Thought Crusade

 Last night the 2025-2026 NBA season tipped off with two exciting Western Conference matchups. I'm going to break down what I saw in both games and what I expect moving forward. Oklahoma City Thunder 125, Houston Rockets 124 The defending champions looked primed for another long playoff run on their home floor for Ring Ceremony Night, holding off the new look Houston Rockets in two overtimes. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander led the Thunder with 35 points on 12/26 field goals, but played nearly 50 minutes. The game was called a "heavyweight fight" by Reggie Miller, but we didn't get to see both teams at full steam. Fred Van Vleet will miss the entire season due to injury, while Dorian Finney-Smith and Ja'Sean Tate both sat as they recover from their respective ankle surgeries. Amen Thompson only scored 18 points in 39 minutes, and despite his -11 plus/minus was definitely needed down the stretch, but did not finish the game due to what appeared to be calf cramping.  On the...

 Well, I've given you my guesses on how each team will fare this season, and I've given you who I think are the top ten players in the league. Now I'm going to give you who I think will win all of the major individual awards for the upcoming 25-26 campaign and compare them to ESPN's choices. Most Improved Player: Amen Thompson (ESPN's choice: Amen Thompson and Matas Buzelis tied) The dynamic athleticism and defensive tenacity of Amen gained him a lot of fans during the Rockets impressive 24-25 campaign which saw them win the second seed in a very competitive Western Conference. With the loss of Fred Van Vleet to a season ending injury, expect Amen to be given more responsibility ball handling and scoring. Those extra touches, in addition to the space that will be created by the presence of new teammate Kevin Durant, project a higher potential for impact on the game and therefore should result in him making a dramatic leap. Dark horse for MIP: Alperen Sengun Amen...

 My last post about this upcoming season of NBA basketball was supposed to include an analysis of my top ten players, but breaking down each team thoroughly took up a lot of page and a lot of time. So I decided to continue my original thoughts for yesterday's post in today's daily blog. Let's take a look at my top ten players going into this season. Disqualified due to injuries: Jayson Tatum, Tyrese Haliburton, Kyrie Irving, Damian Lillard Jayson Tatum probably would have rounded out my top ten in some capacity, but popping his Achilles in the Eastern Conference Finals of last season has him missing at least the first half of this season. He's dropped hints in interviews that he's hopeful for a return at some point this season, but as I wrote in my breakdown of the Celtics' chances next season, I don't expect them to be competing and therefore doubt he would return at all. After the magic of last season's playoff run, Tyrese Haliburton definitely warrant...

 One of the many subjects that I'm constantly going on and on about in my head is my favorite sport- basketball. I play it, I watch it, and I think about it. So in today's post I'll be giving my thoughts on each team and my expectations for them going into this year. They'll be split into tiers with other teams I have similar standards for. Let's start with the best of the best and go from there. Tier 1 - "Championship Favorites": Expect them to win it all or come damn close. My championship favorite: Denver Nuggets Nikola Jokic was one helpful teammate away from possibly stealing last year's series away from the eventual champions, and now he might have what he needs. With the additions of Cam Johnson, Jonas Valanciunas, Bruce Brown, and Tim Hardaway Jr. the Nuggets have upgraded their bench and replaced a starter nearly beat-for-beat if not fully upgrading. I expect another dominant season from Jokic and with the newly acquired depth they should be a...

 A great man once said "writing is a form of therapy; sometimes I wonder how all those who do not write, compose, or paint can manage to escape madness." I couldn't agree more Mr. Greene. The past fifteen or so months have been a whirlwind in my corner of the world. I took a leap of faith and left the company I had been with for over a decade. I went through the highs and lows of a serious relationship starting and ending. I've been ripped from my comfortable stance of head-in-the-sand towards the grown-up world of politics and social issues. I'm now broke and alone, searching for purpose in an increasingly dark world. Jesus and my family are the flotation devices I cling to while I seemingly watch humanity spiral down a maelstrom. So I write. As Graham Greene said. As a form of therapy. To escape madness . Despite the cynicism displayed in the previous paragraph I actually am hopeful and happy. There are sparks in my spirit, like I'm striking flint against st...