Tag Archives: NBA

NBA Finals Preview

The NBA playoffs are in full swing right now, and they have been for a few weeks. The Cavs and the Warriors have earned the right to be called champions of their respective conference. The Cavaliers are a new team who was built around superstar Lebron James, arguably the best player in the world. The Warriors have been led to the Finals by 2015 MVP Stephen Curry who averages over 20 points per game. So far this matchup is starting to look like one of the best in NBA history, but there is more to each team than their stars.

Let’s take a look at both team’s starting five. The Cavaliers have a new starting five as of this year, with many new players being acquired in trades during the season. One such player acquired during the offseason is star forward Lebron James, who some consider to be the best player of all time. The other forward on the team, who has been a fill in for most of the playoffs, is Tristan Thompson. Tristan has taken the place of an injured Kevin Love who suffered A dislocated shoulder during the Cavaliers’ sweep of the Boston Celtics. The guards on the team include players Kyrie Irving, the team’s first pick of the 2011 NBA Draft, and also Iman Shumpert who was acquired from the Knicks during this season. Both are good defensive players  who have helped this team make it to the finals. Finally their center, Timofey Mozgov has provided the rebounds necessary for the team to get more shots, and deny the other team some.

The Golden State starting five is not so different from the Cavaliers team. First of all they have their undeniable two best shooters, Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson. These two players are so good at sinking threes and making shots that they have been affectionately nicknamed the splash brothers. The forward and guard both average over 20 points per game which is a big amount, so we know Golden State has big scorers and faces for their franchise, but there are other players who contribute a great amount to the team. Center Andrew Bogut will need to be a the bigger man against Timofey Mozgov, because the Cavs center has A one inch height advantage against Bogut. The team also has guard Harrison Barnes who is nothing special, just a player who averages about ten points per game and is lackluster in other fields. Lastly, is forward Draymond Green who is a considerable scorer for Golden State.

For the Warriors to win, it won’t take much. The Warriors have an explosive offense and an established coach who knows his way around the NBA in Steve Kerr. Rebounds may be a problem for the team, but if Klay Thompson and Harrison Barnes step it up it could be a good day for the Warriors. The Cavs need to do a few things to win. Number one, Give the ball to Lebron James as often as possible. Let him do as much is possible, he might even go for 35 points in one of these games. They also have to hope that they can somehow manage the damage that Curry can inflict. The key to beating the Warriors for any team is to shut down Steph Curry. Lebron James may not be the best defensive player in the league, but he is their best chance of shutting him down. The last thing they need to do to win is for Kyrie Irving to stay healthy. He suffered a knee injury during the blowout that was the Eastern Conference finals, and he just needs to make sure that he does not do anything to make this flare up again.Finally, is my prediction for the winner of the 2015 NBA Finals. I think that the Warriors will play great at home, and win A game seven at Oracle Arena.For Lebron it will be much like his first year in Miami, he will lose the finals his first year, then go on to win the rest of his career.

~Will

The NBA

The NBA which stands for National Basketball Association brings tons of excitement and joy to millions across the globe. Not only is the NBA a dream for kids all across the nation but a reality for tons of highly skilled athletes. For example, you may know the names Lebron James, Carmelo Anthony, or Kevin Durant. All these people are highly known and respected for their level of talent on the basketball court. The NBA not only brings you a fun thing to watch on TV but also gear that the best athletes wear. You can go out and buy the new Andrew Wiggins jersey or even a legend jersey’s like Michael Jordan’s jersey. Like I said before, the NBA also allows many young children to have a dream of being a professional basketball player. The NBA has been very successful ever since it started on June 6th, 1946. It seems like every year it  is getting a little bit more interesting and enjoyable. The NBA continues to grow over the years and more and more highly skilled players are joining the league each year, With the additions of Andrew Wiggins and Jabari Parker this year, the 2015 season is shaping up to be a very good one. The NBA brings so much excitement and enjoyable plays to keep us occupied while watching the games. The NBA is one of the best basketball association’s there is and will always be one.

I love the NBA. The high-actioned games and plays are one of the best things to watch on television. With the addition of new players every year, the league is growing and will continue to grow. I personally like a lot of NBA players such as Carmelo Anthony and Kevin Durant. I love getting the new gear each year and especially finding some of these all-stars rookie cards is also a great thing to do. The NBA has a very long season, 82 games to be exact, but each and every game is worth watching and they continue to get better as the season goes on. The NBA playoffs are one of the best playoffs in all of sports. Every playoff game is filled with tons of drama and disappointment. Of course seeing your favorite team lose is heart wrenching but it is worth it. The NBA certainly brings ton of excitement and drama to me and I personally love that. The NBA will always be a legendary league.

~Matt

Wade Plays it Smart; Sits Out For Game 1 of Preseason

 

After ending the 2012-13 season strong by winning the NBA Championship against the San Antonio Spurs, Miami Heat guard Dwyane Wade sits out for the first game of the preseason as the Heat cruise by the Atlanta Hawks, with a 92-87 win. Since Wade struggled with impactful knee aches in the 2013 playoffs, he hopes to keep his knee safe this upcoming season, for his own health. “I feel like I’ve worked very hard these last couple of days, so I’m just going to take it a little easier, a little slower,” Wade commented, recently after he practiced in the Heat’s scrimmage the previous night and battling his way through last week’s brutal training camp, located in the Bahamas (Winderman 1). With Wade’s absence, Heat center Chris Bosh stepped up his game with an impressive 21 points and five boards in only 20 minutes, and LeBron James starts off the preseason with a 4-for-11 shooting night which includes 9 points, along with five assists and matching Bosh’s five rebounds, in an amount of 21 minutes. Although James Jones substituted for Wade’s spot in the starting lineup in Monday’s preseason opener, Wade hopes to be practicing on the court today.

I think that Dwyane Wade should do what he plans to do, which is to take his game a little slower because he has had a few leg injuries and severe pains in his legs (hamstring, knee), in the past few years, so he should take his game down a notch. I think that Dwayne Wade should also play a few minutes shorter (two or three minutes) per game this season than last season, because he can let his legs rest more and he is not risking an injury as much as playing nearly 35 minutes per game. Dwyane Wade also might not have to play as much because they (arguably) have the best 3-point shooter in NBA history, Ray Allen, and the Heat also have James Jones as a backup shooting guard. Now that Dwyane Wade, 31, is starting to get a little older, he is at a higher risk of a severe injury that can end his entire season, and possibly his career. Dwyane Wade should also tell head coach Erik Spoelstra if his leg is bothering or giving him pain, so that he can rest his leg. Since the 2010-11 season, when the Big-3 of LeBron James, Dwyane Wade, and Chris Bosh began, Dwyane Wade has had a hamstring injury and a few knee injuries that impact his playing. I think that these injuries and severe pains should make Dwyane Wade take things slow this upcoming 2013-14 NBA season.

~Aaron

Jeff Green Feeling the Celtic Green

 

Not many people have heard of Jeff Green when he first entered the NBA as a member of the Oklahoma City Thunder.  However, he was soon traded to the Celtics in a multi-player trade for Kendrick Perkins.  Even after the trade he struggled.  The past few years were particularly difficult for him because of a heart condition that he developed in the early stages of his career.  Last year he had a heart surgery which kept him from playing for several months.  This year was his first debut back in the NBA since his surgery which left his a 8 inch scar.  The doctors told him that he wouldn’t be able to reach his full potential this year and he would have to wait about a couple years to be in full action.  However, Jeff Green did not let this put him down and refused to back down.

After all of his struggles, Jeff Green started to put on sensational performances and became a key figure in the C’s offense.  He really created a name for himself in the recent game against the Miami Heat dropping 43 points and becoming the highest scorer against the Heat’s tough and gritty defense.  His season averages have been steadily rising and he is working his way into the starting lineup in the power forward or small forward positions.  He doesn’t just have amazing performances, but he also has inspirational performances as well.  Not many people can have open heart surgery and score 43 points in a game against the Miami Heat the very next year.  As he is starting to feel the love of the fans, he is also gathering the attention of the NBA and the fans throughout the U.S.  Jeff Green is definitely one of the most inspirational players in the NBA.

~Sungum Saharan

NBA Trade Deadline

The NBA trade deadline occurred in 2013 at 3 PM on Thursday, February 21. Teams were looking to make a few trades half way through the season to give themselves a better chance to win the championship, and this was the last time they could until next season. Although there weren’t any big trades made, there were some pretty big rumors. One of the biggest was Paul Pierce going to the Brooklyn Nets. Paul Pierce is a future Hall of Famer so it would take a lot for the Nets to acquire him. Manager of the Celtics, Danny Ainge, proposed Paul Pierce for Marshon Brooks, Mirza Teletovic, Kris Humphries, and two future first round picks. The offer was declined by the Nets.
Another big trade that almost went through was the Clippers Caron Butler for the Wizard’s Trevor Ariza. The Clippers wanted a defensive oriented wing to stop some of the best three point shooters in the game such as the Oklahoma City Thunder’s Kevin Durant. Trevor Ariza, who was averaging 8.4 points a game and 1.5 steals, was perfect for the job. The Wizards wanted to bring in Caron butler, who was averaging 10.3 points a game to improve their offense. The Clippers declined this trade at the last minute. So compared to last year’s exciting deadline where big game changing trades were made, this years was boring and uneventful.

~Michael Quint

NBA Lockout to Blame for Late Season Injuries?

Torn ACLs and broken bones. Are these injuries occurring because of overworked bodies? Well, in case you didn’t know, this NBA season was cut to 66 games because of a lockout similar to the one the NFL had. Basically, it was an argument between the NBA Players and Owners over money. They finally agreed on a deal that would decrease the players’ salaries up to 300 million dollars. This decision also led to the teams playing 66 games in 4 months. Was this too many games in too few days?

Recently, there have been many injuries to key players. The worst one so far happened just a short time ago when Derrick Rose of the Chicago Bulls tore his left ACL in the final minutes of a playoff game on April 28th. Other notable injuries were Iman Shumpert of the New York Knicks also tearing his ACL on the same day as Rose, and the Orlando Magic’s Dwight Howard having season-ending back surgery in late April. All three of these players are crucial to the success of their teams. These injuries are not just happening to the older players either. Rose and Shumpert are both in their early twenties at ages 23 and 21. Howard is just a few years older at 26. So, are these injuries occurring because of the lockout? I guess we’ll never know, but it could very well be the reason.

~Tim Fiedler

Is Lin-sanity Lin-ished!!!!

From starting off as one of the NBA’s most elite point guards in February, Jeremy Lin’s magic is starting to take a toll….. a big toll. In the month of February Jeremy Lin averaged about 24.6 points per game and now those points have dropped immensely going to about 13.6, still not bad, but for Lin it’s not as magical as it used to be. Some critics believed and others knew that this would happen but not this fast! It hasn’t even been a month and his level of playing and quality has dropped. His jersey used to be #1 selling in the NBA but now has been taken off the shelves because it isn’t selling anymore as much as it used too. Others still think that their is still magic left in the air but to others that was just a fairytale story that only lasted for a short period of time. Personally I believe that this Lin-derella story is over and most likely will never come back again as big as it did last month and the month before that.

Some questions that I still have about this is that how did he come out of the shadows and just somehow become a star in the span of one game? Also, will this magic come back ever again? What do the critics and other fans think of this Lin-sanity and if it will come again? Some fun facts are that Lin’s jerseys are selling on ebay for about $2000 and his rookie cards are selling for about $30000 and it is becoming very expensive. Also, Jeremy Lin used to play for the Golden Sate Warriors in the 2010-2011 season and played for only about $500000 but now at the Knickerbockers his contract has went from lower then $100000 to about 2.5 million dollars for 2 years. So now that this Lin-sanity is going back into the shadows, some, like me, still wonder if this fairytale will ever rise again and have him come back and take the league by storm…….. again.

~Eric Dishnica

Amazing Underdog From Harvard

AAU, where all the best players played and still play. Bill Holden, the Harvard coach, noticed the great Jeremy Lin at an AAU game in Las Vegas. He didn’t play the best that game but the coach saw him play another game against a more competitive team and he wasn’t good…… he was great! He showed natural basketball instincts, played great defense, and showed skill that can’t be taught. After that he became the number one recruit for Harvard. It has been 57 years since the last Harvard graduate made it to the NBA.

Jeremy Lin inspires me because he was an underdog that sprouted to the top in just a couple of games. Jeremy Lin was on the New York Knicks and the Knicks were running short on guards; they looked on the bench and saw Lin. Lin was about to get fired a couple days after this game so they put him in and he scored over 24 points! Who knew? A grad from Harvard comes into the game and kills the other team. That’s not all , it gets better, Jeremy Lin goes in against the L.A. Lakers and outscores KOBE BRYANT! One of the best players in the NBA. It blows my mind that he can do that and this is what I love about Jeremy Lin.

~Nate Hillburn

How Big is “Linsanity” Going to Be?

If you follow basketball or watch the news at all, you have probably heard about Jeremy Lin, also nicknamed, “Linsanity.” He is nicknamed this because it is pure insanity when he plays basketball. This man came straight from Harvard, and no one knew he could play hard basketball. However, the Knicks needed a point guard for a game, and they discovered he’s amazing at basketball! He now plays a key role in the Knicks starting lineup. The question is, how big is “Linsanity” going to be in the future? Was this a streak of luck, or is he actually an all-star MVP type player?

I personally think Lin is not going to be as amazing as some people think he is going to be. Sure, he will be hot for a few years, but I believe he will be overrated and die out after a few years. He has proved he is excellent under pressure, however you can’t stay like that forever. For example, Kobe Bryant, my favorite player, isn’t nearly as good as he was at the peak of his career. However, I believe Lin will be a great edition to the starting role of the New York Knicks.

~Alex Pierce

A Lockout No More

As of Thursday, the 15th of December, the NBA lockout ended. This lockout lasted 149 days. They finally made a 10 year contract after a 15 hour negotiation in Manhattan, where they had a meeting with the players and head coaches and discussed the terms of the framework of a new collective bargaining agreement that will include a 49-51 percent “band” of basketball related revenue. This will allows the season to start on Christmas day.

So, now starting on December 25th, a 66-game season will start. But since there is only 66-games, the season is 16 games shorter that a regular 88-game season. This will be starting with a triple-header on Christmas day so you don’t want to miss the 2011 season which is finally beginning in time for the holidays. This agreement should mean that there won’t be many more lockouts for a long time.

~Colin Albrecht