Eastern Conference Finals?

[czman]

Cavs
Bulls
Wizards
Heat
Hawks
Raptors
Bobcats
Nets


Knicks and Pacers on the outside IMO.

People are sleeping on the Raptors. I don't see how they fall out of the top 4. Who is going to win the Atlantic if not the Raptors. Also the Wizards are probably going to win ~45 games again.

The Hawks are still an unknown because of injuries. Who knows how Horford will come back.

I think the Nets have less talent this season, but will be far better coached. Hard to say how that will translate.

I kind of see

Bulls/Cavs at the top

Raptors next

Heat/Wizards (same division)

Bobcats

who the hell knows after that. Injuries can still happen. Look at the Pacers with PG. If another Key player to a team goes down you have to scrap it all and start over.

 

[czman]

You mean divisions right?

Yep, now I have football on the brain.

edit: At least I knew how many there were and what the rules are, even though I putzed up the name.

 

[Scoot26]

There was concern when the fight would be between the Bulls, Pacers, and Cavs. Thats settled now with PG gone for the year. Its like Bulls-Cavs-Wizards/Heat and whomever wins the damn Atlantic.

 

[Johnnyt237]

What are you talking about. Is this NFL/NBA confusion.

In the NBA there are 3 conferences and the 3 conference winners are only guaranteed a top 4 spot. The Bulls can get the 2nd seed with the Cavs in the first, or vice versa.

Messed. Right got football on the brain. It's the 3 divisions. So what I said is true that if Cleveland wins our division highest we get is fourth. So there's that. Sorry for any confusion on my part.

 

[DCguy]

Messed. Right got football on the brain. It's the 3 divisions. So what I said is true that if Cleveland wins our division highest we get is fourth. So there's that. Sorry for any confusion on my part.

A non division winner can be as high as a 3 seed, Indiana was in 2012.

 

[JZsportsfan]

The Bulls and Cavs are significantly better than any other team in the East

The next tier is the

Wizards and Heat. Maybe the Hornets

 

[czman]

A non division winner can be as high as a 3 seed, Indiana was in 2012.

Non division winners can be a 2 seed. Pistons 06-07

 

[DCguy]

Non division winners can be a 2 seed. Pistons 06-07

I figured. Couldn't think of a team that did off the top, thanks.

 

[clonetrooper264]

Random thought: how does Cleveland guard Rose the first 3 quarters before Lebron destroys him in the 4th? Rose can take any other perimeter guy on the Cleveland roster right? If he's scoring at will against Waiters or whoever for 3 quarters, wouldn't that lend itself to us being in a good position going into the 4th? Idk...perhaps it doesn't matter.

 

[ChiSoxCity]

I think people are underestimating the Wizards. They might be the 2nd best team in the east.

 

[Johnnyt237]

I think people are underestimating the Wizards. They might be the 2nd best team in the east.

Possible. Beal and Wall are growing into a geat backcourt tandem they just need extra PT and maturity.

 

[RamiTheBullsFan]

The Bulls are not as good as the Spurs, Thunder, Clippers, Blazers, and probably the Warriors.

The Mavericks are a team that I might pick over the Bulls in the Finals.

The Denver Nuggets are a team that matches up very well against the Bulls. They are arguably better along the wing positions and very arguably at the 4 position, as well. And have arguably as much, if not more, depth than the Bulls.

I think the Bulls are better than the Rockets, but that series would still be hard-fought.

The Bulls are more playoff-conditioned than the Cavs, but that is far from a guarantee that they will beat them. I fully expect the Bulls to have the best record in the Eastern Conference. They have a regular season coach, and a regular season roster (depth and quality players all over the roster). Cleveland is a year or two away from being pretty easy title favorites. But that time is not right now. Kyrie Irving is one of the ten (or so) best offensive players in the entire league. But he's an absolute liability defensively. Kevin Love is not good defensively, but I don't see why he can't just be put on Noah (who can't create much of offensive for himself anyway). And a front-line of Varejao/Thompson-Love-LeBron will likely make the Cavs as good, if not better, than the Bulls from a pure rebounding stand-point.

I fully expect Chicago to be a better than Cleveland to start the season. But the problem is that the Cavs will only get better as the season goes forward. The Bulls are more playoff tested, but a lot hinges on how good they can be offensively. And a lot of Chicago's offensive hopes rely on two rookie forwards (McDermott and Mirotic) who have never seen playoff action. Pau Gasol is the x-factor in a series versus Cleveland. If he is aggressive offensively (big 'IF'), the Cavs don't have much of an answer.

All in all, it is impossible to predict accurately who should be the Eastern favorite right now. Bulls would likely win a series right now, but 82 games in and Cleveland will only get better.

I can hardly imagine a case where Chicago or Cleveland beat whoever comes out of the West. This year might be the first year we see the Chicago Bulls get destroyed in an NBA Finals.

 

[Axl Rose]

how is Denver better at the 4?

they got who? Faried? Gallo playing stretch 4?

thats not better than Gasol/Taj/Nikola...even Doug is able to play the 4

edit: forgot they had Hickson...would still take Bulls over Nuggets at that position

 

[RamiTheBullsFan]

how is Denver better at the 4?

they got who? Faried? Gallo playing stretch 4?

Denver is my surprise team this year. I don't think they are better at the 4, necessarily. But the Bulls have Pau Gasol, Taj Gibson (who will probably play more of a back-up role for Noah), and Nikola Mirotic. Kenneth Faried is an all-around very good player, and they also have J.J. Hickson who has quietly turned into a double-double machine.

 

[Axl Rose]

Denver is my surprise team this year. I don't think they are better at the 4, necessarily. But the Bulls have Pau Gasol, Taj Gibson (who will probably play more of a back-up role for Noah), and Nikola Mirotic. Kenneth Faried is an all-around very good player, and they also have J.J. Hickson who has quietly turned into a double-double machine.

Hickson/Faried arent very good defenders

Gasol who can score in the post, Taj who can defend and Nikola who can shoot the 3

thats great versatility....PF is our best position

 

[RamiTheBullsFan]

Hickson/Faried arent very good defenders

Gasol who can score in the post, Taj who can defend and Nikola who can shoot the 3

thats great versatility....PF is our best position

Our PF talent spills a bit into the center position. But I do agree that PF is their best position. Overall, the Bulls have a much better better talent than Denver at the 4-5. What would worry me about Denver is Foye-Harris-Afflalo-Gallinari-Chandler vs. our wings of Hinrich-Snell-Butler-Dunleavy-McDermott. And with all of their depth on the wing, their best player is still Ty Lawson and PG with Nate Robinson backing him up. Denver's pretty loaded.

 

[RamiTheBullsFan]

The Bulls and Cavs are significantly better than any other team in the East

The next tier is the

Wizards and Heat. Maybe the Hornets

Raptors and Nets gotta be thrown in there.

Raptors have the best scoring wings outside of LeBron/Waiters in the East in DeRozan/Ross. Valanciunas is nothing special but very solid. Lowry is a nice PG and Vasquez is a nice back-up. Patrick Patterson and Amir Johnson give you a couple of quality 4's too.

And the Nets beat them in the first round last year without Brook Lopez. Who knows if he will be there but they still have D-Will (who will play through his injuries). Garnett and Plumlee can cover the 5 if Lopez gets hurt, and Joe Johnson is still a very good wing scorer.

Charlotte will make the playoffs but will definitely be a lower seed. Lance Stephenson is good at a lot of things but great at nothing. MGK is not a very good offensive player. I still see their offense as a big question. Al Jeff and Kemba are their only good scorers. Al Jeff is not going to get you high volume number of attempts, and Kemba is not going to get you a lot of efficiency.

 

[Axl Rose]

Our PF talent spills a bit into the center position. But I do agree that PF is their best position. Overall, the Bulls have a much better better talent than Denver at the 4-5. What would worry me about Denver is Foye-Harris-Afflalo-Gallinari-Chandler vs. our wings of Hinrich-Snell-Butler-Dunleavy-McDermott. And with all of their depth on the wing, their best player is still Ty Lawson and PG with Nate Robinson backing him up. Denver's pretty loaded.

i agree they are much better on the wing

 

[Xplosive]

The Bulls are not as good as the Spurs, Thunder, Clippers, Blazers, and probably the Warriors.

The Mavericks are a team that I might pick over the Bulls in the Finals.

The Denver Nuggets are a team that matches up very well against the Bulls. They are arguably better along the wing positions and very arguably at the 4 position, as well. And have arguably as much, if not more, depth than the Bulls.

I think the Bulls are better than the Rockets, but that series would still be hard-fought.

1st. I find it hard to fully take you seriously if you think the Mavs are better than the bulls.

2nd. It seems you are just picking teams that can score a lot of points to easily beat the Bulls, when in reality the Bulls scored betweened 98 and 96 pts per game in the years when Derrick wasn't hurt.

This is the best scoring offense the Bulls will have had in years and they will very likely score 100-102 pts per game next season while still being a top 5 defense.

3rd. Derrick Rose always smashes CP3 and if you haven't noticed, Lillard sucks on defense. Other than just saying those teams are better, please explain why or how they would beat the Bulls in a seven game series.

 

[RamiTheBullsFan]

1st. I find it hard to fully take you seriously if you think the Mavs are better than the bulls.

2nd. It seems you are just picking teams that can score a lot of points to easily beat the Bulls, when in reality the Bulls scored betweened 98 and 96 pts per game in the years when Derrick wasn't hurt.

This is the best scoring offense the Bulls will have had in years and they will very likely score 100-102 pts per game next season while still being a top 5 defense.

3rd. Derrick Rose always smashes CP3 and if you haven't noticed, Lillard sucks on defense. Other than just saying those teams are better, please explain why or how they would beat the Bulls in a seven game series.

1. Tyson Chandler and Dirk Nowitzki complement each other as well as can be imagined. Look what they did in the 2011 playoffs. I understand that they are declining, but I think that they by themselves would still probably outplay whatever 4-5 combination the Bulls can throw together.

The Bulls have Derrick Rose, but the Mavs have 2 very good perimeter scorers: Monta Ellis and Chandler Parsons. Jameer Nelson is still a very decent point guard and Dallas will have 4 three point shooters on the floor at all times.

Rick Carlisle is also a hell of a coach. I didn't say I'd necessarily pick Dallas over Chicago. But, when the time comes, I'd definitely need to think about it.

2. The Bulls will be at least a semi-decent offensive team. I'd say they will probably float around top 5-10 in offensive efficiency next season. But none of those teams I mentioned are bad defensively. GSW was 4th in defensive efficiency last year. This year, they will improve their 12th ranked offense with the addition of Steve Kerr who understands the triangle and will push the pace. OKC, LAC, and SAS were also top 7 in defense. So let's not pretend that all those teams can do is score.

Portland has 2 young superstars in Lillard and Aldridge. Lillard is bad defensively, but he's not Kyrie Irving "bad". Robin Lopez is an underrated, athletic center. Wesley Matthews is well-rounded (much like Stephenson) except a better shooter. Nicolas Batum is a triple-double threat and lock-down defensively. Thomas Robinson gives you energy and more athleticism off the bench. They have a good young coach. Sorry, but they are a better team than the Bulls.

3. Derrick Rose and Chris Paul are the 2 best point guards in the league. Rose smashed CP3 in his MVP season, but CP3 was better before then, and he has been better since then. Rose has more upside at this point in his career, but Paul is the better shooter, passer, and on-ball defender.