NBA Preseason 2011: 5 Reasons It's Good to Have NBA Back

Thank God the players and owners worked out their differences during the NBA lockout, even if it deprived us of a few games in the process.

We now are guaranteed at least six years of stability in the league, and I could not be more elated.

The preseason kicks off this Friday, Dec. 16, and we’ll get to see our first glimpse of the highest level of professional basketball in more than six months.

It’s been a long wait, but it’s all going to be worth it once the season starts for real on Christmas Day.

Here are some reasons (as if you need any more) to love this league and to be grateful it’s back in our lives.  

Rookies

Watching new players in the league is always exciting, and it gives young teams hope for the future when they hit on a draft pick and have a superstar in the making.

We now get to see if Kyrie Irving can turn around the Cleveland Cavaliers, if Kemba Walker and perhaps Bismack “B-Smack” Biyombo will help the Charlotte Bobcats get into the playoffs and so much more.

It would have been a shame for these new guys to have to sit out a year and not get a chance to prove themselves while they were locked out.

Trade Rumors

The NBA has better trade rumors and more potential player movement scenarios than any other league.

It’s awesome to follow NBA insiders on Twitter and read daily rumor blogs to hear about potential deals that are constantly being leaked out into the media.

While most of these never come to fruition, it’s great when someone like Deron Williams all of a sudden gets jettisoned from his current team and thrown onto a new one midway through the season.

These crazy transactions also help put together some really interesting teams.

Stacked Superstar Squads

Think about any great basketball roster in the league’s history.

The ’64-’65 Celtics had Bill Russell, John Havlicek and Sam Jones, the ’82-’83 Sixers started Moses Malone, Julius Erving and Maurice Cheeks, the ’86-’87 Lakers rolled with Magic Johnson, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and James Worthy—and the list goes on and on and on.

These teams all had multiple superstars and were the best of their era.

Nowadays, GMs are going retro and trying to put together rosters full of All-Stars.

Boston started it by getting together Kevin Garnett, Ray Allen and Paul Pierce, while Los Angeles followed suit by pairing Kobe Bryant and Andrew Bynum with Pau Gasol.

Now the Knicks, Heat, Bulls and more teams hoping to compete have added a number of stars to their lineup, and it has become an arms race to acquire the most talented players possible on one roster under the salary cap.

You have to love it. 

Hating the Miami Heat

As much as people love superstar teams, they hate the Miami Heat.

Miami pulled off some blockbuster signings last summer and added LeBron James and Chris Bosh to their lineup to join Dwyane Wade.

They came into that season as favorites to win the title and came within two games of actually making it happen.

They’ll be favorites again this year and will once again be wearing a bull's-eye all year long.

Many fans hate them for trying to buy a title and stacking three of the game's greatest players on one team. But can you blame them?

It’s also great because LeBron has become the definition of an NBA villain for stabbing Cleveland in the back and going to South Beach.

He was once considered a hometown hero but completely changed his public perception after “The Decision.”

It’s honestly fun to have a team to hate and constantly root against because they are so talented. 

Professional Basketball

With the lockout over and the NBA about to tip off for the first time since June, we’ll finally see professional, organized basketball in all of its glory again.

It’s the most exciting sport in the world, and all of the action that happens on and off the court makes for compelling storylines that give fans months of entertainment.

It was very troubling that greedy owners almost deprived of us this joy for a few extra dollars, so I for one am glad everything is settled and could not be more pumped for this season to start.