A month and ten days. This is what remains in this 2021-22 regular season, a season in which the franchises still have about twenty games to play to try to position themselves as best they can for the spring deadlines. The end of this campaign promises to be intense, indecisive, and above all exciting. So to make sure you don’t miss a thing, here are the ten things you absolutely must follow in the coming weeks.
Les Sixers version James Harden – Joel Embiid
We have already had a glimpse of these new Sixers in the first two games of the Harden – Embiid duo, but we will obviously follow them closely every night to get a better idea of their abilities. The first signs shown against Minnesota and New York are in any case very very interesting: the Bearded and Jojo are a hit as if they have been playing together for years, Tyrese Maxey is like a fish in water, it dominates on both sides of the field … in short, Philly fans can expect great things at the end of the season, even if the Sixers have not yet encountered any real big teams. Fortunately, for the orange ball lovers that we are, it will come. Among the meetings that we have already circled on our calendar: Heat (March 5 and 21), Bulls (March 7), Nets (March 10), Suns (March 27) and Bucks (March 29), among others.
The situation at the Nets
You can’t talk about the Sixers without mentioning the Nets right behind. By trading James Harden to get Ben Simmons, Brooklyn changed the balance of their team and for many, Steve Nash’s group is much more balanced today. But the question we ask ourselves is knowing when we will see these Nets new look in full and how the mayonnaise will take, especially since BK is only eighth in the East today (record of 32 wins – 29 defeats). The good news is that Kevin Durant is set to return and Goran Dragic has already played in his new colors. The bad news is that we still don’t know when Simmons will be operational, or when Kyrie Irving will be allowed to play at the Barclays Center. Moreover, the sniper Joe Harris has still not left the infirmary and could even go back to the pool table because of this cursed ankle. Potentially, the Nets have what it takes to play the leading roles in the East, remains to be seen if they will have all their weapons available.
The Big Battle in the Eastern Heights
The Sixers and the Nets are obviously among the big players in the Eastern Conference at the end of the season, but they are far from the only ones. Miami, Chicago, Milwaukee, Cleveland, Boston or Toronto, in short, it’s super dense in the first half of the standings (only five games apart between first and sixth) and it promises an absolutely thrilling end to the regular season. A few days ago, we had precisely focused on the big battle that is looming on this side of the States, we invite you to read (or reread) the paper to understand the issues and the different storylines that will accompany this merciless race.
The race for the MVP: rather Giannis, Joel, Jokic or DeMar?
Each year, the race for the MVP is one of the major themes at the end of the regular. We are talking about the most prestigious of individual trophies, obviously that interests everyone. But there are seasons when twenty games from the end, the suspense is no longer really relevant as one guy dominates the race. Fortunately, this is not the case in 2021-22 because we have Joel Embiid and Nikola Jokic who are both achieving historic seasons, we have Giannis Antetokounmpo who continues to be monstrous like previous years, while DeMar DeRozan has simply taken himself for Michael Jordan for a few weeks. All that to say that the race for the MVP is likely to be tense until the end and that the big perfs could really animate the end of the regular, each candidate having at heart to boost his file by really striking the spirits. So, who’s your favourite?
How far can the Lakers dig?
The more we advance, the more the Lakers sink. While Anthony Davis still seems far from a comeback, LeBron’s band hit rock bottom on Sunday by taking a real spanking (123-95) against the Pelicans at home. “I have no explanation for tonight” even declared the King at a press conference, a symbol of the lack of response from this team. The Lakers have hit rock bottom so much that whistles have descended from the spans of the Crypto.com Arena, and one can legitimately wonder today if the Angelinos will not simply miss the next play-in tournament. The sentence seems improbable when we remember the great ambitions of the start of the season, but it is now very topical, especially when we know that the Lakers have the second most demanding schedule in the NBA at the end of the regular. Clearly, it doesn’t smell very good at all.
LeBron James, soon to be second scorer in history
316. This is the number of points separating Karl Malone (36,928) from LeBron James (36,612). The latter – if he continues on his current pace of 29 pawns on average – will only need eleven games to dislodge Le Facteur from second place all-time in scoring. Logically, that should do it without a problem, except of course if James experiences a physical glitch, which cannot be completely ruled out since the King has already missed 17 games this season. But we keep our fingers crossed that he gets there and that he continues to approach Kareem Abdul-Jabbar’s ultimate record (38,387). This will at least be something to celebrate for LeBron and the Lakers at the end of the season.
Le record all-time de Gregg Popovich
We like record races. The start of the season was marked by that of Stephen Curry, who has become the most prolific 3-point shooter in NBA history, the end should be marked by that of Gregg Popovich, on the verge of becoming the more victorious all-time. Get ready quickly, because it will logically fall from one day to the next. At the time of these lines, Pop is missing a small success to equal the record holder Don Nelson (1,335), and two to take first place alone. The Spurs will meet the Grizzlies tonight, then the Kings, Hornets, Lakers and Raptors by March 9. There’s a way it’ll be wiped out by then. And when it’s done, Pop will be given all the praise in the world, he who is considered by many to be the greatest coach in the history of basketball.
The Suns without Chris Paul
Largely ahead of the Western Conference, the Suns (49 wins – 12 losses, six games ahead of second in the West) seem destined to finish the regular season with the best NBA record. From this point of view, the absence of Chris Paul – out for six to eight weeks due to a thumb injury – should not change much. But that doesn’t mean the situation in Phoenix isn’t intriguing. For the first time since the superb course in the bubble, we will see this Suns team evolve without the Point God for an extended period. It will be interesting to observe the behavior of the men of Monty Williams (record of 1-2 without CP3 for the moment) and we can’t wait to see what the star Devin Booker can offer us, who will now have more responsibilities in matter of playmaking.
The seriously injured (Zion, Porter Jr., Murray, Lillard, Kawhi and PG): who is coming back, who is not coming back?
This 2021-22 season is notably marked by the absence of many big names: Zion Williamson, Michael Porter Jr., Jamal Murray, Kawhi Leonard and Paul George. And to these big names, you can also add Damian Lillard, who has been in the infirmary for several weeks. Of course, each situation is different, whether in terms of injuries or the issues surrounding them. For Zion, we wonder if we are going on a white season before a potential contract extension. For MPJ and Murray, obviously a return is getting closer and that could make the Nuggets the dangerous team for this end of regular. As for Kawhi and PG, it’s still unclear but you can imagine that if these two come back, the Clippers may hurt. Finally, in the case of Lillard, everything will depend on whether the Blazers favor tanking or play-in…
The Kings, kings of lose?
15 seasons without playoffs. This is the series on which the Sacramento franchise finds itself, today in a good position to set the new all-time record with 16. To avoid it, the Kings notably sent… Tyrese Haliburton to the Pacers in exchange for Domantas Sabonis, in order to associate the latter with De’Aaron Fox. Can this allow the franchise from the Californian capital to grab a spot in the play-in tournament and possibly give itself a chance to find the Playoffs for the first time since 2006? Allow us to doubt it. Sacramento is now 13th in the West with a 22-40 record, a record that puts the Kings 3.5 games out of tenth in the conference.
Other major themes to follow:
- Who will finish with the worst NBA record heading into the 2022 Draft Lottery? The candidates: Detroit, Orlando, Houston, without forgetting OKC
- Bucks form: watch out for the rise of the defending champions, especially if Brook Lopez returns
- Rookie of the Year race: Evan Mobley is favorite, but Cade Cunningham & Co will have to be watched
- The rise of Luka Doncic
- The Warriors when they are complete with Draymond Green and James Wiseman
- The Ascension of Ja Morant, Part II
- …
