NBA Training Camp Primer: Buzz on Andrew Bynum's Knee, Kobe Bryant's Foot, More

With less than a week separating us from the regular season, it's time to start paying attention to the NBA again. Okay, okay—we've been paying attention for a while now. This league is one of those fashions that's never not in season.

All the same, we have precious few opportunities left to pass off anomalous performances on preseason irrelevance. Our patience with injuries is waning, our acceptance of turnovers and rusty shooting on thin ice.

Despite the increasing urgency, the Los Angeles Lakers and Philadelphia 76ers won't be rushing anything with former teammates Kobe Bryant and Andrew Bynum, both of whom are at risk of missing their season openers.

On the opposite end of the spectrum, James Harden's dreadful shooting and the Toronto Raptors' struggles won't enjoy quite as much understanding.

We've been bringing you all the latest updates from training camps around the league, and we aren't about to stop now. Here's what happening in with the games that count just around the corner.

Andrew Bynum Still Can't Catch a Break

So much for that Wednesday return to practice.

Andrew Bynum had hoped to participate in preparation for possibly returning in time for the season-opener, but he didn't quite get that far according to AP Sports Writer Dan Gelston:

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Bynum wanted so much more out of the day he expected to practice for the first time with his new team. Bynum remained sidelined with right knee pain and is a long shot to play in the Oct. 31 opener.

His debut is on hold and no one knows when Bynum will return. He will continue to be held out of all basketball activity until he is pain free from a bone bruise he suffered during an offseason workout.

"

The explanation for the organization's caution is simple enough, of course. As hopeful as it is about seeing Bynum in action in the short-term, it's even more hopeful about his ability to stay healthy for the duration of the season.

That longer-term perspective will take priority anytime you're talking about an All-Star seven-footer who could be a difference-maker in the postseason.

Gelston also notes that Bynum has had the opportunity to learn about coach Doug Collins' system while inactive, watching tape and studying playbooks. It may take him some time to rediscover his physical prowess, but his adjustment period with the Philadelphia 76ers should otherwise be pretty limited.

Kobe Bryant May Miss Season Opener

After a summer spent wondering when Dwight Howard would play, few imagined that in the week leading up to regular-season play we'd be worrying about Kobe Bryant instead.

Maybe "worrying" is too strong, but the Los Angeles Lakers can't be thrilled about the possibility of an incomplete debut. All the same, ESPN Los Angeles' Ramona Shelburne and Dave McMenamin report that they'll have to prepare for just that:

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"I don't know if he'll be ready," [coach Mike] Brown said after the Lakers 97-91 loss to the Los Angeles Clippers on Wednesday. "So yeah, I guess there is question. I'm just going to wait for [Lakers trainer] Gary Vitti to tell me he can play because there's nothing I can do about it until they release him anyway."

"

At the very least, Bryant's chances of playing in the team's first game (Tuesday, against the Dallas Mavericks) appear to be at stake on account of a sore foot that's been described as both "bruised" and "strained" in reports.

Proof of Kobe's mortality notwithstanding, there's no reason at the moment to believe this is anything more than a temporary inconvenience.

It goes without saying no one is feeling too sorry for the Lakers at the moment.

James Harden Has Summer-Long Slump

What happened to the reigning Sixth Man of the Year?

After shooting the ball for under 38 percent in the NBA Finals, James Harden did look slightly better in the Summer Olympics—for all of the 73 minutes in which he played anyway. But preseason life with the Oklahoma City Thunder has him struggling once again according to The Oklahoman's Darnell Mayberry:

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James Harden went 16 for 56 from the field this preseason & 5 for 20 from 3-point range. Could the contract be weighing on him?

— Darnell Mayberry (@DarnellMayberry) October 25, 2012"

In addition to that contract situation, an injured groin could certainly be another culprit.

Either way, the shooting guard hasn't looked like the same guy who helped put away the San Antonio Spurs in the 2012 conference finals since...well, since putting away the Spurs in the 2012 conference finals.

As good as Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook are, the Thunder's ability to keep pace with the Los Angeles Lakers will depend heavily on Harden rediscovering his form. Fortunately, he has plenty of time to do so.

Tyson Chandler on Crutches

The New York Knicks have been dropping like flies this preseason.

We knew Iman Shumpert would still be recovering from a torn ACL, but subsequent injuries to Ronnie Brewer, J.R. Smith and Amar'e Stoudemire give the impression some kind of plague is tearing through this club's locker room.

Count Tyson Chandler among the infected.

The New York Daily News' Frank Isola reports that it doesn't look good, either:

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Tyson leaves the locker room on crutches. He thinks it is a left knee sprain. MRI tomorrow

— Frank Isola (@FisolaNYDN) October 25, 2012"

Chandler had a run-in with the Brooklyn Nets' Gerald Wallace in NYC's final preseason game, initially leading the team to believe he was just dealing with some soreness after impact. It now sounds like there could be more to it than that.

Either way, it's looking less and less like the Knicks will start the season anywhere near full strength.

Lamar Odom in Bad Shape

For those ever-optimistic Los Angeles Clippers fans who believed a return to L.A. was all Lamar Odom needed to get back on track, the Los Angeles Times' Broderick Turner reports that his work isn't over yet:

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Del Negro said the hope is that Odom can play in the season opener.

"He was trying to battle through [the injury], but it got to the point where it was not making sense," Del Negro said. "So that was when he changed the process for him. He knows he needed to be in better shape coming in. They tried to tax his body a little bit and this is the result."

"

Officially, Odom's been sidelined with a bruised knee, but his conditioning issues haven't been any secret. The return home appears to have given rise to a diet of Umami burgers and cupcakes rather than any renewed career focus.

But, of course, it's still early. Only time will tell whether the versatile power forward is poised to rebound from a disappointing 2011-12 sideshow with the Dallas Mavericks.

Portland Trail Blazers Hoping for Big Things from Nic Batum and Wesley Matthews

The Portland Trail Blazers' most noticeable offseason improvement was the addition of rookies Damian Lillard and Meyers Leonard.

The most important improvements may come from within, however. 

CSNNW.com's Chris Haynes reports that GM Neil Olshey views the evolution of small forward Nic Batum and shooting guard Wesley Matthews as instrumental to the club taking that next step:

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Now, I'm not putting a number on Nic, but if Nic can make a jump, if Wes [Matthews] can make a jump, if L.A. [LaMarcus Aldridge] can just be L.A., and Damian [Lillard] can be who we think he has the ability to be, we're not that far away. And having a lottery pick potentially, and three second [round picks], and having $13 million in room potentially, is a pretty good position to be in eight months from now.

"

As an example, Olshey referenced the five-point scoring jump Eric Gordon made in his third season. Going into his fifth season now, a similar jump for Batum would put his scoring average at around 19 or 20 points, putting him in a league with wing scorers like Rudy Gay and Danny Granger.

That's not bad company, and that kind of progress would certainly make the club feel better about its massive offseason investment in the 23-year-old Frenchman.

Toronto Raptors Using John Hollinger as Motivation

Head coach Dwane Casey and his Toronto Raptors are using predictions by ESPN's John Hollinger as motivation going into what could be something of a turnaround season.

Given where this team's been since Chris Bosh's departure, it'll use whatever motivation it can get. Like many analysts, Hollinger didn't expect much out of the new-look Raptors (via the Toronto Sun's Ryan Wolstat):

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“I saw today someone predict we’re going to win 33 games, so, with that lack of respect, that should get us motivated to come in this gym each and every day to bust our tails,” Casey said.

“(The) Hollinger report or whatever it was. That right there tells us how much lack of respect the league has for us and how much we’ve got to continue to work each and every day we walk on the floor.”

"

Of course, Casey never said Hollinger was wrong. There is, after all, good reason to be skeptical about what this roster can do this season.

It has plenty of youth and upside, but it could still be another year or two away from really producing results—unless this collective challenge to the Raptors' egos works overnight anyway.

San Antonio Spurs Could Keep Josh Powell

After waiving Eddy Curry and Derrick Brown, the question for the San Antonio Spurs now is what becomes of power forward Josh Powell.

The six-year veteran has played for six different teams over the course of his career—the Spurs would be his seventh. In five preseason games, he's scored efficiently and showed the kind of hustle the club treasures.

If the Spurs opt to keep a 15th player on the roster, Powell thinks he has a pretty good chance of being that player (via the San Antonio Express-News' Jeff McDonald):

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“I think as long as I continue to play with energy, defend, rebound, communicate on defense and do those things, it’s giving me a good shot,” Powell said. “I just try to focus on that and do what the Spurs do traditionally.”

"

Given that the Spurs sometimes do most of their roster tweaking at midseason (as was the case in 2011-12), they could opt to leave that 15th spot open for now.

On the other hand, the club may be persuaded that locking up proven size is more important. Though minutes reason to be scarce with Boris Diaw, DeJuan Blair and Matt Bonner manning the 4-spot, things could change quickly in the event of a trade or injury.