By Will Keyse
A new season of NBA basketball kicked off last week with the defending champion Cleveland Cavaliers receiving their championship rings before their game against the new-look New York Knicks. Cleveland looks to repeat their run to the NBA Finals, but will face heavy opposition from teams loaded up with new free agents.
The offseason this winter was filled with blockbuster moves and with big market teams landing some of the league’s best players. In perhaps the largest move of the summer, Oklahoma City Thunder star Kevin Durant parted ways with his longtime franchise to team up with Klay Thompson and Steph Curry on the Golden State Warriors.
The Warriors, already considered by-and-large the premier team in the league, added a two-time former MVP and scoring champion to their roster, sending the expectations through the roof and placing a target on their backs as the team to beat this season.
Several teams in the Eastern conference saw the dynamic of their lineup shift drastically—most notably the New York Knicks and the Chicago Bulls. Longtime Bulls players Derrick Rose and Joakim Noah signed with the Knicks to form up with Carmelo Anthony in an effort to dethrone LeBron James and the Cavs as the best team in the East. Dwyane Wade moved on from the Miami Heat after 13 years to play with his hometown Chicago Bulls, and was joined by former Sacramento Kings point guard Rajon Rondo.
The scene out west is dominated by young talent, with the Minnesota Timberwolves trio of Karl Anthony-Towns, Andrew Wiggins and Zach LaVine and the dynamic backcourt duo of Damian Lillard and CJ McCollum for the Portland Trail Blazers looking to make deep runs into the playoffs.
This year’s NBA season will be missing several surefire Hall of Famers that retired last season. Kevin Garnett retired as a Minnesota Timberwolf after 20 energy-filled years in the NBA. Tim Duncan retired from the San Antonio Spurs after a 19-year career, bringing five championships to Southern Texas, leaving the franchise in the hands of Lamarcus Aldridge and Kawhi Leonard.
Kobe Bryant also called it quits on a dominant and iconic career this past season, and his Los Angeles Lakers will be in true rebuilding form. The Lakers look to center their success around top draft picks Brandon Ingram and D’Angelo Russell.
The season began on Oct. 25, and Puget Sound students can continue to get their pro basketball fix through May and June of next year with the NBA playoffs.