Yesterday I went over the much-improved Eastern Conference, and today I’m going to hit you all with my Western Conference preview.
Ron Artest is in Hollywood, San Antonio is healthy and has added a bunch of new talent and Allen Iverson has agreed to come off the bench for the Memphis Grizzlies. The plot thickens out West, but one thing remains, Kobe Bryant is the league’s best player and is chasing after his fifth championship ring.
How will the West play out? I know the answers to all of this, so read the review already.
Teams are listed in the order in which they will finish in the division; the number in parenthesis is their position in the conference.
Southeast
1. (2) San Antonio
Without Manu Ginobili for a majority of the season last year, the Spurs were hurting. With Ginobili in the lineup the Spurs were 32-12, they could have given the Lakers a run for their money in the playoffs. They come into the season healthy and have also added Richard Jefferson, Antonio McDyess (who is dying to get a ring), Theo Ratliff and the steal of the draft in DeJuan Blair. Tim Duncan knows time is wearing thin and getting that fifth ring is on his mind just as much as it is for both Kobe and Shaq.
2. (5) Dallas Mavericks
This team still cannot play defense, even with Rick Carlisle as their head coach. Dirk Nowitzki played with a heavy heart in last season’s playoffs and he played better than ever. They added Shawn Marion, Drew Gooden and Tim Thomas and those players should help them win a few more games, but again, the Mavs won’t contend for an NBA title. They’ll probably get bounced in the first round by Denver.
3. (7) New Orleans Hornets
Chris Paul is great, Emeka Okafor is better than Tyson Chandler, but Peja Stojakovic is too old to rely on. The Hornets have a great second option in David West, but the key to their success is having a third go-to scorer. I don’t think that Morris Peterson, James Posey or Devin Brown can get that done, so unless Julian Wright has a huge breakout season, this team will float towards the middle/bottom of the West.
4. (11) Memphis Grizzlies
They added Iverson and Zach Randolph. They’ll sell more tickets, but they will pretty much still suck. Iverson wouldn’t come off the bench for Richard Hamilton in Detroit, but he has no problem doing it for OJ Mayo and Mike Conley in Memphis? Talk about a last resort option to keep your career going.
5. (15) Houston Rockets
I mean this in the most respectful way possible, if Aaron Brooks is going to lead your team in points per game, you’re not going to win many games. It’s no knock on Brooks, he’s a fine player, but this team is going to have problems putting up 90 points a night, especially with Luis Scola as the number two option. Trevor Ariza was a role player who benefited offensively from Kobe and others being guarded. Ariza is not a player who can average more than 15 a night on a consistent basis, unless he’s shooting a low percentage. It’s going to be a long season for Rockets’ fans.
Northwest
1. (3) Portland Trail Blazers
Greg Oden’s health is a major factor in their success, along with figuring out the Andre Miller situation. There is absolutely no way that Steve Blake should start over Miller, ever. They brought in Miller, because Blake is a backup. Now Miller is the backup? This team may take awhile to gel, but by January, I think they will be hands down one of the top teams in the league. They have a championship caliber roster, built upon a superstar (Brandon Roy), a solid number two option (LaMarcus Aldridge) and role players. They must find a way to get Oden involved on offense if they want to go deep into the playoffs, scoring down low will be critical against teams like the Lakers and Spurs.
2. (4) Denver Nuggets
They’re pretty much the same team as last year, except they replace Dahntay Jones with Arron Afflalo, who had a fantastic preseason, and added Ty Lawson. The Lakers, Spurs and Blazers all added major pieces, I don’t think the Nuggets upgraded enough to climb ahead of that pack. They’re still talented and cannot be ruled out, but I can’t see them getting back to the Western Conference Finals this season.
3. (6) Utah Jazz
The Jazz have the talent and the coach to win as many games as almost anyone out West, but I just don’t see it happening. I don’t think Carlos Boozer’s head will into the season, but then again, he does want to play for a contract and to re-up his value. Besides Boozer being healthy, there really is no difference here. Deron Williams will be healthy from the start, so it will turn into maybe a few more wins, but I’m sure this team will hit injuries down the road.
4. (10) Oklahoma City Thunder
This team is going to be fun to watch, and Kevin Durant is going to be an all-star in February. Jeff Green and Russell Westbrook will also improve tremendously. They won’t be in the playoff hunt, but the Thunder will win more than 31 games this season, no doubt.
5. (12) Minnesota Timberwolves
Al Jefferson is in great shape, and will be an all-star. Kevin Love’s injury is going to set them back a bit. Last season–the Timberwolves had the best record in the league during the month of January–so there is some promise here. Granted there is a different coach involved and plenty of new faces, the Wolves could win more games than many people think. It looks like Jonny Flynn is going to be the starter–but if you know anything about me–you know I think Ramon Sessions should have that spot. I’ll say they win around 30 games as well.
Pacific
1. (2) Los Angeles Lakers
I don’t need to say much. They won 60-plus games last season and a championship. They essentially swapped Ariza for Artest and they have a healthy Andrew Bynum. I don’t care what you think about LeBron James, Bryant is the best player in the world.
2. (8) Phoenix Suns
Steve Nash is getting old, but with Shaquille O’Neal out of the way and Channing Frye will be in the middle, this team will be running much more than they did last season. They’ll be back in the playoff race, but out in the first round. That’s assuming Amare Stoudemire stays healthy all season and doesn’t get traded by February.
3. (9) Los Angeles Clippers
If Baron Davis can play 72 games this year and shoot over 42 percent, they should be okay. They’ll definitely be better than last season, but health is the key. Once Blake Griffin gets back on the court, they should be fine. They have plenty of talent, the hard part is keeping guys like Chris Kaman, Marcus Camby and Davis on the floor. I think they’ll win around 35 games though, but I wouldn’t be shocked if they only won 15.
4. (13) Sacramento Kings
They have some good young talent, just not enough to win games. Nobody knows who Kevin Martin is, but the kid can put up 27 points per game with ease. His biggest problem is staying on the court for more than 70 games in a season. They’ll be more fun to watch this year, but don’t expect many wins.
5. (14) Golden State Warriors
As far as talent goes, this team should win around 40 games, but they won’t. Don Nelson alternates his lineups like crazy. Stephen Jackson wants out. Monta Ellis isn’t too happy either. The situation in Golden State is a mess, and it won’t be fixed this season. The Warriors should put up plenty of points and it will be fun to watch Stephen Curry, Anthony Randolph and perhaps Anthony Morrow, but other than that, it’s going to be an ugly season.
