RK (LW) TEAM REC
1 (3) BULLS 56-20
The Bulls are ranked at the top spot and deservingly so. Slippage by the Spurs enabled this to happen. D-Rose is going to win the MVP Award now, but the Bulls may have peaked too soon. I don’t expect them to win the championship this season and as other teams improve, winning the championship will prove to be more difficult, despite Michael Jordan’s prediction that he expects this current Bulls team to wins 4-6 championships. That being said, after 76 games in the 2010-2011 season, the Bulls are the number ranked team in the land.
2 (2) LAKERS 55-21
The Lakers, or should I say the coasters had their 9-game win streak ended by the Nuggets, but in all honesty it really doesn’t matter because this team is very confident that they can beat the Spurs anywhere. I think having home court advantage against the Heat in the Finals might prove to be very important for the Lakers in due time.
3 (3) SPURS 58-19
What seemed like an impossible feat only a few weeks ago has become a reality for the Lakers and Bulls and that is having the best record in the league. The Spurs had a comfortable lead just a few weeks ago, but due to some nagging injuries to their star players they ended up losing 6 straight games. I still expect them to end up with the overall best record in the league, but their recent losing streak shows that they are vulnerable and this is not the time of the season to be looking vulnerable.
4 (4) HEAT 54-23
The Heat are running their offense through D-Wade down the stretch in games and it has had a positive effect. The reason this is happening has nothing to do with Wade being a better closer. Running the offense through Wade and having Lebron set picks, has two effects. First, Lebron has to leave the 3-point line and becomes an active participant. Second, James Jones, Mike Bibby or, Mike Miller are usually WIDE OPEN as a third options, which make the Heat unstoppable. Kudos to coach Spo for making James finally buy into a formula that works.
5 (6) CELTICS 53-23
The Celtics are playing better, but I am going on record to say that they will not recover from the loss of Kendrick Perkins. Kevin Garnett used to walk around like a He-Man and still pretends to, but with an injured Shaq, Garnett is nothing more than a 7-foot skinny dude. Against the Bulls and Heat, he will not be as effective as he’s been in the past, which is why I am convinced that the Heat will reach the NBA Finals. In probably 2 years from now, everyone will be talking about the Kendrick Perkins trade. First, the team knows they are not as physical, and Shaq recent hammy will certainly hurt. But even further, Perkins was beloved by the entire team, which is why the team will fall short, PERIOD!
6 (5) MAVERICKS 53-24
The Mavs are not going to beat the Lakers and from the looks of things, they are not going to beat Blazers either, so it wouldn’t surprise me to see the Mavs get booted out by the Blazers in the first round. Yes! I said it, booted out in the first round!
7 (7) THUNDER 50-26
OKC have a nice storyline going with their acquisition of Perkins and Mohammed to beef up the middle, but let’s be real, they will not defeat the Lakers in a 7-game series, point blank. Yeah they might make it interesting, but if the series goes to game 7 in L.A, Artest will shut down Durant and then what? The Lakers are going to the NBA Finals and there’s nothing the Spurs, Thunder, Mavericks or Blazer can do about it.
8 (8) MAGIC 48-29
Orlando Magic must hope Dwight Howard can average 30-15 while the team shoots forty percent or better from the 3-point line for the entire playoffs, if they expect to face the Lakers in the NBA Finals and that is just not going to happen. I am sorry Dwight, but this is not your year.
9 (9) NUGGETS 47-29
The Nuggets added another notch to their belt, yes, going into L.A and ending the Lakers 9-game win streak, but does that means the Nuggets are ready? No! As we all know, the playoffs is a totally different series, which is usually played at a slower half court pace. Unless Nene, the Nuggets center can average 25ppg and 12rpg for the entire playoffs, I don’t see how this team can defeat the Thunder and the Spurs before facing the Lakers in the Western Conference Finals. I just don’t see how.
10 (11) TRAIL BLAZERS 45-32
The Dallas Mavericks needs to be real concern, because I really think the Blazers will upset the Mavs in the first round. I think this is going to be possible for two reasons. First, losing forward Caron Butler will prove to be the deciding factor. Second, having Batum and now Wallace beating up Dirk for an entire series might prove to be too much, not to mention LaMarcus Aldridge. I think the Blazers will defeat the Mavericks in the First Round, I am sure of it.
11 (13) GRIZZLIES 44-33
I think it’s fair to say that the Rockets and the Suns will miss the playoffs and the Griz will end up with the seventh or eighth seed. The addition of Shane Battier was the best move the Griz could have made after losing Rudy Gay. I believe acquiring Battier assured the Grizzlies a playoff berth.
12 (12) HORNETS 44-33
I think the Hornets will end up with the eighth and final playoffs spot in the West, but a first round exit against the Spurs is almost certain. Losing forward David West for the rest of the season and playoffs gives the Hornets no chance against the Spurs, the team I expect them to be matched up against in the First Round.
13 (10) HAWKS 44-33
The Hawks are another one of those teams that could end up with an upset against the Magic. I think this will be Stan Van Gundy’s last season coaching the Magic if the Hawks are able to pull off this feat. The reason I think this is possible, is because the Hawks are one of the few teams in the league that can play Dwight Howard straight up. Well if you don’t double Howard, the Magic don’t get open 3s and if the Magic don’t get open 3s, Howard will have to average between 35-40 points along with 15 plus rebounds for the series and I just don’t see that happening.
14 (14) ROCKETS 41-36
Good fight, good run down the stretch, but I think we have a case of a little too late. With only a few games left, I am going to predict that the Rockets will miss the playoffs. I don’t think there is any way they wrestle the eighth seed from the Griz, however, you must commend their effort down the stretch.
15 (15) 76ERS 40-37
The Sixers have played beyond their potential and head coach Doug Collins will certainly garner some votes for Coach of the Year, but I don’t see this team upsetting the Celtics or Heat in the first round. There is no way that happens. C-Webb tends to think they may have a chance of an upset if they face the Heat, but that is just not going to happen, PERIOD!
16 (17) KNICKS 38-38
I think the Heat will have their work cut out for them facing the Knicks in the First Round and even though I don’t see the Knicks upsetting the Heat, I really expect this series to be very competitive. In the playoffs when everything slows down, the Knicks will be able to score with anyone and I believe this may pose a threat to the Heat.
17 (17) SUNS 37-39
The Suns used and abused two-time MVP Steve Nash and milked him for everything he was worth, but at the end of the day, the Suns will miss the playoffs for the first time in a long time and I don’t think it was fair to Nash. The Suns should have traded him before the deadline, but they didn’t which means no one benefited. Actually, maybe management did, but certainly not Steve Nash.
18 (20) PACERS 35-43
I expect the Pacers to end up with the eighth seed and make the playoff in the Eastern Conference. Obviously I expect them to be a first round out against the Bulls, but at least in terms of pride they will be able to say they made the playoffs. The two teams behind them, the Bobcats and the Bucks will fall short.
19 (19) WARRIORS 33-44
The Warriors have some decisions to make and they could go in three directions this offseason. First, do they keep their new head coach Keith Smart? I think that is highly doubtful. Second, do they trade Ellis or Curry? I think they would likely trade Ellis, because they might be able to get a dominant post presence to play alongside forward David Lee. Finally, do they keep both Curry and Ellis? I think this is the least likely scenario.
20 (18) JAZZ 36-41
Like I said last week, I think the Jazz will be a completely different team next season. I believe they will use the next four games and the summer as an evaluation measuring stick considering they are going to miss the playoffs this year.
21 (21) BOBCATS 32-44
I think when the Bobcats look back on this season, they will remember their 97-91 loss to the Wizards in Washington as the game that ended their playoffs hopes. The Bobcats are 2-games behind the idle Pacers with six games left which means it will take a miracle for them to make it to the playoffs.
22 (22) BUCKS 31-45
If the Bobcats chance of making the playoffs seems unlikely then the Bucks chances may be lingering around impossible with six games left and 3 games out. Brandon Jennings, the team’s main offensive option is shooting 38.7 and that is simply not going to get it done.
23 (23) CLIPPERS 30-47
The Clippers are not playoffs bound and with their lottery pick going to Cleveland, must rely on their current roster to get it done. I think they are extremely young, but in due time court emerge as the NBA’s next Oklahoma City Thunder.
24 (25) KINGS 22-54
The Kings are preparing for next season, whether in Sacramento which is highly doubtful, or Anaheim, California, which seems like their likely destination. Personally, for as large as the L.A market is, I think having three NBA teams might be just a bit too much.
25 (24) PISTONS 26-50
Rip Hamilton continues to fill up the stat sheet and enhance his farewell tour and the team seems to be okay with that. Obviously the Pistons are not going to make the playoffs this year and if Rip continues playing well, he will only enhance his trade value come next season, which will only benefit the Pistons.
26 (27) RAPTORS 21-55
The Raptors have been without their leading scorer Andrea Bargnani for 3 of their last 5 games and have posted a 1-4 record during that stretch. I think shutting him down for the remainder of the season may be the best thing to do.
27 (26) NETS 23-53
I expect the Nets to shut down Deron Williams for the remainder of the season. Word out of New Jersey is that he is scheduled to see a specialist for his hand and he should. Winning a few more games means nothing at this point, I think it is very important for management to show that they are committed to Williams at this point.
28 (28) WIZARDS 20-56
The Wizards are winners of their last two games and although they will not make the playoffs this year, the team has clearly taking a step in the right direction. The Clippers are my sleeper team for next season, but the Wizards are my sleepers for the 2012-2013 season. This team will be awesome in two years.
29 (29) TIMBERWOLVES 17-60
I think the Wolves might simply shut down Kevin Love for the remainder of the regular season. I think they were trying to play Love in hopes of not finishing with the league’s worst record, but at this point it doesn’t matter if you finish 29th or 30th, because you are still a pretty bad team
30 (30) CAVALIERS 15-61
If Love doesn’t return to the Wolves as I am expecting, the Cavaliers could sneak up and end up with the second worst record in the league. Since beating Miami, the Cavs are sporting a 3-game losing streak, but they have certainly played a lot better as of late.
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