The basketball league will offer a first high-level menu on Tuesday, with the rematch of the epic last final of the Eastern Conference between the Nets and the Bucks.
The NBA opens its 75th season on Tuesday in which Kevin Durant’s Brooklyn Nets and LeBron James’s Los Angeles Lakers, two teams with many doubts to resolve, will try to storm the throne of Giannis Antetokounmpo’s Milwaukee Bucks.
The North American Basketball League will offer a first high-level menu on Tuesday, with the rematch of the epic last final of the Eastern Conference between the Nets and the Bucks (6:30 p.m. from Ecuador, broadcasts ESPN), who will show off their status as champions for the first time in half a century.
The second course will be a duel between Stephen Curry’s Golden State Warriors and the Lakers (21:00 from Ecuador, transmits ESPN), aspiring to add their 18th ring and surpass their staunch rivals, the Boston Celtics, in the historical record.
Back on its regular schedule, the NBA is confident of resuming a certain normality after the shocks of the past two seasons due to the coronavirus pandemic.
The percentage of players vaccinated against COVID-19 (an estimated 96%) is much higher than that of the general American population (57%) but the exceptions have had an impact even beyond the sport.
The most high-profile case among unvaccinated players is that of the controversial Kyrie Irving, one of the three Nets superstars.
The point guard, who has already had previous struggles with the NBA, has spoken out against the mandatory nature of the vaccine. Due to regulations against the pandemic in New York, Irving cannot play home games unless he is immunized and the Nets have chosen to remove him from the team until he can be fully available.
The rest of the twenty players who have not confirmed their vaccination, such as Bradley Beal (Wizards), will be able to play due to the less restrictive regulations in their cities, but they will have to submit to strict restrictions on the dynamics with their teams.
Nets sin ‘Big 3′
At the moment the Nets will not be able to count on their ‘Big 3’ in full but, even without Irving (26.9 points on average last season), many analysts keep them among the great candidates for the title.
Steve Nash’s team continues to enjoy two league giants. Kevin Durant, who has returned in his best version after his serious Achilles tendon injury, will chase his third championship ring after 2017 and 2018 with the Warriors. Beside him will be James Harden, a three-time NBA leading scorer but still chasing his first championship.
The Lakers also have a devastating duo, consisting of LeBron James and Anthony Davis, but their physical problems doomed the team to an early elimination in the past playoffs.
For sure, the Angelina franchise was made with Russell Westbrook, another star of the league whose good fit on the track with James and Davis is yet to be confirmed, and with a group of illustrious veterans in the last stretch of their careers, such as Carmelo Anthony, Dwight Howard and Trevor Ariza.
The oldest squad in the league (an average of 30.7 years) needs to take care of their physical condition as well as generate game chemistry, after a preseason in which they have lost all six games.
“It will take time for us to become the team that we can be. There will be times when we are not quite right, when we take steps back. It’s part of the process, ”said LeBron James, who dreams of a fifth ring at age 37.
The insatiable Antetokounmpo
Without flashy signings, the Bucks maintain the block that defeated the Phoenix Suns (4-2) in the last Finals. Giannis Antetokounmpo, a collector of individual distinctions such as two MVP awards, will fight for a second ring seconded by his partners Khris Middleton and Jrue Holiday.
The Suns, after their fabulous and unexpected last season, extended the contract of veteran Chris Paul to continue to guide young Devin Booker and DeAndre Ayton.
The Utah Jazz will once again rely on their star duo, Donovan Mitchell and Rudy Gobert, and Paul George’s Los Angeles Clippers will have to survive without Kawhi Leonard, whose knee injury aims to keep him out of the regular season.
The Golden State Warriors are about to celebrate the return of Klay Thompson, absent the past two seasons, who is expected to re-launch the team that reached five finals and won three rings between 2015 and 2019.
In the Eastern Conference, the Atlanta Hawks of Trae Young, conference finalists, do not give up taking the next step to fight for the title while the Philadelphia 76ers have to solve the rebellion of Ben Simmons, who wants to break his partnership with Joel Embiid and be transferred to another franchise. (D)
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