The NBA on IFSF

Once again, I'm hopelessly addicted. For 55 years, ever since I saw the great Philadelphia Warrior Hal Greer shoot free throws as jump shots in the early 1960's on the weekly Sunday TV broadcast, The NBA on ABC (Chris Schenkel and Jack Twyman announcing), I've been hooked on professional basketball. The stuff just seems to get better and better, at least good enough to keep pace with nostalgia.

There were 9 teams in the NBA then. The 24-second clocks were set in little metal cages under the baskets, about 5 ft. or so beyond the baseline. Most players had off-season jobs. There was a guard for the St. Louis Hawks, Chico Vaughn, who drank so heavily no one wanted to guard him (he reeked). Some players smoked cigarettes and drank coffee at the end of practice, after doing windsprints. I once saw 6-7 Laker Rudy LaRusso make a shot while laying flat on his back on the floor--a three-point shot if ever there was one: just try it. This must have been 1963 or 4 when The Lakers were playing in the LA Sports Arena, which, despite its name, wasn't built for sports but for the 1960 Democratic Convention.

There are now 30 teams in the NBA, and the league more than ever mirrors our national socio/politican situation: a serious, unbridgeable division between the HAVES and HAVENOTS. The haves are SUPRA ELITE (Cavs, Warriors, Spurs). Then there are THE UP AND COMERS (The Bucks, TWolves, Wiz, Celtics, Clippers) who are the most fun to watch, with just enough pure and wild talent to be able to project themselves into the dream of someday lifting The O'Brien Trophy and receiving The White House invite. Then there are the teams that HAVE NO HOPE, no matter how good they are or what they do: the best of these are The Portland Trail Blazers and The Toronto Raptors, The Pelicans, and the worst The Mavericks and The New York Knicks.

Five teams I like to watch, and that I've seen play this year:

San Antonio Spurs, the General Motors of the NBA. I just love this team!  The Spurs are a team that believes that a strong federal government can and should provide services the states just can't manage. Look at all the beautiful moving parts. Kyle Anderson AND Manu Ginobelli! A center who can hit the 15-foot turnaround. I know, many think Aldridge is soft but I'm sensing something new and edgy about him this year; he too hopes to make a social statement by declining an invite to The White House.

Boston Celtics. Despite the setback on opening night (Hayward) these guys are upward bound. GM Ainge's (you can trace at least one Celtic decline, 1989, when Ainge the player was traded by Boston to Sacramento). allegiance to the Green is written in blood and he's put together a group that may be 2 or 3 years away, but a team built to last. Brad Stevens is the best young coach in the league, a coach who actually makes a difference, of whom there may be three or four others. Kyrie Irving can break down any defense, and no one in the NBA wants to be guarded by Marcus Smart, a throwback player to the days when post-game hugs WERE NOT EXCHANGED by opposing players. 

Memphis Grizzlies. Ok, second best young coach in the NBA: David Fizdale. Where'd this guy come from? O, LA, I should have known. This guy has style! Panache! Is there a better center/point combo than Marc Gasol and Michael Conley? Gasol's lost his baby fat, and Conley looks healthy. Tyreke Evans, a talent, appears rejuvenated, like he actually wants to play for his paycheck, and Mario Chalmers already has a ring. They will miss Zach Randolph in more ways than one (free weed) but will be much more up-tempo without him. Hint: Memphis is a team The Warriors don't enjoy playing.

Los Angeles Lakers. Confession: I liked watching LA last year. Did anyone other than me notice the stylistic links between DeAngelo Russell and Alan Iverson, though Russell's gone now to The Nets? Brandon Ingram has enough regard for his game to have already elected himself SuperStar. I've never been on the Ball bandwagon, but if Magic thinks he's the manchild who am I to argue? They're mostly young enough to play hard for fun, though I did spot fossils Andrew Bogut and Luol Deng in their huddle the other night. But no more Swaggy P. Prediction: The Lakers will play The Celtics for the 2020 NBA Championship.

Oklahoma City Thunder. Not that I think this thing is going to work--Westbrook/George/Anthony--but that I like to watch far-fetched, expensive experiments doomed to failure. Carmelo Anthony is the Chris Paul of power forwards: put him in the test tube with the explosive Michael Westbrook, a force of nature, and expect the unexpected--a blowout loss in the 7-game of the conference final, if they get that far. The notion that the manic Westbrook and the catch-and-hold Anthony can actually work together as one basketball machine doesn't have a lot of legs but, as they say, 'there's no i in team.'

Next NBA on IFSF posting: 4 Teams I Don't Like, Can't Watch, and Why.