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Certain NBA players and teams always fall short of expectations to start the regular season. But a few select cases are more dire than others.

Take the Cleveland Cavaliers. They’re sporting a bottom-five defense, lackluster offense, plenty of injuries and a protracted losing streak. Should we be concerned about their ability to dominate the Eastern Conference and reach a fourth straight NBA Finals, as expected?

How about the Golden State Warriors? Their typically stingy defense currently ranks inside the bottom 10 of points scored per 100 possessions. Is this something that could be an issue all season long?

Also, what about the Miami Heat? Are they ready to exit their two-way malaise now that Hassan Whiteside is back in the lineup? And then we have Harrison Barnes and John Wall, both of whom are shooting crummy percentages from the floor. Will they rebound in a big way from their current slump?

Ditto for Khris Middleton. He went off for 43 points and seven assists in the Milwaukee Bucks’ loss to the Charlotte Hornets, but he’s spent the rest of this year in an offensive fog. Has he played his way out of it?

Will Kyle Lowry ever turn a corner?

Can the Denver Nuggets ever find two-way balance with their current roster?

To gauge the authenticity of these cold starts, among many others, Hardwood Knocks enlists the help of NBA Math’s Founder and Editor in Chief, Adam Fromal (@fromal09), along with NBA Math’s Technical Director, Arjun Baradwaj (@arjunebug21).

Please check your small-sample biases at the door. Things are about to get real.