NBA Season Preview

Basketball season is less than a month away, and I couldn't be happier. With all of the hoopla surrounding the offseason moves, I am very curious to see how they all pan out once the games get going. I heard some pretty big name players switched teams- who knew? There looks to be a power shift from the West to the East, which bodes well for my Jazz, but let's break it down team by team to see for sure. Here now are my picks and thoughts for the 2010-11 season.

EASTERN CONFERENCE-

1. HEAT* (The big three do what LeBron's teams always do, win a lot of regular season games- lose in the playoffs)
2. MAGIC (Dwight and Co. are primed for a deep run as they prove the doubters and Heat lovers wrong)
3. CELTICS* (If this team had been assembled in 2004 it would win 72 games and a championship, but its 2010, sorry old timers)
4. BULLS* (Rose, Boozer and this improved group show flashes of championship potential in their deepest run since the Jordan era)
5. BUCKS (Bogut comes back strong, but this team isn't quite on the same level as the top four)
6. HAWKS (Was Joe Johnson worth all that money? No. Hawks were a nice story, but not anymore.)
7. 76ERS (This team surprises the league and gives the big boys a scare, led by Rookie of the Year Evan Turner)
8. PACERS (The time has come for Indiana to return to the playoffs, led by Danny Granger and point guard Darren Collison)
9. BOBCATS (Some key offseason losses prove too much for Larry Brown's team to return to the postseason)
10. KNICKS (If only they had landed LeBron. They didn't, and Amare and Raymond Felton don't get you to the playoffs)
11. WIZARDS (John Wall will have plenty of years of success, but year one isn't one of them)
12. PISTONS (This team is lacking in many key areas, and it will be interesting to see if they try to make some moves)
13. CAVALIERS (Mo Williams and Antawn Jamison are all that remain to build around. Sorry, Dan Snyder, your team isn't good)
14. NETS (Lopez is a great building block and this team has a ton of money to spend in the next few years)
15. RAPTORS (If you remembered that the NBA had a team in Canada, you'll forget it this year)


WESTERN CONFERENCE-

1. LAKERS* (The champs reloaded with Barnes, Blake and Ratliff in supporting roles, and they still have that guy, what's his name, leading them)
2. THUNDER* (Kevin Durant is legit and his teammates aren't slouches either. They'll be in the finals within two years- guaranteed)
3. JAZZ (With a group of new players, Deron Williams gets back to the Western Finals and makes Al Jefferson a star)
4. MAVERICKS* (When you have Dirk Nowitzki you have a chance, but that's not going to be enough this year)
5. SPURS (I like this team's chances with the depth they have- if they can stay healthy. Duncan is supposedly healthy, I guess we'll see)
6. NUGGETS (This pick gets shelved if Carmelo gets traded because they won't make the playoffs without him)
7. SUNS (Nash lost his best target, but he makes everybody else around him so much better that they might make it to the second round)
8. ROCKETS (The return of Yao is big, but the Rockets need a lot from Kevin Martin and Aaron Brooks because Yao will only play 24 minutes a game)
9. BLAZERS (Another team with health issues will be okay if Brandon Roy can be the leader he is capable of being)
10. HORNETS (Chris Paul is a great point guard, but this team lacks depth at most of the other positions)
11. GRIZZLIES (This team might be a dark horse for the playoffs with scorers like O.J. Mayo and Rudy Gay)
12. KINGS (Sacramento is trying to be like the Thunder by rebuilding through the draft, but there's no Kevin Durant on their team)
13. WARRIORS (No more Nellie is sad, but the team might be better off in the long run)
14. TIMBERWOLVES (Kevin Love and Corey Brewer are studs, but they need more pieces around them if they want to get out of the cellar)
15. CLIPPERS (It's the Clippers, where else would they be but dead last?)

*Divison Winner

WEST FINALS- LAKERS over JAZZ
EAST FINALS- MAGIC over HEAT
NBA CHAMPIONSHIP- MAGIC over LAKERS