Post by Akomplice on Jan 22, 2011 23:45:36 GMT -5
Dallas Mavericks: They going all in, getting cold feet? Were not to sure what the Mavericks are trying to do right now. Either way the Mavericks do have some interesting players, the most intriguing being Shaun Livingston. He is improving his game all around where 20/9/5 is easily feasible next year. The Mavericks added Rasheed Wallace to bring some scoring and leadership. They added two first round picks in JJ Reddick and Jordan Farmar who will spend the year in the development league to round out their game. Right now the Mavericks should stay this course and continue to build around Shaun Livingston.
Denver Nuggets: Year in and year out the Denver Nuggets contend for the playoffs but the years have been catching up to them. They have been so good for so long that they haven't been able to add in great youth. They are led by the 1-2 punch that is Chauncey Billups and Antonio McDyess, However they are both 30 or older so this might be the time to test the trading block. Vassilis Spanoulis looks to be the most intriguing young players on this team, with a good training camp the Nuggets might be persuaded to move Billups. They added Freeland in the draft and he does look like an interesting prospect for the future.
Houston Rockets: The Rockets are coming off a fantastic playoff run in which they got to the finals. Little was thought of the midseason trade for Brand when they moved Bosh. Fast forward a few weeks later and now the entire league is on notice. Bogut enjoyed a fantastic rookie year, Carter played like his stellar self and Brand proved to be formidable. Mashburn can still get it done even with his age, he is not to be overlooked. The Rockets will look to bring back the energetic guard that is Dajuan Wagner, probably no matter the cost. In the draft they added Thabo Sefolosha who is an excellent defender and will go to the D-League to continue to work on that to become a lockdown defender.
Minnesota Timberwolves: One of the most talented teams in the league year in and year out finds itself eliminated from the playoffs again. They have yet to reach the finals with the core that they have and they don't seem to be willing to break it up either. Between AK-47, KG and Odom they have a fantastic core. Add in the contributions from Steve Blake and Adonal Foyle and that is one hell of a starting five. The question now becomes what is the problem with the Wolves? I mean it is silly to think that the Wolves need to retool, but when is enough actually enough? One of the most talented teams in the league continues to get older.
San Antonio Spurs: Last year they made their bed when they traded Tracy McGrady to start the rebuilding in San Antonio. They are building the team the old fashioned way, get a center and then get a point guard. First they added Andrew Bynum who enjoyed a solid rookie season and they just added Marcus Williams in this years draft. All over the roster you can see solid players that can be a part of the puzzle, Emeka Okafor and Delonte West. They are equipped with some serious cap space in which they can land a big time player. Pending on how the free agency goes for this team, it could be a long year for the Spurs, though at least it will be a building one. The question is does Mike Bibby have a future with this team with the drafting of Marcus?
Utah Jazz: Talk about getting boned from the draft lottery. Projected to have the number three pick, they fell to number six. The Jazz ended up selecting Joakim Noah with the sixth pick to team up with LaMarcus Aldridge. The Jazz now have one of the youngest front courts in the league that actually compliment each other. They also had another lottery pick and ended up selecting combo guard Randy Foye. Foye will likely be the scoring punch for this team this year because they have no one else to score aside from Aldridge. The Jazz have a ton of cap space to round out the team if they choose, I'm sure they will have a few selected targets but save some money for next years free agent crops.
Vancouver Grizzlies: Remember when this team was good? Remember when this team traded away Iverson and Shaq? Yeah this franchise is still around. Big Sofo enjoyed a nice breakout year for the Grizz trying to replace Shaq. Aside from him they really didn't have all that much last year. In the draft they selected Paul Millsap who will help on the boards while Sofo concretes on scoring and defense. They also added a shooter in the second round in Morris Almond but it remains to be seen if he will play for them this year. Like the Jazz, they have a ton of cap space but were not sure if they will use most of it. It's probably going to be a long year for this team as they continue to rebuild.
Denver Nuggets: Year in and year out the Denver Nuggets contend for the playoffs but the years have been catching up to them. They have been so good for so long that they haven't been able to add in great youth. They are led by the 1-2 punch that is Chauncey Billups and Antonio McDyess, However they are both 30 or older so this might be the time to test the trading block. Vassilis Spanoulis looks to be the most intriguing young players on this team, with a good training camp the Nuggets might be persuaded to move Billups. They added Freeland in the draft and he does look like an interesting prospect for the future.
Houston Rockets: The Rockets are coming off a fantastic playoff run in which they got to the finals. Little was thought of the midseason trade for Brand when they moved Bosh. Fast forward a few weeks later and now the entire league is on notice. Bogut enjoyed a fantastic rookie year, Carter played like his stellar self and Brand proved to be formidable. Mashburn can still get it done even with his age, he is not to be overlooked. The Rockets will look to bring back the energetic guard that is Dajuan Wagner, probably no matter the cost. In the draft they added Thabo Sefolosha who is an excellent defender and will go to the D-League to continue to work on that to become a lockdown defender.
Minnesota Timberwolves: One of the most talented teams in the league year in and year out finds itself eliminated from the playoffs again. They have yet to reach the finals with the core that they have and they don't seem to be willing to break it up either. Between AK-47, KG and Odom they have a fantastic core. Add in the contributions from Steve Blake and Adonal Foyle and that is one hell of a starting five. The question now becomes what is the problem with the Wolves? I mean it is silly to think that the Wolves need to retool, but when is enough actually enough? One of the most talented teams in the league continues to get older.
San Antonio Spurs: Last year they made their bed when they traded Tracy McGrady to start the rebuilding in San Antonio. They are building the team the old fashioned way, get a center and then get a point guard. First they added Andrew Bynum who enjoyed a solid rookie season and they just added Marcus Williams in this years draft. All over the roster you can see solid players that can be a part of the puzzle, Emeka Okafor and Delonte West. They are equipped with some serious cap space in which they can land a big time player. Pending on how the free agency goes for this team, it could be a long year for the Spurs, though at least it will be a building one. The question is does Mike Bibby have a future with this team with the drafting of Marcus?
Utah Jazz: Talk about getting boned from the draft lottery. Projected to have the number three pick, they fell to number six. The Jazz ended up selecting Joakim Noah with the sixth pick to team up with LaMarcus Aldridge. The Jazz now have one of the youngest front courts in the league that actually compliment each other. They also had another lottery pick and ended up selecting combo guard Randy Foye. Foye will likely be the scoring punch for this team this year because they have no one else to score aside from Aldridge. The Jazz have a ton of cap space to round out the team if they choose, I'm sure they will have a few selected targets but save some money for next years free agent crops.
Vancouver Grizzlies: Remember when this team was good? Remember when this team traded away Iverson and Shaq? Yeah this franchise is still around. Big Sofo enjoyed a nice breakout year for the Grizz trying to replace Shaq. Aside from him they really didn't have all that much last year. In the draft they selected Paul Millsap who will help on the boards while Sofo concretes on scoring and defense. They also added a shooter in the second round in Morris Almond but it remains to be seen if he will play for them this year. Like the Jazz, they have a ton of cap space but were not sure if they will use most of it. It's probably going to be a long year for this team as they continue to rebuild.
