1. Kobe Bryant surpassing Michael Jordan for third place on the NBA’s all-time scoring list.
There has been just five individuals to have climbed the ladder of the 30,000 points plus plateau in NBA history. Kobe Bryant aka the Black Mamba, is one of those guys. Now he’s about to pass up Mr. Icon himself Michael Jordan on the all-time scoring list. Kobe, who starts the season with 31, 700 points, need just 593 points to move past Jordan for third place on the NBA scoring list. With a young cast around him as the Los Angeles Lakers go into rebuild mode, Kobe will get his fair of shots and will past Jordan early in the season. Another notch of accomplishment for the Black Mamba.
2. An MVP season for Blake Griffin.
This is sort of a make break season for Blake Griffin and the Los Angeles Clippers. Look for Griffin to take the Clippers on his broad shoulders and carry the team to at least the Western Conference. Playing for coach Doc Rivers for a second full season will elevate Griffin’s game to yet another level. Griffin finished third in the MVP voting last season as the hardware went to OKC’s Kevin Durant. Every year it seems like everyone calls for Griffin to improve his all-around game. Well, ready or not, NBA here he comes.
3. Lebron James, Kyrie Irving and Kevin Love are the the Cleveland Cavaliers’ version of the Three Muskateers.
Now that LeBron James has come home, he has a couple of new sidekicks to kick it with him as he tries to make another run at NBA title glory. There’s a lot of hype around the NBA’s newest strong-armed trio with much consideration for James, Irving and Love to bring a championship to Cleveland. The only thing new and different is that James left his older buddies (Dwayne Wade and Chris Bosh) in Miami for a younger version in Cleveland. While the Cavaliers will have success in a weak Eastern Conference, the dominant theme remains the same for James: The Western Conference teams are bigger, stronger and faster than any squad in the Eastern Conference, therefore the results will be the same for James come playoff time.
4. What will Russell do?
The story line surrounding the Oklahoma City Thunder is quite obvious: What will they do without the services of reigning regular season NBA MVP Kevin Durant, who is out a couple of months because of a foot injury?
It is very simple: Give the ball to Russell Westbrook. The OKC lightning rod can destroy and break down a defense like no one else can in the league with his mercurial speed and dogged toughness.
However, what gets Westbrook into trouble is sometimes he goes overboard with his zeal to match point-for-point against his opponent.
Then again, that’s also his best attribute. Westbrook will go toe-to-toe with anyone. You can expect Westbrook to take his scoring to a higher level, at least until Mr. MVP comes back.
5. Having a New York attitude.
Former Lakers coach Phil Jackson, now operating as president for the New York Knicks, is hoping his team will get untracked the right way with coach and triangle master Derek Fisher running the show now. Carmelo Anthony and J. R. Smith should thrive in the new offense. The Knicks should be decent this season.
Dennis has covered and written about politics, crime, race, sports, and entertainment. Dennis currently covers the NFL, MLB, NBA, NCAA, and Olympic sports. Dennis is the editor of News4usonline.com and serves as the publisher of the Compton Bulletin newspaper. He earned a journalism degree from Howard University. Email Dennis at dfreeman@news4usonline.com