Mother Nature May Be NBA's Strongest Defensive Player This Weekend
What if there was a slate of scheduled NBA games, yet most of the participating teams were not able to attend? This bizarre and rather unthinkable scenario could play out on Sunday, as a result of the epic winter storm wreaking havoc on the Northeast.
By far, the game most threatened by Mother Nature's wintery wrath is the Los Angeles Clippers at New York Knicks matchup, penciled in for 1:00 ET on ABC. The greatest complication involving this contest is the fact that both of these teams are playing their Friday night games roughly 1,200 miles from Madison Square Garden, with LA taking on the Miami Heat and New York running with the Minnesota Timberwolves. As of now, both organizations have already decided to stay put in Miami and Minneapolis respectively, as opposed to flying to the Big Apple, immediately after the conclusion of Friday's games.
Forecasts are predicting that between 12 and 18 inches of snow will hit the New York Metropolitan Area, with the system finally slowing down around 3:00 ET Saturday. While the heavy snow may taper off during mid afternoon, it will certainly take a period of time for area airports to reopen for business. ABC better be prepared to air some alternative Sunday programming, because this potentially entertaining game may not commence at the crack of 1:00.
Though less likely, Sunday night's game between the San Antonio Spurs and Brooklyn Nets could also run into some blizzard related issues. The event is scheduled to tipoff at 8:00 ET, but the ESPN broadcast could encounter difficulty since the Nets are spending their Friday Night at the Washington Wizards, while the Spurs will be taking on the Detroit Pistons, at Auburn Hills, Michigan.
As is often the case with infamous Nor'easter storms, the further north one heads, the more epic the totally of the mess becomes. Along these lines, the city of Boston is warned to expect somewhere between two and three feet of snow, once everything is said and done. While the Celtics are safely ensconced within the borders of Massachusetts (C's have two days off after Thursday's home win over the Lakers), their Sunday night opponent, the Denver Nuggets, are playing a Saturday night ballgame at the Cleveland Cavaliers.
The Boston portion of the front is supposed to dissipate around 9:00 ET Saturday. Since the Nuggets/Celtics game is planned for 6:00 ET, Sunday night, this should allow for enough time for Denver to successfully make the 640-mile ride from Northeast Ohio to Beantown. But, nothing here is certain.
While it is entirely possible that all the above games will take place as scheduled, without question, the epic winter weather system has thrown a wrench into the plans of many millions of Americans, including those who happen to play, coach and broadcast basketball for a living.
