In one year the Atlantic Divison has gone from by far the worst division in the NBA to arguably the best division. There have been solid addtions to teams (Zach Randolph to New York), great additions (Kevin Garnett and Ray Allen to Boston), and players returning from injuries (Richard Jefferson and Nenad Kristic in New Jersey). The competiton will be fierce in the battle for the crown and here's a look at how I think everything will finally come to an end:
5.Philadelphia
Overview:
The 76ers are a very young team headed by one of the top up and coming acts in Andre Iguodala. However, I see them built more like the Celtics of the past few seasons, young and exciting, than a team ready to go anywhere within the next few years. Andre Miller and Samuel Dalembert will contribute, but with this supporting cast I don’t see much more than a 30-32 win season.
Potential Sleeper: Jason Smith
Smith is one of the 76ers first round draft picks this year (along with Thaddeus Young) and stands 7-0 feet tall and is capable of playing either forward position. He is a very versatile player and may be able to crack the short list of big men on the team. Look for Smith to steadily gain minutes as the season progresses and even be a top 5 candidate for Rookie of the Year.
Theme: We talkin’ ‘bout practice
There is a new AI era in Philadelphia, but the 6ers will need a lot of this to move up from the cellar in the Atlantic. Well I shouldn’t even go as far as to say a new era has begun since the 76ers still haven’t signed Iguodala to a contract extension…
Prediction: 29-53
4. New York
Overview:
The New York Knicks are an offensive-minded team. They are bulky; they have versatile players; they have shooters; what they do not have however is a formula for success. People are questioning how the Celtics are going to work together. What about the rivals from New York? You have Marbury, Randolph, Curry, Crawford, and Robinson all fighting for shots (what I’m wondering is how poor David Lee got caught up in this mess), all of whom have fiery personalities and I can just see within 10 games all hell breaking loose in the locker room.
Potential Sleeper:
With so many scorers on the team I don’t know who is going to stand out as the star never mind a sleeper on the team. Having said that I’m going to have to go ahead and call David Lee the potential sleeper out of this group. Averaging a double-double last year, and an all out all the time player, there’s no way Isiah can keep him on the bench. He is a very smart player who knows how to score and rebound, and he will pick up any minutes that any of the “higher profile” aka higher tempered players want to give him. He may even up his averages from last year somewhat.
Theme: Animal House
There’s no doubt that the talent is there but this is going to be one crazy locker room. If Zach Randolph can’t stay out of trouble out in Portland, how do you think he is going to manage himself off the court in the Big Apple? When things aren’t going well do you think Isiah Thomas is going to be able to play peacemaker with between Zach and Eddy, and Stephan and Crawford? If you said yes to the previous questions, either you are an over optimistic Knicks fan or you can’t read.
Predicition: 40-42
3. Toronto
Overview:
When your best and another one of your important players enter the year with injury concerns, you could be in for a wild season. Despite this the Raptors have a very solid team with good players at all positions. Their only top 15 player is Chris Bosh who is surrounded by 5 or 6 good players. It doesn’t help that Toronto is playing in the same division as the Nets and the Celts, the two teams I have ranked ahead of them.
Potential Sleeper:
If Andrea Bargnani can step up his game to another level this year then I believe the Raptors have a good chance to supplant the Nets for 2nd in the Atlantic and have a slight chance with a little luck to win the division. If you are unfamiliar with the NBA (which I assume you’re not if you are reading this post) Bargnani has been tagged as the next Dirk Nowitski and last year he showed why. I think his numbers may jump quite a bit this year possibly to even somewhere around 18 points, 5 rebounds, and a block per game, while shooting 40% from beyond the arc and 85% from the charity stripe.
Theme: Euroball
The Raptors are a European style basketball team. They are one of the best shooting teams in the NBA, and are comprised of mostly big man snipers. With starters of 6’10, 6’10, 6’9, and 6’6, Toronto will continue to take any open jumper they get and if they can hit with consistency over the year barring any injuries I don’t see too much of a drop off from last years numbers.
Predicition: 45-37
2. New Jersey
Overview:
The Nets are yet again an intriguing team this year. Last year they finished only at .500, but they were without Nenad Kristic and Richard Jefferson for a bulk of the season. When healthy, the Nets are be one of the best teams in the league. Vince Carter is playing some of the best ball of his career, Jason Kidd played flawlessly with Team USA, Kristic and Jefferson can both light up the scoreboard, Marcus Williams will come in as the backup point guard and not allow any drop off in production. They are a very good team and will give Boston all they can handle in challenging for the division.
Potential Sleeper:
It’s a long shot, but troubled ex-BC star Sean Williams may contribute to the Nets run this year. One of the best shot blockers of recent memory, the only thing that held Williams back from being a top 10 pick was his off court issues. If you can’t stay out of trouble and were dismissed from your college basketball team midway through the season and were still the #17 pick in the NBA draft you must have unlimited potential. If someone can help get this kid’s head on straight (which will be no easy task by any stretch of the imagination), at the very least Williams will be a defense force this year.
Theme: Injuries, Injuries, Injuries
Everything I said about giving Boston a run for the division is premised on the fact that the Nets will be able to avoid injuries this year. I am not saying that everyone has to play 82 games, but Vince needs to stay healthy, Jefferson needs to play somewhere around 70 games, and Kristic has to play closer to the 80 and 75 games he contributed in during his first 2 seasons in the league.
Prediction: 50-32
1. Boston
Overview
The Celtics are finally again the majority choice for team to beat in the Atlantic and one of the few in the discussions for East champions. Yes they have weaknesses, the most glaring one is the depth on the bench, but KG, Paul, and Ray will more than make up for this. No team in the NBA has more firepower than the Green but I think it will be their defense that will get them near the top. With one of the best and most intense inside defenders in Garnett, along with Perks shot blocking ability, and Rondo’s ballhawking skills, teams will have an equally difficult time scoring as they will defending… well maybe not as hard of a time, but a hard enough time.
Potential Sleeper:
Perk. The addition of The Big Ticket will benefit Perk more than anyone else hands down. Between the help down low so Kendrick can avoid the foul trouble that kept him out of many games, to the constant instruction and that extra push to excel, Garnett will have an extraordinary effect on his counterpart in the paint. On the offensive end to go along with his improved hook shot, Perkins will be dunking the ball left and right because of Garnett’s passing ability. I think this year will be Perkin’s best year by far. 8.5 points, 7 rebounds, 2 blocks per game. Most importantly I think he will average 30 minutes which he has never come close to doing before.
Theme: It’s good to be Green again
The Celtics are finally relevant again and impose a threat to any team in the NBA. For years the C’s have failed to put that fear in their opponent’s heart but now the Spurs, Mavericks, Pistons, and Suns will be joined by the team from Boston as the elite class of the NBA.
As I sat in my dorm room thinking about my season tickets to the Celtics I couldn’t help but remember the atmosphere that once filled the Garden (then Fleet Center) back in 2004 when Pierce and co came within 2 games of the NBA Finals. No one was walking out of games early, the sound-meter was nearly almost at “Garden Level” and the true passion for Boston Celtics basketball showed every night. This year that feeling will be back and tickets will be hard to come by. Sure everyone wants to go see the Spurs, Pistons, Bulls, Cavs, Mavs, Suns (not to mention new “popular” teams such as Minnesota, Portland, and Seattle) among a few other top teams, but the laws of supply and demand say that not everyone will be able to attend these games. Here are 5 games that may not carry as much demand, but I believe will carry just as much entertainment value.
Orlando: 2/23/07
This may not seem to be that much of a surprise for you if you follow basketball hype, but I think with all of the other elite teams in the NBA this game may be overlooked. Not only did the Magic sign a scoring machine in Rashard Lewis, but they also have Jameer Nelson and Dwight Howard to help carry the load. There won’t be the Nelson/West match-up that everyone loves to watch, but Jameer is still a lighting quick point guard who can score in bunches. Howard is just a beast. Forget Greg Oden (for this year at least); Howard is the most dominant young big man who will get you your money’s worth with his monstrous dunks and blocks out of bounds. Not only does Dwight have 3 years of NBA experience under his belt, but also he showed this off-season in the FIBA qualifiers that he is absolutely ready to take that next step.
Philadelphia: 1/18/08, 3/24/08
3 or 4 years ago this would be one of those games that everyone wanted to go to, but now not so much. What the casual fan would not know is that over the last 2 months of the season the 76ers played some very solid basketball going 15-9. They have all the makings o####ood team; Samuel Dalembert is a legitsmite center who scores, rebounds and blocks shots; a very solid point guard in Andre Miller although getting up there in age and always there are questions about his shape, he is more than enough to get the job done; solid role players to come off the bench and knock down the shot such as Rodney Carney and Kyle Korver; Rookies with loads of potential in Thaddeus Young and lesser known 7 foot winger Jason Smith from Colorado State. Finally, the 76ers have a star. Yes a star. Andre Iguodala has quietly become one of the best overall players in the NBA. This is the year that he gets mentioned along with Lebron and Flash as a true franchise player. Look for his number to look like 22/6/6/2.5.
Atlanta: 11/9/07, 3/2/08
Atlanta has been highly scrutinized for using their last 3 picks on players who are the same size in Shelden Williams, Marvin Williams, and Al Horford. Despite that slight knock I believe that this young and explosive team may be able to pull off a few upsets this year. Besides the potential that Marvin Williams and Horford hold, Josh Smith and Joe Johnson are two stars ready to carry the Hawks this year. Josh Smith may be the highest of all the high flying acts in the NBA, and every time Johnson drills a 3 Celtics fans cringe knowing that we let him go. Despite the fact that the Hawks again passed on the consensus best point guard in the draft (first Chris Paul and this year Mike Conley Jr.) they may have selected the most NBA ready PG in the draft in Acie Law IV out of Texas A&M. Again look for the Hawks to be a run and gun team that can put up a lot of points who in a year or 2 may be the next Golden State Warriors.
Charlotte: 1/9/08, 2/29/08
The Charlotte Bobcats are a very intriguing team this year. I believe they have all the intangibles needed (other than a key veteran presence down low) to make some noise in the Eastern Conference. They are built solid all the way through their starting lineup and even have some players coming off the bench. The two “most important” positions of point guard and center are filled by Raymond Felton and Emeka Okafor. Felton averaged very respectable 14 points and 7 assists last year, while Okafor has a few Denfensive Player of the Years down the road. They have two dynamic wings in Jason Richardson and Gerald Wallace who can light up the stat sheet. Sean May provides some bulk down low, and Argentinian sharpshooter Walter Hermann along with former Irish 3 point specialist Matt Carroll make two great role players coming off the bench. Backing up Felton is a steady veteran point guard in Jeff McInnis. It also doesn’t hurt to have local BC product Jared Dudley possibly getting some minutes with his NBA ready game.
Memphis: 1/4/08
Although the Memphis Grizzles had the worst record in the NBA last year, look for them to be the most improved team this season. To start things off it can only help you out when you have your best player coming back healthy and determined to win. Nor does it hurt to have one of the best to be sophomores in the league. Another positive going for the Grizz is signing a former #2 overall pick who is finally starting to show his true potential after a dismal few yearsand who was once compared to a more athletic Dirk Nowitski in the league. Add Team USA member Mike Miller, two long athletes by the names of Hakim Warrick and Stromile Swift to the aforementioned Pau Gasol, Rudy ####, and Darko Milicic and you have yourself a pretty solid team. The only component I have not mentioned is a point guard and Memphis seems to have addressed that issue in this past draft by selecting Greg Oden’s best friend and long time teammate Mike Conley Jr. Conley I believe is the key to the season for Memphis; if he can come in and run an NBA team night after night then I think Memphis can win upwards of 42-44 games. If he is off and on or if his body can’t take the daily grind of the NBA then I think the Grizz win more along the lines of 35 games. Whatever the case may be, the Grizzles will not have the worst record in the NBA this season and will be a hell of a team to go watch play at the Garden.
Love us or hate us, we don't care. Just read us. We're the Boston Sports Blog and we're here to offer our unique and insightful opinions on the one (joking) thing that truly matters to us: Boston Sports.
