JackBurton

Hey peeps.

i'm new in here.

And am a massive Suns fan. i'm so pumped for the season. Q, Nash, Amare, JJ, and Marion are going to be pretty good.

Who do some of you guys follow?

I think the Spurs are in the box seat to taken on the pistons in the finals.

ps I think Detriot will be awesome this season. McNugget will suprise everyone.

Go suns.

Zyeox

Umm LA Lakers are gonna kick some ASS. Even with out Shaq they will do good this year. I hated to see him leave but hey can't blame the man!!

espi

Ah. My favorite topic: Western Conference NBA basketball.

I'll admit, I haven't given the Suns much thought this season. They were so brutal last season, I've been writing them off. I'm still going to stick with my original conference rankings, but I think the Suns will be in the mix with the Grizzlies to try and grab that eighth position.

I'm not sure how the Sun's backcourt rotation is going to work out though. It seems like they have a lot of duplication in the 2 Guard position: Joe Johnson, Quentin Richardson, and Casey Jacobsen. Q is definitely the best player of the three, but I read somewhere on ESPN that they plan on starting Johnson, and bringing Q off the bench. (Whaaa?) I think I would probably use Johnson as tradebait for a player that can swing between the 3 and 4, they can use a little more depth behind Matrix and Stoudemire.

I'm constantly reading rumors that Matrix is on the trading block. I don't understand why you would max out a player, then trade him two seasons later. Sure, he may be a little overpaid, but he turns in a very respectable box score nearly every night. Last season he averaged 19 pts on on 44% shooting, with 9.3 RPG, 2.7 APG, 2.11 SPG, and 1.3 BPG. If I were an owner or coach, I would gladly take that kind of production on my team.

Getting Steve Nash was a coup, but I think they'll regret that long contract in about four years when he hits 34-35 years old. I've read that Leandro Barbosa may be the real deal. I'm interested to see him come off the bench this season. Eisley may surprise you, too. His best years were definitely backing up Stockton - maybe resuming that role with less media pressure will be good for him. (Of course, a lot of mediocre players excel under Sloan and then have subpar careers elsewhere. See Shandon Anderson, Greg Foster, Jacque Vaughn and Blue Edwards as examples).

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sirsnekcip

don't forget the rockets...yao and t-mac are gonna be a deadly combo imo.

powerclown

Detroit Pistons are looking real good for the upcoming season. Everyone's back, everyone's healthy (Big Ben is almost back, appendectomy), and they only aqcuired more talent and now have an even deeper bench. I'll miss Big Nasty, Corliss Williamson, as I really liked his guts and toughness. Curious to see what kind of damage McDyess will do. Barring any wild swings of team chemistry (and Miami blowing up) the Pistons should have another great year.

bobobear

At the risk of subjecting myself to public ridicule, I am a Golden State Warriors fan. Yea, that's right, a Warriors fan. Maybe someday during my lifetime they'll actually make the playoffs. While the Warriors have the league's worst owner, there is a faint glimmer of hope now that Gary St. Jean is no longer the GM and Chris Mullin is. Heck, he might end up being worse than St. Jean but I'm willing to give the guy a chance.

The W's are trying to build around their "big three" of Richardson, Murphy and Dunleavy. Good young players, but I'm not convinced these are they guys to build your team around. And who knows how they'll do with Mike Montgomery as the coach. He's a proven college guy (Stanford), but how many college coaches were successful making the jump to the pros?

Maybe this season will be different...

espi

Wow, that's gotta be tough. I've been in the Bay Area for four years now, and I think I've watched enough Warriors games to make the decision that they stink, to matter what they do. They just have no team chemistry. I don't know where there problem is, but it seems to be the case no matter who the players or coaches are. (Although, Brian Winters was an abomination).

I'm not sure what Mully is trying to do there. He has said he wants to develop the young players for the future, but then he goes out and gets Dale Davis, Derek Fisher and Eduardo Najera. Not exactly going for the young guys. (Although, I do love the Najera move - that's a good dirty work guy that does the little things to help a team win. Dallas is gonna miss him this year).

I'm also of the opinion that they should think about moving Richardson. I don't think he has what it takes to be franchise player. He's selfish, inconsistent, and plays nearly zero defense. I'd much rather see them giving the time to Pietrus; he plays hard on the defensive end, and has some decent scoring abilities. I think he's going to end up being a much better 2 Guard than Richardson (although, that's not saying much).

The Pacific Division is pretty stocked with the Lakers, Kings and Suns, so I don't think the Warriors have much of a shot making the playoffs this year. So, they would be better off letting their young guys develop. Here's their most promising (but not necessarily best) starting five, as I see it:

PG: Speedy (let him start already!)
SG: Pietrus
SF: Dunleavy
PF: Murphy
C: Foyle (no choice, really. Dale Davis is gotta be 73 by now.)

In the rotation, I would heavily favor Najera (I'm not sold on Dunleavy) when you need a defensive stop or a few rebounds, and bring in Richardson for instant offense. I don't think Biedrins has much of a shot cracking the rotation this season, but you have to remember he's just 18 or 19 years old.

I'm not even going to get into the whole Montgomery thing. I just don't see how the Warriors can fire the only coach that has done a damn thing at least four years to bring in an unproven college guy. But, I'm not going to talk about that.

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walkerboh4269

Well I for one love the Lakers and I always have and will. However now that Shaq is in Miami I don,t see the lakers even making the playoffs. Kobe can not not go it a lone no matter what he may think.

I will watch the Laker and the Heat games because I still love the game but I just can't get worked up this year. I just don,t think it will be very exciting this year.

radioguy

mavs all the way. unfortunately, we gave you nash. it wasn't the smartest thing, but it happened. that was too long of a deal for cuban to have matched. with dampier, our center position is a little better and hopefully our defense can improve. it can't get any worse!

Tralls

The mavs will be happy they didnt sign nash. If Terry can make sure not to turn the ball over, this team can really come together. It is time for the Diggler to step up and take over as a leader. And if Finley can realize that he needs to head to the basket instead of trying his &*^&*@ fadeaway, then we might have a real chance. Stackhouse off the bench will be real nice, I think that now he is healthy he will be back to his old self, pre-Jordan Wizards days. I question whether Nellie can really utilize Dampier the right way. I have a bad feeling about it, but if he can just clog up the middle, block shots and rebound then the Mavs will be looking good! Though I love football, I am pretty damn excited about the NBA right now, especially with Shaq out of the West.

espi

ESPN.com has a couple of articles about the Mavs preseason camp running today, on Nellie's new focus on defense, and the role of the new players. (The second article is an Insider article, so you need to have a subscription. Probably the best $6 I spent each month). Basically they boil down to this: Dampier is having problems picking up Nellie's offensive system, and Terry is having problems running the pick and roll and hanging onto the ball.

I really liked watching the Mavs in the Cuban era, I hope Nelly can put a focus on defense, but still keep the team a fun run-n-gun team.

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Halx

Pistons look like they are gonna be THE team this year. Even better than last year if McDyess can live up to the 6th man role that Corliss filled out.

My real love is the Lakers. They are gonna be so much better than what people are willing to give them credit for. Watch out!

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meansanta

I think that the Jazz are going to turn some heads this year. They have a well built team. i have disliked the Jazz since I was a small boy, but now I llike their team. I live in Seattle where I think that the Sonics will not even win thirty games this year. I am a fan of basketball, but we need to trade Rashard, and Ray is a fie player, but he is no franchise.

meansanta

I agree that the Lakers are going to be good, Butler Odom and Bryant are a great nucleus, then throw in Vlade. Don't forget that the Pistons also got Carlos Delfino this year. He is a great Argentiniean basketball player as well. Many say he is loads better than Manu, and Manu is a pretty fine player.

Cross-Over

I think it will be another great year in the NBA, but once again the parody between the Eastern and Western Confrences is present. In my opinion, the best team is the San Antonio Spurs. They play great defense, are very well coached, have role-specific guys, and have one of the top two players in the league. Barry is a great addition, he shoots well and can create with the ball.

The teams I follow are Washington and Atlanta. Washington is expected to fight for a playoff spot and Atlanta already has a lottery spot reserved. Getting rid of Rahim was understandable, because they just weren't winning. However, I liked Terry. Antoine will be productive, but he is only wearing the uniform to provide cap space at the end of the season. They didn't sign Dampier (fortunately) or Martin this off-season, I really don't know why any big named free agent would want to go there next year. Harrington was a nice addition considering Jackson was going to leave anyways.

Washington:
I didn't really like giving up the 5th pick for Jamison, but ridding themselves of Stackhouse's and Laetner's contract was worth it. Jamsion gives you points and rebounds, but he isn't much of a defender. They have plenty of scoring with Hughes and Arenas in the backcourt anyways. I liked the pickup of Peeler, he plays good on the ball defense and shoots efficently. If healthy, Washington has the capability to be a playoff team.

CityOfAngels

Clippers baby! Yeeeah!

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grumpyolddude

Hhhmmmmm... no Indiana or New Orleans run yet. Despite events in Miami, those 2 have to be the toughest challenge that the Pistons face. Plan on seeing them (Indy and NO) fall short.

There's a power shift going on. The west proved to be over-hyped last season. There'll be more balance this season.

Nimbletoe

Go Pistons! After suffering through a long time of crap, it feels good for championship basketball to be back here in Detroit. Joe made all the right moves in the offseason, showing why he is the best GM in the league. McDyess was a steal, his knee is 100%. Delfino and Darko will have plenty of playtime to keep developing this year. It's going to be really exciting to see how they turn out. Of course, there are concerns. As long as people stay healthy, it's going to be another great season.

That being said, the western conference this year is going to be nuts. So many teams to watch for, so many teams that show a ton of promise this year. Oh, and it's going to be so fun watching the Lakers get shown up the many times they will this year

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Go Pistons!

Cross-Over

The New Orleans Hornets are in the Western Confrence now.

dylanmarsh

Celtics BAY-BEE!!!

Not really, but I like living in the past.

JackBurton

Hey people. good to see a fellow NBA nuts like myself.

Regarding JJ, Joe Johnson earnt the starting role last season. After Marbury and Penny were traded JJ put up 20points a night for the rest of the season. Watch for JJ to really have a solid season. If he gets his confidence up he'll be the Suns second leading scorer after Amare. Casey is one on the outer. He's been dissapointing. Basically is turning into a spot up shooter and thats IT. Steven Hunter will suprise this season.

I think Marion often comes up in the trade talks because he's really been the only guy of value for us. It was no secret when Jerry sold the team he was cutting salary, Penny, Marbs, Googs etc. I think Marion is a player unlike most in the NBA. He struggled a little with Marbury but I think Nash is gonna to be super for Shawn, because he is so good without the ball... ala Cebellos... but quicker, better on defense, and more explosive.

Lampe is only 19 and showing nice progress. Barbosa is indeed a stud but is more a 2G then a true PG. One of the reasons Nash is in Pho is to teach Barbosa to play PG. And as far as the 4 year deal, i think he'll be ok. He'll be playing same sort of minutes as in Dallas round 30's a game. compared with some of the other deals that went down like the dampier deal, the Mcdyess deal. Nash wasn't too bad.

Ps eisley is trash. Seen enough of him last year to see that.

One thing i do hope for this season is that the Lakers play like absolute shit. That will be fun to see. Kobe taking 40 shots a game to get his scoring title.

Shpoop

I live in Miami, so im a heat fan. Im a little wary about the lack of...players...but i still think that we have talent where its needed and will make a good run this year. Im also pretty excited about our draft pick...apparently we got a phenom out of highschool, but a very team oriented player...should fit well. Also, im excited to see Shaq playing as part of a team...i think its exactly what hes wanted, and we'll see a whole new side of him

Seandq

I was just at the Magic- Mavs game. My Magic pwned you by 15+ points.

lyxo

Cavs are going to rock this year, Even after losing Boozer. Gooden is stepping up in preseason, along with Tractor. 10 boards for Gooden and 7 for Tractor against Chicago

CityOfAngels

Two words that don't mean crap when you're talking about the NBA.

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The words "love" and "life" go together. It is almost as if they are one. You must love to live, and you must live to love, or you have never lived nor loved at all.

espi

I wouldn't use the preseason to judge anything about a team's chances in the regular season. The elite and/or veteran teams are going to play the second and third teams to give the younger kids and new players more of a chance to learn the plays, no one is playing defense, and the good players aren't going to try hard for fear of injury. (See McDyess in NY).

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Jimellow

Sixers in the East, Nuggets in the West.

The Sixers finally have youth starting, and a coach that encourages shooting!

The Nuggets might be a few years away, but they should be very exciting this season. The addition K-Mart is huge, and he should help the team immensely. Now if only he would stop attacking teammates...

I like the NBA a lot, and am really excited about the upcoming season. I've been watching pre-season games when I can, especially the Sixers, and they are looking really good.

It should be a really interesting year off the court too. Shaq and Kobe is the big story, but there are a lot of big names playing elsewhere, and it will be neat to see how the fit in with their new teams. I, like many others, am really looking forward to Christmas day, when Shaq and Kobe play each other, and ideally both are healthy and still angry at on another by the time that game tips off.

beta18

i am a huge lakers fan however...we aren't going to kick ass this year. our team is too small...centers are important and we lack a strong precence there. i say make playoffs lose in the 2nd round would be good enough for me.

high_jinx

chris mihm was a sleeper in the payton trade.... i know it's preseason, but 10 blocks in 3 games is something any center in the league will take. also, brian cook is showing even more promise than expected for the 4 spot. the lakers will make the playoffs, probably the 2nd round, but thats about it for this year...

i'm picking wolves/spurs in the west and pacers/pistons in the east for conference finals... from there its' anybodys championship.

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