No Blood No Foul

Here it is – my attempt at predicting the future. Last season I was too busy to write a post, but not this year.

First, some assumptions:

1. All the important players stay (mostly) healthy.
2. There aren’t any major trades. Obviously this will change, but when it does the rankings will be updated (if I have time).
3. When I get one or more of these predictions wrong, some lame-wad who isn’t bold enough to make his or her predictions publicly BEFORE the season will ridicule me. So be it.

In order of how they’ll finish…

1) Boston Celtics

Possibilities: Eastern Conference Finals (ECF) or NBA Finals

Problems: Father time and a need for a backup PG.

Prognosis: Boston matches up nicely with Cleveland and Orlando, not to mention LA and San Antonio. This team is better and deeper than the team that won a championship two years ago. If anyone can knock off the Lakers, the Celtics are it. (more…)

I’ve spent some time the last couple of days trying to figure out how the Jazz can trade Boozer for anyone or anything of substantial value, and I have to admit I’m stymied. Unless OKC decides to help facilitate a trade (which seems unlikely considering neither team is willing to part with anything OKC wants), it’s hard to imagine Utah doing a deal that works. I’m going to list off all the possible deals I see and finish with the deal I think makes the most sense – Lee and Mobley for Boozer and Harpring. (more…)

Anthony Carter is going to get the blame, but the Nuggets lost this game in the last 3 minutes. They simply don’t have the experience in close games. A silly reach in foul, one poor rotation, and one bad possession is all it takes to lose in a game like this.

Denver’s disadvantage on the boards is profound. They’never been good on the boards this season…if only McDyess had stayed. The Nuggets are still one big man away.

By the way, I’m pretty sure that Carter isn’t the Nuggets best passer. Why is he making the in-bounds on the most critical possession of the game? Karl’s confidence in his role players is great, but he deserves part of the blame here as well. (more…)

Here’s what the Lakers-Nuggets 2008-2009 Western Conference Finals are going to look like:

Point Guards – Billups and Carter vs. Fisher, Farmar, and Brown. There’s an awful lot to like about L.A.’s trio of point guards. Brown is lightening quick, Farmar is a talented shooter and capable player, and Fisher is big, strong, and clutch. Denver’s Anthony Carter is a good game manager and a great defender, but I don’t think he’ll be able to match the point output from Brown and Farmar. Lucky for Denver, Chauncey will easily outplay Fisher. Advantage: Nuggets.

Shooting Guards – Dahntay Jones and J.R. Smith vs. Vujacic and some guy named Kobe. If the series lasts 7 games, there will be 1 game where J.R. Smith almost matches Kobe offensively – ONE. Most of the time, Kobe will double up J.R.’s scoring. When you add in Kobe’s defensive abilities and his superman powers, he wins the match-up all by himself.

Having said that, I wouldn’t be surprised if Jones managed to get under Kobe’s skin a little in this series. In fact, the best thing Jones can do is figure out a way to get Kobe suspended (sounds like a crappy job). Advantage: Lakers (and it’s big). (more…)

All the talking heads and analysts have already said the Nuggets win the series, and I think that’s likely as well. Denver simply has too much to overcome the Mavs:

• Billups vs. Kidd – This will come down to Billups being able to score in transition. Kidd is slow, and if he’s out of position because he’s trying to pull down a rebound, Billups is going to get an easy look. Since Billups matches Kidd in terms of playmaking, and since Kidd’s offense is pretty poor, Kidd needs to keep Billups from scoring a lot (like he did tonight) to win the matchup. Billups is the guy in this series, but it’s going to be close. (more…)

A report on Yahoo Sports today says that the Phoenix Suns are considering moving Amar’e Stoudemire. Rumors abound that Amar’e is dissatisfied with his new coach, his reduced offensive role, and the fact that people keep asking him to play defense. This shouldn’t come as a surprise – the knock on Amar’e since he joined the NBA has been his attitude.

Still, it must be said that Amar’e can flat-out ball. The guy has moves, an excellent mid-range game, and he can finish. If the Suns really are interested in moving Amar’e for a combination of youth and expiring contracts (as the report on Yahoo suggested), there are only a handful of teams that have a legit opportunity to land Amar’e. (more…)