NBA Season Review

The NBA season has been quite a good one. As always it is in the shadows of the NFL but as a follower of the NBA I can assure you that it has been excellent. The eastern conference is lead by the defending champion Boston Celtics who have an outstanding record of 28-4. The top of the western conference is held by the Los Angles Lakers who are 25-5. Both teams have brought back generally the same players and are picking up just where they left off from last years finals. One team that has really disappointed me so far is the Chicago Bulls. They have a talented team with rookie scoring sensation Derrick Rose and veterans such as Drew Gooden and Larry Hughes. Their team cannot seem to play together and win games under coach Vinny Del Negro. The rookies from this years NBA draft have been superb, Michael Beasley, Derrick Rose, O.J. Mayo, Russell Westbrook and D.J. Augustin just to name a few. These men have lived up to their college hype and more. They are all averaging double digits in scoring and are helping their teams to win games. What I find very interesting in the NBA is the huge drop off in different teams quality. You have very good teams such as the Cleveland Cavaliers and then you have terrible teams like the Oklahoma City Thunder and the Washington Wizards. The reason I think this is because the higher quality teams player as one and the lesser opponents play as individuals. Even the Cavaliers, who rely heavily on Lebron James, still have other players with excellent numbers. Every night their team plays hard and they are rewarded by getting win after win. The lower teams always hope to improve through the draft but one player cannot turn their team around in one season. It takes great coaches and a core group of players that can play together to win games and be successful in the NBA. Recently the game has been less individual and has leaned towards team play which makes much more enjoyable entertainment on TV or in person. As a basketball player myself I can greatly appreciate this. The NBA is headed in the right direction to get back to the glory days of Michael Jordan and Larry Bird that they once had. They continue to put great match ups on prime time TV and I look forward to seeing how the rest of the season plays out.

Daniel Weberman
NYchalktalk.com