The NBA on TNT schedule will continue with some exciting games on Thursday after opening the season on Tuesday and it includes a doubleheader of the New York Knicks against the Chicago Bulls at the United Center as well as the Los Angeles Lakers taking on the Golden State Warriors in Northern California and the first game will be on at 8:00 PM, while the second game will be at 10:30 PM on TNT.
The Knicks come into the game after opening the season at home against the Milwaukee Bucks and the Bulls host New York after dropping the opening game to the Miami Heat on the road. The Bulls and the Knicks are expecting to be two of the top teams in the East, while the Lakers and the Warriors are going to fight for spots in the West. Golden State could be one of the most surprising teams once again, as they added Andre Iguodala this offseason.
The NBA season got started on Tuesday and the first game on the national schedule was on TNT and was be an anticipated matchup between LeBron James and Derrick Rose as the Miami Heat hosted the Chicago Bulls at American Airlines Arena in a game on TNT that ended with the Heat on top, although they ended up losing their next game to the Philadelphia 76ers in a upset.
James is coming into the season after another championship and MVP award, while Rose is coming back from a serious knee injury and so far he has looked great in the preseason. Rose said that he already feels better than he did before the surgery and now the Chicago Bulls are anticipating a deep run into the playoffs after adding Mike Dunleavy as well and the team will get to watch as Miami is handed their championship rings and banners.
The Bulls come into the season after defeating the Brooklyn Nets in the first round of the playoffs last year in seven games before losing to the Miami Heat and the two sides have already started going at it before the game. The Heat raised another banner as Chicago watched and then the team lost to the Sixers Wednesday and the next game for the Bulls will be against the New York Knicks on Thursday night.
Miami comes into the season after having the best record in the east with 66 wins and they went 15-1 in the division last year and they are considered the favorite in the conference until someone knocks them off. The Knicks, Indiana Pacers, Brooklyn Nets and Bulls seem to have the best shot and this season the pressure will be on LeBron James once again to deliver. Last season amazingly James led his team in assists, scoring and rebounding with a stat line of 26 points, eight rebounds and seven assists and now he comes back looking for more.
Rose has the potential to be an MVP candidate again and while James and Kevin Durant will be the favorites, Rose can play spoiler. The Bulls won 45 games without Rose last season and it seems like there is no doubt they will improve as long as he remains healthy. Both teams bring back their core players and this is a great game to start the season. The Lakers and Clippers played in Los Angeles at the Staples Center in an anticipated game as well and marked the first home game of the season for the Clips. That of course meant the banners were up and that was an early test for both sides as they try to show dominance in LA.