NBA scenarios to look forward to

During our last taste of NBA basketball, much of the hoop-watching planet was celebrating the fall of the Miami Heat while the irony-dipped cone of silence was melting away from Mark Cuban.
 
Commissioner David Stern shook hands with a kid named Kyrie a few days later, followed by rookie-free agent camps that prepared young prospects for, well, nothing. There were no summer leagues, because the NBA was launching a near-five-month run of torture that included mind-numbing information about things referred to as BRI and the flex cap.
 
But it seems we've avoided Stern's forecast of a nuclear winter and pro basketball will involve far more than tracking the results of some team called Besiktas.
 
If the tentative deal is ratified, camps and free agency will be launched Dec. 9 and we’ll have a triple-header to open the season on Christmas Day.
 
Having much to do and little time to get it done, the league now invites us to consider the storylines we were intending to follow before the first two months of the NBA season were hijacked.
 
THE LAKERS
 
OK, you're probably bitter that we're leading with these guys, but this ballyhooed crowd could provide us with a remarkable hay ride.
 
Remember, Phil Jackson is riding a motorcycle across the badlands or something, leaving Mike Brown to attempt steering the Lakers out of the triangle offense and into a mentality of crusty defense.
 
Ex-Laker Shaquille O'Neal has said Brown's attempt to hold a tactical and influential sway over Kobe Bryant will be as doomed as Mike's bid to coach LeBron James in Cleveland.
 
Kobe, by the way, reportedly spent his extended vacation being retrofitted with bionics and infused with tiger's blood. He's now capable of jumping over the mound of embarrassment piled up by 7-foot teammate Andrew Bynum during that playoff series against Dallas.
 
The Laker celebrity riot also includes another year of Ron Artest — now in the role of Metta World Peace — and participation from players' union president Derek Fisher.
 
We also should pay attention to the possible existence of an amnesty clause in the new collective-bargaining agreement that might turn Luke Walton into a full-time college assistant coach. The luxury tax punishment is believed to be quite rough in the new CBA, but the Lakers' deal with Time Warner should allow the Buss family to proceed without casting off any crucial talent.
 
THE SUPER FRIENDS
 
Now that he no longer needs to consider an NFL paycheck to cover his bills, LeBron can return to his status as the league's leading villain.
 
But how much residual dislike for James and the Heat still exists?
 
How will the new CBA's cap structure affect Miami's attempt to put more reliable pieces around LeBron, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh?
 
How many free agents will be interested in joining the Heat's supporting cast?
 
And how soon before some enterprising website creates a LeBron Fourth Quarter Tracker?
 
THE ROOKIES
 
Free from an injured toe and locked-out league, Kyrie Irving now has the opportunity to suit up and justify the Cleveland Cavaliers' decision to select him first overall.
 
We also will see how the Minnesota Timberwolves use University of Arizona star Derrick Williams (small forward or power forward and what about Michael Beasley?), while several European hotshots will attempt to make their mark in the NBA. The list includes a first-time Timberwolves employee named Ricky Rubio.
 
But the rookie with the most to prove is, of course, Sacramento Kings guard Jimmer Fredette. If Jimmer Mania impacts the Kings as profoundly as the franchise is hoping, Sacramento may generate enough of an on-court upgrade to keep the turnstiles spinning and maybe even rally support for a new arena.
 
If that occurs, the Kings may not run off to Anaheim.
 
FREE AGENTS
 
This category is a major concern for the defending-champion Dallas Mavericks, who have four rotation players checking in as unrestricted free agents. That list includes center Tyson Chandler, generally regarded as the defensive catalyst for the Mavs' rise to glory. Also on the unrestricted list is Caron Butler, whose season-ending injury required Dallas to win a title without him, and diminutive playoff hero J.J. Barea.
 
A limited list of semi-coveted (and unrestricted) FAs includes power forward David West of the New Orleans Hornets, Denver Nuggets post man Nene and Orlando Magic shooting guard Jason Richardson.
 
A banner FA roster for 2012 will be captained by Orlando center Dwight Howard, whose future employment interest should generate a heaping helping of conjecture between now and next summer.
 
CHINESE CHECKMATE
 
With little faith in negotiating and/or their own ability to put food on the table, a few NBA players took jobs in China. Big deal, right? Well, the deals may not be that formidable, but they do not include the option to scram when and if the lockout ended. NBA players in this situation now will have to wait until the season ends in China before returning for late-season financial scraps back home.
 
This truly creates a predicament for the Denver Nuggets, who have three free agents  — J.R. Smith, Kenyon Martin and Wilson Chandler — playing in China. Smith and Martin are unrestricted, with J.R. previously referenced as a long shot to make a Denver return. Already wearing thin the patience of his temp team, Smith may come up with really creative injury claims in an effort to be cut loose and return to the NBA.
 
Or maybe he'll start to love China and return when the season in over.
 
Chandler, by the way, is a restricted free agent and (even though they still have Danilo Gallinari) the Nuggets reportedly wouldn't mind having him back.
 
With Nene (unrestricted) and Arron Afflalo (restricted) also on the market, the Nuggets will be hitting speed dial on Dec. 9.
 
THE KNICKS
 
With his acting career now postponed by a return to basketball, Amar'e Stoudemire has the opportunity to make good on that triumph chatter surrounding his New York team.
 
Also dancing into the spotlight is Carmelo Anthony, the hero of last season's manipulation of the free-agent system. Limited to a quickie training camp, the Knicks may still lack the preparation time needed to become fluent in their defensive system. Oh, wait. Never mind.
 
NEW COACHES
 
It should be interesting to see if Rubio is able to run a Rick Adelman offense that really doesn't require a shot-clock-killing dribble routine to be effective.
 
Lawrence Frank takes over a Detroit Pistons team that (for now) still employs the same players who sort of forgot what time to show up for a John Kuester practice last season.
 
Mark Jackson has gone from microphone to head coach at the sport's highest level; too bad Jeff Van Gundy won't be riding shotgun.
 
Kevin McHale, who was a train wreck during his general-managing days in Minnesota, has arrived in Houston to remind us he wasn't half bad while coaching the T-wolves.
 
Dwane Casey, credited with defensive mastermind status in Dallas, is the new coach in Toronto, and may need the Raptors to sign Tyson Chandler before any similar uprising happens.
 
That takes us back to Mike Brown, who — even with the lockout lifted — has the potential to experience a nuclear winter.