season, it has fallen to 19th in the league, and since the beginning of this season, the Bucks' defensive efficiency ranks 22nd.

West: New Orleans Pelicans

The most disappointing team in the West is probably the Pelicans. Injuries have severely affected the Pelicans' performance, with Murray suffering serious injuries in the opener, Murphy, McCollum, Jones also going down, and Zion and Hawkins also injured. One injury is six rotations, and only Yingge is still healthy.

Injuries have left the Pelicans in a 3-5 start, 14th in the West, and only above the 1-6 Jazz in the West. This is obviously not the position that the Pelicans expected, in the offseason, they brought in Murray and prepared to make a big deal, but they didn't expect the injury to hit so quickly, so that the Pelicans were a little overwhelmed.

These injured players are not expected to return until a few weeks later, and by then will the Pelicans have been pulled apart in the competitive West?

The most surprising player

East: Jordan Poole

After taking stock of the team, let's take a look at the players. If you want to find one of the most surprising players in the East, the answer could be the Wizards' Jordan Poole. Let's take a look at Poole's stats in the first two weeks of the season: averaging 22.5 points, 5 assists and 2.8 steals per game, shooting 44.9% from the field, 45.3% from three-point range, and 92% from the free throw line.

He is currently averaging career highs in points, assists, steals, shooting percentage, and three-point percentage per game, and he is currently the No. 1 player on the steals list. I have to say that Poole has been in the first two weeks of the season.

West: Buddy-Hield

The most surprising player in the West is likely to be the Warriors' new signing, Hield. The Warriors were able to put in a 6-1 opening run, and Hield was indispensable. As the Warriors' sixth man, he brought a lot of firepower from the bench. In seven games so far this season, Hield has averaged 21.9 points, 4.3 rebounds and 2.4 assists per game, shooting 51.4% from the field and 50% from three-point range, and can shoot 4.7 three-pointers per game.

HoopsHype, a well-known American media, listed the player rankings in the first two weeks of the season according to their comprehensive performance, Hield ranked 10th, and the 11th was Doncic of the Mavericks, and the 9 in front of Hield have all been selected as All-Stars at least once, and they are basically the core of each team. As a sixth person with an annual salary of less than 9 million, Heard has indeed shown a super good value for money.

The most disappointing player

East: Joel Embiid

Embiid is being paid more than $50 million a year this season, but he may be one of the most disappointing players in the first two weeks of the season. I have to say that there has been a lot of news about Embiid in the past half month, but it is all a farce off the court. From his own announcement that he would no longer play back-to-backs, to the 76ers being fined $100,000 for his injury problems, and then clashing with reporters in the locker room, Embiid was suspended for three games after the NBA investigation, and he will also lose $1.06 million in salary.

As an MVP-caliber star, Embiid has almost all been negative news since the start of the season, and the 76ers' 1-5 start is also quite dismal, and Embiid is urgently needed to come back to help the team. The suspension will begin in the next game against the Clippers, and Embiid is expected to return for his season debut against the Knicks on Nov. 13.

West: Kawhi Leonard

If Embiid is the most disappointing thing in the East, it should be Leonard in the West. The small card, who is currently in an indefinite truce, is expected to rest longer than Embiid. George's departure from the team and his injury have also put Harden under tremendous pressure. The Clippers have only 3 wins and 4 losses since the start of the season, temporarily ranking 11th in the West.

If the small card needs to be injured for a longer time, it can only be said that the future of the Clippers is not optimistic. Not to mention the goal of winning the championship, I am afraid that the goal of the playoffs will be difficult to achieve.

In the first two weeks of the season, who are the most surprising and disappointing in everyone's hearts? Feel free to leave a message to express your opinions.