If you see one of your friends who is a basketball fan starting to fidget and get restless at random times of the day, that usually only means one thing: the year has gone on for too long without basketball and all the basketball heads are undergoing withdrawal from the lack of ball.
Fortunately for everyone, the NBA is not that far away. There’s only less than a month left before the world’s best basketball league begins entertaining basketball fans around the world with eye-popping plays and incredible feats from the best ballers to step on the court.
Some might still find three weeks as too long, but there are more than enough NBA 2018 news to keep us occupied until the start of the season. There are plenty of things to talk about ahead of the new season, and these stories will surely change how you watch the NBA this coming season.
Jimmy Butler Shocks Minnesota with Trade Demand
Some fans may have seen this development coming from a mile away, but news of Jimmy Butler requesting a trade away from the Minnesota Timberwolves came as a surprise for people across the league.
Butler, who led the Wolves with 22.2 ppg despite only playing in 59 regular season games, didn’t have that good of a time in his soon-to-be-short stint with the franchise. He didn’t hide his frustration with the team’s young stars, Andrew Wiggins and Karl-Anthony Towns. The feud between the two sides has gone so bad that they are throwing jabs on social media.
The fractured relationship was especially noticeable between Butler and Towns, and there are reasons for the two to be beefing. The former Marquette Golden Eagle has expressed his frustration over Town’s lack of focus on defence while Towns could be mad at Butler for apparently cheating with his ex-girlfriend.
Butler named the Brooklyn Nets, the Los Angeles Clippers, and the New York Knicks as his preferred destinations. Whether he will get his wish remains to be seen, but it will be interesting to see where Butler will end up.
Until that happens, I advise the dear reader to keep the same energy for the rest of this piece.
Lonzo Ball’s Shot is *Looking* Good!
There are probably three things Los Angeles Lakers guard Lonzo Ball is known for: his impeccable basketball IQ, his loudmouth of a father, and his wacky shooting form that sees the ball start from his left shoulder.
The Lakers have good NBA 2018 odds to make the playoffs with LeBron James at the helm. Ball will definitely want to make sure that he is part of Los Angeles’ rise, and it seems like he realised something after shooting an atrocious 30.5% from the three-point range during his rookie campaign.
He went and changed the mechanics of his signature jump shot over the summer.
There are videos of the baller-cum-reality-star shooting that is making its rounds around the net. While the shot is still not pretty like Klay Thompson’s, it is noticeable that his shot is more fluid and closer to the ideal shooting form. Lakers president of basketball operations Magic Johnson and GM Rob Pelinka are raving about the changes, saying that everything can all be credited to Ball’s determination to improve.
If these changes result to him having a more accurate shot, there is no question that he will become one of the league’s breakout players next season.
NBA Raise Awareness Against Mental Health
Every aspect of human culture is slowly coming to terms with the reality and repercussions of mental illness, and many sectors are taking serious steps to give support to everyone.
The NBA is the latest worldwide brand to directly address people’s mental health. NBA Commissioner Adam Silver and National Basketball Players Association executive director Michele Roberts sent an emphatic letter to NBA players that as much as they are expected to perform well, they should also take note of their mental health.
“Each of our offices has newly-enhanced mental wellness programs, which we encourage you to use to manage stress, anxiety and other challenges,” read the letter. “It’s a critical step that can also encourage teammates and fans alike to understand that it’s a sign of strength, not weakness, to ask for help.”
This announcement is an encouraging message to the players of the league. They go through a different kind of mental pressure and compared to your everyday individual as they scrutinised every single day of their careers. Kevin Love penned a revelatory piece in The Players’ Tribune that revealed the severity of his mental health issues.
The NBA has always been one of more progressive sports leagues in the United States, and it is heart-warming to see the league iterate that they are ready to give help to their players.
After all, SBOBET fans don’t want their stars performing poorly due to the heavy burdens they carry in their minds.
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