NBA Season

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Credit: Michael Wa

Bailey Blum, Assistant Sports Editor

As the first quarter of the basketball season comes to a close, NBA fans across the country, I’m sure, have mixed reactions about the season thus far. From drastic injuries to our superstars (Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook) to the shocking success of a LeBron James-less Miami, the league has been full of surprises.

Perhaps the biggest surprise of all: Cleveland. I think everyone just got a little too excited about the Cavs. Obviously they have potential. They probably have the highest potential of any team in the league, with Kyrie Irving, James and Kevin Love each more than used to leading their own respective teams in the past. However, that’s exactly the problem Cleveland is facing now. They are all leaders.

If Cleveland intends to be successful, which LeBron has insisted on many occasions they do, then those three stars need to sort out the issues they have reportedly encountered in the locker room and learn to sacrifice and share the team’s workload. If they can do that, then they’ve got an NBA championship waiting for them.

I’d also like to give a shout-out to Anthony Davis. Expect him to be a top five player in the league this year. The 6-foot 11-inch center played his first two years of high school as a guard and has certainly showed fans nationwide that he has retained most, if not all, of these skills with his slick ball handling and ability to command the court from beyond the three point line.

Look for him to lead the New Orleans Pelicans even further this season and into the playoffs as he continues to grow as a leader on this up and coming team. Also, his pick and roll game with young star guard Jrue Holiday can only become more tenacious as the two grow and gain experience.

Now, back home to the Chicago Bulls, who have started off the season strong. It appears as though Kirk Hinrich has finally learned to shoot the ball, and he’s come up big in close games for the Bulls. That’s going to be one of the best things about the Bulls this season. They have so many different players who have the ability to step up late in games from their bench. I was a little worried about Aaron Brooks being trigger happy from behind the arc, but he’s proven to be successful enough and puts up a fair amount of points off the bench.

Pau Gasol and Joakim Noah have the potential to become one of the most dominant duos beneath the basket league-wide. Once Noah fully recovers from his knee surgery and gets back into the swing of things, the Bulls should have no problem controlling the boards.

Jimmy Butler really is starting to come into his own, and has shown improved maturity recently and can be counted on late in games. If Derrick Rose can stay healthy and play like he did before all his injuries, then I think the Bulls have the best team they’ve had since the end of the Jordan era. Look for them to be right in the hunt for the Eastern Conference Championship.

This column only scratches the surface though. The Kings have plenty of young talent in DeMarcus Cousins and Rudy Gay and could be this year’s big Cinderella story. The Warriors boast arguably the best backcourt in the league, with Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson making three point shots look easy. And Dwight Howard seems to have finally settled into his role alongside James Harden on the Houston Rockets. It looks like both Conferences will have a wide mix of teams that have the ability to go deep into the playoffs. So step aside San Antonio and Miami, it’s time for some new kids on the block.