NBA: Where Catharsis Happens

catharsis (n.) - the purging of the emotions or relieving of emotional tensions,

March featured the return of Jeff Green, Dwight Howard, and Carmelo Anthony to the teams that drafted them. Jeff Green’s return was quiet as the Thunder handled the Celtics cleanly. The Dwight return was messy, as they crushed the Magic. And the Carmelo return is one he would like to forget, since his team got crushed and he left with an injury. Catharsis feels so good.

Everyone releases those emotional tensions differently. In the 4th quarter of the Nuggets-Knicks game, the crowd began a “WHO NEEDS MELO” chant. The Nuggets were already up by a ton, but the crowd needed that release. I’ve previously discussed my relationship with the Knicks as a fan and the fact that after they traded my favorite player I stopped supporting them. More than 10 years later, I still haven’t bought any Knicks apparel. Eventually I stopped being angry about it, but it was a long time after the Camby trade. Part of the reason was the distance from the initial shocking event. As time passed, my anger lessened. Also, I’m more mature than I was when I was 13. Now I understand why teams trade players, even effective, popular, future Defensive Player of Year…[breathes] …players. I also understand why players leave teams. Sometimes, it’s for personal reasons, like quality of life. At other times, the reason is professional.

Kobe Bryant is still waiting for his catharsis. Kobe was hurt, apparently intentionally, by landing on Dahntay Jones’ foot after a jumpshot. He gave a great press conference, but there will be a lot of anger in his heart until he has the opportunity to get payback against Jones.

The Heat were able to achieve some level of payback against the Spurs. Earlier this season, the Spurs benched their star players against the Heat. The Spurs using only bench players were almost able to beat the full bodied Heat. On March 31st, the Heat played the Spurs in San Antonio and benched Lebron and Dwyane Wade. However, they beat the Spurs in the matchup. 

As we approach the last weeks of the season, I’m focusing on games that affect the playoff picture or lottery for both teams.

 

Monday

DET @ TOR LP 5PM
Both squads are really fun to watch despite being generally sloppy.

SAS @ MEM NBA TV 6PM
The Spurs and Grizzles have the best interior offensive units in the west.

POR @ UTA LP 7PM
Portland is probably out of the hunt, but the Jazz need this game.

IND @ LAC NBATV 8:30PM
These teams aren’t competing in the same division, but they are both equally in need of a win here.

Tuesday

NYK @ MIA TNT 6PM
I had a discussion recently about whether the Knicks could beat the Heat in a series. I strongly doubt it, but a win here for the Knicks would make 3 out of 4 over the course of the season.

DAL @ LAL TNT 8:30PM
This is a game that may have a lot of value for the teams involved. Both teams are close to being in the playoffs and this game could have major tiebreaker implications.

Wednesday

WAS @ TOR LP 5PM
Who wants to lose more?

Thursday

CHI @ BKN TNT 5PM
This might be a first round matchup and the winner may have a second round matchup against the Heat.

 
SAS @ OKC TNT 7:30PM
The Spurs are the team that stands in the way of the Thunder winning the West.

Friday

TOR @ MIN LP 6PM
The Timberwolves are a team that I planned to watch more this year. One thing that makes this more interesting is that the Wolves might have been a playoff contender if healthy this year. With a high draft pick they could get a great player added to a stacked team.  

OKC @ IND LP 6PM
The Thunder getting an opportunity to deal with a quality center will be good practice for the playoffs. Especially, because David West is a solid PF as well.

Saturday

DET @ MIN LP 6PM
This game will feature more mediocre play from teams that seem to only be a couple of pieces away from contender status.

Sunday

NYK @ OKC ABC 11AM
This could be a fun game to watch between conference finals contenders.

LAL @ LAC ABC 1:30PM
The Battle for LA is a lot less interesting when the teams are not very good.

ORL @ CLE LP 4PM
I like the pieces that the Magic have. Vucevic, Harkless, and Harris are all solid starters.  

UTA @ GSW LP 6PM
The lovely thing about the West is that they have a lot of interesting teams near the bottom of the playoff picture. The Warriors have been a solid team that has been surprisingly good on defense this year.

NOH @ PHX LP 7PM
The Hornets might be a few pieces away. The Suns are just terrible. There’s maybe one piece who you’d want to continue with in Gortat. The Hornets will be bettter and better if they can stay healthy since most of their pieces are young and talented. The larger question will be whether or not they want to deal with Eric Gordon who has made it clear that he doesn’t want to be in New Orleans. (Coincidentally, he tried to go the Suns)