2012-13 NBA Predictions

The NBA season is upon us, and it is already off to an exciting first week. So exciting, in fact, that I forgot to give you my season predictions for how this year will turn out. First off I want to start by saying that James Harden will not average 40 points per game, win the MVP, and lead the Rockets to the NBA Finals. I'm sorry to disappoint any die-hard Houston fans. I also believe that the Thunder, Lakers, and Celtics will all finish with records above .500, which their current records do not reflect. So, now I will begin to predict how I think both the Eastern and Western Conference standings will look like at the end of the regular season. 

Eastern Conference:

1. Miami Heat

2. Boston Celtics

3. New York Knicks

4. Indiana Pacers

5. Brooklyn Nets

6. Philadelphia 76ers

7. Chicago Bulls

8. Atlanta Hawks

Well I am definitely not alone with my prediction that the Miami Heat will finish with the best record in the east. I think the Heat are the clear favorites to repeat heading into this season, and with the additions of shooters in Ray Allen and Rashard Lewis, they should end up with home court advantage throughout the playoffs. My second seed is Boston, and I really don't think that they will have a slow regular season like they have in the past couple of years. I believe that the youth the team has gained will help them win some more games during the regular season. I also think that Rajon Rondo will make a run at the MVP, due to an increase in scoring. Now, my three through six seeds could really finish anywhere, there is no clear best team out of those four. I think the Knicks will finish at three just because they have Carmelo Anthony, who thrived along with the  rest of the team under Mike Woodson late last year. I love the point guard tandem of Raymond Felton and Jason Kidd, and the Knicks have great scoring off the bench in J.R. Smith and Steve Novak. The Pacers are number four for me, because they have a very deep roster for the third year in a row, and now have the experience of making a decent playoff run last year. Now I have the Nets over the Sixers because of the injury to Andrew Bynum. He will miss a little time, and I do like Brooklyn. Both teams should be pretty even throughout the season, however, and it will entertaining to watch Joe Johnson and Deron Williams play together. The Bulls will make  the playoffs and finish above the Hawks, because of the return of Derrick Rose at some point this season. The Bulls also, as they displayed last year, have enough on their squad to win a lot of games in the Eastern Conference. I pick the Hawks to squeeze in ahead of the Bucks, simply because I think they have a better all-around roster. The backcourt of Brandon Jennings and Monta Ellis will be great to watch though. 

Western Conference:

1. Oklahoma City Thunder

2. San Antonio Spurs

3. Los Angeles Lakers

4. Los Angeles Clippers

5. Denver Nuggets

6. Memphis Grizzlies

7. Dallas Mavericks

8. Minnesota Timberwolves

The Thunder are my number one seed, because of the combination of youth and experience they have, as well as the greatness of Kevin Durant. Durant should make another run at both the scoring title, and the MVP, while the addition of Kevin Martin will serve as a nice complementary piece to the roster. The loss of James Harden will not stand out as far as I'm concerned, because of the return this season of backup point guard Eric Maynor. The Spurs will finish ahead of the Lakers in the regular season, because the Lakers will take some time to mesh. As we have already seen in the first week, the health of the older Lakers is a legitimate concern. Even though the injury to Steve Nash is not a significant one, it is something to keep an eye on as the season goes on. As far as four through six, the Clippers will finish ahead due to another MVP-type season from Chris Paul. They have also replaced players like Mo Williams, Nick Young, and Reggie Evans with better players in Jamaal Crawford, Grant Hill, Ryan Hollins, and the return of Chauncey Billups. The Nuggets and Grizzlies could finish flipped, but I think the addition of Andre Iguodala will be enough to grab the five seed. The Mavs will get the seven seed ahead of the Timberwolves. I picked the Timberwolves, because I think the return of Kevin Love and Ricky Rubio, as wells as the additions of Brandon Roy and Andre Kirilenko will be enough to sneak into the playoffs. 

Playoff Predictions:

First Round-

(1) Miami Heat v. (8) Atlanta Hawks 

Heat win 4-1

(2) Boston Celtics v. (7) Chicago Bulls

Celtics win 4-3

(3) New York Knicks v. (6) Philadelphia 76ers

Knicks win 4-2

(4) Indiana Pacers v. (5) Brooklyn Nets

Pacers win 4-2

(1) Oklahoma City Thunder v. (8) Minnesota Timberwolves

Thunder win 4-1

(2) San Antonio Spurs v. (7) Dallas Mavericks

Spurs win 4-1

(3) Los Angeles Lakers v. (6) Memphis Grizzlies

Lakers win 4-2

(4) Los Angeles Clippers v. (5) Denver Nuggets

Clippers win 4-3

Conference Semi-Finals-

(1) Miami Heat v. (4) Indiana Pacers

Heat win 4-3

(2) Boston Celtics v. (3) New York Knicks

Celtics win 4-2

(1) Oklahoma City Thunder v. (4) Los Angeles Clippers

Thunder win 4-2

(2) San Antonio Spurs v. (3) Lakers

Lakers win 4-2

Conference Finals-

(1) Miami Heat v. (2) Boston Celtics

Celtics win 4-2

() Oklahoma City Thunder v. (3) Los Angeles Lakers

Thunder win 4-2

NBA Finals-

(1) Oklahoma City Thunder v. (2) Boston Celtics

Celtics win 4-3

Yes thats right, I don't have either the Heat or Lakers in the Finals. I think that the Pacers will give the Heat a great series and then the Celtics will beat the Heat in the Eastern Conference Finals. The Celtics improved perimeter play, along with a stronger Rajon Rondo will knock off Miami. I believe the Lakers will lose to the Thunder, because of Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook. Although the Lakers big men Dwight Howard and Pau Gasol will have strong series, and Kobe will be Kobe, Durant and Westbrook will dominate their respective matchups. Especially Westbrook, because no one on the Lakers can guard him, unless they put Kobe on him, which will hurt his offense. In the Finals, I think it will go back and forth. Rondo will have a great series, while either Garnett or Bass will knock down jumpers all day over Kendrick Perkins. Of course this could, and likely will, not happen and everyone else will have picked the right finals of the Lakers and the Heat. But, I truly believe that there is a strong possibility of the season playing out as I have predicted, we'll see. 

Summer On Smash: Free Agency in The NBA

NBA free agency has always been an eventful time for NBA basketball fans. It occurs soon after the end of the NBA finals, as well as the draft. This summer has been no different, in fact even more exciting than in past years. In the summer of 2007 the Boston Celtics big three was formed, when the Celtics acquired Ray Allen and Kevin Garnett, but those were both via trade. In the summer of 2010, LeBron James made his "decision" to travel down to the warm beaches of Miami Florida, and side with fellow All-Stars Dwayne Wade and Chris Bosh. This summer, however, has seen more big names being moved than any other year, whether through free agency or trade.

A 6-time NBA All-Star, Joe Johnson, was one of many star players to relocate this month. Johnson was traded to the Brooklyn Nets for multiple role players and draft picks. The move sparked maybe the biggest free agent of them all, Deron Williams, to re-sign with the Nets, and give Brooklyn arguably the best backcourt tandem in the NBA. One team who would argue that statement is the Los Angeles Lakers. The Lakers added a huge piece to its squad, one that it thinks has been missing for a while, an All-Star point guard. Well, not only did they get an All-Star, but also a two-time MVP winner in former Suns guard Steve Nash. The sign and trade deal almost came out of nowhere, as the Lakers had been Nash's biggest rival for years, while playing with the Suns. Nevertheless Nash ok'd the deal, not only because of the Lakers' potential, but also because he would be closer to his family in Phoenix. Another shocking move was made by a veteran All-Star guard, this time it was Ray Allen. Ray Allen had spent the past 5 seasons with the Boston Celtics, and helped them win a title in 2008, but after losing to Miami in the Eastern Conference Finals this past season, Allen decided to sign with the defending champion Heat. The move shocked most Celtics fans (including myself), but it was not the end of the world for Celtics fans, because they added a veteran shooting guard of their own. Longtime Dallas Maverick Jason Terry agreed to sign the Celtics just days before Allen decided to leave. Some think that the two are connected, but it has been denied by Allen. Terry was not the only Maverick that left the team, the point guard who led them to a championship just a year ago, Jason Kidd, left Dallas for New York. Kidd signed with the Knicks with the intention of mentoring the young breakout point guard, Jeremy Lin. It sounded like a great plan until Lin signed an offer sheet with the Houston Rockets. One that the Knicks intended to match until Houston changed the third year of the contract to $15 Million. Instead the Knicks decided to just trade for a former Knick point guard, Raymond Felton.

Despite all of these blockbuster moves none were the story of the summer in the NBA. The biggest story remains where is Magic center Dwight Howard going? Howard has expressed on many occasions that he is not interested in playing for the Magic next season, but no deal has been made yet, and the two sides do not seem to be able to figure anything out. All the blame is to go on Howard, however, as he made it clear that he would stay if the coach and general manager left. Well, at the end of the season Van Gundy and Otis Smith were fired, and Howard proceeded to simply change his mind. Howard is single handedly ruining the Orlando Magic's organization. After getting a brand new arena, and hosting the All-Star Game this past year, the Magic are now most certainly headed backwards.

Despite the problems in Orlando, the rest of the NBA is looking great. The league continues to get more and more exciting as more players change locations. Fresh rookies are preparing to make an impact on the league, and the 2012-2013 NBA Regular Season Schedule was just recently released. On October 30th the season begins in Miami, where the Heat will begin their defense of the NBA title against their rival of recent, the Boston Celtics. Can't wait? Me neither.