My Take on the Restart of the NBA

Hello, hello! Here we are, back again at the start of another week. I hope that everyone is doing well and that you all enjoyed the weekends, or whatever time you had off! Today I thought we would talk about something that I have been around for the better part of the last 15 years of my life. Basketball! I'm going to touch on how I think the NBA restart has been handled and my opinions on who I think is going to win awards and the hardware that goes with champions. Let's get into it!

The Bubble

In a country where COVID-19 is running rampart, I was very hesitant at first at the idea of trying to restart sport. But, as more and more details came out about how the NBA were going to handle it, I have to say that I am extremely impressed. Having a closed area within Walt Disney World in Orlando, is something that I wouldn't have thought possible. But it seems that it is working extremely well. Most players and team staff, reporters and commentators, are taking everything extremely seriously and that hard work has paid off with zero new cases within the bubble itself. The players themselves seem to be having a good enough time, based off their various social media posts as they make themselves at home in Orlando. I even heard the commentators talking about how the NBA made sure that the lake was stocked up with fish in order for players to be able to fish! How crazy is that?! 

Another thing that I have found myself thinking is great idea, is the court set up. With all the restrictions that have been put into place, the NBA have not only made sure that players and commentators are the recommended distance away from one another, they have also put in that space around the edge of the court. If you have ever seen and NBA game before, you know that if you're lucky enough to get front row seats, you could reach out and grab a player if you really wanted to. Same goes for the multitude of reporters that sit on the floor under the basket. I understand that this is a massive sporting game and they want to make sure that they are maximizing their profits, but I have always thought that this was stupid. Especially having reporters with big cameras in direct line under the basket. In the few games that I have watched since the restart, I could tell right away that the extra distance has been a blessing for players. I have seen players attack the basket harder than they normally would, using the extra space to slow down easier. I've seen players track down balls that would normally have been destined to be in fans hands, instead being scooped up and sent back into court because players no longer have to worry about crashing into seats and spectators. It allows for players, in my opinion, to hustle more and not have to worry about being injured. Able to go the full length of the court, throw down a dunk and not having to stop suddenly in order to not crash into something. 

The final thing that I think they have done extremely well in the court setup, is the virtual fans. Having set up giant screens around the courts behind the team benches, fans can buy tickets to appear up there and watch the game. Sure, at the end of the day its a gimmick and another cash grab, but it allows for the fun to be felt. Players can still have the feeling, in some aspects, that they're still playing for fans, which is something that a lot of them credit being their favourite part in playing. It helps with creating some kind of 'home' atmosphere as well, with banners of the home team being shown and graphics like they would on the jumbo-tron. 

All in all, I think the NBA has done an extremely good job in getting their league back up and running, as well as maintaining the safety of their players and employees.

The Seeding

The way that the NBA have handled how they're going to go forward with seeding has been handled well. Inviting 22 teams, having them play 8 seeding games, it allows for the teams who are fighting for the better seed, to have that opportunity. This is especially important in the West with, realistically speaking, the Memphis Grizzlies, San Antonio Spurs and Portland Trailblazers all vying for that important 8th seed spot. That being said both the New Orleans Pelicans and Sacramento Kings are 4 games behind 8th spot so there's still a chance. It keeps that competitiveness alive, in what could be seen as a write off season. 

The other thing they have introduced for this 'Bubble Season' is a play-in series. It comes down to if the 9th seeded team is within 4 games of the 8th seeded team then there will be, what the NBA describes as a best-of-two series. In order for the 9th seed to take the 8th seed spot, they will need to win 2 head-to-head matchups. The 8th seed only needs to win one however.

Awards

Alright, lets get down to who I think should win the individual awards for this season. Basically, these are just my opinions from what I've seen in players mixed in with stats and other various factors, like how I think players played overall as well as within their team. 

Coach of the Year

For Coach of the Year, I have Nick Nurse of the Toronto Raptors winning it. A lot of the time, this award is given to the coach who has the best record in the league but I don't always think that should be the case. As a second year head coach in the NBA, Nurse has had to coach his team after losing, now 2x NBA champion Kwahi Leonard as well as 2x NBA champion and 3-point specialist, Danny Green hot off their championship in the 2018-2019 NBA season. Mix in the slew of injuries that the Toronto Raptors have had as well, Nurse has been able to change up his coaching plan and style to keep the Raptors within title contention, as well as winning an impressive 47 games.

Most Improved Player (MIP)

For Most Improved Player, this year I have Bam Adebayo from the Miami Heat winning it. His improvement has been phenomenal this year and was rightly rewarded as an All Star. He also pulled off a win in the Taco Bell Skills Challenge at the All Star weekend. Looking at his stats alone, he's gone from 8.9 PPG to 16.3. So in that category, hes pretty much doubled his production. That's a big jump for a player, especially for a 6 foot 9 inch power forward. His rebounds have gone from 7.3 RPG to 10.5 and the most impressive I think is assists going from 2.2 APG to 5.1! Having your power forward giving you 16, 10 and 5 is something that every team wants especially when that is a double in his production from the year before. To top it all off his +/- has continued to get better starting at his rookie season of -0.4 and now having a 3.4. His tripled his production for his team.

Stats aside, just watching Bam play, you can tell that he's worked hard. Coming from last year where I only sort of knew who he was, I now love watching him play. He's able to work down in that low post, using his length to give him his buckets, but has the ability to step out for the mid range jumper. He's come into his own, which is why he's my pick for Most Improved Player.

Defensive Player of the Year (DPOY)

For DPOY, this year I have Giannis Antetokounmpo. This was a hard choice for me this year, because there wasn't a clear stand out clamp god that we're used to seeing in the NBA, like Kwahi Leoanrd or Rudy Gobert were. Sure both of those guys are still monsters on the defensive end but not like they were. This year, Giannis of the Milwaukee Bucks has had a great overall season as a whole, netting him in the race for MVP as well. But it's his defensive efficiency, that won me over. Out of his 13.8 rebounds per game, 11.5 of them are defensive, giving him the most defensive rebounds in the league at the moment. On top of that, opponents are only averaging 41.9 percent against him at the rim, which again nets him the top spot on that leaderboard. What also makes that impressive is that it has to have at least contested 50 shots this season. The cherry on top of the cherry is his versatility. Giannis is a 6 foot 11 inch athletic freak, which means he's going to be able to guard you from point guard to center. He's quick enough to keep up with the guards and his reach is enough to contest those pesky step back shots. On the opposite side he's strong enough and tall enough to hold his own against the legitimate centers of the league like a Joel Embiid or Rudy Gobert. That is the reason why I went with him for Defensive Player of the Year.

Sixth Man of the Year

For Sixth Man of the Year award, this year I have Montezel Harrell of the Los Angeles Clippers. I know to most Clippers fans, this is a bit of a betrayal to fellow Clippers teammate and former sixth man winner, Lou Williams, but this year I think Harrell has had the better season between the two. Stat wise, Harrell has had a good season avergaing 18.6 PPG, 7.1 APG and 1.1 blocks per game in just 27.8 minutes per game. Standing at 6 foot 7 inches, Harrell is an extremely undersized center, yet when it comes down to crunch time for the Clippers, he's the one you'll find on the floor instead of their starting center, 7 foot Ivica Zubac. A case could be made that Harrell should be apart of the starting squad with such a high production compared to Zubac but running him at sixth man obviously works. It allows the Clippers to keep that intensity when one of their stars comes off the court. Harrell is grinder, fighting for every loose ball and making sure that the opposing center's know he's there, despite being undersized. Because of those reasons, that's why I think Montrezel Harrell should win Six Man of the Year.

Rookie of the Year

For Rookie of the Year, this year I have Ja Morant. A lot of people seem to think the Zion Williamson of the New Orleans Pelicans is just going to be handed the award because it's him. But I think that would be an injustice to the game. Don't get me wrong, Zion is a beast and will probably have a great career, but this season he missed to much time. And his absence, Ja took the league by storm. Averaging, 17.8 PPG, 3.6 RPG and 7 APG, Morant has looked impressive since his first game. Explosive and agile, Morant is the definition of the modern day NBA point guard being able to score when needed but also able to dish out those sweet dimes. The scary part is but, I can only see him improving greatly over the next few years, turning into an elite player. 

Most Valuable Player (MVP)

For the Most Valuable Player award, this year I have Lebron James winning it. Now, I know what you're thinking, "Here comes another Lebron fan boy jumping on the horse." But it's not that. I actually really struggled with this decision and it was between The King and Giannis Antetokounmpo, which I think most people would have as their top 2. The reason I ended up with James was this simple philosophy. If they weren't on their teams, who's winning more games? And from that, I went the Bucks would win more games. My definition of a MVP is someone who can take their team to the top and if they weren't on that team, then that team would struggle. Take the Golden State Warriors for example, missing Steph Curry all season has put them dead last. In my opinion, the Bucks are just to deep of a team and even if they didn't have the Greek Freak, I could still see them winning high 40 to low 50 games (which is a great amount of wins for a team, for my non basketball nerds). Without Lebron, I think the Lakers would be lucky to scrape 40 wins out, even with Anthony Davis. The Lakers just don't have the same depth as other teams and if there was no Lebron, then I think Anthony Davis would struggle, just like when he did in New Orleans. On top of this, stat wise The King is putting up 25.5 PPG, 8 RPG and a league high 10.5 APG, all of this on efficient shooting from the field as well. These incredible stats are being done too, by the way, at the ripe age of 35 which is getting up there for NBA players. These are the reasons for me picking Lebron James to be this year's MVP.

NBA Championship

Alrighty, now to the big one. The Championship. Who is going to get those ridiculously elaborate championship rings? I think its going to be a Finals matchup of the Milwaukee Bucks and the Los Angeles Clippers. For me, I think the winner here is going to be the Los Angeles Clippers. The reasoning behind this is simple. They run deep. This means that their bench players will be a pivotal role in securing them the win. I know that the Bucks also have a fantastic bench, with their efficiency being the best in the league, but the Clippers run a close second and I think they're more experienced. That's reason number 1 why I think they will win. Reason number 2 is their stars. The Bucks have Giannis, which is arguably the most athletic player in the game at the moment. But that's it. Don't get me wrong, the other starting 4 for the Bucks are incredible players but in the crunch time, who's going to get you that bucket? Are you going to be able to play him for 48 minutes every game? I don't think they can. The Clippers on the other hand have a couple of killers who can get you those big time buckets. First up, you have the main man in Kwahi Leonard. 2x NBA champion, 2x Finals MVP and 2x Defensive Player of the Year. What more do you need to know? The man has been a dominant player from his first championship run with the San Antonio Spurs and has only been on the up since. He is also one of the only people I consider being able to shut down Giannis, with his incredible defense. Then you have Paul George. A pure hooper who can score at will but at the same time can lock you up defensively. Having been in the race for both MVP and DPOY, George is a great option to have on your team when Leonard isn't on the court to get you that defensive stop or come up with the big time bucket. Then after that you have Lou Williams who has been coming up with buckets for years now as well as having potential sixth man of the year winner, Montezel Harrell. At the end of the day, the depth and experience that the Clippers have, going all the way to their coaching staff with head coach Doc Rivers and assistant coach Tyronn Lue both having championships under their belts, will just be to much for the Bucks to handle. I have the Los Angeles Clippers winning the NBA Championship in six games.

Phew! We've made it to the end! Hopefully you stuck with me all the way to the end and I was able to give you some light on what the NBA is doing and all of the exciting things yet to come. Did you agree with my choices? Or did you think I got it completely wrong? Let me know in the comments and i'll see you in the next post!