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Rick feels the Lakers have transcended rankings and has agreed to let me take over the SAS NBA Power Rankings! How this works: Rank your top 10 teams, 1-10 using an criteria you want (Who is best now, who has the best shot at the Finals, who had the best month, straight up record, WHATEVER YOU WANT!). Ideally it'll be more interesting to rank teams based on some sort of "best" criteria and not just who your favorites are. Additionally, give your bottom 3 teams, again using any criteria you want. So you'll be listing 13 teams. Feel free to discuss each other's rankings! call someone a dumbass for not realizing Lebron left the Heat, or thinking this really is going to be Sacramento's year. Remember any criteria is fine so don't get bent out of shape if your favorite team isn't getting respect. I'll keep records of how teams do all year as well as monthly. I'll post monthly totals either at the start of the next month or when it looks like everyone who's going to vote has voted, or I won't be arsed to do it, we'll see! Top 10 and bottom 3 are tracked separately, so you might have a team on both lists.
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Oct 6, 2014 17:48
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To kick things off (and show how it's done) 1. San Antonio Spurs (This is barely #1 though) 2. Cleveland Cavaliers (I think they will end the year at #1, but it'll take time to get there) 3. Oklahoma City (End of the top Tier, another strong contender) 4. Chicago Bulls (Dependent on Rose) 5. Golden State Warriors (I'm probably too high on them) 6. LA Clippers (Still not a fan of this team but they'll be really good) 7. Dallas Mavericks (Sure, I have some faith) 8. Miami Heat (They'll still be really good, and someone else from the East has to be on this list) 9. Portland (I still don't think this team can compete but they are solid) 10. Toronto (There's like 6 teams I could put here but I went with another East team) Bottom 3: 28. Utah 29. Bucks 30. 76ers
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Oct 6, 2014 17:49
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1. San Antonio Spurs (Defending champs get the spot unless something happens to take it away from them, and as much as I love the Cavs, adding LeBron, Love, veterans, and a coach not named Mike Brown to a bad team doesn't do the job until games are played) 2. Oklahoma City Thunder (An absurdly talented team held back by coaching) 3. Los Angeles Clippers 4. Cleveland Cavaliers (Possibly the favorites to win the NBA Title, but only because I think they're the team most likely to make the finals. I expect a lot of pains early on as everybody grows into their role, most notably Dion Waiters learning how to play less like Dion Waiters.) 5. Portland Trailblazers 6. Golden State Warriors 7. Houston Rockets 8. Toronto Raptors (Sorry Bulls fans, I'm not sold on Rose's health) 9. Memphis Grizzles 10. Miami Heat 28. Orlando 29. Milwaukee 30. Philadelphia
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Oct 6, 2014 18:08
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Criteria - Most likely to win the Finals 1. OKC Thunder 1. SAS Spurs 3. CLE Cavs 4. LAC Clippers 5. CHI Bulls 6. MEM Grizzlies (probably overrating them) 7. GSW Warriors 8. DAL Mavericks 9. IND Pacers (yes, I don't think they were actually that dependent on Stephenson for anything. George will be missed much more. Depends a lot on Roy Hibbert) 10. PHX Suns or HOU Rockets I think Portland had a fluke season last season, Rockets should drop a lot this summer until they replace their coach, people are overrating Miami (because they overrate Spoelstra because of what he did when they had Lebron), I might be overrating the Grizzlies because their style of play + 3 point shooting with Carter are scary. I think OKC beats the Spurs 1 vs 1 but Spurs beat more teams whereas a team like the Grizzlies or Clippers can really hurt OKC, aka it comes down to matchups. Might be overrating the Bulls, Rose looks horrible and I don't see Gasol as a huge upgrade over Boozer. But they are a team that can win just through disciplined defense and Brooks, Mirotic and McDermott are nice additions.
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Oct 6, 2014 18:11
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1. San Antonio Spurs- Champs and they looked amazing during the finals so I assume they will continue playing nightcrawler basketball for the coming year 2. Cleveland Cavaliers- Two top five scorers but new team new coach and...nevermind we are going to be watching them in the finals 3. OK Thunder- I think there is a good chance they overtake sas this year if brooks learns even a little bit about coaching 4. LA Clippers- Because sick dunks 5. Chicago Bulls- They are going to get through most of the season looking good until rose's knee explodes in june and I throw myself off the GW bridge 6. Warriors- They have a shot at the two seed in the west...maybe 7. Dallas Mavericks- They will probably be a lot worse than this 8. Miami Heat- Briefly forgot about them they should be up there with the bulls/warriors 9. Memphis Grizzlies- They'll fly under the raider like they do every year 10. Toronto Raptors- I would put portland here but I think portland is way too thin to make any kind of run if they get even one major injury 28. Lakers (lol) 29. Milwaukee 30. 76ers I think the finals will be OKC/Cleveland mostly bc I don't see anyone in the east who can really beat Cleveland in the playoffs barring a blockbuster trade. Looking forward to 3 months of cleveland looking like garbage while they pull it together but still landing a top 4 seed.
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Oct 6, 2014 18:42
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Jay Carney posted:I think the finals will be OKC/Cleveland mostly bc I don't see anyone in the east who can really beat Cleveland in the playoffs barring a blockbuster trade. Looking forward to 3 months of cleveland looking like garbage while they pull it together but still landing a top 4 seed. Even worst case scenario, that team playing like garbage will still get the 3rd seed pretty easily in the East....
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Oct 6, 2014 18:44
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1. Oklahoma City Thunder - Kevin Durant repeats as league MVP and a healthy Russell Westbrook and Serge Ibaka carry them to their *first title. *Scott Brooks nullifies this ending. 2. Los Angeles Clippers - Blake Griffin is a beast. This is the team I really expect to come out of the West. 3. San Antonio Spurs - I just hope they aren't this good because I'm tired of watching their no dunking oldness. 4. Toronto Raptors - I think the East's #1 seed this year is going to stun the world. And also be Canadian. 5. Cleveland Cavaliers - Good regular season leads to a brief playoff run before having no defense runs into reality. 6. Miami Heat - Heart of a champion. 7. Washington Wizards - Best backcourt in basketball. Speed kills. Would love a Wizards-Suns Finals. 8. Golden State Warriors - They're Kerrrrrrrific. Bogut and Curry's health might bump them up or down this list. 9. Houston Rockets - This schizophrenic team could win the West. It could also miss the playoffs entirely. 10. Phoenix Suns - This team is going to run opponents into the ground. ... 28. Boston 29. Minnesota 30. Philadelphia The Finals: Clippers vs Heat (chip on shoulder + good coach + flying under the radar + why not)
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Oct 6, 2014 19:20
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1. OKC 2. SA 3. CLE 4. LAC 5. CHI 6. PDX 7. GSW 8. MIA 9. DAL 10. TOR 28. LAL 29. ORL 30. PHI
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Oct 6, 2014 19:27
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Most likely to win finals: 1. LA Clippers 2. OKC Thunder 3. Cleveland Cavs 4. San Antonio Spurs 5. Dallas Mavericks 6. Houston Rockets 7. Washington Wizards 8. Chicago Bulls 9. Golden State Warriors 10. Charlotte Hornets - Worst? Going by record here: 28. Philadelphia 76ers 29. New York Knicks 30. LA Lakers - Rationale: I think Clippers are the best team on paper and just needed another year to gel. I really think they're that good. OKC is where they are entirely because of Durant as I think he continues to excel. Why I put the Cavs at three is, like the Heat, I think it takes awhile to gel and they won't get it done in year 1. So they'll lose to whatever West team makes it out -- the Clippers or OKC I think. I think with the Spurs, age might actually catch up to them this year. Kawhi is really the only elite piece that is under 35 on that team or not a mileage heavy Tony Parker. I think they'll be good in the regular season but get smoked in the playoffs, which seems to happen every other year with them. Similarly, I think Dallas does well in the regular season but falls out in the later conference series. I think the Rockets do about as well as they did last year despite losing some key pieces -- I think Terrence Jones with more minutes and Ariza plugged in will more or less offset those losses. I think the Washington Wizards have a shot at beating the Cavs in the East. An outside shot, but it's a shot. It really depends on how much Beal improved in the offseason and how much Paul Pierce has left in the tank. If both show up, they could be an awesome dark horse team. I think the Bulls will be good but I think they really have no shot at making it out of the East. I don't see how Pau Gasol makes them better -- he does not shore up any of their weaknesses. I also don't see how McDermott is anything but a more inexperienced Mike Dunleavy. Or how Derrick Rose is going to do anything at all. Mirotic could be good, but like all rookies, he'll be worthless for at least a full season. With that said, I think they'll be a decent team because of their defense but it won't be enough to take them anywhere, just like every year with them. I think Golden State will, ironically, regress with Kerr. I'm also not a believer in Kerr as much as I hated Mark Jackson. I also think they're one injury away from the lottery because of how their team is loaded with all of sorts of injury prone guys in key positions. I think Steph Curry will have a career year despite this. I think the Hornets will be solid and slightly better than the Raptors who I initially had here. I think the synergies with Kemba Walker and Lance Stephenson will be immediate and I think one of the many upside projects the Hornets have will pan out coming out of the gate (will it be MKG? Zeller? Vonleh? Biyombo?). With that and most of their core to build on from last year, they could push 47-50 wins in a weak East. 76ers - Putting them here because they'll probably tank again but they have too much talent on their roster (MCW, Noel, Embiid) to actually show up at the very bottom. NY Knicks - Unless the front office pulls something out of their rear end, how is this team better than last year? They got worse, right? I'm thinking they only win 25ish games which puts them in the mix for bottom three teams. Lakers - I keep reading rumors out of LA of the Lakers possibly making the playoffs, and I want to know if this is a real sentiment people have. The Lakers are going to be real bad. REAL real bad. They were one of the worst teams in the league last year and they lost Pau Gasol. I think one of Jordan Hill or Ed Davis will have a monster break out season but that's not going to help a team with almost zero defense outside of them. Your starting lineup could possibly be Steve Nash, Kobe Bryant, Nick Young, Carlos Boozer and Jordan Hill. That is some comically bad defense. GOAT bad defense. I have a feeling we're going to see some out of left field trade that makes the Lakers instantly good again, but until that happens, they will sit here at the bottom of league. Brogeoisie fucked around with this message at 00:27 on Oct 7, 2014 |
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Oct 7, 2014 00:06
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Hashtag Banterzone posted:1. OKC Agree with this.
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Oct 7, 2014 00:32
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If your ranking criteria is most likely to win finals and you have a western team leading the list you're doing it wrong.
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Oct 7, 2014 01:20
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1. Spurs 2. Clippers 3. Thunder 4. Bulls 5. Cavaliers 6. Warriors 7. Mavericks 8. Raptors 9. Wizards 10. Nuggets 28. Celtics 29. Jazz 30. Sixers
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Oct 7, 2014 01:46
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1. Miami Heat - Coming off another deep championship run, the Heat are poised to win the East again with strong, do-it-all play from their small forward position. 2. Denver Nuggets - Will be on a strong start until the league office figures out their new point guard is really just Nate Robinson sitting on Ty Lawson's shoulders while wearing a trench coat. 3. Washington Wizards - John Wall hopes to continue his credentials for superstar status by learning the entirety of the 5th circle of magicka. But will he find the griffin's claw in time to stop the evil ogre lord Gargamax? Time will only tell. 4. Memphis Grizzlies - The Grizzlies are arguably much fiercer than a Hawk or a Hornet but will have to share their supply of woodland berries with the Bucks. 5. Los Angeles Clippers - Strong enough to overcome racism while actively employing Spencer Hawes. 6. NY Knicks - Phil Jackson is a mastermind at the triangle offense, which completely counters the circle defense. 7. Houston Rockets - Dwight Howard only needs 3 or 4 more max contract players in order to realize his true potential as the odd man out on the roster. 8. Dallas Mavericks - Mark Cuban's aggressive moves in the offseason to compliment his aging star have all the pundits perennially saying "eh, that's a pretty good roster I guess." 9. Cleveland Cavaliers - Things are looking up for the city of Cleveland. Their hometown hero is back and playing ball for them (Brian Hoyer), and they were lucky enough to win the rights for Kevin Love. Yes, nothing can possibly go wrong- oh the Cuyahoga river is on fire again. 10. Minnewaukee Buckerwolves - The Minnewaukee Buckerwolves anticipated the league's forced merger of their two low market teams by loading themselves with young talent. Too bad they're being moved to Las Vegas.
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Oct 7, 2014 01:51
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the_american_dream posted:Agree with this. You want me to just, like, count his twice?
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Oct 7, 2014 01:58
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Lockback posted:You want me to just, like, count his twice? Sorry I phone posted. But yea. Copy his twice, sign my name on one. Just like high school
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Oct 7, 2014 02:05
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Hashtag Banterzone posted:1. OKC Kobe coming back and you are putting the Lakers in the three worst teams in the league..highly doubtful. 1. SA (Could repeat this year if they stay healthy) 2. CLE (Kevin Love / LeBron James...) 3. OKC (Can someone else other than Westbrook and Durant show up this season? 4. LAC 5. GSW (Most underrated team in the NBA coming into this season, they have an extremely solid front court and their center has really been developing) 6. CHI 7. DAL 8. POR 9. MEM 10. MIA 28. BOS (Rondo and then who?) 29. PHI 30. MIL
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Oct 7, 2014 08:10
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1. San Antonio 2. Oklahoma City 3. Cleveland 4. Golden State ... what?  5. Chicago 6. Clippers 7. Houston 8. Toronto 9. Dallas 10. Portland 28. 76ers 29. Bucks 30. Celtics Jack's Flow fucked around with this message at 16:48 on Oct 7, 2014 |
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Oct 7, 2014 08:55
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1. Cleveland 2. San Antonio 3. Oklahoma City 4. Chicago 5. LA Clippers 6. Dallas 7. Houston 8. Memphis 9. Golden State 10. Washington 28. Boston 29. Utah 30. Philadelphia
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Oct 7, 2014 10:12
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lagcats posted:Kobe coming back and you are putting the Lakers in the three worst teams in the league..highly doubtful. I don't think it's likely that a 35 year old with more minutes played than Jordan stays healthy.
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Oct 7, 2014 12:18
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lagcats posted:Kobe coming back and you are putting the Lakers in the three worst teams in the league..highly doubtful. lol 1. San Antonio (Welp.) 2. OKC (Can't put them above San Antonio until someone besides Durant and Westbrook steps up their game.) 3. Cleveland (Going to be a hot mess until at least February. We know LeBron is going to show up to the dance, so more of this ranking depends on Kyrie Irving's performance.) 4. Golden State (Wanted to place them in 3rd. drat that's some entertaining basketball.) 5. Clippers (It's hard to arguse against Doc and two superstars. They finally proved they could make a run in the playoffs last year, so we'll see.) 6. Memphis (Absolutely gross defense. Could do some serious damage if they make a move to get another shooter.) 7. Dallas (Someone had to go here, and I don't trust Houston.) 8. Chicago (Too dependent on Rose, and I hate Noah with the fiery passion of 1,000 suns. But otherwise they're ok I guess.) 9. Houston (Too much bull crap behind the scenes for me to trust this team. They're probably implode between March and April, but not so soon that they don't limp into the playoffs.) 10. Wizards (Too many things can go wrong with other teams in the East for this team to not make a deep run sometime, somehow.) ... 28. Lakers (Yep.) 29. Boston (gently caress.) 30. Philadelphia
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Oct 7, 2014 16:03
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1. OKC (I think with a fully healthy Ibaka they may have given the Spurs a better run, and I think some of their young guys like Adams or Lamb could take an additional step forward this year) 2. Spurs (because duh) 3. Cavs (I imagine like Miami when LeBron first got there it will take them a bit to jell. This team isn't as good as that one was, but the East is so dang bad) 4. Clippers 5. Golden State (you could probably flip 4 and 5, I just think the Clips are a little bit more of a sure thing because they don't have the same health concerns) 6. Houston (a lot of people forget just how good Howard and Harden are, and even though Parsons is a better player, I think Ariza fills the role he filled last year offensively reasonably well, with much better defense. They have a lot of flexibility to make a midseason move too) 7. Bulls (could be higher if Rose is fully back) 8. Grizzles 9. Dallas (I'm less high on them than a lot of people; I think Parsons is a tad overrated and they're really old. Point guard is a loving mess too) 10. Phoenix (some of this is wishful thinking because I think they're a fun team, but I do really like the Thomas move and that four point guard rotation; Hornacek is one of the best young coaches in the league too) Bottom 3: 28. Milwaukee 29. Utah 30. Philly
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Oct 7, 2014 16:28
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1. Pelicans 2. Spurs 3. Mavs 4. Blazers 5. Hawks 6. Warriors 7. Cavs 8. Heat 9. Wizards 10. Lakers 28. Rockets 29. Pacers 30. Thunder Criteria used is "Watchability" and is heavily influenced by PTS/G and WB (Whistles Blown). I'm still refining this new power index rating system, so there is a fair bit of subjectivity involved. For instance, the Pelicans are normally rated really low using this index, but they are my home team which automatically gives them a nearly unbeatable score. David West is also the only thing that saved the Pacers from being at the very bottom of this list for me.
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Oct 7, 2014 16:48
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Forgot how much I like these threads for getting teams flying below radar firmly on it. I completely forgot about the Wizards and now I'm convinced they will ice the bulls in the semis in 6. Excited to see them ball this year.
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Oct 7, 2014 22:27
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Kibner posted:1. Pelicans I like your list! Here's my watchability list 1. Pistons 2. Blazers 3. Memphis 4. Hawks 5. Wizards 6. Mavericks 7. Nets 8. Spurs 9. Milwaukee (Armspang) 10. Hornets ( I really want to look at their jerseys while Lance Stephenson dribbles out of control into a stationary defender) 28. Knicks (watching this team learn the triangle is going to be ugly) 29. Cavs (Kyrie Irving and Dion Waiters are absolutely painful to watch) 30. Rockets Dejan Bimble fucked around with this message at 01:15 on Oct 8, 2014 |
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Oct 8, 2014 01:11
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I like the excitement for Portland in this thread. 1. Spurs (62 wins->60 wins) More Leonard, Splitter and Cory Joseph this year should offset any veteran injury/decline. I wouldn't count on another Belinelli outlier year though. 2. Clippers (57 wins->59 wins) Another year of growth for Griffin as he enters his prime and the hope of a healthy Redick indicate strongly for 1st season of the Basketballmer era. 3. Rockets (54 wins->58 wins) Harden, like Griffin is only 25 and will continue to hone his charms on our stable of referees. Even better? 82 games of Troy Daniels. 4. Thunder (59 wins->57 wins) If losing Westbrook doesn't tank your season, is it fair to expect regaining him to give it any kind of boost? Also what are they doing at SG? 5. Suns (48 wins->57 wins) I'm biased but I believe that Z. Dragic's play will remain consistent, Bledsoe will come back strong and Thomas will be a perfect sixth man. 6. Cavaliers (33 wins->56 wins) They need about two more vet signings in order to not have to rely on Brendan Haywood. Also have to overcome undeserving taco-booing bandwagon fans. 7. Warriors (51 wins->53 wins) Klay showed up with a fury at the summer FIBA tournament, but depth is a concern with names like Festus Ezeli and Brandon Rush looming uncomfortably. 8. Raptors (48 wins->52 wins) I just think they are stacked 1-12 and they went on a blistering winning pace after the Gay trade. Here's hoping it carries over in another weak East. 9. Trailblazers (54 wins->50 wins) Defensive scheme from last year leaned heavily on Robin Lopez's size; I have no idea if that's why they signed Chris Kaman but let's hope they don't need to find out. 10. Bulls (48 wins-> 50 wins) I'll give Rose's return the benefit of the doubt for now, but it's going to be weird jumping and dunking on eggshells all season. Esp. when your knees are eggshells. ... 28. Magic (23 wins->28 wins) Remember summer league's Elfrid Payton/Victor Oladipo backcourt? That but against NBA teams. 29. Bucks (15 wins->24 wins) Not overwhelmingly convinced by the potential of the Antetokounpo Experiment. 30. 76ers (19 wins->12 wins) Hey the cat's out of the bag now, let's really get tanking so we can draft more injured rookies.
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Oct 8, 2014 17:40
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1. Spurs 2. Thunder 3. Bulls 4. Grizzlies 5. Rockets 6. Cavs 7. Mavs 8. Clippers 9. Suns 10. Heat Bottom 28. Bucks 29. Celtics 30. 76ers Criteria: Chances of winning a title. Spurs: Yearly "someday the Spurs will fall off" disclaimer. But with some of the power teams in the west getting a little less powerful it should make things even easier for them than last year if the fall off remains mythical. Thunder: The only team besides the Spurs that I think is really, really good this year. Bulls: I think they're the best team in the East. It remains to be seen if they're a contender, or a team that has potential to make the Finals because some team has to make the Finals. Grizzlies: Grizzlies lost something when they lost Hollins but they've made up for it with the addition of some bench scoring and some overall depth that should make them more resistant to injuries. Rockets: If the Rockets could somehow make the Finals they would be the favorites to me against anyone in the East but the Bulls. Their world class awful defense is going to hurt these odds but maybe they'll figure it out. Cavs: Lebron. Mavs: They got Dirk some help, but, not sure how helpful that help will be. Even saying that, if they make the playoffs Dirk's dream might be alive. Clippers: someone has to make it out of the first round. Suns: Would be the second or third best team in the East. Heat: Someone has to win the Southeast. Get Spolestra in the playoffs though and he could do some damage. Bucks: Too much turmoil. Celtics: Trying to not get noticed as the Sixers get all the flack for tanking 76ers: I actually see them as an outside playoff threat for the East, but all the stuff the management makes me think they want this team to keep losing.
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Oct 8, 2014 20:24
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1. OKC 2. Spurs 3. Clippers 4. Cavaliers 5. Bulls 6. Warriors 7. Portland 8. Rockets 9. Memphis 10. Lakers (shouldn't be here but... underdog!) 28. Phily 29. T-wolves 30. Bucks
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Oct 8, 2014 23:01
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1. Spurs 2. Thunder 3. Cavaliers 4. Warriors 5. Clippers 6. Rockets 7. Suns 8. Grizzlies 9. Wizards 10. Bobcats --- 28. Celtics 29. Sixers 30. Jazz
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Oct 9, 2014 03:08
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1.Chapparals 2.Supersonics 3.Braves 4.Bullets 5.Bobcats 6.Royals 7.Americans 8.Nationals 9.Rebels 10.Falcons 28.Bullets 29.Nugggets 30.Huskies
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Oct 9, 2014 23:27
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1. Cleveland 2. Thunder 3. Spurs 4. Clippers 5. GSW 6. Bulls 7. Mavs 8. Blazers 9. Grizzlies 10. Rockets .. 28. Jazz 29. Sixers 30. Bucks
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Oct 10, 2014 02:04
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Watchability 1. Knicks -- with a 2PG set of Calderon, Prigioni, JR Smith, Melo, and Big Bargnani at center this may be the best shooting NBA team ever assembled, what a thrill 2. The Nets -- inspired by Rocky's suicide, the "Dark Knights" of "Gotham" plan to lynch their dumb mascot to open the season and it'll all be great from there going forward 3. Cavs Lebron and Kyrie 4. NBA Rising Stars Eastern Conference Team 5. Suns run run Suns 6. GSW maybe? 7. Nuggets Lawson Faried Robinson Javale, lucky 7 because in reality this team will be broken again and rarely fun to watch 8. Spurs but only in a basketball intellectual sense they aren't going to play like Playoffs Spurs normally 8b. Wizards maybe? Or else the Heat if Bosh shows back up as a superstar. 9. Milwaukee long arms 10. Highlights of OKC games that skip the free throws ... 26. Rockets James Harden Sucks 27. Orlando Magic how is this a real team http://data.shamsports.com/content/pages/data/salaries/magic.jsp 28. Pistons 29. Clippers Adam Silver please make the dunk shot illegal and move this team to Seattle 30. Hawks
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Oct 10, 2014 18:20
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Chances of winning The Finals: 1 - Cleveland Cavaliers: I think too many people are assuming that because Miami came up short in their first year with Lebron, that Cleveland will too. I don't think they will. Love and Irving are both in their primes (and are comparable to Bosh/Wade talent wise, and maybe a better fit around James), and Lebron is on the Jordan/Chamberlain level now all time. It would be a huge disappointment if they don't at least make the Finals out of the East; I think they'll beat the Raptors 4-1 in the Conference Finals. 2 - OKC Thunder: Just to further prove who is the best player of his generation, Lebron will once again win his first championship with a new team against the only player in the world who is anywhere close to his level, Kevin Durant. That does mean, however, that OKC will have to make the Finals, which they will after beating the Spurs in the 2nd round and the Clippers in the Conference Finals 3 - LA Clippers: In the Griffin/Paul vs Durant/Westbrook matchup, I give the advantage to OKC 4 - Toronto Raptors: If ever there was a time for God to prove to me that he is real, then it will be Him guiding the Raptors to the Eastern Conference Finals  5 - San Antonio Spurs: They're the defending champs, but I don't even like putting them this high. They're old, they don't repeat, and the presumed "next generation" of Spurs superstars aren't really proven, despite Leonard winning the Finals MVP. It won't be a smooth transition from Duncan/Parker/Ginobili to whatever comes next, and it's got to happen soon, so..... 6 - uhhhhh, Houston? sure. 7 - Dallas? right 8 - Washington? why not? 9 - Miami - Bosh and Wade are good enough for 3rd in the East 10 - Chicago - only this high bc I wanted to talk about them, and they won't be bad enough to be in the botom 3. This team is going to be alot worse than most people think. There's an excellent chance Rose is done as a top level player, and that's if he doesn't get another season ending injury. That, and Pau Gasol is a prime candidate for my pet theory of "aging but still productive star player gets traded from his long time team to a contender, only to fall off a cliff so fast that his impact at the bottom is hard enough to have caused the extinction of the dinosaurs". In other words, Gasol is going to suck and spend half the year on the disabled list, Rose will have a warm seat ready for him, and Noah will have nobody to pass to. Bottom 3: Boston New York LA Lakers (just to complete the trifecta of tradition-heavy big market teams all having terrible seasons at once) The B_36 fucked around with this message at 14:11 on Oct 12, 2014 |
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Oct 12, 2014 14:09
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Evaluated by classic rap albums: 1. Cleveland Cavaliers: NWA - Straight Out of Compton: Three legends come together, are buoyed by a fully sick supporting cast, and poo poo on the competition. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YVt6XMCLbE8 Key lyric: quote:Hoes on my tip for the title I'm holdin. Eazy-E's hosed up and got the 8 ball rollin 2. - Los Angeles Clippers: 2Pac (Makaveli) - The Don Killuminati: The 7 Day Theory: Over a period of seven or so days Donald Sterling was forced out of the franchise and the Los Angeles Clippers were changed forever. The curse of the Don is gone, possibly due to mechanizations of the illuminati. Blake Griffin, Chris Paul, a now alright Deandre Jordan and a veteran supporting cast will be taking shots at the east and putting the west coast on the map. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FXf-RMXNnbU Key lyric: quote:Plenty beef. I play for keeps, arrange the whole crime scene. 3. OKC Thunder Birdman (Young Money Cash Money) - 5 Star Stunna: Whether through hell or high water, this team stays winning and seems almost a perpetual lock to make the conference finals. Russell Westbrook plays Weezy and Kevin Durant plays Birdman, one of the smoothest and most effortless entertainers in the game. I also hate this team so they get the worst group. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_K6MoWuAXjQ Key Lyric: quote:Now as I recline behind my desk 4. San Antonio Spurs Run DMC - Down With The King: I'll put my nuts on the chopping board and say that this is the season where the Spurs don't win the West. Popovich is a master, but after having fairly good postseason injury luck the last two seasons I think they'll break down in the second half. The smoothest and sleekest old school set will be dethroned. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LYvNnY_VPCI Key Lyric: quote:Now mic check and respect, come correct, and I can protect 5. Golden State Warriors: The Firm - Self Titled: Bringing together two smooth lyrical assassins like AZ and Nas (Curry and Thompson) should have had explosive results, especially when combined with a producer like Dre (Andre Iguodala), but this group never truly lived up to their potential thanks to mediocre performances from the role players. When they're at their best, they're as entertaining as any group. Joe Lacob could have (reportedly) added Kevin Love to the roster this summer, but while constantly meddling in team affairs otherwise, it seems that he's afraid to blow up a core that couldn't make it out of the first round. Their window, with an aging, expensive, and oft injured supporting cast of Lee, Bogut, and Iggy, is closing. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Sy-s0dCbEYY Key Lyric: quote:On some next poo poo, went from humble, now it's hectic 6. Chicago Bulls Common - Finding Forever: They are good and a dangerous team to come up against with their array of talent, but they're boring and corny as hell. They win a lot of games because they play "conscious basketball", not through style alone. I hate this album. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mW_NFwOTjXc Key Lyric: quote:He had game since he used to hoop at Chatham 7. Memphis Grizzlies Three Six Mafia - Most Known Unkown: Represent the values of their city this team is a perpetual underdog that people more or less know by now. I wouldn't expect them to do anything other than win 50 games as long as they're healthy. Hit the track hard. Their parts are good, but they're better together. The Clippers "rivals", want to hate em, but it's hard. We trippy mayn. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wq6sO7p11s0 Key Lyric: quote:A lot them is really sick I think they got amnesia 8. Houston Rockets UGK - Ridin Dirty: This is a two man act. Pimp C and Bun B have a perfect blend of styles, but they never really reached the summit of rap. An entertaining and hard hitting duo that can make waves on any track. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uijHb5U1pD8 Key Lyric: quote:I see the jealousy and hatein in the wicked ways 9. Miami Heat Nas - It Was Written: The follow up to Illmatic was supposed to build off the flames of Nas's previous classic, but it wound up being a let down as things clearly weren't the same. The hip-hop crown had moved. There are still pieces here, but it's hard to imagine the Heat doing any real damage without their best player. After this album Nas took 5 years to release another classic, Stillmatic. It's time to rebuild. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TllbGtempQ4 Key Lyric: quote:Beat up and battered they pull me out 10. Phoenix Suns Hot Boys - Guerilla Warfare: The Hot Boys follow up effort to their debut built on their strength and introduced the world to explosive lyrical talent of Lil Wayne, an artist that would go on to change the game. The philosophy of head coach Jeff Hornacek looks to be a game changer and they give good teams hell. One to watch in the coming years as their assets and talent evolve. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L1wrpJU1dNA Key Lyric: quote:Niggas be terrified from us 'cause they know how we play straight up brolic fucked around with this message at 15:56 on Oct 12, 2014 |
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Oct 12, 2014 15:50
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Ranked by probability of me becoming a fan of the team as someone who started following the NBA (other than playoffs) last season, grew up in Kansas City with no hometown team, and lives in the northeast. 1. Raptors - sweet purple jerseys from my childhood, Kyle Lowry owns, Masai seems like a smart dude 2. Sixers - love Embiid on Twitter, nice jerseys, roommate is from Philly so I get influenced 3. Cavs - Lebron bandwagoner 4. Thunder - close to KC, Durant and Westbrook 5. Warriors - would be higher if I didn't have to stay up so late to watch their games 6. Suns - see Warriors 7. Atlanta - I like yelling caw cawwwwww when they play 8. Heat - love Bosh 9. Dallas - but Dirk is gone soon and they're in Dallas... 10. Nets/Knicks - I root for enough incomptent hometown teams already Bottom 3 30. Lakers 29. Celtics 28. Bulls Never liked any of them.
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Oct 12, 2014 17:26
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straight up brolic posted:Evaluated by classic rap albums: The guy who labeled teams by other sports franchises in the city likely won't be counted since I don't want to look up some AA baseball team, so I might count yours twice.
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Oct 12, 2014 18:39
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Just ranking on how good I imagine the roster will be at full-strength: 1. Oklahoma City Thunder 2. Cleveland Cavaliers - I think Kyrie will elevate his game with legit stars surrounding him. I'm hoping Dion Waiters can embroil those three in an elaborate Marbury-esque intrigue, but I think people are hedging on the sheer talent on this roster more than they should be. 3. San Antonio Spurs 4. Golden State Warriors - I have faith that Kerr can institute an offense that manages to not be worse than the sum of its parts, which the Warriors seem to have been for the past couple of years, and I can't imagine the defense falling far enough off without Jackson to offset that. 5. Los Angeles Clippers 6. Chicago Bulls - I think Noah is a darkhorse contender to be the injury that derails this team's season. Legitimate contender, but an offense where the pecking order is Derrick Rose post-two knee surgeries -> 34 year old Pau Gasol -> ...Jimmy Butler? Taj Gibson? Doug McDermott??? is the biggest flaw of any legitimate contender. 7. Memphis Grizzlies - They won 50 games last year despite an extended absence from their most important player. At full strength, I believe in GRITBALL, although I won't go out of my way to watch them in the regular season 8. Houston Rockets 9. Dallas Mavericks - The Parsons signing will probably look bad value-wise, but he improves the team. Dallas had a good-if-not-mind-blowing offseason, which is pretty much in keeping with their roster. 10. Portland Trailblazers - I think they'll come back to earth a little bit, but they're probably likely the best of anyone I haven't mentioned yet (and possibly better than the three teams above them in the West.) I think the East will be more interesting and competitive than usual this year, but I don't think any one of Toronto/Washington/Charlotte/Miami/Atlanta (wishful thinking) looks significantly better than any of the others, and I have them all beneath the West playoff contenders right now. 28. Jazz 29. Magic 30. Sixers
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Oct 13, 2014 06:50
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Polls still open but I wanted to share the data so far. Tiers are where there was a significant difference between groups. Contenders: 1. San Antonio Spurs (By a sliver) 2. OKC Thunder (Somehow suspect they don't stay here) 3. Cavaliers Pretender: 4. LA Clippers (By themselves in this slot) Strong Showing: 5. GSW 6. Chicago 7. Dallas 8. Houston 9. Grizzlies The Field: 10. Blazers 11. Raptors 12. Miami 13. Washington 14. Suns The Bad 26. Lakers 27. Jazz 28. Celtics 29. Bucks Ugly 30. Sixers The Kings have not gotten a single vote one way or another. Pacers are the 2nd lowest commented with a single vote. Piston's are tied for 3rd least commented with 1 negative vote and a single #1 overall vote  .
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Oct 13, 2014 18:54
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Lockback posted:The guy who labeled teams by other sports franchises in the city likely won't be counted since I don't want to look up some AA baseball team, so I might count yours twice. oh that was just to make fun of people writing bobcats. I ran out of re-names so I had to go to defunct teams.
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Oct 14, 2014 20:48
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Chances of winning the title: 1) Cleveland Cavaliers - Any time you add the best player in the league (and maybe of all time) along with a Top 5 big in the league you're going to be good. How good? Only time will tell. Any number of things can happen to a team, but on paper and in a weak eastern conference, this is the team to beat. Question this team needs to answer: The biggest question this team needs to answer for me to believe in them regards their post defense. Are the Cavs good enough down low to win the title? My hunch is yes. 2) Los Angeles Clippers - From an additions and subtractions standpoint, no one had a better off season than the Clippers. Subtract the worst owner of all time and add bench depth like Spencer Hawes, CDR, Jordan Faramar (40% from 3 fits this team nicely) and you have a recipe for success. The Clippers from 1 to 13 are the deepest team in the league and I have a feeling Blake Griffin is only hitting the tip of the iceberg. Questions this franchise needs to answer: Can Chris Paul string together some series wins? It's a fair question. For all the personal accolades and praise CP3 has gotten, he still hasn't won anything. Another slightly less obvious but just as pressing question is how will the Clippers recover without assistant coaches Tyronn Lue (defense, Cavs) and Alvin Gentry (offense, Warriors)? 3) San Antonio Spurs: God dammit. Every year I say this team is aging and can't do it and every year I am proved wrong. The Spurs under the current reign of Popovic (96-present) have enjoyed 5 championships and Pop will go down as one of the most successful coaches of all time, but when does age finally catch up to these guys? I want to knock them down, but the Spurs will stay at 3 simply based on recent success. Questions this franchise needs to answer: How long have you been hanging out with Vicente Del Bosque Pop? We all know those bodies should be aging but you seem to have a team full of Xavi's and Iniestas. 4) OKC Thunder - The news about Kevin Durant has to be disheartening to the Thunder, but they have been down this road before, just not to this extent. In a very deep western conference, even the first few months of the season can be very important for seeding purposes as the Thunder well know. At full strength, this club jumps the Clippers based on history and San Antonio on age, but with no KD to start the year, I have my doubts that they will be able to attain the 1 or 2 seed in the conference. That's going to mean tough road games for the Thunder come playoff time and knocks them down one spot on my list. Questions this franchise needs to answer: It's simple. Can Russell Westbrook carry this team until the middle of December? Serge Ibaka is a good player, but he's not the second fiddle Westbrook is accustomed to. Secondary question is can Scott Brooks devise a plan to win without KD? 5) Golden State Warriors - The Warriors get the nod over the bulls here because they rid themselves of one of the most idiotic coaches I have ever seen in Marc Jackson. The core of this unit is good and borderline really good. Steph Curry, Iggy, and Thompson are a great 123 punch. David Lee and Andrew Bogut are a pretty decent 45 combo as well. I think this team underachieved with Jackson and for some reason I think Kerr will do a good job. Question this team needs to answer: Was it really Marc Jackson or was it the players? 6) Chicago Bulls - This team reloaded quickly quietly. The entire offseason was a Lebronfest, but the bulls silently added the pieces that will keep them out of defensive shitshows. McDermott, Mitrotic, and Gasol can all fill it up...and you add Derek Rose. I like the Bulls this year, but there's no telling the health of Derek Rose long term or where the chemistry will be with so many new faces needing to make an impact. They come in at 6 with plenty of upside to move up. The east looks pretty easy, and I expect this group will gel just fine. Questions that need to be answered: How good is Pau still? I feel like we lost touch with him in the humor that was the Lakers last year. How good will D Rose be when things begin to matter? For good measure, how healthy will he be? 7) Portland Trail Blazers: The Blazers come in at 7 because they have good young talent that is developing. Damian Lillard is one of the most fun players to watch in basketball and you have not seen a clean midrange j until you've watched Aldridge shoot a basketball. This team gets better and better every season and I expect a good rise this year as well. Question that needs to be answered: Does Damian Lillard Have Derrick Rose's MVP Ceiling? 8) Houston Rockets: On merit, this team reaches the top 10. On hunch, I really don't think they have what it takes. James Hardin and Dwight Howard have big mouths. Parsons, Lin, and Asik are now gone but Trevor Ariza is there to be a decent replacement along with Jason Terry. Question that needs to be answered: Can the rockets mouth their way to a title a la the Seahawks? Will the Rockets trade for a piece at the deadline? 9) Phoenix Suns: There are a million reasons to say the Suns were a fluke last year but i'm just not buying it. The three point guard lineup of Bledsoe, Dragic, and Thomas is going to be hell for a lot of teams in this league and the Suns are going to light up the scoreboard like Turkish flares at a soccer game. The Morris twins seem to be nice pieces and Gerald Green had a really nice season last year. Methinks Hornacek knows what he's doing. Bledsoe should be happy now and Dragic will be playing with a fire under his rear end (contract year). This could be a really great team that surprises some people. Question that needs to be answered: Do you have the bigs to hold up the competition enough? We all know the suns can score, but running teams don't win championships normally. 10) Washington Wizards: Injuries injuries injuries. The only thing holding the Wiz back is their training staff. With a backcourt full of talented youngsters and a frontcourt filled with veterans who have been there, the Wiz seemed destined to be the 3 seed in the east. Can they develop enough to really contend with the elite? Question that needs to be answered: Can John Wall and Bradley Beal continue to develop into the perennial all star backcourt that the front office thinks they can be? What's left in the Paul Pierce gas tank? Good stuff. Excited for the season guys.
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Oct 14, 2014 23:31
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