The 2021-22 NBA schedule was released this week and there are some very interesting matchups right from the start and the headlines from these matchups will be as impactful as the games itself.
Opening night: October 19, the world champion Milwaukee Bucks host the Brooklyn Nets in an east finals rematch. There will be plenty of topics surrounding these teams, the Bucks will receive their championship ring against a team they beat en route to their first championship in 50 years. The Nets were without Kyrie Irving and Kevin Durant was in and out of the lineup, but Brooklyn should be healthy and the first game of the 2021-22 season will set the tone of what fans should expect.
Many expected the Nets to cruise to the finals but key injuries prevented that from happening. On paper, the Nets have one of the best rosters of any team. Brooklyn added Patty Mills to their roster in early August on a two-year $12 million contract.
“It’s one of those things that’s an exciting opportunity for me to even know that there’s a different opportunity to be able to see how I can fit,” Mills said Thursday. “And the conversation that I’ve had already and the conversation that I had with Kevin was so pure and so genuine, you know? Being able to understand a pure hooper and to go back and forth about basketball specifics, I think … it was exciting for me to know that there’s an opportunity there for me to try to be who I am — like I am with the (Australian) national team,” Mills said in part this week.
Where will Mills fit with the Nets? Potentially as a 6th man or occasional starter. Mills has been in the NBA for 10 years and his experience can help the big three in their quest to win a championship.
Another potential under the radar factor is Blake Griffin. Yes his best days are behind him but he can still be an intimidating force inside as a power forward. Expect him to improve on his 10 points a game and more importantly, getting defensive rebounds in the paint against physical forwards and power forwards.
The second game of opening night will feature Steph Curry against LeBron James at Staples Center. It won’t just be the players that dress for success for opening night, given that the weather in southern California is warm all year long, expect to see the cameras pointing at fans dressed in basketball sneakers in Curry and James jerseys. Klay Thompson is not expected to return until around Christmas per a report from ESPN’s Ramona Shelburne.
“He could come back a little bit before that, but in terms of getting his conditioning right, they’re targeting that Christmas Day game against the Suns. I know that sounds a little late to people, but he was injured on Nov. 18, so this is 13 months from an Achilles injury,” Shelburne said in part on ESPN’s The Jump.
The Lakers will have two new veterans, Carmelo Anthony and Russell Westbrook. Will Westbook be able to take pressure off James given #23 will be 37 at the end of the year? What are the downsides of having a Westbrook on the Lakers? He is a ball dominant player and does not shoot well from downtown. Those two concerns could loom big given that the western conference is expected to live up to it’s hype where many of the NBA’s top elite scorers play.
When #11 returns, if he can come back from two straight years of injury and score from downtown like he is capable of, expect the Warriors to be in the playoff discussion. His enthusiasm he exerts after making buckets not only motivates and makes his teammates better but the fans feel the enthusiasm and it reverberates.
They aren’t the team from a couple years ago when Kevin Durant but they have some real solid talent that isn’t as well known as Curry, Thompson and Draymond Green. Keep an eye out for Jordan Poole. Last season, Poole averaged 12 points a game and shot 35% from downtown. This is just the beginning of exciting matchups that NBA diehards are waiting to tune in to or see in person.
ryanhackman1026 