Adelaide 36ers
Lack of offensive weapons surrounding Cotton
Bryce Cotton may be getting his fill, but it's clear from their 88.2 PPG (9th in the NBL) and lack of ball movement that some of the other players need to step up.
Niko Rakocevic has done his part, averaging 18.0 PPG and 11.2 RPG.
However, more scoring aggression needs to come from Zylan Cheatham, who should be putting up at least 10 shots a game, while Isaac White needs to help ease the load off Cotton and switch to the kind of aggression shown in his NBL1 MVP campaign.
Brisbane Bullets
Turning the ball over
It's one of basketball's most frustrating problems, and it's one that has haunted the Bullets for years now. This season looks to be more hopeful in changing the narrative as Arnas Velicka currently leads the league in assists at 10.8 a game. Though the Bullets are still last in the league in turnovers and turnover percentage, with not many other skilled passers on the team.
Guards Nate Hinton and young Max Mackinnon are primarily scorers whose passing is becoming a problem when they each have 3 or more turnovers in the last two games. More minutes for veteran Mitch Norton could help this unstable yet exciting offence.
Cairns Taipans
No clear first-option on offence
It hasn't been the start Jack McVeigh hoped for to start this season, averaging 5 fewer points from his scoring average last season. Keanu Pinder has instead showed promise in terms of reliability and efficiency at an equal scoring level thus far, but can get into foul trouble quickly.
There's also the fact that the Taipans are undefeated when Jaylon Brown scores 20 points.
This isn't an immediate need to sort out per se, but rather an aspect that could hold this team back from making any noise in the postseason when you need an identity and to put the ball in your best player's hands.
Illawarra Hawks
Offence taking priority over defence
The Hawks are always going to have a free-flowing offence as long as Justin Tatum is still in charge, but it's been their defence where all the problems grow for a team with a 1-4 start. Finishing bottom three among teams in defensive rating last season and now even further down at 9th, it looks to be the problem this club can't seem to solve.
A focus on offence seems to be the priority after adding Milton Doyle and Kelan Martin, two high-volume scorers with little to offer on the other end. It will be up to others surrounding Doyle and Martin to step up and evolve as a defensive unit if this is what they're playing for.
Melbourne United
An absence of chemistry
Adding ten new players on the roster during the off-season was always going to be a tall task for first-time head coach Jacob Chance. The talent is there for results; they just haven't figured out how to play with one another yet, and that's evident with United being last in assists per game at a woeful 15.3 per game.
Cole Anthony looks fantastic after a 40-point eruption against Cairns in a loss, but the way he got those points was another story. Slow isolations, ball stagnation, and a lot of confusing half-court set sequences are not going to win you a championship, let alone a regular game.
New Zealand Breakers
Blowing leads becoming a habit
Gordon Herbert's outfit has had a very solid start to NBL27. Parker Jackson-Cartwright has been playing at an MVP level, and their defence looks more coordinated, with most of the team already knowing their role on the other side of the court. The Breakers' only two losses came during games where they got off to a quick start, only to then gradually collapse.
Blowing leads is one of those patterns you don't want to haunt you later in the season when the games increase in pressure. It could very well be the factor that takes this talented team out from beneath their legs.
Perth Wildcats
Lack of rebounding and size
Despite not having a true starting point guard, the Wildcats have started better than most thought at 3-1 off the back of Elijah Pepper stepping up into one of the main scoring roles. The weaknesses for this team are rebounding, for which they rank last in the league in (23.8 per game), and size in general.
Kristin Doolittle is a force and one of their bigger bodies, but with no timetable for Jo Lual-Acuil's return from injury, the concern for size will only continue to grow. The Wildcats signed 36-year-old former player Angus Brandt in the off-season to address but yet the problem still looms.
South East Melbourne Phoenix
Shooting from beyond the arch
Modern basketball has become characterised by high-volume three-point shooting and 5-out spacing that has taken hold of the game. Unfortunately for Phoenix, it's their biggest weakness, one that can be exploited if they continue a high volume of three-point shots.
Capable shooters are littered around the roster, and yet they are still shooting a league-low 25% from three. It's even more concerning when you realise they've also been taking the most threes at 37 a game. However, it's a promising sign for the team's confidence that head coach Josh King hasn't wavered from the three-point game plan despite the inefficiency and seems to have real faith in his team to turn it around.
Sydney Kings
Relying on one player too much
Winning a championship shouldn't mean that you still rely on your point guard to create every shot and opportunity for you to win. It may be harsh with the Kings starting 3-0 and looking better than ever, but having an MVP-level talent like Kendric Davis can be dangerous at times to fall back on for every single play.
It helps that the Kings are already shying away from this concern by having the highest-scoring bench in the league. In part thanks to a much-improved Makuach Maluach averaging the second-most points (16.0) on the team and newcomer Will Johnston creating a lot of scoring opportunities.
Tasmania JackJumpers
Starting slow in games
With only just one loss under their belt early so far, the JackJumpers should have very well walked away with a win if it wasn't for their sluggish 32-16 start. Having to make a comeback in most of your games is a bad habit to get into, and it isn't the first time.
Ranking 9th in the league in first-quarter points at an average of 18 every game, it's the inconsistency that is lowering Tasmania's ceiling. A start to solve this could be letting Taran Armstrong be more aggressive by scoring early, rather than relying on him when fatigued in late-game situations.
