Southwest Division
1.
San Antonio
They’re the champs. And whoever wants to hold the Larry O’Brien trophy, they have
to go thru the Spurs. While all their conference foes retweaked their rosters
with new players, the Spurs stood pat this summer, bringing back the entire
championship team from last year. Duncan & Manu are back along with Tony
Parker, Kawai Leonard is gonna be a stud, and the role players will contribute
& compete regardless of who’s on the floor & who they’re playing
against. With the way they move the ball & hit the 3, along with their
defensive consistency, it’s hard to see them finishing below No. 3 in the West
& No. 5 overall in the league. Mind you, Popovich & Co. Have never
repeated, so this can be a motivating factor once they get to the home stretch
& realize they’re in the top 3 out West.
Over/Under: 55 wins
2.
Houston
So, the Harden & Howard experiment is past the trial stage. Last year,
they were kinda feeling each other out & not trying to step on each other’s
toes. Despite losing to a Portland squad led by LaMarcus Aldridge & Damien
Lillard, and losing Chandler Parsons, Jeremy Lin & Omer Asik means the
young guys like Terrence
Jones, Donatas
Motiejunas & Isaiah
Canaan will have to grow up quick & contribute. Trevor Ariza & Jason
Terry should provide them with some veteran savvy, while all eyes are on
Patrick Beverly to see if he is capable of playing major minutes as a starting
point guard. Hakeem Olajuwon has came out & said that Dwight Howard will have an MVP-caliber year, and from what I've seen from Dwight in the pre-season, he looks ready to carry his weight along with Harden to take this team deep into the postseason.
Over/Under: 50
wins
3.
Dallas
On paper, they don’t look too far off from the team that won the
championship in 2011. I’ll even say that they may be better than that 2011
squad. They got Tyson back in the middle; they still got Dirk Nowitzki, who
still has plenty left in the tank & doesn't have to worry about carrying the
offensive burden, thanks to Monta Ellis being able to get a shot anytime he feels
like it. Ever since arriving in Dallas, Monta has shot a higher percentage,complementing that with better shot selection, which creates a next-level dimension on offense for the Mavs. Chandler Parson will get the same amount of good looks he got in Houston because the offense is THAT good. Their depth at point guard & forward gives them the flexibility to
make adjustments to any style they encounter. They play in the deepest division
in the most competitive conference in sports, yet they still can win 50 games
& make a run if all goes smoothly.
Over/Under: 50 wins
4.
Memphis
In the Eastern Conference, they’re a legit 2 seed, 3 at worst. But they’re
in the Southwest Division, where the division runs thru Texas. And with Anthony
Davis & an ever-improving supporting cast down in New Orleans looking to
make a playoff push this year, the Memphis Grizzlies are in a position to
continue the run they had last year after coming out the gate sputtering. If
Zach Randolph doesn’t get suspended for Game 7 vs OKC, the series could go
either way. Not having Quincy Pondexter at full strength hurt them as well. He
should return to his old form this year, and the addition of Vince Cater should
offset the loss of Mike Miller & Jerryd Bayless. They have backcourt depth,
to go with Mark Gasol & Z-Bo upfront. They will be competitive & make
the playoffs, without a doubt. They just have to put themselves in a position
where they can get a favorable matchup heading into the 1st round.
With the depth of the West, any team from 1 thru 8 can beat each other in a
playoff series, so we’ll see what happens.
Over/Under: 50 wins
5.
New Orleans
SLAM Magazine ranked Anthony Davis as the 4th best player in the
NBA heading into the 2014-15 season. If you seen his progress from his rookie
year to his sophomore campaign, this wouldn’t be a hard sell. If he continues
to improve at this rate, he’ll have the Pelicans in the mix for a playoff spot.
They have Jrue Holiday, Eric Gorden & Tyreke Evans to take pressure off
him, so he doesn’t have to carry the scoring load every night. He has Omer Asik
up front with him, so he’ll be able to flex more on defense, as well as have
more space to operate on offense. With Ryan Anderson’s ability to stretch the
floor, New Orleans can be a matchup nightmare for opposing teams. The only
things that can set them back (barring injuries to any of the guys I named) is
their lack of a bench & playing in the deepest cdivision in the deepest
conference in sports. If all goes right, they can push for an 8th
seed & get it.
Over/Under: 45 wins
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