Tejas Vadali
As the hot summer air slowly leaves Chicago, the cool autumn breeze swoops in, and with that comes another bonus: the NBA season. The 2017-18 NBA tips off on October 17, 2017 with the Rockets facing the Warriors and the Cavaliers battling the Celtics.
Here are some of my predictions for the approaching season. Enjoy!
| MVP: Kawhi Leonard. Leonard’ defensive game is second to none, he has truly developed as an offensive powerhouse, and he will take the Spurs to a deep playoff run this year. |
| Defensive Player of the Year: Rudy Gobert. Now that Gordon Hayward is out of the Jazz’s picture, Rudy Gobert will become their primary scorer and defender, meaning that his skills will be showcased just enough to land him the top defensive spot. The only reason I wouldn’t give it to Kawhi is because of voter’s fatigue. |
| Rookie of the Year: Ben Simmons. Unanimously. There’s not much to say here. Ben Simmons has already proven that he is a very polished scorer and he can simply play the game of basketball. It also helps that he’s a 6’11” point guard. |
| Sixth Man: Eric Gordon. After winning the Sixth Man award last year, Eric Gordon has shown us that he can do his job very well. He will be an amazing contributor off the bench for Houston, especially now that he has an elite distributor in Chris Paul. |
| Most Improved: John Wall. After their game-7 loss to the Celtics in the conference semifinals this past season, John Wall has come back stronger, faster, and with a killer instinct. He know knows that he can carry his team to a deep playoff run, and he will certainly deliver this year as well. |
| Best regular season record: Golden State Warriors(70-12). The Warriors will once again hit the 70 win mark this year thanks to their solid frontcourt in Green, and their star-studded backcourt in Curry, Thompson, and Durant. |
| Worst regular season record: Chicago Bulls(21-61). After trading away Jimmy Butler, the Bulls have set themselves up for a tank of a season, but fear not, that’s a good thing. By having the worst record in the league, they put themselves in prime position to acquire projected No.1 pick overall, Michael Porter Jr. Porter is an amazing prospect, and by acquiring him, the Bulls would be off to a great rebuild. |
For every issue of The Forum, I’m going to interview a Latin Student with expertise in the sport that is being written about. This issue’s featured interviewee was NBA analyst in the making, freshman, Koren Jurado. Here are his predictions for the upcoming season:
| Best regular season record: Golden State Warriors(70-12). |
| Worst regular season record: Los Angeles Lakers(22-60). |
| MVP: Kawhi Leonard or Kyrie Irving. Kyrie has a lot to prove without LeBron, and he’s definitely going to make his mark on the league this season. |
| DPoY: Rudy Gobert. |
| Sixth Man: Eric Gordon. |
| RotY: Ben Simmons. Unanimously. |
| Team with the best prospects: Philadelphia 76ers. With the addition of No.1 overall pick Markelle Fultz, the 76ers’ “process” may finally be complete. |
| NBA Champion: Golden State Warriors in a 4-1 series. |
| Playoff seeds – Eastern Conference
1-Cavaliers 2-Celtics
3-Wizards 4-Raptors
5-Bucks
6-Heat
7-76ers
8-Hornets |
| Playoff Seeds – Western Conference
1- Warriors 2-Rockets
3-Spurs
4-Thunder 5-Clippers
6- Timberwolves 7-Grizzlies 8-Pelicans |
Clearly, Koren and I are on the same page on a lot of things, and that’s for good reason (great minds think alike). This NBA season is bound to be a fun one.
Clearly, Koren and I are on the same page on a lot of things, and that’s for good reason(great minds think alike). This NBA season is bound to be a fun one. In our Latin community, however, there is something bigger than the NBA season: our own basketball season. After a very successful season last year, the Romans will yet again take the court to defend their name. I spoke to an eager player who can’t wait for the season to start, freshman, Shahab Kousheshi. “I’m very excited to play high school basketball because it is a big step up from middle school.” He said. “And also that people might actually come to our games for once.”. As basketball season approaches, I am preparing myself for the upsets, the underdogs, but most importantly, the heart with which our Latin team will play. Whether NBA or high school basketball, athletes give their all on the court, and I’ll be here to give you the facts and a little(a lot) of my own opinions.
Until next time – Tejas V.]]>
