Northwest: Three teams won 48 or more games in this top heavy division last year. Again Denver, Utah and Portland figure to battle it out this year. The Thunder have a very talented team, most of whom cannot drink yet. The T’Wolves are already scouting more point guards to draft next year.
1. Blazers: Deep, deep team. Brandon Roy is a star and now he has Andre Miller to get him the ball. LaMarcus Aldridge is one of the better big men in the league but the other big man is where the question are. If last year’s Greg Oden is what we should expect then there may be a limit on how good this team can be. If he developed into the hype he had a few years ago, the sky is the limit. Rudy Fernandez, Travis Outlaw provide spark off the bench.
2. Jazz: Not much change for this team that won 48 games last year. This team has chemistry and really knows how to play together. One potential hurdle is if Boozer continues to bitch about wanting a trade. Paul Millsap was re-signed for that reason and the Jazz didn’t miss a beat when Boozer was down last year.
3. Nuggets: Chauncey Billups taught this team how to win last year when he replaced Allen Iverson. Arron Affalo and Ty Lawson provide needed depth at the guard positions. The Nuggets should be right there all year.
4. Thunder: There is a whole lot of young talent on this team. They would definitely contend for the ACC or Big East title. They might be a year or two away from contending for a division title though.
5. T’Wolves: The T’Wolves will struggle. Al Jefferson and Kevin Love can be effective big men but how will they adapt to Kurt Rambis’ up tempo style?
Player to Watch: Greg Oden: He shed lbs in the offseason and is focused on not being such an asshole. Is he a black Greg Ostertag or Dikembe Mutombo with an offensive game?
Player to Hate: Carlos Boozer: Talented as hell but whines like a bitch. Now he is crying his way out of Utah.
Posts
Blazers are too hyped. Oden is a bum. Nuggets should take the division. Billups is the perfect guy to mentor Lawson
ReplyDelete