NBA Thread II

[mweb]

Doing this instead of various more specific threads seemed to work well last year so here's one for this season.

A few observations of the early goings of the season:

- The Mavs do not look good at all. Hollinger wrote a piece that basically said teams that go on to win titles never get blown out at home twice in a row, and rarely get blown out twice at home period, or by the extent they did to the Nuggets. Their perimeter defense has gotten worse and they no longer have Chandler to protect the rim. That's a bad combo. Vince Carter looks to be done as an effective player. I think a big slide should be expected from this team.

- Both of the teams that crushed them should have very good seasons. Everyone expected that from the Heat, but I really believe the Nuggets are primed for an excellent season. They may have the best depth in the league as they have a lot of solid to good players, but no great ones. That may not be a recipe for success in the postseason, but it is in a condensed regular season, especially when half of the games are played at high altitude. They were also excellent after the Melo trade last year.

- The Heat meanwhile looked tremendous against the Mavs. Most importantly, LeBron showed off some of his newly worked on post and mid-post game and it looks like they may have a solid PG in Norris Cole.

- The Lakers have started 0-2, which isn't that surprising given Bynum's absence. I've actually been pleased with some of the role players such as Ron, Murphy, and McRoberts. Two bad that the latter two play the same positions as 2 of the best 3 players on the team and Artest is most effective in the post, where most of the other top scoring options are most effective. With all that said, I think they're done as a title contender unless they upgrade the roster.

- Lob City didn't have a great debut, but pulled out the win thanks in large part to CP3. It would be great to see him in a Lakers uniform, but he'll be more exciting with the Clips.

- Lastly, did anyone see the Thunder-Wolves game last night? That was a great game! The Thunder are the favorite in the West and the Wolves should surprise people. Even if they don't make the playoffs, they will be one of the more entertaining teams to watch with the additions of Williams, Barrea, and Rubio. The latter is an exciting play maker to watch.

Looking forward to Boston-Miami tonight.

[Pedro Cerrano]

There are exactly zero teams in the NBA that can run with the Heat.

[Sports Guy]

There are exactly zero teams in the NBA that can run with the Heat.

Battier was an absolute monster pick up for the Heat.

[Pedro Cerrano]

Battier was an absolute monster pick up for the Heat.

Pat Riley knows a thing or two about what it takes to build a championship team. A selfless defensive stopper amongst a bunch of elite scorers is a pretty good ingredient.

[Dr. FLK]

There are exactly zero teams in the NBA that can run with the Heat.

And yet they still barely held on to beat a C's team without Pierce. It looks like you can't run with them, but play a zone...and they have some issues. They still look like the team to beat, but they never look quite as invincible as I think they should.

[Pedro Cerrano]

And yet they still barely held on to beat a C's team without Pierce. It looks like you can't run with them, but play a zone...and they have some issues. They still look like the team to beat, but they never look quite as invincible as I think they should.

Yes, that zone gave them a lot of trouble and will be a defense used against them a lot this year IMO, especially by teams that are older and are playing a condensed schedule, zone may save a little energy as well.

The problem is getting the Heat in a half-court offense. Playing zone doesn't make a lick of difference if LeBron James is sticking his nuts in your face on every other play.

[Sports Guy]

And yet they still barely held on to beat a C's team without Pierce. It looks like you can't run with them, but play a zone...and they have some issues. They still look like the team to beat, but they never look quite as invincible as I think they should.

One game means nothing.

Over the course of a 7 game playoff, a team will have to get lucky to beat them.

[beaner]

Yes, that zone gave them a lot of trouble and will be a defense used against them a lot this year IMO, especially by teams that are older and are playing a condensed schedule, zone may save a little energy as well.

The problem is getting the Heat in a half-court offense. Playing zone doesn't make a lick of difference if LeBron James is sticking his nuts in your face on every other play.

MMM, yummy.

Piggybacking on what Web said above, I love Denver this year as well. Lawson is the real deal (granted I'm biased).

I have really enjoyed watching Minnesota so far, even though they're 0-2. Rubio is fantastic to watch, and Kevin Love is just a purists dream. I honestly think they can make the playoffs this year, (call me crazy) and be a threat for years to come.

It should be neat to see some fresh contenders out West, with Oklahoma City, Memphis, and the Clippers looking to me like the three best teams out there.

As for the East, there are a lot of awful teams unfortunately. New York will be a a lot of fun to watch all year, especially if Baron Davis actually feels like playing. He always feeds off the crowd, and they'll be back in the Garden all year with that team.

Miami finally looks like they've found their 4th quarter clutch superstar in Norris Cole . What a relief.

On a personal note, I'll be glued to every Pacers game to see Hansbrough, who had 15 & 13 in their opener, and remains the hardest working player in the history of basketball.

Heat over Thunder in the finals. A captain obvious pick for sure.

[Sports Guy]

I am really underwhelmed by the Lakers roster and, the biggest loss is Phil Jackson.

I don't think they miss the playoffs but if they don't pull off a trade for Howard(and quickly), I could definitely see them as a 6th or 7th seed and get bounced early in the playoffs.

Bynum is going to have to live up to his potential for this team to be a legit contender IMO.

[Pedro Cerrano]

I am really underwhelmed by the Lakers roster and, the biggest loss is Phil Jackson.

I don't think they miss the playoffs but if they don't pull off a trade for Howard(and quickly), I could definitely see them as a 6th or 7th seed and get bounced early in the playoffs.

Bynum is going to have to live up to his potential for this team to be a legit contender IMO.

All contingent on health. A full season of good health and he develops into a monster, IMO. He'll never be the defensive player that Howard is but he can be better offensively.

[mweb]

MMM, yummy.

Piggybacking on what Web said above, I love Denver this year as well. Lawson is the real deal (granted I'm biased).

I have really enjoyed watching Minnesota so far, even though they're 0-2. Rubio is fantastic to watch, and Kevin Love is just a purists dream. I honestly think they can make the playoffs this year, (call me crazy) and be a threat for years to come.

It should be neat to see some fresh contenders out West, with Oklahoma City, Memphis, and the Clippers looking to me like the three best teams out there.

As for the East, there are a lot of awful teams unfortunately. New York will be a a lot of fun to watch all year, especially if Baron Davis actually feels like playing. He always feeds off the crowd, and they'll be back in the Garden all year with that team.

Miami finally looks like they've found their 4th quarter clutch superstar in Norris Cole . What a relief.

On a personal note, I'll be glued to every Pacers game to see Hansbrough, who had 15 & 13 in their opener, and remains the hardest working player in the history of basketball.

Heat over Thunder in the finals. A captain obvious pick for sure.

Hey Seth, nice to see a post from you.

Yeah, the West will be interesting in terms of fresh teams as you say, but I'd place Denver in the top 3 instead of Memphis due to depth. SA and Memphis are probably the next best two teams imo.

Yep, Baron is the key for the Knicks imo. I think that team is overrated, but if he plays like he's capable of, then they'll be legit.

Speaking of the Pacers, they should surprise people this year. I even have them 3rd in the East. They'll probably be a better regular season team than post season team, though. Same with the Nuggets.

Same for me with the finals.

[mweb]

I am really underwhelmed by the Lakers roster and, the biggest loss is Phil Jackson.

I don't think they miss the playoffs but if they don't pull off a trade for Howard(and quickly), I could definitely see them as a 6th or 7th seed and get bounced early in the playoffs.

Bynum is going to have to live up to his potential for this team to be a legit contender IMO.

I'm glad someone isn't blinded by the gold and purple.

I have them 7th in the West. They can miss the playoffs if just one of their big 3 misses a decent amount of time, which wouldn't be surprising.

I agree with Pedro on Bynum. If healthy, he should be really good. My only other caveat to that is if he gets the ball consistently like he should.

[mweb]

Wade with the game winner against the Bobcats. The Heat fell behind big in this one and Wade missed almost the whole 3rd quarter with an injury, but James led them back with help from Bosh, and the Wade hit the big shot. Lots of exciting plays by the Heat including a LeBron dunk that didn't count because it bounced back out of the basket after hitting Gerald Henderson's head. The James save and then 3/4 court pass to Wade was great.

[Birds of B'more]

The Spurs really took the Clippers to the woodshed tonight. It's one game, and it will be interesting to see how SA's aging stars handle the condensed season, but you never want to count them out either. With Phil Jackson retired, they now have the best coach in the league too.

[mweb]

Durant bails Ibaka and himself (leaving Carter open) out by nailing the 3 at the buzzer!

He also seems to have improved his ball handling skills during the off-season. This should be a huge year for him and the Thunder.