DENVER NUGGETS: The Nuggets aren't looking so hot these days. To the untrained eye that is. They are going to be just as good as last season. 'WHAAAA? But Carmelo is LEAVING! They're DOOMED!' People need to curb their panic, honestly. This team might be better off WITHOUT Carmelo Anthony. I honestly think Carmelo is overvalued in the league (ala Stoudemire). He's a ball stopper on offense and takes ill advised shots. The only person who thinks Carmelo can shoot 3s (which he does a lot) is Carmelo Anthony. There's a lot more talent on this team and they could flourish without Carmelo dominating everything while being ineffective if you really look at the game film. Think about Michael Redd in Milwaukee, he was Milwaukee's best player and highest scorer but when he went down the offense opened up and other players proved their value. It is a team game after all.
When Carmelo leaves (and he will before the trade deadline), the Nuggets have a solid nucleus in place. They picked up Al Harrington (aka Carmelo Anthony light) who does a lot of what Carmelo does but won't be forced to do as much, because the perception was Carmelo is that damn good so he should do more. Nene is going to impress this year, big men historically take longer to come into their own. He's 28, his role will expand and he's primed to have a career year. I'm gaga over Ty Lawson! This guy looks reeeeally good. He's 22 and played clutch in the playoffs, stealing minutes from Chauncey Billups. So as Chauncey will inevitably decline, Lawson will be right there and could maybe exceed him immediately. JR Smith and Chris Andersen might just be the best energy one/two punch off the bench that you can find in this league. They can singlehandedly increase a lead or bring the Nuggets back when the team is sluggish. Not to mention, the Nuggets could pick up some nice young post players/energy guys in a trade for Carmelo. These guys are going to be better than anyone thinks even if they aren't as sexy as years past.
Players I LOVE:
Nene & Ty Lawson: See above.
Players I HATE:
Carmelo Anthony: See above.
Kenyon Martin: If the Carmelo Anthony saga isn't enough, Kenyon has decided he needs to be a distraction too. He's already talking about taking his rehab slowly, in a more 'screw you guys' way than an 'I'm doing the smart thing' way. True NBA warriors don't make statements like that and immediately talk about their contract situation. You're rehabbing slower because your an asshole, Kenyon, not because you want to be smart about it.
MINNESOTA TIMBERWOLVES: Minnesota has a better team this year. They still suck, but they could double their win total (which is still only 30 wins) from last year. The real problem is that it looks like most other bad teams in the West improved as well. I don't think opposing teams can look at the T-wolves as an automatic out anymore though. They are young and athletic enough to hang with anybody on a given night (not a huge amount of nights will be given though). This will be a classic high energy, young team that will catch good teams sleeping on a Tuesday night. Kurt Rambis is a good coach, although I think this team lacks the personnel to be an effective triangle team this year or any other year.
The departure of Al Jefferson is actually positive for this team as currently constructed. They don't play good defense with or without him, so getting rid of Jefferson opens up the offense considerably for Kevin Love and the point guard carousel. K-Love looked lovely in the World Championships this summer and he should have a nice, big set of grapefruits this upcoming season. Since the team will be, maybe, the worst defensive team ever (turnstiles at every position) I like the idea of them going small and quick. They do have the personnel for that.
I like the small lineup with the addition of Michael Beasley. I think he might be turning the corner and needed the change of scenery. People forget he was considered to be a number 1 pick just two years ago. Let's hope he becomes more like Zach Randolph in Memphis this past year and less like Shawn Kemp in Cleveland (illegitimate children and losing the ability to play effective basketball). A smaller lineup of K-Love, Beasley, Martell Webster, Corey Brewer and Jonny Flynn/Luke Ridnour looks like a scrappy bunch that can run the floor and be fun to watch. Wesley Johnson and Lazar Hayward look like good draft picks that can contribute immediately in a lot of areas. Darko Milicic still sucks.
Players I LOVE:
Kevin Love: The section reads 'Players I LOVE' and of course he fits perfectly, last name or not. He will have a bigger role and more big game chops from his World Championship experience. He can rebound with the best and he is a transcendent fast break outlet passer.
Michael Beasley: Whereas Jefferson couldn't coexist with Love, I think Beas can. Beasley is a lot more athletic and can play the 3 if need be. This could be a breakout year for Beasley.
Players I HATE:
Sebastian Telfair: He sucks
Darko Milicic: He sucks, too.
OKLAHOMA CITY THUNDER: Just got done talking about positive experience in the World's this summer by way of Kevin Love. But did anybody in the world raise their stock more than Kevin Durant? No! Kevin Durant was an absolute basketball God in the World Championships. He looked unstoppable, humble, motivated and skilled beyond comprehension. Before the World's, he was viewed as a top 5 or top 10 guy but not in the discussion with Kobe or LeBron. He is without a doubt in that conversation now. He led a Thunder team last year with meager playoff aspirations to a 50 win season (only 7 less wins than the Lakers, mind you), with a cast of guys who just recently graduated HIGH SCHOOL! The scary thing is, that his running mate Russell Westbrook looked pretty damned good in the World's as well. Not to get crazy here, but this Durant/Westbrook combo looks in a lot of ways like a new age Jordan/Pippen. I only say that because Durant and Westbrook are 22 and 21 respectively. These guys are All-Star, playoff veteran studs while most of their contemporaries are still in college. Where is the ceiling here? Does it exist? I don't think it does so that's why it's reigning up in here! (Wow, even I can't believe I just said that. I'm painfully white.)
It doesn't really end with those two either. Here are some other players with ages (in parentheses): Jeff Green (24), James Harden (21), Serge Ibaka (21), Cole Aldrich (21), Eric Maynor (23), Nenad Krstic (27). These guys are all gamers who will see big minutes for the Thunder and weren't even born when Michael Jackson released 'Thriller.' The majority of those names were the crucial pieces to the Thunder's playoff run. This team of KIDS made real noise last year and got invaluable experience. This team of KIDS is going to kick some serious ass this year. The rest of the NBA should be terrified! These guys made the playoffs already and NONE of the major players have reached their primes yet! They will improve with every year starting with a BIG statement this year. You've been warned NBA.
Players I LOVE:
(outside of the obvious) James Harden: Like a fine wine, this guy had time to age last year. Also like a fine wine, he's going to be much better this year and really contribute. Harden showed flashes last year, but with all the focus on Durant and Westbrook, he could really do some major damage.
Players I HATE:
Morris Peterson: I don't really hate him, I think he might be valuable in some areas. However, he is the only guy on the team over 30 (he's 33) so he makes the cumulative age of this team less impressive. Damn you Mo-Pete!
PORTLAND TRAILBLAZERS: Ugh. Myself and everyone I know are sick of talking about the Blazers. For the past 3 years we've all been bombarded with all the "Blazers are going to surprise everybody" predictions and the "Blazers are good enough to make the Finals" chatter. I'm sick of it!
The Blazers are who they are; a talented team who can compete with the best of them. Brandon Roy is damn good. LaMarcus Aldridge is less damn good but still good. Greg Oden will NEVER be healthy. This team will win around 50 games all while exceeding and not living up to expectations. Just like every recent year; they'll be really good but have some rough stretches, they'll deal with a plethora of injuries, they'll make the playoffs as one of the middle seeds and they'll lose in the playoffs. Case closed, let's stop talking about them. Moving on...
UTAH JAZZ: The Jazz are slightly more intriguing than the Blazers, mainly because Carlos Boozer is out and Al Jefferson is in. I'm not a Carlos Boozer guy personally, he shrinks in big situations, he injures himself answering the door (good luck Chicago :-)) and he lied to a blind man in Cleveland (Cleveland should hate Boozer more than LeBron, honestly). While Boozer offered more than Jefferson defensively in previous years, I think Jefferson is a step up from Boozer. Jerry Sloan can and will motivate Al Jefferson to defend to the best of his ability. Think about it; Al Jefferson has never played on a good team in the NBA, EVER! He is a top 3 low post scorer in the league and he finally has a good and disciplined team around him. He's finally recovered from his Achilles injury (it takes two years to completely come back from that type of injury and you saw his stats improve quite a bit in the second half of last season), he's on a good team for the first time in his life and he can DOMINATE in the post. I like the Jefferson pick up.
Oh yeah, there also happens to be a guy named Deron Williams on this team. Williams torched the Nuggets and was an absolute warrior against the Lakers in the playoffs last year. This guy has balls to the wall and talent to boot. He really might be the best point guard in the league and is definitely in the top 3. The Jazz didn't lose much in the offseason outside of Boozer and I think they actually improved with Jefferson, the return of Raja Bell as a defensive stopper/3 point shooter and a guy in Paul Millsap who is only 25 (the best backup power forward in the league). This team is going to be better this year without Boozer. Note it!
Players I LOVE:
Al Jefferson: I'll say it again; Al Jefferson is completely recovered from his Achilles injury, he is on his first good team since he entered the NBA, he's a great rebounder and he's a top 3 low post threat/constantly requires a double team. I think he can really be a monster this year in Utah.
Gordon Hayward: He's like Matt Harpring and Kyle Korver, except better. Matt and Kyle did pretty well in Utah, Gordon has the ability to be better.
Player I HATE:
Mehmet Okur: If he could just do normal center stuff! You know, like rebound and be an inside presence. He's showing his age too, which worries me because Utah needs a guy who can actually be a center and not a tall 3 point shooter.
Andrei Kirilenko: I think he goes into "Boo Hoo, woe is me" mode. His contract expires at the end of the year and he's looking for a trade because of his contract value when he should be looking for a trade by playing how we all know he can really play. Hopefully he can get Utah something good in a trade or, crazy as it sounds, start playing like he actually is capable of.
NORTHWEST DIVISION AT A GLANCE: As it has been the past few years, this continues to be an exciting division. Top to bottom this may be the best division in all of basketball. Just like last year, this division has four potential playoff teams. This year they probably only get three into the playoffs as I think both the Blazers and Nuggets could miss out as the rest of the West quietly retooled. The only team guaranteed to stink and miss the playoffs is Minnesota, yet I still see them as improved. Whereas in previous years the Pacific Division and Southwest Division were the class of the conference, I think the Northwest starts to enter into that conversation if not grab it by the balls. There are two teams that can win the Finals in this division if the chips fall correctly. It's going to be extremely competitive and extremely good basketball out of the Northwest in 2010-11.
Order of Finish:
1. Oklahoma City Thunder
2. Utah Jazz
3. Denver Nuggets
4. Portland Trailblazers
5. Minnesota Timberwolves
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