I was thinking about it and decided that I'm not qualified to write a full-fledged NBA Preview.  I'm not an NBA fan.  I'm a Lakers fan.  Here's how my NBA viewing season goes:

1.  I watch all Lakers games.
2.  I watch all of the Western Conference Playoffs.
3.  I watch the Eastern Conference Finals (some) and the Game 7's.
4.  I watch an NBA on TNT game every now and then.
5.  I watch NBA on TNT halftime and postgame more than the actual games they air.
6.  I go to 2 to 4 Lakers games and maybe a Clippers game (more of a chance this year with my boy Baron).
7.  I watch games that involve my favorite players.  There's no way I'd watch an OkC game this year if Kevin Durant wasn't involved.

I love basketball but I greatly prefer college basketball to the NBA.  I've been coaching basketball ever since my local rec. center allowed me to when I was 16.  I dabbled in high school coaching and consider myself a student of the game.  So, instead of writing an NBA Preview by dong a lot of research of what other people think, I decided to give you my breakdown of NCAA vs. NBA basketball.

1.  X's and O's vs. Match-ups

College basketball revolves around X's and O's, schemes, etc.  If you play against a Rick Pitino led team, you're going to get 40 minutes of pressure.  You play against Ben Howland and you're getting a grind it out game.  Memphis is going to dribble weave you to death.  Arizona (Lute era) used to mix in a 1-3-1, a 2-2-1 full court press, etc.  In the NBA, it's all about match-ups.  If you watched the Phoenix/New Orleans game the other day, with six minutes left, Scott sent Chris Paul into the game.  Terry Porter immediately had Steve Nash sprint to the table.  Boris Diaw had Posey on him so Phoenix cleared out and force-fed Diaw right under the basket.  There will be a million more such examples throughout the season.  The Lakers run the triangle.  The Spurs run some motion.  I'm struggling for another team that doesn't just go to some form of 1 on 1 for 80% of the game.  Again, I don't watch about a third of the teams play.  You're not going to catch me watching a random Charlotte Bobcats game.  I love watching random college basketball games to watch different brands of basketball clash.  I'm not as much a fan of watching individual match-ups unless it's Kobe going against someone who thinks they can stop him for a few minutes at a time, like Ruben Patterson.

2.  Star Power

I like that the coaches are the stars in college ball.  Quick, name a pre-season All-American for Duke in 1999.  The guys who get the press in college basketball are guys like Coach K, Lute Olson, Rick Pitino, etc., and all the way back to my guy John Wooden.  You want to read a great book, go and buy Coach Wooden's book.  He truly is a remarkable man.  Compare a Ben Howland with LeBron James.  I can't remember if I'd mentioned this before, but it's a story that bears repeating.  I was watching a Cavs game last season on TNT and Bron Bron didn't realize that there was a mike near him, or maybe he did and just didn’t care.  He was sitting on the bench and yelled over to his coach, "Hey, King James is ready to go in now."  Not only does he refer to himself in the third person, but he barks at his coach by calling himself King James and demands to be put back into the game.  I'd much rather listen to pregame talks by the stars of college basketball before I listen to NBA players give canned responses to inane questions.

3.  Crowds

I've been going to UCLA basketball games with my Grandpa who has season seats since I was old enough to walk.  During my tenure at UCLA I'd always come say hi to him at halftime (except for when I got to shoot the halftime shot; ask me about that if you want a good story).  I've been going to the games since before they shifted the court over by about 20 feet.  We used to be at the free throw line.  Now we're even with the basket.  I loved the 8-clap.  The band was always great.  I loved the cheer before the game, "yes that's the basketball . . . yes that's the court . . . yes that's the loooooosing team . . ."  The student section jumping up and down during every defensive possession has always gotten me.  Compare that with going to a Lakers game.  Half the crowd shows up after the first quarter is over.  The crowd is silent until the last three minutes of the game barring a big time dunk.  The teams basically agree to lolly-gag until the fourth quarter.  Regular season games are basically like glorified All-Star games with slightly more defense.  It's tough for the crowds to get involved even if they wanted to at most NBA games.

4.  NBA Playoffs vs. March Madness

Here's where the argument becomes a little more interesting.  For those who have ever been to an NBA Playoff game in person, you can throw the above section about crowds out the window.  Some of the liveliest crowds I've ever been a part of have been at Lakers playoff games.  It's way too much fun.  But can you really compare anything to March Madness?  What's better, Game 5 of the Western Conference Semifinals or the second round of March Madness on that first weekend?  Come to think of it, do you really want to try and compare anything to March Madness?  I spend more time researching my March Madness picks than my accountant does my taxes.  The only thing that gets people more amped than March Madness is maybe the World Cup, and maybe a Paris Hilton sex tape.  I think we should put that in list form.  Here's my list of things the general public gets the most excited about:

1.  March Madness
2.  Paris Hilton sex tape
3.  World Cup soccer
4.  Super Bowl
5.  NBA Finals
6.  Jack Bauer saving Africa
.
.
3,680.  "This is our country" commercials
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
46,872.  Dane Cook MLB playoff commercials

March Madness is the greatest invention in the history of mankind.  I'm not exaggerating.  It's better than the wheel.  I get way more excited for Greg Gumbel announcing the brackets than I do getting into my car to drive somewhere.  You know what, I had a few more thoughts on recruiting vs. drafting and free agency, and a couple other things that would have probably been boring.  Why am I wasting your time and mine?  College basketball has March Madness.  Discussion over.  I may love the regular season in college basketball more than pro ball and others may disagree, but there is no argument against March Madness.  Game, set, match.

In case you wanted a real NBA Preview, here it is:  Lakers.  Not losing.  Kobe's pissed.  Bynum's back.