9) San Antonio Spurs
The Spurs win and lose on the shoulders of Kawahi Leonard and he’s a phonemenal player but he can’t score for his entire team and defend multiple players simultaneously. If the Spurs improved as a roster this year it would be minimally and any success to sustain their standing within the NBA as an elite team will depend on the improvement of Dejunte Murray while Tony Parker remains sidelined due to injury. Danny Green has to improve, Pau Gasol is aging yet still skilled. lamarcus can still score from the pinch post to 20 feet out but maybe an improved 3 point pick and pop game could help him age better. Letting Jonathan Simmons go may look foolish if not already. Davis Bertans has shown flashes of playing quality minutes and Patty Mills seems comfortable in his backup point guard role although being paid 4 years, 52 million (this is the new NBA). The Spurs rarely get out executed and don’t beat themselves, so while they may underachievers by Spurs standards of teams’ past it doesn’t mean they’re falling off as much as other teams have improved and are better. Never underestimate the coaching of Gregg Poppovich.
8) Toronto Raptors
The team that represents the North looks poised to have a competitive regular season. Kyle Lowry is an exceptional point guard who has shown only injuries and fatigue can slow his on floor performance down. DeMar Derozan is the most notorious midrange shooter in the game and probably the most effective as well other than Chris Paul. With Serge Ibakas love for shooting 3-pointers not dissipating, he has slowly evolved from a volume 3 point shooter to a more efficient clip, if it carriers over to the regular season, the Raptors record will be a major beneficiary.
7) LA Clippers
The Clippers offseason was one of extreme lows with the loss of one of the best players to ever don a Clippers jersey and optimistic highs with the return of Blake Griffin. The Clippers luckily managed to turn Chris Paul into Patrick Beverly, Lou Williams, Montrez Harrel and Sam Delker. Two of those guys will play a substantial role for the Clippers as Beverly will start in the backcourt with his defensive tenacity and much improved 3- point shooting and Williams coming off the bench as the best offensive sixth man in the game the last few years. Also new to the team is European legend Milos Teodosic who makes passing look like an art. Whether it’s a simple pass or flamboyant his knack to find his teammates and make others better rivals with some of the greatest playmakers in the games’ history. Whether it’s Pete Maravich, Magic Johnson, John Stockton or Steve Nash; Milos shows flashes as to why teammates love to run alongside him and always know even if you don’t realize you’re open, if Milos notices chances are it’s coming your way. If Milos can shoot 40% or above from 3 point land, he will be in the top 5 for Rookie of the year. Next is Danillo Gallinari a versatile six foot ten small forward, he can play a traditional 3 or stretch 4 at times alongside Blake or Deandre; Even a super small ball offensivelineup as a center although Gallo would rather not himself due to the physicality. Gallinari is a savant at getting to the line and is a quality 3 point shooter, his biggest obstacle will be health, but if he can maintain that he’s one of the best offseason acquisitions throughout the NBA. DeAndre Jordan will have to continue to be a defensive beast as well as rebounder but he will get more opportunities to score thanks to the versatility and unselfishness of his teammates. The Clippers have 4 playmakers in their lineup who can facilitate as a passer which makes it harder for teams to game plan for them. Last year they were too predictable because with one guy as a primary ball handler and another guard as a catch and shoot guy it’s easier to set defenses on them because of substantial weaknesses. They also had a small forward who wasn’t a threat from the perimeter so teams essentially ignored and disrespected him and gave more cushion to help on defense. With the continued evolution of Blake Griffin from an only dunker to low post player to quality mid range shooter to unbelievable ball handler and passing ability/ vision for a player of his physical stature and athleticism to evolving 3 point shooting. Blake has continued to improve and has the opportunity to be an MVP type player this year as the team will largely go how Blake goes. All in all the Clippers are built to play a multitude of ways depending on the matchup and while scoring won’t be a problem, defense and playing a full focused 48 minutes might be their Achilles heel unless Beverly and D.J. can make their teammates that much better.
6) Boston Celtics
The Celtics traded one great scoring Point Guard for another in Thomas for Irving and added a versatile wing who can shoot it and pass it in Hayward. When you combine that with Al Horford playing undersized as usual and Brad Stevens as your coach, things look bright for Boston even in the winter months. Jayson Tatum may prove to be a franchise type player in a few years,but he already has an NBA skill of scoring from day one. Marcus Morris’ versatility will be valuable as he can spot up but occasionally post Jalen brown can defend, if he can make open 3s his impact on games will be massive because defense is his first obligation when on the floor with other scorers. Marcus Smart and Terry Rozier are quality players coming off the bench. Size will be the only deterrent against this team but in a league where great bigs aren’t featured unless that team has one you can get away with this.
5) Minnesota Timberwolves
Minnesota is widely considered to be the next NBA dynasty or team to pose a threat to the Warriors reigns with the roster they’ve accumulated. Karl Anthony Towns, Jimmy Butler now aboard, an always improving athletic stud in Andrew Wiggins and now Jeff Teague who has speed for days and an improved perimeter shot. Their coach preaches defense and they have one of the best perimeter defenders in the game. The question with this team is do they have enough shooting. Giorgi Dieng has a corner 3 now and Jamal Crawford is a shell of the great Jamal. This team looks great on paper but are they ready yet.
4) Houston Rockets
With the arrival of one of the greatest point guards ever to pair with James Harden after one of the bestindividual offensive seasons ever, it really is a no brainier with Mike D antoni at the helm. Paul is the best end to end point guard d antoni has coached in the NBA. And other than Steve Nash running the offense Paul would be the ideal guy even win harden on the roster. With Ryan Anderson on the pick and pop or spotting up, Trevor Ariza on the wing and Clint Capella rolling to basket. This team is built for regular season success maybe even the second best record in the west. Come playoff time, the tune will be different, but it will be amazing to watch unfold as we’ve never seen a two headed monster like this in the D’Antoni offense. We will see more teams look at multiple elite ball handlers with the philosophy if this has great success, otherwise CP3 will be on his third team in 3 years.
Notes: P.J. Tucker and Luc Richard Mbah Moute were signed for their defense and if either can shoot near 40% from 3, career years would follow as their minutes would see an uptick.
3) Oklahoma City Thunder
If there was one team in the west who had the best offseason without winning a title it’s the thunder. They somehow managed to trade Victor Oladipo, Domantas Sabonis and Doug McDermott for Paul George and Carmelo Anthony (That’s crazy and lucky). Pairing them with Russell Westbrook and a solid Steven Adams at center and the starting point is one you have to like. Sure Andre Roberson is an awful shooter, but his defense is why he gets minutes. The Thunder have more upside in the playoffs than the regular season as this team is constructed, but shooting could be an area they look to upgrade.
2) Cleveland Cavaliers
Lebron is all in and with the departure of Irving comes more opportunity for Lebron as well as new addition Derrick Rose to return to all star form now that he’s fully healthy. Kevin Love will have an expanded offensive role at times he moves to small ball center and as a result the floor will open up with better driving lanes for James and anyone attacking the basket off the dribble. With Tristan Thompson coming off the bench and J R Smith doing the same, this team looks to have a more reliable bench come playoff time because we all know their success isn’t measured by regular season success.
Notes: Dwayne Wade will be valuable if he can shoot a quality percentage on spot up 3 point shots. When healthy Isaiah Thomas will return via 6th man role as his offense might prove to be more useful than in the starting lineup for this specific team this season.
1) Golden State Warriors
The Warriors return 12 players from their 2016-17 championship winning team including all 5 starters (although Zaza is replaceable). They have the best shooting backcourt in the history of the game with Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson; One of the best small forwards in the games history in Kevin Durant; Draymond Green is a defensive monster as well as great facilitator for the shooters that surround him. This team will steam roll to atleast 60 wins, but realistically 70-75 is more appropriate. They could break their 73 win mark, but if they don’t win the title after doing so, it’s Deja Vu all over again with an even better team.
Note saying: This team has fun while winning which makes Swaggy P (Nick Young) must watch tv (even on the bench) and is the winningest in the leagues history over any 3 year period.
The season is here so the time for speculation ends as the anticipation of one of the best NBA seasons to date is now among us.
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