Brook's-lyn

The Nets' transition to Brooklyn has been a successful one. Regardless of how their showing in the 2013 playoffs ends up (with emphasis on ends), a polarizing, win-at-all-costs owner (with emphasis on costs), who's one ushanka hat short of a Russian presidency, has joined forces with a media mogul who has made the most of his one-fifteenth of a percent ownership before moving "on to the next one" (with emphasis on giving these obnoxious parentheses a rest), and a fan base ripe with the passion and swagger found in all major sports towns from Philly, to L.A., to their neighbors across the bridge in Manhattan. A, well let's face it, pulse noticeably absent from East Rutherford, New Jersey, even when the Nets were perennial Eastern Conference Champs in the heydays of Jason Kidd, Vince Carter, Richard Jefferson etc.

With that said, it takes more than an understated makeover and an even more understated "Brooklyn" chant to revitalize a franchise. At the end of the day, it comes down to the product you put on the floor. With several  acquisitions over the past couple of seasons, highlighted by Deron Williams and Joe Johnson, Mikhail Prokhorov and GM Billy King have shown that the Nets' face lift is much more than aesthetic.

Joe Johnson's trade to Brooklyn for a band of misfits lost in basketball obscurity and Deron Williams' decision stick with the Nets long-term with a five year deal gave validity to a vision of Brooklyn being New York's new mecca for highly touted free agents. While things have not exactly gone to plan quite yet, as Brooklyn prepares for a more than probable first round exit, this postseason has gone a long way to show that the true future of this franchise is the man who's been in the middle during the lows of an embarrassing 12-70 2009-10 season and this recent rise to relevance, Brook Lopez.

The ever optimistic Prokhorov has recently gone on record as saying the Nets are one more acquisition away from contention. In reality, rather than search for a new piece, Nets management should probably get to work on a new puzzle.  Saturday's triple-overtime loss to the Bulls after leading by 14 with just under four minutes left reaffirms that sentiment and all but puts the nail in the coffin for interim coach PJ Carlesimo, who for a time, brought this team back from the brink of disaster after taking over for the deposed Avery Johnson.. The Nets are a gritty squad, for sure, but they've proven to be a group of mismatched skill sets that play entirely too slow to be effective in today's NBA.

Joe Johnson, after all, is nicknamed Iso-Joe for a reason. As he prefers the ball in his hands to create his own shot. Johnson has limited his game to almost exclusively jump shots, a lot of them contested, limiting his ability to get to the line. As brilliant as Johnson can look in spurts, his finesse based play has been an achillies heel in his playoff showings his entire career. If anything, Johnson's ability to get 15-22* (22 taking three overtimes) points per game given his shot selection is a testament to his skill level and few players have proven as clutch as Johnson this season, but, at least with this squad, he's playing nowhere near an all-star level and is, at best, the best of the NBA's B-list.

While the days of Deron Williams and Chris Paul being equated to each other equals at the top of the NBA's ever expanding mountain of elite point guards are long gone, Williams is still a more than formidable point guard in the league, and given the length of his deal and impressive ability, he should still be a part of this team's future going forward.

The remainder of Brooklyn's roster is a series of question marks. Reggie Evans does what he does and that's hustle and provide every intangible you could possibly imagine, Gerald Wallace, who's already not great shooting touch appears to have bounced like a bad check, has little more to do than rebound and play defense in a slower system that he still seems to be lost within. Wallace has become the recipient of a lot of drive and dishes and "Crash" just has nothing to crash into in Brooklyn; totally nuetralizing his otherwise unique ability to create contact and plays. Blatche has adapted to Brooklyn ball nicely and appears to have found a niche there, as has CJ Watson, but both are bench players. Even with both players flourishing they're not going to bring this team to the next level. Brooks appears to be the one person capable of jump starting this stagnant offense, but is such a liability on defense that he can't and won't get the run he needs to prove his worth. Once dominant rebounder, Kris Humphries game appears to have disappeared ever since his mercifully brief stint on reality television.

Amidst this cluster of unfulfilled potential is Nets center, Brook Lopez, emerging as the one constant this team has during the 2013 playoff run. While his Chicago counterpart, Joakim Noah, is at anything but 100 percent, Lopez's ability to put up about 22 points per game against a highly regarded Bulls defense is certainly praise worthy. Lopez's great touch around the rim and great range for his size is not news, necessarily, but his consistency and new found assertiveness is of note, especially as he steps up his defensive game as well with 3, 3, 7, and 4 blocks in each of the last four games respectively, it is Lopez, not Williams or Johnson ensuring that the Nets don't go quietly.

Lopez's game is not without fault. He's not nearly as skilled of a rebounder as a man of his size should be, but he's also never really had to be that presence on that team. With players like Evans and (in his time) Humphries on the team specifically to rebound, it's hard to critique Lopez too hard for something that's never been in his job description, though one would think by virtue of height alone he'd grab a couple more than six or seven a game.

The Nets' Brooklyn renovation has been successful, but clearly this is a team not content with just being relevant  Nets management faces tough choices going forward, but among a team of stars struggling to find their footing, Brook Lopez's emergence as the centerpiece and rock of this team that they envisioned him to be when he was drafted in 2008 is a promising sign for Brooklyn's future and is perhaps the true beacon for free agents considering settling down.in BK and restoring the franchise to prominence atop the East.

Rocky Mountains

In the George Karl era, the Denver Nuggets have seemingly always been an enigma. Led by a coach with the basketball philosophy of a team being greater than the sum of its parts, with emphasis on ball movement, shrewd defense, and not necessarily deep, but strict rotations. Contrary to the win-by-committee ideology of Karl, Nugget head coach since 2005, the most successful Nugget teams to date under his watch have been led by a phenomenal talent and, indeed, franchise player in his own right, Carmelo Anthony.It should be noted, however, that the Nugget squad never truly turned the corner that took them to a Game Six in the Western Conference Finals until the acquisition of floor general and all-around team leader, Chauncey Billups. Billups invaluably balanced 'Melo's unique and then (still) unrivaled offensive abilities with a commitment to defense and consistent effort to involve others offensively.  

Since Carmelo Anthony's rather controversy-riddled departure for Broadway, The Mile High City has been left with a collection of pseudo household names whom, when coupled with savvy drafting (Ty Lawson, Kenneth Faried) have developed a promising young nucleus in a high octane offense that wows NBA fans on a nightly basis. The Nuggets are riding a current home winning streak of 21 games and are fresh off a 15-game tear overshadowed only by the Heat's unprecedented power surge.

Despite their impressive, albeit unorthodox, play this season and their perch atop the Northwest Divsion (3rd in the conference), the Nuggets have been nagged by the lingering question posed by analysts at all levels of professionalism:

"To whom does this team go when the offense is otherwise stagnant and the game is on the line?"

Alas,  upon study of past champions (teams with superstars), history dictates that the house that Karl built is, in fact, made up of cards rather than bricks and will crumble when presented  with the stringent defense of the playoffs. Clearly, the style of play that favors the Nuggets is that of fluidity and finesse, contrary to the grind-it-out slug-fests that playoff games can become. This concern is legitimate and, frankly until they prove otherwise, hard to refute. With that said, bear in mind that this sixth place team of last year that pushed a then very relevant Laker squad to seven games has done nothing but matured over the past ten plus months and will now have at least one round's worth of homecourt advantage to help get them over the hump of first round loses.

As with any team, health plays an important role at this point in the waning regular season as experienced squads rest their players for the playoff run in lieu of jockeying for seeding position. The injury bug has bit the Nuggets hard late in the season and have even the small contingent of Nugget-supporters doubting their playoff expectations.

Many were quick to write off the Nuggets following Danilo Gallinari's season-ending ACL tear. Gallo has flourished in Denver after proving to be a pretty vexing player in New York' alternating between moments of brilliance and outright mediocrity. A Gallo at the top of his game was the popular pick for the one player on the Nugget "team" that could take the torch when times got tough. In a sense, the Nuggets lost their sleeper for the remainder of the year and that understandably dampened the spirits of Denver faithful.

Those who were eager to bury the Nuggets may not want to be too hasty in their assessment of the team heading into the playoffs. The team has continued its blistering play without their star point guard, Ty Lawson, struggling with a lingering heel injury, and have yet to lose without Gallo in the lineup, picking up impressive victories over Houston and San Antonio.

It is unwise to over-magnify essentially meaningless wins over a Spurs team without Tony and Manu and an intriguing Houston team. However, the emergence of the young rookie, Evan Fournier, averaging just under 13 points in his last five contests while contributing subtly, but invaluably, across the board, as well as the resurgence of the injury-plagued Wilson Chandler stepping up in Lawson and Gallo's stead respectively, speaks volumes about how committed to the philosophy of team the Denver Nuggets are. Andre Miller has discovered the fountain of youth of late, Corey Brewer's numbers are off the charts, and even the one-man-enigma, JaVale McGee, has seen more highlights than low-lights during Denver's recent push to be included amongst the league's elite. In addition, the Nuggets lead the league in offensive rebounding, a stat that doesn't appear to be in danger of falling off come late April.

Bottom line: There is no team in league where the phrase "next man up" is more apt and it's foolish and borderline hypocritical to criticize a team for not having a cornerstone and later in the same season, write them off for losing a single, though talented, player in Gallo. Players are rising to the challenge, and if the underwhelming Iggy can come to life late and Lawson can return healthy, this team is equipped to surprise many this May.

It is often said that the regular season is a time for players to play, while the playoffs are a time for coaches to coach. This late season has been anything but smooth for the Nuggets, but George Karl and the team have proven up to the task of navigating this rocky stretch. Heading into the post season, this is a Nugget team as locked in to Karl's ideals as any in recent memory. Even if faith outside of the Denver area has trailed off, the  confidence in the Nugget locker room is at a *sigh* Rocky Mountain High. With a team as invested in his big picture as ever, George Karl will have arguably his best chance yet to put his philosophy to the test and there's not a team in the West that wants to be the guinea pig.

Nota-bull Absence

With barely a whimper, the NBA's trade deadline has come and gone. With most all teams content to stand pat and wait and see what impact returning pieces (Danny Granger), late-blooming seasons (Los Angeles, Dallas, Brooklyn), and the financial constraints of the CBA's now imposing luxury tax will have, the biggest waves resulting from the trade deadline stem from what wasn't done in Chicago, and lingering questions concerning a return that may never come, at least not this season.

While it's ill-advised in most contexts to take the opinion of a professional athlete's family member too seriously, Derrick Rose's brother, Reggie's comments criticizing the Bulls' lack of action on deadline day were as puzzling as they were concerning. Reggie has since emphasized that he spoke on his own behalf and not his brother's and Derrick has, not surprisingly, distanced himself from the situation. As unfounded as Reggie's comments were it does provide an interesting backdrop for the state of the Bulls' franchise this season, and Derrick Rose's potential impact on the team going forward.

It nearly goes without saying, Rose's health must come first. The Bulls have a long term investment in Rose and vice versa, in a way. Rushing back is not an option and writing a paragraph about the long-term upside of sacrificing a season would waste your time. However, theoretically, if Rose were to come back healthy and work off the rust in time for a playoff run, could the Bulls contend?

Head coach Tom Thibodeau's hard-nosed, defensive minding outlook on the pro game, combined with All-Star caliber seasons from Rose's right and left hand men, Luol Deng and Joakim Noah, have kept the Chicago Bulls in the middle of the pack of an Eastern Conference not nearly as inferior as it was even a couple of years ago. The Bulls certainly lament letting big-man, Omer Asik, slip away who, with increased minutes with the running Rockets, has truly blossomed into an exceptional center. Other than that, the Bulls have more or less filled the voids left behind by Brewer, Watson, and even Lucas. Nate Robinson, while still guilty of poor shots and decisions, as well as being the king of garbage time, has proven his glass is half full in Chicago and been a nice spark for the squad overall. The time share at the two between Marco Belinelli and Rip Hamilton (a contract the Bulls would have liked to have unloaded, it seems), has done been nothing to write home about, but also nothing to complain about either. Bear in mind that should Rose return, Kirk Hinrich should/could conceivably move over to shooting guard and fill in whatever overblown voids Chicago's back court has.

There's no question that Carlos Boozer has not lived up to expectations in Chicago. To call him a bust is a bit hasty, though. It's not like he has a great point guard like Rose this season and Williams in Utah to get him the ball in his spots. Boozer spent last year's shortened season out of shape and basically clinging to straws. This season, without Rose on the floor his rebounds and points per game are up (albeit nearly negligibly, but up nonetheless) and he's strung together some consistent stretches. Rose's return would allow the team to take stock and see whether amnestying Boozer and running with their new investment, Taj Gibson, at the power forward would be best.  

All of this is well and good, but could they contend? LeBron James is playing at a vetigo inducing level right now and their lack of size and depth no longer seems that concerning. Indiana is playing well and with a chip on their shoulder. The Pacers arguably look like the hungriest team in the East. Brooklyn hitting their stride is dangerous, but a stretch, and the Knicks are straight up not as good as their record. As much of a cop out as this answer is, the playoffs will come down to matchups and momentum. After a deadline day where, with all due respect, JJ Redick was the premier player on the move, the Bulls, with a healthy Rose, seem as poised for a title run as last year, when they were the number one seed before that fateful drive in the waning moments of a first round win. This Bulls team has proven to be a scrappy bunch without Rose and previous side notes, Luol Deng and Joakim Noah, have truly come into their own. Whenever Rose does return, those players will be ready and the Bulls will likely be more intimidating than ever.

Five and Alive in the City of Roses

It wasn't very long ago that the Portland Trailblazers were labeled the sleeping giant of the Western Conference. One of the deepest and most dynamic teams in the league in spite of yet another draft bust in the  imposing, yet injury riddled form of Greg Oden, lead by the formidable duo of Brandon Roy and LaMarcus Aldridge with role players aplenty, including the up-and-coming Nicolas Batum, swingmen Gerald Wallace and Wes Matthews, the fiery yet vexed Rudy Fernandez, apt if underwhelming Steve Blake and the wise vet Andre Miller there to oversee the operation.

Oh, how the almost mighty have fallen. In a stroke of fate that could only happen to Portland, Brandon Roy's knees crumbled beneath him, causing him to hang up his high tops all too soon only to shine them up again to essentially be fitted for a new Wolves jersey and matching knee brace. A Felton/Miller trade flopped, Blake was traded to Los Angeles and technically hasn't left since, Rudy got his wish and is now out of not only Portland, but the NBA entirely, and Wallace now crashes in Brooklyn. A Rose Garden once in full bloom faced dark times. As expected, some weeding took place.

Once prominent head coach, Nate McMillan, was deposed midway through the 2011-12 season and for a while Blazers rode a General Manager carousel, having three in two seasons. At last that carousel appears to have come to a halt as the Blazers appear to be settling into a new era of basketball with a very unlikely, and very small, cast of characters.

The Blazers gambled on unproven (while successful as an assistant in Dallas) head coach Terry Stotts and an equally uncelebrated point guard out of the largely unknown by D-1 standards, Weber State. As of this writing, these gambles appear to be paying dividends. The Blazers have to be cautiously optimistic that they've finally gotten the draft monkey off their back (bear in mind they technically drafted not Aldridge, but Tyrus Thomas) with Lillard's production, and while this will likely do little to ease the pain of knowing both the names of Jordan and Durant will never loom in the rafters of the Rose Garden, the Blazers seem to have laid the groundwork for raising a banner of their own.

Logging career highs in minutes certainly helps, but the Blazer starting five are flourishing with Matthews and Batum reaching their potential and Hickson showing why, at one time, he was expected to be the eventual right-hand man to LeBron in Cleveland. This team of five has, in recent weeks, picked up nice wins against the Knicks, Grizz, and Heat, with narrow loses to the Spurs, Thunder, Warriors, and Nuggets in overtime. They've had a few bad loses thrown in there, too, but given that their roster 6-10 looks more like a D-league squad, I think it's safe to call those losses "encouraging". You know, what they used to call Laker games.


They don't give Coach of the Year honors to those at the helm of teams one game out of the playoffs. Nor should they, but the fact that Terry Stotts has what is, for all intents and purposes the thinnest team in the league competing on a nightly basis with some of the deepest and best teams in the league is, at the very least, respectable and arguably awe-inspiring. Now, in all likelihood, the wheels will indeed fall off this team and their lack of legs will outweigh their abundance of heart as Dallas and Houston continue to figure themselves out and Minnesota gets healthy, but as we approach the All-Star Break, we're past the point of attributing records to short-term chemistry issues and strength of schedule. The Portland Trailblazers are a team that appears to have put their demons behind them and our truly ready to build around Lillard, Hickson, Aldridge, Matthews, Batum... and  a future draft pick to be named later.

Lying in 'Wade'

At the risk of stating what you already know, LeBron James has won a championship. Seemingly overnight, he has wrapped his third MVP season up with a bow and exercised most all of his "clutch gene" demons and gone from sports culture pariah to grounded family man who still has enough of a hairline to make going to the barbershop more than a social formality, at least according to Samsung commercials. Unfortunately, the Heat's title run has done little to improve their public image as the most easily disliked team in the league and with the championship-sized monkey off of LeBron's back and jokes about Chris Bosh's appearance only stretching so for nowadays, popular opinion has set it's sights on 2006 Finals MVP, Dwayne Wade, implying that at last, "Flash" has lost a step. However, further investigation shows that maybe such claims are just kind of a low blow.

Shockingly, banging the drum at the head of this movement, is Wade's former T-Mobile spokespartner, the recently slimmed down mound of rebound, Charles Barkley, who insists that Wade must cultivate a post game a la Kobe Bryant in order age gracefully in the NBA. While it may be true that Wade no longer has the  raw athleticism and explosion to dominate games as he one did, it's hard to determine how much of that can be attributed to his still ailing left knee and the wear and tear of the NBA grind and how much is the result of his secession of the Miami to Heat to LeBron. Last season, Wade made it clear that he was officially the Robin to LeBron's Batman and as a result, the notion that the big three of South Beach were competing for control of the franchise disappeared and Wade, in his reduced role, raised the Larry O'Brien trophy for the second time in his storied career.

Alas, likely the only unselfish occurrence in Miami all of last season, (except the Marlins handing over their whole squad to Toronto, but that's neither here nor there) which earned Wade such laud and respect has been the very same mindset that has called his skills into question this season. The Heat look more mortal than they have since their initial fumbles when Wade, Bosh, and James first aligned, with an inexplicable loss to the lowly Wizards (then without Nene) and perhaps the more telling and recent loss to the Rose-less Bulls. With all of that said, by the numbers, Wade is shooting a career best 51 percent from the field in just over 33 minutes per game. In addition, Wade is shooting a career best 32 percent from three. The most telling number of all, however, is one. The Heat are first in the East as we near the halfway point of the season.

Despite their expected lofty position at the top of the Eastern Conference, the Miami Heat definitely have issues to address before repeating as champs, not the least of which being improved and hungry teams in New York, Atlanta, Memphis, LA (Clippers), and familiar foes in OKC. The league has appeared to again place value in bruising a versatile front lines, an area where the Heat are incredibly deficient. Their own versatility  of placing LeBron in the post in the half court and pushing the ball through teams otherwise seems more negated than ever as other, equally athletic teams threaten to get over the hump. Without production from the 4 and 5, or at the very least the ability to stop other teams' 4s and 5s. The Heat's chances to repeat are very much in doubt.

As for Wade, he'll likely ride his newly regimented minutes like the passenger seat of the Batmobile with LeBron at the wheel and assuming his health holds up, will have plenty of pop come April and, perhaps, June. If the Heat are ill fit to take on an NBA that's improved around them, odds are it won't be Wade's fault. Until that time, Dwayne Wade will be waiting in shadows waiting for his number to be called. I'm no Heat fan by any stretch, but I'd hate to be the guy to bet against him.

In L.A., They Don't Walk, They Drive

Five games into the 2012-13 season, the landscape of basketball in Los Angeles changed dramatically as Mike Brown was relieved of his coaching duties by the Laker organization. That appears to be a very polite way of saying Mike Brown got canned. The Laker PR department seems dead set on saying that this drastic, yet likely overdue, coaching change had more to do with scrapping the ill-fated Princeton Offense incarnation rather than a change in overall team philosophy. However, the move and Kobe's stares-of-death speak for themselves. Mike Brown had clearly lost the locker room and a team built to win immediately was floundering. Rather than wait out a losing hand, Jim Buss, Mitch Kupchak, and the rest of the Laker brass have decided to move onward and hopefully upward with one of the most polarizing figures in professional basketball today, offensive specialist and former Knicks and Suns coach, Mike D'Antoni.


The lack of Phil Jackson's all-too-familiar Zen on the sideline at Staples is certainly worth mentioning and questioning to an extent. Offering the keys to a classic car to an upstart valet known for driving fast and forgetting where and what the brakes are after passing up a game-tested chauffeur who has successfully navigated the road to victory eleven times is going to raise some eyebrows. The fact is, we'll never really know the semantics and vibe of the meeting with Phil Jackson; whether Jim Buss' ego got the better of him in wanting to prove the Lakers could win without Jackson, whether the Lakers assumed Jackson's eventual asking price and anticipated exceptions regarding his involvement in travel, practice time, and basketball operations would be too great of a price to pay for a championship still in doubt. Perhaps, the Lakers truly felt Jackson's Triangle really would mirror the failed Princeton method a bit too much and limit the production of the aged, but still kicking, Steve Nash. This last scenario is unlikely, but bear in mind, none of those Phil Jackson championship squads are known for their dynamic point guards. Regardless, Laker fans got the change they wanted so badly and writing about the coach that could have been seems as foolish writing about why the dish ran away with the spoon and left the fork behind with the salad bowl. With that said, very legitimate questions remain regarding D'Antoni's ability to lead the Lakers to more than flashy regular season wins.

Mike D'Antoni's success seems to go hand in hand with a high rate of play and a versetile point guard who can break down defenses early in the shot clock. Whether or not Steve Nash can sustain that kind of play for extended minutes over the course of the season is a major concern. However, let's not underestimate Mike D'Antoni's ability to adapt to his personnel. You don't get to be a part of the coaching staff of Olympic basketball teams by being a one-trick-pony. D'Antoni will likely do away with the seven second shot clock that made him infamous entirely and trust his nearly patented ball movement and spacing to do its work at its own pace. While Nash's age is a concern and Steve Blake isn't an ideal back-up for a point guard centric system, no longer will Steve Nash have to drag an otherwise mediocre team up the floor every possession and a freer offense should allow Kobe, Pau, and Dwight Howard to have their chance to shoulder the load respectively in spurts. Nash's minutes will likely decrease, but provided he can get and stay healthy, his contribution should be invaluable.

The lack of defense preached by Mike D'Antoni also brings skepticism in the L.A. coaching change. The Phoenix Suns and New York Knicks never had it in philosophy or personnel (not including the lockout season when the Knicks had Tyson Chandler). This severity of this flaw was made all the more apparent when the Boston Celtics blanked the Knicks in the playoffs of 2011. However, as much as Mike D'Antoni is responsible for sleeping in the bed he and James Dolan made, part of the reason for his semi-bitter exit from New York had to do with the players he was coaching not being motivated enough to commit to defense and do what it takes to win. Perhaps that is harsh criticism, but Melo and Amare's track records speak for themselves in that regard. This Laker squad recognizes that time is of the essence and has Kobe Bryant, a man who went to train with "The Dream" after winning a championship and whose motivation and effort speaks for itself. The Lakers have two-time defensive player of the year, Dwight Howard in the middle and, while not the player he used to be in both name and trade, World Peace's defensive talents should not be underestimated when he's focused. Quick shots and long shots can lead to run outs for Laker opponents, but  it also leaves room for offensive rebounding, which Howard and Gasol should do quite well to say the least. This team won't suddenly be tops in the league in defense (a stat ironically held by the Knicks), but D'Antoni arguably has at last found that happy medium between having a potent offensive team and sacrificing defense altogether.

Mike D'Antoni's New York stock was at it's lowest was when Anthony, a isolation and shoot first player was thrust into the point-forward position and basically put himself on an island on a nightly basis. The only glimmer of hope for D'Antoni and the Knicks was a month long fad when they placed their hopes and dreams in the hands of a dynamic, and indeed, average point guard, Jeremy Lin, who, to his credit, performed and got a heck of a pay day out of the deal.  D'Antoni needs distributors on the floor to be successful. Something the Knicks didn't have; something the Lakers do, at more positions than the point.

Questions seem to circle around whether or not Dwight Howard and Pau Gasol will have their numbers negatively impacted by not being able to post up in a lane that until proven otherwise, D'Antoni uses as a freeway for slashers and rollers. As refined as Pau's outside stroke is, you don't want to negate his size and turn him into a glorified jump shooter and Dwight Howard should never have the ball for any meaningful amount of time outside the paint. Bear in mind, though that these two will continue to do the dirty work down low, just on flashes and pick and rolls. We're not looking at a drive and kick offense a la Phoenix anymore, we're looking at a pick an roll based offense where two of the best bigs in the game will be heading to the rim. If teams overplay it, Pau hits the 15-footer all day. If not, I'd hate to see the guy get in the way of Howard after getting a pocket pass from Nash and a head of steam. If anything, this should finally give us a look at the Laker team the fans expected all along. Pau Gasol's ability as a passer should also add multiple new wrinkles to this offense's flexibility. By the way, Kobe Bryant will be on the court, too, and have the space to do what he still does so well after 17 seasons. The nature in which the Laker bigs get their touches will change, but not their numbers.  The lack of shooters and depth on this team is perhaps the only legitamate concern for this squad, but picking up a shooter is a trade deadline move away (unless Meeks wants the job) and depth was a concern with or without D'Antoni.

Mike D'Antoni faces an uphill battle in Los Angeles and will have to buck a lot of old habits in order to silence critics and lead this Laker team to a title. D'Antoni will have to prove there's a little more to his coaching method than shoot first look at film later, but he and the Laker organization certainly have the tools to prove both he and this team were not brought together in vain. One thing is for sure, Laker players and fans alike seem excited about what this season will hold which, coming off of the Mike Brown era, has to be considered half the battle.

Courts By Northwest

Denver Nuggets: There's no denying that the Nuggets will continue to have one of the most dynamic and entertaining offenses in the league and George Karl's teams have always been notorious for their depth and reliance, almost to a fault, on a 12 man rotation. The Nugget's ability to turn the corner will be determined by Ty Lawson and Kenneth Faried's continued growth and development, for which both appear to be poised. The heady vet, Andre Miller, and a vet with a rather swollen head, Andre Iguodala in the Rockies. Part of the Nuggets success last season, pushing the Lakers to the the limit in the playoffs, was Danilo Gallinari's ability to step up and make big shots. He was about as close to a superstar as Denver had. Iguodala's addition creates an interesting wrinkle in the Nuggets' potential. Iggy's rise to semi-stardom after years of only talking the talk and not walking the walk had everything to do with Doug Collins' coaching and his time on the national team. Iggy's true niche on the court is that of a playmaker, when he had a proverbial leash on him and was not so dead set on being a shotmaker, both Iggy and the Sixers never looked better. If Iggy can maintain that playmaking mindset, the sky is the limit for both he and the Nuggets, but if he reverts back to old habits in this freer offense, the Nuggets organization my live to regret his acquisition. It should be noted that no matter what, Iggy has the potential to flourish in that fast-paced offense, and with Gallo and Iggy locking down the perimeter, if Javale McGee can play with his head on his shoulders consistently, as he did last post season, the Nuggets may fulfill Mile High expectations.

Minnesota Timberwolves: The Wolves finally appeared to have a team tailored for Rick Adleman's system and interest in Wolves basketball was at its highest since Kevin Garnett and, dare I reference him, Spree, suited up in the Twin Cities, then the injury bug bit and bit hard. Rubio's recovery will be something to monitor going forward, but there's no question that the real blow here concerns the implications Kevin Love's broken hand  The team will once again face an uphill battle until those two are on the court again, but there's a chance that some saving grace can be found in the rest of the roster. Obvious questions linger about how one-time superstar Brandon Roy's knees will hold up to the grind of the NBA season. The Wolves, likely didn't expect to have to lean on him as much as they might have to at the season's begining, but that surgery worked wonders for Kobe, and it should put some tread back on Roy's tires. If he can stay healthy, Kirilenko could flourish outside of Utah coming off a season overseas. Rick Adleman's offense isn't exactly free, but the change of scenery and a lack of other options could revitalize AK 47's once promising career. Love's absence will create ample opportunity for Derrick Williams to prove his mettle, and a banged up Luke Ridnour may well be a blessing in disguise for the the Wolves, as minutes will open up for the dynamic JJ Barea. As encouraging as all of this sounds, there's no replacing a Kevin Love, or even Ricky Rubio and the fact that your two best players otherwise are walking injury risks is beyond disheartening. As a Wolves fan, you have to hope you can tread water in their absence, but regardless, this team only goes as far as a healthy Love and Rubio lead them.

Portland Trail Blazers: To say that last year's season in Rip City was a disappointment is an understatement and this year will likely wind up being more of the same. However, up-and-coming rookie guard, Damian Lillard could go a long way in rewriting that script. Lillard's preseason indicated that he's prepared for the NBA game, and the prospect of him playing alongside the talented LaMarcus Aldridge is enough to have Portland fans salivating for basketball. The Blazers haven't been this excited about a rookie since the ill-fated Greg Oden. The Blazer rotation is rounded out by two versatile swingmen in, Nicolas Batum and Wes Matthews who still have a lot of upside to their game, but even if all three of these players play to their potential Portland's squad is still very young and, until proven otherwise, not very deep. The team will likely struggle and the time of them being perceived as the sleeper team in the West is behind them, but at least it will be good to know that Aldridge will not be out there playing alone, as it looked at times last season.

Oklahoma City Thunder: On paper, the Thunder's chances of repeating a trip to the Finals took a hit when they traded James Harden to Houston, but Jeremy Lamb as a long term investment may prove wise, the Thunder have a knack for making those calls, as Westbrook and Harden both had players projected to go before them when they were drafted by OKC. Also, let's not forget just how skilled a shoot Kevin Martin was outside of the context of last season's apparent rough patch. However, Martin likely won't get the volume of looks he did when he was in Houston as he plays third fiddle to Durant and Westbrook. If Martin gets licence to run the second unit as Harden did, Martin may pleasantly surprise. There's no question Martin doesn't fill the intangibles of defense, passing, and beard-growing that Harden did, but this is far from a one-sided trade. Health concerns circling Perry Jones resulted in him falling to OKC, if he can be healthy, he may prove the steal of the draft. Eric Maynor's return should help that second unit keep the pedal to the medal and leave opposing teams in the dust. The Thunder have one of the deepest front courts in the league with Perk, Ibaka, the under-sung Collison, and even Thabeet, who will likely play well with no offensive expectations on his shoulders. Oh yeah, then there's Durant and Westbrook who, already at the top of their profession, seem to improve every year. Bear in mind, a lot of the Thunder errors in the Finals were mental. Another year of maturity could do wonders for this squad as they undoubtedly march towards title contention.

Utah Jazz: This team looked pretty woeful by last season's end, but that had as much to do with San Antonio hitting its stride as it did the Jazz struggling. Mo Williams at point is an improvement over Devin Harris who appeared to lose all confidence in his game last season. The Jazz have one of the best starting front courts in the league in Jefferson and Milsap. Gordon Hayward and Derrick Favors' continued development will shape this season's depth and perhaps, if Marvin Williams can finally meet his potential halfway, the Jazz could turn some heads. Odds are this team will again be in the awkward middleground of too good to break up, but not enough there to really compete. New found guard depth and Marvin Williams' promise at least keeps that glass half full in Salt Lake City.