BOSTON CELTICS: The Boston Celtics made a lot of fans and gamblers look foolish last season, going all the way to game 7 of the Finals against the Lakers. They were an unfortunate injury to Kendrick Perkins away from winning it all. A healthy Perkins in game 7 and Boston raises another championship banner in the rafters. This offseason, the rest of the NBA got better in the top tier, especially in the East, and the Celtics aged another year. But I think the Celtics improved their roster nicely too.
Even at their advanced ages, The O'Neals (Shaq and Jermaine) are still forces when utilized properly. Shaq will be motivated after last year's debacle in Cleveland and Jermaine showed he can still be pretty effective in the post after everybody was ready to sign his death certificate. The Celtics are loaded up front, so those older, bigger bodies won't have to get beat up as much (Kevin Garnett should be salivating). Delonte West was also a great pickup, the guy is a starter in this league and hasn't reached his prime yet. He's had some off court issues...Ok, a lot of off court issues, but he's surrounded by a really tight, veteran team now that has seen it all. I see Ray Allen becoming a great mentor for him and maybe he'll begin to pass the torch a little as well. Also, I think they got a potential STUD in Avery Bradley. He looks like he could contribute right away and could possibly be a star in the future.
The Celtics didn't lose much either. They'll miss Tony Allen's surprisingly effective defense on the wing (and really nothing else from Allen, because outside of the defense he, well, sucked) but I think West will be effective against the smaller players and maybe Marquis Daniels will improve defensively in this system with his athletic ability... Yeah, probably not. Rasheed Wallace played admirably in the Finals but I think the two O'Neals are a big upgrade if they can stay healthy. They still have Paul Pierce (who has at least two elite seasons left in him), Kevin Garnett, Rajon Rondo (who continues to become a true star), Ray Allen and Kendrick Perkins (proved essential to the Celtics in the Lakers series). I don't think they will miss Tony Allen or Rasheed Wallace all that much. With more depth this season in the post, there should be less injury problems as well. Boston looks better to me this year than last.
Players I LOVE:
Kevin Garnett: Supposedly, he is in ridiculously good shape this offseason and looks a step quicker than last. His knees aren't what they used to be but I think with the added depth and news of the great shape he is said to be in, I think he can outplay people's expectations this season.
Delonte West: He can shoot, pass, play decent defense and rebounds well for his size. West fits in perfectly for the Celtics and I think the Celtics are the perfect team to get West on track this season. Also he can play the point when needed and looks to take a lot of minutes from Nate Robinson (not exactly a bad thing).
Players I HATE:
Glen Davis: Big Baby, indeed. This guy looks like he could be cancerous in the locker room. There will be less minutes for him this year, because there are better players in front of him. He doesn't bring enough to the table to be the first or second big man off the bench, Boston is just too deep and Davis has attitude problems. What a fitting nickname, he's going to cry like a big baby all season.
Marquis Daniels: He should be a big part of the rotation but he's extremely injury prone. Oh yeah, and he kind of sucks.
NEW JERSEY NETS: This team is bad but keep your chin up Nets' fans, you're better than last year. Also, you guys get to move to Brooklyn in a couple years. The future looks bright, honestly; motivated/deep pocketed owner, good coach in Avery Johnson and nice looking frontcourt of the future with draft pick Derrick Favors and Brook Lopez. But if you're expecting big things this season you are, well, stupid.
There are some nice new pieces outside of Favors (who does look special) in Anthony Morrow (can score like nobody's business), Troy Murphy (great rebounder and shooter; can't do anything else effectively though, especially defend) and Travis Outlaw (their big off season signing, but as pathetic as that sounds he can actually ball). These guys are nice pieces, but they don't exactly look like guys on a contender. They are more like guys you'd expect to see on a roster competing for the 8th seed in the East. However, they won't even be that good this year.
Devin Harris, with Lopez, is the best it gets for the Nets. These are guys who could steal a spot on an All-Star team, but they might be the 3rd best option on a true contender at best. That isn't exactly something to be excited about. They're more Lamar Odom than Kobe or Pau. Which isn't a bad thing, Lamar is good, but he ain't leading a team deep in the playoffs. The Nets need a stud and if they actually have one in Favors, his "studliness" (made that word up; do something about it) will not be evident for at least a couple years. Sorry Mikhail Prokorov, you're team still sucks (right now).
Players I LOVE:
Derrick Favors: I don't think he's the second coming of Kevin Garnett, but I think he can be close if all goes right in his career. This year will be very valuable for him as he can build his confidence playing under the radar and gaining more polish to his game.
Terrence Williams: Hasn't really lived up to his potential thus far, but looked much improved in summer league and looks much more confident. He even is looking to take more of a leadership role. Plus at 6'6" he has point guard skills. Me likey.
Players I HATE:
Travis Outlaw: Just because he makes $7 million. Aren't the Nets just as bad with him as they would be without him? Now they still suck and they have $7 million less in flexibility.
Brook Lopez: Horrible summer. He had mono I hear but he still looked really sluggish and out of shape on top of that. Plus, in the first preseason game he had trouble dominating a guy who was a half foot shorter. I think Brook has a bad season but will rebound the following year.
NEW YORK KNICKS: Oh you poor bastards! You miss out on LeBron, Wade and Bosh, so you saddle up with Amare Stoudemire (for the same or more money as the Miami guys are making!) Gosh, that has to sting. Amare is only as good as Steve Nash wants him to be and Ray Felton ain't Steve Nash. Amare will put up numbers for you guys, but who in the hell is going to defend in the post? Stoudemire is to defense what Eddy Curry is to skinny. Ha ha, and by the way the Knicks happen to still have Eddy Curry! If New York wants to get back in the discussion with Los Angeles and Boston, they're going to need a lot more than Amare Stoudemire.
Their offseason wasn't a complete wash though. I do believe Amare is a notch above David Lee (neither can defend, Amare is an offensive savant, but Lee is by far a better rebounder) and I like what New York got for Lee. I love Kelenna Azubuike and Anthony Randolph in Mike D'Antoni's system and I think Ronny Turiaf is a vastly underrated energy/glue guy. Raymond Felton > whatever the Knicks have had at the point guard position in recent years. But... again... WHO'S PLAYING DEFENSE? Donnie Walsh should see that while D'Antoni's system is fun and high scoring, it's only effective when a really athletic, fast, defensive minded big man is in the mix. There isn't anything CLOSE to that on this Knicks roster. Put it this way, Eddy Curry could lose 100 pounds but he'd still have to learn how to play defense just to qualify. This roster is fun and will sell tickets but it stinks.
They'll improve on 29 wins from last year, but they are still barely competing for the 8th seed in the East. While contending for a playoff spot sounds nice, the East after the 6th seed is putrid and will be absolutely destroyed in the first round by the likes of Boston, Orlando and Miami. Maybe stop focusing on getting Carmelo who makes you worse defensively and try putting together an actual team instead of something that looks nice on a marquee. They are lucky they play in arguably the worst division in basketball.
Players I LOVE:
Ronny Turiaf: The only guy on this roster that can probably play defense in the post while being able to run on offense.
Raymond Felton: He is a major upgrade at the point guard spot and I think he will look good running some exciting fast breaks for the Knicks. Felton has always been underrated and in the wrong system in my eyes.
Players I HATE:
The Knicks roster for the most part: Instead of talking about who I hate individually, I figured I'd save time by just making it pretty much all inclusive. I hate the way this Knick team is constructed after they mortgaged their future in hopes of acquiring LeBron, Wade or Bosh.
PHILADELPHIA 76ERS: Yuck. I'm so depressed already talking about this division and now it gets worse. The 76ers are GOD AWFUL. To save my sanity...Let's just say these guys are abysmal, fix ourselves a drink and move on. A couple points though:
- Evan Turner looked shell shocked in Summer League. You know, the guy who was supposed to be the MOST NBA ready in the Draft. He also talks like Kermit the Frog. Nobody with a Kermit voice has ever been successful outside of...well...Kermit.
- Andre Iquodala is a really good player, but he can't be Philly's go to guy. He's a stud as a second or third banana on a good team, but not a number one on a monstrosity. Can we end this experiment?
- The big men are Elton Brand's corpse and Mareese Speights. I'd vomit if I were a 76er fan.
- Jrue Holiday looks like he could be a player in this league, maybe even a really good one; but the 76ers SUCK!
- This team has no identity whatsoever, no solid big men (if you say Spencer Hawes I'll choke you Sprewell style), no go to scorer and absolutely nothing to look forward to. Doug Collins has his work cut out for him.
Demar Derozan and Sonny Weems (always liked his game) looked great and exciting in Summer League. Ed Davis looks like he could be a good player but he has a way to go. Bargnani is a talented offensive guy, but he's also a center who doesn't defend, block shots or rebound. If you're going to have a center like Bargnani you better have a power forward who is willing to defend and rebound and Davis isn't going to be that guy for a while. There is no hope for this squad this season. It honestly looks like a team the Raptors would've assembled in 1995 (you know, an expansion team!).
Players I LOVE:
Chris Bosh: Oops. That was insensitive.
Sonny Weems & Demar Derozan: I think these guys can be solid NBA players and they are talented and athletic as the day is long. It's encouraging to see these guys play together and compete to make each other better. Not much else the Raptors can hang their hats on.
Players I HATE:
Amir Johnson: This guy stinks. He's past the upside point of his career. He has athletic ability in bunches but plays like the third center on a lottery team.
Marcus Banks: The, arguably, worst team in basketball wouldn't be complete without Marcus Banks. I mean, this team is the Marcus Banks of the NBA. It works so well, it makes me nauseous.
ATLANTIC DIVISION AT A GLANCE: The Boston Celtics. Honestly, there isn't much else to talk about in this division for this season. The Nets are bad. The Knicks are bad. The 76ers are putrid. The Raptors are expansion team bad (doesn't get much worse). Honestly, the Celtics could realistically win this division by 20 games. It's really sad that a once proud franchise (the Knicks), two teams that played in the Finals in the past decade (the Nets and the 76ers) and a team that looked like it could be a perennial force just 4 years ago (the Raptors) are all now completely irrelevant for the upcoming season unless they're part of a miraculous trade. Boston will coast in this division and it should be a boring year in the Atlantic Division. Pity.
Order of Finish:
1. Boston Celtics
2. New York Knicks
3. New Jersey Nets
4. Philadelphia 76ers
5. Toronto Raptors
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