THE CHAMPIONSHIP CONTENDERS:
1. Dallas - I know they choked last year, I know San Antonio are the champs, but I just feel like this may be Dallas' year. Most championship teams have to take some bumps before winning it all. Most of their guys are in their prime, with D. Harris & D. Diop on the come-up. And I do think Avery is a great coach.
2. San Antonio - It is hard to repeat - they have a target on their back. San Antonio has yet to do it. And many of their role players (Horry, Barry, Finley) are another year older & slower.
3. Phoenix - Losing Kurt Thomas was a bad move. They have no upcoming youth, and they are a pretty thin team. They have also failed to prove they can get over the hump in the playoffs with their style of play.
4. Boston - The Big 3 is awesome, but they are one injury away from being a 8-12 team. Also, I would imagine it will take awhile for their chemistry to come together, and I would expect a few bumps in the road.
CLOSE TO THE TOP:
5. Denver - It seems like no one is talking about them, and I'm not sure why. Melo & AI - enough said. Camby has played the best ball of his career lately. A decent supporting cast & a healthy KMart? They could be really tough. But they could also be a bust.
6. Houston - TMac & Yao, with an improved supporting cast. Adelmans style of play should improve this team's overall play (minus YAO). I still can't put them any higher, based on TMac & YAO's past playoff failures, however.
7. Utah - They looked very solid in the playoffs last year. DWill & Boozer are 2 of the hottest rising stars. Sloan will keep them competitive night in & night out.
8. Detroit - They have been an Eastern Conference powerhouse for the past 5 years. With basically the same guys back, you can't forget about them.
9. Chicago - I'm not sold on this team, but they do have a good coach, a pretty deep group of solid players, and a strong defensive identity.
10. Cleveland - They made it to the finals last year, so it's hard to keep them out of the top 10. But other than LeBron, they are very thin.
SHOULD MAKE THE PLAYOFFS:
11. Miami - They are kind of a wildcard, as I could see them being a top 5 team, or missing the playoffs all together. The health of DWade & Shaq is iffy, but if they put it all together they could once again be a force.
12. Golden State - They were awesome in the playoffs last year, and a full season of Nellieball with the new roster could yield big results. The loss of JRich & a thin front-line are concerning, though.
13. Washington - They have a real solid big 3, but little else. I also do not trust Eddie Jordan as a coach.
14. Toronto - They had a nice season last year, and are an up & coming team. I think they are good, but far from great.
15. New Jersey - This teams seems to also be stuck in the good but not great category. JKidd, Vince, & RJ aren't getting any younger, and they are thin up front overall.
16. New Orleans - I see them as the final West team in the playoffs. T. Chandler seems to be coming into his own, and D. West & C. Paul are very solid rising stars as well.
Slighty Below Average:
17. LA Lakers - Who knows with this team. So much of it depends on Kobe's attitude & antics, and the health & talent of the rest of the squad is a question mark too. I never count a Phil Jackson-led team out completely though.
18. Orlando - D. Howard is a stud, but are they really that good? I don't think so. Jameer Nelson is very overrated in my opinion, not to mention R. Lewis.
19. Millwaukee - With M. Redd, M. Williams, C. Villenueva, A. Bogut, D. Mason, B. Simmons, C. Bell & Yi, they have a lot of good players. But other than Redd, there are no real stand-outs. They scream average to me.
20. Charlotte - They have quietly been improving and stockpiling young players the last few years. With the addition of J. Rich, they could suprise some people. Losing AMo's mustache doesn't help though.
They will most likely suck:
21. New York - On paper they look alright, but the same can be said for their squad the last few years, and we know how that turned out. At least they are entertaining, with the crazy Marbury/Thomas duo, as well as the Buffet Kings of Randolph & Curry.
22. Atlanta - Lots of \"talent\", but will it equal wins?
23. Sacramento - They have been getting progressively worse for a few years now. I don't see why the trend would stop this year.
24. Memphis - They have some nice pieces, but are too young & inexperienced to expect much from them this year.
25. Portland - Losing Oden hurts bad. Still, they played hard last year, and L. Aldridge & B. Roy are nice evolving players.
26. Philly - They suprised a lot of people with a decent record after the AI trade. But still, with A. Igudola & Dre Miller as their \"stars\", how could are they really?
The Cellar Dwellers:
27. Seattle - This is a strange team, with almost no key cogs from last years bad team back. At least Durant will be fun to watch. Over/Under 16 games until Wally's first leg injury.
28. Indiana - They are not good, but at least they have J. O'Neil & the potential emerging D. Granger & I. Diogou (I know I spelled this & AI2 wrong, but at this point I don't care).
29. LA Clippers - They were bad last year and now E. Brand is out. It's kind of fun to watch S. Cassell run another team into the ground though. What a front-runner.
30. Minnesota - I'm sorry, but I think it's true. Who is going to score on this team? Other than A. Jefferson & maybe Foye, who can you count on to give you 15 a night. Absolutely no one.
