John Berger
Reporter
The NBA players and owners seemed to pull a complete 180 and agree to a new collective bargaining agreement a few weeks ago. And now, the NBA will have a packed 66 game season that will begin on Christmas day and conclude in late June. With that said, here’s what I’m excited about this NBA season.
- The Big 3. Love them or hate them, and most people hate them, the Heat are entertaining and they are certainly interesting. I’ll be following them closely all season, passionately rooting against them, and hoping for failure.
- The Chris Paul drama. The star point guard was on his way to the Lakers, before commissioner David Stern decided to intervene and nix the trade. Now, it appears that Paul may be on his way to the Clippers. Stay tuned.
Chris Paul may be on the move soon. Photo from mediaoutrage.com
- The Western Conference race. The conference features a perennial contender (the Lakers), the defending NBA champions(the Mavericks), a team fading downhill (the Spurs), and a host of young, upstart teams (the Blazers, Grizzlies, Clippers and Thunder all fall under this category).
- The compact schedule. A 66 game regular season and full playoffs mean that we’re looking at many games in a short amount of time. Expect worn down players, many injuries, and resting veterans.
- The rookies. This rookie class is hardly composed of world beaters, but there are a number of storylines to follow. Remember all the European players picked in the draft? It’ll be interesting to see if they play at all this season, and how successful they are. Also, it’ll be fun to track the Jimmer in Sacramento, and see how Kemba fares in Charlotte. Kyrie Irving and Tristan Thompson should make an interesting combination in Cleveland.
- The Knicks. Their fans have come out of the woodwork after the Knickerbockers snapped a playoff drought last spring, and were promptly swept by the Celtics. A full (or shortened) season of Amare and Carmelo should be great theater though. The Knicks play a fun style of basketball, and they’re often worth the price of admission. Tyson Chandler is a recent addition to the team and he should upgrade the center spot immediately. The 7 footer is a tremendous rebounder and should complement Amare Stoudemire nicely.
