2010-2011 NBA Preview

In case you missed it, the landscape of the NBA underwent a formation right on par with the Jurassic period shift to the Cretaceous period over the summer. It seems like the events that unfolded were indeed as drastic as the extinction of dinosaur's which made those pre-historic shifts so remarkable.

Alright, maybe it wasn't quite that insane. After all, other than the Miami Heat's trio of  the LeBron/Bosh/D-Wade superstar signings, did any other franchise change their fortunes in that dramatic of fashion? You could say the New York Knicks might have been the second biggest winner, wooing Amar'e Stoudemire to head east. Stoudemire is a great player, particularly at the offensive end, but will the Knicks go from the lottery to the NBA finals by just adding him? Certainly not.  And none of the Heat's signee's actually wound up with the largest payday this summer. You'll be surprised when you find out who did at the bottom of this article.

So finally, tonight, the games will actually count and we can start to move away from the Summer of the Decision and focus on actual basketball again.

I've made my feelings on LeBron very well known: he's a self-absorbed punk who thinks he's bigger than the game of basketball.  That being said, he's still very easily a top 3 talent in the league. Will his numbers reflect that as he shares the spotlight with Dwayne Wade and Chris Bosh? Doubtful, although remember, he's been taking notes about everything that's been said about him this summer.

The Heat are going to be a very good team, there's no question about that. But let's not forget who the defending champions are: the Los Angeles Lakers, who, oh by the way, still have Kobe Bryant on their side. The Boston Celtics, the runners-up last Spring, didn't go anywhere either. And there are still plenty of other legitimate threats to keep the Heat off of this pedestal they feel as though they're on, including the Orlando Magic, who happen to play within the same division.

I'm done dedicating my time to a team that hasn't won anything yet. Zero. Zilch. Nada. Here is how I forsee the Association shaking out in the 2010-2011 season:

Eastern Conference
1. Miami Heat
2. Boston Celtics
3. Chicago Bulls
4. Orlando Magic
5. Atlanta Hawks
6. New York Knicks
7. Milwaukee Bucks
8. Indiana Pacers
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9. Charlotte Bobcats
10. Washington Wizards
11. New Jersey Nets
12. Detroit Pistons
13. Cleveland Cavaliers
14. Philadelphia 76ers
15. Toronto Raptors

Western Conference
1. Los Angeles Lakers
2. Dallas Mavericks
3. Seattle SuperSonics Oklahoma City Thunder
4. San Antonio Spurs
5. Utah Jazz
6. Portland Trail Blazers
7. Houston Rockets
8. Los Angeles Clippers
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9. Phoenix Suns
10. Golden State Warriors
11. Denver Nuggets
12. Memphis Grizzlies
13. Sacramento Kings
14. New Orleans Hornets
15. Minnesota Timberwolves

Eastern Conference Playoffs
Quarterfinals
Heat over Pacers
Celtics over Bucks
Bulls over Knicks
Magic over Hawks

Semifinals
Magic over Heat
Celtics over Bulls


Eastern Finals
Celtics over Magic

Western Conference Playoffs
Quarterfinals
Lakers over Clippers
Mavericks over Rockets
Thunder over Trail Blazers
Jazz over Spurs

Semifinals
Lakers over Jazz
Mavericks over Thunder

Western Finals
Mavericks over Lakers

2011 NBA Championship: Boston Celtics over Dallas Mavericks

That's right, the Celtics are bringing back banner 18 this season. After falling mere minutes short of the feat last season, the Celtics return with a deeper-than-ever supporting cast to compliment their own "Big 3", not to mention Rajon Rondo, who has established himself as one of the NBA's premier point guards. It's not a stretch to call Rondo the Celtics' best player. He's a match-up mis-match, in that no matter how you try to cover him, he can still find ways to beat you. Whether he's fearlessly driving the lane, doing some sort of crazy reverse lay-up, or putting up a floater, or dishing out to his plethora of options along the perimeter, Rondo is one of a kind when it comes to the point guard position. As long as Paul Pierce, Kevin Garnett, and Ray Allen are here, and healthy, the Celtics are going to have a shot.

Worried about the loss of Kendrick Perkins until at least February? That's alright, Shaquille O'Neal is here to hold the fort until he returns. Jermaine O'Neal also joins the front court rotation along with the returning Glen "Big Baby" Davis. In the backcourt, Rondo and Allen are fortified by Nate Robinson, Marquis Daniels, and old friend Delonte West. If you don't think the Celtics added West as a move to get underneath LeBron's skin, well, you're probably right. But it's always a pleasure to bring those rumors up, even if they are far-fetched.

Stepfather with stepson?

Awards

Most Valuable Player: Dirk Nowizki, Mavericks

Rookie of the Year: John Wall, Wizards

Coach of the Year: Greg Poppovich, Spurs

Defensive Player of the Year: Dwight Howard, Magic

Sixth Man of the Year: Shaquille O'Neal, Celtics

Look for the versatile German to take home his second MVP honors.

He still needs to work on his offensive game, but there isn't a better defender in the world right now that Dwight Howard.

The Big 6th Man?

1st Team All-NBA: Deron Williams, Kobe Bryant, Kevin Durant, Dirk Nowitzki, Dwight Howard

2nd Team All-NBA: Rajon Rondo, Dwayne Wade, LeBron James, Pau Gasol, Amar'e Stoudemire

3rd Team All-NBA: Steve Nash, Brandon Jennings, Paul Pierce, Al Jefferson, Al Horford

Anyways, in honor of the Celtics 18th banner that they'll take home, here are 18 other thoughts on the most anticipated season in recent memory.

1. It's going to be one helluva rookie class. With 2009 1st overall pick Blake Griffin still eligible, he and John Wall will have to duke it out to see who ultimately gets the honors. Don't sleep on the Kings' DeMarcus Cousins, either, who with Tyreke Evans at the very least make the Kings an "interesting" team out west.

2. Kevin Durant has made the leap to the second best player in the faster than we ever thought possible. His experiences with Team USA this summer proved that he is indeed ready to compete for championships. However.....

3. Don't get me wrong. Love Durant. Love Russell Westbrook. Love what the Thunder are doing. But they're still a piece or two away from having a legitimate shot at the NBA title. Is Serge Ibaka the answer down low? The early reviews out of the Sooner State do sound promising, but it's really too soon to tell. Let's see how the Thunder adapt from being the hunters to the hunted. 

(And if the Thunder do win the title while Durant's still there, they'd better throw a parade up in Seattle. But that's for another time).

4. So how are Wade, LeBron, and Bosh going to co-exist on South Beach? The Heat will finish with the best record in the regular season, 61-21. But without any legitimate answers for a bona fide NBA center, they're looking at a flameout in round 2 to the Magic. There won't be any alpha dog issues for the Heat this season, but if they do wind up losing in the playoffs and get off to a sluggish start next season, we could have a very interesting situation in Miami. 

5. That's not a misprint above, there will indeed be two Los Angeles teams in the playoffs this spring. With Blake Griffin finally able to be unleashed, the continued emergence of Eric Gordon, and a bounce-back season from Baron Davis, the Clip Show is ready to get back to the post-season. Although the Lakers will show them who owns the city in round 1.

6. The Indiana Pacers are also ready for a return to the post-season. Very underrated off-season pickup of Darren Collison to pair with star forward Danny Granger and 7'2" Roy Hibbert becoming a force down low, the rebuilding project that Larry Legend has overseen is ready for the first step back to respectability.

7. The Minnesota Timberwolves will finish with the NBA's worst record, 18-64. Toronto will finish worst in the East, 20-62. 

8. The Knicks, after years of gutting their roster for the Summer of the Decision, will finally return to the post-season. It's not exactly how they drew it all up, but they'll definitely be a fun team to watch. Amar'e reunited with former Phoenix coach Mike D'Antoni will turn the Knicks into a lesser version of the Suns. The difference, obviously, being Steve Nash.

9. Why Dallas in the representing the West? The urgency has never been higher. Like the Celtics in the East, this is the deepest version of the Mavs to date. Tyson Chandler immediately improves the front court defense, a full season with Brendan Haywood and Caron Butler, Dirk Nowitzki showing no signs of slowing down, Jason Kidd proving he isn't done yet....All these 50 win seasons have gotta add up to something.

10. Why not the Lakers? Nothing more than a gut feeling. What's going on with Andrew Bynum's knees? Kobe is still Kobe, and he'll remind us all year long that he's still Kobe. It's nothing more than going out on a limb.

11. When LeBron James returns to Cleveland December 2, it will be unlike any other homecoming we have ever seen. You think Favre back in Green Bay was bad? Damon back in Boston? This will be in a whole other galaxy. LeBron will get things thrown at him. People will get way too personal in the insults. Am I saying it's right? No. Will I feel sorry for LeBron? Not in the least.

12. I'm not sure what's going to wind up happening with Carmelo in Denver, or with Chris Paul in New Orleans. But the situations are already so damning that the seasons are over there before they even start.

13. The Bulls are going to be a very exciting team to watch. Derrick Rose and Joakim Noah was already a dynamite combination, and adding defense-first coach Tom Thibodeau and Carlos Boozer (eventually) joining up front, they are going to be a very strong team in the Eastern Conference. Probably a year or two away from becoming a serious contender for a title, but it's safe to say that this will be their best squad since MJ split town in '98. 

14. LeBron won't admit that he was wrong in the way he went about "The Decision".

15. God forbid it came down to a Lakers-Heat finals, I would swallow my pride and root for the Lakers. As would any other self-respecting NBA fan.

16. First coach fired: Lionel Hollins, Grizzlies. George Karl will also resign at some point this season.

17. Evan Turner of the 76ers (2nd overall) will prove to be the biggest bust of this draft.

18. Seriously, Fuck LeBron. Let's watch some basketball

Answer to Trivia: Joe Johnson, Hawks.

Pats vs. Chargers: Week 7

I said it yesterday, and I'll say it again. It's not how you win, it's that you win. The Pats looked uglier yesterday than South Park's rendition of Sarah Jessica Parker, I'll be the first to admit it. They did not deserve to win that game. Yet it always seems that those are the kinds of games that will ultimately go to the better team, regardless of who outplayed who. Add it all up, and the Patriots are 5-1 this morning, tied with the J-E-T-S and Steel City for the best record in the NFL after escaping San Diego with a 23-20 victory.

The Chargers, as has become characteristic over the past several years, shot themselves in the foot a few too many times to have any chance at winning. Year in, year out, they always seem to have an elite collection of talent, but nobody on the roster has any idea how to seize "the moment". That's why they're considered the Dallas Cowboys of the AFC. If you look at the numbers, and just the numbers, you could say with relative ease that Philip Rivers is the best quarterback from the 2004 draft, which also featured Eli Manning and Ben Rapelisberger Roethlisberger in the first round. (JP Losman was also a 1st rounder in '04, but we'll leave him off this list because, well, he's kinda in the UFL now).

38 total yards of offense in the 1st half left Patriots with visions that couldn't have been much better than this one.

But Rivers's lack of success late in games, let alone in the post-season, is what keeps him consistently ranked no. 3 on the list. Sure, Rivers managed 336 passing yards yesterday with a depleted receiving corps and did manage to lead the Chargers to 17 4th quarter points. But it was all too-little, way too-late. When Rivers and the Chargers got the gift of starting their final drive just shy of midfield, he led them close but not close enough to having a shot at the game-tying field goal. As usual, San Diego self-imploded.

Add up all the San Diego miscues and it's no wonder the Patriots wound up surviving. The ultimately-ruled backwards pass/fumble to Jacob Hester; the first career catch/first career fumble for Richard Goodman; the unsportsmanlike penalty that got the Patriots 17-play 3rd quarter drive kick-started; the false-start on the potential game-tying field goal; and Kris Wilson's fumble, which caused anyone from Hingham to wonder"why would they ever give Kris Wilson the ball?

(Was that in poor taste? Hell's gonna be something else).

If you look at the game as a chess-match, who would you rather have moving the pieces around? Bill Belichick or Norv Turner? Exactly.

It's alright, Norv. It's not like you're behind the Oakland Raiders in the AFC West or anything.

The lack of a ground game has to be concerning for the Pats, with a combined 48 yards rushing (24 apiece) for BJGE and Danny Woodhead. I'm a huge fan of both of these guys in their own rights, but are either of them the answer long term as a full-time, workhorse back? That's something that will be answered over the course of the season. But I maintain what I say that Woodhead is more than a gimmick, and definitely has a role on this team moving forward, likely as Kevin Faulk's heir apparent.

Bottom line is this: would you rather have the Patriots be firing on all cylinders but wind up losing, say, 35-31, or would you rather have them unravel a stink bomb like yesterday's and still manage the W? At the end of the day, all they count in the National Football League is wins and losses. So in the words of Ron Burgundy, go fuck yourself, San Diego. Gus Johnson might call them the "San Diego SuperChargers" in Madden '11, but there's nothing super going on in the suburbs of Tijuana right now. 5-1 is 5-1, and in a year where it looks increasingly as though there are no elite teams, that's definitely something to hold your head high on.

It's not 2007 anymore. The Patriots aren't going to be blowing anyone out by 30. That being said, this team looks increasingly capable of winning close games that could go either way, something that ultimately befell that historic '07 squad. The offense can't possibly be as inept yesterday as it was the rest of the way.

Needless to say, it's gonna be a helluva trick-or-treat when Randy Moss comes rolling back to town on Sunday with the Vikings. A team which is in complete and utter disarray. General Disarray if you will. Two South Park references in one blog? It's time to stop typing.