With the draft completed, and free agency imminent, I felt that now
would be the perfect time to take a look around the Atlantic Division,
and see what the outlook is for next season.
Washington Wizards - Quite simply, nothing went right on the
floor during the 2000-2001 season. Rod Strickland was absolutely worthless,
Mitch Richmond scored a career low 16 points per game while Chris Webber
lit it up in Sacramento, Jahidi White did not make the leap some had projected
for him, and 63 of the team’s 82 games ended in defeat. The Wizards did
manage to jettison Juwan Howard’s ridiculous contract, and they did win
the draft lottery. Richmond has been bought out for 5 million, which is
a lot better than paying him 10 million a year for the next two seasons.
Richard Hamilton had some nice flashes last year, and Kwame Brown is going
to excite people the first time he hits double figures. The cupboard is,
however, still relatively bare. Do you think any Atlantic Division GM would
trade rosters with the Wiz? Neither do I. Look for Courtney Alexander to
throw up some big scoring nights, and get ready to read a lot of speculative
pieces about what free agents want to play for GM Jordan once they get
under the cap in the next few seasons. For now, the Wizards will probably
win more than 19 games next year, but they were a mere 7-34 away from The
MCI Center last season. Even if they can play .500 at home, 35 wins is
going to be a reach.
Boston Celtics- The Celtics had an up and down year. The Rick
Pitino situation was an albatross hanging around the team’s head, and anyone
who has ever rooted for that team had to be thrilled when Rick waved bye-bye
to The Fleet Center. We read so much about the ego of today’s athletes,
but by far the biggest ego on that team belonged to its coach. When he
arrived, he decided that he was going to full court press for the whole
48 minutes. That might have worked in Kentucky when he had the most talented
squad, but it was a different ball game in the NBA. Pat Riley, Phil Jackson,.
Larry Brown, and Lenny Wilkens weren’t pressing all the time. Were they
fools, or was Rick Pitino delusional? We all know the answer to that question.
Once Rick fell on the sword, the team started to play a more traditional
style of pro basketball, and they started winning some games. Paul Pierce
threw up some huge numbers, and the team occasionally found itself in the
winner’s circle. The key for this team is to keep doing what worked for
them last year: Get the ball to Pierce and Walker. Plain and simple. The
Celts would love to have another banger underneath, but what team wouldn’t?
I am not particularly excited about any of this team’s draft picks, but
the I think the Celts gained confidence last season, and I would not be
surprised to see them challenging for the eighth spot next season.
Orlando Magic- Orlando turned what could have been a major disappointment
into a very nice showing that bodes well for the future. Tracy McGrady
erupted, pure and simple. Name a player in the Atlantic not named Iverson
that you would rather have on your team. Sometimes McGrady made it looked
too easy, taking his man in the post time and time again. Cruising out
on the break, or rolling down the lane for the three point play. People
talk about how good Kobe Bryant is going to be, but this is the guy I’m
watching. Mike Miller did a great job for a rookie. He consistently knocked
down what I like to call the four second shot. That's when a play is run
in the post, the double comes, defense rotates, and the ball comes back
around with 4 on the shot clock. Miller found himself in this situation
a lot last season, and he put several demoralizing jumpers down on the
opposition. As a fan, you hate it when your team plays good D, and the
opponent gets that shot to fall. Miller is a keeper, and wise is the team
that picks him up if the Magic look to jettison him for cap purposes. Grant
Hill is of course the X-factor for the upcoming year. Expect big things
from him once again. I loved him at the point in Detroit, and he should
once again do a great job in Orlando. People call it a shame that Darrell
Armstrong will be pushed to the bench in this situation, but reality is
that Armstrong will be much more effective playing 30 minutes a night.
Imagine the advantage Orlando will have when Armstrong is running against
second team guys like Milt Palacio, Kevin Ollie, and Sherman Douglas. Basketball
is a game of mismatches, and Orlando will be creating them every night.
New Jersey Nets- I just don’t get it with these guys. Eddie Griffin
falls in their lap, and they trade him for one decent prospect and two
marginal ones. I guess that’s why they’re always in the Lottery. I love
Jason Kidd, and I would take him over Marbury any day of the week, but
how does this trade make sense? You take a team with 26 wins, and trade
its best player for a guy who plays the same position. The Nets weren’t
losing games because of their point guard last year, they were losing because
of the other guys. I won't speculate over who is and isn’t available, but
don’t you think that the Knicks would have given up Allan Houston and Camby
for Marbury and fodder? That way the Nets would be better at two-guard,
center, and then they could have addressed the point guard situation through
the draft. Conjecture aside, the Nets seem to have a decent nucleus in
place. Kenyon Martin played some good games for them, and hopefully Byron
Scott will be able to hide Keith Van Horn in a zone for 15 minutes a night.
Kerry Kittles, should he be healthy, can give the team a huge lift, and
as I said before, the team will be worth watching just to see Jason Kidd
running the show. Richard Jefferson looks to be the X-Factor here. He’s
a guy who can get to the hoop, and it will be interesting to see how Byron
Scott uses him early. If they start running plays for him he could be a
very valuable contributor to this team.
Miami Heat - Question: What is the only thing worse than having
a bad team with a miniscule payroll? Answer: Having a mediocre team with
a gargantuan payroll. In Fantasy Hoops you are not going to get many starting
fives better than Mourning, Hardaway, Eddie Jones, Brian Grant, and Anthony
Mason. Unfortunately for Heat fans, the whole is less than the sum of the
parts. The first round loss to The Hornets was one of the most lopsided
playoff matches I have ever witnessed. It reminded me of the Jaguars putting
up 60-some points on the Dolphins last year. So what do the Heat do about
it? Love him or hate him, Pat Riley always gets a lot out of his team (in
the regular season, at least). Unlike Rick Pitino, Riley is willing to
try new things, and it will be interesting to see what he comes up with
to try and get this group on track. The first thing everyone should be
worried about is the health of Alonzo Mourning. We are not talking about
a Torn ACL here. We are talking about a kidney disease that it is probably
a lot worse than is being reported. When he is on his game, Mourning is
second only to Shaq at the center spot. He puts the Heat on his shoulders,
and owns the paint. I honestly have no idea what to expect from the Heat
this year in the results column. But I do know that they are going to grind
it out on defense, and maybe a fresh start with Anthony Carter at the point
will be the best thing for them.
New York Knicks - Tell me if you read this somewhere recently.
With the new zone defenses set to come in to the league next year, a guy
like Allan Houston becomes more valuable. This sentiment has been echoed
in papers, TV reports, and web sites across the world. There's one thing
wrong with this statement. The name "Allan Houston" should be taken out,
and substituted with the name Latrell Sprewell. Anyone familiar with a
zone defense knows that the there are two ways to counter it. One is to
shoot your way out of it, and the second is to go right into the heart
of it, and find the open man on the baseline. Do you really think that
Jeff Van Gundy expects teams to sit back in a zone so Allan Houston can
rain jumpers all night? Neither do I. Good jump-shooters like Allan Houston
are still going to have their work cut out if they want to get an open
look. Zone defenses need to be attacked aggressively, and that's where
Sprewell comes in. When thinking of guys who attack the glass, I think
Iverson, and then Sprewell. Sprewell will be more than obliged to blow
by the first defender on his way to shredding any 2-3’s that are thrown
at him. I am also interested to see what Van Gundy does with Othella Harrington.
In his college and professional careers, Othella has proven that
he can score in the post with his back to the basket. Look for Van Gundy
to run some plays for him, especially when Sprewell and Houston are out
of the game. The Knicks are most definitely a flawed team, but they still
bring it, and show an uncanny ability to bounce back after the most embarrassing
of losses. I think they will be a trendy pick for a big fall from grace
this season, but I see them in the playoffs, and I would not want to be
the team that faces them.
Philadelphia 76ers - Coming off their best season since the early
80’s, the Sixers have a lot of question marks. First of all, is Tyrone
Hill going to cut it for another season? He was awful in the Finals, and
the team was hoping that he would opt out of his contract. A lot of people
will tell you they need a major upgrade at the four, but I think that Hill
be just fine for another year or two. He does not score, but nobody is
going to score a lot unless you run plays for them. Hill pulls down a lot
of boards, and he fights for the loose ball. I am sure Hill feels that
he has something to prove this season, and I expect another solid contribution.
The second question concerns Matt Geiger. Is this guy ever going to get
back in the rotation and help this team? Sixer fans were shocked during
Game 1 of The Finals when Geiger came off the bench for what seemed like
the first time in years, and started nailing jumpers. Five, to be exact,
in 15 minutes or so. Geiger also went after some loose balls, and reminded
Philly fans of the player who played such a big part in their success in
the 1999 regular season, and the first round victory over Orlando. Look
for Geiger to get healthy and back in the mix this year. The next question
deals with sheer endurance. Can Iverson play almost every minute of every
game and still have enough left for the playoffs? I think that Iverson,
and other key players such as Eric Snow and Dikembe Mutombo will find themselves
getting more of a breather while guys like Speedy Claxton, Geiger, Todd
MacCulloch, Jumaine Jones, and Sam Dalembert pick up some of the slack.
Larry Brown was very concerned with getting the top seed last year, and
he certainly felt that he needed maximum effort to get there. This year,
he has the defending conference champs, and knows he’s in the driver’s
seat, even if some other team is ahead in the standings. I see the Sixers
as a prohibitive favorite to win the conference once again, and if the
past is any indicator, I look for the team to make a significant move during
the season to load up for another run at The Lakers.
