Teams that will give us the most trouble

the difference between before and now is that we got a answer for TD and his name is Battier!!! and thats not just for TD but also for Dirk we got Texas covered baby!! so just sit back and enjoy the season until the bright new golden ring shining over Houston

 

Phoenix, Dallas and San Antonio are the team to beat. But let's not forget about the Heat. Shag can still overpower his man despite his decreasing game. Yao would still probably have a hard time against him. Good thing Shaq is not a good FT shooter but bad thing because our big men will be be in foul trouble. I like the improvements this year at least it gives us the chance to stay even with those teams in terms of firepower, defense and depth.

 

I think the Suns are the team to beat this year if Amare gets it going.

If he's healthy,


PG Nash
SG Bell
SF Diaw
PF Marion
C Amare

Frankly, that's downright scary. That's the best starting 5 in the league when healthy.

 

I agree.....phoenix and Dallas...Phoenix runs the ball like crazy and Dallas can shoot lights out..Dallas has so much depth that they don;t lose much when they go the bench...If Amare is back for the Suns, they are really deep as well...I think our 5-7 player rotation will be as good as anybody but it will be key to see who beyond those guys will step up and really make the difference against teh top teams....This is the first time in a long time, that I feel we can beat anybody without it being luck.....

 

Projections don't mean much as evidenced by the fact that he was picked 8th.It woulda been nice to get more in return but at this point the trade will be measured on the team's success.

Time will tell ...so let it go, man.

 

IMO you are paying too much attention to the past, not enough to the future. The Spurs have an older nucleous generally than the Mavs or Suns. Further, the Mavs did beat them at their place and took it to them much of the series by out athleticizing them (if that is a word). Duncan, Finley, Manu, Bowen, Horry and Barry are on the down side of their career, all regressed from their previous season. Only Parker of their key players still has growth potential. Also, their offseason moves neither helped their athleticism nor releaved Duncan pressure for carrying their 4 and 5 spots--unless Elson or Butler really blossum. The Spurs will be formidable, sure, Duncan and Manu still have some fight in them I would expect and Parker has showed steady improvement, but unless Elson/Butler bring more of a presence than Nazr/Rasha--I very big gamble IMO, I can't see how there isn't more distance between them and the Mavs from last year.

You couple the above with the fact 1) the Rockets look much bigger and more versitel on the wings with Battier, Wells and Synder to work on Manu or Finley (so Tmac doesn't have too), and 2) the Spurs style fits to the Rockets, no I don't see down the line the Spurs being the most formidable obstacle. Going into this year we are actually longer, younger and more athletic than they are, and have 2 great players closer to their primes.

The Suns have had a terrific record the last 2 years. While Nash is aging, most of their core is very young and on the upswing (Amare, Diaw, Barbosa, Banks). Barbosa IMO is going to be an increasingly nightmareish match-up, and really relieve pressure on Nash. I also think their team is so deep know in the guards (Banks and Barbosa to share PG responsibilities) Nash should be able to be conserved. But yes to be a title contender they will need Amare to be 90%, with maybe a little help in the big spots from Kurt Thomas (another vet to throw at opponents Cs and PFs). So they have questions, but if it all comes together, they are scary.

Dallas is Dallas. They went to game 6 in a hard fought finals. They have lots of key players with growth potential (Howard, Harris, Diop, Ager) around other stars in their prime (Dirk, Terry) and other solid vets (Stack, Johnson, Damp, Buckner). They also can play uptempo or slow tempo, and can try to change pace to exploit their opponents. They are beatable, but very formidable.

DWade is a match-up problem for everyone. The Heat are the reigning champions. But their style is so close to ours, that is a plus. They are a load, if we can slow Wade down the slightest we can beat them, we got more guys to try on an explosive swingman than in previous years--Wells, Snyder, Head, Battier, Tmac. Whether we could do it (slow him at all) for a 7 game series I don't know, but I'd sure like to find out.