EJECTED.

'8 New And Exciting Things To Watch For In The 2012-13 NBA Season'

-LeBron James as a defending champ.
Is it finally no discussion of calling James 'King' anymore? Critics will say that one ring doesn't a king make, and probably not two either, but this will be the first season where 'Bron can call himself the reigning NBA Finals MVP and world champion. As if he didn't already have a target on his back. If LeBron leads the Miami Heat through the gauntlet similar to what he did last year, it will certainly solidify his standing among NBA royalty.

How many more jewels will the King add to his collection?

-Lakers form latest 'Big 3'.
Ask the Boston Celtics and Miami Heat if adding two big name players in an off season doesn't add up to big time results. Dwight Howard and Steve Nash joining Kobe Bryant is the latest trio and may be the most devastating ever formed when you combine career accomplishments. It's not like they'll be trying for 5,6,7 chips as the Heat prophesied, as Nash and Bryant are in the twilight of their careers. One championship would mean a lot for all three players, with Nash and Howard earning their first in their careers, and Bryant donning his sixth, tying him all-time in rings with one Michael Jeffrey Jordan.

This group, when playing as a unit, will be the toughest out in 2013.

-Revamped Celtics squad.
The Boston Celtics threesome of Paul Pierce, Kevin Garnett, and Ray Allen produced two NBA finals appearances, one championship, and two notorious up 3-2 games series collapses. As a Celtics fan, it's hard not to feel cheated that this group didn't win multiple titles together, and the eldest of the three -- 37-year old Allen -- would leave the Northeast for the arch rival in South Beach. Despite that, there's still a quiet buzz of anticipation going on in Boston right now. On paper, this year's Celtics squad looks younger, deeper, taller, and more athletic than last year's team. The core of the team -- Pierce, Garnett, and Rajon Rondo -- already has championship pedigree, and a bitter taste in their mouths from allowing Pierce's Game 5 Conference Finals heroics to be inducted into the forgotten-clutch-playoff-game-winner-hall-of-fame. The return of guard Avery Bradley and forward Jeff Green, combined with the signings of guards Courtney Lee and Jason Terry, will help pull weight for whatever drop off you might have lost with Allen's departure.  Rookies Fab Melo and Jared Sullinger add depth to a small frontcourt.

Rondo will need this many rocks to dish to all the talent on the C's roster this year.

-OKC Young Gunners minus Harden.
It almost feels like the Thunder gave up on this year when it was announced that badman-beard James Harden was on his way to the Houston Rockets via trade. OKC was in the Finals last year, and yeah they got dominated by the Heat, but it was alot of James Harden's heroics against the San Antonio Spurs in the Western Conference Finals that got them there.  The daggers, energy and excitement that Harden provided, can that be replaced by adding Kevin Martin (who in his defense has been a consistent offensive threat since the 2006-07 season, averaging right around 20 ppg) and UConn rookie guard/forward Jeremy Lamb?

The OKC gang will be firing with an extra chip on their shoulders.

-Flopping Rule.
In soccer, you get yellow carded for 'taking a dive' and certain accumulation of yellow cards leads to disqualification. The NBA will be similar to this format starting this year. The point being, just as we see in soccer, being penalized for 'flopping' won't actually stop players from doing it completely (see Chris Paul and Manu Ginobili) but at least now the consequences are more severe.

Really, Chris Paul?...really?

-Take a Brow.
The boy Anthony Davis has in the past year won a Gold medal in the Olympics, won a National Championship at Kentucky, won the Naismith and Wooden POTY awards, and was the No. 1 overall pick in the 2012 NBA Draft. You gotta give this long, lanky, athletic freak from Chicago his props as no stage seems to big for him. A 6-9 former point guard that can block shots, grab boards, start fast breaks, and has a decent jumpshot? It's only a matter of time until Davis connects that success he's been having into NBA stardom.



Davis' unique skill set will catapult him to NBA stardom in due time.

-Where Brooklyn at?
Deron Williams knows that when it comes to a franchise that is building up high expectations, in the midst of one of the biggest media markets in the world, Brooklyn is on top, and there is no competition. The Nets didn't land Dwight Howard this off season, but BK will be the new perennial hot bed location for off season free-agent player interest. They put up big money to grab scoring guard Joe Johnson from Atlanta, and re-up'd on budding big man Brook Lopez's rookie contract. Add in the Williams extension and swingman Gerald Wallace, and you can clearly see that sky's the limit for Brooklyn in the Eastern Conference.

New look Nets are coming of age in Brooklyn.

-Do it again.
Show and prove time for Jeremy Lin.  Everyone wants to know if it was just a fluke you had, or are you really an elite point guard in this league?



The make or break time for Lin is now.

'Countdown To No More Mike Brown?'

Dwight Howard.  Steve Nash.  Metta World Peace.  And Kobe Bryant.

Coach Mike is either the next Coach Spo or the next Del Harris.

Those are some pretty big egos right there.  Not so much Nash, as he pretty much keeps the same demeanor at all times but those other three guys . . . wow, talk about psycho-emotional roller coasters.  That being said, is current Los Angeles Lakers head coach Mike Brown really fit to coach this team?  I must admit that the most recent NBA Championship winning coach, Erik Spoelstra, did prove me wrong as I predicted that he wouldn't last as head coach dealing with the superstars that are the Miami Heat Big Three.  But by comparison, this Lakers collection of headcases seems like a group that not even an acclaimed psychiatrist could fully breakdown.  Unless, of course, he was a master. . . Zen Master possibly?  Let the speculation of Phil Jackson's imminent return to professional basketball begin.  First off, no one really knows if Phil wants to come back to basketball since he really doesn't have anything left to prove in his career.  Furthermore, he's already done the Lakers thing twice.  I would've suspected that if he were up to a new challenge that the recent New York Knicks opening would intrigue him since Jackson spent most of his NBA playing career as Knickerbocker and was part of the 1973 team, which was the last time a Finals championship banner was raised in the Mecca of basketball.  But Jackson turned down the position and remained retired.  But come to think of it, Phil's thing hasn't really been about accepting a 'challenge', it's really more about taking the best collection of talent on the planet and putting them over the top.  When you look at it that way, then a third stint in L.A. for Jackson seems exactly what the universe would prescribe . . . dharma if you will.  But as it stands, Brown is the coach of this team.  The only things stopping Mike Brown from earning (coasting to) his first ring is possibly being out dueled again by Scott Brooks and the OKC Thunder gang, and his good ole pal LeBron James, who helped another low-profile, defensive-minded coach earn (coast to) a ring last year.  And, the order of the universe of course.

ORLANDO.

8 Things To Watch For Now That The NBA Lockout Is Over

1 - Will LeBron, Wade, Bosh, make the Finals again?

The Heatles have one year under their belt together and should put together a sound round through the Eastern conference on the way to the Finals.  Atleast that is what the talent of the roster indicates.  Pressure is on LeBron James again to see what he can do down the stretch.  I'm not sure his career/legacy can take another 4th quarter late playoff meltdown/disappearance.

2 - Chris Paul, Dwight Howard on the move?

King James can't afford another 4th quarter playoff letdown.

This was originally fifth on my list of things to watch for before the events of this past week transpired, with Paul almost becoming a Los Angeles Laker and Howard seemingly on the cusp of becoming a New Jersey Net.  It's going to be interesting to see now how the league handles CP3 and the league-run New Orleans Hornets.  Paul may have to just become a free-agent as it will be difficult for teams to propose a trade for him without other league owners having a problem with it and urging commissioner David Stern to step in once again.

3 - Can Kobe be a good teammate without Phil Jackson as coach?

Mike Brown is the old coach of the Cleveland Cavaliers and the new coach of the L.A. Lakers.  So this means he is going from coaching LeBron to coaching Kobe Bryant.  If Brown couldn't really check Bron's ego, what the hell is he gonna do when Kobe starts throwing up 30 shots a game?  It will be something to watch to see how coach Mike handles that yearly slide that the Lakers always go through, when they're losing to teams they shouldn't lose to and people act like the world is coming to an end.

4 - What rookie will take the NBA by storm?

It's happened for a good four straight years now where a rookie has hit the scene and looked like a future dominating presence in the NBA (see John Wall, Derrick Rose, Blake Griffin, and Kevin Durant).  It's been a while since we've seen these guys because of the lockout but write me down for Minnesota Timberwolves forward Derrick Williams and Sacramento Kings guard Jimmer Fredette as the top two rooks to have big impacts.

This might be the last chance for the 'Big 3' to get that second ring.

5 - Boston Celtics 'Big 3' final run?

When Boston Celtics general manager Danny Ainge put together the team that would eventually win the 2007-08 NBA Championship in its first year together, most basketball fans found it likely that this team probably could win a minimum of two rings barring any major injuries.  But of course, sports are sports and injuries do happen.  Kevin Garnett went down with a knee injury the following year and really gave the C's no chance of repeating.  The 2009-10 squad made it back to the Finals, only to squander a 3-2 series lead at the hand of the rival Lakers.  Last year, most Celtics fans would blame Ainge for the team not making the Finals, as long time center Kendrick Perkins was traded to the Oklahoma City Thunder late in the season, effectively destroying the team chemistry and morale.  But Boston still has K.G. (age 35) along with Paul Pierce (34) and Ray Allen (36), but the window of oppurtunity for that second 'chip keeps getting smaller.

Dirk is the reigning NBA 'baddest man in the clutch'.

6 - Can Dirk establish himself as one of the greatest players of all time?

Dirk Nowitzki led the Dallas Mavericks to the franchise's first championship ever last year while running through the Western Confrence and the likes of Kevin Durant and Kobe Bryant and stunning the star-studded Miami Heat in the Finals.  This was no doubt one of the best individual playoff runs in NBA history, as the Mavs were not anyone's favorite to win the title before Dirk began his unconscious tear.  Can Nowitzki repeat this type of playoff performance in 2012, with the target of 'baddest man in the clutch' squarely on his back?

7 - Short season to benefit veteran teams or young teams?

You would think that this short season would help the veteran teams because logically they already have chemistry playing together, but I'm not so sure.  Sometimes it takes the older guys some time to get things rolling, it's only 16 less games, yeah, but those games definitely could effect where teams are seeded when playoff time comes.

8 - Blake Griffin?

What do I really have to say here?  It's Blake Griffin folks!

Look out below!!!

'Who's Next?'

I don't think anyone outside of the state of Texas had the Dallas Mavericks winning it all this year and certainly no one could've predicted the absolute clinic Finals MVP Dirk Nowitzki put on along the way to said championship.  You probably won't get very accurate predictions (atleast I called that the Heat wouldn't win a championship though) out of me but nevertheless, my list of players who I think have what it takes to be the 2012 Dirk, but still need work on certain aspects of their games.

Rondo can drive and dish, but his J is AWOL.

Derrick Rose - Chicago Bulls

MVP or not, Rose still needs work on his perimeter jumper.  He shot 33-percent from 3-point during the 2010-11 season and a wretched 25-percent during the playoffs.  The guy is unstoppable off the drive already, imagine what will open up for himself and his teammates once a few more J's start falling.

 

Rajon Rondo - Boston Celtics
It's pretty clear that if Rondo could shoot the basketball worth a ball of yarn, we would all be looking at the second coming of Isiah Thomas.  Rondo has played four years in the NBA and is a two-time All-Star, the starting point guard on NBA Championship team, and boasts some historical individual playoff performances (29 points, 18 rebounds, 13 assists against Cleveland in the 2010 Eastern Conference semis), despite being a career 24-percent 3-point shooter and 62-percent from the free throw line.

Time for Melo to show he's more than just a scorer.

Carmelo Anthony - New York Knicks
We know he can score, but what can he do to make his teammates better?  Melo needs to take a cue from what Kobe Bryant went through in the post-Shaq L.A. years and save the offense for down the stretch.  Get the teammates involved and their confidence up because they are the ones you are going to have to rely on to make shots when the double and tripple teams come.  Also, Anthony is a physical guy on offense but doesn't really translate that mentality on the defensive end.  He needs to be more assertive on that end of the floor, it will go a long way in showing your teammates that you are sold out to doing anything it takes to win.

Russell Westbrook - Oklahoma City Thunder
Very talented and athletic point guard that needs to better understand his role as Kevin Durant's teammate in this current Thunder offensive system.  A first time NBA All-Star in 2011, Westbrook has elevated his offensive game to the point where he commands double teams now.  But what killed Westbrook and the Thunder in the playoffs against the Dallas Mavericks was poor shot selection down the stretch and lack of ball movement.  Westbrook was benched for the whole fourth quarter in Game 2 of the Western Conference Semis for being the main contributor to the two aformentioned maladies.  Westbrook's main job is to help get Durant going by creating space for him by penetrating and kicking out and continue to find K.D. when he's hot.  His offensive game is most effective when he is under control in the half court and when pushing the ball in transition.

Griffin is the second best player in L.A. already. 

Blake Griffin - Los Angeles Clippers
There is no way the Clippers find a way to screw this one up.  Griffin is two post-up moves and one face-up move away from being a player who is perennially in the conversation for league MVP.  All the hype is not an exaggeration either; not when you win Rookie of the Year honors by averaging 22.5 points per game and 12.1 rebounds per game in 82 games after missing the entire 2009-10 season from a knee injury that required surgery.  Who knows if Griffin will end  up staying in Los Angeles though as the Clippers are a franchise known for everything in the world that is the opposite of 'good'.  The Clip roster is pretty young and talented (see DeAndre Jordan, Eric Gordon and Al-Farouq Aminu) but who is to say that they can't make strides like the OKC Thunder have over the past few seasons?

Dwight Howard - Orlando Magic
In a league that is known historically for dominant big men equalling playoff success and championships, Howard has experienced very little of the former and none of the latter in his career which began in 2004.  Rumors are swirling that Orlando might not be the right fit for the three-time NBA Defensive Player of the Year and four-time All-NBA First Teamer.  No matter what team he plays for though, Howard needs to develop as a playmaker when he has the rock with his back to the basket, a-la Hakeem Olajuwon.  When the ball goes inside to him, defenses know that he is probably going to put up a shot since his post game is not smooth enough yet to find open teammates off the double team with any sort of consistency.