So the fight for the last playoff spot or two in the eastern conference should be interesting.
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Official NBA 15-16' Season Thread
- Thread starter trikx_insane
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I'm gonna say the last few playoff spots will be obtained by:
Atlanta Hawks. I'm having serious questions about Atlanta because I can't shake the feeling that last season was a fluke. It showed in the playoffs, despite being in the conference finals. But I don't think they'll regress as much as the Pacers did in 2013 to 2014(Tbf, that was mostly because of the PG13 injury), they'll stay in the hunt but definitely not a top team.
Miami Heat. To me, I have no doubt Miami will be back in the playoffs but idk where. I really don't know what to expect. They have the talent to be a serious contender but I don't know where to place them. I just doubt they'll compete with Cleveland/Chicago/Toronto/Washington.
Milwaukee Bucks? I'm not sure how Milwaukee will do but I wouldn't be surprised if they do go back into the playoffs nor would I be surprised if they don't.
Brooklyn Nets? Only putting this here because they got the 8 seed last season. Realistically, I highly doubt they'll come back.
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1offDHGLNGIROle1A-douWhbolJ0ezsz-nOYhrqq1MKQ/edit?usp=sharing it's been completed, unless someone wants me to write on something else that I haven't done there.
Hmmm.
Zombies exist
It’s finally here! The National Basketball Association regular season of 2015-2016 is finally among us.
So much has happened over the summer during the off-season. San Antonio quietly snatches the biggest free agent, banana emoticons drag DeAndre Jordan away from Dallas, and Porzingis might not even fuckin’ have a green card. Let’s get started with the western conference since it’s a bit easier to digest this time around.
“You’re being tricked. Rondo is hilarious. My relationship with Rondo is so good, if it gets better, I’d get scared.” – George Karl
“I guess I’m kind of consolation prize.” – Deron Williams
“We had Mavs gear shipped to DeAndre for the season. We picked out where he was going to sit on the team bus and plane. We picked out his No. 6 jersey. We narrowed down which home he would buy in Dallas, talked about restaurants here.” – Chandler Parsons
Let’s take it from the top. There’s very little reason Golden State should not be considered the favorite of not just the West, but the entire basketball association. Look at their last regular season numbers… do you see any fluke statistics there? A historic 67 regular season wins, 10 points differential, #2 in offensive efficiency and #1 in defensive efficiency. They’re going in healthy (aside from head coach Steve Kerr, of course) as the same exact team before sans David Lee and continue the same exact chemistry as last year. Why wouldn’t you have them as the favorite? Probably Lil’ B related.
The scary part is that Curry can actually get better. He’s only 27, and this is his first MVP-level season. There’s a good chance he, and others on this team such as Draymond Green and Klay Thompson, have yet to hit their peak. Thus, even with Steve Kerr sidelined, I have to give the top regular season record nod to the team I predicted with it exactly last year.
Oklahoma City gets my vote for second. If they’re healthy, very few can stop this team on a decent day. With new head coach Billy Donovan, their offense finally gets the variation it needed. You thought MVP Westbrook and Durant were unstoppable one-on-one? Just wait until the ball is actually moving. There have been some talks about Durant’s leg injury being so serious that he may not return to his old MVP form, but Durant was still pretty scary last year before he was sidelined for the season.
The real key to Oklahoma City returning to dominance will be their supporting cast, most notably Enes Kanter. If he can get his defense above please-kill-me-now-level, this team can maintain a top ten defense. I think it’ll be interesting to see how Donovan utilizes Westbrook within this new offense. Will he play off the ball with Augustin? Can he play off the ball? Will Dion Waiters not suck? This supporting cast for sure is nowhere near the supporting cast of old. There are too many one-dimensional players surrounding the stars. I mean, that’s what this team’s always been about in general but at least you had guys like Reggie Jackson running things when Westbrook and Durant sat down. With all due respect, DJ Augustine is no Reggie Jackson, so all it takes is a couple of injuries, Kanter stinking it up, and Dion Waters throwing up bricks a couple of games for this team to drop down a couple of spots; however, I choose them here because I feel like their new coach gives them a whole new level of freedom. They’re more likely to maintain incredible streaks and their only real question mark is depth.
Speaking of depth, Houston has it almost in every position if you include the injured Motiejunas. This team is going to have newfound freedom in offense too thanks to Lawson. What holds Houston back is their turnover-prone offense. You may be quick to point at Howard, the most turnover prone center since Kwame Brown, but Harden is actually high up there in turnovers as well. It has much to do with the simple fact that the team depends on him to score so much. When he has to guard someone competent on the other end, it takes away his efficiency. In his last game against Golden State in the playoffs, Harden had 13 turnovers. If you could get a second ball handler, Harden can rest on offense and save more of his energy for late-game shenanigans. Enter Lawson.
This team has all the reason to be the top of its division. I mean, once McHale figures out Howard is not a good back-to-the-basket center, who knows what they’re capable of! If you increase Harden’s efficiency and get some of their injured players back on the roster, this team could potentially jump to historic levels… but third seems to be the most likely result, Lil’ B willin’. They could easily of course be second or even first. In fact, my top three seeds are simply the top divisional teams respectively. I consider them in their own tier.
The next tier contains Los Angeles (not the Lakers you fanboys) and San Antonio. Los Angeles has some great depth at the swingman position finally since Caron Butler maybe? Paul Pierce, Lance Stephenson, and Wesley Johnson are wonderful to have over Barnes and.. I don’t want to insult the same guy who went to my high school but come on; Reggie Bullock wasn’t even bench material back then.
But… it’s still the Clippers. You have Hall of Fame point guard Chris Paul, on-the-rise power forward Blake Griffin, and potential Defensive Player of the Year DeAndre Jordan (okay, that’s stretching it but for sake of argument), and you mean to tell me they still can’t make it out of the second round? I guess Doc is going to give it one more shot, and this time, he wasn’t playing. He’s switching to a Thibodeau-esque defense which means Griffin, Jordan, and now Josh Smith aren’t going to be chasing guards around the perimeter anymore; they’re going to stay in that paint and concede some long two-pointers. Griffin may have an increase in blocks.
If they can integrate Stephenson into this team as a second ball handler to Chris Paul and an amazing perimeter defender who can also knock down threes, they could easily climb to top seed here. Why? Well, Pierce is old as the Wall of China, and he isn’t going to be playing 20+ minutes most nights. Johnson isn’t a forward you want to give major minutes too, so the remaining time has to go to Stephenson. If he can give you at least 30 minutes of decent stuff all over the floor, Los Angeles should be happy.
San Antonio had the best off-season around even though you could practically see them in any spot due to Popovich’s importance on health. Aldridge? Check. David West under a veteran’s minimum? Check. Keep Kawaiiiiii Leonard long-term? Check! So why do I think they’ll be below the supposed western conference gods? Two words: Tony Parker.
Parker’s had an off-year last year, and he didn’t fare much better in the European league. He had no time to rest and he’s 33-years-old… I think it’s time for San Antonio fans to finally admit that this guy is likely entering a decline. Parker’s been keeping this team in the upper-echelon of the western conference for the past few years, but once that motor of his goes down as well as Ginobili’s, the guard rotation is going to get some inconsistency. It is up to San Antonio’s younger, supporting cast to help alleviate these shortcomings. I’m looking at you, Green and Leonard. These two guys are part of the new San Antonio Big Three... in the future.
The only other concern about this team is Aldridge’s ability to man the paint. They lost Splitter, so that means the only defensive-minded big-man on the roster is Duncan. Aldridge is going to have to learn how to protect the paint which he isn’t exactly known for in his career. It’s necessary if San Antonio wants to contend.
Overall, if Parker can give us one more year, that’d be fine. It doesn’t even have to be MVParker. Just one above-average year in efficiency, and San Antonio just might take it one more time… and Old Man Riverwalk can retire in peace…
It’s hard to make an argument for New Orleans to make a big jump in this conference without a huge revamp in their roster and many injury-prone guards. Alvin Gentry is a great pickup in itself but they’re not going to be world-beaters just yet. They do have the luxury of owning the current most efficient player in recent years but until everyone stays healthy and build some healthy chemistry, they’re going to stay right around where they are. The only way this team makes major jumps is if Gentry figures out the most efficient way possible to space to floor while having Davis wreak havoc on his match-up. That actually might be enough for them!
Making the playoffs a consecutive season would still be an accomplishment no matter the seed, so as long as Davis continues to improve and get better. Build some chemistry, a trustworthy offense, and develop this young player into a capable star, because nowhere down the line do I ever picture Jrue Holidae and Eric Gordon being starters for a championship team.
Memphis didn’t seem to want to make much of a change themselves. Although Gasol’s improved efficiency was a wonderful surprise last year, their three-point shooter has been near the bottom half of the league for some time now. It’s hard to win in today’s league without some form of decent three-point shooting to space the floor, and Memphis’ old school style of beating you up in the paint through a close single-digit win simply won’t cut it anymore. You’ve got to find a way to get easy buckets. Every year it’s the same thing. They signed Mike Miller one year but even him alone wasn’t enough.
Their single significant off-season addition was Matt Barnes. Matt Barnes? Who the fuck is Matt Barnes? The most times Matt Barnes’ name has been mentioned in the past few years are when he wants to fucking destroy Derek Fisher. He is no more than another aging 3-and-D dud.
And the final spot in the western conference goes to… not Dallas¸ but Utah.
Utah actually has the best chance to be the new playoff team in the scene. They ended the second half of the regular season maintaining a top ten defense… a defense that coincidentally improved the moment Kanter left (I’m starting to regret my Oklahoma City pick already). Gordon Hayward is slowly becoming into an all-around amazing offensive player. Rudy Gobert has emerged as an elite defensive big man. They developed some decent chemistry throughout the years. The spot is theirs for the taking.
But why not Dallas? I’ll tell you why… Dirk gets another year older and another second slower on defense. Tyson Chandler is replaced by Pachulia. Deron Williams is on that team. The same Deron Williams who was paid big money to leave Broken Brooklyn Nets.
Their swingmen are coming off from serious injuries. We don’t even know what the fuck Parsons is suffering from. They didn’t even disclose much on his end, but most people who come back from Achilles-related injuries tend to take significant time returning to form.
Monta Ellis was a big help to this team in terms of slashing from the perimeter. Barea and Harris are nice but they’re not as fearless or quick. The only way Dallas makes the playoffs is if Deron Williams is Deron Williams of old and that possibility is like, 0.00000000000001%. I don't see too many other redeeming qualities about this team. Their thin frontcourt wouldn't be as blatant bad if their backcourt was just.. decent on some level.
What other teams could possibly scratch themselves in the 8th spot?
We say this every year about Sacramento. They’re going to finally do it! They’re going to play above .500 and be the playoff team we envisioned! Until their ownership fucks it all up and hits the reset button once again. Their front office and head coaching position has been a rotating door for some time, so they have no foundation of culture or standards to stand on. Their only common denominator is Boogie and they almost lost that.
Now you add in Rajon Rondo who hasn’t done shit in this league since I’ve had a girlfriend and Karl who already reportedly wanted to trade Cousins. This team is just… it’s just not ready. Playing .500 basketball would be a moral victory for this team.
Phoenix is an interesting choice since they’ve been fighting for it the last two years but I feel like they got Chandler too little too late. They have some good guard play in Bledsoe and Knight, but I just don’t see it. One of those two guys I just mentioned would have to hit a new ceiling for this team to take off seriously. The Morris brothers’ trade will have an interesting ending, but with that much drama going on about it, they may not get much from Marcus Morris. Other than the aforementioned, this roster is mostly made of young guys developing themselves.
One more team to talk about; no, I don’t actually think they’re anywhere close to the playoffs, but this team has so many fraud fans that you have to talk about them even when they’re complete shit. Los Angeles Lakers are trash and will be trash for a while, but the good news is that their core has so much potential. Randle could turn into a pretty great offensive threat, and Clarkson is a pretty smart dude. Russel needs a few years to learn what kind of shots to take but these three dudes are your next big three talents in Lakerland. Kobe is going to go out hard but unfortunately, his team goes out on a whimper. Kobe Bryant, Nick Young, Lou Williams, and Roy Hibbert attempting to share the ball on one team while you actually have decent youngsters in need of development sounds like adding Tabasco sauce and Texas Pete in a Spicy Tostada: not a literal explosion but only figuratively inside your mouth at such a point where you question why you combined all this stupid shit together in the first place. Hibbert will improve the defense a couple of levels but he remains to be a liability in many other ways. Their offense… will be, uh, interesting to watch.
The western conference will mostly remain the same. You can see the upper-echelon shuffling around a little bit due to injury, game-winning shots, or even trades, but as far as who’s making it? I pretty much took the teams with the failed off-season, a crowned king getting their stars back, and added the best upcoming prospect.
(1) Golden State Warriors
(2) Oklahoma City Thunder
(3) Houston Rockets
(4) Los Angeles Clippers
(5) San Antonio Spurs
(6) New Orleans Pelicans
(7) Memphis Grizzlies
(8) Utah Jazz
“‘Josh Smith for 3’ is a sentence we shouldn’t ever hear in our lives.” – Charles Barkley
“I can imagine Coach Scott calling both in and saying ‘I can only keep one of you.’ Metta simply turns and stares at Jabari until Jabari leaves the room.” – houseQM
“It’s disgusting … he’s still in denial … he will pay for the blatant disrespect and no honor to the originator. All he has to do is show love. Harden has gone too far this time. #DontAngerTheBasedGod” – Lil’ B
Ho’boy, the eastern conference. It’s still a bit of a mess. Good news? This conference is steadily getting better I feel. Give it a few years and this conference may house most of the future superstars and all-stars.
Cleveland is the most obvious pick for first seed, and it requires no explanation. LeBron-led teams have gotten the top two seeds for how many years now? Five? Six? Nobody is going to stop this man unless one of the upper-echelon teams have a crazy historic year like Atlanta did. Cleveland has the craziest payroll on its roster since the Broken Brooklyn Nets but man are they deep when healthy. They are 32-3 with their “big three” healthy, so once again, LeBron continues his reign in the East. I wish I could type as much as I did for Golden State here but it’s simply not as interesting to think about.
The top teams outside of Cleveland, though? That’s interesting! You can pretty much switch 2-5. It’s quite hard to predict between Atlanta’s regression, Miami’s resurgence, Washington’s potential rise, and Chicago’s coaching change.
Washington is my surprise team of the East. John Wall is going to shoot to superstar status or at least borderline. He has had a crazy preseason averaging 10 assists. He’s coming off of an injury late in last season’s playoffs. It’s clear to me that this guy is totally stoked to do something this time around. What hold’s this team back is their coach’s offensive philosophy in shooting an excessive amount of two-pointers. For the past few years, this team has been known for taking the most long two-pointers because of their traditional big lineups. It was only during the playoffs did they attempt today’s era of the stretch four philosophy and shooting more threes. This changed continued in the preseason and Washington’s offense simply flourished.
If Wittman keeps this going, this team will reach new heights. They just need to offset the loss of Pierce at the small forward position. Can Porter do the job? I don’t see why not. He has the tools to be among the best at 3-and-D in this league for some time. Then you also have Bradley Beal who could potentially reach a new level as well. So, I just feel something in the air here. Wall and Beal will rival Curry and Thompson this time around. Well, not completely, but hey, they’re in the East.
Miami is back with vengeance… or not?
This team potentially has the best starting line-up in the league from position to position. Dragic/Wade/Deng/Bosh/Whiteside? This team is likely better than yours at every position. They have a coach with a decent defensive philosophy and got some chemistry in. Their only issue is just keeping Wade healthy.
They got some mediocre guys who can play behind him, and Dragic can handle the ball just fine to let Wade rest on offense similar to how Lawson lets Harden rest. You might say this team struggled and missed the playoffs around last Spring but many people forget how important Bosh is to any team with slashers and shooters. Bosh as well as McRoberts were their only big men who could space the floor. If at least Bosh is healthy, it changes the entire dynamic of this team. Wade might actually improve in efficiency if he has guys to pass it to. Shocker!
Also, if I recall correctly, this team started out hot last regular season and fell off the face of the Earth as soon as Bosh sat out. Whoever that team was, I predict that team to be here. They can definitely go as high as a 2 seed, but due to Wade only averaging about 60 games a season the past few years and being almost on the wrong side of 30, I have to be slightly modest with them. Don’t sleep on them, however. They have the best chance in ending Cleveland since Chicago is figuring out whatever they’re trying to do first.
Atlanta’s regression is so hard to pin down. It’s so clear to me that last season was more likely a historical anomaly than an average. Too many players had career numbers. Most of these players have peaked, so a regression is simply likely. The question is, how steep is the fall?
I don’t think they’re going to fall too much. While you can argue last year’s numbers were closer to a fluke than an average, they still have a system very similar to San Antonio. I think their regression will only push them down further due to the loss of Carroll, their best defensive swingman. Sefolosha can’t simply shoot worth a lick and anybody who utters Hardaway Jr.’s name in a serious contention for starting small forward should be ashamed.
It’s up to Teague and Schroder to expand their games in order to offset the loss. They can continue to keep this team in the upper-echelon. I predict that you get a little bit of both; their point guards improve but their forwards don’t. This puts them pretty much in the middle of the “Not Cleveland” pack of teams.
We also have to keep in mind that the eastern conference as a whole has improved. Cleveland has grown, Washington has grown, Miami gets Bosh back, etc. I can’t find one team in the top ten of this conference last year outside of Brooklyn I can point to and say they didn’t improve in some form, be it off-season moves or continuity. Thus, you have to expect Atlanta to have a year that… won’t be so great.
Just like Oklahoma City, Chicago is getting a new head coaching change! Fred Hoidberg! So far, their offense in the preseason has been more fluid, more shooting, more kick-outs and more drives. Then, what’s their only problem?
Their defense stunk.
Okay, it’s just preseason. They need time to come together with their new coach, right? I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t more afraid than I was optimistic for this team. Defense and energy have been their calling card for about five years now. Will they maintain that identity that got them so many wins for so long? Will an improved offense be enough to not only make them better, but keep them afloat in this conference? I say… barely. There is too much talent on this team even outside of Derrick Rose and Jimmy Buckets for them to be bottom half material, but the conference has just improved too much for me to guarantee them top status.
They have the most talented frontcourt in the league, and suffering from the first world problems of having too much of it. They’re going to trade for something, and process of elimination would say Taj Gibson is the odd man out in this one.
Whatever happens to Chicago, whether it’s another Derrick Rose injury, fallen defense, blockbuster trade; I’m sure they’ll stay in the playoff chase. Their range is just very wide. I don’t know what Hoidberg is simply going to do with this team; especially its frontcourt. His decision on that end will definitely decide where this team ends up.
Quite frankly, I don’t know where to put Toronto. Nor do I really care. All I really know is that I have to put them somewhere. They’re going to be closer to eight than two… that much I can say.
Lowry is on a mission just like Wall. He stunk and got embarrassed last spring. He took it to heart and lost some weight over the off-season. Now he’s putting up numbers in the preseason. Will it be enough?
His surrounding cast echoes, “No.”
DeRozan is overrated to me. He has one more year to prove he’s even an all-star (statistically) since its his contract-year. He’s the only player who scores at least 20 points per game and has some of the most horrendous field goal percentages. He’s a high-volume shooter with no efficiency to back it up. Dude’s trash.
They lost Amir Johnson who was the backbone of their defense, and Valanciunas doesn’t seem up to the task in defending the rim anytime soon. While they improve in perimeter defense with Carroll, their frontcourt defense takes a huge hit. You might argue Biyombo is a decent guy but I doubt he could anchor anything back there on his own.
I honestly feel like Lowry, DeRozan and Valanciunas are the only ones who can take this team places. Their ceiling…? Let me just say that I don’t think this team can even get home court advantage in next year’s playoffs. This team is good enough to make the playoffs through their guard play and continued chemistry, but it’ll be a fight for them to get decent positioning.
The last three teams can pretty much be anyone’s game of the following:Milwaukee, Boston, New York, Charlotte, Detroit, and Indiana. The order for any of these teams depends on small little things that go on in the eastern conference such as injuries, streaks, and trades. I simply chose the teams with the most intangibles.
Milwaukee had a top five defense last year. Their offense struggled after the Brandon Knight trade, though. If Carter-Williams can become at least a steady, solid point guard in his third-year, this team can easily have home court advantage.
They have so many long defenders and can easily lock up most teams in the league. Jibari Parker is coming back to give them some more offensive boost as well and I haven’t even mentioned their biggest wildcard in all of this: Greg Monroe.
I don’t really know what to expect from this off-season upgrade. Can he really score with the best of them? Can he defend? … Does it matter if he can defend with that many long arms on the perimeter?
I think Milwaukee can keep their positioning in the playoffs just by having a top defense. Top defense is the best intangible you can have out of a group. While it does feel weird not to improve a team with actual additions to their roster, I feel like Monroe and Carter-Williams are going to go through some growing pains before they get settled into something.
Boston has the second best intangibles out of the list, and that intangible is their coach. Brad Stevens is amazing. Everybody loves working with him; I actually spoke with a scout not too long ago about him. He was a little more ecstatic than I expected about this man. It was as if he was talking about his rich-as-hell entrepreneur father.
But, it’s true! Stevens is statistically the best out-of-timeouts coach of last season. I think he can get these young guys to gel and play some solid top 15 defense; especially with their addition of Amir Johnson. Their offense will take care of itself. Isiah Thomas with any big man on that team is more than enough to keep them afloat.
This team might even surprise some people and become a middle pack eastern conference team, but I certainly see them a step above the East’s gutters.
Charlotte, your off-season wasn’t half bad. You got some length and scoring in Batum and Lin, respectively. Your draft pick was questionable but he’s turning out to be solid. You were on the cusps of being a middle pack team if Gilchrist didn’t get hurt. With him out most of the season… I can’t convince myself to get down with Buzz City. I really want to put these guys in, but it would take Lin and Kemba to play insane. Gilchrist was this team’s defense. Now, they’re no more than a bunch of players with terrible seasons last year. Hard to pick them. If Steven Clifford can embrace this pace-and-space offense with Kemba and Lin, they might be able to hold on for Gilchrist. I didn’t even mention Al Jefferson once in all of this, have I? Well, when you’re on the wrong side of 30 and have questionable defense, you’re not exactly a guy I want depend on in order to make the playoffs.
Detroit is an awesome dark horse, but I think they just need another year. Gundy is trying to create the next Dwight Howard in Drummond via four-out, one-in offense using Reggie Jackson at the point. This… might work. It requires Drummond to be as good as Dwight Howard (or at least half as good) on the defensive end.
I don’t think it’s going to come to him quickly. He has a lot of defensive issues to fix before he can take this team to the next level. They’ll come close. Also, whenever Jennings has to share with another ball dominant point guard, things don’t go too well. Just ask Monta Ellis.
Indiana was my original eight pick here, and Paul George is as good of an intangible as you can get. I mean, he’s a top ten player and it’s the eastern conference. Works for LeBron James, right? Heck, it’s almost the same scenario. Miami played LeBron at the four to take them to historic levels. Surely, we can find a similar effect with Paul George....
Well, problem here is frontcourt depth. I understand Vogel is changing with the times and going small ball with George at the four but that might take some adjusting especially considering he’s now just coming off of a major injury. This wouldn’t be so bad if they just had an above-average center that’s a threat to roll. George Hill is a great two-way player who can space the floor but every other perimeter player out there.. I don’t know. You see, what made Indiana good was Paul George being one of the best two-way swingman. Now the perimeter just feels… lacking defensively outside of Hill. Stuckey had a career year in shooting but how long do you expect that to last? All that really leaves now is Monta Ellis. Did he grow from Dallas? Can he share with point-guards as dominant or equally skilled offensively as him (and I’m using the phrase “offensively skilled” pretty generously)? Last time Ellis was in this conference, he made the eighth seed with Milwaukee. Now, he has a legit superstar and two-way point guard. If I could put an asterisk on this conference, it’d definitely go to Boston and Indiana.
Their success hinges on their best player getting back into shape, and adjusting incredibly well to this new style of offense. Our NBA is void of real big men, so it’s definitely possible. It’s just going to eventually tire him out over a long 82-game season, and Boston’s superior depth makes them more likely to sustain major injuries and make better mid-season trades. I would pick Indiana to go on a Paul-at-the-four offensive run if his surrounding cast had just a little bit more.
New York could rebound from their 17-win season last year, but when I look at their roster, my brain just says, “No.” Carmelo Anthony played spectacular before he was injured and they were still outside the playoff picture.
Their rookies aren’t really NBA-ready, and everybody else is mostly your average one-dimensional player. Then I think about the triangle offense with this group and just scratch my head.
They had a good off-season, but they carry zero intangibles. Not one. I can’t get myself to pick them, yet I still have to acknowledge the possibility. Derek Fisher is still an unproven entity, so I’m in a wait-and-see mode about this team’s future.
Am I forgetting some relevant teams to talk about? What is this Brooklyn you speak? If you’re not talking about Notorious B.I.G., I have no idea what you’re talking about.
Orlando is slowly growing. Not this year, though. Scott Skiles has to slowly implement his supposed system first. He’s generally be good with young guys all his career. Potentially, they could take that playoff step this year, but Oladipo has to become the man in Disney World. Getting Harris back is a good step for the future. I don’t know why Vucevic still has defensive issues but it might be time to search for a new frontcourt, because their guards and swingmen are hella nice. They just need to make that extra step defensively for me to count them in the above group.
And that’s it for the eastern conference! There’s plenty of unknown movement to talk about other than Lebron-led teams. That’s pretty much how it’s been the last few years. Only time will tell if this conference is finally ready to call itself a conference even comparable to the West.
(1) Cleveland Cavaliers
(2) Washington Wizards
(3) Miami Heat
(4) Atlanta Hawks
(5) Chicago Bulls
(6) Toronto Raptors
(7) Milwaukee Bucks
(8) Boston Celtics
So much has happened over the summer during the off-season. San Antonio quietly snatches the biggest free agent, banana emoticons drag DeAndre Jordan away from Dallas, and Porzingis might not even fuckin’ have a green card. Let’s get started with the western conference since it’s a bit easier to digest this time around.
“You’re being tricked. Rondo is hilarious. My relationship with Rondo is so good, if it gets better, I’d get scared.” – George Karl
“I guess I’m kind of consolation prize.” – Deron Williams
“We had Mavs gear shipped to DeAndre for the season. We picked out where he was going to sit on the team bus and plane. We picked out his No. 6 jersey. We narrowed down which home he would buy in Dallas, talked about restaurants here.” – Chandler Parsons
Let’s take it from the top. There’s very little reason Golden State should not be considered the favorite of not just the West, but the entire basketball association. Look at their last regular season numbers… do you see any fluke statistics there? A historic 67 regular season wins, 10 points differential, #2 in offensive efficiency and #1 in defensive efficiency. They’re going in healthy (aside from head coach Steve Kerr, of course) as the same exact team before sans David Lee and continue the same exact chemistry as last year. Why wouldn’t you have them as the favorite? Probably Lil’ B related.
The scary part is that Curry can actually get better. He’s only 27, and this is his first MVP-level season. There’s a good chance he, and others on this team such as Draymond Green and Klay Thompson, have yet to hit their peak. Thus, even with Steve Kerr sidelined, I have to give the top regular season record nod to the team I predicted with it exactly last year.
Oklahoma City gets my vote for second. If they’re healthy, very few can stop this team on a decent day. With new head coach Billy Donovan, their offense finally gets the variation it needed. You thought MVP Westbrook and Durant were unstoppable one-on-one? Just wait until the ball is actually moving. There have been some talks about Durant’s leg injury being so serious that he may not return to his old MVP form, but Durant was still pretty scary last year before he was sidelined for the season.
The real key to Oklahoma City returning to dominance will be their supporting cast, most notably Enes Kanter. If he can get his defense above please-kill-me-now-level, this team can maintain a top ten defense. I think it’ll be interesting to see how Donovan utilizes Westbrook within this new offense. Will he play off the ball with Augustin? Can he play off the ball? Will Dion Waiters not suck? This supporting cast for sure is nowhere near the supporting cast of old. There are too many one-dimensional players surrounding the stars. I mean, that’s what this team’s always been about in general but at least you had guys like Reggie Jackson running things when Westbrook and Durant sat down. With all due respect, DJ Augustine is no Reggie Jackson, so all it takes is a couple of injuries, Kanter stinking it up, and Dion Waters throwing up bricks a couple of games for this team to drop down a couple of spots; however, I choose them here because I feel like their new coach gives them a whole new level of freedom. They’re more likely to maintain incredible streaks and their only real question mark is depth.
Speaking of depth, Houston has it almost in every position if you include the injured Motiejunas. This team is going to have newfound freedom in offense too thanks to Lawson. What holds Houston back is their turnover-prone offense. You may be quick to point at Howard, the most turnover prone center since Kwame Brown, but Harden is actually high up there in turnovers as well. It has much to do with the simple fact that the team depends on him to score so much. When he has to guard someone competent on the other end, it takes away his efficiency. In his last game against Golden State in the playoffs, Harden had 13 turnovers. If you could get a second ball handler, Harden can rest on offense and save more of his energy for late-game shenanigans. Enter Lawson.
This team has all the reason to be the top of its division. I mean, once McHale figures out Howard is not a good back-to-the-basket center, who knows what they’re capable of! If you increase Harden’s efficiency and get some of their injured players back on the roster, this team could potentially jump to historic levels… but third seems to be the most likely result, Lil’ B willin’. They could easily of course be second or even first. In fact, my top three seeds are simply the top divisional teams respectively. I consider them in their own tier.
The next tier contains Los Angeles (not the Lakers you fanboys) and San Antonio. Los Angeles has some great depth at the swingman position finally since Caron Butler maybe? Paul Pierce, Lance Stephenson, and Wesley Johnson are wonderful to have over Barnes and.. I don’t want to insult the same guy who went to my high school but come on; Reggie Bullock wasn’t even bench material back then.
But… it’s still the Clippers. You have Hall of Fame point guard Chris Paul, on-the-rise power forward Blake Griffin, and potential Defensive Player of the Year DeAndre Jordan (okay, that’s stretching it but for sake of argument), and you mean to tell me they still can’t make it out of the second round? I guess Doc is going to give it one more shot, and this time, he wasn’t playing. He’s switching to a Thibodeau-esque defense which means Griffin, Jordan, and now Josh Smith aren’t going to be chasing guards around the perimeter anymore; they’re going to stay in that paint and concede some long two-pointers. Griffin may have an increase in blocks.
If they can integrate Stephenson into this team as a second ball handler to Chris Paul and an amazing perimeter defender who can also knock down threes, they could easily climb to top seed here. Why? Well, Pierce is old as the Wall of China, and he isn’t going to be playing 20+ minutes most nights. Johnson isn’t a forward you want to give major minutes too, so the remaining time has to go to Stephenson. If he can give you at least 30 minutes of decent stuff all over the floor, Los Angeles should be happy.
San Antonio had the best off-season around even though you could practically see them in any spot due to Popovich’s importance on health. Aldridge? Check. David West under a veteran’s minimum? Check. Keep Kawaiiiiii Leonard long-term? Check! So why do I think they’ll be below the supposed western conference gods? Two words: Tony Parker.
Parker’s had an off-year last year, and he didn’t fare much better in the European league. He had no time to rest and he’s 33-years-old… I think it’s time for San Antonio fans to finally admit that this guy is likely entering a decline. Parker’s been keeping this team in the upper-echelon of the western conference for the past few years, but once that motor of his goes down as well as Ginobili’s, the guard rotation is going to get some inconsistency. It is up to San Antonio’s younger, supporting cast to help alleviate these shortcomings. I’m looking at you, Green and Leonard. These two guys are part of the new San Antonio Big Three... in the future.
The only other concern about this team is Aldridge’s ability to man the paint. They lost Splitter, so that means the only defensive-minded big-man on the roster is Duncan. Aldridge is going to have to learn how to protect the paint which he isn’t exactly known for in his career. It’s necessary if San Antonio wants to contend.
Overall, if Parker can give us one more year, that’d be fine. It doesn’t even have to be MVParker. Just one above-average year in efficiency, and San Antonio just might take it one more time… and Old Man Riverwalk can retire in peace…
It’s hard to make an argument for New Orleans to make a big jump in this conference without a huge revamp in their roster and many injury-prone guards. Alvin Gentry is a great pickup in itself but they’re not going to be world-beaters just yet. They do have the luxury of owning the current most efficient player in recent years but until everyone stays healthy and build some healthy chemistry, they’re going to stay right around where they are. The only way this team makes major jumps is if Gentry figures out the most efficient way possible to space to floor while having Davis wreak havoc on his match-up. That actually might be enough for them!
Making the playoffs a consecutive season would still be an accomplishment no matter the seed, so as long as Davis continues to improve and get better. Build some chemistry, a trustworthy offense, and develop this young player into a capable star, because nowhere down the line do I ever picture Jrue Holidae and Eric Gordon being starters for a championship team.
Memphis didn’t seem to want to make much of a change themselves. Although Gasol’s improved efficiency was a wonderful surprise last year, their three-point shooter has been near the bottom half of the league for some time now. It’s hard to win in today’s league without some form of decent three-point shooting to space the floor, and Memphis’ old school style of beating you up in the paint through a close single-digit win simply won’t cut it anymore. You’ve got to find a way to get easy buckets. Every year it’s the same thing. They signed Mike Miller one year but even him alone wasn’t enough.
Their single significant off-season addition was Matt Barnes. Matt Barnes? Who the fuck is Matt Barnes? The most times Matt Barnes’ name has been mentioned in the past few years are when he wants to fucking destroy Derek Fisher. He is no more than another aging 3-and-D dud.
And the final spot in the western conference goes to… not Dallas¸ but Utah.
Utah actually has the best chance to be the new playoff team in the scene. They ended the second half of the regular season maintaining a top ten defense… a defense that coincidentally improved the moment Kanter left (I’m starting to regret my Oklahoma City pick already). Gordon Hayward is slowly becoming into an all-around amazing offensive player. Rudy Gobert has emerged as an elite defensive big man. They developed some decent chemistry throughout the years. The spot is theirs for the taking.
But why not Dallas? I’ll tell you why… Dirk gets another year older and another second slower on defense. Tyson Chandler is replaced by Pachulia. Deron Williams is on that team. The same Deron Williams who was paid big money to leave Broken Brooklyn Nets.
Their swingmen are coming off from serious injuries. We don’t even know what the fuck Parsons is suffering from. They didn’t even disclose much on his end, but most people who come back from Achilles-related injuries tend to take significant time returning to form.
Monta Ellis was a big help to this team in terms of slashing from the perimeter. Barea and Harris are nice but they’re not as fearless or quick. The only way Dallas makes the playoffs is if Deron Williams is Deron Williams of old and that possibility is like, 0.00000000000001%. I don't see too many other redeeming qualities about this team. Their thin frontcourt wouldn't be as blatant bad if their backcourt was just.. decent on some level.
What other teams could possibly scratch themselves in the 8th spot?
We say this every year about Sacramento. They’re going to finally do it! They’re going to play above .500 and be the playoff team we envisioned! Until their ownership fucks it all up and hits the reset button once again. Their front office and head coaching position has been a rotating door for some time, so they have no foundation of culture or standards to stand on. Their only common denominator is Boogie and they almost lost that.
Now you add in Rajon Rondo who hasn’t done shit in this league since I’ve had a girlfriend and Karl who already reportedly wanted to trade Cousins. This team is just… it’s just not ready. Playing .500 basketball would be a moral victory for this team.
Phoenix is an interesting choice since they’ve been fighting for it the last two years but I feel like they got Chandler too little too late. They have some good guard play in Bledsoe and Knight, but I just don’t see it. One of those two guys I just mentioned would have to hit a new ceiling for this team to take off seriously. The Morris brothers’ trade will have an interesting ending, but with that much drama going on about it, they may not get much from Marcus Morris. Other than the aforementioned, this roster is mostly made of young guys developing themselves.
One more team to talk about; no, I don’t actually think they’re anywhere close to the playoffs, but this team has so many fraud fans that you have to talk about them even when they’re complete shit. Los Angeles Lakers are trash and will be trash for a while, but the good news is that their core has so much potential. Randle could turn into a pretty great offensive threat, and Clarkson is a pretty smart dude. Russel needs a few years to learn what kind of shots to take but these three dudes are your next big three talents in Lakerland. Kobe is going to go out hard but unfortunately, his team goes out on a whimper. Kobe Bryant, Nick Young, Lou Williams, and Roy Hibbert attempting to share the ball on one team while you actually have decent youngsters in need of development sounds like adding Tabasco sauce and Texas Pete in a Spicy Tostada: not a literal explosion but only figuratively inside your mouth at such a point where you question why you combined all this stupid shit together in the first place. Hibbert will improve the defense a couple of levels but he remains to be a liability in many other ways. Their offense… will be, uh, interesting to watch.
The western conference will mostly remain the same. You can see the upper-echelon shuffling around a little bit due to injury, game-winning shots, or even trades, but as far as who’s making it? I pretty much took the teams with the failed off-season, a crowned king getting their stars back, and added the best upcoming prospect.
(1) Golden State Warriors
(2) Oklahoma City Thunder
(3) Houston Rockets
(4) Los Angeles Clippers
(5) San Antonio Spurs
(6) New Orleans Pelicans
(7) Memphis Grizzlies
(8) Utah Jazz
“‘Josh Smith for 3’ is a sentence we shouldn’t ever hear in our lives.” – Charles Barkley
“I can imagine Coach Scott calling both in and saying ‘I can only keep one of you.’ Metta simply turns and stares at Jabari until Jabari leaves the room.” – houseQM
“It’s disgusting … he’s still in denial … he will pay for the blatant disrespect and no honor to the originator. All he has to do is show love. Harden has gone too far this time. #DontAngerTheBasedGod” – Lil’ B
Ho’boy, the eastern conference. It’s still a bit of a mess. Good news? This conference is steadily getting better I feel. Give it a few years and this conference may house most of the future superstars and all-stars.
Cleveland is the most obvious pick for first seed, and it requires no explanation. LeBron-led teams have gotten the top two seeds for how many years now? Five? Six? Nobody is going to stop this man unless one of the upper-echelon teams have a crazy historic year like Atlanta did. Cleveland has the craziest payroll on its roster since the Broken Brooklyn Nets but man are they deep when healthy. They are 32-3 with their “big three” healthy, so once again, LeBron continues his reign in the East. I wish I could type as much as I did for Golden State here but it’s simply not as interesting to think about.
The top teams outside of Cleveland, though? That’s interesting! You can pretty much switch 2-5. It’s quite hard to predict between Atlanta’s regression, Miami’s resurgence, Washington’s potential rise, and Chicago’s coaching change.
Washington is my surprise team of the East. John Wall is going to shoot to superstar status or at least borderline. He has had a crazy preseason averaging 10 assists. He’s coming off of an injury late in last season’s playoffs. It’s clear to me that this guy is totally stoked to do something this time around. What hold’s this team back is their coach’s offensive philosophy in shooting an excessive amount of two-pointers. For the past few years, this team has been known for taking the most long two-pointers because of their traditional big lineups. It was only during the playoffs did they attempt today’s era of the stretch four philosophy and shooting more threes. This changed continued in the preseason and Washington’s offense simply flourished.
If Wittman keeps this going, this team will reach new heights. They just need to offset the loss of Pierce at the small forward position. Can Porter do the job? I don’t see why not. He has the tools to be among the best at 3-and-D in this league for some time. Then you also have Bradley Beal who could potentially reach a new level as well. So, I just feel something in the air here. Wall and Beal will rival Curry and Thompson this time around. Well, not completely, but hey, they’re in the East.
Miami is back with vengeance… or not?
This team potentially has the best starting line-up in the league from position to position. Dragic/Wade/Deng/Bosh/Whiteside? This team is likely better than yours at every position. They have a coach with a decent defensive philosophy and got some chemistry in. Their only issue is just keeping Wade healthy.
They got some mediocre guys who can play behind him, and Dragic can handle the ball just fine to let Wade rest on offense similar to how Lawson lets Harden rest. You might say this team struggled and missed the playoffs around last Spring but many people forget how important Bosh is to any team with slashers and shooters. Bosh as well as McRoberts were their only big men who could space the floor. If at least Bosh is healthy, it changes the entire dynamic of this team. Wade might actually improve in efficiency if he has guys to pass it to. Shocker!
Also, if I recall correctly, this team started out hot last regular season and fell off the face of the Earth as soon as Bosh sat out. Whoever that team was, I predict that team to be here. They can definitely go as high as a 2 seed, but due to Wade only averaging about 60 games a season the past few years and being almost on the wrong side of 30, I have to be slightly modest with them. Don’t sleep on them, however. They have the best chance in ending Cleveland since Chicago is figuring out whatever they’re trying to do first.
Atlanta’s regression is so hard to pin down. It’s so clear to me that last season was more likely a historical anomaly than an average. Too many players had career numbers. Most of these players have peaked, so a regression is simply likely. The question is, how steep is the fall?
I don’t think they’re going to fall too much. While you can argue last year’s numbers were closer to a fluke than an average, they still have a system very similar to San Antonio. I think their regression will only push them down further due to the loss of Carroll, their best defensive swingman. Sefolosha can’t simply shoot worth a lick and anybody who utters Hardaway Jr.’s name in a serious contention for starting small forward should be ashamed.
It’s up to Teague and Schroder to expand their games in order to offset the loss. They can continue to keep this team in the upper-echelon. I predict that you get a little bit of both; their point guards improve but their forwards don’t. This puts them pretty much in the middle of the “Not Cleveland” pack of teams.
We also have to keep in mind that the eastern conference as a whole has improved. Cleveland has grown, Washington has grown, Miami gets Bosh back, etc. I can’t find one team in the top ten of this conference last year outside of Brooklyn I can point to and say they didn’t improve in some form, be it off-season moves or continuity. Thus, you have to expect Atlanta to have a year that… won’t be so great.
Just like Oklahoma City, Chicago is getting a new head coaching change! Fred Hoidberg! So far, their offense in the preseason has been more fluid, more shooting, more kick-outs and more drives. Then, what’s their only problem?
Their defense stunk.
Okay, it’s just preseason. They need time to come together with their new coach, right? I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t more afraid than I was optimistic for this team. Defense and energy have been their calling card for about five years now. Will they maintain that identity that got them so many wins for so long? Will an improved offense be enough to not only make them better, but keep them afloat in this conference? I say… barely. There is too much talent on this team even outside of Derrick Rose and Jimmy Buckets for them to be bottom half material, but the conference has just improved too much for me to guarantee them top status.
They have the most talented frontcourt in the league, and suffering from the first world problems of having too much of it. They’re going to trade for something, and process of elimination would say Taj Gibson is the odd man out in this one.
Whatever happens to Chicago, whether it’s another Derrick Rose injury, fallen defense, blockbuster trade; I’m sure they’ll stay in the playoff chase. Their range is just very wide. I don’t know what Hoidberg is simply going to do with this team; especially its frontcourt. His decision on that end will definitely decide where this team ends up.
Quite frankly, I don’t know where to put Toronto. Nor do I really care. All I really know is that I have to put them somewhere. They’re going to be closer to eight than two… that much I can say.
Lowry is on a mission just like Wall. He stunk and got embarrassed last spring. He took it to heart and lost some weight over the off-season. Now he’s putting up numbers in the preseason. Will it be enough?
His surrounding cast echoes, “No.”
DeRozan is overrated to me. He has one more year to prove he’s even an all-star (statistically) since its his contract-year. He’s the only player who scores at least 20 points per game and has some of the most horrendous field goal percentages. He’s a high-volume shooter with no efficiency to back it up. Dude’s trash.
They lost Amir Johnson who was the backbone of their defense, and Valanciunas doesn’t seem up to the task in defending the rim anytime soon. While they improve in perimeter defense with Carroll, their frontcourt defense takes a huge hit. You might argue Biyombo is a decent guy but I doubt he could anchor anything back there on his own.
I honestly feel like Lowry, DeRozan and Valanciunas are the only ones who can take this team places. Their ceiling…? Let me just say that I don’t think this team can even get home court advantage in next year’s playoffs. This team is good enough to make the playoffs through their guard play and continued chemistry, but it’ll be a fight for them to get decent positioning.
The last three teams can pretty much be anyone’s game of the following:Milwaukee, Boston, New York, Charlotte, Detroit, and Indiana. The order for any of these teams depends on small little things that go on in the eastern conference such as injuries, streaks, and trades. I simply chose the teams with the most intangibles.
Milwaukee had a top five defense last year. Their offense struggled after the Brandon Knight trade, though. If Carter-Williams can become at least a steady, solid point guard in his third-year, this team can easily have home court advantage.
They have so many long defenders and can easily lock up most teams in the league. Jibari Parker is coming back to give them some more offensive boost as well and I haven’t even mentioned their biggest wildcard in all of this: Greg Monroe.
I don’t really know what to expect from this off-season upgrade. Can he really score with the best of them? Can he defend? … Does it matter if he can defend with that many long arms on the perimeter?
I think Milwaukee can keep their positioning in the playoffs just by having a top defense. Top defense is the best intangible you can have out of a group. While it does feel weird not to improve a team with actual additions to their roster, I feel like Monroe and Carter-Williams are going to go through some growing pains before they get settled into something.
Boston has the second best intangibles out of the list, and that intangible is their coach. Brad Stevens is amazing. Everybody loves working with him; I actually spoke with a scout not too long ago about him. He was a little more ecstatic than I expected about this man. It was as if he was talking about his rich-as-hell entrepreneur father.
But, it’s true! Stevens is statistically the best out-of-timeouts coach of last season. I think he can get these young guys to gel and play some solid top 15 defense; especially with their addition of Amir Johnson. Their offense will take care of itself. Isiah Thomas with any big man on that team is more than enough to keep them afloat.
This team might even surprise some people and become a middle pack eastern conference team, but I certainly see them a step above the East’s gutters.
Charlotte, your off-season wasn’t half bad. You got some length and scoring in Batum and Lin, respectively. Your draft pick was questionable but he’s turning out to be solid. You were on the cusps of being a middle pack team if Gilchrist didn’t get hurt. With him out most of the season… I can’t convince myself to get down with Buzz City. I really want to put these guys in, but it would take Lin and Kemba to play insane. Gilchrist was this team’s defense. Now, they’re no more than a bunch of players with terrible seasons last year. Hard to pick them. If Steven Clifford can embrace this pace-and-space offense with Kemba and Lin, they might be able to hold on for Gilchrist. I didn’t even mention Al Jefferson once in all of this, have I? Well, when you’re on the wrong side of 30 and have questionable defense, you’re not exactly a guy I want depend on in order to make the playoffs.
Detroit is an awesome dark horse, but I think they just need another year. Gundy is trying to create the next Dwight Howard in Drummond via four-out, one-in offense using Reggie Jackson at the point. This… might work. It requires Drummond to be as good as Dwight Howard (or at least half as good) on the defensive end.
I don’t think it’s going to come to him quickly. He has a lot of defensive issues to fix before he can take this team to the next level. They’ll come close. Also, whenever Jennings has to share with another ball dominant point guard, things don’t go too well. Just ask Monta Ellis.
Indiana was my original eight pick here, and Paul George is as good of an intangible as you can get. I mean, he’s a top ten player and it’s the eastern conference. Works for LeBron James, right? Heck, it’s almost the same scenario. Miami played LeBron at the four to take them to historic levels. Surely, we can find a similar effect with Paul George....
Well, problem here is frontcourt depth. I understand Vogel is changing with the times and going small ball with George at the four but that might take some adjusting especially considering he’s now just coming off of a major injury. This wouldn’t be so bad if they just had an above-average center that’s a threat to roll. George Hill is a great two-way player who can space the floor but every other perimeter player out there.. I don’t know. You see, what made Indiana good was Paul George being one of the best two-way swingman. Now the perimeter just feels… lacking defensively outside of Hill. Stuckey had a career year in shooting but how long do you expect that to last? All that really leaves now is Monta Ellis. Did he grow from Dallas? Can he share with point-guards as dominant or equally skilled offensively as him (and I’m using the phrase “offensively skilled” pretty generously)? Last time Ellis was in this conference, he made the eighth seed with Milwaukee. Now, he has a legit superstar and two-way point guard. If I could put an asterisk on this conference, it’d definitely go to Boston and Indiana.
Their success hinges on their best player getting back into shape, and adjusting incredibly well to this new style of offense. Our NBA is void of real big men, so it’s definitely possible. It’s just going to eventually tire him out over a long 82-game season, and Boston’s superior depth makes them more likely to sustain major injuries and make better mid-season trades. I would pick Indiana to go on a Paul-at-the-four offensive run if his surrounding cast had just a little bit more.
New York could rebound from their 17-win season last year, but when I look at their roster, my brain just says, “No.” Carmelo Anthony played spectacular before he was injured and they were still outside the playoff picture.
Their rookies aren’t really NBA-ready, and everybody else is mostly your average one-dimensional player. Then I think about the triangle offense with this group and just scratch my head.
They had a good off-season, but they carry zero intangibles. Not one. I can’t get myself to pick them, yet I still have to acknowledge the possibility. Derek Fisher is still an unproven entity, so I’m in a wait-and-see mode about this team’s future.
Am I forgetting some relevant teams to talk about? What is this Brooklyn you speak? If you’re not talking about Notorious B.I.G., I have no idea what you’re talking about.
Orlando is slowly growing. Not this year, though. Scott Skiles has to slowly implement his supposed system first. He’s generally be good with young guys all his career. Potentially, they could take that playoff step this year, but Oladipo has to become the man in Disney World. Getting Harris back is a good step for the future. I don’t know why Vucevic still has defensive issues but it might be time to search for a new frontcourt, because their guards and swingmen are hella nice. They just need to make that extra step defensively for me to count them in the above group.
And that’s it for the eastern conference! There’s plenty of unknown movement to talk about other than Lebron-led teams. That’s pretty much how it’s been the last few years. Only time will tell if this conference is finally ready to call itself a conference even comparable to the West.
(1) Cleveland Cavaliers
(2) Washington Wizards
(3) Miami Heat
(4) Atlanta Hawks
(5) Chicago Bulls
(6) Toronto Raptors
(7) Milwaukee Bucks
(8) Boston Celtics
edit: if someone wants to show me how spoilers worked here again I'd be more than happy to prevent this wall of text from those who don't care for it this year.
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Its [ hide ] and [ /hide ] (without the spaces) instead of the word spoilers
The most important thing for the bucks is stretching the floor better and improving offensively, especially Carter-Williams.
I know I'm posting predictions during games but predictions:
(1) Chicago Bulls
(2) Cleveland Cavaliers
(3) Miami Heat
(4) Atlanta Hawks
(5) Washington Wizards
(6) Toronto Raptors
(7) Boston Celtics
(8) Milwaukee Bucks / Indiana Pacers
(1) Oklahoma City Thunder
(2) Golden State Warriors
(3) Los Angeles Clippers
(4) San Antonio Spurs
(5) Houston Rockets
(6) Memphis Grizzlies
(7) New Orleans Pelicans
(8) Portland Trail Blazers
(1) Chicago Bulls
(2) Cleveland Cavaliers
(3) Miami Heat
(4) Atlanta Hawks
(5) Washington Wizards
(6) Toronto Raptors
(7) Boston Celtics
(8) Milwaukee Bucks / Indiana Pacers
(1) Oklahoma City Thunder
(2) Golden State Warriors
(3) Los Angeles Clippers
(4) San Antonio Spurs
(5) Houston Rockets
(6) Memphis Grizzlies
(7) New Orleans Pelicans
(8) Portland Trail Blazers
*looks at Chicago's defense*
Welp.
Welp.
PAU PAU PAU
Unlucky Desperado
Banned deucer.
(1) Cleveland Cavaliers
(2) Miami Heat
(3) Chicago Bulls
(4) Atlanta Hawks
(5) Washington Wizards
(6) Toronto Raptors
(7) Milwaukee Bucks
(8) Indiana Pacers
(1) Golden State Warriors
(2) San Antonio Spurs
(3) Oklahoma City Thunder
(4) Los Angeles Clippers
(5) Houston Rockets
(6) New Orleans Pelicans
(7) Utah Jazz
(8) Memphis Grizzlies
i think this year the East finally have an actual playoff battle in the lower seeds where the teams arent just shitty teams fighting for a higher draft pick or what little respect they have. Maybe soon the east can reach the competitiveness of the west?
(2) Miami Heat
(3) Chicago Bulls
(4) Atlanta Hawks
(5) Washington Wizards
(6) Toronto Raptors
(7) Milwaukee Bucks
(8) Indiana Pacers
(1) Golden State Warriors
(2) San Antonio Spurs
(3) Oklahoma City Thunder
(4) Los Angeles Clippers
(5) Houston Rockets
(6) New Orleans Pelicans
(7) Utah Jazz
(8) Memphis Grizzlies
i think this year the East finally have an actual playoff battle in the lower seeds where the teams arent just shitty teams fighting for a higher draft pick or what little respect they have. Maybe soon the east can reach the competitiveness of the west?
You're sleeping on Indiana. I think they're definitely a playoff team but the question is what seed(I am an Indiana fan but they do have a ton of talent and I doubt they'll be 2014 bad)
West Semis:
GSW
Spurs
OKC
Clippers
East Semis:
Cavs
DC
Bulls
Hawks
Indiana can be a good "surprise" in the run for the postseason, but Frank Vogel is soooooooo lame for my liking, so they won't go too far. He commits blunders like leaving an open lane with no defender in a final conference series game. Yeah, I'm talking about 2013 ECF Game 1
GSW
Spurs
OKC
Clippers
East Semis:
Cavs
DC
Bulls
Hawks
Indiana can be a good "surprise" in the run for the postseason, but Frank Vogel is soooooooo lame for my liking, so they won't go too far. He commits blunders like leaving an open lane with no defender in a final conference series game. Yeah, I'm talking about 2013 ECF Game 1
You have Kobe Bryant: a 20 season NBA Star, a man with 36 game winners in his career (and counting) and you have a bbq chicken guy on D against him. AND YOU, THE LAKERS' COACH CALL A PLAY WHICH HE INBOUNDS THE BALL. Jesus Christ, I really don't understand Byron Scott.
C.J. McCollum is savage
savage.
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