The NBA season is underway, and already some veterans are unsurprisingly missing time, or on their way toward a seat on the bench in street clothes. Here are five major names that are either falling apart in the season’s first week, or close to it.
Kobe Bryant, SG, Lakers
Bryant has been injured in each of the past three seasons, and all of them have been serious. The Lakers want to limit his minutes, but nobody believes the “Black Mamba” will sit idly by while Nick Young and Lou Williams chuck up bad shots. If the Lakers are going to lose with bad shot selection, then damn it Kobe’s doing the shooting!
Kobe played only 29 minutes in the Lakers’ opener (nice job Byron Scott!) but he managed to toss up 24 shots, four more than he averaged last season in five more minutes. He’s going to keep playing like a madman, and he’s going to get worn out.
Deron Williams, PG, Mavericks
Deron Williams’ fall is sad. He was once neck-and-neck with Chris Paul for the NBA’s best point guard title, and now, he’s just slower, less explosive, and always hurt. It took one game for Williams to sprain his knee, and Rick Carlisle’s being very vague about a timetable.
"The hope is that we can get him going here, but I don't have a timetable. It's one of those ones that could be pretty quick or it could be a little bit. We'll just have to see,” Carlisle said. Sounds about right. This makes all basketball fans shed a tear.
Derrick Rose, PG, Bulls
Another NBA tragedy. Rose was once one of the most electrifying, physically marvelous players in the league. Now, he’s hurt every year – he somehow broke his face in the preseason! – and not even close to the player he was. Rose still plays the same way, even though he’s no longer Chicago’s top dog.
They have a bunch of post players to play through, and Jimmy Butler has surpassed him as the No. 1 perimeter option. Rose now just throws up bricks, and looks good driving to the hoop, until he just can’t quite finish anymore. At least Fred Hoiberg only played him 31 minutes. Everyone’s hoping he can regain his MVP form.
Amar’e Stoudemire, F/C, Heat
Amar’e has already missed a game for “rest.” I’m not kidding. He literally missed the Heat’s first game of the year for “rest.” If that’s not a sign that a dude is completely done, I don’t know what is.
How can a player need “rehabilitative recovery” when the season is one game old? Stoudemire’s been shot since 2011; even though he’s only 32 years old, he has logged 14 NBA seasons and had too many knee issues to count. Stoudemire’s game is built on explosiveness, and his injuries have robbed him of that. He reportedly wants to stay fresh for “big games,” but why would Miami need him for those?
Dwyane Wade, SG, Heat
The Heat are kind of rickety huh? Wade is constantly missing time, even though last year’s slew of absences were more for “maintenance” than anything. Wade, like Rose, has a game built on explosiveness. His mid-range jump shooting is excellent, but he’s never developed the type of consistency from 3-point range that makes defenses worry. Here’s hoping that contract years can cure all ills, because when healthy, Wade is one of the most entertaining players in the NBA.
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