they were a .500 team last year - adding yao and b-miller should add 30 points. all homerism aside, i see us as at least a 5 seed and if healthy (cough, cough...yao), can compete for home court.
1.Lakers-will be stacked wouldnt be suprised if they win the confernce by 10+ games. 2.Spurs-people are underating this team, spurs address alot of there needs this summer as getting size,the best big man in europe(tiago splitter) and shooting and scoring big upgrades compared to mason and bogans (gary neal and james anderson), manu is coming off his 2nd best season,parker is going to an contract year, duncan can still give 20 and 10, jefferson couldnt do anything worse than he did this year has been working with pop this summer, spurs may still need to get a backup sf to jefferson for defense who can possibly shoot also but may address that if the spurs are struggling around the trade deadline. 3.Mavs-will be good in the regular season and choke in the post season but if rodrigue beaubouis can come around more they could be very scary. 4.Nuggets-depends on george karls health and if carmelo could be a distraction for his contract issues and if billups can keep producing without seeing a decline, if those get in a way I can see them dropping a few spots. 5.Rockets-IMO the most deepest team in the conference this team IMO is built to beat the lakers, if they stay healthy and everyone produces like there supposed to be I can see them doing damage in the conference. 6.Thunder- I think this team is not as good as people say they are. I still think there about 2 years from being a serious contender or find a legit big guy that can score, but there not better than any of these listed in front of them, still think there too young but if injuries and age starts catching up with these teams in front of them they I can see them being a top seed. 7.Trailblazers-Probably the most scariest on paper team in the league. There bench is good enough to make the playoffs in the west, but this team can not stay healthy, but if they do, there good enough to beat anyone in the nba including the heat, but I don't think they will make it that far. 8.Jazz-Al Jefferson was probably the best option after Boozer left, but Boozer was perfect for that system IMO, if Jefferson dominated the low block and Okur lighting it up on the outside that could be a deadly combo. Losing wesley matthews was a step backwards I dont think raja bell has anything left in the tank IMO and Jazz fans been saying gordan hayward is better than korver I dont know about that I think Korver is a better shooter I wouldnt be suprised if hayward was on the bench all season and ended up a bust.
I suppose I don't mind the seed we were placed at. The records don't make a lick of sense. I guarantee each Western playoff team will be winning 50+ games. I think the reason we are that is low is because they're predicting we're going to have some injuries, like always. 8th seed may very well be a possibility considering how ****ty luck when it comes to health. Our entire season falls upon Yao Ming. I do not curse the man for being injury-prone. He played his heart out for us in the 08-09 season and got us past the first round. We arguably have a much better cast then we did that year, with an improved Brooks and Scola, new additions Martin and Ariza, and a young, energetic bench which is one of the best in the NBA. I plant my belief firmly in Yao Ming. He is one of the nicest guys in the league, not to mention one of the best centers. He's helped the community of Houston as well as making it popular in China. I'm just rambling at this point, but I truly think this team, one made up of the classiest guys I can think of, deserves to win at least once. To make all this heartbreak and frustration culminate into one glorious victory. ...Anyway, I think we can beat the Lakers as of now, with our teams as it is. Assuming Yao Ming can still be at least 80% of what he was. He can dominate Bynum, and Brooks can run circles around Fisher. Artest is Artest. He'll either be a pain in the ass or a blessing in disguise. Hopefully Martin will be quick enough to keep Artest reeling behind. Gasol, one of the best PF in the NBA will cause plenty of problems for Scola, but on the flip-side, Scola's craftiness will keep Gasol guessing. Kobe Bryant is the second best player in the game, no question. He's going to get his. But luckily, we have Ariza to at least make him work for his points. So, as far as we know... Aaron Brooks > Derek Fisher Kevin Martin > Ron Artest Trevor Ariza < Kobe Bryant Luis Scola < Pau Gasol Yao Ming > Andrew Bynum Lakers would appear to have the advantage here. But I think our bench is where we'll secure the advantage. Kyle Lowry provides the second punch of probably the best point guard tandem. He'll eat Steve Blake for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Shane Battier isn't the same as before, but he is still a great defender. Matt Barnes is too, however, and he's a bit more offensively talented. Shannon Brown is a great scorer, but I think Budinger can match, if not exceed, his scoring output. Not to mention Bud has probably picked up some defensive pointers from Battier. Jordan Hill vs. Luke Walton. No contest, Hill. Lamar Odom is one of the best sixth men in the league, so he will pose problems. I don't really think we have anyone to match up with him, except maybe Patrick Patterson but he's an unknown at this point. It's late, I'm half asleep and just rambling at this point but if Yao is healthy, and our bench shows up, I feel we have a pretty good chance against the Lakers. Lord knows I can't handle another first round exit.
Our bench is CLEARLY better than anybody else's. especially the lakers. lamar odom is better than jordan hill or jared jeffries but... shane battier/trevor ariza > matt barnes chase budinger > matt barnes/sasha vujacic chuck hayes >>> theo ratliff brad miller >>> theo ratliff kyle lowry 10000x > steve blake looks like we win this
The experts are making the classic, amateurish mistake of underestimating a team that played without its best player last season. The Rockets also got deeper at some key positions and have young players who are poised to make strides this season. I don't expect the Rockets to be any lower than a four seed. I think they underestimated the Jazz too, unfortunately. They could be very good this year. Jefferson was a great pickup.
The Thunder did draft a big man and have capspace to pick up a PF they truly need. I expect them to play better next season. Ibaka is only going to get better and Cole Aldrich will make them better as well. The Thunder want to build their team through the draft and not through FA. I'm not going to say they're going to win it all next year but I will say they should at least have home court. Oh and about Houston beating OKC three times. I think people truly underestimate Houston's coaching staff. They beat OKC through their game plan. Again... NBA is won by match ups. OKC is one of those teams where we match up with them greatly.
Yeah the Thunder might be too high at the two spot but people are kidding themselves if they think the Thunder won't improve just because they didn't add some big name big man. Every single key player on their team is young and still improving. The Thunder are banking on them taking the next step through player development which can definitely happen. I still don't know about them being the number 2 seed though.
I concur. OKC is solid in the backcourt and on the wing, but Green and Nonads ain't gonna cut it up front. Green is great back up at best and they already have Ibaka who is young and cheaper than Green, with better defense.
Yeah I can't see them being number 2 seed unless they make an upgrade at PF or other teams have the injury bug like the Blazers or the Mavs. I like Jeff Green but he hurts that team a lot. He's too much of an outside player. Although I hate Dirk, he'll get down in the low post and grab some broads. Right now the West is very unknown at the moment. I can't see the Spurs, NO, and Memphis getting that much better. The Clippers could be a team that can rise next season but then again... we're talking about the Clippers. Phoenix will drop this year. IMO, Houston, Utah, Denver, Portland, and Dallas are the wildcards in the West. No one knows what to expect out of Yao Ming and can Morey land a star? No one knows how Jefferson will fit in Utah. I expect them to be good but how good is to question. Denver needs George Carl and some healthy guys. Portland will probably get better. Health is what killed their season last season and they still made the playoffs. Dallas is also unknown because will Cuban make another trade? IMO he dropped the ball when he traded for Tyson. I still think Dampier's contract could of landed someone better but they still have expiring contracts to swing a deal. They also gave too much money to Haywood but that's Cuban for you. Overall, it's going to be a good season.
im pretty sure the matchup the rockets won were earlier in the season when the rockets were overachieveing, and the thunder had yet to hit their stride. the final meeting we got blasted pretty bad
