NBA Mideseason Review
by Jerryl Abraham and Samip Dehliwala
As the weather gets warmer, we come to the realization that spring is coming. With that comes the most wonderful time of the year, in terms of NBA basketball. With the passing of the all-star break, the second-half of the season has been ushered in, resulting in four possible scenarios for teams. You have your Miami Heat working on their tans in South Beach until the NBA playoffs arrive. Then, you have the mediocre teams frantically pushing for that 8th and final playoff spot. Additionally, you have the Wizards and Bobcats who gave up in the first week of the season and are probably wondering what is for dinner, while deciding on who their next draft pick will be. Finally, you have the teams trying to claw at the elite teams while holding on to those middle 3rd to 6th playoff spots.
Who would have expected the Knicks to start off like this? Right before the start of the season, they were the laughingstock of the NBA because of their acquisitions of very old veterans. Oh, there’s a 35 year old rookie involved too. Yes, the Knicks set the record for having the highest average aged team in NBA history. They signed former Knicks players Kurt Thomas and Marcus Camby, took Rasheed Wallace out of retirement, signed an Argentinian 35 year old rookie in Pablo Prigioni, and signed veteran and future hall of fame guard, Jason Kidd. Additional acquisitions were James White and Ronnie Brewer. They also signed rookie Chris Copeland, who has shown a very promising offensive ability. He may lack on the defensive end, but he scored 29 points once when starting for an injured Carmelo Anthony.
Speaking of Carmelo Anthony, he is having a monster season so far. Averaging over 29 points a game, he has alreadyreached career highs in 3 point shooting. If that isn’t enough, he has heard occasional MVP chants at the free throw line this season, which takes us to the MVP race. Yes, LeBron James has been having an outstanding season as well, but Melo is also competing for that MVP award.
Paired with outstanding team chemistry and Mike Woodson’s great coaching, Melo led the Knicks to jump out to an 18-6 start. They even managed to defeat the Miami Heat twice, winning both games by 20 points (one of them without Melo). Although the team eventually cooled down in a rough January, it has proven itself to be a dangerous title contender, along with the Heat, Thunder, and Clippers. The subpar January was mainly due to Raymond Felton’s extended absence with a fractured finger. There was also a stretch of games where Carmelo struggled with his shot. However, the Knicks have gotten back key injured players that can highly contribute to this championship run. After having a great rookie campaign in the regular season, Iman Shumpert tore his ACL in the playoffs. He has finally returned and has played as expected. He’s been phenomenal on his perimeter defense and you can also rely on him to knock down a couple of threes in a game as well. The big story was Amar’e Stoudemire’s anticipated return on New Year’s Day. Everyone was unsure whether he would be a starter or come off the bench, but it was eventually confirmed that he would start his season coming off of the bench with limited minutes. He received an emotional standing ovation when he first stepped onto the court and he has been doing well compared to his expectations, but it will still take some time for him to gain his former superstar form back. “Stoudemire will definitely need time to get back into his old self. The thing is, will he ever go back to his old self? He’s struggled when on the court with Carmelo Anthony and Tyson Chandler, so this question will always linger throughout the season. I just hope the trio proves that it can function together, and that Amar’e regains his vintage form,” said junior Chris Pak. This is a dangerous team, and many predict that it has a great shot at winning 50 games or more in this season and going deep into the playoffs.
The other hometown team also had an eventful and dynamic first half. The Nets quickly got off to a hot start, taking a spot at the top of the standings. Head coach Avery Johnson also won Coach of the Month for November. However, a sour December later and the former coach of the month was unemployed, the Nets were under .500, and fans felt like the New Jersey Nets were back. Since then, Nets have bounced back significantly, keeping pace even with the Knicks and Heat at the top of the conference. Assistant coach P.J. Carlesimo took over as interim coach and was greeted with great success. After slow and disappointing starts by Deron Williams and Joe Johnson, the players have stepped up to develop a stronger chemistry. Johnson has greatly improved, coming clutch as well late in games. Brook Lopez has been phenomenal for most of the season as well.
Well, time to switch gears to a not-so-good performing team. At this point, who wouldn’t
want to talk about the Los Angeles Lakers? The dysfunctional Lakers at this point are full of drama, high tensions, and unanswered
questions. Fans may argue that the Lakers can easily bounce back and capture a spot in the playoffs.
“The question here is not about whether or not the Lakers
can make the playoffs. Why is there even doubt about a team of all-stars making the playoffs?” said junior Justin Varghese. The Lakers came into this season with high expectations. The first half of the season may seem mediocre but
considering the pre-season hype and the line of all-stars acquired over the summer, the Lakers first
half was an absolute disaster. A full training camp session with Coach Mike D’antoni is necessary for proper chemistry.
The Knicks, Nets and Lakers were the big stories of the NBA for the first half. Will the Lakers continue their run of mediocrity? Or will they put together a dominant second-half so they can be back on the fast track for the championship everyone expected them to win? Which hometown team will represent New York in the Finals? Things are uncertain but it will be an exciting second-half and a playoffs for the ages because of all the intrigue surrounding all these teams.
As the weather gets warmer, we come to the realization that spring is coming. With that comes the most wonderful time of the year, in terms of NBA basketball. With the passing of the all-star break, the second-half of the season has been ushered in, resulting in four possible scenarios for teams. You have your Miami Heat working on their tans in South Beach until the NBA playoffs arrive. Then, you have the mediocre teams frantically pushing for that 8th and final playoff spot. Additionally, you have the Wizards and Bobcats who gave up in the first week of the season and are probably wondering what is for dinner, while deciding on who their next draft pick will be. Finally, you have the teams trying to claw at the elite teams while holding on to those middle 3rd to 6th playoff spots.
Who would have expected the Knicks to start off like this? Right before the start of the season, they were the laughingstock of the NBA because of their acquisitions of very old veterans. Oh, there’s a 35 year old rookie involved too. Yes, the Knicks set the record for having the highest average aged team in NBA history. They signed former Knicks players Kurt Thomas and Marcus Camby, took Rasheed Wallace out of retirement, signed an Argentinian 35 year old rookie in Pablo Prigioni, and signed veteran and future hall of fame guard, Jason Kidd. Additional acquisitions were James White and Ronnie Brewer. They also signed rookie Chris Copeland, who has shown a very promising offensive ability. He may lack on the defensive end, but he scored 29 points once when starting for an injured Carmelo Anthony.
Speaking of Carmelo Anthony, he is having a monster season so far. Averaging over 29 points a game, he has alreadyreached career highs in 3 point shooting. If that isn’t enough, he has heard occasional MVP chants at the free throw line this season, which takes us to the MVP race. Yes, LeBron James has been having an outstanding season as well, but Melo is also competing for that MVP award.
Paired with outstanding team chemistry and Mike Woodson’s great coaching, Melo led the Knicks to jump out to an 18-6 start. They even managed to defeat the Miami Heat twice, winning both games by 20 points (one of them without Melo). Although the team eventually cooled down in a rough January, it has proven itself to be a dangerous title contender, along with the Heat, Thunder, and Clippers. The subpar January was mainly due to Raymond Felton’s extended absence with a fractured finger. There was also a stretch of games where Carmelo struggled with his shot. However, the Knicks have gotten back key injured players that can highly contribute to this championship run. After having a great rookie campaign in the regular season, Iman Shumpert tore his ACL in the playoffs. He has finally returned and has played as expected. He’s been phenomenal on his perimeter defense and you can also rely on him to knock down a couple of threes in a game as well. The big story was Amar’e Stoudemire’s anticipated return on New Year’s Day. Everyone was unsure whether he would be a starter or come off the bench, but it was eventually confirmed that he would start his season coming off of the bench with limited minutes. He received an emotional standing ovation when he first stepped onto the court and he has been doing well compared to his expectations, but it will still take some time for him to gain his former superstar form back. “Stoudemire will definitely need time to get back into his old self. The thing is, will he ever go back to his old self? He’s struggled when on the court with Carmelo Anthony and Tyson Chandler, so this question will always linger throughout the season. I just hope the trio proves that it can function together, and that Amar’e regains his vintage form,” said junior Chris Pak. This is a dangerous team, and many predict that it has a great shot at winning 50 games or more in this season and going deep into the playoffs.
The other hometown team also had an eventful and dynamic first half. The Nets quickly got off to a hot start, taking a spot at the top of the standings. Head coach Avery Johnson also won Coach of the Month for November. However, a sour December later and the former coach of the month was unemployed, the Nets were under .500, and fans felt like the New Jersey Nets were back. Since then, Nets have bounced back significantly, keeping pace even with the Knicks and Heat at the top of the conference. Assistant coach P.J. Carlesimo took over as interim coach and was greeted with great success. After slow and disappointing starts by Deron Williams and Joe Johnson, the players have stepped up to develop a stronger chemistry. Johnson has greatly improved, coming clutch as well late in games. Brook Lopez has been phenomenal for most of the season as well.
Well, time to switch gears to a not-so-good performing team. At this point, who wouldn’t
want to talk about the Los Angeles Lakers? The dysfunctional Lakers at this point are full of drama, high tensions, and unanswered
questions. Fans may argue that the Lakers can easily bounce back and capture a spot in the playoffs.
“The question here is not about whether or not the Lakers
can make the playoffs. Why is there even doubt about a team of all-stars making the playoffs?” said junior Justin Varghese. The Lakers came into this season with high expectations. The first half of the season may seem mediocre but
considering the pre-season hype and the line of all-stars acquired over the summer, the Lakers first
half was an absolute disaster. A full training camp session with Coach Mike D’antoni is necessary for proper chemistry.
The Knicks, Nets and Lakers were the big stories of the NBA for the first half. Will the Lakers continue their run of mediocrity? Or will they put together a dominant second-half so they can be back on the fast track for the championship everyone expected them to win? Which hometown team will represent New York in the Finals? Things are uncertain but it will be an exciting second-half and a playoffs for the ages because of all the intrigue surrounding all these teams.