NBA Season Preview 2022-23: One reason to watch each and every team
By Luke Anton
Detroit Pistons: The Cade and Jaden backcourt
The No. 1 overall pick in 2021, Cade Cunningham, and the No. 5 overall pick this summer, Jaden Ivey, are a natural backcourt fit. Cade with his quarterback style of running the offense and Jaden with his blurring speed in the open court.
This young backcourt should be a nice balance of precision and chaos. Cade plays at a slower pace a la Luka. Jaden plays at breakneck speed like prime Westbrook.
Indiana Pacers: Tyrese Haliburton’s passing wizardry
The first game with Tyrese Haliburton in a Pacers uniform was BONKERS, lighting up the Cavs for 47 first-quarter points. Yes, first quarter. Haliburton is sensational — a true League Pass marvel and passing wizard. 17 assists and 0 turnovers!? Yep, he had two games of 15+ assists and 0 turnovers, something no player had ever done before turning 23 years old in NBA history.
With Malcolm Brogdon out of the kitchen, Haliburton has all the room to cook. A backcourt trio of Haliburton, Chris Duarte and No. 6 overall pick Ben Mathurin will be running and gunning and then running and gunning some more.
Chicago Bulls: DeMarvelous DeRozan
A mid-range God and The King of the Fourth, DeMar DeRozan took over in crunch time last season with his mid-range mastery time and time again. A professional tough shot-maker, DeRozan led the league in fourth-quarter points by a substantial margin. DeRozan’s 612 fourth-quarter points were over 80 more points than Giannis Antetokounmpo’s second-place 528 and over 140 more points than Jayson Tatum’s third-place 469.
DeRozan’s historic stretch of eight straight 35-point games with 50 percent shooting was seriously scintillating and beautiful to watch. It was DeMarvelous. Any time that a player puts up numbers that haven’t been accomplished since MJ and Wilt, they deserve all of the recognition.
Cleveland Cavaliers: Cavalanches
One of three reasons to be excited about the Cavs this season, Cavalanches were a rip-roaring good time last season. https://fansided.com/2022/10/04/cavaliers-2022-23-nba-season-preview/
The Cavs had a great tendency to go on gargantuan runs fueled by Evan Mobley and Jarrett Allen blocks (the Block Brothers!) that ignited fast breaks, leading to Darius Garland flying up the court and finding the open man for a dunk or a 3. And this sequence would be on a loop all while the Cavs bench would be going crazy and the crowd at The Rock would be losing their minds. And now with Donovan Mitchell’s drive-and-kick game, bursting speed and bludgeoning power dunks added to the mix – get your popcorn ready.
Milwaukee Bucks: Giannis destruction
Giannis Antetokounmpo is the most dominant two-way force in the game, dismantling opponents with his otherworldly size, strength and length. He put together one of the most complete and dominant Finals performances EVER two years ago, and he regularly pulverizes the regular season to smithereens.
Giannis’ stats are eerily similar over the course of the last four seasons, going back to his back-to-back MVP seasons. It’s safe to count on around 28 points, 10 rebounds, and almost 6 assists with a steal and a block every single night. His defensive presence is engulfing. It only takes him a couple of gigantic steps to move across the entire court. He can dunk it anytime and anywhere. His across-the-court slingshot passes are always a treat.