NBA Tip-Off Part 2

Los Angeles Lakers:

They kept Nash and Pau, lost Dwight, and can only wait for Kobe. But, they added some young legs with the energetic, sharp-shooter Nick Young. They also added the veteran Chris Kaman. With Dwight gone, the Lakers might be better, Beacuse now Pau will get a chance to really shine, and Robert Sacre will get minutes, as last year he only played “trash minutes” when the game was practically over. They got back Jordan Farmar, he was on the ’10 championship team,  who is still pretty young and is an excellent shooter. Jordan Hill and Steve Blake must be stellar on the bench though, to take this team to the top, as last year theri bench was the worst in the NBA. Jodie Meeks and Wesley Johnson need to shoot consistently.  There is a lot of uncertainty, and all the players need to rise to the occasion to excel without the Black Mamba.  This team can either fail miserably if the no one rises and if chemistry fails, or rise and become a close-knit team.

Los Angeles Clippers:

They got Doc Rivers!! They got one of the best coaches…that itself puts them ahead. They also got sharp shooter J.J. Reddick and Jared Dudley. With Chris Paul, Blake Griffin, and DeAndre Jordan this deep team is one fun team to watch and scary for competitors. They have learned a lot from the last two years and now know exactly how to prepare for the playoffs. Just watch, maybe the Lakers will be dethroned as the best team in L.A.

Brooklyn Nets:

Now, THIS is going to be interesting.  They have Paul Pierce AND Kevin Garnett who are two huge payers in the NBA.  Then you have Derron Williams, Joe Johnson, Brook Lopez, Jason Terry, AND Reggie Evans. On paper, one wold say, : “WOW! You should already give the trophy to the Nets. Ladies and gentlemen, it’s over.” but, you can’t. Why? Because all these players are used to having the ball, the chemistry might not be there immediately.

Golden State Warriors:

This is the perfect example of the under dog rising. Finally, it’s their turn. They kept all the key players from last year, Curry, Barnes, Thompson, and Lee. AND FINALLY Andrew Bogut is healthy. He will be useful and be that important inside presence they were missing. But, unfortunately, the Warriors lost Jarret Jack. It really is a shame since he was such a good shooter and made key plays in the 4th quarter. They brought in Andre Iguodala to fill in his absence. So, the Warriors have 4 GUARDS. How are they going to balance the shooting and how will each player be happy since they will have to share the ball more. When the pace slows down in the playoffs, how will they adapt will all their guards? It would help to have bigs, but hey, you gotta work with what you have. Mark Jackson will for sure figure something out. The Warriors will be a team to watch. All eyes will be on them, and they have great expectations this year after a phenomenal season last year.

Houston Rockets:

Dwight Howard and James Harden. Hmmm..sound like a dynamic duo…maybe modern day Shaq and Kobe? But remember what happened with Shaq and Kobe, they fought. Both Howard and Harden prefer having the ball. And last year, Howard CLEARLY struggled with sharing the ball. So, will he learn? You see with this team, when you think about it sounds perfect. Dwight will grow with McHale as his coach, one of the greatest big men, and he can have a good, young teammate with him in James Harden. Vice a versa, Harden has a nice go-to guy in the paint. Dwight will be the anchor defensively But, put this into action. What if Harden shoots too much?  What of Dwight takes the ball in too often and not strategically. All this can harm chemistry. And what about the other guys…they need a chance too! Only time can tell us the fate of this team

The Nuggets and Grizzlies might not be as strong. Grizzlies lost Holloins as coach and Nuggets lost Iguodala.

That concludes your preason overview! Thank You for reading!

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