The top 7 storylines heading into the 2015-16 season
If there's one thing to be gleaned from the nine-year, $24-billion media rights deal the NBA struck last fall, it's that the league's product has never been more exciting, more fascinating, or more watchable.
This season promises another generous helping of intrigue, drama and the utterly unexpected. Here are some of the biggest storylines that should define the NBA in 2015-16:
LaMarcus Aldridge in San Antonio
The Spurs hooked the biggest fish in the free-agent pond this summer, but questions remain as to whether he's the right fit for their fluid, pass-happy, perpetual-motion machine. Aldridge has made his bones as a meticulous, probing, one-on-one scorer, and a killer mid-range jump shooter.
But what's made the Spurs historically dominant during the mind-boggling 18-year run of Tim Duncan and Gregg Popovich isn't their ability to perfect one particular style of play, it's their adaptability. Aldridge will have to change his style some to fit - especially given his positional overlap with Duncan - but the Spurs will also adapt in order to most effectively accommodate him. It may take some time, but once they figure it out, the results could be breathtaking.
The Cavaliers vs. the East
The Cavs have been tabbed as title favorites over a slew of Western Conference juggernauts - partially because of LeBron James, but also because any West team will have to survive a murderous minefield just to make the final. The Cavs' front office committed some $300 million in salary this offseason, plus untold millions in future luxury tax penalties, on the assumption that nobody in the East can stand in their way. (Said owner Dan Gilbert: "I gave (general manager) David Griffin and (part-owner) Nate Forbes an unlimited budget and they exceeded it.")
Cleveland is starting the regular season with each member of its Big Three in a varying state of disrepair. LeBron's been limited by a bad back, for which he needed an anti-inflammatory shot; Kevin Love is still working his way back into shape after his brutal shoulder injury in the spring; and point guard Kyrie Irving is recovering from knee surgery and could sit out until December or beyond. In other words, the Cavs could be in for a bumpy start. But does the regular season matter a lick so long as they make the playoffs? Recent history says no.
Snowballing small-balling and 3-balling trends
The league continues to skew stretchier and more 3-point happy, and should set a record for triples attempted for the fifth straight season. Will the trend continue unabated, or is it destined to reach a breaking point? The NBA is a copycat league, but it can also be a reactionary league, prone to stylistic cycles. With more and more teams going small (even the Pacers!), and big men from all walks of life migrating outward and working the three-pointer into their games (even Boogie!), one wonders whether teams like the Grizzlies - who swim against the current - will finally go the way of the dinosaur, or begin to re-emerge as standard-bearers for a new tactical inefficiency.
The specter of a DeMarcus Cousins trade
The Kings have been adamant about their desire to field a competitive team when they move into their new arena in 2016, but if this year's outfit stumbles badly out of the gate, they may have no choice but to put Cousins on the market and try to rebuild from scratch.
We're entering year six of the Cousins era in Sacramento, and no team he's been on has cracked 30 wins. That's certainly not all on Cousins, but his propensity to check out mentally when things go south hasn't helped. There's reason to believe this year's group can turn things around, but given the tumultuous offseason the Kings endured (with Cousins and head coach George Karl's feud smack dab in the middle), it's fair to expect an even quicker trigger than usual from the team's notoriously trigger-happy front office.
Pre-emptive CBA negotiations
A potential lockout can't happen until after next season, but that doesn't mean the issues that'll be on the table in the next round of bargaining won't come to the fore - and possibly even be resolved - during this campaign. Last year, both sides lobbied and verbally sparred on a myriad of issues in anticipation of the opt-out, including the age limit, max contracts, the BRI split, potential rule changes, concussion protocol, and more.
Expect more of the same - with just a touch more urgency - this season. Discussions between the two sides have begun in earnest, and if things go as well as union boss Michele Roberts and league commissioner Adam Silver expect them to - both have expressed optimism about avoiding a work stoppage - the framework for a new CBA could be in place by season's end.
Make-or-break seasons for fringe contenders
The legacy of the 2011 NBA champion Mavericks looms large. It gives hope to every borderline contender carrying a staid core through multiple near-miss seasons, hoping to finally find the perfect alchemy of luck and timing. Those Mavs were also an anomaly, and the vast majority of such teams either blow things up or watch their championship windows close.
This year's field is littered with teams on the precipice. The Bulls are ushering in a new coach - and culture - in Fred Hoiberg, after watching countless opportunities crumble (largely due to dumb-luck circumstance) under Tom Thibodeau, while Derrick Rose and Joakim Noah seek redemption after disappointing seasons marred by injury. Clippers coach and GM Doc Rivers admitted his core may be getting stale, and that major changes could be in store if they fall short again - which, in the unforgiving West, is always the most likely outcome. The Grizzlies are in the same boat - only they're older, play an outmoded brand of ball, and have Mike Conley's impending free agency to worry about. This season may well determine the course of the future for all these teams.
And, of course, this one:
The Thunder
They may technically fit in with the group above, but when it comes to desperation, the Thunder are in a category all their own. No team has more at stake this year.
As you may have heard, Kevin Durant will be an unrestricted free agent in about eight months. There's no telling what factors will ultimately go into his decision to stay or go, but the Thunder rebounding emphatically from a lost season couldn't hurt. Like the Bulls, they're looking to a college coach to give their program a shot in the arm. That's a whole lot of pressure on Billy Donavan, who's never coached at the pro level. There's a whole lot of pressure on everyone, really - including GM Sam Presti, who should be doing everything in his power to upgrade the wing rotation.
Here's another familiar refrain you've likely heard: When fully healthy, the Thunder are as dangerous as any team in the NBA. Let's hope they get a chance to prove as much, before it's too late.