NBA Star Wars Part 2

Happy Star Wars Day, and May the Fourth be with you. It's time for another thrilling NBA-Star Wars crossover, where we match five more NBA players with their Star Wars counterparts. These are different from the first one I did, so for those asking about Han Solo ... I’m saddened and hurt that you don’t remember what I wrote last year! Here it is. https://www.bermanssportsblog.com/post/nba-star-wars 

Kawhi Leonard: Darth Maul

He may consider himself a “fun guy,” but he is anything but fun to his opponents when he is on the court. He is a deadly defender, and after feeling betrayed by the San Antonio Spurs (which you could argue was the Empire at that time), Leonard was traded to Toronto and helped them win an NBA title. That was as surprising as a random Sith apprentice killing a Jedi on Naboo! But since then, his body has continued to fail him, and he has been unable to play a full 82-game season in a long time. But he survives the injuries, like Darth Maul, who (SPOILER ALERT) survived being chopped in half by Obi-Wan Kenobi and made a comeback. 

The Detroit Pistons: The Rebel Forces at the start of Star Wars IV: A New Hope

Both look weak and unthreatening, but under the surface both could be something special. Who knows, maybe Cade Cunningham will become Luke Skywalker? Of course, the rebels never sat Luke out to get a better selection in the Jedi youngling draft, like the Pistons did with their best players.  And also true, Detroit is bad, and has been bad for as long as I’ve been alive. But as they say in Rogue One, “Rebellions are built on hope.”

The Oklahoma City Thunder: The Rebel Forces at the end of Star Wars VI: Return of the Jedi

The Thunder’s rebuild is now over. They went through some rough times after trading away Russell Westbrook and Paul George but it was worth it. Chet Holgrem would win Youngling of the Year if it weren't for a Spurs center named Victor Wembanyama. In addition, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander has become a powerful leader and has driven the Thunder to the top seed in the Western Conference. This is like when the Rebels blew up the second Death Star and killed the Emperor (Well, we didn’t actually see the body, but Darth Vader threw him down the shaft so I'm sure he's totally dead). The Thunder have a lot of reasons to celebrate, but - wait, is that the Imperial March theme from Star Wars playing in the arena? And is that Luka Donkic waiting in the second round, and Nikola Jokic or Anthony Edwards on deck in the conference finals? Maybe don’t overdose on the celebration just yet.

Corey Kispert: Fennec Shand

Talk about a pure sharpshooter. Whenever Corey Kispert has an open shot, teams might as well give up.  Before anyone chirps back at me with his stats,  this statement mostly applies to me whenever I play my friend using the Wizards in 2K. But in real life, he can still make shots, just not as consistently. Shand is more of the same when she shows up in The Mandalorian and The Book of Boba Fett - available on DIsney+ - with the difference being that Shand uses a sniper rifle and is much more deadly.