NBA Roundtable Discussion

[Vern Gagne 0]

The Gomes story sounds like bullshit.

[Cheech Tremendous 0]

The Gomes story sounds like bullshit.

 

 

It does sound fishy. Why would they want him in the deal if there were only going to cut him later? It's not like they needed his contract to make the numbers work. Then again, the stupidity of their FO never ceases to amaze. I guess we'll see in due time.

[Cheech Tremendous 0]

You know what? The East may not be that bad next year. It's still miles behind the West, but it should be at least a little interesting, unlike last year's mess.

 

You have Chicago, Cleveland, Boston and Detroit who will be vying for the top spot in the conference. Toronto and New Jersey should be right there as well. That only leaves two open playoff spots for Miami, Washington and Orlando.

 

Milwaukee, Charlotte, Atlanta, New York and Philly will all be much better as well and competitve for a top 8 slot. Nobody looks that bad on paper.

 

If I were to seed them based on what I know right now:

 

1- Chicago

2- Cleveland

3- Boston

4- Miami

5- Detroit

6- Toronto

7- New Jersey

8- Washington

[Guest]

1- Chicago

2- Boston

3- Cleveland

4- Washington

5- Detroit (they're due for some big time regression, but I won't make the mistake of leaving them out like I did last year)

6- New Jersey

7- Toronto

8- Orlando/Miami, can't pick one.

 

I don't trust the health of Riley and Shaq, and the Heat fall in the category of Detroit, except their older players are visibly regressing and Detroit's older ones are just starting to get close. Miami doesn't have the gas in the tank, but they have D Wade. Should probably get them in, but I'm not sold on the sum of their parts. New York and Charlotte could compete for a playoff spot if they stay healthy. The East is more competitive and catching up, but still not at the level of the West. If one of these teams could take 4 from the Suns or Spurs I'd be surprised.

[Failed Bridge 0]

-The T'wolves are expected to cut Ryan Gomes. He may return to Boston.

I think my penis may have moved a bit after reading that. I read they did need his salary to make all the numbers work due to the trade kicker thing. It still counted until the extension but they couldn't do the extension until he was a full-fledged member of the team.

[Guest •]

You know what? The East may not be that bad next year. It's still miles behind the West, but it should be at least a little interesting, unlike last year's mess.

 

You have Chicago, Cleveland, Boston and Detroit who will be vying for the top spot in the conference. Toronto and New Jersey should be right there as well. That only leaves two open playoff spots for Miami, Washington and Orlando.

 

Milwaukee, Charlotte, Atlanta, New York and Philly will all be much better as well and competitve for a top 8 slot. Nobody looks that bad on paper.

So everybody has a shot at the playoffs except the Pacers:? Poor alfdogg.

 

[Cheech Tremendous 0]

You know what? The East may not be that bad next year. It's still miles behind the West, but it should be at least a little interesting, unlike last year's mess.

 

You have Chicago, Cleveland, Boston and Detroit who will be vying for the top spot in the conference. Toronto and New Jersey should be right there as well. That only leaves two open playoff spots for Miami, Washington and Orlando.

 

Milwaukee, Charlotte, Atlanta, New York and Philly will all be much better as well and competitve for a top 8 slot. Nobody looks that bad on paper.

So everybody has a shot at the playoffs except the Pacers:? Poor alfdogg.

 

 

 

I kind of realized that after I finished writing. I didn't mean to leave Indiana out my analysis.

 

In all honesty, Philly, Atlanta, NY and Charlotte probably have no chance either. I didn't want to say that because now I'll get some three paragraph responses from Ripper and Cena's Writer about how I'm totally off and that Atl and NY are ready to compete this year.

[Guest Vitamin X]

I think the East is definitely catching up to the West, and a lot of those teams, barring some sort of massive trade or injury plague, could compete with a lot of the ones out west. The only clear top two teams in the West are (and have been for a couple seasons) the Suns and the Spurs. The Jazz are improving, and I think the Nuggets and Lakers look a bit lost right now. Golden State should be a force to reckon with, and the Blazers, if Greg Oden can stay out of foul trouble and contribute like we know he can, can probably make the playoffs soon as well. The West is a bit more difficult to rank, and I might catch some flak for it, but here goes:

 

1. Phoenix

2. San Antonio

3. Utah

4. Houston

5. Golden State

6. Dallas (big regression this year. I'm picturing Dirk Nowitski sitting there shell shocked these days, rocking himself quietly to sleep while cradling his MVP trophy)

7. Portland

8. Los Angeles (take your pick of which one)

[Guest]

Yeah, we suck. I'd be surprised to see the team grab the 8th spot at this point, honestly. Unless Bynum goes insane on the league, we're kinda fucked. And a pissed off Kobe? Not good.

 

1. San Antonio

2. Phoenix

3. Denver

4. Dallas

5. Houston

6. Utah

7. Golden State

8. Who the hell knows. Portland's still a little too young, the Clippers are going to need a lot from a rapidly deteriorating Cassell, we are in deep shit (we need to get O'Neal just to get the 7th spot, no joke), and Sacramento is a mess. I don't know if Utah can keep Kirilenko healthy.

[Guest Vitamin X]

Denver is a bit highly rated on your list, while I don't even have them making the playoffs on mine. Why do you think they'll latch on to the #3?

[Cheech Tremendous 0]

Denver is a bit highly rated on your list, while I don't even have them making the playoffs on mine. Why do you think they'll latch on to the #3?

 

 

Although I'm not quite ready to do my West list yet, I would put Denver at three or four as well. Once they got everyone together and healthy last year they were one of the best teams in the league. They gave the Spurs more trouble than the Jazz or Cavs. I'm not up on Hollinger's stuff but I know that at the end of the playoffs he picked the Nuggets to make the finals this coming year.

 

I'm surprised that people are dropping Dallas down. That's putting too much weight on the conclusion of the season. It was a bad draw for them in the playoffs, but they were still the best or second best team in the NBA last year. Nothing's really changed.

[Failed Bridge 0]

before the Garnett deal there was alot of talk about Marcus Camby headed to the Celts...I wonder if that's still an option as they do need a big man and Cookie Monster Mutumbo is just too old at this juncture to be a viable option.

[Cheech Tremendous 0]

before the Garnett deal there was alot of talk about Marcus Camby headed to the Celts...I wonder if that's still an option as they do need a big man and Cookie Monster Mutumbo is just too old at this juncture to be a viable option.

 

 

It's not an option. It was a pipe dream from Celtics fan who thought they could use the Ratliff contract to pry him away. It was never going to happen and it certainly won't now. What could they possibly give the Nuggets to have them give up a player like Camby?

[Failed Bridge 0]

I thought the Nuggets just wanted to free up space by moving either Camby or Nene.

[Cheech Tremendous 0]

I thought the Nuggets just wanted to free up space by moving either Camby or Nene.

 

 

Well, sort of. It was a rumor for a while, but I think they decided to stick with what they have. But even if they decide to move one of those guys, there's no way in hell that either could go to the Celtics. They would have needed the Ratliff contract and a young stud to get Camby. No chance of that happening.

[Guest]

Denver is a bit highly rated on your list, while I don't even have them making the playoffs on mine. Why do you think they'll latch on to the #3?

Wasn't that high on the Iverson deal at first, but a full year and training camp with he and Melo could work wonders. Utah probably won't be that good again. Denver's pretty good at playing the run-n-gun at altitude, teams can't keep up.

[Nate 0]

i havent followed NBA for awhile, i might get back into it this year here's how i see the conferences fallin into place

 

Eastern:

 

1. Cleveland

2. Chicago

3. Miami

4. New Jersey

5. Washington

6. Detroit (if i have heard right they lost alot of their good players)

7. Philly

8. Boston (going out on a limb with that)

 

Western:

 

1. San Antonio

2. Phoenix

3. Golden State

4. Houston

5. Dallas

6. Utah

7. Denver

8. LA Clippers

[Cheech Tremendous 0]

i havent followed NBA for awhile, i might get back into it this year here's how i see the conferences fallin into place

 

Eastern:

 

1. Cleveland

2. Chicago

3. Miami

4. New Jersey

5. Washington

6. Detroit (if i have heard right they lost alot of their good players)

7. Philly

8. Boston (going out on a limb with that)

 

Western:

 

1. San Antonio

2. Phoenix

3. Golden State

4. Houston

5. Dallas

6. Utah

7. Denver

8. LA Clippers

 

 

I'm not going to pick on you because you said that you haven't followed the NBA much, but there is so much wrong with that I don't know where to start.

[Nate 0]

i havent followed NBA for awhile, i might get back into it this year here's how i see the conferences fallin into place

 

Eastern:

 

1. Cleveland

2. Chicago

3. Miami

4. New Jersey

5. Washington

6. Detroit (if i have heard right they lost alot of their good players)

7. Philly

8. Boston (going out on a limb with that)

 

Western:

 

1. San Antonio

2. Phoenix

3. Golden State

4. Houston

5. Dallas

6. Utah

7. Denver

8. LA Clippers

 

 

I'm not going to pick on you because you said that you haven't followed the NBA much, but there is so much wrong with that I don't know where to start.

 

feel free to pick away cheech13

 

[Guest]

I'll do it, because I know where to start. Firstly, one team from every division has to be in the top 4 of their respective conference. Secondly, a lot of shit would have to go wrong for Boston to be that bad, and if that kind of shit did go wrong, they'd be a hell of a lot worse off than the 8th spot, they'd be scouting players to choose with their lottery selection.

 

Third, Golden State are not that good. They took a hit for right now by trading Jason Richardson, but they got better for the future by acquiring Brendan Wright in that deal. They'll make the playoffs, but they're one Baron Davis injury from doing the scouting that I mentioned earlier. Philadelphia are dog shit. Toronto are pretty much a lock for the playoffs. Other than that, it's ok for the most part.

[Cheech Tremendous 0]

i havent followed NBA for awhile, i might get back into it this year here's how i see the conferences fallin into place

 

Eastern:

 

1. Cleveland

2. Chicago

3. Miami

4. New Jersey

5. Washington

6. Detroit (if i have heard right they lost alot of their good players)

7. Philly

8. Boston (going out on a limb with that)

 

Western:

 

1. San Antonio

2. Phoenix

3. Golden State

4. Houston

5. Dallas

6. Utah

7. Denver

8. LA Clippers

 

 

I'm not going to pick on you because you said that you haven't followed the NBA much, but there is so much wrong with that I don't know where to start.

 

feel free to pick away cheech13

 

 

Starting with the Western Conference first, the seeding you show is impossible. The Northwest division winner has to be included in the top four teams. If you think Utah is going to win the division, they have to slot into the 4th seed and everyone else moves down. After that, I guess it's your opinion, but Golden State at #3? They barely squeaked into the playoffs on the last day of the season and then traded one of their best players in the offseason. Don Nelson might not even return to coach. What makes them better than last year? Dallas at 5 (or technically 6th) is weird considering they were the best team in the league in 06-07. What's going to cause this massive regression?

 

As for the East, I don't know who told you that Detroit lost their good players but that's not accurate. Ben Wallace is gone but they didn't miss him that much last year when they had the best record in the east. The core is getting older but they have a nice bunch of young talent (Amir Johnson, Rodney Stuckey, etc.). You have Boston at eighth, which you say is going out on limb. What limb? Do you think that the big three will fail to click? Someone gets hurt? They should roll through the Atlantic like it's no problem. And where's Toronto? They were arguably the best team in the conference during the second half and the team is comprised of guys who are entering their primes. They should be very, very good this year.

[Vern Gagne 0]

The Gomes story sounds like bullshit.

 

 

It does sound fishy. Why would they want him in the deal if there were only going to cut him later? It's not like they needed his contract to make the numbers work. Then again, the stupidity of their FO never ceases to amaze. I guess we'll see in due time.

 

That was when McHale had complete control of personal decisions. They've since given power to other people. So I think Gomes is safe, unless he's traded.

[Ripper 0]

I am not going in any particular order because fuck that. But locks out west are:

 

Phoenix

San Antonio

Houston

Utah

Denver

Dallas

 

After that i expect the Lakers, and Clippers to take the two final spots but those are a toss up.

 

In the East:

 

Boston

Detroit

Chicago

Miami

Cleveland

 

After them, it really is a toss up. I don't think there are any teams clear cut better than any other for those last three spots. New York, Atlanta, Orlando, (don't laugh) Charlotte, Washington, New Jersey...I don't see any of these teams being clear cut better than any of the others. Yes I included New Jersey in that group because they are counting on a rehabing Kristic and Jamal Magloire to man their front line and they still didn't add a single shooter.

 

 

 

This is all of course barring major injuries.

[Your Paragon of Virtue 0]

There seems to be no Toronto love around these parts eh? Oh well, that's why they play the games, rather rely on TSM to lay things out beforehand.

 

I'll definitely have to see Boston when they come to town. That should be a crazy game, plus Bosh vs. KG.

[Cheech Tremendous 0]

There seems to be no Toronto love around these parts eh? Oh well, that's why they play the games, rather rely on TSM to lay things out beforehand.

 

I picked them to finish sixth, but that's mostly because I fully expect Boston to surpass them in the Atlantic. I went on to say in a later post that they'll be very, very good. I expect them to be a real contender in th east this year. I know Marc Stein picked them to win the conference.

[Ripper 0]

You know, Actually, they are a lock in the east too. For some reason they completely slipped my mind.

 

They will be a much improved team too. One of the top 2-3 records in the East and they completely slipped my mind.

 

Move them into the locks and move Miami into the Maybes.

 

Yeah, I said it. Wade coming off a shoulder surgery that doesn't even guarentee that he will be ready for camp or the start of the season and Shaq is Shaq.

 

 

[Cheech Tremendous 0]

Cleveland v. Miami, LA Lakers v. Phoenix and Seattle v. Portland are going to be this year's Christmas Day games, according to Marc Stein.

[Ripper 0]

Lakers VS Suns?

 

Really....I mean....really?

[Your Paragon of Virtue 0]

There seems to be no Toronto love around these parts eh? Oh well, that's why they play the games, rather rely on TSM to lay things out beforehand.

 

I picked them to finish sixth, but that's mostly because I fully expect Boston to surpass them in the Atlantic. I went on to say in a later post that they'll be very, very good. I expect them to be a real contender in th east this year. I know Marc Stein picked them to win the conference.

 

Yeah I know, but you seemed to be the only one, until Ripper realized he forgot about them.

 

I'm still unsure about how well the Nets will do with Krstic. That seemed to be something that Nets fans harped on about ad nauseum last year, and I'm curious as to how much of a difference he'll make. I'm also curious as to how much of an impact Moore's departure will have.

[Ripper 0]

that why I think the Nets could very well miss the playoffs honestly. they didn't address a single issue they had from last year, except with Magloire, and I don't really know how effective he can be.

 

Plus they lost Eddie House, who didn't have the greatest year, but at least he spread the court for them.

 

The Raptors had a rash of injuries towards the end of the year that kinda screwed their chemistry some (to Ford, Bargnani, Bosh, Gara-was-his-face and Anthony Parker). Without that i think they would have taken the nets in the first round.