That is true. We easily could have beaten Houston and Toronto. We seem to be undefeated or close to that against the solid tier just below them. If we had lost twice to Memphis and then to Utah, and say we lost the recent Atlanta game, then we might have pause for concern, as in, are we any better than the 45-ish win team developed since Isaiah's arrival?
We seem to be a 55 win type team implying the need for just one more player.
The recent wins against Memphis, Utah and Atlanta imply that we are in the tier above their 45-50 win type ceilings.
A lot is boiling down to continued internal growth, health and whether or not Danny makes a move. Once the deadline passes, this season's situation should become more clear. It's possible there is a further deadline in which you could add a free agent like Sanders. I assume no one has his NBA rights. Zizic could be added, although that seems unlikely. The word out there seems to be Yabs isn't joining us this year no matter what and it's the same for Zizic.
The trade deadline or the last date Danny can add playoff eligible free agents is where there is still some roster suspense.
We should be able to expect nothing less than a hard fought 2nd round loss to Toronto or Cleveland. That seems to be our floor. That is a minimal goal. We are a proven top three EC team, so health has to be the number one priority.
I will start to worry only if we are playing this inconsistently at the same time next year.
Internal growth is where it's at, from Smart to Olynyk to Brown. We have a strong veteran core of Thomas, Bradley, Crowder, Amir and Al. If our bench can catch up and compete with the starters, then Brad will be able to overwhelm opponents with various combinations learned through experimentation.