This topic contains 8 replies, has 7 voices, and was last updated by AvatarAvatar roni3 11 years, 5 months ago.

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  • #43731
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    JoeyGladstone
    Participant

    2012 Standings (Shortened Season)

    Boston Celtics 39-27
    New York Knicks 36-30
    Philadelphia 76ers 35-31
    Toronto Raptors 23-43
    New Jersey nets 22- 44

    The Atlantic Division looks to be the strongest & most competitive division in the Eastern Conference this season. With the Nets moving to Brooklyn & the 76ers & Raptors getting stronger in the off season the Celtics & Knicks will have their hands full.

    Boston Celtics: The Atlantic Division has been dominated by the Celtics ever since they acquired KG & Ray Allen, with Allen gone will it stay that way? Although Allen took his talents to South Beach this past off season it seems that the Celtics have become a deeper team. Drafting guys like Jared Sullinger, Fab Melo, & Kris Joseph has definitely helped the depth, but the additions of Jason Terry, Courtney Lee, Darko Milicic, Chris Wilcox, & a HEALTHY Jeff Green will help solidify their roster. Add that with the hall of famers in Pierce & KG while having the maestro Rondo running the show, I fully expect them to be at the top of this division & finishing as a top 3 seed in the East.

    New York Knicks: This team & I have a love/hate relationship. They have so much talent on the roster, but seem to never play to its potential. Last year was full of a bunch of drama & Linsanity. This off season they loss 8 players, but the only 2 that played much of a factor were Jeremy Lin (Rockets) & Landry Fields (Raptors). They also made a few key additions in signing Jason Kidd, Marcus Camby, Ronnie Brewer, & bringing back Raymond Felton, but the biggest signing may have been making Mike Woodson the permanent head coach. Can this team get off to a good start & quiet the critics before that New York media gets out of control? We all have our doubts, but if they buy into the Mike Woodson style of play this team “should” be a threat in the east. If they come out playing selfish basketball & not being committed on defense they will have a tough time holding off the Nets & 76ers for runners up in the division.

    Philadelphia 76ers: I absolutely love what this team did in the off season. Bringing in Andrew Bynum could pay huge dividends, if he stays healthy. They did lose Andre Iguodala, but I honestly believe Evan Turner is ready to step into that role & have a breakout year. They also added some very nice shooters in Jason Richardson, Dorell Wright, & Nick Young who will open up the inside for Bynum to do some damage. They have a very good young point guard in Jrue Holiday who will be given more duties with the dismissal of Lou Williams & Andre Iguodala, but I feel he should be ready to take that next step in his career. This team has all the tools to be a top 5 seed in the east this season & really surprise a lot of people, but it depends on the knees of Bynum.

    Toronto Raptors: This team is definitely taking steps in the right direction. With the additions of Kyle Lowry, Landry Fields, Terrance Ross, & the young stud center from overseas Jonas Valanciunas this team could be fun to watch. They already have two solid players in Andrea Bargnani & Demar Derozan in place & they need to come out this year & be leaders for this young team. The former number 1 pick Bargnani has a very nice offensive game, but gets criticized for the lack of toughness on the defensive side of the ball & the boards. Derozan with a cleaned up jump shot could be a problem in the league this year. Lowry, Bargnani, & Derozan is a solid attack on the offensive side of the ball & a nice young trio to build around in the future. Unfortunately this year it looks like this division may be a little too tough for this team to compete in.

    ​Brooklyn Nets​: The Brooklyn Nets sure are getting a lot of hype heading into this season, & rightfully so. They have made some solid moves & dished out quite a few bucks to put a respectable team on the floor. Going into the off season they had to get Deron Williams to stick around. Once that happened they were going after Dwight Howard with everything they had, but that failed & they had to settle for resigning Brook Lopez to a max deal. A lot of people didn’t agree with that but Brook Lopez is a 20 ppg scorer & that is rare in the NBA for a big man nowadays. They also made a trade for all star Joe Johnson who has arguably the most ridiculous contract in the NBA, but yet again another former 20 ppg scorer. Johnson is also a major mismatch for other 2 guards in the league because he stands at 6’7″ & can either post up or shoot over the top of other guys. They also brought back key starters in Gerald Wallace & Kris Humphries who do all the dirty work on the glass & defense, & Marshon Brooks a very good scorer coming off the bench. Anytime you have Deron Williams running the show you have a good shot at being a very good team, but when you give him the kind of weapons that he has now you have a shot at being a great team. I expect him to have a career season & lead this team to great things.

    My Predictions:

    ​Boston Celtics​: Just too much depth & experience. Plain & simple.
    Brooklyn Nets​: I gave into the hype & expect Deron Williams & this offense to give other teams major fits.
    Philadelphia 76ers​: As crazy as it sounds I believe Bynum can stay healthy & him surrounded by great shooters will make their offense tough to stop. Also Doug Collins is one heck of a coach & I expect their defense to be towards the top in the east.
    New York Knicks​: The most frustrating team in the NBA will continue to frustrate Knicks fans. They will still make the playoffs, but until Shumpert & Brewer get back I expect their defense to be hard to watch with a back court rotation of Felton/Kidd/JR Smith. Melo & Amare better do a lot of scoring early on in the seaosn.
    Toronto Raptors​: Like I wrote before, I expect this to be a fun team to watch, but this division is just too much for this young Raptors team. Watch out for this young group in the future though, especially if Valanciunas can live up to some of the hype he is getting.

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  • #719553
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    llperez

    im thinking

    boston

    philly

    brooklyn

    knicks

    raptors

    but it really is a toss up with these teams.

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  • #719556
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    OhCanada-
    Participant

     The 76ers messed up big time. People can say what they want but I’m gonna call it what it is. Philly just built a team around a player that is proven to be extremely injury prone, and also failed to show integrity or professionalism so far in his career. They seemed to undervalue Olympic Gold Medalist Andre Igoudala and his leadership assuming Evan Turner will just fill that void and in the longrun it looks like all the weight will be crashing down on Jrue Holidays shoulders. Not to be rude but realisticly old habits die young, Bynum has accomplished alot already but I would be concerned giving him a max contract. He seems like a high risk to be conyent with that and shut it down, remember he is injury prone and injuries are very tiresome annoying and difficult to fight through with the wrong attitude.

    I also see no reason to get excited about Nick Young a player that lacks the intangibles and fundimentals to just be a spot  up and off the ball shooter, Dorrell Wright a player that failed to play his rotation role this year and Jason Richardson who is almost a decade out of his prime.E4QYu

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    • #719559
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      eazy_peaches
      Participant

       I see where you are coming from. That being said, Bynum’s combination of size and talent clearly puts him amongst the top 2 or 3 centers in the league. It is definitely a risk, but one that could pay off.

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  • #719558
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    OhCanada-
    Participant

    And Im not hating at all by saying this Turner should be fine he is one of the greatest college players Ive ever watched, and I love Bynums game and think Holiday has serious upside. At the end of the day if Turner doesnt pan  out, or Bynum gets injured, or the recently added role  players cant play their roles this team is done.

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  • #719557
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    eazy_peaches
    Participant

     My prediction for the Atlantic is pretty similiar. 

    One thing I worry about for the 76ers is Bynums health. He always makes me nervous. I know he had a non-invasive knee procedure done (the same procedure that Kobe Bryant and Grant Hill had done outside of the U.S. as well). It’s my understanding that he will be ready for opening night, but I read he is being "held out of basketball activity for three weeks…".

    If no additional problems arise he should be fine, aside from sort of missing out on training camp and preseason. But if a slow start is Bynum’s biggest issue this season and he is able to replicate last years performance, the 76ers could be a dangerous team.

    http://www.sbnation.com/2012/10/1/3438392/andrew-bynum-injury-philadelphia-76ers

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  • #719609
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    Taylor Gang Mike
    Participant

     My Sixers are building around three players, Drew, Jrue and Et. We hope Bynum does not get injured but Et and Jrue have to show leadership like you said. Its gonna be a tough Atlantic Division

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  • #719619
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    Brew Meister Smith
    Participant

    As mentioned above Toronto should be a decent team for a change.  Their defence is going to be the key to it all, and all the additions over the past couple of seasons are reflections of this – Lowry / Valenciunas / Fields / Ross / Acey etc.

    If Calderon sticks around they have 2 solid starting calibre point guards – Lowry will start – but Calderon’s skill set will be a huge boost to a second line that has in the past had problems running the offence.

    This team actually has lots of depth this year which is a change.  But as stated, they will be fighting uphill to get a playoff spot.  If they do get in it will likely be due to another team tanking or taking on too many major injuries.  They will be hanging around for sure, but I still expect them to finish at the bottom of the Atlantic.

    Also expect a huge season for Bargnani.  Before his injury last year "unguardable" would be the word to describe his game on good nights.

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  • #719622
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    roni3
    Participant

     I like how you analyzed the atlantic division, but you standing are not indicative of the rosters and the teams overall.

    Celtics- Starters-Rondo, Bradely, Pierce, Bass, Kg Bench: Terry, Lee, Green, Sullinger and Militic

    This team is so deep, that you will not notice that Allen left, with a good blend of experience and athletism this team can seriously be considered as the biggest obstacle for the Heat in the East. Rondo will most likley show why this is his team this year, and with young studs like Lee, Sullinger, Bradely, and Green to run the break Rondo will feel at home, while the veterans Pierce and KG can save their energy for the title run in the post season. This team is def. more deeper than last years team that took the Heat to game 7 without Bradely the best way to counter Wade, Green who everyone seems to forget that they mostly aquired Green to defend Lebron, and O’neal was hurt too.

    Knicks- Starters: Felton, Shumpert, Melo, Amare, Chandler Bench: Kidd, Brewer, Smith, Novak, Camby, Wallace

    You said the Knicks need to be unselfish, I totally agree, they have to build chemistry and the only reason to do that is through training camp and playing together and please to not forget since Anthony arrived this team has ot yet had a training camp in over two years. Then you said they have to work defensively, I disagree 100% this team was #5 in terms of opponite points per game thanks to the Defense of Chanlder and Shumpert and an improved commitment thanks to Anthony and Amare, and now they got Brewer who is a tenacious defender who can guard Lebron, and Shumpert who has proved he can lock down Rose, Rondo, Wade, Deron. Now add Camby who will provide the same interior defense and Chanlder when Chandler get a quick break on the bench. Also Felton is a decent defender who always provided pressure. Wallace is a good post and help defender. As for this team to take the next step they have to balance their space on offensive and be more efficient in establishing a good amount of shots for both Amare and Melo. Thanks to Amare’s improved post moves teams will not be able to help on Anthony as much, also if Melo or Amare get doubled they can kick it to Chandler for the alley, and with Amare on the post Melo can become a catch and shoot player, as he did when he scored 37 points in 15 for team USA.

    Nets- Deron, Johnson, Wallace, Humphries, Lopez; Watson, Brooks, Childress, Blatch, and Evans

    The Nets have the best overall back court in the whole Nba, they got a good amount of depth coming off the bench. With so many new players they will have to establish chemistry quick to win this division. Their biggest flaw is their defense and rebounding which will keep them from being a top four team in the East, I see them as 5th or 6th in the east. They will have to account on scoring the opponite on most nights to win which is a pretty hard thing, their perimeter defense is good, but they have absolutely no interior defense which will result in them being mediocre on defense.

    76ers- Holiday, Richardson, Turner, Hawes, Bynum; Ivey, Nick Young, Dorell Wright, Thaddeous Young, Brown

    The 76ers will be fun to watch, esp. with three point shooters like Nick Young, Richardson, and Wright and slashers like Turner, Thaddeus, and Holiday, all surrounding the post player Bynum this team will excell in transition, but the immaturity of the team and the fact they still have no go to guy or leadership will be their downfall. In the half court they will still have problems, as for the defensive end they will be fairly good, their season hingers on the development of Evan Turner to become the play maker and clutch player they envisioned their #2 pick to be, Bynum has to become the emotional leader who encourages the team instead of the immature 3 point shooter who complains whenever something goes wrong, lastly for Holiday who must average around 8 assist per game.

    Raptors- Lowry, Fields, DeRozan, Bargnani, Valinciunas; John Lucas lll, Ross, Kleiza, Amir, and Ed Davis

    The raptors got 3 new staters who all compliment the team well, they got a good bench full of athletes. They will excell in transition. They have good perimeter defense, but their interior is fairly weak, and defensive rebounding needs alot of work. Lowry will most likely be the emotional leader and Fields will provide a little bit of everything. In order for this team to take the next step they have to be healthy and players like DeRozan and Andrea have to improve their game, Andrea needs to bash in the paint more and go up for those rebounds, DeRozaan needs to improve his shot selection and his outside shot. They need a big season from Valinciunas who has to show his potential as a starting center and a person that they can build around.

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