How sick is the West going to be? Predict the final standings.

1.) Thunder - I don't think they'll miss KMart too much. Reggie Jackson and Lamb will do fine. Still have two top-10 players, Ibaka, and a bunch of solid role players.

2.) Spurs - Well oiled machine. Will be up there with the best of them despite essentially taking a few games off.

3.) Warriors - Really solid team. Fairly deep. Well coached -- though they might miss Mike Malone. Injuries and backup PG play are a concern, though.

4.) Rockets - Roster is incomplete, obviously, so not entirely sure where to rank them. I think they'll be no worse than #6. Could be in the race for #1 if Morey pulls of some wizardry. I'd put them at #4 right now.

5.) Clippers - I think Doc Rivers is an overrated coach, but I like most of the roster moves they've made, so they should be no worse than #6 and I'm leaning towards LAC over MEM right now.

6.) Grizzlies - I don't think Hollins was/is a very good coach. Their offense was utterly crappy last year and Joerger was in charge of the defense, so...
I also think Joerger will do the smart thing and start Pondexter over Prince. I liked the Koufos trade. Still need a shooter off the bench. Very good team though. Top-6 for sure.

7.) Blazers - Really liked some of things they did last year. Fan of Terry Sotts. Improved their bench. #7 is probably their ceiling, but that where I'd project them to end up right now.

8.) T-Wolves - Solid team. Well coached. Will score and give up a lot of points. Should be good enough for #7 or #8.

Barring injuries I really don't think the likes of New Orleans, Dallas, Utah and LA will be seriously in the mix for #8. Denver might be, but I'd bet against them right now.

EDIT: I see the Clippers now signed Jamison, not Kenyon Martin. Hate this. Putting them at #5, instead of #4 now.

 

Top tier teams:
Houston
OKC
Clippers
~~~~~
Challengers: 1st or second round
Grizz
Golden State
San Antonio
~~~~~
1st Round Fodder:
New Orleans
Denver / Portland
--------
Portland / Denver
Minnesota
Utah
Sactown
Dallas
Pheonix
Lakers

 

Is our bench really that good guys? I can't see this team being higher then 3, and no lower then 6. Our starting lineup outside of the 4 position is great, title worthy. But are Motie/Jones ready to take that next step?

Maybe Im just being a pessimistic, but Id feel more comfortable if we got one more solid role player. The clippers, spurs, and thunder are in a different league then us right now.

 

1.Spurs
2.Clippers
3.Rockets
4.Thunder
5.Warriors
6.Grizzlies
7.Wolves (if healthy)
8.Blazers
9.Pelicans

 

it's the worst defensive team ever, but man it has scoring power.

 

1.Spurs
2.Thunder
3.Clippers
4.Rockets
5.Memphis
6.Golden State
7.Minnesota
8.Portland

 

Morey has always shown he can constantly pull role players out of his ******* and put them on very favorable contracts. Besides, here's the lineup as of now

Lin/Beverley
Harden/Garcia
Parsons/Casspi
Jones/Dmo
Howard/Asik

In what way is that not deep? Much deeper than OKC as of now. And now that the core (Howard, Harden, Parsons) has been set, it'll even easier to get role players because they'll take a pay cut to ring chase with us on top of Morey getting finding euro gems. Getting a deep team will never be an issue with Morey at the reins.

With that said here's my standings at this point

Spurs (60-22. They just somehow keep rolling.)
Rockets (59-23)
Thunder (57-25. Win Tiebreak)
Clippers (57-25)
Memphis (55-27)
Golden State (51-31)
Trail Blazers (44-38)
Pelicans (41-41)

Minny (38-44)
Utah (35-47)
Dallas (35-47)
Lakers (32-50)
Kings (30-52)
Suns (25-57)

Much harder to predict the West since it's so damn top heavy now.

 

Portland may make it to the playoffs if they can stay healthy. And if Aldridge is still on the team.

 

Thunder
Clippers
Rockets
Spurs
Warriors
Grizzlies
Pelicans
Mavericks

 

peopel rating clippers very high. must like their summer?

 

1) HOU
2) LA
3) OKC
4) SA
5) GS
6) MEM
7) MIN
8) NO

 

3-pt shooters and Doc make a difference IMO

 

They were a good team to begin with.

 

1. Clippers (I think they're going to have a very good regular season.)
2. Spurs
3. Thunder
4. Rockets
5. Warriors
6. Grizzlies
7. Nuggets
8. Timberwolves

Mavs, Pelicans, and Lakers will be in the mix for the 8th seed as well.

Leads to some intriguing match-ups, especially that 4-5 seeds.

 

These guys are smart and probably understand just how awful Vinny Del Negro was lol.

 

Who are the Hornets?

 

I'll take the Rockets over the Clippers. The clippers lack a reliable third option that the Rockets have in Parsons, and I'd rather have Lin and Asik than Jordan and Redick.

 

1. Rockets
2. Thunder
3. Clippers
4. Spurs
5. Warriors
6. Grizzlies
7. Nuggets
8. Timberwolves

 

man, spurs never get any credit every year.
spurs and rockets will be top two

 

The West will be as 'sick' as it always is.