Brilliant Tweaks and a Taper Finish

I turned the lights off in the living room to add to the theatre of the moment. As soon as the fourth quarter started, that’s what it felt like — a brazing show of athleticism and pourous defense gave way to defensive intensity and incredible competitiveness. This year’s NBA All-Star weekend was as much about honoring the legacy of Kobe Bryant. More than anything else, the leagues best did just that when it mattered most.

I have never watched the entirety of any all-star game of any professional sport. I find them stale, boring and overly theatrical. This one was far from it. Though it didn’t tip until 8:45 PM ET, some forty-five minutes after the publicized game time, it ended up being worth every second of the near three hour running time. Team LeBron eventually outlasted Team Giannis 157-155, with Clippers star Kawhi Leonard taking home the first ever Kobe Bryant All-Star Game MVP Award. In a way, I think the all-star game is merely a prelude to what we can expect the rest of the way.

Much has been made about the NBA’s woeful first half television ratings, and while I too have posed concern about the lack of people watching games, I see that drastically changing as the season winds down. For starters, a lot of the dip in ratings can be contributed to an onslaught of Pelicans and Warriors games in prime-time windows. The Pelicans have played most of the season without Zion Williamson, while the Dubs have been missing stars Stephon Curry and Klay Thompson. With Williamson back in the fold, New Orleans is not only exciting to watch, but find themselves back in the Western Conference playoff race. The Warriors remain one of the worst teams in the league, but there’s some optimism around the return of Curry and Thompson before the season ends. Either way, even if most people (myself included) stay away from nationally televised games with Golden State, the Pels are now worth the price of admission. That should drive ratings forward.

One of the things that made Sunday’s all-star game so enthralling was the lead up to the fourth quarter. The first three quarters seemed to gradually improve in quality of play and competitiveness. Similarly, this is the first season in nearly a decade where more than a few teams can legitimately believe they have a shot at the title.

Out West, the City of Angels host both favorites in the Lakers and Clippers, yet both teams have glaring weaknesses. The Lakers passed the trade deadline without acquiring a point guard, leaving much of the ball handling load in the postseason to LeBron James. The Clippers managed to acquire more depth with Marcus Morris Sr., but I remain somewhat skeptical about the chemistry pairing of Paul George and Leonard in the postseason. With Kawhi managing his load, are they going to have enough minutes on the floor together by May to make it all click?

It’s not just the twins in Los Angeles. The other team in the Western Conference that has a legit shot at getting to the The Finals is Utah. After a slow start, they went into the all-star break with a four game win streak and are just a game and a half out of second place. While I’m not sold on the Nuggets, Rockets, Thunder or Mavs as Finals contenders, you would be foolish to not believe any of those teams have the capacity for an upset. Any one of them could find their way to the conference finals.

The East is still Giannis land, as the Bucks stand at a league best 46-8, but the top to bottom talent in the East has drastically improved. The Raptors are capable going of going back to The Finals, the Celtics and Heat are capable of making a deep run too, and the Sixers and Pacers would not be shock conference final participants.

All of this sets up to what should be an exciting finish in the NBA. More than any year in recent memory, seeding will matter. Teams will want to avoid the Clippers and Lakers until the conference finals, but may also feel like they matchup better in the first round with the Thunder as opposed to, say, the Luka Doncic lead Mavericks. In the East, seeds three to six are separated by just 6.5 games. Home court advantage in the first round, and avoiding the Bucks until the conference finals, will be essential.

The best iteration of the NBA All-Star Game seems primed to be the catalyst of what should be one of the most fascinating regulars season finishes in recent memory, setting us up for a thrilling and league wide competitive postseason. Buckle up.

sportsFrederick CurtisNBAComment