this could happen if one or both of our stars went down injury for a certain period of time. As of now, our bench are really thin. No backup center as most of the qualities big men has signed elsewhere, then we have motay, spoon, padgett, boki, pike, a griffin, lue. All of them i consider mo as decent scorer, the rest of them..... soory boki
The West is so f-ing good. Has it eve been this good? The 9th and 10th seed in the West would have HOMEcourt in the East. Houston Minny San Antonio LA Dallas Phoenix Utah Portland Sacramento Memphis Denver All these teams deserve to be in the playoffs. But 3 of these teams have to go. Good luck picking them out. Any of these teams would be able to win the East. Personally, I think Portland and Phoenix will be out. The third team will be the team that suffers the most injuries.
Denver will be #7. Memphis? If they don't improve their roster, I think they'll drop to #8. Ofcourse, they may get Dampier, which may lock them back into #5, or maybe #4 even. Still, though, no stars = no playoff success.
I basically agree but I have Houston as the 6th seed and Memphis as the 4th. As things now stand, Memphis has a more complete team than does Houston. I also feel that the Lakers will be the 8th seed now that Kobe has finished with dismantling them.
As does Utah who should be a contender for a playoff berth. Somebody is going to be really disappointed come playoff time...
That's what makes the Western Conf. so tough. Dallas will be there, Denver was also left out. A 4 seed is to high. It really puzzles me that the rockets haven't made any moves and they want to contend for a championship. I project them to be 6-8 seed and that will be a battle. Some good team will not make it.
Keep in mind that the playoffs probably won't reflect power rankings. We are really in a bad position because we're in the SouthWest. The top teams in each division take the top 3 seeds. For us to get top three we have to beat out the Spurs and Mavs. For us to get the #4 spot, we have to finish second in our division and have the best record among all non-division winners. That won't be easy. The Timberwolves, Nuggets, and Jazz could all be very hot in the regular season. The regular season matters more than ever. One stretch with a key player out with an injury could easily knock out homecourt advantage. Evan
They should swap one Western playoff team with one of the worst Eastern teams to balalnce it out a little more. Houston can play in the East right? They should've done that. Swap Houston with the Bobcats or something. It will be interesting to see how New Orleans fare in the West. Comparing their last season to the next one will be VERY interesting.
man, Denver isn't getting much respect around here. they have a pretty solid nucleus of players at this point. as of today, the Rockets don't have a PG or a C. so, today, IMO, Denver is a more complete team. (i realize the Rockets are not done, but...) 1. Minnesota 2. San Antonio 3. Sacramento 4. Denver 5. Memphis 6. Houston 7. LA Lakers/Utah 8. Dallas/Phoenix/Portland this assumes the Webber stays healthy for a season (if he ever gets back up to speed.) if not, i would switch Sac with LA/Utah. man, the rockets better do something fast. the west is getting scary again, FAST...
1. Ditka 2. Gad 3. Rockets 4. El Santo/Mil Mascaras/Rey Misterio 5. El Chapulin Colorado 6. Hulk Hogan 7. Dah Bulls
How about this (and I'm sure to get wacked pretty good)? The Laker's will not make the playoffs. It will be "Me" ball at it's finest. and Dallas will be a 7th seed, barely. Nash is a huge loss for Dallas. He is a chemistry player. 1. Minnesota 2. Sacramento 3. San Antonio 4. Houston 5. Memphis 6. Phoenix 7. Dallas 8. Nuggets The sleeper is Utah. LA will not survive without Shaq. Their only hope is to start scouting prospects, because the NBA is too thin on decent centers. Yao is going to walk all over the west. The only reason I didn't put them higher is because the top 3 didn't kill last years roster.
It really has only been a short time since the Lakers took the shine off of the Spurs (the Lakers being the same team that was waxed by the best of the East). I keep hearing about Western conference teams being better than the East but the reality is that the top three eastern conference teams would compete or even put a whipping to the best in the West. Indiana, Detroit and Miami are definitely (as currently constituted) as good as if not better than Minnesota, San Antonio and Sacramento. I look at the West as fairly wide open. Minnesota has the best overall talent and there is no reason they shouldn't be in the NBA Finals this year. San Antonio and Sacramento? Could go either way. I wasn't convinced on either but recognize that Sac will have an easy row in the Western Division. Here's how I think it will run down: 1. Minnesota - #1 talent; best player in Garnett 2. Kings - #1 West, but most likely to be upset in Round 1 3. Spurs - #1 Southwest (same formula and mostly same players) 4. Nugs - great lineup and solid depth 5. Rox - best big man in the west, will give the Spurs a challenge 6. Jazz - Jerry Freaking Sloan 7. Griz - Young guns 8. Suns - Western Conference version of the Pistons Also rans: Lakers - just not enough pop and Kobi still distracted Mavs - Nelly has lost the team (fired at midseason) Blaze - This team is cursed Hornets - need help Sonics - just not enough to work with here Clips - no explaination required Warriors - college coach syndrome
Yep. It is unlikely that we are done in our acquisitions, so I will give Houston a little oomph, and say that our beloved Rockets will be a top-4 team. 1. San Antonio (they re-loaded well) 2. Minnesota (a year older, a notch lesser) 3. Sacramento (barring injuries again; they pass and shoot so well) 4. Houston (we WILL fill our roster holes, and we're gonna rock) 5. Memphis (they do need a go-to guy) 6. Denver (bastards really are gonna be good) 7. Utah (they'll need to jell, get some chemistry, but they re-loaded) 8. Dallas (when will they learn?) 9. Lakers (because I hate them so) 10. Phoenix 11. Portland 12. Seattle 13. New Orleans (welcome to the West) 14. Golden State 15. Da Clips
It's funny Shaq headed east since he doesn't have to face Yao like 3 or 4 times. He knows Yao is jsut getting better every year and last year was just the first taste of what Yao will be like.
Denver is going to be very good next year. I see a top 6 seed for them. Utah can definitely find a way to get into the top 8 as well. You just never know in the west.
