Thanksgiving is a time of year to reflect on what matters most to us in life and what we are most thankful for. As all 30 NBA teams got Thanksgiving day off, I thought it would be fun to acknowledge at least one thing that each NBA team can be thankful for at this time of year. It may be hard for some teams to feel grateful for something at this time of year, but you can rest assured that there is something that your team can be thankful for! So rejoice in hearing the good news for your team!
Atlanta Hawks: The Atlanta Hawks still have a ways to go before they can be considered a contending team, but one thing we know for certain is that Josh Smith was not going to lead them to a title. The Hawks should be thankful that Josh Smith is no longer their headache and that he is now a member of the Pistons. They should also be thankful to have a more quality guy like Paul Millsap in their organization to take his place.
Boston Celtics: The Boston Celtics are entering full re-building mode, with the days of Paul Pierce, Kevin Garnett, and Ray Allen over. Only Radian Rondo is left from the era as Doc Rivers has bolted for the City of Angels to coach the Clippers. While it may seem like the Celtics don't have anything to be thankful for, they actually do have some things to be thankful for. One of those things being that the 2014 NBA draft is stacked and the other being that have a quality franchise player to build around in Rajon Rondo. A lot of teams in the NBA would love to have an elite point guard like Rajon Rondo to build around. The fact that the Celtics have that puts them well ahead of a lot of teams.
Brooklyn Nets: The Nets' season so far has been an utter and complete disaster. Jason Kidd is spilling soda pop on the court to call pseudo-timeouts, Deron Williams, Brook Lopez, Jason Terry, and Andrei Kirilenko have all been injured, and Kevin Garnett and Paul Pierce look like the aging stars that they are. But if there is anything that the Nets can be thankful for, it is that the Knicks stink as much as they do, and also, the entire Eastern Conference has been awful. That means they still have plenty of time to get healthy, figure out their team, make the playoffs, and maybe make some noise.
Charlotte Bobcats: This one is pretty obvious. The Charlotte Bobcats can be thankful that next season, they will be known as the Charlotte Hornets. The return of "Buzz City" will make NBA basketball in Charlotte exciting again and also something that Charlotte fans can get behind.
Chicago Bulls: For the Chicago Bulls, it's hard to think of what they have to be thankful for after Derrick Rose goes down again (this time he tore the meniscus in his other knee). But if there is anything they can be thankful for it is that Derrick Rose can still be a major part of their future and that his torn meniscus can regain full strength with proper rehab. They can also be thankful for the fact that Derrick Rose has already made a full recovery in the past. Hopefully next Thanksgiving, the Bulls can be thankful for a healthy Derrick Rose on his way back to MVP form.
Cleveland Cavaliers: The Cleveland Cavaliers have enough to be thankful for to mask the obviously horrible start by #1 overall draft pick Anthony Bennett. One of the main things they can be thankful for is the fact that the 76ers gave up on Andrew Bynum and didn't make any effort to re-sign him in the summer. Bynum still may eventually shape up to be a quality center for them to accompany Kyrie Irving, and it wouldn't have happened had the 76ers invested in Andrew Bynum past last season. Also, the Cavaliers can be thankful for the fact that they have Kyrie Irving, who may one day become the best point guard in the NBA.
Dallas Mavericks: What the Mavericks have to be thankful for is the fact that every team in the NBA overlooked Monta Ellis in free agency. Ellis has been a great fit in Dallas and has given them the perfect offensive punch that they have needed. I'm not saying the Mavericks are contenders with Ellis, but they'll be in the mix all season long for a playoff spot (which in the Western Conference might be all that you need) as a result of picking up Monta Ellis.
Denver Nuggets: The Nuggets should be grateful for finding Brian Shaw to replace George Karl as head coach. I've never been really high on George Karl as a head coach, primarily because I think he underachieved as a coach of the Seattle Supersonics in the 90s, only reaching the NBA Finals once while having Gary Payton and Shawn Kemp to work with. But, with that being said, Karl is still a quality coach, and letting him go would have been a big mistake had they not been fortunate enough to find a quality replacement in Brian Shaw.
Detroit Pistons: The Pistons in free agency went from being a bottom feeder of a bad Eastern Conference to being a potential playoff team through picking up Brandon Jennings and Josh Smith. Both those guys along with Andre Drummond and Greg Monroe ought to lead the Pistons to the playoffs this season, which for the Pistons is a huge step in the right direction.
Golden State Warriors: The Golden State Warriors have a lot to be thankful for. They signed Andre Iguodala in the off season, they have great fans, and a chance to make a deep playoff run, etc. But if there is one thing that the Warriors should be most thankful for, it is that they have a quality front office and a quality ownership that has a vision for the franchise. The Warriors lacked this kind of vision in the previous ownership, but now that they have these new guys at the helm, the Warriors can be sure to contend for many championships in the future.
Houston Rockets: If there is anything the Rockets can be thankful for, it is landing Dwight Howard in the summer. I know things didn't work out for Dwight in Los Angeles and Orlando, but he still is the premiere franchise center in the NBA. Landing Dwight Howard may have dramatically changed the course of this franchise.
Indiana Pacers: The Pacers should be grateful for signing Paul George to a max extension in the offseason, and locking him up as their key franchise player to build a championship caliber team around.
Los Angeles Clippers: This team needed a better coach than Vinny Del Negro, and they got one in Doc Rivers. They should be thankful for landing Doc Rivers as their head coach, which hopefully will take their already talented roster to new heights.
Los Angeles Lakers: The Lakers should be thankful that Kobe Bryant will play basketball again. I didn't agree with the fat contract extension that they just gave Kobe Bryant, but they should be grateful that they got a couple more season to see if he can bring them a title. I don't think he will, but if they didn't have him, they'd be back to page one (which thankfully for the Lakers isn't as bad as it is for other team).
Memphis Grizzlies: After Marc Gasol went down with a knee injury, thoughts of a torn ACL had to cross the minds all Grizzlies fans. The Grizzlies should be thankful it's just a sprain and that he'll only be out for a couple of weeks.
Miami Heat: The Miami Heat have many things to be thankful for, but the main thing they have to be thankful for is that they have the best basketball player on the planet in LeBron James. So long as they have him, they'll be the toughest team to stop in the NBA.
Milwaukee Bucks: They're playing terrible, but they should be thankful that the 2014 NBA Draft is stacked and that they have good odds at getting a quality franchise player to build around in the draft. Plus, they should be grateful that they no longer have Brandon Jennings, and instead have a quality point guard in Nate Wolters who fell to them late in the draft. Bucks fans, feel grateful! There is reason to rejoice in the future of the Bucks!
Minnesota Timberwolves: The Timberwolves should be grateful to have the best big man in the game in Kevin Love. He's playing like a hall of fame big man, and so long as they have him, they'll be a force in the Western Conference. They should also be grateful to have picked up Kevin Martin in free agency.
New Orleans Pelicans: The Pelicans should be grateful for having Anthony Davis pan out. Sometimes #1 picks don't become franchise changing players, but thankfully for them, they have a franchise changing player in Anthony Davis to build around for years to come.
New York Knicks: The Knicks should be grateful that the Nets suck as well. If the Nets were really good and the Knicks were horrible, the New York media would be ripping into them like piranhas ripping into dead gorilla floating down the amazon.
Oklahoma City Thunder: The Thunder obviously have one thing to be grateful for among all the things they can be grateful for, which is that Russell Westbrook returned earlier than expected and that he is looking healthy. As a result, they'll be able to get a high seed in the Western Conference and make a deep run into the playoffs.
Orlando Magic: The dust has cleared from the Dwight Howard trade that sent Howard to the Lakers, Andrew Bynum to the 76ers, and Nikola Vucevic to the Magic. The Magic ironically won that trade, which is what they should be feeling grateful for. At the end of the day, the Magic look like the smart ones in that trade. Plus, they got a promising rookie in Victor Oladipo who can be a key piece for them to build around in the future.
Philadelphia 76ers: The 76ers should be grateful that Michael Carter-Williams may end up being the steal of the draft. The NBA is point guard driven, and they likely have already found their franchise point guard to build around in MCW.
Phoenix Suns: The Suns should be grateful to have hired Jeff Hornacek as head coach. Hornacek has this young, inexperienced Suns team playing way better than they were expected to, which is largely due to his credit. Expect Hornacek to be the head coach of this team for a long long time.
Portland Trail Blazers: They are 13-3, Damian Lillard and LaMarcus Aldridge are a legit one-two punch, and they are holding their own in a tough Western Conference. Plus, Greg Oden is gone. The Trail Blazers have a lot to be thankful for in addition to having an easy schedule to start the season.
Sacramento Kings: The Kings (and more importantly their fans) should be thankful that their team is staying in Sacramento.
San Antonio Spurs: I could say that the Spurs should be grateful for Tony Parker, Tim Ducan, Gregg Popovich, etc. But that would be too obvious. What Spurs fans should be thankful for is that no team in the West leapfrogged them in terms of being favored to win the West over the Summer. The Warriors and Rockets improved their teams, but I still gotta put the Spurs ahead of both teams right now.
Toronto Raptors: In order to have a successful NBA franchise, the first thing a team needs is quality management. The Raptors hired last season's Executive of the Year Award winner Masai Ujiri to be their new GM. Somehow the Nuggets let him go, which means that the Raptors should be sending thank you cards to the Nuggets' front office very soon. For the Raptors, they should definitely be thankful to have Masai Ujiri as their general manager.
Utah Jazz: The Utah Jazz are awful this season, but they should be thankful to have quality young players to build around for the future and also an absolutely stacked draft in 2014. They are in prime position to land either Jabari Parker or Andrew Wiggins in the draft, which could greatly change their franchise for the better.
Washington Wizards: The Wizards should be thankful that so far, John Wall is living up to his max contract and is looking like an elite franchise point guard.
---Ben Parker: follow me on twitter @nba_lord
شركة مكافحة حشرات بالدمام
ReplyDeleteشركة تنظيف فلل بالدمام
شركة تنظيف بيوت بالدمام
شركة تنظيف سجاد بالدمام