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Originally Posted by Rudemiester
Anybody just listen to David Stern body Collin Cowherd?
CliffNotes?
ââ 2012 NBA Finals ââ The King has been crowned; Heat win 2012 NBA Finals! Bron Finals MVP.
- Thread in 'Sports & Training' Thread starter Started by allen3xis,
- Start date
CliffNotes?
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Talent on teams
http://www.basketball-ref....com/teams/MIN/2009.html
That's very ugly, Kahn at least had the sense to trade Foye, and Miller for a top 5 pick.
But man its kind of scary that with the way things turned out health wise etc that they didn't have not one wing scorer, or even good scorer.
Straight up after reading this I want to feel sorry for Kobe. http://www.tmz.com/2011/1...t-kobe-divorce-step-dad/
That is crazy, I thought Kobe was on his way to eventually being the second ex player to own a team, but the divorce, combined with the Cali rules makes that damn near impossible.
I guess thats what happens when you get caught up in the idea of marriage, forgetting who you are and the environment you live in.
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Kris Humphries re-signs with the Nets for one year ~8 mil deal. I was hoping to hear Dwight news.
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Originally Posted by thapointguy
Kris Humphries re-signs with the Nets for one year ~8 mil deal. I was hoping to hear Dwight news.
naw dwight will be traded to the lakers near the deadline for bynum and trash
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Originally Posted by goukiteg
Originally Posted by Rudemiester
Anybody just listen to David Stern body Collin Cowherd?
CliffNotes?
http://espn.go.com/espnradio/play?id=7375802
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and like i said before (now that i've seen the highlights from last night), perkins out there looking spry!
dude messed around and had a reverse dunk.. wasn't until i read it somewhere, i didn't remember perkins dunking at all last year..
and nice to see aldrich turning out to be the type of player we were looking for when we drafted him
dude messed around and had a reverse dunk.. wasn't until i read it somewhere, i didn't remember perkins dunking at all last year..
and nice to see aldrich turning out to be the type of player we were looking for when we drafted him
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D
Deleted member 38182
Guest
Jimmer took a +$%%!%% dump on that ankle
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^ presti has reached christopher nolan status.. i no longer question any descisions
didn't think harden would turn out to be this player
didn't think harden would turn out to be this player
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I hate the Heat, but, my god... these jerseys are tough!
⢠The Heat are back in black. This design concept dates back to the spring of 2004, when the team handed out black-on-black T-shirts as promotional giveaways, which became a big hit among the fan base during the playoffs. Unlike the team's regular uniforms, this one uses old-style nylon dazzle fabric instead of the new-style mesh, so the black surface should really shimmer. The plan is for the team to wear it for six "big" or "important" home games, beginning with the game against the Lakers on Jan. 19.
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Eastern Conference predictions by Hollinger
*Waits for Knick fans to riot*
Spoiler [+]
East Forecast: Ranking worst to first
Life isn't fair, and neither is the distribution of talent in the Eastern Conference, where four teams hoard the A-list stars and leave the rest fighting for scraps. While I wrote the other day that the West standings likely will be very compressed this season, the East is just the opposite.
This conference has been split into extreme haves and have-nots each of the past four seasons, and it figures to be that way again. The NBA's two best projected records are in the East this season ... and so are the five worst. It's particularly ugly at the bottom, with early-stage rebuilding situations in five cities and a sixth team, New Jersey, teetering on the cusp of prosperity but potentially facing another bottom-to-top rebuild a year from now if its aspirations don't pan out.
Only a few upwardly mobile middle-class teams dot the landscape, and one of those (Orlando) might get kicked back downstairs. At least in terms of playoff contenders, it's become a more respectable neighborhood. Making the playoffs in the East will require winning half a team's games, and the top six seeds should all be genuinely good.
Here's how they stack up individually:
15. Charlotte Bobcats (13-53)
Michael Jordan has won seven championships (six as a player and a seventh when he gifted Tyson Chandler to the Mavs two summers ago), but Charlotte is currently the furthest in the league from a title. This is why Chad Ford and I ranked this team 30th every time we ran our Future Power Rankings -- the Bobcats' post-Larry Brown experience has left them with little cap space or young talent. This season, they'll bottom out before recovery starts.
The schedule will help them steal a few wins against tired opponents, but their talent deficit is daunting. Raw first-round pick Bismack Biyombo was stuck in Spain and missed most of training camp; nonetheless, he might be their starting center. Tyrus Thomas is probably the closest thing they have to a go-to guy, and wings Corey Maggette and Reggie Williams will put up numbers while allowing more. That's only if they can get in the lineup -- Williams is out for several weeks, and Maggette is permanently day-to-day. Keep an eye on shooting guard Gerald Henderson, however, who could evolve into a top-notch wing stopper.
At least the Cats know where they stand. They have two first-rounders in Biyombo andKemba Walker to start the rebuilding process, and they will be more than $20 million under next year's cap once they give amnesty to DeSagana Diop or Maggette (who was acquired before the lockout, remember). More importantly, the recent hiring of general manager Rich Cho should spare them the laughable cap mistakes they made when Jordan was trying to run things himself -- dumping Chandler's salary without actually saving any money being the most comical of the bunch.
Alas, the damage has already been done. This season will be ugly, and the timing is unfortunate. When the Bobcats made the playoffs two years ago, it seemed the team was just beginning to gain traction with the fan base in Charlotte. Now it is back to square one, hemorrhaging cash and hoping for some lottery magic this spring.
14. Cleveland Cavaliers (18-4
Well, it's better than a year ago. Slowly but surely, the Cavs are rebuilding their future and cleaning up their cap, and in two years, they might have a very good team.
This year's draft pick is the linchpin. He might not be LeBron What's-His-Name, but Kyrie Irving will be a very nice building block and the early favorite for the rookie of the year award. Fourth overall pick Tristan Thompson will combine with a returned-from-injury Anderson Varejao to contribute some energetic defense, rebounding and finishing in the frontcourt.
As expected, the Cavs gave amnesty to Baron Davis, cleaning up a messy guard situation and making their trade-deadline deal with the Clippers one of the best in NBA history. With no cap consequences to the deal, Cleveland essentially got the first pick in the draft for the cash difference between the salaries of Mo Williams and Jamario Moon and that of Davis.
Ramon Sessions, a vastly underrated offensive player but one whose defense has become indefensible, now backs up Irving and, one suspects, will often play alongside him in two-guard sets. There isn't really a true 2 on the roster, as Daniel Gibson and Manny Harris both are undersized, and that's likely to be a sore spot all season defensively.
At forward, the Cavs triggered a sweet deal before the lockout by trading J.J. Hickson to Sacramento for Omri Casspi and a first-round pick (albeit a heavily protected one), filling a gaping hole at the 3 and earning another asset for the future. At the other forward spot,Antawn Jamison will score 18 points a game and give up 27 until he's traded or bought out, which should be soon, given his advanced age, huge expiring contract and near-total indifference to stopping the opposition.
Overall, the Cavs have enough players now to give themselves a chance on most nights, but they're still going to lose a ton of games. Long term, the three keepers here are Irving, Thompson and Casspi, so those are the ones to watch.
13. Toronto Raptors (19-47)
Toronto has finally come to grips with reality. No longer are the Raps delusional about loading up on mediocre veterans with long-term deals, nor about winning games without bothering to play defense. With Toronto again last in defensive efficiency in 2010-11, the overmatched Jay Triano was finally shown the door. Replacing him is former Dallas zone defense maestro Dwane Casey, who now must upgrade one of the most pathetic defensive outfits in league annals.
Central to Casey's cause is center Andrea Bargnani, who is offensively gifted but remains one of the most clueless off-ball defenders in the game. He's mobile for his size, though, and the Raps might experiment with playing him at power forward periodically now that they have some genuine size. Don't be surprised if 7-footers Solomon Alabi and Aaron Grayget a fair amount of run.
Alas, they also have to clear minutes for Ed Davis, a revelation as a high-percentage finisher last season, but one who needs to add strength to battle NBA big men. Ditto forAmir Johnson, who quietly had a strong season in 2010-11 but, like his frontcourt mates, suffers from a lack of lower-body strength at the defensive end.
In fact, Toronto's frontcourt looks pretty darn good going forward. First-round pick Jonas Valanciunas won't be coming over this season, but at only 19 years of age, he ranks among the best players in Europe and looks like a star in the making. He and Davis could be a fearsome combo in five years; Bargnani, whatever you think of him, would make for a pretty potent sixth man in that arrangement.
On the wing, DeMar DeRozan flashed some star potential as a scorer, but the rest of his game lies dormant; he needs to pass the ball once in a while and play some defense. Small forward looms as a huge weakness, although the talented but ridiculously mistake-proneJames Johnson remains intriguing. And at the point, Jose Calderon is a flawless offensive operator and a traffic cone for opposing point guards.
Big picture, there are a lot of problems here beyond Casey's control -- team president Bryan Colangelo invested almost entirely in offensive players, so the result is again likely to be a decent offense paired with a hopeless defense. But if Casey can persuade his charges -- particularly Bargnani -- to compete and at least use their length as a deterrent, the Raptors' D should be less of an embarrassment.
12 (tie). Detroit Pistons (22-44)
The Pistons basically quit on John Kuester last season, especially at the defensive end; there was no reason a team with this roster should have finished 28th in defensive efficiency. Enter Lawrence Frank, who presumably will have his troops better prepared and better motivated. Not having Richard Hamilton around might actually help, clearing up a playing-time logjam on the wing and a volatile presence in the locker room.
There's more good news for the Pistons. They didn't make a single transaction last season while awaiting the team's sale; now that Tom Gores has taken over, they're diving back in and reshaping the roster for the future. The franchise has taken an interest in analytics for the first time, hiring StatsCube guru Ken Catanella from the league office and Charles Trask from Orlando, and its salary-cap mess finally shows signs of clearing. If the Pistons give amnesty to Ben Gordon in 2013, they'll fall about $20 million under the cap just as their kids are ready to blossom.
In the short term, however, Detroit faces all-too-familiar problems, the biggest being a glaring lack of star power. Their best player is either Rodney Stuckey or Greg Monroe, and there's a decent chance neither of the two will ever play in an All-Star Game.
Beyond that, the roster is lopsided. There's an overload of combo-forward types withTayshaun Prince, Jonas Jerebko, Austin Daye and Charlie Villanueva, although it's possible Prince will get some run at the 2 with Hamilton gone. Meanwhile, the only true interior players are the grizzled Ben Wallace and the rapidly declining (not to mention rapidly expanding) Jason Maxiell.
It's the same story in the backcourt. The Pistons are overloaded with tweener combo guards such as Stuckey, Will Bynum, rookie Brandon Knight and Gordon, but there is not a true point guard in the bunch and not a fearsome deep shooter, either.*
As a result, I have trouble seeing the Pistons winning much more than a third of their games. Perhaps they can surprise if Stuckey or Monroe breaks out, and certainly their depth will help them in the compressed schedule format. But even the "surprise" scenario leaves them well short of a playoff spot.
(* This is how far Gordon has fallen. Dude was awful last season.)
12 (tie). Washington Wizards (22-44)
The Wizards have a lot of young, talented players. Young, talented players who are professional and know how to play? Let me get back to you on that one.
This makes the Wizards a fascinating team to watch, because you'll see things you otherwise wouldn't in the NBA. For example, we're treated to amazing feats by the likes of JaVale McGee and John Wall, plays nobody else in basketball can make. Mixed in, however, will be all kinds of unexpected knucklehead moves that you'd rarely see from another pro team. Not surprisingly, these blunders usually sabotage the game for Washington.
In spite of themselves, the Wizards are slowly getting better. Wall in particular seems ready for a breakout after his rookie campaign was held back by injuries, and I've factored a borderline All-Star season into my projection. If so, that might also help Andray Blatche, who was miscast as a go-to guy but might thrive as a second option and pick-and-pop weapon. Meanwhile, years of high draft picks have given Washington a 10-deep base of young legs who will serve it well in this season's punishing schedule.
Nonetheless, it's hard to get too excited about this team until guys such as Blatche, McGee,Nick Young and Jordan Crawford figure out that a 20-point, 0-assist performance in which they give up 115 points doesn't constitute a "good" night. That's where veterans such asRashard Lewis and Mo Evans might pay their freight -- somebody needs to set the right example for these guys.
Long term, however, this is a team on the upswing. At some point, these kids will figure out how to play (probably), and when they do, they'll be dangerous. Meanwhile, the Wizards will have a trove of cap room if they give amnesty to Lewis next summer and a fairly desirable market as a lure. They're a have-not at the moment, but with the bad contracts off their books and several talented young players, they shouldn't be doormats for long.
10. New Jersey Nets (28-3
The Nets are the hardest team to project because of all the potential wild cards. While Kris Humphries finally signed, they still have a ton of cap room and might sign Andrei Kirilenko, too. Longer term, of course, the possibility of a trade for Dwight Howard teases.
For now, the Nets are a mishmash. Star guard Deron Williams has been playing in real games since October and should be in tip-top shape, andBrook Lopez looms as a secondary offensive weapon in the middle. That's a solid offensive foundation and certainly one that should improve on last season's 27th-place standing in offensive efficiency. If they indeed add Kirilenko to Anthony Morrow's shooting, Humphries' energy and a bench with some offensive options (Shawne Williams,Jordan Farmar, first-round pick Marshon Brooks), this should be a decent offensive team.
Defensively, the Nets are still short-handed. Lopez blocks shots but is ponderously slow and a comically poor rebounder for his size. The other bigs don't offer much on defense, either, and Morrow is a sieve on the wing. Williams' effort on D has also slackened the past two seasons. Of course, if they land Howard, all of that changes.
If they don't, the scenario is much worse. Williams is probably leaving after the season, and the Nets will effectively have given the Jazz Derrick Favors, Enes Kanter and a 2012 lottery pick for a year and a half of Deron Williams. So basically, they're heading into Brooklyn next year either riding atop a huge wave or smashed on the rocks beneath it.
In the meantime, they should be respectable in their final season in New Jersey. I priced in a re-signed Humphries and an added Kirilenko to this projection, but no Howard. That still leaves them short of the playoffs, but the folks in Jersey should be left with some decent memories.
9. Atlanta Hawks (33-33)
The Hawks won 44 games and made the second round of the playoffs in 2010-11, but that's misleading. They gave up more points than they scored in the regular season, went 10-17 after the All-Star break, lost one of the top sixth men in free agency and didn't do much to replace him, and will be without Kirk Hinrich for nearly half the season.
Pressed face-first against the luxury tax thanks to the bad contracts they lavished on Joe Johnson and Marvin Williams, the Hawks were left to fill in around the edges with veteran retreads such as Tracy McGrady and Vladimir Radmanovic. These weren't bad pickups for the price, but they don't offset losing Crawford and Hinrich.
On the plus side, Jeff Teague takes over at the point after breaking out as a slashing, scoring guard in last season's playoffs, and Al Horford and Josh Smith provide a solid foundation as a 24-year-old frontcourt. Smith, however, is frustrated and spent the offseason angling for a trade.
Atlanta's bench looms as a major weakness; past editions of this team weren't deep, either, but Crawford and Zaza Pachulia often gave them an advantage against opposing second units. I can't see that happening with the current group, especially with McGrady likely to be the backup point guard until Hinrich returns. (Pape Sy, who has been talked up for this spot, has no chance of keeping it beyond the second quarter of the first game.)
As a result, this is going to be a harder slog for the Hawks than they might think, especially with a schedule that does a short-benched team few favors. Unless they're blessed with outstanding health, they're in danger of falling out of the playoffs entirely. After three straight trips to the second round, that's going to be a jolt.
8. Milwaukee Bucks (34-32)
Last season, the Bucks were one of the best defensive teams in basketball, but it didn't matter because the offense was so awful -- they ranked dead last in offensive efficiency. They've tried some tweaking around the edges to fix that, sending out Corey Maggette for Stephen Jackson, adding Beno Udrih and Mike Dunleavy, and drafting Tobias Harris.
Nonetheless, the Bucks' biggest obstacle to the playoffs is simply this: They need Andrew Bogut and Brandon Jennings to play better. Bogut isn't really a go-to guy but plays that role for Milwaukee, and last season he was bothered enough by his surgically repaired elbow that he took a major step back statistically. Jennings, meanwhile, also seemed stuck after a very encouraging rookie season; while his jump shot gets most of the criticism, it's his inability to finish that's been the bigger problem.
Milwaukee also was wracked by injuries last season; on health alone, it should be a better team this season, especially if Drew Gooden comes back and stabilizes the power forward spot.
As for the help, Jackson is holding out with a nebulous back injury while he lobbies for a contract extension -- a strategy that will fail miserably unless former Warriors president Robert Rowell took a job with the Bucks and forgot to tell everyone.
But the Bucks hardly need Cap'n Jack. Milwaukee has vast reserves of depth -- so much so that it sent Keyon Dooling to Boston for a future draft pick -- and is well adapted to the grueling schedule this season. The starting five (Jennings-Jackson-Carlos Delfino-Gooden-Bogut) might not scare anybody, but as with the Nuggets out West, the Bucks go 12 deep with Shaun Livingston and Udrih in the backcourt, Dunleavy, Harris and Luc Richard Mbah a Moute on the wing, and Larry Sanders and Ersan Ilyasova up front.
All except Udrih can defend, and coach Scott Skiles will make sure they all do. They still won't be an offensive juggernaut, but they'll be better than last season and maintain a top-five defense. That combination should just squeak them back into the playoffs.
7. New York Knicks (35-31)
This might seem pessimistic in light of the hype coming from Gotham, but in the short term, I'm not sure the Knicks have dramatically improved. They've essentially traded Chauncey Billups for Tyson Chandler, which will help, but this is the wrong season to have a thin bench and brittle stars. Between Amare Stoudemire's knees and Chandler's toes, the Knicks are likely to feel the brunt of the schedule-makers' wrath.
Baron Davis, despite his weaknesses, will prove quite useful when he's able to play. Mike D'Antoni's system demands a point guard who can pass, and Davis can do that when he's not jacking up 3s with 20 on the shot clock. It's even more important given the Knicks' other high-profile moves -- they boast three of the best frontcourt finishers in the game, but nobody to get them the ball.
I factored half a season of Davis into my projection, figuring he will miss more than a quarter of the season with his current back injury and then some more with his next injury. When he's out, the Knicks have Toney Douglas running the point, which is less than ideal. While I like him as a player, he's a bad fit at the point in this system because he's blind as a bat.
Otherwise, the roster is a bit of a mess. Landry Fields and Iman Shumpert are nice prospects but aren't ready to be top-seven players on a contending team. Jared Jeffriesand Renaldo Balkman are the top two frontcourt reserves. Really. And at some point the Knicks will have to play Mike Bibby in a real game.
About the best thing New York has going for it is, well, New York. Players are lured by the city, and, as with the Lakers, the Knicks have a great shot at signing any decent veteran who shakes free during the season via buyout, waivers or departure from China. Better yet, the Knicks still have their $2.5 million "under-cap" exception lying around to use on such a player.
Nonetheless, I have trouble envisioning a high seed for this team. The Knicks get more dangerous once the playoffs begin. If their three frontcourt stars and Davis make it to May upright, they'll be a very difficult first-round out. Getting to that point is the problem.
6. Indiana Pacers (36-30)
On most levels, few teams are set up for the future better than the Pacers. They have a lot of young talent, $15 million in cap space and nary a bad contract, and they scored a rare small-market free-agent coup by luring David West from New Orleans.
However, they face the classic small-market conundrum: How do we snag a star if we don't win the lottery? While Plan A is hoping Dwight Howard develops a passion for corn, more realistically their hopes depend on an advantageous trade opportunity. They've set themselves up for that chance, but they still need the right deal to fall into their laps.
In the meantime, they'll hope Paul George can take a step toward addressing their star problem. The second-year pro won't be their best player this season, but he is an alluring prospect with his size and fluidity, and at 6-10, he combines with Danny Granger to give Indy the biggest wing combo in the league. In fact, long term, one suspects Granger will be traded for a guard to clear the decks for George at the 3.
Despite the absence of a star, Indy has built itself a nice, deep team that should be able to take advantage of tired opponents on the schedule. One gets the impression the Pacers aren't quite done in the backcourt -- the only real rotation-quality guards on the roster areDarren Collison and George Hill, and neither sees the floor well. A deft passer would be Indy's preference going forward, because its frontcourt can seriously fill it up. West, Granger, George, Tyler Hansbrough and Roy Hibbert all should average at or near a point every two minutes this season.
The good news is that getting good guards is generally easier than nabbing bigs; the more difficult problem has already been solved. The Pacers have a two-year window to convert some of that cap space into an A-lister before the kids start becoming restricted free agents and hammering away at their cap position, but they've put themselves in great shape. For now they're a merely interesting, one-and-done playoff team, but they're potentially much more.
5. Philadelphia 76ers (37-29)
The limited practice time before opening day is going to favor teams with continuity, and the Sixers have more of that than anybody. The likely nine-man playing rotation will be identical to last season's; the only major change is the mascot, which they've tentatively named "At Least It's Not A Hip-Hop Rabbit."
Philly also sports a fair number of young players who should play better this season, most notably point guard Jrue Holiday and wing Evan Turner. Putting the pieces together into coherent lineups gets a little tricky, however. Jodie Meeks is the only consistent long-range threat, inviting teams to pack the paint. Sixth man combo forward Thaddeus Young, while deadly effective in the right matchup, has to be spotted carefully; he can't guard big 4s and has struggled when asked to play the wing.
The Sixers proved shockingly good when they played small with Young at the 4 and Elton Brand at the 5 last season. They could go to that option more often this season, especially since small, young and fast is likely to be a winning strategy in this season's grind of a schedule. However, they built a top-heavy roster that's dangerously thin in the backcourt, and an injury to any of their guards would leave them in a precarious spot. Philly was very fortunate in that respect last season, gliding through 2010-11 virtually unscathed health-wise, but it can't count on similar fortune again.
Big picture, the immediate future is a bit brighter than the medium term, despite the club's youth. Philly might challenge for a top-four seed this season, depending on Dwight Howard's mood, but it's difficult to see how it will take the next step forward with this group. Coach Doug Collins' history is that he gets a big boost in Year 1, starts getting on everybody's nerves in Year 2 and completely self-combusts in Year 3, which presents a bad omen. A worse one is the Sixers' lack of stars and subpar cap situation. Unless Holiday becomes a big star -- possible, but not likely -- they'll be tugged back toward .500 by two giant anchor contracts (Brand and Andre Iguodala) that have left them with their hands tied financially.
4. Orlando Magic (40-26)
I know everyone is anxious to predict doom and gloom for the Magic, but let's keep in mind that before losing to Atlanta in the first round, they'd put together a very solid regular season. Orlando won 52 games in an accredited basketball conference and had the point differential of a 58-win team. The Magic ranked third in defensive efficiency thanks to the might of Dwight Howard, and they might be able to considerably improve the offense if sharpshooting forward Ryan Anderson gets more burn.
In fact, my initial projection for Orlando was even rosier. Despite all the overpaid averageness surrounding Howard, Orlando's ceiling remains very high because of Howard's dominance in the middle. If he plays all season in Orlando at last season's level, I could easily see this team pushing for a top-two seed in the East.
But there's the rub. Orlando's success depends on Howard being fully engaged and playing at an MVP level; if he's anything less than the second-best player in the league, the Magic's chances fall off a cliff. This, then, is a bit different from the celebrated 2007 example in which Kobe Bryant demanded a trade and then belatedly realized he had a really good team around him. In Orlando's case, Howard has a really good team almost entirely because of his own efforts. Anderson and Jameer Nelson are the only teammates who project to generate a player efficiency rating better than the league average.
So if Howard isn't 100 percent committed to the enterprise, the Magic's fortunes inevitably suffer. And right now, Vegas has "checked out" as a seven-point favorite over "dialed in." If Howard goes into Vince Carter-in-Toronto mode, the Magic will take a step backward.
While Howard talk will obliterate any other news trying to escape Orlando, three other players who bear watching are Anderson, Earl Clark and Daniel Orton. If Howard is going to experience a Kobe-esque revival of interest in staying, the development of those three youngsters would be the most likely cause. Anderson has definite breakout potential, but we aren't holding our breath on the other two.
Overall, this is a difficult projection -- we don't know how long Howard is staying or how motivated he'll be while he's here. I split the difference and projected the Magic with a full season of unmotivated Dwight. That's not unrealistic; in a vacuum, I'd say Orlando would be better off declining the current lame trade offers and crossing its fingers he'll re-sign. However, a lot of water can go under the bridge between now and the trade deadline.
3. Boston Celtics (43-23)
It's amusing that the same Celtics fans who wanted Jeff Green tarred and feathered last spring now think they're hosed because he's out for the season. It's a loss, but he's a backup small forward and they can do other things with their lineups to mostly cover his absence. As long as they can avoid playing Sasha Pavlovic in an actual game, they'll be fine.
The more worrying problem for Boston is the grueling nature of the schedule, which will be magnified for the Celtics because of their age and mediocre bench. The theft of Brandon Bass from Orlando should help, and I suspect they'll get a lot more from Jermaine O'Neal than they did last season. Still, this team tied for 17th in offensive efficiency in 2010-11 and should be mediocre again; Boston is counting on its defense being at or near the top of the league to keep it in contention.
Perhaps it will be, but the combination of age, schedule and coaching staff defections (Tom Thibodeau left two years ago and Lawrence Frank this past offseason) might cause some slippage. All of Boston's bench players are good defenders except offseason pickup Chris Wilcox, but the C's still will have great difficulty retaining their No. 2 ranking in defensive efficiency.
Here's one other bummer for Boston: There are no games before Christmas this year. Over the past four seasons, the Celtics were a ridiculous 94-14 (.870) before Santa's arrival and a much more pedestrian 140-80 (.636) afterward.
In the big picture, the Celtics shape up for this season as Mavericks East: They're a Tier B contender, but rather than ride their veterans slowly down the tubes, they've built around short-term contracts and given themselves an opportunity to completely reshape the roster after the season. Paul Pierce and Rajon Rondo are the only rotation players with contracts for next year, presuming Bass opts out, and Boston will have more than $20 million in cap space and two first-round picks next summer.
2. Chicago Bulls (48-1
Provided they can keep up last season's intensity through a sausage-grinder of a schedule, the Bulls are very likely the second-best team in basketball. Chicago led the NBA in defensive efficiency last season, thanks in equal parts to Tom Thibodeau's help-heavy schemes and a long, athletic rotation that defended the rim with gusto.
While the Bulls won a league-best 62 games, they finished just 12th in offensive efficiency and were shut down by Miami in the playoffs. This explains their quest to add more scoring. Chicago waived Keith Bogans and signed Richard Hamilton to provide scoring help for Derrick Rose; I'd argue Hamilton can help the Bulls' anemic second unit even more, depending on how they spot his minutes. Unfortunately, he's also higher-maintenance than Bogans, so the Bulls will need to manage that carefully to maintain the esprit de corps that fueled them through last season.
Aside from Rip, the big item in the Bulls' favor is continuity -- Chicago has the most intact roster this side of Philly, with Hamilton the only change. Several young players likely will improve, including Joakim Noah and reserve bigs Omer Asik and Taj Gibson. The latter combo presents an awesome defensive frontcourt with the second unit, but each is raw offensively. Rose comes off an MVP season, but the exciting part is that he's still getting better -- his free throw rate steadily escalated during 2010-11, while his long-range shooting and court vision are the next items on the list.
While continuity favors the Bulls, the schedule presents some challenges. Chicago is generally a deep team, but Thibodeau's instincts last season were to ride Rose and Luol Deng as long as humanly possible; do that with this season's schedule, and he'll break them. If he treads more carefully, the Bulls are heavy favorites to get back to the conference finals.
1. Miami Heat (52-14)
We don't know yet what LeBron James will do if he gets back to the Finals this season, and there is little he can do to mollify his critics between now and then.
Here's what we do know: James has a better chance of playing in June than any other player in the league. We already know Boston and Chicago had no answer for the Heat's stars last season, and it remains to be seen what the Western Conference could throw at him in a potential Finals matchup -- especially now that Dallas has reshaped its roster.
Thus, while I would take "the field" over the Heat to win the NBA title this season, I would take the Heat over any other single team. There simply is too much talent not to put them above the rest, especially since they're likely to have more help than last season.
The scary thing about last season's Heat was how heavily they had to rely on awful players. Between Mike Miller, Joel Anthony, Mike Bibby, Erick Dampier, Juwan Howard, Carlos Arroyo, Jerry Stackhouse and Dexter Pittman, Miami allocated 5,346 minutes to players who produced a PER less than 10 ... nearly matching the combined playing time for Wade and James.
That 5,346 figure should diminish considerably this season. Shane Battier's arrival and Miller's having operable thumbs should allow Miami's wing rotation to be far stronger, permitting more lineups in which James is playing either power forward or, in a frightening matchup situation, point guard.
In the backcourt, rookie Norris Cole should soak up the minutes taken by the Arroyos, Bibbys and Eddie Houses of last season, along with holdover Mario Chalmers. Unfortunately, Miami still lacks a point guard who can push the tempo and get James and Wade out in transition; the Heat had disappointingly few run-outs last season and ranked just 21st in pace factor.
And up front, Udonis Haslem returns after missing nearly all of last season. He'll often be playing as an undersized 5 next to Bosh or even James; while this isn't ideal, it's a big improvement on what they had a year ago.
Despite those upgrades, weaknesses remain. The Heat have only three players who project to have a PER better than the league average -- I'll let you guess which three. Their starting center, Anthony, was statistically one of the league's least effective players last season. Yes, he provides defense, but no player in basketball is more blatantly disregarded by opposing offenses.
And despite the bench upgrades, the depth situation remains fraught. For instance, Juwan Howard is the second big off the bench; I'm pretty sure he played with Bob Cousy. As a result, any injuries to one of the Big Three will quickly make this team very beatable. Plus, the grueling schedule puts teams with weaker benches at a disadvantage.
With all those caveats, Miami will be extremely difficult to beat in the playoffs, because there's more rest and the Superfriends can each play 40 minutes a game. With the drama quotient dramatically reduced this time around, I expect a more relaxed and comfortable Heat team than the one that pressed through early-season games a year ago. That team was already a heavy favorite, and with a better bench and unmatchable star power, this is again the team to beat. Whether James can deliver on that promise will have to wait until June.
Life isn't fair, and neither is the distribution of talent in the Eastern Conference, where four teams hoard the A-list stars and leave the rest fighting for scraps. While I wrote the other day that the West standings likely will be very compressed this season, the East is just the opposite.
This conference has been split into extreme haves and have-nots each of the past four seasons, and it figures to be that way again. The NBA's two best projected records are in the East this season ... and so are the five worst. It's particularly ugly at the bottom, with early-stage rebuilding situations in five cities and a sixth team, New Jersey, teetering on the cusp of prosperity but potentially facing another bottom-to-top rebuild a year from now if its aspirations don't pan out.
Only a few upwardly mobile middle-class teams dot the landscape, and one of those (Orlando) might get kicked back downstairs. At least in terms of playoff contenders, it's become a more respectable neighborhood. Making the playoffs in the East will require winning half a team's games, and the top six seeds should all be genuinely good.
Here's how they stack up individually:
15. Charlotte Bobcats (13-53)
Michael Jordan has won seven championships (six as a player and a seventh when he gifted Tyson Chandler to the Mavs two summers ago), but Charlotte is currently the furthest in the league from a title. This is why Chad Ford and I ranked this team 30th every time we ran our Future Power Rankings -- the Bobcats' post-Larry Brown experience has left them with little cap space or young talent. This season, they'll bottom out before recovery starts.
The schedule will help them steal a few wins against tired opponents, but their talent deficit is daunting. Raw first-round pick Bismack Biyombo was stuck in Spain and missed most of training camp; nonetheless, he might be their starting center. Tyrus Thomas is probably the closest thing they have to a go-to guy, and wings Corey Maggette and Reggie Williams will put up numbers while allowing more. That's only if they can get in the lineup -- Williams is out for several weeks, and Maggette is permanently day-to-day. Keep an eye on shooting guard Gerald Henderson, however, who could evolve into a top-notch wing stopper.
At least the Cats know where they stand. They have two first-rounders in Biyombo andKemba Walker to start the rebuilding process, and they will be more than $20 million under next year's cap once they give amnesty to DeSagana Diop or Maggette (who was acquired before the lockout, remember). More importantly, the recent hiring of general manager Rich Cho should spare them the laughable cap mistakes they made when Jordan was trying to run things himself -- dumping Chandler's salary without actually saving any money being the most comical of the bunch.
Alas, the damage has already been done. This season will be ugly, and the timing is unfortunate. When the Bobcats made the playoffs two years ago, it seemed the team was just beginning to gain traction with the fan base in Charlotte. Now it is back to square one, hemorrhaging cash and hoping for some lottery magic this spring.
14. Cleveland Cavaliers (18-4
Well, it's better than a year ago. Slowly but surely, the Cavs are rebuilding their future and cleaning up their cap, and in two years, they might have a very good team.
This year's draft pick is the linchpin. He might not be LeBron What's-His-Name, but Kyrie Irving will be a very nice building block and the early favorite for the rookie of the year award. Fourth overall pick Tristan Thompson will combine with a returned-from-injury Anderson Varejao to contribute some energetic defense, rebounding and finishing in the frontcourt.
As expected, the Cavs gave amnesty to Baron Davis, cleaning up a messy guard situation and making their trade-deadline deal with the Clippers one of the best in NBA history. With no cap consequences to the deal, Cleveland essentially got the first pick in the draft for the cash difference between the salaries of Mo Williams and Jamario Moon and that of Davis.
Ramon Sessions, a vastly underrated offensive player but one whose defense has become indefensible, now backs up Irving and, one suspects, will often play alongside him in two-guard sets. There isn't really a true 2 on the roster, as Daniel Gibson and Manny Harris both are undersized, and that's likely to be a sore spot all season defensively.
At forward, the Cavs triggered a sweet deal before the lockout by trading J.J. Hickson to Sacramento for Omri Casspi and a first-round pick (albeit a heavily protected one), filling a gaping hole at the 3 and earning another asset for the future. At the other forward spot,Antawn Jamison will score 18 points a game and give up 27 until he's traded or bought out, which should be soon, given his advanced age, huge expiring contract and near-total indifference to stopping the opposition.
Overall, the Cavs have enough players now to give themselves a chance on most nights, but they're still going to lose a ton of games. Long term, the three keepers here are Irving, Thompson and Casspi, so those are the ones to watch.
13. Toronto Raptors (19-47)
Toronto has finally come to grips with reality. No longer are the Raps delusional about loading up on mediocre veterans with long-term deals, nor about winning games without bothering to play defense. With Toronto again last in defensive efficiency in 2010-11, the overmatched Jay Triano was finally shown the door. Replacing him is former Dallas zone defense maestro Dwane Casey, who now must upgrade one of the most pathetic defensive outfits in league annals.
Central to Casey's cause is center Andrea Bargnani, who is offensively gifted but remains one of the most clueless off-ball defenders in the game. He's mobile for his size, though, and the Raps might experiment with playing him at power forward periodically now that they have some genuine size. Don't be surprised if 7-footers Solomon Alabi and Aaron Grayget a fair amount of run.
Alas, they also have to clear minutes for Ed Davis, a revelation as a high-percentage finisher last season, but one who needs to add strength to battle NBA big men. Ditto forAmir Johnson, who quietly had a strong season in 2010-11 but, like his frontcourt mates, suffers from a lack of lower-body strength at the defensive end.
In fact, Toronto's frontcourt looks pretty darn good going forward. First-round pick Jonas Valanciunas won't be coming over this season, but at only 19 years of age, he ranks among the best players in Europe and looks like a star in the making. He and Davis could be a fearsome combo in five years; Bargnani, whatever you think of him, would make for a pretty potent sixth man in that arrangement.
On the wing, DeMar DeRozan flashed some star potential as a scorer, but the rest of his game lies dormant; he needs to pass the ball once in a while and play some defense. Small forward looms as a huge weakness, although the talented but ridiculously mistake-proneJames Johnson remains intriguing. And at the point, Jose Calderon is a flawless offensive operator and a traffic cone for opposing point guards.
Big picture, there are a lot of problems here beyond Casey's control -- team president Bryan Colangelo invested almost entirely in offensive players, so the result is again likely to be a decent offense paired with a hopeless defense. But if Casey can persuade his charges -- particularly Bargnani -- to compete and at least use their length as a deterrent, the Raptors' D should be less of an embarrassment.
12 (tie). Detroit Pistons (22-44)
The Pistons basically quit on John Kuester last season, especially at the defensive end; there was no reason a team with this roster should have finished 28th in defensive efficiency. Enter Lawrence Frank, who presumably will have his troops better prepared and better motivated. Not having Richard Hamilton around might actually help, clearing up a playing-time logjam on the wing and a volatile presence in the locker room.
There's more good news for the Pistons. They didn't make a single transaction last season while awaiting the team's sale; now that Tom Gores has taken over, they're diving back in and reshaping the roster for the future. The franchise has taken an interest in analytics for the first time, hiring StatsCube guru Ken Catanella from the league office and Charles Trask from Orlando, and its salary-cap mess finally shows signs of clearing. If the Pistons give amnesty to Ben Gordon in 2013, they'll fall about $20 million under the cap just as their kids are ready to blossom.
In the short term, however, Detroit faces all-too-familiar problems, the biggest being a glaring lack of star power. Their best player is either Rodney Stuckey or Greg Monroe, and there's a decent chance neither of the two will ever play in an All-Star Game.
Beyond that, the roster is lopsided. There's an overload of combo-forward types withTayshaun Prince, Jonas Jerebko, Austin Daye and Charlie Villanueva, although it's possible Prince will get some run at the 2 with Hamilton gone. Meanwhile, the only true interior players are the grizzled Ben Wallace and the rapidly declining (not to mention rapidly expanding) Jason Maxiell.
It's the same story in the backcourt. The Pistons are overloaded with tweener combo guards such as Stuckey, Will Bynum, rookie Brandon Knight and Gordon, but there is not a true point guard in the bunch and not a fearsome deep shooter, either.*
As a result, I have trouble seeing the Pistons winning much more than a third of their games. Perhaps they can surprise if Stuckey or Monroe breaks out, and certainly their depth will help them in the compressed schedule format. But even the "surprise" scenario leaves them well short of a playoff spot.
(* This is how far Gordon has fallen. Dude was awful last season.)
12 (tie). Washington Wizards (22-44)
The Wizards have a lot of young, talented players. Young, talented players who are professional and know how to play? Let me get back to you on that one.
This makes the Wizards a fascinating team to watch, because you'll see things you otherwise wouldn't in the NBA. For example, we're treated to amazing feats by the likes of JaVale McGee and John Wall, plays nobody else in basketball can make. Mixed in, however, will be all kinds of unexpected knucklehead moves that you'd rarely see from another pro team. Not surprisingly, these blunders usually sabotage the game for Washington.
In spite of themselves, the Wizards are slowly getting better. Wall in particular seems ready for a breakout after his rookie campaign was held back by injuries, and I've factored a borderline All-Star season into my projection. If so, that might also help Andray Blatche, who was miscast as a go-to guy but might thrive as a second option and pick-and-pop weapon. Meanwhile, years of high draft picks have given Washington a 10-deep base of young legs who will serve it well in this season's punishing schedule.
Nonetheless, it's hard to get too excited about this team until guys such as Blatche, McGee,Nick Young and Jordan Crawford figure out that a 20-point, 0-assist performance in which they give up 115 points doesn't constitute a "good" night. That's where veterans such asRashard Lewis and Mo Evans might pay their freight -- somebody needs to set the right example for these guys.
Long term, however, this is a team on the upswing. At some point, these kids will figure out how to play (probably), and when they do, they'll be dangerous. Meanwhile, the Wizards will have a trove of cap room if they give amnesty to Lewis next summer and a fairly desirable market as a lure. They're a have-not at the moment, but with the bad contracts off their books and several talented young players, they shouldn't be doormats for long.
10. New Jersey Nets (28-3
The Nets are the hardest team to project because of all the potential wild cards. While Kris Humphries finally signed, they still have a ton of cap room and might sign Andrei Kirilenko, too. Longer term, of course, the possibility of a trade for Dwight Howard teases.
For now, the Nets are a mishmash. Star guard Deron Williams has been playing in real games since October and should be in tip-top shape, andBrook Lopez looms as a secondary offensive weapon in the middle. That's a solid offensive foundation and certainly one that should improve on last season's 27th-place standing in offensive efficiency. If they indeed add Kirilenko to Anthony Morrow's shooting, Humphries' energy and a bench with some offensive options (Shawne Williams,Jordan Farmar, first-round pick Marshon Brooks), this should be a decent offensive team.
Defensively, the Nets are still short-handed. Lopez blocks shots but is ponderously slow and a comically poor rebounder for his size. The other bigs don't offer much on defense, either, and Morrow is a sieve on the wing. Williams' effort on D has also slackened the past two seasons. Of course, if they land Howard, all of that changes.
If they don't, the scenario is much worse. Williams is probably leaving after the season, and the Nets will effectively have given the Jazz Derrick Favors, Enes Kanter and a 2012 lottery pick for a year and a half of Deron Williams. So basically, they're heading into Brooklyn next year either riding atop a huge wave or smashed on the rocks beneath it.
In the meantime, they should be respectable in their final season in New Jersey. I priced in a re-signed Humphries and an added Kirilenko to this projection, but no Howard. That still leaves them short of the playoffs, but the folks in Jersey should be left with some decent memories.
9. Atlanta Hawks (33-33)
The Hawks won 44 games and made the second round of the playoffs in 2010-11, but that's misleading. They gave up more points than they scored in the regular season, went 10-17 after the All-Star break, lost one of the top sixth men in free agency and didn't do much to replace him, and will be without Kirk Hinrich for nearly half the season.
Pressed face-first against the luxury tax thanks to the bad contracts they lavished on Joe Johnson and Marvin Williams, the Hawks were left to fill in around the edges with veteran retreads such as Tracy McGrady and Vladimir Radmanovic. These weren't bad pickups for the price, but they don't offset losing Crawford and Hinrich.
On the plus side, Jeff Teague takes over at the point after breaking out as a slashing, scoring guard in last season's playoffs, and Al Horford and Josh Smith provide a solid foundation as a 24-year-old frontcourt. Smith, however, is frustrated and spent the offseason angling for a trade.
Atlanta's bench looms as a major weakness; past editions of this team weren't deep, either, but Crawford and Zaza Pachulia often gave them an advantage against opposing second units. I can't see that happening with the current group, especially with McGrady likely to be the backup point guard until Hinrich returns. (Pape Sy, who has been talked up for this spot, has no chance of keeping it beyond the second quarter of the first game.)
As a result, this is going to be a harder slog for the Hawks than they might think, especially with a schedule that does a short-benched team few favors. Unless they're blessed with outstanding health, they're in danger of falling out of the playoffs entirely. After three straight trips to the second round, that's going to be a jolt.
8. Milwaukee Bucks (34-32)
Last season, the Bucks were one of the best defensive teams in basketball, but it didn't matter because the offense was so awful -- they ranked dead last in offensive efficiency. They've tried some tweaking around the edges to fix that, sending out Corey Maggette for Stephen Jackson, adding Beno Udrih and Mike Dunleavy, and drafting Tobias Harris.
Nonetheless, the Bucks' biggest obstacle to the playoffs is simply this: They need Andrew Bogut and Brandon Jennings to play better. Bogut isn't really a go-to guy but plays that role for Milwaukee, and last season he was bothered enough by his surgically repaired elbow that he took a major step back statistically. Jennings, meanwhile, also seemed stuck after a very encouraging rookie season; while his jump shot gets most of the criticism, it's his inability to finish that's been the bigger problem.
Milwaukee also was wracked by injuries last season; on health alone, it should be a better team this season, especially if Drew Gooden comes back and stabilizes the power forward spot.
As for the help, Jackson is holding out with a nebulous back injury while he lobbies for a contract extension -- a strategy that will fail miserably unless former Warriors president Robert Rowell took a job with the Bucks and forgot to tell everyone.
But the Bucks hardly need Cap'n Jack. Milwaukee has vast reserves of depth -- so much so that it sent Keyon Dooling to Boston for a future draft pick -- and is well adapted to the grueling schedule this season. The starting five (Jennings-Jackson-Carlos Delfino-Gooden-Bogut) might not scare anybody, but as with the Nuggets out West, the Bucks go 12 deep with Shaun Livingston and Udrih in the backcourt, Dunleavy, Harris and Luc Richard Mbah a Moute on the wing, and Larry Sanders and Ersan Ilyasova up front.
All except Udrih can defend, and coach Scott Skiles will make sure they all do. They still won't be an offensive juggernaut, but they'll be better than last season and maintain a top-five defense. That combination should just squeak them back into the playoffs.
7. New York Knicks (35-31)
This might seem pessimistic in light of the hype coming from Gotham, but in the short term, I'm not sure the Knicks have dramatically improved. They've essentially traded Chauncey Billups for Tyson Chandler, which will help, but this is the wrong season to have a thin bench and brittle stars. Between Amare Stoudemire's knees and Chandler's toes, the Knicks are likely to feel the brunt of the schedule-makers' wrath.
Baron Davis, despite his weaknesses, will prove quite useful when he's able to play. Mike D'Antoni's system demands a point guard who can pass, and Davis can do that when he's not jacking up 3s with 20 on the shot clock. It's even more important given the Knicks' other high-profile moves -- they boast three of the best frontcourt finishers in the game, but nobody to get them the ball.
I factored half a season of Davis into my projection, figuring he will miss more than a quarter of the season with his current back injury and then some more with his next injury. When he's out, the Knicks have Toney Douglas running the point, which is less than ideal. While I like him as a player, he's a bad fit at the point in this system because he's blind as a bat.
Otherwise, the roster is a bit of a mess. Landry Fields and Iman Shumpert are nice prospects but aren't ready to be top-seven players on a contending team. Jared Jeffriesand Renaldo Balkman are the top two frontcourt reserves. Really. And at some point the Knicks will have to play Mike Bibby in a real game.
About the best thing New York has going for it is, well, New York. Players are lured by the city, and, as with the Lakers, the Knicks have a great shot at signing any decent veteran who shakes free during the season via buyout, waivers or departure from China. Better yet, the Knicks still have their $2.5 million "under-cap" exception lying around to use on such a player.
Nonetheless, I have trouble envisioning a high seed for this team. The Knicks get more dangerous once the playoffs begin. If their three frontcourt stars and Davis make it to May upright, they'll be a very difficult first-round out. Getting to that point is the problem.
6. Indiana Pacers (36-30)
On most levels, few teams are set up for the future better than the Pacers. They have a lot of young talent, $15 million in cap space and nary a bad contract, and they scored a rare small-market free-agent coup by luring David West from New Orleans.
However, they face the classic small-market conundrum: How do we snag a star if we don't win the lottery? While Plan A is hoping Dwight Howard develops a passion for corn, more realistically their hopes depend on an advantageous trade opportunity. They've set themselves up for that chance, but they still need the right deal to fall into their laps.
In the meantime, they'll hope Paul George can take a step toward addressing their star problem. The second-year pro won't be their best player this season, but he is an alluring prospect with his size and fluidity, and at 6-10, he combines with Danny Granger to give Indy the biggest wing combo in the league. In fact, long term, one suspects Granger will be traded for a guard to clear the decks for George at the 3.
Despite the absence of a star, Indy has built itself a nice, deep team that should be able to take advantage of tired opponents on the schedule. One gets the impression the Pacers aren't quite done in the backcourt -- the only real rotation-quality guards on the roster areDarren Collison and George Hill, and neither sees the floor well. A deft passer would be Indy's preference going forward, because its frontcourt can seriously fill it up. West, Granger, George, Tyler Hansbrough and Roy Hibbert all should average at or near a point every two minutes this season.
The good news is that getting good guards is generally easier than nabbing bigs; the more difficult problem has already been solved. The Pacers have a two-year window to convert some of that cap space into an A-lister before the kids start becoming restricted free agents and hammering away at their cap position, but they've put themselves in great shape. For now they're a merely interesting, one-and-done playoff team, but they're potentially much more.
5. Philadelphia 76ers (37-29)
The limited practice time before opening day is going to favor teams with continuity, and the Sixers have more of that than anybody. The likely nine-man playing rotation will be identical to last season's; the only major change is the mascot, which they've tentatively named "At Least It's Not A Hip-Hop Rabbit."
Philly also sports a fair number of young players who should play better this season, most notably point guard Jrue Holiday and wing Evan Turner. Putting the pieces together into coherent lineups gets a little tricky, however. Jodie Meeks is the only consistent long-range threat, inviting teams to pack the paint. Sixth man combo forward Thaddeus Young, while deadly effective in the right matchup, has to be spotted carefully; he can't guard big 4s and has struggled when asked to play the wing.
The Sixers proved shockingly good when they played small with Young at the 4 and Elton Brand at the 5 last season. They could go to that option more often this season, especially since small, young and fast is likely to be a winning strategy in this season's grind of a schedule. However, they built a top-heavy roster that's dangerously thin in the backcourt, and an injury to any of their guards would leave them in a precarious spot. Philly was very fortunate in that respect last season, gliding through 2010-11 virtually unscathed health-wise, but it can't count on similar fortune again.
Big picture, the immediate future is a bit brighter than the medium term, despite the club's youth. Philly might challenge for a top-four seed this season, depending on Dwight Howard's mood, but it's difficult to see how it will take the next step forward with this group. Coach Doug Collins' history is that he gets a big boost in Year 1, starts getting on everybody's nerves in Year 2 and completely self-combusts in Year 3, which presents a bad omen. A worse one is the Sixers' lack of stars and subpar cap situation. Unless Holiday becomes a big star -- possible, but not likely -- they'll be tugged back toward .500 by two giant anchor contracts (Brand and Andre Iguodala) that have left them with their hands tied financially.
4. Orlando Magic (40-26)
I know everyone is anxious to predict doom and gloom for the Magic, but let's keep in mind that before losing to Atlanta in the first round, they'd put together a very solid regular season. Orlando won 52 games in an accredited basketball conference and had the point differential of a 58-win team. The Magic ranked third in defensive efficiency thanks to the might of Dwight Howard, and they might be able to considerably improve the offense if sharpshooting forward Ryan Anderson gets more burn.
In fact, my initial projection for Orlando was even rosier. Despite all the overpaid averageness surrounding Howard, Orlando's ceiling remains very high because of Howard's dominance in the middle. If he plays all season in Orlando at last season's level, I could easily see this team pushing for a top-two seed in the East.
But there's the rub. Orlando's success depends on Howard being fully engaged and playing at an MVP level; if he's anything less than the second-best player in the league, the Magic's chances fall off a cliff. This, then, is a bit different from the celebrated 2007 example in which Kobe Bryant demanded a trade and then belatedly realized he had a really good team around him. In Orlando's case, Howard has a really good team almost entirely because of his own efforts. Anderson and Jameer Nelson are the only teammates who project to generate a player efficiency rating better than the league average.
So if Howard isn't 100 percent committed to the enterprise, the Magic's fortunes inevitably suffer. And right now, Vegas has "checked out" as a seven-point favorite over "dialed in." If Howard goes into Vince Carter-in-Toronto mode, the Magic will take a step backward.
While Howard talk will obliterate any other news trying to escape Orlando, three other players who bear watching are Anderson, Earl Clark and Daniel Orton. If Howard is going to experience a Kobe-esque revival of interest in staying, the development of those three youngsters would be the most likely cause. Anderson has definite breakout potential, but we aren't holding our breath on the other two.
Overall, this is a difficult projection -- we don't know how long Howard is staying or how motivated he'll be while he's here. I split the difference and projected the Magic with a full season of unmotivated Dwight. That's not unrealistic; in a vacuum, I'd say Orlando would be better off declining the current lame trade offers and crossing its fingers he'll re-sign. However, a lot of water can go under the bridge between now and the trade deadline.
3. Boston Celtics (43-23)
It's amusing that the same Celtics fans who wanted Jeff Green tarred and feathered last spring now think they're hosed because he's out for the season. It's a loss, but he's a backup small forward and they can do other things with their lineups to mostly cover his absence. As long as they can avoid playing Sasha Pavlovic in an actual game, they'll be fine.
The more worrying problem for Boston is the grueling nature of the schedule, which will be magnified for the Celtics because of their age and mediocre bench. The theft of Brandon Bass from Orlando should help, and I suspect they'll get a lot more from Jermaine O'Neal than they did last season. Still, this team tied for 17th in offensive efficiency in 2010-11 and should be mediocre again; Boston is counting on its defense being at or near the top of the league to keep it in contention.
Perhaps it will be, but the combination of age, schedule and coaching staff defections (Tom Thibodeau left two years ago and Lawrence Frank this past offseason) might cause some slippage. All of Boston's bench players are good defenders except offseason pickup Chris Wilcox, but the C's still will have great difficulty retaining their No. 2 ranking in defensive efficiency.
Here's one other bummer for Boston: There are no games before Christmas this year. Over the past four seasons, the Celtics were a ridiculous 94-14 (.870) before Santa's arrival and a much more pedestrian 140-80 (.636) afterward.
In the big picture, the Celtics shape up for this season as Mavericks East: They're a Tier B contender, but rather than ride their veterans slowly down the tubes, they've built around short-term contracts and given themselves an opportunity to completely reshape the roster after the season. Paul Pierce and Rajon Rondo are the only rotation players with contracts for next year, presuming Bass opts out, and Boston will have more than $20 million in cap space and two first-round picks next summer.
2. Chicago Bulls (48-1
Provided they can keep up last season's intensity through a sausage-grinder of a schedule, the Bulls are very likely the second-best team in basketball. Chicago led the NBA in defensive efficiency last season, thanks in equal parts to Tom Thibodeau's help-heavy schemes and a long, athletic rotation that defended the rim with gusto.
While the Bulls won a league-best 62 games, they finished just 12th in offensive efficiency and were shut down by Miami in the playoffs. This explains their quest to add more scoring. Chicago waived Keith Bogans and signed Richard Hamilton to provide scoring help for Derrick Rose; I'd argue Hamilton can help the Bulls' anemic second unit even more, depending on how they spot his minutes. Unfortunately, he's also higher-maintenance than Bogans, so the Bulls will need to manage that carefully to maintain the esprit de corps that fueled them through last season.
Aside from Rip, the big item in the Bulls' favor is continuity -- Chicago has the most intact roster this side of Philly, with Hamilton the only change. Several young players likely will improve, including Joakim Noah and reserve bigs Omer Asik and Taj Gibson. The latter combo presents an awesome defensive frontcourt with the second unit, but each is raw offensively. Rose comes off an MVP season, but the exciting part is that he's still getting better -- his free throw rate steadily escalated during 2010-11, while his long-range shooting and court vision are the next items on the list.
While continuity favors the Bulls, the schedule presents some challenges. Chicago is generally a deep team, but Thibodeau's instincts last season were to ride Rose and Luol Deng as long as humanly possible; do that with this season's schedule, and he'll break them. If he treads more carefully, the Bulls are heavy favorites to get back to the conference finals.
1. Miami Heat (52-14)
We don't know yet what LeBron James will do if he gets back to the Finals this season, and there is little he can do to mollify his critics between now and then.
Here's what we do know: James has a better chance of playing in June than any other player in the league. We already know Boston and Chicago had no answer for the Heat's stars last season, and it remains to be seen what the Western Conference could throw at him in a potential Finals matchup -- especially now that Dallas has reshaped its roster.
Thus, while I would take "the field" over the Heat to win the NBA title this season, I would take the Heat over any other single team. There simply is too much talent not to put them above the rest, especially since they're likely to have more help than last season.
The scary thing about last season's Heat was how heavily they had to rely on awful players. Between Mike Miller, Joel Anthony, Mike Bibby, Erick Dampier, Juwan Howard, Carlos Arroyo, Jerry Stackhouse and Dexter Pittman, Miami allocated 5,346 minutes to players who produced a PER less than 10 ... nearly matching the combined playing time for Wade and James.
That 5,346 figure should diminish considerably this season. Shane Battier's arrival and Miller's having operable thumbs should allow Miami's wing rotation to be far stronger, permitting more lineups in which James is playing either power forward or, in a frightening matchup situation, point guard.
In the backcourt, rookie Norris Cole should soak up the minutes taken by the Arroyos, Bibbys and Eddie Houses of last season, along with holdover Mario Chalmers. Unfortunately, Miami still lacks a point guard who can push the tempo and get James and Wade out in transition; the Heat had disappointingly few run-outs last season and ranked just 21st in pace factor.
And up front, Udonis Haslem returns after missing nearly all of last season. He'll often be playing as an undersized 5 next to Bosh or even James; while this isn't ideal, it's a big improvement on what they had a year ago.
Despite those upgrades, weaknesses remain. The Heat have only three players who project to have a PER better than the league average -- I'll let you guess which three. Their starting center, Anthony, was statistically one of the league's least effective players last season. Yes, he provides defense, but no player in basketball is more blatantly disregarded by opposing offenses.
And despite the bench upgrades, the depth situation remains fraught. For instance, Juwan Howard is the second big off the bench; I'm pretty sure he played with Bob Cousy. As a result, any injuries to one of the Big Three will quickly make this team very beatable. Plus, the grueling schedule puts teams with weaker benches at a disadvantage.
With all those caveats, Miami will be extremely difficult to beat in the playoffs, because there's more rest and the Superfriends can each play 40 minutes a game. With the drama quotient dramatically reduced this time around, I expect a more relaxed and comfortable Heat team than the one that pressed through early-season games a year ago. That team was already a heavy favorite, and with a better bench and unmatchable star power, this is again the team to beat. Whether James can deliver on that promise will have to wait until June.
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Those jerseys are awful.
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Uni Watch details NBA uniform changes
Better late than never, right?
Actually, it's kinda cool to have the NBA season opening on Christmas Day. It's like Santa's bringing us all a bonus present (well, unless you're a Timberwolves fan, in which case you're just getting another lump of coal).
Strained holiday metaphors notwithstanding, we have a lot of ground to cover here in Uni Watch's annual NBA season preview. Let's start with what you can expect to see while sipping eggnog Sunday. As has been the case for several years now, all teams playing on Christmas Day will wear a snowflake-patterned version of the NBA logo patch -- except for the Mavericks, who'll mark their championship by wearing an O'Brien Trophy patch and gold lettering.
In addition, expect several players to wear Christmas-themed shoes -- lots of red and green. And then there's Kobe Bryant, whose Christmas shoes appear to be Grinch-inspired.
As for the rest of the season, here's Uni Watch's team-by-team rundown of what you can expect to see on the court (if a team isn't listed, it has no changes):
⢠The Bobcats have made some small alterations to their logo portfolio. And remember the team's NASCAR uniforms? Those have been scrapped and replaced by a jersey patch, which will be worn Feb. 10. Also, the Bobcats are one of nine teams that will be unveiling ABA throwbacks later this season. The good news is that most of them -- including the one the Bobcats will be wearing -- are very, very good. The bad news is that they're all NOPE, which stands for Not Open for Public Exposure. In other words, nobody's allowed to talk about them yet. Further details when the gag order is lifted.
⢠The Bulls will wear their red road uniforms at home on Feb. 14, for Valentine's Day.
⢠The Cavaliers will have another "CavFanatic" uni design, which they'll wear for a handful of games, beginning on Jan. 25. Just like the throwbacks, this design is NOPE for now.
⢠Another team waiting to show off a new throwback uni: the Clippers. For now it's NOPE, but it's worth noting that video gamers have been circulating this Los Angeles Stars screen shot lately. Draw your own conclusions.
⢠The Grizzlies are another team with a NOPE throwback. And once again, the video gamers have given us a hint. That appears to be a Memphis Tams throwback (and yes, the Tams really did wear mismatched shorts and jerseys back in the day). Could that design really be coming to an NBA court? We'll have to wait and see.
⢠The Heat are back in black. This design concept dates back to the spring of 2004, when the team handed out black-on-black T-shirts as promotional giveaways, which became a big hit among the fan base during the playoffs. Unlike the team's regular uniforms, this one uses old-style nylon dazzle fabric instead of the new-style mesh, so the black surface should really shimmer. The plan is for the team to wear it for six "big" or "important" home games, beginning with the game against the Lakers on Jan. 19.
⢠The Hornets will wear their Mardi Gras uniform for six consecutive games in February, running from Feb. 10 to Feb. 21.
⢠Great news out of Utah, where the Jazz have a beautiful new green alternate (which is similar but not identical to what the team wore 30 years ago). They'll wear it for their home opener Dec. 30.
⢠The Kings have a new black alternate uniform. Uni Watch doesn't much care for the old-school chest script being paired with the new-school number font, but whaddaya gonna do? The Kings will wear this design for their home opener Dec. 26.
⢠In a welcome move, the Knicks have removed the black trim from their primary logo. Now if they'd just do the same with their uniforms.
⢠No changes for the Lakers, but it's worth noting that they'll have a very interesting-looking jersey on the court this season.
⢠You know that P. Diddy design that the Mavericks have variously worn in green and blue? This season they're adding a navy blue version, which will be worn as an alternate. On-court debut: Dec. 30.
⢠The Nets are bidding adieu to New Jersey with an anniversary logo, a stripped-down version of which is being worn as a jersey patch. Also, the Nets are another team that will be unveiling a throwback later this season. Officially: NOPE. Unofficially: This video game screen shot has been making the rounds.
⢠Add the Nuggets to the list of teams that will have throwbacks this season. Uni Watch has seen the design and can confirm that it's a beauty. But for now, NOPE.
⢠Another team with a NOPE throwback in the works: the Pacers.
⢠You might not even notice that the Raptors have made some minor changes to their logos. But you'll definitely notice what's happening on March 21, when they plan to salute the Canadian military by wearing the NBA's first-ever camouflage uniform. Uni Watch is generally opposed to camo uniforms, in part because they look ridiculous and in part because they raise some difficult issues (if you're curious, there's a full discussion here), but Raptors ownership has a long history of military support -- COO Tom Anselmi has even visited Canadian troops in Afghanistan -- so this is obviously a sincere gesture, not a gimmick. Still, does anyone else think it's a bit weird to have a team of mostly American players wearing a uniform that honors another country's army?
⢠The 76ers have a new blue alternate uniform. Simple but nice. Uni Watch wouldn't mind one little bit if they made this the road uniform and changed the red uni to the alternate. (As an aside, the Sixers have also scrapped their mascot and are letting fans vote on the new one.)
⢠The Spurs will have one of the nicest throwbacks of the season, but for now it's all NOPE.
⢠Interesting move in Phoenix, where the Suns are commemorating the Arizona state centennial with a patch -- but only on their warm-ups.
⢠The Timberwolves are yet another team with a throwback in the works, and you know what that means. (Hint: Rhymes with dope.)
⢠The Trail Blazers will wear their "Rip City" alternate uniform on March 18.
⢠The Warriors have added a very nice anniversary patch.
⢠Makeover of the Year Award goes to the Wizards, who've channeled their franchise history with a very Bullets-esque redesign. So much to like here -- well done. (Also of note: Because of the design's horizontal stripes, Washington is the only team in the league that is not using adidas' Revolution 30 mesh pattern throughout their regular home and road jerseys.)
⢠The league will once again market itself to the Hispanic community with a series of "Latin Nights" uniforms, which will be worn for selected games in March. As you can see, the one new team in the program is the Orlando Magic. They're replacing the Mavs, who will no longer be part of this promotion.
⢠Several teams will once again wear special uniforms for St. Patrick's Day. In addition to the three shown there, the Jazz will wear their new green alternates. The Raptors, who had previously been part of this promotion, will not participate this year.
⢠The All-Star Game will be played Feb. 26. Want to see the uniforms? NOPE. But at least the logo is available.
⢠Can't keep track of all the NBA's collar and neckline styles? Here's a handy guide (click to see a larger version):
⢠While we're at it, here's a breakdown of this season's uniform number fonts (click to enlarge):
⢠Here's a guide to the lettering used by each team for player names on the back of the jersey (click to enlarge):
⢠The most prominent detail of this season's warm-up attire is that the NBA logo is getting rather large. A more subtle detail is this dot-matrix pattern on the fabric. It's officially called the "Run with the Pack" pattern (if you can say that out loud with a straight face, you're way ahead of Uni Watch), which supposedly refers to a team playing as one, there's no "I" in "pack," something like that. Eh, whatever, we all know it really just refers to merchandising. You can see all 30 warm-up sets here.
⢠Uni Watch doesn't care too much about practice shirts. But in case you do, here's the full breakdown of practice logos (note the lack of a geographical signifier for the Nets, who already have one foot out the door on their way from New Jersey to Brooklyn; click to enlarge):
⢠Turning to non-apparel aesthetics, the Blazers, Pistons, Raptors, Rockets, Thunder and Wizards have made adjustments to their court designs. The most intriguing one is the new court in Toronto -- see those "Raptors" placards under the backboards? They look convincingly three-dimensional, but that's actually an illusion. This 3-D signage was pioneered by a company called LogoPaint and has been going on for years in soccer, cricket, Aussie football and so on, but this is the first time it's been done in a major North American sporting venue. Expect other teams to follow soon.
And there you have it, a full season's worth of NBA uniformities (well, except for the NOPE designs). Only a coupla shopping days left before tip-off, and Uni Watch, for one, can't wait.
Link
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I aint even really mad except Philly. He is putting way too much credit into continuity. I know it's nice but talent usually overcomes. Magic should be lower too. Their roster is trash and once dwight goes, lottery city.
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Those Alternate Jazz shorts are a must purchase
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Please post Hollinger's predictions from previous years. This is stupid if I can't see how he's done in the past.
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^Gracias.
2011-12 NBA broadcasting guide
Story Highlights
ESPN is changing the format of its studio show and expanding Magic Johnson's role
TNT will feature its newest star, future Hall of Famer Shaquille O'Neal, in studio
NBA TV has a Thursday pregame show leading up to TNT's pregame show
Read more: http://sportsillustrated....index.html#ixzz1hC928zCS
2011-12 NBA broadcasting guide
Story Highlights
ESPN is changing the format of its studio show and expanding Magic Johnson's role
TNT will feature its newest star, future Hall of Famer Shaquille O'Neal, in studio
NBA TV has a Thursday pregame show leading up to TNT's pregame show
Read more: http://sportsillustrated....index.html#ixzz1hC928zCS
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maybe earl is next
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Originally Posted by Blazers21NTNP
I hate the Heat, but, my god... these jerseys are tough!
⢠The Heat are back in black. This design concept dates back to the spring of 2004, when the team handed out black-on-black T-shirts as promotional giveaways, which became a big hit among the fan base during the playoffs. Unlike the team's regular uniforms, this one uses old-style nylon dazzle fabric instead of the new-style mesh, so the black surface should really shimmer. The plan is for the team to wear it for six "big" or "important" home games, beginning with the game against the Lakers on Jan. 19.
i hope your being funny ive seen better jerseys at kmart in the clearance section...those cheap +#! create a team jerseys i hope they wear them to the uc so i can go ham on the warm even more
|A-Man|
formerly atgd7154xbbxmz
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I'm surprised Hollinger doesn't have the Nets in the playoffs somehow.
@ Indy and Philly being ahead of us. Can't really take his predictions seriously after looking at his West coast list.
The best thing that came out of GSW hiring himOriginally Posted by 504 D1 Prospect
No more Jackson/Van Gundy telecast
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Man how did I know Hollinger would do the Hawks like that, not even making playoffs? Dude hates Joe Johnson and in turn hates the Hawks...
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Everything but crewneck jerseys suck... *shrug*
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Was Kenyon Martin even playing well in China?
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They're sorting that prediction by worse record to highest. It's more like a conference team review.
