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For those not informed, the Northwest division lies in the Western Conference and consists of five teams which are the Denver Nuggets, Portland Trailblazers, Oklahoma City Thunder, Minnesota Timberwolves & Utah Jazz.
This is an early look into the current status quo of the Northwest Division, one that consists of four teams that made the playoffs last year. The Denver Nuggets fell a sliver-short of the 8-team playoff window and finished 9th with a 46-36 record.
The Northwest consists of all the teams that house the ability to breakout any season and ruin the Western Conference for the expected leaders in the Warriors & Rockets. The talent pool in the ever-so-competitive West is reinforced by the skill level the players in the above five teams possess.
Some of the stars have really played out of their skin so far this season and it would make sense to pick and list the well-deserved All-star predictions from this division, in particular.
#4 Karl Anthony Towns (Minnesota Timberwolves)
Karl Anthony-Towns signed a five-year, $190M super-maximum deal in the September of 2018. The impactful signing was an indication that the T-Wolves organization sees a potential future in him, and expectedly so, the 23-year-old hasn't disappointed.
He has started all 20 games of this season for Minnesota so far and is averaging a double-double of 20.8 points & 12.3 rebounds per game. Hosting career-high averages in blocks(1.7) and rebounds(12.3) this season, Towns is also averaging 89% from the free-throw line which is his best of all the four seasons he's spent in the NBA.
His undeniable presence in the post and inhuman tenacity on the boards has often come to the rescue of the Wolves in times of need. His leadership and maturity in crunch situations willed Minnesota into taking the final playoff berth(at the 8th position) last year, only to be beaten 4-1 by the Rockets in the first round.
The most recent show of KAT's dominance occurred when he dropped 35 points and 22 rebounds against the Bulls on November 24th, making it his 3rd career game with atleast 30 points and 20 rebounds.
#3 Russell Westbrook (Oklahoma City Thunder)
The former MVP is a lock for an All-Star berth this year if he keeps playing the way he is.
He was leading the Thunder in points and assists this season when he sprained his left ankle in a matchup against the Pelicans. He missed five games because of the injury on top of the two opening games of the season which he took to deal with inflammation in his right knee from an offseason knee procedure.
The Thunder are 12-7 on the season and Westbrook has started 11 of these 19 games, placing OKC at the 5th position in the Western Conference currently.
Characteristically, he is averaging a near-triple-double this year, posting 23.2 points, 9.5 rebounds and 9.3 assists per game, and just posted his second triple-double of the season when OKC faced the Nuggets(the first one coming against the Golden State Warriors).
What's even scarier is that he's shooting a career-high 46% from the field in the 11 games he has started this season, and looks like he has found his shooting groove.
#2 Paul George (Oklahoma City Thunder)
The Thunder have won seven out of their last 10 games after starting 0-4 this season and PG13 has had a huge contribution to the cause (while Westbrook has been in-and-out).
To be precise, he is averaging 24.0 points across the 19 games he has played for the Thunder in the 2018-19 season, which is more than Westbrook's average(23.6) who has played seven lesser games due to intermittent appearances owing to injuries.
In the aftermath of being snubbed from the All-Star race last year for the first time in three seasons, George is back on track again. The 5-time All-star is averaging a career-high in points per game this season along with posting 2.3 steals per game (also a career-high).
George's solo heroics in the absence of Melo on the roster has been the prominent basis for Thunder staying afloat this season, and for that matter, excelling, after a sluggish start.
Apparently, George re-signing with the Thunder to a four-year, $137 million contract was one of the best things to happen to the Thunder ever since Westbrook won MVP in 2017.
#1 Damian Lillard (Portland Trailblazers)
Dame's field goal percentage this season(43.4%) is a sliver above his career average(43.2%).
Just around 10 days into the season, he crossed the 11,000 point mark when he scored 42 points against Miami Heat, and eventually, passed Terry Porter for the third position on the all-time Blazers scoring list recently when he dropped 23 points in another blowout loss to GSW. During the historic week, he also leapfrogged Damon Stoudamire for third place on the Blazers' all-time assist list as well.
The most impressive part of Dame's feat was he took the fewest games in doing so in comparison to the greats he passed on his way up.
Currently, he's scoring 26.2 points per game(8th in the league) and is shooting 43.4% from the field this season, fouling just 1.5 times a game(career low).
One of his highlight performances has come against the Wizards when he dropped 40 points in D.C to snap a two-game losing streak.
