Opening night is finally upon us and we start things off between a matchup featuring the defending champs, the Toronto Raptors, and a new-look New Orleans Pelicans side.
In truth, one of the primary reasons why the league chose this particular matchup to kick things off this season is because of one man — Zion Williamson. Unfortunately, the highly-touted phenom sustained a knee injury a few days ago, which will force him to miss the first few weeks of the new campaign. Surely, there will not be a shortage of discussion about Zion's knee during the broadcast, and rightfully so. While this injury is not considered to be serious, it is still mildly concerning that he has been ruled out for a relatively long period of time even before he was able to make his much-awaited NBA debut.
Nevertheless, there are still more than a few things to watch out for in what should be a high-octane matchup between two teams that will be fielding a revamped side. Below, we highlight three things we should all pay attention to, as these may serve as a bit of a preview of how both teams will fare the rest of the way.
A Kawhi-less Raptors Side
Despite entering the new season as the defending champions, the Raptors are not considered to be one of the favorites to lift the title for a second consecutive season. The reason behind this is the departure of reigning Finals MVP Kawhi Leonard, who opted to make the big move to the Los Angeles Clippers during the offseason.
As a result, Toronto have been left with no choice but to muster up a squad that will hope to put up a fight in their title defense. Make no mistake, though, this may be a weakened Raptors side, but they are by no means a weak team. The question now is, who will step up in the wake of Leonard's summer exit?
Much has been said about another potential breakout year for reigning Most Improved Player of the Year Pascal Siakam. He is widely expected to be the heir apparent to Leonard as Toronto's new cornerstone superstar, and surely, the incoming fourth-year forward will be looking to start things off with a bang.
Likewise, Kyle Lowry is also expected to have a great year this season for the Raptors. The veteran will need to serve as the primary facilitator of the team, and this first game should allow him to set the tone for his squad.
A New-Look Pelicans Backcourt
Similar to Lowry, Pelicans All-Star point guard Jrue Holiday is also looking to have a huge year ahead of him. With Anthony Davis out of the picture, Holiday is expected to be the team's new superstar. His role becomes even more important given Zion's injury, and it will be interesting to see how far Holiday can take the Pels early on in the season.
Holiday will be joined by former second overall pick Lonzo Ball as the new arrival to New Orleans' new-look backcourt. Injuries have plagued Ball's first two seasons, and if he is somehow able to avoid the injury bug this season, then the Pelicans' Holiday-Ball backcourt should definitely be one to be wary of.
The New Orleans Bench
Finally, this opening game should also serve as a good preview of how New Orleans' bench will hold up for what should be a very taxing season ahead. As a matter of fact, the season hasn't even started yet and already, Pelicans head coach Alvin Gentry will already need to make some adjustments in his rotation. New Orleans will likely fill the Zion void through a committee approach, with the rest of the team soaking up the rookie's minutes.
The most important addition to the Pelicans' bench this summer is former Philadelphia 76ers sharpshooter J.J. Redick, who signed a two-year, $26.5 million deal with New Orleans. He should be able to provide a lot of firepower off the bench, and this signing definitely boosts the team's second unit significantly.
This matchup may not hold what many had initially expected, but it should not be short of fireworks. Whatever the case may be, this contest should still prove to be an excellent way to kick things off for the 2019-20 season.
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