2015 NBA Season In Review
The 2015 season is now in the books. Somewhat surprising how
it all went down, if you look at the start of the season in comparison to the
end. First, let's look at my 20 questions at the beginning of the season.
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| Unfortunately Nash's last season equaled 0 games played. |
1. Kobe/Rose: are they injury-prone for
the rest of their careers?
I can confidently say for Kobe, the answer
is "yes." It's a sad way to end his career, with yet another
season-ending injury. But Kobe has driven his body harder than most over
the course of his career. His goal for next season shouldn't be about
scoring, or even winning (to a degree), he should try to limit his playing time
and try to play as many games as possible.
Derrick Rose is still a bit murky.
He did play the most games he's played (51) since his 2011 MVP year.
That's good, but still he was obviously hurt for a nice chunk of the
year. He did average 20, 5, and 7 in the playoffs (playing every game) so
hopefully he is heading in the right direction.
2. What's Cleveland going to look like? Is it too good to be
true? Or will LeBron be able to pull it all together? That team
wasn't exactly a harmonious place last year.
The Cavs team at the start of the season
and at the end of the season, were essentially two separate teams with the
exception of LeBron. I'll dig deeper into this later, but I can say that
LeBron in Cleveland part 2 was indeed a success regardless of who is now the
champion.
3. How will the "grandpa" Spurs hold up? Popovich
is the minutes-monitoring master, and last year was the perfect
example.
As we know by now, the
Spurs started off slow, then came roaring back at the end of the regular
season. Due to a last game of the year loss, the dropped from the 2 seed
to the 6th. (Proves just how ridiculous the West is) So they played
the Clippers first round, and lost in 7 games on an off-balance buzzer beater.
Credit to the Clippers, but I think if they went at it again, the "Grandpas" would win. Obviously a disappointing end to the season, not even including the fact 2 of the big 3, plus Popovich's status is in the air. This one is to be continued.
4. How good exactly is Kawhi Leonard? Is he a future All-NBA guy? Or just a really overqualified defensive specialist? If he is "that good" will he ever be able to show it in limited minutes? Does it even matter if the Spurs are winning championships?
Well he only played 64 games, but in those 64 he won Defensive Player of
the Year, All-Defense 1st Team, led the NBA in SPG, had the best defensive
rating, and posted career highs in PPG, RPG, APG, and SPG. He didn't make
the all-star team yet again, but he was also hurt. I predict, if healthy,
that will change next year. He's going to be an "all defense"
guy for the foreseeable future, but what about that elusive All-NBA team?
Considering he's only 23, I think he's on the right track.
5. I'm not going to address this one because it was about how bad the Lakers are and if they have any shot of making the playoffs. (For the record, I said no.)
6. Does Paul George come back this year? He is making significant progress. But seriously, the Pacers are going to suck. I predict they won't make the playoffs, so there is absolutely no reason for PG-13 to even attempt a comeback this season.
He did indeed comeback,
and even made his first shot attempt much to the delight of the Indiana crowd.
He was on a 15 minute limit restriction (and rightfully so) so he wasn't
going to accomplish much even if he was firing on all cylinders. Hopefully he regains his full form, and gives the NBA back one of its
best two-way players. (Also the Pacers nearly made the playoffs!)7. What's Wade got left in the tank? Is he going to be fully exposed this season, or will he be more motivated than he has been since LeBron showed up?
Wade played in 62 games and put up a respectable (for him) 22 PPG, 4
RPG, and 5 APG. The games played was about in line with what he had been
doing the previous seasons, and if not for the season ending injury to Bosh,
they would have made the playoffs. (And I'm sure Wade would have played
more if the season wasn't lost at that point.) What's next for D-Wade?
More on this in a minute.
8. What the hell is going to happen with the Knicks? Is this lineup of morons beyond help?
Shockingly it was even worse than expected. 17-65 in the putrid
Eastern Conference!!!! Okay Melo was shut-down after the all-star break,
but still. They were active trading away a bunch of rotation players
throughout this season, all but giving up and hoping for good luck in the
offseason free agency signings. Good luck.
9. When will Rondo be traded and to where?
To the Mavericks, it was a disaster, now looking for somewhere else to
call home. The question is, does anyone want him at this point?
10. The Houston Rockets lost some serious rotation players in the off-season, coupled with the lack of leadership of Harden and Howard, are the Rockets potentially on the outside looking in? Is it reasonable that they are fighting for the 8th seed?
I will admit I
was way off on this one. Harden had a monster season (arguably the MVP)
carrying the Rockets on his back with Howard essentially missing most of the
season to the 2nd seed in the West. That's impressive. (Granted
that 2nd seed could have been low as 6th, but it is what it is.)
The midseason acquisitions of Corey Brewer and Josh Smith (!) helped beef up their bench. Trevor Ariza made everyone forget about Chandler Parsons, and Dontas Montiejunas came out of nowhere to be a reliable role player. The future for the Rockets is nearly as murky as it appeared.
11. Anthony Davis has gotten more hype over the summer than anyone not named LeBron. Will he live up to the hype of being a MVP-candidate?
24 PPG(4th), 10 RPG(8th),
1.5 SPG, 2.9 BPG (1st), 1st in PER, All Defensive 2nd team, All-NBA 1st team,
all-star, 5th in MVP voting, and most importantly lead the Pelicans to the playoffs. I would say he did pretty well.
12. What type of antics will Lance Stephenson and J.R. Smith be up to? Will J.R. still have a job in two years? (My guess is no.)
Lance signed with the Hornets, struggled mightily, and they regretted
signing him since day one. He has since been traded to the Clippers, in
what I assume will be his last chance. Hello China!
J.R. had a tale of two seasons. I'll cover it more in the Cavaliers portion of the Finals.
13. Will Andrew Wiggins make the Cavaliers regret trading him/Should Jabari have went number one instead?
Post-all-star break Wiggins averaged 20, 5, and 2. Pretty good
stuff for a rookie. As for the Cavs regretting their trade? Well on
one hand they made the Finals, on the other the player they got in return was
hurt in the playoffs and didn't always fit in with the team. Theoretically
Wiggins could have gotten hurt too, but you can't say for sure that he would
have. Had he given them anything of what he showed on Minny, he would
have been a big upgrade over J.R. or Shump in the Finals.
As for Jabari, he was somewhat underwhelming for 25 games before going down with an injury. Albeit it was on a Bucks team that was still finding itself. The jury is still out on him.
14. It's put up or shut up time for Kevin Love. Will he shine on the biggest possible stage?
If you trade for a guy that gives you 16 and 10, you would consider that
a success. However, with Kevin Love in the 2015 season, it seemed as
though he was a failure. His shooting percentages were down, but he was
also down 6 shots per game in comparison to last year. Honestly, I'm
surprised it wasn't more. He had two extremely ball-dominate players
ahead of him, which would make it tough for anyone to get in a shooting rhythm. Combine all that with the first round playoff injury, and it was quite a strange season for Love. I'm not getting into all the off court things because quite frankly I don't care. Will Love leave Cleveland? They do seem to be infatuated with Tristian Thompson who assumed Love's starting spot. I'm very intrigued to see how this plays out.
15. Kenneth Faried was arguably the best player in FIBA this summer. Will he keep that momentum going?
Short answer is: no. However things could be looking up. Post-all-star break and new coach in place he averaged 14 and 9.
That seems more in tune with what he should be doing. (In my mind
anyway.)16. Are the Suns really going to play Isiah Thomas, Eric Bledsoe, and Goran Dragic all together?
Nope, they all hated it. Now only Bledsoe is left on Phoenix.
Brandon Knight is now there, but that seems to be more suitable for
Bledsoe. (Maybe not so much for Knight.)
17. Are the Clippers going to finally get to the Western Conference Finals? CP3 isn't getting any younger.
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| Still in shock the Clippers beat them. |
The Clippers seemed to be firing on all cylinders this year. DeAndre
Jordan had an All-NBA season, and more importantly Chris Paul played all 82
games (the first time in his career). A first round match with the Spurs
seemingly was going to keep their playoff woes going, but in arguably the
greatest ending to a series ever, CP3 hit an off-balance shot to beat the
defending champs in game 7. Then the wheels fell off.
The Clippers had a 3-1 lead on the Rockets in the Semi's. Only to drop three straight, and probably end this current era of the Clips. Why? DeAndre is a free agent, and going to be wanting big money after this year's individual performance. They just brought in Captain Insano, aka Lance Stephenson. Sure a lot can happen in free agency. They have no first round picks, but they could be active trading on draft night. I would wager to guess that they've peaked though. When else are you going to get 82 games out of CP3? I would say it's not a lock that Jordan leaves, but I would say it's very likely, thus changing the dynamic of the team substantially.
18. Will the Brooklyn Nets finally implode? It looked that way at
the beginning of last year, but they somehow pulled it together to make the
playoffs.
The fact this mess of a franchise stumbled ass-backward into the
playoffs tells me two things. The east is so bad it's ridiculous, and it
really needs a revamp. Whether you get rid of conferences all together, I
don't care. But outside of Brooklyn, who can honestly say they wanted
that crappy ass team in the playoffs? If I was the GM of the Nets, I would
be having a fire sale on every player. Doing everything I could to rack
up draft picks, and be as crappy as possible. Also known as the
"Sixer's strategy."
19. Can the Wizards and Raptors keep ascending? They both have the
right pieces, and are in the East; anything is possible.
The Raptors completely laid an egg in the playoffs; ironically playing
the Wizards no less. They started out like a house of fire, but then...
well let's just say some roster moves probably need to be made-immediately!
The Wizards made one of the most underrated pickups of the summer with
Paul Pierce, who came up big for them at times. Should they be able to
keep Bradley Beal healthy (big "if" at this point) and Wall continues
to ascend, they should be a top 4 team in the putrid East.
20. With Durant out at least 2 months, what will this do to Westbrook's
ego/shot selection when Durant returns? Will the Thunder remain competitive
during that time, or struggle without the reigning MVP?
This was a huge factor in the playoffs this year. Durant played in
only 27 games. To add insult to injury, Westbrook got hurt in the second
game of the year, and played in 67 games total. The whole Thunder team
was bitten by the injury bug, with Anthony Morrow playing the most games at 74.
You know you're in trouble if a bench guy is playing the most games for
you.
Westbrook did everything a player could possibly do (kind of like LeBron
in the Finals) to will the Thunder into the playoffs. Starting at the All
Star game (where he won MVP), he went on a tear the second half of the season:
31.4 PPG, 8.6 RPG, and 9.9 APG. That's Oscar Robertson shit right
there. (He led the league with 28.1 PPG for the season.)
He had his critics no doubt. He shot too many bad shots, he didn't
pass, blah blah. It's tough to say a guy didn't pass when he averaged 10
assists a game. Think how many assists he would have had had he had
teammates that could score? 14? 15?
So the Thunder won 45 games and missed the playoffs. (They would
have been 6th seed in the East, just for the record.) Part of me was
hoping the lottery would play in the Thunder's favor and they would squeak into
the number one pick like the Bulls did in '08. (They drafted Rose)
That would have gone a long way in helping the Thunder persuade Durant to
stay after '16, and Westbrook in '17. But we can cross that bridge when
we come to it.
So looking back at the season, the biggest story was the Cleveland
Cavaliers. They struggled mightily through the first few months.
LeBron took two weeks off, they traded for Mozgov. They traded for
Iman Shumpert and GASP J.R. Smith.
Let's look at J.R. Smith. I make no secrets that he is my least
favorite player in the game today. Truly he is everything wrong with the
NBA, and why some people prefer the college game. (Quick note: My
favorite internet headline of the year was:
Knick’s J.R. Smith confused by the triangle.
You don't say! I don't remember what site it was on, but it
hilarious and oh so predictable. The whole Knicks squad was a disaster,
chucked full of boneheads. It makes perfect sense that the biggest
bonehead of all can't figure out a complex offense. Especially when his
offensive game plan is as follows:
Get the ball. Jack up a three, regardless of how far away I am, or
how many people are guarding me. Because after all, I enjoy shooting
contested shots more than open shots.
As I've mentioned before, had J.R. stayed on the Knicks, he would have
played himself out of the NBA. He was saved by the trade to Cleveland.
LeBron biggest strength is that he makes all his teammates better.
Smith's FG% went from .402 to .425 once he joined the Cleveland roster.
His 3 point % went from .356 to .390. Which isn't ideal, but he
would have his classic J.R. games were he would hit 6 threes and single-handedly
win the game for them. Which is what is so frustrating about him in the
first place. Inside of him is a truly great 6th man, (he even won player
of the week once this year) but the baggage that comes along with him would be
too much for me to take.
So J.R. became an important cog on the Cavs rotation. He was
suspended 2 games during the playoffs, but he had some big games as well.
Then came the Finals.
Smith took 51 3's. You know how many he made? 15! And
two of them were desperation shots at the end of game 6. That's good
enough for .294%!!!! His overall field goal percentage was .312, which
translates into a pretty awful serious all the way around. His running
buddy Shumpert shot quite poorly as well, but I'm not as jarred by his stats
for two reasons. First, he isn't known for shooting; he's a defensive
guy. And secondly, he was hurt. J.R. just opted out, and his hoping
to sign with the Cavs long-term. If they were smart they would let him go
explore his options elsewhere. I guess we'll see what GM LeBron thinks. Speaking of which...
Look at LeBron's Final's numbers: 35.8, 13.3, and 8.8. The fact
that he was receiving Finals MVP votes are quite warranted. (Granted he
would never have won, but still.) What he did with his rag-tag group of
misfits was extraordinary. What other player could have come within 2
games of a championship with best players number 2 and 3 out hurt?
Probably no one else. Like I said, I feel you can count this Cavs
season as a success.
What about the future? LeBron could opt out and leave. I
don't think he will. But it's always possible. Never say never, as
they say. What about the rumblings of Dwyane Wade going to Cleveland? That would be something wouldn't it? Hell, you could bring him off
the bench if you wanted. It would bring buddy ball to a whole new level
if that happened.
As for Kevin Love. He also just opted out. Because I feel he
is just that, "out." The Cavs are going to resign Thompson for
some big dough. Why would they sign to power forwards to big money deals?
Again if GM LeBron says "do it," I'm sure they'll make every
possible offer to get it done. Still though, I feel both parties probably
feel it's best to go there separate ways. Does that tarnish Love's
legacy? I kind of feel like his injury scored him some brownie points,
then with the ascension of Tristian Thompson, it's understandable if he leaves.
I wish I could give some definitive answers on this one, but I really
don't know.
What a season it was for the Golden State Warriors. Best team in
the league start to finish. What was the big difference from last year? Youth and versatility. Rookie coach Kerr moved David Lee out of the
starting lineup for Draymond Green (became one of the best defensive players in
the league) and Harrison Barnes. That was a huge gamble that paid off
nicely. Also the key additions of Shaun Livingston (arguably the best
backup point guard in the league), and Leandro Barbosa (the next in line of the
run 'n gun Suns to win a ring). Speights stepping it up, Ezeli coming
back from injury, Klay Thompson becoming an All NBA player, and Steph Curry
going from a really good player, to the MVP.
They steamrolled the competition throughout the regular season.
The true test came in the playoffs naturally. At two different
points, they were down 1-2 in series only to come back. That's
impressive. It was also interesting that it was the first time an all NBA
1st teamer (Curry) played all 4 other 1st teamers in the playoffs.
(LeBron, Harden, Gasol, Davis) All that being said, who would have
guessed what the X-factor would been?
If I would have told you at the beginning of the season that the
Warriors would win the championship, you could probably see that within reason.
They weren't going to be favorites, but it wasn't entirely out of the
question. If I were to tell you that Andre Iguadala would be the Finals
MVP you would slap my face and tell me to lay off the crack pipe. And
with good reason. 7.8, 3.3, and 3.0. Those were Iggy's regular
season numbers, which were even worse than last year's. (The worst of his
career.) Then came the NBA Finals.
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| courtesy of bleacherreport.com |
Harrison Barnes struggled to guard LeBron (who wouldn't) and Draymond
Green was too prone to foul trouble to. Iguadala stepped in and did a
great job of staying with him. (LeBron's numbers were huge, but he would
have averaged 60 a game if Andre wasn't guarding him.) After going down
1-2, Iguadala was inserted into the starting lineup during game 4. And the
Warriors never looked back.
16.3, 5.8, 4.0, those were the numbers of the Finals MVP. Much
better than his regular season stats for sure, but what he did in making
LeBron's life hard doesn't show up in box score. He was also the only
Warrior who was consistent all 6 games. Curry looked rattled the first 2
games or so. Draymond's shot wasn't falling the whole series (his defense
was fine though) and it says that Klay Thompson averaged 15.8 a game. I
don't know how that is possible. It seems like he should have averaged 8
PPG. He couldn't get into any kind of offensive rhythm. But, he was
coming off a concussion in the last series, so it's totally understandable that
he wouldn't be playing at his highest level. My point here is that Iguadala
truly steadied the ship and kept these guys on track. Excellent run,
excellent playoffs. Congratulations Warriors.
The 2015 season in the books, here are some things to think about for
next season. Some of these dominoes will fall into place tonight during the
draft when I'm sure trades will be made to make room for/convince player X to
stay/go to team Y. Here are the top free agents this summer in no
particular order:
LaMarcus Aldridge
He has been on the mediocre Blazers for too long now, and has quietly
been one of the best players in the league.(Arguably the best power
forward.) I've thought all year he was gone, and now reports are saying
it's a foregone conclusion. I wonder who will sign this beast?
Marc Gasol
It's possible he could leave, but I really don't see it. The
Grizzlies aren't trash by any means, and the dude went to high school in
Memphis. I'm 90% sure he'll stay with Memphis.
Brook Lopez
Assuming he could stay healthy, he would be a nice pick-up. I
would be pretty confident in saying, I'm sure he can't get out of Brooklyn fast
enough.
Jimmy Butler (R)
Although he is restricted, I'm sure teams will be throwing gobs of money
at Butler. He had a fantastic season with the Bulls, and with Thibs out
the door, Rose's uncertainty, I wouldn't blame him for wanting to leave if he
did. The question is, what are the cheapskate Bulls willing to fork out
to keep him?
Kevin Love
Will he be the same when he gets back? He has been known to be
injury prone. But the upside is definitely there. I could list his
teammate LeBron here, but I'm not going to. He's not leaving, he's the
G.M. dammit!
Tyson Chandler
What does he got left in the tank?
Rajon Rondo
Again, what does he have left in the tank? And is he worth the
headache?
Monta Ellis
Ellis would be a great
6th man for a good team.
Reggie Jackson (R)
No telling when Brandon Jennings gets back, so I’m assuming the Pistons
will try to keep him.
Greg Monroe
Definitely not going back to the Pistons.
Draymond Green (R)
Is he a system guy?
Meaning would he have the same success on another team that utilizes him
differently? It would be strange to leave a championship team, but money
does talk.
Roy Hibbert
His fell off the radar the last 1.5 seasons. He seemed to be on
pace to be one of the next great centers in the league. If I was a team I
would gamble on Hibbert if the money was right.
David West
I was surprised to see he opted out. This would be quite a blow
for the Pacers should he leave, which seems to be the case.
DeAndre Jordan
I think he's as good as gone. If he truly doesn't get along with
Chris Paul, we know who the Clippers will side with. And if he can get
his big money somewhere else, more power to him.
Goran Dragic
If Wade leaves, I don't know why he would stay in Miami. Maybe he
and Bosh are big buddies?
Dwyane Wade
It will be weird to see
Wade in a new uniform. I do think it's going to happen. I would bet
on the Cavs. I pray he doesn't go to the Lakers. Could be
game-changing if he's in the right situation. And he could rewrite his twilight
years in the process.
Kawhi Leonard (R)
I would think this is a lock for him to stay in San Antonio. Unless, the Spurs know that Duncan and Ginobili are leaving, and they are
looking to rebuild. That is the only way I could see the Spurs not
matching any of the 29 offers that I'm sure will be presented to the
former Finals MVP.
Duncan/Ginobili
Let's face it, one's
decision affects the other. Which way it falls, I have no idea.
Lou Williams
Coming off the 6th man of
the year, is going to get him some suitors, and judging how the Raptors ended the
season I’m sure he's ready to get out of there.
Paul Millsap
The Hawks were without a question
the feel-good story of the year. I mean it truly came out of nowhere.
I would think Millsap would want to stay part of it. Unless he
knows Horford is leaving the following year, I can't think Millsap would be the
type of guy to chase the money over a good team.
Under the radar guys:
Danny Green
Arron Afflalo
Robin Lopez
Wes Matthews (depending
on how he recovers from the Achilles injury)
Brandon Knight (R)
Tobias Harris (R)
Khris Middleton
Luol Deng
Shumpert/Thompson/Dellavedova
Demarre Carrol
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