As an NBA sportswriter, I already know everything there is to know about hoops. In order build my ego up even more, I decided to go look at some of my predictions about the league in my NBA preview. As stated above, I am always right about basketball, making some of these preseason observations a little odd. Hey, some of them were spot on. But others…yuck! REGARDING THE NEW YORK KNICKS: “To make it to the playoffs, Stephon Marbury has to carry this team. To make it any further, Allan Houston, Kurt and Tim Thomas must produce like never before without too much infighting over minutes. Given that the Knicks are privately frightened that Houston might not be able to play this season, the smart money would be on the latter and not the former coming true.”
Looking at this prediction, one of the firsts of the preview, I was still pretty confident in my expertise. I mean, just look at the Knicks. They’re a mess!
REGARDING THE CLEVELAND CAVALIERS: “Everyone knows what a blow loosing Boozer was to this rising franchise. But here’s to General Manager Jim Paxson not panicking and making this roster just as good, if not better than the one that finished one spot out of the playoffs last season.”
At this point, I felt pretty solid. I mean, Carlos Boozer is floundering in Utah and Drew Gooden, while not quite as productive, is having his best season as a pro. Of course Paxson was just fired, but that had more to do with the new ownership than anything else
REGARDING THE CHICAGO BULLS: “Also, the team drafted Deng who should contribute this season and Gordon, who, if preseason is any indication, won’t.”
Alright, I batted .500 there, that wouldn’t be so bad if it wasn’t for…
“When it comes right down to it, though, the Bulls had the second worst record in the league last year and while they will be better than that this season, they won’t be good enough to play after their last regular season game on April 20th.”
REGARDING THE ORLANDO MAGIC: “Turkoglu, Battie, and Nelson are all solid if not spectacular pickups and should help the Magic easily eclipse last season’s 21 wins and be in the mix for the playoffs. Should Grant Hill’s comeback be for real this time, the Magic will challenge for home court advantage.”
OK, back on track here, at least a little. Sure, the Magic unraveled a bit, but they did get 36 wins and I picked them for 37. That’s not bad at all.
REGARDING THE ATLANTA HAWKS: “This team will not be good, but they may surprise a few. Not the surprise and contend for a playoff spot type, but more of the 33 wins when you expected 25. Wait `till next year Hawk fans. Both of you.”
This is my first real bomb. “33 wins when you expected 25?!” Exactly who expected 25 wins for the Hawks?!!! They had 13 wins and I have lost all self-respect.
“New Orleans Hornets Projected Record: 29-53”
Here’s another doozie. 29 wins for the Hornets? Watching that team I’m surprised they got to 18. Ugh.
“Minnesota Timberwolves Projected Record: 55-27”
Yeah, a pretty ugly projection. I’m sure you’ll enjoy the rest of my thoughts on the Wolves:
“The fact that almost every other contender has made at least a couple major changes while they have stood pat should work to the T-Wolves advantage, at least during the beginning of the season when the other team’s struggle to find their identities. If they can use the consistency on their roster to start strong, they may be able to grab the best record in the West which will be very important should they find themselves in the conference finals against San Antonio.”
Best record in the West, huh? How about 44 wins after a desperate and futile late season surge and missing the playoffs altogether?
REGARDING THE DENVER NUGGETS: “It might take them a little while to gel, but look out when they do.”
Ah, nice. I needed something to restore my confidence in my NBA I.Q.
“Seattle Supersonics Projected Record: 28-54”
Uh oh, I’m reverting to form here. I foresaw 28 wins for the Sonics and instead, they have 52. This had to be my worst prediction yet, right? Nope. That honor belongs to:
“Phoenix Suns Projected Record: 42-40”
Not good. Phoenix won 62 games and has the league’s best record, as well as home court advantage throughout the playoffs.
“You ask how we can leave a team that improved so much over the summer out of the playoffs? Because they only won 29 games the year before.”
Nice reasoning. Granted, they had talent everywhere, and upgraded at key positions like putting Steve Nash at point guard, but hey, they only won 29 games the year before so that win total has to come back down.. Real solid, Gabe. Finally:
“Think about it this way: If the Suns fall to the lottery they’ll have an easier time picking up the center they so desperately need to make it to the next level. That’s not so bad.”
Right, either lottery, or they could compete for the NBA Championship. That’s not so bad, either. As I said at the top, I know everything there is to know about the NBA. Turns out, that’s not all that much, huh?