NBA Eastern Conference Preview: Part One

The NBA season tip off is in less than 14 days. I thought I would do my due diligence and provide you with a preview of the upcoming season and give you my predictions on how it will all play out. I am sure I won’t be wrong at all (need sarcasm font here).

Over the course of a number of blog posts, I will predict and give a snapshot of every team in the league and where I anticipate them finishing in their conference. Part One starts here with a look at the Eastern Conference and the teams that will finish between 15 through 12.

For years, the Eastern conference has been the Gerald Wilkins to the Western Conference’s Dominique. It has been joked as the minor leagues of the NBA, but no longer is that necessarily the case.

Yes, the Western Conference is more powerful 1-8, but looking at the entire conference, that is not true. Outside of the top four, the Eastern conference is fairly even and believe the remaining playoff spots will be determined by injuries, as is usually the case in the East.

Over the past few years, injuries to star players, whether it is Dwayne Wade, Gilbert Arenas, or KG,  have wreaked havoc in the conference and changed the landscape of the playoff picture. It will be no different this year and the teams that are hit by the injury bug will find themselves in a much different position than they envisioned in training camp earlier this month.

Without further ado, here is what we are looking at for the bottom teams of the Eastern conference:

15. New Jersey Nets

Key Additions: Rafer Alston, G (trade, Orlando), Tony Battie, C/F (trade, Orlando), Courtney Lee, G/F (trade, Orlando), Terrence Wiliams (R)

Key Losses: Vince Carter, G/F (trade, Orlando), Ryan Anderson, F (trade, Orlando)

The Nets were a surprise team last year winning 34 games and Devin Harris had a breakout year, making the Eastern Conference All-Star team.

This year, they have continued the rebuilding project but are still years away from cracking into the the playoff picture. In the offseason, Vince Carter was traded away to the Orlando Magic, which saw the Nets bring back some younger talent in Courtney Lee and a veteran point guard in Rafer Alston, though it remains to be seen how long Alston will be in "Dirty Jerz."

Although I am not a huge fan of Carter and his waning defensive attributes, the trade was lopsided in favor of the Magic in terms of talent. What it did bring the Nets, however, was chance to rid itself of a bad contract and get younger to add to the rebuilding project—and a rebuilding project it sure is.

To go along with Harris, the Nets have big man Brook Lopez in the middle who surprised many basketball writers and fans, not named Jaime as I said to draft him fifth in last year’s NBA draft. He is a legit man in the middle, standing 7' and has a nice touch around the basket with a knack for rebuilding. His defense is improving and he will only get better with more experience—he is only 21.

Besides Lopez and Harris, the Nets will sport Lee at the two who is a good defender and above-average shooter. He is not a go-to type of a guy, but Lee is a very nice complement to have on any team.

One of the big question marks is still Yi Jianlian. He came over in the Richard Jefferson trade last year and has still not lived up to his hype. He will be given the opportunity to hold down the power forward position, and it will be interesting to see how he develops.

I believe he is a nice complement to have on a good team but not a player to carry a team, especially a bad one. He needs to be surrounded by more scorers where he can be a good third or fourth option and hit the open jump shot consistently, which is not the case on this Nets roster. Like Lopez, he is still young (22) and has plenty of years ahead of him to get better.

The Nets are a team full of side dishes but no main entree. Next summer’s approximately $30M in cap space should open them up to get that prime steak. Only time will tell with this team, but not this year.

14. Milwaukee Bucks

Key Additions:Hakim Warrick, F (Memphis), Ersan Ilyasova, F (Turkey), Kurt Thomas, F (trade, San Antonio), Walter Sharpe, F (trade, Denver), Carlos Delfino, G (trade, Toronto), Roko Ukic, G (trade, Toronto), Brandon Jennings (R)

Key Losses: Charlie Villanueva, F (Detroit), Fabricio Oberto, C (Washington), Richard Jefferson, F (trade, San Antonio), Malik Allen, F (trade, Denver), Amir Johnson, F (trade, Toronto), Sonny Weems, G/F (trade, Toronto), Ramon Sessions, G (Minnesota)

Just like the Nets above, the Bucks are in a rebuilding project and traded away a top player in their rotation in Richard Jefferson to the San Antonio Spurs for future cap relief. The pieces are starting to come together in the puzzle, but the Bucks are still a few years away from making any sort of run at the playoffs.

Having plenty of athleticism on the wings in Joe Alexander, Warrick, and Mbah Moute, along with first round pick PG Brandon Jennings allows the Bucks to be a much more up-tempo team that is more aligned with second-year coach Scott Skiles’ style. Look for the Bucks to fast-break more and open the floor up.

The foundation of the team still relies heavily on fringe all-stars Andrew Bogut and Michael Redd, but health with these two is always an issue with both missing a combined 69 games last season. If healthy, they are two of the better players at their position, and if they can stay on the court, the Bucks have a chance to fight for the eighth and final spot of the playoffs.

After a disappointing rookie campaign, plenty of the Bucks present and future depends on the progress of second-year forward Joe Alexander. GM John Hammond traded away SF Richard Jefferson which should open up playing time for Alexander and look for him to get increased minutes. The question remains, will he be able to live up to the expectations?

Beyond Bogut, Redd, Alexander, and Jennings, the Bucks do not have much firepower to propel them into the playoffs. The rest of the team is filled with role players, and do not think they do not have what it takes.

13. Indiana Pacers

Key Additions:Dahntay Jones, G (Denver), Earl Watson, G (Oklahoma City), Solomon Jones, F (Atlanta), Luther Head, G (Miami), Tyler Hansborough

Key Losses: Jarrett Jack, G (Toronto), Rasho Nesterovic, C (Toronto), Jamaal Tinsley, G (waived)

Larry Bird is doing all of the right things to put his team in position to win in the future, but the Pacers are not good enough yet this year.

They possess emerging star Danny Granger who broke out last year to make the all-star team and average over 25 ppg. Other than that, their other main contributors are injury-proned players who are soft in Mike Dunleavy and Troy Murphy. In the NBA, you can’t win with soft players and the Pacers have too many of them, which I believe is why they went with All-American Tyler Hansborough ("Psycho T") in the draft.

Some people believe this was a stretch in the draft, but I believe it was a good pick-up. I think grabbing somebody like Hansborough you get exactly what you expect: hard-nosed and tough player who can rebound and be a nuisance.

This type of draft pick changes the culture of the ball club and forces players to get tougher in practice. The draft wasn’t particularly strong this year and Hansborough will be a solid rotation guy for years to come.

Along with Hansborough and Granger, the Pacers have a bright future. They have Brandon Rush on the wings who is a deadly shooter from the outside and can knock down shots—something always coveted in the NBA.

In the middle, Hibbert had a nice rookie season and will move into the starting center position with the void left by Nestrovic. He looks lighter this season and looks to be quicker and more mobile. Big men always take longer to develop in the NBA, and I believe the best of Hibbert is down the road. If he continues at this development, he will be a nice five in the league for years to come.

Like many of the other teams missing the playoffs, the Pacers are just a couple of pieces away. Unfortunately, they have some bad contracts on the books and can’t make moves in free agency in the near future. For them, it will all be about development of their younger players and making good picks in the upcoming drafts.

12. Detroit Pistons

Key Additions: Gordon, G (Chicago), Villanueva, F (Milwaukee), Chris Wilcox, F (New York), Ben Wallace, F (Phoenix), Dajuan Summers (R)

Key Losses: Rasheed Wallace, F/C (Boston), Antonio McDyess, F (San Antonio), Amir Johnson, F (trade, Milwaukee), Arron Afflalo, G (trade, Denver), Walter Sharpe, F (trade, Denver), Allen Iverson, G (Memphis)

Many of you may be surprised to see me rate the Pistons so low in the Eastern Conference. Bottom line, I have not been impressed with the moves Joe Dumars has made over the last few years.

Last year, the Pistons squeaked into the eighth and final playoff spot. This offseason they have lost their starting frontcourt and replaced it with mediocre players in Charlie Villanueva and Chris Wilcox, not exactly a force to be reckoned with in the middle. Dumars was able to pick up sharp-shooter Ben Gordon from division rival Bulls, albeit overpaying for him.

Yes, Gordon lit it up in the playoffs but he is streaky and a liability on defense. Not to mention, you have to try and squeeze him in for playing time among the Pistons' best players in Hamilton and Prince. Rookie coach John Kuester will have his work cut out for him. Players have been responding well to him so far, but we are still in the preseason and that will only go on for so long when a team starts losing.

Kuester will definitely have his bumps in the road as a rookie coach, particularly dealing with an under-manned front court.