The NBA season is finally upon us! The season kicks off tonight with 4 quality games: Boston vs. Cleveland, Washington vs. Dallas, Houston vs. Portland, and Lakers vs. Clippers. I personally cannot wait for tonight, and in the spirit of the new season, I thought I would give you all a little preview and predictions. Lets get started
I believe there are only 4 teams with a legit chance of reaching, and winning the NBA finals. San Antonio, Boston, Cleveland, and the Lakers. San Antonio made some big noise with their acquisition of Richard Jefferson. They add a legit all star and big time playmaker to their talented trio, that being Duncan, Parker, and Ginobili. They had the steal of the draft when they got Dejaun Blair, a big body who should be able to throw his weight around inside, and rebound highly effectively, in the 2nd round. He has an excellent motor, and anyone who saw what he did in college in arguably the best conference should expect more of the same in the NBA. Parker and Duncan need no explanation or analysis. Ginobili on the other hand is the red flag. He is somewhat injury prone due to his violent style of play and is going on two very bad ankles. He is already 31 and has shown signs of slowing down. The spurs are not getting any younger, and if Ginobili keeps having these problems, look for them to move him by the trade deadline to free up some capspace for the upcoming OUT OF THIS WORLD free agent class. For those of you that dont understand, there is a very high chance they trade him, dont be shocked, you heard it here first. George Hill is turning out to be quite the player, so lets see is Pops gives him some minutes this season. As long as they have Parker, and Duncan, and now Jefferson, they look to be in decent shape.
Prediction: Western Conference Finals
The Los Angeles Lakers start their title defense when they host the dismal Clippers (whose season just got a little worse with the Blake Griffin Injury.) They are in great shape to repeat, due to the addition of Ron Ron, and oh yea, they still have Kobe. A lot of people might be having their doubts about Artest, saying things like: "He is a head case", "He will jack up too many shots", etc etc. Put those worries to bed, because there is absolutely NO CHANCE of any of that. Last year with the Rockets he was in control of himself and not going crazy. He has that part figured out. However, with the Rockets, he did jack up alot of shots, and that took away from the offense. This will not be the case in LA because he is in a veteran locker room, with an established leader, and possibly the best coach of all time. Kobe, D-Fish, Gasol, Phil, and Lamar will def. keep Ron in check and he knows his place playing with Kobe. He is a major upgrade over Ariza, both defensively and offensively. Ron can create his own shot whenever he wants, unlike Ariza who was spoon-fed by Kobe. Artest is a freak of nature athletically and one of the best defenders of this generation. He has the muscle and toughness to go up agasint lets say, Lebron James. Kobe is Kobe, enough said. The area that worries me is the PG position. D-Fish is getting up there in age, and didnt have the greatest playoffs. Shannon Brown really came on strong, and if D-Fish continues to struggle, look for him, and not Jordan Farmar to get the starting nod. Andrew Bynum looks great in pre-season action, and IF, IF he can stay healthy, should show vast improvement and could finally reach his enormous potential. Lamar Odom showed everyone the player he can be, and should continue to do more of the same, now that he is settled in his 6th man role ,oh and not to mention, he just got hitched, so that should keep him happy for some period of time. Kobe has all the pieces around him to make a return trip to the finals, and everyone can stay healthy, with the addition of Ron, there is just too much talent on this team not to repeat. Look for the Lakeshow to hoist the banner yet again.
Prediction: NBA Champions
Sleeper Teams: Portland, New Orleans, Dallas.
This may finally be the year Portland makes some noise in the playoffs. They are a young, extremely talented team with two future superstars in Brandon Roy, and LaMarcus Aldridge. If they can get off to a fast start, and learn to close out games, and play solid D, they certainly are capable of taking the next step. Brandon Roy needs to fully assert himself as the leader, and Go-to guy of this team. At times last year he was too passive, and didnt have that killer mentality of a Kobe Bryant. He is better than most players in the league and once he figures this out, the sky is the limit.
New Orleans had an abysmal season by their standards. They have arguably the best PG in the league (save Derron Williams), a young, talented center in Emeka Oakafor, and the always sharp shooting Peja, who was hampered by injuries last year. Again, being healthy is key for this team. If Paul to Okafor works as well as Paul to Chandler, the Hornets might be on to something special. Okafor is younger, more athletic, smarter, and has way more potential than Tyson Chandler. Lets see if they can put it all together.
Prediction: Playoffs
Dallas has a very talented lineup, Dirk, Shawn Marion, Josh Howard, and Jason Kidd. However injuries (just yesterday with Howard) and old age (Kidd) could slow this team down tremendously. Dirk will be the always consistent regular season player he always is. Marion however needs to be in a run type offense, not a half court set. A smart thing to do may be to play him with the 2nd unit as well, with the shorty and speedy JJ Barea so he can take advantage of his athleticism. They will make the playoffs, but injuries could affect how far they go.
Prediction: Playoffs
For all the Rocket Fans out there, here is what will happen. They are clearly in the re-building stages. Yao is out, so the bulk of the offense will lie with Brooks, Ariza, Buddinger, and Jermaine Taylor. Brooks can score....Buddinger can shoot the lights out, and is extremely athletic, and Jermaine Taylor is a straight up baller. Ariza is the big question mark. While he is def. a downgrade from Artest, the fact that the Rockets are trying to get younger makes this move the correct one. What is left to be seen is if Ariza is capable of being a number one option on a team, and if he can create his own shot. Last year all he had to do was sit in one spot and make threes, which he did in the playoffs, not so much in the regular season. He only attempted 66 threes in his career up until last year where that number jumped to 191. He was only a 32% three point shooter last season, and 29.9 % for his career. This is what he made his bread and butter off of last year, so it begs the question, "One year wonder?" He is very athletic and an outstanding defender, but he will need to develop an offense game if he wants to help this team. There are reports that T-Mac is on schedule to make a return very soon. This is good news, because this season will be an audition for him. Make no mistake about it, he will be traded before the seasons end, because this is the only way to get value for him. If the Rockets decide to keep him, he will become an un-restricted free agent, and the Rockets will get nothing in return. His expiring $22 million contract is an extremely attractive piece of trade bait, and if he performs well enough during the season, look for him to be moved. All in all it will take a few years for the Rockets to return to prominence, but if a healthy Yao can make a full recovery and not lose a step, things will be looking up.
Prediction: Will miss Playoffs
Look for the Eastern Conference analysis as well as award predictions in my next post....enjoy
Z$
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