2019/2020 Western Conference Projected Standings

[Roy The Natural]

Where exactly did he carry the Pelicans? Davis is great and all. But sans Lebron the Lakers are MARKEDLY worse than the Pelicans were.

Lakers are going to have serious problems with their bench.

The Pelicans team with AD, Cousins, and Rondo was VERY good. Now, add Lebron. That's scary. Too many chumps on this website fail to recognize.

The Pelicans team with AD, Cousins with an untorn Achilles, and 2 years younger Rondo was a pretty good team. And Rondo was at best the fourth or fifth best guy on that team. Cousins isn't even close to that guy anymore and Rondo was not very good last year.
The Lakers will be very good by the end of the season but the Jazz and Nuggets at least will likely have better regular season records. They also rack up home wins when they're good to great teams.

I think people are underselling Portland a bit as well. They were REALLY good when Nurkic was healthy. Rodney Hood really started to come into his own late in the season. Zach Collins surpassed Aminu in overall effectiveness come playoff time, and if they can revitalize Hassan Whiteside to be motivated to play like he did 2-3 years ago, they have a pretty monstrous Center rotation. Bazemore is a waaaaaayyyy better fit than Turner. I think Portland will be better than last year, through internal development if nothing else.

I also think Simons will show out, and look like a future star this year. I think that Portland improved noticeably, but people are stuck on the loss of Harkless and Aminu, who really were by the end of the year outplayed by the guys replacing them.

[tv24lakers]

They will be a top 3 seed. The Lakers don't need Lebron to carry them in the regular season. They have freaking Anthony Davis - does anyone not know who he is? Its like everyone forgot how good he is.

Where exactly did he carry the Pelicans? Davis is great and all. But sans Lebron the Lakers are MARKEDLY worse than the Pelicans were.

Lakers are going to have serious problems with their bench.

The Pelicans team with AD, Cousins, and Rondo was VERY good. Now, add Lebron. That's scary. Too many chumps on this website fail to recognize.

Agreed. The Pelicans team w/ Cousins and Rondo had a nice run. Injuries and age are not on Cousins and Rondo's side. I hope I'm wrong, but I don't see Rondo or Cousins returning to their former self this coming season.

[tsirigoj]

Where exactly did he carry the Pelicans? Davis is great and all. But sans Lebron the Lakers are MARKEDLY worse than the Pelicans were.

Lakers are going to have serious problems with their bench.

The Pelicans team with AD, Cousins, and Rondo was VERY good. Now, add Lebron. That's scary. Too many chumps on this website fail to recognize.

The Pelicans team with AD, Cousins with an untorn Achilles, and 2 years younger Rondo was a pretty good team. And Rondo was at best the fourth or fifth best guy on that team. Cousins isn't even close to that guy anymore and Rondo was not very good last year.
The Lakers will be very good by the end of the season but the Jazz and Nuggets at least will likely have better regular season records. They also rack up home wins when they're good to great teams.

How do you know? He came back halfway through the season last season not in top-shape (understandably so) and averaged 16 and 8 in just 26 minutes. This time around, he actually has an off-season and self-reported that he's 100% healthy (not the case last season) and getting stronger.

I think it's bold to say he "isn't EVEN CLOSE to that guy anymore." Worst case is we don't know how healthy he'll be, but assuming that he'll be in better shape, he'll likely average AT WORSE 16 and 8, and that was with a team with Durant, Curry, and Klay.

[tsirigoj]

The Pelicans team with AD, Cousins, and Rondo was VERY good. Now, add Lebron. That's scary. Too many chumps on this website fail to recognize.

The Pelicans team with AD, Cousins with an untorn Achilles, and 2 years younger Rondo was a pretty good team. And Rondo was at best the fourth or fifth best guy on that team. Cousins isn't even close to that guy anymore and Rondo was not very good last year.
The Lakers will be very good by the end of the season but the Jazz and Nuggets at least will likely have better regular season records. They also rack up home wins when they're good to great teams.

I think people are underselling Portland a bit as well. They were REALLY good when Nurkic was healthy. Rodney Hood really started to come into his own late in the season. Zach Collins surpassed Aminu in overall effectiveness come playoff time, and if they can revitalize Hassan Whiteside to be motivated to play like he did 2-3 years ago, they have a pretty monstrous Center rotation. Bazemore is a waaaaaayyyy better fit than Turner. I think Portland will be better than last year, through internal development if nothing else.

I also think Simons will show out, and look like a future star this year. I think that Portland improved noticeably, but people are stuck on the loss of Harkless and Aminu, who really were by the end of the year outplayed by the guys replacing them.

Agreed. I think Blazers may be the best team in the West not from LA this upcoming season.

[Foye]

lol at them Pelicans 8th seed preditions.

[Roy The Natural]

The Pelicans team with AD, Cousins, and Rondo was VERY good. Now, add Lebron. That's scary. Too many chumps on this website fail to recognize.

The Pelicans team with AD, Cousins with an untorn Achilles, and 2 years younger Rondo was a pretty good team. And Rondo was at best the fourth or fifth best guy on that team. Cousins isn't even close to that guy anymore and Rondo was not very good last year.
The Lakers will be very good by the end of the season but the Jazz and Nuggets at least will likely have better regular season records. They also rack up home wins when they're good to great teams.

How do you know? He came back halfway through the season last season not in top-shape (understandably so) and averaged 16 and 8 in just 26 minutes. This time around, he actually has an off-season and self-reported that he's 100% healthy (not the case last season) and getting stronger.

I think it's bold to say he "isn't EVEN CLOSE to that guy anymore." Worst case is we don't know how healthy he'll be, but assuming that he'll be in better shape, he'll likely average AT WORSE 16 and 8, and that was with a team with Durant, Curry, and Klay.

How is it bold? We've only ever once seen a guy return to himself after an achilles rupture. I think it would be far bolder, and unrealistic to expect Cousins to ever regain anything close to what he was.

[tsirigoj]

lol at them Pelicans 8th seed preditions.

I anticipate Ingram will be healthy and a beast, Lonzo will be coming into his own, Jrue will Jrue, and Zion will take the league by storm. Not an awful prediction, having them at 8th.

I just wish they'd get rid of Gentry. I always thought he was a terrible coach.

[tsirigoj]

The Pelicans team with AD, Cousins with an untorn Achilles, and 2 years younger Rondo was a pretty good team. And Rondo was at best the fourth or fifth best guy on that team. Cousins isn't even close to that guy anymore and Rondo was not very good last year.
The Lakers will be very good by the end of the season but the Jazz and Nuggets at least will likely have better regular season records. They also rack up home wins when they're good to great teams.

How do you know? He came back halfway through the season last season not in top-shape (understandably so) and averaged 16 and 8 in just 26 minutes. This time around, he actually has an off-season and self-reported that he's 100% healthy (not the case last season) and getting stronger.

I think it's bold to say he "isn't EVEN CLOSE to that guy anymore." Worst case is we don't know how healthy he'll be, but assuming that he'll be in better shape, he'll likely average AT WORSE 16 and 8, and that was with a team with Durant, Curry, and Klay.

How is it bold? We've only ever once seen a guy return to himself after an achilles rupture. I think it would be far bolder, and unrealistic to expect Cousins to ever regain anything close to what he was.

No one is really expecting him to be that 25 and 13 beast that he was, but again, considering he JUST came back from injury, was pretty out of shape, and playing an average of 26 minutes, to average 16 and 8 is VERY solid. Again (just repeating myself), NOW he'll be in better shape, may command more minutes (no one knows Vogel's plan), I can see him as a 19 and 11 threat every night. That's all he'd have to be on this team.

[Jack Dempsey]

The West is going to be BRUTAL this season!!!

1. Denver Nuggets
2. LA Clippers
3. Utah Jazz
4. Portland Trailblazers
5. LA Lakers
6. Houston Rockets
7. GS Warriors
8. San Antonio Spurs
_______________________

9. Dallas Mavericks
10. Sacramento Kings
11. New Orleans Pelicans
12. Minnesota Timberwolves
13. Phoenix Suns
14. Oklahoma City Thunder
15. Memphis Grizzlies

[Roy The Natural]

How do you know? He came back halfway through the season last season not in top-shape (understandably so) and averaged 16 and 8 in just 26 minutes. This time around, he actually has an off-season and self-reported that he's 100% healthy (not the case last season) and getting stronger.

I think it's bold to say he "isn't EVEN CLOSE to that guy anymore." Worst case is we don't know how healthy he'll be, but assuming that he'll be in better shape, he'll likely average AT WORSE 16 and 8, and that was with a team with Durant, Curry, and Klay.

How is it bold? We've only ever once seen a guy return to himself after an achilles rupture. I think it would be far bolder, and unrealistic to expect Cousins to ever regain anything close to what he was.

No one is really expecting him to be that 25 and 13 beast that he was, but again, considering he JUST came back from injury, was pretty out of shape, and playing an average of 26 minutes, to average 16 and 8 is VERY solid. Again (just repeating myself), NOW he'll be in better shape, may command more minutes (no one knows Vogel's plan), I can see him as a 19 and 11 threat every night. That's all he'd have to be on this team.

Maybe... but he also looked like Enes Kanter on defense last year. I expect teams with competent guard play to put him in 1-5 pick and rolls all day long, and run him off the court. He looked like his feet were stuck in quicksand this last year. I think that Cousins will be getting run off the court long before he can get to 19-11 on most nights.

[tsirigoj]

How is it bold? We've only ever once seen a guy return to himself after an achilles rupture. I think it would be far bolder, and unrealistic to expect Cousins to ever regain anything close to what he was.

No one is really expecting him to be that 25 and 13 beast that he was, but again, considering he JUST came back from injury, was pretty out of shape, and playing an average of 26 minutes, to average 16 and 8 is VERY solid. Again (just repeating myself), NOW he'll be in better shape, may command more minutes (no one knows Vogel's plan), I can see him as a 19 and 11 threat every night. That's all he'd have to be on this team.

Maybe... but he also looked like Enes Kanter on defense last year. I expect teams with competent guard play to put him in 1-5 pick and rolls all day long, and run him off the court. He looked like his feet were stuck in quicksand this last year. I think that Cousins will be getting run off the court long before he can get to 19-11 on most nights.

Maybe! Good thing he's sharing the frontcourt with an All-NBA defender (when healthy).

Enes Kanter makes bad decisions and doesn't disrupt a defense like Cousins can on 1 foot.

[Roy The Natural]

No one is really expecting him to be that 25 and 13 beast that he was, but again, considering he JUST came back from injury, was pretty out of shape, and playing an average of 26 minutes, to average 16 and 8 is VERY solid. Again (just repeating myself), NOW he'll be in better shape, may command more minutes (no one knows Vogel's plan), I can see him as a 19 and 11 threat every night. That's all he'd have to be on this team.

Maybe... but he also looked like Enes Kanter on defense last year. I expect teams with competent guard play to put him in 1-5 pick and rolls all day long, and run him off the court. He looked like his feet were stuck in quicksand this last year. I think that Cousins will be getting run off the court long before he can get to 19-11 on most nights.

Maybe! Good thing he's sharing the frontcourt with an All-NBA defender (when healthy).

Enes Kanter makes bad decisions and doesn't disrupt a defense like Cousins can on 1 foot.

As good as Davis is. There isn't much he can do if Cousins is put in the blender and the other team puts a bunch of shooters on the floor. I think Cousins is going to be a bench guy, who looks more like Greg Monroe, than Jusuf Nurkic.

[BNM]

The Pelicans team with AD, Cousins, and Rondo was VERY good. Now, add Lebron. That's scary. Too many chumps on this website fail to recognize.

The Pelicans team with AD, Cousins with an untorn Achilles, and 2 years younger Rondo was a pretty good team. And Rondo was at best the fourth or fifth best guy on that team. Cousins isn't even close to that guy anymore and Rondo was not very good last year.
The Lakers will be very good by the end of the season but the Jazz and Nuggets at least will likely have better regular season records. They also rack up home wins when they're good to great teams.

I think people are underselling Portland a bit as well. They were REALLY good when Nurkic was healthy. Rodney Hood really started to come into his own late in the season. Zach Collins surpassed Aminu in overall effectiveness come playoff time, and if they can revitalize Hassan Whiteside to be motivated to play like he did 2-3 years ago, they have a pretty monstrous Center rotation. Bazemore is a waaaaaayyyy better fit than Turner. I think Portland will be better than last year, through internal development if nothing else.

I also think Simons will show out, and look like a future star this year. I think that Portland improved noticeably, but people are stuck on the loss of Harkless and Aminu, who really were by the end of the year outplayed by the guys replacing them.

Whiteside will be plenty motivated. It's a contract year for him and probably a his last chance at another big contract. He'll be playing with Dame and C.J. who he likes and respects, and is a great fit in POR's system, where centers that clog the paint, protect the rim and rebound the ball all thrive (POR doesn't expect/require their center to space the floor).

He's the perfect place holder/1-year rental until Nurkic comes back and returns to form - which presents two very intriguing options to POR, depending on when Nurk comes back and how he looks. If he comes back and looks solid before the trade deadline, POR can trade Whiteside's huge expiring contract for a disgruntled star, or simply a highly paid player on a team that decides to blow it up. Or, Nurk comes back later and they bring him a long slowly and POR goes into the playoffs with a front court of Nurkic, Whiteside and Collins. That's a LOT of rim protection.

[tsirigoj]

Maybe... but he also looked like Enes Kanter on defense last year. I expect teams with competent guard play to put him in 1-5 pick and rolls all day long, and run him off the court. He looked like his feet were stuck in quicksand this last year. I think that Cousins will be getting run off the court long before he can get to 19-11 on most nights.

Maybe! Good thing he's sharing the frontcourt with an All-NBA defender (when healthy).

Enes Kanter makes bad decisions and doesn't disrupt a defense like Cousins can on 1 foot.

As good as Davis is. There isn't much he can do if Cousins is put in the blender and the other team puts a bunch of shooters on the floor. I think Cousins is going to be a bench guy, who looks more like Greg Monroe, than Jusuf Nurkic.

Maybe. But I see a return of Demarcus Cousins on fewer minutes being more likely.

It also really depends on how Lakers use him. I, personally, would like for him to start with Davis, but I can't see the Lakers NOT starting Kuzma.

But, then again, AD has said he hates playing center.

It would be weird to see Cousins as the backup for JaVale McGee.

[Roy The Natural]

Maybe! Good thing he's sharing the frontcourt with an All-NBA defender (when healthy).

Enes Kanter makes bad decisions and doesn't disrupt a defense like Cousins can on 1 foot.

As good as Davis is. There isn't much he can do if Cousins is put in the blender and the other team puts a bunch of shooters on the floor. I think Cousins is going to be a bench guy, who looks more like Greg Monroe, than Jusuf Nurkic.

Maybe. But I see a return of Demarcus Cousins on fewer minutes being more likely.

It also really depends on how Lakers use him. I, personally, would like for him to start with Davis, but I can't see the Lakers NOT starting Kuzma.

But, then again, AD has said he hates playing center.

It would be weird to see Cousins as the backup for JaVale McGee.

I would play McGee over Monroe. So I'd imagine that Lakers will start him, eventually. Probably going to start Cousins to start the year, find out it's a disaster, then start McGee for the length and defense.

[tsirigoj]

As good as Davis is. There isn't much he can do if Cousins is put in the blender and the other team puts a bunch of shooters on the floor. I think Cousins is going to be a bench guy, who looks more like Greg Monroe, than Jusuf Nurkic.

Maybe. But I see a return of Demarcus Cousins on fewer minutes being more likely.

It also really depends on how Lakers use him. I, personally, would like for him to start with Davis, but I can't see the Lakers NOT starting Kuzma.

But, then again, AD has said he hates playing center.

It would be weird to see Cousins as the backup for JaVale McGee.

I would play McGee over Monroe. So I'd imagine that Lakers will start him, eventually. Probably going to start Cousins to start the year, find out it's a disaster, then start McGee for the length and defense.

???

Did you mean to type something else other than Monroe?

[Roy The Natural]

Maybe. But I see a return of Demarcus Cousins on fewer minutes being more likely.

It also really depends on how Lakers use him. I, personally, would like for him to start with Davis, but I can't see the Lakers NOT starting Kuzma.

But, then again, AD has said he hates playing center.

It would be weird to see Cousins as the backup for JaVale McGee.

I would play McGee over Monroe. So I'd imagine that Lakers will start him, eventually. Probably going to start Cousins to start the year, find out it's a disaster, then start McGee for the length and defense.

???

Did you mean to type something else other than Monroe?

No... I'm saying that I think that Cousins will basically be Greg Monroe, maybe slightly better. And that I would start McGee over Monroe if I was the Lakers, so it makes sense that McGee will end up the starter at the 5, if Davis doesn't wont to start at the 5.

[SK21209]

How do you know? He came back halfway through the season last season not in top-shape (understandably so) and averaged 16 and 8 in just 26 minutes. This time around, he actually has an off-season and self-reported that he's 100% healthy (not the case last season) and getting stronger.

I think it's bold to say he "isn't EVEN CLOSE to that guy anymore." Worst case is we don't know how healthy he'll be, but assuming that he'll be in better shape, he'll likely average AT WORSE 16 and 8, and that was with a team with Durant, Curry, and Klay.

How is it bold? We've only ever once seen a guy return to himself after an achilles rupture. I think it would be far bolder, and unrealistic to expect Cousins to ever regain anything close to what he was.

No one is really expecting him to be that 25 and 13 beast that he was, but again, considering he JUST came back from injury, was pretty out of shape, and playing an average of 26 minutes, to average 16 and 8 is VERY solid. Again (just repeating myself), NOW he'll be in better shape, may command more minutes (no one knows Vogel's plan), I can see him as a 19 and 11 threat every night. That's all he'd have to be on this team.

Cousins just signed for 1 year and $3.5 million in a year when half the league had cap space. It's not just me, the entire league thinks he won' be anywhere close. A lumbering center is probably the worst candidate to recover from an Achilles. The Lakers best lineups will probably be with him on the bench.

[Roy The Natural]

How is it bold? We've only ever once seen a guy return to himself after an achilles rupture. I think it would be far bolder, and unrealistic to expect Cousins to ever regain anything close to what he was.

No one is really expecting him to be that 25 and 13 beast that he was, but again, considering he JUST came back from injury, was pretty out of shape, and playing an average of 26 minutes, to average 16 and 8 is VERY solid. Again (just repeating myself), NOW he'll be in better shape, may command more minutes (no one knows Vogel's plan), I can see him as a 19 and 11 threat every night. That's all he'd have to be on this team.

Cousins just signed for 1 year and $3.5 million in a year when half the league had cap space. It's not just me, the entire league thinks he won' be anywhere close. A lumbering center is probably the worst candidate to recover from an Achilles. The Lakers best lineups will probably be with him on the bench.

Yup. Cousins was a really damn good player. The disconnect is that some Laker fans seem to think that the injury knocked him down to Jusuf Nurkic levels. Realistically, from what we've seen of achilles injuries previously, and what we saw from Cousins last year... it looks more like he's been knocked down to a Greg Monroe, or Enes Kanter level player.

I don't doubt that Cousins will still be able to rebound, and score at a decent enough clip. But it looked to me like he had become almost entirely immobile, and lost any bounce which he had at one point. He looks entirely ground-bound, with zero agility. He's going to have a tough time staying on the court due to all the defensive issues he causes IMO.

[tsirigoj]

I would play McGee over Monroe. So I'd imagine that Lakers will start him, eventually. Probably going to start Cousins to start the year, find out it's a disaster, then start McGee for the length and defense.

???

Did you mean to type something else other than Monroe?

No... I'm saying that I think that Cousins will basically be Greg Monroe, maybe slightly better. And that I would start McGee over Monroe if I was the Lakers, so it makes sense that McGee will end up the starter at the 5, if Davis doesn't wont to start at the 5.

Pretty awful comparison.

Lets compare the two.

We'll use the 2014 season for Monroe, as that was statistically one of his best years. Cousins was at 25.7MPG, Monroe at 31MPG

Points Per Game:
Greg Monroe: 15.9
DeMarcus Cousins: 16.3 PPG
Advantage: Cousins, +0.4

Field Goal Percentage:
Greg Monroe: 49.6
DeMarcus Cousins: 48.0
Advantage: Monroe, +1.6 points

Three Point Field Goal Percentage:
Greg Monroe: 0
DeMarcus Cousins: 27.4
Advantage: Cousins, +27.4 points

Rebounds Per Game:
Greg Monroe: 10.2
Demarcus Cousins: 8.2
Advantage: Monroe, +2

Assists Per Game:
Greg Monroe: 2.1
Demarcus Cousins: 3.6
Advantage: Cousins, +2.5

Blocks Per Game:
Greg Monroe: 0.5
Demarcus Cousin: 1.5
Advantage: Cousins, +1

Steals Per Game:
Greg Monroe: 1.1
Demarcus Cousins: 1.3
Advantage: Cousins, +0.2

Free Throw Percentage:
Greg Monroe: 75
Demarcus Cousins: 73.6
Advantage: Monroe, +1.4

Turnovers Per Game:
Greg Monroe: 2.2
Demarcus Cousins: 2.4
Advantage: Monroe, -0.2

Plus/Minus:
Greg Monroe: -24
Demarcus Cousins: +65
Advantage: Cousins, +89

Greg Monroe AT HIS BEST is arguably not as good as Cousins AT HIS WORST. Again, couple that with a GOOD off-season where Cousins gets to rehabilitate himself AND he reports he is currently at 100% getting stronger, you need to think of a better comparison.