With football nearly halfway through the regular season and baseball wrapping up the World Series, we shift our attention on to the National Basketball Association. Oct. 28 marks the opening day of the 2014-2015 NBA season tip-off with the defending champion San Antonio Spurs facing the Dallas Mavericks.
There are many different stories to keep an eye on this season from each of the 30 NBA teams.
Starting with the new guys, here are a few rookies to keep an eye on while watching your favorite teams play. The No. 1 pick in the draft, Andrew Wiggins, impressed nearly every pro scout during his time at the University of Kansas. He now headlines a young and building contender with the Minnesota Timberwolves.
Another rookie to look out for is now playing alongside the ever-dangerous “Black Mamba,” Kobe Bryant. Julius Randle, first-year forward out of the University of Kentucky, was a double-double machine in college and hopes to bring his unique skill set to the Los Angeles Lakers, who is looking to replace their star power forward, Pau Gasol, who they lost to free agency following the previous season.
Speaking of offseason acquisitions, here are a few transactions and signings that shook up the basketball world over the past few months. Without a doubt, anyone who turned on ESPN recently has heard the biggest news to hit the NBA this year: LeBron James returns to the Cleveland Cavaliers. James returned to his home state of Cleveland this offseason, and this time he’s there to play and he’s there to stay. After the Cavaliers secured LeBron’s return, the team acquired highly sought after power forward Kevin Love by trading the previously mentioned Andrew Wiggins along with other players and draft picks.
There were a few other moves that took place this offseason outside the city of Cleveland. The Dallas Mavericks signed star forward Chandler Parsons who was most recently with the Mavericks inner-state rival, the Houston Rockets. Lance Stephenson, who is most famously known for blowing in the ear of LeBron James during the Eastern Conference Finals last year, has left his former team, the Indiana Pacers, for the Charlotte Hornets, the same team owned by NBA legend Michael Jordan. Finally, while the LeBron decided to leave the “big three” from Miami, the other two have decided to stick around. Both Dwayne Wade and Chris Bosh re-signed with the Heat and appear to be in it for the long haul.
Early rankings from around the sports world predict another big year from the Spurs, with many sources saying they could repeat as champions. However with so many moves in the offseason, teams like the Cavaliers, Bulls and Mavericks have a serious shot at knocking off the champs. If the regular season is half as exciting as this year’s offseason, NBA fans are in for a treat come late October.