Coming in from the London Olympics: NBA Players to watch out for – NBA Feature – Part 2
The Olympics are a thing of the past and there are many players going into the 2012-13 season who will use their performances in the London Games as a stepping stone for the next year to come.
3. LeBron James
The third player on the list of players ready to take their Olympic performances and come out strongly next season is LeBron James.
There can be no doubt that James capped off 2012 as the best any individual could have done in regards to their career. He won the MVP honours for the third time in his career only to go one step up on himself and finishing the
season by winning his first ever NBA Championship with the Miami Heat
But the season was not over for LeBron James as he geared up for team USA and the Olympics. Despite not scoring much as he held an average of 13.3 points, 5.6 rebounds and 5.6 assist during the Olympics, James came out as the ultimate
leader for team USA
He put up some of the most spectacular performance only when his team needed him the most and his triple double performance in the knock out stages is one of the best individual outings in Olympic history.
However to LeBron, individual brilliance is not of much value as his ultimate goal remained to help team USA defend its gold mead – which they did in a repeat of the Beijing Final against Spain.
The performances from James were of great team value as he had grown as a leader not only for the American contingent but for Miami Heat. So when he takes to court next season, James can be expected to be the ultimate leader for
his team as he helps Miami in their cause of repeating as NBA Champions.
4. Andrei Kirilenko
The 2012-2013 campaign will mark the return of Andrei Kirilenko back into the NBA and if he is able to bring the best of his talents which enabled him to help Russia secure a bronze medal at the Olympics, AK-47 is bound to succeed
on his return.
The Russian forward will be returning to American basketball with the Minnesota Timberwolves who can use a player like him. Kirilenko is renowned for his endless energy on both ends of the floor which can only mean a sign of bad
things to come for the oppositions.
During the Olympics, he averaged 17.5 points, 7.5 rebounds, and 1.9 steals. And was one of the best players in this year games. He proved to many spectators that he is more than capable of using his energy both for earning individual
honours and results for his team which marks him as one of the best players coming into next season.
5. Pau Gasol
The Spaniard could not fulfil his dream of getting past team USA to win gold for the second time running but did show during the Olympics that he can be a key asset for any team he is a part for.
By averaging 19.1 points, 7.6 rebounds, 2.9 assist during the Olympics, he led Spain all the way to the final during which he laid out his best against the Americans but was unable to achieve much success.
However he will take the performances into the next season and be a key part of the revival of the Los Angeles Lakers. With Dwight Howard, Steve Nash and Kobe Bryant on the roster, Gasol could be a key part of how the Lakers look
to be in strong contention next season.
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