Page 1 of 4 1234 LastLast
Results 1 to 15 of 50
  1. #1
    10 plus years on ISH crisoner's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jun 2006
    Location
    Californications
    Posts
    11,393

    Default ESPN Insider Western Conference predictions

    1. Oklahoma City Thunder: 57.9 wins, 0.3 games worse
    Oklahoma City's projected age (weighted by game minutes) for this season is 25.8 years, which ranks 22nd in the league. To give some context, the teams just behind the Thunder are Sacramento, Toronto and Washington. In other words, OKC sports a collective age typical of a franchise in rebuilding mode, yet the Thunder are coming off a Finals appearance.

    The sky is the limit, especially considering the growth potential Oklahoma City still has on the defensive end, where it is projected to rank 11th. This is a squad that could win 60-65 games this season if healthy and focused.

    2. Los Angeles Lakers: 54.8 wins, 9.6 games better
    The Lakers' projection keeps nudging forward with every signing Mitch Kupchak makes to round out the league's oldest roster. Most of that optimism can be traced to the acquisitions of Dwight Howard and Steve Nash. The Lakers project to jump from 10th to seventh on offense and 12th to fifth on defense.

    3. Denver Nuggets: 51.1 wins, 2.2 games better
    The Nuggets will be one of the league's most interesting teams to follow. Already fielding one of the NBA's deepest rotations, Denver bolstered its upside by upgrading from Arron Afflalo to Andre Iguodala. Iggy gives Denver one of the top five defenders in the league and a guy who should flourish in George Karl's frenetic system.

    4. Minnesota Timberwolves: 51.0 wins, 16.3 games better
    Only Brooklyn projects to make a bigger jump than the young, talented and suddenly deep Timberwolves. For all the abuse that general manager David Kahn has taken in the past, he had as good an offseason as any executive in the league. Minnesota has 12 legitimate NBA talents on its roster, giving Rick Adelman the versatility to play any style that suits him at any given time. And, yes, this projection takes into account the fact that Ricky Rubio will miss anywhere from 30-40 games while recovering from his knee injury.

    5. San Antonio Spurs: 50.7 wins, 9.3 games worse
    The league's most consistent franchise is once again displaying an amazing amount of continuity by bringing back about 98 percent of its minutes from last season, although DeJuan Blair has been rumored to be on the trade market. Still, the Spurs overachieved a bit last season based on their point differential, and their aging core is one year older, which means wilting playing time projections for Tim Duncan and Manu Ginobili.

    6. Los Angeles Clippers: 49.1 wins, 0.6 games worse
    This whole super-team fad is fairly new, so we're still not sure about the best method for filling out the roster for such a model. The Clippers have as much foundation talent as anyone, but the rest of the roster looks like a bunch of names. Jamal Crawford may or may not be an upgrade from Mo Williams, while recognizable but tepid players like Ronny Turiaf, Caron Butler, Willie Green, Ryan Hollins and Grant Hill -- the league's oldest player -- round out the bench to no real effect. A return to form by Lamar Odom would be a huge boost for the Clips.

    7. Utah Jazz: 42.9 wins, 0.1 games worse
    Utah has a lot of really nice, young pieces, but as the franchise continues to evolve, it remains to be seen how it's all going to fit together. With so many efficient interior scorers and a growing collection of 3-point shooters, the offense projects to be top-five in the league. However, the defense lags, and it will as long as the Jazz count on Al Jefferson to anchor the middle.

    8. Memphis Grizzlies: 42.2 wins, 4.9 games worse
    Small-market teams have to make hard decisions as they age and their core pieces become more expensive, and so it was for Memphis, which had no choice but to allow O.J. Mayo to walk. Jerryd Bayless will be asked to fill his role as a bench scorer and may be well-suited for the role. Memphis is woefully short of outside shooters, however, and projects to make the fewest 3-pointers in the league.

    9. Dallas Mavericks: 38.2 wins, 5.7 games worse
    The Mavericks' placeholder roster screams average, but with Rick Carlisle at the helm, you certainly can't rule out a run at a playoff berth. Despite the turnover in personnel, the Mavericks managed to remain long in the tooth, with a projection as the fourth-oldest team in the league.

    10. Golden State Warriors: 34.7 wins, 3.3 games better
    The Warriors fancy themselves as a playoff contender. We do not. Golden State has questionable depth despite the presence of veterans such as Richard Jefferson, Carl Landry and Brandon Rush on the roster. Harrison Barnes projects to be one of the worst players in the league. Indeed, his ability to outperform that forecast is the key to Golden State taking that longed-for step toward the postseason.

    11. Sacramento Kings: 34.1 wins, 8.4 games better
    The Kings seem to be headed in the right direction, but it has seemed like that for a few years now, and the results never quite measure up to the expectations. To say that this is a pivotal season for Tyreke Evans is an understatement.

    12. New Orleans Hornets: 33.2 wins, 3.6 games better
    There is no doubt that the Hornets are on the upswing and the long-term picture is bright. While New Orleans has a really exciting core, it remains very young and raw. Austin Rivers could help matters by exceeding a horrific forecast, but even if he does, chances are that Ryan Anderson is going to fall short of his projection now that he's no longer joined at the hip with Howard.

    13. Portland Trail Blazers: 33.1 wins, 6.1 games worse
    The last epoch of Blazers basketball was utterly ruined by injuries, so Portland has effectively hit the reset button and projects to have a younger roster than all but four other teams in the league. Right now, this is just a franchise searching for an identity.

    14. Houston Rockets: 29.4 wins, 12.2 games worse
    The Rockets cleared the decks for a run at Howard, and once that didn't work out, they were left with the next-best thing for a team trying to escape the middle: flexibility. Houston projects as the league's worst offensive team, one that will get an inordinate amount of its scoring from a starting backcourt of Jeremy Lin and Kevin Martin. In that sense, this Rockets squad harkens to some of the lesser Rudy Tomjanovich teams that were led by the duo of Steve Francis and Cuttino Mobley.

    15. Phoenix Suns: 27.8 wins, 12.5 games worse
    We're not exactly sure what the plan is in Phoenix, but the Suns are moving forward with a roster devoid of core players. They won't just be bad. They'll be boring. We'll have to see what the future brings.
    You are welcome!

  2. #2
    Good college starter HorryIsMyMVP's Avatar
    Join Date
    May 2007
    Posts
    3,294

    Default Re: ESPN Insider Western Conference predictions

    The Sun's won't be THAT bad.

  3. #3
    Not airballing my layups anymore
    Join Date
    Jul 2012
    Posts
    102

    Default Re: ESPN Insider Western Conference predictions

    This was absolutely terrible.

  4. #4
    King Heno qrich's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jul 2006
    Location
    Tucson/520!
    Posts
    22,970

    Default Re: ESPN Insider Western Conference predictions

    Clippers at #6...Memphis at #8....Denver at #3....Sacramento ahead of New Orleans...Phoenix last....

  5. #5
    The Sheriff FreezingTsmoove's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jul 2012
    Posts
    10,071

    Default Re: ESPN Insider Western Conference predictions

    ESPN really does sleep on the spurs. Every year they predict them to fall of and every year they prove them wrong time and time again. Spurs will be a 2 seed AT WORSE .

    I still remember last year before the season started Skip Bayless predicted that the spurs would make the WCF and Stephen A Smith laughed for a 1 minute and 30 seconds straight.

  6. #6
    I Insist JohnnySic's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jun 2006
    Location
    Boston, MA
    Posts
    12,807

    Default Re: ESPN Insider Western Conference predictions

    I think that Dallas will be a lot stronger than people think.

  7. #7
    NBA sixth man of the year Levity's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jun 2012
    Location
    long beach bred
    Posts
    7,926

    Default Re: ESPN Insider Western Conference predictions

    iggy bringing the nuggets all the way to the 3 seed. hmmmmm... i guess its possible

    but with that being said, this a prime example of why i dont ever try to talk basketball with one of my friends that gets all his info from espn and sportscenter.

  8. #8
    NJ Net Fan For Life. wang4three's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jun 2006
    Posts
    11,775

    Default Re: ESPN Insider Western Conference predictions

    Minnesota won't be that good.

  9. #9
    Phil of the Future DStebb716's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jun 2010
    Posts
    5,679

    Default Re: ESPN Insider Western Conference predictions

    I love how everybody just says it's wrong because it disagrees with THEIR opinion. Teams bounce around every year.

  10. #10
    Lol RRR3's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jul 2011
    Posts
    47,957

    Default Re: ESPN Insider Western Conference predictions

    Quote Originally Posted by ESPN Insider
    1. OKC-no problems here
    2. LA Lakers-no problems here
    3. Denver-Yeah, no way Iguodala is that much of a difference maker
    4. Wolves-ROFLMFAO hell to the no. Still don't think they make playoffs.
    5. Spurs-Too low
    6. Clippers-Too low
    7. Jazz-8th seed more likely IMO
    8. Grizzlies-too low
    9. Mavericks-They won't be great, but they won't miss the playoffs.
    10. Warriors-Could sneak into playoffs IMO
    11. Kings-Yeah, no. They suck.
    12. Hornets-Eh.
    13. Blazers-eh.
    14. Rockets-I'll be absolutely shocked if they aren't the worst team in the conference.
    15. Suns-LOL they won't be that mad, they should be mediocore

  11. #11
    NBA rookie of the year senelcoolidge's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jul 2011
    Location
    At home
    Posts
    6,773

    Default Re: ESPN Insider Western Conference predictions

    ESPN..that says enough. Not legit.

  12. #12
    NBA Legend and Hall of Famer
    Join Date
    May 2010
    Posts
    23,214

    Default Re: ESPN Insider Western Conference predictions

    Minnesota over the Spurs.


  13. #13
    Raz
    Fan in the Stands (unregistered)

    Default Re: ESPN Insider Western Conference predictions

    Bradley Doolittle..... pfft.

    He rates Harrison Barnes as one of the NBA's worst players. I say we bombard him with boxscore tweets and highlights once the season starts. I am no Barnes fan, but he is not by any means one of the worst players in the league. Doolittle needs to actually show what metrics he's using instead of talking about "our projections."

  14. #14
    The Puppeteer FireDavidKahn's Avatar
    Join Date
    Feb 2011
    Posts
    15,787

    Default Re: ESPN Insider Western Conference predictions

    Not sure why everyone is completely writing off the Wolves. If Roy returns to 85% of what he was then it's very possible.

  15. #15
    Phil of the Future DStebb716's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jun 2010
    Posts
    5,679

    Default Re: ESPN Insider Western Conference predictions

    How are we so sure that the Suns can't be the worst in the West? They lost their best player in Steve Nash and already weren't even a playoff team. They added a rookie and a guy who has never been a part of a remotely good team. They are going to be VERY bad.

    The Kings are going to have an insane frontcourt, and have depth at the PG position as well as a few shooters.

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •