As we approach the NBA season, I wanted to dive into teams I like and don’t like, just like I did last year, when I told you the Memphis Grizzlies would be a disappointment, yikes. Now the name of this blog should probably be teams that will exceed expectations and teams that will disappoint but that is not as catchy as like and don’t like. As a result of that, here are 3 teams I like and 3 teams I don’t like.
One team I like: Minnesota Timberwolves
I talked at length about the Wolves last week so go check that out for a deep dive on the Timberwolves. However, I just wanted to reiterate just how good I think the Wolves should be. I would go as far as to say I would not be surprised if the chips fall correctly, if the Wolves ended up in the Conference Finals.
One team I don’t like: Charlotte Hornets
The Hornets stunk last season and now they lost Miles Bridges and could not replace him. Steve Clifford returns as head coach after the team fired James Borrego and Kenny Atkinson spurned them at the last minute. LaMelo Ball is good but I am not sold on him as a franchise player, Gordon Hayward is hurt way too often and has a good awful contract, and Terry Rozier is a good player but not a needle mover in terms of what Charlotte is. They do not have a guy, besides Ball, who pops off the page on the roster. They don’t have many talented bigs, though Mark Williams, the 15th pick in the draft, is exciting. Hayward, Kelly Oubre Jr., and Cody Martin need to play bigger roles as the Miles Bridges legal situation is sorted out and could be needed beyond that as well. The guard play is good but not that good as Ball and Rozier are fun and talented players but are not amongst the top backcourts in the NBA. The depth simply is not there and after getting blown out in the Play-In Tournament in back to back seasons, it could be a struggle for the Hornets just to get back to that point.
One team I like: New Orleans Pelicans
The West is loaded and though I am not sold on the Pelicans being one of the main players to make a dent in the playoffs much less win the conference, I really like this Pels team. Last season after starting 1-12, the Pelicans finished out the last 69 games (nice) at 35-34. Head coach Willie Green had his team buy-in and they battled their way into the playoffs, even though their best player (Zion Williamson) was out for the entire season. After acquiring C.J. McCollum at last year's deadline, the Pelicans made the playoffs, being eliminated by the 64 win Suns in 6 games that were way tougher on Phoenix than what was expected. This year they get Zion back, McCollum is there for a full season, and they have some momentum coming off of the end of last season. Last season’s rookies, Herb Jones, Jose Alverado, and Trey Murphy should continue to improve while they also add the 8th pick in the draft, Dyson Daniels. Finally, Brandon Ingram should continue to progress into a legit star in the league. The Pelicans are dangerous and a team that could surprise some people this season.
One team I don’t like: Portland Trail Blazers
I liked what Portland did this summer, Jerami Grant and Gary Payton II are good additions while they kept the guys they needed to keep… but then I looked at the roster and was less than impressed. Their starting 5 of Damian Lillard, Anfernee Simons, Josh Hart, Jerami Grant, and Jusuf Nurkic is good, nothing special though, and the bench of Gary Payton II, Nassir Little, 7th overall pick Shaedon Sharpe, and Summer League Championship MVP Trendon Watford is okay (they also have Justise Winslow on the roster but I am not sure he cracks the rotation). They got better this summer, reshaped what was an expired roster, but I do not think this is a playoff team. The West is loaded with really good teams and the Blazers are not really good, they are good but not as good as the likes of the Warriors, Clippers, Suns, Mavericks, Grizzlies, Nuggets, and the previously talked about Timberwolves and Pelicans. This team is mediocre and one that is in the same spot they were before the restructuring of the roster, stuck in the middle without a sense of direction.
One team I like: Sacramento Kings
There was not a 3rd team that jumped off of the page at me for a team I liked so I checked the over under win projections and noticed the Sacramento Kings are at 32.5 while the Portland Trail Blazers are at 40.5. No way is Portland 8 games better than Sacramento, I refuse to believe that. De’Aaron Fox and Domantas Sabonis make up a really good duo, Keegan Murray just won Summer League MVP, and guys like Kevin Hueter, Harrison Barnes, Malik Monk, Davion Mitchell, Richaun Holmes, and Chimezie Metu are all good NBA players who can make an impact for Sacramento in their respective roles. Mike Brown should have them play better defense than what they have been playing and I think there is a really good chance the ‘Kangz’ will be better than the Blazers, and fully expect me to talk myself into that take. No, this team isn’t a threat to do much of anything in the West playoffs but they are better than 32.5 wins.
One team I don’t like: Los Angeles Lakers
Please note that this summary is assuming no Russell Westbrook trade is made and shall not be held against me if he is. However, assuming he is not traded, this roster is very different and very similar to last season’s roster at the same time. The differences are obvious, the Lakers got younger, more athletic, and tougher in the offseason with additions like Lonnie Walker IV, Patrick Beverly, and Thomas Bryant. The similarities are not clear when you look at a roster sheet but they are so clear when you compare it to the 2019-20 championship Lakers. That team was loaded with 3 and D players, around LeBron James and Anthony Davis. For example, Kyle Kuzma, Alex Caruso, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, and Danny Green. Even Rajon Rondo shot 40% from 3 on 3.1 attempts per game. This team has no shooting on it, Russell Westbrook, Dennis Schroder, Lonnie Walker IV, and Troy Brown Jr. are all on this roster and are not going to hit their open 3’s. This forces Anthony Davis to play the 5 more but he usually gets hurt when he needs to play extended minutes at center in the regular season. The Russell Westbrook experiment has been a disaster and one that no one should expect to change. LeBron only has so many years left playing at this level and the Lakers continue to waste them. This roster is a disaster and even if the team does trade Russ, I do not see a world where the Lakers can reasonably expect to compete for a championship.
The NBA season is a couple of weeks away and it cannot get here soon enough.
NOTE: As I wrote this Bojan Bogdanovic was traded to the Detroit Pistons for Kelly Olynyk and Saben Lee. I love this trade for the Pistons, it puts them in a spot where they can actually expect to make a push at the Play-In Tournament in the Eastern Conference. Bogdanovic adds some shooting at the 4 next to Cade Cunningham and Jaden Ivey while also opening more cap space for next season. For the Jazz I would have liked to at least have gotten a 2nd but they did not take on any long term money and acquired a starting center in Olynyk, something they needed. This trade also tells me that the Lakers did not put both 2027 and 2029 firsts on the table with Russell Westbrook for a package of Bogdanovic, Mike Conley, and Rudy Gay… which is telling about what the Lakers think of their team.
NOTE 2: I saw the Ime Udoka news but am not mentally prepared to write about it yet… you should be able to expect that next week.
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