It's here!

The Real Return

The day has finally come. The 2013-14 NBA season begins tonight with a trio of games including the much anticipated Bulls-Heat rivalry. Led by Chicago’s own Derrick Rose, the Bulls are the only team in the NBA to come out of the preseason with a perfect record (8-0). They’re hoping to continue their winning streak against the two-time defending champion Miami Heat.

After being sidelined for an entire season due to an ACL injury, it’s an understatement to say Rose looked absolutely amazing in the preseason. He was aggressive with the ball, whizzing past opponents in the blink of an eye and attacking the rim with explosive energy, no matter how much contact he received. Not to mention, he’s got a new and improved jumper. Rose averaged 20.7 points and five assists while hitting 44.4% of three-pointers in the preseason. It’s only going to get better from here.

Rose’s official return tonight has already ignited a fire between the Bulls and the Heat even before the game begins.

"They've got something that we want, so we can't hold back," Rose said today before a practice. 

"We don't like them and they don't like us," James said, succinctly summing up the feelings of both teams.

The probable starting five for Chicago includes Rose, Luol Deng, Carlos Boozer, Joakim Noah and Jimmy Butler. Both Noah and back up PG Kirk Hinrich are expected to play against the Heat after recovering from injuries. The probable starters for Miami include LeBron James, Dwayne Wade, Chris Bosh, Mario Chalmers and Shane Battier.  

With a new-and-improved Rose, the Bulls are definitely the biggest Eastern Conference threat to the Heat so it looks like it’s going to be an exciting season for Chicago. Don’t get me wrong, Indiana and Boston were great match ups for Miami, and I was genuinely surprised when both teams took the Heat to a game 7 in the Eastern Conference finals for the past two years, but the real rivalry is between Chicago and Miami. Simply put, Rose is back with the only goal to win on his mind so the stakes are higher.

Kobe and the West

On a completely Rose-less note, tonight is also a big basketball night for California. For the first time in seven years, Kobe Bryant will not be on the floor with the Lakers when they take on the Clippers in LA. Due to an Achilles injury he obtained back in April while playing the Golden State Warriors, Bryant's return is still up in the air. Even without Kobe present, the two LA teams playing one another is always entertaining to watch.

Speaking of the West, all of the teams I look forward to keeping up with this season are in the Western Conference. I’m excited to watch Chris Paul and the Clippers (especially under the new instruction of Boston’s ex-coach Doc Rivers), Steph Curry and the Warriors, Kevin Durant and the Westbrook-less Thunder (he's out for at least for four to six weeks), the aging-but-agile Spurs and the flourishing-but-ridiculously-named New Orleans Pelicans (with Anthony Davis –the 2012 no. 1 overall draft pick—ready for a breakout season). I pretty much hate all of the teams in the East, but I am interested to see how the Brooklyn Nets, who acquired Kevin Garnett and Paul Pierce from the Celtics, play under the coaching of Jason Kidd (yeah I still can't believe that happened either).  

The schedule for tonight’s NBA Tip-Off is as follows:

Orlando Magic at Indiana Pacers 6:00pm (CT)

Chicago Bulls at Miami Heat 7:00pm (CT)

Los Angeles Clippers at Los Angeles Lakers 9:30pm (CT)