Well, It's the end of March Madness coming up. The NBA regular season is almost done. How did we get here. To sum it all up for you I will tell you how each of the teams have played out so far in this very exiting season.
The Boston Celtics - This team has been developing rookie Marcus Smart and are still in a playoff race. With the new addition of Isiah Thomas, they must be able to finish games (which they have shown they can do with Tyler Zeller) and get some wins down the stretch. In the East, it's not that hard to make the playoffs. Win 50% of your last games and they will be right in the playoff mix.
The Brooklyn Nets - This is one of my favorite rosters that a team has. However, I do not understand how they aren't able to win 50% of their games. They started out with Deron Williams, Brook Lopez, Mason Plumlee, and Joe Johnson. They had veterans like Kevin Garnett, Jarrett Jack, and Andrei Kirilenko and rookies like Bojan Bogdonovic and Markel Brown. They aren't out of the playoffs though. Though they do have a tough schedule coming up, Their new addition of Thaddeus Young (acquired from the Wolves) will give them a big boost.
The New York Knicks - Spike Lee is at the all time low of his life right now. As of right now, the Knicks have the worst record, Carmelo Anthony is out with injury, they traded off Iman Shumpert and J.R. Smith, waived Stoudemire, and are starting Louis Amundson. They will probably get a great pick in the draft, and that's about the only good thing that came out of this Knicks season so far.
Philadelphia 76ers - They started out this season 0-17 until they beat the Wolves. The rookie Noel has made a big impact. However, I will never understand this team after they traded off Young, started Mbah A Moute, traded off Shved, K.J. McDaniels, and Carter-Williams for draft picks. Imagine a combination in the front court of Embiid and Noel and a back court of Carter-Williams and McDaniels. Now throw in a great lottery small foward. There is a future championship team.
Toronto Raptors - Great team, They started off top of the eastern conference. Louis Williams looking to make a case for 6th man of the year. Then Atlanta happened. The Cavs came up from behind, then the Bulls, Louis Williams stopped and went back to last years Louis Williams. They stopped just like they stopped last year in the playoffs against the Nets. They just stopped winning. Why? Nobody really knows, but they have to pick it up during the playoffs.
Chicago Bulls - This is a team that I have high respect for. There have been injuries everywhere. The downfall of Derrick Rose and Jimmy Butler were supposed to bring them down but they are in control of the 3rd spot in the east.
Cleveland Cavaliers - This is a team that has made great in-season trades. They have made additions of Timmy Mozgof, Iman Shumpert, and J.R. Smith. They are right now the 2nd seed in the east. Guys like Love want a championship and with talent like Love, LeBron, and Irving, anything is possible. This is a team with great players off the bench but they do lack in backcourt reserves. If Irving was to go down, they wouldn't have much to replace him with.
Detroit Pistons - Will Greg Monroe ever get a playoff taste with this pistons team; it doesn't look like it. After Jennings went down, this team was a train wreck. I can't see any hope in sight for this team except for a lottery pick.
Indiana Pacers - This poor team. I really feel bad for how they turned out. They grab Rodney Stuckey looking to grab a championship. Paul George goes down and so does George Hill. Paul George is still out. Now you have to remember they are in the east so they are in the playoff race. This team is still playing great even without Paul George. Can they make the playoffs though?
Milwaukee Bucks - I am amazed on how this team has done. Jabari Parker goes down and Brandon Knight steps up. The team is right in the 6th seed in the east. They traded off Knight but they got an addition of Michael Carter-Williams. They have a chance to make some playoff upsets this post-season.
Atlanta Hawks - Great first half of the season, and now the team is losing some games due to Kyle Korver being out. When he comes back, I do expect this team to make it to at least the eastern conference finals. This is a great offensive team and they are one of the best in defense. The team gets everyone involved and have great bench production.
Charlotte Hornets - Kemba Walker goes down. Then the Mo Show happened. Mo Williams scored 52 points in one game with the Wolves then he was involved in a trade that sent Williams to Charlotte and Gary Neal to the Wolves. Williams came out, brought them back into the playoff race, and earned an eastern conference player of the week award. The team signed Lance Stephenson at the beginning of the year, who was quickly benched. This is one of many eastern conference teams that are vying for a playoff spot and with the addition of Williams and with Walker back, they are making a case to be in that 8th seed.
Miami Heat - I feel like all Heat fans need a sympathy card. Team star, LeBron James, left to Cleveland. Then Chris Bosh went down with blood clots on his lungs. However, this team is in the 7th seed in the east. How? First, they got the addition of Goran Dragic. Second, Hassan Whiteside stepped up and has been a beast. This is a team that will do wondrous things when Chris Bosh comes back.
Orlando Magic - This is a team that has great future talent including Vucuvic, Oladiapo, Gordon, and Payton. While they will not make the playoffs this year, expect them to in the future.
Washington Wizards - The Wizards were in Free-fall. Then they went on a win streak. Before all of that, they were the second best team in the east. You can tell though, when Bradley Beal is out, this team has problems. They caused an upset last year when they beat the Bulls, they might do it again this year. Remember, this team has so very talented players. The problem is they have no bench depth.
Dallas Mavericks - This is a team that has so much talent. At the beginning of the season, this was a team that I thought was a playoff contender. The additions of Rondo and Stoudemire I thought would have helped them. However, Rondo has struggled shooting and so has Dirk. If they can put it together, I do think this team can make some upsets in the playoffs and might just make it to the Western conference finals.
Houston Rockets - James Harden is making a case for MVP. When the Rockets lost Howard to injury, it barley hurt them. James Harden kept the team in that 3rd seed. He didn't do that by himself though. They had acquired Josh Smith off the waivers list and traded for Corey Brewer. This is a team that has a good chance at making the finals. We'll see what they can do with Dwight Howard.
Memphis Grizzlies - This is a team that everyone forgot about. This talented team includes Mike Conley, Zach Randolph, and Marc Gasol. After they acquired Jeff Green, this team was looking for the finals. That is hard to do in the west though. Veteran, Vince Carter, has came off the bench strong. This is a team that many people forget about. Don't forget about the Grizzlies.
New Orleans Pelicans - Anthony Davis has been out for this team. You would think that even with Davis out that the Pelicans would be doing great with the roster they have. Big man Omir Osik hasn't done much. Jrue Holiday is still not himself with this team. Evans has had shooting problems. The Pelicans are slowly loosing playoff hopes.
San Antonio Spurs - The defending champs started out pretty bad. Parker and Leonard went down and so did the team. Parker and Leonard came back and they lead their team to a better second half of the season. Now they look at winning a title even though they are in the 6th seed so far in the west.
Denver Nuggets - This team has been a disaster. The beginning of the season looked good. Everyone thought Faried was going to be great. So far, they are way out of the playoffs, their head coach has been fired, and Ty Lawson has skipped out on practices.
Minnesota Timberwolves - This is a team at the bottom of the western conference. I have to hand it to Flip Saunders though. He has transformed this team into a future finals team. He grabbed Andrew Wiggins, Kevin Garnett, Gary Neal, Adrien Payne, and Anthony Bennett in trades. This team this season has great untapped potential. Zach LaVine was the Dunk Contest Winner while Andrew Wiggins won the MVP of the Rising Star Challenge. Four wolves players went to the Rising Stars Challenge. This team has a bright future ahead of them.
Oklahoma City Thunder - Durant was out for most of the season, and now he's out for the rest. Russell Westbrook is taking on a load though. He has had 9 triple-doubles this season and is making a case for MVP. This team is on the edge of the 8th seed in the west. They could definitely cause some upsets in the post-season.
Portland Trailblazers - With all the talent on this team, you would think that they would be a finals team. However, that will be hard when you are missing your starting shooting guard, Wesley Matthews. Damien Lillard has had his best season and so has LeMarcus Aldridge. They will have to play even better if they are going to thrive in the post-season without Wesley Matthews.
Utah Jazz - This team has not had the season gone the was they wanted it to. Both Rodney Hood (yeah remember him) and Dante Exum have not had great seasons. Gordon Hayward is going to miss out on yet another post-season. But this team has some great talent with a great future.
Golden State Warriors - Wow, what a shock. This team has shattered everyone's expectations. Klay Thompson came out as an MVP player to start the season, but then he started to quiet down a little (except for that 37 point quarter) and Stephen Curry has been a favorite candidate for MVP ever since. This team has the 1st seed in the western conference so far. This is a finals team. It's amazing that Rookie coach Steve Kerr has lead this team to this. But this season for them is far from over.
Los Angeles Clippers - The Clippers have moved on from the Donald Sterling incident as they have the 5th seed in the West. When Blake Griffin was injured, every lost hope, except for Chris Paul and DeAndre Jordan. Jordan was doing great and Chris Paul was playing like regular Chris Paul. When Griffin is 100% they will be a tough team to beat.
Los Angeles Lakers - Steve Nash Retires, Kobe Bryant get injured, and they are 2nd to worst in the west. Some good things come out of this though. They get a high draft pick, and Clarkson, Wesley Johnson, and Nick Young have been great. The Kobe Era has passed, they need new people to step up.
Phoenix Suns - The trade deadline was the highlight of this team. They traded off of Miles Plumlee, Goran Dragic, and Isaiah Thomas for Brandon Knight and others. They are outside of the playoff picture right now just like last year. Something has to change if they are going to make it though.
Sacramento Kings - This team was looking like they were going to make it to the playoffs with Rudy Gay and DeMarcus Cousins leading the way, but they have burned through coaches as fast as James Harden burns through free throws. Now they are looking for next season. They need to find a great coaching staff if they will have any chance at the playoffs next year.
Well, thanks for reading this first article and there are many more to come.
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