Tomorrow, we’ll get our aboriginal TNT double-header, our aboriginal attending at the cardinal one all-embracing pick, our aboriginal attending at the arresting champs, our aboriginal attending at LeBron James, and our aboriginal attending at Craig Sager’s suit.
But afore we alpha active in the present and alpha the bullwork of addition abundant division on NBA basketball, let’s booty one aftermost attending advanced and appraise the Western Conference.
Today, in the fourth and final chapter of SC’s month-long NBA division examination “82 Things to Watch For This NBA Season,” we breach bottomward the Western Appointment to see which aggregation in NBA’s big brother of a appointment has the best adventitious to appear out on top aback the dust settles on the approved division this April.
Lottery Teams
15. Sacramento Kings
Projected Record: 14-68
It isn’t generally that the affliction aggregation in the alliance absolutely gets worse, but I accept a activity it adeptness appear this year.
The Kings won aloof 17 amateur aftermost season, the atomic in authorization history. Clearly, some changes bare to be fabricated this offseason.
So what did the kings do? Well, basically, nothing.
Their big offseason moves were Desmond Mason and Sean May. Ouch.
They drafted Tyreke Evans with the fourth all-embracing pick. I accept annihilation adjoin Evans, he could actual able-bodied about-face out to be a solid player. But as of appropriate now, he’s still angry for account with Beno Udrih. I apperceive it’s boxy for amateur point guards to appear in and accomplish an actual impact, but aback you don’t authorize yourself as arch and amateur bigger than Beno Udrih during training camp, the “bust” autograph is on the wall.
Things accept already gone bad for the Kings, with Francisco Garcia breaking his wrist afterwards an exercise brawl access during a accepted weightlifting exercise.
Needless to say, Kings admirers (if there are any left, and anticipation by aftermost season’s appearance figures, there aren’t many) are in for a continued season.
14. Golden State Warriors
Projected Record: 20-62
What is in the baptize in Oakland? The abandoned able sports aggregation that is alike abutting to as abortive as the Warriors is the Raiders.
Heading into this season, the co-captains of this aggregation were Monta Ellis and Stephen Jackson. Both players showed up on media day and acted like the girls on MTV’s “Super Sweet 16″ whose parents abominably bought them a Range Rover instead of a BMW, badmouthing the alignment and authoritative it actual accepted that they accept no admiration to abide arena in Golden State.
My prediction: both Ellis and Jackson get “hurt” actual aboriginal in the season, and both of them absorb weeks rehabbing the consistently alarming “back spasms” or “knee tendinitis” injuries that consistently assume to affliction black players.
13. Memphis Grizzlies
Projected Record: 22-60
On paper, the Grizzlies absolutely got a lot bigger this offseason. They added one of the NBA’s greatest scorers of best and a guy who averages 16.7 credibility and 8.3 rebounds for his career. How does that aftereffect in two beneath wins than they had in 2009?
Well, on paper, you don’t accept to accord with two of the bigger arch cases in the NBA, Allen Iverson and Zach Randolph. These guys accept been cancers on their teams in every stop they’ve fabricated in the NBA, and I don’t see Memphis actuality any different.
By the time it’s all said and done this season, it’s activity to be the amount of O.J. Mayo, Rudy Gay, Mike Conley, and Marc Gasol that get the aggregate of the minutes. That’s a appropriate core, but it’s the aforementioned amount that won aloof 24 amateur aftermost season.
Bringing in Iverson and Randolph was all smoke and mirrors. Accomplish no mistake; the Grizzlies will be bad yet afresh this season.
12. Minnesota Timberwolves
Projected Record: 25-57
I absolutely capital to basis for the Timberwolves this season. I’m not absolutely sure, but I anticipate that I may be in the boyhood aback I say I was accurately aflame to see Ricky Rubio comedy in the NBA this season.
Of course, that didn’t happen.
Even still, I was aflame to watch Kevin Adulation develop. He was a airy apparatus in his amateur division aftermost year. I was acquisitive that he’d advance into a Kevin Willis blazon dement on the bottle and he’d be absolutely fun to watch.
Of course, that won’t happen, either. At atomic not appropriate away. Adulation bankrupt his duke in the preseason and he’ll be out for the aboriginal 6-8 weeks of the season.
Now, the Wolves are larboard with Al Jefferson, and appealing abundant annihilation else. Johnny Flynn intrigues me, but we already talked about how adamantine it is for amateur point guards to appear in and be acceptable appropriate away.
It could be the all-star breach afore we assuredly see this aggregation assuredly adeptness their acme this season. By then, they’ll be 10-15 amateur aback of the playoffs.
I appetite to basis for the T-Wolves, I absolutely do, but they’re authoritative it absolutely adamantine appropriate now.
Maybe abutting season.
11. Los Angeles Clippers
Projected Record: 30-52
Really, the abandoned acumen this isn’t a ambiguous playoff aggregation is because they are the freakin’ Clippers.
They accept aptitude at every position on the floor.
They accept the cardinal one all-embracing aces in Blake Griffin, who has fatigued babble reviews this preseason.
They accept little to no expectations advancing into this division because, like I said, they are the freakin’ Clippers. They are basically arena with abode money because no one expects annihilation from them. They should be able to bastard up on teams, abnormally aboriginal in the season.
In theory, this should be the one aggregation in the West that is in the best position to accept a blemish season.
But, they are the freakin’ Clippers. They’ll lose 50 amateur this year. I don’t apperceive how, but they will.
10. Houston Rockets
Projected Record: 32-50
The Rockets adeptness be the NBA’s adaptation of a “Moneyball” team, but all the cardinal crunching in the apple can’t accomplish up for the actuality that Yao is activity to absence the complete season.
And while bodies are debating whether the Ron Artest/Trevor Ariza bandy will end up affliction the Lakers, there is no agitation in my apperception that it works out awfully for the Rockets.
Last season, the Rockets counted on Artest to do a lot for them offensively. So much, in fact, that he took the added shots than anyone on the team.
I like Ariza, but he has boilerplate abreast the abhorrent bold that Artest has. If the Rockets are allurement him to appear in and ample that role and be a focal point on offense, they are activity to acquisition themselves in a apple of hurt. Ariza is and consistently will be a role player. Role players should never be asked to advance the aggregation in shots.
But with Yao and McGrady aching (again), that seems like absolutely what the Rockets are activity to ask from Ariza, and it’s not activity to end well.
9. Phoenix Suns
Projected Record: 35-47
Nothing makes me happier than this prediction. It’s no abstruse that I abhorrence the Phoenix Suns and aggregate about them. But for the bigger allotment of the accomplished decade, I accept to admit, whether I admired it or not, they were a appealing abuse acceptable team.
So it’s with abundant joy that for the aboriginal time aback I started with Sports Central over three years ago that I can durably say, afterwards my affections accepting in the way, that the Phoenix Suns won’t be any acceptable this season.
Steve Kerr laid the foundation aftermost division aback he fabricated it actual bright that the aggregation bare to save money, and he traded abroad some of their key players.
I’ve already predicted already this preseason that Amar’e Stoudemire will be traded at some point in this season, and I angle by that.
That agency by February the best players on this aggregation will be whatever’s larboard of Steve Nash and Jason Richardson.
It takes a lot added than that to accomplish the postseason, abnormally in the West.
You can bet that I’ll be on my couch comatose in approval several times this division as I cast over to a Suns bold on the Alliance Canyon to watch them attempt to accumulate teams beneath 70 credibility in the aboriginal half.
Playoff Teams
8. Oklahoma City Thunder
Projected Record: 41-41
If you couldn’t already tell, I’m admiration a monster blemish division from the Thunder.
For some reason, one of my die-hard NBA fan accompany fell in adulation with the Thunder aftermost season. Despite accepting no ties to any of the players, active over 2,000 afar away, and accepting abutting to no absorption in the aggregation whatsoever aback they were in Seattle, he absolutely admired them.
Naturally, I asked him to explain this abrupt and affected adulation activity with one of the affliction teams in the league.
His response, “I can’t explain it, aloof watch them. You’ll understand.”
He was right. Afterwards about two weeks of blockage in on them via the Alliance Pass, I was hooked.
They played adamantine and they played as a team, it was absurd not to like them.
Last season, the Thunder won aloof 23 games, but weren’t about as bad as their record. They were young, inexperienced, and aloof couldn’t amount out how to win games.
Well, two things are altered this season. Aboriginal of all, they aren’t amateur anymore. They started a amateur at point bouncer (Russell Westbrook), and two second-year players (Kevin Durant and Jeff Green). All three were badly talented, but all three went through growing pains at the aforementioned time.
There’s still activity to be some bumps in the alley with those guys, but they are activity to be much, abundant added constant this season. That abandoned should advance to a scattering added victories.
But the complete acumen I anticipate this is a .500 team: Kevin Durant.
In allotment two of the preview, I predicted Kevin Durant to advance the alliance in scoring. He’s absolutely the complete deal. You could see it in academy that this kid was activity to be a superstar.
You could see it aback he won Amateur of the Year.
You could see it in the Amateur Bold aftermost season.
You could see it all throughout the additional bisected of the division aftermost year.
Now be able to see it every night. Durant is the affectionate of amateur that abandoned comes about already or alert every 10 years. He can score, rebound, pass, and alike comedy a little defense. This will be the division that he assuredly puts it all calm night in and night out.
Maybe 41 wins is over-estimating it a little bit, but assurance me, this is an advancing team.
Just watch them, you’ll understand.
7. Portland Trail Blazers
Projected Record: 46-36
For three beeline seasons now, the Blazers accept been the one aggregation that we’ve accepted to accomplish “the leap” into aristocratic status. And every year, they aiguille at actuality a average of the backpack aggregation at best.
This season, I’m done giving this aggregation the account of the doubt.
After accident to the Rockets in the playoffs aftermost season, it was bright that they bare to abode some issues. Instead, they went out and got Andre Miller. And I absolutely absolutely like Andre Miller.
Unfortunately for Portland, he is the ultimate “good player, bad fit” chargeless abettor signing.
Miller is one of the aftermost “true” point guards in the league. He is unselfish, runs the breach well, and looks to get all his teammates involved.
The botheration is, that isn’t at all what the Blazers need.
They already accept Brandon Roy, one of the best adolescent guards in the league. For Roy to be effective, he needs to accept the brawl in his easily all the time. He’s a scorer, but not a Rip Hamilton work-without-the-ball scorer. He’s bigger ill-fitted to comedy one-on-one and exhausted his man to the basket.
He is the exact adverse of the blazon of amateur that Andre Miller needs surrounding him.
Miller needs to boss the brawl for best of the control to absolutely aerate his casual ability. Roy needs to boss the brawl to aerate his scoring. Something’s got to give.
There are a lot of teams that would accept benefitted from accepting Andre Miller this offseason. Portland wasn’t one of them.
I adumbrate addition black end to the division for Portland, and it adeptness be time to go in a new direction.
“Good” isn’t acceptable abundant in the NBA.
6. Utah Jazz
Projected Record: 47-35
Much like the Blazers, Utah has been on the bend of actuality abundant for a few years now too, but consistently assume to abatement short.
It’s boxy to adumbrate area the Jazz as complete appropriate now will end up, because it seems acceptable that Carlos Boozer could be traded at some point during the season. Depending on how the aggregation responds afterwards the trade, they could accomplishment anywhere amid fifth and ninth in the West.
But if they accumulate Boozer, we apperceive what the Jazz are. They are a abundant aggregation at home, a appropriate aggregation on the road, a aggregation that you don’t appetite to comedy in the playoffs, but additionally a aggregation that isn’t acceptable abundant to win a title.
There are affluence of teams in worse appearance than Utah branch into the season, but I agnosticism that Jazz admirers will booty any abundance in that as they watch their aggregation attempt to get accomplished the additional annular of the playoffs again.
5. Dallas Mavericks
Projected Record: 48-34
I’ve already affected on Dallas’ offseason moves already in the preview, so there’s no point in breaking bottomward the Shawn Marion accord again.
The Mavs approved to ample their Texas-sized abandoned in the average by signing Marcin Gortat to an action sheet, but the Magic akin it. Aback that didn’t work, they fabricated a few crabbed moves.
They won 50 amateur aftermost season, and they’ll be appropriate about that cardinal afresh this year. If a big name amateur becomes accessible via barter during the division (and assurance me, one will), apprehend Mark Cuban to complex in the conversation.
But unless they do accomplish a move, it’ll be business as accepted in Dallas, and it’ll be one-and-done in the playoffs again.
4. New Orleans Hornets
Projected Record: 50-32
I’m begrudgingly acrimonious the Hornets to accomplishment fourth in the West and accept home cloister advantage in the playoffs, but I’m absolutely analysis a affair here: the West isn’t about as ample as it acclimated to be.
Just a few years aback the West was advanced open, with bristles or six teams that had a accepted adventitious to get to the Finals.
Now, I’m acrimonious the Hornets to accomplishment fourth, and I don’t anticipate they are a blackmail whatsoever.
I adulation Chris Paul, and he abandoned is what separates the Hornets from the blow of the average of the backpack teams (Portland, Utah, and Dallas), but that’s absolutely all this aggregation has activity for them.
In reality, I could accept fatigued the seventh through fourth spots out of a hat and been annoyed with the results. All of these teams attending the aforementioned to me: acceptable but not great.
If any of these four teams accept a adventitious to prove me amiss and do some accident in the playoffs, it’s New Orleans because, unless they comedy the Lakers, they’ll accept the best amateur on the floor, and that’s consistently a nice affluence to accept in the playoffs.
Chris Paul could absolutely still be accepting better, and he adeptness aloof be acceptable abundant to backpack this aggregation to a abysmal playoff run.
That adeptness be the abandoned way we see annihilation added than a Spurs/Lakers Western Appointment Finals.
3. Denver Nuggets
Projected Record: 55-27
The Nuggets are the complete agrarian agenda in the West. On the one hand, aggregate went able-bodied for them aftermost season. Their cruise to the Western Appointment Finals was an complete best-case-scenario for them because the actuality that they gave themselves a complete makeover three amateur into the division aback the traded Allen Iverson for Chauncey Billups. A little bad luck and they could abatement appropriate aback bottomward into the average of the backpack with the antecedent four teams.
On the added hand, they accept Chauncey Billups for an complete offseason and training camp. I don’t apperceive how abounding altered agency to say it: the man is a winner. There is absolutely no added chat that describes him.
His attendance this offseason and training affected has the abeyant to accomplish this aggregation alike bigger than they already are. We saw how acceptable the aggregation became already they added him to the mix, now let’s see what happens aback they accept an complete offseason to body a arrangement about him.
Chris Paul was acceptable abundant for me to put the Hornets advanced of three added teams in a basic tiebreak situation. Chauncey Billups is acceptable abundant for me to put the Nuggets in a chic aloft those four teams. He agency that abundant to this team.
We’ll acquisition out anon abundant if aftermost division was a accident in Denver, but the acute money says that as continued as Chauncey is healthy, this aggregation will be a blackmail already again.
2. San Antonio Spurs
Projected Almanac 63-19
The Spurs accept one aftermost appellation advance larboard in them with Tim Duncan and they apperceive it, so they went all-in to try to get it.
And of course, aback you accept R.C. Buford and Greg Popovich affairs the activate on the moves, you can bet that things are apparently activity to assignment out well.
If you’ve apprehend any of the added three genitalia of this preview, afresh you apperceive that I am acutely aerial on the Spurs this season. I’ve accepted their management, their coaching, their starters, their reserves, their abstract — appealing abundant aggregate that they’ve done aback the end of aftermost season.
There’s annihilation larboard for me to say about this team. It’s time for them to either accomplish me attending absolutely acute or absolutely dumb.
1. Los Angeles Lakers
Projected Record: 67-15
I’ve affected on the Artest/Ariza bandy from the Houston standpoint already, now it’s time to attending at it from the Lakers’ point of view.
I don’t adulation the move, I don’t abhorrence it. I said afore that Ariza consistently has been and consistently will be a role player. Aback you’re as acceptable as the Lakers are, role players are appealing accessible to find, so I’m not all that aghast to see Ariza go. Crumbling vets who can still comedy are consistently accommodating to appear in and comedy a role on a acceptable aggregation for a adventitious to win a ring.
However, Artest is not aloof an crumbling vet who can still play, he’s additionally certifiably insane.
If you attending at every championship team, they usually accept two actual apparent qualities: they accept actual authentic roles for anniversary of their players, and they accept abundant chemistry.
With a few actual accessory exceptions, those two ancestry administer to every championship aggregation for the accomplished 20 years.
The botheration with the Artest accord is that he’s such a head-case you don’t apperceive if he’s activity to understand/buy into his role, or if his teammates are activity to appetite to comedy with such a apart cannon.
In a absolute world, Artest would appear in and bouncer the best amateur on the opposing aggregation every night which would chargeless up Kobe to be Kobe on breach and booty 7-10 shots per game, all aural the breeze of the offense.
But “Ron Artest” and “a absolute world” accept never appeared in the aforementioned book before, and it’s not activity to alpha now.
The Lakers are aloof so accursed accomplished that it won’t amount in the approved season.
I like them to accomplishment the approved division with the best almanac in the conference, but if the allure isn’t there appear playoff time, the Spurs or whoever wins the East could be accessible to accord the Lakers a abrupt awakening.