2009-10 NBA Predictions

With the season getting underway today I though I’d roll out my predictions for the upcoming year.

WESTERN CONFERENCE:

Northwest Division: 1. Portland Trail Blazers. 2. Denver Nuggets. 3. Oklahoma City Thunder. 4. Utah Jazz. 5. Minnesota Timberwolves.

Pacific Division: 1. Los Angeles Lakers. 2. Phoenix Suns. 3. Los Angeles Clippers. 4. Golden State Warriors. 5. Sacramento Kings.

Southwest Division: 1. San Antonio Spurs. 2. New Orleans Hornets. 3. Dallas Mavericks. 4. Houston Rockets. 5. Memphis Grizzlies. 

EASTERN CONFERENCE:

Atlantic Division: 1. Boston Celtics. 2. Toronto Raptors. 3. Philadelphia 76ers. 4. New York Knicks. 5. New Jersey Nets.

Central Division: 1. Cleveland Cavaliers. 2. Detroit Pistons. 3. Indiana Pacers. 4. Chicago Bulls. 5. Milwaukee Bucks.

Southeast Division: 1. Orlando Magic. 2. Atlanta Hawks. 3. Miami Heat. 4. Washington Wizards. 5. Charlotte Bobcats.

PLAYOFFS:

Western Conference, 1^st Round: 1. San Antonio Spurs d. 8. Oklahoma City Thunder, 3-0. 2. Los Angeles Lakers d. 7. Dallas Mavericks, 3-1. 3. Portland Trail Blazers d. 6. Phoenix Suns, 3-2. 5. Denver Nuggets d. 4. New Orleans Hornets, 3-1. Semifinals: 1. San Antonio Spurs d. Denver Nuggets, 4-2. 2. Los Angeles Lakers d. 3. Portland Trail Blazers, 4-2. Finals: 2. Los Angeles Lakers d. 1. San Antonio Spurs, 4-3.

Eastern Conference, 1^st Round: 1. Boston Celtics d. 8. Miami Heat, 3-2. 2. Cleveland Cavaliers d. 7. Philadelphia 76ers, 3-0. 6. Detroit Pistons d. 3. Orland Magic, 3-2. 4. Toronto Raptors d. 5. Atlanta Hawks, 3-1. Semifinals: 1. Boston Celtics d. 6. Detroit Pistons, 4-2. 2. Cleveland Cavaliers d. 4. Toronto Raptors, 4-0. Finals: 1. Boston Celtics d. 2. Cleveland Cavaliers 4-2.

NBA Finals: Los Angeles Lakers d. Boston Celtics, 4-2.  

INDIVIDUAL AWARDS:

Most Valuable Player: Chris Paul, New Orleans Hornets.

Sixth Man: Rasheed Wallace, Boston Celtics.

Rookie of the Year: DeJuan Blair, San Antonio Spurs.

Coach of the Year: Nate McMillan, Portland Trail Blazers.

Only injuries can derail Lakers

The Los Angeles Lakers are owners of the best roster in the NBA.

Kobe Bryant, Pau Gasol, Ron Artest, Lamar Odom, Andrew Bynum, Derek Fisher, Luke Walton, Sasha Vujicic, Jordan Famar and Shannon Brown comprise a versatile, exciting and potentially dominating team. A 65-win team.

But for as good as these players are as a unit, some of the pieces are fragile. Should any of the first six players be seriously injured the Lakers chances of winning back-to-back NBA titles diminish exponentially.

Players most likely to be injured:

Andrew Bynum: He’s the key to the Lakers’ sustaining success beyond the career of Kobe Bryant but has been injured each of the last three seasons. He’s just 21 and already has balky knees and he recently strained a rotator cuff and is doubtful to play the final two games of the preseason.

Pau Gasol: He’s the best all-around big man in the world but has a testy hamstring and is coming off surgery to repair a severely broken index finger that he sustained during the FIBA Euro Championships. His energy was essential to this team’s first title and any time he misses games the Lakers are missing their compass.

Lamar Odom: He twisted his ankle about a week ago and has a history of “lower leg” injuries. He also has a bad back, which re-occured in last year’s Finals against the Orlando Magic. His ability to play four positions can not be understated — Odom just makes things happen.

Luke Walton: He’s clearly not as integral as the above three but, like Odom, has back trouble has been sidelined most of the preseason. His playing time has been greatly effected by the controversial signing of forward Ron Artest.

As for Artest, his physical health has never been much of a concern. It’s the guy’s mental health that demand’s attention. His play and behaviour for the Lakers, thus far, has been exemplary. How long that lasts is anyone’s guess.

Coach Phil Jackson also has health issues and will likely miss a road trip or two during the season. As long as Bryant is active this shouldn’t be a problem. He ran the team during the playoffs last season and will probably do the same this season.

Bryant, to his credit, has transformed his game from that of a slasher/scorer to a turn-around jump shooting distributor. He’s the best player in the game and as long as he — and other key members or the team — remain injury-free the Lakers are obvious favorites to retain their title.

Vick getting 2nd chances all around

I’m not quite sure what to make of this, aside from wondering how many other third-string QBs in the NFL with criminal records have multi-million sponsorship deals…

It’s being reported that Nike has re-signed Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Michael Vick to an endorsement deal, the terms of which were not disclosed.

On one side, this is a positive step for Vick as he attempts to rebuild his image. Once one of Nike’s most prolific football endorsers, Vick was dropped by the company after he signed a plea deal in connection with his dog fighting scandal.

On the other side, this move proves that great athletes will always be given second chances so as long as they’re not actively incarcerated. Vick is free and clear right now so Nike honchos jumped at the opportunity to again have the elusive playmaker in their house before Adidas, Under Armor or Reebok scooped him up. They also likely got him at a reduced rate.

So will we be seeing commercials and billboards with Vick’s likeness anytime soon? I’m thinking Nike’s strategy will be much the same as it was when they signed Kobe Bryant following his own scandal. That is, build him a shoe that fans can buy, do a few pointed magazine ads and then wait for the athlete to do something amazing before applying to full-court marketing press.

Nike helped Kobe to fully rehabilitate his image in just four seasons. Vick’s image revival may take a little longer.