It is currently Thursday the 8th on the United States, your opening round matchup will begin tonight at midnight, and end next Thursday at midnight.Topic: Who will win the 8th seed in the West, and why will they win the 8th seed in the West?
Well, to me it's between the Wolves and LA Clippers. I highly doubt the Rockets or Lakers will slip down to .500 like these teams will likely be around at the end of the season, so they are out. Warriors will need more time to mesh their new players, and with injuries and inconsistent play I don't see them making it. You can bring the Nuggets up, but with star players like Melo and AI, and a good supporting cast like they have, I think they will make a run before the end of the season and be a safe 7 spot. That leaves Clippers and T-Wolves.For me it's the Clippers edging out the T-Wolves. The Clippers record is a bit skewed as they haven't been healthy until about early January when one of their biggest parts, Sam Cassell, came back and started getting minutes. Since then they have been playing better basketball, despite being on a recent 3 game skid. They have everyone healthy, are a bit deeper than last year, and still have an all-star caliber player in Elton Brand. As a team, they are better than the T-Wolves, and don't have as mnay young players and new parts like the T-Wolves do. They don't rely as much on their star as the T-Wolves do their star. They have an all star in brand, and very good players in Cassell, Mobley, Livingston, and Magette. They are solid with a true center in Kaman, and good role players in Tim Thomas and Quintin Ross. This team is not really weak in any area, and unlike say the Bulls which aren't weak at any position either, have a player in Brand they can rely on to score 20-25PPG a night. Lastly, the Wolves have been on a recent skid, losing 7 of their last 10. They are still learning to mesh with each other, and are fairly thin in roster. They got a fantastic player in KG, very good players in Davis and James, a pretty good rookie in Foye...but not much else. Davis, James and Foye (being a rookie) are all inconsistent players, and James isn't a very good playmaker. This leaves KG with a massive load on his back, and being a player that rarely truly takes over a game (let alone nigh tin and night out), I just don't see this team being an above .500 team. They are not nearly as well rounded as the Clippers, and unlike the Clippers who underachieved for most of the season, this team overachieved for most of the season. Bottom line is T-Wolves don't have as much depth or talent that Clippers have, are more youthful and in a transition period right now, and rely way too much on KG. Clippers are a better overall team, playing better since they have gotten healthy, and I see them pulling away with 8th seed.
<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (GArenas @ Feb 10 2007, 12:22 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}></div><div class='quotemain'>I agree w/ everything he said new topic plz</div>There are like four different legit teams you could pick for who is going to get that 8th seed in the West. You should be able to make a case for The Clippers, T'wolves, Hornets, and Warriors. I really don't think it's that hard of a topic to debate.
<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (GArenas @ Feb 14 2007, 01:08 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}></div><div class='quotemain'>Yeah but I agree w/ all his points so..</div>lmao.an arenas fan agreeing with someone? no way!
