Credit to Kevin Ding as I was inspired by his beyond terrible list to attempt my own. I’ll try to remain as unbiased as possible:
1a. Warriors
Great coach, flawless lineup, defending Champs. The Warriors lost no one of note (besides our very own David Lee) and it’s hard to pick against such a perfect roster which is coming off a Finals victory.
1b. Spurs
The most stable and well coached team in the NBA added an All-NBA PF to their roster made up of the defending DPOY, the greatest PF in the history of the league, the best 3 and D player in the league, and unbelievable depth.
1c. Thunder
IMO the Thunder have two of the five best players in the NBA, making them the only team with two bona fide superstars (MVP candidates). Add Ibaka and ridiculous depth, specifically in the front court, to Durant and Westbrook and you have one of the very best teams in the league.
1d. Cavaliers
LeBron James.
1e. Clippers
I thought the Clippers had arguably the best starting lineup in the NBA last year, but their depth was utterly nonexistent. They added the Truth and several really solid bench players, seemingly plugging the one hole in their roster.
IMO the top five teams are essentially flawless and are all too similar in quality to really differentiate. The above teams are the creme de la creme of the NBA.
6. Rockets
Harden’s a stud playing alongside a real PG now, Dwight is still excellent, and there are no glaring holes in the Rockets’ roster.
7. Grizzlies
Excellent frontcourt, including the second best Center in the league. They fortified their bench this offseason and will be really solid once again.
8. Bucks
I decided to be bold and go with my gut here. I know it’s a huge jump from last year, but I couldn’t talk myself into putting the Bulls or Heat ahead of this young Bucks team. This is probably the second best young core in the league (Minny first) and I feel like it’s all going to come together for them this year. Kidd is a great coach and now has Monroe and added depth to work with. I see Giannis taking another BIG leap forward this year.
9. Bulls
No major changes in Chicago besides the coaching change, they should be a contender in the East once again.
10. Heat
Full season of Dragic and Bosh, solid depth, and the addition of Justise Winslow. Even if Winslow can’t contribute on offense right away, he’ll be able to guard just about anyone.
11. Hawks
I think they overachieved last year and Carroll is a big loss, but they should be near the top of the East again next year.
12. Pelicans
In each of his first 3 years in the league Anthony Davis has improved in nearly every statistical category, enough said.
13. Jazz
Best young frontcourt in the NBA, Gordon ‘Swiss Army Knife’ Hayward, and youth make the Jazz a promising team to break into the Western playoff scene next year. If Hood continues to impress and Exum rights the ship, this could be a very dangerous team in a few years.
14. Suns
All-around solid roster with a lot of young and intriguing talent. They might move up a few slots once they assure us all that Bledsoe and Knight are a workable duo in the long term.
15. Wizards
The best young backcourt in the NBA with some decent depth, but the loss of the Truth hurts them a lot.
16. Celtics
I don’t think we’re the 53 win team that our post ASG record indicates, but we were a nearly .500 team without Lee and Amir. Without significant losses, with some solid additions, and with some growth from the likes of Smart, Crowder, and others, we should be a fairly competitive team next year. We won’t be getting Banner #18 next year, but we’ll be fun to watch and should avoid the Cavs in the first round of the playoffs, allowing for a little extra Celtics basketball in the Spring.
17. Raptors
They probably got incrementally better this year, but the rest of the East improved more. I expect a slight decline from the Raptors, but they should be decent and our only real competition in the Atlantic.
18. Pacers
It’s been a weird off season for the Pacers with a lot of roster turnover, but the return of Paul George makes them a great contender to make it into the playoffs this year.
19. Pistons
Monroe, despite his talent, was not a great fit in Detroit. Additionally, Stanley Johnson, who was one of my favorite players in the draft, should be able to contribute immediately using his defensive abilities and strength/size. Drummond, KCP, and Jackson have all showed a lot of promise early in their careers and should continue to grow. The Pistons should be much more dangerous in 2016/17.
20. Hornets
The Hornets are such a meh team. I hate just about every move they made this offseason and I expect that, in hindsight, the Vonleh trade and (lack of) Kaminsky trade will go down as two of the worst moves of this offseason. I fully expect the Hornets to continue to wallow in mediocrity for years to come.
21. Kings
On paper Sacramento improved a lot, but I don’t think the new roster will gel particularly well and the West is super tough. They’ll stay out of the lowest of the low since Boogie is an absolute beast.
22. Mavericks
The essence of mediocrity. Their PG is a shell of his former self. Their SG is coming off an achilles tear. Their SF is coming off knee surgery. Their PF is 37 and also a shell of his former self. Their C is solid bench player. This is one terrible starting lineup and I’m genuinely worried this pick may not convey.
23. Timberwolves
No team in the league has more young talent than the T-Wolves, but it will take time for them to develop. In 3-4 years the Wolves may have the best duo in the league (Wig and KAT) and be a legitimate contender; Minnesota’s future is beyond bright. Unfortunately, I don’t see this pick conveying unless Wig emerges as an All-NBA player already and KAT is ROY.
24. Knicks
There’s some more talent in NY this coming year and Melo is a clear upgrade over the fringe NBA talent they were rolling out there last year. Porzingis could be GREAT some day, but that’s multiple years in the future. The Knicks will be better in 2015/16 than they were in 14/15, but that’s not saying much.
25. Magic
Another team with loads of young talent. Hezonja was one of my favorite guys in the draft and I think he’s going to be downright monstrous eventually. However, these guys are very young and it’ll take some time before it all gels, much like the T-Wolves. I expect the Magic to be fighting for a playoff spot as early as 2016/17.
26. Nets
The 2015/16 Nets will feature Brook Lopez, Thaddeus Young, Joe Johnson, and 12 borderline NBA players. Amazingly, by moving on from DWill the Nets actually got worse at PG. I honestly didn’t think that was possible, but along came Jarrett Jack. If Lopez’s chronic foot injuries strike again, this team drops down to 30th. In other words, start watching highlights of Ben Simmons, Jaylen Brown, Brandon Ingram, and Skal Labissiere and mark June 23, 2016 on your calendars.
27. Nuggets
There’s some nice young talent in Denver, but Ty Lawson is a big loss on the court. Mudiay seems to have the potential to be an unbelievable pure PG. From what I’ve read, he seems to really love dishing the ball and is extremely unselfish as well. If Mudiay pans out, this team could be very exciting in a few years.
28. Lakers
Defensively, the 2015/16 Lakers will be the equivalent of the 2013 Dallas Cowboys. Roy Hibbert and Brandon Bass may be the only above average defenders on the entire team. I think Russell could evolve into a spectacular player eventually, but not while Kobe is cancerously impeding his development. I see Randle being unable to translate his strengths to the NBA game and falling flat. The Lakers are fraught with egotistic volume scorers who don’t play defense, they’ll be VERY bad.
29. Blazers
You can’t really expect a lot from a team which lost 4 of it’s 5 starters, including an All-NBA PF. Damian Lillard is still a beast, but he won’t be able to carry this team alone. On the bright side, they’ll be able to afford guys like Vonleh valuable PT. With added talent from an early pick next year, internal development from the likes of Leonard and Vonleh, and the continued excellence of Dame, the Blazers should return to contention relatively soon.
30. Sixers
I’m not going to pick on the Sixers here. They have some great prospects in Nerlens and Jah, but both are still inexperienced and neither plays PG. Until the Sixers start winning consistently, I’ll be leaving them at #30. I just have no reason to believe that Hinkie’s going to field a competitive squad any time soon.
Thoughts?
