2008-2009 NBA Basketball Western Conference Preview

2008-2009 NBA Western Conference Preview Courtesy of The Prez, A Professional Award Winning Handicapper Featured on Touthouse.com. IF you are betting on NBA basketball this season be sure to buy The Prez’ Expert NBA Picks

Is this the year that Kobe wins his first ring without Shaq? The Lakers are loaded and are the favorites out West and to upend the Celtics next June.

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L.A. Lakers (+150 to win West/NBA favorites at +300 to win NBA title): What don’t they have? Andrew Bynum is healthy, Kobe is happy, Pau Gasol had a full offseason to get acclimated – this team should be favored. In fact, L.A. is so deep that it appears Lamar Odom, a former All-Star, will be the sixth man this year. That way, Odom can be the primary scorer and ball-handler with the second unit, and he is better with the ball – something that won’t happen when playing with Kobe. As long as Bynum and Bryant stay healthy, the Lakers are the class of a loaded West.

New Orleans Hornets (+380 to win West/+650 to win NBA title): The West is so good that the Hornets could finish as the conference’s No. 1 seed or at No. 5. Chris Paul has become a top-five player and everyone of substance is back. The Hornets also added James Posey from the Celtics; Posey is a playoff veteran who is a clutch outside shooter – it was the perimeter game that cost New Orleans in the West semifinals last year against the Spurs.

Houston Rockets (+500 to win West/+850 to win NBA title): No NBA title contender has more questions than the Rockets, so their odds might be a little too low in value, in my opinion. The Rockets could come out of the West and win it all, but that’s only if newly acquired Ron Artest doesn’t act up (he is in a contract year, so that might help) and if Tracy McGrady and Yao Ming don’t get hurt. The sad thing is that it’s probably more likely that Artest stays sane than McGrady and Yao don’t miss some time. At least T-Mac should end his playoff jinx and win a round or two if all goes well.

San Antonio Spurs (+650 to win West/+1100 to win NBA title): The Spurs looked really old in losing to the Lakers in the West finals last year, and they won’t have Manu Ginobili for the first month or two as he recovers from ankle surgery. But don’t rule out San Antonio, which has won titles in the past three odd-numbered years. Tony Parker, Tim Duncan and Ginobili are as good a trio as any. But there’s just not much after those three. I don’t see how the Spurs can stay in the top half of the West this year.

Utah Jazz (+650 to win West/+1000 to win NBA title): All five starters are back, although swingman Andrei Kirilenko has taken a new role coming off the bench. Still, this team goes as point guard Deron Williams and power forward Carlos Boozer go. Williams may miss the first few weeks with a severely sprained ankle. That doesn’t sound like much, but the Jazz really need homecourt advantage to have any hope of winning the West, as Utah was 17-24 on the road during the regular season last year and equally inconsistent in the playoffs. This could be this unit’s last shot, as Boozer has been rumored to opt out of his contract and head to Miami next year.

SHOULD MAKE PLAYOFFS

Dallas Mavericks (+1200 to win West/+2300 to win NBA title): The title window on the Mavs appears closed, although you know Mark Cuban will make any deal to try and get this team back to the Finals. Perhaps new coach Rick Carlisle can get the Mavericks to play defense, but it looks like point guard Jason Kidd’s best days are behind him.

Phoenix Suns (+1100 to win West/+2000 to win NBA title): Those odds to win the West and the NBA crown seem rather generous to Phoenix, which appears headed down, not up. The Shaq experiment didn’t work last year, and he and Steve Nash are one year closer to retirement. For sure this team won’t be as fun to watch under new coach Terry Porter. If Phoenix didn’t have Amare Stoudemire, it would be lottery-bound.

Portland Trail Blazers (+1300 to win West/+2200 to win NBA title): Easily the most intriguing team in the league, and no one has the type of young talent as Portland. In fact, the Blazers could easily end up with the top two finishers in this year’s rookie of the year voting in Greg Oden, who’s back from his knee surgery, and Spanish import Rudy Fernandez. This team is rising fast.

BETTER LUCK NEXT YEAR

Denver Nuggets (+2500 to win West): This club is ready to implode. Denver wants to trade Allen Iverson, but no one wants him. And the Nuggets gave away their best defensive player in Marcus Camby. It will be a long year.

Golden State Warriors (+5000 to win West): Coming into last season, the Warriors appeared to be a club on the rise. Not anymore. Baron Davis is in Los Angeles, and his replacement and the team’s current best player, Monta Ellis, was suspended for 30 games for lying about his moped accident.

L.A. Clippers (+5000 to win West): They lured Elton Brand’s buddy in Baron Davis and might have made some noise – if only Brand hadn’t then jumped to Philly. The Clips also lost Corey Maggette to Golden State but did steal Marcus Camby, who already is hurting. Two steps forward, two steps back. Still mediocre.

Minnesota Timberwolves (+8000 to win West): These team might be moving in the right direction with a star in the making in Al Jefferson and a good-looking rookie in Kevin Love. Adding Mike Miller in the trade for Love should make the T-Pups competitive most nights.

Sacramento Kings (+10000 to win West): Kevin Marin is the best player you might not have heard of. Other than that, there’s not a star-caliber player on this team now that Ron Artest has been traded to Houston. It will be a few years, at a minimum, before the Kings are factors again.

Oklahoma City Thunder (+10000 to win West): The former Sonics should score with Kevin Durant, Jeff Green and rookie Russell Westbrook. But they won’t defend much – or win much. At least they will play in front of sellouts in OKC.

Memphis Grizzlies (+10000 to win West): Playing in the West probably will land the Grizzlies with the NBA’s worst record this year – just beating out the Knicks or Nets. Rudy Gay is a good player, Memphis has a plethora of point guards and O.J. Mayo could average 20 his rookie year. But there are plenty of holes.