NBA Preseason Predictions

I am going to start off this blog on a sport I enjoy, but a league that I have lost a lot of love for...Actually I am not too sure if I ever loved the NBA, but it seemed to be much more entertaining for me in years past. Perhaps the similarities between my Miami Heat and our current stock market has something to do with it, but I have put more time and effort into following the college basketball scene. More on that later. On to the picks (sorry a couple days after the season has commenced, but it's an 82 game season).


DIVISION CHAMPIONS

Southeast: Orlando Magic
Dwight Howard leads the Magic to the repeat. Atlanta has a very good chance with one of the most underrated players in Joe Johnson. My heart says the Heat rebound in a big way and finish top 3 in the division...possibly the playoffs.

Atlantic: Boston Celtics
You would be hard pressed to find anyone to say otherwise, and if so they would be wrong come season end.

Central: Cleveland Cavaliers
The addition of Mo Williams fills the void at point guard they have been missing the last couple years. Detroit will be close, but they are aging.

Southwest: New Orleans Hornets
In what is arguably the best division in the league, we will see a great race for the title. Every team but Memphis has the potential to win it, but the Hornets pickup a guy that helps teams win championships in James Posey. Oh yeah, they also have Chris Paul. Houston will be much better defensively with Ron Artest, and I'll pick them to finish second. San Antonio and Dallas will follow close behind.

Northwest: Utah Jazz
The Jazz will win substantially. This team could be phenomenal with top tier two-guard. Contrary to popular belief I'll take Denver to finish higher than Portland. I still think the Blazers are too young.

Pacific: Los Angeles Lakers
And it will not even be close. They look like the best team coming in to the season.

REMAINING PLAYOFF TEAMS

Eastern Conference:
Atlanta, Detroit, Miami, Philadelphia, and Toronto

Western Conference:
Dallas, Denver, Houston, Phoenix, and San Antonio

PLAYOFF RESULTS

Eastern Conference Finals: Cleveland over Boston
The "Boston Three Party" heads back to the conference finals, but comes up short against a younger and faster Cavs squad led by King James. This one will will probably go 7 games.

Western Conference Finals: Los Angeles over Utah
It is honestly a crap shoot as to who could be playing against the Lakers, but it probably won't matter. The Lakers will make their return to The Finals, and with a healthy Bynum they'll be stronger than last year.

NBA Finals: Los Angeles over Cleveland
This may be a boring Finals. The Cavs will find themselves down early, and Lebron will try to carry the load leading to missed threes and errant shots. I'm thinking a 4-1 series.

INDIVIDUAL AWARDS

Most Valuable Player: Chris Paul
James is the popular preseason pick, and it is true the Cavs would be nothing without him. But hey, the Hornets would be even worse without CP3. Since Paul competes in the tougher conference and plays the most criticized position, he gets the nod.

Rookie of the Year: Michael Beasley
Beasley will get tons of minutes and probably average a double-double for the season. Watch how much the Heat will be improved with his presence (and a healthy Wade). Oden is the trendy pick, and for good reason. He has had an extra year to train with NBA players, but even before he got hurt I had my doubts in his ability to stay healthy.

Defensive Player of the Year: Ron Artest
He will reestablish his attitude with a new team. No reason he should not win this award every year he is in the league.

Sixth Man of the Year: Leandro Barbosa
This is a tough award to predict so I am going with two pretty good reasons. He scores a bunch and my best friend looks exactly like him.

Coach of the Year: Rick Adelman
The toughest award for me to pick because I do not think there will be any teams that surprise. The Rockets have the potential to win it all and Adelman would have to be given tons of credit for it.

Well there you have it on my preseason predictions. You should not be surprised if many if not all of these are incorrect, but like I said the NBA is not my specialty. I will reassess this after the All-Star break.