Power Rankings

[ohara]

http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/powerrank ... 10&week=-1

I know we have not even played a game yet, but that is what impresses me. We are picked #19 before the season starts. Not sure if we have ever been looked at so favorably to start off a season. Looks like we at least have a little respect and are not being considered a pushover.

[Fred Williamson]

We are definitely better than the Pistons. Sure, they have some fire power on the bench, but their froncourt is a joke.

Diaw/Ajinca/Chandler/Diop/Nazr >>>>> Charlie "look ma, no hair!" Villanueva/Kwame "bonafide scrub" Brown/old Ben Wallace/ bunch of d-leaguers and benchwarmers

[Paydro70]

It's a little bit misleading to get excited about #19... Stein's still placing us 11th in the East.

[Dexmor]

Raja Bell is finally on the block according to hoopshype.
I wanna see what they get for him.
If nothing it's time to look at John Wall tapes.

[Paydro70]

What does that have to do with this thread, Dexmor?

[Fred Williamson]

Raja Bell is finally on the block according to hoopshype.
I wanna see what they get for him.
If nothing it's time to look at John Wall tapes.

[Battery]

We can beat out the teams right above us - Toronto, Miami, Philly, Washington and Detroit. I'm not impressed with any of those teams. Not a fan of Bosh. Wade will get injured and miss chunks of the season and rest up for free agency. Philly lost Andre Miller who was the director of that team after they dumped AI. Washington gets back Arenas but I think he's the most overrated player in the NBA and will contribute to chemistry problems. Detroit is interesting but I think it will take time for them to gel. I like Gordon but it remains to be seen how well he fits in there. Charlie V.? Huh? Hello? Why in the world did they sign this soft turd?

Not only do I think we will make the playoffs, but I believe we will be competing for the 6th spot provided there is no major injuries.

[Battery]

Raja Bell is finally on the block according to hoopshype.
I wanna see what they get for him.
If nothing it's time to look at John Wall tapes.

If we trade Bell, we absolutely must get back a good PF. Easier said than done of course.

[Fred Williamson]

We can beat out the teams right above us - Toronto, Miami, Philly, Washington and Detroit. I'm not impressed with any of those teams. Not a fan of Bosh. Wade will get injured and miss chunks of the season and rest up for free agency. Philly lost Andre Miller who was the director of that team after they dumped AI. Washington gets back Arenas but I think he's the most overrated player in the NBA and will contribute to chemistry problems. Detroit is interesting but I think it will take time for them to gel. I like Gordon but it remains to be seen how well he fits in there. Charlie V.? Huh? Hello? Why in the world did they sign this soft turd?

Not only do I think we will make the playoffs, but I believe we will be competing for the 6th spot provided there is no major injuries.

/signed.

Wizards are the most overhyped/overrated team this offseason. Some people really think that Arenas will cataplut them from a 19-63 team to a title contender.

Same goes for Miami. I doubt that Wade can stay healthy, and if he goes down, it's over for the Heat.

[Benjamin Linus]

So we were ranked 28th when we drafted Morrison, 18th when we brought in Richardson, 21st when LB came on board, and 19th for this coming season. I guess that's somewhat reasonable considering where it's coming from.

We can beat out the teams right above us - Toronto, Miami, Philly, Washington and Detroit.

I sort of agree with this. I think Miami is a lock to make the playoffs as long as Wade is on the court and Detroit, IMO, is not even in the race for a playoff spot - they should be knocked down another 5 or 6 slots in the PR. But I can see seeds 7-8 coming down to Toronto, Philadelphia, Washington, and us.

Toronto did make some improvements this offseason but they are, with a doubt, going to be soft as hell, their defense is going to be horrendous, and they will have a decent shot at being the worst rebounding team in the league. I'm not so sure that their offense will be soo good that they'll be any better than a 7th seed / first round exit while they could just as easily miss the playoffs altogether. Washington is going to need both Haywood and Arenas in full health and in complete game shape - there is no way a core of Jamison, Butler, Miller, and Foye is going to make it to the playoffs. Philly desperately needs Brand to come in and play well and they are going to need some decent production from the PG spot if they are going to make the playoffs. But that doesn't go without saying - we need to pick up where we left off last season (sans the last few games Bell was out) and we cannot afford to have guys like Wallace and Chandler experiencing significant down time. It is definitely going to be tough.

[Battery]

Toronto did make some improvements this offseason but they are, with a doubt, going to be soft as hell, their defense is going to be horrendous, and they will have a decent shot at being the worst rebounding team in the league. I'm not so sure that their offense will be soo good that they'll be any better than a 7th seed / first round exit while they could just as easily miss the playoffs altogether. Washington is going to need both Haywood and Arenas in full health and in complete game shape - there is no way a core of Jamison, Butler, Miller, and Foye is going to make it to the playoffs. Philly desperately needs Brand to come in and play well and they are going to need some decent production from the PG spot if they are going to make the playoffs. But that doesn't go without saying - we need to pick up where we left off last season (sans the last few games Bell was out) and we cannot afford to have guys like Wallace and Chandler experiencing significant down time. It is definitely going to be tough.

Yeah, the bottom line is we just need to stay healthy and pick up where we left off in the second half of last season. Of course with some improvement.

As for Philly, even if Brand comes in and plays well, they still need someone to get him the ball. Philly is in for a rude awakening because Andre Miller was the glue that held them together the past couple of seasons.

I hate Gilbert Arenas. Cannot stand him. Worst chucker in the league. Hate Bosh too.

[DeeJay]

Raja Bell is finally on the block according to hoopshype.
I wanna see what they get for him.
If nothing it's time to look at John Wall tapes.

If we trade Bell, we absolutely must get back a good PF. Easier said than done of course.

Yeah when i first saw that they were looking to trade him i thought they were going to get a starting SG in return. But getting a PF makes sense. Do you reckon they would go for a PF that can start over Diaw? or a PF that would be a backup?

[thesneakysneak]

/\
tyrus thomas would be perfect if there was a god....

Remember also how poorly the team started last season while they were still learning LB's offence. i couldn't be bothered looking it up exactly but i remember our fg % being low 30's for some and maybe a high 20's for one early shocker of a game. and then after bell went down at the end our lack of depth really showed as we lost more games to close out the season.

now that the core minus TC has a year of LB offence under them and our depth in the front court is looking better i really think we should be looking at over .500 this year. hopefully anyway. i would place us 8th in the east to start the season with confidence