USA TODAY International Edition
Bucks’ fortunes may sway Giannis
The NBA’s 2019- 20 restart comes with plenty of intrigue, starting with the plan to complete the season at Disney’s ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex near Orlando, Florida.
The Bucks were rolling through the regular season, on pace to win 67 games, when it was suspended. The Lakers were cruising to the top seed in the Western Conference.
But COVID- 19 altered the season, and now there’s much more unknown as teams play for the first time in more than four months and without any home- court edge.
We take a look at the teams and players with the most to gain as the NBA returns.
Bucks: There’s a valid reason Milwaukee falls into both most to win and most to lose categories, and the reason is Giannis Antetokounmpo.
The speculation about his future started almost the minute he signed an extension with the Bucks in 2016. Antetokounmpo can sign a max deal with them in the offseason or he can wait to become a free agent following the 202021 season.
If the Bucks getting to the Finals or winning the championship entices Antetokounmpo to sign with Milwaukee soon after the season, then the Bucks have plenty to gain and can bank on being a contender for another four or five seasons.
Lakers/ LeBron James: A season without playing in the NBA Finals would’ve been detrimental for LeBron James, who at 35 is remarkably still playing at an MVP- caliber level.
While he doesn’t like to think about his career in terms of when it could end, James doesn’t want to miss squander what the Lakers had going this season. James has a chance to win his fourth championship and first with the Lakers, who haven’t won a title since 2010.
Rockets: Through the James Harden era, which includes his prolific scoring and 2018 MVP award, the Rockets have no team accomplishments to show for it – save for division titles and two Western Conference finals appearances.
Even though the Rockets are tied for fifth place in the West at the restart, they have a rested Harden and Russell Westbrook and enough firepower to make a run at the NBA Finals and redeem a small- ball philosophy that general manager Daryl Morey and coach Mike D’Antoni have championed.
76ers: Wonderful at home ( 29- 2) and dreadful on the road ( 10- 24) this season, what kind of Philadelphia team will we see at the sports complex?
Ben Simmons is healthy, and if Joel Embiid can be the dominant player he wants to be – and sometimes is – the Sixers are capable of a deeper run than what was expected before COVID- 19 shut down the season. If the home version of the Sixers shows up and Simmons excels playing power forward, the team could be playing in late September.
The 76ers’ performance could impact coach Brett Brown’s job security, too.
NBA: Like the Bucks, the league has a lot to lose in this scenario. But also, so much to gain if it can pull of this restart without any major problems – such as a significant COVID- 19 outbreak that upends a team or results in the cancellation of the season.
The league and the players felt an obligation to give it a shot, and behind Commissioner Adam Silver’s leadership, the league put together a comprehensive plan to play games inside a bubble- like environment in one location. It might not work.
But it very well could, and the league, Silver, players and teams could be lauded for pulling off a difficult task in the middle of a pandemic.