Debate this!

[Rummpd]

Having a heated arguement for Hoopsworld with another writer that a "Western Bloc" Spurs/Mavs/Suns will not win more les next five years over the "Eastern Bloc" of Heat/Pacers/Pistons. Each was able to pick up a "free agent" team and I went with Denver (pondered on the Rockets and Sonics before picking Denver) while he went with the Cavs.

I see West getting 3 les (most likely Spurs 2 or 3 of those) and the Heat or Pacers one and some other team sneaking in (perhaps most likely the Pistons if Brown returns).

Anyone see this contrary to my opinion?

[Pistons < Spurs]

Working within only a 5 year period makes this tuogh. Either one can win 3-2. You might aswell flip a coin 5 times.


I have to go East on this one.

Det & SA will prolly win 2 or 3 of the next couple finals...either team could win it.

Miami & Indiana are too physical for the Suns or Mavs. I think either of those matchups would go to the East pretty easy.

And for the Cavs, and Nuggets, I again like the East. The Cavs have a much higher ceiling IMO.

Dallas, only has 2 or 3 yrs left...

Suns need alot more defense....

Denver...I'm still not sold on

Pacers are younger and more defensivel

Miami...only has a short window till Shaq gets too slow

Det....players locked for yrs to come ...not really concerned about LB leaving

Spurs...players locked up for yrs to come

[xcoriate]

Should have gone with Houston Rummpd

Denver doesn't have the pieces, Houston only needs role players.

[BillsCarnage]

Should have gone with Houston Rummpd

Denver doesn't have the pieces, Houston only needs role players.

Yeah, Houston is a scarey team. They only need a few players and to get their act together, which they did somewhat down the stretch. They are the worst matchup for the Suns.

[midgetonadonkey]

I don't see the East getting any les in the next 5. If a sub .500 team can make the playoffs in the East, that means the top tier teams in the east division won't be able to compete with the top teams in the west. I don't care what move the Cavs or the Heat make, they will not be as good as the west. The Pistons will not make another Finals appearance if Brown is gone. The Pacers will not be able to do anything without their heart and soul, Reggie Miller. The Heat rely too much on aging players. I see the west winning 5 of the next 5. I think the Spurs will win 3 of those.

[50 cent]

Damn, this whole "debate" makes things so good for the Spurs if injuries don't bite us in the ass. We are light years ahead of everybody.

[Mr. Body]

Interesting. I'd definitely say West, but then I've been a WC homer for a while.

The East depends in large part on both Ron Artest and Larry Brown. Indiana has a number of good players and role players, but nobody that's at the top of the league. Artest could be that guy - he's a game maker, game changer, everything. Larry Brown, if he leaves the Pistons, makes them resort to a lesser coach like Flip Saunders. No team has won the championship in recent memory with an inferior coach. Even if they do have excellent players.

Miami's window is small, given Shaq's twilight. Also, they're facing huge salary cap hurdles already without really being able to address them. They're starting a good bench player (Damon Jones) and another decent guy in Udonis Haslem, who is well respected by everyone but may not yet be starting caliber in the Finals (though we got by with an ineffective Mohammed). Their bench looks to dry up this summer if an already marginal player like Dooling leaves. Miami won't win a championship.

Phoenix's window is also small, given reliance on Nash - but it could be 3-4 significant years. They have lots of talent.

Mavs are just a complete -up team, excuse my French. I don't see them ever winning anything. Cuban's play money gives them a higher profile than they deserve. Have you taken a look at their draft picks lately, as in last year? Harris, Podkolzine? *Shiver* Marquis Daniels may have already topped out, too.


So, the question is basically, can anybody run with San Antonio and Phoenix? Can Indiana and Detroit run with them? Indiana is stricken with having players that are only 'so-good' but none of them great enough. Detroit stricken with possible coaching problems and problems with the bench.

[mavsfan1000]

Mavs are just a complete -up team, excuse my French. I don't see them ever winning anything. Cuban's play money gives them a higher profile than they deserve. Have you taken a look at their draft picks lately, as in last year? Harris, Podkolzine? *Shiver* Marquis Daniels may have already topped out, too.

You forgot Josh Howard. That is a pretty good draft pick right there and he is getting better. Daniels had a serious ankle injury last year that prevented him from being a factor. Don't count out Dallas even though they aren't the favorites. I think Houston still needs a PG, SG, and PF with T-Mac at SF. That is alot to get.

[Mr. Body]

Howard's great, mavsfan. I didn't forget him, just left him out.

I don't like how Nowitski hasn't really improved much in the last few years and did so little in the playoffs. He took a big step backwards in my mind. The rest of their parts seem a little junky to me (Stackhouse, Van Horn) and their draft last year hurt in a major way, along with having nothing to show from the draft this year. I'm not counting them out, but I don't see anything more than another second round exit. Maybe another year or two and it's time to think of dismantling.

I also think Houston needs a lot of pieces and I deliberately left them off the list. I actually don't see them ever really threatening to win a championship, but that's because I see a low ceiling for Yao (ouch- bad pun) and an iffy management, although all their moves this last year generally worked really well.

[Supergirl]

Right now, the only teams other than the Spurs I think good enough and stable enough to win a championship is Denver and Dallas. If the Suns can get deeper and tougher, they'll hang around in the West finals awhile...but I'm not sure that a team led by Nash can win it all, simply because he doesn't play defense. If, as he gets older, he can accept a reduced role, and they get a more defensively minded PG to back him up (Joe Johnson, for eg) then they could win in 3-4 years. But that's a lot of ifs. Otherwise, I think they'll go the way of Dallas, the last offensely oriented team in the West - close, but no cigar.

Dallas could be compe ive because they've got AJ coaching, and Dirk actually playing some D. But they have some major offseason tweaking to do, and it remains to be seen if they can muddle through and get tougher.

Denver is the most stable, and with Nene and Camby and Martin as their front court, they should remain compe ive for a couple years at least - I could see them being the the West Finals against he Spurs next year. Miller is a fantastic, big, athletic PG.
Oh, and Anthony, if he doesn't prove to just be a knucklehead, could breakout next year and score tons of points.

[Rummpd]

I agree in hindsight Probably! with sentiments on Houston > Denver with only caveats being that Van Gundy is so strange that Karl may be better caoch.

I also saw some "special fire" in Anthony that I am not sure is there in "taking some games" off McGrady or the enigmatic Yao.

Plus Denver had a damm good draft and has money to spend in FA > Houston.

Still Houston probably the better 4th team.

IMO Dallas is our biggest threat!

[Joesteds]

Dallas is not a threat to the Spurs. Name someone in their lineup besides Nowitzki that is truely scary, and he showed his fashion of choking it off in the playoffs. Jason Terry is a good shooting guard but not a point. Stackhouse has only that fade away left to cling onto. Josh Howard is a great defender, but dude just cannot shoot. I was never impressed with Marquis Daniels and got his big contract playing in that Sacramento series, who plays horrible D. Dam is soft and is no where near the second best center in the league, as he claimed he was. Van Horn rode that ankle sprain for a month in the playoffs, haha classic (I have sprained my ankle many times, but none so bad that I would miss virtually two long series in the playoffs), plus they played a lot better without him. I see the Suns being better in the playoffs next year with Bell and Thomas, but after next year, you have to believe Nash is going to start breaking down. After next season, I see the Rockets freeing up a little bit of cash and getting some decent role players and making a run at the Spurs.

[strangeweather]

Honestly, I would have taken Houston and Denver ahead of Dallas. They've peaked, and the only way they're ever going to even get back to the conference finals is to find a better star than Nowitski to ride, and superstars don't grow on trees.

[spurs_fan_in_exile]

Hmm, I think that the west is probably going win four of the next five. The Spurs will probably win two, the Suns might figure this out, and the Mavs and Rockets seem eternally on the brink of legitimately contending for a le. With Larry leaving Detroit, and Shaq breaking down that just leaves the Pacers, and that hinges on Artest not going bonkers. If Cleveland can develop quickly enough maybe they could contend.

[Useruser666]

If Miami can't win next year, they'll be hard pressed to win without the game Shaq brings. I'd say Detroit and SA should be the favorites.