I say Portland will make the last spot. Lakers and Twolves won't make it. Memphis will drop out as well, Denver will be at #7 by season's end.
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting WCBallerz:</div><div class="quote_post">I say Portland will make the last spot. Lakers and Twolves won't make it. Memphis will drop out as well, Denver will be at #7 by season's end.</div> Twolves will get in, i think. They will make a trade before the deadline and drop some dead weight (spree).
I predict the Grizzlies finishing in the 8th spot. The Lakers will finish 7th, and neither the TWolves or Nuggets will make the post-season. Of course a lot can change before the tradeline, if any major trades go down. Whoever makes it to the post season in the West definitely earned it this year. It's a great race.
I see Denver getting the 8th seed or a little better, and the TWolves missing out entirely. I see the Lakers finishing either 6th or 7th, but that all depends on how well they play after the All Star Break, whether or not they can keep their focus on both ends and play as a team instead of just trying to get individual crap accomplished.
Ohh this doesnt look good for us Laker fans. Nobody thinks that the Lakers will make it?? Its a sad day when this happens. Lakers have almost never missed a playoff and wont miss it this time either. 6 - Houston 7 - Lakers 8 - Memphis
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting Bobcats:</div><div class="quote_post">I like durvasa's list the best. Lakers will NOT make the playoffs.</div> What makes you think the Lakers won't make the playoffs? The Lakers finally have everyone healthy...well...everyone but Devean George. I think the Lakers will find a groove after the All Star Break now that Kobe is back. They hit a wall after having a good start without him, and I think he's going to make a huge difference in the win/loss column now that he's back.
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting Moo2K4:</div><div class="quote_post">What makes you think the Lakers won't make the playoffs? The Lakers finally have everyone healthy...well...everyone but Devean George. I think the Lakers will find a groove after the All Star Break now that Kobe is back. They hit a wall after having a good start without him, and I think he's going to make a huge difference in the win/loss column now that he's back.</div> They are also without Divac. I'm also interested in why he doesn't think the Lakers will not make the playoffs. The Lakers managed to maintain the 8th seed despite Kobe being injured. Neither the TWolves or Nuggets gained much ground on them, and now they have to play catch-up with Kobe Bryant back on the team. The Nuggets are having their own injury problems with Camby out, and now Nene out until March. They are also playing with a backcourt of Miller and Boykins, which allows teams to take advantage of size mismatches. I just don't see the Nuggets having enough to catch the Lakers at this point. The TWolves are a mess right now and the ramifications of firing Flip Saunders is more likely to have a negative effect on the team chemistry than a positive one. Flip is a great coach, and his players know it. The problem in Minnesota is Sam Cassell and Sprewell, who are two grumpy old men worried about contract extensions. Their confidence is low and the I don't see anything sparking a change for them.
I think the Lakers will get it although they have a tough schedule after the break with most games on the road. Don't see Denver keeping it up or Minny finding a way.
6) Houston 7) Memphis 8) Timberwolves, Lakers or Nuggets Best case scenario, Clippers get the 8th seed I think a lot of people are still sleeping on the Grizzlies, they're 7-3 in their last 10, and have had injuries to many of their important players, I say they don't get any less than 7th seed. I think the Top 7 playoff seeds are determined, even with many games left, I think it's San Antonio, Phoenix, Sacremento, Dallas, Houston and Memphis. The 8th seed will be a battle between the Lakers, Twolves, Nuggets, and possibly Clippers.
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting og15:</div><div class="quote_post">6) Houston 7) Memphis 8) Timberwolves, Lakers or Nuggets Best case scenario, Clippers get the 8th seed I think a lot of people are still sleeping on the Grizzlies, they're 7-3 in their last 10, and have had injuries to many of their important players, I say they don't get any less than 7th seed. I think the Top 7 playoff seeds are determined, even with many games left, I think it's San Antonio, Phoenix, Sacremento, Dallas, Houston and Memphis. The 8th seed will be a battle between the Lakers, Twolves, Nuggets, and possibly Clippers.</div> What about Seattle???
<div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">What about Seattle???</div> I knew I forgot someone because I only had 6 teams, so yes, Seattle is the other team
1. San Antonio 2. Pheonix 3. Seattle 4. Sacramento 5. Dallas 6. Lakers 7. Houston 8. Memphis I think the biggest movers will be Seattle on the way down, and Lakers on the way up. Kobe is back and they held the fort while he was down, Seattle is for real, but I think they will come back down to earth just a little bit. I think Minny will be nippin at heels, they will pull together in the second half, but I think their record is just too crappy right now with too many good teams ahead of them.
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting norespect:</div><div class="quote_post">1. San Antonio 2. Pheonix 3. Dallas 4. Sacramento 5. Seattle 6. Lakers 7. Houston 8. Memphis I think the biggest movers will be Seattle on the way down, and Lakers on the way up. Kobe is back and they held the fort while he was down, Seattle is for real, but I think they will come back down to earth just a little bit. I think Minny will be nippin at heels, they will pull together in the second half, but I think their record is just too crappy right now with too many good teams ahead of them.</div> ahh...Seattle cant drop out as a divisional winner, so two Pacific division teams in the top 4 aint going to happen.
The way things are going I think the Lakers will move up to the 7th spot and the Nuggets will get the 8th seed like they did last year. IMO the Wolves aren't even in the playoff race race. They'll finish the season in the 9th or 10th spot in the West.
