NBA Regular Season 11-1-10

Bulls vs Trailblazers (Slo's pick: Bulls)

With Boozer out of the lineup it has become evident that Rose needs to play at an MVP level for the Bulls to be competitive, so far so good. It will be a struggle but I think the Bulls will pull it out, even if it's not too pretty.

Kings vs Raptors (Slo's pick: Kings)

I think the Raptors will be one of the worst teams in the league this year and the young and hungry Kings will play well at home as most young teams do. The Kings get the win barring any major unforeseen factors such as an injury to Tyreke Evans or something along those lines.

Clippers vs Spurs (Slo's pick: Spurs)

The Clippers will get going sometime soon it's just not going to be tonight. The veteran Spurs will play them close and pull it out in the end.

Slo's record 0n October 29th: 6-6

Slo's record on the season: 20-10 (66%)

NBA Regular Season 10-29-10

Knicks vs Celtics (Slo's pick: Celtics)

The Celtics are coming off an embarrassing loss to the Cavs, because basically they didn't care. Tonight they will get the win before every sportswriter starts saying extremely idiotic, premature things.

Nets vs Kings (Slo's pick: Kings)

Tyreke Evans is listed as likely for tonight's game which is why the Kings are getting the nod. Even if Evans doesn't play the Kings still have a shot. The Nets are better than they were last year bit they're still not great.

76ers vs Hawks (Slo's pick: Hawks)

The Hawks are being overlooked a lot right now and I'm sure they're taking it as an insult. Expect them to start out hot, beating the Sixers tonight will be a part of that.

Raptors vs Cavaliers (Slo's pick: Cavaliers)

Despite losing one of the best players in the game the Cavs are still a respectable team. They should win tonight unless someone on the Raptors goes off which is highly unlikely.

Bobcats vs Pacers (Slo's pick: Bobcats)

Teams are always dangerous in their home openers. The Bobcats are the better team tonight anyway so this is an easy pick.

Nuggets vs Hornets (Slo's pick: Nuggets)

Although the Nuggets probably have the worst chemistry imaginable right now, they are still grossly more talented than the Hornets and shouldn't drop a home game to them.

Thunder vs Pistons (Slo's pick: Thunder)

The Pistons are going to get killed. The Thunder are too fast and too good for the Pistons to contend with for 48 minutes.

Heat vs Magic (Slo's pick: Heat)

The Heat don't have a choice but to win their home opener. This game is going to have playoff intensity and hopefully will be close. A lot of words have been fired back and forth in Florida and tonight both teams will have to let their play do the talking.

T'Wolves vs Bucks (Slo's pick: Bucks)

The Bucks are easily the better team and they need to rack up some wins before the Bulls get Boozer back from injury. Winning now is just about the only chance they have to give themselves a shot to win the division.

Mavericks vs Grizzlies (Slo's pick: Mavericks)

The Mavs are kind of like the Hawks in that they're being overlooked consistently this season. They will also be looking to make a statement in the opening weeks.

Warriors vs Clippers (Slo's pick: Warriors)

The Warriors are a good young team and young teams are often extremely dangerous at home. If their shooters get hot they will win, and I have confidence that their shooters will with the home crowd behind them.

Suns vs Lakers (Slo's pick: Lakers)

The Suns are playing the second half of back to back games and the Lakers are well rested. They will win tonight in Phoenix.

Slo's record last night: 1-1

Slo's record on the season: 14-4 (77%)

NBA Regular Season 10-28-10

Magic vs Wizards (Slo's pick: Magic)

The Wizards are overmatched tonight and don't stand a chance. It's going to be a blowout but I can't wait to see John Wall in action. Right now I feel like he should have stayed in college, let's see if he can change my mind.

Jazz vs Suns (Slo's pick: Jazz)

Both teams are searching for their first win of the season. The Jazz will win because their home and because the Suns are playing the second half of back to back games.

Slo's record last night: 10-3

Slo's record on the season: 13-3 (81%)

NBA Regular Season 10-27-10

Thunder vs Bulls (Slo's pick: Bulls)

The Bulls might struggle a bit out of the gate without their post scoring presence Carlos Boozer. I think the Bulls will win in a close game where Rose and Durant will be trading blows down the end.

Cavaliers vs Celtics (Slo's pick: Celtics)

With no LeBron James the Cavs are obviously nowhere near the powerhouse they've been in years past. I expect the Celtics to go into Cleveland and win convincingly.

Nets vs Pistons (Slo's pick: Nets)

Nobody struggled more than the Nets last season. With their young talent I think the Nets will make a small step forward this year.

76ers vs Heat (Slo's pick: Heat)

If the Heat don't absolutely annihilate the Sixers I will be shocked.

Raptors vs Knicks (Slo's pick: Knicks)

I expect Stoudemire to have a field day down low in his Knicks debut. The Knicks will win comfortably.

Hornets vs Bucks (Slo's pick: Hornets)

I don't think the Hornets will go anywhere this year but I do think they're getting the win tonight. Chris Paul will make it a point to outplay Brandon Jennings. Paul has been overlooked a lot in the conversation for best point guard because he was injured last season, I can't imagine he's taking that well.

Timberwolves vs Kings (Slo's pick: Kings)

I'm picking road teams a lot tonight which I usually don't like to do, well I'm doing it again. I'm extremely impressed by Tyreke Evans and I think he's going to make big strides this year in becoming a serious force in the league.

Grizzles vs Hawks (Slo's pick: Hawks)

The Hawks had a disappointing end to last season, they're going to make a statement on opening night with a solid road win.

Mavericks vs Bobcats (Slo's pick: Mavericks)

The Mavs will start the season with a win in front of their crazy owner and their home crowd. The Bobcats will be decent this year but their nowhere near the level the Mavs are at.

Spurs vs Pacers (Slo's pick: Spurs)

The Pacers improved significantly this offseason but the Spurs are at a title contending level, the Pacers have a long way to go to reach that distinction.

Warriors vs Rockets (Slo's pick: Warriors)

The Rockets are better than the Warriors but I believe Stephen Curry will lead the way to a win in the home opener.

Nuggets vs Jazz (Slo's pick: Nuggets)

Despite all of their off court distractions, the Nuggets will win games. That is until Carmelo Anthony is inevitably traded. Melo has no choice but to play well because he needs his trade value to stay up.

Clippers vs Trailblazers (Slo's pick: Clippers)

The Blazers will be on the road for the second half of back to back games. That spells disaster against a young team that likes the game at an uptempo pace.

Slo's record last night: 3-0

Slo's record on the season: 3-0 (100%)

NBA Regular Season 10-26-10

Celtics vs Heat (Slo's pick: Celtics)

I don't know what to think of the Miami Heat yet. Usually I have a good sense of how a team will develop but in this case I really have no idea. I'm picking the Celtics in this game just because their home. But I really don't know on this one, but I can't wait to find out.

Trailblazers vs Suns (Slo's pick: Trailblazers)

The loss of Amar'e Stoudemire severely hurts the Suns and I'm not confident that they'll be able to contend even for a playoff spot without him. The Blazers are going to be coming out energized by their home crowd and grab a win to start the season.

Lakers vs Rockets (Slo's pick: Lakers)

The Lakers are going to dismantle the Rockets in their season opener. Kobe has had many questions asked about his poor preseason and I think he's going to go off for 30+ points. This one won't be close, Lakers start their title defense with a win.

Slo's record on the season: 0-0

Take a look, and you can tell that he's destined for greatness

Last season Kevin Durant of the Oklahoma City Thunder at just 22 years old became the youngest scoring champion in NBA history, came in second place in the MVP voting, and was seven tenths of a second from pushing the eventual champion Lakers to a seventh game. Right now Kobe is still the best, Durant is second, and LeBron and Wade follow. By the end of this season I think Durant will be the undisputed best player in the world.

At 6-9 Durant possesses guard skills and a big man's body, a deadly combination for the rest of the league. He can rise up and shoot over pretty much anybody and he will go by whoever is guarding him if they play too far up on him. Because he can score at will, Durant gives the Thunder a great chance to win night in and night out.

This year I expect big things from the Thunder. With Durant and Russell Westbrook leading the pack I think they have a good chance to make a deep run into the playoffs. There's no reason to believe that the Thunder won't be a dangerous team in this year's playoffs.

Durant is better than LeBron because A, he's a better scorer and a much better teammate. Durant gets his shots up but he is not selfish in doing so. And B, because Durant's game doesn't interfere with any of his teammates'. LeBron is a dominant player, but (at least in Cleveland) he has the ball in his hands far too much. Often times his teammates can't get into the game because it's the LeBron James show.

Right now the reason why Kobe is still the alpha dog is because of his ability to close out games. With the game on the line there is nobody in the league who I would rather give the ball to. It seems like every time the game is in his hands he delivers. Durant has hit some game winners but Kobe does it on a consistent basis. Once Durant shows that he's clutch enough to close out games like Kobe he will be the best player in the league.

Once he takes the throne, I don't see him getting knocked off for awhile. Because Wade and James joined forces in Miami they are immediately removed from the conversation. The young wave of all stars like Derrick Rose, Rajon Rondo, and Deron Williams are all game changers and they all consistently lead their teams to the playoffs but they're just not on Durant's plateau.

I am willing to guarantee right now that Durant leads the Thunder to at least two championships before his career ends. I'm happy I get to live in a time where I can see one of the most dominant scorers ever develop and grow. Averaging 30.1 PPG this early in his career is Jordanesque. I can't wait to see what he does for an encore.

The Thunder kick off the season at home against the Chicago Bulls on Wednesday night on ESPN.

Boozer out 6-8 weeks

Every Bulls fan cringed when they heard the news. Carlos Boozer injured his hand during non basketball activities and will not return to the lineup for 6-8 weeks.

While at his home Boozer tripped over a big luggage bag and broke his hand when he braced himself for the fall.

"It was just dark, my doorbell rang and I tripped over a gym bag, tried to brace myself and it popped," Boozer said. "I jumped back up, opened the door and my hand was still a little numb. I'm 265, 5 percent body fat. I'm heavy, man. I guess I had to brace myself and my weight just collapsed the bone. If I had landed with an open hand, I would've been fine. But somehow my right hand got turned over and that's what caused the break."

Losing Boozer for the first 15 games hurts the Bulls badly. It means that Boozer will miss the annual circus trip that has given the Bulls a ton of problems since 1998. After the last few seasons, the Bulls don't want to spend another December trying to make up for a slow start.

I have no doubt that Derrick Rose can keep the team afloat for a little while but it's going to be tough beating the league's best teams consistently without a low post scorer. The one and only positive is that if the Bulls make the playoffs. Boozer will have the freshest legs by about 15 games.

Dwyane Wade sidelined for two weeks

Three minutes into the new big 3's first preseason game Dwyane Wade pulled his hamstring while chasing Richard Hamilton around a screen.

It was a very good move to pull Wade from the lineup for the next few weeks because a hamstring injury is something that could nag him for the rest of the season if not treated correctly.

If I were in charge I would keep him out until the last game of the preseason. It means absolutely nothing and it's just a bad opportunity to get your star player injured. The only purpose it serves is to give the end of the bench guys a chance to prove they should be on the team.

Bulls, Noah finally agree on extension

The Bulls are locking Center Joakim Noah up for the long term with a 5 year extension. The exact value of the contract has not been disclosed but it's believed to be in the 60 million range but is loaded with incentives. According to reports, those incentives are what made Noah agree on the deal.

Bulls fans were beginning to become restless when Noah and his party kept declining offers, however all along Noah said that he had no intention on leaving Chicago, he just wanted more money.

At this morning's practice when asked about his rumored agreement Noah gave the camera a big smile but declined to comment.