Bringing the Balance
This last offseason marked the end of an era where NBA basketball just wasn’t fun to watch. Everyone knew what the result would be, and it was just all hoping and praying that a miracle would happen. But it never did - until this past spring. Ever since Kawhi Leonard beat the Warriors, the NBA has been changed forever. I can’t give all the credit to Kawhi, though, because he did have a little help from Damian Lillard. Either way, this is the first year in a long time, where I really don’t see a clear choice to come out of either conference. Yes, the Bucks and Lakers/Clippers might be the favored teams, but that doesn’t mean I think they’re the only choice. There are any number of teams in both conferences that could easily make a run and upset any of these guys. I’m actually invested in seeing this season out to its end. Let’s go over what it took to get to this point.
April 23, 2019
Action: Damian Lillard ends the Thunder Franchise
Result: Thunder trade star players for assets
The Thunder looked so good on paper for so many years, but could never put it together. With Paul George coming off an MVP level season, it looked like they could have a real chance in the playoffs. Then they met the Trailblazers. Damian Lillard took a 3-1 series lead and then got to play game 5 in his home arena. It was a close game throughout, and then Paul George was put on Lillard for the last shot of the game. Damian stepped back, and hit one of the most iconic shots of the last 10 years, ending the entire Thunder franchise in one single shooting motion.
May 8, 2019
Action: Kyrie loses in 5 to Bucks and plays poorly
Result: Kyrie leaves for Brooklyn and Kemba comes to Boston
As a fan of the Celtics, I remember watching the first game and thinking we had it all in the bag. Little did I know Kyrie would play horribly in game 2. What made it even worse was when he spoke to the media after the game. He was asked whether or not he was going to slow down and try to distribute the ball more, but we came back quickly with his response. Kyrie made it clear that he was going to continue shooting, no matter if he was shooting poorly or not. I was hoping this would lead to good things, but clearly it did not. The Celtics lost in 5, and Kyrie left a bitter taste in the mouth of all of New England.
June 13, 2019
Action: Kawhi Leonard takes down the Raptors
Result: Kevin Durant leaves for Brooklyn and Klay is out for the 19-20 season
The Warriors decided to play Kevin Durant in a situation where we’ll never really know if he was fully healthy yet or not. In the end, it took a horrible turn for the worst. The Warriors lost Durant to a major injury, and then Klay in the same series. Even though two stars went down, Kawhi still managed to take down a dynasty that ruled the NBA for years. He went to a team that had never won a championship in their history, and took down a team of superstars.
July 10, 2019
Action: Kawhi Leonard signs with the Clippers
Result: The league becomes balanced
Kawhi Leonard had the perfect opportunity to absolutely ruin the NBA. He could have easily signed with the Lakers, teamed up with LeBron James and Anthony Davis, and dominated the NBA for years to come. If he had done that, we would have been right back to having one super team destroying everyone else, and nothing would’ve changed. However, Kawhi went on his own path with PG13, and created a league of duos instead of super teams. He finally brought some semblance of balance to the league.
