There’s only a week remaining before the best basketball league on the planet makes its emphatic return to the lives of its adoring fans. With only a couple of days left in the preseason, all teams are focused on getting their teams in top shape to start their campaign for the Larry O’Brien trophy on the right foot.
And with the NBA being busy as it is, there’s no short supply of intriguing storylines for the seasoned pundits and the casual fans to digest and process. We’ll be focusing three especially interesting topics that are currently making rounds in every circle that is heavily invested in the sport.
Leonard Might Fight for Title at Toronto
Everyone and their mother knows how Kawhi Leonard had a bizarre final year with the San Antonio Spurs. He strained the good relationship he had with heralded head coach Gregg Popovich and asked for a move away from the team.
The resulting Leonard trade was one of the most rattling transactions in a busy summer of moves made by stars across the league. Both teams are looking forward to moving towards the NBA title with their new stars, but there was uncertainty as to whether the Klaw will actually stay with the Raptors after the season’s over. Kawhi’s future is the biggest among the NBA 2018 updates Canadian basketball fans are wary of.
Fortunately for Raptors fans, it seems that there is something to look forward to next summer with the way things are going at with the team.
The former San Diego University standout has been working hard on his game ever since returning to the team. He told the press that he came to the franchise with an open mind and that he wanted to play up north.
Even fellow former Spur Danny Green noted that there is a noticeable difference between the San Antonio and Toronto versions of the Klaw. He noted that the 27-year-old is more vocal and focused than ever.
These bits of information are bad news for the teams out in the East, already one of the biggest favourites to win the East in the SBOBET basketball market at 4.50. The Klaw will definitely be sharp, and the Raptors will rip the East to shreds if they’re not careful.
NBA and the Push for Staff Diversity
The NBA is a global brand, with fans spanning from Canada all the way to the farthest reaches of China. With that fact in mind, NBA Commissioner Adam Silver and the association are doing everything they can to ensure that the league will have the reputation as one of the most diverse sporting leagues in the world.
The league’s teams have long since opened their doors to the world’s best players, but it’s only recently that they have started accepting coaches and backroom staff of different races. Serbia’s Igor Kokosov will be coaching the Phoenix Suns for the season while the Charlotte Hornets tapped the league’s first full-time Hispanic head coach in James Borrego.
Many in the league also believe that women should be given opportunities to thrive in a league that has been long deemed as a man’s world. And at the front of that is Popovich himself.
The long-time San Antonio coach has been working with Becky Hammon in his team since 2006, and the former San Antonio Stars point guard is the leading favourite to become the first-ever female head coach of the league.
“There are more Beckys out there, they just have to be noticed and given the opportunity by people who are wise enough and courageous enough to do it and not just sit in the old paradigm,” Popovich proclaimed.
I’m sure that this is something Silver is already looking into.
Chris Bosh Hopes to Return to Playing Basketball
Chris Bosh is a name that hasn’t been heard by NBA fans in many moons, but the former Toronto Raptor and Miami Heat star is definitely beloved by the league.
Bosh was a star that stirred NBA 2018 predictions alongside LeBron James and Dwyane Wade during the trio’s outstanding run with the Heat. After LeBron returned to Cleveland in 2014, he showcased the talent that was overshadowed by the King.
However, the forward was forced to stop playing in 2016 due to the discovery of blood clots in the system. The Heat were surely crippled without their stretch big man and have struggled to get out of the first round since then.
However, Bosh has come out and said that he hasn’t really hung up his shoes just yet.
Bosh reminded people that he is not retired just yet and that basketball is still in his heart. He explained that he has still not made his decision and will be contemplating as to whether he will give it a shot one more time or just walk off into the sunset and call it a career.
If he does decide to go back, however, he could find himself plying his trade in the Big Apple. The New York Knicks have become a possible destination for him, and Bosh is open to playing with former Heat assistant coach and current Knicks head coach David Fizdale.
“If they make me a deal, yeah,” Bosh said of the possible move.
Of course, he still cannot play basketball as long as he is still in medication. But if his complicated recovery process gets the job done, we might see Bosh playing with Kristaps Porzingis in the future.
That in itself is a terrifying thought.
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