Post by FectaDEEZ on Mar 7, 2017 17:11:43 GMT -6
Some major moves this off season give this upcoming season a lot of uncertainty. Gilbert has a new home in Toronto and is joined by Sam Jones, the Celtics made a power move acquiring AD and the Rockets stole Elgin Baylor from Portland. Its gonna be weird seeing the Blazers suck and not sure where the recent world champion New York Knicks head.
Lets take a look at each conference starting with the garbage:
West:
Tankers, Rebuilders and Lost Souls
Lakers: With the resigning of Mottola for 18 million dollars Ian made it very clear that winning was not a priority for the Lakers this season. The fan base understands but is starting to get frustrated with the process. A breakout year for Brandon Ingram and a good rookie campaign for their new SG Chauncey Billups could help the fans feel better about the process.
Prediction 24-58. Bad, but not bad enough for a top pick but still in the lottery.
Clippers: The Clippers suck. The Candy man has some promise and will compete every night, but other than that this roster is garbage and thats exactly what Yawn wants when trying to get Yao as a twin tower in the upcoming draft
Edit: Yawn is losing and will get nothing from it.
Prediction: 12-70 and top 5 worst record
Nuggets:
TJ Ford is almost a perfect tanking PG with how often he turns the ball over, probably not what Dirt hoped for when he picked him in the top 5 but at least it will help him continue to tank. They lost Hawkins and added no one worth anything to help this year. Antonio Daniels looks promising but wont do much for a couple years.
Prediction: 10-72 and looking good for maybe number 1 odds
Blazers
Majic went into the offseason hoping for one more majical run at a title but those hopes were thrashed when Baylor left him for sunny skies and a more african american friendly culture in Houston. He then quickly traded Arenas for his own picks and started the tanking process. Unable to move Minor and Lasalle he still might win 20 games but with some luck he could move into the top 5 and get a piece to rebuild with.
Prediction
21-61 top 8 pick
Grizzlies
Getting unlucky with the Melo pick put the Grizz in a weird spot. They were ready to start building around Melo and acquired some nice pieces like Chris Kaman and Johnny Cox to go with Alston but this team looks like they will be stuck in no man's land for a couple years unless they make some big changes without having a legit superstar on their team.
Prediction
37-45 late lotto
Suns
They started the rebuild process last year with the trade of Minor and it might not take too long before they are back in the playoff picture, but it wont be this year. They started to get some nice pieces with the signing of Zarko and getting Gates in the draft but they lack the scoring needed to be a contender and will need to add a big time wing to start winning.
Prediction
30-52
Late Lotto
Sonics
Best record in the pre season, but I just dont see them making a run this year. Prince is a good PG, Eddie G is the perfect D/R big but where are the points gonna come from? Not from Bonzi or Wallace that for sure. Not sure what Delaps next move is, does he stay put and try to make this core better? Does he blow it up and give Prince a new home?
Prediction
41-41
Late Lotto
Sorta Contenders
Thunder
Great duo of White Chocolate and Twan will give them a lot of points and the addition of Hawkins at a fair price is a good addition to this squad and should get them in. Even with Connie helping out I don't think he adds enough scoring and I dont the Thunder rebound well enough to be a threat to win any playoff series. I wonder where they go from here because they also seem to be stuck in no man's land.
43-39
Spurs
I think Lonzo Ball takes a leap and creates a 1-2 combo with Marvin that is good enough to get them in the playoffs. Not a third player there that gets them to the next level but should be fun to watch. Mikki Moore could be the next Gobert as well.
45-37
Actual Contenders
Kings
They took the eventual champion Utah Jazz to the brink last year and even with the loss of Brent Price I think they got better. Monk's development should be a pleasant surprise for King's fans and they also added Khris Middleton at a cheap price which should provide a lot of depth and improved defense. They also have Lebron, so that helps.
Prediction
55-28
Timberwolves
Liilard and Long score a lot, Wade looked better this preseason and could be the spark they need off the bench. Curry is coming off a top 3 W/S season at C and Mohammed is a solid D/R who can keep them in games when it gets tough. Honestly thought the T-Wolves be better the last couple years and maybe this is the year?
Prediction
56-27
Golden State Warriors
Dick Mcguire is back with a long term deal, Dirk is Dirk and they also have the second best SG in the league giving them a dangerous trio. But what makes the Warriors unique is how strong their bench is X-Man is looking to repeat as 6th man of the year and Rodney White has finally found his home as a solid guy off the bench.
Prediction
58-26
The Favorites
Utah Jazz
The defending champs bring everyone back that matters and Khris Dunn looked really good in pre-season. There isn't too much to add here, they would be the favorites if it weren't for the Rockets having a great off season.
Prediction
63-19
Houston Rockets
Rashard Lewis is a freak of nature, Sleepy Floyd is still somehow averaging 30 points per game and then Ward added Elgin Baylor to give the Rockets arguably the best trio in the league. It also doesn't hurt that he has accumulated a whose whose of cheap D/R veteran bigs and has germanys finest PG coming off the bench. I expect a lot of points and a lot of wins for the Rockets this year.
Prediction
67-15
Western Conference and NBA Champs.
Lets take a look at each conference starting with the garbage:
West:
Tankers, Rebuilders and Lost Souls
Lakers: With the resigning of Mottola for 18 million dollars Ian made it very clear that winning was not a priority for the Lakers this season. The fan base understands but is starting to get frustrated with the process. A breakout year for Brandon Ingram and a good rookie campaign for their new SG Chauncey Billups could help the fans feel better about the process.
Prediction 24-58. Bad, but not bad enough for a top pick but still in the lottery.
Clippers: The Clippers suck. The Candy man has some promise and will compete every night, but other than that this roster is garbage and thats exactly what Yawn wants when trying to get Yao as a twin tower in the upcoming draft
Edit: Yawn is losing and will get nothing from it.
Prediction: 12-70 and top 5 worst record
Nuggets:
TJ Ford is almost a perfect tanking PG with how often he turns the ball over, probably not what Dirt hoped for when he picked him in the top 5 but at least it will help him continue to tank. They lost Hawkins and added no one worth anything to help this year. Antonio Daniels looks promising but wont do much for a couple years.
Prediction: 10-72 and looking good for maybe number 1 odds
Blazers
Majic went into the offseason hoping for one more majical run at a title but those hopes were thrashed when Baylor left him for sunny skies and a more african american friendly culture in Houston. He then quickly traded Arenas for his own picks and started the tanking process. Unable to move Minor and Lasalle he still might win 20 games but with some luck he could move into the top 5 and get a piece to rebuild with.
Prediction
21-61 top 8 pick
Grizzlies
Getting unlucky with the Melo pick put the Grizz in a weird spot. They were ready to start building around Melo and acquired some nice pieces like Chris Kaman and Johnny Cox to go with Alston but this team looks like they will be stuck in no man's land for a couple years unless they make some big changes without having a legit superstar on their team.
Prediction
37-45 late lotto
Suns
They started the rebuild process last year with the trade of Minor and it might not take too long before they are back in the playoff picture, but it wont be this year. They started to get some nice pieces with the signing of Zarko and getting Gates in the draft but they lack the scoring needed to be a contender and will need to add a big time wing to start winning.
Prediction
30-52
Late Lotto
Sonics
Best record in the pre season, but I just dont see them making a run this year. Prince is a good PG, Eddie G is the perfect D/R big but where are the points gonna come from? Not from Bonzi or Wallace that for sure. Not sure what Delaps next move is, does he stay put and try to make this core better? Does he blow it up and give Prince a new home?
Prediction
41-41
Late Lotto
Sorta Contenders
Thunder
Great duo of White Chocolate and Twan will give them a lot of points and the addition of Hawkins at a fair price is a good addition to this squad and should get them in. Even with Connie helping out I don't think he adds enough scoring and I dont the Thunder rebound well enough to be a threat to win any playoff series. I wonder where they go from here because they also seem to be stuck in no man's land.
43-39
Spurs
I think Lonzo Ball takes a leap and creates a 1-2 combo with Marvin that is good enough to get them in the playoffs. Not a third player there that gets them to the next level but should be fun to watch. Mikki Moore could be the next Gobert as well.
45-37
Actual Contenders
Kings
They took the eventual champion Utah Jazz to the brink last year and even with the loss of Brent Price I think they got better. Monk's development should be a pleasant surprise for King's fans and they also added Khris Middleton at a cheap price which should provide a lot of depth and improved defense. They also have Lebron, so that helps.
Prediction
55-28
Timberwolves
Liilard and Long score a lot, Wade looked better this preseason and could be the spark they need off the bench. Curry is coming off a top 3 W/S season at C and Mohammed is a solid D/R who can keep them in games when it gets tough. Honestly thought the T-Wolves be better the last couple years and maybe this is the year?
Prediction
56-27
Golden State Warriors
Dick Mcguire is back with a long term deal, Dirk is Dirk and they also have the second best SG in the league giving them a dangerous trio. But what makes the Warriors unique is how strong their bench is X-Man is looking to repeat as 6th man of the year and Rodney White has finally found his home as a solid guy off the bench.
Prediction
58-26
The Favorites
Utah Jazz
The defending champs bring everyone back that matters and Khris Dunn looked really good in pre-season. There isn't too much to add here, they would be the favorites if it weren't for the Rockets having a great off season.
Prediction
63-19
Houston Rockets
Rashard Lewis is a freak of nature, Sleepy Floyd is still somehow averaging 30 points per game and then Ward added Elgin Baylor to give the Rockets arguably the best trio in the league. It also doesn't hurt that he has accumulated a whose whose of cheap D/R veteran bigs and has germanys finest PG coming off the bench. I expect a lot of points and a lot of wins for the Rockets this year.
Prediction
67-15
Western Conference and NBA Champs.
