NBA Opening Night: What to watch for in each match-up

Spurs: Big Man Rotation

There is a lot of intrigue surrounding San Antonio entering the season, and I say that not only because I am a fan. The departure of Tim Duncan was obviously huge, but the team also saw Boban Marjanovic, David West, and Boris Diaw depart the once loaded frontcourt. On top of that, veterans Andre Miller and Kevin Martin were allowed to walk, and Tony Parker and Manu Ginobili got another year closer to the scary age of 40.

The team is not exactly revamped, as it returns four starters, but the bench will look drastically different. The big man rotation will be interesting, as Aldridge will team with newcomers Pau Gasol, David West, and DeWayne Dedmon, with Kyle Anderson possibly seeing minutes at the four as well. The only traditional center out of the bench squad is Dedmon, and there is a reason the Spurs got him for less than two million: he ain’t very good.

With the league as a whole trending towards quicker power forwards who can shoot the long ball, watch out for how mastermind Gregg Popovich uses his old but skillful bigs against teams like the Warriors, who can play Draymond Green at center. Expect the defense to suffer, but watch how Pop’s big guys on the block make shorter defenders look silly. As much crap as Gasol took in Chicago, he is still an elite scoring big man that can make a six-foot-seven Green look dumb with his quick spins and head fakes.

Bonus to watch: LaMarcus Aldridge post up fadeaway mid-rangers.