One of the cool things about my job is I am constantly surprised.

I go into each athletic season thinking I have a pretty good idea of what will transpire.

Sometimes I call it with the precognition of the Football Baby and Paul the Octopus.

Sometimes, though, I am way off, like a friend of mine (who shall remain nameless) who said Ryan Leaf would be better than Peyton Manning.

Here are some of the biggest surprises of this young hoop season:

Knoch girls basketball team.

The Knights won just two games last season and lost 20. They averaged a mere 28.6 points per game.

What a difference a year makes.

In 2014-15, Knoch has already doubled its win total and is averaging 45.3 points per game.

The Knights have also shown resiliency, overcame a 19-point deficit in the second half against Highlands for a win earlier this week.

Union girls basketball.

The Damsels had an unprecedented run of success for four decades. Only one season in 40 ended with more losses than wins.

Then the bottom fell out. Last year, the Damsels won just one game.

This year, they’ve already topped that behind exciting young player Lexey Shick.

Butler boys basketball undefeated.

Last year was a frustrating one for Matt Clement and the Golden Tornado.

A 7-15 overall record and a disappointing 3-11 section mark sent Butler into this season with huge question marks.

Consider those questions (mostly) answered.

Eye-opening was a 40-point win over Vincentian Academy early this season in which Butler scored 104 points.

The Tornado already have two section wins. There is a lot of basketball left to play, but Butler may be a team to watch.

Grove City girls basketball team.

It isn’t exactly a shock that the Eagles are off to a great start. They came into this season with high hopes after being bounced in the first round of the playoffs the last three seasons.

What is a bit surprising is how they are doing it.

Grove City is still playing well on defense, but the offense has been potent — senior forward Jordyn Wyllie in particular.

Wyllie averaged 6.6 points as a junior. This year, she is scoring at a 20 ppg clip in five games — all wins — for the suddenly dominant Eagles.

Freeport boys basketball team.

To say last year was a rough one for the Yellowjackets would be an understatement.

They are one of the smallest Class AAA teams in the state and they struggled to a 2-10 record in their first season in Section 1-AAA last year.

Freeport already has two section wins this season.

It’s certainly early, but these teams and players should be fun to watch this winter.

Mike Kilroy is a staff writer for the Butler Eagle.