2015-2016 NBA Atlantic Division preview

[insidehoops]

2015-2016 NBA Atlantic Division preview

List the predicted order of finish for teams in the Atlantic Division. And next to each team, list your thoughts on the squad.

Here's what last season was, in order by wins:

Raptors:
Celtics:
Nets:
Sixers:
Knicks:

Take that, arrange it in order from best to worst, and comment on each team

[Suguru101]

You've never mentioned your favorite team. Or your opinion on LeBron/Kobe. Why not do it now?

Anyways.

Knicks - healthy Carmelo. Porzingis. Robin L

[Fallen Angel]

Division rankings alone aren't interesting to me at all unless they come with comments. The comments about each team make it worth reading
I ranked the divisions, the teams in them, and who I thought would make the playoffs.

I'll add comments and post them to here later.

[chips93]

this is gonna be the worst division in the league

1. Celtics 40
2. Knicks 38
3. Raptors 35
4. Nets 33
5. Sixers 25

Celtics: smart gets better, isiaih is the best player in the division, and he meshes better with his teammates, plus they have the best coach in the division. they have a bunch of decent young guys, none of whom will ever be stars, but they will ave good depth.

Knicks: melo will put up good stats, and afflallo and lopez are smart players, so they should fit well in the triangle. porzingis will be decent ~10ppg, but he'll look lost on a lot of nights

Raptors: lowry looks to be in the best shape of his life, but their defense was trash, and they lost their best defensive player in amir williams. demarre is a nice player, but atlanta move the ball far better than toronto do, and he'll look a lot worse without that ball movement.

Nets: the least interesting team in the entire league? they're boring, they have no exciting young players to build around, and their best players are locked up long term so there's no change coming soon.

Sixers: Jahlil will win ROY, but it will take some time for him to fit next to noel, since neither can shoot, both are decent passers though. they'll play good defense again, but jahlil will need to be great for them to even be decent offensively.

[ralph_i_el]

Raptors should make the playoffs. If Lowry is healthy they are a nasty squad. They have young Lucas Nogueria, which means they have two brazillian mofo's with long long arms. I'm interested in Bruno Caboclo, but neither of those guys will be contributors next season. Look for Valanciunas to break out this season

Celtics should be fun to watch, but I don't think they'll be able to play any defense. Isaiah Thomas and David Lee should have no trouble getting some points on the board. Brad Stevens may be able to coach them to a palyoff berth if the East stays bad

Nets might get really ugly. Lopez is a really good scorer, but will he stay healthy? They're old with no depth

Knicks are starting Derrick Williams at the 4 and he sucks. Hopefully Porzingis will be a stud and will take that spot from him. If Melo is healthy they could be a good squad. No depth at the guard spots. Jose Calderon is slow as molasses and can't guard a crosswalk.

Will the 6ers let their bigs play? Jahlil or Embiid might just take the league by storm this year, but I think it will be a year or 2 until we see the 6ers playing winning ball

I'm going to say:
Raptors
Knicks
Celtics
Nets
Sixers

[Derka]

Far and away the Creme Puff Division in the NBA this season, let's get that straight right now.

1. Toronto Raptors
Carroll was a great pickup. DeRozan and Valanciunas will show improvement and Lowry is still a beast. They've got a bunch of nice pieces at the guard and tweener slots. They should win the division comfortably.

2. Boston Celtics
We couldn't rebound worth f*ckall last season, so adding David Lee and Amir Johnson helps in that department and provides some more offense, which Coach Stevens loves. A full season with Isaiah Thomas will be great and our young guys had the benefit of closing their season out on the upswing while getting into the playoffs that we weren't supposed to get into. Still a ton of growth to go through...I don't think we'll finish more than 5 games above .500.

3. New York Knicks
Does Melo give anything that remotely resembles a shit anymore? Afflalo and Lopez were nice pickups, but if Melo doesn't come to to ball this team is screwed. If he comes to play, they're at least better than Brooklyn.

4. Brooklyn Nets
Lopez played 70+ games last year so I'm willing to bet he's getting hurt this year. Billy King really drove this franchise right into the shitter with his deals, too. JJ and JJ at the guard spot...eh. Bargnani...double eh. Thad Young is a baller though. They're at least better than Philly.

5. Philadelphia 76ers
I want these guys to do well and I feel bad that Embiid is going to end up being the newest Oden (a 7-footer missing his first two seasons because of foot problems is just bad news...he's never going to shake an injury like that at his size completely), but that's basketball. Brett Brown's going to do his best with this collection of kids, at least. In a few years, hopefully this talent is ready to start cleaning house.

[chips93]

Will the 6ers let their bigs play? Jahlil or Embiid might just take the league by storm this year, but I think it will be a year or 2 until we see the 6ers playing winning ball


embiid is out for the year

[ralph_i_el]

embiid is out for the year

damn, that does not bode well for him ever playing.

[ballup]

Raptors: They won't win as many games as they did last season, but I think they'll have more stability with a healthy Lowry/DDR. The upgrade of Carrol over Ross should bolster their starting unit, but the loss of Amir, Vasquez, and Lou will hurt quite a bit. The burning question is if Patterson is capable of starting at the 4 and Casey can properly implement a small ball lineup with Carroll at the 4. At this point, will Valanciunas ever get the nod to play full starter minutes in this system? Expect this team to drop, but still make the playoffs.

Celtics: They are a very similar team to last season with more log jams. That might change with an in season trade. It could really hurt them too. Stevens is creative and will find a way to get this team rolling from the second half of last season. Expect this team to be around the same record, maybe with a few more wins to get over .500.

Knicks: With Melo coming back and the Knicks putting together a more competitive team, expect a jump from the bottom to mid lottery in the conference. They don't have enough talent to match their high at the Melo-Stat-Chandler peak.

Nets: Overall weaker than they were last season. Johnson seems to be declining inch by inch each season. Still a solid player. They'll have to rely on Lopez to do the offensive heavy lifting barring any injuries. They'll be murdered on the glass and their offense will be iso heavy. Despite Thad Young to be a league favorite, his presence clogs up an already clogged offense. Expect a drop to the bottom depths of the conference.

Sixers: Not much to explain really. They can scrap for wins here and there. It'll be interesting to see if the pair of Noel and Okafor will impress Hinkie enough for him to move out of the process. Even so, given the rest of the roster, it'd be more ideal for the team to be at the bottom again. "Oh, you have a sprained ankle Noel? Go sit out for a month, we don't want to rush you back"

[DMV2]

Winner of this division might be the first to miss the playoff? :lol


45 wins should get this division.

[BlackWhiteGreen]

[QUOTE=Suguru101]You've never mentioned your favorite team. Or your opinion on LeBron/Kobe. Why not do it now?

Anyways.

Knicks - healthy Carmelo. Porzingis. Robin L

[Marv_Albert]

None of these teams are even relevant, just lucky they play in the east.

[Dr.J4ever]

Celtics don't need the pick. Nets pick will be higher, and so might Dallas'.

What do you mean the Celtics don't need a pick? I didn't know that you already have a core of players that could win a title for you. Who is your new superstar these days?

Just curious.

[Legends66NBA7]

What do you mean the Celtics don't need a pick? I didn't know that you already have a core of players that could win a title for you. Who is your new superstar these days?

Just curious.

Little over the top there.

[BlackWhiteGreen]

What do you mean the Celtics don't need a pick? I didn't know that you already have a core of players that could win a title for you. Who is your new superstar these days?

Just curious.

Are you suggesting that having #13 compared to having #15 matters, if they have #1 and #8?

There is a finite number of roster spots, you know.

[ballup]

Why tank for a pick when the Nets can do that for you? Hell, the Mavs could possibly score an additional top 10 pick for the Celtics.

[Derka]

What do you mean the Celtics don't need a pick? I didn't know that you already have a core of players that could win a title for you. Who is your new superstar these days?

Just curious.

Easy there Tonto. We have Brooklyn's pick and Dallas' pick this year. Both are probably going to be in the lottery. Two picks in the lottery = we really have no cause to tank (which is a stupid strategy regardless).

The roster we do have should be focused on winning as much as they can and improving on the progress made last season after the All-Star break.

[chips93]

Are you suggesting that having #13 compared to having #15 matters, if they have #1 and #8?

There is a finite number of roster spots, you know.

you can package the picks together to move up :confusedshrug:

[Dr.J4ever]

Are you suggesting that having #13 compared to having #15 matters, if they have #1 and #8?

There is a finite number of roster spots, you know.

If that's where you're coming from, okay then, I stand corrected.

Many Celtic fans think drafting in the mid teens will get them a superstar. You probably won't get a superstar in the mid teens, and you need a superstar to ultimately make a real impact in the playoffs.

Ainge was right in that he tried to trade for Noel or Okafor by reportedly givng up his mid teen draft picks and Marcus Smart and who knows what else. It's a rumor only, but it sounds true.

[Dr.J4ever]

Easy there Tonto. We have Brooklyn's pick and Dallas' pick this year. Both are probably going to be in the lottery. Two picks in the lottery = we really have no cause to tank (which is a stupid strategy regardless).

The roster we do have should be focused on winning as much as they can and improving on the progress made last season after the All-Star break.

I haven't checked Brooklyn's or Dallas lineup lately, but both teams have a history of doing just enough in competing for playoff spots, especially for the Nets in the weak East.

Not sure if these are the picks Ainge was willing to give up for Okafor or Noel.

[Dr.J4ever]

you can package the picks together to move up :confusedshrug:

wishful thinking

[TheMarkMadsen]

them knicks

[BlackWhiteGreen]

I haven't checked Brooklyn's or Dallas lineup lately, but both teams have a history of doing just enough in competing for playoff spots, especially for the Nets in the weak East.

Not sure if these are the picks Ainge was willing to give up for Okafor or Noel.

Dallas won't be terrible but the West is just brutal. They need Wes Matthews to live up to that deal and be back pretty early to even have a shot at that 8 seed. The Nets will legitimately be awful unless Lopez takes a huge step or the rookies make a big difference from the jump.

PG: Jarrett Jack | Shane Larkin
SG: Bojan Bogdanovic | Wayne Ellington
SF: Joe Johnson | Rondae Hollis-Jefferson
PF: Thaddeus Young | Thomas Robinson
C: Brook Lopez | Andrea Bargnani

I mean, if Lopez gets injured again, that's last season's Knicks, give or take.

[GoRapz]

Raptors: lowry looks to be in the best shape of his life, but their defense was trash, and they lost their best defensive player in amir williams. demarre is a nice player, but atlanta move the ball far better than toronto do, and he'll look a lot worse without that ball movement.

Stop acting like you know basketball :facepalm

[chips93]

Stop acting like you know basketball :facepalm

just my opinion :confusedhsrug:

you're welcome to share yours too, and, you know, actually contribute to the discussion