NBA Season...right on!

Damn, I'm so excited about the upcoming season!!!
I t seems like the talent level in the NBA has finally reached the mid 90's level and people are back watching the game...Still there are lots of great players but also a couple of horrible teams...can you say Oklahoma City Thunder???

Spurs coach Gregg Popovich is one of the league's great treasures. He knows David Stern is a complete novice when it comes to on-court issues, and he won't hesitate to publicly criticize the commissioner on any count. If his players don't like the dress code, Popovich takes on their case himself. During the rigors of playoff travel, he has been known to cancel a mandated media session and pay the fine himself so his players can get some rest. He treats the Stern-imposed, in-game interviews as the rude inquisitions that they are. He also has a fine sense of humor. In the wake of Shaquille O'Neal's recent rant, saying it was "cowardly" for Popovich to pull the "Haq-a-Shaq" strategy at certain times,

Popovich used Michael Finley to intentionally foul Shaq on the Suns' first possession of the season. With Popovich smiling broadly, both thumbs up, even Shaq had to laugh.

Popovich ain't my favorite neither but you gotta love that kind of humor...

Teams I'll be watching this year:

• Cleveland: looking great with a brand new true PG and Lebron getting bigger and better...
• Dallas: probably on the downfall..this is NOT Jason Kidd's team and Kidd was always running his teams, literally and figuratively !
• Denver: Even before the Iverson - Billups trade but now it's even more interesting!! Where does this trade leave both teams? They swapped guards that do things in entirely different ways and to move from a steady point to a score-first undersized two-guard (and lose the point position all together) makes for some uncertainty in Detroit. It seems uncertain if this trade will make the Pistons a better team and a more viable candidate to supplant Boston as the boss of the Eastern Conference, but I can guarantee you that the Denver Nuggets will be immediately better.
• Houston: Do Yao, T-Mac and Artest form a true big three?? Yes, IF they can stay healthy which I don't believe they ll do...
• LA Clippers: They actually "traded" Corey Maggette and Elton Brand for Baron Davis and Marcus Camby..will they be better or worst??? early indications show the lateral and again injuries will be huge for them..Oh, and I heard Baron Davis just bought a moped.
• New Orleans: My pick for winning it all while, contrary to what everybody is saying ,their bench IS solid!
• New York: you gotta love all the drama in the Mecca of basketball..Check this out: Last season Stephon Marbury was the scapegoat for this poor Knicks team, taking all the blame from his coach, the press and the fans...You'd expect the same reactions this year since the Knicks haven't been able to get rid of Stephon, right??? Guess again! During the team's first home game of year some fans in the Garden crowd surprisingly started chanting "We Want Steph" with 11:10 remaining in the fourth (others booed the chant)... A stewing D'Antoni was caught on MSG Network cameras Wednesday in a tirade, mouthing:

  "You've got to be (bleeping) kidding me. You've got to be (bleeping) kidding me. What a bunch of (bleep) holes."

  You gotta love the drama NY... Marbury received a DNP, his second of his career, and is out of the rotation indefinitely despite likely being the team's most skilled player..
  
• Phoenix: New coach and new system, will Steve Nash's numbers go down??? Will Amare finally mature?? and can Shaq stay healthy?????
• Portland: Young and exciting team but will they be solid??? Greg Oden proving to be the new Sam Bowie doesn't help...

Go out there and Vote! yay!!