What Does Success Look Like In 2021-22?

There’s no debate about it - the NSL is a hugely successful enterprise for a multitude of reasons. Managers are forming stronger bonds with their organisations and further shaping their rosters and destinies, hopefully for the better. The community of people is as respectful, caring and committed as ever, breathing life into every week of the NSL calendar and bringing different colours and sounds to each interaction and opinion.

Success is subjective and relative to goals, expectations. Failure isn’t the end, it’s the new start. This isn’t about ranking. This is about celebrating the varied trajectories and velocities of thirty different people and the teams the run.

For this article, I will post what I deem to be a positive, successful achievement for the team, phrased as a news headline or an excerpt from an article.

We can’t all win at the same time, but it doesn’t mean we can’t all be successful. 

Atlanta Hawks

We were wrong, about the Hawks. The Embiid trade paved the way for Atlanta to add a bunch of young talent, and created a niche for that talent to thrive for a long time. Making the play-in tournament was a huge tick. 

Boston Celtics

Celtics take next step, make the playoffs. Tatum reaches superstardom status, and along with rookies Kuminga, Sengun and Moody, raise the Celtics’ ceiling even higher for the future.

Brooklyn Nets

Jamal Murray, written off by most to miss almost all of the regular season, returns in record-breaking time from his ACL injury, and leads the Brooklyn Nets to their first ever NSL playoff appearance.

Charlotte Hornets

LUKA LUKA LUKA! Charlotte is in raptures after their wunderkind Doncic holds off the rest of the East challengers to take the crown and make the NSL Finals. Chris Paul gets another chance to win a title in the twilight of his career.

Chicago Bulls

Redemption, achieved. The Bulls find their way back to the NSL Finals after Anthony Davis puts together an MVP season and dominates the playoffs. Healthy for the majority of the regular season, Davis was a man on a mission since Week One.

Cleveland Cavaliers

It might have taken some time, but the Cavaliers core are flashing some of that potential. Since Mitchell has found his shot, the core of Davion, Jarrett Allen and Bogdan Bogdanovic has reeled off eight straight wins, many against playoff teams.

Dallas Mavericks

After somehow retaining Victor Oladipo, Kelly Oubre Jr and Dennis Schroeder, the Mavericks have finally surrounded Durant with a cast worthy of a Finals appearance. With just weeks to go in the regular season, they look as worthy as any to win it all.

Denver Nuggets

After two years and a lot of patience, the Denver ‘Splash Family’ have rewarded the faith of GM Digga, as they are atop of the entire league with the most wins of any team. Primed for a run at the title, the shooting prowess on this team has never been seen before and at this point, can’t be stopped.

Detroit Pistons

The Detroit Pistons have backed up their groundbreaking 69 win season of 2021 with a stellar 2022, and again see themselves primed to make the NSL Finals and hopefully, Kyrie, Rudy and Bam can go one step further this time.

Golden State Warriors

SOMEBODY SAY ZACH LAVINE! It used to just be Titles, but now it’s the basketball world, with Lavine moving into the superstar stratosphere and taking the Warriors with him. After two average seasons, the Warriors have won over 50 games and the core of Lavine, Ayton and ….. wants a playoff series win.

Houston Rockets

Congratulations, Nikola Jokic, the 2022 NSL Most Valuable Player.  Jokic, the premiere big man in the league, has put together a historical season for a big man, averaging a god-like 30-14-11 for the Rockets.

Indiana Pacers

Congratulations, Joel Embiid, the 2022 NSL Most Valuable Player.  Embiid, the premiere big man in the league, built on his excellent 2021 season and has put together an incredible season for a big man, averaging a god-like 34-15-5 and 2 blocks per game for the Pacers.

Los Angeles Clippers

The Clippers, in 2022, have taken that next step, with Giannis finally having running mates worthy of his talents. Their reward, a run towards the playoffs that has Clippers fans believing in a Finals berth.

Los Angeles Lakers

ROOKIE OF THE YEAR looks to be in the bag for phenom Cade Cunningham, who has been as good as advertised or even better. The Lakers franchise is beginning to show signs of life and fans are hopeful and excited again.

Memphis Grizzlies

JJJ was worth the wait for Memphis, with the young gun finally getting his body right and showing why the team invested such a high draft pick in him. Memphis continue to take a balanced approach with their team, but the growth is happening and the chemistry is elite. Playoff series win is the pass mark.

Miami Heat

With the Simmons saga behind them, with Ben deciding to stay put and work things out in Miami, and Isaac back healthy and playing, we get to see the Miami Heat that Pete planned and the NSL envisioned; Tall, talented, athletic and a team you don’t want to play in the first round.

Milwaukee Bucks

Zion, SGA and now Mobley, three young stars for the Bucks to lock in for the foreseeable future. Zion is an MVP candidate, SGA is an All-Star candidate. One more star youngster and Badwolfs and the Bucks won’t have any choice but to start phase two: winning a lot. 

Minnesota Timberwolves

The team took a risk, adding some veterans and hoping to jump quickly from tank-team to playoff hopeful. As the league moves further to positionless basketball, the Wolves went chips in at the right time, as their pace, dynamism and talent sees them as one of the NSL’s most fun and dangerous teams.

New Orleans Pelicans

60! After already breaking the 60 win barrier with games still to be played, the young Pelicans have put the league on notice that the coming of age has already happened. Pels shouldn’t be just asking if they can win a playoff series, but how many? Their portfolio is stacked.

New York Knicks

Two All-Star nominations for New York, DeAaron Fox and Brandon Ingram, has Knicks fans ecstatic about their future. Both players have continued to get better and reaching All-Star status at such young ages means the Knicks will be reaping the benefits for a long time. 

Oklahoma City Thunder

The moves that the Thunder have made this season have not only sorted the hierarchy of player roles within the roster, but have created a product that is greater than the sum of its parts. Instead of worrying about young or old, the Thunder GM has worried about winning - and they’ve been doing a lot of it this season.

Orlando Magic

This is the season that was promised, all hail Ice Trae! Gav has played it so well these past few seasons, and despite a longing to win and compete in the playoffs, the alignment to the natural arc for the Magic has reaped the benefits of more talent and synchronicity. Orlando are looking to finish strong and claim home-court advantage in the first round.

Philadelphia 76ers

DAME TIME CONTINUES! Imagine trading LeBron James and it being the right move!? The 76ers have struck a much better balance this season between scoring and defense and it’s equating to more wins. The East is tough, but Dame is as explosive and consistent of a bucket-getter as the league has. 55 wins beckons.

Phoenix Suns

The calm, forward thinking Suns have kept their course, and the investments into their young prospects already looks to be paying dividends. They are on track to win at least as many games as last season, but now possess a clear rhythm in their roster building and a asset portfolio that continues to increase in value.

Portland Trail Blazers

Despite the turmoil of having no Kawhi, you would barely notice that they were playing without their best player, as it’s been business as usual for Portland. It’s not going to look like 78 wins, but Portland fans are still enjoying seeing their team beat up most of their NSL counterparts as they steam towards playoffs.

Sacramento Kings

NAYSAYERS BE DAMNED! Klemm doesn’t wear his heart on his sleeve, it’s tattooed there. For all the skepticism of the King’s move and empty hopefulness, this build just works - Vucevic has been surrounded by shooters, and this time, it works. No one wants to play the Kings on their night.

San Antonio Spurs

The Spurs front office, right off coming off a title, proving once again why they are the best traders in the business. Sentiment disregarded entirely, they rolled one of the best players in the league into the best player. Back to back is looking ominous for the physical Spurs.

Toronto Raptors

All-Stars Paul George and Demar DeRozan have Raptors fans believing anything is possible. After a season with no momentum, Canada’s team has been rolling all season and with a strong finish to the season, can stake their claim as best in the East and the NSL.

Utah Jazz

While the win totals won’t impress anyone, what continues to tick over and add more value is the massive portfolio of future assets the Jazz possess. Giddey has been brilliant for the Jazz and they need about six hands to count all their picks.

Washington Wizards

For all of those naysayers who doubted Joshua and the decision to trade for Karl-Anthony Towns, validation has been coming in a constant stream. The Wizards, who are closing in on 60 wins, are only receiving positive comments lately.