2013-2014 Pacific Division Projections

The Los Angeles Clippers are preparing to embark on something that they have been unable to achieve since they called Buffalo, New York home. The Clippers have their sights set on their third consecutive playoff appearance, but more importantly their first NBA Championship. Last season the Clippers won a franchise best 56 games in the regular season, but they were unable to advance past the first round of the NBA Playoffs. After three seasons in the which team’s win total increased every year under his watch, Vinny Del Negro was fired as head coach of the Clippers and he was replaced by Doc Rivers. Rivers brings a championship pedigree to Los Angeles as he led the Boston Celtics to the NBA Championship in 2008.

Rivers first order of business when he arrived in Los Angeles this past summer was to get on the same page with Clippers point guard Chris Paul. Paul had the option to leave L.A. as a free agent, but he signed a five-year, $107 million deal to remain with the Clippers once Rivers was brought on board. Rivers expects plenty from his point guards and Paul should be up for the challenge in leading this basketball team.

Rivers is looking to implement more of a half-court offense which will put to rest the Clippers reputation of “Lob City”. Paul will consistently find power forward Blake Griffin and center DeAndre Jordan, but dunking alone will not win a championship. Griffin shot nearly 54 percent from the floor, but he must continue to refine his mid-range jump shot as he looks to compliment his point guard in Paul.

Clippers general manager Gary Sacks has given Rivers a deep bench to work with. Point guard Eric Bledsoe was traded to the Phoenix Suns this past summer in exchange for veteran swingman Jared Dudley. In that same trade the Clippers acquired shooting guard J.J. Redick from the Milwaukee Bucks who is a career 43 percent shooter from beyond the three-point arc. Sacks also signed point guard Darren Collison to be Paul’s backup. Collison is a burner in the open court with terrific ball handling skills. Shooting guard Jamal Crawford and small forward Matt Barnes will both have huge roles in the Clippers success this season. Crawford won the NBA’s Sixth Man of The Year Award in 2010 as he is instant offense off of the bench while Barnes has a reputation in the NBA of a tough defender on the wings.

The pieces are in place and a deep playoff trip is expected this season from the Clippers. 

The Golden State Warriors made a drastic leap in their second season under head coach Mark Jackson. For only the second time since 1991, the Warriors advanced to second round of the NBA Playoffs last season and heading into this campaign the expectations for this team have gone through the roof.

Last season the Warriors averaged 101.2 points per game which was 7th in the NBA and they will once again have a high-powered attack. Point guard Steph Curry averaged 22.9 points per game last season and he has quickly developed a reputation as instant offense in the NBA. The Warriors also have two emerging stars in the form of shooting guard Klay Thompson and small forward Harrison Barnes. 

The Warriors may have the most athletic starting five in the NBA this season as the team signed forward Andre Iguodala this off-season. For his career Iguodala has averaged 15.1 points, 5.8 rebounds, and 4.9 assists per game and he is a solid defender on the perimeter. The Warriors still have their reliable power forward in David Lee. In his three seasons with Golden State, Lee has averaged 18.2 points and 10.3 rebounds per game while giving the Warriors a player in the paint that is not afraid to mix it up.

Jackson is hopeful that this is the season in which center Andrew Bogut can remain healthy. With the exception of his rookie season Bogut has never appeared in all 82 regular season games as his presence is needed due to his terrific passing skills for a big man and his ability to hit the mid-range jumper.

More than likely Barnes will be coming off of the bench for the Warriors, but he won’t be the only spark plug subbing in for Golden State. Steph Curry’s younger brother Seth is on the Warriors roster and during his collegiate career at Duke University he developed a reputation as a sharp shooter from three-point range which will only improve this Golden State team that led the NBA last season in three-point shooting percentage at 40 percent per game. 

With reserves in the frontcourt consisting of forward Draymond Green and Marreesse Speights along with centers Jermaine O’Neal and Festus Ezili this is the deepest and most talented Warriors team that we have seen in a long time.

The term mediocre and the Los Angeles Lakers are not commonly used in the same breath, but that is the harsh reality that the Lakers are facing this season. The Lakers have not failed to qualify for the NBA Playoffs since the 2004-2005 season, but could that be the case this season?

The Lakers experienced something this off-season that they are unaccustomed to which was having an NBA superstar turn them down. After one season with the Lakers, seven-time NBA All-Star center Dwight Howard left as a free agent to sign with the Houston Rockets. 

Shooting guard Kobe Bryant suffered a ruptured Achilles tendon late last season which was expected to keep him out of action until at least this December, but Bryant is determined to get back on the basketball court for the Lakers sooner rather than later. Bryant is 35-years old with a ton of mileage on his legs, but he has been one of the best in the NBA as far as conditioning himself so it will be interesting to see if he can beat the odds against him to return to his All-Star caliber form.

Point guard Steve Nash will turn 40 in February and his production is declining. Nash only appeared in 50 games last season and he failed to average at least 9 assists per game for a season since the first time since the 2003-2004 season when he was a member of the Dallas Mavericks.

Last season Lakers power forward Pau Gasol only averaged 13.7 points and 8.6 rebounds per game which was the lowest total in both categories for his entire 13-year NBA career. Gasol was unable to blend on the interior with Howard while adjusting to Lakers head coach Mike D’Antoni’s system. Now Gasol will be able to roam the interior by himself and his productivity should improve.

D’Antoni has a reputation for “run-and-gun” basketball, but he doesn’t have the team for it this season with older players in Gasol, Bryant, and Nash. Defensively the Lakers gave up 101 points per game last season which was 22nd in the NBA and those numbers could be worse as Howard isn’t around to protect the interior anymore.

D’Antoni and Lakers general manager Mitch Kupchak are relying on a healthy Bryant to lead this team, but that is asking too much for Bryant as he is returning from a severe injury. The Lakers are treading water heading into the season and it will only get worse.

The Sacramento Kings are once again bottom feeders in the NBA as they have failed to make the playoffs since 2006. The Kings have been surrounded by speculation of leaving the city of Sacramento, but Vivek Ranadive stepped in to purchase the team while promising that the franchise would remain in Northern California. More than anything the Kings need stability. Since the Kings parted with head coach Rick Adelman in 2006, they have had six head coaches with a seventh in Michael Malone coming on board for the upcoming season. Malone will be charged w
ith changing the culture for a team in the Kings that has finished no better that fourth in the Pacific Division since 2006.

For the Kings to have success in the upcoming season it will start with center DeMarcus Cousins. Cousins averaged 17.1 points along with 9.9 rebounds per game last season, but there is still the immaturity factor that is plaguing him as he is only 23-years old and he needs to become fully focused on the game of basketball.

The Kings are hopeful that rookie guard Ben McLemore will be as good as advertised as some people referred to him as the “steal” of last summer’s NBA Draft coming out of the University of Kansas where he averaged 16.4 points per game as a freshman. Along with guards Jimmer Fredette, Marcus Thornton, Isiah Thomas, and Greivis Vasquez, the Kings have talent in the backcourt, but it all comes down to Mr. Cousins in the paint.

It won’t be an easy start to the season for the Kings as their first three games of the year will be against playoff teams from last season in the Denver Nuggets, Los Angeles Clippers, and Golden State Warriors. For a young team like the Kings they must establish confidence and continuity early on.

Phoenix Suns 30-52

The road back to respectability has been a long one for the Phoenix Suns who have failed to make the NBA Playoffs since 2010. The Suns have tabbed former NBA shooting guard Jeff Hornacek as their head coach for this season. Hornacek spent the first six seasons of his NBA playing career with the Suns.

The Suns franchise has always been known for high scoring, fast break basketball, but they have been reduced to a sputtering vehicle lately. Last season the Suns scored 95.2 points per game which was 21st in the NBA. Hornacek will rely on his two point guards in Goran Dragic and Eric Bledsoe to set the pace in Phoenix. Dragic averaged 14.7 points and 7.4 assists per game last season for the Suns. Bledsoe was acquired this past summer from the Los Angeles Clippers where he had been the backup point guard to Chris Paul, but he has tremendous athleticism and play making ability which is something that the Suns lacked last season.

For the Suns and Hornacek they must attempt to weather the storm of what will more than likely be another long season in the rebuilding process for the Suns.