This year was a roller coaster and there was no shortage of headlines. Here are my top 10 stories of 2022.

• Rudy Gobert Trade

  After losing in the first round for the second time in three seasons the Utah Jazz traded Rudy Gobert to the Timberwolves in the offseason. Gobert was traded for five players and five draft picks including a pick swap. Still a trade that has many scratching their heads.

• Donovan Mitchell Trade

  After the Gobert trade it looked like the Jazz would build around Mitchell but that was not the case. For some time there has been rumors that Mitchell wanted to go back home to New York. Instead the Cleveland Cavaliers came in with a trade to give the jazz three players and five picks including three pick swaps. This trade was a win-win, the Cavs get someone that puts them in title talks and the Jazz get more picks that could be used as assets for trades down the road.

• Kevin Durant Trade Request

  KD asked for a trade twice this summer after a crazy season. He then asked Nets governor Joe Tsai to fire general manager Sean Marks and head coach Steve Nash but he didn’t budge. After they all met up in the offseason Durant rescinded his trade and decided to stay.

• Stephen Curry Finally Gets Finals MVP

  It is crazy to think the Curry has not won a Finals MVP after winning three titles but it looks like fourth time is the charm. He finally got the trophy he deserved and his resume looks more flawless than ever. He averaged 31.2 points, six rebounds and five assists per game in the Finals with an amazing 43-point performance in Game 4.

• Victor Wembanyama- The New Unicorn

  After the world was put on notice about the 7’2 French star all NBA teams have been keeping a close eye on him. He everything on the basketball court from defending the rim, dribbling the ball up the court and scoring on all three levels he looks like a taller Kevin Durant which is scary. The only thing most have in question is his frame he is very skinny and if he is going to be down low in the paint he will have to build his body up more.

• Kyrie Irving- Problem After Problem

  Kyrie has had himself a year and sadly I don’t mean that in a good way. Last season he sat out a good amount because he decided not to get vaccinated for COVID. Then the team lets him play part-time (only road games) until the ban was lifted and he could play at home. Then the Nets get in the playoffs and get swept by the Celtics in the first round. Irving had a horrible series. Earlier this season he posted a link on Twitter to a movie that had antisemtic language in it. His failure to apologize got him suspended for eight games. He would later apologize and go through obstacles to get back on the court.

• Zion Williamson Coming Back From Injury

  The hype surrounding Zion from high school was something the basketball world has not seen since Lebron James. He was out all last season with a foot injury and concerns were growing about him. Would he stay in New Orleans? Will he actually play basketball again after this injury? Well he has come back and he has showed that there is no one that can stop him. So far for the 2022-23 season he is averaging 25.8 points, seven rebounds and 4.7 assists per game. He is the leading scorer and is shooting 60.7% from the field. If he continues like this he is on his way to something special.

• Ben Simmons-James Harden Trade

  After Simmons meltdown in the Sixers second round lost to the Atlanta Hawks he did not want to be in Philly anymore. He tried to go back but it was not working out. He was mentally unable to play and wanted out. In Brooklyn things were not going as planned and Harden wanted out as well. The Nets and Sixers swapped players in hopes everyone got what they wanted. Now Simmons is starting to look like himself and Harden is becoming more comfortable with Embiid.

• Celtics Sweeps Nets

  In what was the most hyped up first round series I can remember it did not live up to the hype. The Celtics easily walked past the Nets sweeping them 4-0. Kyrie was nowhere to be found as he was off the whole series except game 1. Durant did everything in his power to keep the Nets in it but he was getting harassed. With or without the ball he had a body on him. This was the start of the problems for the Nets offseason.

• Luka Dominates Suns in Game 7

  Early in the series Doncic and the Mavericks looked to be out of their league going back home down 0-2 to the Suns who just went to the NBA Finals the year before. Luka magic was not going to let his team lose winning both games at home tying the series 2-2. Coming back to Dallas they were looking at elimination down 3-2 but they would find a way to win tying the series going to a game seven. In game seven Doncic looked to be on another level. He had a total of 35 points and 10 rebounds. By the end of the first half he had 27 points and nine rebounds. They were beating the Suns 57-27 by the half. Simply the Suns did not show up in the most important game of the season.

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