Eastern Conference
1. Miami
2. Chicago
3. New York
4. Atlanta
5. Boston
6. Orlando
7. Philadelphia
8. Indiana
Western Conference
1. Oklahoma City
2. Denver
3. LA Clippers
4. San Antonio
5. LA Lakers
6. Portland
7. Dallas
8. New Orleans
In the East, I see Miami rolling all season long. The team added more depth in the offseason, they've finally found that chemistry that eluded them for big parts of last year, and with that extra chip on their shoulder from losing in the finals, they're gonna be one tough team to beat. New York is going to finish well because of the defensive addition of Chandler, and I think Amare and Melo find a way to share the scoring. Despite Boston's slow start, I think once Paul Pierce is back and the team gets their feet underneath them, they return to being the normal Celtics. Indiana is my darkhorse team of the East: I see Hansborough having a breakout season, and a team that's going to surprise a lot of people with their offense.
In the West, its going to be a year dominated by the Northwest Division. OKC, Denver, & Portland are all going to have big years. OKC is a still a young team with a huge amount of talent, but with the experience those players have gained over the past few years, especially in playoffs, they now are going to have the poise and leadership to step up as one of the premier teams in the league. Denver is going to continue their play from last year post-melo, and under George Karl I think they can be successful without a marquee superstar. Ty Lawson is having his breakout season, and Nene is going to continue to establish himself as one of the best all-around center in the league. They have a great offense but if K-Mart returns also, the Nuggets are going to be scary good on defense. With the addition of CP3 and the loss of Lamar Odom, there will be a changing of the guard in LA. Despite their slow start, Dallas is still a championship team. Just like the Boston Bruins, once the hangover has subsided their going to be a force to be reckoned with. I have New Orleans in the 8 spot and as my darkhorse of the west. Even without CP3, they have a lot of depth, and they're going to play great team basketball with a chip on their shoulder.
Hope you enjoyed my NBA predictions!
