we’re back
we’ve returned
IN FULL EFFECT
victory screech is due
But, really, I’ve had mixed feelings about the NBA coming back. As a 21 year old, the summer has been very stale and the NBA couldn’t come back at a better time, as far as entertainment is concerned, not to mention, the job necessity for a multitude of athletes that don’t earn top dollar because of their paychecks on top of team employees, venue employees, vendors, etc. that now don’t have work because of the NBA’s inactivity, needing the money now as it constitutes their annual income. In the same breath, I was concerned about how much the simple game of basketball would take away from the protests and the Black Lives Matter movement, seeing that it was on a much larger stage and would garner more attention, becoming a distraction for what needs to be understood. Instead, they’ve amplified the message with a megaphone through the Association’s players and their strongly worded quotes and stands, or, more fittingly, kneels against police brutality on black lives. And just as I’ve noticed the stances from the players, collectively, there are other things I’ve noticed that I predict will surely affect the outcome of the playoffs.
No excuses for fatigue
In the past, the NBA consumer has witnessed the playoff product become a slower, grind-it-out, bogged down rendition of the regular season that, while the hype is still mightily prevalent, is a consequence of the 82 game marathon of what’s been understood as the lesser important junction of the season. With a four month layoff, all players, specifically superstars oftentimes affected by said fatigue, like James Harden or Russell Westbrook, or load management, like Kawhi Leonard, have had and will have no excuse to lean on for tired legs as this is a sprint to the end now, with a total of at least 24 games played for every team that makes the playoffs. Through these first eight games, I’ve seen an increased energy and intensity, particularly on the defensive end of the floor that will surely translate even to the later rounds of the playoffs.
Some role players will play better, others will play worse
In creating the playoff atmosphere, the crowd has an incredible effect on it, providing a lightning jolt of energy for the home team while jarring the opposing team and more often than not, this affects the role players more than it does the superstars. As we’ve seen thus far in the bubble, shooters have been shooting incredibly, this may have to do with having four months off and their legs are back underneath them, but also a consistent shooting environment, coupled with no travel and no crowd, NBA courts in the bubble have become a shooter’s gym; no noise, no distractions will lead to better play by more of the offensive minded bench players. On the other hand, with no tangible crowd in the bubble, some players won’t respond as well to the environment as the playoffs wear on because, believe it or not, players feed off the energy of the crowd just as much as the crowd feeds off of them. In those cases, the players will struggle just as much as others will thrive.
This will be possibly the most competitive, energetic basketball that we’ll see for a while.
Let’s be honest here. The worst 8 teams are not in the bubble which will make for closer, more competitive games. Not only does every team have to play against another that is competing for a playoff spot, most teams are competing for positioning and seeding. 11 out of 22 teams (2-6 in the East, 2-7 in the West) are vying for strong positioning in the playoffs while the 8th seed for both conferences have yet to be determined. Now we’re going to be susceptible to a few blowouts (see; Clippers v. Pelicans), but the majority of games have gone down to the wire and I don’t really see that changing with the playoffs. Couple that with the rest for all the players that saw of almost four months of inactivity and rest and no travel, I expect the energy level will be high.
With the NBA back, I fully expect the world to be tuned in to see who will be crowned champion, but not without caveats that were different than any and possibly every other NBA championship in NBA history. With such a unique situation at hand, we, as sports deprived fans, will be tuned in with our eyes peeled to see how these effects will change the outcome of every series over the course of the playoffs.
youngwhipsnap 