Quick, off-the-cuff, pre-preseason power-as-seen-by-dnk rankings:
WEST
1. Lakers - Defending champs. At the worst, they just treaded water over the offseason. Personally, I don't think Artest is too much of an upgrade over Ariza, but we'll see.
2. Spurs - Such a potent lineup. Just depends on health. The Celtics of the West.
3. Nuggets - The team I like to support in the Western Conference. I like Melo and I like Chauncey. Hopefully J. R. Smith matures a little.
4. Blazers - We'll see how Miller meshes with the Blazers. I'm a big fan of Roy.
5. Mavs - I think they have a chance at being a higher seed, maybe even third, but I don't think they make it to the WCF or beyond.
6. Jazz
7. Hornets
8. Suns
EAST
1. Cavs (groan) - They will win a lot of games. But I still don't know if I see them reaching the Finals. I think another team could easily beat them in a best of 7. They still have too many role players and not a good second or third fiddle. Mo Williams would be a good third or fourth guy, but I don't like him as the second option. And I don't see Shaq doing too much damage, especially without the mystic Phoenix medical staff by his side.
2. Celtics - Such a potent lineup. Just depends on health. The Spurs of the East.
3. Magic - Will probably take a while to mesh, but they are still very good.
4. Wizards - It'll take a while to find the group of players that know their roles and start playing good defense, but they'll score A LOT of points. PLEASE STAY HEALTHY. I also think they match up well with almost any team in the East so I wouldn't be surprised to see them make a run in the playoffs. But even if by some miracle, they have a Cinderella run to the Finals, any Western team in the Finals will beat them good in a 7-game series (not saying it would even reach 7 games).
5. Hawks - I don't think there's a lot of room for improvement. The team you saw last year is basically the team you'll get for the next three years (unless Teague or a new draft pick really shines). You know what you get with Bibby and JJ, I honestly don't see Marvin Williams or Josh Smith putting it all together (but I could definitely be wrong), and Horford (the guy who will improve) probably won't get enough touches.
6. Raptors - I don't think their offense is as good as the Wizards, and the defense might be just as bad, if not worse. The two key positions (PG and C as I see it) are flawed defensively; Calderon is not athletic enough on the perimeter and Bargnani just does not cut it as the anchor to a defense. But Hedo will help (although I don't think he was worth the money).
7. Bulls - I talk a little about them further down.
8. Heat
Give me your thoughts.
I'm expecting that San Antonio will finally begin to show their age
I've been thinking this for at least the last 4 years and somehow it hasn't happened. I actually think if they can keep Parker/Manu/Duncan healthy they have a real shot against the Lakers. Getting Blair that late in the draft was unbelievable.
I'm curious to see if the Bulls can build on last season. Gordon is gone, but I'm not so sure that will be as much of a loss as people think. Sure, he could score in bunches but he really didn't do much else. I think a full season of Salmons/Miller will be good. I'm hoping Rose will make another big leap - I really think in the next year or two he'll be in the discussion for best PG in the game. Of course, I'm also hoping that Wade will come to Chicago in 2010.
I think Rose is a great player, but I think the presence of Gordon as a really legitimate three-point threat helped spread the floor and give Rose room to drive a lot more than Salmons will. I think they'd be better off running Rose and Hinrich as the starting backcourt. Make sure Rose doesn't tire himself out by letting Hinrich defend the better guard on the other team. And then maybe having Deng and James Johnson both play hybrid forward, with Noah anchoring the team at the 5. A pretty decent line-up, with a really solid bench (Brad Miller, Salmons, Jannero Pargo, and Tyrus Thomas). But at the moment, I still see them as around a 7th seed. But I would not at all be surprised if they proved to be better than that.
Probably the Knicks. It seemed like they were always on the NBA on NBC on Sundays. So I grew up with Patrick Chewing, John Starks, Derek Harper, etc. Needless to say, the Tapscott-Layden-Zeke era made the Knicks difficult to watch. But I like where they're headed now. I hope they're able to get Rubio. Rubio-Gallinari-Chandler isn't a bad group to build around.
No way the Knicks are getting Rubio without getting rid of Chandler. I don't think the Knicks have any shot anyway, it's media hype. All they have to offer are marginal players w/o much upside at positions that the Wolves don't need. If McHale was still running the team he'd already be gone for probably Nate Robinson and David Lee but the Wolves aren't the dumping ground of the league anymore.
Yeah I know it's probably a pipe dream. The Knicks really wanted Stephen Curry, but didn't have the ammunition to move up in the draft. I think it's all about trying to build a team to attract LeBron. He's not coming to a team with middling talent, regardless of the endorsement opportunities to had.
Then again, I've always thought that the "2010 strategy" was stupid. I'd rather the Knicks cultivate their own talent than pay for someone else's.
I do think the T-Wolves will move Rubio, maybe not to the Knicks, but definitely somewhere else.
I think the 2010 strategy is terrible. For any of the teams trying it. At least have some semblance of dignity and put together a team that will at least challenge opponents. It's awful to expect fans to spend hard-earned dollars to watch a bare-bones skeletal team because you want to throw all your chips in for LeBron or Wade.
P.S. One thing you will notice about me is that I DESPISE LeBron. I acknowledge that he is very, very, very good at playing basketball. But I do not like him at all. Some brief reasons: how he always checks his mouth and nose for blood when he gets body checked, what he did to Gil at the line in the '06 playoffs, and his enormous ego.
