2017 NBA Season Preview Part 1: The Cellar Dwellers
It feels good to have NBA Basketball officially back. In fact, it feels like the season never ended. From the legendary comeback by the Cleveland Cavaliers in the 2016 NBA Finals, to the unexpected moves in the summer. It was one surprise after another. With the season right around the corner it's time to see where we stand. Instead of doing a countdown to opening night (like what I do for the NFL), I've decided to bring back the old format of breaking down the NBA teams into tiers. From the "cellar dwellers" to the pantheon of contenders. Also, I'll throw in an accolades and playoff predictor at the end. So without further adieu, here are the NBA Cellar Dwellers for the 2016-2017.
30. Brooklyn Nets
Of all the cellar dweller teams in the league, the Brooklyn Nets are the ones sitting in the dark damp corner by themselves. Sean Marks certainly has his work cut out for him in the County of Kings. Luckily for the Nets, they will have a first-round pick this season. Unfortunately, it won’t be theirs unless the Celtics finish below them in the standings. So yeah, they really don’t have a first round pick all because of that robbery that got them KG, Paul Pierce and Jason Terry. Last year’s team was abysmal and there’s not much they could do to improve themselves. Jeremy Lin is back in New York, but just in a different borough. They also added Luis Scola who was only ‘meh’ with the Raptors last season. They also added former number one overall pick Anthony Bennett…moving on. Brook Lopez is their best player and surprisingly stayed healthy all of last season. Other than that there’s nothing. Bojan Bogdanovi? and Rondae Hollis-Jefferson will be starters on this team. Nothing more really needs to be said. They managed 21 wins last season and will likely barely match that. Brooklyn, your borough is thorough but your team isn’t.
Best Case Scenario: The only good thing that can happen is if the Celtics somehow plummet below them so they can get their first-round pick back. Maybe they can even find a way to trade for one.
Worst Case Scenario: They can’t get a first-round pick.
29. Philadelphia 76ers
Just when Sixers fans thought they were free of ‘the process’ they are haunted by its ghost. They finally got what they believe to be a franchise changing player in Ben Simmons and then he gets injured. And in typical Sixers fashion, Simmons likely won’t play this season. This is nothing new coming from a team that would sit young players down for something as small as a broken nail and intentionally stash players overseas to improve their tanking odds. The tank is back on the warpath, but at least there’s something to look forward to. Joel Embiid will make his NBA debut this season after missing two seasons with injury. Dario Saric will finally make his way to the NBA after being stashed by the Sixers for two seasons. Jahlil Okafor and Nerlens Noel will likely be good trade pieces at some point. So while they’re destined to be near the top of the draft board once again, they at least are worth watching this season.
Best Case Scenario: The Sixers can get to the top of the draft board by themselves, but they can also get the Lakers pick if it falls out of the top three. Also, Embiid and Saric developing into NBA quality players along with trading their other centers will serve them well moving forward.
Worst Case Scenario: They don’t get the Lakers pick and more of their young players suffer injuries.
28. Los Angeles Lakers
The first season of the post-Kobe era will also be the beginning of the largest rebuild in the history of the franchise. Luke Walton comes in from Golden State to coach a young core oozing with potential. The young nucleus of D’Angelo Russell, Jordan Clarkson, Brandon Ingram and Julius Randle should be fun to watch. Plus they’re surrounded by veterans like Luol Deng and Jose Calderon. Lakers fans will hate to hear it, but this will be a slow build. Ingram will begin his career coming off of the bench. Young players will need to earn respect and playing time under Walton’s watch and that’s the way it should be. Expect improvements from Russell, Clarkson and Randle. Russell will likely be handed the reigns to the offense in his sophomore year and already looks like a better player this season. Clarkson has been trending up since coming into the league and Randle has plenty of room to grow his skill set. The future of this organization starts now with player development and growing as a unit.
Best Case Scenario: The young players come into their own. Ingram eventually gains a starter role late in the season and shows flashes of what he can be. However, the youngsters must not show too much as the Lakers draft pick falls to the Sixers if it drops out of the top three.
Worst Case Scenario: The young players regress or the Lakers lose their draft pick.
27. Sacramento Kings
Do they even know what job security is in Sacramento? Dave Joerger will be the ninth coach on the sidelines for the Kings since 2006. Lets just hope he’s able to get along with the franchise player or he may be unemployed soon. Speaking of their franchise player, this will be DeMarcus Cousins seventh season in the NBA and he has yet to play alongside another current all-star. The Kings should be embarrassed that they have the best center in the NBA and yet have done nothing but squander his career to this point. Rondo is gone and they let Seth Curry go for some odd reason. To replace them, the Kings have Darren Collison who will miss some games due to suspension and Ty Lawson who has let off the court problems turn him into a broken shell of his former self. Rudy Gay is still around, but even he admits he has ‘no idea’ what the Kings are doing. He’s not alone as I’m sure no one knows what they’re doing. At least they have a new arena.
Best Case Scenario: The best case scenario for the Kings will be organizational stability and direction. They need their front office, coach and franchise player to be on the same page and take a step forward. A positive season for the Kings would be to flirt with .500 honestly.
Worst Case Scenario: Everything implodes again and they go through another coach en route to more questionable draft choices.
26. Denver Nuggets
The Nuggets will enter the season with five players 21 or younger: Nikola Jokic, Emmanuel Mudiay, Juan Hernangomez, Malik Beasley and Jamal Murray. One rule of the NBA that typically holds true is that youth doesn’t win in the NBA. Which makes their attempt to get D-Wade all the more head scratching. The Nuggets are clearly in rebuilding mode and Nuggets fans can expect a lot of losses and trade rumors swirling around. As with all the other teams mentioned here (except the Nets), the Nuggets have a lot of young players to watch out for. Garry Harris is coming off of a season where he improved in just about every way. He became the team’s most consistent performers last season. Nurkic had a down season coming off of knee surgery last season, but he is one of the most talented defenders in the paint. Mudiay is an athletic juggernaut that needs to find a way to bring a more consistent base skill set to the floor. So there’s something building here. Also, lets look at a potential trade this team may do before the end of the season. Kenneth Faried likely won’t finish the season in a Nuggets uniform and could serve another team well as a high-motor guy.
Best Case Scenario: The young players develop well and show the Nuggets direction towards the postseason. A playoff spot this season would be nice, but not very likely. Their expectations are simply tied to getting better and getting more from their young players.
Worst Case Scenario: The roster still needs more time and it shows on the court in the worst possible way.
On the next stop on the NBA Preview, we go from the cellar to NBA Purgatory to see teams who aren’t terrible, but aren’t that good either.
