Bank Shots: Oct. 27, 2009

Bank Shots: Scattered thoughts on the day's NBA action.

It's opening night and I must say this is as excited as I've ever been for an upcoming NBA season. Those old enough to be sports writers like to refer to the 1980s as the golden era of the league. But I'm not sure that the influx of talent in the league over the past decade isn't on par with the Jordans, Birds or Magics in terms of skill and personalities.

And the previous dreadful 90s era has finally weeded itself out to only the most useful of players (with Allen Iverson still hanging on for marketing), providing just enough of an old guard (Kobe, Duncan, Shaq and Garnett) to test the new guys (Paul, James, Wade, Howard) in their championship run. That being said, here's some thoughts on the NBA's first night of action:

Boston 95, Cleveland 89:
The addition of Rasheed Wallace at worst makes Rajon Rondo's jumpshot (or lack thereof) a bit more of a moot point. He's not quite an elite point guard but he's pretty good. His best shot charts resemble those of a big man, which works for Boston because their own big men favor jump shots.

Speaking of 'Sheed. I think at this point it's safe to say he's strictly a role player. Six of his nine shots were from behind the arch, which worked out fine tonight but he's not always going to shoot at a 50 percent clip. And three rebounds? For a night at least it was okay.

Garnett looked good. Will it hold up? I find it funny that everyone questions Tim Duncan while it's assumed that Garnett will be fine. KG relies more on his athleticism and let's remember, he's the one that had season ending surgery.

The Cleveland offense continues to be a joke. It's a testament to LeBron James that he could be so poorly utilized and still dominate. It's not easy to guard James but it's of at least some comfort that you never have to worry about where to find him: the top of the key, starting from a standstill, with the entire defense set and focused on him. With the bigger wings in the offseason I actually prefer their sets with Lebron at the power forward. Is it too much to ask for him to get the ball on the move or at more efficient spots on the floor?

Washington 102, Dallas 91
Gilbert Arenas is back. It was just one night but everything seemed in place for Arenas. It's so easy to forget how much of an elite player Arenas was given the developments of LeBron, Howard, Wade, 'Melo and Paul but he's one of the best offensive players in the league so long as he's healthy.

Arenas has an enforcer. Haywood is an overlooked part of the Wizards but right now he's the only one that provides size at an NBA rotation player quality. I also see that Fabricio Oberto got the start. While he's not going to get serious run he's a great pickup in terms of teaching Blatche and the Wizards young frontline how to find shots without having the ball.

The Mavericks need another player that can create offense. Right now Dirk just seems to have too much of a burden right now carrying the offense. Jason Kidd can still find the right passes but he's not exactly creating the passing lanes. Just about the rest of the Mavs offense needs to have their shot created for them. Can you rely on Josh Howard for this?

Portland 96, Houston 87
Where's Houston going to get their shots? There was a lot of talk this offseason about the Grizzlies setting records for fewest assists because the number of ball stoppers on their team. But what about Houston and their lack of creators? Scola can draw double teams in the right matchups and their best shot creator, Brooks, sets up primarily for himself. I'm just not sure who streses the defense enough to draw double teams or cause defenses to collapse. Who's their best passer? I'm not sure you can count on Lowry for eight assists a night.

At this point do you think the Blazers would rather have Oden or Brook Lopez? They're a highly efficient offense, we know. But they're primarily a jump shooting team which means you can automatically pencil them in for at least one loss every playoff series. Jumpers just don't fall every night. Can you picture Oden guarding combinations of Bynum/Kobe or Duncan/Ginobili without getting into serious foul trouble? And they're not exactly an uptempo team so somehow they're going to need to learn how to get easy shots.

Lakers 99, Clippers 92
I'm not sure what I can say about the Lakers that you don't already know. Kobe's good. Bynum can beast weak frontlines. Odom is versatile. We can nitpick all we want here but really Gasol is the one that makes this offense so dangerous and he was out tonight.

On the Clippers part, Davis looked bothered and a step slow. Lakers biggest weakness comes from an inability to guard point guards and Davis just couldn't take advantage. Kaman looked good, Camby overmatched. Gordon on the other hand is the real deal. He can shoot and he's strong. The Lakers towering front line didn't seem to bother him at all. He and Griffin are great pieces to build around. Not sure if Davis should be around when they take over.

The other thing that became obvious: No team that gives Al Thorton major minutes is a good team. He had a terrible shot selection and just doesn't seem to have a great feel for the game. He'll get numbers primarily because he'll force shots but he's not a part of a winning team. Probably my least favorite player to watch in the league right now.