| 09 April 2011
I took a lot of time off, people who inexplicably read this website. I rested. I stopped focusing on teams that don't matter quite as much as others (sup, T-Wolves). Now, the regular season is over. We know which teams are in the playoffs and which teams wasted their time not tanking.
This brings me to a post I did on my old (mostly un-trafficked) site - Off-Season Promises and Predictions. I didn't do as good of a job updating as I would have liked, but we still have material to work with.
#1. Kevin Love - "Mark my words: we're going over 30 wins this year."
In-Depth Hindsight Analysis - Haha, nope. Although I'll admit that Kevin Love was an absolute inspiration this season (he had a 30-30 game, for God's sake) and was responsible for the Timberwolves not being the worst team in the history of time, 17 wins is not even close to "over 30," gang.
#2. Jason Thompson - "Being a young team won't be an excuse anymore."
In-Depth Hindsight Analysis - I have not bothered to follow the Kings closely enough to know if any players or coaches broke out the "We're a young team" line. Also, this quote was kind of lame anyway. Sorry I wasted your time.
#3. Morris Peterson - "I think we have a real shot at a championship."
In-Depth Hindsight Analysis - Looks like a pretty good call by Mo Pete. The Thunder are real contenders for the championship (4th in the West with a record of 55-27). Sadly, Mo Pete is now a member of the Charlotte Bobcats after the deadline deals that helped bring Kendrick Perkins and Nazr Mohammed to the Thunder.
#4. Kendrick Perkins - "When I come back I will be in my spot, everyone else will just have to adjust."
In-Depth Hindsight Analysis - After getting back into the swing of things off the bench upon his return from his Finals knee injury and subsequent surgery, Perkins did indeed return to his starting job with the Celtics. Sadly, his return to the starting line-up was followed with another knee injury and a deadline move to Oklahoma City. Tears were shed as Perk left Boston, but he is indeed OKC's starting center.
#5. Team Predictions! (there are a lot of these, obviously)
Zach Harper of CowbellKingdom (Sacramento Kings) - 37-45
In-Depth Hindsight Analysis - There's certainly no shame in this prediction. High hopes for the young Kings were derailed by injury and dissension within the organization. I mean, the Kings probably aren't going to be in Sacramento anymore. Also, they aren't going to be the Kings. Weird.
ForumBlueAndGold.com (Los Angeles Lakers) - 62-20
In-Depth Hindsight Analysis - Pretty solid pick, here. We knew the Lakers would be good and they didn't disappoint.
Michael Schwartz of ValleyoftheSuns.com (Phoenix Suns) - Tenative 48-34
In-Depth Hingsight Analysis - Team bloggers are usually going to have a cheery outlook for their team. This pick was no different. The Suns were unable to replace Amar'e Stoudemire's lost production and Steve Nash and Grant Hill became tragic heroes, sort of.
CelticsHub.com (Boston Celtics) - 55-27
In-Depth Hindsight Analysis - This was almost spot-on! The Celtics finished up the regular season with 56 wins and 26 losses. No one, of course, could predict the Perkins deal that has landed Jeff Green and Nenad Krstic on the C's. And that's a pretty big deal, because Jeff Green isn't very good and Nenad is injured.
Knickerblogger.net (New York Knicks) - Around .500.
In-Depth Hindsight Analysis - Sure. Although I doubt people would have bet on the team being only 2 games over .500 in the win-loss column with Amar'e AND Carmelo AND Chauncey Billups on the squad. The team is still taking time to gel and we'll see how they do in the playoffs.
NetsAreScorching.com (New Jersey Nets) - Not as bad as last year, thank God!
In-Depth Hindsight Analysis - Congratulations! The team did not have a historically awful year and was not the worst team in the league! Sadly, Brook Lopez forgot how to rebound while Avery Johnson yelled at everyone in sight while calling many rage-filled timeouts. The good news is that you have Deron Williams. More bad news is that he's probably a rental.
BrewHoop.com (Milwaukee Bucks) - 50-32
In-Depth Hindsight Analysis - How does 12 games below .500 and out of the playoffs sound, rather? The Bucks signed/retained (for way too much money, generally) the services of several players that were meant to improve their laughable offense of last season while maintaining their defensive identity. Unfortunately, Andrew Bogut never recovered from his horrific arm injury and the Bucks were the most injured team in the NBA this season. Better luck next time, and enjoy that Drew Gooden contract.
BlogABull.com (Chicago Bulls) - 48-34
In-Depth Hindsight Analysis - The Bulls were the big winners this year (as if you didn't know). The team that everyone underrated. New head coach (and likely Coach of the Year) Tom Thibodeau brought in his defensive brand, the team bought in and now holds the best record going into the playoffs. Derrick Rose is the likely MVP. Joakim Noah is delightful. Keith Bogans is the starting shooting guard on this team. Kurt Thomas comes off the bench. Perfect storm of wonderful and crazy.
FearTheSword.com (Cleveland Cavaliers) - Hopelessly awful.
In-Depth Hindsight Analysis - Yep. Sorry.
More Cavs predictions! - Mavs broadcaster Bob Ortegel, earlier this season, on the Cavs - "I think they're gonna be better than people expect. I think they can make a run at the playoffs." Fortune did not favor this bold prediction, in case you didn't hear about the Cavs being the 2nd worst team in the league this season, by record.
Jon Barry - "There is still a basketball team in Cleveland, and they will meet the Heat in the 1st round of the NBA playoffs as an 8th seed." Stop that, Jon Barry.
IndyCornrows.com (Indiana Pacers) - 36-46
In-Depth Hingsight Analysis - Pretty spot-on. The team had a very solid run at the beginning of the season before Roy Hibbert's play dropped off and the team as a whole began to struggle so much that head coach Jim O'Brien was released. The immortal Jeff Foster is at least back in the playoffs, although a likely sweep awaits the Pacers in the 1st round against the Bulls.
DetroitBadBoys.com (Detroit Pistons) - 35-47
In-Depth Hindsight Analysis - Detroit came up slightly short of this prediction, although the team felt much worse than they were. The veterans on the team clashed with head coach John Kuester, Ben Gordon and Charlie Villanueva are still really bad and overpaid and Richard Hamilton is untradeable. Things aren't great in the Motor City.
SLCDUnk.com (Utah Jazz) - 53-29
In-Depth Hindsight Analysis - Okay, that wasn't a bad guess, but now assume that your legendary head coach of 20 years resigns mid-season and you trade your best player. Better luck next year with your new, younger core. (Devin Harris! Derrick Favors!)
RoundballlMiningCompany.com (Denver Nuggets) - 40-42
In-Depth Hindsight Analysis - Everything was going exactly as expected for this team - The team was distracted by Carmelo Anthony trade rumors while Melo tried to shrug off the media. The day of the trade that sent Melo to New York, the Nuggets sat at 33-25 (8 games over .500. Math). But wait! After playing the 2nd half of the season with a new core based around new-starter Ty Lawson, trade acquisition Wilson Chandler and old standard Nene, the Nuggets enter the playoffs with a record of 50 wins to 32 losses. 18 games over .500 from 8 before the Melo trade.
WelcomeToLoudCity.com (Oklahoma City Thunder) - 53-29
In-Depth Hindsight Analysis - The Thunder were expected to improve as their young core grew together this season, and they did. While allowing the core to make that natural progression, GM Sam Presti brought in veteran centers Kendrick Perkins and Nazr Mohammed in an attempt to reacquire the team's defensive mindset from last season. At the same time Nenad Krstic and Jeff Green, both serviceable offensive players but no defensive stalwarts, were shipped to Boston.
WolfAmongWolves.net (Minnesota Timberwolves) - 21-61
In-Depth Hindsight Analysis - The team was bad while Kevin Love and Michael Beasley made them watchable. Ricky Rubio is not coming. That just about covers it.
BlazersEdge.com (Portland Trailblazers) - No specific numbers, but "a playoff team".
In-Depth Hindsight Analysis - Brandon Roy's knees are being slowly eaten away by whatever is in the water in Portland and Greg Oden isn't running yet, but the Blazers are a playoff team. With the acquisition of Gerald Wallace (on the cheap, even) and a strong season from Wesley Matthews and LaMarcus Aldridge, the Blazers have a good shot at the 2nd round and perhaps even beyond.
RufusOnFire.com (Charlotte Bobcats) - No record, but "the playoffs seem distant."
In-Depth Hindsight Analysis - DJ Augustin proved to be a capable starting point guard, Tyrus Thomas had a solid season (when healthy) and Kwame Brown became an actual NBA basketball player under the tutelage of John Silas (taking over for Larry Brown mid-season) and assistant Charles Oakley. On the negative side, the franchise's all-time best player (Gerald Wallace) was traded for scraps. The rebuild is on.
PeachTreeHoops.com (Atlanta Hawks) - 50-32
In-Depth Hindsight Analysis - The Hawks were the Hawks. They got beaten when you didn't expect it, won when you thought they were going to lay down, and were blown out many, many times. Yet Atlanta still managed to win 44 games while ditching Mike Bibby and finally getting Jeff Teague some minutes. All in all, not a great season.
MagicBasketball.net (Orlando Magic) - 60-22
In-Depth Hindsight Analysis - The Magic fell 8 wins short of the 60 win mark and ditched Marcin Gortat and Vince Carter to get Hedo Turkoglu back. I have no idea what's going to happen with this team, but Dwight Howard is still great, so there's that.
PeninsulaIsMightier.com (Miami Heat) - 67-15
In-Depth Hindsight Analysis - The Heat were a pretty popular pick to take the #1 seed overall and win 65+ games, but they fell short. The Big 3 took a while to figure chemistry issues out and dropped some very winnable games over the course of the season. Despite just missing the 60-win mark, the Heat are a playoff favorite and excellent team. What else did you expect?
TruthAboutIt.net (Washington Wizards) - No consensus.
In-Depth Hindsight Analysis - The Wizards were the 5th worst team in the Association, but there's at least some hope. John Wall was good while having the usual rookie PG struggles (turnovers, defense). JaVale McGee continues to be confounding and hilarious and exhilarating all at once. Andray Blatche's defense was an easy target for lazy bloggers such as myself. Things could have been worse.
Thanks for reading, if you made it this far!
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