NBA Preseason

On October 2, the 2015-2016 got underway, and fans were able to get a first look at how their team would compete after the busy off season. After last season ended with the Golden State Warriors 4-2 NBA Finals victory over the Cleveland Cavaliers, teams all throughout the league began speaking with the multitude of free agents that had become available. Throughout the majority of the summer, teams met with both their current players whose contracts had expired to resign them and free agents they believed could help lead their team closer to a championship. Some notable off season negotiations include both Lebron James and Kawhi Leonard resigning with the Cleveland Cavaliers and the San Antonio Spurs respectively. Some key free agents that signed with new teams include LaMarcus Aldridge, who left his longtime team of the Portland Trail Blazers to sign with the Spurs, Roy Hibbert, who was traded by the Indiana Pacers to the Los Angeles Lakers, and Jeremy Lin, former star of the New York Knicks during the "Linsanity" era who left the Lakers to join the Charlotte Hornets. With all of these off season transactions, along with the many more that occurred this summer, the teams look very different than they did a season ago. The preseason allows the teams throughout the league to begin learning how to play together, and also allows coaches to test out different strategies and plays before the regular season begins.
After twenty days of preseason games, the Charlotte Hornets lead the Eastern conference with an undefeated record of 7-0. At the bottom of the Eastern Conference is a team that most NBA fans would not expect to be anywhere near the bottom, the Cleveland Cavaliers, who made it all the way to the NBA Finals after defeating their competition in the East during the playoffs. They currently have a preseason record of 1-6. In the Western Conference, the team leading the way is the Memphis Grizzlies, who kept a majority of their players during the off season, with a record of 6-0. The Dallas Mavericks currently sit in dead last of not just the Western Conference, but of the entire league with an abysmal record of 0-6. The Mavericks lost a key player during the off season in Monta Ellis after he declined his option to resign for the 2015-2016 season, but they did sign some guards to replace Ellis in Deron Williams and Wes Matthews. They also signed JaVale McGee from the Philadelphia 76ers. While these standings aren't usually a very accurate representation of the final standings of the NBA regular season due to teams resting their stars and coaches trying out plays they may not in the regular season, it is interesting to see which teams are struggling and which teams are thriving with their new rosters. This looks to be like a nice preview of what will hopefully be an exciting NBA regular season.