*heat will not do as well as everyone expects (50-55 wins or less imo, all depending on how their role players perform...tbh if wade gets healthy again soon i think he will be the key to any success they will have)
*rockets will be really good regardless of whether ming plays
*john wall will be great but he won't save his team from being terrible
*suns will make the playoffs and become the first all-seniors team to do so
*raptors will do better than expected and still be terrible, thereby breaking my canadian heart
*lakers will have one last great season
*celtics have already had their last great season with their current group but they may still turn some heads; the Spurs are looking at the same fate, but they won't turn heads
*thunder will improve on last year's regular season and scare everyone when the playoffs arrive
*allen iverson will somehow resurface with some kind of post-retirement bullshit drama and cost a team some money
*magic will do well again but will again lack the formula to win it all
*mavericks will do what they usually do and fail

If I had to predict a championship team at this early stage, I would predict the Lakers to win it all. I think the most interesting team to watch will be the Rockets, because they probably have the most dynamic roster in the NBA. They will end up cutting guys who could get playing time on other teams. I will be cheering for the Bucks. I don't think they have a hope of winning a championship, but I think Jennings is the most exciting player to watch since Michael Jordan. Jennings isn't even a superstar right now, but he can play COMFORTABLY at the fastest pace I've seen since Isiah Thomas. A lot of guys are really fast, but very few have his level of control at that speed. Aaron Brooks and John Wall (and maybe Westbrook and Rondo) are other guys to watch in terms of speed and control. This year could solidify him as a superstar, or it could expose any major weakpoints in his game.

John Wall will be rookie of the year unless Blake Griffin snipes it. MVP prediction = Wade or Lebron. They may both get less time with the ball this year but if one does better than the other, he will be everyone's hero and take the prize. I hate to say it but I think Lebron is the most likely MVP.

also, jeremy lin will be the most under-appreciated rookie this year.

mad you left out the bulls

really? comparing the Spurs to the Cs? Oh ya, you are known for terrible opinions because you're a Canadian. Carry on, eh.

spurs finally lost to the sunsi n the playoffs last year

they aren't turning anymore heads, ever

Celtics finish first in the East because the East is laughably bad this year.

Thunder give the Lakers a run for their money but lose in 7 games in the Western finals.

Celts/Lakers finals, BOOM.

bulls > celts, foo

You have Carlos Boozer and Brian Scalabrine.

shaqs got your back

rather have Shaq for a million than Boozer for any amount of money. Shaq/JO tandem til Perk gets healthy, baby.

2011: $14,400,000
2011: $1,352,181


plus Shaq doesn't break his hand walking in his house.

tripped over a bag*
fag

Let's bet on the finals, k?

i'm working on re-paying my debts, i've set up a date that myself and Gareth can have a sit down chat about my reinstatement.

A fireside chat, ala the one that Carter did in 1977?

i love the suns but i don't think they have it in them. grant hill and steve nash are two of my favourite players. they both work hard, they both love the game, and they're both good people .. and they both have great skills. i stand by my conviction that if hill hadn't been injured so many times with major foot injuries, he would've been one of the best players in the history of the game, right up there with jordan and bryant. he's 37 (i think) and he can still jump and reach above the white box in the backboard.

i agree with STQ that the celts have a good chance to win the east, but i don't think they're still going to be an elite team in the NBA. the east is up in the air, and it's true that it's underpowered compared to the west (more so this year than in previous years). orlando, miami and a few other teams could make a run to the finals. my odds-on pick for the east would be orlando right now. washington and milwaukee will be the most interesting teams to watch, just in case their young leaders can help them improve their respective positions. they're teams that could suddenly become very dangerous. and of course we can't forget the hawks, mainly due to their athleticism.

in the west, to be sure, i'm not counting the spurs out (i'm just counting them out of the western finals). i don't think they're an elite team anymore, but they possess a lot of experience, they have a strong organization, and they have some really good young players and some highly skilled veterans. not to mention they have one of the best coaches in the NBA. i just don't think they're legit contenders in the west because the west is overloaded with talent. young teams like the thunder and the grizzlies are going to press a lot of "borderline" playoff teams this year. the lakers and the rockets have great role players and each team has a dominate star. the clippers may end up looking at a playoff spot just because blake griffin is going to be a major impact type of player this year. denver and utah are loaded with talent. the mavs are set to be a great team on paper, but i'm sure they will disappoint as usual. every team in the west would make the playoffs in the east, so i expect that the bottom spots in the west will be hotly contested. there are so many young guys like demarcus cousins that could have a major impact this year that predicting the bottom of the western playoffs map is pointless.

the pre-season indicates nothing about the regular season, but based on the performances by a lot of young players, we can be pretty sure this will be the best rookie year since '03: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2003_NBA_Draft

i really hope jeremy lin will make an nba team and get some playing time this year. a guy like that shouldn't be passed up, because he has a lot of speed and talent. i was really happy to see him destroy john wall in the 4th quarter of a pre-season game. he exposed john wall's two biggest weaknesses but he also showed off his own strengths. just b/c the guy went to harvard, it doesn't mean he can't play ball.

fucking rew'd

Celtics can win the East, but are not an Elite team?

wut?

bulls will rape your face

ALREADY READY ONE GIANT WALL OF TEXT YOU POSTED IN THIS THREAD


NOT READING ANOTHER


HOW DID WADE GET INJURED/WHAT IS THE INJURY/HOW LONG WILL HE BE OUT?

hamstring, he would prob play if they were regular season games

oh, its still preseason nba, og;dc

go heat

yeah i think he's just resting it. unless he tore it (which he didn't) he should be able to return within 4 weeks max. realistically he probably just tweaked it or got a minor pull, so I agree that he would probably play if it was the regular season--he would definitely take no more than one game off if it was the playoffs.

i watched the heat's last pre-season game. they played better than i would've expected (on paper) w/o wade and lebron. chris bosh was way to quiet except during his 20 point quarter. thankfully he has some help with rebounding.

Random notes being added:

*impressed with monte ellis in the pre-season (golden state), esp considering that he's not at 100%. too bad curry will steal his thunder.
*Blake Griffon looks like he's in game shape. nice to see it.
*Kobe has looked really slow but one has to guess his knee will recover. Ron Artest looks like he got in better shape for this season.

Season starts this week

Celtics big over the Heat in the opener, thinking at least 11 pt victory

we agree on some things

i have a feeling the celts will want to start strong this year to prove not only that they still have it, but that they're better prepared this year than they were going into last season. the heat will probably be disorganized and it's possible that wade will be playing reduced minutes. i think the celts have better big men, and in general garnett has given bosh ass kickings in the past. lebron james is the huge problem for the celts. if they can keep him frustrated and out of the paint, they can give the heat a solid beating. if the heat role players play well, it won't make a big difference. the celtics are the deeper team.

and i do still think the celts can win the east without being a true top 3-5 team in the NBA. the magic are the major competition they should expect in the east (good thing that howard and vince carter are more female than male). but the west is plain overpowered. for all we know, this could be the year of the thunder. maybe the mavs will finally meet expectations (i doubt it, though). denver and utah will both have their eyes firmly set on winning the championship. and if they stay healthy, the lakers will be expected to remain top dogs. that's why i don't see the celts as an elite team. they're really good, but i think the lakers, jazz, possibly nuggets, possibly thunder and a few other teams are getting an edge on them. i've bumped the spurs off the map this year in terms of elite teams. i'd say the celts are hovering atm. it's not about talent; it's more about waning physical ability. the good news in all of this is that the celts could still make the NBA finals with a simple twist or two of fate. whereas only one of the elite teams in the west will get to the finals.