Author: Uri Uziel

MADISON- In the blink of an eye, the NBA offseason came and went. Unexpected twists, shocking betrayals, and monster contracts–and you missed all of it. Now the season is approaching and you have no clue where to start. Fret not, that's why I'm here. As Madison's resident NBA nerd, I present to you the procrastinator's guide to the 2020-2021 NBA season.

The Contenders in the West

Lucky for you, nothing's really changed at the top. In the West, the Lakers and Clippers are still top dogs, though the former is widening their margins. The Lakers had what many consider to be the best offseason of any contender, signing the 2020 Sixth Man of the Year (Montrez Harrell) on a two year/19 million dollar deal) and traded for the runner up (Dennis Schröder). The purple and gold replaced centers Dwight Howard and JaVale McGee with 2014 Defensive Player of the Year and former NBA champion Marc Gasol on the veteran minimum, and to top it all off they locked up Lebron James and Anthony Davis for the immediate future.

Their Tinseltown rivals had less fun. The Clippers haven't made any assertive moves to resolve the apparent chemistry issues that plagued them in the NBA Bubble. The biggest move they made was replacing long time head coach Doc Rivers via the promotion of assistant Tyronn Lue. They added sharpshooter Luke Kennard and defensive guru Serge Ibaka while securing the services of Paul “Playoff P” George for the next six seasons. But none of these moves scream improvement with any kind of convection.

To round out the legitimate list of teams we may see represent the West in the 2021 Finals: the Denver Nuggets, the Portland Trail Blazers, and the Dallas Mavericks. The Nuggets lost playoff hero Jerami Grant to the Pistons as well as a plethora of role players, but haven't done anything else to rock the boat. If Jamal Murray and Nikola Jokic are awesome, so will be the Nuggets. Similarly, the Mavericks season will entirely depend on the broad Slavic shoulders of Luka Doncic. Through two seasons his career has been nothing short of mythological and if he continues his rampage through the NBA, we may well be having MVP discussions with him at the center. The Mavs flipped Seth Curry for Josh Richardson to address defensive concerns on the wing, but brought back most of the roster that took the Clippers to six in the Western Conference first round.

The Trail Blazers, on the other hand, were very busy indeed in the offseason. Headlined by versatile three-and-D Robert Convington and future hall of famer Carmelo Anthony, the Blazers made small but significant strides forward. They addressed their defensive deficiencies on the wing while beefing up their frontline with players like Enes Kanter and Harry Giles. Whether or not they will be able to capitalize on the prime years of Damian Lillard and CJ McCollum's careers remains to be seen, but a conference finals appearance would come as a surprise to few.

The Contenders in the East

The first thing you should know is that there are at least six teams in the East that could realistically represent the conference in the Finals. The Bucks, Raptors, Nets, Heat, Sixers, and Celtics each have a puncher's chance at the championship and outside of the Bucks the core talents of each team have stayed the same.

If you did do some light basketball reading during the fall, you know that the first major move of the offseason was the Bucks trading the farm for Jrue Holiday. The Bucks sent George Hill to Oklahoma City, the 24th overall pick to the Denver Nuggets, and Eric Bledsoe (alongside a slew of future draft picks and pick swaps) to the New Orleans Pelicans for Holiday's services. Notably, the Bucks also botched an opportunity to sign-and-trade for Sacramento Kings guard Bogdan Bogdanović. The Bucks now possess one of the most versatile starting fives in the NBA, but the lack of depth could hurt them down the road. Oh yeah, and Giannis is back on the most lucrative deal in league history. 

Remember the unexpected twists and shocking betrayals? That would be on account of the Philadelphia 76ers, who stole away general manager Daryl Morey from the Rockets (after he announced his plan to take a sabbatical after seeing one of the most potent offenses in league history crumble in the playoffs year in year out) and secured the services of Doc Rivers as their head coach. Morey went to work quickly, reconstructing the roster to add more shooting in the form of deadeye shooters Seth Curry and Danny Green. And with Morey shooting down the popular rumor that a Ben Simmons–James Harden deal was in the making, the Sixers head into the season with one of the most balanced teams in the East.

The Celtics, Raptors, and Heat greased the gears but have largely decided to run it back with the competitive rosters of yesteryear. The C's added veteran guard Jeff Teague to replace Brad Wannamaker and former NBA champ Tristan Thompson in lieu of Enes Kanter ditching Beantown for Portland. With all-star guard Kemba Walker out the first month of the season, this Celtics squad only goes as far as their superstar forward Jayson Tatum (for what it's worth, I think that's pretty damn far). The Raptors let go of their two aging big men but re-signed Fred VanVleet–who happened to be the best unrestricted free agent on the market–for four years on an 85 million dollar deal. The big question here will be if OG Anunoby can make the jump to a consistent offensive threat and if Nick Nurse can continue to be the best head coach in the NBA.

This Brooklyn team is New York's closest chance at a title since the 1999 Knicks. With all-world players like Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving leading the charge, Steve Nash's team will have no shortage of pressure. That being said, they boast one of the deepest rosters in the league and are a more conventionally talented roster than any in the East. Defense will be the question, but the talent is there for the Nets to win their first championship since the days of the ABA.

And finally, the reigning Eastern Conference champion Miami Heat. All is relatively quiet on the Heat front, their major offseason moves being the re-signing of Slovenian speedster Goran Dragic and the extension of Bam Adebayo, who seems to be the cornerstone of the next generation of Heat basketball. Though nothing too flashy, the Heat can contend with anyone in the East.

League Pass Storylines

NBA League Pass is the association's streaming service, allowing subscribers to watch any out of market games whenever and wherever. Over the years it has been colloquialized to indicate any player or team that doesn't get the love it maybe deserves on national TV and is thus regulated to primarily gracing our screens via League Pass rather than ESPN. “League Pass” qualifier serves as an indicator letting you, the faithful reader, know that we're heading to the muck of the NBA's middle class and below. 

The Atlanta Hawks (1 nationally televised game): Trae Young is a social media phenom, and his team broke the bank adding talent in an attempt to reach the playoffs. The Hawks spent $158.5 million on the signings of Kris Dunn, Rajon Rondo, Danilo Gallinari, and Bogdan Bogdanovic. Showing Young that this team can compete is a huge step toward convincing him to sign a long term deal when that time comes.

The Washington Wizards (0 NTG): The Wizards offseason appeared plainly solid until they traded John Wall, their talismanic point guard, to the Rockets for former MVP and nuclear energizer Russell Westbrook. The tandem of Bradley Beal and Russell Westbrook at least guarantees a playoff appearance and more than a few upsets. Along with the young core of Davis Bertans, Troy Brown Jr., Rui Hachimura, Thomas Bryant, and rookie Deni Avdija, don't be surprised if this team sneaks into the top five.

The New York Knicks (1 NTG): Long story short, the Knicks will still stink up Madison Square Garden, but at least this year Knick's fans will get some Sportscenter Top 10 moments by way of rookie Obi Toppin. This is also the first year in the regime of Leon Rose and William “World Wide” Wesley as president and vice-president of basketball operations. Depending on how this young team grows, Knicks fans may have something to look forward to this decade.

The Utah Jazz (4 NTG): In the wake of the Giannis deal, the Jazz extending center Rudy Gobert on a five year $200 million+ deal likely went unnoticed by many fans. It's not so much that the Jazz are any more or less exciting than a year ago–their rotation may be identical–it's that this is a team that was a shot away from beating a team that went to the conference finals. It should be fun to see if all-star guard Donovan Mitchell can reach another level and enter the MVP conversation.

The Memphis Grizzlies (3 NTG): The Grizzlies might have the best young core in the NBA. In his rookie year, Ja Morant looked like the second coming of Russell Westbrook and delivered some of the nastiest posters of the season. A little Dillon Brooks, a healthy Jaren Jackson Jr. (hopefully), add in a touch of Brandon Clarke's explosiveness and this foundation could show the league it means business.

Rookies to Watch

No cumbersome paragraphs, just names and teams

Anthony Edwards (Minnesota Timberwolves), James Wiseman (Golden State Warriors), Lamelo Ball (Charlotte Hornets), Patrick Williams (Chicago Bulls), Killian Hayes (Detroit Pistons), Obi Toppin (New York Knicks), Deni Avdija (Washington Wizards), Tyrese Haliburton (Sacramento Kings), Cole Anthony (Orlando Magic), RJ Hampton (Denver Nuggets), Tyrese Maxey (Philadelphia 76ers), Immanuel Quickley (New York Knicks), Tyrell Terry (Dallas Mavericks), Theo Maledon (Oklahoma City Thunder), Isaiah Joe (Philadelphia 76ers), Cassius Stanley (Indiana Pacers)

Final Thoughts

If you didn't see your team mentioned, here's the rundown. The Phoenix Suns went 8-0 in the NBA Bubble play-in games and won the Chris Paul sweepstakes, adding one of the most wanted veterans in the league to a hungry team ready to win now. The Rockets had a soap opera of an offseason that saw their general manager, head coach, and all-star point guard skip town among others. James Harden has been requesting a trade since the early stages and opted to follow up Lil Baby's birthday party in Atlanta with some adult entertainment in Las Vegas rather than attend Rockets training camp. The Pelicans have Zion and some exciting talent around him. The NBA wants to market Zion so badly that they've awarded the Pelicans with 14 nationally televised games, tied for second-most in the NBA with the Celtics, Mavericks, and Warriors. The Timberwolves picked Anthony Edwards #1 overall but are still on the outside in the race for the eighth seed.

The Warriors are the only team that didn't get a full rundown because who knows what they'll look like. Following the reported Achilles injury suffered by Klay Thompson, projections for this team have swayed from championship contender to playoff hopeful. The combination of Steph Curry–the greatest shooter in the history of basketball–and Draymond Green should guarantee a playoff berth if they can replicate their form from the 2019 season. The additions of Kelly Oubre and rookie James Wiseman will insure that the Warriors stay competitive if nothing else.

If a team wasn't mentioned they're either rebuilding (the Thunder, Cavaliers and Pistons), seeing what they have before doing anything crazy (the Bulls, Spurs and Kings), or are the living embodiment of mediocrity (the Pacers).

There. For the holiday season, I've gifted you with the NBA SparkNotes you need to hold up a conversation or simply get back in the loop after final exams season. I hope that if you're still reading this that you'll find comfort in a Kevin Durant pull up three, a Chris Paul alley-oop to Deandre Ayton, or a game-winning dagger by Luka Doncic. Happy watching and happy holidays.