The latest NBA season has come to a close, and congratulations are in order for the Los Angeles Lakers, particularly Kobe Bryant and Coach Phil Jackson. Now, with the off season in full swing, it's a great time to look back at what was a wonderful year. First, I'll tackle the season's top stories that warmed and uplifted my heart.
1. Orlando's Magic Run - While many considered the Magic a strong team with Dwight Howard and Jameer Nelson, few dared to predict how deep the Magic would go in the playoffs. Just as I foresaw, Orlando put on an incredible run, defeating the Philadelphia 76ers (despite losing homecourt advantage and Dwight Howard for one game), overcame the defending champions Boston Celtics and dominating the Eastern Conference favorites Cleveland Cavaliers and its Golden Child, MVP Lebron James. Despite losing to the eventual champs, the Magic gave the Lakers quite a scare as well. Overall, it was a great season for the Magic, who proved tons of critics wrong.
2. Derrick Rose and the Bulls' run to the playoffs - Facing great pressure to bring the Chicago Bulls back to the playoffs, things did not go well for the number one draft pick, hometown favorite Derrick Rose and the Windy City team. After losing a majority of their games early into the season, the Bulls were already being written off and Rose being considered a rookie of the year by default. Things turned around after the Bulls fixed their crowded guard rotation and trading for veterans Brad Miller and John Salmons. Before people knew it, Chicago went on an incredible winning run, not only qualifying for the playoffs, but almost taking away fifth spot from the Miami Heat. Then, the Bulls took the defending champions Boston Celtics into an epic seven game series, with Derrick Rose leading the charge. He proved himself the true rookie of the year by taking charge when it counted the most.
3. The Nuggets' Redemption - Almost all of the major players in the Nuggets rotation were written off, almost seemingly at the same time. Chauncey Billups was supposed to be getting too old, JR Smith a basket case, Carmelo Anthony a "me-first" player who found individual stats more important than a championship, Chris Andersen a junkie, Nene a shadow of his former self after a bout with testicular cancer and Linas Kleiza a soft European player who couldn't contribute in the NBA and Kenyon Martin a player with both knees shot. Collectively, though, they found a bond and trust in each other and it propelled them to the franchise's best finish since 1985. Together, they helped each other overcome their bad reputations, seemingly showing a maturity and desire to win that showed not only their capability to win this year, but also for the next two years.
4. Gina Marie Incandela - While this little cutie is not a household name anywhere outside of Orlando Magic fans' homes, her story is certainly a tremendous one. Suffering from a kind of autism, PDD NOS, Gina Marie was not given much hope to be able to speak. When her parents brought her to the University of Central Florida to help with her speech, Gina found herself expressing herself through singing; and sing she can. Taking a liking to LeAnn Rimes' Star Spangled Banner performance, Gina began singing the national anthem, first in practice then later in major singing events. When she sang for the Orlando Magic one time, the Magic won. Then, she was asked to sing again. The Magic won again. Then, all of a sudden, she became the Magic's "secret weapon," with the Magic going 7-0 with her singing (6-0) in the playoffs until the Lakers spoiled the Magic's fun. In any case, hers is an amazing story and the Magic, if they know what's good for them, will invite her again next season.
5. Some Love for Kevin Love - When Kevin Mchale made another controversial decision to trade away top draft pick O.J. Mayo, fans collectively slapped their heads, thinking it was another lopsided trade a la Randy Foye for Brandon Roy. The Wolves badly needed a guard, and Mayo seemed to be answer. Instead, the Wolves traded him away, essentially for another rookie, Kevin Love. Before the draft, Love was touted as a front court player who could, "make a decent baseball pass," not exactly the description of the savior the Wolves fans desperately sought. As the season went on, however, O.J. Mayo, while scoring heavily, showed a lack of ability or willingness to pass to go along with his poor percentage shooting. Meanwhile, Love finally received some love in Minnesota, earning it by posting averages of 11.1 points and 9.1 rebounds, including the most rookie double doubles. Now, Wolves fans will look forward to a new era under a new GM, new coach and the promising front court duo of Love and Al Jefferson.
While I'm sure the NBA season brought a lot more than five uplifting stories, these five were my personal favorites. Do you have an uplifting NBA story from this past season? I invite you to post!
(Coming soon: NBA's Downer Stories)
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