Eastern Conference
1-Boston
2-Cleveland
3-Orlando
4-Atlanta
5-Chicago
6-Miami
7-Toronto
8-Indiana
I think the Washington Wizards will be the darkhouse in the East if Gilbert Arenas will stay healthy the rest of the season. It will be Flip Saunders biggest challenge to lead Arenas and the Wizards way past the second-round of playoffs in the East.
Western Conference
1 - LA Lakers
2 - San Antonio
3 - Denver
4 - Portland
5 - New Orleans
6 - Dallas
7 - LA Clippers
8 - Phoenix/Oklahoma City
Golden State Warriors will play the spoilers role in the West with a cinch to steal the last seed from the Suns or Thunder depending on the performance of Stephen Jackson and the young guns of the Warriors. Expect Don Nelson to wave some magic to turn this young team into a playoff contender.
Prediction for the NBA Finals: BOSTON CELTICS over LA LAKERS (4-2)
Kobe Bryant and the Lakers will have their hands full against the quartet of Garnett, Pierce, Allen, and Sheed Wallace on both ends of the court. The backcourt will be the deciding factor for these two teams with the Lakers will only have the dependable, aging warrior Derek Fisher against rising star Rajon Rondo and Marquis Daniels. Rasheed Wallace will take out the game of Paul Gasol as he will drain all those three point shots dagger in the heart of the Lakers.
Let us see how the 2009-2010 NBA season will be played starting October 2009.