Thoughts from training camps around the NBA
by Mike Kahn
As we meander our way through the thoughts of NBA training camp 2008 beginning over the weekend, it's really no different than any other year.
Teams have been changing faces and obstacles, while the ambiguity over whether the Boston Celtics retain the championship or somebody else steals the trophy remains.
The Los Angeles Lakers surprisingly came out of the West last season, and took the Celts to six games, but are they any more of a favorite than the Celtics are to repeat?
Not necessarily.
There are so many variables with 30 teams, so let's peruse the six divisions, starting with the Celtics in the Atlantic and the East, and consider how this month of preparation for the regular season will give us indicators of where this season is headed.
Atlantic Division
The Celtics, of course, return their superstar triumvirate of Kevin Garnett, Ray Allen and the self-proclaimed best player in the world Paul Pierce after his Finals MVP Award. But they lost super-sub James Posey, responding with the long-shot signing of perennial loser Darius Miles and the drafting of knee-challenged Bill Walker. Mostly, though, it will still be about how the over-30 trio responds to the weight of their first championship rings.
The best challenge in the division is likely to come from the Toronto Raptors, taking the gamble that Jermaine O'Neal has the legs left to make he and Chris Bosh arguably the best interior duo in the East. They didn't lose any of their superb outside shooting, handing over the point guard duties to Jose Calderon in the wake of giving up T.J. Ford in the O'Neal deal.
That's not to underestimate how the Philadelphia 76ers snuck up on everybody last year and took the Detroit Pistons to six games to open the playoffs. Andre Miller proved to be the superlative floor leader, Andre Iguodala grew up, and the rest of the youngsters were productive enough that it proved how much Maurice Cheeks had grown up as a coach. And now they have Elton Brand ... they are more than dangerous.
What we don't know is what we'll see out of the rebuilt New Jersey Nets, with all the youth around Vince Carter now that both Jason Kidd and Richard Jefferson are gone with the likes of Devin Harris and Yi Jianlian in their place. Lawrence Frank has his work cut out for him, but at least the club added a few solid veterans like Eduardo Najera, Bobby Simmons and Trenton Hassell and a fine draft class.
More confusing are the talented but disparate New York Knicks now that Mike D'Antoni and Donnie Walsh have replaced Isiah Thomas as coach and president, respectively. Do they really believe this team will go forward with Stephon Marbury and Zach Randolph draining the young players of positive vibes? Nobody else does.
Central Division
It's hard to fathom the aging Pistons not being the favorites again in the Midwest, despite Joe Dumars not making any significant changes other than replacing coach Flip Saunders with untested Michael Curry and signing chronic underachieving big man Kwame Brown. The difference-maker could be second-year guard Rodney Stuckey, picking up some minutes from Chauncey Billups and Richard Hamilton.
Still nipping at the Pistons' heels are LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers. The Cavs -- who struggled after a big mid-season trade last year -- will have a camp with Wally Szczerbiak and Delonte West that will help, but the big deal came in the acquisition of point guard Mo Williams. He's a serious upgrade as a shooter and ballhandler as long as he can mesh with coach Mike Brown's defense.
The most interesting team in the division figures to be the Chicago Bulls, with Vinny Del Negro as a rookie coach on a young and very talented team that fell apart last season. Do they retain Ben Gordon, and if they do, can they get any consistent leadership out of him, or veterans Drew Gooden and Larry Hughes? That's not to mention the development of Kirk Hinrich and Luol Deng, while trying to fit in No. 1 overall pick Derrick Rose at point guard.
Chances are the Milwaukee Bucks will be a much better team with Scott Skiles as coach, bringing defense into focus and the addition of Richard Jefferson to set the tone. They'll need Andrew Bogut to become a star in the middle and Michael Redd to be a more pronounced leader with the hope that Luke Ridnour can regain his confidence at point guard.
Still lost in mediocrity appear to be the Indiana Pacers, as president Larry Bird is still busy discarding players while seeking chemistry for coach Jim O'Brien. They've added T.J. Ford to a lineup featuring Danny Granger, Mike Dunleavy and Troy Murphy. And yet they're a long way from regaining what has become a horribly fractured fan base.
Southeast Division
With the best frontcourt in the conference thanks to dominant center Dwight Howard, the Magic figure to be the significant players again in the East again. But that's contingent on the continuing improvement of Rashard Lewis and Hedo Turkoglu in support of Howard, plus the necessary growth of Jameer Nelson at point guard. They also lack the depth to seriously compete in the conference.
A bigger question is which team is behind the Magic. At first grasp, the thought would be the Washington Wizards, seeking their fifth trip to the playoffs in a row for the first time in 21 years. Antawn Jamison and Caron Butler are back to lead the team, but the third left knee surgery in 18 months on Gilbert Arenas continues to threaten the stability for Eddie Jordan and his team.
Expectations have to be raised for the Atlanta Hawks, though, in the wake of their first postseason appearance since 1999 and taking the Celtics to seven games. Joe Johnson is a star, Josh Smith is statistical machine and a training camp with a healthy Mike Bibby at point guard should help. They're dangerous.
But so are the Miami Heat. With Dwyane Wade looking 100 percent in the Olympics, a camp with Shawn Marion and top draft choice Michael Beasley, we'll learn a lot about another rookie coach -- Eric Spoelstra -- with president Pat Riley looking on. They problem is finding other players around them to make this thing work over the course of the season.
The Bobcats are napping in the basement, though they do have talent and ubiquitous Hall of Fame coach Larry Brown. It's the ninth NBA team for Brown, seeking redemption for the disaster he left in New York. He's overloaded with youth, usually his strength to upgrade, with the hope to battle their way to .500 with Emeka Okafor, Jason Richardson, Gerald Wallace and Ray Felton as the core.
Midwest Division
Nobody would ever be so bold as to underestimate the San Antonio Spurs, even with Tim Duncan creeping up there in age, Manu Ginobili's ankle requiring surgery and the rest of the roster close to applying for social security. But it seems every other year they're primed to compete for the le, and with Tony Parker's maturity at point guard, they'll still be a major threat.
This division, however, has four teams that can win it, with the upstart New Orleans Hornets still smarting from blowing a playoff lead over the Spurs last season. Coach Byron Scott has developed Chris Paul and David West into one of the top inside/outside duos in the NBA, and they added a defender and bench threat in James Posey, but they still have to prove their depth.
That may no longer be the case for the Houston Rockets, in the wake of adding talented Ron Artest to the Tracy McGrady/Yao Ming factor. Provided the maturity of Rafer Alston wasn't a fluke last season, they have the makings of a le contender for coach Rick Adelman.
And it would certainly be premature to rule out a return to contention for the Dallas Mavericks with Jason Kidd getting a full camp with Dirk Nowitzki, Josh Howard and Co. More than anything they'll relish the new coaching staff of Rick Carlisle, with superlative assistants Dwane Casey and Terry Stotts.
That leaves little or anything for the hapless Memphis Grizzlies, hoping that the young group of Mike Conley, O.J. Mayo and Rudy Gay can provide some explosiveness for coach Marc Iavaroni and this failing franchise.
Pacific Division
The Lakers took off last season once they stole Pau Gasol from the Grizzlies, taking pressure off Kobe Bryant and opening the door for Lamar Odom to display his diverse talents. All that was left for them to win, it seemed, was to get young center Andrew Bynum's knee healthy and they're ready to win numerous les. Well, now we'll find out if Odom is suffering a hangover from trade rumors and a poor finals performance.
Speaking of transitions, let's see how the Phoenix Suns do with Shaquille O'Neal getting a full training camp next to Amare Stoudemire, along with the transition that comes with the departure of Mike D'Antoni and the more traditional coaching style of Terry Porter. Steve Nash will be 35 at the All-Star break, and we really don't know how young players like Leandro Barbosa and Boris Diaw will respond. This will be a different team.
The same goes for the Los Angeles Clippers, who thought they were going to add free agent point guard Baron Davis to the team with the possibility of retaining both Elton Brand and Corey Maggette. Instead, they got Davis, and lost both. They did steal Marcus Camby from the Nuggets to establish a formidable post duo with Chris Kaman, but they lack depth and overall talent.
In the same breath, the Golden State Warriors lost Davis, gained Maggette, but suddenly will start the season without budding young star Monta Ellis to a severe ankle injury from a moped accident. And there's always the interminable question of where Stephen Jackson's head is this season as well. Meanwhile, how long before Don Nelson bows out and heads for Maui again?
That leaves us with Reggie Theus' second season with the Sacramento King. They unloaded Artest and don't have much left in the talent pool except for a bunch of young guys like Kevin Martin, Francisco Garcia and Quincy Douby -- with developing point guard Beno Udrih huge in the equation. And there's always the hope that Brad Miller plays a full season at center and maybe helps young Spencer Hawes develop. But this remains a team in transition.
Northwest Division
The prevailing question lingering over the Utah Jazz is will Jerry Sloan retire from the game as the most revered coach ever to win neither an NBA le, nor a coach of the year award. They've got the tools again, with superior point guard Deron Williams, potent Carlos Boozer, and talented front court players Andrei Kirilenko and Mehmet Okur. They should dominate the division, but something else has to happen for them to get to the next level.
It's hard to know what to make of the Portland Trail Blazers, other than Kevin Pritchard and Nate McMillan have put together an amazing array of very young talent around 20-year-old center Greg Oden, LaMarcus Aldridge and Brandon Roy. Adding star Spaniard Rudy Fernandez and top draft choice Jerryd Bayless just adds to the tough decisions. It makes some people wonder if expectations are too high and if they should unload some of that young talent in exchange for a veteran leader.
One team that had no problem unloading veterans was the Denver Nuggets. Strangely enough, this defensively-challenged group lost their two best defensive players -- Marcus Camby and Eduardo Najera. So that means coach George Karl will let loose his dynamic scoring trio of Allen Iverson, Carmelo Anthony and J.R. Smith to shoot and score at will. They'll be fun, but frustrated again.
We'll see what is to be with the Minnesota Timberwolves in their reconstruction from the Garnett trade of a year ago. Yes, Al Jefferson looks like a star, plus they dealt Memphis the rights to O.J. Mayo for talented but bersome rookie Kevin Love and all-around talent Mike Miller. They should be better, but improvement from 22 wins isn't saying much.
And lastly, there may be a clap of Thunder, the team that like lightning moved from Seattle to Oklahoma City in what is an embarrassment for everyone involved. Nonetheless, there will be the future of 2008 rookie of the year Kevin Durant on display, with Jeff Green and not much else, as the former Sonics are coming off their worst season in franchise history.
Correction: Southwest Division - Old names die hardMidwest Division
Nobody would ever be so bold as to underestimate the San Antonio Spurs, even with Tim Duncan creeping up there in age, Manu Ginobili's ankle requiring surgery and the rest of the roster close to applying for social security. But it seems every other year they're primed to compete for the le, and with Tony Parker's maturity at point guard, they'll still be a major threat.
I almost corrected it, but I bolded the Spurs stuff instead.
I've never read what exactly happened, other than "low-speed moped accident". How hard is it to ride a moped?...will start the season without budding young star Monta Ellis to a severe ankle injury from a moped accident.
I missed it when I skimmed cuz I was looking for Southwest.
:P
If the Spurs stuff wasn't in bold I would of skipped the "MidWest Division."
too bad they dont hand out championship trophies in the wcf where the real finals are played, fukn boston has no one to give them a real comp in the east.
The East is weak so that will leave the Celtics healthier and more rested for the post-season which is certainly an advantage. Any team not in the top 8 is pretty much trash.
Philly, Atlanta, Miami should move up the pecking order.
The West should be a dogfight almost every night that West plays West.
While the Celts have to worry about powerhouses like the bulls, magic, heat, and cavs to worry about. I would kill to somehow get the Spurs into the eastern conference. 60 wins this season, easily.
what fukn crack are you on?
bulls continue to underachieve
magic same as above,
heat too damn undersized to play against the celtics
cavs is a one man team, they go as far lebron can take them
pistons i see can give them a run for their money...but thats about it, the rest are just fodder
I think Manufan909 is being sarcastic...
The Western Conference Champions Trophy.
Please go back and read the post again, and turn your sarcasm detector on "high".
Except the Celtics still played two game sevens and went to a game 6 in the ECF.
There's the other way of looking at it is whichever team that does come out of the West is better battle-tested.Philly, Atlanta, Miami should move up the pecking order.
The West should be a dogfight almost every night that West plays West.
Enough with the horse . Everyone knows the East is a weaker conference. Oh ing well. Deal with it.
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