NBA Season Tipoff

[moresko]

Orlando Magic vs Indiana Pacers

 

The Magic and Pacers will start the season off (really, they couldn't find two better, more marketable teams to tip the season off?). The Magic are hoping to rebuild and start the season off on the right foot, while the Pacers will be looking to build off the past two seasons and try to make that extra leap into the NBA Finals. Both teams have some attractive players from a fantasy perspective, let's take a look at some of the guys we think will have the most impact.

 

Paul George: This one was obvious. He's probably going to be the best player on the court and should lead the Pacers in scoring and I expect him to lead them to victory as well.

 

Roy Hibbert: This guy is so up and down, it's frustrating. I'm not sure if he will ever be consistent, I do expect him to haul in over 10 rebounds, though. Heck, I'll go ahead and say 14 points and 11 boards for big Roy.

 

David West: Indiana's second choice on offense after Paul George should get his season started off right against the weak Magic.

 

Luis Scola: This was an interesting pick-up by the Pacers this off-season. They gave up a lottery protected first round pick, Gerald Green and Miles Plumlee to acquire him. However, they also re-signed David West, so the Pacers are really looking to go after it this season after missing the Finals by one game last year. Scola will be an interesting one to watch, especially if the Pacers get hit with the injury bug. He will be David West's immediate replacement.

 

SLEEPER ALERT: Lance Stephenson - Danny Granger is expected to miss the first three weeks of the season (SHOCKER!). That means Lance Stephenson will be seeing adequate playing time and he showed us last season he can produce when given playing time.

 

Nikola Vucevic: Rebounding machine. Plain and simple. Double-double waiting to happen.

 

Maurice Harkless: If he's given the time he deserves on the court, he'll be close to a double double. I'll say 12 points and 7 boards for Mo'. With Tobias Harris out injured for tonight's game, we should see a steady dose of Harkless.

 

Tobias Harris: Harris is hoping to pick up where he left off last season where he averaged 17.*** points in the final 27 games of the season. (out injured for this game).

 

Victor Oladipo: The early frontrunner for most to win the Rookie of the Year, Oladipo will have the chance to show us why he should be.

 

Chicago Bulls vs Miami Heat

 

The appetizer has been served, and now it's time for the main course! The heavyweights are here! This is the game everybody wants to see. Derrick Rose finally back on the court facing LeBron and Wade. It's a heavenly match-up that will draw ratings sure to please the network executives.

 

LeBron James: I don't think any explanation is needed.

 

Dwyane Wade: See above.

 

Chris Bosh: The weakest link. It'll be interesting to see how Bosh starts the season off. Will he still be a big softy or, nevermind, he'll never change. Of course, he's still going to be a big softy.

 

Derrick Rose: His first game back in what seems to be an eternity. Will we see the Rose of old or will his game be altered? I think he'll be back to normal and good as new.

 

Luol Deng: Always reliable.

 

Joakim Noah: He's a beast. Plain and simple. He's ready to go tonight and when healthy, he's a no questions asked, must start.

 

Los Angeles Clippers vs Los Angeles Lakers

 

Battle of LA: Chris Paul vs Steve Nash....Blake Griffin vs Pau Gasol...Doc Rivers vs Mike D'Antoni...Billy Crystal vs Jack Nicholson. Who ya got? I think this one is easy, without Kobe, the Clippers should be able to win round 1 of the Battle of LA. The Clippers added Jared Dudley and J.J. Reddick to their team along with Byron Mullens and Darren Collison. While the Lakers will be relying on Nick Young and Pau Gasol to rack up the points in Kobe's absence.

 

Nick Young: I like Nick Young while Kobe is out. I think he can be very productive. A great source of ***'s and points in general.

 

Pau Gasol: He's gonna need to step up and take a leadership role while Kobe is out. They need him to do everything.

 

Chris Kaman: Kaman played for the Clippers once upon a time. They drafted him 6th overall back in 2003 and he gave them eight productive seasons before moving to New Orleans, then Dallas and now back to Los Angeles with the "other" LA team. I think he'll post a modest double-double, 10 pts and 10 boards.

 

Chris Paul: He's the best PG in the game. What more is there to say?

 

Blake Griffin: Freak of an athlete. I'm looking for Blake Griffin to improve on his stats from last year and have himself a career year.

 

DeAndre Jordan: I expect double digit rebounds and maybe about 5 blocks from him tonight. He IS the SWAT team.

 

J.J. Reddick: Cheap source for ***'s if you need 'em.

 

Jared Dudley: Another potential cheap source of ***'s if you need em, can chip in with some boards too.

 

UNRELATED BUT RELATED: The Houston Rockets have announced that Jeremy Lin will start the season coming off the bench. This means, Patrick Beverley will be the starting PG for the Rockets. It is very possible Beverley went undrafted in your league, so go ahead and take a look, if he's available and you don't have to drop someone of value, he's worth a pick-up. I think we are in for quite the "platoon", if you will, at PG in Houston. This one could get frustrating.