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Five questions to tip off the season
Updated: Tuesday October 30, 2001 1:50 PM
Since this is my first NBA column for CNNSI.com, I want it to be unique, and this one is unique for the following reason: It will mention the name of you-know-who only once. It will not be centered on you-know-who. There has been enough written about you-know-who. It will not pretend that you-know-who is the only good story out there. Anyway, I don't think Moochie Norris is the key to the Houston Rockets' success this season. Allow me a one-paragraph appetizer before I dig into the main course. After eight years away, I am returning to the pro basketball beat for Sports Illustrated. When last I roamed this ground, Shaquille O'Neal was a rookie who couldn't pass out of a double-team, Tim Duncan was an intriguing but unknown Wake Forest freshman and Moochie Norris was wrapping up the first of his three-peats with the Chicago Bulls. (I think it was Moochie Norris; wait a minute, that's three times.) When my esteemed colleague, Phil Taylor, decided he needed a breather from covering the league, I jumped at the invitation to come back for one basic reason: The NBA seems exciting and relevant again. Yes, TV ratings are down, but TV ratings are down for every damn thing. If you rid yourself of one canard before the end of the calendar year make it this one: that TV ratings are an accurate reflection of what is culturally relevant. Anyway, here is a starting five of questions as America eagerly waits to find out how many Moochie Norris (ooh, that's four) is going to get against those Atlanta Hawks Tuesday night. Question No. 1: Which team got the best of the Jason Kidd-for-Stephon Marbury trade? That deal was as intriguing as any in recent memory, involving as it did two marquee guys who play the same position, although not the same way. Marbury is a scorer who will make the Phoenix Suns score more, something they don't necessarily need; Kidd is the best quarterback in the game who will make the Nets a playoff contender. If only Kidd were playing for an East Coast team in a major metropolitan market, America would see how good he is. Actually, he is playing for an East Coast team in a major metropolitan market, but his game will be a topic of discussion only in Secaucus, Hoboken and certain sections of Weehawken. Still, that's more attention than Marbury will get out there in the Lost Time Zone. Question No. 2: Is Pat Riley still relevant? Thirteen seasons removed from an NBA title, we tend to forget about the ol' Master of Mousse, except when it's time to go to the hair jokes. But I've long thought -- and still think -- the man is one of the greatest coaches in the history of the game. Last season he coaxed 50 wins out of a team that had lost its best player to a kidney ailment. This season he beat the bushes and got good role players such as Kendall Gill, LaPhonso Ellis and Chris Gatling and will have achieved a major coup if he lights a fire under Rod Strickland. Yes, behind Riley's leadership, the Miami Heat (provided Alonzo Mourning doesn't go down for long stretches) can make some noise in an Eastern Conference that's there for the taking. Question No. 3: Who will be the best player in the NBA this season? Moochie Norris will be real good. (Sorry, that's five.) So will his teammate, Steve Francis. So will Kevin Garnett, Ray Allen (see next question), Allen Iverson (if he stays healthy) and Vince Carter. Dirk Nowitzki will make another quantum leap because the Dallas Mavericks are going to run and score all night. Tracy McGrady will make all the highlight films, even more than his apparently healthy teammate Grant Hill. Rasheed Wallace will be so effective that he'll even look as if he's having a good time once in a while. Duncan will continue to play as if he was born at center court in Madison Square Garden instead of in the Virgin Islands. Shaq will be frustrated at times by zone defenses but he will still be unstoppable most of the time. The Washington Wizards have an outstanding swingman in Rip Hamilton. But from what these eyes have seen, there won't be anyone better than Kobe Bryant, more mature, more focused, more court-savvy. Question No. 4: Which good team could implode? The Philadelphia 76ers would seem to be the prime candidate, given its injuries and roster shakeup. But my bet is the Milwaukee Bucks. Adding Anthony Mason to shore up rebounding and ball distribution may have seemed like a good move, but I liked the idea of letting the triumvirate of Allen -Sam Cassell-Glenn Robinson get another crack at winning the East. But it doesn't matter what I like: At this writing, Big Dog doesn't think much of ceding his starting spot to Mason and that could spell trouble. Question No. 5: Who will be the worst team in the league? Perennial contender Los Angeles (the Clips, that is) hurt its chances by going out and getting a bunch of depth and good players. The Golden State Warriors damaged themselves with an excellent draft that produced one future star, Jason Richardson, and two solid keepers, Troy Murphy and Gilbert Arenas. The Chicago Bulls seemingly made a strong bid for ultimate basement status by unloading their best player, Elton Brand, but they almost can't help but get better with an infusion of youth and the solid presence of Charles Oakley. Any team that just stepped out of a moving van is a cellar candidate, but the Memphis Grizzlies have a semblance of an offense with Jason Williams, mature-beyond-his-years Shane Battier and future star Pau Gasol. My choice is the Denver Nuggets, who managed to get their best player, Antonio McDyess, hurt, and who will be under the squirrely leadership of Nick Van Exel. Sports Illustrated senior writer Jack McCallum covers the NBA beat for the
magazine and is a regular contributor to CNNSI.com. Click here to send a
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