2016 NBA Season in Review
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Very
shortly after the season began, Kobe announced he would return at season's end.
Would he have done it if the Lakers were competitive or if his body
clearly didn't break down beyond repair? It's hard to tell. If you
want to read my very detailed thoughts on this, or Kobe's career in general,
click here.
As
for the Lakers team, they did something I didn’t think was possible, and
had an even worse season than last year’s!
Kobe’s Farewell Tour put a bit lighter spin on the season (for some),
but it was 76ers-bad. I suppose if
you’re going to be bad, be really bad.
It did get them another number two pick in this year’s draft.
Speaking
of number two draft picks, D’Angelo Russell had quite the season. And I don’t mean that in a good way. It wasn’t entirely his fault, for some
strange reason coach Byron Scott thought it would be a good idea to bench their
“supposed” guard of the future, on a team that had very little talent to begin
with. Now if this was part of an
elaborate rouse to tank, then I suppose job well done, but I highly doubt that
was the sole reason. Post-all-star
break, when he was finally allowed to play, there was flashes of what he could
become. In the month of March he averaged nearly 16, 3, and 3. That’s pretty good for a rookie. (A different rookie would make that look like
child’s play, but we’ll get there.) Oh
and there was also that little Nick Young situation… good grief.
Julius
Randle finally got to play this season, after the leg break in game one last
year. I have to say I was pleasantly
surprised. He looked eerily like a Lamar
Odom out there playing. Now, before any
jokes get made, I’m talking strictly about Odom’s playing style not his off the
court
shenanigans. If
he could really turn into the versatile player that Odom was, then the Laker’s
have a piece that they can really turn to.
Right now he’s not quite the passer that Odom was, but he is a really
good ball-handler. In turn, he also was
sixth in total rebounds in the NBA for the year.
All this rookie talk makes me truly think about one
rookie. THE rookie. The rookie of the year Karl-Anthony
Towns. KAT was a monster this year. The Timberwolves truly won the lottery in
every sense of the word with this guy. Okafor
isn’t good enough to wash KAT’s feet at this point. Let’s look at the laundry list of accolades
he compiled this year:
- Rookie of the Year
- All Rookie 1st Team
- Western Conference Rookie of the Month all 6 months
of the season
- Western Conference Player of the Week for the last
week of the season (A good omen to start next year?)
- Played all 82 games
- Season average: 18.3 PPG, 10.5 RPG, 2 APG, 1.7 BPG,
.542 FG%, .811 FT%
- 4th in total rebounds
- 6th in blocks
- 8th in field goal percentage
Towns had the best rookie season in a quite a few
years. I know I say this every year, but
this is my strongest case yet, the Timberwolves are trending upward. I see no reason why KAT can’t be an all star
next season, and some journalists made the argument he should have been All NBA
3rd team. He’s the new era of
big man, that can shoot, and still do the traditional big man game. In fact, I’m so high on him, I see no reason
why he can’t become all the things people expect Anthony Davis to become. (More on him shortly.)
I realize this post isn’t about next year, but if
Towns wasn’t enough, the hiring of Tom Thibodeau will do nothing but add fuel
to the T-Wolves launch into the stratosphere.
There’s also that rumor of Jimmy Butler heading that way, but let’s not
get ahead of ourselves.
I mentioned Anthony Davis a moment ago. He had a season to forget. He only played in 61 games, a trend that
worries me a tad. His career high is 68
games. The whole Pelicans team was
ravaged by injuries, only to win 30 games.
Quite the letdown after last season’s improbable playoff run. I’m sure he’ll be out for vengeance this
coming season, but he’s going to need some serious help. They have the 6th pick this year,
here’s hoping they come up big.
For the second straight season Chris Bosh had to throw
in the towel early due to blood clots.
That’s some scary stuff and I would assume that he is probably
done. Your life isn’t worth a basketball
game. Which is too bad, I’ve ragged on
Bosh in the past, but he was a really good player that had a few more good
years left.
Also likely to be done is Tim Duncan and Manu
Ginobili. Duncan had easily the worst
year of his career, and Ginobili has been on a downward slide for some
time. Ironically, the Spurs kicked all
sorts of ass this year, winning 67 games which was a franchise record. This got overshadowed by another team’s
winning, which is a shame. I wouldn’t
have been surprised at all if the Spurs had won the title.
The Spurs have bridged the gap of old and young talent
better than any team I’ve ever seen.
They scored big last offseason with the Aldridge signing. Then just for a capper they got David West as
well. Aldridge was a key cog for the
Spur’s success, but the main reason was Kawhi Leonard.
Kawhi had never been an all-star prior to this season,
but by season’s end, he was second in MVP voting. Kawhi was a certified stud this year. Aside from the second in MVP voting, he was
defensive player of the year again, obviously an all-star, and averaged 21.2
PPG, 6.8 RPG, 2.6 APG, 1.8 SPG, 1 BPG, .506 FG%, .874 FT%, .443 3PT%.
People are already calling him the best defender of
his generation. (He even got a sweet new
nickname to prove it, “the Claw.” I like
it.) Defense was always the name of his
game, but his offense went to a new level this year. In all actuality, he has improved it every
year, but this was clearly the most dramatic jump. The small forward position is as deep as it’s
ever been and it can be argued if you wanted one to start your franchise,
Leonard could be your man. That’s an
impressive feat to be mentioned in the rare air of LeBron and Durant. Maybe Duncan and/or Ginobili won’t retire
quite yet, but even if they do, the Spurs are still in great hands with the
Claw.
On the opposite end of the spectrum, the Rockets may
be in quite poor hands with James Harden.
I’ve never been sold on Harden as a leader, and his offseason exploits
with a certain reality family leading to an extremely poor, out of shape start
to the season did nothing to disprove me.
It’s apparent he and Dwight Howard hate each other, which can’t be
entirely blamed on Harden. Howard has
crashed and burned on every team he has left.
It was probably destined to be a toxic relationship from the start. They squeaked into the playoffs, which no one
outside of Houston was rooting for. They
played so bad and were such punks, that no one wanted to see them succeed.
Dwight’s able to leave now in free agency,
unfortunately for him, he may be a shell of his former self. He’s not going to get the money he wants
(probably). Who am I kidding? He probably will. Even if he doesn’t, would it be worth it to
him just to leave Houston? Harden seems
to be more alienating every year, from everyone to the fans to his
teammates. Who is going to want to play
with him and his ball-dominating ways?
Harden may need to have a hard look in the mirror if he wants to have
any success.
Speaking of not having any success, my old “pal”
Carmelo Anthony had yet another season of no playoffs. Yes his team wasn’t that great. Only moderately better than last year’s
debacle. Melo’s stats are declining-
slowly. He’s a good player, but his
basketball mentality still drives me nuts.
I don’t feel bad for him at all because he could be playing on a good
team right now. He easily could have
been traded the last few seasons, but he chose not to. He likes New York and all its bright
lights. Which is fine I guess, but if
you want to be considered one of the greats, you can’t be toiling around on
bottom-feeder teams. Which I probably
just answered my own question, he doesn’t care to be one of the greats. He just wants to jack up three’s and collect
a huge paycheck. Good for him. At least he has Porzingis.
You know who else had no success, with an even worse
approval rating than Carmelo? Blake
Griffin that’s who! Mr. Kia Commercial
had possibly the worst season a guy could have.
He had a hamstring injury early in the season that lingered on, all the
while the Clippers started winning.
During that off period, he punched a trainer- repeatedly. Allegedly this trainer was beloved by the
Clippers organization, and even Griffin.
He also allegedly was a tiny little guy.
Granted, almost anyone in the real world would be considered tiny next
to the 6’10” Griffin. Blake got a big
time suspension, and did I mention that the Clippers kept winning?
The Clippers were by no means a contender. I may have underappreciated them some, but
there is no sane argument for them getting past any combination of the
Warriors, Thunder, and Spurs. Maybe one
of the teams, but definitely not two.
I’m a big believer in chemistry, and the fact that they played better
without Blake spoke volumes to me. This
prediction has been thrown around a lot, but Blake Griffin won’t finish next
year in a Clippers uniform.
When the turd finally came back, he got hurt again in
the first round of the playoffs. Chris Paul
also got hurt that same game. Obviously
they’re not going to make any noise without both guys, so the PORTLAND
TRAILBLAZERS knocked them out in the first round. I don’t know what’s going to happen with this
Clippers team. Clearly their version of
the “big three” isn’t championship material and needs some sort of shakeup,
drastic or otherwise.
The aforementioned Lillard was ballin’ with a 25, 7, and 4 (and an all-star snub, but was rewarded with the much more prestigious All NBA 2nd team honor). His partner in crime was C.J. McCollum who averaged nearly 21 PPG, and won the most improved player award. These two guards put the team on their backs and caught everyone off guard (no pun intended). They had a rotating cast of big men, but none would start on a good team. If you gave out a “feel good” award, the Blazers would definitely have won it.
Another feel good story this season was Paul
George. He came back at the tail end of
last season, but was on a major minutes restriction. This year he came back and played 81 games,
but with a new Pacers team. To be
completely honest, a not that spectacular Pacers team. They were an average team in the East. George had career-highs in points and assists,
and came out like a man on fire to begin the year (Eastern Conference player of
the month in November). Then in what has
become a trend for him, went on a bad shooting slump right before the all-star
game, before turning it back on at the end of the year. He made himself yet another All NBA 3rd
team, and best yet, the Pacers were back in the playoffs.
The Pacers opponents in the first round were the
Toronto Raptors. After a flame-out in
last year’s playoffs, Kyle Lowry and DeMar DeRozan both had great regular
seasons. Then history seemed to repeat
itself as the Pacers pushed the Raptors to the brink. The first round of the playoffs were almost
all blowouts, but the Pacers appeared to have the Raps on the ropes. In the end, the Raptors closed in game 7 to
make the second round for the first time in franchise history. But they were sweating to be sure.
After another 7 game series in the second round
against the Heat, the Raptors went on to face Cleveland in the Eastern
Conference Finals. They lost in
six. It was a pretty good showing for a
team that didn’t look like it would make it out of the first round. The problem is that DeRozan is a free agent
now, and appears to be on his way out.
Just speculation at this point obviously, but should he leave, is the
Raptors window closed? Who knows, maybe
they could land another scorer?
They young teams of the Orlando Magic and Milwaukee Bucks both underachieved this season. The Bucks in particular were expect to make a little noise with their ridiculous length and athleticism. Greg Monroe turned out to be a bust for them. I will admit I was wrong on this one. I thought Monroe was a good addition for them. There is hope though. Jabari Parker played in 76 games after missing most of his rookie year. He’s not quite living up to that number two pick status yet (some swore he should have went first), he is however progressing in the right direction. The real diamond on the team seems to be Giannis Anteokounmpo. The Greek Freak may have the hardest name to spell and pronounce in NBA history, but with Jason Kidd declaring him his next point guard (he initially was their small/power forward with ball-handling duties), expectations are soaring. He’s 21, 6’11” and one of the most athletically gifted players in the game. I’m not saying he’s Magic Johnson, but I’m excited about the possibilities here. We shall see.
The two previously mentioned teams were
youngsters. It is expected that they
fall on their face, no matter how much potential is there. One team that was thought to be contenders,
and had been for the last five seasons (more or less) is the Chicago
Bulls. They didn’t even make the
playoffs. This blew my mind. Even without Rose, they should go deep into
the playoffs. The thing is, they had
Rose. He was there for 66 games. Now I was criticizing the Unibrow for only
playing that many, but 66 is a fantastic amount if you’re a long-suffering
Bulls fan. No the problem wasn’t Rose,
every else got hurt. No Bull played all
82 games. Doug McDermott played 81, but
he hasn’t proven to even be a rotation player yet. Jimmy Butler is another guy who had a career
year, but again only played 67 games.
Speculation runs wild that he and Rose had a power struggle/ just don’t
like each other. Who knows whether it is
true or not because with the trade recently it doesn’t matter anymore? The thing is, it ran deeper than those two.
The Bulls team as a whole seemed to hate each other
this year. Was it because of
Hoiberg? The benching of Noah in favor
of Mirotic seemed to rub many the wrong way.
I was in favor of it at the time.
I thought it would help preserve Noah’s body, which in the end didn’t
matter anyway. But clearly it wasn’t the
right move. Even good-natured Pau Gasol
made a few remarks about the in-fighting.
He didn’t name names, he’s too smart for that, but if Pau is coming out
complaining, you know you’re having some problems. He also said, without coming out and saying
it, that he’s leaving in the offseason. For a team that should have been dominating
the Eastern Conference, the future looks really bleak. Add in Jimmy Butler trade rumors, and it
appears the Bulls may be headed to rebuild mode. Which is a damn shame. This Bulls team will easily (in my mind) go
down as one of the “what if” teams.
As previously mentioned, the opening round of the
playoffs were quite dull. The second
round saw things heat up. The Thunder
took on the Spurs, which some thought could be the last series with Kevin
Durant wearing “OKC” on his uniform. The
Thunder are always a good team, but this Spurs team seemed to be something
special. And let’s face it, OKC has been
known to collapse at times, so it seemed to be a foregone conclusion that the
Spurs will win this thing. I would have
bet money that the Spurs could do it in six games or less.
Well the series was decided in six games, but the
result was shocking to anyone outside of OKC.
The Thunder flipped a switch that no one knew that they even had. Durant and Westbrook gave a big middle finger
to anyone who doubted them, but Steven Adams came out with a vengeance. The dude was everywhere. He gave them a grit that they seemingly never
had before. Their defense was locked
down. They suddenly looked like the best
team in the NBA, and I was pissed. I had
been dreaming all year of a Warriors vs. Spurs Western Conference Finals that I
was sure would be the best series of the year; it definitely would be better
than the Finals would be with whatever wimpy Eastern Conference team showed up
to get slaughtered. Boy oh boy was I
wrong.
The Warriors did make the Western Conference Finals, but their journey there was quite remarkable. The opened the season going 24-0, shattering the old record of 15. There didn’t seem to be the “disease of more” going on with this team. In fact, they seemed hungrier. Much like last year, they were blowing people out left and right. I thought they had a chance to reach the coveted 70 wins, and they did just that. Which put another record in play. The immortal 72 wins.
Michael Jordan proponents seem to think that everything he ever did was untouchable. And even if a player/team do achieve the same things, or even more so, it somehow still doesn’t measure up to the god-like MJ and the Bulls. That’s bullshit. Call a spade a spade. The Warriors broke the record with 73 wins. (I don’t care how the season ended for them, they still achieved a once-thought “unattainable” record.) Rant completed.
Despite a hiccup in the second round when Curry was
injured for a couple games, everything was a breeze for Golden State. Then round three was upon us. What was deemed to be a clash of the titans
against the Spurs, who were easily the second best team all season, now faced a
focused Thunder team. I still thought it
was a real possibility that the Warriors could sweep the Thunder. I really thought they were that much
better. Then the series started.
In a huge shocker, the Thunder stole game one in
Oakland. Wow that was unexpected. However the past two years have shown that
when the Warriors did get socked in the mouth, they would then come back the
next game and deliver a knockout blow.
Which they did. All things were
going according to the plan. Then in
games three and four in OKC, the Warriors played probably their worst two games
up to that point, and suddenly OKC was up 3-1?!?! What alternate universe are we living
in?
Statistically speaking, being down 1-3 is almost a
lock that you’re going to lose. Not
impossible obviously, but close enough.
The Warriors had to live by the old adage to “take it one game at a
time.” And that they did. The next three games were competitive, but in
the end the Warriors did the near impossible to keep their dream season alive. I got that dream seven game series that I
wanted, just the participants weren’t exactly how I envisioned. It was pretty awesome.
In the Eastern Conference, nothing exciting happened for the Cavs on the way to the Finals. Shocking, I know. (The East needs more superstars, period.) In fact, they didn’t lose a game until the conference Finals. Which I suppose is exciting if you’re a Cavs fan. That being said, I remember some Cavs team in ’09 that was undefeated through part of the playoffs and it didn’t end so good for them now did it? Now they’re facing a juggernaut in the Golden State Warriors. In the immortal words of Al Bundy, “let’s rock.”
Game one, the Warriors came out and beat the piss out
of the Cavs. I distinctly remember
thinking that this was going to be a sweep.
(Why do I keep thinking that?)
This Cavs team could get rolling at times, but they didn’t have
chemistry. Their pieces don’t fit
together very well. They are just a far
inferior “team” compared to the locked-in Warriors. Game two was more of the same, and then
some. The Warriors completely curb-stomped
the Cavs and headed to Cleveland 2-0.
Game three was an egg for GSW. All the starters (except for Harrison Barnes) played bad, bad but not awful. Unfortunately for them that would come later. The Cavs on the other hand got 30 from LeBron and Kyrie. Even, gasp, J.R. Smith scored 20 points. After nine Finals games, Smith and Irving finally had a good output. For Smith, naturally it would be his last (in his defense he did much better than last year). Irving, not so much. You could argue that Irving’s step up in play ended up winning the series for Cleveland.
The Warriors won game four despite another 30+ point
game from Kyrie. Now with the Warriors
up 3-1, it seems as probable as it possibly could for a second Warriors
championship. Warriors don’t choke, do
they?
Game five was the turning point. Draymond Green was suspended for being a
dumbass one too many times. So naturally
Andre Iguadala was inserted in the starting lineup. He had a near triple double, Klay had 37, and
Curry had 25. Yet, they still lost. That was a bad omen for the Warriors. This will probably be considered a classic
game down the road due to Kyrie and LeBron both scoring 41 points.
In the back of my mind, I wondered if the tide had
turned? Surely the Warriors could get it
done with two more chances? Kyrie coming
on had me nervous though. Game six was
the Warriors worst performance yet. This
fantastic shooting team, just barely shot over .400 for the game. Some LeBron guy scored 41 again. Game 7 really? Did we switch to another alternate universe?
There was no possible way the Warriors were going to
lose game seven on their home court. Not
after being up 3-1, not after a 73 win season.
It just can’t go down that way.
But it did. The Warriors shot the
ball even worse this game (.386) than in game six. With the exception of Draymond. He was projected to come back from suspension
game six and set the world on fire, leading the Warriors to victory with his
energized play. Instead he shit the
bed. Well he was a game late, but he did
so in game seven. 32 points, 15
rebounds, 9 assists, 2 steals, and 75% from 3.
Unfortunately he had no help in the end, as the King won his ring for
Cleveland.
Mr. James was spectacular those last few games. His block on Iguadala in the closing seconds
of game seven is probably the most clutch, intense, incredible block I’ve ever
seen. It is the highlight of the series
for sure. I can’t leave out Kyrie, who
I’ve repeatedly crapped on for his career as being an underachiever and a choke
artist. Well he shut me up this
Finals. So kudos to him and congrats to
the Cavaliers for winning their first NBA championship.
The cool thing now is to shit on the Warriors. Curry is overrated blah, blah, blah. You do remember what happened last year
right? You do remember he was the
rightful MVP of the last two seasons?
You do remember that he has set numerous NBA records, and then proceeded
to break his own record right? I’m not
worried about the Golden State Warriors one bit. You don’t think they’re going to be
contenders again next year? Barring some
catastrophic injury, I don’t see how they couldn’t be. Haters gonna hate I suppose.
Since I brought up MVP, let’s talk about the
awards. Curry was the first unanimous
MVP. I’m really shocked there hadn’t
been a unanimous one before, but no doubt Curry rocked it this year.
Rookie of the Year I’ve sung the praises of enough
already. Karl-Anthony Towns was amazing,
and a future superstar. This was almost
as much of a landslide as the MVP voting.
Kawhi won Defensive Player of the Year again, and got
second in MVP voting on top of that.
Draymond was his main competition, but Kawhi is the golden boy as far as
defense goes.
Jamal Crawford won the Sixth Man of the Year in the
weakest ballot yet. I don’t know if it’s
getting worse every year, or I just care less and less about this award every
year. Crawford’s win came out of the
blue to me. I hate the Clippers so I’m
not the most informed of them, but everything I was hearing this year says the
Crawford was washed up. I probably would
have voted for Andre Iguadala because he means so much to that team, but Enes
Kanter was probably a worthy candidate as well.
C.J. McCollum won the most ridiculous award of the
year, also known as “most improved.” It
wouldn’t be so ridiculous if it had definite guidelines, but it’s so open to
interpretation (sounds like someone’s argument for a different award) that it’s
silly. This year had more all-stars
nominated than probably ever before (Curry even got some votes). But to me, this award shouldn’t be about all
stars, and McCollum was a perfect recipient.
The All Defensive Teams looked like this:
1st team
DeAndre Jordan
Draymond Green
Kawhi Leonard
Avery Bradley
Chris Paul
2nd team
Tony Allen
Hassan Whiteside
Jimmy Butler
Paul Millsap
Paul George
Do you see any issues with those? Me neither, let’s move on.
All NBA 1st team:
Steph Curry
LeBron James
DeAndre Jordan
Russell Westbrook
Kawhi Leonard
Never has it been more apparent at the lack of great
centers in the NBA as it is when DeAndre Jordan is first team all NBA. I could
maybe see him on second team, but come on.
Marc Gasol getting hurt for most of the year kind of screwed it up, and
Cousins is too much of a loose cannon to give the award to (plus the Kings blow,
so that works against him as well.)
Ideally, Draymond Green should have been Center-eligible and he could
have slid in there.
All NBA 2nd team
DeMarcus Cousins
Kevin Durant
Draymond Green
Damian Lillard
Chris Paul
How long has it been since Durant has not been on 1st
team? (Not counting last year when he
was hurt) It shows the ridiculous depth
of the forwards nowadays, the small forward in particular. It makes the DeAndre 1st team pick
look more ridiculous when you see Durant’s name on the 2nd team.
All NBA 3rd team
LaMarcus Aldridge
Paul George
Klay Thompson
Andre Drummond
Kyle Lowry
I would make the argument that jimmy butler should be
the guard over Lowry, but the Bulls lack of success and his injuries make his
exclusion seem justified.
And finally free agency. There is only one free agent worth talking
about. His name is Kevin Durant. Sure there are some other really good ones
out there, but the one that causes every other domino to fall is Durant. Smart money says he should stay one more year
in OKC, then if he so desires, he and Westbrook can give it one last shot, and
choose to go their separate ways.
It does make sense, the way they clamped down on GSW
was quite impressive. However they still
pissed it away in the end, which has always been the problem in Oklahoma
City. I don’t think Durant and Westbrook
complement each other. I used to, but I
now feel Durant needs a traditional point guard if he wants to win it all. (The problem for Westbrook is, I don’t know
what kind of star player could compliment him.)
The crazy rumor is that Durant would go to Golden State. Harrison Barnes is free agent, and likely to
move, so Durant would just slide right in there. On paper it sounds incredible. All those amazing shooters. The problem is there is only one ball. Klay Thompson would figure to be the odd man
out, but everyone’s touches would dramatically decrease. The Warriors have proven to be a selfless team,
but integrating a new superstar to your battle-tested lineup would be tough.
I think Durant just may go to Miami. Going to the Eastern Conference makes sense,
and living in Miami sure can’t be a bad thing.
That way he gets to take on LeBron 4 times a year, and can enjoy
possibly knocking him out of the playoffs early. That would take some sting away from not
winning a ring yet. Pat Riley is a hell
of a salesmen, and I wouldn’t count him out.
Just for fun here are some other predictions:
- Dwyane Wade signs with Cleveland. Granted if Durant went to Miami that may stop him, but I could easily see this going down.
- The Timberwolves will be a hair away from making the playoffs, but only to come back with a vengeance the following year, ending their playoff drought.
- J.R. Smith parties all offseason following the championship and is never seen again.
- Phil Jackson resigns from the Knicks
- The Lakers still suck, but there may be a glimmer of hope
- Derrick Rose gets hurt
- Andrew Bynum dyes his hair green
- Chris Paul forces the clippers to make panic trades, they all blow up in his face, and he demands to be traded
- Dirk signs with the Spurs- just kidding
- After another horrendous start by the Rockets, James harden is “injured” for the remainder of the season (yet still plays in the all star game)
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