2010-2011 NBA Season Preview Thread!

[Rip32]

These are always fun aren't they? I don't think we have an "official" one yet, plus I thought of this late as hell.

Anyways:

Eastern Conference
1. Miami Heat
2. Orlando Magic
3. Chicago Bulls
4. Boston Celtics
5. Milwaukee Bucks
6. Atlanta Hawks
7. New York Knicks
8. Charlotte Bobcats
---
9. Washington Wizards
10. Indiana Pacers
11. New Jersey Nets
12. Detroit Pistons
13. Philadelphia 76ers
14. Cleveland Cavaliers
15. Toronto Raptors

Western Conference
1. Los Angeles Lakers
2. Portland Trailblazers
3. Oklahoma City Thunder
4. Dallas Mavericks
5. Utah Jazz
6. San Antonio Spurs
7. Houston Rockets
8. Los Angeles Clippers
---
9. Phoenix Suns
10. Memphis Grizzlies
11. Denver Nuggets
12. New Orleans Hornets
13. Sacramento Kings
14. Golden State Warriors
15. David Kahn and Kevin Love

Awards
Coach of the Year
Tom Thibodeau - Bulls

Rookie of the Year
Blake Griffin - Clippers

Defensive Player of the Year
Dwight Howard - Magic

Most Improved Player
Eric Gordon - Clippers

Sixth Man of the Year
Steve Blake - Lakers

Most Valuable Player
Kevin Durant - Thunder

[|)e8*]

I thought we had a prediction thread?

[benji]

That was a month ago and more than filled with idiots (including our OP who apparently didn't realize he posted in it): viewtopic.php?f=21&t=75319

And I will only recognize this thread because of its superior title.

[deihatein]

Eastern Conference
1. Orlando Magic
2. Miami Heat
3. Chicago Bulls
4. Boston Celtics
5. Milwaukee Bucks
6. Atlanta Hawks
7. Charlotte Bobcats
8. New York Knicks
---
9. Washington Wizards
10. Indiana Pacers
11. New Jersey Nets
12. Detroit Pistons
13. Philadelphia 76ers
14. Cleveland Cavaliers
15. Toronto Craptors

Western Conference
1. Los Angeles Lakers
2. Portland Trailblazers
3. Dallas Mavericks
4. Thunder
5. San Antonio Spurs
6. Utah Jazz
7. Houston Rockets
8. Los Angeles Clippers
---
9. Phoenix Suns
10. Memphis Grizzlies
11. Denver Nuggets
12. New Orleans Hornets
13. Sacramento Kings
14. Golden State Warriors
15. David Kahn and Darko Milicic

Coach of the Year
Scott Brooks - Thunder

Rookie of the Year
Demarcus Cousins - Kings

Defensive Player of the Year
Gerald Wallace - Bobcats

Most Improved Player
Rodrique Beaubois - Mavs

Sixth Man of the Year
Rodrique Beaubois - Mavs

Most Valuable Player
Kevin Durant - Thunder

[shadowgrin]

These are always fun aren't they?

Not really, IMO.
All we have to do is post some team rankings and awards predictions without even having a discussion or reason why each poster did so.
It's a spam thread like the Random thread, at least the Random thread is amusing.
Anyway, I'll still bite.

Eastern Conference
1. Miami Heat
2. Orlando Magic
3. Boston Celtics
4. Chicago Bulls
5. Milwaukee Bucks
6. Atlanta Hawks
7. New York Knicks
8. Charlotte Bobcats
---
9. Washington Bullets
10. New Jersey Nets
11. Cleveland Cavaliers
12. Philadelphia 76ers
13. Detroit Pistons
14. Indiana Pacers
15. Toronto Raptors

Western Conference
1. Los Angeles Lakers
2. Dallas Mavericks
3. Utah Jazz
4. Portland Trailblazers
5. San Antonio Spurs
6. Oklahoma City Thunder
7. Houston Rockets
8. Denver Nuggets
---
9. Phoenix Suns
10. Los Angeles Clippers
11. Memphis Grizzlies
12. New Orleans Hornets
13. Sacramento Kings
14. Golden State Warriors
15. Minnesota Timberwolves

Awards
Coach of the Year
Tom Thibodeau - Bulls

Rookie of the Year
John Wall - Bullets

Defensive Player of the Year
Ron Artest - Lakers

Most Improved Player
Paul Millsap - Jazz

Sixth Man of the Year
Manu Ginobili - Spurs

Most Valuable Player
Kevin Durant - Thunder

[|)e8*]

Jerry Sloan - Jazz

Rookie of the Year
Blake Griffin- Clippers

Defensive Player of the Year
Josh Smith- Hawks

Most Improved Player
Roy Hibbert- Pacers

Sixth Man of the Year
Ersan Ilyasova- Bucks

Most Valuable Player
Kobe Bryant- Lakers

[Fresh8]

Coach of the Year
Miami Heat Dude... Erik

Rookie of the Year
Blake Griffin

Defensive Player of the Year
Dwight Howard

Most Improved Player
Michael Beasley

Sixth Man of the Year
Jamaal Crawford

Most Valuable Player
Kobe Bryant

[Martti.]

MVP - Kobe Bryant
DPOY - Dwight Howard (Some guy picked Serge Ibaka on ESPN)
MIP - Kevin Love
ROY - John Wall
COY - Jerry Sloan
Exec - Pat Riley
6th Man - Corey Maggette (If the Bucks start Ilyasova or Mbah a Moute)

Eastern Conference

1. Miami Heat
2. Boston Celtics
3. Orlando Magic
4. Chicago Bulls
5. Milwaukee Bucks
6. Atlanta Hawks
7. New York Knicks
8. Charlotte Bobcats
---
9. Washington Wizards
10.Philadelphia 76ers
11. New Jersey Nets
12. Detroit Pistons
13. Indiana Pacers
14. Cleveland Cavaliers
15. Toronto Raptors

Western Conference

1. Los Angeles Lakers
2. Dallas Mavericks
3. Oklahoma City Thunder
4. Portland Trailblazers
5. Utah Jazz
6. San Antonio Spurs
7. Houston Rockets
8. Denver Nuggets
---
9. Phoenix Suns
10. Memphis Grizzlies
11. New Orleans Hornets
12. Los Angeles Clippers
13. Sacramento Kings
14. Golden State Warriors
15. Minnesota Timberwolves

[Andrew]

MVP - Kevin Durant
DPOY - Dwight Howard
MIP - Kevin Love
ROY - Blake Griffin
COY - Erik Spoelstra
EOY - Pat Riley
6th Man - Lamar Odom

East

1. Miami Heat
2. Orlando Magic
3. Boston Celtics
4. Chicago Bulls
5. Milwaukee Bucks
6. Atlanta Hawks
7. Charlotte Bobcats
8. New York Knicks
---
9. Cleveland Cavaliers
10. Philadelphia 76ers
11. Detroit Pistons
12. Indiana Pacers
13. New Jersey Nets
14. Washington Wizards
15. Toronto Raptors

West

1. Los Angeles Lakers
2. Dallas Mavericks
3. Oklahoma City Thunder
4. Portland Trailblazers
5. Denver Nuggets
6. San Antonio Spurs
7. Houston Rockets
8. Utah Jazz
---
9. Phoenix Suns
10. New Orleans Hornets
11. Memphis Grizzlies
12. Los Angeles Clippers
13. Sacramento Kings
14. Golden State Warriors
15. Minnesota Timberwolves

[Lamrock]

Repost!

Western Conference:
1. Portland (They probably can't beat LA in a 7 game series, at least not without Oden. As long as Roy, Batum and the rest of the team's core stays healthy, they can still be a very good team without Oden. Gotta love Marcus Camby!
2. LA Lakers (Best team by far in the conference, but coasting and injuries should drop them to the 2 seed.
3. San Antonio (finally healthy and boasting a legit starting C, I can see the Spurs retaking the southwest)
4. Houston (are being slept on, despite having a very stacked, talented team. If Yao can play like he did in 08-09, they're contenders again.
5. OKC (Don't know why everybody is penciling them at the #2 spot. Who did they get to improve their team? Improvement to young players is negated by the team not having another injury-free season)
6. Dallas (One of the most overrated teams in the league. I reckon they regress to the mean this season, then have another good series with the Spurs for the right to be swept in round #2)
7. Utah (Probably not as good as they were last year, but neither are Denver or Phoenix!)
8. Denver (was tempted to put them at #3 but the Melo distraction and likely trade keeps them from accomplishing much of anything)
----------
New Orleans (Chris Paul's supporting cast is really really bad)
Phoenix (Turkoglu sucks! Turkoglu sucks!)
Memphis (lol Rudy Gay)
Golden State (Could surprise, but probably won't)
Sacramento (If there's a 2011-12 season, that will be their year of emergence)
LA Clippers (Don't let their only somewhat subpar start to last season fool you - they suck)
Minnesota (worst team ever?)

Eastern Conference:
1. Miami (will win a shitload of games)
2. Orlando (will also win a shitload of games)
3. Milwaukee ($20 = mine)
4. Boston (winner of the division by default, though #5 seed has better record)
5. Chicago (improved, but overrated)
6. Atlanta (the first of 5 straight 6th place finishes)
7. New York (they are fairly decent)
8. Charlotte (sucks they didn't get Devin Harris. That first playoff win will likely have to wait some more)
----------
Cleveland (they stay competitive before having a fire sale on Jamison, Mo Williams, etc.)
Indiana (they suck, but they also suck at sucking)
New Jersey (improved, but not playoff caliber)
Philadelphia (still a mess)
Detroit (god their roster sucks!)
Washington (Wall-Arenas will be a failure, and their roster isn't the most talented. Harrison Barnes would be a great addition to the Wiz Kidz...)
Toronto (Andrea Bargnani will likely lead their team in scoring, rebounding and defensive win shares.)

Awards:
MVP: Kevin Durant (will average a lot more points than LeBron)
MIP: Rodrigue Beaubois (hype hype hype!)
DPotY: Gerald Wallace (Dwight Howard is BORING!)
6th Man: Corey Maggette (last I checked he's not starting)
ROY: John Wall (it will be ugly)
CotY: Nate McMillan (shocking #1 seed!)
Exec: David Kahn (actually Pat Riley)

[Rip32]

Yeah, it's kind of a retread thread, but it's organized to an extent.

Chris Sheridan of ESPN picked Tony Allen as his defensive player of the year...

[rise]

East


Miami Heat [70 wins] - LeBron will average his triple-double and then almost get beat by the Bobcats in the first round, but go on to win the Finals.
Boston Celtics [61 wins] - Rondo will be the best PG in the NBA at the end of this season (20 ppg, 12 apg) The Celtics will go on to the conference finals but get beat by the Heat.
Orlando Magic [55 wins] - gets creamed by the Celtics again in the playoffs. DH finishes behind Gerald Wallace for DPOY.
Chicago Bulls [51 wins] - Luol Deng will step up and average 20ppg. Playoffs- Sweeps Atlanta
Atlanta Hawks [48 wins] - Josh Smith makes the All-Defensive First Team - Joe Johnson averages 25 again and proves he's worth his contract.
New York Knicks [44 wins] - Amare' impresses during the regular season, but the team bombs out against Orlando in the playoffs. Raymond Felton just misses the All-Star spot to Brandon Jennings.
Milwaukee Bucks [42 wins] - Brandon Jennings becomes an All-Star, but Bogut is limited for the first half of the season. The team will get torn limb from limb against Boston in the first round.
Charlotte Bobcats [40 wins] - Bobcats repeat as best defensive team in the NBA, Gerald Wallace wins DPOY, Stephen Jackson and Gerald Wallace both make the All-Star team, Augustin improves but still isn't enough to lead a playoff caliber team, MJ fails to bring in a decent center and Boris Diaw plays the 5 half the season. Charlotte goes to a game 7 against Miami but loses it narrowly.
---
New Jersey Nets [36] - Get Carmelo Anthony at the trade deadline.
Washington Wizards [30] - John Wall is not enough!
Philadelphia 76ers [27] - Iggy gets traded.
Cleveland Cavaliers [25] - Go to the lottery for several years to find their next LeBron.
Toronto Raptors [20] - Andrea Bargnani improves a lot, but the team is still crap.
Detroit Pistons [18] - Fail.
Indiana Pacers [14] - Extra-Fail, miss the bottom of the league only because the Wolves are there.

West


Dallas Mavericks [62] - Dirk challenges for the MVP (approaching 30 ppg) and will win in game 7 of the conference finals against Phoenix, crushing Steve Nash's dreams.
Los Angeles Lakers [62] - Lamar Odom wins 6MOY award. Kobe regresses, misses at least 20 games, and his numbers drop to around 21 ppg. Guess who loses to the Thunder in the 1st round of playoffs?
Portland Trailblazers [58] - Lamarcus Aldridge becomes an All-Star, Marcus Camby remains as solid as ever, but the Jazz upset them in the first round due to injuries to Roy.
San Antonio Spurs [50] - Duncan's last big year. DeJuan Blair is in the running for the MIP. Cut short by Phoenix in a 1st round sweep.
Phoenix Suns [46] - Steve Nash (20 ppg 12 apg) and Jason Richardson (27 ppg) both see huge hikes in their scoring. J-Rich earns a much deserved All-Star award. Unleash Goran Dragic again against the Spurs. Make it to a game 7 against Dallas in the conference finals, but lose. Steve Nash and Grant Hill show signs of regression toward the end. Grant Hill retires after the season.
Utah Jazz [45] - Start off really strong, but kind of drop off toward the end of the season. Somehow win the first round against Portland but don't hold on in the second.
Oklahoma City Thunder [45] - Kevin Durant finishes right behind LeBron in the MVP Award. He scores 32ppg, wins the scoring title- his second of four straight score titles. Upset the Lakers in the first round of the playoffs.
Denver Nuggets [41] - Carmelo looks like he'll lead them to another 4-6 seed in the playoffs, but gets traded off to the Nets, and the Nuggets' numbers plunge. Hopeless in the playoffs, are dealt four blowouts against the Mavs in the first round.
---
Houston Rockets [40] - Sure, they've made improvements. They have talent, but Yao must be healthy- something I don't think will be the case. Yao will get about 50 games in this season.
Los Angeles Clippers [32] - Blake Griffin is the only reason they're not below the Grizzlies. Baron Davis will probably balloon to 260 pounds again following an injury.
Golden State Warriors [30] - Ellis and Curry are absolute beasts. But they have nothing else.
Memphis Grizzlies [30] - Rudy Gay is good, but not good enough to lead a team.
Sacramento Kings [22] - Tyreke will impress. Nobody else will though.
New Orleans Hornets [17] - Chris Paul will demand a trade in the first month of the season. He won't get one and will play like shit the whole season. lol, looking at the roster: were they at one point trying to surround Chris Paul with good players?!?!?!
Minnesota Timberwolves [12] - if they are lucky. Wesley Johnson is the only thing keeping team from breaking records. Bad records.


MVP - LeBron James
DPOY - Gerald Wallace
MIP - DJ Augustin (wow, never thought I'd say that!)
ROY - Wesley Johnson
COY - Erik Spoelstra
EOY - Pat Riley
6th Man - Lamar Odom

[Axel The Great]

Since Rip32 posted this, I'll give my honest predictions.
East:
Miami
Boston
Orlando
Milwaukee
Chicago
Atlanta
Charlotte
New York
-----------
Washington
Philadelphia
New Jersey
Detroit
Cleveland
Indiana
Toronto

West-
Lakers
Portland
Oklahoma City
Dallas
San Antonio
Utah
Houston
Phoenix
----------------
Nuggets
Clippers
Grizzlies
Kings
Warriors
Hornets
T-Wolves

MVP- Kevin Durant
MIP- Michael Beasley
DPOY- Dwight Howard
ROY- John Wall
COY- Rick Adelman (that's right, Rick Adelman bitches!!!)
EOY- Pat Riley
6th Man- Corey Maggette

[Oskar]

Funny to see everybody nuthugging the Heat and them barely scoring 30 points in their first 24 minutes of action.

[shadowgrin]

It's only the first game of the season. Even the defending champion '98 Bulls lost to Antoine Walker and the Celtics on opening night.
Also, Erik Spoelstra is coaching the Heat for now. Just wait until Riley gets the itch if this continues in the middle of the season.