On to the wide open Eastern Conference. In my mind there are really only 3 contenders in this conference, with one (Orland0) significantly decreasing since last year. Lets get into it.
Boston is 1, or 2, in this conference depending on a few things. The addition of Rasheed Wallace is HUGE. This guy is a legit player.... can take you inside, can stroke the tri-fecta, can defend. He is a 6'11 player with tremendous range. He has always been a player, just hasnt had the right attitude. Put him on a veteran laced Boston team, and this should fix that. However with the good always comes the bad. KG. His attitude and leadership are the X factor. This guy is so intense to the point where it is annoying. The Celtics were def. not the same team without him last year.If he is healthy and can return to form, then this team might be a lock to make it to the NBA finals. With that said, Rajon Rondo's quarell with the front office might not have that big of an affect, because his goal is to become a restricted free agent, so he will be on his best behavior and will bring his A game, if he hopes to get paid. Paul Pierce should once again return to all star form, as he is in better shape, and with Rasheed Wallace in the lineup, it might help ease the load off of him. Marquise Daniels also provides some help, because now, PP wont have to guard the other teams best player, Daniels can come off the bench and provide some help with this. Rondo might be the best PG in the East and if he is running up and down the court, look for the Celtics to fire on all cylinders offensively. I am a little worried about their bench, losing Leon Powe is a bigger deal than people think. Eddie House is a staple, and should perform well. Kendrick Perkins must develop some sort of offensive game, and thats where Sheed comes in. It should be like the Gasol-Bynum deal in LA, lets just hope Perkins is capable of picking it up. I see Cleveland as the biggest threat to this team, however I think once again we will see an LA-Boston rematch.
Prediction: NBA Finals
Cleveland is Cleveland. Lebron James, and not much else. The addition of Shaquille O'neal was more for the playoffs than the regular season. His minutes will be limited, and he will have days off to try and conserve himself for the playoffs. Who knows what on earth is happening with Delonte West, so there is another big question mark. Moe Williams will need to pick it up and remain consistent the entire season. They do have Lebron James and in the weak East, that might be enough for a showdown with the Celts. Shaq will be used in their matchups with the Magic for the sole purpose of shutting down Dwight. It will be done in the regular season, and if they meet in the playoffs, it will be done even more so. Not much more I can say about this team. They might struggle at times...but again, Lebron might be enough to carry them.
Prediction: Conference Finals
Ahh, Orlando! Many people are ooohhhing and ahhhhing over the VC acquisition, I am def not one of them. To lose your go-to player in Hedo (sorry Superman, its true) is a major major loss. Not only was he their clutch performer in the playoffs, he was their most consistent weapon. 6'10 with the ability to run the point, pull up from anywhere on the floor, and post up is unparalleled. His departure will have grave consequences for this team. VC is a good player, but he does not create the match up problems that Hedo did. VC is an avg. 6'6. He can still score, but come playoffs, it will be so much easier to shut him down than it was Hedo. Just look at what happened last year. Dwight Howard needs an offensive game. He cannot live on put backs and slam dunks if he wants to be considered a legit superstar. His free throw shooting is horrendous and this needs to improve or we might be seeing a "Hack-A-Dwight." The magic also lose their starting 2 guard in Courtney Lee, a young, and very talented player. They lose their backup PG Rafer Alston, who basically stepped in and performed extremely well. Without him, they dont make it to the finals last year. I just dont think VC is the answer. They gave up too much and we will see the consequences of this during the season. Hedo is laughing straight to the bank in Toronto.
Prediction: Playoffs
Sleeper Teams: Miami, Toronto
Miami should be much improved from last year. D-Wade led the league in scoring, and I expect him to be in the top 3 yet again. They have aquired two stellar guards in Arroyo and Q-Rich. Both are really good players, and Q-Rich is a knockdown three point shooter. He should thrive with D-Wade setting him up. If Beasley can figure it out and have the right attitude, watch out. He is a beast, but is way to immature and doesn't show the right work ethic. If he can get going, this might be a very potent lineup. An aging Jermaine O'neal has worked relatively hard this off season and again, if he can stay healthy, and get back to form, then this team is def a contender. He used to dominate people when he was with the Pacers, but bad knees have hampered him. Look for Haslem to have more of an offensive role too. The more players they can get involved the better.
Prediction: Playoffs
Toronto might be the best team no one is talking about. They already have a bonafide star (not superstar) in Chris Bosh, and the addition of all star Hedo Turkoglu just adds that much more fire power to this team. Hedo is a match up nightmare. (refer to Orlando paragraph). Marco Bellinelli is a great pickup for this team. He is a combo-guard with tremendous shooting ability, a quick first step, and decent ball handling skills. He uses ball fakes very well and can come off of screens and knock down jumpshots. His defense needs to improve, but he is a very athletic player. Demar Derozan is an excellent young player who can flat out score the ball. He needs to get better defensively but the same goes for any young rookie. He will get better as the season goes on and might even be in contention for the ROY award.
Prediction: Playoffs
Now here come the award predictions
MVP: Lebron James...... I had a tough time picking him over Kobe, but Lebron will put up better numbers because he doesnt have a strong of a team. I believe they had the best record in the NBA last year, but the Lakers are going to challenge them for that this year. However if Kobe Bryant is fueled by the talk that he is getting old, or he has lost a step, look for him to dominate even more so offensively and he could sneak it and take it. But at this point, ill go with James.
Sleeper: Chris Paul
Rookie of the Year: Tyreke Evans. The injury to Blake Griffin solidifies my choice. Evans may be the most talented player in this draft class. He will get a lot of minutes on a bad team, so look for him to put up excellent numbers.
Sleeper: DeMar DeRozan, Johnny Flynn
6th Man- Lamar Odom. With him being comfortable coming off the bench, he will excel offensively. He is a freak talent with unmatched skills for his height, and length. He can score from anywhere, and can handle the rock with ease. He will be much improved defensively as well.
Sleeper: Rasheed Wallace
Most Improved Player: Anthony Randolph. He came on strong at the end of the year. Much like a Lamar Odom type player, he is tall, long and athletic. He put on a show in the summer league. Last year being the youngest player in the NBA might have made him a little nervous, but this year, look for him to put up huge numbers.
Sleeper: Andrew Bynum, Aaron Brooks
Coach of the Year: Flip Saunders. With a healthy Agent Zero, and Caron Butler, this team should drastically improve on their 19-63 record. This team will make the playoffs. They should blow their 19 wins from last year straight out of the water with this roster.
Most Imrpoved Team: Washington Wizards. Again, with Flip as the coach, a healthy Gilber and Caron, this team should be in the playoff hunt all season. HEALTH is the main concern. Gilbert Arenas hasnt played in nearly 2 years, so he might be a little rusty. As long as his knees hold up, he should be fine, as he was once considered a top 10 player in the NBA not too long ago.
Thats all I got for yall. Hope you enjoyed it. The NBA season kicks off tonight, I cant wait. Enjoy the games...
Z$
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