NBA All-Star Weekend has finally approached us and we can finally say its BASKETBALL FEEEVA/SEASON! My preseason predictions are looking solid. The Los Angeles Lakers vs. Cleveland Cavaliers in the 2009 NBA Finals prediction looks great . . . I will post all my preseason predictions at the end of this post which are also on my old blog (jmccracken.blog.com). I'm purrrrty accurate so far. :)
Here are my thoughts now that we are half way through the basketball season....
-BEST TEAM
With or without Andrew Bynum, I think the Los Angeles Lakers are the team to beat in the National Basketball Association - - bar none. They have talent from their starting five alllll the way to the last part of their bench >>> Josh Powell, Luke Walton, and Sasha Vujacic. I understand they are not a defensive oriented team without Andrew Bynum in the line up but who cares when you can score points like the Lakers do, plus they still have great defenders in Kobe Bryant, an All-NBA-Defensive Player himself, Trevor Arriza, and even Lamar Odem. Plain and simple...this is the team to beat in the second half. L.A. cannot be beaten in the Staples Center and thats where teams are going to struggle.
- DISAPPOINTMENTS
The Chicago Bulls (23-29) have been a bit of a disappointment for me because I have them as the 4 seed in the Eastern Conference Playoffs, and right now they are 10th in the East, out of the playoffs. This Bulls team is virtually the same team they have had now for four years . . . and I figured this was the year for the Bulls to make at least a little run. I know Vinny Delnegro is a new coach and its a change of scenery, but its the NBA. The "Windy City" got a hell of draft pick in Derek Rose, and they are COPY of the past five to six years. They have six players averaging 10 points or more, and 9 guys that are playing 20 minutes or more game. The Bulls do not lack talent, they lack too much "I wanna be the STAR" people. If they can adjust their roster within the next week (Trade Deadline), then the team has a good chance to make a run.
Another disappointment in my book would be another Eastern Conference team, the Charlotte Bobcats and I am a HUGE HUGE Larry Brown fan. I am not going to go "irate" on Coach Brown, but I am going to go crazy about the front office and Michael Jordan. Look at his recent draft selections- Adam Morrison and Kwame Brown. I am not even going to say anything, watch those guys play (ummm) when they do . . . they speak for themselves. I liked the trade from Phoenix, acquiring Raja Bell and Boris Diaw will help the team's defensive struggles. They have two guys that are walking double-doubles in Sean May and Emeka Okafor if they could ver stay healthy. I do not think this team makes a run at all . . . who does with a rookie point guard these days???
-SURPRISES
Well I talked bad about the East so you know I have to go to the West for my surprises. The Denver Nuggets (36-17) are my BIGGEST surprise. Head Coach George Karl looks as if he might have a Championship caliber team this year. I'm on their bandwagon at least . . . even if Karl is a CAROLINA boy. But this team is extraordinary because they are deep, talented, and well-coached. J.R. Smith has done a fabulous job after taking over the "move out of the way, I'm going to score" guy, Allen Iverson. Smith is averaging 13 points a game but he is one of those guys who can explode for 30 on almost any given night. Of course, we know about All-Star Carmelo Anthony, but how about this Nene' dude. 15 points 8 boards a game . . . where the hell did he come from. Oh yeah, he's a Brazialian . . . duh? I did not know that Brazil was known for having anybody even capable of putting a round ball in a hoop. I thought they only kicked the round ball with black squares into a net. Seriously though, Nene' has been outstanding for the Nuggets this season. All I have to say is . . . he is just a PLAYYYA. The Nuggets are,yes I said ARE a top echelon team. Borrowing no injuries, they will get deep. Main reason = experience point guard that just knows the game = Chauncey Billups.
NBA All-Star Weekend Predictions
Rookie Sophomore Game- Rookies are due, they have not won this game in 6 years. The sophomores are going in trying to win 7 straight. I think this rookie class is a more talented and more athletic.
Skills Competition- Tony Parker . . . he is the best fit for this competition and the best point guard in this group.
3-Point Shootout - Jason Kopono, there is no one else I trust.
Slam Dunk Contest- Dwight Howard . . . there has only been 2 guys to win it back-to-back, Michael Jordan in 1987 and 1988 and Jason Richardson in 2002 and 2003. Dwight will be lucky number 3. I do not go against Super Heros like Superman. HA!
All-Star Game- WEST . . . this game basically alternates every other year from EAST to WEST. Love Kobe. Love Yao. Thats all you need to really win this type of game.
IN OR OUT - List of teams that I think will be in the playoffs or out of the playoffs.
Milwaukee Bucks- OUT (As much as I like Big Bucks and I cannot lie . . . without BIG REDD, this Milwaukee team is in trouble).
New Jersey Nets- OUT (Devin Harris is a great point guard "to be." Too old and not enough commodity.
Chicago Bulls- IN (Of course I have the Vinny Delnegro's Bulls in, I had them as 4th seed. The Bulls may not be the 4th seed come playoff time, but they will get in.)
Utah Jazz- IN. (This is my team from here on out. Not only do I think the Jazz are in, I think they will be anywhere as high the 4th or 5th seed in the West come playoff time. When Carlos Booze aaaaaaaaand AK 47 gets back in that lineup . . . LOOK OUT!)
New Orleans Hornets- IN. (Too good not to get in the playoffs. But if they do not get their ACT together ((TYSON CHANDLER)) then they will not go anywhere.)
Phoenix Suns- OUT. (If they make a trade who knows. . . but I think the 8 seeds that are IN right now, are going to be in when its all said and done. Dallas is improving and the Hornets should get their with their ridiculous talent. Phoenix is old and they cannot seem to mesh together. The Suns are good but not good enough.)
PRESEASON PREDICTIONS from (jmccracken.blog.com)
Thursday, October 30, 2008
Final NBA Predictions
If you have not seen my NBA preview post - - - they were written Wednesday, October 22. Scroll down and you will see what I have to say about the East and West. These are the FINAL predictions for the 2008-09 NBA Season.
WEST EAST
1 seed- Los Angeles Lakers 1 seed- Boston Celtics
2 seed- New Orleans Hornets 2 seed- Cleveland Cavaliers
3 seed- Houston Rockets 3 seed- Detroit Pistons
4 seed- Utah Jazz 4 seed- Chicago Bulls
5 seed- San Antonio 5 seed- Orlando Magic
6 seed- Phoenix Suns 6 seed- Philadelhpia 76er's
7 seed- Dallas Mavericks 7 seed- Miami Heat
8 seed- Denver Nuggets 8 seed- Toronto Raptors
EAST - Just missing the playoffs- Washington Wizzards, Atlanta Hawks, and Milwaukee Bucks.
WEST- Just missing the playoffs- Sacramento Kings, Los Angeles Clippers, and Golden State Warriors.
Defensive Player of The Year- Marcus Camby (Los Angeles Clippers)
Scoring Title- Kobe Bryant/Lebron James - - - (split)
Most Valuable Player- Kobe Bryant
Eastern Conference Champion- Boston Celtics vs. Cleveland Cavaliers - Cleveland
Western Conference Champion- Los Angeles Lakers vs Utah Jazz - Los Angeles
NBA World Champion- Los Angeles Lakers
Coach of The Year- Jerry Sloan (Utah Jazz) (Do not be surprised if Rick Carlisle of the Dallas Mavericks)
6th Man of The Year- Too early ... but when Manu Ginobli is back...he could win it back to back.
ROOKIE OF THE YEAR- This is so hard to choose from. If Oden is healthy who knows. I am going out on a limb and taking either KEVIN LOVE or OJ MAYO- both can do wonders for their team.
PEACE I WILL BE IN CT this weekend for the WVU football game.
Posted by at 20:41:45
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