Early Thoughts on the NBA Season
I have to admit, I was extremely terrified of the Beno Udrih/Francisco Elson second line pick-and-roll. Not anymore. I have become a fan of Elson’s athletic ability. I thought he was a thug/stiff in Denver, but I was wrong. That was simply the role he played there for them. He’s stepped in for the Spurs and has been an exceptional contributor thus far. He’ll start stealing more minutes from Fabulous Fabricio (partly because Fab picks up too many fouls), and Elson will be in the running for Most Improved Player this season.
There are some exciting things that are going to occur in Portland this year. They’ve cleaned house, leaving Zach Randolph as the only remnants of their sordid “JailBlazers” past. They’ve also got a ton of exciting young talent. Brandon Roy should walk away with the Rookie of the Year Award. He’s been excellent so far, and several teams whiffed on him. Travis Outlaw has shown a ton of potential. Juan Dixon may have finally found a home, and should do well at shooting guard with the size of Jarret Jack and Brandon Roy at the point. The Magloire/Pryzbilla/Aldridge (once healthy) center trio will be better than most center tandems in the league. Jarret Jack’s consistency-without-flare will be an added bonus for the young team. They’ve got their fan hero in Ime Udokwu. They will probably move Darius Miles before the trade deadline. There is a lot of positive stuff occurring in Portland for the first time in a long time. They won’t sniff the postseason, but there is certainly cause for optimism in Portland.
Doc Rivers and Dwayne Casey won’t make it through the season. Once Minnesota fires Casey, and brings in a quality NBA coach (if any exist anymore) that team should do well. Also, there is no reason why Marko Jaric should ever play ahead of Randy Foye. Their rotation should include the center trio of Griffin (who should be moved)/Blount/Craig Smith, K.G., Mike James, Ricky Davis (before he flips out), Randy Foye, Troy Hudson (or the original Ricky Davis for this team), and Trenton Hassell. That team should win, especially if the rookies, Smith and Foye, start getting more minutes over Davis and Blount. Meanwhile, in Boston, Doc Rivers continues to do strange things. Boston needs a set rotation for its young, and loaded with talent, roster. They’ve got too much inconsistency all over the place, and its leading to sloppy play. They’re tough to watch, because you can’t figure out what they’re trying to do. Who’s running what positions? It’s a total mess.
I like the Raptors new uniforms. I’m glad they dumped the purple. The logo in mid court is pretty cool too.
Speaking of courts, I’m going to go into my rant for the week. Can we bring the cameras in close and fade the backlighs to focus on me, ala ‘Dennis Miller Live’? Okay, now that we’ve got the mood set, I’m not a fan of this new trend to go multicolor wood. If you haven’t noticed it yet, you will soon. Several teams have gone to the lighter wood in the paint or within the three-point arc than on the rest of the court. I can’t stand it. It looks too much like a college court, which, in turn, makes the courts look lame. If you need an example of a college basketball court that looks stupid, google an image of the University of Florida basketball court. The Cleveland Cavaliers were the first team I noticed do this. Then it appeared that Toronto joined suit. Seattle did not want to be outdone and joined in the fun. It’s eerily reminiscent of the early 90’s when teams went to cartoonish designs all over their court. Atlanta had a Hawk logo that covered 95% of their court (slight exaggeration), the Charlotte Hornets went to a bee-hive design in the paint, and the Rockets had a cheesy Rocket flying all over the court. By the way, I’m convinced that Rocket single-handedly destroyed the back of Hakeem Olajuwan. You’re not going to convince me otherwise. These tired gimmics didn’t work then, and they are not going to work now. Just stop it. I’m begging you.
Now that I’ve gotten that off of my chest, I’m ready to move forward with the season. I’ve got my predictions set. Unfortunately, they are on a .Word document at home, so they won’t go up until tonight.
