Why am I telling you this? Well, I felt the need to tell you which teams I will pick this year. Without further ado:
The Honorable Mentions
These are the teams I would have chosen if I could go to 15 games.
Dallas Mavericks
Dallas had an unexpected renaissance last year, eking into the eighth seed and giving the Spurs their toughest test in their playoff run. Bill Simmons and Jalen Rose are right in saying that what Dirk did with that supporting cast earned him a spot on the MVP ballot. Just look at that roster.
They also added one of my favorite guys in free agency, Chandler Parsons. Why do I love Parsons? I appreciate when a player uses ingenuity to make up for lesser athletic traits. For example Andre Miller, the point guard who uses a refined post game to punish smaller guards. Parsons creates on the perimeter, will love to throw lobs to Tyson Chandler, and will have the occasional 10 three-pointer game. Good signing by Dallas to get Parsons away from in-state rival Houston. Hey, speaking of Houston...
Houston Rockets
You may think it's crazy for me to pick 10 teams over the one that has Dwight Howard, James Harden, and Harden's YouTube-worthy bad defense, especially after the game I went to last year. Corey Brewer scored 51 points and the Wolves got a dramatic win at home. But that's the point; I don't really want to see a team that let Corey Brewer drop 51 on them.New Orleans Pelicans
The only reason I would go to this game would be for Anthony Davis. He's the next in line to LeBron and Durant for the MVP. I'll get to see him a few years down the road.
Charlotte Hornets
I love everything Charlotte did this offseason. Signing Lance Stephenson. Changing their name. Changing their uniforms. Love all of it. I'll definitely watch them on TV, and we'll all be watching them come playoff time. They just couldn't match up with some of the other teams on the main list.
Golden State Warriors
Now you're surprised. I know this is a little iffy, but I'm confident in my choices. There will be other years to go see Steph Curry and Klay Thompson, or as they're also known, the entire Warriors team. If they trade for Kevin Love, they'll bump the last team on here off the list. I have to see Love's return.*
The No-Doubt-About-Its
Keep in mind, there is no order of importance on this list.
Boston Celtics
My Celtics are easily going to be the worst team on this entire post, but I have to see how Marcus Smart and James Young are doing. I have to see them with or without Rondo, and if without, I have to see what they got back for him (Nik Stauskas anybody?). Stauskas would provide them some shooting, confidence, and fill the role of next great Celtics white guy. I'd be happy going forward with Smart, Stauskas, and Young as our perimeter of the future.
Even if nothing like that happens, the C's are my team and I have to see them. Long live the Green.
Cleveland Cavaliers
For all the obvious reasons (LeBron, LeBron back in Cleveland, possibility of a Love trade, Wiggins + LeBron = Havoc athletically) and a few not so obvious ones (Is Waiters still there? If he is, did LeBron have an effect on his relationship with Kyrie Irving? Would Love and Irving work as well together as they did in the Uncle Drew commercial?). Easily the most interesting team out there.
Oklahoma City Thunder
Just the athleticism, youth, and talent that Durant, Westbrook, and Ibaka bring to the table is enough for me to come back every year. As a fan, watching Durant in action is almost an epiphany, a revelation not just because of his skills at his height, but how he looks. He's so long and skinny, and he goes back so far on his step back. He's incredible.
Westbrook is perhaps the best specimen of an athlete in the league not named LeBron James. Just the way he flies around, covering space astoundingly fast, makes him seem superhuman. The craziest thing about Westbrook is how he'll pull down a rebound, come out of the pack, shift three gears higher than everyone else, accelerate and absolutely destroy a big man at the rim. It's amazing. I'm definitely looking to see if they fill that last scorer's role they need. If they do, they'll be incredibly hard to beat.
Chicago Bulls
The Bulls are on the list for a few reasons:1) My dad is from Chicago, so I have some allegiance to all Windy City teams.
2) I want to see if Derrick Rose will ever really make it back. Personally, I doubt it. I hate to say it, but I think he's this generation's Penny Hardaway, a supremely gifted athletic specimen, who just can't seem to make it past the injuries. And if it happens again this year, it's definite. I sincerely hope I'm wrong, because Rose is so gifted and by all accounts a great guy and teammate, but I don't see it happening for him.
3) If I'm wrong, and Rose does make it back to around 85% of what he was in his MVP year, does Gasol push them over the top? The East is wide open and they don't even need to be as good as they were in 2011 (which I don't think they will be) as long as Cleveland doesn't get Love.
The Bulls will be interesting for sure.
Los Angeles Clippers
As long as Donald Sterling is no longer the owner, and all the players don't sit out the season, this is a definite choice.
