The NBA Is BACK! – A Quick Look At Pre-Season Action

NBA pre season means absolutely NOTHING. Now that we’ve gotten that out of the way. Let’s talk about a few of the early revelations:

• Having Wade, Lebron & Bosh out there is going to be exciting!  Joel Anthony (or whoever they decide to float through at center) can somehow pull out 15 to 10 decent minutes at the 5 the position won’t be too big of an issue for them with all the match up nightmares they can create. Also having the 3 on the floor together means lots of open looks for guys like Mike Miller & Eddie House. Precisely the reason why they were brought in. The problem with the heat will be their bench and how much they’re giving up at the PG spot. Granted Lebron or FLASH (is he still using Flash or have we moved away from that era?) can handle point duties but some combination of the Super friends will need to be on the floor at all times against teams that have depth. This will become a bigger issue towards the middle and later part of the season when fatigue is also a factor. DWade pulled a hamstring early in the game yesterday and will be out for 1 to 2 weeks. Hamstring injuries can be tricky, they need him at %100 for this to work.

• The Wizards need to find someone willing to accept Arenas. Though he’s saying he won’t stand in the way of John Wall’s development, his attitude might have an adverse affect on the rest of the team. Is John Wall a leader and up for the battle of wills with Gilbert? A few soundbites from at yesterday’s pre season action, Gil on what his emotions were playing again: “I lost all feeling a long time ago. Basketball is basketball. The city is John’s. I’m not here to fight anybody. I’m here to play alongside of him. He’s Batman, I’m Robin.” The lack of passion for the game is dangerous and could transfer to other guys. A fresh start is something that could benefit all parties

• Andrew Bynum’s return has been pushed to December (I told you). How’s Kobe’s knee and finger. We know his will is there. Michael Beasley had a good shooting game against the Lakers in London on Monday. His game will certainly benefit being out of Miami but how many wins that translates to is another story.

• Celtics are building great chemistry. The 1st game of the season is against the Heat and I don’t think the Celtics are a team that should be dismissed just because they have a little age on them. If they can stay healthy, I think they’re a definite threat to the Heat.  Motivated Shaq is always a danger and I think this team has a nice mix of veteran and young players. Their other advantage over the Heat… BENCH

• Same old clippers, baron out of shape didn’t play because of his knee. Eric Gordan was resting. You know he did play all summer and brought home a gold medal from Turkey (not the Olympics but its the road TO the them) Chris Kaman was leading scorer. Blake had a decent debut. To soon to really make a call (I wonder if he’ll be in contention for rookie of the year) And the new uniforms… thumbs down

It’s just game 1 of the preseason, we have a long way to go. And while it doesn’t mean anything officially, at least now you have it in black and white to check back with me to see if my observations still ring true in January! Did I mention I LOVE THIS GAME?? My baby is BACK!