five questions for the new NBA season

The NBA season is a couple days old and since the World Series quickly got out of the way, there is a lot of excitement about basketball. Here are 5 things to watch for this year.

1. Can anyone compete with the Heat in the East?

The Heat’s Big 3 have gone to the Finals in back-to-back years and look pretty unstoppable again this year. Injuries are certainly hampering everyone else. Derrick Rose’s entire season is in doubt, crippling the Bulls’ chances. The Pacers are starting the season shorthanded as their #1 guy Danny Grainger is dealing with a sore knee. The Knicks are down two starters as Amar’e Stoudemire is having surgery on his knee and will miss a couple months, and great lockdown defender Iman Shumpert could be out the whole year with a serious knee problem. Even the 76ers are dealing with a bad knee in their star Andrew Bynum. Playoff teams Orlando and Atlanta each traded away their best player. The Celtics are at full strength, but that looks significantly less than what the Heat have, as evident in the Opening Tipoff double-digit loss. Perhaps the new-look Nets can contend? Perhaps. Dewayne Wade looked great following his health issues from the summer, Ray Allen is a great addition to the bench and LeBron is as good as anyone ever. The Heat are a dead lock to run represent the conference in the Finals.

2. Who’s the king of New York?

Unfortunately, Hurricane Sandy may be queen and forced a postponement of the Opener, but there is a lot of excitement with a new rivalry between the Knicks and Nets in the Big Apple. The Knicks really had a dreadful season last year and this season starts with some missing pieces (see above) but they also have lots of new playmakers, as old as they may be. In video games this is the most fun team to be. Jason Kidd and Raymond Felton replace Jeremy Lin. Ronny Brewer fills in for Shumpert. Dinosaurs Rasheed Wallace and Marcus Camby provide some depth while Amar’e is out, as does potential ‘diamond-in-the-rough’ Chris Copeland. Carmelo is still here and one of the best best scorers in the game.

The Nets have made a lot of news with their moves to Brooklyn and in their roster. It was shocking that they were able to retain D-Will, Wallace, Lopez and Humphries and also add Joe Johnson and Andray Blatche. People will say that it will take time for the roster to get used to each other, but the Heat and Celtics both made the Finals the first year of their new looks, and as noted, the Nets are returning four starters from last season so the transition should not be too bumpy. They are also surprisingly healthy.

The Nets and Knicks may not have any recent history but especially in a weak conference, both the teams form an instant rivalry and should both rise to near the top. The Nets are my team and I’m sticking my flag with them.

3. Are the Lakers the Best of the West?

On paper, but the games are played on the court where L.A. is already 0-2. This is a Hall of Fame roster but it will take time to get all the pieces on the same page. Each superstar comes with his own system and Mike Brown’s job is to make those compatible and it isn’t easy. Fortunately, this is an 82-game schedule. Dwight Howard in gold will get old quick if he has too many of those 3-14 free throw games where he also fouls out. (He did play much better in the second game). Nash, Kobe, and Gasol are all great but old. The Lakers’ road was helped as their top competition Thunder surprisingly traded their Olympian James Harden, who looked like a superstar in his Rocket debut. Thunder will still be strong, and the Spurs and Clippers will continue to push the standings.

4. Who will step up around all the injuries?

Seems like a lockout-delayed beginning to the season would have been welcome news this year with all the injuries already plaguing teams. Aside from the people already mentioned (Rose, Amar’e, Grainger, and Bynum) there are plenty more stars and important players that are starting the season in street clothes. In fact, the Knicks are one of four teams with playoff aspirations that have multiple starters out. The Timberwolves will be without Kevin Love and Ricky Rubio for a while. The Mavs are missing their two big men Dirk Nowitzki and Chris Kaman. The Wizards are dealing with injuries to John Wall and Nene. A year ago Jeremy Lin took advantage of an opportunity created by several teammates getting injured to come from an unknown to banking on a new $25 million contract. Who will be this year’s Jeremy Lin?

5. Which team off the radar could surprise?

More than any other sport, the NBA has fewer surprises of teams busting out. The Pacers and Spurs did that last season, although who is surprised by anything involving Tim Duncan and Greg Popavich? The Knicks and Nets certainly haven’t been hiding this offseason and in a weaker Eastern Conference they should contend. But who are we not thinking of?

The recent trade of James Harden make the Rockets a candidate, especially if Jeremy Lin can continue what he began. This is a superstars league, and Harden has been hiding behind two of them in OKC. Perhaps he was a third, and this is his opportunity to prove it since there is no one to steal the attention. Harden and Lin should be great at first but on a team without much depth or experience, teams will game plan to take them out and Houston will have to find another playmaker. Who that is I’m not sure, as the Rockets are going with a completely revamped lineup missing their six highest scorers from 2011-12. But that void provides plenty of opportunity for the likes of Chandler Parsons, Patrick Patterson, Royce White and Carlos Delfino to step up and make a name for themselves.