1 Reason We Should Be Pumped to Watch Every NBA Team in 2014-15
Hoops heads round the world, get pumped.
Real, live, meaningful regular-season NBA action is almost here. And it comes bearing happiness.
For everyone.
It doesn't matter if your favorite NBA team is contending for a championship, stuck in the throes of mediocrity or tanking itself into fiery ping-pong ball-bundled oblivion. Every fan has ample cause to be rationally and irrationally amped up for 2014-15. Even Philadelphia 76ers supporters.
There are many different reasons to watch each team this season, most of which must be checked at the doorway this introduction provides. We're not here to be imprecise. This is an exercise in specificity, during which yours truly will narrow down tune-in appeal to one unequivocal argument.
You're welcome for such enlightenment in advance.
This one reason could be anything. It could be a player or play style, a storyline or set of expectations, a nostalgic urge or imminent milestone. Anything. Whatever would compel you to watch any given team on any given night—even if a Gilmore Girls marathon is on—that's what it could be.
So strap yourselves in. The Charlotte Hornets are bringing Sour Patch Watermelon treats. Gregg Popovich is uncapping decades-old 96-proof super-premium bourbon. Enes Kanter is checking IDs (and for Lil B) at the door.
Get pumped.
Atlanta Hawks: On-Court Forecast Says Spurs
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Middling distinctions won't apply to the Atlanta Hawks much longer, so all of us would be wise to take notice now, before basking in their systematic glory becomes barefaced bandwagoning.
Mike Budenholzer's arrival has started a movement. As a Popovich disciple, he's bringing San Antonio flair to Atlanta, installing an on-court blueprint and culture that can only be described as Spurs-y.
For more on this transformation, we graciously turn to Bleacher Report's Adam Fromal:
"What makes these Hawks so exciting, and what allows them to shape themselves in San Antonio's image, is their willingness to take advantage of the new cutting-edge developments, like shooting a ridiculous number of threes and passing the ball more than anyone else.
"
Look not at the Hawks' 38-win, first-round-perishing conclusion to 2013-14 for thrilling inspiration. Instead, take in their ball movement—the selflessness that resulted in the league's best assist percentage. Engulf yourself in their volume three-point shooting. Lose yourself in Kyle Korver's off-ball motions, which can only be described as poetry personified. Embrace the zero-in, five-out lineups that still have Roy Hibbert scratching his head.
Things are heating up in Hotlanta. Much like a video of a baby bobbing to the beat of Beyonce's "Single Ladies," you shouldn't miss this.
Boston Celtics: Rajon Rondo's Ticking Clock
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This one's going to be worth the wait—so long as that wait culminates in the continuation of a Rajon Rondo-headlining soap opera that is approaching conclusion.
Countless layers of speculation becloud Rondo's future with the Boston Celtics. He expressed a desire to remain with the team long term at media day, per Baxter Holmes, then of The Boston Globe, but that's a battle between dollars and cents—and sense.
Asked if he fancied himself a max-contract star, Rondo responded in kind, answering with a definitive, "Yes, I do," according to Holmes. Though that notion isn't entirely "Hey! We paid Keith Bogans $5 million to do nothing last season" absurd, it offers absolutely no clarity.
Rondo has appeared in just 68 games over the last two years, and he's currently nursing a broken hand that could prevent him from playing on opening night. Then there's the matter of him manning a loaded point guard position and having to regain his superstar status while playing for a lottery-bound Celtics squad.
Will his notoriously capricious personality conflict with Boston's mission? Do the Celtics want to pay him big money? Are trade rumors bound to become fact?
Watching is the only way to find out.
Brooklyn Nets: Unpredictability in Volume
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What does $94-plus million in payroll and millions more in luxury taxes buy the Brooklyn Nets?
Uncertainty. Sweet, bitter, beautiful, ugly uncertainty.
Rare is the playoff hopeful that dabbles as an agent of tacit chaos. That's what makes the Nets so special. This is probably Kevin Garnett's last season, so there's no telling what he'll do or say. Lionel Hollins is trying to show Jason Kidd that real coaches write their own daily journals. Owner Mikhail Prokhorov could sell part of the team to Guggenheim Partners, per Nets Daily. Deron Williams is trying to stay healthy and productive for the first time in forever.
(Deep breath.)
Brook Lopez's lower limbs are still made of soggy tissues that will haunt the sidelines for at least 10 days, according to ESPN New York's Ohm Youngmisuk. Joe Johnson is chasing an eighth All-Star selection (seventh appearance) he would hopefully earn, not undeservedly inherit. To top it all off, the old-school Hollins will be forced to depend on young guns such as Mason Plumlee, Bojan Bogdanovic, Jorge Gutierrez and Cory Jefferson to get by.
Bearing witness to the Nets' season—which could track toward both playoff success and tabloid domination—is going to be fun. Squared.
Charlotte Hornets: Budding Backcourt Chemistry
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Consistent offense was hard to come by for the Charlotte Bobcats last season. Then they became the Charlotte Hornets. And then they added Lance Stephenson. And now a Kemba Walker-Stephenson backcourt dyad is an actual thing.
Yay us.
Recent injuries aren't enough to curb enthusiasm. Rick Bonnell of the Charlotte Observer says Walker (knee contusion) and Stephenson (groin strain) aren't exactly healthy, but not to worry. They're young; their bodies will heal.
When they do, it's going to be a boon for the Hornets offense. Point-totaling was the sledgehammer to their defensive jewel last season. They ranked 24th in offensive efficiency, handicapping what was a top-six defense. The two-man game between Walker and Stephenson should help balance out and strengthen an attack that also includes Al Jefferson and the Chris Bosh-ish Noah Vonleh (also injured).
Stephenson is a nightly triple-double threat. He led the league with five last season and could rack up even more on a Hornets team that shouldn't resemble his anemic Indiana Pacers from 2013-14. Walker, meanwhile, is a crafty—albeit erratic—point man who will test Stephenson's spot-up shooting chops.
If all goes according to plan, the Hornets are nearing offensive reformation replete with adrenaline rushes. So, like I said: Yay us.
Chicago Bulls: Whole Again...And Then Some
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Derrick Rose is back. This is not a drill or a cruel joke. He's actually back, working off rust, battling inefficiency, treating us to explosive acrobatics that some thought he left in 2011.
Life is good for the Chicago Bulls because of his return alone. But the intrigue surrounding this team doesn't stop there. It goes on for miles.
Pau Gasol is being plugged beside Joakim Noah, forging an interior playmaking duo unlike any other in the league. Then there are the shooters. Rookies Doug McDermott and Nikola Mirotic know how to bombs away, a long-lost element of the Bulls offense. Coach Tom Thibodeau now also has the option of limiting player minutes at different positions.
(Cuts to video of Thibodeau using seven-man rotation and Vines of Luol Deng, on a beach, rejoicing retroactively.)
Cross your fingers for across-the-board health. These Bulls have the requisite talent to dethrone the prematurely crowned Cleveland Cavaliers.
Cleveland Cavaliers: History in the Making
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LeBron James, Kyrie Irving and Kevin Love are all playing for the same team, under an innovative offensive mind in David Blatt, within a system that endorses ball movement and volume chucking but flagrantly rejects the timeworn concept of "positions." There is only one word for what comes next.
History.
Kevin Pelton of ESPN.com (subscription required) will now use more than one word to say the same thing:
"Zooming in, Cleveland could feature unprecedented offensive versatility. Since the ABA-NBA merger, no team has ranked in the top five in all four offensive factors (shooting, rebounding, free throws and turnover rate). In fact, only one team since 1996 (the 2005-06 Dallas Mavericks) has ranked in the top 10 in all four factors. SCHOENE projects the Cavaliers first in both eFG% on offense and offensive rebounding and fifth in the other two factors.
"
Outlet passes. Three-pointers. Slashes. Dunks. More outlet passes. More outlet passes still. No matter what happens to a defense light on rim protection and heavy on Dion Waiters, this offense will be the lovechild of limitless ability and insane dominance.
Follow the Cavaliers not for James' return, or Love's free agency, or Mike Miller's latest hairstyle (hybrid pompadour, by the way). Tune in because, if you don't, you'll miss out on what projects as one of the league's best offenses ever.
Dallas Mavericks: The Offense; Oh, the Offense
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Not one other team is capable of surpassing the Cavaliers' offensive potential, though the Dallas Mavericks should come pretty darn close as they flirt with the Western Conference's best bucket-blitzing attack.
Limits cannot be placed upon their potential. Immorally incredible is their ceiling, and Mavs Moneyball's Bailey Rodgers sees them hitting it:
"Offense and coaching. The Mavs were one of the best offenses in the NBA last season, and despite losing one of the key cogs to that offense (Jose Calderon), the Mavs have reloaded extremely well. This team has so many offensive weapons who can attack defenses in so many different ways. Dirk Nowitzki. Monta Ellis. Chandler Parsons. Devin Harris. Brandan Wright. Tyson Chandler. I could go on and on, but my point is that it's almost unfair how good this offense might be.
"
Losing Jose Calderon hurts in theory. But statistically speaking, NBA.com shows that the Mavericks offense was actually more potent per 100 possessions with him off the floor, though the team's shooting percentages did suffer.
Jameer Nelson, Devin Harris and Monta Ellis provide enough playmaking. Head coach Rick Carlisle is also one of the most underrated offensive geniuses in the league. He knows how to perfectly tailor systems to talent. Chandler Parsons might be a 20-point guy too. And if all else fails or borders on unimpressive, I hear that Dirk Nowitzki dude has Father Time bound and gagged in his basement.
Make way for explosive offensive displays in Dallas. They're coming.
Denver Nuggets: Speed
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Brian Shaw is cray-cray, and you should love that about him—provided you're a proponent of speeding bullets.
Talking shop at media day, the Denver Nuggets head coach revealed that his team will try to run circles (and squares and triangles and octagons) around its opponents.
"In terms of style of play, having gotten to know this team a lot better, we want to get out and run," he said, per Denver Stiffs' Nate Timmons. "We played at a fast pace last year, we want to play at an even faster pace this year."
Upping the pace factor means the Nuggets will try to play really, really, really (really) fast. They ranked third in possessions used per 48 minutes last year, behind only the Los Angeles Lakers and Sixers. Perhaps the company they kept—two teams that won no more than 27 games apiece—is a red flag. Both myself and colleague Grant Hughes have found elevated pace to be a defensive detriment.
Still, fast is fun. Six of the top-10 fastest teams also won at least 48 games last year, so it can be effective.
Here's to Ty Lawson, Nate Robinson and Kenneth Faried game-long footraces.
Detroit Pistons: Stan Van Gundy's Magic Touch
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Yep, this one's all about the coach.
Stan Van Gundy has inherited a flawed roster, specifically when it comes to spacing the floor. Attempts to remedy the Detroit Pistons' space-sapping dynamic have thus far been inconclusive. Caron Butler and Jodie Meeks were overpaid for their shooting, but the latter will be sidelined for up to eight weeks rehabbing a "stress reaction" in his lower back, per ESPN.com.
Meeks' injury puts even more pressure on Van Gundy, along with sophomore Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, who is battling a knee strain himself. The Pistons ranked 29th in three-point shooting last season and sorely need to improve if they're to make a play for an Eastern Conference postseason spot.
Their frontcourt issues also aren't going anywhere. Staggering the minutes of Greg Monroe, Josh Smith and Andre Drummond will help alleviate offensive congestion, but it's impossible to clear the traffic jam entirely.
Internal development is then of the utmost importance. Van Gundy needs guys like Smith, Monroe, Caldwell-Pope, Drummond and Brandon Jennings to adjust and adapt their games to one another. He's been lauded for his work with bigs (Dwight Howard) and shooters (Ryan Anderson) in the past, so if there's anyone who can cure Detroit of its on-court warts, it's him.
Hopefully.
Golden State Warriors: Stephen Curry Meets Ball Movement
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Mark Jackson and Stephen Curry may have been close, but it's the Golden State Warriors' new coach, Steve Kerr, who will help the baby-faced defense-killer achieve world domination.
Last year's Warriors team was disappointing offensively. It wasn't bad; it just wasn't great. And anything less than great for a team with so much firepower—Curry, Klay Thompson, David Lee, Harrison Barnes, Draymond Green, et al.—is simply unacceptable.
Collective stagnancy hurt the Warriors most. They ranked 12th in offensive efficiency and dead last in passes per game. Kerr is tasked with reversing course.
“I think we’re going to emphasize throwing the ball ahead to our wings and trying to attack from the wings and get some easy baskets in transition," he said, per the San Jose Mercury News' Tim Kawakami. "And when you do throw it ahead it puts a lot of pressure on the defense in transition and makes it easy to run some sort of secondary offense."
Imagine what Curry—who buried 48.9 percent of his spot-up opportunities last year, including 48.2 percent of his treys—could do within such a free-flowing model that promotes passing and catch-and-shoots. Put a shooter like him in a system like that, and crazy things happen.
Prepare yourself, then, for some year-long Curry-centric craziness.
Houston Rockets: All James Harden Everything
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Offseason mayhem has rendered James Harden even more important to the Houston Rockets' Western Conference livelihood. Dwight Howard's current knee ailment is not to be overlooked either.
Refusing to match Parsons' contract with the Mavericks and trading Jeremy Lin to the Los Angeles Lakers has left the Rockets without their No. 3 and 4 scorers. It's also left Harden as the only tried and true playmaker on the offensive end.
Trevor Ariza will replace some of the scoring that was lost to Houston's offseason ambitions run afoul, and Terrence Jones and Donatas Motiejunas should play bigger roles, but the rest of the burden—scoring and passing—will fall on Harden. And that's exciting.
Without Parsons and Lin, 20-plus field-goal attempts per game is not out of the question. As the best distributor in town who's been bilked of his backup (Lin), he's going to play point shooting guard. Think of it as the ultimate green light. Harden is Houston's offensive lifeline, free to do whatever he wants more so than ever.
Hear that? It's the sound of rims everywhere bending in fear of exertion.
Indiana Pacers: Chris Copeland Unchained
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Bright sides are found even in the darkest of times. The Pacers are almost an unfortunate exception, but not quite.
Chris Copeland's promotion will make watching Indiana worthwhile. In the wake of Paul George's injury and Lance Stephenson's departure, Copeland "has been moved to small forward full time," according to Pacers.com's Scott Agness. Although he's started just one of the Pacers' preseason games, his most recent performance off the bench—16 points, four rebounds and three assists in 24 minutes—boosts his pursuit of actual playing time.
Coach Frank Vogel had the luxury—or, depending how you look at it, misfortune—of using him sparingly last year. He has no such option this time around. Good thing, too, because the team needs him.
Instant offense isn't a weapon the Pacers can enjoy without Copeland. They ranked 22nd in offensive efficiency for 2013-14 and enter 2014-15 down two of their top three scorers. To remain afloat, they'll have to hope Hibbert undergoes an offensive metamorphosis, pray that David West doesn't age any further and, most awesomely, rely on the player who tallied the most points (153) of everyone who logged no more than 265 total minutes last year.
Just so we're clear, that's Copeland.
Los Angeles Clippers: Blake Griffin's Evolution
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Remember when Blake Griffin was overrated? Of course you don't. That was many moons, one exiled owner and an expertly executed parody of Nicholas Sparks book clubs ago.
Over the past couple of years—last season in particular—Griffin has established himself as a legitimate superstar, and he's not even done improving. At only 25, he's still adding different elements to his game, most notably a better-looking jump shot.
Bleacher Report's Fred Katz is going to grab the mic for a moment:
"I'm referring to the Clippers power forward who isn't hesitating to take jump shots anymore. The one who has radically changed his release point from where it was last season, bringing the ball way higher and farther in front of his forehead than before. The one who is actually releasing the rock at the peak of his jump as opposed to when he's coming back down.
Blake Griffin looks completely different.
"
Griffin averaged 24.1 points per game last year, despite shooting just 37.1 percent on mid-range jumpers, and 27.3 percent on three-pointers. That his form is not only better, but gradually yielding results—he banged in his first six jumpers during the Los Angeles' Clippers preseason opener—should terrify anyone who's forced to defend him.
Everyone else is free to fist-bump each other whilst doing his or her best "Blake face" impressions.
Los Angeles Lakers: Kobe Bryant Will Go HAM
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Optimistic takes on the Lakers' 2014-15 campaign are hard to find. Rightfully so too. Their roster isn't built to win now, and first-year head coach Byron Scott is only complicating matters with his vexing vendetta against three-pointers. Aside from acknowledging deft bargain-bin pickups like Carlos Boozer and Lin, there isn't much to like about this roster.
Except Kobe Bryant.
Health permitting, this season is going be Bryant's time machine. The Lakers don't have enough shooters or speed to run-and-gun, Steve Nash can't even go to the bathroom without putting his career in jeopardy and the team's supporting cast is only valuable because it came cheap. That leaves a 36-year-old reality-scorning Bryant to run rampant.
Any chance the Lakers have at respectability lives and dies with him. He knows it, and they know it. Per ESPN Los Angeles' Baxter Holmes, Scott is already planning to play him between 30 and 40 minutes a game—not because it's logical or even necessarily possible, but because he has no choice. Similarly, Bryant has no choice other than to never stop shooting.
Even if the Lakers go down in a haze of two-pointers and rim-clanging fadeaways, watching Bryant attempt to carry a team constructed out of convenience is enough to get the juices flowing.
Memphis Grizzlies: Marc Gasol Passes
15 of 30Part of the Memphis Grizzlies' charm is that, well, they're not charming. They didn't go out and spend a lot of money over the summer. They're consistent. Save for extending Zach Randolph and adding Vince Carter's grit to their grind, they didn't do much of note.
In lieu of significant change or anything out of the Grizzlies' ordinary, there's only one "wow" factor that stands above everything else: Marc Gasol's playmaking.
Touch passes, between-the-leg dimes, one-handed whatchamacallits—he does it all. He's basically an oversized point guard with better court vision.
Yes, the Grizzlies offense can be unbearably slow at times. But Gasol keeps things interesting. Accept the above YouTube tribute as a token of that interest. It's time well spent.
(Sorry, no refunds or exchanges.)
Miami Heat: Chris Bosh's Return to Superstardom
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Admit it: At some point over the last four years, you've wondered where Chris Bosh would stand in the NBA's superstar pecking order if it wasn't for the Miami Heat's Big Three dynamic. Well, now your wonder—however secret—is about to be placated.
No James means more Bosh. An injury-prone Dwyane Wade means even more Bosh. A dearth of distributors means more Bosh still. He's the guy in Miami, and not just because he's being paid enough to support legions of socialites.
"Last year was more of when I get it, shoot it every time," Bosh said, per the Sun Sentinel's Shandel Richardson. "It was more of a difficulty in figuring out when to shoot and when to move it. This year, I have to get guys involved. It's a bigger responsibility to look for my shot but put my team first."
Almost everything about the Heat offense falls on him. He's the Heat's best—and only—inside-out presence. Their offensive livelihood this side of James' second decision is his to squander or save. And while many doubt the 30-year-old's ability to reclaim superstar status, Bosh is only four years removed from his 20-point, 10-rebound days.
Miami's season may go up in flames, but Bosh is going to reacquaint himself with superstardom regardless. Not even the shadow of James' departure can take that away from him.
Milwaukee Bucks: Beauty in Nonconformity
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Say what you will about Jason Kidd, but the Milwaukee Bucks head coach knows conformity can be overrated.
During the Bucks' preseason loss to the Cavaliers, Kidd started Giannis Antetokounmpo at point guard. Yes, that Antetkounmpo. The one who stands nearly 7'0" tall. Kidd started him at point guard. It marked the continuation of an experiment he began over the summer—only this time it wasn't pretty.
Antetokounmpo struggled to dictate the ebb and flow of Milwaukee's offense for the possessions he spent piloting it. He looked confused, out of place and didn't score a single point or register a single assist.
All of which matters very little. Like NBC Sports' Kurt Helin explained in September, these are the kinds of quirky, against-the-grain moves Milwaukee must make:
"This is the kind of experiment the Bucks need to try — they cannot think inside the box. Simply put, Milwaukee is not the market elite free agents will flock to unless another star is there (and of course, plenty of money). Think Cleveland with and without LeBron and how Kevin Love viewed it. If the Bucks are going to build an elite team they need some big hits in the draft, which they hope Jabari Parker will be.
But Antetokounmpo can be special because of his talents and because he just does not fit the mold. If he is a 6’11” point guard (or even a two guard with the ball in his hands, a la James Harden) that could be a unique piece.
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Turning Antetokounmpo into a gangly, center-sized point guard is going to be a process, if it works at all. But it also opens up different options. There could come a time when Antetokounmpo is sharing the floor with Jabari Parker, John Henson and Larry Sanders. Tell me that, along with any other wonderfully wacky lineups, isn't reason to get frat-boy-at-dollar-beer-night pumped.
See? You can't.
Minnesota Timberwolves: Bounce Brothers
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Kevin Love who?
Exactly.
This season is all about ushering in a new era for the Minnesota Timberwolves, and they're off to a good start. The roster is packed with young, talented prospects, two of whom have taken it upon themselves to craft a collective moniker.
"They got the 'Splash Brothers' over in Golden State, so we going by the 'Bounce Brothers," Zach LaVine said of he and fellow rookie teammate Andrew Wiggins.
Corny? Yes. Endearing? Of course. Appropriate? You bet.
It's not just about the two self-proclaimed Bounce Brothers, either. The Timberwolves have so much athleticism, speed and explosion in Gorgui Dieng, Ricky Rubio and Thaddeus Young. Watching them run end to end is going to be high-octane awesomeness.
Put it this way: The Timberwolves ranked fourth in pace last season, and they're built to be even faster now. The speedy Nuggets might even wind up being jealous of their quick-fire offense.
That's not a surefire recipe to win games, but remember: Fast is fun.
New Orleans Pelicans: Brow Power
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Every so often, a budding NBA player comes along with the indomitable skill set necessary to reinvent an entire team while securing his place among the league's superstar hierarchy, shaking its established infrastructure to the very core.
Anthony Davis of the New Orleans Pelicans is not that player. That player is Davis' butler and resident eyebrow-tweezer. (Note: He's not very good.)
Nothing and no one like Davis has wandered into the NBA's gravitational pull before. There is no comparison for him; there is no ceiling for the first player under the age of 22 to average at least 20 points, 10 rebounds, one steal and 2.5 blocks per game.
What you're watching in New Orleans is unprecedented. The 34-win Pelicans from a year ago could be a surprise playoff participant upon season's end. That's the power of having a freakishly gifted athlete who can score from anywhere on the floor in every way imaginable and defend all five positions.
Forget 2014-15. Davis—assuming he doesn't get that LeBron James itch—has us pumped up for the next decade of Pelicans basketball.
New York Knicks: Zen Master(y)
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Successfully implementing a new system and culture isn't easy. The New York Knicks are going to experience growing pains as they try to grasp the complexities of Phil Jackson's famed triangle offense. They are, at times, going to struggle. It's not always going to be pretty, and the playoffs aren't a given.
But that's all part of the thrill.
Long the laughingstock standard for dysfunction, the Knicks are undergoing a cultural renaissance. From the personnel to the triangle to Jackson insisting the players go through "mindfulness training," per ESPN New York's Ian Begley, to owner James Dolan's noticeable—and merciful—shift in focus (kazoos!), everything looks and feels different.
Now imagine how entertaining it will be once meaningful games start.
This year's Knicks aren't the Knicks as we've known them. They're the Knicks reborn. You'll want to be there when the Power of Zen travels full triangle circle and everything comes together.
Oklahoma City Thunder: Westbrook Being Westbrook, but with More Westbrook
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Kevin Durant's Jones fracture is tragic. It's expected to sideline him for six to eight weeks—at least three of my fantasy teams are hoping for the under—maybe longer. Oklahoma City Thunder fans needn't fear his absence, though. They have Russell Westbrook.
Comfort isn't found in him running the show for some. To those people, Bethlehem Shoals, writing for GQ.com, has some words he turned into sentences that you most definitely should read:
"If I told you that a player was an explosive scorer, willing point guard, dynamic rebounder, and dangerous defender, you'd be fine with him taking the reins of a playoff team. If I told you this player was Russell Westbrook, your reaction would be some combination of breathless anticipation and sheer terror. Westbrook is as unpredictable as he is thrilling, as maddening as he is talented.
That's why, without Durant, the Thunder might be even more fascinating to watch on a night-by-night basis.
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Naming 10 players currently better than Westbrook would be an exercise in futility. He's averaged at least 20 points and five assists per game in each of the last four seasons. The only other player to do that is James. Carrying the Thunder isn't an impossible task for him because he's already a team-carting superstar.
"Everybody keeps asking what I'm going to do and how I'm going to change," Westbrook said, per ESPN.com's Royce Young. "I think it's more about our team and what we can do."
Indeed, the Thunder won't ask for Westbrook to be anything other than himself, only more so. Seeing how he responds to the call—and then seeing how perception of him changes as a result—is going to make for one helluva ride.
Orlando Magic: The Dipo-Payton Connection
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Victor Oladipo's knee needs to get healthy soon. It's hindering the Elfrid Payton-Oladipo connection that has the potential to take the NBA by storm.
Neither player has what you can call a reliable jumper, but other than that, they're both well-rounded athletes who can do damage on both ends—especially the defensive side.
"With Payton as a fascinating foundational prospect alongside Victor Oladipo, there's a different feeling inside the franchise: relief is coming to the rebuild," wrote the Orlando Sentinel's Brian Schmitz. "For defensive reasons alone, they should pair these piranhas together as if Oladipo and Payton will be their backcourt until 2025."
Pairing these two together isn't solely about their offensive and defensive potential; it's about what Payton and Oladipo represent: an end game. They are the Orlando Magic's starting backcourt, two players that the team can develop and build around.
Direction of this kind can be difficult to find. The Magic have found theirs, and the glimpses into the future that Oladipo and Payton can offer is reason enough to watch them closely and, more importantly, optimistically.
Philadelphia 76ers: [Insert Your Projected No. 1 Draft Pick Here]
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Embrace the tank.
Cheering for a bad team is difficult. Rooting for a deliberately atrocious team is even harder. At the same time, there's solace in knowing the Sixers aren't going to stink something awful on accident.
General manager Sam Hinkie is something of a cult hero because of how brazen—and therefore brave—his tanking intentions have become. The Sixers have direction. Rebuilding through the draft is their direction.
Michael Carter-Williams, Joel Embiid and Nerlens Noel have given the Sixers a core to build around, but they need more. Losing in excess gives them the best chance at winning next year's draft lottery and getting more.
There's no shame in being pumped up for this calculated downturn. It's actually preferred. The Sixers are not going to be good in 2014-15. Embrace it. Love it. Bathe in the inefficiently fast-paced offense they will run. Joyfully mock the defense everyone aside from Noel won't play.
Let yourself become enamored by the Sixers' tanking diligence and the unpredictable path it paves moving forward.
Phoenix Suns: Point Guards Galore
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Consider this your "The Phoenix Suns are going to play three-point guard lineups" alert.
Wait, what?
During the Suns' 121-90 preseason victory over the barely present Spurs, coach Jeff Hornacek threw positional wisdom out the window and played Goran Dragic, Eric Bledsoe and Isaiah Thomas at the same time. It was predictably glorious.
Phoenix's point guard corps sparked an 11-2 run in the final minutes of the first half. They were swift, decisive and impossible to defend. Fielding three point guards created matchup nightmares just about everywhere, and the Suns make no apologies.
"Paced picked up something crazy," Marcus Morris said afterward, via Arizona Sports' Craig Grialou. "I think that's going to be special for us. ... It was great to experience it and you just see how the game changed. That's going to be great for us, I think."
Sounds like this preseason experiment is fated to become a regular-season staple. Lucky us.
Portland Trail Blazers: Damian Lillard
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Why should we be chomping at the bit to watch the Portland Trail Blazers?
"They’ve got one of the fastest-rising stars in the game in (Damian) Lillard," Sean Highkin wrote for NBC Sports, "a cold-blooded shooter who thrives in big moments."
There ya go. It's that fantastically simple.
Damian Lillard is an offensive fiend. Last year, he became just the second sophomore in league history to average at least 20 points and five assists per game while drilling 39 percent of his treys. He's so calm and collected under pressure, you forget he didn't turn pro 10 years ago.
Piloting the Blazers offense given his inexperience isn't easy, remember. They play a brand of basketball that fluctuates in tempo—10th in pace last season—and use offense as their primary lifeline. If the Blazers are not a top five offensive team like they were last season, they don't win 54 games and earn postseason cred.
A 24-year-old Lillard is at the forefront of that attack, directing one of the league's best point-totaling machines, distinguishing himself from a plethora of talented floor generals. Watch him and the Blazers enough next season, and you'll see him climb even higher up the point guard totem pole.
Sacramento Kings: DeMarcus Cousins' Leap
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Like many of their lottery-lost brethren from 2013-14, the Sacramento Kings are not on the cusp of a complete turnaround. DeMarcus Cousins is, however, about to explode. That should count for something.
Cousins has always been one of the more polarizing athletes, but he's even more interesting now, weeks removed from his gold-medal run with Team USA at the 2014 FIBA World Cup.
Interesting, as in pleasantly different. Ailene Voisin explained just how different for Sactown Royalty:
"DeMarcus Cousins' performance is the major factor, of course. This is year five. If he pushes back early-season fatigue - which could affect both Cousins and Rudy Gay in the opening weeks because of their time with Team USA - this should be the first of his many All-Star seasons. He is a better passer than he showed the last two-three years, and says he surprised himself with his defensive maturity while with Team USA.
"
Statistics have never been the problem for Cousins. Last season, he was the only player to average at least 20 points, 11 rebounds, 2.5 assists and one block per game. The numbers have, for some time, suggested he's a star.
Failing to mature as a leader is really what's kept him in constant flux. If both time and his stint with Team USA have given him the means to handle his intangible responsibilities as Sacramento's franchise cornerstone, then things are looking up for Cousins and his team.
Oh, and for us. Our fascination with Cousins' on- and off-court progress will live to fight another year.
San Antonio Spurs: They're Still the Spurs
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Coming up with reasons to watch the Spurs is superfluous.
Not a single soul should need another reason to watch them. They're still the Spurs. Their longevity alone—17 seasons of winning at least 61 percent of their regular-season contests—should get your blood pumping.
If you need an additional reason at all to watch them, it's their fading shelf life. Tim Duncan and Manu Ginobili are in the last year of their contracts and aren't going to play forever. This could be the last opportunity we have to watch Tony Parker, Duncan, Ginobili and Popovich in action together.
It's fitting, then, that the Spurs are also chasing something they haven't accomplished before: a repeat. Last year saw them make back-to-back Finals appearances for the first time ever. The end to 2014-15 could hold similar promise and—if Duncan and Ginobili walk away—a storybook ending to years of dynastic dominance.
Those without racing hearts at this point might want to make sure theirs are still working.
Toronto Raptors: Stability
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Stability isn't a buzzword. It doesn't usually instill passion or portend adventure. For the Toronto Raptors, though, it's exciting.
Nearly 15 years have passed since the Raptors last had back-to-back winning seasons (2000-01 and 2001-02). This year's group has a great chance at ending that drought and putting sufficient distance between itself and the cyclic losing of the last decade.
"Great" might not even do these Raptors justice. You know what? It doesn't. They're absolutely going to finish above .500 and make the playoffs. No, that's not late-night vodka and Gatorade talking. This has to do with the Raptors' continuity and how rare a commodity similar stability is for their Eastern Conference foes.
Most teams are dealing with some type of turnover or strife. The Cavaliers have a new superteam to manage; the Bulls have new and old faces to integrate; the Washington Wizards must press on without Bradley Beal; the Heat lost an all-time great to Cleveland; the Knicks are learning a new system; the Nets are confusing; the Pacers are done; and the Hornets have a new backcourt that needs time to develop chemistry.
Toronto is coping with no such obstacles. Carving out a role for Lou Williams is the Raptors' biggest chore. Kyle Lowry, Greivis Vasquez, Jonas Valanciunas, DeMar DeRozan, Terrence Ross—they're all back.
And so the Raptors of last year are here to stay.
Utah Jazz: The Youth Movement of All Youth Movements
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Of every NBA team that isn't going to win 35 games in 2014-15, the Utah Jazz will be the most fun.
To answer your question, yes, rookie head coach Quin Snyder's angry face has something to do with it. Some of us (me) are shamelessly hoping Trey Burke's decision-making—which has been pretty good of late—brings out that terrifying scowl every so often, just to keep things interesting and the GIF industry in business.
But drumming up the Jazz begins and ends with their stable of youth. It's overwhelming how deep their talent pool stretches.
Dante Exum, Derrick Favors, Alec Burks, Rodney Hood, Gordon Hayward, Kanter, Burke and Rudy "Gobstepper" Gobert are all players with must-watch promise. So, you know, watch them.
They won't combine for 35-plus wins and Western Conference adequacy from the jump, but the lineups Snyder trots out as he looks to shore up a long-term core figure to be popcorn-worthy.
Washington Wizards: Southeast Division Crown Is Within Reach
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Here's something about the Wizards you may find surprising and/or painful: They haven't finished first in their respective division since 1978-79, when they were still the Washington Bullets. That's 35 years, which means their divisional drought is 14 years older than Bradley Beal.
This now concludes the torturous part of our segment. We will now move on to happier things.
Ahem: The Wizards have a chance to win their division this year. With the Heat falling back to Earth in the wake of James' departure, the Southeast sector is wide open. Any one of the Heat, Hawks, Hornets and Wizards can make a play for the crown.
Finishing in second place last year should give the Wizards an inside track, but they, like their division rivals, have new pieces (Paul Pierce) to incorporate. Beal's broken left wrist also puts them in a hole to start, though his temporary absence isn't insurmountable.
Once Beal comes back, it's all systems go. He showed flashes of stardom during the postseason, and together he and John Wall make up one of the NBA's five best backcourts.
Holding off the Heat, Hawks and Hornets—all of whom project as playoff contenders—won't be mindless work, but it's possible. And so, for the first time in a long (long) time, the Wizards can taste divisional supremacy.
*Stats courtesy of Basketball-Reference and NBA.com unless otherwise cited. Salary information via ShamSports.
