Oct 19, 202311 min read

Hoop-Scoop: Hoop SZN

Five more sleeps until the NBA's new campaign is officially underway. Per usual, the noise is hot on the stove going into another opener. More drama infestation in Philadelphia; new "super" trios ready to show their unity; and several teams hopin' to prove they don't belong in the basement and in the lottery every year. Sprinkle in the new in-season tournament and personal vendettas... basketball is back!

The NBA has a slew of headlines and questions that spark the opening week. Will the East get legit? Will we see more than eight teams be legitimate title contenders? Can the new big threes actually be "big"? Ah, so many questions as we get ready for the tip. Jam packed season preview of the Hoop-Scoop... lets talk some ball.

The Eastern Conference has had a consistent power four atop the conference in the Celtics; Heat; 76ers; and Bucks. All four teams are consistently posting .600 win percentages in the NBA regular season the past few years. The problem is once you look past those four, you notice the rest of the East is extremely weak. Last year the first three seeds (PHI; MIL; and BOS) all had more wins and higher win-percentages than any of the Western Conference teams- including the NBA champion Denver Nuggets. There is a simple reason on why that is: and it's not the three East teams being better then the West' powerhouses.

The Eastern Conference lacks depth of competitive teams, and has for some time. The Nuggets were better than all three teams last year; they have a title to back that up but, the top of the East had more wins due to conference play as the top four seeds beat up the teams 5-15. Collectively the (1) Bucks and (2) Celtics had a combined conference record of 69-49; the top four seeds in the East all had a better conference record than the West led Nuggets. The West only had the Nuggets who ended the season with a conference record win percentage better than .600- the East had the Bucks; Celtics; 76ers; and Cavaliers.

There is an obvious drop off of comp' level when you compare the 6-15 seeds in the East with those in the West. Ten Western Conference teams had better than a .500 conference win percentage compared to the East's seven. Will the East show more depth this year? The bottom 6 teams had solid off-seasons in hopes to answer that question with a yes.

Last year's bottom two in the East, Detroit and Charlotte, both got better in the offseason. They each welcome stud rookies with the Pistons' Ausar Thompson and the Hornets' Brandon Miller to help bolster the clubs out of the basement of the East and back in the fray of the comp'. The Pistons got demolished last season across the East, going 8-44 in conference play. I predict that to change this season with what I have seen from the Pistons in preseason. They should be much more competitive, and may even surprise some people. The combination of Jalen Duren and Ausar Thompson is very appealing. I believe the Pistons should absolutely play Thompson at the 3 with Ivey at the 2. If Cade Cunningham and Duren can stay healthy, this young core will take many steps forward. The veteran presences of Monte Morris; Bogdanovic; and Joe Harris will give the rotation a perfect touch and should help elevate the younger players as they progress and gel as a unit. Very solid rebuild in Motown.

I predict the same notion for the Hornets who ended 15-37 in conference play in the last campaign. The return of LaMelo Ball is huge; the forward duo of P.J. Washington and rook Brandon Miller will accompany Ball well on the floor making the Hornets a better club just off paper alone. As long as Ball and co. can stay healthy- the Hornets will improve this year. They will take a shot at the play-in tourney. Improvement is also what the Magic; Wizards; Pacers; and Bulls look for as well.

Pacers made some moves this offseason, creating a quite interesting rotation and one that could be good depending on consistency. Indiana brought in forwards Obi Toppin and world champ' Bruce Brown Jr. Toppin gets a fresh start in a system that fits his offerings well, while Brown is coming off a great season in Denver that is summarized around his stellar playoff performance that helped elevate the Nuggets to their first title. Toppin and Brown accompany the Pacers' backcourt of Bennedict Mathurin and Tyrese Haliburton nicely. I like what they are doing in Indiana, I think they have a surprising ceiling of 45-48 wins.

Wizards added some interesting pieces as well in guards Tyus Jones and Jordan Poole to join a young and thin team in DC. Wizards also drafted the lengthy international talent in Frenchman Bilal Coulibaly. Building off of Daniel Gafford and Kyle Kuzma; the Wizards have a very interesting starting five. The roster still is bare bench wise but, the starting backcourt could be pretty damn solid. Washington placed 12th in the East last year with a 35-47 record. I predict the Wizards to improve on offense, I still question the depth and the consistency of Kuzma and Poole but, they should still have a ceiling of 40 wins with eyes on the play-in tourney. Gafford and Jones could be a real good pick and roll in DC. Good additions by the Wizards.

When you consider the Magic and their growth in the offseason, the basement teams of the East look like they all could improve as squads in the new campaign. The comp in the East will sure to be better off that fact, I do question the bottom playoff seeds from last season on how much they improve in the new season. The Bulls didn't make any real changes in the off-season, they will roll with the their big three of LaVine; Vucevic; and DeRozan. Ending the season last year two games under .500 and the 10th seed was quite a disappointment in my opinion. Toronto was in the same boat as Chicago... and still are going into the opener. Raptors' backcourt will be interesting without Fred VanVleet as Dennis Schröder becomes the new point. I don't have much confidence in the Bulls and Raptors having a high ceiling, they stay at the .500 threshold in a fight for the play-in.

The Nets and Knicks didn't do anything in the off-season to move their needles either. Mikal Bridges will have a good year in Brooklyn and I expect the same for Jalen Brunson in New York. Both squads are still right there and should be playoff worthy, they just don't look as strong as the Bucks; Celtics; and Cavs. Hopefully they prove my prediction wrong. We need more comp across the East. Last year's playoffs were underwhelming and so were the TV games across the regular season (should change with new star rule). The East is slowly building prestige again, lets see if the teams can take the next step forward in 2023-24.

Prestige is already known in the West. The new season should bring a loud race to the mountain between the elite. The Nuggets finally got the monkey off their back as they won their first championship in franchise history, the Suns formed a "big" three, and the Grizzlies/Kings look to build off last year to stay in the elite. Do we see a shift in positioning?

Some feel the Nuggs may go on a championship decline after losing some key members of the championship team- including major depth to the rotation. Hard to tell if they do or not. They still have Jokic. The big question that I have- will we ever see playoff Jamal Murray full-time in the regular season? Murray was exceptional again in the playoffs and a huge factor in the title run. If Murray continues his playoff play in the new campaign- the Nuggets will be the number one seed in the West for back-to-back years. Murray playin' 60+ games last year was a plus, now lets see if he can put it all together.

The Suns improved on paper in a big way by adding Bradley Beal in the first big move that struck the NBA offseason. Phoenix also joined in on the Damian Lillard mega-trade by movin' on from center Deandre Ayton, replacing him with Jusuf Nurkic as well as adding some depth that was lost in the Beal trade. Quite a roster twist for a team that was the 4 seed outta the West last season. Suns obviously took the conference semifinal lost to the Nuggets hard, as they form a possible big three with Beal; Durant; and Booker. The three should put numbers up in the regular season, the big question is can Beal and Durant stay healthy? Neither have played in more than 60 regular season games in the past three seasons. If that changes and they both stay healthy, then this team can win 50-60 games quite easily. It sure will be interesting to see Beal at the one & to see how the offense will work. One thing is for sure... someone is going to be open. I hope Booker comes out of it with more of the touches, to be honest. Let him be that mid-range machine with Beal and Durant prepared to break the barriers on the outside. Durant should limit his slashing to telly games and the playoffs.

Suns and Nuggets don't have any crazy concerns outside of Phoenix's injury fear; that's not the case for the rest of the Western Conference- especially last years 2 and 3 seeds in the Grizzlies and Kings. How will Memphis fare without their starting point guard Ja Morant, who serves a 25-game suspension and isn't eligible to return until December 19th? Many people think Morant is a huge absence for the Grizz, after the addition of Marcus Smart- I am not one of those people. Morant is a flashy player who posses a slashing ability that can shred the spacing inside the key on any possession but, he lacks on defense of late and has been high on turnovers. With the ball, Morant doesn't always give the Grizzlies the best offense- Marcus Smart will and even more so than Tyus Jones did. Smart is poised as a caller on the offense. He posses a raw competitive edge that has made him an elite defender, something Memphis has needed & hasn't had in the backcourt since Tony Allen. Smart should accompany Desmond Bane well. Morant's absence isn't earth shattering whatsoever for the Grizzlies.

The mystery comes with the consistency of Desmond Bane, who is the number one scoring option to start the season; and the rotation in full being productive. Jaren Jackson Jr. can be a game changer on defense but, does like to get in foul trouble. Considering John Konchar being the starting small forward, if Jackson fouls out, the Grizz are bare at forward. To be frank, they are bare at every position. Memphis may have a bottom 5 bench in the league. I predict they decline from the big year they had last season; I just don't see this team winning 50 plus games. Ceiling in the 40s with a play-in reality. Same reality for the Sacramento Kings as well. Being the three seed was a huge thing for a Kings squad that delivered the franchise it's first playoff win since 2006. Unfortunately, the Kings lost a heartbreaking game seven to the Warriors in that opening round. I don't predict some crazy off the cliff decline, low 40s in wins seems more fitting.

It's an easy prediction to have the powerhouse Nuggets and Suns as the top two in the West; the rest of the seeds could be anyone's taking in my opinion. The comp has gotten tougher, I am excited to see how the Western Conference pans out in the new campaign. Should be another dose of noise for us to enjoy.

First it was Beal being dealt to the Suns, then the offseason wrapped up with Damian Lillard being dealt to Milwaukee. Big time additions for both squads but, how big truly are the additions?

The Bucks are ecstatic to bring in Lillard to bolster the offensive attack. The addition of Dame provides the Bucks with tremendous spacing thanks to his infamous long-range shooting and elite shot creation around the perimeter. Lillard and Khris Middleton should be able to feast on open looks with Giannis disrupting the paint. Lillard's 32.2 points per game is the most by a player to change teams the following season. Adding a 30+ point scorer to this Bucks team is big time. Giannis and Middleton going cold led to many playoff losses. Not only do they add an elite scorer to the backcourt, but the spacing and presence of Lillard will give Milwaukee a whole new look on offense. A dangerous look in the eyes of defenses. The kicker? They get hit hard on the defensive end as they lose Jrue Holiday as part of the trade.

Bucks backcourt of Malik Beasley and Damian Lillard is one that is weak defensively speaking. The depth behind them makes things worse. The Bucks downgrade big time on defense losing Holiday. Like big time! A big reason the Bucks lost 5 of their last 8 playoff games by blowouts (13+) is due to the lack of depth in the rotation and poor defense outside of Jrue Holiday. They gave up a lot for Lillard. Bucks have great depth and solid defense now in the frontcourt with their forwards and centers. Brook Lopez is elite and they have Jae Crowder and Bobby Portis to add defensive presences off the bench. The backcourt lacks both and may be a liability at times. Will trading defense for elite scoring be their missing piece to return to the wonderland of winning a NBA championship? Giannis Antetokounmpo; Khris Middleton; and Brook Lopez's tenures are nearing it's final chapters in Milwaukee. The Bucks are in full out win now mode. The Lillard addition makes things exciting for the franchise and for the Eastern Conference. I am intrigued to find out how new head coach Adrian Griffin fares with this new era in Milwaukee.

Philadelphia yet again starts a season with major drama behind the scenes. James Harden has given the 76ers a massive migraine as the season begins next week. Harden failed to show up for several practices, including Wednesday and Monday’s preseason game. For months, Harden has begged for a trade to the Clippers. Harden is in Houston right now on a "personal matter" according to the 76ers press statement. Who knows if that holds any weight. All I know is he has continued to want out and now isn't with the team days before they start their new campaign. My biggest question: if he shows up and plays, will he even try?

We all remember how he handled wanting out of Houston... oh, and Brooklyn. This cat Harden now has been unprofessional, mishandling situations with the Rockets; Nets; and 76ers. I'm talkin' gaining weight; not playing fast or hard in games; bailing to hit the strip club; and public embarrassments. So if he shows up by the opener, will he even care to try in the games? It's hard to say he will try with how he handled games with the Nets and Rockets. We all remember this moment:

video via BallySports/X

I'd hope that Harden wouldn't do that to his teammates in Philly, but he very well may. Daryl Morey has been adamant on his stance that he wants two first rounders and Terance Mann. Clippers won't trade Mann- putting things at a standstill and forcing us to deal with the Harden/76ers nonsense for longer. If Harden isn't available for the opener, the 76ers will likely start Patrick Beverley at the point. Tyrese Maxey has all the eyes on him to take over the backcourt for the 76ers. Harden being out will give him major opportunities to step up and elevate more. Will we see Harden be traded; bail on Philly; or play the season in Philly? Only a matter of time and an answer will be forced.

The new campaign should be ultra exciting right off the tip. We get a new annual in-season tournament for all 30 teams to take part in. Just something new to try in efforts to add some intrigue in the early shade of the season. Trying something new is always accepted, we shall see how serious teams take it and the type of noise it will deliver. On top of the new little tourney, we have a big name rookie who has been given superstar attention that hopes to prove his value. Not enough? How about faces in new places: Chris Paul (GS); Bradley Beal (PHO); Damian Lillard (MIL); Kristaps Porzinģis (BOS); and more ready to make impact for their new squads. It's always noise to see faces in new places, Lillard and Beal will have people tuning in.

What a season we have in store. Just five more sleeps and we get a slate of two bangers with the defending champion Nuggets taking on LeBron James and the Los Angeles Lakers as well as the new Phoenix big three and the Suns set to battle it out with Steph Curry and the Golden State Warriors. Shine up that hardwood; get the arena's spotlights right; and the rims netted... it's hoop season baby!

Hoop-Scoop: Hoop SZN

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