Bold Predictions for the 2011/2012 NBA Season: Part I

I woke up uncharacteristically early Sunday Morning November 26, 2011, still recovering from a turkey induced coma. This unusual early morning wake up can only be categorized as a beautiful instance of fate. I wearily looked at my phone, body aching with the after effects of thirds and fourths of garlic mashed potatoes, to see a tweet sent to me by fellow COA writer, Connor Witt, that read, “#NBAisBack.” Never hath my eyes turned upon such a simple yet glorious proclamation. I had a brief moment to gather myself, possibly a few single tears of joy, and then fervently tore through any sports media I could get my hands on, because it seemed too good to be true. The "tentative deal" struck between the NBAPA and NBA Owners seemed to emerge out of thin air, but there it was, unlikely and controversial, but to this beholder, beautiful. NBA basketball lived.

At this point, I must apologize to our loyal readers. I hate to admit my writing professionalism was shattered. I wanted to sulk, cry and curse the system. When the abbreviation NBA was uttered, a video montage of NBA highlights played in my head to the tune of REM’s “Everybody Hurts.” This doesn’t justify my neglect, but I hope you can find it in your hearts to forgive my absence. It was a dark time. Needless to say, I was not optimistic about an NBA season coming to fruition. I had all but counted my proverbial chickens and was ready to start my bracketology studies much earlier than I expected or wanted.

Against all odds, the league and players came through. And now, the NBA’s delayed start has begun to really tickle the imagination and eagerness of basketball fans everywhere. As the old adage goes, “absence makes the heart grow fonder.” Quite frankly, this season has all the pieces to be potentially one of the most tremendous basketball seasons in recent memory. These 66 games have presented the Association with the opportunity to make believers out of the many doubters created by the NBA lockout More than ever, there are a lot if ins, a lot of outs, and inevitably, a lot of what-have-you’s. So without further ado, let the speculation begin! Here are some bold predictions for the 2011/2012 NBA season, brought to you by none other than Court of Appeals.

Christmas Day Predictions!

New York Knicks vs. Boston Celtics

Everybody and their dog knows that the Knicks traded everything but the kitchen sink for superstar Carmelo Anthony before the trade deadline last year. Between Anthony, Stoudemire, and Billups, the Knicks have the perfect concoction of youth, experience and talent to be a special team this year. With role player Landry Fields and first round draft pick Iman Shumpert picking it up on D, D'Antony's Knicks could be dynamic in the Big Apple. Boston showed their age down the stretch in the playoffs last year, and I think this fatigue is bound to catch up to these aging superstars. Lookout Boston Three Party, there's a new sheriff out East.

WINNER: New York Knicks

Miami Heat vs. Dallas Mavericks

Ya hate 'em or you love 'em, though cliché, nothing could be truer about this team. Most people expected the Heat to roll through the league with ease, but when they stumbled along the way, doubts began to arise. The Heat fell well short of NBA analyst, Jeff Van Gundy's, 72 win prediction, and people no longer felt the Heat to be favorites for the Eastern Conference crown. LeBron's Heat proved the doubters wrong and galloped into the NBA Finals. They met an unbelievably hot Mavericks team, and what can you say, they got Dirked. A little food for thought: this was the first year these three were together and they came within inches of the trophy. LeBron, Wade and Bosh are too good, too tenacious and too hungry to let the Mavs thwart them again on Christmas Day.

Winner: Miami Heat

Chicago Bulls vs. Los Angeles Lakers

Many had the Bulls riding that number 1 seed to the NBA Finals last year, but inexperience and fatigue seemed to set in as the Heat took the series easily 4 games to 1. Out west, Los Angeles seemed to show their age down the stretch, being swept handily by Dallas. Pau faded, Kobe and Artest (are we supposed to say Metta World Peace yet?) looked old and their frustration began to show. I think this will be the best game of the day and probably the closest. As a tiebreaker, I'll give it to the better conference.

Winner: Los Angeles Lakers

Mike Brown wins Coach of the Year

One of the bigger headlines from the Dallas Maverick’s sweep of the Los Angeles Lakers last year was that longtime coach Phil Jackson would finally retire. Jackson created an absolute basketball juggernaut in LA and his triangle offense works season in and season out. The unique thing about the Lakers though, is that they have a head coach on the floor. With the system that Jackson has implemented, NBA superstar Kobe Bryant has inherited this structure as second nature.. In Spike Lee’s movie, Kobe Doin’ Work, Lee sheds light on not only the brilliant and unbridled athlete Kobe is, but also the basketball knowledge he has mastered. All first year head coach, Mike Brown, needs to do is stick to formula that Phil Jackson has established. If Brown sticks to the script and lets his players do the work, the Lakers will continue to do what they always do and Brown will get the credit.

Monta Ellis becomes a 76er and leads them to deep playoff run

The small guard combo of Monta Ellis and Stephen Curry in Golden State has, so to speak, proved to come up short. The lack of defense and rebounding in this system has yielded little results. There’s no doubt that the Warriors have to make a change to be a contender in the ever-competitive Western Conference. There’s no doubt that Philly has been trying to shop Iguodala and a straight swap for Ellis seems to make perfect sense. Iggy provides height, defense, length and rebounding to a team that desperately needs all of these things. Philly needs a running mate to pair with emerging forward Thaddeus Young. Ellis is one of the most exciting and dynamic players, and could relieve thrive in the Eastern Conference. Monta reminds me of a guy the Sixers used to have, and if memory serves me correctly, that guy did pretty well in that system.

Alec Burks wins Rookie of the Year

Burks has never gotten much love as a basketball player. Going into college, the best school to look his way was the University of Colorado-Boulder, not exactly basketball Mecca. Ever since, Burks has played with a chip on his shoulder, which has served to his benefit. Being drafted 12^th overall by the Utah Jazz, Burks has a blossoming NBA game and will get plenty of playing time with a system that allows its rookies to prove themselves, a la Wes Matthews. “Draft experts” knocked Burks for not having the three-point range a shooting guard in the NBA needs to be succesful. Burks has used this lockout time to foster his three-point jumper. At the Pro Player Charity Classic, Burks efficiently stroked the pumpkin, going 5/6 from downtown and finishing with 29 points. In a draft class heralded as one of the weakest in recent memory, I think Burks unexpectedly steals the show, like he’s so used to doing.

Kevin Durant wins MVP

This lanky assassin has undoubtedly proved to be an elite player in the NBA. With unchecked range, and slick basketball prowess Durant has sealed himself as a league favorite. Though Durant was knocked for disappearing during last year’s playoff series against the Mavericks, Durant is young and will get plenty of chances to go deep in the spring. Durant will always get his numbers, and with this young team a year older and a year wiser I see them a legitimate contenders out of the West. With his squeaky-clean reputation and humble demeanor, the league is dying to give this guy MVP honors and I think this could be his year.

Miami Heat, NBA Champions

This season has been tailor-made for LeBron, he only has to play 3/4 of it! Joking aside, the guy is the most dominant force in the NBA and won’t let the chance to get his ring slip through his fingers again. The Heat nearly accomplished what they had promised in one year of play. The Heat had virtually no role players, and this year have the opportunity to snag some guys that can take the load off of the Big Three. Three names come to mind, Nene, Samuel Dalembert and Mehmet Okur. These three guys are huge competitors, aging and are hungry for a ring. With all the clout and hate surrounding the Heat last year, they made an unlikely run to the Finals but were thwarted by an unreasonably hot Dallas team. The only way Dallas was going to beat the Heat was if they played out of their mind, and they did. LeBron gets his ring. Everyone has had their shot at the King, but remember, he who laughs last laughs loudest.

Court is adjourned.

It Was The Best of Times, It Was The Worst of Times

by Connor Witt

I cannot say for certain what inspired Charles Dickens' inspiration to write A Tale of Two Cities, but recently I've hatched quite the theory. Since its release in 1859, we have been misinterpreting Dickens' famed novel. This whole time we've falsely believed that the novel was really about the French Revolution and other 18th century European mumbo jumbo. But no! The secret metaphor has been hiding in plain sight for over 150 years now, in the often quoted but rarely understood introductory phrase.

"It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, itwas the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity..."


Isn't it now crystal clear to you? Charles Dickens did not write a novel about the French Revolution, it was all a metaphor about  to the conclusion of the 2011 NBA season! That Dickens... truly a visionary. See the connection? No? Allow me to elaborate:


"It was the best of times, it was the worst of times"


The NBA is enjoying some of its greatest success in years at the moment. We are in the midst of a competitive series featuring four surefire future Hall of Famers in LeBron, Wade, Dirk, and Kidd. If that weren't enough, there are a number of other plots that make this series riveting. Can the Mavericks avenge their loss to the Heat in the 2006 Finals? Will Jason Terry have to get his Larry O'Brien trophy tattoo removed? Can the Mavs' win a ring before their title window closes? And of course, the Finals' most appealing storyline: the boo-boo on Dirk's non shooting hand can The Heatles live up to the hype and win a title in their first season Post-Decision? The intrigue surrounding this series has resulted in the highest TV ratings for the Finals in seven years.


However, not all is good and merry in the NBA. With 1,308 NBA games already completed this season, we are down to the last two or three. We must embrace the last few contests because no one can say for certain when we will see another NBA tipoff after these Finals conclude. 


On the eve of Game 5, players' union president Derek Fisher revealed that the owners' collective bargaining agreement proposal has remained essentially unchanged since their original proposal over a year ago. This is a grave sign for all those who had held out hope for an unscathed 2011-2012 season. Barring some sort of miracle, there will be an NBA lockout beginning July 1, and the significant progress that was made this season will be put on hold. The memories of a great season featuring The Decision, Derrick Rose's rise to greatness, Carmelo's blockbuster trade, and the downfall of the Lakers will be all basketball fans have to cling to as we wait anxiously for NBA basketball to resume.


"it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness"


I'll start with the age of foolishness on this one, and where better to begin than with the Golden State Warriors, a franchise that has exemplified foolishness in recent years (see: Adonal Foyle's 6-year, $42 million contract in 2004.) I thought perhaps the winds of change were blowing in the Bay Area when the team was sold to Joe Lacob in July of last year. The new management would surely learn from the mistakes of the previous ownership group and the failures of Nellie ball for Golden State.


The Warriors parted ways with coach Keith Smart in April with the best intentions of rebuilding the franchise. Lacob stated his intentions of hiring a coach "with, certainly, experience, someone with a lot of great ability to relate to players." It was the right criteria, the Warriors needed someone who knew how to manage their crowd of young talent and get them playing in a structured system where they could build a team identity.


So what did the Warriors do? Hire Mark Jackson, the only candidate with no coaching experience and no established system, of course!


Mark Jackson was a great player in his day and he could become a capable coach, but why, Golden State, why? Rick Adelman, Brian Shaw, and Lawrence Frank were all available and each could have brought some stability to the organization. I'll root for Mark Jackson to succeed with the Warriors, but the last thing the trigger-happy trio of Stephen Curry, Dorrell Wright, and Monta Ellis need -- if Ellis is still with Golden State by next season -- is a coach learning on the fly.


There is a silver lining to the Warriors' hiring Mark Jackson, and I'll give you a hint: it has nothing to do with the Warriors. Jackson leaves his position as an ESPN broadcaster to take the Warriors job, and his new gig leaves an open seat that needs to be filled so that we're not forced to listen to Jeff Van Gundy's rants for the entirety of the game. How convenient then that this vacancy coincides with Shaquille O'Neal's retirement. If we are forced to continue listening to Van Gundy, the least ESPN can do is complement him with Shaq. Honestly, how is ESPN going to pass up the opportunity to feature the oddest television duo since Flavor Flav and Brigitte Nielsen? Shaq could be just the person to put Van Gundy in his place the way Mark Jackson never could. 


Imagine:

Van Gundy: "Ya know, that really ticks me off! Nowadays players are taking 3, 4, 5 steps without a whistle for traveling. Back in my day, if you took -"


Shaq (in Shaq voice, mind you): "Listen up, little man! Cut the jibber jabber, if viewers wanted to hear about dinosaurs they'd be watching History Channel."


In addition to the commentary, Shaq's plethora of nicknames could make for an all-time great title for a television segment ("Monday Night Hoops with Superman and Clark Kent", "Tip-Off with the Shaq Diesel and Little Biodiesel", "JVG and Chamberneezy," the possibilities are endless.) 


Please, ESPN. Please.


"it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity"


LeBron James is coming off a regular season in which he established himself as the top player in the game. Had he not been sharing the spotlight with his running mate Dwyane Wade, his play would have merited a third straight MVP award. He answered early-season concerns about clashing egos in Miami by being a vocal leader, emphasizing defense, and involving his teammates on the offensive end. He battled through unimaginable scrutiny every away game, none more intense than his first return trip to Cleveland (in which he put up a cool 38, 8, and 5, while observing the entire fourth quarter from the bench.) With that game, America had proof that LeBron had the ability to deliver what Bill Simmons has dubbed an "Eff You" performance, an outstanding game motivated by a personal desire to annihilate the other team and shut up their crowd. This gave people the belief that perhaps it was not too late for LeBron to replicate Jordan's greatness. (For the record, LeBron is not Jordan, nor will he ever be. He has not asked to be compared to Jordan. Please, world, stop acting like LeBron is letting you down by not living up to Michael Jordan's feats.)


Then came the Finals.


In games 3 through 5, LeBron pulled an unfathomable unless you watched last year's Cleveland/Boston series vanishing act in the fourth quarter. After teasing us with late game heroics in the Eastern Conference Finals against the Bulls, LeBron has been nowhere to be found in these last three games. I could toss out any number of statistics about LeBron shitting the proverbial bed down the stretch, but the eye test says more about what is going on with King James.


LeBron wants the title to be won for him. He is not showing the necessarily killer instinct, the desire to take the game over and ensure his team comes out victorious. If there is any way that Miami even makes it to Game 7, LeBron will have to make us believe once again. Or, then again, he could keep passing to Wade and watch him shoulder the load.


Court adjourned.