2010-2011 NBA Predictions: 9 NBA Teams Poised to Make Some Noise
Last time I checked, there were 30 teams in the National Basketball Association, yet we only get news about the championship contenders shoved down our throats.
I personally have had enough of the hackneyed storylines about LeBron and the Heat, Boston's age, the Lakers feeling slighted, and Orlando and the Heat forming a budding rivalry etc. etc.
So here are some teams that might not see the light of a Finals day, but are certainly poised to make some noise in the 2010-11 NBA season.
New Jersey Nets
1 of 9
Ever since the end of the Jason Kidd era, the Nets have been on a downwards spiral— culminating in last year's abysmal 12-70 record.
At one point in the season, many people even had them penned down for legitimate challengers to the NBA's all time futility record of 9-73.
Coming off of a season where supposed point guard of the future Devin Harris looked bored and apathetic and where rookie tantrums were the norm, the Nets had nowhere to go but up.
In the off-season, the Nets quickly made moves to improve their roster, picking up promising rookie Derrick Favors with the third overall pick, clutch swingman Travis Outlaw, three-point specialist and marksman Anthony Morrow, backup point guard Jordan Farmar, and the perfect complement to Brook Lopez-- “stretch four” Troy Murphy.
With a new “sugar daddy” owner in Mikhail Prokhorov bankrolling operations and a new Brooklyn stadium looming the distance, the Nets look more than ready to leave the lower echelons and filter feeders of the league.
Chicago Bulls
2 of 9
As the old sports adage goes: “Good franchises always find ways to win,” and the storied Chicago Bulls are no exception.
After spending the past few seasons in mediocrity and quick first round exits, the Bulls have made the necessary moves hoping to propel themselves deeper into the playoffs.
Last season, one of Chicago's biggest weaknesses was the inability to space the floor for Derrick Rose's forays to the basket.
Looking to fix that, the Bulls gutted the Utah Jazz's roster and signed sharpshooter Kyle Korver and starter Ronnie Brewer from the Utah Jazz as well as instant sparkplug CJ Watson from the Golden State Warriors.
Yet their crowning achievement this off-season has to be the luring and eventual signing of Carlos Boozer from the Jazz.
Boozer, a legitimate top 5 power forward in this league, has the potential to form a very deadly high-low combo with point guard Derrick Rose, similar to what he and Deron Williams had.
With threats beyond the perimeter, mid-range, and in the post game, the Bulls have more than qualified themselves as a team to watch.
New York Knicks
3 of 9
The Knicks are like the little kids who wait all year for Christmas and end up getting socks.
For the past year and all of the 2009-10 season, the Knicks have been waiting for LeBron to join them.
It seemed almost acceptable when they lost because “We're getting LeBron next year.”
And for a while, it did seem like the Knicks were going to pry LeBron from the Cavaliers. But once other teams began to stock pile cap space as well, the Knicks' hopes began fading and had to settle for Amare Stoudemire and Raymond Felton instead.
Two very good players, no doubt, but hardly of LeBron's caliber.
That said, with a high-octane offense under Mike D'Antoni and, for the first time, a roster full of players suited to play this offense, the Knicks will certainly have no trouble lighting up the scoreboard.
Whether that will translate wins will hinge on Amare's ability to recreate the chemistry he had with Nash with Felton.
Milwaukee Bucks
4 of 9
This was a team that looked poised to breakout in the playoffs last season, before center Andrew Bogut went crashing down with a horrific arm injury, taking the Buck's playoff aspirations with him.
This off-season, the Bucks decided to shorten the rebuild process and focus on moving deeper into the playoffs by picking up slasher Corey Maggette, Drew Gooden, and resigning John Salmons.
For a team that often struggled to put points on the board and get to the line, Maggette is a perfect fit, as he does little else but score.
Drew Gooden has the same success everywhere he goes and John Salmons is a very good third option as he is able to create shots for himself.
The Bucks, however, can only go as far as Andrew Bogut and Brandon Jennings takes them and so their 2010-11 season hinges on whether Bogut's arm has made a full recovery.
Houston Rockets
5 of 9
Yao Ming is 7-foot-6. The starting center for last year's Rockets team, Chuck Hayes, is barely 6-foot-6.
Just like the Bucks, the Rockets will only go as far as their pivotman, Yao Ming, can take them, so this ranking is completely based on my belief that Yao Ming will finally put together a relatively healthy campaign and regain his pre-injury form that had many calling him the best center in the NBA.
In addition to adding the biggest man in the NBA, the Rockets also acquired swingmen Kevin Martin and Courtney Lee to shore down the wing position and add slashing options to force opponents into the penalty.
With Luis Scola and Yao Ming fighting in the paint and Aaron Brooks and K-Mart on the wings, the Rockets look ready to keep the Southwest division as competitive as ever.
Oklahoma City Thunder
6 of 9
The Thunder chose to largely stand pat this off-season, and for good reason. With arguably the future of the NBA in Kevin Durant and an incredibly young and talented core surrounding him, OKC looks to be a contender for many years to come.
Although inexperience led to the Thunder meeting the buzzsaw of the Lakers, they were only a few plays away from forcing a game 7 and perhaps even taking the series from the eventual champs.
Another year and another training camp together will only make this team even more fearsome. NBA, beware.
Portland Trail Blazers
7 of 9
The injury bug visited Portland last year and decided to stay— effectively wrecking the 2009-10 season for the Trail Blazers.
Franchise cornerstone Brandon Roy missed 17 games(mainly in the playoffs), No. 1 pick Greg Oden once again had his season cut short by freak injuries, missing a whopping 61 games, and his replacement, Joel Pryzbilla, went down for the season shortly after taking over.
Before the team was decimated by injury, many experts had the Blazers penned as legitimate contenders to the Lakers' throne and I feel that they certainly have the ability to do so this season, provided that the team stays healthy.
Swapping Martell Webster for a very effective Nicholas Batum only improves the team that gave the Lakers fits at times last season. The Trail Blazers are definitely a dangerous team.
Los Angeles Clippers
8 of 9
I am hesitant to put the Clippers on any promising list as they always seem to find a way to under-perform and screw things up, yet they seem to finally have a competitive team.
Led by Baron Davis and Chris Kaman, the Clippers will add No. 1 overall pick Blake Griffin after his season-ending injury and an experienced Eric Gordon coming off of a successful USA team stint.
Provided Davis stays interested and involved, this team has the potential to upset some contenders and really put their mark on the West. Then again, we are talking about the Clippers...
New Orleans Hornets
9 of 9
Coming into this season, only the Denver Nuggets front office is feeling more pressure than the New Orleans Hornets front office.
After the whole league watched as Cleveland and Toronto lost their franchise backbones for nothing more than pieces of paper, you can easily imagine that the Hornets want to avoid a similar fate with Chris Paul.
Although the Hornets did not make any radical roster changes, they did add Trevor Ariza to bolster their defense as well as Jannero Pargo to help placate Chris Paul.
What will be the difference maker for the Hornets is a healthy Chris Paul, who missed 37 games last year.
The core of Chris Paul and David West managed a 56-win season just two seasons ago, and the Hornets have since added young talent Marcus Thornton, Trevor Ariza, and Emeka Okafor to their ranks—only increasing their chances of having a successful 2010-11 season.
