Much of today’s NBA discussion has centered on the surprising opening night result at the Staples Center, where the Kobe Bryant-less Lakers upset Doc Rivers and the Clippers. When the Hoops Rumors team revealed its predictions for the season yesterday, all of us had the Clippers finishing into the top three in the West, while none of us expect the Lakers to make the playoffs.
As we look forward to whatever surprises tonight’s slate of games will bring, let’s check in on a few items out of the Western Conference….
- Although Marcus Camby was waived by the Rockets earlier this week, he hasn’t gone anywhere. Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle reports that Camby was back at Rockets practice yesterday, taking the team up on its invitation for him to work with players as he recovers from a foot injury.
- The Lakers‘ Plan B this offseason after they missed out on Dwight Howard was dicey, but it looked awfully good on opening night, writes Dave McMenamin of ESPNLosAngeles.com.
- Paul Coro’s latest column for the Arizona Republic focuses on Channing Frye‘s comeback, the rise of offseason acquisition Miles Plumlee, and the team’s plans for newest Sun Emeka Okafor.
- Timberwolves camp invitee Lorenzo Brown requested and received a trade from the D-League’s Iowa Energy, who sent him to the Springfield Armor, tweets Darren Wolfson of 1500 ESPN Twin Cities. Minnesota will no longer hold any form of rights, D-League or otherwise, on the 2013 second-rounder.
- Brad Rock of The Deseret News examines Tyrone Corbin‘s job security and argues the Jazz must make the playoffs this season to be considered a success. If that’s the benchmark the team uses, Corbin might not be around much longer.
Chuck Myron contributed to this post.