These eight lottery teams bring something that makes them a lot of fun to watch.
The first tenth of the NBA season is in the books, people, and without further ado, here are the lottery teams that have been and will be the most fun to follow to in 2014-15.
New Orleans
Um, they have Anthony Davis, otherwise known as “The Brow.” The guy is an alien, and he has taken over planet Earth. We may very well see a quadruple-double from the 21-year-old this season with points, rebounds, steals and blocks. Jrue Holiday is returning to All-Star form, Ryan Anderson is raining from everywhere and Omer Asik is wreaking havoc on the interior. Oh, and Tyreke Evans learned how to shoot, and is dishing like crazy. The Pelicans have even wooed long-time-skeptic Bill Simmons, who recently picked the Pels to finish eighth and earn a spot in the Western Conference playoffs during the Grantland basketball hour. Of course, New Orleans doesn’t have anywhere close to double-digit national TV appearances. That is an absolute disgrace, and one that really should be corrected immediately.
Phoenix
If you don’t enjoy watching the three-headed-point-guard-monster that is the Phoenix Suns, I don’t think we’re going to get along. Eric Bledsoe, Isaiah Thomas and Goran Dragic are almost too much fun, really. And with Markieff Morris, Gerald Green, Alex Len and others flourishing under second-year coach and former NBA sharpshooter Jeff Hornacek, this team is an undeniable threat to make the playoffs. In terms of being watchable, the Suns satisfy my standards thanks to their up-tempo style and never-say-die mentality.
Sacramento
Sure, they’ve already started to slow down after a thrilling start to the season with three straight losses, but the Kings are playing defense, Boogie Cousins looks reborn mentally, Ben McLemore is improving, and basketball is exciting again in Sacramento. I never thought I’d be saying this before the season but I get legitimately excited when the Kings are playing. Cousins has devoted himself to establishing a new reputation in the league, and Omri Casspi fixing Cousins’ headband on the bench is a beautiful metaphor for the way this season seems like it’ll end up. Win or lose, these guys are bonding, and it all starts with “the Boogie Man”—who will be earning his first trip to the All-Star game this season.
Utah
They’ve had two buzzer-beating wins already, and the Jazz core is improving rapidly. Gordon Hayward and Derrick Favors are off to monstrous starts, Trey Burke has turned it around after a slow start—sinking the game-winner last night versus the Knicks, and Dante Exum has shown plenty of promise as well. Since the Jazz are unlikely to win that much in the loaded Western Conference, every win is gravy for them, as they’re simply looking to get better. They’re all but assured a pretty decent draft pick given that 54 of their 82 games come against fellow Western foes, so there’s really no pressure for them to tank terribly, as they also already have a lot of young talented players.
Minnesota
They were much more exciting prior to Ricky Rubio’s injury, but the Wolves will still be worth watching based on their depth of young intriguing players. Andrew Wiggins, Zach LaVine, Gorgui Dieng, Anthony Bennett, and even Shabazz Muhammad have looked good so far, and when Rubio does return they should pick up right where they left off in terms of chemistry—which Rubio clearly had with veterans Nikola Pekovic and Thad Young. Rubio’s injury is obviously a sad thing for Wolves fans as he was playing so well, but in the long term they could certainly afford the losses and improved odds of landing a top draft pick. Until Rubio comes back and the Wolves are back to competing for wins more frequently it will be wonderful watching Wiggins as he starts to assert himself offensively, and he’s already had some exciting flashes.
Milwaukee
Brandon Knight is ballin, Larry Sanders is looking like a starting center, and O.J. Mayo is no longer obese. Jason Kidd has this team sharing the basketball, and though Jabari Parker and the “Greek Freak” haven’t lived up to the hype yet so far this season, the Bucks have still been a fun team to follow. They represent the 8-1 Memphis Grizzlies’ lone loss, and they’re currently 4-5 despite losing two games in which they held huge leads. The Bucks are one of the biggest surprises of the young season, and if they keep this up they’ll end up coming much closer to competing for a playoff spot than anyone could’ve previously imagined.
Boston
Rajon Rondo is a mesmerizing magician. He can make Evan Turner look like an All-Star, and if the Celtics trade him for next to nothing they’ll deeply regret it. Boston management probably doesn’t want the team to compete for the playoffs this year since they’d have to relinquish their first-round pick to Philly if they do make the postseason, but if they find themselves in a position where they can acquire another All-Star-caliber player they should swing for the fences. Al Horford or Roy Hibbert would be dynamite with the Celtics, and while a trade is possible given that they have a plethora of assets, they may opt to wait until the offseason to decide on whether to re-sign Rondo. But one things for certain, Brad Stevens is coaching the heck out of this team, and so long as Rondo has a pulse they’ll be a joy to watch.
Orlando
The Magic are living up to my projection for them to be the surprisingly competitive team in 2014-15. They very well may not make the playoffs, but they went 3-6 without Victor Oladipo and earned a win in his first game back on Friday versus the Milwaukee Bucks. At 4-6, Orlando is much better than most people anticipated they’d be, and though Nikola Vucevic, Tobias Harris, rookie Elfrid Payton and veteran newcomer Channing Frye are very deserving of credit, Evan Fournier has been the brightest star for the Magic so far. Trading Arron Afflalo for Fournier seemed like a trade designed to clear the way for more playing time for Oladipo, but Fournier could wind up playing the majority of minutes alongside Oladipo this season with Payton becoming the odd man out. They’re young, determined and competing in close games on a nightly basis, and Oladipo’s return means I’ll be tuning into their games now even more than before.
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