You know, for a summer that had a pretty exciting Olympic Basketball Tournament, this NBA offseason still seemed pretty damn long. 

Although the WNBA, with rookie sensation Caitlin Clark, has been immensely entertaining, there still isn’t any replacement for the entertainment that the NBA brings to the table.

That said, we’re now only a month from opening night, which will see the Boston Celtics take on the New York Knicks in the Eastern Conference, along with a battle between the LA Lakers and Minnesota Timberwolves in the Western Conference. Both of those games will take place on Monday morning on October 23 (Manila Time), and they should be a great start to the campaign.

The handing of the torch is in full effect, as evidenced by LeBron James, Steph Curry and Kevin Durant all failing to reach the second round of the playoffs. It was the first time since 2005 that none of those three stars were a fixture in the conference semifinals. Although the three legends had a great closeout to their Olympic campaign, it’s clear that it’s the young guns’ time now. The likes of Luka Doncic, Anthony Edwards, Jayson Tatum, Jaylen Brown, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Victor Wembanyama and other young stars are ready for the spotlight.

Speaking of torches, it’s going to be weird watching LeBron James play with his son in an NBA game. I had just graduated from high school when James was drafted by the Cavaliers in 2003, and James serves as reminder about how old I’m getting. Watching him play with Bronny is just going to hurt my feelings, but there’s no doubt that the father-son duo will grab tons of headlines.

The Celtics have kept their championship core intact, so I’m looking forward to seeing how they fare in the quest to be the first repeat champions in half a decade. They’re so goddamn strong that it’s probably just going to be a race to see who comes second behind them in the East, but don’t discount teams like the Villanova Knicks and the Indiana Pacers.

I’m not entirely sure that Klay Thompson is the answer for the Dallas Mavericks, but he sure as hell knows that all eyes will be on him. Luka Doncic does need shooters around him, but the days of ‘Game 6 Klay’ may be long gone.

The Western Conference was a nightmare of a gauntlet for all teams in the playoff hunt and it looks like it will be more of the same this season. As a Sacramento Kings fan, I’m hoping the addition of DeMar DeRozan will help us get beyond a play-in appearance again. 

There are a ton of other things I’ll be watching out for, but that’s the main list that’s on my mind for now. What are the storylines you’re looking most forward to following?