jazzfan1971
Well-Known Member
(crossposted on Realgm)
So, we had
Spurs
Lakers
OKC
Memphis
Denver
Clippers
Dallas
Utah
in the playoffs last year. Of those teams only Dallas and Utah seem to be in much danger of dropping out. Dallas if they can't land a big fish like Deron and Kidd walks/retires. But, they've got a way of retooling year to year. As long as Dirk is healthy they probably make the playoffs.
Utah is an up and coming team, but, they barely squeeked into the playoffs last year. However they did just add Mo Williams for a TPE, so if they have any internal improvement along with adding Mo they can make a strong case to believe they will be a playoff squad next year.
Minny is doing some nice things. Adding Buddinger should help them a bit, and they are making a big offer on Batum. Also rumblings of a Pau Gasol deal. Long story short, they are efforting a playoff spot. And with a very solid core of Rubio and Love, improvements to the wing and possible internal improvements I think they can also make a strong case to believe they will be a playoff squad next year.
Then you have Golden State. They've put together a very impressive starting 5 down there. Curry, Thompson, ??Wright??, Lee, and Bogut. They seem very committed to achieving the playoffs this year and if they can stay away from the injury bug they can also make a strong case to believe they will be a playoff squad next year.
Houston was on the cusp last year with a record over 500. They seem more concerned with building value than making the playoffs, but, it would only take a small improvement over last season to get them to the post season. Houston is obviously shopping for a big fish right now. If they land one, even a rental (Dwight Howard?) they could go from being an also ran to a team looking at home court advantage in teh 2nd round.
Portland is a bit of a dark horse. But, they are definitely pushing that direction, looks like they just made a max dollar offer to Hibbert. Add that to the 2 lotto picks they had this year and they've got a lot of potential to shoot up the leaderboard. If they match on Batum (probably) and land Hibbert (unlikely) they should have every reason to think they will be a playoff squad next year.
So, that's 12 teams by my eye that look to have a legit claim in a playoff slot next year. Going to be 4 teams in the West this year wondering what the hell happened come the end of the season.
So, we had
Spurs
Lakers
OKC
Memphis
Denver
Clippers
Dallas
Utah
in the playoffs last year. Of those teams only Dallas and Utah seem to be in much danger of dropping out. Dallas if they can't land a big fish like Deron and Kidd walks/retires. But, they've got a way of retooling year to year. As long as Dirk is healthy they probably make the playoffs.
Utah is an up and coming team, but, they barely squeeked into the playoffs last year. However they did just add Mo Williams for a TPE, so if they have any internal improvement along with adding Mo they can make a strong case to believe they will be a playoff squad next year.
Minny is doing some nice things. Adding Buddinger should help them a bit, and they are making a big offer on Batum. Also rumblings of a Pau Gasol deal. Long story short, they are efforting a playoff spot. And with a very solid core of Rubio and Love, improvements to the wing and possible internal improvements I think they can also make a strong case to believe they will be a playoff squad next year.
Then you have Golden State. They've put together a very impressive starting 5 down there. Curry, Thompson, ??Wright??, Lee, and Bogut. They seem very committed to achieving the playoffs this year and if they can stay away from the injury bug they can also make a strong case to believe they will be a playoff squad next year.
Houston was on the cusp last year with a record over 500. They seem more concerned with building value than making the playoffs, but, it would only take a small improvement over last season to get them to the post season. Houston is obviously shopping for a big fish right now. If they land one, even a rental (Dwight Howard?) they could go from being an also ran to a team looking at home court advantage in teh 2nd round.
Portland is a bit of a dark horse. But, they are definitely pushing that direction, looks like they just made a max dollar offer to Hibbert. Add that to the 2 lotto picks they had this year and they've got a lot of potential to shoot up the leaderboard. If they match on Batum (probably) and land Hibbert (unlikely) they should have every reason to think they will be a playoff squad next year.
So, that's 12 teams by my eye that look to have a legit claim in a playoff slot next year. Going to be 4 teams in the West this year wondering what the hell happened come the end of the season.
