NBA Season Starts Tonight

     The NBA season starts tonight with two great matchups. The Brooklyn Nets will be visiting the defending champions, the Milwaukee Bucks, in an East showdown which could end up happening again in May during the playoffs. The second game will be the Golden State Warriors playing the Los Angeles Lakers at the Staples Center. Comment down below what your predictions are for tonight's games.

    I believe that the Nets and Bucks game will be a great game and will come down to the very end. In the end, I believe that the Bucks will end up winning this game behind a strong game from Giannis Antetokounmpo. 

    In the second game, I think that it is going to take time for the Warriors to gel again with the return of Klay Thompson. The Lakers will pull away from the Warriors in this one and take game one of the season. I think that Anthony Davis will be the highest scoring Laker and Stephen Curry will score close to 40 points in this one.

    This season is going to be with full arenas all season long unlike last year where they were empty most of the year. What do you think will happen tonight? Comment down below.

NBA Season Predictions

     Training camp and preseason for NBA teams has started and the season starts later this month. It is time to make some predictions for the NBA season. Comment down below what teams you think will overperform or underperform this season and who will be in the NBA Finals.

Awards

MVP: Giannis Antetokounmpo 

Defensive Player of the Year: Rudy Gobert

Rookie of the Year: Jalen Green

6th Man of the Year: Dennis Schroder

Most Improved Player: Lonzo Ball

Coach of the Year: Steve Kerr

Eastern Conference

1. Milwaukee Bucks

2. Brooklyn Nets

3. Miami Heat 

4. Atlanta Hawks

5. Philadelphia 76ers

6. Charlotte Hornets

7. Chicago Bulls

8. New York Knicks

9. Boston Celtics

10. Indiana Pacers

11. Toronto Raptors

12. Washington Wizards

13. Cleveland Cavaliers

14. Orlando Magic

15. Detroit Pistons

Western Conference

1. Phoenix Suns

2. Los Angeles Lakers

3. Los Angeles Clippers

4. Utah Jazz

5. Denver Nuggets

6. Golden State Warriors

7. Dallas Mavericks

8. Portland Trail Blazers

9. Memphis Grizzlies

10. Minnesota Timberwolves

11. New Orleans Pelicans

12.  San Antonio Spurs

13. Sacramento Kings

14. Oklahoma City Thunder

15. Houston Rockets

Eastern Conference Play-In Games:

10 Indiana Pacers vs. 9 Boston Celtics

8 New York Knicks vs. 7 Chicago Bulls

9 Boston Celtics vs. 7 Chicago Bulls

Eastern Conference Round 1:

8 Chicago Bulls vs. 1 Milwaukee Bucks (6 games)

7 New York Knicks vs. 2 Brooklyn Nets (5 games)

6 Charlotte Hornets vs. 3 Miami Heat (7 games)

5 Philadelphia 76ers vs. 4 Atlanta Hawks (6 games)

Eastern Conference Round 2:

4 Atlanta Hawks vs. 1 Milwaukee Bucks (7 games)

3 Miami Heat vs. 2 Brooklyn Nets (7 games)

Eastern Conference Finals:

3 Miami Heat vs. 1 Milwaukee Bucks (6 games)

Western Conference Play-In Games:

10 Minnesota Timberwolves vs. 9 Memphis Grizzlies

8 Portland Trail Blazers vs. 7 Dallas Mavericks

9 Memphis Grizzlies vs. 8 Portland Trail Blazers

Western Conference Round 1:

8 Memphis Grizzlies vs. 1 Phoenix Suns (5 games)

7 Dallas Mavericks vs. 2 Los Angeles Lakers (6 games)

6 Golden State Warriors vs. 3 Los Angeles Clippers (7 games)

5 Denver Nuggets vs. 4 Utah Jazz (6 games)

Western Conference Round 2:

4 Utah Jazz vs. 1 Phoenix Suns (6 games)

6 Golden State Warriors vs. 2 Los Angeles Lakers (7 games)

Western Conference Finals:

6 Golden State Warriors vs. 4 Utah Jazz (7 games)

NBA Finals:

Utah Jazz vs. Milwaukee Bucks (6 games)

Clippers New Home

     The groundbreaking ceremony for the Los Angeles Clippers' new arena was yesterday and it looks amazing. The Clippers are leaving the Staples Center, which they share with the Los Angeles Lakers, in the 2024-25 season when they move into the Intuit Dome. The arena will be located in Inglewood, California and the cost of the satdium will be around the $1.8 billion range.

    The Inuit Dome is going to be huge and have a two-sided halo scoreboard the circles around the entire setaing bowl. It is a real upgrade from the Staples Center and they will finally have a place to call their own. It looks like SoFi Stadium but in basketball form and I really like it. The Clippers needed a new arena that they could call their own and this is definitely a good looking arena. I think that it will be good to finally get out of the shadow that the Lakers have put them in and it could translate to more success on the court.

    This is another stadium/arena that is going above and beyond for fan experience, and I think that teams will continue to try and build something better than the team before them did. Stadiums are going to continue to grow and as years go by, we will continue to be amazed by the extraordinary stadiums that teams build. The Intuit Dome is going to be fun to see when it is finally completed and teh Clippers get to play a game in their in front of their fans. The Clippers finally beat the Lakers in something and they do not have to live in their shadow anymore because they can create their own brand and fanbase in Inglewood 

NBA Expansion?

     The NBA, like the MLB. has had talks about expanding their league to 32 teams. I think that it will be easier to expand the NBA than the MLB because they have two markets that are strong possibilities. Seattle, Washington and Las Vegas, Nevada are the two cities that make the most sense and it would be a shock if they both do not get a team.

    Seattle makes the most sense, especially after Seattle got a NHL team and the arena there has been renovated. Ever since the Seattle Supersonics left for Oklahoma City, people have been trying to get another team in Seattle. I think that it is a done deal for the NBA to expand to Seattle and I do not see too many obstacles being in their way. Seattle probably still has a fanbase that does not have a new alliance to another team so it will probably not be a problem to get a fanbase to support them.

    Las Vegas has also been in the news as another possibility of expansion for the NBA. I think that every major professional sport will make their way to the Las Vegas area and the NBA is no exception. I think that they will be there before the MLB finds their way there and they area have an arena there that the Las Vegas Golden Knights use. Both, Seattle and Las Vegas have the arenas in place to make the transition to these cities seamless. 

    Expansion to these cities would also help realign the conferences that are already in place. Both, Seattle and Las Vegas can join the Western Conference and that would help move the Memphis Grizzlies or the New Orleans to the Eastern Conference. Only one on these teams would be able to move since the conferences would not be even if they both did. Both of the teams are closer to the East coast so it only makes since that they are in the Eastern Conference. 

    There are not too many other cities that can make a strong case for a NBA team but I believe that Louisville, Kentucky would make an interesting case since the state of Kentucky is a huge basketball state. I just do not think that they will get a team before Seattle or Las Vegas but they could always be a possibility for a team to relocate there. I believe that the NBA has already decided on their expansion cities and they are just waiting for the time to announce them.

Where do you want the NBA to expand to? Comment down blew and click the link to vote in a poll!

https://linkto.run/p/WW1W4U62