PLAYERS TO WATCH
KOBE BRYANT, LAKERS: Bryant hasn’t decided whether he’ll retire, re-sign with the Lakers or go elsewhere next summer. Although he has repeatedly said in the past he would never play for another team, Bryant isn’t eliminating any possibility as he heads into a season in which he’ll consume 37.5 percent of the Lakers’ salary cap room with his $25 million deal. “Hell if I know,” he said.
JAMES HARDEN, ROCKETS: Harden was a major reason the Rockets reached the Western Conference finals last year for the first time since 1997, despite injuries to several key players. Harden was second in the NBA with 27.4 points a game and was MVP runner-up. His play and his beard have made him one of the NBA’s most popular players; he acknowledges that he enjoys seeing fans wearing fake beards. “It’s pretty dope to me,” he said.“It’s a credit to what we built here in Houston. The winning ways.” KEVIN DURANT AND SERGE IBAKA, THUNDER: Both are back and ready to go. Durant, the 2013-14 MVP and scoring champion, played just 27 games last season because of a broken right foot. Ibaka, the team’s defensive centerpiece, missed the final month of last season after knee surgery.
PAUL PIERCE, CLIPPERS: The 10-time All-Star and former NBA Finals MVP returns to his hometown to close out his career in a reunion with coach Doc Rivers. How well the 38-year-old veteran integrates with longtime locker room leaders Blake Griffin and Chris Paul will be a key.
LAMARCUS ALDRIDGE, SPURS: The ex-Portland Trail Blazer is coming back to a part of the world with which he’s very familiar — he’s from Dallas and played college ball at the University of Texas. Aldridge has averaged at least 21 points per game in each of the next five seasons. Chances are, he won’t be expected to extend that streak. Over the last decade the Spurs have had only one player — Tony Parker in 2008-09 — average at least 21 points. Their balanced approach clearly works — San Antonio has been a top-seven scoring team in each of the last five seasons.
TIM DUNCAN, SPURS: If Duncan appears in 49 games that the Spurs win this season, he’ll be the third player in NBA history to participate in 1,000 victories by his team (excluding playoffs). He’s currently No. 5 on the all-time wins list and should rise to No. 3 quickly, trailing one behind Karl Malone (952) and John Stockton (953). Once he passes that legendary duo, the only players with more wins will be Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (1,074) and Robert Parish (1,014).
MINNESOTA MENTORS: One of the most interesting roster experiments in the NBA is happening in Minnesota, where the Timberwolves have assembled a mentorship program for a promising young core of talent. Minnesota brought in three veterans over the age of 35 (39-year-olds Kevin Garnett and Andre Miller, and Tayshaun Prince, 35) to show five pups under 23 how to be pros. After more than a decade of futility (no playoff appearances since 2004), the Timberwolves have tutors at every level for a group that includes Andrew Wiggins, 20, the reigning rookie of the year; 19-year-old Karl-Anthony Towns, the No. 1 overall pick; and 20-year-old Zach LaVine, the slam dunk champion.