This ends up being, arguably, the most top-heavy division in the Western Conference. Other than the Lakers, there is no guaranteed playoff team within the division, and although the NBA season can have an element of parody, from the looks of these teams, a lot of things have to go right for there to be true competition because at this point, it's the Lakers division, healthy Kobe or not.
1) Los Angeles Lakers (LY: 57-25, 1st in division, 1st in conference, NBA champions...oh delight!)
Kobe is recovery from his third knee surgery. Bynum is out til late November/Early December. Pau took the summer off from basketball to pursue NBA Cares initiatives and act as an international ambassador for the game. Lakers have had the least amount of practice time with all the international, preseason travel. The Lakers lost Farmar, Mbenga. They have new additions in Steve Blake, Matt Barnes, and Theo Ratliff to integrate into the system.
Worried yet? If the answer is no, that's because years of postseason experience and veteran leadership pose little worry in Lakerland when it comes to regular season success.
Phil will be going for his 4th! Threepeat. Kobe will be chasing Jordan for number 6! And Fisher has seen what it takes to win a title over the last decade. They have the wherewithal to make it through the regular season, and the only thing that is important is relative health going into the playoffs.
Now we all know what the Black Mamba is capable of on the court. However, expect to see a shift in offensive features with Pau Gasol as we see Kobe slowly get back to full strength. Essentially, this should be Pau's Team from now until January as Phil as iterated, "We are going to monitor Kobe's minutes at the beginning of the season." And with Bynum being out for the first month or so of the season, it is even more of a necessity that Pau (and even Odom) carry the offensive load for the Lakers.
That being said, expect a solid regular season from these Lakers. They aren't chasing the Bulls regular season mark (72-10) and they aren't going to go for record breaking winning streaks like the 71-72' Lakers. But do expect the Lakers to get the top seed in the West.
Prediction: 62-20, 1st in division, 1st in conference, NBA Champs...could you expect me saying otherwise?
2) Phoenix Suns (LY: 54-28, 2nd in division, 3rd in conference, WCF exit)
As much as I despise the Suns...it's truly hard to loathe the likes of Steve Nash. He seems like a relatively good guy who keeps himself in tip-top shape despite his age, and you can truly tell he wants to win. He hasn't made the NBA Finals, let alone win a title, but the general public would like to see Nash get some success. However, not even Nash himself believes he can win a title with this Amare'-less Suns team and he may very well be this era's Championshipless John Stockton:
Steve Nash: "I spent four months this summer and a month this training camp feeling like I'm trying to get to the top,"he says. "It's hard as a competitor to convince yourself every day all summer and then through the preseason that you're going to get back to where you were and hopefully take the next step, and then you realize that camp is starting all over again and it's not quite as linear as you made it out to yourself all summer."
Oooo, not exactly a strong endorsement from the team's captain. Aside from Nash, you do have a lot of likeable, hardworking individuals in Dragic, Frye, Hill, and bench favorite Jared Dudley. Unfortunately, it takes at least two superstars to win a title, aside from arguably The Detroit Pistons team from earlier this past decade. And with Amare' gone and Phoenix not filling his void, anything more than a first round exit would be gravy.
Unless we see Robin Lopez cut his hair and switch cities with his brother...don't expect too much success. Nash's back can't handle it.
Prediction: 47-35, 2nd in division, 7th in conference, first round exit...sorry Justin
3) Los Angeles Clippers (LY: 29-53, 3rd in division, 12th in conference, no playoffs)
Every year we have a team that has a chance to make the playoffs, has all the talent in the world, and all the potential to make some noise throughout the league. However, that never seems to come to fruition because they are the CLIPPERS!
They have a front-runner point guard in Baron Davis who, depending on how is team does early on, can be the best pg on the floor, or merely an apathetic movie producer. Word is he came to camp out of shape and disinterested which doesn't bode well for Clippers fans.
However, there does seem to be a diamond in the rough in LA LA land as Blake Griffin begins to remind everyone that, "Hey, remember how I was far and away the most touted draft pick, ahead of Jennings, Collison, Curry and even Tyreke?!" He seems to be a double-double machine who plays with an energy and unbounded wrecklessness that can help him and quite possibly hurt him as he seems to have an almost Gerald Wallace lack of concern for his body. We'll see how this plays out.
Overall, with the core of Davis, USA impact player, Eric Gordon, Chris Kaman, and Blake Griffin, this team should do good things this year. But they NEED to have success early in order to have the confidence to carry through an 82 game season. Staples Center is the Lakers House, but maybe the Clips can sneak up and surprise everyone.
Prediction: 42-40, 3rd in division, 10th in conference, no playoffs
4) Golden State Warriors (LY: 26-56, 4th in division, 13th in conference, no playoffs)
Although they won't be very good, they will be better than last year, and will still be fun to watch. Don Nelson is out, but Nellie-ball should remain. Their defense will be awful, but they will still score a ton of points and do their darndest to win by outscoring you.
They did get better. They acquired David Lee, a double-double machine, who is generally very team oriented, however he fits the bill of good offensive player and bad defender. It's not for lack of trying for David Lee on the defensive end, but he is undersized, and against players like Bynum, Pau, Ming, Dwight, etc. he is undermatched because he is undersized.
What makes them most fun is their sophmore point guard, Stephen Curry. He had a tremendous rookie season. The lanky point guard can shoot, steal, score and pass. He has a leader-type demeanor about him and his play has determined that he deserves a certain level of respect from his teammates. We'll see what steps he takes in getting this team on a winning track.
Keith Smart has mentioned how he wants to focus on the defensive end this year. Sounds great in theory, but he doesn't have the assets to employ a defensive scheme. Or he is just trying to say the right things because, honestly, who is going to say they don't care about defense.
Expect some fun, but expect a handful of exciting losses!
Prediction: 40-42, 4th in division, 12th in conference, no playoffs
5) Sacramento Kings (LY:25-57, 5th in division, 14th in conference, no playoffs)
Speaking of exciting point guard, middle-California shares another exciting PG in ROY, Tyreke Evans. We've heard the numbers, 20pts-5asts-5rbs...first rookie since Jordan to do that...etc. But does his attitude inspire others to jump on a the winning bandwagon? Demarcus Cousins isn't that person.
Paul Westphal is a great coach, but the Kings are one piece away from making that run to the playoffs. Not so much a superstar as a floor general, a leader...someone who commands respect ala Chauncey Billups.
They're a young team that has potential to win any game. Just look at the beginning of last year and the early success they were experiencing from October to December.
Can they be mentally tough enough to sustain an entire season of consistency and winning? I'll bet not. Perhaps it would be more convenient to make this wager if the Kings were in Vegas...perhaps sooner rather than later...
Prediction: 31-51, 5th in division, 14th in conference, no playoffs
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