NBAAll the power polls/rankings should be in, every team should have their rosters just about solidified and the NBA basketball season should be underway shortly. I shall give you my own personal thoughts and predictions on the upcoming season.The NBA champions will come out of the West. Put it on your bulletin board, write it down, take a picture, I don’t care; remember it. Who are the teams that matter this year? In order: San Antonio Spurs, Phoenix Suns, Dallas Mavericks, Boston Celtics, Cleveland Cavaliers, and the Detroit Pistons. That’s half out of the West and half out of the East, why?

The best teams come down to three things: talent, experience, and coaching. Barring any unforeseen injuries or scandals *cough*refs throwing games*cough* the West just has the better teams. The Spurs are the champs, have battle-tested players, and arguably the best coach in the league. They have won, and know how to win. They are the team to beat.

The Suns were on their way to giving the Champion Spurs seven games of hell last year when the NBA effectively gave the Spurs the series on a ridiculous interpretation of the rules. The Suns were up in the series when Robert Horry, of the Spurs, committed a flagrant foul that resulted in the suspension of two Suns starters. Read that last sentence again. Yeah the Suns were screwed but they will be back this season and ready to take it all the way again. Their only problem that I can see is they lost some lockdown defense when they traded away Kurt Thomas in the off-season. Their defense is suspect but their offense is sublime. This Suns team has one of the most efficient offenses in the history of the game.

Next is the Dallas Mavericks, who won the most regular season games last season and seemed to be on cruise control to the championship when they met the Golden State Warriors in the first round. Dallas was dropped like a bad habit by a team who may have been the worst matchup for them. This alone exposed a glaring problem that the Mavericks have to face this season, and is also the reason they are at number three. Yet, they have one of the best big men in the league, a deep roster, a commitment to defense and a great coach.

The East teams are the fourth, fifth, and sixth best teams this season and have a lot of work ahead of them if they want to go to the finals.

The Cavaliers are coming off a season where they went to the NBA finals, yet didn’t look like they should have been there. They were swept by the Spurs and sent home with a lot of work to do. They have had some contract issues this off-season and may struggle if they can’t get their team focused.

Next up is everyone’s darling pick: the newly formed Boston Celtics. With a trio of Kevin Garnett, Ray Allen, and Paul Pierce you automatically get handed a title, right? Well that’s what the media will have you believe. Chemistry is a unique monster that cannot be forced. The Iverson and Carmelo experiment didn’t exactly yield results last season so be weary of the Celtics. Of course they DO have Garnett, Allen and Pierce.

Finally, the Detroit Pistons. They’re losing Chris Webber to retirement, they’re still stuck with Flip Saunders as a coach and they seem to have lost their identity. Still, they have great players and experience and since the East is fairly weak, they should have no troubles making it into the playoffs.

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