The NBA season that begins on December 22 is something worth writing, but here we are, on the eve of a season played in the United States despite a furious pandemic (sorry, Toronto).
After the massive success of the Orlando league bubble, 30 groups entered the normal season, a season inevitably different from all noted before.
To make sense of all this, we asked NBA experts to make ambitious reviews of Bleacher Report 14 before the season.
Rockets are rushing to end an industry with James Harden. The industry deadline is March 25, but this can be resolved by the end of January. The appointment between 76ers basketball operations president Daryl Morey and Rockets general manager Rafael Stone is a factor.
Joining Kevin Durant can make a lot of sense for Harden, but in the end, it will be the Pelicans with the offer of young players (Lonzo Ball, Jaxson Hayes, etc. ), veterans (one or any of JJ Redick and Eric). Bledsoe) and preliminary considerations.
Eric Pincus
The Lakers were incredibly smart last season, but they’re better this year. Their acquisitions cover what they have missed and also give this team tactics to handle their offense, whether LeBron James and Anthony Davis are on or off the field.
Dennis Schroder and Montrezl Harrell deserve to shape a fatal pick-and-roll combo. Marc Gasol is another type in which they can carry out movements with their best IQ and passing ability. The Lakers might have lost some defense, but they have. became much more powerful in attack.
Mo Dakhil
Last year, Kawhi Leonard played only 57 of the Clippers’ 72 regular-season games. From the beginning of the year, he was in the cargo control plan to remain new to the playoffs. Things didn’t happen as planned.
This season will be different. Leonard participated in all sessions and played all three preseason games, so I bet he plays 90% of the games scheduled for the Clippers.
Mo Dakhil
Each season, the rumor centers on a handful of players, humming until they are despite everything spread. However, it turns out that there is an industry that results from nowhere. This year’s surprise will be triggered by the terrible misfortune of falling on Klay Thompson, who tore his Achilles tendon before the start of the education camp.
The window for the Warriors closes quickly, while the Hawks are determined to reach the playoffs. Unable to succeed in a contract extension with John Collins, the Hawks sent him with shooter Kevin Huerter and veteran Tony Snell to the Warriors for Draymond Green. .
Eric Pincus
Thirty points, 8 rebounds and 8 assists consistent with the game while shooting 38% of three.
It’s hard to expect much more from Luka Doncic in terms of gross production. A few years ago, before Russell Westbrook broke expectations with his triple-double seasons, Luka’s 28. 8 points, 9. 4 rebounds and 8. 8 assists in 2019-20 would have been almost unstoppable. So in terms of numbers, the expectation is that it will be precisely where you were last season.
Where we will see some expansion is in its external effectiveness. Luka is already one of the most productive finalists in the game. If he becomes an above-average three-point shooter, he’s on his way to an all-time offensive season.
“Andy Bailey
Steph Curry will take the Warriors to the playoffs, assuming we now come with the play-in groups (the most sensible seed 7-10 at the conference) as a member of this group. Getting a position among the six most sensible in the West will be exceptionally difficult.
With Klay Thompson absent, it’s hard for Golden State to be more reliable than groups in Los Angeles, Denver, Dallas, or Utah. Even Portland and Phoenix look deeper. And Houston is a prankster, depending on what happens to James Harden, but Curry alone is enough to justify the Warriors’ inclusion in the next playoff contender point. If James Wiseman gets ahead of schedule, maybe they’re pushing for more.
“Andy Bailey
Ball’s rookie reel will be at the highest sensitivity of everyone in the class. He enters the league as one of his most talented and artistic smugglers. But will it shine with substance and efficiency?
Yes and no. Her death will be Charlotte’s attack and fluency. Teammates will have more chances to score in the transition and will open 3 or end up on the partial court. But Ball himself probably wouldn’t shoot a high percentage. It will be difficult for him to take snapshots, end up in traffic and create quality looks for himself.
But so soon, the positives outweigh the disadvantages. Ball’s game will make the game for several Hornets, especially Miles Bridges and P. J. Washington.
Jonathan Wasserman
Players don’t make tanks. But front offices can do this by prioritizing the progression of young clients rather than the accumulation of insignificant victories, and that deserves to take place next season given the enthusiasm generated through the 2021 draft class.
Scouts are already drooling with hope. Cade Cunningham of Oklahoma State, Jalen Suggs of Gonzaga and Evan Mobley of USC are expected to replace franchises. Then there are G League stars Ignite, Jalen Green and Jonathan Kuminga, whom headhunters didn’t get as many chances to see.
Unlike 2020, when there will be more interest in negotiating down than upwards, groups will be more motivated to get a first option.
Jonathan Wasserman
Coby White’s forged game just before last season’s closes gave hope to Bulls enthusiasts for the first time in a long time. He’s going to start with Zach LaVine in the back, and he’s going to shoot a lot.
But the Bulls are going to have difficulty betting from one aspect to another, and White’s emergence as a starter doesn’t replace the fact that they want a long-term solution as the main ball player. or move White to the bench, he’s much more likely to keep his promise as a sixth player than as a long-term starter.
“Sean Highkin
The feathers were fussed when Nikola Jokic finished ahead of Anthony Davis in the BLEACHer Report NBA 100. It wasn’t intentional, and I’m outraged. Davis emerges from a monstrous bubble performance, his defense remains underestimated and he has necessarily become Kevin Durant from the mid-range while hitting 3 to a top clip.
However, number one game creators inherently have more influence on the offense and, by extension, on their teams. Jokic is the player who sets the tenor and ceiling of the Nuggets. It’s not Davis’ duty to the Lakers, as LeBron James carries that burden. It’s very good. Davis shouldn’t be penalized for it, and he’s not. It’s more about giving Jokic the credits he deserves as a name contender’s heartbeat.
Dan Favale
Pre-season, like the summer league, is not the time to overreact to the youth game, situations are sculpted in particular to give them volume that they will not enjoy the games that matter, all this will have to be kept in the brain when evaluating Emmanuel Quickley’s future prospects.
And yet,. I’m going out with that anyway.
Quickley, like many other Kentucky alumums before him, shows that he has more to offer when allowed to put the ball on the ground. Nor does it seem like a Kevin Knox-style mirage, He scores to many degrees and in other ways, his remote shooting is incredibly functional and looks more comfortable to start the offense than any hopeful game creator New York has ever written.
Head coach Tom Thibodeau may be able to ride with more established features in the back, such as Elfrid Payton and Austin Rivers, but the bet here is that Quickley plays too well to be ignored and therefore collects counting statistics and attention. needed to form the first All-Rookie team.
Dan Favale
I’m not neglecting the possibility of undoing the Nets. All I’m saying is that if Brooklyn gets rid of him, it’s probably not because Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving don’t get along. These guys have been selected as career friends, and enjoy the game with other star scorers.
Will.
That leaves rookie head coach Steve Nash, Irving’s bumpy record in the locker room, injuries, bust name or tension, and a suspicious defense as contenders to take down the Nets.
“Grant Hughes
While the lack of intensity means there is a chance of a normal recoil of the season, the Bucks were 53-12 in the bubble, well ahead of the Raptors, second seed.
Think of it as a bet the Bucks have a mattress to get a little worse and still get to the playoffs, planted in the East.
All bucks reviews relate to their performance in the playoffs: stiffness, total minute bass for stars, the overall lack of a Plan B opposed to elite defenses, all of which are postseason stuff. Giannis is still Giannis, and he has, ruled the last two normal seasons.
That’ll change.
“Grant Hughes
The MVP box is wide open this year. Giannis Antetokounmpo will not be the first player since Larry Bird to win it 3 times in a row (1984-86) after two disappointing playoff outings. LeBron James would probably not play enough games and the jury is fit for a full season of Stephen Curry. or Kevin Durant.
Damian Lillard is well positioned to capitalize on his streak in the bubble and win the prize. If the Blazers end up with one of the 4 most sensible in the West and Lillard shows the kind of numbers he did last year, he has the means for the electorate to need it.
“Sean Highkin