The Clippers can't sign-and-trade for Koufas; who would they be trading to the Grizzlies to make it worth their while? Outside of Paul and Griffin, all they have is roster flotsam and jetsam. Despite that, I still think the Clippers will be better than Portland assuming Portland does lose Aldridge. That said, the Lakers still project to be a worse team, IMO, as does Sacramento. Acquiring Rondo isn't a good thing; I was wrong about him when he first entered the league, but I came around and thought he might even be a Hall of Fame caliber point guard...until the injury cut his peak and prime short. He's been declining every year since then. He has a lot to prove and no longer has the ability to prove it. Plus, Sacramento is far and away the worst-run franchise in basketball. They destroyed their own season last year by firing Malone who actually had Boogie playing well and their front office operations have been borderline arson ever since; I have little doubt they'll find more ways to suicide their franchise. The Timberwolves are pretty high variance. I like Karl-Anthony Towns, I like Wiggins and I like Rubio, but Rubio probably isn't even money to play a full season and has to do more than play a high assist/high turnover game to be a great player, Wiggins is extremely talented but was largely a low-efficiency gunner last season and Towns is a rookie--it's the very rare rookie that anchors a team as a foundational star. I could see a scenario where everything snaps together for those guys, but I could also see Rubio being hurt again, Towns struggling as a rookie and Wiggins still not yet becoming an elite scorer. All in all, I doubt Portland will have the worst record in the West, but it's not impossible. This is one of the most talented conferences I can ever remember seeing, so if they are the worst, it won't be the same level of indictment that it might have been in other years.
Because we aren't getting LeBron or Gasol and nobody else left on the market is worth getting excited about? At this point, would you want the team to over-pay for somebody like Kanter or Smith? At this point I sure HOPE they are done - because the alternative screws us for the next 4 years!
on paper are we the preseason powerhouse predicted last fall ? no. but as injuries devastated our season last year, key injuries to other western conference preseason powerhouses could just as easily turn playoff teams to lottery bound hopefuls. the clips paul and griffen have missed significant time in the past and koufos wont make anyone think he is going to be the DPOY, Duncan's knees and parker's ankles could torepedo finals aspirations, boggut has only managed to play in 60=games twice in the last 7 seasons and curry's ankles looked chronic just 2 years ago. anthony davis and jarue holiday and eric Gordon are long odds to all play 70+ games. count out the blazers at your own peril =
I trust Neil and I trust Lillard. I think all you negative prognosticators are going to be eating a bit of crow. Not saying we even make the playoffs, but this team will not be the worst, not even close. 36-40 wins with just miner Olshey adjustments, and a big trade or signing could propel us up sharply.
Worst possible scenario is we over achieve and end up bottom part of playoffs or slightly below. ONLY way to improve our team is through the draft! We obviously can't sign free agents and haven't been able to do a lopsided trade. Frustrating to be rebuilding again but it's what we need to do or we'll have years of being mediocre. Injuries have just decimated this franchise
Or we need a couple players out of Noah, Ed, Al, Crabbe, Meyers, CJ, Mason or Pat to prove to be up and coming stars in the NBA. I think we have some damn nice young talent and a coach that's able to get the most of of his players.
This. The draft is a crapshoot. Who is to say we don't already have a player as young and talented on the roster as we are likely to pick up in the lottery at the end of the year. Being crap does not guarantee you get better. Oden. Derrick Williams. No guarantees
We still have an all-star and a lot of young guys who could step up. And it's not like this is our final roster. I don't think we're going to go into the season with about $28m in cap space... That said, Aldridge please come back.
Building a winner isn't doesn't require either drafting in the top-five or else landing a superstar in free agency. You can also build by smart drafting wherever you are in the draft and signing or trading for good non-star players. The Warriors, for example, aren't built around a top-five pick of their own (Bogut and Livingston were technically top-five picks, but the Warriors traded for them after injuries had already robbed them of a lot of their scoring game--they weren't superstars or anything of the sort when the Warriors acquired them). Curry was a #7 pick, as was Harrison Barnes. Klay Thompson was a #11 pick. Green was a second-round pick. Iguodala and Livingston were smart signings, the types that even Portland could conceivably make. Granted, those are still three lottery picks, but the point remains that players are overlooked every year--making the right pick is more important than where you select. Obviously, selecting higher gives you a wider pool, but I don't think it's at all necessary to tank in order to win, even for a non-destination franchise like the Blazers.
The Jazz will be better this season Minnesota will also be better OKC will be fighting for the division title Denver is gonna suck, maybe as bas as us Sac is gonna suck Lakers are gonna be horrible Clippers will drop some Houston is about the same Memphis a little better maybe Dallas is not any better San Antonio with Aldridge will be lethal The suns will be better if they get Aldridge, still will have trouble making the playoffs New Orleans will be better Golden State won't change much Its gonna be tuff to make the playoffs And yes I believe we have the record
Agreed. Portland could with a bit of luck could have a breakout player on the roster already. Their profile isn't significantly different - Lillard #6 Aminu #8 Vonleh #9 McCollum #10 Leonard #11 Henderson #12 Davis #13 Plumlee #22 Lot of lottery picks right there. Also...looks like we need a #7 for a super-straight!
We most definitely arent the worst, that would be the Lakers. Id have to do a rundown but id say were comfortably in the bottom 3.
