Atlantic Division Preview

The Cleveland Cavaliers played their first preseason game at home on October 7th against the Toronto Raptors and their first regular season game is October 28th against the Celtics in Boston. That gives us a less than a month until the season is officially underway, and so we will use the next week or two previewing the NBA season making predictions that will surely not even be remotely close to coming true.

Next up is the Eastern Conference, and we start with the Atlantic Division.  

1. Boston Celtics

Players Lost:

-James Posey, F (FA – New Orleans)

Players Added:

-J.R. Giddens, G (Draft)
-Semih Erden, C (Draft)
-Patrick O’Bryant, C (FA – Golden State)
-Darius Miles, F (FA)
-Bill Walker, F (Trade – New Orleans)

Projected Lineup (Players with +Average PER last year in bold):

PG Rajon Rondo (10.6 pts, 5.1 assists, 1.68 steals)
SG Ray Allen (17.4 pts, 3.1 assists, 0.89 steals)
SF Paul Pierce (19.6 pts, 5.1 rebounds, 4.5 assists)
PF Kevin Garnett (18.8 pts, 9.2 rebounds, 1.25 blocks)
C Kendrick Perkins (6.9 pts, 6.1 rebounds, 1.46 blocks)

Bench:

Leon Powe, PF
Sam Cassell, PG
Eddie House, SG
Glen Davis, C
Tony Allen, SG
Bill Walker, SF
Brian Saclabrine, PF
Patrick O’Bryant, C
Gabe  Pruitt, PG
J.R. Giddens, SG
Darius Miles, PF

Analysis:

What can really be said about the Celtics that you don’t already know? The Celtics were an NBA-best 66-16 last season, 2nd in ponts against and 11th in points per game. They’re returning basically the same team, only instead of James Posey, they’ll bring in rookie Bill Walker. That’s a bit of a drop-off as far as experience and clutch shooting is concerned, but what Walker lacks in experience, he makes up for in youth and athleticism. The Celtics have an excellent chance to have the NBA’s best record again, although if people are wondering if age will catch up to them this season, you can’t really blame them as it’s a more than fair question. I don’t expect the Celtics to match 66 wins again this season, but I do expect them to finish with the best record in the East.

Projected Record: 61-21 (1st in the Eastern Conference)

Key Boston Celtics Blogs:

CelticsBlog
Green Bandwagon
LOY’s Place
Celtics247.com
Red’s Army

When The Cavaliers Play Them:

1. Tue, Oct 28th – Away – TNT
2. Fri, Jan 9th – Home – ESPN
3. Fri, Mar 6th – Away – ESPN
4. Sun, Apr 12th – Home – ABC

2. Toronto Raptors

Players Lost:

-Primoz Brezec, C (FA – Italy)
-Carlos Delfino, G (FA – Russia)
-Maceo Baston, F (Trade – Indiana)
-Rasho Nesterovic, C (Trade – Indiana)
-T.J. Ford, G (Trade – Indiana)
-Roy Hibbert, C (Trade – Indiana)

Players Added:

-Nathan Jawai, F (Draft)
-Roko Ukic, G (Draft – 2005)
-Hassan Adams, F (FA – Italy)
-Jamal Sampson, C (FA – Dallas)
-Will Solomon (FA – Turkey)
-Jermaine O’Neal, C (Trade – Indiana)

Projected Lineup (Players with +Average PER last year in bold):

PG Jose Calderon (11.2 pts, 8.3 assists, 1.06 steals)
SG Anthony Parker (12.5 pts, 2.2 assists, 0.96 steals)
SF Jamario Moon (8.5 pts, 6.2 rebounds, 1.2 assists)
PF Chris Bosh (22.3 pts, 8.7 rebounds, 1.0 blocks)
C Jermaine O’Neal (13.6 pts, 6.7 rebounds, 2.1 blocks)

Bench:

Kris Humphries, PF
Jason Kapono, SG
Andrea Bargnani, C
Roko Ukic, PG
Hassan Adams, SG
Joey Graham, SF
Nathan Jawai, C
Will Solomon, PG

Analysis:

I’m sure most prognostications have Philly in 2nd in the Atlantic Division. It’s hard to blame them, as the Raptors and Sixers look to fight back and forth for the #2 spot all season long. It’s hard to imagine more than 4 or 5 games separating these 2 teams. The reason I have the Raptors in 2nd instead of the Sixers is because of experience. The Raptors have gone through the experience of a playoff run fighting for a top 4 seed before, while it will be new territory for the Sixers. Last year the Raptors pushed the Cavaliers all year long, and in the end they came up just short of the 4 seed, ending up at 41-41 on the season, despite having a pythagorean win total of 49 games. They were 13th in scoring and 10th in defense. Their defense could be even better with the arrival of Jermaine O’Neal, provided he can stay relatively healthy. Jose Calderon is ready to take over the starting PG spot that was vacated by trading away TJ Ford. Calderon is, in my opinion, the single most underrated PG in the NBA. People know he’s good, but few know just how good he really is. He had 8.3 assists per game, and his A/TO ratio was out of this world at 5.38 (his closest competitors in that category were Brevin Knight at 4.62 and Chris Paul at 4.60). With Calderon setting up the offense, two solid wing players in Parker and Moon, and then Bosh and O’Neal roaming the middle, the Raptors will be a formidable starting lineup. Their fatal flaw will be depth. As big of an upgrade as Calderon is over Ford at the starting PG spot, there’s now no proven PGs behind him, as the Raptors will have to rely on newcomers Ukic and Solomon to back him up. Kapono is a lights out shooter, but provides little else. Humphries is a very solid player, and an increase in minutes should see him put up some good numbers this year, but Bargnani has been a huge disappointment in Toronto. The Raptors have a good chance to be the #4 or #5 seed in the East this year, but they have to build more depth before they can be considered a true threat to win the Conference. Health and depth will be the things to watch for on this year’s Raptors team.

Projected Record: 48-34 (5th in the Eastern Conference)

Key Toronto Raptors Blogs:

Cuzoogle
RaptorBlog
Sports And The City
Arsenalist
The AltRaps Blog

When The Cavaliers Play Them:

1. Tue, Dec 9th – Home – FSNOH
2. Tue, Feb 3rd – Home – FSNOH
3. Wed, Feb 18th – Away – FSNOH

3. Philadelphia 76ers

Pkayers Lost:

-Louis Amundson, F (FA – Phoenix)
-Shavlik Randolph, F (FA – Portland)
-Calvin Booth, C (Trade – Minnesota)
-Rodney Carney, F (Trade – Minnesota)

Players Added:

-Marreese Speights, C (Draft)
-Elton Brand, F (FA – LA Clippers)
-Royal Ivey, G (FA – Milwaukee)
-Theo Ratliff, C (FA – Detroit)
-Kareem Rush, F (FA – Indiana)
-Donyell Marshall, F (FA – Oklahoma City)
-Jared Reiner, C (FA – Europe)
-Antywane Robinson (FA – France)

Projected Lineup (Players with +Average PER last year in bold):

PG Andre Miller (17.0 pts, 6.9 assists, 1.28 steals)
SG Andre Iguodala (19.9 pts, 4.8 assists, 2.09 steals)
SF Thaddeus Young (8.2 pts, 4.2 rebounds, 0.8 assists)
PF Elton Brand (17.6 pts, 8.0 rebounds, 1.9 blocks)
C Samuel Dalembert (10.5 pts, 10.4 rebounds, 2.34 blocks)

Bench:

Louis Williams, PG
Willie Green, SG
Reggie Evens, PF
Kareem Rush, SF
Theo Ratliff, C
Royal Ivey, PG
Marreese Speights, C
Jason Smith, PF
Donyell Marshall, PF

Analysis:

The Sixers are going to be one of the most fun and most electric teams to watch this season, especially in the Eastern Conference. This is a team somewhat built like a Western Conference team. Last year they snuck into the playoffs with a 40-42 record, but they put a scare into Detroit in the first round when they destroyed the Pistons in Game 3 to take a 2-1 series lead. Detroit would win the next 3 games to take that series, but the Sixers’ playoff performance, combined with their 2nd half charge last year and the offseason acquisition of Elton Brand has lead to uncontrollable optimism and enthusiasm in Philly. Last year the Sixers were 23rd in scoring and 7th in defense. Once again this year, this should an outstanding defensive team. They are young, quick, and athletic. They love to push the ball and run and use their youth and energy to their advantage over more talented opponents. Elton Brand will only help their offense while keeping their defense at an elite level. Their low post defense with Brand and Dalembert is frightening. I’m sorry, though, but I am not ready to just coronate the Sixers quite yet. I’m not convinced the addition of Brand alone makes them better than the Raptors. Across the board on the starting lineups, I would take Calderon over Miller, Moon over Young, Bosh over Brand (if only because of age and health), and O’Neal over Dalembert. The only position I would take a Philly starter is SG, where I would take Iguodala over Parker. Sooner or later, Andre Miller’s age is going to catch up to him, and while Lou Williams is a superb bakup, he’s not in the top rung of NBA point guards. Where Philly has a huge edge over Toronto, though, is their bench. Williams, Green, Evens, Rush, and Ratliff are all more than capable backups at their respective positions. I won’t be surprised at all if Philly ends up in 2nd in the Atlantic, I’m just not ready to count on it until I see it.

Projected Record: 47-35 (6th in the Eastern Conference)

Key Philadelphia 76ers Blogs:

The 700 Level
Passion and Pride
Depressed Fan
All Things Philly Sports
Sixers Shots

When The Cavaliers Play Them:

1. Wed, Dec 10th – Away – ESPN
2. Fri, Dec 12th – Home – FSNOH
3. Fri, Apr 10th – Away – FSNOH
4. Wed, Apr 15th – Home – FSNOH

4. New York Knicks

Players Lost:

-Randolph Morris, C (FA – Atlanta)
-Renaldo Balkman, F (Trade – Denver)
-Frederic Weis (Trade – Houston)
-Taurean Green, G (Waived)
-Bobby Jones, F (Waived)

Players Added:

-Danilo Gallinari, F (Draft)
-Jamal Sampson, C (Trade – Denver)
-Chris Duhon, G (FA – Chicago)
-Anthony Roberson, G (FA – Turkey/Israel)
-Dan Grunfeld (FA – Spain)
-Allan Houston, G (FA)
-Patrick Ewing Jr, F (Trade – Houston)

Projected Lineup (Players with +Average PER last year in bold):

PG Chris Duhon (5.8 pts, 4.0 assists, 0.7 steals)
SG Jamal Crawford (20.6 pts, 5.0 assists, 1.01 steals)
SF Quentin Richardson (8.1 pts, 4.8 rebounds, 1.8 assists)
PF Zach Randolph (17.6 pts, 10.3 rebounds, 0.21 blocks)
C Eddy Curry (13.2 pts, 4.7 rebounds, 0.49 blocks)

Bench:

David Lee, PF
Nate Robinson, PG
Stephon Marbury, PG
Wilson Chandler, SF
Jared Jeffries, PF
Mardy Collins, SG
Jerome James, C
Danilo Gallinari, SF
Anthony Roberson, PG
Malik Rose, PF

Analysis:

Close the book on the Isiah Thomas era in New York and welcome in the Donnie Walsh era. New head coach Mike D’Antoni certainly will have his hands full at first. While the rebuilding effort under Walsh is underway, there’s still a lot of Isiah residue on this roster. Last season the Knicks basically quit on Thomas and in the midst of perpetual turmoil, they put up a record of 23-59. They were 21st in scoring and 22nd in defense. This year, under D’Antoni, it’s unclear if he can get this team to score more while playing his style of basketball, but the defense certainly won’t improve under his tutelage. The challenge D’Antoni (the ultimate team-first coach) faces is to get a bunch of selfish players to play together as an offensive unit. Don’t let all the past negativity fool you, there is some real talent on this team. Crawford and Randolph are both excellent players with a world of offensive talent. Nate Robinson has some offensive skill. But all these players are fairly selfish players who have never really worked together. That’s the challenge D’Antoni faces. David Lee is another really good player, and Lee has the intangibles and does some of the little stuff others won’t. He’s capable of scoring, but where he excels is crashing the boards. Duhon looks to be the starter for this team, and that has more to do with D’Antoni’s system than it does Duhon’s talent. The Knicks are probably a little better this year, but not much. This is still a circus freak side show of a team, and until some of these overplayed characters can be removed, this team will struggle to come together and play for D’Antoni.

Projected Record: 26-56 (14th in the Eastern Conference)

Key New York Knicks Blogs:

Posting and Toasting
KnickerBlogger
Rockin’ Steady
What Would Oakley Do?
NY Knicks Beat

When The Cavaliers Play Them:

1. Tue, Nov 25th – Away – FSNOH
2. Wed, Dec 3rd – Home – FSNOH
3. Wed, Feb 4th – Away – FSNOH
4. Sun, Mar 15th – Home – FSNOH

5. New Jersey Nets

Players Lost:

-DeSegana Diop, C (FA – Dallas)
-Nenad Kristic, F(FA – Russia)
-Bostjan Nachbar, F (FA – Russia)
-Richard Jefferson, F (Trade – Milwaukee)
-Marcus Williams, G (Trade – Golden State)

Players Added:

-Brook Lopez, C (Draft)
-Ryan Anderson, F (Draft)
-Chris Douglas-Roberts, F (Draft)
-Jarvis Hayes, F (FA – Detroit)
-Eduardo Najera, F (FA – Denver)
-Eddie Gill (FA)
-Brian Hamilton (FA)
-Julius Hodge (FA)
-Bobby Simmons, F (Trade – Milwaukee)
-Yi Jianlian, F (Trade – Milwaukee)
-Keyon Dooling, G (Trade – Orlando)

Projected Lineup (Players with +Average PER last year in bold):

PG Devin Harris (15.4 pts, 6.5 assists, 1.36 steals)
SG Vince Carter (21.3 pts, 5.1 assists, 1.22 steals)
SF Bobby Simmons (7.6 pts, 3.2 rebounds, 1.1 assists)
PF Yi Jianlian (8.6 pts, 5.2 rebounds, 0.8 blocks)
C Josh Boone (8.2 pts, 7.3 rebounds, 0.87 blocks)

Bench:

Keyon Dooling, PG
Sean Williams, C
Jarvis Hayes, SF
Eduardo Najera, PF
Trenton Hassell, SG
Stromile Swift, PF
Brook Lopez, C
Chris Douglas-Roberts, SF
Maurice Ager, SG
Ryan Anderson, PF
Keith Van Horn, PF

Analysis:

I don’t know about you, but I was always told not to put all my eggs in one basket. Well, the Nets simply don’t care. Injuries and declining play led to a disastrous campaign last year, and it ended with Jason Kidd being sent to Dallas. The Nets finished the year at 34-48. They were 25th in scoring and 17th in points against. So what did they do to fix those problems in the offseason? They shipped off their best player, Richard Jefferson, for nothing of significance in return. Sure, they got Yi Jianlian, who was the number 6 pick overall a year earlier, but Jianlian never really developed into much of anything in Milwaukee. The Nets are hoping they can do a better job of developing his NBA game. This lineup is flawed all over the place. Vince Carter is not the same Vince Carter, they have no true SF who is worthy of starting, and they have a frontcourt filled with fairly soft players. Their leading rebounder a year ago was their point guard, Jason Kidd. Their leading returning rebounder is Josh Boone, who grabs a paltry 7.3 rebounds per game. Their starting PF, Jianlian, is good for only 5.2 boards. Outside of Sean Williams, who comes off the bench, there’s no shot blocking presence. There’s nobody who’s going to get a lot of steals on this team. This is a team designed to fail now, in the hopes of giving young guys time to develop by the summer of 2010. They drafted a trio of nice players in Lopez, Anderson, and Douglas-Roberts, but in order to be a contender by 2010, they’re going to need all 3 to reach their potential. Devin Harris is a very good young PG, but he has yet to prove he’s a true, elite PG. The Nets will need him to take the nest step for any future success. But for this year, this team is going to lose a ton of games.

Projected Record: 25-57 (15th in the Eastern Conference)

Key New Jersey Nets Blogs:

NetsDaily Blog
Hooplah Nation
NJ.com: Nets Blast

When The Cavaliers Play Them:

1. Tue, Nov 18th – Away – FSNOH
2. Sun, Mar 22nd – Away – NBA TV
3. Wed, Mar 25th – Home – FSNOH

Next up will be the Southeast Division.

Previous Previews:

WESTERN CONFERENCE

Northwest Division
Pacific Division
Southwest Division