Make sure to listen and add the 13 Rules: NBA Random Thoughts podcast the Shot Clock Pod to your list! This week Steve shares his thoughts after week 6 of the 2025-26 NBA season. Fouls are up, some surprising hot starts and injury-plagued contenders
Fouls and Game Flow
The average fouls called per NBA game this year is 45.7. Last year it was 37.2. The increase in called fouls does not help the game for two reasons. The first is it makes longer games with plenty of stoppages. This leads to the second problem, choppier games with no flow, which makes a game tough to watch.
Chicago Bulls Start
The Chicago Bulls opened the season with five straight wins, and their up-tempo offense was said to be the reason. Since that start, the Bulls are four and nine, including only winning three of their last 11. In those 11games, they have given up 120 points or more in each game. It seems to prove the old adage in sports: defense wins.
Toronto Raptors Surge
How about the Toronto Raptors? After starting the season one and four, they have gone 13 and one, including winning the last nine straight. In that stretch, they are giving up a little more than 107 points per game. In their first five games, they gave up 127.8 points per game. The other plus has been the play of Brandon Ingram. Not only has he been healthy and has played more games so far this year than last year in the entire season, he also has made some huge shots down the stretch and has become Toronto’s go-to man.
Orlando Magic Improvement
The Orlando Magic are another team on the rise. The Magic began the season one and four like Toronto. Since then, they are 11 and four. They have beaten the New York Knicks twice and the Detroit Pistons once in that stretch. They have done this with one of their best players injured; Paolo Banchero has missed their last eight games.
Phoenix Suns Culture Shift
Who would have thought the Phoenix Suns would be 12–8 and in sixth place in the Western Conference? Included in that is two wins over the Spurs and one over the Timberwolves. Jordan Ott has seemed to change the culture of the Suns. When you watch them, it looks like a team that likes playing together, unlike last year’s team.
Philadelphia 76ers Injuries
The Philadelphia 76ers cannot escape the injury bug. It seems it carried over from last year. So far this year, Joel Embiid has missed 12 games, Kelly Oubre 6, VJ Edgecombe 3, Paul George 14, Trendon Watford 4, Dominick Barlow 9, Adem Bona 5, and Jared McCain 9. Andre Drummond was injured last night as well. These are all players that would get regular minutes when they are healthy.
LA Clippers and DeRozan Rumor
Rumor has it the LA Clippers are interested in acquiring DeMar DeRozan. This makes absolutely no sense. The Clippers are 5–14; their next first-round pick is in 2027, and DeRozan is 36 years old. The Clippers have James Harden at 36 and Kawhi Leonard at 34, two of their best players, and they are in their later years. It looks like the Clippers are destined to bottom out in the near future.