Happy Opening Day!
Tonight opens the 2005-06 NBA season, the day me, my brother, LC, Bdawg, and 3 other people not affiliated with the league have been waiting for since June. I'll admit, I'm not excited as usual, (I think it has something to do with my general disbelief that it's almost winter) but this has potential to be a really fun season. There are lots of good teams in both conferences, an impressive rookie class, and the new neverending hilarity of 7' black men who've never seen a piece of fitted clothing in their life wearing suits.
As for the Sixers, I think they could get anywhere from 30 to 50 wins this year. They have a lot of raw talent and so much heart, and if they stay healthy and play well together (with less of those mind-boggling typical Philly team losses where they don't even show up) they'd compete at the top of the conference. But that's a huge if. The starting lineup still hasn't played together yet. Dalembert is poised to make the jump to being one of the league's premiere centers (as long as he can start to catch some of Iverson's passes), but he's already injured. Webber looks good so far and is dying to form a tandem with Iverson, but I don't trust his knees. And there's the issue of our nonexistent bench...
But as always, there are bright spots, with Iverson at the top of the list. Despite being 30, he looks as good as ever and possibly had his best season last year. Sometimes it seems like his heart alone could will the team to the playoffs. Iguodala will hopefully make a leap this year (and if not continue providing alley-oop highlights for sportscenter), Korver should keep up his three-point prowess and reportedly has bulked up and improved on defense, and Johnny Salmons looked good in the preseason and could add a lot of points off the bench. The addition of Mo Cheeks as coach will give a boost too. Iverson and the rest of the team are pleased as punch to have him, the city practically considers him a hero, and he seems likes he's going to ask a lot of everyone and really try to work with their skills and desires.
A couple years ago this could have gotten them deep into the playoffs, but unfortunately the competitiveness of the rest of the East is probably going to be a bigger problem for them than any weaknesses in the team. There's a lot of parity in the league as a whole, and the West arguably is no longer dominant. In the East, the Pistons, Pacers, and Heat will definitely be the top 3 teams. The Sixers have a pretty good chance at winning the Atlantic...the Raptors are hopeless, and the Knicks have some potential with their draft picks and Larry Brown, but I don't think they'll do much. The Nets look good on paper with Kidd, Vince Carter, and Richard Jefferson, but I think they'll have problems, and the Celtics are young with a lot of potential and I think could be surprisingly good, especially if they pull off a rejuvenating trade for Paul Pierce. In the rest of the conference, the Wizards, Cavs, Bucks, and maybe Bulls are all about as good or slightly better than the Sixers, plus you can't count out the Magic with Stevie Franchise and Dwight Howard.
So basically, I'm not expecting all that much. I'd die and go to heaven if Iverson got a championship (so he doesn't have to playing the GP/Karl Malone role in 6-7 years of wandering around to find a team that will let him sit on the bench and get a ring when they win), but his chances are getting slim. As long as they compete all season and are fun, I'll be happy. And if anyone but the Spurs could win the championship, that wouldn't be so bad either.
As for the Sixers, I think they could get anywhere from 30 to 50 wins this year. They have a lot of raw talent and so much heart, and if they stay healthy and play well together (with less of those mind-boggling typical Philly team losses where they don't even show up) they'd compete at the top of the conference. But that's a huge if. The starting lineup still hasn't played together yet. Dalembert is poised to make the jump to being one of the league's premiere centers (as long as he can start to catch some of Iverson's passes), but he's already injured. Webber looks good so far and is dying to form a tandem with Iverson, but I don't trust his knees. And there's the issue of our nonexistent bench...
But as always, there are bright spots, with Iverson at the top of the list. Despite being 30, he looks as good as ever and possibly had his best season last year. Sometimes it seems like his heart alone could will the team to the playoffs. Iguodala will hopefully make a leap this year (and if not continue providing alley-oop highlights for sportscenter), Korver should keep up his three-point prowess and reportedly has bulked up and improved on defense, and Johnny Salmons looked good in the preseason and could add a lot of points off the bench. The addition of Mo Cheeks as coach will give a boost too. Iverson and the rest of the team are pleased as punch to have him, the city practically considers him a hero, and he seems likes he's going to ask a lot of everyone and really try to work with their skills and desires.
A couple years ago this could have gotten them deep into the playoffs, but unfortunately the competitiveness of the rest of the East is probably going to be a bigger problem for them than any weaknesses in the team. There's a lot of parity in the league as a whole, and the West arguably is no longer dominant. In the East, the Pistons, Pacers, and Heat will definitely be the top 3 teams. The Sixers have a pretty good chance at winning the Atlantic...the Raptors are hopeless, and the Knicks have some potential with their draft picks and Larry Brown, but I don't think they'll do much. The Nets look good on paper with Kidd, Vince Carter, and Richard Jefferson, but I think they'll have problems, and the Celtics are young with a lot of potential and I think could be surprisingly good, especially if they pull off a rejuvenating trade for Paul Pierce. In the rest of the conference, the Wizards, Cavs, Bucks, and maybe Bulls are all about as good or slightly better than the Sixers, plus you can't count out the Magic with Stevie Franchise and Dwight Howard.
So basically, I'm not expecting all that much. I'd die and go to heaven if Iverson got a championship (so he doesn't have to playing the GP/Karl Malone role in 6-7 years of wandering around to find a team that will let him sit on the bench and get a ring when they win), but his chances are getting slim. As long as they compete all season and are fun, I'll be happy. And if anyone but the Spurs could win the championship, that wouldn't be so bad either.
posted by Alexis @ 8:57 PM
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