Y-San Antonio Spurs 52-30
Coming into this season you have to wonder if the sting of last season’s loss in the NBA Finals is still with the San Antonio Spurs. In Game 6 of the 2013 NBA Finals, the Spurs were a few precious seconds away from winning their fifth NBA Championship before things fell apart against the Miami Heat. The Spurs would go on to lose the series in seven games and you wonder if this veteran team has another championship run in them?
Veteran power forward Tim Duncan is 37-years of age and he is entering his 17th year in the NBA (all with the Spurs). Shooting guard Manu Ginobili is 36-years old and injuries are starting to take their toll on him. Point guard Tony Parker is 31-years old and he seen a slew of injuries recently hinder his play. Duncan, Ginobili, and Parker have won three NBA Championships together and Spurs head coach Gregg Popovich will rely on them once again this season.
Last season the Spurs were the most unselfish team in the NBA as they led the league in assists per game with 25.1. Popovich preaches team basketball and last season the Spurs also had six players average double-digits in points as they were led by Parker who averaged 20.3 per game.
The Spurs will once again be formidable in the Western Conference due to their “team first” mentality and the fact that people continue to write them off.
In just two seasons in the NBA, Spurs small forward Kawhi Leonard is emerging as a terrific wing player in their system. Aside from his athleticism on the fast break, Leonard has averaged 1.5 steals per game for his NBA career. Power forward Tiago Splitter emerged as another scoring option for the Spurs last season with a 10.3 points per game and more will be expected from him this season; especially since he signed a four-year, $36 million deal to remain in San Antonio over the summer.
The Spurs may not jump off of the page and excite the average basketball fan, but come next May they will once again be gearing up for another deep playoff run.
X-Memphis Grizzlies 51-31
Last season was all about rolling with the punches for the Memphis Grizzlies. In a salary cutting move, the Grizzlies made a mid-season trade that sent their leading scorer in small forward Rudy Gay to the Toronto Raptors. The Grizzlies were undaunted as they advanced to the Western Conference Finals for the first time in franchise history. The Grizzlies success wasn’t enough to persuade the team to retain Lionel Hollins as their head coach 
in spite of the fact that the team’s winning percentage increased in each of his four full seasons in Memphis. Grizzlies general manager Chris Wallace appointed David Joerger as the new head coach in Memphis after six seasons on the team’s bench as an assistant coach.
The Grizzlies still have one of the best combinations on the interior with power forward Zach Randolph and center Marc Gasol. Randolph and Gasol combined to average 29.5 points and 19.0 rebounds per game last season as both players can explode on any given night for 25 points and 15 boards on their own.
For the Grizzlies to once again be a threat in the Western Conference they will seek contributions from their backcourt. Point guard Mike Conley has improved his scoring in each of his six NBA seasons as he looks to emerge with the top point guards in the Western Conference. Former University of Florida shooting guard Nick Calathes spurned the NBA back in 2009 in favor of playing in Europe. The Dallas Mavericks drafted Calathes back in 2009 and traded his draft rights this past summer to the Grizzlies. Calathes comes to Memphis as the reigning Eurocup MVP and he will add more depth to an already deep basketball team.
From 2003-2008, small forward Mike Miller enjoyed a good career with the Grizzlies which was highlighted by him earning the NBA’s Sixth Man of The Year Award in 2006. Miller now returns to the Grizzlies after winning two NBA Championships with the Miami Heat. The Heat used their amnesty clause on Miller and his aching feet. Miller is a career 40 percent shooter from three-point range and the Grizzlies are anticipating him fitting in with this team while bringing championship experience.
Small forward Tayshaun Prince came to the Grizzlies last season in the deal that sent Gay to Toronto. Prince has championship experience from winning an NBA Championship with the Detroit Pistons in 2004 and at 6′-9″, he is another long defender on a team that only surrendered 89.3 points per game last season which was the lowest in the NBA.
In spite of the coaching change in Memphis this will once again be a tough team when the NBA Playoffs roll around.
X-Houston Rockets 49-33
The Houston Rockets have spent the past few seasons positioning themselves for what they did last summer. In 2012, the Rockets had a plethora of draft picks. Rockets general manager Daryl Morey was able to use some of those picks to acquire shooting guard James Harden from the Oklahoma City Thunder. With Harden’s presence on the roster, it allowed Morey and Rockets head coach Kevin McHale to seal the deal in signing free-agent center Dwight Howard to a four-year, $88 million deal last summer. The combination of Harden and Howard give the Rockets a duo that they are hopeful will produce the team’s first NBA Championship since 1995.
It will be extremely important to see how Howard and Rockets center Omer Asik can co-exist. In his first season in Houston, Asik averaged 11.7 rebounds per game which was third in the NBA. As a member of the Los Angeles Lakers last season, Howard averaged 12.4 rebounds per game which led the NBA. Asik wasn’t too pleased when Howard signed with the Rockets, but Morey and McHale expect both players to be on the court together.
Howard’s presence along on the interior along with Harden’s shooting should allow point guard Jeremy Lin to see an improvement in his production. Lin is getting acclimated to the spotlight as a starting point guard in the NBA and he should become a better penetrator this season.
The presence of Howard and Harden should also benefit forward Chandler Parsons who averaged 15.5 points per game last season as he is becoming a good scorer.
This is the first time in the past several seasons that Howard is playing for a team that he actually wants to play for and the Rockets should benefit as he will be focused and healthy.
Dallas Mavericks 42-40
Since winning the NBA Championship in 2011, the Dallas Mavericks have been treading water which doesn’t sit well with their owner Mark Cuban. After purchasing the Mavericks in 1999 it was a long trip to the top of the mountain for Cuban and he is hopeful that it doesn’t take that long to get back; but this is an aging team. Forward Dirk Nowitzki has been slowed by a bothersome knee as he averaged less that 20 points per game last season for the first time since the 1999-2000 NBA season, but the 2007 NBA MVP is hopeful to be healthy for the long haul this season.
After losing out on current Brooklyn Nets point guard Deron Williams on the free agency market in 2012, Cuban set his sights on shooting guard Monta Ellis to give this team another impact player. Ellis’ eight-year NBA career has seen him average 19.4 points per game with the Golden State Warriors and Milwaukee Bucks. Ellis has always had the mentality of a scorer, but can he co-exist with Nowitzki?
The Mavericks point guards are currently a mash unit. Point guard Devin Harris returns to the Mavericks after stints with the New Jersey Nets, Utah Jazz, and Atlanta Hawks, but he is currently sidelined with a toe injury. Rookie point guard Shane Larkin suffered a broken ankle this past summer that still has him out of action. The Mavericks are hopeful that the 2012-2013 Atlantic Coast Conference Co-Player of The Year in Larkin can step in and have an impact. If Larkin’s last name sounds familiar to sports fans it is because he is the son of Major League Baseball Hall of Fame shortstop Barry Larkin.
For Mavericks head coach Rick Carlisle he will have to rely on the “what ifs” for the upcoming season. Along with Nowitzki, Harris, and Larkin, you wonder if forwards Shawn Marion and Vince Carter can hold up for the riggers of an 82-game season as they are both in their mid-30s? Cuban and Carlisle are resourceful and they will find a way to put a playoff contending team on the floor this season in Dallas.
New Orleans Pelicans 42-40
After being on life support for several seasons in the French Quarter, the New Orleans Pelicans now have life. A few years ago the Pelicans needed an owner that was going to keep the team in New Orleans. Tom Benson who owns the New Orleans Saints stepped in and purchased the Pelicans. Benson then decided that it was time for the team to change its name as they are no longer referred to as the Hornets. Now with a name change and an owner with deep pockets, the Pelicans appear to be ready to compete in the Western Conference.
The Pelicans only won 27 games last season under their head coach Monty Williams, but they have seen a huge roster overhaul heading into this season.
After drafting center Nerlens Noel in the first round of last summer’s NBA Draft, Pelicans general manager Dell Demps traded him to the Philadelphia 76ers for point guard Jrue Holiday. Last season with the Sixers, Holiday averaged 17.7 points along with 8.0 assists as he earned his first NBA All-Star Game appearance. After having a fallout with the front office of the Sacramento Kings, guard Tyreke Evans was shipped to New Orleans. Evans was named the NBA’s Rookie of The Year in 2010, but in each year since then his productions has dipped which includes him missing time to injury and more time running his mouth. Now with the Pelicans, Evans is expected to come off of the bench and if he is focused he’ll be a logical candidate to win the NBA’s Sixth Man of The Year Award.
On the subject of injuries, Demps and Williams are hopeful for a healthy Eric Gordon at shooting guard this season. In his five-year NBA career, Gordon has never played all 82 games in the regular season. Gordon is a proven scoring threat in the NBA, but he must remain in the lineup.
As a rookie last season, center Anthony Davis averaged 13.5 points, 8.2 rebounds, and 1.7 blocks per game. After being the first pick of the 2012 NBA Draft, Davis has all of the intangibles to be a defensive menace. Davis has a nose for the basket on offense as well as he is a rare type of player that does not require a play to be called for him in order to be effective.
At 6′-9″, forward Ryan Anderson adds another perimeter scoring threat to this team as he will benefit from the presence of Davis and forward Al-Farouq Aminu in the frontcourt. Guard Austin Rivers will come off of the bench along with Evans to provide depth. The combination of Rivers and Evans could be a starting backcourt for most NBA teams, but that isn’t the case in New Orleans.
With new players on board for the Pelicans, it will take some time for everyone to get on the same, but by the spring the spirit of basketball should be alive and well in the French Quarter.
Source: Basketball-reference.com
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