Predict Your Teams Season

[trojanfan12]

The regular season starts in about a week. Most teams have 1 pre-season game left. So, now that rosters are rounding out, cuts have been made or soon will be.

How do you see your team doing this year?

 

[bksballer89]

48-34 top 5 seed in the east. We need a 3 pt shooter by the deadline though

 

[trojanfan12]

For the Lakers:

Unless an absolute best case scenario happens, the Lakers aren't going to the playoffs this year. However, they should be an improved team that will get better as the season moves along.

We are finally starting to see a roster of players who will actually be playing together for awhile, rather than a team of guys on 1 year deals who are just trying to stay in the league.

Starting lineup looks like it will be:

C - Hibbert: He's actually looked better than I expected. He's lost weight, looks a little quicker and more mobile. He's always been a rim protector, so he should improve the Lakers defense.

PG - Russell: Looks good overall, but he's 19 and has a lot to learn. I wouldn't be overly surprised if Marcelo Huertas (who's looked really good and is a 32 year old rookie) doesn't start a few games at some point in the season to take some of the pressure off of him.

SG - Clarkson: It's looking like all of the work he put in over the summer may pay off. He not only looks like he hasn't missed a beat, he looks better. His shot selection is already improved from last year. He's a combo guard, so he can handle some of the PG duties when necessary to help Russell out.

SF - Kobe: He has looked good in the limited time he has played. The time off over the past couple of years may have been good for him. Still, he's 37 and is coming off of 3 straight significant injuries. How he holds up physically and responds to reduced minutes, will go a long way to determine how good the team is.

PF - Randle: Looks strong, has some playmaking ability and working on his mid-range jumper in the off-season seems to be paying off.

The bench: Huertas, Swaggy P, Williams, Black and Bass look solid, especially with Huertas running point. The Lakers will likely also keep Upshaw (really raw, but lots of potential upside), Nance Jr. (been showing some of his Daddy's athleticism and Jabari Brown (offense off the bench). The last 2 spots will be filled from a mix of MWP, Kelly, Sacre, Holmes and Anthony Brown.

I think the Lakers will finish around 30-35 wins. Enough to show improvement and that the team is headed back in the right direction, but not enough to make the playoffs in the west.

 

[trojanfan12]

48-34 top 5 seed in the east. We need a 3 pt shooter by the deadline though

If the Lakers cut Ryan Kelly, the Heat may want to give him a look. He could help in the 3 point shooting dept. I wouldn't call him a difference maker by any stretch, but he'll come cheap and when he gets minutes, has shown he can shoot. His defense is very suspect though and if he gets cut, that will be the reason.

 

[Bolts]

The Homer in me wants to say 45-48 wins and a playoff spot, which should be possible.
The depressed kings fan in me wants to say 31 wins, team blows up but has enough depth to get over 30 wins and avoid getting a top draft pick which is always possible.

Actual prediction I'll say they go 41-41 which is much better than what they've done in recent years and if they were in the East would probably get them the 7th seed, but would still be a bit of a disappointment because I want to see one more Kings playoff series before they move to a new Arena.

 

[HurricaneDij39]

Nuggets: 32-50. Not entirely convinced Gallo will stay healthy or that Chandler won't continue to hoist ill-advised jumpers. Starting SG could be an issue as well as depth on the wings. Mudiay will be good and Malone is a good coach, so this team could overachieve, but as it stands 32 wins is probably generous as this team is buried in the west.

Pacers: 45-37 (#6 seed in East). I have major reservations about Monta Ellis now that he's on the wrong side of 30, but he and Rodney Stuckey are savvy veterans that attack the basket. The Paul George PF experiment will probably be met with mixed results in is first season back. Obviously have my doubts that Frank Vogel is the right coach for a team that wants to go up-tempo this season after giving away Roy Hibbert for next to nothing. I expect Vogel to be canned if the team is eliminated in the first round as I predict. That being said, this team is loaded with depth on the perimeter and has too much talent to miss the Playoffs completely.

 

[CitySushi]

Warriors - 60-22. Repeat Champs (obv)

Last year was a dream run, but with all the returning pieces the Warriors should be right back up there with the best of them. I think there may be a bit of a lull to start the year, but once the ship is righted, they'll cruise to 60 wins.

Barring any injury I would think that they'll be in the Western Conference Finals. Once there, it's really going to be a crapshoot. It's going to come down to who is the freshest and also who is the most injury free. The West is loaded that even an injury to a role player could affect a teams championship aspirations.

I have to go with repeat Champs, if only because I never thought I'd be able to say that. Realistically, I like our chances to repeat, but cautiously optimistic.

 

[CitySushi]

For the Lakers:



PG - Russell: Looks good overall, but he's 19 and has a lot to learn. I wouldn't be overly surprised if Marcelo Huertas (who's looked really good and is a 32 year old rookie) doesn't start a few games at some point in the season to take some of the pressure off of him.

After watching Russell play a bit in the preseason, I think he would be best served coming off the bench to at least start the year. He looks a little behind defensively, but the biggest reason would be wanting to bring him along slowly, without all the Kobe pressure.

There will be a certain point in the season where Kobe will get tired of losing, he'll lose patience and start trying to take over games himself. It's inevitable. If you want Russell to develop, you need to give him an opportunity to make mistakes and learn from them. He'll be able to do that exclusively with the second unit. You give him the keys to the car and tell him to make it happen. That can't happen with both Clarkson and Kobe in the first unit, imo.

 

[gordontrue]

55 wins, 2 seed, entertaining Heat-Cavs ECF, Cavs ship

 

[Arizona_Sting]

Best case scenario 7th seed, worst case 10th seed.

 

[ManuForever]

58-34 season for the Spurs. If they all stay relatively healthy, and everyone new fits in well as we all know they should, there's no reason this team shouldn't be in the Western Conference Finals at THE LEAST. They have arguably the best starting five in the entire league, not to mention a great, deep bench. Not anywhere near the same team as last year, which was riddled with injuries that cut their season short.

I thought the Spurs would have beaten the Warriors last year if they played, and I see no reason why they shouldn't be able to do it if they meet in the Playoffs again.

So I'm going to say..Spurs/Cavs in the Finals. Spurs in 7! NBA Champs!

.....hopefully. West is too damn deep this year to accurately predict anything.

 

[wildturkey]

33ish wins but the NBA pulls some draft strings so that the ping pong balls give the Lakers a top 3 pick, thus the pick stays with LA and doesn't go to Philly. LA fans rejoice, the rest of the country is hella pissed

 

[Arizona_Sting]

I hope the Sixers get the 4th pick from LA and that player turns out to have a HOF career.

Even though that pick came from us to Philly, it would be better them than LA.

 

[handicappers]

I'll be surprised if the Mavericks don't forfeit most of their games.

 

[Lakers+USC=#1]

For the Lakers:

Unless an absolute best case scenario happens, the Lakers aren't going to the playoffs this year. However, they should be an improved team that will get better as the season moves along.

We are finally starting to see a roster of players who will actually be playing together for awhile, rather than a team of guys on 1 year deals who are just trying to stay in the league.

Starting lineup looks like it will be:

C - Hibbert: He's actually looked better than I expected. He's lost weight, looks a little quicker and more mobile. He's always been a rim protector, so he should improve the Lakers defense.

PG - Russell: Looks good overall, but he's 19 and has a lot to learn. I wouldn't be overly surprised if Marcelo Huertas (who's looked really good and is a 32 year old rookie) doesn't start a few games at some point in the season to take some of the pressure off of him.

SG - Clarkson: It's looking like all of the work he put in over the summer may pay off. He not only looks like he hasn't missed a beat, he looks better. His shot selection is already improved from last year. He's a combo guard, so he can handle some of the PG duties when necessary to help Russell out.

SF - Kobe: He has looked good in the limited time he has played. The time off over the past couple of years may have been good for him. Still, he's 37 and is coming off of 3 straight significant injuries. How he holds up physically and responds to reduced minutes, will go a long way to determine how good the team is.

PF - Randle: Looks strong, has some playmaking ability and working on his mid-range jumper in the off-season seems to be paying off.

The bench: Huertas, Swaggy P, Williams, Black and Bass look solid, especially with Huertas running point. The Lakers will likely also keep Upshaw (really raw, but lots of potential upside), Nance Jr. (been showing some of his Daddy's athleticism and Jabari Brown (offense off the bench). The last 2 spots will be filled from a mix of MWP, Kelly, Sacre, Holmes and Anthony Brown.

I think the Lakers will finish around 30-35 wins. Enough to show improvement and that the team is headed back in the right direction, but not enough to make the playoffs in the west.

Huetas was looking like Nash out there. As far as Upshaw, unfortunately, he got cut tonight.

 

[trojanfan12]

Huetas was looking like Nash out there. As far as Upshaw, unfortunately, he got cut tonight.

Yeah, saw that Upshaw got cut. Looks like they wanted to go with the stability Sacre brings (they know what they're gonna get every time). I read that they are hoping that he clears waivers so that he can sign with the D-fenders where they can keep an eye on him. Apparently, if they signed him, he'd have spent the season with the D-fenders anyway.

 

[MHSL82]

The Jazz started 14-27 in the first half last year and 24-17 in the second half.

I predict they will either start 24-17 this year and continue to a 48-34 season or they will:

Start 19-22 and finish 29-12 to get to 48 either way. (14 and 24 averages out to 19... 19-14=5... 5+24= 29)

Now that I said that, they'll go 42-40.

 

[logic]

I really don't see good things happening for the Pistons, unfortunately. Except Stanley Johnson. He is a big improvement at the SF. I think Drummond's numbers will be about the same or possibly drop a little. He is an athletic center, but outside of just athleticism, which goes a long way with him, I still don't see much. He needs post moves and/or a short jumper. Monroe will be missed more than people think. Reggie Jackson is at best a parallel move to how Brandon Jennings was playing prior to his injury.
At the very best this team competes for the 8th playoff spot, but I think more likely they will be ~30-52 in the mid lottery, again . I am not a big fan of the moves Stan has made, but do hope that he can prove me wrong and convert me.

 

[Captain Confusion]

Hiccuuup... Yeah...Yeah.... Knicks will be at top of the Atlantic Division..... Hiccuup...

 

[ericd7633]

Sixers: 19-63