team analysis: Southwest Division

easily the best division in the L, it boosts 3 champion hopefuls and two teams that are ready for playoffs.

rockets:

jeff van gundy is a great defensive coach, however, this team has slowly become a very offense oriented team, and JVG basically dragged the team down with his uninspiring offense. so gone is JVG, in is rick adelman, who previously coached two high power offenses (late 90's kings who never got past the lakers and early 90's blazers who never got past the bulls) and is looking to do the same with this squad.

mcgrady and yao are two of the most unstoppable offensive force in the game, so everything needs to start with them. adelman will occasionally put yao in the high post, where he can effective shoot and pass, while drawing the opposite center out of the paint. mcgrady should remain as the team's offense decision maker, whether it's scoring or playmaking, the ball needs to go through his hands because he draws so much attention. chuck hayes will continue to provide energy and grab boards, rafer alston will continue running the offense and spreading the floor with his 3s, mutombo will continue backing yao up, and shane battier will be mr intangible again.

big addition this off season is luis scola, a seasoned argentine veteran who's been in the game for 10 years. he should be able to get the starting 4 spot half way through the season. he will do whatever it takes to win, and will help out yao in the post. back on the team is mike james, who was traded for juwan howard this off season. he will provide instant offense off the bench, and will probably be splitting time with alston for crunch time minutes, depend on whos' having a good game. bonzi wells was on the team last year, but played so few and in between that he's basically a new comer this year. his size, athleticism, and scoring ability will make him 3rd option of the team (still off the bench though, the team needs battier's defense and hustle for the starting squad). last and the least, steve francis is also back on the team. the signing doesn't make much sense as the point guard spot has rafer alston, luther head, mike james, and draftee aaron brooks already. maybe they are just stockpiling talents/names for trades later, but who's gonna take steve francis, who's fallen off so much the past 3 years?

rockets is going to take a while to switch from a tightly structured defense-first strategy to a free flowing offense set, but once everyone's on board, this team should make a lot of noise and probably grab a top 4 seed in the west. biggest question mark, as usual, is the fragile health of Yao Mac. if they can play together for about 70 games, they should get favorable seeding and advance to second round, for the first time in yao mac's respective careers.

spurs:

tim duncan, ginobili, tony parker, and popovich. as long as those 4 are with the team, the spurs are a championship caliber team. practically the whole team return so they will be right back to the thick of things. their weakest link last year was at backup point, but rookie darius washington has come in and provided hustle, great defense, and some outside shooting to boot. they will consistently pound away wins in the regular season, so they can possibly have the best record by the end of season. though it won't matter to them as they are built for the playoffs, and i like them to (finally) repeat as champion.

mavs:

the mavs' psyche has been seriously shaken the last two playoff series, but they are still an elite team in the NBA. more than ever, dirk needs to prove himself as a capable leader and late game performer. this team is even more of a machine than san antonio, in terms of lack of persoanlities, and they are no good. they are efficient and faceless, which i suppose is why a lot people don't like them. i, on the other hand, just don't really have much to say about them. they will have a win total around 55-60 and advance to 2nd round, then lose to either suns and spurs. i don't think they'll advance past either of them.

hornets:

a team that was ravaged by injuries last year but was still able to make a playoff push towards the end of the season. with a healthy squad this year, they are poised to be in the playoff. peja is back and should provide the team with a lethal long range threat to loosen up the paint, tyson chandler will clean up the glass and provide the team with a huge defensive presence, and david west will do his work near the baskets and drain short jumpers. mo pete & bobby jackson are going to provide points when the previously mentioned are off their games.

the hornets is led by floor general chris paul, and he will make sure the weapons on the team are as effective as possible, with his passing and decision making. byron scott is an okay coach, so he won't exactly hold the team back nor lead the team to overachieve (though he did take the nets to two east finals, but it's probably more coz of assistant coach eddie jordan). my prediction for them is 7th seed in the west.

grizzlies:

a veteran point guard (stoudamire), 2 up and coming PG of the future (lowry, conley), a long range bomber (mike miller), a defensive big man (milicic), a rising all-star (gay), 2 athletic power forwards (warrick, swift), and a low post scoring threat (gasol). there's a lot to like for this team, and new coach marc iavaroni was an assistant coach in Phoenix, so this team will probably be an uptempo team. in the east, this team is good enough to be playoff bound; but this is the west, in the toughest division, so it's highly unlikely they will make it this year. 2-3 years down the line, if the team keeps developing this core, they can be a powerhouse.