LeBron, DWade, Bosh, Mike Miller, Big Z and uhm, Carlos Arroyo will all be in Miami jerseys next season. I know that the first 3 names were enough to make my point, but the others were necessary (more on that later). Most people say though that the triumvirate of 1,6 and 3 will be enough to pull the Heat out of the East and straight to the Finals.
On the other beach-lined side of the country, Mamba, Pau, Ronron, Fish, Andrew (he needs a nickname quick) and Chlomar are still going to be Lakers. This time, with the help of former enemy Matt Barnes. With their experience and skill, not to mention Amare, Boozer and Josh Powell(?) all moving East, the Lakers seem favored to go back to The Finals.
So i guess it's obvious: Miami vs LA (of course the Lakers. Clippers? Haha. Funny) in the 2011 NBA Finals. Wade Lebron and Bosh vs Kobe Pau and Phil's legacy. Sounds great! Sounds exciting. Sounds likely? Not so fast.
This is a great game. The best part is that everyone starts out 0-0. Mathematically, everyone's got a shot at the title right? Right. But in all likelihood, it'll come down to a few teams. A few very good teams ready and very much able to beat LAL and MIA. So let's weigh all of them up and see who MIGHT make it to the Finals.
(But of course being that it's soooo early and that Free Agency still isn't done and trades will still be made and injures will happen, and draft picks will shine and disappoint, all this will probably be ridiculously wrong in a few months. But what the hey? At least we have something to go back to for a few laughs right?)
WEST
DALLAS MAVERICKS
The biggest signing for Dallas is their homegrown (sort of) star, Nowitzki. Second best signing was keeping Haywood, to keep a formidable frontline with Caron Butler and Shawn Marion. With Jason Kidd, Terry, Barea and Beaubois, this team is still the elite team they were last year. The addition of Tyson Chandler makes them really deep, but look for them to make one more deal soon, maybe ship Terry or Marion for some sure help for Dirk.
*Can they break the Lake? People thought they could beat LA last year in the playoffs. Unfortunately they never got the chance. With their current roster, they'll probably go as far as 6 games before losing to the Champs. But if they improve that lineup?
DENVER NUGGETS
Two years ago, they were championship material, NBA giants. This year? They're smaller. Much smaller. Kenyon Martin is likely gonna miss a chunk of the season after his surgery. The Bridman is questionable as well. Nene is very good, but he'll need help for the Nuggets to be the tough team that they wanna be. Al Harrington is a great pickup, but fitting in might be a problem as he's more of a poor man's Carmelo than the big inside presence they need. Their most important big man though, Coach George Karl, needs to be on that sideline this year for them to stay in the hunt and for Melo to stay with them after this season.
*Can they break the Lake? They almost did two seasons ago. They won't be able to do so this year though.
GOLDEN STATE WARRIORS
This is a weird team to gauge, mainly cos of their weird coach. But Don Nelson aside, it must be noted that even though they signed David Lee (who i think is a way better pick-up for most teams than Carlos Boozer and [gulp!] Chris Bosh), they still lost key young talent in the form of Maggete, Anthony Morrow, CJ Watson, Anthony Randolph and Kelenna Azubuike. However, a core of Monta Ellis, Lee, Andris Biedrins and Stephen Curry still looks promising. Plus, new owners willing to spend is always a good thing.
*Can they break the Lake? Not likely. But remember when the fast Warriors beat the tall Mavs that year? Nah. Forget i even said that.
HOUSTON ROCKETS
Much like in years before, the Rockets will go only as far as Yao Ming's testy foot can carry them. Adding Brad Miller was a good move, seeing as a frontcourt of Yao, Miller, Luis Scola and Trevor Ariza, paired w/ a Kevin Martin, Aaron Brooks and Kyle Lowry backcourt looks AMAZING on paper. But then again, so did T-Mac-Yao. We all know what happened there.
*Can they break the Lake? If Yao stays healthy, and plays in All-Star form, yikes. Yes.
LOS ANGELES CLIPPERS
It all starts and ends with how Blake Griffin will perform this year right? Right! But that shouldn't have been the case. Their core is okay: Baron Davis, Chris Kaman, Eric Gordon. Adding Ryan Gomes and Randy Foye were okay too. But with the cap space they had and their big-market city, this team should (as it has always been with them) be more than just okay. And with new coach Vinny Del Negro, the Clips are looking like they're gonna live up to their usual expectations and be....okay.
*Can they break the Lake? LA still belongs to the next team on this list. Nothing's gonna change this year. For the record, no, they can't.
LOS ANGELES LAKERS
The defending champions are looking at a 4th 3-Peat for Phil Jackson on his final year of coaching. Kobe and Pau are getting rest in the summer for the first time in years. Keeping Fish and adding big man Theo Ratliff (in case Bynum gets his yearly injury), Matt Barnes (tough perimeter defender + decent 3point shooter = calmer, better shooting version of Ron-Ron, just in case) and Steve Blake (more experienced, better shooting version of Jordan Farmar) has restored the Lakers' Bench Mob that disappeared at times last year. They have the chemistry, the experience, the confidence. It's just a matter of staying focused and turning that switch on and keeping it on to avoid playoff threats (see Nuggets, Rockets 2009 & Thunder, Suns 2010). All in all, still quite possibly the best team in the league, definitely the best in the West, without question.
*Can they break the boredom? These Lakers have the tendency to coast. If they do it again this year against the wrong team, they might finally pay for it. But if there's something Kobe Bryant and D-Fish have proven, when it's win time, there's no one better.
MEMPHIS GRIZZLIES
Stop the Girzzly jokes. This is a real NBA team. Forget the god-awful Vancouver jerseys and that Allen Iverson tragedy. Rudy Gay (hahaha, Gay. Okay, we can still joke about that one), OJ Mayo, Marc Gasol, Zach Randolph, Mike Conley Jr. and Hasheem Thabeet make up one of the most promising cores in the entire league. This is a playoff team this year. And seeing Mayo and Gay's consistent improvement as offensive monsters, Gasol and Randolph getting in shape and more athletic, and hoping Thabeet finally lives up to expectations, they'll remain a playoff team for the coming years. Believe that.
*Can they break the Lake? They'll definitely be more competitive this year. If they're lucky, they can avoid LA in the 1st round this year. If they meet, they might be swept and ruin the morale of a young upstart team. OR they might scare like the Thunder did and fast-track their success.
MINNESOTA TIMBERWOLVES
This is a crazy team, mostly because their General Manager is a complete lunatic in the eyes of many. They say David Khan is a trainwreck waiting to happen. But first the good stuff: getting Michael Beasley for nothing, adding shooter Martell Webster, PG Luke Ridnour and drafting Wesley Johnson. However, giving away Al Jefferson for chum change and overpaying Darko Milicic? Darko? So they're saying that a combo of Kevin Love and Darko is better than Love and Al Jeff? Wow. Plus all that waiting over Ricky Rubio with no certainty he'll even ball in Minnesota? Summer moves made this T-Wolves team more athletic, but not necessarily better.
*Can they break the Lake? Not even with Rubio in the lineup.
NEW ORLEANS HORNETS
Their biggest problem is the smallest guy on their team: Chris Paul. Why is he the problem when he's without a doubt the best player to ever put on a NOH jersey? Simple: it's because he wants a new jersey and a new team to play for. He's very frustrated at the ownership's refusal to spend and put together a winning team around him. Sure, they might have calmed him down for now, but after the first month of the season, look for CP3 to take a serious stand at demanding that trade. On the court though, he'll be great, but the team will get blown out a lot of times. It's like Katrina rolling in all over again.
*Can they break the Lake? Not even with a hurricane on their side
OKLAHOMA CITY THUNDER
Now here's a team that has a silver lining waiting for it this coming season. Kevin Durant is going to be neck-in-neck with Kobe Bryant and possibly Dwight Howard in the MVP Race this year. Russel Westbrook is going to grow as a point guard and will continue to create very difficult mismatches around the league. Playing the Lakers very well last year did wonders for this team, and it will be obvious once the season starts. Their main weakness though, is strength inside, so they're hoping draft pick Cole Aldrich will blossom and help them out in the interior.
*Can they break the Lake? They almost did it last year. Tough to see them winning a seven-game series though, but i think they'll be even more competitive this year. It's a stretch, but it's possible.
PHOENIX SUNS
No Amare means no more chance for the Suns right? Wrong. Stevie Nash and the rest of the Arizona boys got a whole lot of help to help fill the giant void Stoudemire created by chasing the money, i mean the......oh nevermind, money, by moving to the Big Apple. All the new faces in the city of the sun though, will have success because of that Canadian wearing #13. Hedo Turkoglu plays great when he wants to, and EVERYONE likes playing with Nash, so expect Hedo to shine again. Josh Childress is a great pickup despite him not having NBA action the last two years. The daily lessons he'll get from Nash in practice will go miles. As for Hackim Warrick being signed to 'replace' Amare, people often laugh at that, but in reality, Nash is so good that all it takes is a big body, two hands and decent hops for him to find you in the pick-and-roll. Even Jimmy Santos could average 15-10 playing with Super Steve.
*Can they break the Lake? I don't see it happening. But if they avoid LA in the early rounds, they can go back to the Conference Finals again this year.
PORTLAND TRAILBLAZERS
This team has all the pieces: a grade A superstar in Brandon Roy, a slew of great and could-be-great big men in Joel Pryzbilla, Marcus Camby and Greg Oden, a veteran point guard in Andre Miller and a spark off the bench in Rudy Fernandez. Okay, maybe not ALL the pieces, but a couple of good ones, at elast enough to get out of the first round. However, injuries plaguing this team have brought them here: on the verge of dealing Fernandez and considering packaging Miller with him (maybe for Chris Paul or Tony Parker). Whether they pull the trigger or not, they go nowhere if Oden remains to be a bench ornament.
*Can they break the Lake? The Lakers always have a tough time winning in the Rose Garden, so they might steal a game or two. But not a playoff series.
SACRAMENTO KINGS
This young team needs to focus. Over the summer, their rookie-of-the-year Tyreke Evans got clocked and convicted after driving at 130 mph. And then they drafted a bright talent with questionable attitude in DeMarcus Cousins. Adding Samuel Dalembert however, will give them that inside presence they need, and hopefully, the development of Evans, Casspi, and Cousins gets fast-tracked enough for this team to pull off a couple of shockers.
*Can they break the Lake? They'll meet four times this season, and though it still won't be like the Kings-Lakers games of old, the Kings might be more competitive this year, not enough to beat LA, but enough to make Vlade Divac proud. And in the end, isn't that what matters?
SAN ANTONIO SPURS
The MVP for the Spurs this offseason is Peter Holt, their owner. He has pledged to pay whatever amount of money up until Tim Duncan's contract is done to get another crack at the title. And that's why they were able to extend Manu Ginobili and Richard Jefferson and bring in Tiago Splitter, one of the best big men to never play in the NBA. Now whether or not they trade Tony Parker to give more room for George Hill is probably a decision entirely up to Greg Poppovich. Either way, the Spurs, in true Spurs fashion, are still able to beat anyone anyday, as long as they're healthy.
*Can they break the Lake? What part of "able to beat anyone anyday, as long as they're healthy" did you not get?
UTAH JAZZ
One thing I don't get with the Jazz is their position on Paul Milsapp. They traded away Boozer to make room for Milsapp at the power forward and then signed Al Jefferson from the T'Wolves anyway. I doubt Al Jeff will play the 5, seeing as how ineffective that was in the Twin Cities. However, Jerry Sloan is one of the smartest basketball minds in the planet, so i bet he knows what he's doing. All their other signings make up perfectly for the personnel they lost. Raja Bell fills in for Wesley Matthews' defensive shoes, Gordon Hayward will take up where Kyle Korver left off.
*Can they break the Lake? They've been meeting each other in the Playoffs the past few years. If they see each other again this year, expect the same result.
So there it is folks. A full round-up of your NBA teams. With the schedule already released, it seems as if almost all is set for us to sit back and enjoy the game and the league we all love. The two teams we focused on here - LAL and MIA, have pretty opposite paths ahead of them. The Lakers have a soft end of the season, while the Heat play 8 of their first 12 at home. Whether or not those paths still lead them to meet in June is a different story, and seeing as we've reviewed the entire league, we now know that there are a couple of teams out there hell-bent and capable of stopping a LeBron - Kobe Finals again.
Thankfully, we're at a day and age where we can enjoy all the action from our couches, no matter how much our wives/girlfriends/mothers tell us to do something more productive. But then, that's why we love this game. because the Bobcats beat the Lakers every year. Because the Spurs are like the dads at the court - capable of beating anyone with boring post plays and mid-range jumphots. Because every game starts out zero-zero, and every guy is due for a lucky shot or two. And every superstar catches the flu.
As they say in every kanto court in the country, "Bilog ang bola" Indeed it is. And that's why I Love This Game.
Wednesday, August 4, 2010
Tuesday, July 27, 2010
NBA FINALS 2011: Heat or 3Peat? Not so fast. (Previews - Eastern Conference)
LeBron, DWade, Bosh, Mike Miller, Big Z and uhm, Carlos Arroyo will all be in Miami jerseys next season. I know that the first 3 names were enough to make my point, but the others were necessary (more on that later). Most people say though that the triumvirate of 1,6 and 3 will be enough to pull the Heat out of the East and straight to the Finals.
On the other beach-lined side of the country, Mamba, Pau, Ronron, Fish, Andrew (he needs a nickname quick) and Chlomar are still going to be Lakers. This time, with the help of former enemy Matt Barnes. With their experience and skill, not to mention Amare, Boozer and Josh Powell(?) all moving East, the Lakers seem favored to go back to The Finals.
So i guess it's obvious: Miami vs LA (of course the Lakers. Clippers? Haha. Funny) in the 2011 NBA Finals. Wade Lebron and Bosh vs Kobe Pau and Phil's legacy. Sounds great! Sounds exciting. Sounds likely? Not so fast.
This is a great game. The best part is that everyone starts out 0-0. Mathematically, everyone's got a shot at the title right? Right. But in all likelihood, it'll come down to a few teams. A few very good teams ready and very much able to beat LAL and MIA. So let's weigh all of them up and see who MIGHT make it to the Finals.
(But of course being that it's soooo early and that Free Agency still isn't done and trades will still be made and injures will happen, and draft picks will shine and disappoint, all this will probably be ridiculously wrong in a few months. But what the hey? At least we have something to go back to for a few laughs right?)
EAST
ATLANTA HAWKS
Ok. First things first. 124 million dollars. MILLION. That's how much Atlanta's going to pay Joe Johnson. JOE JOHNSON. He's a great fit there, a better-than-most player, but not worth all that moolah. But then again, the Hawks didn't have a choice. New coach, same guys, probably same result. 50+wins, second round of the playoffs. Oh, and hopefully, Josh Smith gets recognized as the All-Star he's been for a while now.
*Can they beat the Heat? Regular season? Yeah. Playoffs? Probably give them a scare. But nothing more.
BOSTON CELTICS
Biggest thing for the C's is Doc Rivers coming back to coach. No one in the world has more faith in this core than that dude. "My team has never been beaten when they're healthy." He's said that for years. He'll probably say it again this season. With the addition of Jermaine O'Neal, they're still going to be good IF HEALTHY. Lots of fragile bones here. And that young guy with great defense they pulled off the bench? Gone. Tony Allen is now a Grizzly. Might not seem like much, but his absence will be big in the playoffs or (gulp) Finals. (Side note: Lawrence Frank is now also on their coaching staff)
*Can they beat the Heat? Yes. IF HEALTHY
**BIG UPDATE: Yeah they got Shaq. Does that make them better? Hells yeah. Very very much better.
CHARLOTTE BOBCATS
Oh the Cats. Jack is their best player. And their team leader. Scary stuff. No more Raymond Felton or Tyson Chandler for them. Tyrus Thomas needs to have a breakout season and show more of that potential he had with the Bulls. Larry Brown is going to need a miracle to get back to the playoffs this year. But then again, that guy who owns them can maybe get in a jersey and play. Just a thought.
*Can they beat the Heat? Nope. Sorry.
CHICAGO BULLS
Speaking of that dude, here's his former team FINALLY being good again. And i mean really good. New coach Tom Thibodeau is going to turn this team into an even better defensive unit. Obviously, the addition of Boozer to the core of Derrick Rose, Luol Deng (who WILL be traded i bet my hair on it) and Joakim Noah is huge. I've always thought the Booze was a tad overrated, but in this team, he'll flourish. Korver, Brewer and CJ Miles round out an extremely solid, talented and young core.
*Can they beat the Heat? Yessir they can. If they have homecourt.
CLEVELAND CAVALIERS
Poor poor Cleveland. I pity this city the way i did Marikina after Ondoy. Man that was tough. A public break-up is always painful. But the bright side is...Mo-Will? Antawn Jamison? Zero draft picks? New coach? Ok fine, so things are tough in Cleveland. Hopefully Byron Scott can get inspired play from a core of Williams, Jamison, Varejao and JJ Hickson.
*Can they beat the Heat? They'll probably beat UP the Heat. With either baseball bats or burned LeBron jerseys. It'll be ugly. I'll record it. :D
DETROIT PISTONS
Joe Dumars used to be a god in Detroit. Champion guard, fearless leader, outstanding general manager. And then things started going wrong. There were signs. Allen Iverson for Chauncey Billups. Acquiring Ben Gordon and Charlie Villanueva. Getting stuck with salary cap trouble for years. And now, signing Ben Wallace to a two-year extension. This year's gonna be tough for Detroit. Look for unhappy Tayshaun Prince, Rip Hamilton and maybe even Gordon to ask for trades.
*Can they beat the Heat? Only in the PG spot. Stuckey/Bynum/Gordon > CarlosArroyo/MarioChalmers
**BIG UPDATE: Yeah they got T-Mac. Does that make them better? Not really. But it'll sell more tickets. Maybe. No, not really.
INDIANA PACERS
Nothing but the impending end of a bunch of their players' contracts to look forward to. Tough to get a free agent to go to Indiana next year though. Why? It's Indiana. Not a lot of kids grow up wishing to be a Pacer (What is that anyway?). I say, move the franchise to Vegas or better, Seattle and be the new rock n' roll team. New city, new name, and please, new jerseys. Nothing much to expect here this coming season. Sorry Reggie Miller.
*Can they beat the Heat? Maybe if Reggie came back with Chris Mullin, Mark Jackson, the Davis's and Rik Smits. Hahaha. Solid laughtrip.:)
MIAMI HEAT
Okidoki. Here we go. The big 3. Big question is: Can they play together? If Bosh accepts that the only shots he'll get are off the boards and LeBron allows Wade to be the Alpha Male, then yeah. Bigger question: Who do they play with? Udonis, Mike Miller, Big Z, Chalmers and Arroyo are okay. But with a young coach and a ton of expectations, they'd be better off with more sure shots (figuratively and literally) off the bench. Tough seeing them as a defensive-minded team too. But then again LeBron and DWade are two of the top 3 players in the league. They might just pull it off.
*Can they beat the pressure? It'll take a loooot to get to the Finals when you have the biggest bull's eye since Dennis Rodman's hair on your back. But if anyone's skilled enough to do it, it's them.
MILWAUKEE BUCKS
If you didn't last year, then you better now. FEAR THE DEER. Brandon Jennings is an All-Star to be, especially now that he's been given room in that PG spot after they let go of Ridnour and Charlie Bell. Andrew Bogut is great. John Salmons is too. So is Michael Redd (if he accepts finally that he's a shooter, not a franchise player). The addition of Corey Maggette will spark their offense for sure and give them yet another potent scorer who can shoot over you or beat you off the dribble.
*Can they beat the Heat? It'll be a fun series to watch. They'll scare them, but will most likely come up short.
NEW JERSEY NETS
Here's a team that wished for overnight sucess, missed out, but are still in an okay place. No huge splash in free agency, but a solid draft pick in Derrick Favors, a promising core of Devin Harris, Robin Lopez and Courtney Lee, plus some help with Jordan Farmar and Travis Outlaw. But the star of the show is owner Mikhail Prokhorov. They're in a nice spot salary-wise, and he's got a lot of money anyways. Avery Johnson as a head coach is fantastic. Look for them to be better now and great in a few years, maybe just in time for that move to Brooklyn.
*Can they beat the Heat? They couldn't do it in free agency, they won't be able to do it on the court either.
NEW YORK KNICKS
Concrete jungle where dreams are made of. That's certainly the case for Amare Stoudemire and his 100 Million Dollar contract.Fact is, NY settled for Amare after it became clear none of the Big(ger) 3 would wear Blue and Orange. However, they've improvised quite well, signing Raymond Felton, Anthony Randolph and the best bench cheerer in the league, Ronny Turiaf. Tough to judge the Knicks before the start of the 2011 season. If Carmelo/CP3 joins them, fantastic. If not, then they'll slowly see Amare might have not been worth all that cash.
*Can they beat the Heat? If Felton starts playing like Nash and hitting Amare's sweet spot, then maybe...no. Not even.
ORLANDO MAGIC
Great team. Fantastic to watch. Unless they're playing Boston. Dwight Howard, Jameer Nelson, JJ Reddick. Those are the 3 most dependable/important guys on this team. Vince Carter is good, but obviously, not good enough when it matters. Pietrus, Bass, Gortat make up one of the best benches in the league though. Orlando has a lot of trade pieces, and a lot of options. Will they give it another go? Or are Vince's big game nerves too much to stand? Interesting to see what they do. Always difficult being 2nd or 3rd best. You dont know how to beat the top gun. Do you risk it or pray you've improved (or the other team gets injured)?
*Can they beat the Heat? Trade or no trade, yes. JJ Reddick's gonna have a career year and threaten VC for that starting role. Whichever of them comes off the bench will torch Miami's 2nd unit.
PHILADELPHIA 76ERS
Doug Collins is known as a miracle man. Well he'll need to work his magic on this one. Andre Igoudala is a yearly disappointment for Philly fans. Now he has some help from rookie Evan Turner, comebackers Jrue Holiday, Thaddeus Young and Lou Williams and newcomer Andres Nocioni. However, the loss of Sam Dalembert might be a little too much to bear as the Sixers are starting to look very guard-heavy.
*Can they beat the Heat? Not even if they still had Dalembert. Or Iverson for that matter.
TORONTO RAPTORS
It ain't looking to good up north. When Chris Bosh is your alpha and omega, it ain't grand. But to lose him? Yikes. Sending Hedo Turkoglu to Phoenix is addition by subtraction though as he was someone every Canadian hated. Barbosa is an okay addition together with Linas Kleiza. Ed Davis is a rookie that will be forced to fast-track his improvement if this team wants to compete at all. All in all, they're safe to book flights to early vacation spots as soon as now to get a discount. No playoffs this year Canada.
*Can they beat the Heat? They'll try their darndest just to piss Bosh off. But they'll still probably save the spite for Vince Carter. That won't ever die.
WASHINGTON WIZARDS
Thank goodness they won the lottery. John Wall has all the makings of being an NBA star (except for that ugly-looking jumpshot). Andray Blatche can quite possibly be an outstanding power forward. Apart from that? Well they now have Yi Jianlian, the ongoing chinese experiment and Kirk Hinrich. Plus Josh Howard. It all depends though on what they do with Agent Zero. Gil's gotta go for Wall to fully blossom. But with a contract like that? It'll be a challenge. But there's talk of VC for Gil. Ya never know.
*Can they beat the Heat? The Bobcats beat the Lakers every year so again, ya never know. But most likely, ya know it's a no.
Okay, that's it for now. I'll have the WEST previews up soon and we can dice up the teams there to see if they can beat the favored Lakers. Till then, always remember to thank God for this game we all love. In the name of Saint James Naismith, Amen.
On the other beach-lined side of the country, Mamba, Pau, Ronron, Fish, Andrew (he needs a nickname quick) and Chlomar are still going to be Lakers. This time, with the help of former enemy Matt Barnes. With their experience and skill, not to mention Amare, Boozer and Josh Powell(?) all moving East, the Lakers seem favored to go back to The Finals.
So i guess it's obvious: Miami vs LA (of course the Lakers. Clippers? Haha. Funny) in the 2011 NBA Finals. Wade Lebron and Bosh vs Kobe Pau and Phil's legacy. Sounds great! Sounds exciting. Sounds likely? Not so fast.
This is a great game. The best part is that everyone starts out 0-0. Mathematically, everyone's got a shot at the title right? Right. But in all likelihood, it'll come down to a few teams. A few very good teams ready and very much able to beat LAL and MIA. So let's weigh all of them up and see who MIGHT make it to the Finals.
(But of course being that it's soooo early and that Free Agency still isn't done and trades will still be made and injures will happen, and draft picks will shine and disappoint, all this will probably be ridiculously wrong in a few months. But what the hey? At least we have something to go back to for a few laughs right?)
EAST
ATLANTA HAWKS
Ok. First things first. 124 million dollars. MILLION. That's how much Atlanta's going to pay Joe Johnson. JOE JOHNSON. He's a great fit there, a better-than-most player, but not worth all that moolah. But then again, the Hawks didn't have a choice. New coach, same guys, probably same result. 50+wins, second round of the playoffs. Oh, and hopefully, Josh Smith gets recognized as the All-Star he's been for a while now.
*Can they beat the Heat? Regular season? Yeah. Playoffs? Probably give them a scare. But nothing more.
BOSTON CELTICS
Biggest thing for the C's is Doc Rivers coming back to coach. No one in the world has more faith in this core than that dude. "My team has never been beaten when they're healthy." He's said that for years. He'll probably say it again this season. With the addition of Jermaine O'Neal, they're still going to be good IF HEALTHY. Lots of fragile bones here. And that young guy with great defense they pulled off the bench? Gone. Tony Allen is now a Grizzly. Might not seem like much, but his absence will be big in the playoffs or (gulp) Finals. (Side note: Lawrence Frank is now also on their coaching staff)
*Can they beat the Heat? Yes. IF HEALTHY
**BIG UPDATE: Yeah they got Shaq. Does that make them better? Hells yeah. Very very much better.
CHARLOTTE BOBCATS
Oh the Cats. Jack is their best player. And their team leader. Scary stuff. No more Raymond Felton or Tyson Chandler for them. Tyrus Thomas needs to have a breakout season and show more of that potential he had with the Bulls. Larry Brown is going to need a miracle to get back to the playoffs this year. But then again, that guy who owns them can maybe get in a jersey and play. Just a thought.
*Can they beat the Heat? Nope. Sorry.
CHICAGO BULLS
Speaking of that dude, here's his former team FINALLY being good again. And i mean really good. New coach Tom Thibodeau is going to turn this team into an even better defensive unit. Obviously, the addition of Boozer to the core of Derrick Rose, Luol Deng (who WILL be traded i bet my hair on it) and Joakim Noah is huge. I've always thought the Booze was a tad overrated, but in this team, he'll flourish. Korver, Brewer and CJ Miles round out an extremely solid, talented and young core.
*Can they beat the Heat? Yessir they can. If they have homecourt.
CLEVELAND CAVALIERS
Poor poor Cleveland. I pity this city the way i did Marikina after Ondoy. Man that was tough. A public break-up is always painful. But the bright side is...Mo-Will? Antawn Jamison? Zero draft picks? New coach? Ok fine, so things are tough in Cleveland. Hopefully Byron Scott can get inspired play from a core of Williams, Jamison, Varejao and JJ Hickson.
*Can they beat the Heat? They'll probably beat UP the Heat. With either baseball bats or burned LeBron jerseys. It'll be ugly. I'll record it. :D
DETROIT PISTONS
Joe Dumars used to be a god in Detroit. Champion guard, fearless leader, outstanding general manager. And then things started going wrong. There were signs. Allen Iverson for Chauncey Billups. Acquiring Ben Gordon and Charlie Villanueva. Getting stuck with salary cap trouble for years. And now, signing Ben Wallace to a two-year extension. This year's gonna be tough for Detroit. Look for unhappy Tayshaun Prince, Rip Hamilton and maybe even Gordon to ask for trades.
*Can they beat the Heat? Only in the PG spot. Stuckey/Bynum/Gordon > CarlosArroyo/MarioChalmers
**BIG UPDATE: Yeah they got T-Mac. Does that make them better? Not really. But it'll sell more tickets. Maybe. No, not really.
INDIANA PACERS
Nothing but the impending end of a bunch of their players' contracts to look forward to. Tough to get a free agent to go to Indiana next year though. Why? It's Indiana. Not a lot of kids grow up wishing to be a Pacer (What is that anyway?). I say, move the franchise to Vegas or better, Seattle and be the new rock n' roll team. New city, new name, and please, new jerseys. Nothing much to expect here this coming season. Sorry Reggie Miller.
*Can they beat the Heat? Maybe if Reggie came back with Chris Mullin, Mark Jackson, the Davis's and Rik Smits. Hahaha. Solid laughtrip.:)
MIAMI HEAT
Okidoki. Here we go. The big 3. Big question is: Can they play together? If Bosh accepts that the only shots he'll get are off the boards and LeBron allows Wade to be the Alpha Male, then yeah. Bigger question: Who do they play with? Udonis, Mike Miller, Big Z, Chalmers and Arroyo are okay. But with a young coach and a ton of expectations, they'd be better off with more sure shots (figuratively and literally) off the bench. Tough seeing them as a defensive-minded team too. But then again LeBron and DWade are two of the top 3 players in the league. They might just pull it off.
*Can they beat the pressure? It'll take a loooot to get to the Finals when you have the biggest bull's eye since Dennis Rodman's hair on your back. But if anyone's skilled enough to do it, it's them.
MILWAUKEE BUCKS
If you didn't last year, then you better now. FEAR THE DEER. Brandon Jennings is an All-Star to be, especially now that he's been given room in that PG spot after they let go of Ridnour and Charlie Bell. Andrew Bogut is great. John Salmons is too. So is Michael Redd (if he accepts finally that he's a shooter, not a franchise player). The addition of Corey Maggette will spark their offense for sure and give them yet another potent scorer who can shoot over you or beat you off the dribble.
*Can they beat the Heat? It'll be a fun series to watch. They'll scare them, but will most likely come up short.
NEW JERSEY NETS
Here's a team that wished for overnight sucess, missed out, but are still in an okay place. No huge splash in free agency, but a solid draft pick in Derrick Favors, a promising core of Devin Harris, Robin Lopez and Courtney Lee, plus some help with Jordan Farmar and Travis Outlaw. But the star of the show is owner Mikhail Prokhorov. They're in a nice spot salary-wise, and he's got a lot of money anyways. Avery Johnson as a head coach is fantastic. Look for them to be better now and great in a few years, maybe just in time for that move to Brooklyn.
*Can they beat the Heat? They couldn't do it in free agency, they won't be able to do it on the court either.
NEW YORK KNICKS
Concrete jungle where dreams are made of. That's certainly the case for Amare Stoudemire and his 100 Million Dollar contract.Fact is, NY settled for Amare after it became clear none of the Big(ger) 3 would wear Blue and Orange. However, they've improvised quite well, signing Raymond Felton, Anthony Randolph and the best bench cheerer in the league, Ronny Turiaf. Tough to judge the Knicks before the start of the 2011 season. If Carmelo/CP3 joins them, fantastic. If not, then they'll slowly see Amare might have not been worth all that cash.
*Can they beat the Heat? If Felton starts playing like Nash and hitting Amare's sweet spot, then maybe...no. Not even.
ORLANDO MAGIC
Great team. Fantastic to watch. Unless they're playing Boston. Dwight Howard, Jameer Nelson, JJ Reddick. Those are the 3 most dependable/important guys on this team. Vince Carter is good, but obviously, not good enough when it matters. Pietrus, Bass, Gortat make up one of the best benches in the league though. Orlando has a lot of trade pieces, and a lot of options. Will they give it another go? Or are Vince's big game nerves too much to stand? Interesting to see what they do. Always difficult being 2nd or 3rd best. You dont know how to beat the top gun. Do you risk it or pray you've improved (or the other team gets injured)?
*Can they beat the Heat? Trade or no trade, yes. JJ Reddick's gonna have a career year and threaten VC for that starting role. Whichever of them comes off the bench will torch Miami's 2nd unit.
PHILADELPHIA 76ERS
Doug Collins is known as a miracle man. Well he'll need to work his magic on this one. Andre Igoudala is a yearly disappointment for Philly fans. Now he has some help from rookie Evan Turner, comebackers Jrue Holiday, Thaddeus Young and Lou Williams and newcomer Andres Nocioni. However, the loss of Sam Dalembert might be a little too much to bear as the Sixers are starting to look very guard-heavy.
*Can they beat the Heat? Not even if they still had Dalembert. Or Iverson for that matter.
TORONTO RAPTORS
It ain't looking to good up north. When Chris Bosh is your alpha and omega, it ain't grand. But to lose him? Yikes. Sending Hedo Turkoglu to Phoenix is addition by subtraction though as he was someone every Canadian hated. Barbosa is an okay addition together with Linas Kleiza. Ed Davis is a rookie that will be forced to fast-track his improvement if this team wants to compete at all. All in all, they're safe to book flights to early vacation spots as soon as now to get a discount. No playoffs this year Canada.
*Can they beat the Heat? They'll try their darndest just to piss Bosh off. But they'll still probably save the spite for Vince Carter. That won't ever die.
WASHINGTON WIZARDS
Thank goodness they won the lottery. John Wall has all the makings of being an NBA star (except for that ugly-looking jumpshot). Andray Blatche can quite possibly be an outstanding power forward. Apart from that? Well they now have Yi Jianlian, the ongoing chinese experiment and Kirk Hinrich. Plus Josh Howard. It all depends though on what they do with Agent Zero. Gil's gotta go for Wall to fully blossom. But with a contract like that? It'll be a challenge. But there's talk of VC for Gil. Ya never know.
*Can they beat the Heat? The Bobcats beat the Lakers every year so again, ya never know. But most likely, ya know it's a no.
Okay, that's it for now. I'll have the WEST previews up soon and we can dice up the teams there to see if they can beat the favored Lakers. Till then, always remember to thank God for this game we all love. In the name of Saint James Naismith, Amen.
On a Positive Note
Im a lucky guy. My bosses at Magic 89.9 are great. My fellow DJs are the best friends and mentors a young rookie can ask for. Show of hands: How many of you like your bosses and/or the people you work with? Let me see those hands. Don't worry, i'll wait. Not a lot of fingers in the sky i see. Which brings me back to the first point: I'm a lucky guy. :)
I host a radio show called "On A Positive Note" on the Magic, Sundays 10AM-2PM. It used to go from 12-2 while i spent 10-12 playing requests. As of last Sunday though, i've gone 4 hours with the good stuff. This is great for programming i hear, better for fluidity, more effective for presentation, etc. However the most glaring aspect of it to me is this: the responsibility.
On my show i speak of being positive, i attempt to inspire. I share stories of overcoming obstacles, achieving triumph, doing good, and yes, burying hatchets. I'm many things, that i know. But the last thing i wanna be is a hypocrite. I know how difficult it is to see the bright side when it's pitch black and i know the silver lining can sometimes be awfully thin. I also know that forgiveness is harder to give away than a pair of front-row Paramore concert tickets. I ain't sayin it's easy.
I ain't saying i do it all well. All im saying is, we owe it to ourselves to try. To genuinely try.
I've hit my rough patches as a DJ. I've made mistakes that i'm ashamed of. I can chalk it up to stupidity, to youth, to impulse. but a mistake is still a mistake. Now sometimes you pay for it. Sometimes you run way. But sometimes, when you're lucky, and you have the right guidance in your life, you're given an opportunity to prove yourself, to better yourself, and more importantly, to help others be better.
So now on Sundays, you'll hear this kid on the radio for 4 hours. He ain't the best DJ around. Doesn't sound spectacular, doesn't give away cars. But i promise i'll try to make your day seem better than how you initially thought. Because most probably, it is. I'm lucky. I was a kid with a dream. Now im a kid with a chance, an opportunity. And it's not even about proving myself, it's about proving that the right attitude is always the catalyst of everything good.
This ain't a plug. You can listen to the show, or you can choose not to. This ain't about me. After all, im just another kid with a microphone. This is about how much we practice what we preach. DJ or not, we all speak of being positive, attempt to inspire, share stories of overcoming obstacles, achieving triumph, doing good, and yes, burying hatchets. What's stopping us from giving it all a try? A genuine try?
I'm not an expert. I'm not better than you are. All im saying is, listen to the songs in the soundtrack of your life. If you're lucky too, you'll hear that no matter what happens, they're always playing on a positive note. :)
I host a radio show called "On A Positive Note" on the Magic, Sundays 10AM-2PM. It used to go from 12-2 while i spent 10-12 playing requests. As of last Sunday though, i've gone 4 hours with the good stuff. This is great for programming i hear, better for fluidity, more effective for presentation, etc. However the most glaring aspect of it to me is this: the responsibility.
On my show i speak of being positive, i attempt to inspire. I share stories of overcoming obstacles, achieving triumph, doing good, and yes, burying hatchets. I'm many things, that i know. But the last thing i wanna be is a hypocrite. I know how difficult it is to see the bright side when it's pitch black and i know the silver lining can sometimes be awfully thin. I also know that forgiveness is harder to give away than a pair of front-row Paramore concert tickets. I ain't sayin it's easy.
I ain't saying i do it all well. All im saying is, we owe it to ourselves to try. To genuinely try.
I've hit my rough patches as a DJ. I've made mistakes that i'm ashamed of. I can chalk it up to stupidity, to youth, to impulse. but a mistake is still a mistake. Now sometimes you pay for it. Sometimes you run way. But sometimes, when you're lucky, and you have the right guidance in your life, you're given an opportunity to prove yourself, to better yourself, and more importantly, to help others be better.
So now on Sundays, you'll hear this kid on the radio for 4 hours. He ain't the best DJ around. Doesn't sound spectacular, doesn't give away cars. But i promise i'll try to make your day seem better than how you initially thought. Because most probably, it is. I'm lucky. I was a kid with a dream. Now im a kid with a chance, an opportunity. And it's not even about proving myself, it's about proving that the right attitude is always the catalyst of everything good.
This ain't a plug. You can listen to the show, or you can choose not to. This ain't about me. After all, im just another kid with a microphone. This is about how much we practice what we preach. DJ or not, we all speak of being positive, attempt to inspire, share stories of overcoming obstacles, achieving triumph, doing good, and yes, burying hatchets. What's stopping us from giving it all a try? A genuine try?
I'm not an expert. I'm not better than you are. All im saying is, listen to the songs in the soundtrack of your life. If you're lucky too, you'll hear that no matter what happens, they're always playing on a positive note. :)
Back on the blog
I kept saying that i was going to blog again. I always never found the time to get to it. But alas! Here i am. Blogging. Again. Let's hope this one lasts longer than the former ones. The past ones were terrible anyway so let's toast to a new blog and hopefully, better writing! Haha. Read on and enjoy. And always remember that im just another guy with an opinion, one that's just as good as yours. Cheers!:)
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