RANK | TEAM | THE RUNDOWN | LAST |
http://www.sheridanhoops.com/2013/08...ust-edition/2/
RANK | TEAM | THE RUNDOWN | LAST |
1 | HEAT (66-16) |
They really didn’t need Mike Miller, who was amnestied and fell into the lap of his original team, the Grizzlies. He was nice to have around when somebody, anybody, needed to hit a big 3-point shot in a closeout game. But that job will now fall to Rashard Lewis or Ray Allen or LeBron. They are all capable. | - |
2 | PACERS (49-32) |
If I was a gambling man, I’d pick them to win the title — and I would get some very decent odds. The Luis Scola trade put them right up there with Brooklyn as the team that improved the most over the course of the season. Chris Copeland will be a key contributor off the bench, but what will make or break this team is the play of guards George Hill and Lance Stephenson. | - |
3 | NETS (48-33) |
Paul Pierce will not have to be the de facto point guard, as he was after Rajon Rondo’s injury. Kevin Garnett will not have to be the de facto center, which he was for the past two seasons. Andrei Kirilenko and Andray Blatche can get them past the Pacers. Jason Kidd can be the good cop, Garnett will be the bad cop. They will be fierce. | - |
4 | SPURS (58-24) |
In case you’ve forgotten, Gregg Popovich cost this team the title. He is not a genius anymore. Great coaches don’t do things in Game 6 of the NBA Finals the same way they do things during the regular season. They adapt to the situation. It’s called tactics. It’s called adjusting on the fly. He did neither. And he acted like a jerk during his podium time. Time to lighten up, Pop. Show some class. Show some savvy. | - |
5 | THUNDER(60-22) | On principle, I should be ranking them beneath the Rockets (Sam Presti is no genius either, but at least he didn’t coach his team out of a championship, a la Pop.) The fact of the matter is that Kevin Durant is a more valuable player than Dwight Howard, and the same goes for Russell Westbrook when comparing him to James Harden. They’d better hope they have something in Jeremy Lamb. | - |
6 | GRIZZLIES (56-26) |
Well, they finally found their shooter in Mike Miller. And they found a way to keep Tony Allen at an affordable price (One day, defensive stoppers will be paid like 7-footers). They also pulled off one of the best under-the-radar acquisitions by getting Kosta Koufos from the Nuggets, which will reduce the wear and tear on Marc Gasol. If they can get Nick Calathes to back up Mike Conley, they’ll compete for No. 1 seed. | - |
7 | CLIPPERS (57-25) |
Doc Rivers? A vast improvement over Vinny Del Negro. J.J. Redick and Jared Dudley? Two glue guys that will provide what Chauncey Billups and Grant Hill were supposed to provide but never did. What will be their undoing when all is said and done? The free throw shooting of Blake Griffin and DeAndre Jordan. | - |
8 | KNICKS (54-28) |
We should penalize them with a double-digit ranking simply for the idiocy of trading for Andrea Bargnani. But the acquisition of Metta World Peace (or Whole Foods Guacamole Dip, if that’s what he indeed changes his name to) is going to make a world of difference when it comes time to have a defensive stopper in the playoffs. The Nets made the bolder moves, but the Knicks can compete with them if Amar’e Stoudemire has a real role. | - |
9 | WARRIORS (47-35) |
Every single team needs a defensive stopper. Personally, I’d rather have Tony Allen than Andre Iguodala, because Tony won’t be tempted to take the key shot of the game. Iggy? He’ll do it enough times to make Dubs fans shake their heads and ask why Stephen Curry or Klay Thompson didn’t get a chance. X-factor for these guys is Andrew Bogut’s health. | - |
10 | BULLS (45-37) |
Dear Derrick Rose: That ******** you pulled last year should prompt adidas to fire you as an endorser. “Wear these shoes, but don’t play basketball in them.” Have the goods to get Pau Gasol. It’ll cost them the No. 1 pick the Bobcats owe them, plus another No. 1, plus the rights to Nikola Mirotic, plus a couple guys to make the money match. But with Gasol, they can beat anybody. | - |
11 | ROCKETS (45-37) |
Congratulations to Daryl Morey for landing Dwight Howard and James Harden within the space of 10 months. Now, what are you going to do about Jeremy Lin? Put him on the bench again in the playoffs and let Patrick Beverly and Harden handle the playmaking chores? This team has four great starters. You need five. | - |
12 | WOLVES (31-51) |
No question they will miss Andrei Kirilenko, but they did just fine the previous year without him with Kevin Love being a 20-20 machine. He still has that in him. Had a strong draft and made a nice signing by adding Corey Brewer (see repeated references to defensive stoppers, and how everybody needs one). | - |
13 | CAVALIERS (24-58) |
And while we are on the subject of sleeper teams, let us not forget the East. Not only will they be one of the NBA’s most enjoyable teams to watch, they will become what Chris Paul and Blake Griffin became two years ago, with Kyrie Irving and Anthony Bennett filling those roles. Plus they get a healthy Anderson Varejao back. | - |
14 | PELICANS (27-55) |
Three things you need to compete with the very best: An All-Star point guard (Jrue Holiday gets the check mark), an All-Star center (Anthony Davis is well on his way) and a 3-point shooting machine (Ryan Anderson is a known commodity in that department). They are the West’s sleeper team. Mark my words. | - |
15 | PISTONS (29-53) |
Joe Dumars did a lot better in free agency this time than he did last time (remember Charlie Villanueva and Ben Gordon?) beginning with getting Josh Smith for less than the max, then adding Brandon Jennings to address the team’s biggest weakness — point guard. The front line was already solid with Andre Drummond and Greg Monroe, and they might even win a postseason game with Mr. Big Shot back on board. | - |
16 | HAWKS (44-38) |
Didn’t bid against themselves for Jeff Teague, and retained him at a reasonable number — which will allow Lou Williams to continue heading up the second unit. Lost Zaza Pachulia but picked up Paul Millsap and Elton Brand, which will allow Al Horford to play a lot more center than he did a year ago. | - |
17 | KINGS (28-54) |
Pulling their offer to Andre Iguodala may have been the smartest move they made. They don’t need to clog their cap with 30-somethings. Still have the league’s No. 1 head case (DeMarcus Cousins) who could become the league’s No. 1 center if the right coach can pull the right strings (Good luck with that, Mike Malone). Made a nice value signing in getting Carl Landry. | - |
18 | NUGGETS (57-25) |
Look no further for an example of how quickly things change in the NBA. Coach of the Year George Karl was fired. General manager Masai Ujiri left to take over the leadership of the Raptors — and was able to find a taker for Andrea Bargnani. Andre Iguodala left as a free agent. Starting center Kosta Koufos was traded. Is this still a playoff team? At this point, methinks not. I like the Kings better. | - |
19 | MAGIC (20-62) |
We can safely anoint Rob Hennigan as the winner of the Dwight Howard sweepstakes. Nik Vucevic will be an All-Star next season, Tobias Harris was an absolute steal in the J.J. Redick dump job, Victor Oladipo is going to be the next Dwyane Wade, and they’ll be under the salary cap once Hedu Turkoglu is cut (only half his $12 million salary is guaranteed.) | - |
20 | CELTICS (41-40) |
As much as it appears they are going to be major players in Tankapalooza, there is one problem. They still have Rajon Rondo on their team, and that guy is capable of winning 16-20 games all by himself. We fully expect him to be traded (he is probably No. 2 on the Most Likely List behind Pau Gasol), and the sooner that happens the sooner the Celtics can get into the Andrew Wiggins mix. | - |
21 | LAKERS (45-37) |
It is August, so I will take a swig of the purple and gold Kool-Aid, put aside my skepticism and buy into the talk that Kobe will be ready for Opening Night. After all, it’s only a torn Achilles. Just like the common cold, some would have us believe. | - |
22 | BLAZERS (33-49) |
Is Robin Lopez going to be a better center than J.J. Hickson was? Because aside from drafting C.J. McCollom, not a lot has been done here in terms of upgrading the roster in the NBA’s toughest conference. Hard to see them being better than a 35-win team. They’d be ranked ahead of Lakers if I wasn’t drinking the Kobe Kool-Aid. | - |
23 | JAZZ (43-39) |
Three starters are gone, and they were three pretty darn good starters — Al Jefferson, Paul Millsap and Mo Williams. The front office did a nice job taking Golden State’s flotsam and getting a pair of first-round picks, and drafting Trey Burke was solid. He could be ROY if win total reaches 30. | - |
24 | BUCKS (38-44) |
After last year’s late-season meltdown, it was time to take out the dynamite. They will get a lot more bang for the buck in the backcourt from Brandon Knight, Gary Neal and O.J. Mayo in comparison to what they were paying or would have had to pay Monta Ellis, Brandon Jennings and J.J. Redick. Can’t understand why they gave away Luc Richard Mbah a Moute. | - |
25 | MAVERICKS (41-41) |
The summer’s biggest losers. Can’t fault Mark Cuban for going all-in cap wise when players such as Dwight Howard and Chris Paul were going to be on the market, but sometimes all-in pushes backfire. If they start 2-18 or 3-17, will Dirk want out? One would think so. | - |
26 | WIZARDS (29-53) |
Giving John Wall a max contract extension goes down as the summer’s second-dumbest move (nobody can supplant the Knicks’ acquisition of Andrea Bargnani). There is talent here, no doubt, and the club’s surge in March and April was certainly promising. Coming out of the gate strong will be key to their season. | - |
27 | RAPTORS (34-48) |
Nominations for executive of the year are now closed. Masai Ujiri would have traded Bargnani for a bag of basketballs, and he fleeced the Knicks for Steve Novak and a first-round pick. Does Masai have the cajones to trade Landry Fields back to the Knicks, too? | - |
28 | BOBCATS (21-61) |
Why on Earth Al Jefferson chose this as his new home defies explanation. Can’t imagine Cody Zeller is too happy about it. Still owe a first-round pick to Chicago for the Tyrus Thomas trade. Will be paying Ben Gordon $13.2 million this season. At least they’ll be better than the Sixers. | - |
29 | SUNS (25-57) |
They are owed three first round picks (Indiana, Lakers, Timberwolves), and they don’t have any dead money on their cap after next season. But those are the only nice things we have to say. | - |
30 | SIXERS (34-48) |
Repeat after me, Sixers fans: “Andrew Wiggins, Andrew Wiggins, Andrew Wiggins.” Could be the worst team in NBA history. |
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