Thoughts for the Start of the Season

[mvblair2]

Just a few thoughts on Day One of the NBA season. I hope this is a good season. There are a lot of nice story lines and a lot of bad story lines.


Atlantic

• Boston – They have a complete roster. Rondo is one of the brightest PGs, somebody I didn’t like at first, but he has really grown on me. Shaq can give 15 minutes a night and Jermaine O’Neal can give 25. Pierce and Allen will get buckets. KG is very slow defensively now, but he is still an intense player.
• New York didn’t improve very much by getting Amare Stoudemire instead of David Lee. Stoudemire is an awful, awful defender. New Jersey still looks terrible, although Brooks is a better-than-average center. Toronto will be fun to watch with Kleiza and Bargnani, but they lack a big defender in the middle. Philadelphia looks awful.

Central

• Milwaukee – Bogut is a one of the top three centers in the league. Jennings is a great young PG who, like Rondo, has really grown on me. Those two players are the energetic voices that lead a great cast of guards and forwards, like Delfino (a top 20 player toward the end of last season), Ilyasova (poor man’s Dirk), Redd (we’ll see if he gets back), Maggette (gets easy points at the FT line), Mbah a Moute (solid big man) and Salmon (very underrated player who never wastes the shot clock). Gooden gives them a little more defense behind Bogut, but they could still use another back-up center. I’m surprised they didn’t grab Oberto.
• Chicago – Chicago is not better than Milwaukee. Boozer is a nice pick-up, but he’ll be gone until January. Rose is quick as a bat out of hell and shoots a nice percentage. In today’s NBA, Noah is a good center. Deng will get some points. But Chicago lacks depth to climb very high in the play-offs.
• My illusions about Cleveland making the play-offs are slowly deteriorating. I really thought they would find a better free agent than Ramon Sessions. Indiana has Collison, who I guess played great in NO, but they still struggle. Not much new for them. And Detroit needs to make a big trade if they expect to do anything.

Southeast

• Orlando – Matching up head-to-head, I like Orlando a little more than Miami. Orlando has beef and they know how to use it. Carter is slower than he used to be, but he’s still effective on offense. Perhaps they should start Pietrus. Nelson is a good PG, but not the best in the East. I like Reddick. Lewis and Q-Richardson are ho-hum for me. I’d love to see Orlando play Twin Towers with Howard and Gortat.
• Miami – They are the national media’s darlings, even though the NBA crowd does not respect Wade, Bosh, and James for joining forces like kids on a playground. Nevertheless, this team looks great. Miller, Haslem, House, and Ilgauskas can all do their jobs, although Ilgauskus will have limited minutes, which is unfortunate because he is their only player who can’t be moved in the post. Anthony, their starting center, is very, very thin. Arroyo is in the last years of his career but is still serviceable and Chalmers is not a good distributor at all. …but Wade, Bosh, and James will be better as a group than any three other players that they fight against.
• I don’t really see Charlotte making the play-offs without a PG, although Larry Brown got a lot out of this team last year. Atlanta is going to struggle this year, but might sneak into the play-offs. Even if John Wall is as good as advertised, Washington lacks a big man (not impressed by PF Blatche). I’m surprised Arenas is still with the team. I can’t imagine they’d make the play-offs, but maybe Arenas will be as good as he used to be.

Northwest

• Utah Jazz – They lost Boozer and gained Jefferson. Jefferson has never been a very productive player given his minutes but Sloan and Williams will change that. Okur is a great shooter who opens the lane for CJ Miles, AK-47, and Williams, so Okur might play with Jefferson a lot. Let’s see if Millsap can get more points for them as a starter. I’m looking forward to watching Gordon Hayward. I hope he has a good career.
• OKC – I’m hesitant to say that OKC will do really well this year. Durant is clearly one of the top 5 NBA players, Westbrook is a nice PG, and Krstic is a good center, but who else do they have? A great play-off run last year does not mean that they will have a great season this year.
• Portland seems very, very brittle with Camby, Oden, and Pryzbilla at center. Roy is a great player at a position filled with great players. Fernandez is an NBA-style player who should stay in the NBA, because he will not thrive in Europe. Andre Miller is still a steady PG. Maybe Portland and OKC will fight for second in this division.
• Denver is still a good team, so I don’t know why Carmelo is telling his agent to cry so much. They could compete in this division and do well in the play-offs. Minnesota is unimpressive.

Pacific

• Los Angeles Lakers – Los Angeles is best team in the NBA (I’m bitter about that). Gasol leads the best set of big men in the league, with Odom and Bynum. Odom and Gasol look beautiful when they are passing to each other in the post. Derrick Fischer is getting old, so that will be a problem, but Blake is a good back-up. Artest will defend and get a few easy buckets. Will he stay happy now that he has his championship? Then there is this little guy named Kobe, who I guess is pretty good.
• Phoenix – Nash will have another good year despite his age. They’ve got a good cast of players. Childress is coming off a decent campaign in Europe where he wasn’t exactly a star but took on increased defensive responsibility. Hill is very smart. Jason Richardson is a nice player for this team. Hakim Warrick is replacing Amare Stoudemire, which could be a blessing in disguise because Warrick might actually play defense for a change. The biggest question for this team is whether Turkoglu can play better than he did in Toronto. He was awful in Toronto and cried like Carmelo Anthony. Hopefully he can fit on this team.
• Sacramento is still very young, so their hopes can’t be too high. Casspi and Evans are fun to watch. I think this team looks a lot like Toronto: fast and fun, but not too many wins. Even if Griffin is the second coming of Karl Malone, the Los Angeles Clippers can’t make the play-offs. They’ll need somebody who can hit a three pointer. Golden State doesn’t have a decent defender at that SG/SF spot which is so critical in today’s NBA. Biedrins and Lee will be nice together and Curry can get some points, but otherwise this team is way too thin to make any impact.

Southwest

• Dallas still has Dirk, so they will be in the play-offs. Kidd has turned into an awful defender, so I would expect to see Jason Terry play defense for him and maybe Roddy Beabois if he continues to improve. They will have a full training camp with Haywood and Butler, which is important for them. That extra time will help. Marion will do his thing. This is still a great team. They still have a chance.
• Houston will be great, especially if Yao stays healthy. If Yao is healthy, they can go to the Western Conference Finals. He is still one of the best centers in the league (along with Howard and Bogut). The Rockets have great guards and forwards. Scola gets so many points very quickly and he plays good defense. Chuck Hayes can back-up Scola or Yao with instant energy. Kevin Martin and Aaron Brooks are fast, flighty guards who can score lots of points. Courtney Lee was great in Orlando, so he will thrive on a team that is playing better than New Jersey, his previous team.
• San Antonio could be the sleeper of the league. Every year we expect them to turn sour, but Manu, Duncan, and Parker are still going strong. Jefferson was in terrible shape last year and looks good now, so he will be improved. The only way Splitter will fail is if Popovich loses faith; Splitter will take so much pressure off Duncan, especially on defense. Who doesn’t like DeJuan Blair (my cousin)? George Hill is great as a starter or off the bench. …but injuries could hurt this team. Duncan and Manu are long in the tooth. I’m surprised Duncan has lasted so long without a major injury, but he seems to be doing just fine.
• New Orleans doesn’t do anything for me. Chris Paul is great. David West is pretty good. Ariza is OK. Belinelli was a great addition for a team that needs outside shooting. Stojakovic is clearly on the way down. This team won’t even be in the play-off mix. As for Memphis, I was really impressed last year. They have a great starting frontline with Randolph and Gasol. Gay and Mayo are good. Memphis has a weak bench, though. It’s a very thin team.

 

[durden_tyler2]

Just a few thoughts on Day One of the NBA season. I hope this is a good season. There are a lot of nice story lines and a lot of bad story lines

.

First, explain what do you mean by "bad story lines" if it's so bad, it means it's still a good storyline to follow

Let's tackle it one by one...

Boston – They have a complete roster. Rondo is one of the brightest PGs, somebody I didn’t like at first, but he has really grown on me. Shaq can give 15 minutes a night and Jermaine O’Neal can give 25. Pierce and Allen will get buckets. KG is very slow defensively now, but he is still an intense player.

Yes, i agree totally on Rondo. The criticism on him WAS that he had a zero jumpshot. The criticism on him IS that he has a zero jumpshot--- yet he's already an above average point guard, near-elite even to most. So yeah, for a guy without a jumpshot, that is impressive. But regarding KG, if reports are to be believed he is back to his '08 form--- a year off surgery and a season after losing to the Lakers in a close one, if healthy he's going to be a major factor especially on defense and leadership.

i doubt Boston makes consistent headlines during the regular season. After all, this is a postseason team we are looking at. i expect them to sort of go auto-pilot mode (more rest for the vets) then rise it up a notch come playoffs.

 

[durden_tyler2]

New York didn’t improve very much by getting Amare Stoudemire instead of David Lee. Stoudemire is an awful, awful defender. New Jersey still looks terrible, although Brooks is a better-than-average center. Toronto will be fun to watch with Kleiza and Bargnani, but they lack a big defender in the middle. Philadelphia looks awful.

But but it's Amare-D'Antoni, something has got to work, right? i am on the fence here but leaning towards New York Slight Improvement. While player for player comparison is close i believe Amare is a real "star" compared to a David Lee who i see as a glorified role player. Sure Lee is better on defense but he doesn't command doubles on the post nor can he take over the game offensively--- Amare can do this and that means New York will be competitive half the time. And also, Felton is an underrated point guard. He's too passive maybe, maybe too erratic but under this system, maybe he can improve his point guard skills. And yeah, Gallinari is the next Nowitzki too (So says NYK fans )

New Jersey should improve a bit too. Toronto is the worst team in the league and will challenge the Nets' record last year. And Philadelphia still has Iguodala, good for 10th to 11th place in the East.

 

[mvblair2]

First, explain what do you mean by "bad story lines" if it's so bad, it means it's still a good storyline to follow

Good point. Any story is going to be good to follow.

I guess a "bad" story would be something like Carmelo Anthony's trade "request" which is not really a trade "request." If Chris Paul or Rudy Fernandez or anybody else starts to get upset, that is going to be a bad story. Also the fights, the league's refereering, that's all bad stuff for me.

Yes, i agree totally on Rondo. The criticism on him WAS that he had a zero jumpshot. The criticism on him IS that he has a zero jumpshot--- yet he's already an above average point guard, near-elite even to most. So yeah, for a guy without a jumpshot, that is impressive. But regarding KG, if reports are to be believed he is back to his '08 form--- a year off surgery and a season after losing to the Lakers in a close one, if healthy he's going to be a major factor especially on defense and leadership.

Is KG healthier? I haven't really heard anything. If he is healthier, they are going to be in great shape. I guess he is coming back healthy after surgery, though.

i doubt Boston makes consistent headlines during the regular season. After all, this is a postseason team we are looking at. i expect them to sort of go auto-pilot mode (more rest for the vets) then rise it up a notch come playoffs.

I agree completely. I think it might be that way for the Lakers, too.

But but it's Amare-D'Antoni, something has got to work, right? i am on the fence here but leaning towards New York Slight Improvement. While player for player comparison is close i believe Amare is a real "star" compared to a David Lee who i see as a glorified role player. Sure Lee is better on defense but he doesn't command doubles on the post nor can he take over the game offensively--- Amare can do this and that means New York will be competitive half the time. And also, Felton is an underrated point guard. He's too passive maybe, maybe too erratic but under this system, maybe he can improve his point guard skills.

Yes, Amare will be better with D'Antoni, but he still can't hold his ground on defense. You're not selling me on Felton. He shoots a very low percentage. I don't trust him very much with the ball. Maybe he's better than I think he is, though. I only really saw him during the play-offs last year.

And yeah, Gallinari is the next Nowitzki too (So says NYK fans )

Yeah, and I'm the Pope. Seriously, I like Gallinari. He's good and maybe he will play well with D'Antoni, but what else does NYK have? They need more than two good offensive players and a mediocre guard.

New Jersey should improve a bit too. Toronto is the worst team in the league and will challenge the Nets' record last year. And Philadelphia still has Iguodala, good for 10th to 11th place in the East.

True! Igoudala can get them to 10th or 11th place. If Evan Turner, their big draft pick from Ohio State, turns out well, maybe they can sneak into the play-offs. New Jersey has improved, you're right. They are better than last year with Anthony Morrow and Troy Murphy.

 

[durden_tyler2]

* Milwaukee – Bogut is a one of the top three centers in the league. Jennings is a great young PG who, like Rondo, has really grown on me. Those two players are the energetic voices that lead a great cast of guards and forwards, like Delfino (a top 20 player toward the end of last season), Ilyasova (poor man’s Dirk), Redd (we’ll see if he gets back), Maggette (gets easy points at the FT line), Mbah a Moute (solid big man) and Salmon (very underrated player who never wastes the shot clock). Gooden gives them a little more defense behind Bogut, but they could still use another back-up center. I’m surprised they didn’t grab Oberto.

Any team coached by Skiles will be extra-competitive. That said, any team with Maggette in there... Ugh. He can single-handedly destroy what this franchise built the last couple of years--- if he can accept his role and be effective on defense i guess it'd work. So basically what i am saying is that Skiles should control Maggette somewhat... And yeah, Jennings should improve his percentage and Bogut should stop elbowing people because it's dangerous. (to him and the opponent)

* Chicago – Chicago is not better than Milwaukee. Boozer is a nice pick-up, but he’ll be gone until January. Rose is quick as a bat out of hell and shoots a nice percentage. In today’s NBA, Noah is a good center. Deng will get some points. But Chicago lacks depth to climb very high in the play-offs.

Korver and Brewer on the wings... G-F spots looks pretty solid to me. And that Turkish guy has shown he can contribute during the preseason... Plus the fact that this team is now coached by Tom Thibadeu (sp?) so i disagree, this team will ultimately be better than Milwaukee.

* My illusions about Cleveland making the play-offs are slowlydeteriorating. I really thought they would find a better free agent than Ramon Sessions. Indiana has Collison, who I guess played great in NO, but they still struggle. Not much new for them. And Detroit needs to make a big trade if they expect to do anything.

There is a Cleveland franchise in the NBA?

 

[durden_tyler2]

Southeast

* Orlando – Matching up head-to-head, I like Orlando a little more than Miami. Orlando has beef and they know how to use it. Carter is slower than he used to be, but he’s still effective on offense. Perhaps they should start Pietrus. Nelson is a good PG, but not the best in the East. I like Reddick. Lewis and Q-Richardson are ho-hum for me. I’d love to see Orlando play Twin Towers with Howard and Gortat.

Carter will be the key here. He disappears in the most crucial times. If that happens again, goodbye Orlando! (East Finals depending on the match-up in the earlier rounds which means they have to avoid Miami/Orlando, which means they have to finish #1 in the conference, which is a tough tough task)

* Miami – They are the national media’s darlings, even though the NBA crowd does not respect Wade, Bosh, and James for joining forces like kids on a playground. Nevertheless, this team looks great. Miller, Haslem, House, and Ilgauskas can all do their jobs, although Ilgauskus will have limited minutes, which is unfortunate because he is their only player who can’t be moved in the post. Anthony, their starting center, is very, very thin. Arroyo is in the last years of his career but is still serviceable and Chalmers is not a good distributor at all. …but Wade, Bosh, and James will be better as a group than any three other players that they fight against.

i see them finishing #1 despite what the critics say. Do i love them? Not sure. Anytime you assemble a powerhouse team you either cheer for them hard or boo them hard. i am in the middle here, i just want to enjoy their mighty (or not-so-mighty) run... If they are going to be the #1 team in the NBA, so be it, but i want to see them challenge the 72-10 record; if they fail to meet the expectations, i want to see them fall in the first round of the playoffs

* I don’t really see Charlotte making the play-offs without a PG, although Larry Brown got a lot out of this team last year. Atlanta is going to struggle this year, but might sneak into the play-offs. Even if John Wall is as good as advertised, Washington lacks a big man (not impressed by PF Blatche). I’m surprised Arenas is still with the team. I can’t imagine they’d make the play-offs, but maybe Arenas will be as good as he used to be.

Atlanta su cks.

 

[dxjayrock20082]

I don’t really see Charlotte making the play-offs without a PG, although Larry Brown got a lot out of this team last year. Atlanta is going to struggle this year, but might sneak into the play-offs.


I'm not expecting the Bobcats to duplicate their play-off stint last season, but they might surprise their critics this time.


Atlanta? Never mind! Lol.

 

[mvblair2]

Any team coached by Skiles will be extra-competitive. That said, any team with Maggette in there... Ugh. He can single-handedly destroy what this franchise built the last couple of years--- if he can accept his role and be effective on defense i guess it'd work. So basically what i am saying is that Skiles should control Maggette somewhat... And yeah, Jennings should improve his percentage and Bogut should stop elbowing people because it's dangerous. (to him and the opponent)

That's true about Maggette. I'm not sure if he has a bad attitude or what, but it seems like locker room problems follow him wherever he goes.

Korver and Brewer on the wings... G-F spots looks pretty solid to me. And that Turkish guy has shown he can contribute during the preseason... Plus the fact that this team is now coached by Tom Thibadeu (sp?) so i disagree, this team will ultimately be better than Milwaukee.

Truthfully, I haven't seen brewer that much. Korver is nice. He can really spot-up and he was good for Philly and Utah. But I still like Milwaukee better.

There is a Cleveland franchise in the NBA?

Forget you, dude!! Finals or Bust: 2011 is our new motto.

i see them finishing #1 despite what the critics say. Do i love them? Not sure. Anytime you assemble a powerhouse team you either cheer for them hard or boo them hard. i am in the middle here, i just want to enjoy their mighty (or not-so-mighty) run... If they are going to be the #1 team in the NBA, so be it, but i want to see them challenge the 72-10 record; if they fail to meet the expectations, i want to see them fall in the first round of the playoffs

Well, I'm not cheering for them, but like I said, I go back and forth about whether this will be a team that pushes that 72-10 record. I mean, no team in the NBA has had this star power in history...but most regular season NBA teams would beat an All-Star team because the All-Star team never practices and just tries to look pretty. After last night's game, Miami looks pretty bad, though.

 

[durden_tyler2]

To continue.

* Utah Jazz – They lost Boozer and gained Jefferson. Jefferson has never been a very productive player given his minutes but Sloan and Williams will change that. Okur is a great shooter who opens the lane for CJ Miles, AK-47, and Williams, so Okur might play with Jefferson a lot. Let’s see if Millsap can get more points for them as a starter. I’m looking forward to watching Gordon Hayward. I hope he has a good career.

Jefferson is a VERY productive player with rather consistent minutes (he was the centerpiece in the KG to BOS trade remember?) So what i see here is the fact that he'd be playing for winning franchise for the first time in his career. Playing for winners like Sloan (and to an extent, Williams) for the first time in his career! Will he be another Shareef Abdur Rahim type of player, who had good stats but only with mediocre teams? Will he be another Drew Gooden who can easily get a double double but does not necessarily translate to effective basketball? His time to prove that he's not just another "empty stat player" is now.

Okur's healthy will greatly help the Jazz's frontcourt but with Millsaap already there i think they'd be fine. The Kirilenko of 3-4 years ago should return if they want to be considered a "real" contender.

And Hayward, i just don't to see him become the next Adam Morrison.

* OKC – I’m hesitant to say that OKC will do really well this year. Durant is clearly one of the top 5 NBA players, Westbrook is a nice PG, and Krstic is a good center, but who else do they have? A great play-off run last year does not mean that they will have a great season this year.

i agree with you. After last year, they became the average fan's darlings. This year? They'd make the playoffs yes but won't make as much noise as last year. Watch the fans turn on them (and specifically Durant) when they keep on busting out of the first/second round in the next 5-6 years.

* Portland seems very, very brittle with Camby, Oden, and Pryzbilla at center. Roy is a great player at a position filled with great players. Fernandez is an NBA-style player who should stay in the NBA, because he will not thrive in Europe. Andre Miller is still a steady PG. Maybe Portland and OKC will fight for second in this division.

i just want them to be healthy. All of them. Please.

* Denver is still a good team, so I don’t know why Carmelo is telling his agent to cry so much. They could compete in this division and do well in the play-offs. Minnesota is unimpressive.

Melo is just insecure with what happened with Lebron. And i'm still waiting for Ricky Rubio to don the Twolf jersey. Until then, they don't exist.

And oh,

Forget you, dude!! Finals or Bust: 2011 is our new motto.

There's one good thing working for the Cavaliers. 99 per cent of NBA fans like them now. Why? Out of pity for the franchise. So Go Cavs!

 

[mvblair2]

I have come from the future to respond to myself now that we are about twenty games into the season.

Atlantic

• Boston – They have a complete roster. Rondo is one of the brightest PGs, somebody I didn’t like at first, but he has really grown on me. Shaq can give 15 minutes a night and Jermaine O’Neal can give 25. Pierce and Allen will get buckets. KG is very slow defensively now, but he is still an intense player.
• New York didn’t improve very much by getting Amare Stoudemire instead of David Lee. Stoudemire is an awful, awful defender. New Jersey still looks terrible, although Brooks is a better-than-average center. Toronto will be fun to watch with Kleiza and Bargnani, but they lack a big defender in the middle. Philadelphia looks awful.

You were absolutely right about the Atlantic. Rondo has been brilliant and the Celtics are on top of the East by far. New York is still bad but they've won some games. New Jersey and Philly are still pathetic. Toronto is in the play-off chase.

Central

• Milwaukee – Bogut is a one of the top three centers in the league. Jennings is a great young PG who, like Rondo, has really grown on me. Those two players are the energetic voices that lead a great cast of guards and forwards, like Delfino (a top 20 player toward the end of last season), Ilyasova (poor man’s Dirk), Redd (we’ll see if he gets back), Maggette (gets easy points at the FT line), Mbah a Moute (solid big man) and Salmon (very underrated player who never wastes the shot clock). Gooden gives them a little more defense behind Bogut, but they could still use another back-up center. I’m surprised they didn’t grab Oberto.
• Chicago – Chicago is not better than Milwaukee. Boozer is a nice pick-up, but he’ll be gone until January. Rose is quick as a bat out of hell and shoots a nice percentage. In today’s NBA, Noah is a good center. Deng will get some points. But Chicago lacks depth to climb very high in the play-offs.
• My illusions about Cleveland making the play-offs are slowly deteriorating. I really thought they would find a better free agent than Ramon Sessions. Indiana has Collison, who I guess played great in NO, but they still struggle. Not much new for them. And Detroit needs to make a big trade if they expect to do anything.

You screwed up here, Matt. Milwaukee is not playing well thanks to John Salmons' poor performance, Bogut's absences, and what looks to be Jennings' second year slip. They can still bounce back, though. Chicago looks a lot better than you thought and Boozer's early return helps. Roy Hibbert is playing like a man's center for Indiana and that's keeping them in the play-off chase. Cleveland looks about where you expected and Detroit too.

Southeast

• Orlando – Matching up head-to-head, I like Orlando a little more than Miami. Orlando has beef and they know how to use it. Carter is slower than he used to be, but he’s still effective on offense. Perhaps they should start Pietrus. Nelson is a good PG, but not the best in the East. I like Reddick. Lewis and Q-Richardson are ho-hum for me. I’d love to see Orlando play Twin Towers with Howard and Gortat.
• Miami – They are the national media’s darlings, even though the NBA crowd does not respect Wade, Bosh, and James for joining forces like kids on a playground. Nevertheless, this team looks great. Miller, Haslem, House, and Ilgauskas can all do their jobs, although Ilgauskus will have limited minutes, which is unfortunate because he is their only player who can’t be moved in the post. Anthony, their starting center, is very, very thin. Arroyo is in the last years of his career but is still serviceable and Chalmers is not a good distributor at all. …but Wade, Bosh, and James will be better as a group than any three other players that they fight against.
• I don’t really see Charlotte making the play-offs without a PG, although Larry Brown got a lot out of this team last year. Atlanta is going to struggle this year, but might sneak into the play-offs. Even if John Wall is as good as advertised, Washington lacks a big man (not impressed by PF Blatche). I’m surprised Arenas is still with the team. I can’t imagine they’d make the play-offs, but maybe Arenas will be as good as he used to be.

Miami is not a team that needs to panic. They are doing worse than you expected, but they're not bad. Ilgauskas is the right choice for starter because Bosh cannot play center. Bosh looks more vulnerable than people thought. The coach does not deserve the criticism. Orlando is good enough to compete for the third or fourth play-off spot, but besides Howard, they have a lot of ho-hum, mediocre players. Good call on Orlando. Charlotte and Washington still look pathetic, as you predicted.

Northwest

• Utah Jazz – They lost Boozer and gained Jefferson. Jefferson has never been a very productive player given his minutes but Sloan and Williams will change that. Okur is a great shooter who opens the lane for CJ Miles, AK-47, and Williams, so Okur might play with Jefferson a lot. Let’s see if Millsap can get more points for them as a starter. I’m looking forward to watching Gordon Hayward. I hope he has a good career.
• OKC – I’m hesitant to say that OKC will do really well this year. Durant is clearly one of the top 5 NBA players, Westbrook is a nice PG, and Krstic is a good center, but who else do they have? A great play-off run last year does not mean that they will have a great season this year.
• Portland seems very, very brittle with Camby, Oden, and Pryzbilla at center. Roy is a great player at a position filled with great players. Fernandez is an NBA-style player who should stay in the NBA, because he will not thrive in Europe. Andre Miller is still a steady PG. Maybe Portland and OKC will fight for second in this division.
• Denver is still a good team, so I don’t know why Carmelo is telling his agent to cry so much. They could compete in this division and do well in the play-offs. Minnesota is unimpressive.

Good predictions in the Northwest. Utah is the class of the division and OKC is where you thought they'd be. Good call on Denver and Minnesota (you really went out on a limb with your Minnesota prediction, dude). However, Portland is doing worse than you predicted.

Pacific

• Los Angeles Lakers – Los Angeles is best team in the NBA (I’m bitter about that). Gasol leads the best set of big men in the league, with Odom and Bynum. Odom and Gasol look beautiful when they are passing to each other in the post. Derrick Fischer is getting old, so that will be a problem, but Blake is a good back-up. Artest will defend and get a few easy buckets. Will he stay happy now that he has his championship? Then there is this little guy named Kobe, who I guess is pretty good.
• Phoenix – Nash will have another good year despite his age. They’ve got a good cast of players. Childress is coming off a decent campaign in Europe where he wasn’t exactly a star but took on increased defensive responsibility. Hill is very smart. Jason Richardson is a nice player for this team. Hakim Warrick is replacing Amare Stoudemire, which could be a blessing in disguise because Warrick might actually play defense for a change. The biggest question for this team is whether Turkoglu can play better than he did in Toronto. He was awful in Toronto and cried like Carmelo Anthony. Hopefully he can fit on this team.
• Sacramento is still very young, so their hopes can’t be too high. Casspi and Evans are fun to watch. I think this team looks a lot like Toronto: fast and fun, but not too many wins. Even if Griffin is the second coming of Karl Malone, the Los Angeles Clippers can’t make the play-offs. They’ll need somebody who can hit a three pointer. Golden State doesn’t have a decent defender at that SG/SF spot which is so critical in today’s NBA. Biedrins and Lee will be nice together and Curry can get some points, but otherwise this team is way too thin to make any impact.

You got the Pacific right, but how hard was it to predict that the Lakers would win this division? Nice call on Warrick replacing Stoudemire in Phoenix: he's a better defender by far and he deserves more minutes than Turkoglu, whose career looks to be on falling fast.

Southwest

• Dallas still has Dirk, so they will be in the play-offs. Kidd has turned into an awful defender, so I would expect to see Jason Terry play defense for him and maybe Roddy Beabois if he continues to improve. They will have a full training camp with Haywood and Butler, which is important for them. That extra time will help. Marion will do his thing. This is still a great team. They still have a chance.
• Houston will be great, especially if Yao stays healthy. If Yao is healthy, they can go to the Western Conference Finals. He is still one of the best centers in the league (along with Howard and Bogut). The Rockets have great guards and forwards. Scola gets so many points very quickly and he plays good defense. Chuck Hayes can back-up Scola or Yao with instant energy. Kevin Martin and Aaron Brooks are fast, flighty guards who can score lots of points. Courtney Lee was great in Orlando, so he will thrive on a team that is playing better than New Jersey, his previous team.
• San Antonio could be the sleeper of the league. Every year we expect them to turn sour, but Manu, Duncan, and Parker are still going strong. Jefferson was in terrible shape last year and looks good now, so he will be improved. The only way Splitter will fail is if Popovich loses faith; Splitter will take so much pressure off Duncan, especially on defense. Who doesn’t like DeJuan Blair (my cousin)? George Hill is great as a starter or off the bench. …but injuries could hurt this team. Duncan and Manu are long in the tooth. I’m surprised Duncan has lasted so long without a major injury, but he seems to be doing just fine.
• New Orleans doesn’t do anything for me. Chris Paul is great. David West is pretty good. Ariza is OK. Belinelli was a great addition for a team that needs outside shooting. Stojakovic is clearly on the way down. This team won’t even be in the play-off mix. As for Memphis, I was really impressed last year. They have a great starting frontline with Randolph and Gasol. Gay and Mayo are good. Memphis has a weak bench, though. It’s a very thin team.

You missed the boat on the Southwest. Houston has been bad (but don't be hard on yourself because you couldn't predict injuries to Brooks and Yao). Dallas and San Antonio are doing well, as predicted. But Splitter's single 18 point game is a little disappointing. He should be starting over Blair, who is struggling. New Orleans started off well and you called it on Belinelli, but they're starting to fall. Memphis still looks pretty bad, but Gasol isn't as good as he was last year.

Overall, your predictions were pretty good. You really blew it on Milwaukee and Houston, though.

 

[Khalid802]

I have come from the future to respond to myself now that we are about twenty games into the season.
You were absolutely right about the Atlantic. Rondo has been brilliant and the Celtics are on top of the East by far. New York is still bad but they've won some games. New Jersey and Philly are still pathetic. Toronto is in the play-off chase.
You screwed up here, Matt. Milwaukee is not playing well thanks to John Salmons' poor performance, Bogut's absences, and what looks to be Jennings' second year slip. They can still bounce back, though. Chicago looks a lot better than you thought and Boozer's early return helps. Roy Hibbert is playing like a man's center for Indiana and that's keeping them in the play-off chase. Cleveland looks about where you expected and Detroit too.
Miami is not a team that needs to panic. They are doing worse than you expected, but they're not bad. Ilgauskas is the right choice for starter because Bosh cannot play center. Bosh looks more vulnerable than people thought. The coach does not deserve the criticism. Orlando is good enough to compete for the third or fourth play-off spot, but besides Howard, they have a lot of ho-hum, mediocre players. Good call on Orlando. Charlotte and Washington still look pathetic, as you predicted. Good predictions in the Northwest. Utah is the class of the division and OKC is where you thought they'd be. Good call on Denver and Minnesota (you really went out on a limb with your Minnesota prediction, dude). However, Portland is doing worse than you predicted.
You got the Pacific right, but how hard was it to predict that the Lakers would win this division? Nice call on Warrick replacing Stoudemire in Phoenix: he's a better defender by far and he deserves more minutes than Turkoglu, whose career looks to be on falling fast. You missed the boat on the Southwest. Houston has been bad (but don't be hard on yourself because you couldn't predict injuries to Brooks and Yao). Dallas and San Antonio are doing well, as predicted. But Splitter's single 18 point game is a little disappointing. He should be starting over Blair, who is struggling. New Orleans started off well and you called it on Belinelli, but they're starting to fall. Memphis still looks pretty bad, but Gasol isn't as good as he was last year.

Overall, your predictions were pretty good. You really blew it on Milwaukee and Houston, though.

Awesomeness!! Great 1 to 1 personal intuitive analysis

Go MV, Go MV, Go !!

When I say Matt you say Blair Matt... Blair!! Matt... Blair!!

Damn those MC's from the Jam Fest really got to me

Do revisit this thread right about before the All Star game and then towards the end of the season and hopefully by that time you'll be the new proclaimed "King" everyone is talking about in Cleveland

 

[mvblair2]

Damn those MC's from the Jam Fest really got to me

Hah, hah, hah!!! You're starting to get me excited, man!!

Do revisit this thread right about before the All Star game and then towards the end of the season and hopefully by that time you'll be the new proclaimed "King" everyone is talking about in Cleveland

If my predictions remain mostly correct, I will revisit the thread, but if the predictions turn out wrong, I'm definitely not going to revive it.

 

[Dtown2]

My goal this season has gone from competing for the playoffs, to simply competing against Cleveland