I write about a few teams looking into the NBA season

with pre-season basketball rapping up we get our last looks into a preview of the upcoming NBA season.

The Los Angeles Lakers have looked old, they have looked more like the Minnesota Vikings than the Los Angeles Lakers. They had four losses to Minnesota, Barcelona and Utah. But the Lakers did beat Golden State, Denver and Sacramento. The Lakers also won last night to Golden State with no Kobe who was resting and Phil Jackson had the flu. The Lakers don’t look like championship contenders, but I feel like they still have a chance this season.

The Boston Celtics look great finishing their preseason 7-1. Their only loss was to the Philadelphia 76ers. The team might be looking toward one of their best seasons in the teams franchise of all time. I’m not saying they will go 72-10 like the Bulls but I do think they will have a great season. That is, if they al stay healthy. Injuries to the older players will happen frequently this season and that could take away home court advantage in the playoffs. The bigger factor is if the players will stay healthy in the playoffs. Kevin Garnett went out 2 years ago and the Magic won in a 7 games series they played the Lakers in the finals. If all their players can stay healthy though, they should have a great season.

The Cleveland Cavaliers surprised us all going 6-2. They look okay playing without Lebron James. Antwan Jamison and Mo Williams will have to lead the team this season. But they were injured and Varejao and Williams missed a few games earlier on, most were won. I look at their schedule and I think they will finish around .500.

The Oklahoma City Thunder were talked about all post-season, everyone saying they would do great, and they did, a little. They finished their preseason 4-3 and have to host Chicago for the season opener. It seems so stupid that they didn’t add too much to their roster and everyone says they will go to the conference finals. They have too much young talent and they need a big man who will be number 2. LA has Gasol, Miami has Bosh, Boston has KG, Orlando has Dwight “Superman” Howard and Chicago has Carlos Boozer. I think a player like Yao Ming might help, he is going to be a free agent so they can pick him up and he and Durant will lead the team to the finals.

That is all for now, I hope you enjoyed reading this.

Today is a bigger day than the other 5, today is so big it’s going to take more than 1 post to do it, Let’s get started going down the Southwest Division.

1:Dallas Mavericks

As much as I hate to say it, the crown goes to Dallas in this division. The Mavs have Dirk, Terry and Kidd, plus they got Tyson Chandler on that Erik Dampier trade. Mark Cuban did not buy the Rangers which might actually help them because he wont be worrying about baseball, only basketball. Dirk Nowitzki has an MVP and lost to D-Wade in the finals in 06. I don’t know if he will go back, but the team has the potential and talent to win it all. But if the Cowboys and the Mavs both win it all, get ready to move Texas citizens.

2:San Antonio Spurs

Tiago Splitter gives them a blast of energy. I was watching what he had done in Europe and I liked what I saw. Duncan and Splitter will be 2 good big men for the team. Richard Jefferson came last year and left the window open and Parker can be great if he stays healthy. I wanted to take a look at Manu Ginobili. Last year after the all star break Manu caught on fire. He was the star of the team. When they beat Dallas in the playoffs last season it was for a few reasons. 1:They were more experienced 2:They were better coached 3:Tim Duncan was not in the big 3. I also like what power they get from the bench, but in the end it all comes down to whether they can all stay healthy or not.

3:New Orleans Hornets

I would have put Houston here but I am still a little worried about Yao Ming. I feel like Chris (CP3) Paul wants to leave but he will still work hard for the team. NOH added forward Trevor Ariza who will help their offense. I like Emeka Okafor and David West on the inside, but this team still doesn’t have what it takes to make the playoffs and possibly win a championship. They shouldn’t even be talking about the finals yet though, They need to focus on keeping CP3 this season.

4:Houston Rockets

Yao Ming is coming back and Kevin Martin is here to help the team. They also got Courtney Lee, Brad Miller and Patrick Patterson in the off-season. I am still concerned about Yao’s knee and I don’t know if he should start for their first tip-off. I would want him to come off the bench for the first few games to make sure he doesn’t retire at the end of the season. I don’t think this team worries too much about making the playoffs this year and they lost Ariza for Lee. Not too convincing.

5:Memphis Grizzlies

The team added Tony Allen and Xavier Henry. I like their roster with Rudy Gay, O.J.Mayo, Marc Gasol and Zach Randolph but the roster is too young and inexperienced for me to fall for it. Zach Randolph is your oldest player and he is 28, I don’t buy it yet, I don’t think a team this unexperienced can match up against a team like San Antonio or Boston who have veteran talent and better coaching.

Today I am going down the Pacific Division with you.

1:Los Angeles Lakers

Some people say the Miami Heat are the team to beat, but you still have to give the prize to the Lakers. They are 2 time defending NBA champs who just got better this summer. I might have thought twice about them being better than the Heat if Phil Jackson or Derek Fisher had left, but they didn’t. The Lakers acquired Steve Blake and Matt Barnes this summer. Vujacic and Lamar Odom coming off the bench as well it gives the depth. The team has a depth that Miami does not have.

2:Los Angeles Clippers

The team sharing LA is not as big as the defending champs. They never were and probably never will be. That might be why I put them second in the division. The team is underrated and other teams might not play as hard as they will against bigger teams. The Clips are just sitting and waiting for something big to happen. They got Eric Bledsoe and Al Farouq-Aminu at the draft and Blake Griffin can finally play. In the pre-season last year Griffin led them past the Spurs and the team just got better. Vinny Del Negro is the new coach and he might be able to teach them a thing or two.

3:Phoenix Suns

The team was great, they had great chemistry and they flew past Portland and San Antonio in the playoffs, and they could have beat the Lakers to go to the finals against Boston. This is a team that surprised the league, plus they got Hedo Turkoglu. So the question is, why did I rank them so low. Oh yeah, Amare Stoudamire fled for New York. I wouldn’t agree with him that it was a good decision, though he gets more money and it helped attract Lebron to the Big Apple. Now that Amare is off the team they will have to work without him, I don’t see them going to the playoffs.

4:Sacramento Kings

DeMarcus Cousins and Hasaan Whiteside both are joining the club and they got a good trade for Samuel Dalembert. The team is headed in the right direction but they still cannot become championship contenders. The Memphis Grizzlies have a young roster and look where they are. I don’t expect this team to play much better than last year, though I do think they play better than last season.

5:Golden State Warrriors

This team is weird for me to think about. They drafted Ekpe Udoh who got injured. They traded Turiaf, Azubuike and Anthony Randolph to the Knicks for David Lee. They also lost Raja Bell. But the team still has Stephen Curry and Monta Ellis, so I would watch this team, I don’t think GS moves huge, maybe tiny steps. They should get better when Udoh comes back.

As I head into day 4 of my predictions, we head to the wild west and break down the Northwest division.

1:Oklahoma City Thunder

Durant was one of the top guys running for the MVP last season. He is one of the best forwards in the league, and adding Cole Aldrich to the team helps them with depth. Russell Westbrook and James Harden are 2 really good guards. Collison can play power forward while Aldrich plays center if he is ready to be a starter, but it looks like Krstic will start which isn’t too surprising because he isn’t a rookie. Scott Brooks might not be the best coach in the league but he was good enough to take them to the playoffs last year and squirm a game six against the champions. I like where this team is headed.

2:Denver Nuggets

After coach George Karl left with cancer, you could see it affected the team. They lost in the first round to Utah and were not able to climb out of that hole. It seems to me George Karl will return this season and the team will play a lot better, but until then I don’t see them getting more wins than OKC. Carmelo Anthony is an all-star forward who works great for the team, and Chauncey Billups is possibly one of the best point guards in the west. George Karl has also been working to get back on the floor and when he does, this team could be facing LA in late May.

3:Portland Trailblazers

For Denver it was all about the coach, Nate McMillan and Jerry Sloan match up pretty well, so when I chose who came next, it all came down to the roster. Portland has a good starting lineup with Andre Miller, Brandon Roy, Nicholas Batum, LaMarcus Albridge and Greg Oden. The team has made the playoffs the last two years and has played a good game. Plus Bayless, Babbit, and Camby can all come off the bench. I like the direction where this team is headed and as long as they have a good coach, they should keep going farther in the playoffs.

4:Utah Jazz

Al Jefferson is coming to Utah to team up with Deron Williams. I would have ranked them higher but they lost Boozer to Chicago. They lost their big man inside, and their main rebounding source. Jefferson is their star rebounder and wont rebound too well when they play teams like Orlando, Boston, San Antonio and LAL. It looks like They might barely make the playoffs if Jefferson has a good season.

5:Minnesota Timberwolves

Ridnour and Love are starting while Beasly and Flynn hit the bench? Jonny Flynn and Michael Beasly both are better than the 2 starting in front of them. Ricky Rubio is still aloud to be in Europe? Not that it matters because they have Flynn and Ridnour, but they could have used one of them in a trade. Two years ago they drafted Rubio and Flynn, last year they did a horrible trade with Portland. It seems like they want the first pick in the draft, I am thinking they play worse than Cleveland right now, there’s always Perry Jones when you need him.

Today is Day 2 of my predictions as I take a look at the Southeast division.

1:Miami Heat

The team that we all thought could not fill out a roster now has 16 players revolving around the Big-3. The teams offense is unstoppable but as they say, Rome wasn’t built in a day, neither is an NBA franchise, at least not with the Lakers in the west. They have a big 3 but who is going to guard Bynum and Gasol? Dwight Howard? Carlos Boozer? Until they get a reasonable big man I don’t think this squad can get an NBA championship. Teams needed Shaq in 06 and KG in 08, Duncan in 07, and Gasol in 09. Big Z might be the biggest reason Cleveland lost in 2007 in a sweep, they will not win a championship with this roster.

2:Orlando Magic

Dwight Howard led Orlando to the finals 2 years ago. they lost to the C’s 4-2 last year but they can get back to the finals. Miami may be at the top of my list, but I wont be surprised if Orlando finishes first. They have a big man, a handful of shooters a great coach and a purpose. Matt Barnes might have left for LA and that is the only problem I have with this team, their small foward. They still have Peitrus and Vince Carter they can throw out there. They can start Redick at guard and Carter at forward and you have championship contenders. I really believe in Orlando next season.

3:Atlanta Hawks

The league just got harder, but at the same time easier. With so many players going to one or two teams makes other teams like Cleveland and Toronto even easier to beat. Atlanta is a great team at home and can beat bad teams on the road. Josh Smith is a great forward that has a nice defense and rebounding. Joe Johnson recently re-signed with the Hawks to an insane deal, they have Mike Bibby at point and the team should be very happy.

4:Charlotte Bobcats

Michael Jordan helps the team at practice and Larry Brown is a great coach. The Bobcats surprised the league last season when they not only made the playoffs, but they finished 7th in the east. They got swept by Orlando, but this is the same Orlando that swept Atlanta right after that. They lost Raymond Felton but got Erik Dampier. The team also has Gerald Wallace, Tyrus Thomas, Stephen Jackson and D.J. Augustin.

5:Washington Wizards

Washington added John Wall who is an amazing point guard. They also have Gilbert Arenas who they can trade and they have Kirk Hinrich, Josh Howard and Kevin Seraphin (pronounced Ke-veen) I like this Wizards team but they are fighting in a good division, all I can say is that they are not getting the first pick at the draft again, unless they do stupid trades like last season.

In this post, I look into the futures of these NBA players and where they will be in 10 or 15 years.

Kobe:Kobe Bryant is on my to 10 players of all time, maybe because he is in his 30′s and is still in his prime, still leading teams to a championship. In about 10 years I can see him as a coach in the NBA, maybe LA, but he will probably be coaching because he already kind of does that during games.

D-Wade:Dwyane Wade might still be playing in 10 years, his career will be coming to a close. He has a history of injuries and will probably injure himself every time he steps, on the court, I can see his career ending up like Tracy McGrady’s career. He  will still help a team, but he wont be the top dog.

Lebron:Lebron James will be a 35 year old who will still be able to play but have lost his magic touch. Wether he’ll still be in South Beach with D-Wade and Chris “CB4″ Bosh depends on how much they win. Cleveland might have said all those bad things about him but would take him back in a split second. Not that he’d go back.

Pau Gasol:Pau went to Med school but left to play basketball, he does plan to go back to medicine. He wanted to find the cure to AIDS after Magic Johnson got HIV. He will probably be a doctor, and how amazing would it be if he found the cure for AIDS, won several NBA championships and awards. He would mean so much to Spain.

Shaquille O’Neal:Shaq will probably be a hall of famer in 10 years and I can see him with Marv Albert and Reggie Miller on TNT or Magic Johnson o ABC. maybe he will be retired but I don’t see that, I see him working a job in the NBA, maybe rapping.

Rasheed Wallace:60% of NBA players go broke within 5 years of retirement and I can see this happening to Sheed. A former NBA player who left the NBA with a championship ring and had to sell it to afford life till he could get a job, I don’t know why I say this but Rasheed Wallace reminds me of some of those athletes. I hope he doesn’t blow all of his money, and lives a god life.