Aside from sidestepping the revelations attached to a rogue referee, the NBA has maintained an impressive level of predictability.

Through the first month of this season, for example, Rasheed Wallace is within striking distance of the lead in technical-foul acquisition. To the surprise of nobody, we haven’t seen or heard the Thunder roll in Oklahoma City, while Shaquille O’Neal continues to be the league’s foremost revisionist historian.

And consideration has been given to staging an All-Star Game on the moon.

NBA roundup

Tuesday’s action

• LeBron, Cavs rout revamped Knicks
• With new coach, Warriors win big
• Down 16, Suns rally past Thunder
• Mavs come back for fifth straight win
• Gasol, Lakers run away from Nets
  
  

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FOXSports.com analysis

• Rosen: Bad move by Wizards
• Galinsky: NBA power rankings
• Rosen: Heat have a big problem
• Hill: D’Antoni a difference maker



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Photos

• Celtics celebrate 17th title

But the 2008-2009 campaign hasn’t been without its share of surprises that go beyond creative interpretations of facial hair. Before attempting to decide which of these unexpected elements should be included in a list of five, we feel obliged to mention which players, teams and maneuvers deserve a nod for being disappointing thus far.

The biggest disappointments

New Orleans Hornets

Thanks to a recent, back-to-back picnic with the Thunder, last year’s NBA Western Conference finalists have reached a robust record of 8-5.

This relative mediocrity has happened despite the work of point guard Chris Paul, who leads all league employees in on-court efficiency. So, even with Paul playing at an elite level, the team seemingly prepared to challenge the Los Angeles Lakers for Western sway has managed to lose to the Charlotte Bobcats and Sacramento Kings.

The efforts of newcomer James Posey have been as swell as expected. As the Hornets’ top sub, the former Celtic is scoring a bit more and making shots at a higher clip than he did in Boston.

Unfortunately, a drop in performance level can be attached to center Tyson Chandler, who has rallied from an ankle sprain by averaging about three fewer rebounds per game than he snagged last season (8.2 compared to 11.7). A certain level of glass cleaning has become expected and required of Tyson, who averaged 12.4 boards the year before.

We expect Chandler and the Hornets to reach expected production; until then, they’ll earn a spot on this list.

Philadelphia 76ers

A big assist for this appearance goes to newcomer Elton Brand, whose arrival was supposed to elevate the young and bouncy Sixers into Eastern Conference contention. It still could, of course, but through 14 games, Philly has triumphed an unreasonable seven times, with a Monday loss to Charlotte now on file.

The leader in disappointing us has been Brand, who — by missing 57 percent of his field-goal attempts — checks in at 44th in player efficiency. Even with Andre Miller running the show, the Sixers are 21st in dimes.

Baron Davis, Los Angeles Clippers

Baron didn’t make this list just by arriving from Golden State and registering as 48th in the player-efficiency chart. Despite his considerable talent, it was difficult to generate high expectations for Baron and the Clippers, who are who we thought they might be.

What’s disappointing is Baron telling us he’s had difficulty dealing with coach/general manager Mike Dunleavy. Davis and Dunleavy have been working in the West for a while; Baron should have realized what he was getting into. He should have asked Brand.

Maybe the acquisition of Zach Randolph will produce that Clipper hayride we’ve all been hoping for.

Paul Pierce, Boston Celtics

His rebounding has improved and the scoring is about the same, so why has The Truth backed onto this list?

Well, the field-goal accuracy had dropped almost seven percent and is the main reason why the defending NBA Finals MVP is ranked just 33rd among his peers for on-court efficiency.

Sure, these numbers don’t really define how well a guy may be playing on the defensive end, but after Paul said he’s the planet’s greatest player, we expected much more.

Shaquille O’Neal, Phoenix Suns

Let’s see, that feud with Kobe Bryant really didn’t exist, but it was created by Phil Jackson and reporters. Oh, and he wouldn’t mind playing for the Lakers again after expiration of a contract currently being paid by a team that now requires its guards to throw him the ball.

That’s lovely.

The biggest surprises

Cleveland Cavaliers

It’s not shocking to find the Cavs just a notch below the Celtics in the Eastern Conference standings. But we are a bit stunned to note that Coach Mike Brown’s team leads the league in offensive efficiency, raising its field-goal marksmanship by almost five percent.

How does this happen with LeBron James slipping to a chilly 22 percent from three-point range? Well, it doesn’t hurt that LeBron is taking almost two fewer threes per game and spending more time working from the post.

And don’t discount Mo Williams, who came to Cleveland from Milwaukee with clutch shooting and the ability to break down defenders. Mo’s assist numbers are pedestrian, but getting into the lane often presents defenses with rotation issues and gives the Cavs a clean look after that second pass.

Anthony Morrow, Golden State Warriors

His recent numbers may not track with Jamal Crawford now in the fold, but the undrafted guard from Georgia Tech averaged 15.3 points through six games. He and Crawford both started in Tuesday’s loss to Washington, but Anthony was limited to 15 minutes and six points. Crawford, it should be noted, was the point guard … whew.

Anyway, Morrow, who scored 11.4 points per game in four seasons at Tech, made 57 percent of his shots in those first six games as a pro.

When asked how players like Morrow can escape the draft, one NBA scout explained that desperation to find good big men often leads to unreasonable selections.

Luc Richard Mbah a Moute, Milwaukee Bucks

OK, we know that the Bucks chose one 6-foot-8 forward in each of the draft’s two rounds, and that Luc was not the guy taken in the first round.

But it’s also interesting to note that the former UCLA Bruin is averaging more points and rebounds than former college teammate — and lottery pick — Kevin Love is giving the Minnesota Timberwolves (9.7 and 7.5 to 8.3 and 6.0).

Please note that inadequate sample size allows us to maintain hope for any struggling rook. However, Mbah a Moute qualifies as a revelation despite the season’s infancy.

Devin Harris, New Jersey Nets

We understood why the Dallas Mavericks took a big swing by sending this guy to the Nets for Jason Kidd last year. Didn’t exactly endorse it, but the window-closing desperation in Dallas was pretty acute.

Anyway, while Harris was expected to be a lively, young contributor in Jersey, he currently sits as the third-most efficient point guard in the NBA. And his 23-points-per-game scoring average is almost eight points above what he gave the Nets last season.

Joe Dumars, Detroit Pistons

Yeah, adding Allen Iverson could lead to cap-room paradise, and the team didn’t look capable of coming out of the Eastern Conference as constituted.

We know that a culture change can create nice yogurt.

And sometimes, all you’re left with is spoiled milk.

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