NBA 08-09 Storylines!

Last year was a very good year for the association. To list just a few things why: Kobe got his MVP, Chris Paul took over the reigns from Steve Nash as best PG, Lebron put up as amazing averages across the board as we have seen in decades, Boston had three all-stars on their team and won the Larry O'Brien trophy, Dwight Howard made the dunk contest relevant again, Shaq was sent to Phoenix, Houston won 22 straight games [many without Yao], Atlanta took Boston to 7 games in the playoffs, the all-star game was hosted in New Orleans, the West had 9 teams better than almost anyone in the East, Jason Kidd was sent to Dallas, and the Raptors kept their 3-point streak alive! I am sure I missed a million things that could be added to the list, but you get the point... the season was great.

This year? There are many things to follow: Greg Oden is finally a rookie, Gilbert Arenas should be back at full strength, the league has a new team [Thundercats!], Jermaine O'Neal is a Raptor, Ron Artest is a Rocket, Lebron has another year under his belt, diddo Chris Paul, Boston will be looking to repeat, Detroit might lose their streak of consecutive conference finals appearances, T-Mac might get out of the first round, Lakers have Bynum back, and the Knicks will get back to .500! .400!

My "interview" with Sam Mitchell

Sam Mitchell was nice enough to sit down with me to discuss the upcoming season. In the interview, I ask Sam about his new big man, the Olympics, and about making shots



Kevin: Hi Sam, thanks for finding the time to talk to me.

Sam: Okay.

Kevin: So, Sam, another year, another set of new guys. How do you feel about the new players Bryan has acquired for you?

Sam: It's not all that important. Whoever is on the floor has got to make shots. If you're not on the floor, you gotta work your butt off in practice. Whoever is here is here for a reason, and I'll reward you if you play hard.

Kevin: Have you created a strategy for having Bosh and JO on the floor at the same time?

Sam: Yeah, I have an idea of how it will play out. It will depend on match-ups. It will change each game. But look at it this way, our two bigs are two all stars. We're going to have two, maybe three [with Calderon] all stars on the floor at the same time, so we're going to be all right.

Kevin: Speaking of Calderon, do you think you will miss TJ?

Sam: Well, of course we will miss TJ. He is a terrific player, who put up great numbers both years he was with us. Jose will be fine, though. And we get to see what Roko can do.

Kevin: Did you watch much of the Olympics?

Sam: Not really, no. I knew Bosh was doing well, Jose too. I don't see them being too tired for the upcoming season. It was good that Roko got some more experience as well.

Kevin: What do you make of the Jose controversy? First the picture with the Spanish team, and then his comments about the officials?

Sam: Listen, I'm not going to go around saying anything bad about Jose. I don't know what role Jose had in the picture, and he apologized. As for his officiating comments, who doesn't complain about international officiating? Have you read Rod Benson's blog? Next question.

Kevin: Who is going to be your starting 3? Moon or Kapono?

Sam: Kapono will have every opportunity to start. The way he played against Orlando was magical... no pun intended. Moon, he was great last year, so we will see if he can come back and keep growing.

Kevin: Last question Sam, what do the Raptors have to do to compete with the top teams this year?

Sam: There are a lot of "if's" right now when it comes to that. If JO can stay healthy and revert back to his all star form, if Bosh can keep the intensity we saw with the U.S. team, if Jose can play like he did last year, if Roko can take his game to the NBA level, if AP can still be Mr. Consistent, if Moon can take the next step, if Kapono can play like he did in the playoffs, if Chris and JO can co-exist together, and if Bargnani can become the player we think he can be. If all that happens, and if we make shots, we'll be okay.

Kevin: Thanks Sam, appreciate the visit.

Sam: My pleasure.

Ed. Note: This interview may or may not have happened, and the characters may or may not have been made up.