14 Degress of Seperation (West Season Preview)
Feb 3, 2013 11:46:30 GMT -5
Post by nybombers3 on Feb 3, 2013 11:46:30 GMT -5
We start off the West priview with the Utah Jazz, who were swept out of the finals. The Jazz took a bit of a step back when they lost Russell Westbrook to the Spurs during the off season but the important parts of the team return for another run. This could very well be Baron Davis' last run so I'm sure somewhere during the year GAME will be checking out Lin to see if he can take over next season. The Jazz have a solid big 3 that can do it all. The front court lacks a bit but it's not bad at all. I expect the Jazz to make another solid playoff run. Westbrook's new team, the San Antonio Spurs are up next. The signing of Westbrook gives them a core 3 of Morris/Thompson/Westbrook. The Spurs front court looks weak but I can see the Spurs fighting for a playoff spot, depending on how Morris' new shiny ratings allow him to play. If the Spurs do want to make a playoff run (and that may very well be questionable), they need something up front. BJ Mullens will not cut it as a starter or back up. Mullens' old team, The Phoenix Suns are next and appear to be retooling a bit. Nobody really knows with Skillz. I don't expect this team to be the same team after day 80, let alone day 10. I also expect JO to be moved as soon as humanly possible. The JO acquisition, while understood at the time, looks like a rough one for the Suns. He can still play but that contract and his current decline obviously don't help. The Suns don't really have anyone that stands out (star wise). It looks like a team full of good player/role players coming together. Not really a bad thing per say but for a title run it may be tough. All that said, it's the perfect team for Skillz. He can easily turn this team into a top 4 team in the West and that's where they will be. The Suns have some solid looking youth. Jared looks nice no doubt. His preseason numbers weren't all that impressive but it's preseason. Whatever.
The Suns acquired Jared in a deal for Shawn Marion from the Portland Trailblazers. Our former commish is next and he comes up with a pretty nice big 3 of LMA/Duncan/Marion. The other CY team looks like a lock to make it. While the Blazers front court is amongst the best in the league, with the obvious starters plus back ups Horford and Yaro, the back court leaves some to be desired but it isn't horrible at all. If the Blazers can improve that back court (through trades or articles), I expect a finals run from this team. Hell, as is, expect a high seeding and solid playoff run. The biggest worry for the Blazers, back court aside, is how long can Duncan/Marion last? Shelling out picks may be tough knowing this. Duncan was acquired from the Dallas Mavericks this off season, which is our next stop. The Mavs are a bit changed from last season. They switched out Duncan for Lou in the grand scheme of things. While this may be a step back, especially when it comes to having an dedicated offense, it obviously extends the window of the Mavs. The obvious issue with the Mavs is that, past those 2, there isn't a ton left. Unless the Mavs have other moves they are going to make, it may be a fairly tough run for them. The Mavs very recently (hasn't even been put through, that's how recent) acquired Lou Will. Obviously his talent cannot be questioned but his fit with Kris can. The Mavs need these 2 to carry the team. Lo Will was traded from the Los Angeles Lakers. The Lakers are finally able to rebuild after trying so hard last season. The Lakers have a solid core in place already with former-called-bust Favors, Harrison Barnes and the ultimate role player Kawhi Leonhard. The Lakers don't have much past that (literally, ain't shit else) but who knows. It's going to be a full out tank for the Lakers and Nanz wouldn't have it any other way.
The Lakers tank competition, the Memphis Grizzlies are up next and they are not that far off from the Lakers. The Grizzlies roster is pretty much Bradley Beal and Kyrie Irving with some other guys having to fill roster spot 3-12. It's obvious the Grizzlies will be tanking again and hoping to snag someone in FA. The Grizzlies biggest misstep thus far was the trade to acquire John Henson. A lot of picks traded for a decent at best looking prospect at the moment. It was fairly bad before CC chose Black Ops over BBS. Speaking of CC, his former team, the Golden State Warriors are up and damn. I have two numbers for everyone 36.2 and 34.2. The first is the average age of the starting line up without Rondo. The other is with. The Warriors obviously do have talent. Dirk, at a fairly young 34, can still play. Pierce is a solid 2/3rd option. KG and Shaq are a solid front court and Rondo can do it all (besides hit a 3 but that's besides the point). The scary thing for the new guy is that the Golden State retirement home can open up for any, and even all, of these guys past this season. Good luck to the monkey man.
The lucky team holding on to some of these Warriors picks are the Houston Rockets. The Rockets have a fairly interesting team. Their best player may very well be Monta Ellis, the scoring machine. Past that, the Rockets have a fairly solid team. The front court has talent with Dwight/Gasol/Butler and Sam Bert off the bench. The back court is solid with Monta/Ivey with Manu off the bench. The problem though is fit. Dwight really has been up and down throughout his career. His current cancer label obviously doesn't help his value and his stats look sub par. He and Gasol obviously work well in an inside offense but will this fit for Monta? It's going to be interesting to see with Biggie does. Don't be surprised to see Dwight moved at some point, as has been the only thing he's known for in his brief career. The Denver Nuggets, who originally drafted Dwight, are next and we have yet another team with a big 2 and big question marks past that. Even the big 2 are fairly, well, big question marks, At least when it comes to Rose. Rose can score. He can rebound. His assists are solid. His turnovers are bad though. Really bad. It appears that Rose is more a 2, which is currently owned by Roy and rookie Terrance Ross. Someone has to go at this point and it should be a move done quickly before another season goes by. The front court of the Nuggets is fairly sub par, led by Mr. Sub par himself, Chris Bosh. It does get worse when you look at Nicolas Batum. 4.9 ppg in 31 mpg in a new level of suck and fail =. Jesus. Another team in the Midwest division that has to make a move is the Minnesota Timberwolves. Just glancing at the roster and there isn't much to actually glance at. This past TC for the Wolves may very well make a grown man cry. The Killer B's (Blair, Brand, Bledsoe) really had sub par TC's. Trying to differentiate one Evan (former 5th pick) from the other (last season's 27th pick) isn't all that tough. They both suck. The biggest benifit for Wolves is that they have their draft picks from here on out. From the looks of it, it may very well be a tank out season for Minny. Amir Johnson, despite his own decline, still looks decent enough to help someone out. Same with Mehmet Okur.
Okur used to play for the Sacramento Kings, who are next. David Lee is the obvious first guy we need to talk about. The first half MVP last season is starting to show a bit of decline. While his stats may very well still be beastly as hell, it wouldn't shock me if this was Lee's final season in Sacramento. The Kings traded for their draft pick this season and even made a trade block so, yeah. Might be the end. Assuming the team remains about the same, it's not bad really. They have some missing pieces (at SF and SG specifically) but the front court still looks very good with Amare and Lee. Expect another 25/9 season for Amare in an offense that is obviously directed for him and Lee. The Seattle Supersonics, Amare's old team, is next. The Sonics have solid talent no doubt but what's the direction is the issue right now. Are they rebuilding? Winning? It's Jah like. They lack a good PG. Collison seems like more of a 2 and he isn't great there either. SuperCoolBeas might be the better of the 4 SF's but he plays no D. Davis and Booz look solid up front and they have decent depth but that's really it. It's all just, solid. The GM needs to do a Skillz like job for this team if it remains the same. On a slightly random note, seeing White not explode brought a slight smile to my face. Fuck em. The last season left is the Los Angeles Clippers. The other LA team is young as hell. Thabo Sefolosha and Steve Blake aside, they have no one over 26. Team has no bad contract and a great looking rookie stud in the brow. Anthony Davis already looks ridiculous and he should be the man in LA for a while. He's not alone though. Chandler Parsons and Alec Burks gives the Clippers a nice swing rotation to play with. Outlawz helped shape this team and the current GM is doing a fine job of keeping it going. Hard to say anything bad about the team right now. They are obviously tanking but I don't see them being THAT bad right now. Hell, let's be honest. It's the West and it sucks. They may even hit that 8th seed. Still, good future team thus far.
My West Predictions
1. Blazers
2. Suns
3. Jazz
4. Rockets
5. Warriors
6. Mavs
7. Kings
8. Sonics
9. Nuggets
10. Clippers
11. Spurs
12. Lakers
13. Grizzlies
Finals Participant:
Portland Trailblazers
West MVP:
Tim Duncan
The Suns acquired Jared in a deal for Shawn Marion from the Portland Trailblazers. Our former commish is next and he comes up with a pretty nice big 3 of LMA/Duncan/Marion. The other CY team looks like a lock to make it. While the Blazers front court is amongst the best in the league, with the obvious starters plus back ups Horford and Yaro, the back court leaves some to be desired but it isn't horrible at all. If the Blazers can improve that back court (through trades or articles), I expect a finals run from this team. Hell, as is, expect a high seeding and solid playoff run. The biggest worry for the Blazers, back court aside, is how long can Duncan/Marion last? Shelling out picks may be tough knowing this. Duncan was acquired from the Dallas Mavericks this off season, which is our next stop. The Mavs are a bit changed from last season. They switched out Duncan for Lou in the grand scheme of things. While this may be a step back, especially when it comes to having an dedicated offense, it obviously extends the window of the Mavs. The obvious issue with the Mavs is that, past those 2, there isn't a ton left. Unless the Mavs have other moves they are going to make, it may be a fairly tough run for them. The Mavs very recently (hasn't even been put through, that's how recent) acquired Lou Will. Obviously his talent cannot be questioned but his fit with Kris can. The Mavs need these 2 to carry the team. Lo Will was traded from the Los Angeles Lakers. The Lakers are finally able to rebuild after trying so hard last season. The Lakers have a solid core in place already with former-called-bust Favors, Harrison Barnes and the ultimate role player Kawhi Leonhard. The Lakers don't have much past that (literally, ain't shit else) but who knows. It's going to be a full out tank for the Lakers and Nanz wouldn't have it any other way.
The Lakers tank competition, the Memphis Grizzlies are up next and they are not that far off from the Lakers. The Grizzlies roster is pretty much Bradley Beal and Kyrie Irving with some other guys having to fill roster spot 3-12. It's obvious the Grizzlies will be tanking again and hoping to snag someone in FA. The Grizzlies biggest misstep thus far was the trade to acquire John Henson. A lot of picks traded for a decent at best looking prospect at the moment. It was fairly bad before CC chose Black Ops over BBS. Speaking of CC, his former team, the Golden State Warriors are up and damn. I have two numbers for everyone 36.2 and 34.2. The first is the average age of the starting line up without Rondo. The other is with. The Warriors obviously do have talent. Dirk, at a fairly young 34, can still play. Pierce is a solid 2/3rd option. KG and Shaq are a solid front court and Rondo can do it all (besides hit a 3 but that's besides the point). The scary thing for the new guy is that the Golden State retirement home can open up for any, and even all, of these guys past this season. Good luck to the monkey man.
The lucky team holding on to some of these Warriors picks are the Houston Rockets. The Rockets have a fairly interesting team. Their best player may very well be Monta Ellis, the scoring machine. Past that, the Rockets have a fairly solid team. The front court has talent with Dwight/Gasol/Butler and Sam Bert off the bench. The back court is solid with Monta/Ivey with Manu off the bench. The problem though is fit. Dwight really has been up and down throughout his career. His current cancer label obviously doesn't help his value and his stats look sub par. He and Gasol obviously work well in an inside offense but will this fit for Monta? It's going to be interesting to see with Biggie does. Don't be surprised to see Dwight moved at some point, as has been the only thing he's known for in his brief career. The Denver Nuggets, who originally drafted Dwight, are next and we have yet another team with a big 2 and big question marks past that. Even the big 2 are fairly, well, big question marks, At least when it comes to Rose. Rose can score. He can rebound. His assists are solid. His turnovers are bad though. Really bad. It appears that Rose is more a 2, which is currently owned by Roy and rookie Terrance Ross. Someone has to go at this point and it should be a move done quickly before another season goes by. The front court of the Nuggets is fairly sub par, led by Mr. Sub par himself, Chris Bosh. It does get worse when you look at Nicolas Batum. 4.9 ppg in 31 mpg in a new level of suck and fail =. Jesus. Another team in the Midwest division that has to make a move is the Minnesota Timberwolves. Just glancing at the roster and there isn't much to actually glance at. This past TC for the Wolves may very well make a grown man cry. The Killer B's (Blair, Brand, Bledsoe) really had sub par TC's. Trying to differentiate one Evan (former 5th pick) from the other (last season's 27th pick) isn't all that tough. They both suck. The biggest benifit for Wolves is that they have their draft picks from here on out. From the looks of it, it may very well be a tank out season for Minny. Amir Johnson, despite his own decline, still looks decent enough to help someone out. Same with Mehmet Okur.
Okur used to play for the Sacramento Kings, who are next. David Lee is the obvious first guy we need to talk about. The first half MVP last season is starting to show a bit of decline. While his stats may very well still be beastly as hell, it wouldn't shock me if this was Lee's final season in Sacramento. The Kings traded for their draft pick this season and even made a trade block so, yeah. Might be the end. Assuming the team remains about the same, it's not bad really. They have some missing pieces (at SF and SG specifically) but the front court still looks very good with Amare and Lee. Expect another 25/9 season for Amare in an offense that is obviously directed for him and Lee. The Seattle Supersonics, Amare's old team, is next. The Sonics have solid talent no doubt but what's the direction is the issue right now. Are they rebuilding? Winning? It's Jah like. They lack a good PG. Collison seems like more of a 2 and he isn't great there either. SuperCoolBeas might be the better of the 4 SF's but he plays no D. Davis and Booz look solid up front and they have decent depth but that's really it. It's all just, solid. The GM needs to do a Skillz like job for this team if it remains the same. On a slightly random note, seeing White not explode brought a slight smile to my face. Fuck em. The last season left is the Los Angeles Clippers. The other LA team is young as hell. Thabo Sefolosha and Steve Blake aside, they have no one over 26. Team has no bad contract and a great looking rookie stud in the brow. Anthony Davis already looks ridiculous and he should be the man in LA for a while. He's not alone though. Chandler Parsons and Alec Burks gives the Clippers a nice swing rotation to play with. Outlawz helped shape this team and the current GM is doing a fine job of keeping it going. Hard to say anything bad about the team right now. They are obviously tanking but I don't see them being THAT bad right now. Hell, let's be honest. It's the West and it sucks. They may even hit that 8th seed. Still, good future team thus far.
My West Predictions
1. Blazers
2. Suns
3. Jazz
4. Rockets
5. Warriors
6. Mavs
7. Kings
8. Sonics
9. Nuggets
10. Clippers
11. Spurs
12. Lakers
13. Grizzlies
Finals Participant:
Portland Trailblazers
West MVP:
Tim Duncan
