NBA Takes Center Stage
With the NFL season in the rearview mirror, basketball will now take center stage. Here are three storylines for the remainder of the NBA’s regular season that will play a significant role in determining who hoists the Larry O’Brien Trophy come June.
1. Will the Cavaliers find their groove? Recently, Cleveland has been utterly pathetic. Saturday night against James Harden, Chris Paul, and the Rockets LeBron and company were thoroughly dominated. Quite frankly, LeBron look disinterested and disengaged. I haven’t seen him like that since his last season in his first stint in Cleveland. Tyronn Lue needs to find a way to get Isaiah Thomas going because right now he is nowhere near the player that he was in Boston, let alone a level akin to Kyrie Irving. The Cavaliers need to make a move prior to Thursday’s trade deadline and I think they will. Will that be enough to steady the tide? I’m not sure.
2. Can the Rockets overtake the Warriors for the top spot in the Western Conference? As it stands right now, Houston is just one game back in the loss column of Golden State and have taken the season series from the Warriors, 2-1. Clearly the Warriors are the overwhelming favorite to win their third title in four years, but if the Rockets can somehow manage to squeeze out home-court in the Western Conference Finals I’d give them a puncher’s chance.
3. Will Gordon Hayward return? The Celtics forward suffered a brutal ankle injury on the first night of the season. Since then Boston has managed to climb to the top of the Eastern Conference. With just over two months until the playoffs begin, all eyes will begin to shift to the health of Hayward. If he can contribute in even a minor role this season, all of a sudden the Celtics go from possibly giving the Cavaliers a scare in the Connference Finals to becoming legitimate title contenders. Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown are solid, and will only get better as they get older, but Gordon Hayward is a walking bucket. They need him if they’re serious about winning a championship.
