Bringing Back the Buzz: Zo & '92-93 Hornets

[studbucket]

Teams listed in predicted order of finishing. Italics = Predicted to make playoffs

Indiana Pacers (38-44 last year)

The Pacers signed Darren Collison in free agency to further bolster their starting 5 and send George Hill to the bench. It’s possible that this move doesn’t help them at all and they end up under .500 again, but if Paul George stays healthy this could be a 55-win team. They will need to get more production from their frontcourt, though.



Cleveland Cavaliers (52-30 last year)

The Cavs should be the prohibitive favorites here, but we know the ceiling of a team led by Irving and Love and it’s probably about what last year’s record was. Irving can take over games, but can also be taken out of games.


Chicago Bulls (45-37 last year)

The Bulls are the same team as last year, one year older, and just as boring. They’ll make the playoffs and probably be knocked out in round 1 by the Heat for the 3^rd straight year.



Milwaukee Bucks (32-50 last year)

The Bucks have an impressive collection of talent, but it’s clear to everyone that they aren’t a good team. Despite this, Jason Kidd and the Bucks gave Monroe and Giannis their money and have kept their same core together. The league doesn’t expect them to figure it out this season either.


Detroit Pistons (39-43 last year)

The Pistons have lost Greg Monroe for the first few weeks of the season thanks to a hernia, but it shouldn’t matter too much anyway. They were fortunate to make the playoffs last year and their run was impressive, but it looks like Sim Bhullar will be their first replacement for the foul-prone Drummond and Calvin Benjamin may get minutes over Reggie Jackson, which wouldn’t be good for Detroit.

[JuiceboxCA]

How are you creating the GIFs? Love this addition.

[studbucket]

Quote: Originally Posted by JuiceboxCA

How are you creating the GIFs? Love this addition.

Thanks!

1. I record game clips using the Xbox One's game dvr functionality.
2. I download them to my pc using the Xbox App
3. I edit them down in Windows Movie Maker
4. I upload them to ezgif.com and crop them there

.

[studbucket]

Right before the season started, the Spurs swapped Nene for Kyle Singler with the Thunder.

[studbucket]

Teams listed in predicted order of finishing. Italics = Predicted to make playoffs

Charlotte Hornets (70-12 last year)

The Hornets come back with their team intact and ready to push for a three-peat. With Johnson, Mourning, and Gill all reaching the beginning of what should be their prime years ,the Hornets are as scary as ever. This may be the last season we see this group of Hornets together as they all hit free agency, but we know Coach J wants to make it count.


Washington Wizards (57-25 last year)

Washington is a very good team, but they greatly under-achieved last season, especially in the playoffs. Tim Duncan has retired and been replaced by Taj Gibson, but they are mostly the same team. If 2^nd year player Greg Houston can step into a starting role, that may be the tough interior presence they need to deal with the teams they struggled with like Detroit and Charlotte.


Atlanta Hawks (42-40 last year)

Atlanta didn’t change a thing, like Chicago. They seem happy to keep their aging and average team together and hope they can get luckier in the Eastern Conference Finals this time around, but it seems unlikely.


Miami Heat (47-35 last year)

Miami’s carousel of average big men continues as they keep the same roster but put Bismack Biyombo in the middle this year to replace the departed Tiago Splitter. Chris Bosh carried the Heat last year and will likely need to do it again, but how much longer can he do that? We see Dwyane Wade declining, but the Heat have finally put Justice Winslow into the starting lineup, which should help them.


Orlando Magic (33-49 last year)

The Magic aren’t awful…they’re just an average team in a division full of above-average to great teams. Rudy Gay and rookie point guard Pavlo Bilous may inject some life into this team though, and it’s not inconceivable to see them leapfrog Miami and Atlanta.

[studbucket]

None of Coach J’s former college players changed teams this offseason and they all enter this season with relatively similar roles as last year. Given the relative stability, the preview will be less in depth and will group the players into three groups that represent expectations.

Poised to Step Up

Hope Law is the face of the franchise in Phoenix, and he needs to start playing up to that label. He has no obvious holes in his game and could easily be a James Harden for the Suns.

Jerret Carmichael steadily matured over last season and looks like he’ll become the 6^th man for the reigning champions. He worked hard on his shot all offseason and Coach J will be looking for him to be a well-rounded wing player that can get to the basket like Wallace Anrin and shoot like Kendall Gill.

Freddy Tobias had a disappointing rookie season, but the Jazz have publicly stated that he is a part of their plans this season and will likely be Exum’s backup. If he can get 15-20 solid minutes each game, it should be good for him and the Jazz.

Varney Shepard is back and healthy this year, and almost anything has to be better than playing 7 games and blowing your Achilles. The Clippers should hope for 10-15 minutes, 5 points, and 5 boards and a few blocks a game from the big man.

Eto Ruffin didn’t log a minute all of last season, so there’s nowhere to go but up.


Holding Steady

Joey Fletcher had a spectacular rookie season and took a small step back last year, though he was still pretty good on a terrible Knicks team. As long as Carmelo is on the team, Fletcher won’t be a scoring leader, but if he can keep similar stats and facilitate more victories, that will be a good step.

Tommy Camper is the Jazz’s 6^th man once again, bringing defense and rebounding off the bench. There’s a chance he steps up his scoring prowess, but Camper likely is who he is at this point in his career.

Chief Bing should be more effective than he is, but like Tommy Camper, there’s not likely to be much improvement in his offensive game. The Pacers need him to be a consistent defender and rebounder, and hopefully he can score around 10 points a game.

Wallace Anrin will reprise much of the same role for the Hornets: strong wing defender, fast-break finisher, and make a few shots when needed. He could probably be much more on a different team, but he’s happy to be player for Coach J and alongside Alonzo Mourning.

Mamadou Banjo won’t have a huge impact, but he should see a few more minutes and more impact this season as he improves his game.


In a Decreasing Role

Paul Noonan had a nice return to the league last year, but faded down the stretch. With Jerret Carmichael stepping up, he’ll be getting less minutes.

Romain Martin seems to be aging and has fallen down the bench of a bad Raptors team, who also drafted several rookies at his position.

[studbucket]

And with that, the preview is done. Let’s get started!

[jeremym480]

Where's Drummond at these days?