Can anyone feel the heat?
By Shaun Johnson
IV Leader Sports Writer
The NBA season is under way and this year holds many
expectations for a lot of teams.
Ron Artest is back in the lineup for Indiana but can he keep
his cool on the court?
Larry Brown packed his bags and landed in New York City.
Hopefully he and team President Isiah Thomas can conjure up a game-winning plan.
There are a lot of questions to be answered this season, but
what about the teams who only made their lives easier. Take the Spurs for
example. Gregg Popovich is back on the sideline and Nick Van Exel makes an
excellent sub for Tony Parker and Michael Finley can do anything but harm a
team’s well being.
The Phoenix Suns, on the other hand, are hurting, literally.
Joe Johnson and Quentin Richardson parted ways with the team and an injured
Amare Stoudemire won’t help. These guys were role players and the most important
players on the roster. You wonder how well the run-n-gun Suns will fare this
season without them.
The Lake Show has Phil Jackson back and Kobe is in the
driver’s seat, a recipe for winning some may say. But I say where are the rest
of the players?
Despite all the roster changes made this offseason, none were
more impressive than the additions Miami made. Jason Williams, Antoine Walker,
Gary Payton and draft choice Wayne Simien all play for the hottest team in the
NBA, appropriately nicknamed the Heat. Shaq may be out but that’s only temporary
and it will give the team a chance to play a different type of basketball, a
type that their lineup is perfect for: the ever famous run and gun. The Heat
will run away with their division with a banner hanging from the ceiling. Dwayne
Wade has blossomed into a fearless leader and a relentless scorer. He will lead
his team to and through the playoffs. And oh and LeBron, you can give the Rookie
of the Year trophy back anytime now.