NBA Preview

Here is a comprehensive NBA preview written by the Red Headed Scoring Machine , Chris Craxton.

Atlanta: Not signing either of the Josh's (Childress & Smith) to extensions was questionable. However Atlanta will have good salary cap flexibility next summer and is probably hoping to make a big splash. Team will again be athletic and fun, but with no significant additions can be counted on to be amongst the bottom third of the league again.

Boston: Boston's got the best big three in the league. Period. By a huge margin. All of these guys have been, and still are, all-star caliber players. But Rondo? Rondo?? Are you serious?? Danny Ainge has done a good job of making this team look good enough but thats about it. Does anyone these days still think you can win a championship with zero depth? Not only that but Boston has pretty much no young, developing talent or salary cap flexibility for the future (which looks bleak in the post-Garnett era). Way to go Danny, way to go.

Charlotte: Another young, interesting team. Interesting not from the point of view that they'll shake things up this year (because they won't) but because they will continue to remain a bottom feeder for yet another year. And Okafor turning down $13 million a season? Are you kidding me?

Chicago: Good. Really good. Great young solid core with Ben Wallace anchoring them down low. One beef: Joakim Noah?? They needed low post scoring and they got the reincarnation of Anderson Verajao (seriously, check out the hair). Kid's gonna have to prove himself. Look for the Windy City to hit the 50-win plateau this season.

Cleveland: Ok so no one gave a damn about Pavlovic and Verajao until they refused to sign and everyone suddenly noticed that Cleveland had no one else. Let's face it, this team is LeBron James. The Cavs are gonna have to put some more talent around the King if they expect to repeat last season's success, let alone win it all.

Dallas: What can I say about this team? Dirk is unstoppable (unless you're Stephen Jackson and Don Nelson of course). They are a winning machine. They added Eddie Jones and Juwan Howard which will give a boost to their bench and provide a great veteran presence. Will be ridiculously good again, but the question remains: Can Dirk lead them to the Championship?

Denver: My man Eddie Johnson over at HoopsHype says he doesn't think the team meshes well and may be prone to a few losing streaks here and there. I agree. However their talent is undeniable. The health and productivity of the front line may very well determine their season. This team will be a huge question mark throughout the season and a dangerous dark-horse come playoff time.

Detroit: Rasheed Wallace needs to shut his mouth. I know he likes to try and rev up the Pistons by running his mouth, but there is no conspiracy. LeBron was out of this world, get over it. Detroit will be good again, no doubt there, but they need C-Webb back. I know he's got zero hops and isn't what he used to be, but he is still big, still a great passer and still a great shooter. They'll make their run.

Golden State: This team is completely insane. But you know teams are afraid of them either because of what they did to the Mavericks or because you know Stephen Jackson is packing heat. To be honest I think they'll be good if they can remain focused. Good enough to scare the Mavericks anyways.

Houston: Would you want to guard Yao or McGrady? Me neither. And so far, they both look good. I think if Rick Adelman can get Yao and McGrady in the same chapter (never mind on the same page) these guys will do big things. Real big. As in contenders for the title big. Oh and Steve Francis... seriously??

Indiana: I've heard nothing about them all summer (save Jermaine O'Neal trade rumors) and that should continue into the season.

Clippers: Elton Brand is the heart and soul of this team. And now that he is gone for the season, Clipper fans can only hope that there are other teams out there worse than theirs.

Lakers: I feel sorry for every guy on their roster not named 'Kobe Bryant'. Kobe has the unique ability to make it all about Kobe. And when it's not all about Kobe, it's all about Kobe. The guy is the most talented basketball player on the planet and all he has succeeded in doing is alienating everyone on his team (especially the poor Bynum kid). The Lakers are in a tough spot whether they trade him or not unless they magically convince someone to give up their entire team. If I'm Mitch Kupchak I'm trying to get a hold of Danny Ainge right now... no wait... he already traded his team.

Memphis: I root for the Grizzlies only because they used to be Vancouver's team. And because I like Pau Gasol. Conley is going to be good and Navarro is best buddies with Gasol, two good moves in the off-season. They should be better than last year but unfortunately not as good as the Beasts of the West.

Miami: Let's have a look at Shaq's stat line from the first game of the season: 9 points, 7 boards, 5 fouls and 4 turnovers. I'm not gonna tell you that Shaq's done, because he's not. But with Wade out and Shaq still working himself into game shape the Heat are going to have a big hole to dig themselves out of in the second half of the season.

Milwaukee: Honestly I don't think anyone cares about the Bucks. They're not good enough or bad enough to be talked about. The most interesting thing about their season will be Yi. Will he dunk over Yao this season? If he does, I'm buying the rights to that poster and setting up shop in China.

Minnesota: The KG era was over. They had to face it. And they did, by getting almost an entire team of youngsters for him. But make no mistake, they will be terrible.

New Jersey: Teams should be scared. Very scared. With a healthy Jefferson, Vince Carter being Vince Carter, Nenad Krstic back and a developing Marcus Williams the Nets have the talent to say to Jason Kidd, “Ok Jason, here's some guys... go make us really good.” Scary thing is, with a healthy Jason Kidd, he'd do it.

New Orleans: With Chris Paul at the helm this team could do very well. They've got talent. If they can stay healthy and gel as a team well probably see them in the playoffs. The problem again being they are not one of the Beasts of the West and will likely fall in the first round in indeed they do make the post-season.

New York: New York is fun to talk about. It's like Isiah thought to himself, “Hmmm how can we possibly get more delinquent. Oh I know, lets get Zach Randolph!” Can Eddy Curry and Zack Randolph really co-exist? If they could they'd have the scariest front line since the Twin Towers. But with so much talent MSG is not going to be a good place to be when they start to lose.

Orlando: Intriguing. Rashard Lewis is a phenomenal talent. Dwight Howard is a beast. But do they really have what it takes? Something tells me they're one more significant addition and a few years away from being true contenders.

Philadelphia: People are giving Philly zero love. But let me tell you something, this team will be in every game. They'll lose every game, but they'll hang around long enough to give Philly fans hope for next year. Willie Green is sick and Kyle Korver might be the next Reggie Miller in terms of shooting off screens. If they could just get some more help down low.

Phoenix: Steve Nash. Period.

Portland: Portland got screwed. Could you imagine if next years draft had a Tim Duncan, LeBron James or Jason Kidd in it? Oden's out for the season and Brandon Roy is probably still hampered by that heel. Do you think they might just do badly enough to land another top pick? Also: I think with Oden out for the season they should be trying to get Bill Walton out of retirement. It has been too long.

Sacramento: Dear Geoff Petrie: Please trade Ron Artest to the Knicks. Pretty please?

San Antonio: San Antonio didn't get any younger this season. Oh wait a minute, I forgot I was talking about the Spurs. No one cares if they got any younger. Tim Duncan is a championship-winning machine. It's what he does. Some people are born to be doctors or make delicious donuts. Tim Duncan wins championships. Expect him to add another this season. Oh and a note to the NBA: This year when Tony Parker scores 25 a game in the finals remember it's because of Tim Duncan.

Seattle: Errr... Oklahoma? The Sonics look to be moving out of town and who can blame them? No one in Seattle really tried to get this arena deal done. Unfortunately for the Sonics regardless of what city they're in they'll still be terrible.

Toronto: As my man RK commented, Toronto may have the best bench in the league. Why is this? Chemistry. These guys are all ball players. They only care about winning, not their stats. Bargnani was sick in his sophomore debut putting up 20 points in 22 minutes. These guys are talented and deep and will get more dangerous as the season wears on. Also: Can we please start calling Jose Calderon the 'Spanish Bulldog'?

Utah: Very impressive last year and with no significant changes (although D-Fish was a hero in last years playoffs) we should see another strong outing from this ball club. Andre Kirilenko just needs to shut up and play. He had a bad year last year and Jerry Sloan being the hard ass that he is benched him. So stop crying, get over it and start playing like you mean it.

Washington: Did you know that DeShawn Stevenson's grills reads 'Poppa Smurf'? Good stuff. Gilbert Arenas is ridiculous and they have a good team. Very dangerous offensively but they still need more size and toughness down low. Also: YouTube 'Gilbert Arenas vs. DeShawn Stevenson'. I think Poppa Smurf coulda had him.