A top four spot in the West is available - why not take it?

What I'm afraid of is that EG will send us a couple of more games into the losses coloumn..

I think the Rox will be solidly entrenched for the playoffs and one or two games won't make a big difference. I don't see what happened last season happening this season. And comparing Braggs and EG.. well Braggs seems to be more of a hustler, and he has something to prove as well so I have more confidence in Braggs hustling and taking high percentage shots than EG. I guess you could say EG also has something to prove, but I don't see him bringing the same kinda energy with all his problems as Braggs would, plus he shoots at such a low percentage. I think, taking his now messed up life into account, that last season was probly his season to shine, but he didn't. Now I think he's got a much harder road to follow to get back in the game, and I just don't see him doing that this season.

Anyways, the Kings didn't really show any marked improvement or any signs of getting worse. That in itself is already a disadvantage to them because just about every other team has improved. Sure Wallace seems to have improved a lot, but they lost some key reserves like JJ and Turkoglu, and injuries seem to have taken them for now. Divac is getting older too, and Miller is plain bad when it comes to centers in the west. I believe that they'll be just about as good as last season (not record-wise, but just team-wise) which is to their detriment because the other west teams which have improved will eat them alive.

 

I think EG is already gone. They'll get him cured and then he will be tradable. Codell couldn't give you 15 games because the guy isn't probably going to be wearing a Rockets uniform ever again.

The Cato thing has worked out to the point that they will trade for a big small forward or small power forward.

Does the trade exception count in an EG trade?

 

Dearrock,

Jamison and Walker can both play multiple positions. Hardly excessive at one spot. Surely you noticed that Dirk, Toine and Jamison all got over 30 mins last night right??

Again, AJ usually only played garbage minutes for Dallas last year. I don't understand why you think losing him hurts Dallas. It doesn't. Best is a better player than AJ is/was. And how you can say that Best/Delk won't be able to fit in with their offense is beyond me. Especially seeing as how they have played a grand total of 1 game so far.

Ill give you 15 injury games for EG. Suspended games don't count. And being in the hospital for a mental condition doesn't count either. If he never comes off the suspended list, then the bet still counts.

In return, I will take a 3rd player off the Fab 5.

Sac - Christie
LA - Malone
SA - Ginoblli
Min - Olowokandi
Dallas - Jamison

 

Do you really think JVG and Les will put up with this. What about team chemistry. What will the other players think if he just goes through treatment and is allowed to simply come back? He's history in my book. Trade the rehabilitated EG for a big small forward.

 

Dallas has actually gotten better than last year, but not to the same degree as the Lakers or Wolves is all. But they're still a team to be feared. Fortson will give them a little more presence inside on the boards and defensive end, not much but a little. LaFrentz was doing nothing in Dallas anyways. The loss of NVE hurts them.. a lot. But they have Walker and Jamison to make up for the lost scoring (and Jamison actually plays some defense), and both will get significant minutes, probly averaging close to 30 minutes a game. In the end Dallas has more firepower than before and still pretty sucky D. Granted their backup pg position sux now, but that's not really a big deal. They'll still be in the top 4 by beating every team not called the Lakers, Wolves, or Spurs.

 

I think the Rox should keep EG. Who knows, maybe he'll get his act together, but right now nothing much can be gained from letting him go or trading him (his trade value is probly nil right now anyways). However, I would not be surprised if the Rox do trade him as a message.

 

The brand of basketball the Mavericks and Kings play will win you alot of regular season games. Both teams are wide open fastbreaking teams that have two of the best push guards in Nash and Bibby. I don't see any drop off in their win total this year.

 

Exactly. "Cure" him and trade him. JVG didn't leave NY for broadcasting because he puts up with this crap. Look what he did to Rice - twice!

Maybe we can get a first round pick from someone or combine him with the trade exception for an older good two role forward.

 

No DR,

15 games, injury only. It makes no sense for you to take 10 games for Yao and Francis and take the same for EG since he is nowhere near as important to this team as Yao and Steve are.

Suspension games do not count since we already know hes going to miss at least 5.

DNPs don't count either.

 

The Mavs were the best team in the regular season, they are even better this year. Sure they don't have defense, but they never had it. With the offensive power they had, I just don't see any team can win more games over a 82 game season.

The Kings are a bit weaker than last year because of their age & injury, but their strength is their system, where everyone knows his role. They should be still up there with the Lakers, Mavs, and the Spurs.

Fans on this board usually overestimate the Rockets, which I attribute to the home-team thing, but the Rockets were fighting for the 8th seed with the Suns, Warriors, and the Sonics at the end of the last season. Now, people are talking about 4th seed?
Get real guys!

My pick for the season,

1. Mavs
2. Lakers
3. Spurs
4. Kings
5. Blazers
6. Wolvs
7. Suns
8. Rockets

 

Anything can happen because of the depth problems and injuries.
Notice how much SA missed T. Parker.

I think the teams like LA and Dallas with extra go to guys on the roster have an advantage if hit with injuries.

Sac- must keep Webber on the court
Houston- must keep Yao and Steve on the court
Minnesota- Garnett
SA- Duncan
Phoenix- Marbury/ Marion
Blazers, Seattle, - who cares

The above teams who stay the most healthy will have a advantage.

I think Houston will be much improved, even getting the 6th or 7th seed if they stay injury free. What a big if.

Adding Jeff Van Gundy was the key roster move for the Rockets. But they are not deep enough to lose Steve or Yao for more than a handful of games this season.

 

San Antonio has significantly weakened with the retirement of DRob. Kings are getting older everyday, with CWeb and Divac injury-prone. T-wolves had nice offseason additions, but I don't see KG as a winner until he proves me wrong.

Forget about top 4! How about top 2? This season I see the west will be decided by Lakers and the Rockets.

Yao vs Shaq
Cato vs Malone
JJ vs George
Cat vs Kobe
Francis vs Payton

That's an awesome matchup!

 

Well, I'm putting the Rox at about 5 or 6, and even I think that might be a tad optimistic since the West IS harder than the East, but point taken, it could happen. Anybody probly could've predicted Dallas demise yesterday, but that's not the point I guess. The thing is you can't place the Rockets just by how you think they match up with the top 3 teams, but also based upon the previous season, matchups, and how the team will dominate the sucky ones, and how competitive they are against the good. I don't think anyone here will argue that the Mavs, Lakers, and Wolves will probably dominate the weaker teams (including the east teams) consistently. I doubt the Rox will be so consistent in their play. Of course Dallas is going to lose to the Lakers, hell just about everyone is going to lose the Lakers. The Lakers are in a class of their own, then comes the Wolves, Mavs, and Spurs, then comes the Kings (yes I'm putting them here, I may be wrong but I believe they're going downhill so they're sorta on the edge), Rockets, and so on.

I don't want to put down the Rox but here's the deal -
They've never been to the playoffs with this core team, they were the fighting for the 8th playoff spot and seriously underacheived, they didn't get any blockbuster trade or acquisition but did acquire good depth and everyone's matured their game (as far as I can tell), new coach and new players that need to gel. So yes they have gotten better, but so have other teams, and some far far better: Lakers and Wolves for instance. I think putting them top 4 is a stretch.

 

I believe the intangibles have a big impact. The Rox have a lot of talent, and some untapped talent as well, I just don't think they have so much skill and talent that they'll be able to consistently put away the weaker teams night in and night out. I hope I'm wrong though. I agree with you though, JVG seems to have made a big difference, at least so far.